Real Estate in Santa Cruz County

Recently, bad actors have focused on real estate agents and brokers as targets of impersonation scams. By the very nature of the industry, an agent’s identifying information is highly visible to the public. This means that someone who wants to impersonate an agent for nefarious purposes can obtain the agent’s name, image, license number, and other relevant information and then use it to create a fake website or social media account.

The scammers then solicit money (via fake lease listings or other means) from unsuspecting consumers. On top of stealing money from innocent members of the public, this can do serious harm to an agent’s reputation. To put a stop to this kind of impersonation, periodically search for information online to make sure nothing pops up that should not be there. If fraudulent content is found, notify the Department of Real Estate and law enforcement agencies.

The benchmark 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 7.28% from 7.03% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday, the biggest leap in four years. A year ago, the average rate was 6.34%.bIt is the sixth consecutive week that mortgage rates have increased.

Average long-term US mortgage rate churns upward to its highest level in nearly 3 years at 7.28% The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate remained above 7% this week, reaching its highest level in nearly three years.

Finding the right place to live tiny is one of the bigger issues for people deciding to downsize their lives, and the search is often complicated by local ordinances and municipal requirements for tiny homes.

Tiny-Home 'Matchmakers' Are Helping Connect Residents With Rural Landowners Finding land on which to put a tiny home can be a challenge, so new services are helping connect landowners and buyers.

The new three-year authorization allows HUD to establish standing program rules, creating a more predictable framework for disaster recovery assistance. For homeowners and communities, that could mean faster access to recovery funds, more consistent program requirements, and a quicker path to rebuilding housing after hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and other disasters.

21st Century ROAD to Housing Act: Disaster Recovery Reforms A little-noticed section in the new 21st Century ROAD to Housing Law provides a three-year authorization for the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program, a long-standing National Association of REALTORS®' priority.

"Home sellers have largely sidestepped disappointment this summer and are sticking with the market rather than delisting, a marked contrast to 2025, but relatively flat new listings signal caution among potential sellers," notes Hale. "This caution will likely keep slowing home sales from tipping the market abruptly in favor of buyers."

Home Sales Plunge to 14-Month Low as Rising Mortgage Rates Stun Buyers Existing-home sales fell 2% month over month and 1.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million, the lowest since June 2025.

Pending sales have been losing steam since May, when the growth rate reached a selling-season peak of 4.8%. That coincided with a steady climb in mortgage rates driven by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which put upward pressure on oil prices and fueled inflation fears.

Mortgage Rate Shock Stalls Housing Market as 8-Month Growth Streak Collapses Pending home sales in August dropped for the first time in eight months against a backdrop of surging mortgage rates.

41% of waiting homebuyers already regret not buying before rates or prices climbed further, and 17% say they'd have bought sooner if they could redo the last year.

What Homebuyers Think Mortgage Rates Are vs. Reality Many overestimate current mortgage rates, a survey of 1,000 homebuyers found. Knowing the real numbers could open the door to homeownership sooner.

"Homeownership is the biggest thing to create generational wealth, not even a question. Instead of rent, you have a house that rises in value, you're paying down the mortgage," Hertzberg said. "It creates real value, real generational wealth for people."

Proposition 37 proposes $25 billion loan program to help Californians buy homes The measure would allow the state government to issue bonds to help residents borrow up to 17% of their down payment, requiring them to contribute at least 3% themselves.

California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection Approves First-in-the-Nation Zone 0 Defensible Space Regulations

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There’s no question insurance has gotten pricier. From 2018 to 2024, average inflation-adjusted premiums increased between 18.3% and 43.3% across the four regions analyzed by the NAIC. But over that same period, insurer-initiated non-renewals rose much faster.

The Nationwide Home Insurance Crisis Is About Far More Than Monthly Premiums Skyrocketing Home insurance premiums are rising, but that's not the only problem. Nonrenewals are surging, leaving some homeowners with fewer options.