Found 73 blog entries tagged as selling your home.

According to the National Association of REALTORS®' recently released 2011 Legal Scan: Legal Issues Facing Real-Estate Professionals, nondisclosure of a property's problems is becoming a bigger issue. That could result in more lawsuits against sellers who have not provided full disclosure of problems with their property.

As a seller, you must disclose anything that might impact the value of your Santa Cruz home. That includes something as small as a toilet that doesn’t flush properly to something as big as an unstable foundation.  Anyone selling a Santa Cruz home, even in “as-is” condition, must obey disclosure laws.

Here are six things you, as the seller, must reveal:

1. Termites.  If your Santa Cruz home has or had a problem with termites, it…

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These days, over 80% of all home buyers begin their search for homes online. So it’s crucial to market your Santa Cruz home for sale by owner online to reach as many potential buyers as possible.

An Internet listing of your home gives buyers 24/7 access to your home. Unfortunately, a poorly executed Internet listing can hurt rather than help your home sell.  Here are six tips to effectively market your Santa Cruz home for sale by owner (FSBO) online:

1. Upload the best possible pictures.  Make sure you use a good digital camera.  Cell phone cameras will not work for this purpose.  You want great quality pictures for potential buyers to see all the glory of your home.

2. Include photos of your home’s best features. Whether it’s a great view, the…

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If you are financially distressed, it might be time to cut your losses and minimize the damage to your financial future. If you’re feeling the economic pressure of an impending foreclosure, then consider putting your Santa Cruz real estate up for a short sale.

While it might seem like short sales should be a speedy process, they’ve been known to play havoc with many unsuspecting sellers. In honor of April Fool’s Day, we’ve created a list of the many short sale pitfalls sellers encounter.

• Settle your accounts – Strive to pay off all your other debt. Your bank might not approve your short sale application if you have judgments from other creditors pending.

• Pay your HOAs – Even if you’re defaulting on your mortgage, it’s important to meet your…

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There’s good news for buyers and sellers of Santa Cruz real estate: The U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook that came out the end of February is encouraging. According to this research done by Freddie Mac, both the economy and the housing market are showing cautious signs of recovery.

Here are some of the changes stimulating these improvements in both nationwide and Santa Cruz real estate markets:

• Loans that were seriously delinquent or going into foreclosure declined to the lowest quarterly share since the start of 2009, according to the latest Mortgage Bankers Association Mortgage Delinquency Survey.

• In January, existing home sales were at their highest since May 2010, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.

• Job gains…

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Even though we’re celebrating St. Patrick’s Day this month, do not count on the luck of the Irish when it comes to selling your Santa Cruz home. Finding the right buyer in this housing market can seem about as easy as spotting a leprechaun. However, with a little bit of research, you can identify the type of buyers most likely to purchase your home and develop a marketing strategy to target that group.

Pinpointing the buyers most likely to purchase your home and marketing specifically to that group is a tool that real estate professionals use all the time. Below are two crucial steps to identifying potential buyers of your home, appealing to the people most likely to purchase your property and selling your house quicker — which means claiming your pot…

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Selling a Santa Cruz home in this economy can be challenging. There’s a lot of fixing up, cleaning and planning that goes into putting a house on the market. So when sellers get a bite, they might jump on an offer a little too quickly.

If you’re about to put your house on the market, you should be prepared to counter lowball offers and outrageous contingencies. On the other hand, you need to be ready to accept an offer that meets your demands. Take into consideration the following tips so that you’re prepared when a buyer strikes.

• Closing costs assistance – Many first-time Santa Cruz home buyers have barely enough money to cover their down payments. So if you want to close the deal quickly, you might want to have money set aside in case they ask…

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If you need (or want) to sell your Santa Cruz real estate this winter, you’ll have to step up your game a bit. People tend to be less likely to buy in the winter because the weather keeps them indoors rather than out house hunting. And let’s face it, most homes just don’t look as good in the brown, drab winter as they do in the spicy spring and summer.

If you’re one of the lucky owners with a home for sale in an area that stays beautiful all year long, you can still find a few tips here to help get your home ready to sell.

Six tips to help you sell your home this winter:

1. Keep it cozy. You want your home to be warm so people can comfortably take their time viewing your Santa Cruz real estate. Saving money on heating costs isn’t worth it if it…

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Many people are downsizing these days, either because they're empty nesters and no longer need the room, they’re getting older and want a smaller space to maintain, or they’re reducing their financial burdens or environmental impact.

If you’ve made the decision to downsize to a smaller Santa Cruz home, here are five tips to help you make the transition:

1. Start early: Downsizing to a smaller home is much less stressful if you have plenty of time to sort through your belongings to figure out what you’re getting rid of and what you’re keeping. Plan to do this at least a month before you put your home up for sale. (Bonus benefit: it makes your house less cluttered and more desirable to buyers.)

2. Evaluate your needs: Take an honest look at your…

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Appraisals are final when it comes to securing money from a bank, so don’t let a poor one ruin your Santa Cruz real estate plans. Be proactive to ensure your appraiser is competent and has all the information he or she needs, because your purchase, sale or refinancing goals could be wrecked with a low-ball appraisal.

Minimize the risk of receiving an inaccurate appraisal by …

• Meeting the appraiser at the house. Show them around your Santa Cruz real estate, just like you’d show a potential buyer. That way you can highlight some of your home’s unique features that they might otherwise overlook. Also, if they have any questions about when things were updated or replaced, you’ll be there to share all relevant information — instead of them just taking…

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With a new year beginning, it’s time for you to get rid of last year’s baggage and concentrate on making 2012 the best it can be. So if you had a home for sale in 2011 and it’s still on the market, then you only need to have one New Year’s resolution: do whatever it takes to sell that house!

This economy has made it challenging to get acceptable offers from prospective buyers. While this is extremely discouraging, the lack of offers might mean it’s time to bite the bullet and lower the price on your Santa Cruz real estate. Then you might be able to sell quickly and start a new lease on life.

Below are reasons you should lower your price now to sell fast and start anew:

• It costs time and money to keep a house on the market. Maintaining a house…

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