Flippers Rule in Some Sacramento Markets

June 18, 2013 by Elizabeth Weintraub

June is shaping up to be a pretty good month for my real estate closings. I’ll probably have more sales close in June than any other month this year. I just closed a regular home sale in Curtis Park. This was a beautiful brick home in the St. Francis Oaks subdivision. Everybody who saw the home said pretty much the same thing about it: it was gorgeous but it wasn’t updated enough for their tastes. So, it sold to a … Continue reading →

Should Sacramento Home Sellers Give Early Possession to Buyers?

June 17, 2013 by Elizabeth Weintraub

My cat, Pica, has a one-track mind when it comes to communicating what he wants. His focus is crystal clear, because he asks for only one thing. It’s never food nor treats nor pets nor playtime that he begs for, perhaps because those requests are often ignored, especially when I am working, which is most of the day for at least 5 days a week. The one thing that he truly wants above all else in life is to go … Continue reading →

How to Attend a Funeral

June 16, 2013 by Elizabeth Weintraub

One type of social function I have not attended in recent years has been a funeral. It’s not that I’ve been too busy selling real estate in Sacramento to notice when a friend has died, like I’m certain some agents who close fewer transactions than I might use as an explanation. Oh, she’s just too busy to come cry over you, I can hear them whispering to the person inside the coffin. “There’s always something about about your success,” Mark … Continue reading →

Choosing a Sacramento Real Estate Agent in the Top 10%

June 15, 2013 by Elizabeth Weintraub

My relationship with Google is that of love and hate. It’s a necessary evil. When Google says Do No Evil, I wonder why they don’t talk to themselves about it. Isn’t world domination in itself sort of an evil goal? Don’t they ever watch 007 movies? On the other hand, Google delivers my products and services to the world. It’s difficult to put a real estate term into Google and not find one of my articles about real estate. Ditto … Continue reading →

The Waiting Period for Multiple Offers in Sacramento

June 14, 2013 by Elizabeth Weintraub

How many purchase offers does it take to sell a home in Sacramento these days? Maybe a better way to put it is how many days should a seller wait to accept an offer after receiving the first purchase offer? An agent in San Jose called Thursday afternoon about a listing in Elk Grove that went on the market on Monday. I informed her the home was pending. Wha? She was shocked. She stuttered, “Bu bu bu but, it was … Continue reading →

Another Amazing Bank of America Cooperative Short Sale

June 13, 2013 by Elizabeth Weintraub

I closed another Bank of America cooperative short sale yesterday, this time in West Sacramento. The entire short sale was processed as smooth as silk. Our on market date to closing was fewer than 60 days, start to finish. This is because I prequalify my sellers whom I believe will be a good candidate for the Cooperative Short Sale. By the time we go on the market, we have the agreement in place to do a Cooperative and we have … Continue reading →

Congressman Uses Political Power to Persecute a Short Sale Agent

June 12, 2013 by Elizabeth Weintraub

A friend of mine, a real estate agent on the East Coast, is under investigation and accused of breaking the law when he did nothing of the sort. It’s a crazy situation, apparently brought on by vengeance and petty vindictiveness, in other words, it’s political. Some guy in Congress tried to buy a short sale. He wrote an offer that was contingent on selling his home and sent it to my friend, the listing agent. Now, you and everybody from … Continue reading →

How a 21-Year-Old Can Buy a Home

June 11, 2013 by Elizabeth Weintraub

My 21-year-old niece should be buying a home but instead she is spending an entire month’s take-home-pay to acquire a Sphynx kitten. I didn’t know what my sister had sent me when I first laid eyes on the photograph. She had sent a photo to my cellphone without any explanation, just asking what I thought. I said it looked horrid, like a Gollum creature. That’s when she sprang the news that it was my niece’s new kitten and not some … Continue reading →