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buy a home: The Time to Think About Selling is When You Buy a Home - 02/26/12 08:06 AM
One of the biggest fears sellers often harbor about short sales is what if it doesn't sell? They have those fears because they are not in real estate. When you're in real estate, like this Sacramento short sale agent, you know that anything will sell if the price is right. Even a flooded-out house with mold the size of basketballs will sell. And yes, I've sold one of those, too.
There are a variety of reasons why a home might take longer than usual to sell, though. These are sometimes the reasons that some sellers don't want to hear because they … (3 comments)
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buy a home: If You Believe This, I've Got Some Swamp Land in Florida to Sell You - 02/15/12 09:37 AM
The thing about writing about what really happens to you in your life is you don't have to make up anything. It almost seems like cheating. To just write about crap that happens. No embellishments. But that's why I don't have any problem writing a daily blog or coming up with stuff to write about because life happens every single day, whether or not I agree.
It's tough choosing what to write about. So much goes on. Sometimes, it's the very last thing that happened that sticks in my head, which is what I'm choosing to talk about today. I could … (7 comments)
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buy a home: Are Buyer's Agents Allowed to Talk to the Seller? - 02/07/12 09:22 AM
I received an offer last from a buyer's agent for one of my short sale listings in Sacramento. This is a home that just came on the market in a high demand neighborhood. The agent gushed and cooed about how much her buyer loved loved loved this home. He loved it so much that he offered 90% of list price. This is not even worth a comment. But you can't help but figure the agent had a hand in it.
Some agents are struggling with buyers. I hear from those, too. They have a hard time explaining the market. When they … (8 comments)
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buy a home: How Do You Cancel a Short Sale Contract in Sacramento? - 01/26/12 11:09 AM
Some buyer's agents do not know that when a buyer and a seller sign a purchase agreement for a short sale listing, they have entered into a binding contract to buy a home. I don't really know why agents often treat a short sale like the red-haired stepchild, but it's a real transaction just like any other real estate transaction.
This means if the buyer elects to cancel, a buyer can do so. The RPA contract put out by C.A.R. is written in favor of buyers. Probably because buyers sue more often than sellers. Sellers are typically happier after closing than … (5 comments)
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buy a home: If You're a Buyer for a Short Sale in Sacramento, Come Over and Sit Down By Me - 09/12/11 10:16 AM
Even though I am just a Sacramento short sale agent, I still follow up on my listings after agents show them. That act seems to surprise some buyer's agents. I guess they think a short sale doesn't deserve the same kind of attention that a regular equity listing does, but that's probably why they are buyer's agents and not a Sacramento short sale agent. All sellers deserve follow up. I send feedback -- whether it's good or bad -- just so my sellers know what's going on.
Yesterday, an agent asked me if her buyer could offer substantially less for a … (9 comments)
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buy a home: If You Had to Sell Your Wares at a County Fair, What Would You Sell? - 06/29/11 10:00 AM
I recall advice that somebody gave to me years and years ago about handling emotional upsets. Like, say, your partner up and walked out on your relationship. You're angry. You're hurt. You might want to get even. Do something hurtful back. But the advice that was given to me, which I'll pass along to you, is to instead imagine this person in a favorable light. I realize this is unthinkable to some, but just bear with me.
The image was a pink cloud. You could conjure up any happy image you want. So, you plaster this person's face on a pink … (5 comments)
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buy a home: Not Every Distressed Sale in East Sacramento Needs to be a Short Sale - 04/28/11 10:44 AM
Early February a seller called to ask if I would mind stopping by her home after hours. It was dark when I arrived. She lived in the back unit of a duplex in East Sacramento. Most entry-level homes in East Sacramento are selling briskly these days as prices have softened a little bit and financing is extremely cheap. It's a good time to buy a home in Sacramento.
This seller bought the duplex several years ago from Fannie Mae. It was a foreclosure home. She had been reading the headlines in the Sacramento Bee about all the foreclosures and short sales … (4 comments)
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buy a home: If a Sacramento Agent Tells You To Write Multiple Offers on a Short Sale, Fire That Agent - 02/27/11 11:07 AM
I've had a theory for several years now, sort of lingering in the back of my mind, which I decided to test out this week. It involves buyer's agents who show short sales in Sacramento. See, for a long time now, I've been attaching a tip sheet and seller instructions to MLS for buyer's agents. The primary purpose is to educate buyer's agent, secondary to weed out the loser agents, and it's been working pretty well. I haven't been receiving nearly as many fraudulent and corrupt purchase offers as I used to get on my Sacramento short sales.
My gut instincts … (6 comments)
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buy a home: A Turn Key Short Sale in the Elk Grove School District - 01/25/11 10:31 AM
Do you have any idea how difficult it is to type with a squirmy kitten in your lap? I can't let my new kitty, Jackson, run all over the house yet because a) my other cats have not yet adjusted to him and b) he might scoot behind the refrigerator and not come out. He also likes to chew on things. Most recently he tried to gnaw on my printer cable and the charger cable for my Bluetooth. But I am bound and determined, regardless, to tell you about my new short sale listing near Elk Grove in Sacramento.
This 1990-built … (5 comments)
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buy a home: There is Grief in a Short Sale - 12/10/10 10:48 AM
I seem to be starting out my mornings by crying. I walk into the family room where my computer is to turn it on and look at the space where my cat's pen used to sit. Brandon's pen took up a lot of the family room because it was four feet by four feet, and this room is only 12 feet wide. But it's better than it was on Wednesday when we had to euthanize him. At least big fat tears aren't dropping everywhere without notice. I'm not breaking down in the middle of the day. It's just mornings. I can … (13 comments)
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buy a home: What Can You Buy for $75,000 in Sacramento? - 12/07/10 10:23 AM
Can $75,000 buy you happiness in Sacramento? Yes, says Time magazine. A study by economists, one of whom won a Nobel Prize, shows that people who earn $75,000 or more are happier than people in lower-income categories. I don't know why $75,000 was used as a benchmark, but it's a good number. Good enough that you can buy a home in Sacramento for that amount.
Granted, the home needs a little work. For example, many of the stucco walls are covered in sheets of paneling, which means you'll probably have to pull off the paneling and fix the walls underneath. Or, … (3 comments)
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buy a home: I'm Just Sitting Here on the Group W Bench - 12/01/10 09:34 AM
They say the numbers don't lie. But numbers lie all the time. Look at 'em, just sitting there on the page. Lies, all lies. Can't you hear 'em squawking, making promises they can't keep? Why, I'll never leave you, say the zeros. And then they skip town. You can count on me, say the fives, as you watch their backbones crumble and morph into squiggly threes.
The thing is there are a dozen ways to manipulate interpret just about any real estate market report. What do you want it to say? Whether real estate prices in Sacramento are going up or … (8 comments)
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buy a home: Who Rules the Home Buying Decision? - 11/26/10 10:29 AM
You know what I hear some Sacramento real estate agents say about buyers? If mama ain't happy, nobody is happy -- meaning it's generally mama who keeps peace in the family. Because if you make mama happy, she'll make everybody else around her happy. And if you don't, she'll make everybody else miserable. So, if mama wants to buy a home, a particular home, maybe a home in Land Park, ya'll better sit up and pay attention.
Except it doesn't always work this way. Sometimes it's daddy who better be kept happy. It's rare that we have a compromise between … (17 comments)
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buy a home: Home Buyers, For Crying Out Loud, Don't Show the Seller Your Hand - 09/16/10 09:35 AM
People ask me how I can write a blog every single day. The only answer to that question, really, is that I have thoughts to write about. It generally comes down to choosing among which thoughts to write about -- not whether I have any thoughts. Because sharing experiences, ideas and thoughts with others is something I like to do. But I get a benefit out of blogging as well. I might never know exactly what that benefit is on any given day but I know that I learn, too, by sharing.
For example, a while back I wrote a blog … (12 comments)
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buy a home: Do You Spend More Time Buying a Car Than Choosing a Mortgage? - 06/01/10 09:45 AM
A survey released last month by Zillow showed consumers spend more time buying a car than shopping for a mortgage to buy a home. However, when you look closely at that survey, it makes sense. There might be more to buying a car than researching a mortgage. For one thing, you've got to decide on which car to buy. I think consumers start with the manufacturer, then they choose a model and, finally, they select options and discuss delivery dates.
When choosing a mortgage, home buyers are buying a bag of money. All money is the same. It's the cost of … (17 comments)
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buy a home: The Number One Short Sale Question - 05/26/10 09:02 AM
One of the main questions sellers who are contemplating a short sale always ask is whether they should stop making mortgage payments. There is no cut and dry answer to that question. Not to mention, it's also a legal question best answered by those in the capacity to render such advice -- which automatically bars real estate agents from answering it, unless those agents sport a J.D. after their names.
Every situation is different. Every short sale seller is different. Some sellers have a high tolerance for risk and others do not. See, the thing is if you stop making a … (10 comments)
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buy a home: It's a Good Idea to Know the Street Address When Calling a Sacramento Listing Agent - 04/05/10 09:23 AM
Sometimes I toy with the idea of buying a second cellphone. Then I could use that phone number solely for MLS agent calls and sign calls. I know some listing agents use a second phone for those purposes, and I suspect they send all their calls to voice mail. Except you don't need a phone to do that. You just need a phone number. Then nothing would buzz or ring or jingle while attached to your person.
But the reason I don't buy a second phone is because a lot of those agent calls and sign calls are important. The downside … (16 comments)
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buy a home: Some People Would Say if New Furniture Won't Fit in Your House, Why Not Buy a New Home - 02/01/10 09:20 AM
What I probably need is a personal shopper. See, I no longer clean my house, do laundry, grocery shop, prepare meals, mow the lawn, weed or water the gardens, run to Target, pay the bills -- those chores are done for me. And, it's actually a bit inconvenient that I have to put gas in my car myself. I wish we would go back to the concept of full-service gas stations.
I utilize almost every waking moment of my day focused on my hobby, er, occupation. I specialize in selling older, classic homes in Land Park, East Sacramento, Curtis Park and … (13 comments)
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buy a home: If It Rains On Your Parade, Then Parade in the Rain - 01/20/10 08:50 AM
A seller called me a saint yesterday. She could not understand why I was hanging in there for her and trying to close her short sale after everything that has happened. Her Sacramento short sale is a double Countrywide -- meaning it has 2 loans that originated with Countrywide, which is now owned by Bank of America. Bank of America short sales can be a nightmare or a blessing.
We initially sold her Sacramento home to a buyer who walked away at short sale approval. After 5 months. So, we put the home back on the market and sold it to … (14 comments)
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Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, East Sac, Lyon RE
Sacramento,
CA
More about me…
Top 1% at Lyon Real Estate #00697006
Address: 2801 J Street, Sacramento, CA, 95816
Office Phone: (916) 233-6759
Cell Phone: (916) 233-6759
Email Me
Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate, midtown Sacramento. Selling since 1974. Home Buying Columnist at About.com. Sacramento short sale agent.
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