Pleasanton Real Estate, Livermore, Dublin & Beyond!

The short sale process is ever-changing; literally what is acceptable procedure this month may be a thing of the past next month. Here is a list of what I have encountered over and over again. This is the only guarantee I can give you regarding your short sale.

• The lender will claim they’ve not received a fax even when I have fax confirmations sheets showing it was sent.
• Once they do receive a fax, it takes 48-hrs to ‘upload’ to their system.
• Since it takes them 48-hrs to upload to their system, by the time they “lose” it twice, we’ve lost a week of time.
• Every person you or I talk to up and until we have a negotiator assigned to the file is “reading off a script”. They are uneducated ‘phone representatives’ hired to divert us from pestering them. This is my personal opinion, not a fact.
• Every time we call, up and until we are assigned a negotiator, we will never talk to the same person twice. There are hundreds of ‘phone representatives’ located in different states. We can ask the same question of 3 different phone representatives and get 3 different answers. Yes, they have a script, but each individual can throw their own twist on what they believe the script means.
• Once a foreclosure date is set, they will NOT allow us, you or anyone else to postpone the date unless they have an offer in hand that they deem acceptable and MUST be at least 7-days prior to the sale date.
• Once we have a negotiator assigned it can still be an additional 30-days before we have concrete information from them.
• Expect the unexpected.  Iwork so diligently on my clients’ short sale and sometimes when it makes all the sense in the world for them to work with us to complete the short sale, they will move forward with the foreclosure.
• There is nothing I can say with exact confidence that will put your mind at rest other than my promise that I make your transaction just as important to me as it is to you. There are no regulations in place that I’ve found to be consistent and the lender can choose their path at any given time without regard for your feelings.

 All of the above are my own personal experience with many different lenders and should not be considered fact across the board with regard to all short sale lenders. There are some outstanding lenders, such as HSBC and Wells Fargo, but for the most part, these are the exception to the rule.

You may wonder why many Realtors® do not do short sales. They are so much work on the part of the Realtor and there is no assurance of being paid since the lender can foreclose instead of short selling.

About the Author: Rhonda Fee is a licensed Realtor, ABR, e-Pro serving the Tri-Valley and beyond. For more information about Rhonda, please visit her website: www.rhondafee.com

According to an article recently posted by Andrew Taylor (AP), there is good news about the extension of the First Time Home Buyers Federal Tax Credit. I’m looking forward to more clarity regarding the exact qualifications. I interpret this to refer to clients already in contract by the cut-off date of April 30, 2010, having an extended period of time (September 30, 2010) to close escrow. That is great news for those who have been in contract for months purchasing a short sale property! Comments are welcomed; more news to come.

Most of us have been wondering for over 3 years when we will know we’ve hit the bottom of the market. I’ve written about this before and I still hold to the fact that if we wait to see the bottom, it will be too late and maybe we are already there! Especially if you are a buyer, don’t let that ship sail without you!

Pleasanton Real Estate is my specialty and I particularly pay close attention to Shadow Cliff Homes as I am an original owner and resident of the neighborhood. We have seen some very difficult times and are by no means on our way to smooth sailing, but there is some bright news. The chart below shows history from 2008 through today.

This chart is evidence of one neighborhood in Pleasanton, CA but I can surely tell you, activity and multiple offers are the norm in many parts of Pleasanton. In working with my buyers recently we made an offer on a home priced around $675,000. There were 9 offers on the property after only a few days on the market and shortly thereafter, we offered on a property that came on the market on a Thursday and by Saturday afternoon was already pending and also had multiple offers. Rates are low, inventory is low and sellers are seeing good prices for their homes.

If you’d like this kind of detail on another neighborhood, I’d be happy to provide it.

As both a Pleasanton Realtor and resident of Shadow Cliff homes, here is an update of what is happining in my neighborhood. At this same time period last year, January – April we did not have even one sold property! In my opinion, 2009 was a very good year considering 2008! This update shows that the market has most definitely improved.

Shadow Cliff continues to be a great place to live. If you’d like further details about this report, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Jan – April 2010

Many Real Estate owners in Pleasanton, CA and everywhere in the country are facing difficult decisions regarding what to do with their mortgages.  Some of the more common reasons people are finding themselves in these stressful situations are:

 1.  They were talked into financing 100% of their mortgage due to the “thinking” that within a few years, the market value of their property would increase, thus they could then refinance because they would have instant equity.

 2.  The type of loan the borrower got to purchase or refinance the loan has met it’s short “intro rate” term and has now adjusted to a rate the borrower cannot afford.

 3.  Someone refinanced their home back when “No Doc Loans” were available for, let’s say for the sake of example, a 5-year term. Now the term is up, there is no longer the “No Doc” option and they are stuck without a way to remain in their home.

 And I’m sure the list goes on as to the reasons why many find themselves in this situation. The one thing to know is that You Are Not Alone!!

 What can you do if you find yourself wondering how to move forward?

First, (A) Act upon your situation. Don’t sit around hoping it will get better, burying your head in the sand. That won’t help. You can get through this; many people have gone through it successfully and are beginning the process right now.

Second (B) Believe…find a professional you believe you can trust. ASK for references from their past clients. Make your professional prove to you they know what they are doing. If you hire someone to guide you that doesn’t truly know how to get through a short sale, you’re going to be in deep trouble.

Third, (C) Cooperate. Cooperating with your Real Estate professional makes ALL the difference. How can we do our job if you are not providing the information the bank requires? The process is what it is. And what is that you might ask? It is tedious, time consuming, monotonous, wearisome, and the list goes on. Your professional knows exactly what to expect and how to get through it. They should set your expectation right up front as to the path to a successful end.  This is not a short process and you should expect it to take at least 4-months to a successful close. Once an offer is received and sent to the bank, this process alone can take up to 90-days to get an approval. Once the approval is completed, let your 30-day escrow begin!  That’s the less complicated part.

Pleasanton, CA Forclosures are on the rise. Over the past several months due to a moratorium on foreclosed properties, these “for sale” properties have been far and few between not only in Pleasanton, but nationwide.  We currently have 7-active bank owned/foreclosed properties on the market in Pleasanton and although for many communities this number is extremely low, for Pleasanton, this is on the high end.

At current, there are 7 “active” foreclosed properties available ranging from $334,900 to $2,100,000 located in the Ruby Hill community. The smallest of the 7-available properties was recently used as a business location near downtown.

Based on the pattern of the last 12-months, I suspect these properties will be pending within a matter of days. For homebuyers thinking of purchasing, the best advice to take heed…get pre approved by your lender of choice because in this market, once you fnd the property, acting quickly and wisely with the professional you feel most secure with is your best strategy.

Pleasanton CA, as of January 4, 2010 there are only 116 TOTAL Properties on the market in Pleasanton according to the Multiple Listing Service. This includes Single Family Homes (SFR), Condo and Townhomes!  Just before the holidays we had 102 Single Family Homes alone!!  Here’s how the market is currently stacking up:

• 86-Single Family Homes priced from the low of $399,000 up to the high of $8,888,888
• 15-Condos priced from the low of $170,000 up to the high of $395,000
• 14-Town Homes from the low of $189,000 up to the high of $468,000

The shortage of homes available on the market continues to be the trend. We are beginning to see a trickling of Bank Owned (aka, REO, Foreclosed) properties come to the market; one being in the Shadow Cliff neighborhood of Pleasanton, located on Whitney Drive.

 The First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit is still in affect until April 2010 and FHA loans continue to be accessible allowing for down payment Requirements (as low as 3.5%).

If you’ve been on the fence about selling, this is most definitely a good time to make a move. The market is begging for more properties!

For specific questions or housing information, please feel free to contact me direclty.

Sometimes buyers don’t even know what they should expect from a Real Estate Professional. I think their hope is that they will be treated professionally, be shown all the homes that match their criteria and have a good negotiator representing them.

When deciding who you’d like to put your trust in, here are a few questions you can ask:

Are you a Realtor®? A new buyer may not even know the difference between a Realtor® and an Agent.  Realtors® adhere to a strict code of ethics and pay an annual fee to belong to their local & state association.  They are kept abreast of issues as they arise via CAR® (California Association of Realtors). Wouldn’t you like someone who adheres to a strict code of ethics and is continually learning about new challenges for buyers and sellers? Agents that do not belong to their local association are not allowed to call themselves Realtors®.  Did you know that?

Do you have any Designations?  Designations are earned by Realtors® that exceed the minimum standards required to pass the California real estate license exam. It is actually quite easy to cram for a test and pass, but it is another thing altogether to continually be studying and working the business from all angles.  It is both costly and time consuming for the Realtor® to earn Designations.  If you work with someone with Designations, you know they are committed to excellence.

 What kind of experience do you have?  It might help you to know how long your potential agent has been in the business. It is not necessarily a bad thing if they are new to the industry as long as they have a good mentor working alongside them.

In most cases, your gut instinct will not lead you wrong. My mom’s favorite phrase, “You Can’t Fool Mother Nature”, meaning that the feeling you get in your gut when something feels wrong will rarely lead you astray, is a valid barometer for you to check.   

When you feel you’ve found the right professional for you, PLEASE be loyal to them. It is so very frustrating in this business to work diligently with your buyers only to find that they are “two timing” you, or worse.  Working with multiple agents, and not committing to one is NOT in your best interest as a buyer.  Please remember that it is time, effort and expense on the part of the professional representing you to locate properties, drive you around town and spend numerous hours with you and then learn you are not loyal to them.  You may or may not be asked to sign a Buyer Representation Agreement. Either way, please be honest with the professional you choose and let them know if at any time you are dissatisfied.

As a resident of Shadow Cliff homes in Pleasanton and speaking as a Pleasanton Realtor, I can say our neighborhood is quite busy! There are currently 2 active homes on the market ranging size from 1,135 sf. up to 2,165 sf. and ranging in price from $509,000 to $699,950. In the last 35-days 3 homes in the neighborhood have gone pending. Two of these homes are priced at $559,000 and one at $569,000. Last year, all year long we didn’t have this kind of activity in the neighborhood.

As an original owner, I purchased my home in Shadow Cliff in 1988 and at the time had no children. Since then of course things have changed and have a daughter now in college and my son still at Amador High School. Many know Pleasanton is well known for its educational system and thus many people want to move here.  Shadow Cliff is a wonderful community and very friendly.

This week is a week of welcoming new businesses to the area. This one in particular is special to me as my broker and I represented the owner of the space in finding the perfect location for his restaurant.

Yanagi Sushi and Grill is located on the corner of Dublin Blvd and Dougherty Road in Dublin at Tralee. Jay Chung, owner, is a WELL established, successful business owner. This is his 6th restaurant opening. He has previously created and opened sushi restaurants over the past several years in the Pismo Beach and Santa Maria area and has ventured north to continue his success here in the Bay Area!

The restaurant in Dublin is a Tappan Style (sit at the grill and watch your personal chef create a delicious meal) and has a full sushi bar. The pre-Grand Opening was last night for invited guest and a “trial” run for the public opening tonight! The staff is enthusiastic and eager to serve a fantastic meal. Owner and Master Chef, Jay Chung, was on hand over seeing all the activities of the evening.

I encourage you to show your support to this new-to-the-Bay-Area business and stop by for a tasty meal.