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Where to Find Good Deals on Foreclosures in Sacramento
Just what is the deal with all of those Sacramento foreclosure listings potential buyers find online and get all excited about? Man, you’ve got your auction houses, trustee sales, preforeclosures, short sales, bank-owned homes, HUD homes, the list goes on, and it’s enough to make a poor buyer’s head spin. Let’s not even talk about Property Radar because that’s way too confusing for even licensed real estate agents to navigate much less a poor first-time home buyer, but talk about it I suppose we must.
For starters, you can pretty much discount at least 90% of the stuff you find posted online, unless it is posted on a reputable website in which all of the information on that website is screened for accuracy such as MetroList — but even the public can’t access all of the up-to-minute information available from MetroList like a real estate agent can. We pay big bucks for dues to these businesses for a reason. They have a monopoly.
The preforeclosures that look like listings are typically not for sale. Some buyers spot preforeclosure homes on a website like Zillow, which buys a feed from third-party vendors that downloads listings of homeowners in default. It generally means a homeowner is behind in making payments. A preforeclosure does not mean the home is for sale or will ever be for sale, nor does it mean anybody has the right to start poking around the property, looking in the windows, unless they want to get shot for trespassing.
A short sale listing could be for sale or it could be a contingent short sale or a pending short lender approval status, in the latter cases it means somebody else beat ya to the punch and has already written an offer that the seller accepted. Some short sale status information, especially those advertised in MetroList, are very confusing and laypeople can’t figure out whether they are for sale or not.
If you plan to bid on a trustee’s sale, you’ve got to figure out if the minimum bid is reasonable or the opening bid is unreasonable. If it is unreasonably high, it means the bank doesn’t want anybody to bid on it and prefers to take the home in foreclosure because the bank might make more money to foreclose than to sell at market. If it is reasonable, then you better be prepared to bid with the courthouse steps’ sharks, those guys chewing toothpicks and sticking unlit cigarettes behind their ears. They know what they’re doing; you don’t. Plus, you’ll needs lots of cash. No financing.
There are always auction websites such as auction.com where you can go to buy auction homes online, finance those homes, and you can name an agent to represent you. Be careful of shill bids and reserve pricing, figure out incrementals, and know whether you’re bidding on a short sale, foreclosures in Sacramento or a flipper.
If you like, you can look at those overpriced homes HUD lists online at Homepath, where there is no appraisal because the home probably won’t appraise at that price. The government doesn’t care if you’re upside-down the day you buy.
Or you can just cut to the chase and talk to your Sacramento real estate agent and ask a professional to find you a good deal. But bear in mind we have very little inventory and stiff competition for the well priced stuff. Maybe your best bet is just to try to buy a home? Not everybody needs to get a smokin’ deal to do well. Those searching for smokin’ deals often end up with nothing but black hands and shredded beliefs based on getting something for free.
Closing a Home in South Sacramento for an Elderly Seller
If my mother were alive today, she would be in her early 80s, just like an elderly seller in Sacramento whose home that I, as her listing agent, recently closed. This woman’s son had called from Georgia to ask if I would help his mother to sell her home. His mom is moving across the country as I type to live with him. Her son had done his homework online, reading website after website about real estate agents. He didn’t pick any ol’ Sacramento real estate agent, he entrusted this agent to take care of his mom.
I suspect he chose me in part because I give a crap about other people; I guess it shows, and I have a conscience that follows the Golden Rule. I have an obligation to those I represent, not only as a a REALTOR but as a person.
This elderly seller lived for many decades across from a school in South Sacramento. It’s not the easiest neighborhood in which to sell nor the best location. People get so used to where they live that they don’t always realize that selling real estate depends on the adage: location, location, location. They feel that if they can overlook a train rumbling past the kitchen window, so should every other buyer out there.
Selling a home near a school is no easy feat. I’ve sold 3 of them like this in the past few months. It’s got to be the right combination: an attractive sales price, good condition, exemplary layout. The first buyers who expressed an interest in making an offer were put off by the school, and there was no way they would offer list price. So, we focused instead on the second buyers who appreciated the immaculate condition of the home and its upgrades.
This elderly seller was a bit feisty, sharp as a tack and a supremely delightful person to represent. She was resourceful, and we talked for a while at her kitchen table about her life. It was difficult for her to read the listing paperwork, which I also emailed at her request to her son so he could feel comfortable as well. I showed her patience. Some day I will be that old, and I would like to think that my real estate agent at that time in my life would take a few extra minutes out of her day to be patient with me.
I am honored to have met this woman, this elderly seller. I wish in our country that our American customs showed more respect for elderly people, like they do in other cultures in which the elderly are revered for their wisdom. We should show a little more compassion for our elders. Open doors for them, if you can. Let them move ahead of you in line at the grocery store. Stop your car at pedestrian crossings and wait for them to cross. Small things, simple gestures, are big things.
Zillow to Acquire Trulia and Who Cares About Realtor.com?
You can put all of those rumors to rest about Zillow acquiring Trulia because the official Zillow press release came out this morning that Zillow is indeed intending to take over Trulia in exchange for stock valued at $3.5 billion. As a consumer, you might not notice much difference as both websites will continue to operate as they always have, albeit, the merger should improve Trulia.
My own Sacramento listings on Trulia are tangled up and a mess. Still, I am excited about the news of Zillow to acquire Trulia. I’ve talked with customer service reps who seem to be following a revolving door and nobody has been able to fix the problem. In some instances, I can’t feature my listings as a special promotion. Some of the other problems are:
- Photos and marketing comments vanish after a listing moves into pending status
- No conformity among links to property sites
- Status modifiers are not active on all listings
- Photos uploads are slow and clunky
- Updates are not immediate and require 24+ hours
And that just breaks the surface. So, if you see that stuff on Trulia, don’t blame me. At times I may need to perform manual manipulation of my listings into Trulia if I want them to appear on my profile at all, but I’m not really complaining. Sometimes, I get clients who gripe and want to know why real estate agents don’t routinely try to update data on other companies’ websites but we don’t own those websites. They are owned by corporations. They may supplement our business a bit and provide a friendly service to the public but they are not our personal websites.
Some real estate agents around the country are freaking out over the intended purchase, they are not happy that to hear Zillow to acquire Trulia. They believe Zillow wants their jobs, their companies, their business and is out to slice their necks off like the top of a pineapple in one fell swoop. Zillow is not King Kong and we are not Jessica Langs. Paranoia has its place — why aren’t they more worried, for example, about Google world domination? BTW, you notice that nobody is talking about Realtor.com. Does anybody even use that website anymore?
I just go about my business, selling homes in Sacramento as a Sacramento real estate agent. If I had to pick a favorite website though, it would be Zillow, even though its computer-generated Z-estimates cause my clients so much frustration — because it makes my job even more important. It’s not a conflict. I bring extreme value to the table. Real estate still requires a human touch and expertise.
What the History From the Sacramento MLS Will Disclose
As a real estate agent in Sacramento, I am fortunate to have access to a vast network of private subscriber information that is unavailable to the public. Oh, the public is clamoring for listings, meaning homes for sale and, if they peck around on enough websites they can piece together a string of homes that may or may not be available. Not to mention, a real estate agent can give a buyer access to MLS information directly through MetroList Prospector, with a portal and all kinds of goodies. But an agent can’t give a buyer or a seller access to behind-the-scenes information, and that’s where the all of the crucial data lies. The “meat” is not in the square footage or sales price.
Maybe it’s my title and escrow background that makes me naturally inquisitive. I used to search title and liens for First American Title in the early 1970s. Uh, oh, I almost typed that date as 1907. Transposing the digits would probably no difference to most people; whereas to me the 1970s seems like it wasn’t all that long ago, but further down the path than, say, 1990s. Although the 1990s was yesterday, you know, and I still haven’t adjusted to the 2000s. What, what, new millennium?
My how time flies when we are researching the history of property through the Sacramento MLS. The MLS provides access to other links containing essential data ripe for exploring through other companies as well.
One can learn so much by looking at history. For example, when I take a new listing, I will study how many times it has been listed before and by whom and when. I pay particular attention to the Days on Market. Those days on market could become mine. I might not differentiate much between the 1970s and today but I do recall — without question and with superior clarity — what the real estate market was like in any given time period since then, let’s say, 2004. If I spot a home that sold in 2004, and it was on the market for longer than a few weeks, there was most likely something wrong with the listing.
Then I have to figure out the defect. Was it price? Location? Condition? Agent expertise? I blow the dust off the comps from back then, flip through the photos, pull up the agent’s license and background. If I see that the home has been withdrawn from the market repeatedly during all sorts of real estate markets — including hot and cold real estate markets — then it might be a seller problem. I have to ask myself if I want to take on that kind of problem. I love challenges. I thrive on challenges, actually, but I try to draw the line at working with assholes and crazy nut jobs.
I recently skirted one such situation. A seller called, seemingly desperate to sell a couple of homes in South Sacramento. The prices she wanted were out of the realm of reality but I sometimes agree to take overpriced listings if other factors are compelling. Let’s just say during my discovery phase, not one of the other elements was compelling. Nada. So, those potential listings were not listings. It was an exercise in futility and, while the 1970s might not seem like that long ago, one would hope that I have learned a thing or two along the way. Experience is invaluable.
The Enormously Big Deal of Buying a House
When it comes down to choosing between buying a house in Sacramento or having a baby, the latter is a bigger deal for most people, yet you can’t rule out the enormously big deal of buying a house. The Washington Post talks about the financial constraints felt by many in today’s economy and how, while waiting for improvement, some decisions are postponed, as in this part of the article: “Choices large and small hang in the balance — whether to buy a house, go to college, get married. Have a baby.”
I don’t know about you, but all of those choices seem ginormous to this Sacramento real estate agent. I don’t spot a “small” choice in that grouping. Not only that, but buying a house is often said to be the single most expensive investment a person can undertake. They are all big choices and decisions, accompanied by their friends: anxiety, risk and anticipation.
As a person who works with people to sell and buy Sacramento real estate, I can tell you it’s also a highly emotional experience, mixing the love of all things drywall and wood with Ben Franklins. One moment a person is hyperventilating and the next cooing. I never know what I might find on the other end of the phone when I answer.
It’s my place to be empathetic and listen. To be that rock to lean on. To offer support and guidance and help sellers and buyers through my decades of experience to make the right decision. Sometimes it means taking the lead and saying, OK, look, here’s what we’re gonna do. Offering that solution. Other times, I need to sit back and wait for the information to sink in and for the parties to reach a state of calmness, awareness and decision-making capability.
I help people make a transition. And transitions are a big deal in life. Your Sacramento real estate agent is a coach for you, not a crutch, but we can be that, too, if that’s what you need.
