Sacramento Real Estate Gal

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If I Wasn't a Sacramento Realtor...
2007-11-28 18:23:00
...I'd most likely be a Roseville Personal Shopper!
More About: Fun , Realtor , Sacramento , Amen , Cram

Sacramento Real Estate Gal Answers!
2007-11-27 18:14:00
Today's answer is directed toward this post about the necessity of a buyer's agent and the comment that followed. I thought writing about it and answering the questions raised in it through an "Ask Sacramento Real Estate Gal" feature would make more sense. So here goes!Question/Comment:"The buyers are going to get a loan and the bank is going to require a [sic] appraisal which will protect the buyers from overpaying by 25% so really they still don?t need to use you. Oh and say they wanted to get their independent appraisal just to be sure? I?m sure $300 - $500 is lesser than your commission. I realized [sic] the buyer doesn?t pay your commission but he could use that as a negotiation tool to get a better price on the house. Realtors are only needed for very uneducated people or people that have a very high value on their time such as very, very rich people. People use Realtors because they are to [sic] lazy to get educated about a very simple process. My .02 cents."- Luke Hoppel.A...
More About: Real Estate , Answers

Real Estate Quote of the Week
2007-11-26 18:33:00
Yes, as a Thanksgiving present to all you readers out there, I'm adding yet another feature to Sacramento Real Estate Gal! Every week, I'm going to pick a really great quote related to real estate and post it here. I love great food for thought, and if you're reading this blog, chances are you do too! So enjoy!
More About: Real Estate , Week , Quote

Sacramento Real Estate Gal Answers Tomorrow!
2007-11-26 18:21:00
I'm going to be responding to a comment on this post about people needing a Real tor to represent them. Here is the comment in its entirety, that is, without the blatant advertising. The commenter was trying to say that buyers do not need a Realtor representing them, that they can do very well just by themselves. Read on:"The buyers are going to get a loan and the bank is going to require a [sic] appraisal which will protect the buyers from overpaying by 25% so really they still don?t need to use you."Oh and say they wanted to get their independent appraisal just to be sure? I?m sure $300 - $500 is lesser than your commission."I realized [sic] the buyer doesn?t pay your commission but he could use that as a negotiation tool to get a better price on the house."Realtors are only needed for very uneducated people or people that have a very high value on their time such as very, very rich people."People use Realtors because they are to [sic] lazy to get educated about a very simple proc...
More About: Estate , Real Estate , Answers , Sacramento

Excellent Short Sale Article on Sacramento Home
2007-11-26 18:02:00
I have written a post before on bank owned homes (REOs) and short sales and the difference between them, but if you are considering a short sale of your property, do read John Lockwood's post on three things your Realtor should tell you about short sales. I think it's also important to look at the statistics on short sales and how many of them really go through - not too many, in my experience! I promise to do more research into this and post it soon!
More About: Article , Home , Sale , Sacramento , Short

Landlords - time to send out rent bills!
2007-11-21 17:49:00
It's time. You should be sending a bill to your rentals today to ensure prompt payment of your rent. The statement should include the following:- when rent is due- when rent is late- what the fine is for the rent being late- what form to make the payment in- where to send it.It doesn't hurt to have a return envelope with the statement with your address on it. Log that you have sent out this statement in your rental logs.I know, I know. You're saying most of these things are in the month-to-month or lease agreement you have signed with the tenants. But most of them have not been read, so remind them. Today. And have a good December!
More About: Time , Rentals , Send , Rent , Landlords

Another Scum...
2007-11-21 05:02:00
... has taken to sending mass emails to people, mostly fellow Realtors, with stupid and sometimes obscene messages and predictions about the real estate market with my name and email address underneath.If you've received an email from me and it has not come directly from my mailbox, I did not send it. It's just the work of someone with way too much time on his hands - well, I guess it doesn't take much time to sit around collecting welfare and reading real estate blogs (with no intention of buying or selling a home!) now does it?By the way, Chicken Little (you know who you are), there are a few Realtors including me considering slapping you with libel here. So you better watch out.
More About: Blogging , Scum

Why is Email the Preferred Choice for Scummy People?
2007-11-21 01:46:00
There sure are a lot of scummy people out there and their preferred choice seems to be the internet. Sure, I know there are a lot of good people out there too in the blogosphere, including my friends, family, homebuyers and homesellers that like to do their research and so on. But lately there have been consistent attempts at people being pretty terrible online and by email. Exhibit 1 - competitors that would like to advertise on my blog while saying I'm unimportant to the homebuying process.Exhibit 2 & 3 - Chicken Little 1.0 and 2.0Exhibit 4 - Competitors in general that send mean little messages that are supposed to be threatening and scary.Hmmm.... come on, nice people. Express yourselves on the internet! No wonder so many people in general feel threatened and afraid in the blogosphere - the annoying ones are the loudest. Nut Hound Quincy, Huck, John and me excluded. :)
More About: People , Email , Blogging , Choice , Refer

First-time Homebuyers a Real Joy!
2007-11-17 18:48:00
I've always said I absolutely love working with first-time homebuyers. Of course, it becomes even more fun when the homebuyers are excited, have timed the market just right and are your friends!Yesterday, we opened escrow on a fantastic property my clients and friends found in the Foothill Farms area. It is a 3 bedroom 2 bath house and had an asking price of $199,000. The home sold last year for $330,000 and then was foreclosed. As an REO, it is one of the best deals around. My fingers are crossed - I imagine all our fingers are crossed!
More About: Time , Real , First Time

Playing House in Pollock Pines
2007-11-15 05:50:00
I was playing house today because we're going to be having house guests soon and I have to put in a good word for Fran at Fluff-n-Fold at Pollock Pines, who helped me professionally clean and fold five comforters for free. She gave me insider details on which machines are the best at the laundromat and how to fold the huge comforters I was washing.If you're at Pollock Pines and have to go to the laundromat, check out Fluff-N-Fold on Pony Express Trail. Ask for Fran. And tell her the woman who didn't know how to fold her comforters sent you. :)
More About: Fun , House , Neighborhoods

Zillow to Nationalize Real Estate Advertising
2007-11-14 15:58:00
Realtors are getting luckier - now we can advertise our Open House in Sacramento, CA to someone in Houston, TX. Or so says Lloyd Frink, president of Zillow in a company-prepared press release. Basically, this would work well for Realtors who advertise in the Sunday classifieds. Zillow has formed a partnership with about 282 newspapers (and are expecting more to join before the first half of 2008) where anyone who advertises in the classifieds will have the option to advertise online on Zillow across the nationwide alliances.Already I find a few of my clients using Zestimates to evaluate the market for their homes and I've been known to add homes for sale to the Zillow database. While I think the Zestimates are not accurate, they're a good place to start. Then get a Realtor to tweak them.My real problem with Zillow is that it is not regulated enough. And while I have had problems with the Metrolist MLS that keeps a very strict tab on Realtors and fines you for being late in reporti...
More About: Estate , Breaking News , Real Estate , Advertising

Sacramento Homes are still Seeing Multiple Offers
2007-11-13 18:29:00
No lies here. I submitted an offer for my friends who are buying a home and was surprised to learn that there were multiple offers on the table. Another client I am helping to locate a home in Natomas had exactly the same results. He saw a home he wanted to take a closer look at and when I checked the MLS, it was pending sale.How could this happen in this market? Aren't we all bemoaning how horrible it is out there - using dramatic speech like "blood on the streets?"The secret is simple - it's price. There obviously is pent up buyer demand out there like previously noted in the real estate market predictions. When a home is priced correctly, it will sell. And sell fast - in as little as two weeks, with multiple offers.Some examples:240 Regency Park Circle, Sacramento , CA 95835 - asking price $334,9004951 Clearwood Way, Sacramento, CA 95841 - asking price $199,0004805 Winamac Drive, Sacramento, CA 95835 - asking price $295,900
More About: Real Estate Market , Offers , Homes , Offer

I Guess the Blog is Doing Well!
2007-11-12 23:09:00
Lately, I've been receiving a lot of traffic that wants to put its own advertising on here within the comments. While some of these comments are ones I would love to respond to, I don't want to allow any advertising here.One such commenter - Luke Hoppel - appeared on the post for "Are Realtors Necessary?"Be rest assured, I will put your comments up in their entirety in the next post. I think you make some good points, Luke, that bear consideration and response. But I will delete your blatant advertising on my blog.Check back!
More About: Blogging , Blog , Guess , Well

Real Estate Trivia
2007-11-11 18:36:00
Today's real estate trivia is about something I really like seeing in a home when it is done well. It is considered a feature today because it adds beauty to the walls. I'm talking about wainscoting. Wainscoting is usually wood paneling used in conjunction with crown molding used to cover the two to three feet of the bottom of a wall above the baseboard in a home. In the past, it was used to conceal the bottom of the walls to cover up rising damp - at a time when they didn't have a horizontal barrier to prevent moisture from rising up on a wall from the ground.Today the purpose of wainscoting is purely ornamental.
More About: Estate , Real Estate , Trivia , Real

Is a Realtor Really Necessary?
2007-11-11 18:32:00
True story.I?m working with some friends of mine on the purchase of their first home and I?m very excited about their decision. Buying in this market affords them opportunities unheard of in the last few years. While we were getting them pre-approved however, they came across a FSBO (for sale by owner, for those of you that haven?t learned Realtor -Speak yet) through their family. So they told me that they would go check it out and would want to be represented anyway in the event that they liked it.Now I?m not a big fan of FSBOs. And it goes beyond just the fact that there?s the possibility of not getting paid or the absolute insult that we Realtors are not needed in such a momentous thing as selling a house! No. The problem I have with FSBOs is that there is no one counseling the seller about how much the home is really worth.Therein lies the rub.Back to the story - my friends sent me the address to the property they were considering, and I pulled up comps (comparable properties tha...

When Will the Real Estate Market Recover? Some Predictions
2007-11-09 20:21:00
Everyone has an opinion lately on when the market will recover and they get pretty pugnacious about it too. Here are some claims. Pick the outrageous ones!Lawrence Yun, chief economist of National Association of Realtors: believes they might start recovering next year, based on job growth and a rising stock market. He reiterated that interest rates are still low and that buyers will be able to enter the best market in years soon. Read about it here.Chicken Little 1.0: "Wait a few years and let them drop another 30-50%" - no, he has no credentials. Just hope and a willing spirit. How cute.Chicken Little 2.0: "House prices will come back down to historical norms. This is a 30 to 50% decrease from "the top"... we have a long way down to go." (as of October 15, 2007) "Now is a good time to buy - Long term buyers, who do not have to sell while prices are falling and who can afford to buy are in the best position to buy whenever they choose."(As of November 4, 2007) Can anyone say flip-fl...
More About: Estate , Real Estate , Real Estate Market , Market , Predictions

I Told You So!
2007-11-08 23:24:00
This might be the most compelling reason for investing in real estate. When the sales market slows, rents rise.And remember, I told you so!
More About: Told

Real Estate Books are Meant to be Devoured
2007-11-08 19:43:00
Please note the new Amazon widget I have placed on the blog. You can never know enough about investing and homeownership, so to help you get started, I have added some books there. These are books I have read and believe to be extremely helpful. Time permitting, I intend to review a book a month and place it there for you to buy, so check back often for what's new!Related posts: Review of Flipping Confidential which you can buy by clicking on the book right here!
More About: Books , Estate , Real Estate , Real

Landlord E-book going Swimmingly Well
2007-11-08 16:32:00
I've caught the "little project" bug lately - you know - the little project here and the little project there. I guess that's what happens when you're between escrows. Showing lots of homes, but between escrows.But this week I've decided to get done with at least one project, mainly the advice for landlords e-book. John has been helping me with setting up the website for it, but I was the one who promised to write the book first! So be it. Landlord Landmines will be the name and you can see the blog associated with it here.We both agreed that since the Sacramento Real Estate Gal Blog is directed more toward Sacramento (although it definitely has a bias towards real estate investing) that Landlord Landmines should be geared toward a larger audience. While we do have quite a few landlords and property investors in Sacramento, this book would make good reading for all landlords everywhere.I'm making some real progress and should have a first draft of about 75 pages done by the wee...
More About: Book , E-book , E Book , Well , Going

Hey, Courtesy Still Exists!
2007-11-07 20:33:00
That I have to make special mention of this on my blog tells me it's not all that common, but I'm just glad to be treated well as a real estate agent by another Realtor and that Realtor's client. Here's the full story: Last evening I made an appointment with a potential client - someone I "met" from Elite Properties' website asking for a home showing. We spoke on the phone for a bit and I made an appointment to go out and meet him today. I asked him if he was working with a Realtor already (agency requirement) and he said no. He was looking for an investment property for his brother and the brother had asked him to shortlist a few. Sounded good.But just a few minutes ago he called and said that the brother already had a Realtor and my client didn't know. So he was calling me to cancel the appointment. He added that the Realtor involved had asked him to do that, so as to not waste my time.Isn't it nice to know that courtesy still exists in this world where sometimes we have to...

Sacramento Market Statistics for October are Here!
2007-11-03 18:59:00
Total number of active houses (single family residences)on the market on or before October 31st, 2007: 9967Total number of homes (single family residences) sold in October: 746Silver lining? Pending sales of single family homes are at 974. The last time pending sales were this high was July of this year.Condos tell pretty much the same story as single family residences - In October there were 831 active condos in Sacramento county. A mere 42 sold, but 76 went pending in the month of October suggesting that there seems to be more activity in October than we're used to seeing. The median price of a single family residence now is at $305,893 and that of condos is $206,000. Short sales continue to lag behind all other categories with just a little over 1.1% sold. There are currently 1638 short sales on the market and only 18 have sold. Compare that with the 286 sold of the 2385 REOs on the market!Days on market continue to average about 65.Inventory has climbed to 13.7 months in Sacram...
More About: Market , Statistics , Amen

Real Estate Trivia - Did You Know?
2007-11-01 17:54:00
... that The Homestead Act written into law on January 1, 1863 allowed anyone to file for 160 acres of free land. If you dug a well, fenced it, plowed ten acres and built a house on it (oh yeah - you also had to live on it!), it was yours at the end of five years.But don't run out to do it - The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ended homesteading. Alaska retained it until 1986.The last person to receive land under this act was Kenneth Deardorff.
More About: Estate , Real Estate , Trivia , Real

Federal Reserve cuts Interest Rates Again!
2007-10-31 19:18:00
This just in... the Federal Reserve dropped interest rates again - Fed Funds Rate is down .25% to 4.50% and the discount rate is down .25% to 5.00%
More About: Breaking News , Interest Rates , Interest , Rates

Happy Halloween!
2007-10-31 15:46:00
Happy Halloween to all my readers, and just because you keep coming back, I'm adding a new feature to Sacramento Real Estate Gal: Real Estate Trivia.Every week, I'll post some little known fact related to real estate. Hey, no one said this blog had to be boring! Boo!
More About: Happy , Allo

Ask Sacramento Real Estate Gal Answers
2007-10-29 23:02:00
Welcome to Ask Sacramento Real Estate Gal where you can ask your burning real estate questions and I answer them! So let's get straight to it!Dear Sacramento Real Estate Gal,My house has a fence that is rotting and breaking down on the back of the property. I will be selling the home next year and I know that in this market I have to make it the best it can look. As such, I have tried to talk to my neighbors who share the fence to get them to pay for half. I have only been successful in locating the tenants - the house behind me is a rental. And then last week finally I got the landlord's phone number. I have left him innumberable messages, but he won't get back to me. I'm assuming he doesn't want to pay for half, as he is legally required to do.I have a good mind to put up just half a fence. Your thoughts? - D.S. Dear D.S.,Wow... half a fence?!? :) Seriously though, you don't want to do that, do you? Look, it's obvious that your neighbor doesn't want to pay for half, but th...
More About: Answers

Advice for Landlords Evolving!
2007-10-29 22:54:00
Remember this call for submissions for the upcoming e-book for landlords? Well, the project seems to be getting bigger by the day and so I've decided to dedicate an entire blog to it. Be sure to check out Landlord-Tenant-Advice as well every time you stop by here.
More About: Landlords

Real Estate Orple of the Week
2007-10-26 19:13:00
Hi there, NutHound Quincy reporting here. Picture next time, I promise. I've been missing for a while because the orple activity out there has gone down. Here's a good one, though:"I am having a very hard time finding a broker that I want to work for....I'm looking for a broker who is honest enough, that he tells people that prices are dropping and has put at least 3 people into a rental property in the last year." - Chicken Little 2.0Uh... no wonder you're having trouble finding a broker to work for. You want to sell houses, but don't want to sell houses?!?!And... if you're really concerned about your clients and looking out for their best interests, wouldn't you ask them how long they intend to live in the home? If it's a long term investment, wouldn't it make sense for them to buy when the prices are down, so as to be able to save money and get a good bargain?
More About: Estate , Real Estate , Week , Real

Use your Fireplaces with Care this Winter
2007-10-26 18:32:00
Sacramento County will have no-burn days beginning December 1, 2007. As of next year, these no-burn days will begin in November and extend through February. On days with heavy pollution, Sacramento county residents will not be able to use their fireplaces (and other wood-burning devices) and will have to depend on other forms of heat - mainly electric.On less severe pollution days, only those with EPA certified devices or pellet stoves will be allowed to burn. In general, people with certified devices would not be able to burn them about 11 days a year and those without would not be able to use their fireplaces and wood stoves about 23 days a year.
More About: Breaking News , Winter , Care , Fireplace

Sacramento Bee: Sales of New Homes Rise
2007-10-25 17:43:00
The Sacramento Bee today reported that sales of new homes rose 4.8% in September. The sales are still much worse than they were last year, but in this market any news of flattening is better than the same old, same old.Wouldn't you say?
More About: New Homes , Breaking News , Sales , Homes

Foreclosure Filings Down 8% in September
2007-10-24 22:39:00
Here's a piece of news I missed lately. RealtyTrac Inc. reported that foreclosure filings in September fell 8% under August's foreclosure filings nationwide. These filings include notices of default, bank repossessions and auction sale notices. 39 states saw a drop in foreclosure filings. California saw a drop of 11% over August. But with one foreclosure filing every 253 houses, this is mixed news at best for home sellers in Sacramento.
More About: Foreclosure