Whether you’re a homeowner who plans to sell or just wants to keep the value of your home up, you are right to be concerned about a run-down property in the neighborhood. The problem, though, is that you just don’t have much control over what your neighbors do concerning their homes even when they have … Continued
Selling your house to a friend or family member can be a pleasant, smooth transaction . . . or it can be a painful, enemy-making disaster. Keep in mind that you will be transferring ownership of your most valuable asset, one that you may have strong emotional ties to from living there for years. And … Continued
Open houses should resemble (at least a little) a job interview or the house’s audition. But the reality is that most of the time they are boring at best. Potential buyers show up, look around for a little, feign some interest, and then duck out as soon as they can. And often the only reason … Continued
While it’s important to keep a clean home the entire time it’s on the market, it feels like the largest part of selling your home involves the initial deep cleaning and reorganization. Let’s start your home sale off in the right direction by looking at 5 areas of your home to focus on when selling … Continued
If you’re thinking of buying a second home, you may not realize that the process is a little different than buying your primary home. While all the basics are the same, there are some things to keep in mind when choosing a new property. Here are 4 steps for buying a second home in Santa Cruz without … Continued
For most homebuyers, acquiring a home loan through a reputable mortgage lender is a large part of the home purchase adventure. Let’s get you prepared to start off with a lender on the right foot by looking at how to avoid getting turned down for a mortgage in CA. Check Your Credit History Every single … Continued
The year 2022 continues the ongoing saga of strange times in the real estate industry, and there are plenty of ways to make your listing stand out in the ever-changing markets. To help you generate as much buyer interest as possible and get your home sold fast, here are 5 trends to help you sell … Continued
Traditionally in most markets, spring is the best time to list and sell a house, with fall coming in a close second. Summer has a few selling challenges that other seasons don’t have: kids are out of school, people are on vacation, and summer activities keep a lot of people busy. So selling during the … Continued
Going through a divorce is never easy, no matter how amicable it is. Adding the sale of a home, which is often a major focus in divorce proceedings, just brings another level of stress. Your home is likely your greatest asset and holds sentimental value for both parties, and that usually complicates matters even further. … Continued
Taxes are, as you know, one of those two irksome but inevitable things in life. And included among the inevitable taxes are property taxes. It’s just that with these taxes, many of us don’t know as much about them as we should or could. For example, how are property taxes calculated, who pays them in … Continued
The idea of homeownership is to build equity in your home that becomes an asset over time. In fact, a home is often the largest asset many people will ever have with the exception of perhaps a retirement plan. There are ways for you to maximize the value of the asset before you sell. Improvements can happen … Continued
In almost every home sale, the buyer will request the seller to make some fixes and repairs. Sometimes these are reasonable and should be done, but other times not. This means that there are fixes you should do and those you shouldn’t do when selling your house. The difficulty for most sellers lies in knowing … Continued
As one of the least well-understood aspects of selling your home, closing costs tend to quickly eat away at the profits from selling your home. To gain a better grasp of how things will work for you once your home is sold, let’s go over what Santa Cruz home sellers should know about closing costs. … Continued
If you’re ready to escape the cold, you’ve probably set your sights on buying in a warmer climate. Whether you’re relocating, buying a second home, or retiring, purchasing a home in a warmer area requires some special considerations. Here are 5 things to watch out for when buying in a warmer climate such as Santa Cruz: … Continued
Over half of all businesses in this country are home-based businesses, and a few of the biggest companies started out as home-based businesses. But buying a house that will accommodate your business and your living needs can be pretty challenging. If you run a business from home, the house you buy has to meet both … Continued
When purchasing a home, it can be easy to get caught up in all of the little things going on around you while losing sight of other important aspects. Let’s help to keep your head on straight by going over 6 things homebuyers wish they knew before buying a home in Santa Cruz. It Pays … Continued
Right now is the perfect time to drum up buyer interest and get serious bidding wars going over your for-sale home. Let’s give those interested parties the opportunity to come and witness what your home has to offer with our 5 incredible ideas to rock your Santa Cruz open house this summer. Push Your Listing … Continued
Technology is advancing at an exponentially growing rate in most areas and industries. Until recently, though, that hasn’t been the case in the real estate arena. The adoption of the latest technologies in real estate has lagged behind that in other business sectors. But that’s changing now, with a huge increase in real estate tech … Continued
When a homeowner passes and doesn’t have a revocable living will in place, the most common scenario is for the property to go into probate. And if the owner dies owing significant debts, the property will have to be sold off to pay creditors. Most of the time, homes in probate are marketed and sold … Continued
Are you preparing to sell your house? Well, hold on a second before counting all that money to intend to make from the sale. It may in fact cost you much more to sell your house than you realize, and that means less profit than you were counting on. It doesn’t always cost a lot … Continued
Planning on selling your home during the hot summer real estate market? Don’t wait until you are about to list to determine what needs to be done. Plan ahead to keep your sanity and maximize your listing price options. Here are key items on what to do now to sell your property this summer in … Continued
Buying a house is usually far from easy, even if you’re not a first-time buyer. From house shopping to making an offer to negotiating to close, a host of things can go wrong in the process. And in today’s competitive market, buyers need a plan in order to avoid common mistakes. You certainly need to … Continued
It may appear simpler, more profitable, and enticing to take on the responsibilities of preparing and selling your home all on your own, but there are serious issues that could endanger the sale. To help put things into perspective, let’s go over 4 downsides of selling your home on your own in Santa Cruz: Pricing … Continued
Interview with Bob Nash; President of Kingsmen Car Club I’m really excited today because we are here with Bob Nash, who is the president of Kingsman Car Club, a Santa Cruz Classic Car Club! I met Bob when a client of mine needed to sell her 1964 Chrysler 300, which was a really cool car. … Continued
For some of us, selling a home may seem like a simple task, but there’s a lot that goes into every real estate transaction. To save yourself the headaches and avoid the pitfalls, let’s go over 3 reasons why you need to hire an agent when selling your house in Santa Cruz. They Know the … Continued
Reverse mortgages are talked about a lot these days, but are sometimes not that well understood. Basically, a reverse mortgage is a type of mortgage loan secured against a residential property that can provide additional income for retirees, doing so by giving them access to the unencumbered value of their properties. But that doesn’t really … Continued
Homeowners associations (HOAs) are great for some people, but not so much for others. If you want to live in a well-run, well-maintained, orderly neighborhood or community, then an HOA is likely a good fit for you. But if you’d resent not being able to decide how to manage and change your own property the … Continued
You know that before listing and trying to sell your house, you’ll have to make some fixes and possibly some upgrades. But where do you start and what, exactly should you do? If you’re like most of us, you don’t have the cash on hand for major renovations or an all-out remodel (which may not … Continued
A home sale generates hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even with the high revenues and potential capital gains, everyone wants to maximize profits. While you don’t want to spend money that doesn’t provide a return on investment in the final sale price, don’t hesitate to put the right money into your home. Save money in … Continued
When it comes to selling your home, you certainly want to get every little bit you can for the time, effort, and money you have invested into the property. In order to maximize your profits and give your property the edge versus the competition, here are 4 quick things you can do to add value … Continued
