Housing Stimulus – An Open Letter to the Politicians

February 10, 2009 · Lee Ginsburg · 6 Comments

To Congress Woman Jackie Spier, Senator Diane Feinstein, and Senator Boxer

I am a local realtor specializing in San Mateo and San Francisco Counties. I do not think the $15,000 Home Buyer Tax Credit in the Economic Stimulus Package is making best use of Tax Payers money. Read more

Sellers looking at Contract Terms

February 10, 2009 · Shokoofeh Nowbakht · 8 Comments

Buyers and their agents need to be very careful about not only the offer price, but also the terms of the contract. Sellers do not always just accept the highest offer, as one might think.They want to SELL the property and the only way that would happen is Read more

Millbrae Community Workshop

February 6, 2009 · Terry Birt · 8 Comments

Last evening I attended a Millbrae NOW Community workshop. The meeting was open to the public and hosted by our city staff. The purpose of the workshop was to inform the community of its economic status, and what methods can be used to raise revenue for Millbrae’s’ vital services.

After hearing all the presentations, the conclusion was that the city does not have enough revenue to maintain its current services and is not building a surplus in our infrastructure which could be a huge liability if there was an emergency.

They were able to illustrate what cuts have been made by providing data on the sources of revenues and how it is distributed. It was demonstrated how the city was able to cut costs by sharing services, staff, and program budgets, such as fire and police with other cities, without impacting public safety. Read more

Benefits of staging!

February 1, 2009 · Francis G. Bautista · 7 Comments

After writing my blog on “What is staging?” I am following up with the benefits of staging and the return in dollars to the seller. After some thought, I called a friend, Yvette Thoma, who was a San Bruno Prudential Realtor and who has gone on to successfully open “Let’s Stage it” a local staging company.

She was kind to provide me with some real numbers and facts. Per Yvette Thoma “Out of the last 25 homes staged in 2008, “Let’s Stage it” clients in San Francisco recieved 3% above average market asking price and in some cases 8% above asking. The homes also sold in half the time.” Per Yvette “the cost of staging is much less than your first price reduction!” Lastly “Staging is not a expense it is an investment and is tax deductible.” Read more

Buyers…are You Commitment Phobic?

January 28, 2009 · Julie Cleland · 6 Comments

You’ve made the commitment to buy a house. You’ve committed to a lender and gotten your pre-approval letter and now it’s time to go looking. When it comes to choosing your Realtor(R), you’ve decided to take a different approach…find as many Realtors willing to work on your behalf. You’ll give the business to the one that actually finds the specific house you want. Sounds like a good plan, but is it? Are you hurting yourself instead? Read more

Fannie Mae Short Sale Webinar

January 13, 2009 · David Wang · 7 Comments

Do you know what a short sale is?

Doing a routine search for properties today I came across a very good 20 minute video on what is a short sales put on by Fannie Mae. We have been working with short sales for over a year and have had the explanations given and have had the explanation received many many times already but this is short and good. The slides are good and to the point the Audio is clear and crisp it is short enough for clients to get through without losing focus.

As a client I would believe this more than an agent i just met because we all recognize the name Fannie Mae and with all the government oversight they are receiving they have to watch their P’s and Q’s. Read more

Loan, Gift or Partner to Help Children Buy A Home?

January 9, 2009 · Lee Ginsburg · 6 Comments

As parents we all love our children and only want to help them. In the Bay Area parents almost have to help with a down payment. Do you give your children a gift or a loan? Is it better to be a co-borrower with them? Maybe be partners. If you help one child, you have to help the others. California is a community property state and that creates other issues. It is difficult to bring it up but more than half the marriages wind up in divorce and gifting child money to purchase a home is possibly giving your child’s ex-spouse a very generous gift. Asking a child to sign a promissory note is not always comfortable. In many families Money is a “taboo” subject. I helped my son purchase a home with the idea he was to pay it back when he could. My wife and I always had a good relationship with my son so we did not see any need to have a signed document. Hope that does not come back to bite us. He got engaged a year later and married a short time later. Read more

Are Home Auctions a Good Deal for Buyers.

December 19, 2008 · David Wang · 3 Comments

Any type of real estate investment can be profitable. Like the stock market real estate is about timing. Auctions have become more prevalent in recent months and many buyers have asked if auctions are better deals than properties listed on MLS.

This very excellent question simplifies three bigger topics. First are you interested in just the purchase price, without concern of repair or remodeling costs? Next, have you done all the research you need to do with regards to the property, traditional sales have a contingency removal period. Finally will you be satisfied in focusing on the least desirable properties on the market. Read more