Humboldt County Real Estate Blog

I dare you to go ahead and answer your phone when your mortgage lender calls! Here's why.

1. They really need to know if you still live in your home

2. They would like to work out some sort of loan modification with you

3. They really do not want to foreclose on you!

A couple of weeks ago, I sat with one of my long time clients who was going though some tough times. He called me to sell his house because he was going to lose it. His wife left him and he got laid off from his job. He fell 6 months behind and couldn't see himself suffering any more.

Since he has been a long time client, I took a step back and talked to him a little more about his situation. I found out he just accepted another job that's paying him twice as much.

We sat down and mapped out his finances and he cut out a lot of fluff and doodads. He canceled his premium channels on his cable bill, decided to sell his truck and drive the car to work everyday, he had several products he ordered from home shopping network and was on the auto pay system to which he canceled. We found about $1100 more money for him to work with per month!

I grabbed his mortgage statement and started dialing. Of course, once I entered his info through the automated system, it sent me to the loss mitigation department where a live person answered the phone. Since I couldn;t talk to them about his situation, he HAD to talk to them. He explained his situation and about 10 minutes later, he was smiling after he hung up the phone.

I asked him what happened and he said," After I explained to them what happened and told them about my new job and new income source, they said they are going to send out a loan modification packet and all I have to do is sign it and send them what I can to pay down some of the past debt, and I can stay!"

So, 3 weeks later, he receives his packet, sends in a little money and he is on his way to a fresh start! His payments have gone down slightly and he is now current on his mortgagee.

I went to his house to sell it. I didn't get the sale, but I did get a great cheerleader and most of all, a great friend.

so go ahead and answer your phone, I dare ya! 

Preparing Your House on a Moment's Notice

 Follow these quick tips to ready your home for its best showing when you have 30 or fewer minutes' notice.

 Start where the potential buyers will start:

þ Make sure that the front door presents well. Sweep steps, if needed.

þ Pick up any out-of-place objects and store them away quickly.

 Head inside:

þ Open window treatments and turn on lights.

þ Put any dirty dishes into the dishwasher.

þ Make the beds.

þ Put any dirty laundry inside the washing machine.

 If you still have time:

þ Run a quick vacuum and/or sweeper to give carpets and floors a fresh look.

þ Wipe down counters and tabletops.

þ Warm some vanilla on the stove to give the house a welcoming scent.

 While we would all like to have our houses in showroom condition 24 hours a day, we also know that we live in them. Do your best to present your house in its best light AND make sure that every potential buyer has an opportunity to view it-accommodate all showings possible.

It seems everywhere we look, there's more bad news about the real estate market. But, reading some of your blogs, it seems the market is doing just fine. I'm not an economist and I really don't know how to crunch numbers, but here are some interesting facts about the Humboldt County, California market.

The median price used to be $377,159 in March 2006

Last September brought the number down to $358,767

Last February the number was down to $343887

But, now last month, we jumped back up to 346,219! It now appears we have the lowest priced ocean front/view properties in the state for under $1,000,000!

There is a 3500 sq. ft. home high on the hill with bay and ocean views for only $487500!!

So, how's your market?

One would think with the state of the market in some areas, that many lenders would be falling over themselves to get some of the best buyers to buy homes right now. Well, it seems that may not be the case.

Lenders have really tightened up the purse strings and are becoming even more difficult to deal with.

Case in point, I have been working witgh this ame buyer for 5 years. he has purchased many homes thru me and intends to sell them  thru me when he is ready. He has a creidt score over 750, has a great income and almost 20% down. We have been in escrow with a home that has appraised for more than the asking price and yet, one of the biggest lenders in the U.S. denied the loan! I have yet to get an answer as to why.

Now the sellers are in a panic and the ecrow should have closed a month ago! We have sent the packet to 2 other lenders and so far they are dragging their feet. our county doesn;t have too many comps in a 1/4 mile radius and they seem to think they should treat our area the same as the large cities!

whew! i am so glad for the "Rain because I can vent here and everyone here will understand my pain!

How's the real estate market? Any time I wear my Realtor pin on my lapel, someone notices and asks me the same question. How you answer this all important question will determine where your business will be by the end of this year.

I have heard some people say, "wow, I've never seen it this slow!" or, "I had to take a second job to try and keep up with my bills!"

Most people who have asked me this question is either going to put their home on the market soon or they know someone who's going to be making a move. So, what do you say to people who ask you this all important question?

I always say, "It's movin!"

Isn't it the truth? People are still moving out and moving up! Not as fast as they used to a couple of years ago,but it's still happening.

You listen to the media these days and they will tell you that people are either locked up in their homes and never going to leave or they are just fed up with the payments and have walked out.

So, what are you going to say tpo someone who is curious about our market?

It's moving!!

i have read many posts throughout our Rain Community and have yet to find too many posts about spending time with family. Well, here goes one for the record books!

As I was headed out today to show property, my 10 year old son looked up in my eyes and asked me to play ball with him and to show him how to pitch so he can get ready for the first day of practice tomorrow. At first, I couldn't picture myself kneeling down as catcher in my suit. How can I resist those big brown eyes!

You know, sometimes we go about our days focusing on the next sale or inspection periods or even just trying to please our clients and making sure everything falls into place, but we forget why we do this. Why did we pick this profession?

It is so easy to wake up in the morning, get the kids to school, check in at the office,drive around clients, make presentations and stage listings.

By the time you get home, the homework gets done, dinner gets cooked, the kids get sent to the showers and then off to bed. Then the whole cycle starts all over again the next day.

We shouldn't forget to stop and take a breather and remember our families and thank them for being there for us.

I was late for my appointment today.

But, I played ball with my son.

The California State PTA is opposing the governor's proposed budget for 2008-09 because it would harm the

youngest and most vulnerable in our state: our children. The proposed budget would make across-the-board

cuts to education, healthcare and other programs that have a direct impact on the safety and well-being of

California's children. Below is a list of budget cuts as proposed by the Governor. As the budget gets debated

in Sacramento, we must make sure our children's voices are heard.

Cuts to Schools

Given that California has among the lowest per-pupil funding and largest class sizes in the country, the

Governor's proposed budget reductions would make a bad situation even worse, and they are fundamentally

inconsistent with the state's goal of improving student achievement. The Governor is proposing a $4.4 billion

cut to school funding. This could result in the loss of tens of thousands of teachers and increased class sizes

throughout the state, not to mention a further erosion of programs and the support system for students

provided by special education aides, reading specialists, counselors and other support personnel.

Cuts to Foster Care Programs

Current foster care reimbursement rates are already woefully inadequate. The proposed cuts would ultimately

hurt children and lead to fewer families taking in children who have been abused and neglected.

Cuts to Child Welfare Services

The proposed 10% reduction to funding for child welfare services would cause an accompanying loss of

federal funds, thus compounding the negative impacts. These cuts would endanger the health and safety of

thousands of neglected and abused children. It would mean the loss of more than a thousand social workers

whom children now rely on to investigate reports of abuse and neglect, provide family maintenance services

and reunite families.

Cuts to CalWORKs Program that Supports Low Income Families

Research links outcomes for children to the types of sanctions proposed by the administration. Enacting

policies that drop children from CalWORKs and reduce the amount of resources available to their families

would exacerbate the situation and reduce the likelihood of these families becoming self-sufficient.

Cuts to California Children's Services (CCS) Health Care Program

The proposed cuts to CCS could drastically affect the health care services provided to the severely ill children

served by this program. Medical Therapy cuts would result in longer waiting lists for children to receive

physical therapy. Delays in providing timely medical care to CCS children could result in greater emergency

room usage.

Cuts to Medi-Cal Administrative Cuts

Nearly 160,000 Medi-Cal children would be required to re-apply for eligibility every three months, instead of

the current annual requirement. While increasing the administrative burden, the budget proposal would at the

same time reduce administrative funding. The result would be gaps in - or the loss of - healthcare coverage

for some of the most vulnerable and needy children in California.

Cuts to Juvenile Rehabilitation Facilities and Crime Prevention Grants

The proposed $20 million reduction in funds for the Juvenile Probation and Camps program could mean

closure or service reduction of county-operated residential facilities. Displaced wards would be placed in

group homes, thereby increasing impacts on the foster care program. The $11.9 million proposed cut to the

Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Grant program would cause gaps in the continuum of services that counties

have established to prevent, control and treat juvenile offenders.

Cuts to Early Childhood Education/Child Care

The proposed $198.9 million reduction for child development programs, as well as subsidy criteria changes,

translates into nearly 106,000 children losing access to pre-school and after-school programs, and services that

assist with disabilities.

not really...but I did just get your attention! How are you gaining attention toward yourself and your marketing? How many Press Releases have you sent to your local newspapers? How many times have you advertised your new technology? Have you thought of something different to make your listings stand out?

I am constantly on the look out for something new. Anytime I add another page to my website, or portal, a new press release goes out! There was a time when I subscribed to the Talking House System and I was featured on the local news channel, and all three of our newspapers.

That one press release has given me 3 new clients who have either purchased or sold a piece of property with me! That advertising was FREE!

There are so many ways to get your name out! For Free!

So, here I go! Headed back out to rejoin that fight!

How would you like some free exposure? Become a volunteer with your local festival organizer! Here in Eureka, we just finished our 18th Annual Redwood Coast Jazz Festival. It's 3 days of swing, jazz and blues in 6 venues and it gets bigger and bigger every year!

I was the host/emcee in one of the larger venues and used this opprotunity to promote my company and to hand out business cards to anyone who is interested. It was a great time to listen to some great music and to network with many new people who may need my services in the near future.

Although there were a couple of paying sponsors, and I made sure I mentioned their names alot, I was able to wear a shirt with my logo and told jokes and stories about the real estate market so it was pretty clear what I did for a living.

I also noticed some people here have purchased the new Flip Video and are just raving about it! That could be an amazing press release! I would use that to my full advantage and send a press release out to as many news medias as you can! You can be the authority in this new age of technology and real estate sales!

Finding the right real estate professional requires doing a little research and asking a few questions. You need to know everything about the selling process.

What is the marketing strategy?

What kind of advertising will be done?

Is the Realtor capable and willing to communicate effectively?

 Can the Realtor effectively present and sell the less-noticeable assets of the property?

Is the Realtor familiar with the latest trends in online marketing?

Real estate professionals also need to be knowledgeable about the community. They need to have a feel for the history of the area and the approximate price that people will be willing to pay. Also, real estate agents should know what the competition is and how much it will effect your sale.

NEVER choose a Realtor on price alone. Remember that a Realtor cannot magically raise the selling price of the house. Consider the buyer. The purchaser won't willingly pay too much; it's most likely that he or she will do research on the market and try to find the best product for the best price. The facts simply cannot be changed, no matter which Realtor you select. In spite of these unchangeable factors, the Realtor you select must still be diligent and knowledgable.

If your property does not elicit attention within several weeks, the cause can most likely be attributed to one of these three factors: location, condition, and price. The location obviously cannot be changed. You should consider examining the conditioning of your property and reevaluating the marketing strategy. Ask your Realtor to offer an explanation of the competition and your pricing strategy.