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The Price a Sacramento Buyer Will Pay Can Exceed Market Value
Examining comparable sales is not the only way to establish market value.
Real estate 101 teaches us that market value is the price at which a seller is willing to sell and a buyer is willing to buy. However that doesn’t always apply to the amount a home will appraise for, and when you’ve got a lender involved at 80% of the value or greater, that lender will rely on an appraisal. And appraisals are an opinion of value, not fact. This is what can get Sacramento sellers in an uproar.
They know what their home is worth. I, as their Sacramento Realtor, also can generally accurately predict how much a buyer will pay, based on how I will market the property. Another agent might not get the same result; in fact, I know other agents don’t. Because they won’t take the listing. They think they know more than anybody else in the universe about Sacramento real estate. When they don’t.
I read a lot of blogs by agents who claim to walk out the door when sellers are “unreasonable” about their hopeful list prices. They act like it is beneath them or unprofessional not to take a listing at the market value they deem. Seems a bit arrogant to me. There are other ways to deal with this than to say adios, and don’t let the door hit you in the butt on the way out.
In hot seller’s markets, it is not unusual to sell a home for higher than its appraised value. I often get that result from my real estate marketing efforts. In those instances, the buyer can sometimes soften the sting of a lower appraisal by contributing cash to the transaction, and some buyers absolutely will accommodate that seller request. They realize market value is just one person’s opinion.
But the one thing that everybody forgets when they are riding on that high horse of they-know-the-market-better-than-anybody is what about cash? Huh? What about those cash buyers? There is no appraisal with a cash buyer. Many buyers from the Bay area pay cash. I market to buyers from the Bay area by networking with those agents, mostly foreign agents and their foreign buyers.
I had such a situation close escrow recently. I won the listing battle and had to call the rejected agent to ask him to remove his lockbox because he ignored the seller’s request to take it off. The agent appeared a bit snippy and sassy, saying he thought the price was too high above market value, and he didn’t want to take such a bad listing. Well, that listing sold after our open house at our list price for cash in 2 days and closed in 6 days. Sucks to be that agent right now.
There are many meanings to market value in Sacramento real estate, fine nuances. I’d also like to see the day the banks require two appraisals to justify market value. Why do they rely on the opinion of one appraiser anyway? If you’re looking for a Sacramento Realtor who uses her 40 years of experience to attract offers at maximum value, call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759.
The Insane State of Our 2017 Real Estate Market in Sacramento
Agents can’t work with every buyer in our 2017 real estate market in Sacramento.
Because of our bizarre 2017 real estate market in Sacramento, buyer’s agents right now have to be very selective when choosing respective clients. The basic problem is we have thin inventory (few homes for sale) and an excessive number of buyers. There are only so many homes available to buy, meaning there are not enough homes for every buyer who wants to buy a home. If agents are hauling around buyers who want to make lowball offers, those agents are wasting valuable time that could be spent working with serious buyers who desperately need our help.
Agents don’t get paid for their good looks, you know. We get paid when an escrow closes. If buyers are not listening to their agent nor being realistic, those unfortunate souls are not players for our 2017 real estate market. Agents, your buyer either conforms or the buyer doesn’t. If the buyer does not conform, you need to let go. If you’re not responding to new business because you’re beating a dead horse, that’s not good for anybody.
Instead, refer the buyer to another agent who can knock himself out trying to write offers that go nowhere. Maybe a new agent who needs offer writing practice. But don’t you waste your valuable time with these guys. These kind of buyers will always be with us and they are often oblivious to the market movement. These types of potential clients are immune to external forces and refuse education. Especially when these buyers lowball brand new listings that others drool over. You can talk yourself blue in the face and they won’t listen.
Well, agents, why don’t you stop? You have the power to say no.
Over a 24-hour period this weekend, I sold every listing I have (thank goodness I have a new listing on the market Monday). And one of those listings I sold wasn’t even on the market. It was in off market status. Yet, I received two offers. We are witnessing a May market in February. I put 5 homes into escrow, many with multiple offers. We had sent out 5 seller multiple counters on one property, eliminating the buyers who did not quite fit our profile, and while we were evaluating the 4 counters that returned accepted, a high cash offer slipped in the door and stole the house.
I was asked about a potential open house for a brand new listing yesterday, and the truth is I don’t think we’ll make it to Sunday. I think the home will sell with multiple offers over the next couple of days. I cannot plan that far ahead. Five days is too long to predict whether the home will still be available. The average sold price to average list price for our 2017 real estate market in Sacramento is 100.40%. That the statistic for ALL home sales within 30 days on the market since January 27th in the entire county of Sacramento.
An MLS search reveals 1,409 homes for sale in Sacramento County. Pending sales, those in escrow, are 1,658. With pending numbers like, we could sell every home in about 3 weeks! If you need a Realtor, call Elizabeth Weintraub at Lyon Real Estate at 916.233.6759.
Why the Missionary Position is Always the Best
The missionary position in Sacramento real estate is perfect ranking against competition.
Sacramento Realtors like me can make a strong argument for anything, including why the missionary position might be preferred by more doctors 5 to 1. I’m certain to offend somebody somewhere on the internet today, by talking about positioning. It’s incredible what people find to get riled up about. Some of them send me mean, snippy little emails, when I write a completely tongue-in-cheek blog. They don’t get it.
Like last week I wrote a blog about hearing aids and where the microphone is located on your cellphone. It was a light-hearted blog, mostly poking fun at myself and how I stuffed soda straws into my ear as a kid. Some old fart like me — I presume he was an old fart because I talked about how 80% of 80-year-olds can’t hear a thing — blasted me. He was pretty ticked off. He told me to stop using hearing aids to sell houses. But if I could actually use hearing aids to sell houses, you betcha I’d do it. Sorry, old fart.
The missionary position I’d like to discuss today has nothing to do with what you might be imagining. I consider myself a missionary of Sacramento real estate. It is my religion. I am pretty much consumed by it. Even while on vacation to see the butterflies in Mexico last week, I pondered how to get my sellers another two weeks in escrow because the construction of their new home was delayed. Constantly thinking, analyzing. I created a solution.
One thing I do all of the time is relentlessly study the comparable sales for my listings. I don’t always remember to share the results of the analysis with my sellers, my bad, but I got into a discussion about it recently. The seller wanted to reduce the price, and I cautioned against it. She was positioned beautifully.
I could see why she considered a price reduction. She was in a hurry to sell, and owned a somewhat unique home. Agent after agent sent buyer feedback that mentioned their buyers had made an offer on another property. That’s excellent news to me! You know why? Because it’s one less competing home in inventory. When every home within a mile goes pending, and you’ve got the only home left on the market, your home will sell.
Which is not difficult in our present Sacramento real estate market. Comps are one thing but you’d be a fool not to consider the missionary position. Look at the value, the price per square foot, and how many homes are selling for less. If there is none, you’re in like flint. Sure enough, my seller’s home popped into escrow at list price. Happens time and time again.
Houses in Sacramento Sell Anytime of the Year
Good thing about Sacramento is houses sell at all times of the year.
If you’re wondering whether houses in Sacramento sell anytime of the year, it’s probably because right now we’re rolling into Thanksgiving week and after that it’s pretty much Christmas 24 / 7 until the new year. You might think it’s not a good time to sell houses in Sacramento because people are focused elsewhere and busy with holiday celebrations. But people still need to pack and move. Life goes on in Sacramento. Family emergencies, death, job transfers. Opportunities don’t follow a calendar.
In fact, I would go so far as to say that this time of year is perfect for those hard-to-sell houses in Sacramento. The reason is there are fewer homes for sale, so by comparison, the homes that are on the market are not necessarily that competitive. If there are only two homes for sale in the neighborhood a buyer wants, yours, regardless of its condition, might be the winning selection. And if it’s not with this particular buyer, there will be zero competition with the next one. The market is predictive.
The reason to sell now is because in the Sacramento spring market (February to May), when competition is fierce, a home in less-than-perfect condition will slip way down the totem pole. I wonder if that is a racist term and, if it is, that is not my intention. Unlike some in America, I would be crushed if I were called a racist. Slipping down the totem pole means buyers, when presented with more desirable choices, will pass by your home.
Not so in the winter months and during holidays. Your home might be the only game in town.
When you throw in the fact we already have limited inventory in Sacramento and we have more buyers than we have homes to sell, this time of year is a good time to sell. Obviously, if you own an exceptional home — all fixed up, modernized with updates, in perfect condition, ready to move into — you most likely will get a higher price in the spring market when the number of buyers increase. You could very well enter into negotiations from multiple offers in the spring with such a home. Some sellers want to wait until spring, and I’ve been working with a number of sellers in Sacramento who are doing exactly that.
My schedule is my client’s schedule. I will put a house on the market whenever my clients desire. If you need to sell a house before the end of year, houses in Sacramento are selling, and I will definitely sell it. Just call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 40 years of experience to work for you.
Why Sacramento Real Estate Teams are the Future
Sacramento real estate teams working together can work in the best interests of clients.
When I look back at my start in real estate in the 1970s, I would never have predicted that today I would lead one of the most successful Sacramento real estate teams in the state of California. In fact, back then I represented only buyers for the most part, and if I had a seller in my portfolio of clients, I matched that seller with a buyer in my portfolio. Dual agency? Who cared? My career began as a real estate consultant, and selling real estate was just a byproduct of an intensive counseling process.
Almost every client was an investor. I helped them to tap the equity in their homes to buy rental properties. Eventually I opened 3 real estate offices in Orange County as the managing broker / owner. I operated that way for 12 years before I decided I did not want to own a real estate company. But I still focused on buyers. Fast forward to my relocation to Sacramento in 2002, via Minneapolis. I volunteered for a year on the Building Unity in Oak Park committee, briefly worked as the marketing manager at the Sacramento SPCA, while eventually hanging my real estate license in 2003 at Lyon Real Estate.
My real estate career in Sacramento began slowly, too tediously. At one point, I asked the managing broker if perhaps I should join one of the Sacramento real estate teams. Her reaction was absolutely not! I can see why she responded that way today, but at the time I didn’t really understand how Sacramento real estate teams operated, so it was confusing to me. I just knew I could do so much more than I was doing. It was an unfulfilled yearning.
It took at least another 5 years of selling Sacramento real estate, working with both sellers and buyers, before I figured out that Sacramento real estate teams are the future of California real estate. My friend, JaCi Wallace, pointed me in that direction. I am grateful to her. Now, many Sacramento real estate teams are different. They don’t all follow the same protocol or rules. I set up my real estate team the way that I feel it benefits everybody on the team. We each pursue our own specialities. I dare say that we have redefined the way to sell Sacramento real estate.
Sacramento Listing Agent Speciality in Sacramento Real Estate Teams
For example, I work closely with sellers as a listing agent. With very few exceptions, I handle all of the listings for the team. Turns out I have a passionate calling as a top producer listing agent. Who knew? I love working with sellers exclusively. It’s easy to make sellers happy. I know what they want. They want maximum price / profit, minimum hassle and excellent communication. I can give them that. That is my focus. I love marketing homes, the creative aspects, and I excel at fine-tuning negotiation strategies. Being a listing agent hits all of my hot buttons. My 40+ years of experience obviously pays off for my sellers.
Sacramento Buyer’s Agent Speciality in Sacramento Real Estate Teams
On the other hand, my team members are free to work madly on their own passions, which is helping buyers purchase a home. We cover four counties. My team members find homes for my sellers who want to sell and move up. They spend countless hours scouring inventory, escorting my clients to view homes and treating them to white-glove service, just the way that I would. We truly complement each other. We probably do twice as much business as any one of us could accomplish alone. Clients always have an agent available to them. We cover each other’s backs, too. The Elizabeth Weintraub Team members are buyer specialists.
No longer do I have to worry: am I representing my sellers fairly? Because without dual representation, my focus is on my sellers. It’s a freedom for me and an absolute joy for them. Teams within a real estate brokerage are the upcoming thing in California. I’ve been managing my team for just about 7 years now. It’s the best of all worlds for everybody. When you only do one thing, you tend to do it really, really well. If you’d like to know more, call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759.
