A report from the San Francisco Chronicle in California. "Historically, the spring selling season in San Francisco is the most active of the year, with new listings, sales and market prices all climbing steadily out of the mid-winter slowdown. But today, the coronavirus has changed all that, altering the typical San Francisco housing market in the same way it has altered so many other aspects of our lives. Of the Bay Area counties, San Francisco County 'has seen the greatest impact of the crisis,' said Patrick Carlisle, Compass Realty's chief market analyst. While it's too soon to chart a change in sales prices, the striking shortage of new listings (less than 20 by the second week of March) is telling, as is the sharp decline in accepted offers."

"All of this growth came to a skidding halt in March, including in San Francisco, where usually at this time, the market would be heading steadily up. 'If unemployment gets as deep as some people are predicting, if it gets to the mid-teens, then it could be far deeper than the subprime crisis,' said Sanjiv Das, CEO of Caliber Home Loans."

The Los Angeles Times. "Actress Kaley Cuoco has sold her home in Tarzana for $3.95 million, or about $3 million less than the original asking price — $6.9 million. Cuoco bought the estate through a trust in 2014 for $5.499 million."

The Real Deal. "April has been cruel for California residential landlords but the cruelest months may be ahead. Rent came due for the state’s six million apartments over a week ago, but multifamily owners have received 10-12 percent less in rental income compared to before the coronavirus pandemic, according to the California Apartment Association’s preliminary findings. For owners of single-family and duplex homes, the numbers were even worse: They received about 25 percent less in rental income."

"'I’m fearful in a few months there are going to be a lot of mortgage defaults,' said Daniel Yukelson, executive director of the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles. 'It’s going to get worse.'"

"Landlords say they received barely enough from their April rent checks to stay above water. A more significant drop next month will have devastating effects, they added. Neil Shekhter, whose companies own 2,200 apartments in Santa Monica and Los Angeles, said about 85 percent of his tenants had paid their rent as of April 7. 'When you lose 15 percent of your rental revenue,' he said, landlords begin to not have enough money to pay their loans, or do more than cover basic expenses."

"Anything beyond that number, Shekhter said, could create a cascading effect. Landlords would be forced to withhold mortgage payments, or make other cuts like laying off maintenance workers whose tasks are vital for residents."

From iNews Source. "For years, a lack of affordable housing and a booming short-term vacation market has squeezed renters in San Diego. Now, a statewide temporary ban on all evictions of renters affected by COVID-19 seeks to provide short-term security for them. Escondido residents Barry and Sharon Herbst said they invested their retirement savings into three rental properties — 20 units total — in Spring Valley, La Mesa, and National City. They fear they will lose their investments if they stop receiving rental income."

"Herbst was forced into an early retirement after a layoff in 2014, he said. He and his wife downgraded to a smaller house in Escondido and invested their life savings in rental properties. But he quickly learned they would not be able to live off that income. Sometimes two or three months would pass before he could break even with management, maintenance and utility expenses, he said, so he went back to work at a property investment firm."

"Now, he and his wife are worried about what will happen if their tenants are unable to make payments. The company he works with to manage his properties has already asked him to pay $20,000 — $10,000 right away and $10,000 in a couple of weeks — to cover property taxes and other expenses due this month. He had to borrow money from his son, he said."

"'We do not live a lavish or excessive lifestyle,' Herbst said. 'Many times, going out to dinner meant getting pizza or a hotdog from Costco.'"

From Your Stories 8. "Families all over the country have been canceling vacations to San Diego County because of the coronavirus pandemic. In this Your Stories investigation, News 8 spoke to people who are upset about the refund policy of one local, short-term-rental company. Jonah Mechanic is the owner of SeaBreeze Vacation Rentals in La Jolla. He's back in the spotlight in a Facebook group calling itself SeaBreeze Vacation Rental Scam. While Mechanic’s rental management business is legitimate and technically not a scam, the name seems to be sticking for people on social media, who are peeved."

"Atossa Jackson lives in Los Angeles. She and a group of 12 friends booked an estate in Temecula through SeaBreeze Vacation Rentals as part of a planned wine-tasting trip. Jackson’s group tried to cancel with SeaBreeze and got the same offer: a 50% refund or full credit for rebooking later. The owner of SeaBreeze said a 50% refund is fair, given the fact that he is under contract to pay property owners when their homes are booked."

"'Offering a 100% refund might be the right thing to do through the guest's eyes, but what about the homeowner who also has bills to pay, who also has a mortgage to pay?' said Mechanic."

The Orange County Register. "Soon enough, jumbo mortgages will be as hard to get as Charmin and Purell. Just a few weeks ago, the entire private label jumbo mortgage channel stopped. Jumbos are mortgages greater than the 'conforming' amount that can be sold to mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, or loans totaling over $765,600 in Los Angeles and Orange counties and over $510,400 in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Private label jumbos are those typically funded by non-bank lenders."

"Non-bank lenders fund 20% of the jumbo market while depositories (banks and credit unions) fund the other 80%, according to Guy Cecala, CEO and publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance. Nationally, jumbo mortgages represented 17% of the $2.3 trillion originated in 2019."

"So what? We still have depository banks funding jumbos. Not so much. While Citibank and Chase continue to buy jumbos from other lenders, Wells Fargo Bank temporarily suspended the purchase of jumbo loans from other lenders last week. The nation’s largest mortgage servicer also is limiting jumbo refinance applications to existing customers who already have deposits or other asset accounts valued at $250,000 or more."

"Last year, Southern California borrowers took out more than 56,000 jumbos totaling more than $66 billion, according to Attom Data Solutions. Statewide, borrowers received more than 146,000 jumbos last year, totaling more than $165 billion. Black Knight figures show that as of February, 13-14% of this year’s mortgages in Los Angeles and Orange counties are jumbos, as are just under 12% are jumbos statewide."

"One lender raised its jumbo rates from the low 4% range without points just a few weeks ago to 8.625% with 3 points. Yes, over the moon! If you are thinking of getting a jumbo loan, you need to act fast. All it takes is one fire sale of a comparable home in your neighborhood to result in worse jumbo pricing for you or no jumbo mortgage because you don’t have sufficient equity."

"And those lenders still offering jumbo loans may have their fill sooner rather than later. Or, they might get spooked by the next piece of news related to the coronavirus economic calamity and just put their cold, hard cash on ice."