Scott Summers - Dublin CA. San Ramon CA. Danville CA. 925.236.2375's Blog

How I made $30,000 with one simple email

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 12:17:43 -0800

I still look back at that deal as a reminder to myself NOT to pre-judge people.

About four years ago, I was lucky enough to finally get my first REO listing after doing BPO's for a long time. An asset manager left me a voicemail and said he had a listing for me and I had to accept it on RES.NET right away. So I ran home, signed up for RES.NET and accepted the assignment. I looked up the property, and to my amazement, it was located in an upscale develpment and was worth about 1.5 million dollars. (It was also vacant, empty of all furniture and clean as a whistle. :) )

Once on the market I proceeded to hold the home open every weekend, for the first several weeks. One particular guy came in and started looking around. He was a bit grouchy and didn't seem very interested in talking to me, in fact I would have guessed that he didn't like me at all. I did get his contact info though. When I put those contacts into my contact list, I made sure to write down at which house I met them.

A year later, Im sitting at my desk with nothing going on. So I looked up which properties were currently active in that development. There was just one for sale, so I emailed the listing to all those people I had met at that REO listing and asked them if they would like to see it. I received one response... from Mr Grouchy. "Yes, I would like to see it" was the reply.

I proceeded to start working with him, as he seemed ready to buy. He did warm up to me a bit after we spent some time together. A few weeks later, we went into escrow and closed on a different property worth $1,050,000. I then listed and sold his previous home. It sold for $550,000

Lessons:

1 Don't pre-judge

2 Get that contact info.

3 Write down where you met the contacts

4 Stay in contact with them.

Scott Summers - Realtor

www.SanRamonValleyBlog.com

Direct: 925-236-2375
DRE# 01489110
760 Camino Ramon
Danville CA. 94526

Danville CA Forclosures Inventory Trend January 12, 2012

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 16:03:15 -0800

Danville CA Forclosures Inventory Trend

This Danville CA Foreclosures Inventory Trend Report shows the three year trend for pre-foreclosures, homes scheduled for sale and Danville CA Bank Owned homes. Preforeclosures are just the instances where a home loan is in default and the lender has decided to start the foreclosure process and has filed a Notice of Default. The "Scheduled for Sale" line indicates how many homes have gone through the preforeclosure process and the lender has filed a "notice of trustee sale". The "Bank Owned" line shows how many properties where the lender has taken ownership. As you can see, the overall trend for Danville CA Foreclosures is fairly steady. The "Bank Owned" line tends to follow the "Scheduled for Sale" line. There is a slight dip at the end of that line so I would expect a slight dip in the number of Danville CA Foreclosures available for sale in early 2012. The market is starting to pick up as we head out of the holiday season. If you have questions fill free to contact me at 925-236-2375

Danville CA Foreclosure Percentage

The following graph shows the percentage of listing types available in Danville as of January 12, 2012. Either a traditional or normal sale, short sale or bank owned. As you can see, bank owned homes for sale are only 4% of the total market. This means bank owned homes are hard to come by in Danville. Short Sales on the other hand are on the rise as lenders have gotten more efficient at processing them. The government has also introduced various rules that encourage lenders to accept short sale offers.

You can search for all available Danville Foreclosures here

Scott Summers - Realtor

www.SanRamonValleyBlog.com

Direct: 925-236-2375
DRE# 01489110
760 Camino Ramon
Danville CA. 94526

Buying San Ramon Foreclosures

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 19:00:19 -0800

San Ramon Foreclosures

Below are some links to current San Ramon Foreclosures as well as San Ramon Short Sales. A Foreclosure, also known as a Bank Owned house, or in Bank speak, an REO. This simply means that the lender has gone through the foreclosure process and has taken back ownership of the house from the previous owner. A Short Sale on the other hand, is a situation where the home has not gone through the foreclosures process, rather, the current owner is attempting to sell the home for less than what is owed to the lender. San Ramon, like most areas of the country has experienced an increase in foreclosure activity in past few years. The amount of foreclosures to hit the market has not reached a level where it has caused home values to crash. The percentage of San Ramon Foreclosures has remained fairly steady at between 10 to 20% of the market. The following are ways that you can search foreclosures, bank owned homes and short sales in the San Ramon valley. Note that in the Advanced Search, you can also search for bank owned homes. Look for the "Disclosures" list box and select the REO/Bank Owneditem from the list.

San Ramon Foreclosures

San Ramon Short Sales

What you need to know about San Ramon Foreclosures

In San Ramon, foreclosures are very sought after properties. They represent the possibility of getting a great deal in a real estate market where multiple offers are still common. As a buyer, you need to understand that lenders typically price their properties very accurately. I've listed many Foreclosures in San Ramon, and they all sell quickly. So if you find a bank owned house for sale in San Ramon, you need to look closely at the comparable properties, so you can figure out what to offer. This is where a seasoned foreclosure specialist can be of great help to you. Just because the house is a foreclosure, doesn't mean you can offer 30% below asking and expect to get the property. If the house is trashed, then that's a different story. Sometimes the home may be so messed up that a traditional lender won't lend on it. THIS is where a deal can be had. The catch is that you have to have cash in hand, i.e. no loan contingency. Banks love cash buyers! In this market, cash is king!

How To Purchase San Ramon Foreclosures

Purchasing a San Ramon Foreclosure is not all that different from a purchasing a home from a regular person. There are a few tricks though, that can make or break your offer. The following are few of my secrets. 1. Never ever request more than 30 days to close escrow 2. Keep the offer clean, do not clutter the offer with allot of miscellaneous requests. 3. Don't go cheap on the earnest money deposit. If you put less than 3% deposit on your offer, then the lender may think you don't want the property bad enough to go through with the sale. That's a few of my tricks, but there are more. If you need help purchasing a home in San Ramon or the surrounding area, I would love to talk with you and earn your business. [post_list preset="related-posts"]

Scott Summers - Realtor

www.SanRamonValleyBlog.com

Direct: 925-236-2375
DRE# 01489110
760 Camino Ramon
Danville CA. 94526

San Ramon Windemere Homes

Sun, 08 Jan 2012 12:26:35 -0800

San Ramon Windemere Homes is a master planned community Located on the Eastern edge of San Ramon. It's located beyond The large Shapell development at The Bridges and Gale Ranch, and close to the Dublin border. San Ramon Windemere Homes features several neighborhoods built by several builders. These include Centex, Brookfield Homes, D.R. Horton, and Lennar. The community features 2 new elementary schools, a new middle school and high school. It has a library, plans for community college, and over 1100 acres of permanent open space. Homes range from townhomes to single family homes on small lots to luxury homes on generous lots. San Ramon Windemere Homes were built between 2002 and 2006 and range in size from 1600 to well over 4000 sq ft, with 2 and 3 car garages. Lots are typically in the 3000 to 8000 sq ft range with some lots over 10,000 sq ft.

One criticism that is often made of Windemere is that lot sizes are too small and homes are situated to close to one another. There is some justification for this. Nevertheless, this is not always the case, and those seeking larger lots will find them available. Prices for homes on large lots are higher of course - land is our most expensive commodity in the California Bay Area.

San Ramon Windemere Townhomes are relatively affordable, but it has to be pointed out that Property Taxes are rather high compared to other parts of San Ramon. Annual property taxes and assessments can come to as much as 1.7% of the purchase price, compared with 1.25% in other areas. This was required to pay for the new schools, parks and community facilities.

San Ramon Windemere homes are very appealing to the high-tech workers seeking more affordable housing and great schools as compared to other parts of the Bay Area. As a result, demand for Windemere homes in San Ramon is strong. Days on market is typically only a few weeks at best.

View San Ramon - Windemere in a larger map

School Information:

The following are the schools for the Windemere San Ramon neighborhood. Click on the school name to get detailed information including school scores, ratings, and rankings

Elementary School: Hidden Hills Elementary Live Oak Elementary

Middle School: Windemere Ranch Middle School

High School: Dougherty Valley High School

Homeowners Association Information:

Neighborhood Amenities include Playground, Greenbelts, and Common area.

>>>Click Here to Search All Current Listings in Windemere <<<

Scott Summers - Realtor

www.SanRamonValleyBlog.com

Direct: 925-236-2375
DRE# 01489110
760 Camino Ramon
Danville CA. 94526

San Ramon CA Real Estate Market Update and Trends for January 5, 2012

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 16:26:50 -0800

San Ramon CA Real Estate Market Update and Trends for January 5, 2012

This mostly weekly report covers the current state of the real estate market in San Ramon CA. Including Single Family homes as well as Condos and Townhomes. The goal here is to give buyers and sellers an accurrate picture of what is going on in the San Ramon CA. real estate market.

I include the current new listings
A chart that shows the relationship of distressed homes, i.e. bank owned and short sales, to traditional sales
A graph of price trends for a medium sized home in San Ramon CA.
The current inventory of homes in San Ramon CA.

To search for San Ramon CA homes go hear

New Detached Single Family Homes in San Ramon, CA. for January 5, 2012

The following shows all the newest listings (Detached Single Family Homes) for sale in San Ramon CA, as of . These homes have been on the market in San Ramon CA. for no more than a week. This report is updated automatically so you can bookmark if you wish or you can have new San Ramon Ca listings emailed to you by signing up here.

$1,875,000 1060 Hawkshead Circle SAN RAMON, CA 94583 Listing #: 40556092	$948,000 101 AVALON CT SAN RAMON, CA 94582 Listing #: 40555943	$859,000 500 Andreas Court SAN RAMON, CA 94582 Listing #: 40556022	$800,000 2224 BRITANNIA DR SAN RAMON, CA 94582 Listing #: 40556165	$669,000 1280 USTILAGO DR SAN RAMON, CA 94582 Listing #: 40556256
$650,000 2910 MORGAN DR SAN RAMON, CA 94583 Listing #: 40555998	$559,000 2839 SOMBRERO CIRCLE SAN RAMON, CA 94583 Listing #: 40556193	$555,900 9963 Mangos Drive SAN RAMON, CA 94583 Listing #: 40556217	$549,900 2681 TWIN CREEKS DRIVE SAN RAMON, CA 94583 Listing #: 40556151

New Condos or Townhomes Homes in San Ramon, CA. for January 5, 2012

The following shows all the newest condos ot townhome listings for sale in San Ramon CA, These homes have been on the market in San Ramon CA. for no more than a week. This report is updated automatically so you can bookmark if you wish or you can have new San Ramon Ca listings emailed to you by signing up here.

San Ramon Distressed Property Percentage

The following chart shows the percentages of real estate listing types sold in San Ramon. 22% are short sales, 9% are Bank Owned, i.e. foreclosures and 69% are traditional sales.

Analysis:

While distressed properties such as short sales and bank owned homes represent about 30% of the San Ramon Real Estate market, it's not enough to significantly impact prices in the near term.

San Ramon CA Real Estate Price Trends.

So.... how is the real estate market in San Ramon CA?

This is the million dollar question. The question that gets asked of real estate agents more often than any other. The key thing to keep in mind is that REAL ESTATE IS LOCAL! The so called "National" real estate statistics you hear on the news are completely irrelevant to buying a home in San Ramon CA. And although local Realtors, myself included are good sources local information, sometimes we are too close to what's going on. As an example, we may hold a particular home open on Sunday and have 50 people show up. This can leave an impression that the market is hotter than it might actually be. So, my goal here is to stick to the facts and try to give an accurate picture of the San Ramon CA real estate market, so that my buyers and sellers have the best information with which to make decisions.

The Average of Sale / Sq Ft shows no appreciable trend up or down. The market is flat.

The Average of Sold price for a medium sized home in San Ramon Ca, shows no distinct trend up or down. The market is flat.

Looking for a great deal? Click here to see currently available bank owned homes in the following cities

Bank Owned Homes in Pleasanton Ca.
Bank Owned Condo Townhomes in Pleasanton Ca.

Bank Owned Homes in Dublin Ca.
Bank Owned Condo Townhomes in Dublin Ca.

Bank Owned Homes in San Ramon Ca.
Bank Owned Condo Townhomes in San Ramon Ca.

Bank Owned Homes in Danville Ca.
Bank Owned Condo Townhomes in Danville Ca.

When working with buyers, we move fast because getting your offer accepted on the home of your dreams often comes down to how fast you and your Realtor move when "THE" house comes on the market. Sign up for daily email alterts so when your dream home appears, you can move quickly, and beat the competician!

Note on Data Assumptions: Data for Median Home Price and Average Days on Market for Homes for Sale and Pending is accurate only for the date the data is extracted and is not a monthly average. Data shown for these categories is extracted at approximately the same time each month so the comparison is relevant on a once a month basis.

* Based on information from the Bay East Association of REALTOR'S® MLS . Display of MLS data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by the MLS.

Brought to you by REALTOR® Scott Summers
Buying or selling a home? Contact me or my team at 925-236-2375 as we are skilled Realtors®, offering extensive knowledge and strong negotiation skills.

This report report is based on information from the Bay East Association of REALTOR’S® MLS Display of MLS data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by the MLS.

Scott Summers - Realtor®

Direct: (925) 236-2375

CA DRE Lic. # 01489110

"The Extra Mile Agent"
Because in this real estate market, going the extra mile is what it takes to get YOU what YOU want

summershomes@gmail.com

760 Camino Ramon, Danville Ca. 94526

Scott Summers - Realtor

www.SanRamonValleyBlog.com

Direct: 925-236-2375
DRE# 01489110
760 Camino Ramon
Danville CA. 94526

Are we teaching our kids how to thrive in this new economy?

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 14:38:49 -0800

Hi All. The other nite, I watched a movie called "The Company Men" starring Ben Affleck and Tommy Lee Jones. It's about a large corporation downsizing their workforce as the recession of 2009 has adversely affected their business. Tommy Lee, a top executive fights tooth and nail to keep people from being laid off while Ben affleck plays a sales exective who was laid off and given 3 or 4 month severance. The movie mainly follows Affleck as he struggles to find a similar job, only to have to sell off his pricey home, his porsche and give up his golf club membership. Then he has to move in with his parents and take a low paying construction job working for his Brother-in-law. Ouch. A real hit to his ego.

The central point of the movie (I think) was to highlight the greed of the CEO who was all too willing to lay off thousands of employees in order order to maintain a certain stock price and eventually sell off the company for a huge profit for himself and the other top executives. I'm sure there are some greedy bastards out there just like the one played in the movie that should be called out. To this point, honestly I don't have much of a clue. I'm not a CEO of a large multi- national and never will be. I don't know what kind of market pressures exist at that level to make those kinds of decisions. Decisions that can ruin people’s lives.

Finally getting to my point. The part of the movie that has kept me noodling it for the past few days is the way in which Affleck ran his life. The picture of success. He owned the big house (big mortgage) and belonged to the nice golf club (monthly dues). He drove a new Porsche (not owned outright, but was making payments). His kids had all the cool toys etc. So, after his last severance check arrives, he's really screwed. He's got nothing left. Really? You didn't save for a rainy day? He's making 120k/ yr and was living in a million dollar house. c'mon!

I think the movie was trying to make the audience feel sorry for him. I did not. You don't need the huge house, the Porsche and all the toys. Essentially, Affleck was so cocky in his own ability he felt no pressure (or was not taught) to be frugal and save for that rainy day. It was, to him, about maintaining the appearance of success.

The world has changed. It's not the 1950's anymore where you can settle in with a company and expect to retire after 30 years. Having worked in corporate America from 1994 to 2005, I saw how tough it is and how easy your job can disappear. More and more people have to learn how to be entrepreneurs and how to run their own small businesses, because you can't count on the big corporation to take care of you anymore. You have to flexible and have backup plans. Be a bit frugal!

I worry that we are not teaching our kids about how this new economy world really works and how to thrive in it.

Scott Summers - Realtor

www.SanRamonValleyBlog.com

Direct: 925-236-2375
DRE# 01489110
760 Camino Ramon
Danville CA. 94526

San Ramon CA Real Estate Market Update and Trends for December 29, 2011

Thu, 29 Dec 2011 18:04:59 -0800

San Ramon CA Real Estate Market Update and Trends for December 29, 2011

I include the current new listings
A chart that shows the relationship of distressed homes, i.e. bank owned and short sales, to traditional sales
A graph of price trends for a medium sized home in San Ramon CA.
The current inventory of homes in San Ramon CA.

To search for San Ramon CA homes go hear

New Detached Single Family Homes in San Ramon, CA. for December 29, 2011

$679,000

2060 GOLDENROD LN
SAN RAMON, CA 94582

Listing #: 40555443

$539,900

7605 NORTHLAND PLACE
SAN RAMON, CA 94583

Listing #: 40555444

$519,000

41 TERRACED HILLS CIR
SAN RAMON, CA 94583

Listing #: 40555547

New Condos or Townhomes Homes in San Ramon, CA. for December 29, 2011

$299,000

278 S Overlook Dr
SAN RAMON, CA 94582

Listing #: 40555649

San Ramon Distressed Property Percentage

The following chart shows the percentages of real estate listing types sold in San Ramon. 22% are short sales, 9% are Bank Owned, i.e. foreclosures and 69% are traditional sales.

Analysis:

While distressed properties such as short sales and bank owned homes represent about 30% of the San Ramon Real Estate market, it's not enough to significantly impact prices in the near term.

San Ramon CA Real Estate Price Trends.

So.... how is the real estate market in San Ramon CA?

The Average of Sale / Sq Ft shows no appreciable trend up or down. The market is flat.

The Average of Sold price for a medium sized home in San Ramon Ca, shows no distinct trend up or down. The market is flat.

Looking for a great deal? Click here to see currently available bank owned homes in the following cities

Bank Owned Homes in Pleasanton Ca.
Bank Owned Condo Townhomes in Pleasanton Ca.

Bank Owned Homes in Dublin Ca.
Bank Owned Condo Townhomes in Dublin Ca.

Bank Owned Homes in San Ramon Ca.
Bank Owned Condo Townhomes in San Ramon Ca.

Bank Owned Homes in Danville Ca.
Bank Owned Condo Townhomes in Danville Ca.

* Based on information from the Bay East Association of REALTOR'S® MLS . Display of MLS data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by the MLS.

Brought to you by REALTOR® Scott Summers
Buying or selling a home? Contact me or my team at 925-236-2375 as we are skilled Realtors®, offering extensive knowledge and strong negotiation skills.

This report report is based on information from the Bay East Association of REALTOR’S® MLS Display of MLS data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by the MLS.

Scott Summers - Realtor®

Direct: (925) 236-2375

CA DRE Lic. # 01489110

"The Extra Mile Agent"
Because in this real estate market, going the extra mile is what it takes to get YOU what YOU want

summershomes@gmail.com

760 Camino Ramon, Danville Ca. 94526

Scott Summers - Realtor

www.SanRamonValleyBlog.com

Direct: 925-236-2375
DRE# 01489110
760 Camino Ramon
Danville CA. 94526