Are you a "Move-Up" Buyer? How to sell your current Sacramento home and buy another one...

With home values on the rise again in the Sacramento area, I have gotten several inquiries in the last 12 months from folks who want to sell their current home and purchase another one. WHAT!? This is a huge change from the demographic of the Sacramento home buyer in 2006 - 2011. That Sacramento home buyer was typically either an investor or a first time home buyer...but what we Realtors refer to as "move-up buyers" had been scarce. Let me tell you -- move up buyers are back, and have been back for a while now.

Many Sacramento area homeowners have some newly discovered equity. Sacramento home values have increased 30%+ in the last year and a half, and many folks who had the luxury of waiting out the market, who didn't have a financial hardship, and have patiently made their mortgage payments during the roller coaster Sacramento real estate market are ready to sell. Many folks are selling that starter home and moving into something bigger and better, out to the suburbs, or perhaps in a better school district, closer to work, etc. Many are now "empty nesters" and selling the home they raised their children in, and would like to downsize, or move back out of the suburbs into the central city. Whatever the case, now has turned into an opportune time for many to sell their homes.

So how do you pull this off exactly?

Well, some people who want to do the sell-and-buy tango are lucky enough not to absolutely have to sell their home in order to buy another. If you are in the position to be able to purchase your "replacement home" before you sell your home -- this is an enviable position to be in. This requires some strong financial positioning...you will need to be able to qualify to obtain your new loan, while maintaining your current house payment and other debts. You will need to have your downpayment funds in hand, and have sufficient income to make all of your payments under the lender's "debt-to-income ratio" guidelines. So this is relatively simple -- get pre-approved for your loan, find an agent to assist you, purchase your home, move, and then list your other home for sale. Or keep it as a rental (though many people don't want to be landlords). You have the luxury of waiting until the right house comes on the market and buying it. If this is you -- congratulations! But you will be in the vast minority of "move-up buyers."

If you are the other 95%, you will need to sell your current Sacramento home in order to qualify and have the downpayment to purchase your new replacement home. I have helped several sellers/buyers with this lately. And you have some options...and decisions to make.

Option A: Make a "contingent offer" on your replacement home, then simultaneously list your current home. Finalize the new purchase and sale concurrently.

Option B: Sell your home, do a "rentback" and then purchase your replacement home.

Option C: Sell your home, find a temporary home, and then purchase your replacement home.

Rather than write a novel here, over the next week or so I will write individual posts to elaborate on Options A, B, and C. Each has many pro's and con's, certain contractual implications, and certain financial ramifications that sellers should be keenly aware of. So stay tuned...and if you have questions, feel free to ask them. You can comment here, call or email me.

November 19, 2013: How to make a "Contingent Offer" on a Sacramento home. AKA, how to concurrently sell and buy a new home...

Sacramento: The City of Trees

Did you know that our little old city is commonly referred to as "The City of Trees", that it was ranked one of the "Top 10 Best Cities for Urban Forests" by the Foundation for American Forests, is rumored to have the highest number of trees per capita in the entire world, AND currently Sacramento is shooting to plant a total of 5 million more trees by the end of 2025?

How to remove that pungent Cigarette Smoke Smell from your home...

I showed a house in Orangevale a couple weeks ago...as soon as I got to the front steps I detected a very pungent odor. When I opened the front door, the air seemed thick with cigarette smoke. The walls were yellow. My client and I checked out the house in just a few minutes. I could smell the smoke on my clothes later. UGH.

I frequently encounter homes where there is a cigarette smell and am asked how to get rid of it. I spoke to one of my go-to contractors Jon Shepherd, President of JDS Construction (License # 962347), who does work like this all the time. "I once was hired to paint an apartment after tenant smoked for 40 years! Tar seeped out of walls like tree sap." He described a very long painstaking process to rid a home of cigarette smoke. "Wash tar off walls. Prime with denature shellac alcohol based solvent and re-paint. Remove and replace carpets and pad. Spray oil based Killz on the subfloor or slab." He has also had to replace central heating and air ductwork and attic insulation in extreme cases. 

There are other methods of smoke removal. A local Sacramento company "Smoke Busters" claims to eliminate smoke odor by pumping "Photonic Oxygen" into a home.

Whatever method you use -- the expense can be in the thousands of dollars. But I will say that the decline in value your home will suffer will likely far outweigh the cost to remove the smoke smell. This particular Orangevale home was probably priced $25,000 under a comparable property with no odor.

So I guess if you or a family member smokes -- you may want to strongly consider NOT smoking inside your home.

New Listing - 817 10th Avenue, Land Park / Sacramento, CA 95818

Hard to find 4 bedroom, 2.5 bathroom, 1,536sf home in Land Park! You will love the remodeled kitchen and bathrooms, the low maintenance yard, energy efficient dual pane windows, garage, and more! Close proximity to William Land Park, Vic's Ice Cream, restaurants, the river, and more. Offered at $375,000 subject to lender approval of short sale. For more photos and detail please visit 817 10th Avenue, Sacramento, CA 95818.

New Listing - 3715 Tallyho Drive #12, Sacramento / Rosemont, CA 95826

Cute 2 bedroom / 2 bathroom upper level condo with private patio in the gated "Highlands" community in the Rosemont area. You will love the remodeled kitchen and bathrooms with granite counters and stainless appliances. Inside laundry, big bedrooms, lots of storage space, dual pane windows, and more! Gated community with park-like grounds, swimming pool, club house & tennis court. Conveniently located just minutes from CSUS, the river, downtown Sacramento, and public transportation. Don't wait! Offered at $85,000 subject to lender approval of short sale. For more photos and information please visit 3715 Tallyho Drive, Unit 12, Sacramento, CA 95826.

I Finished my First "Century" Bike Ride!! And I can still walk today...

If you follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc then you may already know that I have been training hard to ride my first "Century" -- aka, a 100-mile bike ride. I've been doing lots of long rides, shorter rides along the American River Parkway, hill repeats (going up and down hills = BLAH), etc.

Why would I do this, you may ask? Well I have been running for the last few years, and my husband Greg is an avid cyclist. He and I made a pact this year that I would do a century with him if he does a marathon with me. I like a good challenge.

So this last weekend I conquered the Napa ALS Century in 8 hours and 52 minutes! The weather was nice; cool in the morning, not too hot, and a little breezy in the afternoon. The first half of the ride included climbing lots of hills, including one section called "Ink Grade" that was just over 4 miles with a little over 1,000-feet of elevation gain (that's a lot for me!). The second half of the ride was relatively flat...Unfortunately that breeze I mentioned was a headwind for about the last 30 miles of the ride. But, I crossed the finish line at 3:52pm. What a great experience! I am going to train for a "Double Century" next year (that's a 200-mile bike ride).

Greg and I will be doing a half marathon together in a few weeks, and have registered for the California International Marathon coming up in Sacramento in December. So we shall see if he can keep up his end of the bargain. =)