San Leandro CA Real Estate Market Report January 2011: Seller's MarketOne of my favorite neighborhoods in San Leandro CA is Estudillo Estates.  It’s a beautiful neighborhood of about 1200 homes. The people who live there have their own association and newsletter, dedicated to preserving the neighborhood’s charming character. Many of the homes are Tudor and Mediterranean style, developed by the same people who developed the sought-after Fernside District in Alameda CA.San Leandro has many other nice communities....but like the rest of the country, it has its share of real estate woes. Following are charts for detached single familyhomes over a two-year period of time.Median List and Sold PriceSince December 2009, the median list price steadily declined by 14%, and the median sold price b... 01/22/2012

GOOD NEWS F0R SAN LEANDRO SINGLE FAMILY HOME BUYERS   GOOD NEWS FOR SAN LEANDRO SINGLE FAMILY HOME BUYERS  The median sales price for single family homes in San Leandro has steadily declined since the second quarter of 2008.  Median prices for single family homes are now at their lowest, at a little under $300,000.  With the interest rates at also at the lowest levels and prices so low this is the perfect time for a buyer to be looking for a home in San Leandro.         San Leandro is a vibrant community which stretches from the hills to the bay.  It is known for its charming older homes on tree lined street.  The climate is excellent and perfect for outdoor activities such as golf and boating.               08/22/2011

The CA Residential Purchase Agreement is the the only document that a lender will accept as the basics for granting a home loan. Home buyers, specially first time home buyers, are reluctant to sign such document on the spot, after all, with the required Buyers Inspection Advisory and the Disclosure Regarding Real Estate Relationships, those are 14 pages of gibberish mambo jumbo stuff that is not easy to understand when read for the first time. At the height of the market, we lost a great home because the first time buyer took 2 days to read the contract and another 3 hours for me to clarify the questions he had when he read it. By the time we presented the offer, another buyer's offer had been accepted. I could not blame the buyer for not signing on the spot. For this type of purchase, ... 08/18/2011

Dear Mr. and Mrs. kaiser. Is has been a pleasure working with you. Now that the house has been sold, and you have settled in your new home, I have one last request for you before I close this file once and for all. In my business, I depend on a good reputation, but no matter how hard I work, nobody will know it until somebody else points that out. Most of my work unfortunately is done behind the scenes, because of that, a good letter of recommendation from a recent client is a very valuable tool, that I can provide to people considering hiring me for their real estate needs. I would like to ask you, if you would consider giving me such a letter. After all, there has been 3 different transactions within your family in which I have been involved as the listing Realtor. If you think I have... 08/09/2011

In our last closing, our colleague, the listing agent went for a minor surgery and... did not come back! As the selling agents, we were left wondering for days who would take over and finish the transaction. We had sent signed documents via email that could not be retrieved for days. We understand the broker of record is actually the responsible party, but I wonder, what would happen when the broker is the listing agent... and he dies in the middle of the transaction, who would take over then? The fact is that we all will go sometime, and even though, we do not like to think about it, we must have a system in place that could allow somebody else to step in and take over, at least on the business part. An assistant is good, but when dealing with clients, (like in our case) there apparent... 07/14/2011

When preparing the house for sale, homeowners have a clear choice: A) Keep a low budget and do it yourself (DIY) or B) Go Pro and make some money. The difference is actually like day and night. On the DIY project with a low budget, the house most likely will take time to sell and the offering price will reflect the quality of the materials used and the level of workmanship. Getting professional help is the way to go, it will impress would be home buyers, it will show well, it will sell faster and will bring in more money because it will give the impression that the house has been well taken care of, home buyers usually pay more for quality. Home buyers look at a lot of homes for sale before making an offer, and usually can spot those that have been poorly dressed for sale. There is the ... 05/31/2011

Oh yeah, this is it! The bakery you've been looking for and now the locations are more than one! La Farine is a french bakery known for their morning buns, and in my world, their current scones. Their first location was on College Avenue in Oakland CA and over the yeras, the company has grown to two other locations that I am aware of. One is in the Laurel District of Oakland, ,and the other is on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland CA. If you have a special occasion you are able to order an elegant cake. I love surprising friends with a bakery treat from La Farine. it's a guaranteed hit! This is one post of many to help spread the word about local small business in Oakland and the greater East Bay. Elisa Uribe, Realtor).   05/28/2011

If a future home seller would take the time to check the credentials of potential listing agents, they could very easily weed out those who are not fitted for the job. After all, a listing agreement presently will tie up the seller to his Realtor of choice for about 4 to 6 months. If you, as a home seller, have the wrong representation, it's your fault. You, Mr. Seller did not do your homework, as simple as that.  A quick look at my MLS, here in Alameda County, on the East shores of the San Francisco Bay, shows an incredible array of listings of all types. The ones that stand a good chance of attracting a home buyer, are those that simply have the basic information, i.e. a few photograhs, a good description of the property on the remark section, and an easy to find listing agent with an... 04/18/2011

If you are selling a house in San Leandro, CA. You should hire a Realtor who knows San Leandro, CA. If you hire a Realtor whose office is too far from the property, you might be shooting yourself on the foot. A local Realtor will have far more flexibility and an expanded knowledge of your neighborhood than one whose office is miles away. Smart home sellers who choose a local Realtor to sell their home will be ahead when making their move. Via the Internet, Realtors advertise far and wide, and they flaunt knowledge of the entire county and even nearby counties, but can they really service all areas? The personal knowledge that the local Realtors have about their area and their city is very important because this information when provided to a potential home buyer can help him/her choose ... 03/04/2011

Setting the correct asking price for a house from the beginning, is by far one of the most important steps in selling the home. But how does the homeowner know what is the right price? Who sets the asking price? the seller? his Realtor? the home buyer? the appraiser.? How do they come up with the asking price? Smart home sellers should interview at least 3 local Realtors. In a typical listing presentation, the Realtor will bring a copy of the tax records for the subject home, plus real estate data from the neighborhood. This data includes homes offered for sale, pending sales (those that have already accepted an offer but have not close escrow yet) and a list of all homes that have sold in the area within the last 3-6 months similar to the one the owner wants to sell. Realtors call this... 02/15/2011

One of my best friends is seriously thinking about walking away from his mortage via a strategic default. But his guilt and sense of moral obligation and ethical responsibiliies are killing him. He wants my opinion... he bought his home in 2007 for about $850,000 and it is now worth only $550,000. His payments are going to almost tripled the amount he currently pays in about a year.  A strategic default occurs when a homeowner stops paying their mortgage even though they are still financially able to do so. I told him the standard Realtor talk: I could not tell him what to do, he needed to talk to a his bank about possible options for a loan modification, also to talk to his CPA to understand potential tax liabilities, and to a lawyer for potential legal ramifications, and to consider t... 01/30/2011

A person thinking about buying a home, who is driving around the neighborhood he likes, stops by the curb, activates his mobile phone and touches the Realtor application on the screen.  The built-in GPS in his phone identifies his location and within a few minutes he has very detailed information about all available homes for sale or for rent around him. Even those houses that do not have a for sale sign in front of them. If he sees something he likes, not only can he access all the pictures associated with the listing, this home buyer can touch the screen and it dials the listing agent of the house he is interest in. For those people without the Free Realtor application in their phones, they have to drive around the neighborhoods they like and write down the phone numbers of the homes ... 01/20/2011

With tears in her eyes, this recently divorced woman spent a few days packing her belongings into boxes, going through "memory lane" at almost every step. Almost every item had something that was special some long time ago, but not any more. The day before the movers come to collect her things, she sat down for the last time at her beautiful dining room table and light a candle, put some soft background music and began to eat her last diner at her old house: she had shrimp, caviar and soda. Once she finished half her diner, she went into each room in the house and took down the curtain rods, methodically she stuffed half eaten shrimp shells dipped in caviar into the hollow rods and put them back up. She cleared the house and left for the last time. Then her ex-husband and his new girlfr... 12/23/2010

Have you ever been on a roller coaster? Then you know the feeling of going up, and up, and up... and then there is a point when you realize you are about to experience one of the most basic laws of nature: what goes up, must come down! Yes, I am a Realtor and this analogy is very real in my business. Since 1985 I have experience a few of those turns... this one however, is by far the most long lasting, meanest and most destructive business periods I have ever seen in my profession I believe most Realtors are on a survival mode right about now, here in sunny northern California, the inventory of homes is still way too high, the banks are not helping anybody, the home buyers are scared and those who can afford and qualify for a loan are waiting to see what happens next. Not a friendly atm... 12/10/2010

Back in 2007, when our real estate market started going... nowhere. My wife and I went to a movie called Pirates of The Caribbean. As the movie ended, she turns to me and says, wouldn't it be nice if we make our house look like a Pirate Ship for Halloween? I looked at her in disbelief and started to say "...are you craz..." I changed my thought mid sentence and ended with: You know, that is a great idea, In our ballroom at home, we started building a 40' Pirate Ship. The very first Saturday of October, we took the pieces outside and started putting it together in our front lawn, in the beautiful Estudillo Estates neighborhood in San Leandro, CA. What we discovered was that people started to come by to look at the unusual display. Working on the Pirate Ship outside our house, we started ... 11/27/2010

Note: previous month’s numbers are in parentheses. San Leandro, CA homes for sale that sold November 1st through 15th, 2010 Foreclosures Sold – 11 Short Sales Sold – 3 Total homes sold - 31 San Leandro, CA homes pending November 1st through 15th, 2010 Foreclosures Pending – 15 Short Sales Pending – 12 Total homes Pending- 35 San Leandro, CA homes for sale as of October 15th Total single family homes for sale in San Leandro, CA: 262 (277) Foreclosed/bank-owned homes (REOs) for sale in San Leandro, CA: 65 (69) Short Sale homes for sale in San Leandro, CA: 98 (107) Inventory has dropped only slightly. Foreclosure and short sale listings make up 59% (63%) of the current homes for sale in San Leandro, CA. 11/21/2010

October 2010, Mid Market Report - Homes Sales San Leandro, California, 94577, 94578, 94579 Note: previous month’s numbers are in parentheses. San Leandro, CA homes for sale that sold as of October 15, 2010 • Single Family Detached homes sold – 1(2) • Attached homes sold – 0 (1) San Leandro, CA homes for sale that went pending as of October 15, 2010 • Single Family Detached homes, pending - 35(26) • Attached homes, pending 8(7) San Leandro, CA homes for sale as of October 15th • Total single family homes for sale in San Leandro, CA: 277• Foreclosed/bank-owned homes (REOs) for sale in San Leandro, CA: 69 • Short Sale homes for sale in San Leandro, CA: 107 Foreclosure and short sale listings make up 63% of the current homes for sale in San Leandro, CA. Units sold are sluggish, in part due ... 10/20/2010

As a Professional Realtor, I am in the front lines and play an important part, up close and very personal when representing a homeowner who is facing foreclosure. How do you stay up beat during these trying times? Selling a house used to be a voluntary, smooth and well thought out process. Typically home sellers would be looking forward to their new place, or new destination. Asking them to prepare the house for sale was greeted with joy and anticipation, everybody in the family would get in on helping sell the house and move on to the next one. Sadly, that is not the case now, in probably 30-40% of the cases I deal with. The entire process requires a lot more TLC, that infamous "Tender, Love & Care" is far more important now than ever before. Most people do not realize, how critical ou... 09/29/2010

What if a good portion of the money you pay in rent, were to be put on a place where you will get some interest and when you decide to leave that residence you get a hefty payoff? As a homeowner, that is exactly what you get. The sooner you start, the earliest you finish. One of the most basic needs for humans is shelter, having a roof over your head is of primary importance. How do you go about dealing with that issue all your life is very critical to your financial wealth. Renting or owning the place you live in could determine a lot of things when you retire. Owning your house could make this experience one of the most profitable ones of your entire life. After all, when you retire, you might need to have a place of your very own with no mortgage payments and perhaps some income fro... 09/23/2010

Getting a home loan today is getting harder and harder, and home buyers who are unprepared could find themselves homeless if they misbehave while applying for a loan. Lending institutions now check, double check and triple check their applicants until the very last day they fund their loans.  A recent first time newly wed home buyer found out the hard way, how banks fears of having another foreclosure is making them pull their loans at the very last minute. This particular loan applicant went through about 35 houses, wrote 14 offers, responded to 10 counter offers, and finally! his offer was accepted on first place! Since he had done all the prequalification for the loan, he was informed that he did not need anything else, except to wait for another 3 weeks to close the escrow. He was s... 07/30/2010