We are happy to announce that we have achieved the status of the number one agents in all of Frank Howard Allen for the first half of 2009. Thank you so much to all of our clients! Let’s continue this streak for the second half of 2009 and help lead Marin County out of the recession!

As of August 1 there will be yet another change to our loan terms when buying a home. As a buyer of a personal residence the banks are now bound by a three day right to review and rescind per the terms set forth in the Truth in Lending document sent to all borrowers prior to closing. This always applied for refinancing but now it applies when you first buy a home with a new loan, too.  This is important for several reasons. The buyer has a chance to review their terms in a leisurely fashion. The buyer can also make adjustments with their lender and then receive a new Truth in Lending Statement. Be forewarned however. Any changes to close of escrow, price, credits, anything that affect the price will require a new Truth in Lending to be issued. And the 7…

We are excited to announce that we have recently released a new feature of www.marinrealestate.net called "New Marin Listings". This section of the site will auto-populate listings that just came on the market within the past two weeks enabling buyers to have one easy place to search for and sort new listings in the Marin County Market.

Check it out and let us know what you think!

Recent Marin County Listings

We understand that buying a home is a huge decision and in this market it is important to know you are making the right financial decision. As in selling a home, hiring a seasoned professional who has lived through similar challenging markets and not just the recent one where an agent was more of “an order taker” is imperative. This market is serious and you need the right advice and guidance. Here are some statistics: The median price rose in Marin in June to almost $800k which is up from the month before and the average price has jumped to approximately $860,000. 207 homes sold in June which is 37 more than the month before but 20% less than the same time last year. Number of sales jumped by 16% but down from this time last year. Currently, there are…

Hello all,

We have to paste a piece of code to claim our blog. Please ignore this posting. Sorry!

 5nqawx9pr7

The two biggest factors that determine whether a home sells or not in this market are Pricing and Motivation. Never has the professional experience and knowledge of the agent you choose to represent you been more important in getting your home sold. They are the ones that will not only give you the right advice and guidance in accurate pricing, but also give you honest feedback as to whether your motivation – your reason to sell now – is authentic enough to put your home on the market now or just wait.
 
This is a buyer’s market which means the buyer is looking for “a good deal”. In the last market, emotion played a huge part in whether a buyer would submit an offer on a home. In this market, they also need to be assured that they are making a sound…

Google released their real estate search engine about a year ago but on Monday they took a huge leap toward becoming one of the web’s most trafficked real estate search engines. 
On Monday, Google Maps published an article: Improving Real Estate Search on Google Maps. In it they have discussed some enhancements that improve the entire site. They have added more markers on the page and also a more intuitive search interface. 

What does this mean for Marin Real Estate?

We feel that Google’s real estate search does serve a purpose. It is nice to view listings in Google’s familiar “Maps” interface and it is fun to see how many listings are available in your area but, like Zillow and Trulia, Google Real Estate search is still limited by the data it…

No one would call the current status of the California real estate market good, but it is showing improvements. The median price of southern California is still a 35.8% drop from last year. However, California real estate is slowly making a comeback. From January of this year through December, qualified first time home buyers will get a tax credit of $8,000 or 10% of the cost (the lesser of the two) of the home. This tax credit can also be used to contribute to the down payment, which is a primary reason the sales of homes have increased for the third consecutive month. Low mortgage rates and reasonable home prices are also strong contributors to the increase in sales. Fortunately, Marin County is taking advantge these temporary benefits.

…

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in April suggests that the pace of economic contraction is slowing. Conditions in financial markets have generally improved in recent months. Household spending has shown further signs of stabilizing but remains constrained by ongoing job losses, lower housing wealth, and tight credit. Businesses are cutting back on fixed investment and staffing but appear to be making progress in bringing inventory stocks into better alignment with sales. Although economic activity is likely to remain weak for a time, the Committee continues to anticipate that policy actions to stabilize financial markets and institutions, fiscal and monetary stimulus, and market forces will contribute to a gradual…

Ask friends for referrals. Friends can give you a starting point, but don't hire an agent solely on a friend's recommendation, says Brenner. Don't choose an agent based on personality alone, but make sure you can get along well.

Choose the broker or real estate agency first, and then ask the agency to recommend a couple of their best agents. Then stick with her. If you see a house for sale and call the agent listed on the sign, that agent's first concern will be representing the seller, not you, the buyer. "Sometimes the broker is associated with a franchise, such as Century 21," says author O'Hara. "If you select a franchised broker, you have the advantage of national name recognition and usually a strong national advertising campaign." But beware.…