When you’re trying to sell your home, the bigger you can make it look, the better buyers will like it. For one thing, it will make them think they’re getting more square footage for their purchase dollar. With the right staging tactics, even a small home can be made to seem much larger. That’s why … Continued
You may have moved into your new home, but the moving-in process is far from over. Making a new house into your new home involves more than just getting the boxes unpacked and all the furniture in place. You still have to have to move into the neighborhood. It can be a little intimidating, meeting … Continued
Tips for First Time Home Sellers in Santa Cruz Many people talk about first-time homebuyers, but often overlooked is needing support through what could be a daunting process are first-time home sellers. Selling your Santa Cruz home can feel overwhelming. So I wanted to share a few guidelines to follow to get your home sold … Continued
In most situations, kids are a lot more adaptable and resilient than we are. But moving to a new home and a new school may be one of the few occasions when they are not. We may find it exciting, but it’s not so much that way for kids. For they are leaving friends and … Continued
Selling your house in Santa Cruz doesn’t have to be all hard work and seriousness with a good measure of nail-biting anxiety. But no longer is an open house with a freshly baked batch of cookies and some fresh-cut flowers enough to do the job. In today’s markets, you have to get a little inventive, … Continued
Preparing your house for showings, especially the cleaning, can appear at first glance like an overwhelming, hopeless undertaking. And it most likely will be if you don’t go about it in the right way. There are, however, some tricks and tactics to make the whole thing much more manageable. So pay attention to these simple … Continued
It goes without saying that you want to get the best price you can for your house, and you probably also want to sell it as quickly as possible. And if you’re not listing during the spring season, but instead during fall, that may seem like a tough job. But it can be done. First, … Continued
After buying a new house and getting all the stuff moved in, the next task for most of us is making that new Santa Cruz house feel like home. There is, after all, a huge difference between a living space equipped with all the necessities and plenty of amenities and an inviting place that reflects … Continued
In most cases up until this year, buying a home presented a good number of tax benefits in the form of certain deductions. Those benefits still exist, but they have been watered down for some people in some situations. So it pays to know how buying a home in Santa Cruz will impact you next tax season. … Continued
Santa Cruz Real Estate Market Update | September 2021 Are we in a housing bubble right now? Is my Santa Cruz home going to lose value in the future? Don’t be misinformed. Many times, people react based off of emotion due to lack of information, and I’m here to help make sure that does not … Continued
Any major undertaking always goes better when you know what to expect when and plan accordingly. And this definitely applies to something with as many steps and contingency factors as selling a house. Any number of things can go wrong, but they don’t necessarily have to if you have a solid plan in place. So … Continued
There are thousands of real estate agents to choose from. In fact, you’re probably bombarded daily with their ads via yard signs, TV and radio, and social media. So how do you choose the right one for you? First, you don’t choose an agent solely on the basis of list price and commission. These can … Continued
If you’re thinking about selling your home, you’re probably also thinking about getting an agent. That’s a good idea – if, that is, you get a good agent, one who is knowledgeable and experienced in the right ways. In fact, in looking for agents, you should treat that first conversation as a job interview, with … Continued
Yes, we all know that spring is typically the best season for real estate in general and house sales in particular. Still, other seasons present great selling opportunities, especially in autumn when people are out and about again after the summer heat. You have to make the most of every seasonal opportunity, and that’s why … Continued
Purchasing a new home can be an exhilarating (though sometimes tiring) experience, especially for first-time homeowners. Still, there’s always something to be done, even in brand-new homes – if not repairs, at least small tasks to make the house your own home. But when you start getting into repairs and renovations, the investment in both time … Continued
Partnerships are as old as business itself, which is just about as long as humans have been around. So there must be something about partnerships that work, that make it a good business move. Sophisticated real estate investors enter into all kinds of partnerships all the time because, chiefly, it can distribute the risk. But … Continued
Real estate experts agree that the single most important consideration for selling your house is pricing it right. Besides having to be in line with the price of similar homes in the area, the sale price can’t be too high or too low, it should be priced for online searches, and it needs to be … Continued
Everyone wants to sell his house for the most money possible. But how do you do that? Really, it all boils down to simply making your house stand out above all the other similar competing ones in the area. And a large part of that lies in understanding what is driving home sales in your … Continued
When you’re considering selling your property, a logical first step is to figure out what it’s worth. Now, this doesn’t mean the price you want (although can be an important consideration). Rather, what it means is the fair market value – what other comparable properties in the immediate area have sold for in the recent … Continued
Traditionally and nationwide, spring (usually the first part of May) has been touted as the best time to sell a house, both to maximize return and to minimize the time on the market. But this can change from region to region and from market to market. So in some areas and markets, fall can be … Continued
Things to Consider When Relocating to Santa Cruz A relocation can be both a really stressful time and an emotional moment in someone’s life, even when you are moving to a beautiful beach town. But whether you’re relocating to Santa Cruz for a job or just moving away from bad neighbors or to be closer … Continued
After summer’s oppressive heat, fall is a great time to be outdoors and an especially good time to be out house hunting. But, you ask, isn’t summer the best time to buy/sell a house? It can be, especially for sellers, but fall just may be the season for buyers, even though there may be certain … Continued
Everyone trying to sell a house, wants, understandably, to sell it fast. So most sellers spend a good amount of time, effort, and money making repairs and renovations, hoping it will all translate into a fast sale. But there’s a better way. Take a look at these secret (and some not so secret) agent hacks … Continued
Staging is a species of visual merchandising that draws on the principles of interior design. And you need to do it because it works. Numerous studies have shown that staged homes sell faster and at better prices than those that haven’t been staged. But professional staging is out of financial reach for many sellers. If … Continued
Selling your home is a big (sometimes life-changing) event and financial transaction, so why not profit from it as much as you can? When you get that big chunk of money in your hand from selling your house, you can bet the IRS won’t be far behind. There are, however, several tax deductions you can … Continued
Buying or selling a home is one of the largest financial transactions a person will experience ever. Hiring the wrong agent can lead to mistakes. Mistakes might cost you the home or tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. Do you need an agent? Here are 4 signs of a great agent in Santa … Continued
Painting your house in bright, bold, brash colors is fine for you – you’re the one who lives there. But it’s a different matter entirely when it comes to selling your house. Your preferences then have to take a back seat to what buyers want. And what buyers prefer is neutral colors rather than bold … Continued
The process of selling a house has a lot of parts that must be in place for everything to go smoothly, and a few of those parts cause more anxiety than all the rest. Among the anxiety-inducing steps in the process are the inspection and the appraisal. You can, however, reduce the stress and anxiety … Continued
Many homebuyers use the internet to locate potential homes and often go through a neighborhood’s day of open houses before they contact their real estate agent. This makes the open house all the more important in the marketing process. Hosting an open house? Here are 3 ways to be successful in [market-city]. Research and Market … Continued
Santa Cruz Date Night Ideas Looking for a fun day in Santa Cruz that leads into an incredible date night? Well, if you plan to visit Santa Cruz, my suggestion is to go to Main Beach and the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Main Beach stretches from the mouth of the San Lorenzo River to the … Continued
