I was recently visiting a house in Fremont that our real estate team was about to put on the market. It is a short sale. As I was headed for my car, the neighbor from next door hailed me. He asked if I had a couple of minutes to spare to talk to him. In […]

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We have long known that high performing schools drive real estate values upwards in the areas around those schools. In the Mission San Jose School District of Fremont, Ca. a buyer will pay more for their new home than they will for a similar home in surrounding communities or even other parts of Fremont. Why? […]

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The Medford Team has a new listing in Castro Valley. It is a beautifully landscaped home on a cul-de-sac in Castro Valley’s well regarded Columbia neighborhood. The home has 4 bedrooms and 2.5 baths in 2,154 sq. ft. on a large lot of 9,300 sq. ft. With an upgraded kitchen, new paint and in an […]

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Anti-Deficiency Protection Almost There: On Thursday, August 19, the California Senate approved SB1178.  This bill extends anti-deficiency protections to homeowners who refinanced their mortgages, but didn’t take any cash out, and are now facing foreclosure.According to C.A.R. under existing law, if a homeowner defaults on a mortgage used to purchase a home, the home owner’s liability on the mortgage […]

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It has been a good Christmas Season. I just got back from two days away visiting family in the Sierra foothills. Cold, but no snow. Warm inside with great-grandparents, grandparents (me included), parents and children all gathered for the holiday fun and joy. Lots of good food and love in several helpings. I got my […]

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If you answered the above questions by saying “A long sale” you are wrong. A short sale IS a long sale! (Of course, we are talking about real estate, not stocks and bonds.) When I say long, I mean as in a long time…months, in fact.
Some time back, I told my wife that I was […]

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Mortgage rates have been low for a while. They remain low. Unusually low. Attractively low. You don’t really expect them to stay this low forever…do you?
A recent article in The Business Journel, covering the Triad Area of Greensboro and Winston/Salem , North Carolina stated that ” Freddie Mac says the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.78 percent this […]

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Are you a real estate investor? How many properties do you own? Do you have a mortgage on these properties? Well…if you have 4 or more mortgages, then you better be ready to write a check for the full amount of your next purchase. Yes…it does not matter if your credit is good and you […]

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Aren’t we getting tired of short sales?
 Misleading prices…extremely long response periods from lenders…the necessity for way to many follow up phone calls-from buyer’s agent to listing agent and from listing agent to lender…buyers walking away from offers because they have (pick one) 1. bought another property, 2. got tired of waiting for a response, 3. […]

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My wife was happy when I told her that I was writing an offer for a client.
“The property is a ’short sale’ ” I told her.
 ”Great!” she said. “That means that your commission check will  come quickly. Why don’t you do more transactions like that?”
 Well…she assumed that ’short’ meant short-time-wise. Not so! Short, in this […]

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