New listing - 7556 Wooddale Way, Citrus Heights, CA 95610

Well-maintained 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, 960sf adorable Citrus Heights home is ready for a new owner. You will love the laminate flooring, freshly painted interior, cute updated kitchen with tile counters, remodeled master bathroom, dual pane windows, central heat and air, acrylic stucco exterior, composition roof, and attached two car garage. Big backyard with spacious patio for entertaining, shed for extra storage. Located close to parks, k-12 schools, shopping and more. Don't wait! Offered at $299,900. For more photos and detail visit 7556 Wooddale Way, Citrus Heights, CA 95610. MLS# 18032963

Top Producer Trifecta for May 2018 in my Coldwell Banker Sierra Oaks office...

In my first full month at my new office at Coldwell Banker in Sierra Oaks, I hit the trifecta: Top Closer, Top Seller, and Top Listing Agent in the office. You will see they rank "teams" (groups of multiple agents) and individuals, and I swept the individual category. There are well over 100 agents in my office, and it's nice to see I rank among the top, and clearly I hit the ground running after transitioning to this Coldwell Banker office from another brokerage in mid-April.

New Listing - 8238 Leesburg Way, Elk Grove, CA 95624

Adorable 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, 1220sf Elk Grove home! You will love the spacious open layout with vaulted ceilings, freshly painted interior, updated flooring, and a cozy fireplace. The kitchen has lots of storage space, tile counters, and a cute dining nook. The backyard is a great place to garden and it has a covered deck which is a wonderful spot to entertain or barbeque! This home features a newer fencing, corner lot with possible RV access and an attached 2-car garage. It is located close to parks, Harriet Eddy Middle School, Monterey Trail High School, shopping & more! Don't wait! Offered at $339,900. For more photos and detail, please visit 8238 Leesburg Way, Elk Grove, CA 95624. MLS#18033426

Don't wait to get a "Date of Death" Appraisal...

I sell many homes where the original owner passed away, and the administrator of a probate estate or successor trustee of a trust is the person selling the home. As a rule, I do not give tax or legal advice to my clients since I am not a CPA and not an attorney...but I see this situation enough that I feel the need to make a suggestion to sellers of homes after the death of the owner - talk to a CPA immediately, and obtain A DATE OF DEATH APPRAISAL.

A Date of Death Appraisal is a formal valuation of the home by a state-licensed real estate appraiser upon the date of death of the owner.

You should look into this sooner than later. The estate will likely need one for tax purposes, whether you decide to sell the home immediately or wait.

For too many people having this done is an afterthought. Be proactive. Recently I sold a home for a successor trustee where the owner died over 8 years ago. The longer you wait to have a this done, the more expensive the appraisal will be. The appraisers I refer to my clients typically charge $400-$500 for an appraisal, however if they have to dig for comparable sales information that is not readily available or current, the cost will definitely increase. Additionally, if you get this done sooner than later, while you still have access to the property, the appraiser can actually see the home. If you wait a long time...and maybe even wait until after the property is sold (very common), then the appraiser not only has to dig up old information but also won't have the benefit of being able to see the home in person.

My suggestion - talk to a CPA and don't delay getting this done. If you need a referral to a great appraiser, reach out to me and I can connect you.

Quoted in a Sacramento Bee article about bay area buyers moving to Sacramento...

I have helped numerous buyers relocate to Sacramento, but one thing is certain -- none of them have been overeager to plunk down a bunch of money on a home here. For some reason there is concern that bay area buyers come to Sacramento with their high tech salaries and recklessly offer more than homes are worth.

Nope.

All of the bay area transplants I have worked with have been very financially prudent and conservative. I relayed this experience to a Sacramento Bee reporter for an article that ran in this weeks newspaper about bay area home buyers moving to Sacramento. He also interviewed some of my recently closed clients in the article as well. They sold their long-time home in Dublin and paid cash for a cute 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, 1501sf Antelope home for $339,000, closing just last week. They did so in order to retire a little ahead of schedule. We looked at many homes together before they made any decisions, and before they made an offer we carefully reviewed recent comparable sales so their offer was in line with the market value.

New Listing - 9434 Pandora Court, Orangevale, CA 95662

Well-maintained 3 bedrooms + office / possible 4th bedroom, 2 bathroom, 1813sf Orangevale home is ready for a new owner. Lovingly cared for by one owner for more than 30 years, this home is the ideal blank canvas for your personal touches! You will love the spacious, open layout, separate living and family rooms, updated kitchen with granite counters, formal dining area, large bedrooms, central heat and air, dual pane windows, composition roof and two-car attached garage. Inviting built-in swimming pool is the ideal place to play or entertain, and large sunny garden area is a great place for your green thumb! HUGE attached workshop with high ceilings and 220v is just waiting for your crafts and hobbies, and large covered RV or boat access can store all of your toys. Bring your imagination! All this located near award-winning K-12 schools, parks and recreation areas, shopping and more. Don't wait! For more photos and detail, visit 9434 Pandora Court, Orangevale, CA 95662. MLS#18035980

New Listing - 3428 Kauai Road, West Sacramento, CA 95691

Adorable 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, 1362sf Bridgeway Island West Sacramento home. You will love the open layout, separate living and family room areas, kitchen with tile counters and breakfast bar area, dining room, integrated surround sound speakers, gas fireplace, laminate flooring throughout, and custom-painted interior. Backyard has a large covered patio, plenty of room for entertaining and lots of sunny space to garden or play! Two-car attached garage. Located in close proximity to schools, parks, and nature trails. Don't wait! Offered at $369,900. For more photos and information visit 3428 Kauai Road, West Sacramento, CA 95691. MLS#18038541

Graduated with my Master's Degree in Public Policy and Administration!!!

I have a list of goals. Small goals, big goals, and BIG goals. And about 5 years ago, I set a BIG goal for myself. I decided to work toward a Master's Degree in Public Policy and Administration (MPPA).

Why? My friends and family all asked me this. I did not have a clear answer other than the fact I had a deep interest in housing policy issues thanks to my involvement in the Sacramento and California Associations of Realtors, and I felt I wanted to deepen my understanding of policy analysis. [Analysis and advocacy are two very different things.] And to answer the question everyone seemed to ask: NO, I AM NOT changing careers. I continue to be a full-time, top-producing Sacramento real estate broker. I am perhaps just a smarter, geekier realtor now.

I earned my Bachelor's Degree in Spanish with a minor in Ethnic Studies back in 2001 -- a far cry from the study of Public Policy and Administration. Before I could even apply to the MPPA program, I had to enroll in prerequisite coursework in Economics, Government, and Statistics. So in the spring semester of 2014 I enrolled at American River College and for the next three semesters knocked out those classes. I applied for the MPPA program and was accepted, and in the fall semester of 2015 started the MPPA program at California State University Sacramento. 

Initially I felt like a fish out of water - generally I was a bit older than most of the other students in the program, and most of the other students worked for public agencies, in legislative offices, or were lobbyists. Thankfully, they all were my nerdy kindred spirits and we all had a love for policy. I fit right in.

Not only did I fit right in, but as it turns out, I really excelled in my coursework. I took classes in applied economic analysis, public administration, quantitative analysis, urban policy, research methods and more. I wrote papers on all sorts of nerdy policy topics ranging from homelessness, the supply and demand of labor markets, short-term rentals and the sharing economy, organizational performance metrics, homeownership rates, and determinants of home value. I wrote my thesis on the positive and negative spillover effects associated with the growth in numbers of Homeowners Associations in Sacramento County. It was a lot of hard work and I loved every minute of it. 

I liked it so much that I got involved in the Graduate Association of Students in Public Policy and Administration (GASPPA) and served as Treasurer for 2017-2018. The Faculty asked me to sit on the hiring committee for a new faculty member, which was a really interesting experience. My professors encouraged me to submit my research on Homeowners Associations to different student research symposiums, and I ended up presenting my research in three separate events, which was really awesome. 

And the craziest part...I had the highest GPA in my program at 3.97 (darn that one A-). The faculty of my department selected me for the 2018 Cristy Jensen Award, named for the founder of the MPPA program. And last but not least, the Dean of the College of Social Science and Interdisciplinary Studies named me Graduate Student of the Year for 2018 for the SSIS Department. And I graduated "with Distinction". 

So May 18, 2018 I walked across the stage at the Golden 1 Arena. What a ride! I can't say enough great things about the program, faculty, and my fellow students. It was a lot of work, and during my 1.5 years of prerequisites and 3 years in the MPPA program I managed to do all that and remain a top producing Realtor. In fact if anything I just got busier while I was in graduate school.

So now what? Well I am maybe the nerdiest Realtor in Sacramento. And being done with school, I have more time on my hands for something - I guess my next BIG goal, whatever that turns out to be.