Email Elizabeth
Elizabeth Weintraub
Sacramento Home Selling Myths That Sellers Often Believe
Because I’m in full blown spring mode dealing with Sacramento home selling myths at the moment, I’ve noticed that I get asked somewhat the same questions from many sellers. At first I wondered where are they getting these ideas? But then I decided there isn’t any one place, and much of it is arrived at within their own minds. It makes sense to them. Even if it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, those beliefs, so I try to be even more patient and understanding.
One of the most common Sacramento home selling myths I hear repeated: seeing as how we have to pay commissions and closing costs, can we raise the price? The reason we listing agents get that question? Because sellers temporarily forget how we determined the sales price. And they honestly did not think about paying costs of sale. Raising the price seems entirely rational and normal to ask. When you think about it this way, you can see how a seller could come to that conclusion.
But it is a bad idea. You do not want to be overpriced or priced so high you won’t even get one offer much less the multiple offers sellers crave. When more than one buyer fights for the home, that alone can raise the price. The costs of sale also have no bearing on the sales price. The costs are whatever the costs are. The standard real estate commission in my neck of the woods that top producers charge makes perfect sense because we tend to negotiate better than inexperienced agents who charge less. We also tend to get higher sales price ratios and we eliminate more hassles for our clients.
A second common Sacramento home selling myth: oh, geez, my ceiling fans are so gorgeous and I love my Tiffany light fixtures; can I take them with me? Even if they seem incompatible with the seller’s new home, sellers believe someday they will use them again. Perhaps the fixtures have been part of the seller’s life for years. An emotional reaction. However, they are fixtures: a legal thing. They are also the things that makes the sellers’ home so beautiful. Without the gorgeous ceiling fans and Tiffany light fixtures, the home could lose some of its luster and appeal. It won’t be so pretty anymore.
Fixtures, basically anything attached in a permanent manner, should remain with the home. Buyers do not want to buy stripped-out homes with builder-grade low-end fixtures when they pay a premium price.
The third common Sacramento home selling myth: Must my house be 100% perfect to be for sale? Must all the appliances be brand new? Should we paint the interior and exterior? In our super hot seller’s market, the single most important thing a seller can do is clean the house and get rid of trash. Make it presentable and liveable and loveable. That does not mean sellers need to repaint in contemporary colors or fix minor defects that nobody will notice. Call your Sacramento Realtor today and get that home ready for sale. Spring awaits!
Wondering How Much to Offer to Buy a Home in Sacramento Today?
One of the hardest decisions for a home buyer is how much to offer to buy a home in Sacramento. Buyers see the list price but it doesn’t mean much to them. Not being in the real estate business, many buyers look to their agents for advice while others soak up bad information on cable TV. All real estate is local. That means only one thing: The only advice that matters is that which pertains to the Sacramento real estate market. Not Los Angeles or Miami or Chicago.
A seller’s market persists in Sacramento. See my Sacramento Housing Market Report for February 2018. We’ve been in the midst of a seller’s market for a long time now. We have very few homes for sale. High demand. Remember your high school classes about the laws of supply and demand? When supply is low, demand goes up. When supply is high, demand goes down. Supply = house for sale. Demand = qualified, ready, willing and able home buyers.
For example, to help to determine how much to offer to buy a home in Sacramento, you should first look at our local real estate market. Today, for instance, we have 1,822 residential listings in Sacramento (versus over 10,000 homes from the height of 2005). We have 1,501 pending listings. A tight market exists. Many listings receive multiple offers. The starting point for most purchase offers in Sacramento happens to be list price.
Interestingly, more than 72% of all listings sold within the first 30 days in Sacramento (over the 30 days). The list-price-to-sales-price average ratio for all of these listings? 100.55%. Obviously, the more desirable the home, the higher over list price a buyer needs to go. Swamped open houses and many buyers ooh-ing and ah-ing tends to result in a lot of offers bubbling up on the horizon.
Unfortunately, comparable sales won’t help much in our seller’s market. You need to rely on your agent’s advice now more than ever, especially if you do not have access to accurate information about the local market. Zillow can’t really help you, either. I’ve seen it incorrectly tag certain neighborhoods as buyer’s markets.
So, to figure out an offer price for a Sacramento home today, especially newer listings, buyers may need to begin at list price. Then, determine the number of competing offers and plan accordingly.
How Does an AS IS Sale Work in Sacramento?
Technically, when you get right down to it, the question about how does an AS IS sale work in Sacramento makes little sense because every sale is AS IS. But buyers don’t really understand that concept and many of their agents fail to grasp the verbiage, too. For example, many agents do not spend time perusing our purchase contracts. However, they should because our California Residential Purchase Agreement, paragraph 11, states the following:
11. CONDITION OF PROPERTY: Unless otherwise agreed in writing: (i) the Property is sold (a) “AS-IS” in its PRESENT physical condition as of the date of Acceptance and (b) subject to Buyer’s Investigation rights; (ii) the Property, including pool, spa, landscaping and grounds, is to be maintained in substantially the same condition as on the date of Acceptance; and (iii) all debris and personal property not included in the sale shall be removed by Close Of Escrow.
AS IS does not mean that after a home inspection the seller is required to make repairs nor otherwise satisfy the buyers’ concerns. Now, if you consider a first-time home buyer, well, not unusual to discover this type of buyer harbors a bit of confusion, especially if you listen to a buyer’s agent assuring the buyer she can make the seller do repairs. Not true. Every home presents defects. Every home requires upkeep and maintenance. No law requires sellers to make a home suitable for a buyer’s tastes or preferences.
Maintaining a home falls to the buyer’s shoulders. Welcome to home ownership. And whatever improvements the buyer wants to make. However, I can beat to death this topic as definitely reflected in other blogs you can probably note below this blog. Instead why not talk about how does an AS IS sale work in Sacramento, especially when buying, say, a fixer.
Often I include in counter offers the wording: Sold in its AS IS condition, and there will be no renegotiations, no credits and no repairs.
You probably think that sounds very straight forward and clear. Yah? But people pretend they don’t understand. Non capisco. No entiendo. Or, they thought they understood but completely forgot the neglected home exuded much deferred maintenance. It came as a shock to them, a total shock, mind you, that floors that give a little bit underfoot might bend due to a broken joist. Or that wet, rotting wood might produce termites. Or, that the sagging roof one could easily spot from the ground might need replacing.
So to these people, answering the question about how does an AS IS sale work in Sacramento, well, they make the mistake of assuming it works through attempts to renegotiate. Or extortion. By claiming brain injury or foggy memories. Or, by blowing defects out of proportion. What a fun game. And many try to play. When they really should consider admitting, hey, sorry, I goofed when I made an offer. Did not mean to commit. I’m not ready to buy AS IS real estate in Sacramento.
But that will happen when pigs fly.
Probably half of my AS IS sales blow up because those buyers did not enter into contracts in good faith. The other half close with the first buyer. But first buyer, second buyer, makes no difference to me which ultimately purchases home. The only thing for me to add: my sellers understand AS IS means AS IS. Nothing else. At least for my transactions. If buyers expect a discount or some other consideration, not gonna happen.
Seller Asked: Did You Just Sell a Home in Hampton Station?
When the seller asked did I just sell a home in Hampton Station, I had to stop to think about his question. I did just sell a home in Hamptons Village in Natomas on Tides Edge, but he meant a different subdivision. Mostly homes built by Woodside in Hampton Station in south Sacramento off Florin. When you sell as many homes every year as I do, it’s sometimes a challenge to keep them all straight. This was a subdivision I did not even realize existed until I sold a home at 7511 Georgica Way in Hampton Station.
Secluded doesn’t begin to describe this area. Nothing around it resonates with the construction of all these newer homes. The cluster of homes pretty much stands alone. Some of the homes back to the railroad tracks and power lines; hence my listing on Georgica.
The seller seemed to think his home on Tisdale was an identical model to Georgica, but no. Georgica actually had a better layout. Not to mention, the square footage differed by about 50 or so square feet. Although the lot size at Tisdale was much bigger than Georgica, one of the largest lot sizes among homes in that area. He seemed very insistent that he work with me since I managed to sell a home in Hampton Station.
I mention this because the seller of Tisdale wanted a much higher price. The comparable sales for the area indicated a top price of $340K, but he wanted to push it even further to $345K. OK, fine with me. I was not too happy with the crumpled astro turf he left in the yard, but hey, at least he got rid of the above-ground pool, so focused on the bright side. Besides, I wanted to sell a home in Hampton Station again. This seemed an easier sale than the Georgica sale that overlooked the train tracks and power lines.
Sure enough, after a few showings and our open house, the home sold. Not only did I sell the home through all of my marketing attempts — and I utilize a big arsenal of marketing tools — but it sold for all cash. At full list price. No appraisal. I negotiated no repairs and no credits for the buyers, represented by their own agent. Home free. Such a smooth closing.
7389 Tisdale Way, Sacramento, CA 95822 sold at $345,000 on March 13th, 2018. If you would like to sell a home in Hampton Station, call Elizabeth Weintraub and put 40+ years of experience to work for you. Call 916.233.6759. I answer my cell.
New Listing: Spacious Mid-Century Home in Rancho Cordova
Who would not love a big mid-century home in Rancho Cordova? Especially a home with 3 baths and updates! This gorgeous single-level story is more than 2,100 square feet, according to the Sacramento County Assessor’s office. The layout includes a permitted family room addition, about 20 x 20 feet, that looks like it was original. If you need 3 bedrooms (all large) and 3 baths, you can’t do any better than this home in Rancho Cordova.
Oh, my goodness, will you look at those beautiful hardwood floors? This living room is spacious and open, with a floor-to-ceiling painted white brick fireplace. What picture will you hang in that spot? It’s the first room you see when you walk into the sheltered entry. Through the living room, you can see the bonus family room with sliding glass doors. Why you could fit two pool tables easily in that space.
Into the updated kitchen, the first thing you will notice, of course, is the light earth-toned granite counters. So much storage available. Plus space in the kitchen for a table and chairs. There is a double oven and a gas cooktop, including a built-in black microwave. Right off the kitchen is a formal dining room, which also features sliding doors to the bonus family room.
Down the hall of this Mid-Century home in Rancho Cordova to the bedrooms. Apart from a 1/2 bath, a vintage bright yellow sink, there is another full bath (also vintage in pink) in the hallway with a tub and shower, and yet another full bath (white) in the master with a shower. All three of the bedrooms are larger than you might expect. But then, the home was constructed in 1959 when larger bedrooms were more common.
The back yard — wow, so many fruit trees: orange, mandarin orange, lemon and peach trees. On top of which, for your entertaining, a roomy covered brick patio, too. See the virtual tour. It will give you a better feel for how large the yard actually is!
Restricted hours for showing this Mid-Century home in Rancho Cordova. Call your own Sacramento Realtor or the listing agent, Elizabeth Weintraub, at 916.233.6759 for more information and details.
10829 Glenhaven Way, Rancho Cordova, CA 95670, offered exclusively by Elizabeth Weintraub and Lyon Real Estate at $375K.
