Jose Siojo Santos Team REO/Bank Owned and Short Sale Specialist

Our comeback in Real Estate this 2011 is truly amazing! It's not the way it used to be from our 25 years of practice before. The last 5 years has taught us to re-strategize the marketing we implemented before with so much outbound marketing-postcards, newsletters, print-ads, newspaper ads etc. We have allotted our budget at least 30% for outbound marketing. Now the in-bound marketing through Social Mediais is helping us a lot to renew our commitment and dedication to the industry with a very minimal expenses. Aware of the new technologies and the new trends in real estate, working from home and enjoying grandparenting, is making our passion re-ignited and enjoy the journey of helping others. Specializing with REO/Foreclosures and Short Sales in San Francisco and San Mateo counties, we are connecting the bargain properties with First Time Homebuyers. Prices rolled back just like in the early 2000's and now it is more practical to own than to rent. Mortgage payments for low prices is practically the same as renting. We just handed the keys last week to a happy family to their first home here in San Francisco Peninsula and combined rent for siblings to 2 apartments is almost the same owning their 4bedrooms, 2 baths home with 2 separate kitchens on a 2 story home. In time for THANKSGIVING. What a breath of fresh air and a joy to our hearts being a part of an American Dream. This also shows in hard times there is always a silver lining. Great bargains are out there with Foreclosures and Short Sales, for those dreaming to own their First Home in San Francisco and San Mateo counties, there is no better time to buy NOW.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL. May another Thanksgiving bring you to your dreams and goals of owing your own home for the first time or next time to find you to be homeowner again.

Here's the 12-month report of residential single family homes for sale in South San Francisco California.

Here's the 12-moth report of residential CONDO homes for sale in South San Francisco California.

Now we can compare that most of the homes that First Time Homebuyers can afford are the Bank Owned or Foreclosures.

This is the best time for Gen Y First Time Homebuyers to buy their first place in San Mateo county especially in South San Francsico.

To find out more REO/Bank Foreclosures in San Francisco and San Mateo counties click here

1. The first step is to look at your financial picture by gathering your last 2 years income tax returns, your last two year's W2's, last 3 months bank statements and last paystubs. This will save you time before you even think of approaching a Mortgage Officer or a Real Estate Professional or searching a home on-line.

2. The second step any potential buyer needs to do when they start thinking of buying a home, is to contact a local and trusted mortgage broker, bank or credit union. A good local loan officer will pre-qualify at no cost. Internet is a good source of lenders but try your local lenders first. A recommendation from a Trusted Real Estate Advisor or Professional will save you time and give assurance that you will be handled by a professional too.

3. Third step, get PRE-APPROVED not only PRE-QUALIFIED. Make sure your pre-approval is based on your credit, employment and down payment. Understand what program you have been pre-approved, the amount of downpayment required and the closing costs that you need to come up before closing.

Then only then, you can start to look for the home that will fit to your criteria and based on your lifestyle. This is the POINT when you need a Trusted Advisor and Professional Real Estate Agent to guide you through the process. A professional who will represent your best interest and give you advice anytime you need to make a decsion. A professional who can be using all the tools of the digital real estate and at the same time have a "personal touch" who will make your purchase less stressful and will give you peace of mind, before, during and after the purchase.

After 5 years of hiatus, my TeamSantos Real Estate had planned to tap into the growing pool of 20 to 35 years old, called the Gen Yers or Millenials home buyers by creating website/blogs for Gen Y First Time Homebuyers in San Francisco Bay Area. We started in the city of South San Francisco where we raised our seven Gen Yers children ages 24-33. Our oldest daughter, now 33 who started her interest in real estate since she was 18, had decided to re-join our team to connect with her Millenial peers. Directing our advertising dollars to the digital world of marketing and moving forward over the next five to 10 years, we have to understand the buying trends for the younger generation in purchasing their first home.

With the growing trend of First Time Homebuyers in Y Generation, they normally search the Internet first before getting into buying decision. Websites for particular needs based on their lifestyle is usually the start to search their parameters, compare and then connect and inquire in the internet. They based their decision on what datas and information they have accumulated. What we found out, these younger breed are most likely to connect if the service they are seeking can provide them the quickest responses from the Real Estate Professional.

The more information we can give, with different tools out there, the better we can generate inquiries that will later become legitimate Homebuyers. If we can offer a sophisticated website packed with resources, data and information about the market, we can be assured to get a piece of the pie to this growing Gen Yers or Millenials which are estimated at 120 million.

South San Francisco is the most ideal location for Gen Y First Time Homebuyers, 5 minutes from San Francisco International Airport, going North to Downtown San Francisco is 15 minutes and to the South going to Mountain View, Palo Alto and the Silicon Valley is 15-45 minutes through 2 major freeways 101 and 280.

To search for homes for sale in South San Francisco starting from 199k to 399k click here.

Who belongs to Generation Y? They are born between 1977 and 1995. For most Gen Xers like us, our children were born between those years. We raised seven Gen Yers, ages from 24 to 33, born between 1978 and 1987. As parents we learned to be flexible since every one of them has their own individuality. Six daughters and the baby of the family is our son, now age 24. Our experience in raising them up gave us a lot of opportunities to become flexible and adjust to their lifestyle after they started to move out, one by one. It was a challenge in the beginning with our oldest daughter but once we get used of the second one moving out, the third one was just getting used to it and accepting loosing control to be involved in their life’s decision.

This generation’s lifestyle is operating in a world with remote controls, Internet and smart phones. In other words, they are accustomed to instant communication at the tips of their fingers. So when my wife and I decided to come back in real estate after 5 years of hiatus, we thought of servicing the Gen Y First Time Home Buyers. We can relate to them easily. Just like a normal Gen Yers, when it comes to marketing to this generation- we can not use the techniques we used 10 years ago. They expect instant results, quick communications through email, text, twitter and you’ve got to be ready in your knowledge of using smart phones and all the available apps that will make them stick to you. They want information to be instantly be viewed on a smart phone, laptop, ipads, tablets or their own PDA ( personal digital assistant).

Millenials, as the Gen Yers are also known are increasing in numbers when in comes to the market share for First Time Homebuyers. With their dependency in communications, media and digital technologies, to successfully market to them the following strategies have worked when we integrated these strategies:

1. Gen Y website and blog to address their needs and the services they can get from our site, from doing the home search through our IDX, blogs they can ask questions and get answers quickly, forms and reports they can download, videos they can watch and personal touch they can avail, by text or smart phone.

1. Social Media involvement through Facebook, Twitter, You tube, LinkedIn, RSS blogs and other Social Media sites.

1. Mobile Update and QR Codes for instant response and information without them calling you personally.

1. On-line communications through esign or docusign, efax, wifi access to scanner, photographs sharing etc.

It’s not how you call them personally at the beginning,but it’s how they can access you through their smart phones features. And then the relationship begins.

Search for homes, available for Gen Y First Time Homebuyers in San Francisco and the Peninsula, prices starting from $199k to $299K visit our website for homes for sale in south san francisco.