Hi Desert Real Estate Forum

San Bernardino County, Third District Supervisor Dennis Hansberger has proposed an ordinance that will require the licensure of all rental dwelling units in the unincorporated areas of San Bernardino County.  The proposed fee is $50 annually per rental property (there are a few exceptions), plus fees for health permits or special inspections.

Additionally, the following stipulation will be placed on landlords:  "Be available, or have an authorized representative available by phone on a 24 hour/7 days a week basis to respond to calls/complaints, respond to such calls/complaints within 2 hours and commence any necessary corrective action within 24 hours"

The justification behind this proposal is that "There currently exist several substandard and unsanitary residential buildings and dwelling units within the incorporated area of the County.  The physical conditions and characteristics of these buildings render them unfit or unsafe for human occupancy and habitation, and can jeopardize the health, safety and welfare of their occupants and the stability of sound residential buildings and areas....".

It appears to me that there are a few bad landlords that should receive the attention of code enforcement instead of burdening every landlord with additional fees, which will ultimately be passed onto the tenants.

Supervisor Hansberger can be contacted at:

57407 Twentynine Palms Highway
Yucca Valley, CA 92284
(760) 228-5400
Fax: (760) 228-5401

Or visit his website http://www.sbcounty.gov/bosd3/contact.htm

I would love to hear from both owners and tenants regarding this issue.

I recently read an article from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) discussing opportunities in the 2008 housing market. Although the forecast is not for a return to the boom years of 2004 and 2005, the article did paint a picture of a more stable housing market in 2008.

Housing forecasters predict that new and existing home sales will bottom out in either the second or third quarter of 2008. This is mainly due to the underlying strength of the U.S. economy. NAR is forecasting that existing home sales will bottom out in the second quarter of 2008 and then begin to rise over the remainder of the year. It is also expected that median home price will level off this year ending the decline of 2007.

Some of the reasons for this optimism is the fact that since the housing slowdown started in the second half of 2005 the economy has added 4 million new jobs, wages have increased 8% and household wealth has grown by 5 trillion dollars. According to NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun “the slowdown has never been about the underlying fundamentals of the economy. Consumers have the means to buy, but they’ve lacked the confidence. Once they see sales and prices stabilizing, they’ll be back in the market”

Of course, the availability and cost of credit has been a driving force in the housing decline. Creditors concerned about the subprime mortgage defaults and write offs associated with securities backed by such loans were hesitant to say the least to continue to pour money into this market. It is expected that there will be ample money available this year for most borrowers with sound credit.

So the bottom line may be that the next few months will provide an excellent opportunity for borrowers with good credit to get back into the market. Additionally, it appears as though sellers may only have to wait a little longer for prices to stabilize, and perhaps even see appreciation in the market again.