buying a home: The Story About Anna Way is a Story of People
- 07/24/18 06:37 PM
So often when I write about my day in blogs, I get rather technical. All hung up on some legal point or some new maneuver I've figured out to bypass an annoyance. While it doesn't happen to me all the time this way, it can be easy to forget about the people in a real estate transaction. I tend to compartmentalize steps to a transaction. Mostly focused on the outcome. Then, when a transaction closes, I talk about the things I did right and how I orchestrated certain scenarios. But today, I'd like to talk more about the other side of the … (7 comments)
buying a home: Not Every Sacramento Realtor Will Show a Home
- 04/12/16 09:29 AM
Sacramento home buyers seem to have a very hard time figuring out how real estate works, I've come to conclude. It's evident in the type of calls I receive from potential buyers. Some want to work only with the listing agent because they read somewhere that a listing agent will throw her seller in front of a moving train to get a double commission. They probably read that in some get-rich-quick seminar course but it doesn't have much bearing on today's world of Sacramento real estate. In fact, we tried to offer a referral fee to an agent a few days ago … (11 comments)
buying a home: Are You a Snooze You Lose Home Buyer?
- 05/04/15 01:26 AM
There are days in the real estate business that you can see the train wreck coming. It often starts with the buyer's agent who is trying desperately to capture the perfect home for her home buyer but the buyer just is not ready to act. Yesterday, a buyer asked her agent to find out the amount of the seller's average utility bills. The sellers were out of town, btw. That's the kind of question that a) a buyer should already know and b) can be discovered during the inspections if she doesn't. Yet, some buyers use this type of information as a … (7 comments)
buying a home: What Happens After 3 Counter Offers in Sacramento?
- 10/16/14 02:42 AM
I felt really bad for these home buyers in Sacramento who just could not get their act together to buy a home. They ended up writing at least 3 counters to buy a home. I explained to the buyer's agent what the seller wanted, but sometimes buyers don't listen to their agents or they think that the buyer's agent is not on their side, when buyer's agents typically try to focus on what is best for their buyer. They truly want happy buyers and to help a buyer to purchase a home, so they give them the best advice they possibly … (7 comments)
buying a home: When Home Buyers Intend to Cancel a Contract Before Acceptance
- 10/03/14 01:27 AM
There are days recently in Sacramento real estate when I feel like some of us agents are the butt-end of a joke about how many home buyers it takes to screw in a light bulb or buy a house. Is the third time a charm? The fourth? You tell me. It seems buyers are signing purchase contracts like they are rockstars signing autographs for fans. Here's one for you, and one for you and one for you. They'll go through countless hours of counter offers, too. See, my sweet, isn't this fun, we're getting all of this attention? But they have … (11 comments)
buying a home: Home Buyers Who Gravitate Toward Pending Sales
- 09/03/14 12:08 AM
Everybody has their Achilles heel and mine, I admit, is desserts, which is fairly easy for me to suppress because I'm not around it much. I love all things sweet: doughnuts, pastries, chocolates, cakes, pudding, ice cream, gelato, candy, but I try to limit that intake to less than 15% of my diet, which is what doctors recommend. I don't always need that whipped cream and chocolate-cherry bomb to satisfy an urge when a small scoop of sorbet will suffice. Yet, when I listen to buyer's agents describe the yearning, longings and unfilled dreams, the affliction their home buyers seem to suffer … (8 comments)
buying a home: Which Home Buyer in Sacramento Loses Out the Most?
- 08/27/14 12:09 AM
People think because I talk so much about my love for VA buyers and how much I enjoy receiving purchase offers from VA buyers that I am this extremely patriotic person, and that's not really the entire picture. Well, I do feel patriotism, but it's not due to VA buyers, LOL, any more so than an agent might feel working with an FHA buyer, since those loans are guaranteed by the United States government. One of the reasons most agents I know in Sacramento truly appreciate VA buyers is because once they commit to a transaction, they stick with it. They … (3 comments)
buying a home: Why Home Buyers From Open Houses Don't Always Want Targeted Marketing
- 06/16/14 02:22 AM
It's not entirely uncommon when talking to a prospective home buyer who pops into an open house for that buyer to refuse to give out personal information. They worry that they'll end up on some targeted marketing mailing or calling list, and that a real estate agent will hound them to death. I think those kinds of worries stem from the fact that the buyer hasn't seen the benefit. If a buyer knew that a real estate agent would not contact them unless requested and understood the benefits of receiving listings that fit their parameters the minute those homes came on … (9 comments)
buying a home: The Hobbit Movie Gave Me Two More Reasons to Buy a Sacramento Home
- 12/16/12 11:43 PM
Even if you've read the book cover to cover a million times, I think you will still enjoy the movie, The Hobbit. Especially if you get a chance to see it in Sacramento in 3D and high-speed. The guy at the ticket counter at Century Stadium in Sacramento gave us a little pre-rehearsed speech about how high-speed film can make people dizzy and sick, and I asked if he's had complaints. Nope, he just thought we ought to know. Yeah, right. But the movie was enjoyable. Even if it was annoyingly long. The Hobbit, in reflection, also gave me two more … (6 comments)
buying a home: How Many Purchase Offers Do You Have?
- 10/07/12 01:17 AM
How many offers do you have? I can't count the number of times I answer my phone and am asked that question. First, I don't know which property the agent or buyer is asking me about because they don't identify it. Second, what difference does it make? What bloody difference does it make? Are you going to write your purchase offer any differently if we have 7 offers than if we have 22 offers? If the question is do you have more than one offer, then ask that question. Don't ask how many offers we have because it doesn't matter, and … (14 comments)
buying a home: Are CHDAP Loans a Good Idea for a Sacramento Short Sale?
- 10/02/12 12:16 AM
Home buyers in Sacramento are struggling. No question about it. It's difficult to buy a home in a seller's market regardless of the type of financing a home buyer is utilizing, but CHDAP loans can present even more obstacles. I have closed short sales with home buyers who have utilized CHDAP financing but that was in a different market. Not in a seller's market. And even then, closing often required an extension. A CHDAP loan adds a layer to the approval process and can delay underwriting for a home buyer. The last thing a Sacramento short sale seller needs is to … (3 comments)
buying a home: A Tip for Getting the Edge When Buying Homes in Sacramento
- 08/02/12 11:16 PM
In this Sacramento real estate market, it doesn't matter how many offers the seller has received. Yet, agents continue to call and ask that question. Why doesn't it matter? Because any well priced home will be sold within hours if not within days of hitting the market. If a listing agent doesn't have an offer when the buyer's agent calls, you can bet an offer is on its way. Maybe 10 or 20 offers are in the works. It just doesn't matter. What does matter is how strong is your purchase offer? How well written is your offer? Have you included … (6 comments)
buying a home: The Apple Pie of Sacramento Short Sales is No Dessert
- 05/26/12 12:37 AM
Imagine you're having dinner at a restaurant. You've finished your meal and are awaiting for dessert when your cell phone rings. So, you excuse yourself from the table, grab your cell and head out to the parking lot to talk. When you come back to your table, everybody is gone, the table is cleared, and the waiter elbows you to ask: "Do you have a reservation?" You wonder if this is the Twilight Zone. You say, "I just want to eat my apple pie." No, the waiter says you must call a special 800# and make a reservation. Then, they will … (9 comments)
buying a home: Many Short Sale Banks Are Issuing Counter Offers on Sacramento Short Sales
- 07/14/11 03:19 AM
A trend I am noticing in my Sacramento short sales is buyers who try to negotiate on my short sale listings end up back at my list price. I don't know if I am flagged in a computer-based network somewhere as an agent who knows what she is doing as a Sacramento short sale agent, but many banks are accepting my list prices. I'm getting counters if the buyers didn't offer list price. And those counters are at my list price. Then, the buyers get ticked off. Hey, I never told them to offer less than list price. They aren't my … (8 comments)
buying a home: You've Always Had the Power to UnSubscribe, But Should You?
- 04/26/11 04:38 AM
Hi thank you for all your help. I would appreciate you not sending Me anymore emails. I broke up with my boyfriend who wants to Buy a house. I am no longer involved. jane I received the above email this morning in response to a homebuying newsletter I send weekly to my subscriber base. People have to individually sign up to get my newsletter. It doesn't go out automatically nilly willy to just anybody. And subscribers always have the ability to unsubscribe at any time. It's against the guidelines of my contract with About.com to tell you how many subscribers I … (6 comments)
buying a home: What's Better Than a Four-Bedroom Pool Home in Elk Grove?
- 06/04/10 03:05 AM
Because first-time home buyers make up the majority of home buyers in Sacramento, I work with a lot of first-time home buyers. It never amazes me what types of questions they ask. I tell all my buyers there are no dumb questions. If a person has no experience in buying a home, an agent should be there to guide every step of the way. Every so often I might get asked a question that is amusing, though. Like last week. A buyer did not understand why the seller wouldn't give him the keys. Even though the transaction has not yet closed, … (6 comments)
buying a home: Another Lincoln Crossing Short Sale Home is Offered at $208,000
- 02/15/10 12:45 AM
Buying a home these days is a little bit like buying a pair of shoes at Macy's. After listing a Sacramento short sale in Del Paso Manor last week, I stopped at Macy's in the Country Club shopping center on El Camino. Macy's was having a shoe sale, and I needed a few pairs of flat, brown shoes. Figured I'd grab them before the spring colors arrived. The store was mobbed with buyers. There was one sales clerk to serve them, and he had one arm. OK, his arm was in a sling, but still. I picked up eight pairs of … (14 comments)
buying a home: Why Buying Your First Home is A Lot Like Playing ZUMA
- 05/19/09 03:02 AM
OK, I admit it. Sometimes I play computer games. Not all the time 24/7 but a round or two of Bejeweled -- after a stressful phone call from an irate buyer's agent who can't understand that list prices of Sacramento short sales mean nothing -- keeps me in my usual calm, happy and peaceful state. For the past few months, I've been playing ZUMA, another addictive Pop-Cap game. Zuma's premise is simple: A bunch of colored balls roll merrily along a path. A ball appears in the frog's mouth. The player aims and clicks the mouse to hit 2 or … (11 comments)
buying a home: Do You Take Off Work on Labor Day?
- 09/01/08 02:40 AM
Because of cell phones and computers, how do you get away from work on Labor Day? I just heard the trucks on my street scraping up garden refuse, so I know that some Sacramento city workers don't take off Labor Day. I suspect it's because they can earn time-and-a-half. Plus, it's an early morning job. But do you take off Labor Day? Relax with the family, go to the beach or on a hike or maybe just stay home and read a book? I received an email this morning from an Lori Kim Polk, wishing me a happy Labor Day and … (40 comments)
buying a home: Even If It's Painful, Agents Should Always Tell Buyers the Truth
- 08/17/08 03:14 AM
I know a lot of agents who are afraid to lose the sale. It's tough out there right now for many real estate agents. Some are struggling, doing lower-priced deals, getting paid half as much and some aren't doing any transactions at all. For these agents, I suspect it's even harder to tell a potential home buyer that perhaps buying a home is not the best direction for them to move. Yesterday, a buyer was ready to go into contract. He had a viable counter offer in front of him at a price that was agreeable. The counter offer contained two … (29 comments)
Broker-Associate at RE/MAX Gold, Midtown and Sierra Oaks Sacramento office. Co-partner Weintraub & Wallace Realtors. Selling since 1974. Homebuying expert at The Balance. Weintraub & Wallace sells homes from Galt to Lincoln. <
Author Bio: Elizabeth Weintraub is a Sacramento real estate broker, author, home buying expert for The Balance, a Land Park resident, who specializes not only in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown and East Sacramento but sells extensively from Elk Grove to Lincoln. Weintraub is prominently known as the #1 Sacramento Short Sale agent throughout the Sacramento four-county area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 40+ years of real estate experience to work for you.
So often when I write about my day in blogs, I get rather technical. All hung up on some legal point or some new maneuver I've figured out to bypass an annoyance. While it doesn't happen to me all the time this way, it can be easy to forget about the people in a real estate transaction. I tend to compartmentalize steps to a transaction. Mostly focused on the outcome.
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