Industry Insights

For Buyers

Home Sales Volumes Plummets to 1995 Levels

Yes, the real estate market in 2024 has been very slow. Home sales are projected to be at their lowest level since 1995: Home sales The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that existing home sales in the United States fell 1% in September 2024, and are...

Rate buy-down

Real Estate Financing: Making an Offer with Rate Buy-Down When buying a property, buyers are often looking for ways to reduce their monthly mortgage payments, especially in an environment of rising interest rates. One strategy gaining traction is the seller-paid...

Rising Inventory Creates Buyer Opportunities

Rising Real Estate Inventory Creates Buyer Opportunities The housing market has hit a milestone: inventory levels are now at their highest since 2019, including in popular "boomtown" areas. In October, listings rose 29.2% compared to last year, marking a year of...

PB Monstrosity

I've lived in the Pacific Beach/La Jolla area since 1984, and I love this community. In those 40 years, I’ve seen a lot of changes—mostly good, but a few not-so-great ones too. However, this latest proposal is downright absurd. A 239-foot, 22-story high-rise is...

NAR Settles Lawsuit

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“Rates a Dropping”

October 2024 The Fed finally dropped Interest rates. Is now the time to sell your home or buy...

Don’t Fall Victim to the Probate Trap

Recently, I found myself in a difficult situation with my client and close friend, John. A few weeks ago, his mother passed away. Amidst his grief, he received additional stressful news—his mother’s estate plan was not properly prepared. Although she had left a Will,...

The Buyer / Broker Agreement

At some point in time every business relationship that moves forward is predicated on some level of trust. Whether you have a 100-page contract or not, the parties must trust each other to perform according to the terms of their agreement. This too is the basis for...

Don’t Miss Out on the California Dream

California is giving out free money! Yes, it’s true! The California Housing Finance Agency (“CalHFA”) has designed a brand new program called the California Dream for All Program (“DFA”) to help low- and moderate-income households purchase a home in California. This...

Avoid a Rookie Mistake — Don’t Sell Your Home Too Fast

I’ve seen multiple real estate agents recently boasting about how fast they sold one of their clients’ homes. In several cases they were bragging about a market time of only 2-3 days. Each time, I roll my eyes and wonder how exactly that agent thinks this satisfies...

How to Submit an All-Cash Offer

If you find yourself as a Buyer in a Seller’s market, you better know how to compete if you are serious about securing the property you really want to buy. In my earlier article, Submitting a Competitive Offer in a Seller’s Market, I discussed several methods to make...

Home Warranty vs. Homeowner’s Insurance

Is a Home Warranty the Same as Homeowners Insurance? Home Warranty Perils Homeowner’s Insurance Perils HVAC Stops Working Theft Water Leaks Fire Damage Dishwasher Stops Working Storm Damage Toilet Overflows Flood Damage A home warranty isn’t a...

“Rates a Rising”

What does this mean for real estate? We knew it was coming! Mortgage interest rates have spiked over the last few weeks. Rates have been steadily rising since last summer, but the increases have been more drastic since the beginning of 2022. The 30-year fixed rates...

Escalation Clause

What is an escalation clause? An escalation clause (also called a relative bid or “sharp” bid) is a provision added to an offer or counteroffer where the buyer offers to pay more for a property than another prospective buyer(s) without knowing the price offered by the...

Short-Term Residential Occupancy (STROs)

UPDATED 6/28/23 Previously, we wrote: “There has been a lot of public discourse, political discussion, and general controversy over the topic of Vacation Rentals (aka: Short Term Rentals, STVR’s, or as the city refers to them: Short-Term Residential Occupancy (STRO)....

What is a “Hard Money” Loan

The term “hard money loan” refers to a type of loan that is backed by a “hard” asset and is commonly used in the real estate industry. Also knows as a Bridge Loan, these are “asset-based” loans usually secured by real property. Hard money loans are most frequently...

Understanding SB 9 (California State Senate Bill 9)

I’ve heard people say recently, “there is no such thing as single-family zoning in California anymore”. There is some truth to this but only under certain circumstances. The California State Senate Bill 9 (better known as SB9) is a 2021 California state law that...

Submitting a Competitive Offer in a Seller’s Market

When you find yourself in a market where there are more qualified buyers than there are homes for sale, you’re in a Seller’s market. And when buying a home in a seller’s market you have to bring you’re A-game! Below you will find the most comprehensive list of...

Request for Repairs (Seller)

The RR As a Seller, be prepared to receive a Request for Repairs (RR) from the Buyer near the end of the physical contingency period during your transaction. Yes, the California Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA) has standard language in paragraph 11 that says, “the...

6 Reasons Why FSBO’s Fail

Unfortunately, DIY sellers often have to go through these sometimes painful motions to get a much-needed reality check. With so many red hot real estate markets across the country, DIY-minded sellers might get ahead of themselves and decide they can sell their own...

Buying Power

Formally defined as, “The financial ability and soundness of a business or individual to afford the purchase of real property”, there is much more to Buying Power meets the eye. If you are a prospective buyer of real estate, of course is makes sense to know what your...

New Rules About ADU’s (Accessory Dwelling Units)

State law change to residentially zoned property Affordable housing Where they are allowed Building permits Size FAQs: https://www.sandiegocounty.gov/pds/bldg/adu.html

Don’t Be Fooled by the Discount Brokerage

Every few years a new company or individual pops up in the real estate market and thinks they are going to be the low-price leader and gobble up a big chunk of the market share. And oddly enough, they all seem to disappear after just a short while. Remember these...

Full-Service Brokerage…

What is the difference between a Full-Service Brokerage vs. a Discount Brokerage or a Limited Service Brokerage? There are so many types of brokerages out there these days that may offer a slightly lower fee (“Don’t get Fooled by the 1% Commission”) for a...

FSBO vs Agent to Sell Your Home

Knowledge Early on in my career, after finding out that I had only been licensed a short while, a veteran agent told me, “You don’t even know what you don’t know”. Maybe not the friendliest comment but she was right! 20 years later, I still remember that conversation...

Seller Financing

Background Seller Financing, Seller Carry-Back Financing, Seller Participation, Owner Financing, Bond-For-Title… all terms for the same thing. It’s a loan provided by the seller of a property to the purchaser of that property. Most consumers have little or no...

Real Estate Broker Or Attorney

Most real estate attorneys can help with the composition of an offer, give good legal advice, and may even have E&O insurance to protect you from fraud or negligence. They might even offer a little real estate-related tax advice if needed. Sounds good, right? It...

How to Choose a Real Estate Agent

Parent and child, teacher and student, doctor and patient, real estate agent and home buyer/seller: These are some of the most important relationships you’ll have in life. Some might question if that last one was in jest, but it couldn’t be more true. Do you know how...

Prequal Letter vs Preapproval Letter

A Prequalification Letter (Prequal letter) is a letter written by a mortgage broker / lender intended for use between the Buyer and the Seller in a real estate transaction. The Buyer traditionally will submit a Prequal Letter with an offer to purchase a property...

Selling Your Home Solo to Save Money?

Posted in Economist Commentaries, by Amanda Riggs on July 9, 2018 You’ll Actually Make Less Than You Think Some homeowners opt to sell their residence without a real estate agent to get around paying a commission and make more of the profit. Forty-three percent of...

The Cost of Selling Without a Real Estate Agent

You’ve heard of buyer’s remorse; but without your market expertise and sales skills to back them up, sellers who choose to sell their home on their own just may experience “seller’s regret” when they see how much less they get for their properties. FSBOs earn an...

Home Buyer’s Guide

Before you run out and start walking through open houses, before setting up automated internet searches, before you start scouring through the MLS and before you drag your real estate agent out to show you properties, let’s talk about the best way to go about buying...

Request for Repairs (Buyer)

After you complete your inspections and investigations, you should have time to compose and submit a Request for Repairs (RR). This step has two purposes; To address any physical defects that maybe discovered during the escrow period and A less palatable reason but...

Tax Consequences of a “Short Sale” of Real Estate vs. Foreclosure

© 2012, 2013 by Michael C. Gray, CPA | January 3, 2013 Congress passed legislation permanently extending the Bush tax cuts on January 1, 2013. The title of the Act is American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, HR 8. A 39.6% tax rate was added for taxpayers who file joint...

How Much Is My Home Worth

The Do’s and Don’ts of Home Valuation How much is my house worth? Its an easy question to ask that many tech companies today would have you believe its followed by an easy answer. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. There’s an easy way to get an...

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