The Carlsbad real estate market, found in the midst of the San Diego County real estate housing market, is forecast to gradually recover during the course of the next year. Local experts have predicted an incremental recovery for the region despite an unfortunate increase in the preponderance of San Diego foreclosures as opposed to short sales in San Diego County. According to an October 4, 2010 report from the San Diego Union Tribune, “San Diego County home prices, which have risen sharply in the last 18 months, are likely to remain flat or drift slightly higher in 2011 as the rest of the state catches up, the California Association of Realtors said Monday. Robert A. Kleinhenz, deputy chief economist, said San Diego resale house price rises have already slowed from a 20.4 percent year-over-year rate of increase at the beginning of 2010 to 2.4 percent in August, when the median stood at $384,700, up from $375,706 a year earlier. They said prices and sales statewide both are likely to rise about 2 percent in 2011, after this year’s projected 11.5 percent price rise and 10 percent sales decline.” Of course, market conditions continue to be volatile and any number of factors may alter these variables of the course of the next fiscal year.
A vast majority of the distressed properties in the Carlsbad housing market are foreclosures as opposed to short sales. An October 18, 2010 report from the San Diego Real Estate Examiner provided the following perspective on the situation, stating that “Approximately 14,500 homes were in the process of foreclosure throughout San Diego County as of October 18, 2010. Yet of those foreclosures in process, only around 1,000 (7%) are listed for short sale whereby the owner settles the debt with their bank. This means that 93% of these San Diego homes will foreclose within the next few months and their owners may suffer the negative impacts for nearly 7 years...Making matters more ominous is that the investors of delinquent loans are squeezing the banks and loan servicers to expedite foreclosure procedures and timeframes. This means that delinquency and foreclosure proceedings will no longer be a way to get “free rent” in the near future.”