Tell me, who does not adore smart home technology? Clap your hands and the lights come on. OK, maybe not in this home, I haven't tried it, but it does offer a combination code for an entrance and the lights run on smart technology. You can turn the lights on and off, plus open and close the garage door all from a cellphone app.Personally, I like the hickory hardwood floors and the open floor plan on the first floor. The seller hasn't even lived here a year yet and he regrets having to leave. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: This Smart Home in Natomas for Sale is Almost Brand New. 06/15/2018

The top criteria every first-time home buyer in Sacramento wants is a good location. Because location is everything in real estate. Part of what defines an area as a good location is whether that neighborhood is crime-free and safe. Unfortunately, no neighborhood is really crime-free. Not when you consider all the crimes, especially domestic abuse. Sex offenders are another statistic that you will find just about everywhere as well. It's astonishing to look at such websites, and as real estate agents, we are constantly warned not to look at them at all because it's better not to know. That way, you can't blurt out something you'll get sued for later, I suppose. You can read much more in my personal blog today at this link: Why Your Realtor Cannot Show Homes in a Safe Neighborhood. 06/13/2018

Somewhere I read an interview with a bunch of agents who work in Sacramento who told the reporter we are not suffering from a market of low inventory. That our low inventory was somehow a hoax, made-up or a misperception. I have no idea where they would get that goofy idea. We definitely have low inventory in Sacramento. Yes, we have an uptick in homes for sale but it is not enough to meet demand. Demand is still very high. What this low inventory is doing to our market though is making buyers cautious and confused. They don't understand what's going on. Buyers are also very choosey. If they can't find their dream home, they are refusing to settle. This is an oddity that wasn't happening last year.You can read more in my personal blog today and see the Trendgraphix chart at this link: T... 06/09/2018

Most home buyers in Sacramento are somewhat hardpressed to find an affordable home in Sacramento under $250,000. If they do, it is probably not a 3 bedroom home in Sacramento. And it might be very small or located in a fairly lousy location or need a ton of work.This 3 bedroom home in Sacramento fits none of those qualifiers. Further, it features two full baths, and a bonus room. The bonus room is a separate structure in the back yard with electricity, which offers endless possibiities. Need storage? A hobby room? Separate office space? Man cave? Place to hide the bodies? You got it. You can read more in my personal blog today and see a bunch more photographs at this link: Can You Buy a 3 Bedroom Home in Sacramento for Under $250K? 06/08/2018

When I first got into real estate, in the 1970s, we were taught to never do a price reduction on a home. Because once you reduce, buyers wonder how much further you will go. In some ways, I still follow that format. However, real estate in 2018, particularly where I sell in Sacramento, is a lot more fluid, transformative and constantly evolving than the markets of the 1970s. I have come to learn over the years that cookie-cutter answers to standard questions are not always the best solution in certain situations.In other words, the distance traveled from Point A, which is taking the listing, to Point B, which is closing the sale, is not always in a straight line. Fellow Active Rainer Beth Atalay from Florida has inspired me to dig deeper into this question. You can read more in my perso... 06/06/2018

Like I mentioned in my personal blog this morning, I generally hold open houses because my clients expect that service. It's an activity. A busy motion. An investment of time. And it's OK. Some areas of Sacramento attract a lot of buyers and other areas do not. Just depends where the home is located, demand for the neighborhood, lure of the property and whether there is a lot of traffic near by.It's also a nice way to meet neighbors who might want to sell and to find buyers in their early stages of house hunting who might not have an agent. I've also sold homes right after an open house, but not every situation warrants an open house. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: How Many Sacramento Homes Sell at an Open House? 06/04/2018

It can happen to any Realtor, and the more transactions an agent closes, the more often it is likely to happen. I'm talking about what happens when a Realtor does not like her client. Should she continue working with that client? What if the agent starts out working with a spouse, say, the wife, but her husband takes over and is a jackass? Both of these individuals are the client.Is it unfair to fire the wife who has done nothing wrong? These are questions I've had to struggle with lately. Ultimately, though, there was a reason why the wife handled all of the upfront negotiations. Because we'd never get as far as we had come if it had been the other way around.You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Must a Sacramento Listing Agent Like a Seller to List the Home? 06/02/2018

1810 Caramay Way, Sacramento, CA Get Directions Click Here   Description Photos Maps & Local Schools Walk Score   $ Click for current price 3 BEDROOMS 1 BATHROOMS (1 full) 1490 Square Feet   Property Description: Be prepared to fall in love with the charm and detail here!! Huge kitchen has tons of potential! Large family room with fireplace and large picture window. All original hardwood flooring, doors with crystal knobs, built-in's everywhere, and smooth textured walls!! The bedrooms are larger than most old homes, as well as the bathroom. Some minor fixing up and this home would be a show stopper! To see more details on 1810 Caramay Way in Sacramento or All Homes For Sale in Elk Grove, CA call The Mode and Durham Team at (916) 405-5765. Do you know how much Equity You Have?? Get You... 05/30/2018

Agents are programmed from birth it seems to ask people they meet if those individuals are working with an agent. Nobody wants to tread on toes. However, as anybody who knows me knows, that is not a question I ask. The reason I don't ask that question is because it sets up the agent asking it. What buyer out there wants to admit they don't have an agent when asked? Everybody else has an agent. If they don't have an agent, they sound like a loser.Nope, instead I ask if they would like to work with an agent, have an agent represent them, meaning my team, of course. I am offering a tangible. Something of value, not interrogating. Same question, different words, different impact. You can read more about dealing with the public and proper etiquette when home shopping in my personal blog toda... 05/29/2018

Not talking about hamburgers and hot dogs when I say grilling. I mean the rapid-fast firing of questions from curious buyer's agents when they try to extract information from listing agents. There you are, for example, at Arden Mall in Sacramento, dodging screaming babies in strollers as you try to find an inconspicuous spot to chat with an agent who just called. Probably caught you off-guard when you're not in your element.Then the agent asks you what are other buyers saying about your listing? How do you respond? You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: What is the Deal With That House in Davis, Agent Asked. 05/27/2018

An agent in a bit of confusion yesterday left a voice mail to ask how a seller can refuse to accept their counter offer after the buyer signed it and sent it back. Like with anything in Sacramento real estate, the devil is in the details. It all depends on how the acceptance came together. When the counter was delivered and whether receipt confirmed.How did the refusal to accept a counter offer occur? Is the home still on the market or did the agent cancel the listing? There are all sorts of variances that make a difference in this type of situation. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Can a Seller Withdraw a Counter Offer Before its Deadline? 05/26/2018

No matter what day of the week, I seem to always be busy with work. For that reason, it's not unusual for me not to pay a lot of attention to the day, much less the month or year. I still can't get over the fact the 20th century is gone -- since those years comprised such a huge part of my life . . .Which is why I've often suggested appointment times to a seller who then says, "but that's a holiday." Oh, right. So I try to be cognizant of the fact. What I've discovered over the years is it seems to be standard practice not to hold open houses on 7 particular Sundays. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Why There Are No Open Houses Over Major Holidays in Sacramento. 05/25/2018

One of the reasons to buy a home in Sacramento is so you can plant a garden in that newly acquired yard. It's not the same as renting a house, as I can recall a rental in 1981 in Newport Beach where I had a garden. My lease was up right before the artichokes were ready to pick, and I had to move. If you've ever grown artichokes, the width of these plants alone is stupdendous. Too big to dig up.If you own a home, whatever you plant in your yard stays with you. If you decide you no longer appreciate, say, trumpet vines, good luck removing them. They will still sprout up in your yard from time to time. I imagine a vast underground root system flourishing, all due to our 3 initial plants. Which will probably need to be a material fact at any future resale efforts.Planting appropriate plants... 05/24/2018

When it comes to upholstery, I can honestly say I have never before in my life hired a professional upholsterer. That's probably because I'm with the bulk of people who would throw out a worn sofa, for example, before re-upholstering it. Or, maybe I've just never really owned any nice furniture in my life because we have 3 cats. You can't have nice things when you are owned by cats.A few years ago, when Tessa the tore the crap out of my mango vinyl bench, I tried very hard to view that experience as a lovely piece of art she has created. It kept me from wanting to kill her. You can read more in my personal blog at this link: Cats, Vinyl Chairs and a Good Sacramento Upholstery Company. 05/23/2018

The interesting thing about the 2018 Taste of Land Park is we have lived in Land Park now for 16 years, and we just attended the 17th Annual Taste of Land Park. Yup, never participated in the past. How lame is that? Well, in all fairness, I've been busy every single  Sunday for the past 16 years. If I wasn't traveling somewhere exotic, I was either holding or managing open houses or finishing up my writing at About.com. Now that I quit my second job (finally, after much gut wrenching), I suddenly have more time available on Sunday. And we put it to good use last Sunday. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: The 2018 Taste of Land Park and Best Sunday Open Houses. 05/22/2018

Right after contract acceptance, my transaction coordinator sends out an estimated timeline for the transaction. Which I forward to the seller. And you can bet they keep an eagle eye on that timeline, LOL. The day before the first contingency release is due, often a seller is on the phone to me, asking for our next-step plan if we don't get it. Clients truly keep us on the ball. Which means by sharing all of the details with our sellers, we had better perform on time. I imagine some agents don't share timelines because maybe they don't want to be held accountable.But closing, well, that is another story. Sometimes we sign extensions we don't need in the interest of making sure we remain in contract. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Sacramento Home Selling: When ... 05/21/2018

My husband is not known for planning weekend activities, but he did suggest we go to Selland's Market Cafe yesterday. Selland's was celebrating Sacramento Beer Week by featuring a selection of craft pale ales, coupled with a house-made pastrami sandwich, dripping with sauce, pickles, sauerkraut. Sounded very low calorie, not. So he probably figured that the way to get me out of the house was to offer to walk there.It's not that far. Maybe 6 blocks at maximum from our house in Land Park. But we've just done take-out from that location. Never actually walked up there to relax outside under an umbrella. However, the location also let me stare at the new construction that out-of-area buyers are snapping up like hotcakes, 1,800 sq. ft. homes that face the freeway, selling in the low $600's. ... 05/20/2018

Active Rainer and Los Angeles Realtor Jane Peters was instrumental in pushing me to get a SSL certificate for my website. It's been mentioned a lot in this forum but at first blush I didn't think I needed it. After all, I'm not taking credit card information or selling anything on my website other than the opportunity to be prepared to be amazed if you call me. However, after reading up on where we are heading, I concluded Jane was on to something. I absolutly needed to secure my real estate website. All interaction with visitors such as emailing me their contact information should be secure. Just a few days after I installed the certificate, Chrome came out with its big announcment, which made me so glad I did it.You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Use Only a Secu... 05/19/2018

Let's see a show of hands. How many real estate agents listed short sales prior to 2012? And how many of those short sale listings sold and closed within 6 months? OK, now you can peel yourselves up off the floor and stop laughing. Hey, I wasn't the one who sold buyers hope. Nope, that was the California Association of Realtors with its short sale addendum contract default period of 90 days. My listings for a short sale were always 360 days. But I digress.The average length of time for a Sacramento listing doesn't really matter. What matters is whether the listing agent is willing to cancel the listing at any point in its duration if the seller is unhappy for any reason. Including, how many times your real estate agent is willing to sell that home yet get paid once. You can read more in... 05/18/2018

Quitting a second job should not be so hard. But it's old habits. Hard to let go of. Not to mention, there is a certain amount of enjoyment and reward from my second job. Oh, you didn't know I had a second job? Well, not everybody realizes a top producer in Sacramento real estate is also driven enough to manage a second job, much less a second job for 12 long years.Although, when I started my second job, which was writing for About.com as its homebuying expert (although we were called "guides" in the old days), I was selling one or two homes a month, not a couple of homes a week like today. I kept writing for About.com through the days of short sales . . . when I managed 75 listings on average. This year, I looked hard at my career with that company and how it has changed. How much free... 05/17/2018