Thursday, January 29, 2015

Who Will Be Involved In The Sale Of My Home

Who Will Be Involved In The Sale Of My Home



Listing Agent:  Your listing agent has a fiduciary duty to you to represent you with your best interest in mind.  Listing agents take the listing, market the listing, present all offers to you, help you understand the offers so you can make the best decision in picking the best offer,  handle all paperwork to make sure everything is done timely and legally.

Buyers agent:  Your listing agent can find a buyer and sell the house, but most often your home will be sold by a different agent who is representing the buyer.  This agent has a fiduciary duty to their buyer to represent them in their best interest.  The buyer’s agent protects their buyer by making sure the buyer is making a fair offer but not over paying for the property.  He/She will educate the buyer on the appropriate price to offer based on the homes recently sold in your area.   A buyer or seller can offer or sell their home for as much as they choose but your agent will be able to guide you in making those decisions.  They also handle the paperwork on the buyer’s side to make sure it is done timely and legally.

Duel Agent:  This is the agent who handles both the buyer’s side and the seller’s side.  A transaction like this can go well if both sides agree on everything and the sale is simple.  Where this concept can get tricky is when the agent must negotiate for both the buyer and seller.  Since they have a fiduciary duty to represent both parties to their best interest it becomes a very fine line to walk.  They have to present both sides equally meaning they can not suggest the seller may sell for less or that the buyer may be willing to pay more.  This can get morally and legally tricky in many cases.

Loan Officer:  The buyer’s loan office will really be the one driving how fast it can close.  When a loan is involved it usually takes 30-45 days.  (Cash can go quickly about 10-15 days)  Buyers have options on which inspections they want so depending on how fast those inspections can be done, pest, home, appraisal, and loan contingencies, repairs, etc. will also play a part in how quickly it will close.  There are timelines in the contract and it is up to your agent to keep people moving according to those timelines. 

Inspectors and Appraisers:  They will be hired (usually by the buyer) outside of the sales contract to do different inspections. 

Escrow Company:  Escrow works as the neutral third party between all parties involved, the loan officer and the agents.  Their job is to handle, keep track, and distribute all monies in the transaction. They also impartially make sure that all written instructions from the contract and negotiations are carried out.  They pull the preliminary title report to determine the status of the title of the property. Prepares escrow instructions, requests payoffs of any one being paid through escrow, records the deed and other related documents, and closes escrow.


Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Fee’s Usually Paid by the Seller

Fee’s Usually Paid by the Seller




Real Estate Fee’s:  Sellers always pay the Real Estate Fee’s.  Remember when you bought your home the real estate fees were paid for by the seller of your home.  (New Home Sales Company or the owner of the property)  Depending on the area of the country where your home is located fee’s can vary. 

Homeowner Association Doc’s and Transfer Fee’s:  If you have a homeowners association in your development as a seller you will need to order a copy of your associations rules and guide lines.  (You can’t usually use the ones you received when you purchased the home as most are out dated and it must be the most recent revision)  These are doc’s that your title company will order but they will require a check up front before ordering them.  Fee’s vary from one association to another.

Pest Inspections:  Often times it is best as a seller to get a pest inspection done on your home prior to listing it.  Pest inspections have two area’s they report in the first is called Section 1 (areas that require immediate attention) usually items that fall in the section 1 area are things most buyers ask to be fixed and are often required by a loan company to be fixed before the home can be financed.  Section 2:  (items that if not correct have the potential to cause damage down the road) It can help in marketing your home to advertise that there is a current pest inspection and all section 1 items have been repaired.

Well and Septic Inspections:  If there is a well and septic tank on your property the seller usually provides a copy of a recent inspection at the time of sale.  Again this can be use in marketing your home if done prior to the sale.

Escrow Fee’s:  Escrow fees are negotiable depending if it is a buyer’s or seller’s market.  Most common way is they are split between buyer and seller.

Title Fee’s (Owners Policy) Most often split between buyer and seller.

County/City Transfer Fee’s:  Most often paid by the seller.


If you have already paid the property taxes it will be worked out in escrow between buyer and seller sides based on the date the sale closes. 



The easiest way to understand your costs is have us do a net sheet for you at the time of listing so you will have a good idea of what to expect.

Friday, January 23, 2015

Selling Your Home

Selling Your Home


Getting your home ready:
Many people looking for their dream home are looking for move-in-ready homes.  The more you can make your home look move-in-ready the faster it will sell and often times for more money.  Walls being painted light neutral colors, carpets cleaned, clutter removed, etc. all make your home more appealing.  It will often make the difference in your home selling at the top dollar for your neighborhood and being at the low end of the spectrum.  As your real estate agent I will give you an evaluation of your home and what I believe will make a difference in getting top dollar or below market. 

Pricing your home right:
Everyone is hoping to get the highest price for their home, but it is important to be realistic.  As your agent I will use my area knowledge backed up by a thorough and accurate market analysis to suggest the best listing price for your home.  We will look at homes in your area that have recently sold, currently listed, and pending sales.  You will be able to see what these homes look like inside and out to truly understand how your home will compete in the market.  By taking the time to price your home right (not too high, not too low) it will make sure your home will be marketed to the buyers who are qualified to buy your home and looking for a home similar to yours.

Marketing:  
I can offer some of the most technically advanced ways of marketing your home.  Your home will be listed on up to 500+sites where people of all ages are searching for homes.  Of course you will be on MLS where all agents in the area have access to your listing.  We belong to Leading Real Estate Company’s of the world which has people from all over the world reaching out to us for listings. Our Mobil Apps puts your home right on people’s cell phone so when they are out looking in your neighborhood they can see your home on their Mobil App.  In addition to all of this we will talk about other home specific marketing we can do.  Nobody beats our marketing!!!


Call Today to find out the Net Value of your Home

Steve (916) 425-1100 or  Sandy (916) 544-2066

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Lower MIP- Conventional 3% down Program and Low Rates Bring Buyers Back

We are beginning to see the housing market pick up in Sacramento. It appears with the new guidelines on the lower MIP rate, the conventional 3% down program and coupled with the continued low interest rates buyers are taking notice and are back in the market looking again.  Agents holding open houses this last weekend reported some of the best number of visitors seen in the past year.  If you are wanting to buy a home in 2015 this may be the best time to buy.  As always be sure to explore your options on loans and lenders to be sure you secure the best deal for you.  Call us if you have any questions or need any help finding a good lender.

Thursday, January 15, 2015

FHA Reduces Annual MIP Rates

Good News for Home Buyers
FHA Reduces Annual MIP Rates
HUD recently announced a reduction to the Annual MIP rate for loans with terms greater than 15 years, lowering the annual premium by 50 basis points (.50%).  These changes are effective for FHA case numbers assigned on or after January 26th, 2015.

What does this mean for home buyers?

With this update, FHA has made it less expensive for buyers to obtain financing up to 96.5% loan-to-value. This is great news, as FHA remains the most flexible program for buyers with less than a 5 percent down payment.  With our expanded guidelines, we are able to help buyers with a FICO score as low as 580. 
Information provided by Lori Utley of Guild Mortgage

Monday, January 5, 2015

Housing Market Outlook for 2015



The forth quarter of 2014 came in strong with the fastest paced economic growth in (GDP) Gross Domestic Product since the forth quarter of 2003.  This is a strong sign for our economy for the New Year.  Due to the signs of a strong economy there is already some chatter of interest rates increasing in the New Year.  Since interest rates are currently still at all time low’s this is a great time to buy and lock in a lower rate while you can. (First time buyers and people wanting to move up to larger homes will benefit as well by being able to afford more with lower rates)

Unfortunately, none of us have a crystal ball to exactly know what the future brings, economists use many calculations to try and predict how 2015 will go.  By some of the best the predictions for the housing market are:

1.      Housing market will continue to strengthen
2.      Home prices will rise at a much slower rate
3.      Interest rates will creep up
4.      Lower demand for homes due to new building starts (more new structures)
5.      In general the housing market is not going to get much better or worse.

With this kind of status-quo prediction I would say if you are planning on selling your home go ahead, don’t wait it’s not expected to get much better. And, if you are planning on buying go ahead as prices won’t go much lower (if at all) and interest rates (by all signs) may reach up to 5% this year.

Looking at the Sacramento stats for the last several years home prices tend to decrease a little in the last quarter and then begin to rise a little in the first quarter.  The movement on price is so small it really isn’t enough to make a large difference.  (Also, keep in mind it varies from area to area and price point to price point)