Chia Rodeski's (chiarodeski) Blog

As a first time buyer in San Jose, CA, a high cost housing market, it's likely that you may need to consider buying a condominium (condo) or a town home instead of a single family home as your first home. Here are some factors to consider: Let's define what each of these terms mean: Condo: with t...

First time home buyers in San Jose CA often ask this question: is bank owned/foreclosure/short sale home the best deal for me? The answer is "it depends on your individual situation". Let me explain. To start, let's define what these terms are. Bank owned or REO (real estate owned) and foreclosur...

First time home buyer in San Jose, CA is usually sensitive to every dollar saved or spent because buying a home is probably is the biggest investment and commitment in his or her life. One of the topic of discussion during our initial consultation is always about how to get the best loan/mortgage...

First time home buyer in San Jose, CA often wonders how much home can he or she afford, once it's decided that home ownership is the right choice. You've been burning the midnight oil scouring the online multiple listing service and viewing number of for-sale listings, pictures, and virtual tours...

It's understandable that as a first time home buyer in San Jose, CA, purchasing that very first home is both exciting and scary at the same time. I work a lot with first time home buyer and one of the first topic of reassurance is to explain the key concept of contingency period. California's con...

As a first time home buyer in San Jose, CA; it's very common during the initial consultation that we discuss protections when it comes to buying the first home. It's easy to fall in love with a home that Saturday afternoon during an open house, while strolling through the neighborhood you want to...

As first time buyers in San Jose, CA, it's important to understand the key role as homeowner's insurance as this protects your real estate interest. As a home buyer, if you're purchasing through financing a mortgage, a lender will not sign-off on your mortgage loan unless you have secured adequat...

First time home buyer in San Jose, CA often asks me: what exactly is a title company and what does it do? Title companies provide title insurance to buyers, sellers, lenders and developers. Services vary throughout the country, depending on local practices and laws. In many states, title companie...

Winning multiple offers in San Jose's real estate market is becoming increasingly important in today's market condition. Because of limited supply of good quality homes in the area (see blob post: Santa Clara County real estate trend 2012), there are plenty of buyers out there competiting for the...

Now that you've decided to buy a home (see blog post on rent versus buy), it is time to evaluate neighborhoods in San Jose CA in which you're interested. If you're looking for a home in a community that you know well, you probably already know exactly in which neighborhoods you'd like to live. Fo...