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JaCi Wallace
A Creative Sink For A Sacramento Remodel
A creative sink for a Sacramento remodel is an understatement. A client vacationing in Europe took this photo today while in Naples. It was in a restroom based inside a coffee shop. I love coffee so much and this would be such a fun idea, one that I would seriously consider. I think our Sacramento real estate team Instagram page would benefit from this idea to share.
If you are thinking of remodeling and replacing that tired old bathroom sink, this would certainly be a conversation piece. I’m sure your house guests would all have interesting comments and probably even wash their hands more often.
This is definitely a sink for a Sacramento remodel; just look at how many coffee shops we have in town. Just imagine your plumbing contractor having some fun installing it, brings more pictures to the mind, doesn’t it? I’m sure the plumber would be thinking, hmm? Enjoy the picture and I hope you get a chuckle out of it as I sure did.
This reminds me of a blog Elizabeth previously published regarding a lotus-shaped sink. If you are looking for a unique new sink design with an interesting twist on a water feature, we have a couple of ideas for you. These sinks would make amazing outdoor fountains as well. The possibilities are endless, if you think outside the box.
We have creative ideas to help sell your home. You can be sure that any Realtor who shows a home with a coffee cup sink will not forget it anytime soon. Call Weintraub & Wallace Realtors, with RE/MAX Gold. We can be reached at 916-233-6759.
–JaCi Wallace
Treat the Realtor You Want to Hire With the Same Respect You Expect
Treat the Realtor you want to hire with the same respect you expect for yourself is no different than the Golden Rule. Below is an excerpt from a blog my partner, Elizabeth Weintraub, wrote in August of 2012; it is in italics. As Realtors are paid to sell you a home, occasionally some clients feel that a Realtor doesn’t deserve to be treated well. You know, sellers and buyers get paid to do their job and they would expect fair treatment in the workplace.
I remember a situation where I was not treated fairly. I was trying to explain the details of an offer to a seller. One of the clients immediately barked at me. He said that he had sold homes before and didn’t need to be “talked down to.” Of course, the flip side to that is Realtors are accused of not explaining enough. I apologized and said that my only intent was to provide a gold standard of service and to be thorough.
With some people, you can’t win, no matter how hard you try. We care about each person we help. There is a standard of care we provide, even if we get barked at. Explaining the details is what we are paid to do. When we sell a home, we want clients to feel they had the level of service and care they expected and, more importantly, deserved. Luckily, most clients are kind and appreciative, many become friends. Selling Sacramento real estate is a rewarding job. To this day, 25 years later, I still love what I do. Read on from Elizabeth:
“I work fervently from 5 AM to 7 PM during the week. Much of my day is spent reacting to fires, especially working on 50 short sales or so at a time. Sometimes, I receive more than 500 emails a day. But if you want to be a client, I will call you back. If you are a client, I will call you back. If you are an agent calling on an active listing, I will call you back. This is a service business, and I never forget it. I respect the time of other people.
I had to chuckle, though, when I received an email on Friday from a seller I had never met (and never will meet). She had sent me an email a few days earlier saying she wanted to sell her home in Rocklin. I immediately called and left her a message on her cellphone. No response. Then I sent an email. No response. Four or five hours later, I called and left her another message. No response.
Then, on Friday, she sent an email to say she was feeling ill and could not meet with me, we would need to reschedule, although we had not scheduled an appointment. Obviously, she was in communication with a bunch of other agents. Can’t keep us all straight, I guess. Some days I’m just damn lucky. I’m confident she will find an agent she deserves.” — Elizabeth Weintraub
If the Realtor you want to hire is a professional who provides full-service real estate services, call Weintraub & Wallace Realtors with RE/MAX Gold. We can be reached at 916-233-6759.
— JaCi Wallace
Home Buyer Can Kiss His Earnest Money Deposit Goodbye
A homebuyer can kiss his earnest money deposit goodbye. You may ask, How can a home buyer kiss her money goodbye? The excerpt below in italics is from a blog Elizabeth wrote several years ago. It still holds today. It got me to thinking about a tricky technicality in this deposit forfeiture that you may find interesting.
I represented two buyers on a short sale in Roseville. She and her fiance bought it together. The listing agent was someone who said he was the #1 short sale agent in Sacramento, but, of course, we all know that title was well deserved and earned by the one and only, Elizabeth Weintraub. Well, the couple broke up. Mister buyer went packing, and he had not been removed from the contract, nor did the listing agent ever request it. Should I have removed him, probably, but I knew these two, and they broke up and went back together regularly.
Miss Buyer had removed her contingencies, but Mister had not signed as they were squabbling. Well, lo and behold, I send the cancellation to the listing agent. He replies: we are keeping the buyers’ deposit. I reminded him that Mister Buyer had not released his contingencies. He said, but they broke up, and Miss Buyer released her contingencies.
Well, the seller took my clients to a Small Claims Court. I went with them to testify. I showed the judge our documents and explained Mister had not been removed from the purchase agreement and had not released contingencies. I added one more thing. Your Honor, a seller cannot profit from a short sale and must disclose any funds and income received.
The seller had since sold the property. The judge said as she can not profit and as she had sold her house, what were her damages? I reminded him she was not making payments; that’s why it was a short sale. I said if the deposit were found to be in jeopardy, the bank would be the party to receive those funds. OMG, the seller went crazy. She asked the judge why wasn’t her agent there with her? She said that I should have told her that her agent should have attended court with her.
You get what you pay for. Full service means I accompany my clients to Small Claims. The judge explained to the seller that I did not represent her and was not responsible for her agent’s absence. Additionally, I wasn’t responsible for explaining anything to her. What do you think happened? The judge ordered a full return of my client’s deposit. He did not have to kiss his earnest money deposit goodbye.
Now, for more from Elizabeth:
As a Sacramento real estate agent, I take precautions on behalf of sellers. It’s my job. For example, I routinely ask the buyer to sign a contingency release by the termination date for contingencies. Many listing agents don’t demand a contingency release from buyers because they don’t want to rock the boat or they don’t think of it. What a contingency release does, providing all of the contingencies are released, is put the buyer’s earnest money deposit at risk. It basically says if the buyer later elects to cancel, the earnest money deposit belongs to the seller.
Of course, if the buyer wants to contest the release, the money is not automatically released. Escrow requires mutual consent. In that case, the seller can take the buyer to Small Claims court and fight for the deposit there. Either way, once contingencies are released, the seller is generally entitled to the earnest money deposit. Elizabeth Weintraub.
If you want to have confidence that if you end up in Small Claims we will be right there with you, call Weintraub & Wallace with RE/MAX Gold for full-service representation. We can be reached at 916-233-6759. –JaCi Wallace
More About Getting the Edge When Buying Homes in Sacramento
A tip for getting the edge when buying homes in Sacramento. The italics below feature an excerpt from a blog Elizabeth wrote several years ago. It is the same thing happening today. Agents call and ask if we have offers. We say not yet, but expecting offers any moment. Offers are often sent in poorly written, missing information and without proof of funds. Why would an agent ever send in anything less than picture-perfect offers?
Sometimes the offers never even make it in to us. We follow up with every agent and help in any way we can. Make sure you have discussions about your offers before they are sent to the listing agent. This will help with some of the smaller issues. Enjoy.
In this Sacramento real estate market, it doesn’t matter how many offers the seller has received. Yet, agents continue to call and ask that question. Why doesn’t it matter? Because any well priced home will be sold within hours if not within days of hitting the market. If a listing agent doesn’t have an offer when the buyer’s agent calls, you can bet an offer is on its way. Maybe 10 or 20 offers are in the works. It just doesn’t matter.
What does matter is how strong is your purchase offer? How well written is your offer? Have you included any special conditions to make your offer stand out among other offers?
I have empathy for buyer’s agents in this market. It’s very tough. A buyer’s agent is but one of many pigeons in the park scrambling for tossed bread crumbs. Sacramento is a seller’s market. Limited inventory. — Elizabeth Weintraub
If you want to hire a professional real estate team that always looks for the edge, call Weintraub & Wallace Realtors, with RE/MAX Gold. We can be reached at 916-233-6759.
— JaCi Wallace
Looking For a Dream Home Can Be Like Finding A Lost Hearing Aid
Looking for a dream home can be like finding a lost hearing aid. My mom is here in Wilton with me for a few days every other week. She helps so much with all the animals, she does my laundry, cleans cat boxes. She loves her children so much. At 83, she is a machine. I often have to say, “Mom, it’s 2 AM, let’s go to sleep as I have to work tomorrow,” lol, it is true. She will be moping the floor and I say: “Mom, it’s midnight, why are you moping?” The answer is so she has a head start tomorrow. I hope at 83 I’m half as tough as she.
So, you’re maybe thinking, OK, what does this have to do with a hearing aid? Well, Mom wears a hearing aid. She set it next to the bed and not in the case I gave her. So last night she tells me, “Oh, no, it’s gone.” I asked what is gone? “My hearing aid,” she exclaimed. She heard one of my menagerie of cats playing with something while she was changing the bed (yes, she changes the sheets, too; I’m so spoiled).
I started looking around and I found the battery, then a piece of the ear cover. Finally, I’m about to move my book cabinet out and, lo and behold, here is her hearing aid. It was smack in a pile of dust under the cabinet. Well, she was thrilled. We had been on our hands and knees with flashlights looking at every inch of floorspace wondering: will we ever find it? Cats love to knock stuff off counters and play bat-mitten, it should be called cat-mitten.
I was thinking about how a Zillow buyer called today and wanted a new home in Elk Grove, California. Must be less than 10 years new. Also 3 bedrooms and a two-story, plus a decent back yard for $350k. Well, in all three zip codes, not one house. We looked everywhere. nothing in resale so now checking one new subdivision, This hunting for a house with very low odds reminded me of our hearing aid hunt. Elk Grove has become a very high demand area.
Looking for a dream home under $350,000 in Elk Grove can be like finding a lost hearing aid. You just have to take a systematic approach in your search and not give up. If you want to find your dream home, call Weintraub & Wallace Realtors with RE/MAX Gold. We can be reached at 916-233-6759.
JaCi Wallace
