Philip McClendon

PRICE
Price is the number 1 factor which will sell your house in this market. If you price your home at or below the current market you will attract more buyers. Homes priced above the market or competitively with other homes sit on the market longer and eventually take more price reductions.

A well priced home attracts the interest of agents and buyers alike and will be shown often and will sell more quickly.

Your agent needs to know where the market has been and where it is going. They will also need to have very good analytical skills to price your home properly and will also need to be able to react quickly to a changing market.

EXPOSURE
Your home needs to be marketed through many different medians that will help your home gain exposure and hit potential buyers 24/7.

Your home needs to have its own website and/or a virtual tour. This allows potential buyers to see your home every minute of every day.

If your agent is not using social media than you should find another agent. This is one of the hottest most effective ways to attract buyers to your property. Examples of social media are:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Blogging
• Linked-In
• You-Tube
• Digg
• Active Rain
  

Your agent also needs to place your home on the top real estate websites. My e-marketing platform allows me to easily place your home on the following sites and allows me to give you top placement on these sites:
If your home is not on these Real Estate websites you are missing out on the savviest buyers who are looking for great homes even in the current market.

My office, Tahoe Riverfront Realty, Inc. is one of the oldest firms in the Tahoe area offering over 30 years of experience. It is important to go with a firm that is well established as these firms have superior knowledge, a deep client base, and are the first stops for potential buyers. Agents that work for these firms have a copious amount of knowledge at their disposal and can best serve their clients.

CURB APPEAL & STAGING
In the current buyer’s market it is more important than ever for your home to have good curb appeal in order to get potential buyers to walk in the door. Without curb appeal your home will not be set apart from the hordes of other listings and it will be more difficult to attract buyers. If you home has good curb appeal you will notice more agents showing your home, you will receive more clicks on your web site, and the home will sell more quickly. Time is everything in a rapidly changing market!

Your house needs to be clean and presentable during the listing period. This does not mean that you have to move out, but it means things need to be tidy and some items will need to be removed to show buyers why your house is so special. Renting a storage space is a great idea to make your house seem less cluttered.

Buyers will notice every little defect, so it is important to fix/repair any major items that will be noticed. These items include:

• Fixing holes and cracks in walls
• Removing old wallpaper that is in disrepair
• Painting rooms with neutral colors to appeal to the masses
• Replacing missing trim or woodwork
• Fixing deck issues

Most minor repairs that will help your home show better can be achieved even on the smallest budgets. Your agent should be able to provide you with local handy men or contractors that will help you fix issues if you are not able to do so yourself.

OFFERS
When an offer is presented you will be notified immediately once we have reviewed the offer. We tediously review all offers so that you are made aware of potential pitfalls, built in exit strategies, and to make sure you are being represented to the highest standard.

Daily updates on contract negotiations and what to expect from the buyers.

All inspections that need to be completed before the close of escrow will be set up and monitored as not to delay the close of escrow.

We will also be talking with the buyer’s agent regularly so that the escrow time line is followed and that all aspects of closing the transaction are handled in a timely manor.

Your interests will be protected and you will have a piece of mind that I am getting you the best price possible for your home.

Let's sell your house!!

Times were hard in the early days of Grass Valley California - the territory had to be cleared so houses could be built. Trees were cut down, burned or turned into lumber to build the homes and schools. Very little was wasted and the quality of life in Nevada County began to steadily develop. Water had to be carried by nearby springs prior to wells being dug. Stones were cut and shaped, and crops were sown and harvested by hand.

The name Grassy Valley seemed appropriate when immigrants first came through the meadows here to provided fodder for their horses, oxen and cattle. Later, in 1849, a group of immigrants from Boston settled by the side of Wolf Creek. They built a store and cabins and named their settlement Boston Ravine. The main route through the area ran between Nevada City and Rough & Ready. The area that is now downtown Grass Valley was about halfway between the two settlements, so in 1850, it came to be known as Centreville. The Postal Service opened it's first office under that name. Ultimately the three settlements became one town and adopted the name Grass Valley.

Little Known Grass Valley Facts:
Grass Valley was the first city in California to pass a law limiting cat ownership to one per household. In effort to put an end to the increasing number of stray cats, the law passed in 1987 and was the first of its kind.

View Grass Valley Real Estate

About Grass Valley Clifornia (CA)

Grass Valley in Nevada County is located West of Lake Tahoe and North East of Sacramento and San Francisco. This area in the sierras is California gold country and its beautiful scenery, springs, lakes, rivers, mountains, forests, and historic landmarks are what makes Nevada County world famous. Once you visit, live, camp, or just view the beauty of this region you will fall in love with Nevada County.

Grass Valley has warm to hot, dry summers, and wet, rainy winters. Summer is very dry but a thunderstorm may occur. The dry season is from May to September. November to mid-April is the true rainy season. Grass Valley has somewhat of anOceanic climate, except that summers are warmer and dry enough to give Grass Valley characteristics of the Mediterranean Climate like much of Northern California. Snow does occur at times and can be heavy. The winter rains contribute to a heavy fuel-loading of brush and grass, which dry out during the summer, posing a wildfire hazard. Nevada County Home Buyers and Sellers If you are looking for a Grass Valley Real Estate Agent, you will find Philip's 15 years experience along with his credibility very useful. Being a past Firefighter of almost 12 years a vast majority of Philip's clients are law Enforcement, Firefighters, Paramedics and Military personal. As a licensed CA agent under the Department of Real Estate, Philip's commitment is to always act in the best interest of his clients.

Are you interested in buying or selling real estate in California and are unsure if you can afford it. Just give Philip a call and five minutes is all it takes to know if this dream can become a reality.

Contact Philip today for more information by visiting him at Nevada County Home Sellers contact page.

Some Other Helpful Links when searching for a home: Home Search

Real Estate News on Twitter

The FHA just announced tighter guidelines (January 20).

Insurance premiums increased from 1.75 to 2.25 percent. Seller concessions are limited to 3 percent, down from 6 percent and new borrowers with a FICO score below 580 will need a 10 percent down payment instead of the 3.5 percent now required. GASP! We have a choice. We can choose to support what they are trying to do, or we can complain loudly and keep the buying public confused.

We are not going to get everything we want or think is needed. In down markets like this it isn't interest rates and terms that will pull us out; it is buyer and lender confidence in the market.The FHA does not live to prevent the recovery. Let's make sure we don't do anything to prevent it either.

Perspective helps in times like these.

When the Florida Condominium Act was made law in the 70's, it was going to 'kill the condo industry." In fact, confidence in the concept and stronger condo documents gave the consumer more confidence in the concept.

When the Florida Timeshare Act came along, it was going to 'kill the timeshare industry.' In fact, the public started trusting the concept and buying. Major hotels came into the business, which confirmed its credibility, and timeshare sales took off.

When interest rates were twenty percent and builders were paying six to eight points to buy down fixed mortgages to 12%, the industry and its experts all agreed on two things: “It was going to kill the industry" and “this country would never see single digit interest rates again. It didn't happen. One result: adjustable mortgages were born.

In 2006-2008 our onsite sales team did about seventy million dollars as broker of record for five condominiums. It was great. Interest rates were low, buyers were living in fear it seemed that they may not get in on the opportunity to own at least one condominium.

Condominium developers, Realtors, lenders and appraisers made a ton of money riding a condominium bullet train that was rapidly derailing down a slippery slope. It was almost embarrassing not to own at least one piece of real estate.

Lenders and real estate agents did not complain about the 'if you can fog a mirror you are qualified to buy real estate" or the feasibility studies that agreed that if you owned land, your project was approved. Or so it seemed.

Fast profits were made by no- risk investors buying a condo one day and selling it for a profit the next. This was reported and explained to the public as presales, when the market knew this was only a paper market.

For the first time in memory, interest rates did not stop sales, lenders and high prices did. But not to worry.

When sales stopped, and cash flow dried up, where better for developers to find money to make mortgage payments than condominium association funds. And who can forget those investors who purchased rental conversion units and never make a mortgage payment or an association payment. Or those who purchased presales in high rise condominiums, then baled before the condominium developer was able to close on the sales, leaving the lender and developer in one of worse cash flow positions imaginable.

Lately it dawned on me. I need to button it. I need to learn to work with HUD and the FHA. I am a marketing consultant and onsite sales broker with tons of experience. Just because I am out of ideas and frustrated does not mean the FHA is a bad program.

The government basically got us into this mess, through its permissive 'don't ask, don't tell' qualifying process, a system process was so loose, it was practically impossible to not qualify for at least one home if not two. And the closings just kept coming.

It's a new year. It is a good time to rethink our thinking. We are professionals in real estate. We need to understand the times and know how to respond. There will be more changes coming, just like there will be in your business or any growing business.

Here's a thought. Let's agree that we need to sell what we have to sell. It doesn't matter what the rules are, we can work within them. We always have.

We need to stop complaining to the public every time we don't get what we want.

Remember: The FHA is in business to protect you and me, the taxpayer. While many of us, including lenders, real estate brokers, mortgage brokers were making record breaking commissions, they were being set up to lose billions of dollars.

The best way for them to serve us is to do everything possible to restore credibility to the condominium and residential industry, prevent as many foreclosures as possible, and help qualified Americans afford to purchase a home, if that is there choice.

The condominium market is as mixed up a yard dog's breakfast. Unscrambling it will take time, but it will also take good ideas and the support of Realtors, homebuilders, lenders, and mortgage brokers.

Here's a challenge. No one expects us to agree with everything or each other on what needs to be done. We can agree that until guidelines are tested, their effectiveness will not be known.

Therefore, when the FHA announces new policies and guidelines, let's at least give them a chance, and while we are at it, try to figure out how we can sell what we have to sell.