One Buyer’s Loss is another Buyer’s Second Chance
30% of Real Estate Deals Don’t Go Thru. Maybe it is more, maybe it is less, but that is a pretty good estimate. So what does that mean to buyers and their agents? It means the property you lost out to in multiple offers or just because someone was faster than you does not mean it is gone forever. Read more
A Few Bad Pennies….
About 3 weeks ago, I wrote an offer on a bank owned property in Hayward for a client of mine. I tried contacting the agent representing the seller to let her know that I was sending an offer, but wasn’t able to reach her. So, I emailed the offer and, also, faxed it to make absolutely sure that she received it by the deadline.
Over the course of the next 3 weeks, I tried diligently to reach this agent. I tried both calling and emailing. Sometimes when I called, I would get her voice mail. Other times, I got her husband who was listed as the co-lister, but knew nothing about the property. He indicated that he had “taken the phone away from her, because if she kept taking calls, she would never get anything done.” Read more
Is it a “Buyer’s Market” or a “Buyers Market”?
The short answer is BOTH! What’s the difference and how can the market be both? A buyer’s market refers to a market where the conditions are more favorable toward the buyer. In real terms, the buyer has an upper hand in negotiations due to conditions. But what do I mean when I’m referring to a “buyers market”?
I’m referring to the incredible number of buyers we are now seeing in our local market signaling what may be the end of the the real estate free fall, at least in parts of the bay area. Just this morning, in my office’s weekly meeting, we discussed open house traffic over the weekend. Read more
Real Estate Jargon…What Do All of These Terms Mean?
We Realtors often bandy about tons of real estate jargon. We talk to our clients and friends about short sales, REO’s, contingency periods, etc. I have come to realize, however, that just because we know what all of this stuff means, not everyone does, so I thought it would be helpful to describe some of the terms we use. Hopefully, this will give you some idea of what we’re talking about as we rattle on and on and your eyes are going bleary! Here goes:
Contingency Periods: We, generally, refer to these when doing our contracts. As an example, we tell you that you will have a 10 day period to “remove your property condition contingency” or 20 days to remove loan and appraisal contingencies. What this really boils down to, is that these are the time frames during which you will have the right to get your deposit back if you cancel the contract. Once you “remove these contingencies,” you are no longer entitled to get your deposit back, unless you can prove some sort of fraud. Read more
Positives of This Economy!!!
JEvery Negative Has a PositiveJ
Positives of This Economy
1. Bay Area Housing Affordability has gone from 16% to 38%
2. Debt of Americans is Decreasing.
3. A Large Increase in People Volunteering.
4. A Large increase in Military Enrollment.
5. First Time Home Buyers can get an $8000 Tax Credit.
6. Buyers of California New Homes can get a $10,000 State Tax Credit.
7. People are able to modify or refinance their loans to an affordable payment.
8. Businesses have the opportunity to clean up their books and start fresh.
9. Great Opportunity to Purchase a new car or any other major purchase.
10. Tax on Debt Forgiveness is waived.
And one of my favorites; you can Buy any Foot Long Sub for only $5.00
Please add to this list of Positives
www.leesellsmore.com
The “Runaway Buyer”…
Just a quick post on a funny note… I have encountered a “runaway” buyer at two of my open houses in South San Francisco, two months apart from each other in two different neighborhoods. The first time I met her; she was so nice and friendly and seemed genuinely interested in the home. She said she liked it so much she wanted her husband to see it (he was waiting in the car). I didn’t think anything of it at the time, but once she went out to the car the husband slammed on the accelerator and took off down the street. I thought it was strange, but in this business nothing fazes me. It was about two months later Read more
Are Things Looking Up?
“Jean, a conference room is available for you upstairs…Jean, a conference room is available.” Such went a page by my trusty colleague Shokoofeh about a week ago. I was meeting a client in order to submit an offer on a condo, but to my dismay (and some delight too) ALL of our conference rooms were full. Shokoofeh had just finished meeting with her clients, so she was able to vacate one conference room just in time for me and my client. At our company meeting last Friday, one of the brokers mentioned how pleased he was to hear this page and that he was hoping it was a sign that things were going in a positive direction. I couldn’t help but agree. Read more
January home sales in the west are WAY up!
I just caught this article off of Google AP. I’m passing it along because it gives more detailed picture of the January sales report. NAR reports existing home sales where down to their lowest levels in six years. However, if you look at the western region, they are up 32.1 percent from a year ago. Although prices are down, sales jumped 57% in the bay area!! Buyers are clearly taking advantage of the high inventory. What a great time for young families to get into that first home!
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h78GtI74ZouhZ1bCfF7cOWPQWKzwD96IS94O1

