The choices: A. No landlord rulesB. Peace of mind and securityC. Investment and building equityD. Decorating/home design After many many years as I renter, I finally bought a home. Since then, I’ve gone through buying, owning, maintaining, paying for two East Bay homes, the first which I regretted. Although at the time, it seemingly met…
Open houses provide an invaluable opportunity for prospective buyers to explore properties firsthand at your leisure. Open houses are usually held on weekend afternoons, open to the public. Rather than private home tours, open houses give early home buyers the chance to explore neighborhoods and home features without “bugging” your agent over the weeks, months,…
With changes in 2024, home buyers will have more visibility into the compensation of agents than ever before. It’s important to know the value a buyers’ agent brings to a buyer, especially if the buyer is paying out of pocket. Whether it’s a buyers’ market (with plenty home inventory to choose from) or a sellers’…
You know you’re a Bay Area home buyer when the idea of a “rentback” to a home seller gives you chills. What if the home owner doesn’t leave? What if you become a landlord? What if you have to end up evicting them? Enter the California Association of REALTORS® (CAR) form: “Seller in Possession.” Basically…
Home sellers in Oakland, Alameda and some other East Bay cities need to decide whether to repair their sewer lateral, if necessary, or let the buyer pay for repairing the sewer lateral. It’s part of a program called East Bay Private Sewer Lateral (PSL) In Oakland, home sellers or home buyers where there is a…
The New York Times profiled of a Los Angeles house buyer who wrote a “love letter” to the seller. The buyer just happened to be a successful Hallmark romance movie writer. Was wooing the owner with a romantic letter how she got the house? Why many home sellers sand real estate agents won’t look at…
I buy my home buyer clients a home warranty for a typical reason: peace of mind. I’ll admit, it took my becoming a real estate agent to learn about the magic of home warranties. Most of us assume only new developments have warranties, just like a new dishwasher. Nope! In fact, I usually warn buyers…
What’s the most important feature when buying a home? The oldest wisdom says “location, location, location.” But what exactly defines the perfect location that checks all the boxes of desirability and long-term appreciate? It depends! The book FLIP: How to Find, Fix, and Sell Houses for Profit distills that perfect location into “9 Neighborhood Appeal Factors.” You…
Chicago Title put together a scary video of home title horror stories (for Halloween). There’s nothing funny about someone stealing your property through fraud or finding out that you don’t actually own the property you bought. Watch these horror stories if you have any doubts about the importance of title insurance. What is title insurance…
According to Chicago Title, scammers and fraudsters are impersonating property owners to illegally sell real property — especially vacant lots and land. Avoid being scammed! Due to the types of vacant lots and land property being targeted, it can take months or years for the actual property owner to discover the fraud. Facebook has lots…
