Welcome to the "Z" Team!

In some parts of the country, energy efficient and eco-friendly homes are easier to find. The real estate brokerage Redfin recently ranked cities that have the greenest homes, basing its rankings on the number of homes for sale that boast green features—such as solar panels, LEED certification, and Energy Star appliances—as well as taking into account each city’s carbon-dioxide emissions ranking.

“The residents of these cities are reducing their environmental footprint and saving money at the same time” by lowering their monthly utility bills, says Julie Jacobson, a real estate agent with Redfin.

The 3 cities emerged on the top of the list for greenest cities for homes:

1. San Francisco
2. Washington, D.C.
3. Sacramento, Calif.

Source: “10 Cities With the Greenest Homes,” AOL Real Estate (April 19, 2013)

The National Association of REALTORS® reported that 16 percent of real estate professionals surveyed in June reported a cancelation in a sale, mostly due to a large number of low appraisals. 

Many real estate professionals are watching deals unravel, with some appraisals coming in 10 to 20 percent — or even more — below the accepted offer. Our Placerville, El Dorado County region has been no exception during the past 3 years. Generally, it seems some appraisers are not familiar with the area or don’t do necessary research?  

“Over the past decade, finding ‘comps’ that accurately reflect values has been a challenge as values rose quickly during the boom and fell just as fast during the bust,” according to a recent article by RISMedia, 5 Ways to Fight a Low Appraisal. “Discounts paid for foreclosures and short sales have created a dual price structure between ‘normal’ and distress sales.”

Obviously one of the easiest solutions when a low appraisal comes in: Ask the seller to agree to a lower price? But when that doesn’t work, RISMedia offers some tips for fighting low appraisals. 

Read more tips from RISMedia on how to fight low appraisals. 

Source: “5 Ways to Fight a Low Appraisal,” RISMedia (Sept. 7, 2011)

Housing isn’t hurting everywhere: A tech rush in Silicon Valley is once again causing mega-mansions to be in demand there. Real estate pro Alex Wang says he’ll get 17 or 18 offers on a property at times, and that buyers are even purchasing homes for hundreds of thousands of dollars over the asking price. Also, many of these buyers are paying cash and closings are happening quickly.

The social media tech boom in Silicon Valley has caused mansions to become sought-after, but with limited inventory of homes for sale, new construction and bidding wars are increasing, Fox News reports. 

In Palo Alto, Facebook’s headquarters, the median sale price of a single-family home rose nearly 5 percent over last year to $1.3-million in June, DataQuick reports.  

“The social media and explosion of high-tech IPOs are also creating a new work environment where people aren’t always in the office,” says Allison Buffam, marketing manager with SummerHill Homes. “They want to be able to be at home and work as well, and they want the best home they can afford.”

 Source: “California Bay Area Mansions Are in Demand Due to Tech Boom,” Fox News (Aug. 11, 2011)

 Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

Shoppers hoping to buy a home aren’t the only ones finding real estate financing a challenge these days. Even big fish in the property game struggled to get funds.

870,000 Californians leave the state, Tustin-based Bridgeport Investments recently financed four Southern California deals worth $40 million. We asked Bridgeport founder Randy Bramel to give us an update on the local climate for corporate real estate financing.

How tough is it the traditional lending environment for home developers and commercial real estate in Southern California these days?

Full article by OCRegister at:

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/estate-305032-real-financing.html 

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

Bankrate.com recently featured a range of tips for first-time sellers to help them stay competitive in today’s real estate market. Here are some things you may want to discuss with your sellers:

Pricing a home competitively from the beginning is important. “Your largest number of showings will occur in the first two to three weeks,” says Mark Ramsey, broker with the Ramsey Group/Keller Williams Realty in Charlotte, N.C. “The (multiple listing service) systems and the Internet tend to drive the majority of showings.” That’s why real estate experts stress that it’s important sellers get a competitive, realistic price from the start.

Consider sweetening the deal. Sellers may be able to lure more buyers by offering some extra incentives, whether that’s leaving that top-of-the-line gas clothes dryer or other items that would be difficult to move, like the two wall-mounted, flat-screen TVs. The perks may add a little extra to attract buyers and become extra selling points too.

Make sure the home is show-ready and in move-in condition. In smaller homes, for example, clutter can mean the difference between cozy and cramped, experts say. Be sure the sellers keep homes clean and clear of clutter, particularly kitchen and bathroom countertops that tend to accumulate personal items that can hamper showing the home’s features.

However, make sure sellers don’t go to the other extreme and clear away too much.

Bankrate.com recently featured a range of tips for first-time sellers to help them stay competitive in today’s real estate market. Here are some things you may want to discuss with your sellers:

Pricing a home competitively from the beginning is important. “Your largest number of showings will occur in the first two to three weeks,” says Mark Ramsey, broker with the Ramsey Group/Keller Williams Realty in Charlotte, N.C. “The (multiple listing service) systems and the Internet tend to drive the majority of showings.” That’s why real estate experts stress that it’s important sellers get a competitive, realistic price from the start.

Consider sweetening the deal. Sellers may be able to lure more buyers by offering some extra incentives, whether that’s leaving that top-of-the-line gas clothes dryer or other items that would be difficult to move, like the two wall-mounted, flat-screen TVs. The perks may add a little extra to attract buyers and become extra selling points too.

Make sure the home is show-ready and in move-in condition. In smaller homes, for example, clutter can mean the difference between cozy and cramped, experts say. Be sure the sellers keep homes clean and clear of clutter, particularly kitchen and bathroom countertops that tend to accumulate personal items that can hamper showing the home’s features.

However, make sure sellers don’t go to the other extreme and clear away too much.

Full article at: “7 Tips for the First-time Home Seller,” Bankrate.com (June 2011)

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

Low appraisals that come in below the purchase price are still delaying closings or killing some sales contracts, real estate professionals say in a survey from April.

One out of 10 real estate professionals–or 11 percent–say that low appraisals are causing home sales contracts to fall through. An additional 10 percent say low appraisals are delaying closings, according to an April survey by the National Association of REALTORS®. About the same number of real estate professionals reported the problems with low appraisals in a March survey.

About 14 percent of real estate professionals reported that appraisals below the purchase price are requiring extra negotiating in order to get the deal closed.

“Short sales and foreclosures are still priced too high by the lenders, who do not believe the agents information concerning actual market conditions,” said one real estate professional in the survey comments.

Source: “Appraisals Still Kill Home Sales,” UPI.com (May 25, 2011) 

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

Say goodbye to the traditional laptop and desktop computer–tablet computers will soon be the only thing most people will need, industry analysts predict. And real estate professionals are not immune to the trend, continuing to unlock the business potential computer tablets offer in keeping them in touch with their business while on the go.

Indeed, while global PC sales recently posted its largest drop in nearly 10 years, tablet sales have been soaring.

In 2010, about 19 million tablets were sold worldwide when Apple debuted its first iPad, which then set off a wave of tablet competitors. By the end of this year, tablet sales are expected to more than double to 50 million units. By 2012, industry analysts predict sales could reach 100 million.

Full article at: “Will Tablet Computers Take Over?” Consumer Reports (May 9, 2011) 

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

Banks who spend the extra cash to rehab a foreclosed or REO property stand to sell the property much faster than a non-rehabbed REO, according to a new study by Field Asset Services Inc., a property preservation and REO asset management company.

For the last two years, the company has analyzed the number of days on market for remodeled foreclosure or REO properties versus those that are not remodeled.

In reviewing 17,252 properties across 13 states, researchers found that the average days on the market for REO properties that were not rehabbed was 222.8 days. On the other hand, properties that were rehabbed sold, on average, in 69.8 days.

“When a home looks better, it sells faster,” Javier Zuluaga, director of sales and marketing for Home Repairs and Remodeling (HR&R) LLC in Tempe, Ariz., told Inman News.  

Full article at: “Rehabbed REOs Spend Less Time on Market,” Inman News (April 22, 2011) 

Our comment: Lenders might consider this in the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions. This is what may cash buyers are doing.   

Despite Federal Reserve regulations that took effect April 1 requiring lenders to pay appraisers fair fees, many appraisers say they are still offered $200 to $250 by lenders for work billed to consumers at $450 or more.

MAKING SENSE OF THE STORY:

Last year’s Dodd-Frank financial reform law mandated that appraisers receive fees that are “customary and reasonable” for their local market areas, yet the Appraisal Institute says that is not happening.

While a portion of the difference between what consumers are billed and appraisers are paid goes to the management companies that connect lenders with local appraisers and take a percentage for their services, often times lenders make a profit from the appraisal as well.

Home buyers should care about this for several reasons. For starters, accurate appraisals are a concern for consumers, as appraisals can be deal-breakers if the appraisal comes in too low. When performed competently, appraisals can be accurate measures of the equity in a home when the homeowner refinances or seeks a second mortgage.

Read the full story: http://lat.ms/hIGZUL

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

The country’s top mortgage servicers have reportedly reached an agreement on changes to their foreclosure procedures.

The consent agreement has not yet been made public, but The New York Times was able to get a preview of what the agreement contains from individuals who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Among the proposed changes include:

• Greater oversight of foreclosures. The oversight will happen from third party groups that include law firms, who mostly will be charged with doing the actual work of eviction, The New York Times reports.
• Improved training of foreclosure staff.
• A single point of contact for every defaulting home owner with the servicers. Mortgage servicers will no longer be able to foreclose while borrowers are pursuing loan modifications.
• Servicers will hire independent consultants to review foreclosures that have been completed in the past two years. Mortgage servicers have agreed to compensate any owner who is found to have been improperly foreclosed on or made to pay excessive fees. 

Source: “Servicers Said to Agree to Revamped Foreclosures,” The New York Times (April 5, 2011) 

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com