Cameron Wilson: Murrieta/Temecula/ Menifee California Real Estate

Recently the city council in Murrieta Ca. passed an ordinance that requires the owners of Real Estate Owned (REO) properties to clean the lawns on their properties and keep them mowed and watered as many neighborhoods were deteriorating in their appearance due to the high number of foreclosures and nobody likes a dead lawn especially the neighbors.

The ordinance was passed because of complaints flooding in to the city office from residents complaining about the banks that own these properties, and the Realtors that are selling them, not caring about the appearance of the homes and it is lowering the property values of the whole city. Fair complaint in my opinion and as an agent that represents some of the Institutions involved I passed the information on to the Asset Managers I work with and received positive results.

The Home Pictured received a new sod lawn and you would think most of the neighbors would be glad, I'm sure some are, but it has created a new problem as some of the parents in the neighborhood are allowing their children to play on this brand new lawn as we are trying to allow it to take root. Where is the cooperation between the City, Banks, Neighbors and the Agents when one party complains and gets their request then tells the other to kick rocks when asked to do their part to improve the situation?

This Home has received new interior paint and carpet plus the pool has been repaired to the tune of $4500 dollars in addition to the new front lawn all paid for by the bank and it just went into escrow with a family who cannot wait to move to their new home. Congratulations to the buyers, the bank, the agents involved, the neighbors that do care, and to the neighbors who don't care I can only say Stay Off The Grass!!!!!!!

Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don't.

In this crazy Real Estate market we all are experiencing at this time everyone is getting frustrated and when I say everyone I mean buyers, buyers agents, listing agents and even the Asset Managers who represent the Investors of the Real Estate Owned (REO) properties and the blame for the length of time to get a response to offers made has gotten ugly at times.

Buyers agents have blamed listing agents for holding back offers so the listing agent can sell the property themselves and earn more commission and I as the listing agent of two separate REO properties was accused of this very thing this past week when I informed two agents, who were waiting for signed bank addendum's from the asset manager, that their offer had been accepted but the Asset Manager was extremely busy and it would take more time than normal to get signed addendum's.

The accusations came flying at me like a sonar powered missile and I'm not half of those things I was called and when it comes down to the bottom line "Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones But Words Can Never Hurt Me". But today, Sunday, crow is being served for the holiday BBQ at a couple of agents homes.

The Asset Manager of these two properties e-mailed the signed addendum's TODAY and the escrow has been assigned so all will be right with the world on Tuesday for the buyers and their respective agents but was any credit given to the Asset Manager for working on a Sunday on a holiday weekend? NOPE!!!!

My hats off to this Overworked, underpaid, under appreciated, very qualified professional who has gone above and beyond to make these transactions become a reality of home ownership to two buyers who will never meet her and in all probability never know what she did.

Rachel, THANK YOU!!!!!

Three weeks ago I was assigned a foreclosed property in the La Cresta area of Murrieta Ca. by the bank that now owns it and the first thing a bank always asks is the property occupied and if not do a BPO ( Broker Price Opinion) and then a price will be set according to estimated value. No problem right? Wrong.

When working with a bank owned property (REO) the agent is the eyes for the bank and I am always honest with my evaluations and very thorough in the documentation of my opinion of value and this property was no different than the rest so the bank set the price on June 2nd and it's time to get it sold. On June the 5th my partner submitted an offer she wrote on this house to the bank, as our marketing does produce results, but in the meantime I showed the property to another potential buyer and guess what we discovered while we were there? A potential settling crack in the slab foundation!!!

When a BPO is done on a property we cannot check every square inch of a home even if the inspection is thorough and this potential problem is located in the master bedroom underneath some nice Berber carpet in a corner but if it is really a settling crack about 1/2 inch deep it does and will affect the value of the home. Overlooked during initial inspection but tomorrow I must inform the Asset Manager for the bank to see what they want to do about this as it is my Fiduciary Responsibility to report any known facts that I know about this property and all properties I represent.

Those of you who work REO have you ever had anything similar happen to you after you have submitted your BPO and what was the result when you informed the Asset Manager?

The buyer with the submitted offer will be informed of this potential problem.

With home sales in most areas of the country declining many companies and Real Estate Agents are cutting costs to make ends meet and keeping an eye on the bottom line is imperative to the survival of any business but where do we draw the line on cutting expenses?

Saturday I arrived at my office as usual at 7:30 and since it was the first time in quite a while I didn't have any clients coming in to look at homes it was the perfect time to catch up on paperwork and that was exactly what I was doing when the phone rings at 8:15. The gentleman on the line, Rich, asked me if we have an agent in our office and he began to describe the person and ended his statement by saying this agent showed me property 10 days ago but he didn't give me a card and I don't remember his name.

After explaining to Rich we didn't have anyone fitting his description in our office he tells me he saw our ad in the newspaper with bank owned properties (REO) and could I show he and his daughter, Tara, houses today as she needed to buy a home ASAP as she was paying too much in income taxes being a renter.

Two hours later Tara and Rich are in my office speaking with a lender on the phone who gave us the price range to stay within and with the information given to me by Tara describing the type of home she wants it's off to Menifee,Ca. to look at 5 REO properties that fit her needs. Tara fell in love with one of the homes and made a full price offer after seeing the sales comparables for the area and her offer will be presented to the bank on Monday and the poor girl probably will lose sleep waiting for an answer as she is so excited.

Cutting costs can become necessary in any business but the only thing cheaper than a few business cards is a persons own face and it appears some folks put themselves Out Of Business!!!

The numbers are in and home sales in the Valley for the month of April 2008 increased 73% from April of 2007 and for the first time since the housing market took a downward swing the house sales were higher than sales in the same period for 2006 at the peak of home sales.

Escalating home sales have some analysts predicting we have hit the bottom on declining values and with a leveling out on prices we my see an upturn in appreciation by the end of the year. Other analysts say with the number of homes on the market we might see prices fall a little more but they are not taking into account the fact we are seeing multiple offers on many properties and especially the bank owned properties (REO) that buyers are seeking out to take advantage of favorable prices.

With favorable interest rates it is obvious many folks are choosing to move to the Murrieta, Temecula, Menifee Valley and begin to enjoy the lifestyle they have always dreamed of from the abundance of golf courses and lakes to the world famous wine country and the yearly film festival that has made a name for itself throughout Hollywood and beyond.

If you are looking to make a move the Murrieta, Temecula, Menifee Valley has it all from starter homes all the through luxury estates and equestrian ranches and the lifestyle that awaits you is priceless.

For more information please feel free to contact me at cameron.wilson@century21.com

951) 677-5661 ext 206