Memorial Weekend Hangover

Today's Featured Listing



Cute Double Wide Mobile home in 55+ Park, New Carpeting, New coating on Roof, Featuring central heat and air. 3 bedrooms and 2 baths. Great location close to shopping. Park Approval Required.


So - it occurred to me that I hadn't yet blogged this listing - which is MY listing - which is bad! This is a very nice unit and it's only $17K!

My listing on Charmain that I last blogged about is now Pending escrow! YAYYY! It was only on the market for a few days before we had a very good offer and my sellers accepted it! Just shows that if the property is priced right, it will sell quickly. 

Has anyone else out there that the holiday weekend hangover effect going on? Kind of like the Vacation Hangover effect. Characterized by lethargy, day-dreaming, and generally not being very time efficient. Remember, you don't have to drink to be hung-over!  What is it??? You would think that a couple of days off would re-invigorate, right? Not me. And actually, I only really took the whole one day off - Monday. or was it Sunday? I don't remember but I have been really lagging this week! It doesn't help that I'm going to a baby shower tomorrow and Saturday and will be out-of-town. More lethargy scheduled for next week! 

764 Residential listings on Shasta MLS right now. 85 listed under 100K but only 16 of those are in Redding itself. 27 between 100K and 150K in Redding. If you are in that end of the market its tough.

54 between 150K and 200K, getting better...

Resiliency

MY NEW LISTING

This home really reflects pride of ownership. Re-modeled in 2003, the home features tile flooring throughout and an updated kitchen. It has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a pellet stove to keep you warm. The back yard has a peaceful relaxing atmosphere. It has a detached two car garage and a shop. Fully fenced there is plenty of room for animals, toys and your RV.

There it is, up above - My new Listing! This house is really cute as a button! Stay tuned for upcoming news about the Open House!

These are the latest headlines taken from CNNMoney.com

Home buying at most affordable level in decades

Home sales surge in April

Sales of new homes inch up

Then, there is this one...

More than 30% of mortgage borrowers still underwater

Don't you love the media? They love us...they hate us... It seems like there was too much good new lately about Real Estate so they had to knock it a bit with the last one. It's like - just when we were all starting to feel better - "POP!" Pop that bubble of euphoria, bring it back down to reality. - "Oh yea - things are looking great but it still stinks! "  Its a good thing that as a Real Estate Professional aka Realtor, I am used to getting that bubble popped.  Realtors (I) have to be resilient, otherwise we would all just go home and slit our wrists or become drug addicts - Case in point- an agent that I know - no names here because it has happened to ALL agents at one time or another - is working with some buyers. They are being emailed listings from the agent, she follows up with them, she takes them to see properties, she knows their wish list inside and out...She has spent countless hours looking at properties on their behalf. One day, the couple decide to go driving around town...they see an Open House sign, being the happy house hunting people they are - they stop in...They LOVE everything about the Open House - it's in an area they hadn't even considered - its larger than what's on their wish list - a little over budget but they decide its worth it. They have the Open House agent write up an offer for them. ... So, what happens to the original agent that has been showing them houses? She doesn't get any commission. She doesn't get paid. "POP" goes her bubble...The clients are not bad - they didn't know. The Open House agent isn't bad - she didn't know. Their agent never told them - "If you go to an Open House and you like the house - CALL ME and I will write the offer for you." She never told them that that was how she got paid. So, here's the deal - be nice to your agent - they are working hard for you even if you don't see it.  Make sure you tell the Open House Agent that you are already working with someone. Todays blog is a little longer than usual but thanks for reading through. LOL Today there are 767 Residential listings in Shasta MLS,  33 new today and 28 went pending. Have a FANTASTIC Memorial Day and if you are out and about - I'll be doing the Open House at MacLeod again this Saturday. See you next week!

CASH is King?

Today's Featured Listing




Beautiful waterfall and greenbelt view awaits you upon entering this 4 bedroom home. 10Ft ceilings, crown molding, stainless steel, granite, gas fireplace, split floor plan, inside laundry with a sink and lots of cabinets, master bath has soaking tub and separate shower, parking for large RV, 3 car garage. On demand hot water Whiskeytown Lake area is a few miles away. Sorry, today's listing doesn't yet have a video!


I want to talk about a dirty four letter word in Real Estate these days, C-A-S-H. Cash is king they say. In Real Estate it's not as pretty as you would think. Oh - don't get me wrong we love ALL CASH buyers so - if that's what your'e thinking about doing -Go for it! - But, if you want to secure any kind of financing and you think that having 20K or even 5K that you have socked away is going to be good - think again. That 5K that you have hiding in the bag under the mattress is UNVERIFIABLE. Lenders want your money to "season" - like fine wine I guess. So, put it in the bank before you go shopping - the official word is that the banks can go back 90 days to figure out that source of funds. Same if you have your Aunt or Uncle Gift the money to you (unless its an FHA loan). Lenders want to see bank statements showing that that money has been there for a while. You can not deposit 5K or really any funds over $1,000 (Not including your paycheck) prior to close of escrow without having the bank ask where it came from. Gifted funds have to verified before they are given. If this is confusing - welcome to my world! So remember - I'm NOT talking about money that you have already in your savings or checking or money-market or IRA or places like that - I'm just talking about the neat little stacks of Benjamins that you have been collecting.


Okay -  so we have 28 New listings today and 18 Pendings. There are 767 residential listings on MLS today in Shasta County. Looks like our inventory is inching up a bit. 294 of those are in Redding. Here's the deal though - in Redding, only 17 of those are under 100K and 33 are between 100K and 150K so that end of the market is looking REALLY, REALLY sparse! 
Thanks for tuning in!  

Redding Rodeo

Todays Featured Listing



This is a beautiful home sitting on 6+/- very pretty fenced acres! The home has had extensive upgrades/remodel throughout; floors, bathrooms, counters/cabinets, kitchen, master suite and more. Expansive Brazilian hardwood deck wraps around the home. 3-stall barn, fenced paddock. Grant School dist. Minutes to shopping, lake. I will be hosting an Open House here tomorrow, Saturday May 18th from 11:00am - 2pm so drop by and say Hi!

A few days ago my washing machine fritzed out. It was making noises like it was out of balance - you know that noise.. ca-clunk,ca-clunk! I thought it was just overloaded and uneven but after fixing the load, the noise persisted and then it just died! - Full of water DEAD. Ugh..So we cleaned it up, jeans of course, wrung the clothes out... dumped the water. Got it to spin but its dead.
Last night in the face of a looming clothing shortage I taught my son to wash clothes by hand. - I actually think he had fun doing it , what a weirdo. I'll say it again - you never appreciate technology or in this case - modern appliances - until they're gone. Which reminds me...Don't wait to get started on selling that house or buying one..we are in a great market at this time - Don't wait until its over to get in to it!

Today, there were 23 new listings on MLS and 13 Pending. I wrote an offer the other day and there were 12 - yes, TWELVE other offers on it! Wouldn't you like to be that seller? - 763 active listings at last count in Shasta County but only 296 in Redding.  Have a Great weekend out there - its Redding Rodeo so come to my open house and then go to the Rodeo!

My dad

So, I haven't posted in a while and here's why. My father died last week. Even though we haven't been close - or maybe because of it - the loss has hit me really hard. I've been keeping really busy here at work and showing properties and writing offers like mad but...I'm sad.

My dad was a famous comic book artist. He has lived the past few years on and off again in the Philippines and he died while over there. The funeral is 10,000 miles away. I have been following it closely on FB and Google and it really stinks, (not the word I really wanted to say), not being there. My mom made her transition - I like the way that sounds, so much better than saying she died - 11 years ago and I know that they are together now. I keep thinking we will see each other again some day - hopefully in the far, far future. So, I thank you all for reading and even looking forward to my postings.

Read about my dad


I miss you daddy.

Time Flys...

Today's Featured Listing

This very special home is nestled on 22 acres and boasts views of the mountain ranges & offers total privacy! With 2093 sq ft, this well designed floor plan offers a cozy fireplace, a kitchen with double ovens, many sitting areas, 3/2 & lots of natural light. The upstairs bonus room has floor to ceiling windows to take in the views! Quality built in 2002 with Trex decking & 2x6 construction. - Okay, I admit it I've featured this home before... but can you blame me? Its awesome!

I have been remiss in my posting this week but business is CRAZY! This is a word to buyers...Even on an all cash offer - it takes 15 days to complete it. I have been trying to close escrow on a purchase now with a 10 day close and it's just NOT working very well. There are little things going on in the backside of an escrow that can't be rushed by me. Title searches... time it takes paperwork to go from the buyer to the seller and back to escrow...inspection appointments. (and not in any particular order) Whew! Did you know that a buyer has a 3 day rescission on a Natural Hazard Report? That means NOTHING can close until 3 days after the buyer receives that report. Fortunately, I got that one in time but these are things that can delay the whole purchase process. I don't know if that's true for other states but here in California it is. 

Also, due to the shortage of listings on the market right now, as I have mentioned before, its a rush to show a home and get an offer submitted.

So, on the personal front, I'm going back to HSU today to pick up my son. First year of college down - 3-5 more to go. The first year of college can be overwhelming to some and it certainly has been for him. Home for the summer now, he hopefully will be able to re-charge his batteries.

Speaking on that... It's Almost Summer, It's Almost Summer! - I jumped in the pool the other day, the pool has NOT gotten the memo. The pool still thinks it's winter - I think I'll give it a bit more time to warm up...Brrrr...Wanna watch a funny video? - Check it out...

21 New listings hit the market today, 762 total residential in Shasta MLS,  279 of those are in Redding.