How to prepare your home for the spring real estate market

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When it comes to real estate, spring starts in January.

You might already know spring is the hottest season in terms of home sales.

Home buyers come out in big numbers with a lot of pent up demand from the long winter months.

The numbers bear this out — homes sold in the spring sell 15 days faster and for about 2% more money than the average listing.

However, in order to make the most of the spring real estate rush, you have to start preparing now.

Today, I want to show you how to do that in four easy steps.

The first step is to find out what your home is worth.  

Pricing your home correctly from the start will mean it sells more quickly. And homes that sell more quickly tend to sell for more.

To get an idea of the value of your home, check out the calculator on my site that takes into account recent East Bay sales.

Enter your street address here to find out what your home is worth

You can also give me a call at (510) 500-5428 and I’ll give you an even more accurate estimate based on the unique characteristics of your home.

The second step is to decide the right time to list.

March through May is the peak season — but this is a very broad range.

A home's listing is viewed five times more on its first day than even one week later, so it’s important to get this exactly right.  

In addition, the East Bay market has some quirks about the best time to list, depending on when you are hoping to close the sale.

If you’re thinking of selling, give me a call and I can give you specific recommendations for the perfect time to list your home.

Third, you'll want to maximize curb appeal.

The reason why is simple: 63% of home buyers will drop by a home they viewed and liked online.

Make sure you give them a good first impression by removing the lingering effects of winter.

Simple projects are often enough — pressure washing the outside, refreshing the landscaping, and cleaning the windows.

Occasionally, upgrades such as a paint job or roof repairs also make sense and can add thousands of dollars to the value of a home.

Finally, you have to prepare for the viewings.

Tidy up the inside of your home, declutter as much as possible, and start packing away non-essential things in anticipation of a sale.

And really, that’s it. By following these simple steps, you’ll be taking full advantage of the spring boom in the real estate market.

And if you need any advice — about pricing your home, about the best time to list, or about small projects that can bump up your sale price by 10% to 15% — just give me a call at (510) 500-5428. I'm here to help.

How to Avoid Disaster During a Transaction

Today we have a story for you, and it's about how to protect yourself as a home buyer. One of our clients recently found a great home that they really wanted to purchase.

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Want to buy an East Bay Home? Search all homes for sale

Today I wanted to tell you about what happened to one of our buyer clients recently. They had been looking for a home for quite some time, but couldn't find one that suited their needs exactly.

Finally, they found a home and they fell in love with it. They liked it so much that they were actually willing to forgo a home inspection. We recommended that they get one, and we're happy they did because they discovered that the former owner had made a lot of his own repairs on the home, and they weren't up to par.

Sure enough, when the inspector came in he noticed all of the bad repairs the former owner had made. This caused our buyer to back out of the purchase, but we're happy we helped to prevent our buyer from making a terrible decision and not get a home inspection.

Home inspections are your only safety net as a buyer, and we recommend that you never purchase a home without one. Even new homes need inspections.

It's like buying a car without taking it out for a test drive. Why wouldn't you do that with your home?

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. We would be very happy to speak with you!

How Soon Can You Purchase After a Short Sale or Foreclosure?

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Want to buy an East Bay Home? Search all homes for sale

Hey everyone, welcome back to our blog. Today we are going to answer the question, "How long does it take to purchase a home after a short sale or foreclosure?" We are here today with Diane Koizumi of Banc Home Loans, who is going to explain the process with us.

For most of you, if you walked into your normal banker down the street, it would take you at least few years to be able to secure a loan after a short sale or foreclosure. However, at Banc Home Loans, they are able to offer a loan to someone 1 day after a short sale or foreclosure. 

There are a few requirements you need to meet first. You have to be able to provide a 20% down payment, and have a credit score of 660. There is also a loan limit of $3.5 million, which is adequate for most people's needs. 

If you have any questions for Diane, feel free to give her a call at 925-548-4410. If you have any questions for us, feel free to give us a call or send us an email anytime. We look forward to speaking with you soon!

What's Happening with Alameda and Contra Costa County Real Estate

        

The summer is here, and buyers in our market are ready to purchase. If you are thinking about buying, there is going to be some stiff competition out there this summer, so we have some advice. 

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Welcome to our video blog. Today I'll be giving you an update on the latest trends in our local real estate market here in Alameda and Contra Costa County. Without further ado,  Here are the latest statistics for Alameda and Contra Costa County.

In Alameda County, the market is currently moving forward at a steady pace. In March, we saw 1140 new listings come on the market, and 731 closed transactions. Our market is currently experiencing high demand and low supply.

When we sat down to compare Jan-Mar of 2014 with Jan-Mar of 2015, we noticed some interesting trends, including a 12% increase in the average median price and a 16.5% increase in the average sale price.

For Contra Costa County in March, we saw 1269 new listings come on the market and 807 closed transactions. That market is currently experiencing a high demand and low supply.

As for the numbers for Contra Costa County from Jan-Mar 2014 for January-Mar of 2015, we saw a 1% increase in the average median price and a 7.5% increase in the average sales price.

We have a lot more pending homes right now than we did a year ago, which is always a great sign. If you are thinking of buying or selling, give us a call or send us an email and we will be in touch! Have a great day!