ADDIE SCHARFF - Broker/Realtor

If you are thinking of buying a home, chances are you may be involved in a transaction where the home is owned by a lender, or is needing lender approval, as is the case for Short Sales.

Make your first offer, your best offer. When writing an offer for a property where a lender is involved, it is best to make it as simple as possible, and make it your best because in many cases the lenders do not counter offer. In some cases where multiple offers are submitted, they may ask all buyers to re-submit their highest and best before they decide.

Be prepared for lenders to ask you to sign their own purchase contract. These contracts should include just about everything that a normal contract has, but you need to read it very carefully, as with any contract, so that you know what the process will be and what needs to happen, and when.

Most lenders will not make repairs. If you find out the home needs repairs, you may ask for a credit and some lenders will issue credit, they most likely will not do repairs unless is a safety or health problem that needs to be address in to obtain financing, such as FHA.

Some lenders are requiring pre-approve buyers themselves before considering an offer. You will not be required to get the loan from them, and you can also insist on them accepting your current approval. Some lenders however, make no exceptions. Having too many credit checks may affect your score in a negative way, so be cautious when letting that take place. A plus on this is that you'll get to see what they can offer you.

Lenders are not required, or able, to disclose all the things a regular seller is. Because the lenders do not have a personal knowledge of the property, they are not able to disclose many things. However, they are not exempt from every thing. You agent will give a disclosure that states what the lenders are exempt from. So this being the case, you must be extra careful as to the inspection of the home.

CLOSE ON T IME. Many lenders have a per diem charge of about $100/per day is you do not close on time. So you must stay on top of the transaction to make sure there no delays cause by something on your side.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions on buying or selling your home.

Whether you're a buyer, a seller or someone who just likes looking at homes for sale, do you see value in Staging homes prior to putting them on the market?


I think that if Staging did not make such a HUGE difference in how fast and for how much homes sell, we would not have the MODEL HOME concept, right? Or Staged to Sell, or Get it Sold, or The UNsellables, you get my point, right?

REOs are perfect for Staging because you don't have an owner whose feelings will get hurt when I take down the dream catcher collection they bought in 1979! We all have a "collection" of our own in our homes, don't we? When the home is vacant, I can go in any time, work my magic, post the awesomeness online the next day and let my client see the value of my services for their investments.

Let me ask you this....if a certain agent was Staging all of his/her listings, would you see value added to his/her listings over other those that are not Staged?


Those of you who are Staging, or love Staged Homes, or know of sellers who would be interested, please comment. I'd love to know how everyone is doing, or how much interest is out there.

I offer Staging FREE to my clients, if property conditions allow it, of course. On vacant homes I decide how much or how little to Stage depending on the property. If the home is occupied that also determines how it is Staged.

All comments would be appreciated, but especially those who are either Staging, or Asset Managers who use agents who Stage your REOs, please contribute! :)

Don't you just love a beautiful Porch?

As a real estate agent with a passion for improving the homes I sell, by Staging them, I often find myself looking for new ways to improve, and transform different areas and little corners of the home, into more enjoyable spaces.

As I walk my dog, Tommy, around my neighborhood I often get to see the creative and beautiful ways in which people lovingly dress their front porches. It just makes you want to stop and smell the roses and take in the beauty of the moment! No, don't I really sit at people's porches, but it sure is tempting! It makes me want to get to know who lives there and learn from their creativity!

A porch's look and feel gives us a glimpse of what awaits us inside the home. How your porch right now? Is it bright and welcoming, or sad and neglected? Are there flowers blooming or is everything dead? Is there a place that says come sit, relax and refresh your soul?

A porch is also a great place for us to change the mood, as the seasons change, or with each holiday, without having to take too much. With a few potted plants, colorful pillows, which are so readily available at great prices, a whimsical wreath, are easy ways to make wonderful changes and add instant cheer with little effort.

Some great things we can use are:

Potted plants - just leave the plant in the original container and put that in a nice decorative pot.

Pillows / Cushions - Stores like TJ Maxx and Ross have great choices at great prices. Try fun colors like these white and red from www.urbanlivingshop.com

Birdhouses - unique rustic birdhouses are just charming and the perfect addition to any garden spot

Benches - a simple bench or chair and a bright pillow will make an inviting space

Wreaths - either on the front door or on the wall behind a bench is simple to change for holidays & seasons

Statues - a charming statues is always such a cute way to add whimsy

Flags - my favorite is the American flag. Always keep it clean and looking fresh

Window Boxes - few things are more charming than a window box overflowing with blooming annuals & ivies

Hanging baskets - just be sure they look healthy at all times by keeping them watered

These are only some of the many things we can do without much effort. Next time I think I'll have fun writing about back patios!

Beautiful Homes Realty embodies the concept and idea of helping home buyers and sellers make the most of their Real Estate investments. Whether you're just starting the dream or selling and upgrading to a bigger home, our goal is to maximize your overall investment. Do let us know how we can be of assistance with any of your real estate needs. Coverage areas include: Turlock, Denair, Waterford, Hilmar, Delhi, Stevinson, Atwater, Keys, Ceres, Modesto, Ripon, Salida, Manteca, Tracy and Patterson areas. Visit us soon at: www.sellingbh.com

As a Realtor® representing both, buyers and sellers, I am too often amazed at how badly homes for sale are being presented to potential buyers and their agents. Whose to blame? The agents who list them, or the sellers who hire them? In these times of sellers having to sell properties are record low prices, do sellers have extra money to leave on the table by listing homes this way? It makes you wonder!

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS

For the most part we all have a special place in our hearts for the home life, and making the home a place where we are able to leave the outside worries behind. There is the occasional person who comes home from a vacation only start planning the next! I know a few people who'd rather be on vacation than at home. That's not most of us, however. Home is a place to recharge and renew daily. But for some reason, many homes for sale do not resemble anything close to this idea. And I am not talking just about a vacant homes here. Of course, you have the high-end homes that may be the exception but when we're talking about the average home here. And even an "average" house can be half a million dollars or more. When most buyers are looking for a home, they have this idea in mind. BUYERS ARE LOOKING A HOME TO MAKE THEIR OWN. They don't set out to find bad house!

So why is it that being that Real Estate is in most cases and for most people, their hightest and best investment, that there seems to be such a lack of caring when selling it? I dont' get it!

A HOUSE FOR SALE IS A PRODUCT

When you put your home on the market, is in fact no longer a home. YOUR HOUSE IS NOW A PRODUCT FOR SALE. You don't know who the buyer is going to be. It may be an investor (local or out of the area), a young first time buyer, an experienced older buyer, a male, a female, young ,old, a do-it-yourselfer, or a buyer looking for a move-in ready home. You have no idea. None! However, in most cases the one thing you do know is that YOUR HOUSE IS MOST LIKELY NOT THE ONLY CHOICE this buyer will have. Right?

The truth is that even though most buyers believe they will be able to see passed the clutter and minor repairs needed when seeing a home, in most cases they are not even aware of why they don't feel at home in a house. Time after time I hear buyers say "I just don't feel it" or "it just doesn't speak to me".

OH, THAT'S EASY TO FIX!

I could give you a very long list of items where Mr. Seller says "Oh, that's easy to fix". Is that right, Mr. Seller? Then why haven't you fixed it? The problem with small "easy to fix" things is that they are only noticed, negatively, when they are a problem. If they were fixed, the buyer would just move on down the hall taking in how spacious the rooms are. Instead they get the sense that THIS HOME HAS BEEN NEGLECTED, even if they don't say a word.

A WELL-CARED-FOR HOME

When you hear the words "a well-cared for home" what comes to mind? To most buyers it means the homeowner tended to any problems and fixed them, and maintained the home. They get an image of A HOME WITH NO PROBLEMS! That's right. Subconsciously a buyer will feel that way. In short, they are more inclined to feel that the home is WORTH ITS ASKING PRICE! In fact, others will also feel the same. The agent, the appraiser, and the inspectors. That's right!

CAN BUYERS SEE WHAT YOU'RE SELLING?

Now to the marketing of the property. Do you ever take the time to find out what the listing of your house looks like on the internet? If you do and if you're happy, that's great!! If you don't, you really should. Time and time again I am searching online for homes for my buyers only to find out that many listings only have one photo, or even worst, no photo at all! Okay, other times there may be 3....all of the FRONT!! Without actually driving to each one of these properties, you can't even get an idea of the layout of the rooms or yard, and of its overall interior appeal. MR. SELLER, YOU ARE LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE!

SHOW MY HOUSE LAST! OR BETTER YET, DON'T SHOW IT AT ALL!

As a seller would you ever ask a buyer's last, or not show it at all? Well, when you have no photos, or the house is cluttered to the point that it's hard for buyers/agents to see through the mess, that is exactly what happens! When there are so many homes on the market that meet a client's needs, there just is not enough time to show them all. So, NATURALLY THE BEST ONES GO ON TOP! The ones with no photos, bad photos, over priced, need appointment for showing, have restricted hours, must give prior notice, ect. - those are left for LAST, if there is time. Where do you want your house to be, top or bottom?? In fact, I read an article once about an agent who said that houses with one photo and high "Days On Market" are at times good deals for buyers because it is perceived that the reason there no inside photos is because there is something wrong with house, so it just sits on the market without showing. A house that has sat on the market for a long time is NOT likely to sell for asking price! MR. SELLER, YOU ARE LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE.

MESSY CLUTTER FOR SALE!

If all that buyers can see in a photo is your clutter how will they be inspired to rush right over? Perhaps if your house was the only house on the market, they would have no choice, but being that there are many others, they in fact have no reason to! None! MRS. SELLER, YOU ARE LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE.

LOOKING FOR BUYER DUMB ENOUGH TO PAY TOP DOLLAR FOR FILTHY HOUSE IN BAD SHAPE!

How clean is your house when on the market? If you're house in not in the best shape it could be, and you're expecting to get full asking price, the hearder above might as well be used. We may be fine with living in a house that's less than perfectly clean all the time, but the way we live in our homes and the way sell them are two different things. Our messes are not as filthy as someone else's, right? Don't you just hate dirty bathrooms?? But if it's your own bathroom, you know you just need to clean it. But if it's someone else's nasty and filthy bathroom....YUCK!!! Or your adorable pet's hair all over the carpet, or urine smell, is certainly not the same as someone else's smelly pet's mess everywhere, right? Even when a home is vacant, if it's filthy, it may just feel all wrong to the buyer - like they just can't use that kitchen to prepare their food or put their dishes in those nasty cupboards that seem impossible to come clean. By the way, this applies also to sellers and lenders who are dealing with REO and Short Sale properties. If you are selling a filthy or cluttered house, or both, YOU ARE LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE!!

NO ONE CAN RESIST BUYING A BEAUTIFUL HOME!!

When selling your house, go with an agent that knows what needs to be done before putting it on the market. When we decorate our homes to live in, we want our personality to show in our décor. It tells a story of who we are and what we love. It's what makes it home to us. When we are selling, we want to do just the opposite. We want to take our personality out and make it neutral so that we can appeal to a wider range of buyers. This is especially true if our taste is very specific, or if we haven't changed our décor in decades!! The process of doing this with selling in mind, it's called STAGING. Do not take it personally when suggestions are made about what needs to be done to get the house sold. That is why you're hiring an expert - to help you and guide you. It's a team effort. When the space is clear of clutter and in a neutral palette, buyers are better able to imagine themselves living in it!

When a house hits the market, it should be READY TO SHOW and it should have as many photos as possible! Otherwise, what's the point??? Most MLS associations allow up to 12 photos per listing. If your house is photo-ready there shouldn't be any reason not to have the max # of photos published. Photos should be clear and show each room in good lighting from the best angle(s).

Mr. Seller, you are in charge of how your house is sold. Hire an Accredited Staging Professional Realtor who will work with your interest at heart, to get you top dollar on your invesment. Don't leave money on the table!

May all your sales produce only the best results in 2009!

About us: Beautiful Homes Realty, Turlock CA, is an entity founded with the idea of helping home buyers and sellers make the most of their Real Estate investments. Whether it's buying that first home, buying investment property, or selling a property already owned, our only goal is to maximize your earning potential by helping you find the best home for your money and/or by getting you top dollar when selling. Coverage areas include: Turlock, Denair, Waterford, Hilmar, Delhi, Stevinson, Atwater, Keys, Ceres, Modesto, Ripon, Salida, Manteca, Tracy and Patterson. Visit us soon at: www.sellingbh.com

In spite of me always trying my best to explain the buying process to my buyers, I get questions that let me know just how short I have fallen in my explaining! I want my buyers to always have an understanding of what we are doing, and where we are in the process when buying a home.

You know, sort of like knowing that you're going from point A to pint B, and that along the way you will be changing freeways four times, crossing two bridges, and you will be on the road 1 1/5 hrs and will travel 95 miles! There will still be traffic lights and stop sighs along the way, but you have the overall idea of where you'll be and when. Not just that you're going to get in the car and take a trip to place you've never been to, period!

This article is especially written with First Time Buyers in mind. Now that I practice Real Estate I realize that I had no idea of what was going on in a transaction when purchase real estate before I became an agent! None!! I mostly just scanned over the contract telling myself that I would take the time, later, to read it "carefully"!

Here is the BIG PICTURE and some key details of what to expect. Also keep in mind that every transaction is different and things may happen differently in your transaction due to the uniqueness of your circumstances.

A Real Estate purchase transaction has phases, or steps if you will, and timelines as to WHEN they must be completed. But let's look at it from an overall big picture prospective.

FIND A HOUSE YOU LIKE. Okay, that goes without saying!! Okay, and EVEN before you find a house you would have met with a lender or loan broker to be pre-approved for a loan. This way you know how much you can buy. You would not want to waste your time seeing homes you could not afford, right?? Right! This house of course would be in an area you like. Always check out the neighborhood to make sure you like it and that you will feel safe and comfortable living there before you waste your time and maybe even the opportunity to put an offer on a better house and area.

MAKE THE OFFER. The offer will be based in part by how much you like the house and on comps of other similar homes that have sold in the area.

ORDER INSPECTIONS. This is done by your agent, not by you personally, to get an independent and professional opinion of the condition of the house in order to really know IF you are going to BUY the house. Inspections should include an Natural Hazards Disclosure Report, in most cases paid for by the seller. This report will tell you of possible surrounding hazards affecting the property, including things such as fire hazards, flooding, earthquakes. Other inspections may be roof, pool, chimney, home, termite, ect. Once you receive a copy of the inspection reports you will have to decide if you still want to house. So, read the reports carefully so you can make an informed decision!

APPRAISAL - this is required by the lender, and ordered by the person that is getting you the loan.

ESCROW - in short is the process by which a 3^rd party, Escrow or Title Company, opens escrow ONCE you are in contract. They make sure all parties meet all conditions of the contract before property and money change hands. They impartially carry out the written instructions given by the principals.

FEES are all the associated fees related to the purchase. You should ask for an ESTIMATED BUYER'S CLOSING COSTS to give you an idea of that the fees will be. You can always estimate your closing costs to be about 3% of the purchase price. These fees will include fees associated with your loan, appraisal, inspections, transfer taxes, home owner's insurance, escrow fees, interest paid in advance, title insurance, and escrow company fees, ect.

THE PURCHASE CONTRACT - which contains the provision noted above.

Read your contract a couple of times and you will get a good sense of what to expect and you will feel much better about the transaction process. It contains the TERMS of the agreement, such as purchase PRICE, how fast you will close escrow, in most cases 30 days, how long you will take to do your inspections and get your loan, what type of loan you're getting. The contract is the document that escrow will use to carry out a successful completion of escrow. If changes in terms occur during the transaction Addendums can be added if agreed to by both parties.

The contract also states what happens if things are not done in a timely manner. The contract gives a buyer a certain amount of time, either by default or by adding it in, to perform inspections, get your loan, sell a current house, or whatever the case may be.

If you are not able to perform a particular item within the specified amount given, you can either ask for an extension or cancel the contract if do not foresee being able to perform. Once you perform your inspections and such, the seller's agent will ask you (through your agent) to remove your contingencies - meaning that you are now satisfied with that aspect of the purchase and will not cancel the contract based on any of those conditions without losing your deposit.

Each item in the contract is clearly numbered. So say you are having difficulties getting your loan approved. You'd go right to the item in the contract that contains your loan contingency and you will know what options you have.

Close of Escrow happens when all instructions in the contract have been carried out by the parties. Once escrow, AND THE LENDER, have received all requirements, escrow or your agent will let you know how much money you will need at closing when signing your documents.

Once your documents have been signed and reviewed by the lender, the lender will fund the loan (sends escrow the funds), and the property normally records the next day in the County where it is located.

Upon recording you are the owner and get keys!

If you have ANY questions regarding this article or to begin your Dream Home Search with me, contact me at once! Addie@SellingBH.com * 209-277-8346.