West Sacramento, CA

Are you thinking of buying a condo? Have you ever considered a loft? This is the new up-in-coming way of living Downtown Sacramento and in West Sacramento.

Recently, I helped a buyer buy a new loft from a builder in West Sacramento at Ironworks. The reason why you want to make sure and have representation by a Realtor and not the builder is that you can get more frankly, when you are represented. My recent home buyer got a heck of a deal and loves living in his new loft.

Currently, I have a second home buyer who was interested in purchasing a condo Downtown Sacramento but when I showed him these great looking lofts in West Sacramento he decided to have me negotiate the best deal for him at Ironworks.  Smart idea...he too is getting one heck of a deal.

The photo is a little deceiving, the walls do not touch between each of the lofts. It's a modern way of life within walking distance of Downtown Sacramento right over the Tower Bridge.

Come take a ride with me and learn a little something about these great lofts in West Sacramento and if you are interested in buying one, be sure to give me a call.

 

West Sacramento Loft from Gena Riede on Vimeo. 

 

32 Condos have sold in West Sacramento from January 1, 2008 through Nov. 30, 2008 for an average price of $213,531.

I'd love to get YOU a good deal, too. The way it works when buying a new loft, new condo or a new home from a builder is that you MUST have your Realtor come with you for the first visit in order for the Realtor to be recognized by the builder. So, don't delay give me a call so I can negotiate the very best price and terms for you with the builder.

I suppose one of the reasons I am such a prolific blogger is that I spend so much time on hold working on short sales. I am currently negotiating six of them (with a total of 10 loans between them), so several times a week I spend a couple hours listening to hold music trying to get through to Loss Mitigation. I try to be as productive as possible, and often times in the absense of emails to respond to, listings to look up, home evaluations to do, Trulia Questions to answer, news to read, and websites to play on, I do a brain dump into my blog. It is almost theraputic.

Last week, I closed another one of my short sale listings after a very tumultuous time on the market. We were in contract a total of 3 times with 3 different buyers before one stuck. I had approval from both lenders within a couple weeks of receiving our first offer...I had tirelessly communicated with the buyer's agent while I was working with the lenders. The day I received written acceptance, the buyer's agent told me they had gone into contract on another property. ARRGGHH!

So, back on the market we went. A week or so later we had another offer...of course the approvals I had received from the lenders had an expiration date that presented an unrealistic time line for this new buyer, so I worked hard to get an extension. After about 2 weeks of waiting, that buyer got restless...2 days after that buyer cancelled, I received new approvals from the lenders. Again, ARRGGHH! I felt really bad for the sellers, who were trying to determine when to move...what a crazy up and down ride for them!

Back on the market...within another two weeks we had yet another offer. Again I had to go back to the drawing board with the lenders. Two weeks later I had written approval from the lenders - but this time they wanted the buyer to close escrow in 13 days (that's really fast!). The buyer threatened to walk away, saying that there was not enough time to close the escrow. After wrangling with the lenders, they agreed to extend the close of escrow...it finally closed escrow on November 7th.

One of the most frustrating elements in short sale transactions for me as a listing agent (aside from countless hours on hold), is the fact that you never really know if the buyer for your property is coming or going. The longest short sale negotiation I have done to date was 5.5 months, and that buyer really wanted the house and patiently waited throughout the entire process, while I have worked on others that were approved in just a couple weeks where they buyer skipped out. One thing I have learned to prep my sellers for is the fact that getting and KEEPING a qualified buyer is one of the most critical pieces in the transaction...and it is a piece we have zero control over. Luckily, I have worked with some wonderful clients who understand this and appreciate my efforts.

Well anyway, in the time it has taken me to write this post, I learned that one of my short sales was just recommended for approval!...woohoo!!!

West Sacramento Rental Survey

I have collected current rental rates for the West Sacramento area. The chart below shows rental averages for 1 bedroom apartments, 2 bedroom apartments, 2 bedroom duplexes and/or condos, 3 bedroom homes, and lastly 4 to 5 bedroom homes.

Rent rates will vary based on current condition of the property, property features, and location. The rental averages below for 95691 can help place your rental in the competitive market.

West Sac/Yolo Co. 95691
Apt	1 Bdr	$ 673.33
Apt	2 Bdr	$ 756.67
Dup/Condo	2 Bdr	$900
Hse	3 Bdr	$1,250
Hse	4-5 Bdr	$1,744.89

Alexandra Machado

Property Manager

916.429.1205x700

www.HomePointe.com

amachado@HomePointe.com

West Sacramento seems to get a rough deal many times when people are discussing the Sacramento region. With much of the city located next to downtown Sacramento it is a growing community that has a lot to offer.

One way the community is changing is to continue to build then connection between the two cities. Early in 2009 the City of West Sacramento will take over a set of abandoned rail lines and plans are to build a path that connects the two communities. Anything that promotes walking and bike riding should be supported. KCRA recently ran a story about this project.

Contributed by Carolyn Gjerde-Tu, Sacramento Real Estate

So you've been standing around the water cooler and are hearing about these crazy deals in the beautiful community of Southport in West Sacramento. Many brand new homes were sold during the boom years in southerly section of West Sacramento. Like other areas, there is a steady flow of bank owned homes to that market. However, an interesting thing has happened in the past few months. The number of bank owned homes coming on the market is not keeping up with those going pending/sold. For investors, the numbers are starting "to pencil" as they say. Practically new homes are selling for around $130 a square foot (for homes over 3000sf). In most cases, you can't build for that price let alone purchase a lot. Unfortunately, owner occupied buyers are now having to compete with investors (who have 20% down). In most cases, well priced properties (beauties) are receiving multiple offers in the first day or two on the market. There are some that are just sitting because they are over-priced, filthy, trashed, and so on (beasts). Sifting through the inventory was an endless process just a few months ago. Now, a realtor and client can see everything in an afternoon. Investors don't wait for the bottom, when they jump in the bottom comes to them. If you are an owner occupied buyer, the best time to buy is when you are ready. If you are an investor, the time to buy is when it pencils (or makes financial sense). Whether you are a first time home buyer, veteran investor, or first time investor, I am happy to help. Please call or email with your questions... Lori Prizmich, Realtor Keller Williams Realty 530 845 3325 (direct) lori.prizmich@pcgagents.com www.LoriPrizmichHomes.com