If there is one thing I know after 25 years of selling real estate, maintaining a sense of humor is imperative!  So even though this little bit of humor has been around for many years, it will usually get a laugh from sellers and buyers alike --- it's that kernel of truth in the ridiculous, you know?? YOUR HOUSE AS SEEN...Read More!

Many people do not understand the role of a buyer's agent vs. a seller's agent, aka the listing agent.  Probably the biggest difference between the two is a contract.  When a seller hires an agent to list, market and sell a property, a contract is used to define the terms of the listing.  The seller and agent agree at that time...Read More!

Do I have your attention? What you don’t know about your smoke alarms could kill you. This is what I learned recently from a California Association of Realtors® meeting in San Jose, as reported by Skip Walker of the California Real Estate Inspection Association (CREIA):  there are two types of smoke alarms. One is the ionization type and the other is...Read More!

...I have answers! Many buyers, and sometimes owners who haven't sold property for many years, wonder what role "escrow" plays in the sale transaction.  I thought it might be helpful to give a brief sketch of escrow's job, both what it is and what it isn't.  Here in the Santa Maria Valley, we have gone from 7 escrow companies at the...Read More!

I'm wondering how sellers feel about the concept of welcoming total strangers into their homes at the typical weekend Open House. The sellers spend lots of time preparing/cleaning the house first, and then they leave for the afternoon during the designated hours, while their Realtor hosts. Now anyone can come to an Open House, right? Whether or not it is affordable...it might be...Read More!

Big money? Little money?  You won't know unless you ask!  I am always willing to prepare a Comparative Market Analysis for you, aka a CMA as it's commonly called in the real estate industry.  Using my knowledge of the local market, and the information available to me from our MLS (Multiple Listings Service), I can present you with a fairly accurate...Read More!

Freddie Mac reports the lowest fixed rate on 30 year loans for the year  at an average 4.32%.  What will it take to get buyers off the fence?  Record low prices, combined with record low interest rates, ought to provide plenty of incentive!   However, according to a post in the Los Angeles Times, home loan applications have slipped to...Read More!

Paying off a mortgage, or even paying down the balance early, might seem enticing to most borrowers. There’s the big savings in interest payments and the freed-up cash flow that can result, not to mention the emotional benefit of wiping out what for most people is the largest financial commitment of a lifetime. Read the full New York Times story.Read More!