THE PROBLEM: Over the last few years, Americans have been made aware of what the words "Housing Crises" means.  All over the United States, due to the sagging economy, coupled with poorly regulated lending policies, homeowners are discovering that what they supposed their home's value to be is no longer correct. 

In the past, the American dream of purchasing a house, staying in it for a while, then selling it and using it's increased equity to move up to the next level of ownership was a realistic and reasonable expectation.  The simple fact is that, for quite a while now, this has been unattainable for a disturbing segment of the Oakland-East Bay homeowners. 

Complicating this issue are the huge amount of regulations and rulings at the Federal level…

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When a home is put up for sale, it becomes obvious that many people are going to view it.  They will be seeing it in person with their real estate agent, or looking at it on the realtor's web site.  As a result, they are going to have a lot of questions about the condition of the home, especially since a purchase today has become a very detailed process.

I recommend that you, as the seller, should consider having a professional home inspection as soon as you make the decision to put your house on the market. Whether you live in Berkeley, Oakland or Piedmont, the same applies.

This concept is often disturbing to many sellers, because, while they may think that they know what is in need of repair, they often are concerned that many new things will turn…

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When potential buyers tour your Rockridge home, they are looking for many things.  One of the most important is space.  The more space you can show, the larger, and more appealing your home becomes.  Your goal should be to present an open, uncluttered home that allows them to envision their things in that space, and encourage them to want to live there.

 Homeowners create their home to suit their needs.  After living in that house for a long time, they may not see how cluttered it has become.  Very often, as the years go on, rooms gather much more furniture and accessories than are necessary.  Things become a jumble of style and function.  While the homeowner has learned to walk around narrow spaces, or ignore the mismatches, the possible buyers will…

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In Part 1, we talked about making sure that your financial offer was strong and attractive. 

In Part 2, we will talk about the issues that will develop in buying your Piedmont home, and how to deal with them--that is, dealing with contingencies.  Together, we will spend time, before submitting the offer, deciding what will be the shortest and simplest list of contingencies that would be acceptable to you, and potentially, to the seller.

Sellers want to move on with their lives once they make the decision to place their house on the market.  Quite often, they will need the money from the sale to assure the funds for the purchase of the new house that they have selected.  As a result, if they have a choice between an offer with a long list of…

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You have seen the Piedmont home that you want to buy.  It has the special features that you want your future home to have, and looks just like the home that you want to make your own.  The only thing standing in your way is your competition--other potential buyers.  Right now, in many areas, the inventory of homes on the market that are reasonably priced, and in acceptable physical condition is extremely limited. In some neighborhoods, the "bidding war" has begun.  As a result, it becomes important to get your offer seriously considered, and then accepted promptly, if you want to assure that you will have this property for you and your family.

Here is where I, as an experienced real estate agent, can assist you in getting what you want.  Here are the…

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At the outset, it seems as though it might be a good idea, when selling your Berkeley home, to be present during the day of the Open House.  You might feel that you would prefer to be there because no one can really "know" the property the way that you do, especially if you have lived in the home for a long time. However, the majority of real estate agents will disagree, and this disagreement is brought on by years of past experience.

The first reason uses the concept that "Time is Money". Buying a home is a huge investment for anyone.  Buyers need to look inside and out of every bedroom, closet and washroom.  They need to evaluate the kitchen and the back yard to determine if the home will meet their future needs.  This takes time. It especially takes…

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In Part 1, we discussed the importance of gathering all your records together to be prepared to discuss and analyze all the factors that will be involved in pricing your Oakland home for sale. However, as you go over all these replacement and repair issues, you will realize that there may be potential problems in preparing your home for sale.  Any serious problems will have to be revealed to future buyers. 

1. Deal With Issues That Must Be Disclosed to Potential Buyers

Most homes have things that need to be addressed--cracked water pipes in the back yard, a chimney that needs attention, or hidden structural cracks that can cause future problems.  Many of these things have come about due to deferred maintenance, or lack of funds to fix them. California…

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1. Sell Your Home Faster By Following the Boy Scout Motto "Be Prepared!"

Once you have selected me as your Oakland real estate agent, you will be asked to collect a lot of information to assist in determining the ultimate sales price of your home.  Some of this information will take time to collect and organize, so begin as early as possible to do your research.  Doing this will save a great deal of preparation time, and we can get your home on the market much sooner.  Even better, with complete and comprehensive information, you can significantly increase the interest in your home because you can prove and justify it's value.

a. Regarding Repairs and Replacements: Most homeowners have repaired or replaced something in the years that they have lived…

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A mansion is for sale in Beverly Hills that has an amazing history-and an amazing recovery.  It is located at 805 N Linden Street, and was designed by renown architect Wallace Neff. It is a handsome Spanish styled home, and is located in one of the most famous neighborhoods in the world. This neighborhood is unique, and one which is long renown to be the home of motion picture and television stars both past and present.  Approximately 40% of the homes here sell for 3 million to 10 million dollars.  This one is being sold for $6.995 million, and has a huge amount of space for use by the buyer.  It has a total of 6246 square feet.

This particular home has a very unique distinction.  In 1946, Howard Hughes, the famous millionaire and aviation pioneer,…

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San Francisco Bay is one of the most inviting recreational areas in the United States.  You can see bulky container ships moving slowly among the graceful sailboats that are racing each other from one point to another.  Every portion of the bay has sweeping views of some portion of the city that the Gold Rush built. 

Recently, I was able to get out on the water with some friends, and really began to appreciate all that the area has to offer.  We went on one of the best ways to see it in comfort-The Oakland/Alameda Ferry.  Whether you have a home in Oakland, or one in Alameda, it is just a short trip to their ferry terminal. We left from Alameda's terminal because the parking is often easier, and then, after a brief stop at Jack London Square to pick up…

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