Email Elizabethsacramento buyer’s agents
Where Can You Buy Below Sacramento’s Median Housing Price?
Do not get discouraged that choices are limited below Sacramento’s median housing price.
When you see Sacramento’s median housing price rose to $317,000 for April, you might wonder what you can buy for that and where can you buy it? Some of you might question whether we’re headed for a bubble, but that’s unlikely. Our median housing price was $374,000 at the height of the market in the summer of 2005. We’re a ways from that. Plus, lending is too restrictive now and many buyers are paying cash. If you’re thinking “bubble” forget those thoughts. Can’t blame the bubble.
If you feel the need to point the fickle finger of fate at somebody, point it at the White House. Interest rates are going up, but that was inevitable. Blame yourself, perhaps, for not buying at the bottom of the market in 2011, or just suck it up and get over it. What are ya gonna do anyway? Move to Texas? Because Sacramento is one of the most affordable places to live in California.
I took a peek into the MLS to see if I could show you what’s for sale in Sacramento. I wanted to answer the question: where can you buy below Sacramento’s median housing price. Below are the numbers I found. Bear in mind these numbers constitute ALL of Sacramento County, from Antelope out into the hitherlands of Isleton.
In all of Sacramento, we have 531 homes for sale below Sacramento’s Median Housing Price. Here is the breakdown, including photos of recent pending and closed sales that were listed by Elizabeth Weintraub at Lyon Real Estate:
Under $200,000 for sale (below Sacramento’s Median Housing Price):
5901 Meghan Way in Foothill Farms sold under $200K, listed by Elizabeth Weintraub, Lyon.
63 homes under $200K
Most of these are in North Sacramento, North Highlands or Tallac Village.
$201,000 to $250,000 for sale (below Sacramento’s Median Housing price):
8375 Holly Jill in 95823 sold at $245K, listed by Elizabeth Weintraub, Lyon.
144 homes, $201K to $250K
Most of these are in North Sacramento, Oak Park, South Sacramento
$251,000 to $300,000 for sale (below Sacramento’s Median Housing price):
2808 American Av in Gardenland sold at $270K, listed by Elizabeth Weintraub, Lyon.
215 homes, $251K to $300K
These are more scattered, in Carmichael, Citrus Heights, Rio Linda, Rancho Cordova, South Sacramento and South Natomas.
$300,000 to $325,000 for sale (right at Sacramento’s Median Housing price):
8233 Crystal Walk in Elk Grove sold at $306,000, listed by Elizabeth Weintraub, Lyon.
109 homes, $300K to $325K
Scattered more still, among Citrus Heights, Elk Grove and Elk Grove school districts of 95828 and 95829, South Sacramento, Rosemont, Natomas, Foothill Farms and Antelope.
What Can You Buy in the Capitol Corridor of Sacramento under $400,000?
2709 2nd Avenue in Curtis Park sold at $390,000, listed by Elizabeth Weintraub, Lyon
In the inner core corridor of Sacramento, which is Downtown, Midtown, East Sac, Land Park and Curtis Park, we have 8 single-family homes for sale under $400,000. They are mostly around 1,000 square feet, and priced between $329,000 and $400,000. (This report does not include condos.)
What does this mean for Sacramento home buyers? It means tough competition in the median housing price market, multiple offers and you better have hired a top-notch buyer’s agent or you’ll buy nothing. You might have to write more than one offer in this market, and only the strong will persevere. If you get discouraged easily, maybe this is not the market for you.
Will you be one of the lucky 500 homebuyers in Sacramento County to buy a single-family home below $325,000?
Hey, if you’re a fighter, and you believe in yourself, in your family and in your agent’s ability to find and negotiate the winning offer, you will buy a home. You can count on it. Just don’t expect it to be easy.
Need help? I can connect you with an exclusive buyer’s agent from the Elizabeth Weintraub Team ready to assist. Call Elizabeth at 916.233.6759.
Sacramento Agents Can Cause Buyers to Lose the House
Sacramento agents should thoughtfully craft purchase offers to avoid counter offers in hot markets.
The one thing all Sacramento agents should try to avoid have happen with their buyer’s purchase offer is to give the seller’s agent and seller a reason to issue a counter offer. A few weeks ago, a seller had a counter offer out, and while we waited for the response, another buyer swooped in and submitted an offer that the seller accepted. After pulling the counter offer, of course. If one can avoid the counter-offer situation all together, a Sacramento agent can increase the odds her buyer won’t lose the house.
The Elizabeth Weintraub Team members realize this and we try to avoid counter offers at all costs. When my husband and I bought our house in Hawaii, for example, there was already a counter out. Our offer caused the seller to pull that counter, too. Buyers, don’t ever let the fact that there is an existing outstanding counter offer discourage you. Jump on that baby like hot fudge on a sundae.
Some Sacramento agents never call the listing agent before submitting an offer. Even in this market of low inventory and high demand, which makes this a seller’s market. They just shoot over an offer, thinking this is how they’ve always done it, but maybe that purchase offer contains things that need to be countered. Now they’ve set up their buyer for possible failure.
It’s not just the sales price a buyer needs to worry about. It’s not always the big things. Often, it’s the little things. Here are some of the small things that Sacramento agents can do to cause their buyers to lose the house by inadvertently forcing the seller to counter:
- Asking for personal property that is not included in the purchase price
- Bucking local custom on how fees are split
- Requesting government retrofits, i.e. water-saving devices
- Demanding to choose title and escrow
- Asking for longer than 30 days to close
- Not tightening contingency periods
Success is often buried in the details. In the fine print. And it is to a buyer’s advantage for her agent to find out if there are special things the seller might hope to see in the offer. Maybe the seller needs a few days to move or to rent back? Sacramento agents won’t know if they don’t call the listing agent. (Of course, that agent would have to answer her phone.)
If you’re looking for Sacramento agents who work to avoid counters for their buyers (and answer their phones), call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759.
When Sacramento Buyer’s Agents Use the Wrong Comps
Sometimes agents use the wrong comps or don’t provide comps to buyers.
Sacramento buyer’s agents do not always give the comparable sales to the buyer and, if they do, sometimes agents use the wrong comps. Buyers often base a price decision on what else is for sale and not on closed comps. It is not uncommon. Further, the reasons why agents use the wrong comps are varied. Agents might pull comps that are outside of the property’s radius. Or, there might be too many comparable sales in that particular neighborhood to choose from. Or, perhaps the agents just don’t know the neighborhood very well.
Maybe the buyer’s agent is unfamiliar with appraisal terms. There are all kinds of real estate agents in Sacramento real estate. A seller mentioned to me the other day that the first agent she considered to list her home was a property manager. He wanted to list her home for almost $50,000 more than the comps supported. Why? We don’t know. Maybe he didn’t want to lose the listing.
I explained to the seller that many property managers are not really real estate agents, per se. She said ever-so-sweetly, “Oh, but he has a real estate license.” Certainly, he has a real estate license because it is required by law to manage rental properties, but a license doesn’t make a property manager a real estate agent. Those are two different occupations and specialties. A person who deals with tenants, evictions, collections, repairs, does not necessarily know how to sell real estate, and could very well be one of the reasons agents use the wrong comps. I don’t know why he gave her the wrong price.
We also received an offer from a buyer that was $20,000 less than our list price. When I asked the buyer’s agent why the buyer made such a lowball offer in light of the comps, she replied there was a similar home on the market at that price. An active listing is not a comp. It is an active listing for sale. Homes do not become comps until they close escrow. Further, why didn’t the buyer go buy that house? That would be a reasonable question. Probably because there are things about that house the buyer doesn’t like. Doesn’t like enough to pay $20K less for, apparently. Which makes that home worth less than its list price, but not ours.
My solution? Since we cannot assure that a buyer’s agent will give the comparable sales to the buyer, the next best thing to do is make the comparable sales part of the counter offer, as an attachment. Little tells the story better than the numbers in black and white. Just check that little box for an attachment on the counter and merge the two seller-signed documents into one PDF file.
If you’re looking for an experienced Sacramento listing agent, please call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759.
Show Sacramento Homes That Fit Buyer Requirements
Real estate agents who show Sacramento homes should try to match buyer needs.
How hard is it to show Sacramento homes that fit what a buyer is looking for? It can be somewhat challenging in our particular market at the moment because we don’t have enough homes for sale, especially in certain neighborhoods; yet, an agent should still use her noggin’ when showing homes, don’t you agree? Nobody wants to waste time looking at homes one would not in a million years buy, right? This is why not every agent in town can be an extraordinary homebuying agent. It takes a knack and experience.
This is not to say that a real estate agent might not explore / challenge and / counsel a home buyer about certain parameters, to make certain the agent fully understands the buyer’s needs. That kind of full service is what an agent is supposed to do. An agent might also try to expand the parameters in a tight market like Sacramento to determine whether a home in a nearby neighborhood might also work. The professional Realtors like those who are part of the Elizabeth Weintraub Team try to overturn every rock.
We consider every opportunity and will present those opportunities to the buyer with the caveat that it might not precisely fit 100% of the requirements. We want to show Sacramento homes that a buyer is likely to purchase. But we don’t just drag a buyer over to a random home to ask: what do you think? We discuss it first. We send listings and we call / text back and forth about the pros and cons. A fully informed buyer is a happy buyer.
I know how disturbing a buyer can feel when her agent decides to show Sacramento homes that are not a good fit. In fact, it reminds me of that commercial from years ago, put out by a brokerage we, in the 1970s, used to call the yellow-jacket real estate company. The commercial was a twist on a buyer’s disappointment who wanted a single-level home when shown all 2-story homes. Its point was those agents listen to buyers and will show Sacramento homes that fit what the buyers want. Because many do not.
I can’t count how many times I receive buyer feedback from buyer agents who tell me the home was not at all what the buyers were looking for because it was a) too small or b) not enough bedrooms or c) too old. It makes me wonder how upset the buyers must be. Those are all parameters clearly laid out in MLS, which means the home should never have have been on the agent’s list to show in the first place. I also realize that some real estate agents do not fully read the MLS.
A few days ago, an agent called to say she could not figure out how to show a home listed in Carmichael. As the listing agent, I tried to show empathy. I said, “I understand, it is really confusing for you.” And the agent replied: “Yes, those showing instructions read ‘no showings 4/8-11’ and you should really fix that.”
It Is Not What You Say It Is How You Say It
It is not what you say, it is how you say it.
Everybody knows it is not what you say it is how you say it, but how often do you see a professional in action? OK, let’s not talk about Donald Trump because that’s a really malo example. He has about as much finesse as a termite. He violates the first rule of it’s not what you say it’s how you say it porque he doesn’t consider his words before opening his mouth. He says whatever lingers on the short string between brain and tongue.
Real estate agents are taught to convey information, but who spends the time to teach agents that they should consider how that information will be received by the recipient? If it could be construed as damaging or irritating or in some way produce an unanticipated result from the recipient, perhaps a better choice of words would be in order? Supuesto, to get to this point, one would need to lay it out there and analyze the results.
The first rule of it’s not what you say but show you say it is to imagine first the recipient’s reaction. Will it be favorable? ¿Simpatico? Are you trying to persuade a person to act in a certain way or to change a perception? One of my pet peeves are the well meaning managers in real estate who advise agents to always ask a potential buyer if they are working with an agent. Just so we don’t tread on anybody’s toes or violate the Code of Ethics. So that’s what agents do. They ask: are you working with an agent?
What buyer ISN’T working with an agent? Are they a loser, for crying out loud? Does nobody want to work with them? Don’t they know ANYBODY in the universe who is a real estate agent? Wow, what a deadbeat sucker. You can get the same point across by asking: If you haven’t settled on an agent yet, I would love to help you to buy a home. Would you like to work with an agent like me?
Agents are not required to “grill” potential buyers.
Another incorrecto question is: do you have a preapproval letter? It sounds like a personal attack. An agent who blurts out this question is saying a) she does not trust the buyer, and b) perhaps the buyer really is a deadbeat.
Remember, it is not what you say it is how you say it. Doesn’t it sound much better to say: Wouldn’t you love to start looking at homes this weekend? If so, we need to round up a lender letter before then so you will have it ready to submit with our offer; this is a tough market and sellers tend to reject offers without such a letter. Just thinking ahead for you. I can refer a lender to you who can produce a letter for us if you like.
It’s easy when you’ve been in the business for decades to develop bad habits, just as easy as it is to pick them up in the first place. We are in a service business. We develop fiduciary relationships with our clients, which means putting the client first. If agents are not working with very many buyers, maybe it’s time to reassess the approach and to consider it is not what you say it is how you say it.
For buyers, por favor disculpen the agents who sound like they are attacking you. They’re trying to do their job, they’re just not doing a very good job of it. You might want to reassess your own strategy and choose an agent who thinks before she opens her mouth. That’s the type of Sacramento Realtor who will get your offer accepted.
