How Much Will the Seller Take?

October 1, 2008 · Julie Cleland · Comment here

In today’s market every buyer is looking for a bargain. With that in mind it is no surprise that the question most often asked these days from buyers is “How much will the seller take?” There is only one sure-fire way to find out…write up an offer! Read more

Current Real Estate Trends Affecting Brokers and Agents

September 8, 2008 · Mark Hasha · 1 Comment

I saw this really interesting list of current real estate trends on Wikipedia. The list is of the top 10 trends that are affecting the way real estate agents are doing business. I wanted to share it with you and over the next couple of weeks add my thoughts and comments on each trend.

The only annual report detailing real estate trends impacting the residential real estate brokerage business lists the following 10 trends as having the largest impact on residential real estate brokers and agents over the next 12 – 18 months.

Trend #1 – Growth of Social Media and Virtual Communities

Trend #2 – The Sub Prime Lending Collapse Driving Rise in Foreclosures

Trend #3 – The Importance of Information in Real Estate Business Read more

10 Reasons you should NOT buy a house in 2008!

August 25, 2008 · Karin Cunningham · Comment here

1. You don’t feel like taking advantage of GREAT opportunities while prices have stabilized.

2. You enjoy renting over owning your own home.

3. You believe in buying HIGH and selling LOW rather than what experts suggest which is buy low and sell high. Duh!

4. Your accountant told you that you have enough tax write offs.

5. You don’t believe you can build equity if you buy at the bottom of the market. Read more

“Bouncing Along the Bottom”

August 20, 2008 · Karin Cunningham · Comment here

Last month I attended the Inman Real Estate Conference at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. It was so cool because I got to listen to different panels of experts talk about the state of the real estate market, new and improved real estate technology, and a lot about blogging and websites. Read more

Is This New Stimulus Package Going To Help The Bay Area???

August 4, 2008 · Lee Ginsburg · Comment here

YES! YES! YES! It may not be as immediate as we would like but it will. The two major provisions that I see as beneficial to specifically the Bay Area Are:

The increase in the conforming loan limit to $625,500 permanently and the ability of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to borrow if necessary from the U.S. Treasury.

The increase in conforming loan limits has no immediate effect since the emergency stimulus package temporarily increased the limit to $729,750. That terminates Dec. 31 of this year so the new permanent increase is a major long term bonus. Bay Area Realtors Read more

How much do I offer?

July 16, 2008 · Shokoofeh Nowbakht · Comment here

Ok, you find a house and now like to make an offer, but how much? Don’t think just because it’s a short sale or REO that you can offer 20% or so lower than the asking price. Do your homework, study your market, and find out what the market value of the property is. Discuss it with your realtor. Generally, if the property has been on the market for months and specially if it hasn’t had a price reduction, you would have a stronger position to negotiate. Don’t be surprised to see multiple offers and overbidding on short sales and REOs in today’s market. Sometimes, the listing agents list the property at lower than the true market value to create activities and multiple offer situations. So, talk to your realtor and make a reasonable and realistic offer.

GOOD LUCK!

20 homes under $500,000 in San Bruno

July 16, 2008 · Shokoofeh Nowbakht · Comment here

First time home buyers and investors, what are you waiting for? I just checked the multiple listings and found 20 homes in San Bruno for sale, listed under $500,000. WOW!!! These include regular sales, shortsales and bank owned.

This is the time to buy real estate!

Shokoofeh Nowbakht, Realtor

Welcome to PruVoices!

July 2, 2008 · admin · 2 Comments

Welcome to PruVoices, a real estate blog sponsored by Prudential California Realty located in San Bruno, California. We are here to talk with you about all sorts of real estate related topics and hope you join in on our conversations on all things real estate!

Our topics include:

Bay Area neighborhood news and events. The San Mateo Peninsula areas we cover include Daly City, Brisbane, South San Francisco, San Bruno, Pacifica, Millbrae, Burlingame, San Mateo, Belmont, San Carlos, and Redwood City.

Local real estate trends such as the amount of homes on the market versus recent sales. What is affecting real estate prices in your neighborhood?

Marketing your home. Let’s talk about great ways to get your home sold and how to get top dollar.

Real estate finance topics include current interest rates, pre-qualifying for home financing and FICO scores and loan programs such as FHA loans, first-time home buyer programs, CalVet, and some of the more local programs.

Real estate in the news, a place to express your opinion and leave comments about real estate articles in the news and on the web.

Frequently asked questions is another category that should help some of those who are too shy to ask!

We look forward to connecting with buyers, seller, and agents alike. We welcome all comments on our posts. Please don’t be shy to ask a question. That is how we all learn!

Our goal is to continue to provide information and engage in conversations about different areas in the Bay Area that you would like to buy, sell or simply talk about. We are very excited that you found us so leave us a comment and we will respond promptly!

Thank you for joining us!