If the activity on our site is any kind of indicator of today's buyer mindset, then interest in REOs (bank owned properties) is one of the top areas of interest for today’s home buyer. Our inbound leads with an interest in bank owned properties and foreclosures has increased about 30% over the last month.

In parts of Contra Costa County, home values have dropped more than 50%. Rents are continuing to rise. This is the perfect scenario for investors looking for real estate opportunities that can create cash flow or at least get near positive cash flow.

The situation in eastern Contra Costa County (Antioch, Pittsburg, Brentwood) is producing some of the best price values, but investors are showing some concern about those depressed home values bouncing back. The thing to remember is that the same housing affordability dynamics still exist in the East Bay and Contra Costa County.

East Bay communities like Antioch, Brentwood and Pittsburg still offer some of the most affordable real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area. With BART considering an extension into Antioch in the next few years, it is going to make these East Bay communities even more attractive to home buyers looking for affordable housing.

Large investor groups are beginning to look at these communities. It would not surprise me to see the lion’s share of foreclosures in these areas gobbled up by investors in the next 6 months.

As I noted in my post – Now is the Time to Buy that Retirement Home – this is a wonderful window of opportunity for East Bay baby boomers.

The interest in foreclosures and bank owned properties is not confined to eastern Contra Costa County. On Friday, we received an inquiry from an investor looking for a vacation home or second home in the Bay Area in the $3million range. There are foreclosures and REOs in all price ranges.

High-end communities like Blackhawk, Danville and Lafayette have their share of real estate deals to offer this summer. Communities like San Ramon and Pleasanton, CA continue to see value-priced homes entering the market, which is a real benefit for employees of companies moving into Bishop Ranch like PG (links to past posts).

We think that the second half of 2008 may be the best second-half real estate year the TriValley has seen is quite a while.

Dr. Bajaj, a financial economist is very optomistic on the possibility of real estate recovering from the subprime mess in the near future. A couple of good quarters with the banks not taking any more drastic write-downs, some relaxation of over-reactive lending guidelines – and we could see foreign investment in the U.S. economy return in a big way.

If you have an interest in foreclosures or bank owned properties, talk to our REO specialist – Craig – (925) 895-2694