Real Estate Blog

When deciding to sell a piece of Santa Cruz real estate, there are certain things you must disclose about the property to the buyer before the sale can go through. Disclosure laws are put in place to protect the buyer from unknowingly purchasing defective property. Not disclosing certain information about the property can jeopardize the sale, or worse, invite a lawsuit.

Some laws are different depending on where you live. The best way to know what you need to disclose in your area is to check with your REALTOR or property attorney and fill out the seller disclosure form.  The main items that need to be disclosed are any defects with the home. This includes, but is not limited to, plumbing problems, water leaks, cracks in the foundation, insect…

From building a nest egg for retirement to generating more income on a daily basis, there are many reasons people look toward Santa Cruz real estate for a secure investment. If you’re looking to put your money into the property market, you have several options. Below we’ve outline three types of property investing depending on your time and desire to be actively involved.

1. Purchasing Rental Properties
If you don’t have time to play the Santa Cruz real estate game and want to make sure you’re making a solid investment with a long-term payoff, then purchasing rental properties might be your ticket. Look for homes that need little work. Check the comparable rentals in the area to make sure you can charge more than what your mortgage payments will…

Buying a Santa Cruz home can be a great investment. And growing that investment by making it more valuable before you sell means more money in your pocket. While a lot of projects can be expensive and time consuming, there are a few quick and easy upgrades to make your property worth more to buyers.

Update Kitchen Cabinets
You don’t need to completely replace kitchen cabinets to make them appealing. Switching out the doors and drawer fronts can make them appear new. You can also add a fresh coat of paint and replace the hardware on the front of the cabinets to create a new look.

Replace the Front Door
The entry point of your Santa Cruz home is the first and last thing potential buyers see. If your front door is old, outdated or looks like it has…

Selling your Santa Cruz home can be an exciting, yet frustrating process. Receiving an offer only to have it be too low or fall through can be disappointing and discouraging. While real estate contracts can vary across the country, be sure to take a hard look at the following sections before accepting an offer.  

1. Purchase Price – This is what the buyer wants to pay. Your real estate agent can help you determine whether it’s a price you can negotiate on or the offer is too low and you should disregard it.

2. Earnest Money – Buyers put a deposit of earnest money into a third-party escrow account in good faith that the transaction will go through. The general rule is, the larger the deposit, the more serious the offer.

3. Financing –…

Buying a home is an emotional process. You spend countless hours searching for the right property, qualifying for a loan and completing what seems like an endless stack of paperwork. All this takes its toll on you, and can leave you feeling stressed and anxious. Rest assured, you will survive this frustrating time.

If you start to feel that things are getting a little too hectic or you’re taking frustrations out on coworkers or family, then take a deep breath. Here are five tips to help you relax and have some fun during the process of buying Santa Cruz real estate.

1. Choose your REALTOR carefully.

Finding the right property professional can relieve a lot stress. Be sure to find one that is constantly in communication, has great references…

As the weather gets warmer, the desire to get outside and enjoy the fresh air begins to take hold. Having a place to entertain or just unwind can add a new dimension to your Santa Cruz home.

First, you have to decide what type of space you want to create. Whether you want to have an outdoor living room, a vacation-like spot or a place to meditate and enjoy nature, how you extend your living space is limited only by your imagination — and possibly your budget. Start with your vision and make a list of the things you want to have there. Then go for it!

Choose a Theme
• Vacation spot - Decorate with bright colors for a festive, tropical look.
• Zen garden - Add a water feature, such as a fountain, for a calming effect.
• Nature hideaway -…

It can be very difficult to determine what your property is worth in the current marketplace, because you are biased by what the property is worth to you. These emotions can get in the way of impartially evaluating a property and often cause sellers to overprice their Santa Cruz home.

When pricing your property, you need to be objective and reasonable so you can come up with a selling price that will capture the interest of buyers. Here are a few examples of common mistakes people make when pricing their house for sale.

Reading too much into online comparables
Avoid relying too much on online pricing information of sold houses. They can be a perfect place to start for getting a general idea of how much real estate is worth, but they are not always…

When it comes to selling your Santa Cruz home, you’ve probably thought of the most common staging tricks, such as clearing out the clutter to make your rooms look bigger and bringing in more light to brighten things up. However, have you considered that the colors in your house might have an effect on whether buyers are interested?

Color has a psychological effect on people, whether they are aware of it or not. First impressions are everything when you are selling a house, so think about how the colors you choose will influence your potential buyers. A new paint job could be a simple and effective way to make your house more appealing.

Choose Mellow, Neutral Shades

When a potential buyer is looking at your house, they want to be able to imagine…

From new landscaping and a fresh coat of paint, to appliance upgrades and room remodeling, homeowners will go to great lengths to present their Santa Cruz real estate for sale in the best light possible. However, sellers need to be aware that while they’re fixing up current flaws in their home, they shouldn’t cover up past ones.

That’s where the disclosure comes in. All sellers will need to fill out disclosure forms about their properties, and every buyer should triple-check this form before signing on the dotted line of a contract. Below are a few facts about disclosures to help sellers ensure they’re doing the right thing when listing Santa Cruz real estate.

The Purpose of a Disclosure

Disclosures come in a variety of forms, but their…

From location to age, many factors play into the desire to purchase a condominium instead of an unattached Santa Cruz home. If you want to live in a large city, freestanding houses may be few and far between. If you are older and don’t want to worry about yard work, then a complex where that’s taken care of might be for you.

Making the decision to purchase a condo rather than an unattached property can be tough. So below we’ve outlined some of the pros and cons of each option.

Pros and Cons of a Condo

• Tax benefits. Purchasing a condo gives you the same tax benefits as owning a house. You can deduct mortgage interest and property taxes from your federal taxes.
• Equity. Just as when you own a single-family property, you’ll be…