PORTOLA HILLS LIVING by Kelly Turbeville

As we enter into the first month of January it's important to look at how the overall Portola Hills market ended.   As noted in my previous blog post, Portola Hills real estate closed transactions in December ended the month with a home value increase of 6%.  This is very consistent with the entire Orange County Real Estate market. Below is a quick look at the complete year.  The highest priced home sold for $1.1 Million and the lowest priced condo sold for $270k. Portola Hills 2015 Real Estate Sales Summary The number of closed sales (Volume) was up 7% from 2014.  Looking at the mix of properties the median price per home was up approximately 17%.   Of course, I always like to note this is a summary of all transactions. Each property type, have different levels of appreciation.   See our year end summary which includes each property type here Portola Hills 2014 Real Estate Sales Summary So what is on the horizon for 2016.   Looking at the current low inventory

Buying a home is a hot topic once again and a happy one at that.  Which is great to hear after a few depressing years.   Though there are hurdles to over come, the one thing that has not changed for Home Buyers is the fact that is is a very important aspect of life that brings a number of benefits to your life.   Are you sitting on the fence of homeowner ship, here are few little reminders of what owning a home brings to you! 1.   Tax Breaks :    Currently the U.S. Tax Code allows you to deduct the interest you pay on your mortgage, your property taxes and some of the cost involved in buying your home.  2.   Appreciation :  Yes we can say that word again....  Real Estate has long-term, stable growth in value. Even with the last few years decline, National Association of Realtors (R) estimates home sale prices increased 88.5% over the last 10 years. Over the next decade it is expected to rise 15% due to the high demand for housing. 3.   Equity:   Money paid for rent is