How Long to Wait Before Dropping Your San Diego Home Price

Question: “When we put our home on the market, how long should we wait before dropping the price if it’s not selling?” Answer: Smart question.  Too many people get stubbornly attached to their asking price and ignore the reality of feedback from the market. To answer your question, let’s assume three things: Your home is
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How to Tell If the Market is Slowing Down or Speeding Up

Question: “How can I tell if the market is slowing down or speeding up?” Answer: One way is by looking at changes in the “absorption rate.” Absorption rate is defined as “the number of months (or weeks) it would take to sell the current inventory of homes at the present rate of sales.” To determine
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A Good Choice For Your First San Diego Home & Investment

Question: “I’d love to buy my first house, but can’t quite afford one.  And I really don’t want a condo.  Do you have any houses where the owner will let me make payments to them at a low rate?” Answer: Nope, and you’re unlikely to find anything like that. But I have a totally different
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Should You Invest in Cheap Detroit Real Estate?

Question: “I’ve heard that a lot of the real estate in Detroit can be bought for just a couple hundred dollars. So why don’t people buy it up and wait for the market to improve? What’s the catch?” Answer: That may well be a good idea. After all, often the best time to buy any
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How to Find Out if the Seller Will Come Down in Price

Question: “Are there any good ways to figure out if a seller is likely to come down in price?” Answer: Here’s the simplest way: Ask (or have your agent ask) the seller’s agent how much the seller will come down! Unless the seller’s agent has specific permission from the seller (almost never happens), it’s a
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Pest Control Clearance: Section 1 vs. Section 2

Question: “My husband and I made an offer on a home a couple of weeks ago and asked for a termite clearance. The agent said we should ask for all repairs for Section 1, but not Section 2. When we asked the agent what the difference was, she didn’t know. Can you tell explain the
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Where to Look for a Lender for Your San Diego Home

Question: “Where do you suggest I start looking for a lender to get approved for a home loan?” Answer: I would avoid some of the common sources, such as going online or looking at newspaper ads. The best source is to ask a good, reputable, experienced agent. He or she will know a handful of
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Selecting a Range for Value Range Pricing

Question: “I’m trying to figure out value range pricing. If I feel my home is worth $500,000. What range would I ask?” Answer: Great question. Your desired price should be around the middle of the range. That allows for an attractive lower end of the range to draw interest, and a higher range to give
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No Right of Rescission on Real Estate Contracts

Question: “I signed a contract to sell my home yesterday, but I changed my mind and want to cancel using my 3-day right of rescission.” Answer: Not a question, but let me address this. While many (most?) types of contracts in California have a 3-day right of rescission, real estate contracts do not. So unfortunately,
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How Much to Reduce the Price on Your San Diego Home

Question: “I’m asking $799,000 for my mother’s house, but getting no action. What do you think of a reduction to $789,000? Is that enough?” Answer: As a general rule, if your home has been listed for a few weeks and getting low activity, you need to adjust 3-5% to see a noticeable increase in interest.
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