The Southside Urban Villas were all the rage when they were built 11 years ago. That's because little infill development was happening in Sacramento at that time. Most of the homes you could buy near Southside Park, which borders Land Park going toward downtown, were much older, vintage classics. And then this subdivision of 34 individual free-standing homes popped up.They contain all the bells and whistles of course, for a care-free lifestyle. Granite counters. Cherry cabinets. Charging station for electric car. I would not be surprised if the Mill at Broadway was fashioned after this complex. Favors young Millennial professionals. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Lock-and-Go Lifestyle by Downtown Sacramento is a Tri-Level. 12/05/2018

 Rarely do I oversleep in Hawaii, but this morning I did not wake up until the Lowe's contractor guys were hitting my Ring Doorbell, which chimes very loudly in our master bedroom. BTW, I highly recommend getting the Chime feature doohickey for that contraption. Pulled me out of a sound sleep.I had almost forgotten about the conversation I had about buyers with an agent yesterday. Maybe because I was too busy fending off the agents who wanted to "discuss" sales prices on certain properties. They were trying to "build a case" for their lowball buyer. That buyer sitting on the sidelines, watching the market. That buyer who mistakenly thinks they know the neighborhood oh-so-well, only to watch that dream house fly into escrow with two offers. You can read more in my personal blog today at ... 12/03/2018

Some agents learn how to sell real estate by memorizing sales techniques and making canned statements. It works for them, I guess, but it's never been authentic to me. Yeah, yeah, all the world's a stage and we are but bit actors, still, it doesn't seem the way to go in my mind. The way to go is to make clients happy. Genuinely happy.Not to try to trick them into being happy because that's impossible. You can get away with it for a short period of time, but in the long haul, clients will see right through those shenanigans. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Formula to Exceed Client Expectations in Sacramento Real Estate. 12/01/2018

Let me be clear that I am not badmouthing all agents. It is always just a few that ruin it for the rest of us. One thing I have noticed over my 40+ years in real estate is there seems to be a) no shortage of scumball agents and b) that puts us always on high alert that a client could confuse the good agents with those guys.And by "guys" I mean women or men or any other combination of gender preferences. You would think that by the time a seller has contacted an agent and indicated they want that particular agent to represent them that they would have some iota of trust in that agent. But some people don't trust anybody. They don't read reviews, either, so they automatically lump us in with the scumballs.If you like, you can read actual examples of this behavior in my personal blog today... 11/28/2018

Yes, my prediction for today is December real estate sales in Sacramento could be much stronger than you might expect.  There is a lot of doom and gloom talk going around, and I see the numbers, too. Sure, interest rates are climbing, sales prices have appreciated, and now we are moving into a more balanced market.As with every year, I also move my business home base operations to Hawaii. There are not a lot of face-to-face meetings toward the end of the year, so it's easy for me to sell my listings no matter where I am physically located. My phone is attached to my wrist. Makes it very handy when grocery shopping except when Safeway shoppers wonder why I'm talking to my wrist. They shake their heads: those crazy old haole (white people).I make this prediction for December based on the ... 11/27/2018

By the time you read this, I shall be 30,000 feet in the air without WiFi. Yup, on this day of November, I am moving my real estate business from my summer home in Sacramento to my winter home in Hawaii. It doesn't mean I sell real estate in Hawaii. It means I still sell real estate in Sacramento, I just run my base of operations from our winter home. Nothing much changes for me except a few more geckos enter my world.Above is a photograph from our Thanksgiving at the Weintraub household in Sacramento. Seated are my brother-in-laws from Chicago. My husband bought what I call a tiny turkey. It was only 18 pounds. I'm used to at least 24-pounders and up for Thanksgiving, but he kept saying it's only us four. Well, he left out the cats.You can read more in my personal blog today at this li... 11/26/2018

Last week I accidentally overheard a conversation between a potential buyer an a buyer's agent. The buyer was extremely rude, although I'm not sure she meant to be. Her conversation led her to this conclusion: "Let me remind you there are a lot of preforeclosure experts on Zillow; I can call any one of those experts."Don't laugh, please. This was wrong on so many accounts. For one thing, the likelihood of more than one "preforeclosure expert" on Z is extremely unlikely since no such title really exists, and no such type of sale really exists. I'm not even getting into an explanation of what that crap is about. It was also wrong because the buyer did everything she could to alienate herself from that particular buyer's agent. Which is probably because she's living in Opposite Land. Lotts... 11/25/2018

Sure, Imelda Marcos was a criminal who stole a lot of money, but she will always be remembered for her shoes. When she was forced to flee the Phillipines, it was reported she left behind more than 3,000 pairs of shoes. Some reports indicated 7,500 pairs of shoes, to which she famously clarified, "I have only 1,060 pair of shoes." When you think about it, that's not even one pair a day for 3 years. Above is my donation this year to charity. It is not all of my shoes, of course, just the ones I care to now donate. Does that make me a bad person? You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Is it Possible to Own Too Many Pairs of Shoes? 11/21/2018

10550 Peruvian Way Sacramento, CA 95830  Spectacular 5 bed 3 bath home in the highly sought after community of Dierks Ranch. This home is nestled on nearly an acre and boasts a spacious open floor plan with plenty of natural lighting and wonderful flow, huge gourmet kitchen with dining bar, and multiple garages for up to 6 cars. Situated on a premium lot this backyard is incredible. Enjoy the huge covered patio, custom landscaping, solar heated swimming pool & spa, outdoor gazebo with view, backyard trails, and raised garden beds.  Jake DaRosa | DRE # 01704082 BKCO Real Estate Team | DRE # 01406150916-402-5786 11/19/2018

After the open houses today, we begin the countdown to Thanksgiving and then Christmas and New Year. This is the time of year in Sacramento that our real estate market typically slows down. Buyers are not as active in the winter months, but when they have to buy a home, they need to purchase a home.If a buyer is waiting until spring, though, I would caution against it. Spring is busier and there will be more competition for the beautiful homes. A buyer can purchase a beautiful home right now, today, at a lower price most likely, and with better financing. I've always said, btw, that the best day of the year to buy a home is on Christmas.You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: What Home Buyers Can Now Expect in Sacramento Real Estate. 11/18/2018

Trying to combat some of the misinformation in the real estate industry is like trying to explain how a leader of the free world can make up stuff when so few seem to care. It's like if one repeats a lie often enough it starts to sound like the truth. Which is why it's very annoying when a seller insists that a listing agent has bunch of buyers to work with, when they don't. It's a little bit like living in Opposite Land.One of the goals of a real estate agent is to put a buyer into escrow. If an agent cannot perform that function, that's not saying much about the agent, now is it? You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Sacramento Sellers Ask: Where Do Buyers Come From? 11/16/2018

In our MLS system in Sacramento, we are not allowed to market a property before it is published in MLS, unless we obtain an MLS waiver. But that doesn't stop the sellers from chatting with neighbors or the real estate brokerage from circulating listings internally prior to publication, among other things.Sometimes, I've even had sellers say they wanted to exclude a certain party from the listing, a party who has expressed interest when they decided to sell. Usually I prefer they settle up with that person before I extend a great deal of effort on their behalf. If I don't think they will act, I may also exclude them from the listing for a week or so. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Following Up On Buyer Leads Before a Listing Hits MLS. 11/15/2018

Free Adoption at Front Street Sacramento Shelter!  Thanks to this good man, a Local dentist, Dr. Badahl-he is donating the funds for anyone from the public, to save a life and get a new family member-at the same time!  At the Front street Animal Shelter, located at 2127 Front Street, Sacramento- Questions, please call 916-808-7387,  As your Value Added Realtor-I'm lookin' out!  :)  Stay tuned for other fun stuff!  and Let's all be sure to thank Doctor Badahl, they will have his information there on adoption day-what a wonderful contribution he has made to his Community...to save these lives, and like I say-we get a new cuddly family member for FREE! What a blessing-Now You can use that money, you would have otherwise spent, on the adoption...instead-Use it to train your new dog or spoil... 11/14/2018

Who is most likely to sue in a California real estate transaction? I've seen statistics that point to the buyers. Most sellers are getting a big ol' pile of money at closing, so they usually don't have much to complain about. One of the reasons I love working with sellers is it's very easy to keep sellers happy. Keep them informed, be proactive, get them the highest price in the shortest period of time, and they're content.Buyers are a whole 'nother story. Especially after closing when negative issues pop up and they are definitely certain, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they were taken advantage of. But in dual agency, both parties can find a good reason to gripe. Especially now that we have new laws in California that will provide a better foundation for a lawsuit.You can read more ... 11/14/2018

Don't ask me where this sign was located in Sacramento or which company because I didn't take the photo, my team member Josh did. He often sends me cute photos of places he goes. Generally it's places like the top of El Capitan in Yosemite or the bottom of river gorges in Idaho, not the front yard of somebody's house.However, it offered a discussion among the team as to why. Or, as Josh initially put it, we've been doing this all wrong! You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: One Way to Sell a House in Sacramento. 11/13/2018

It is really tough to find the middle ground where one needs to take up residence when explaining the real estate market to Sacramento sellers. On the one hand, I don't sugarcoat anything. I give it to my potential clients straight and explain what has happened, what is happening now and what is likely to happen down the road. Everybody agrees that's the best way. However, it's not without drawbacks.The drawbacks are a bit complicated. For starters, the sellers might not believe their agent. After all, their next-door neighbor's recently remodeled house sold in one day, so surely their neglected house will, too. Then, a cousin in another state tells them the same thing, so they believe that. Because they want to. And on top of all of that, the next agent who walks in the door, when they... 11/12/2018

Home buyers in Sacramento know something is changing in our real estate market, but they are not sure what that means to them, exactly. Some interpret the change to mean they can make crazy lowball offers, which they always can if they can find an agent to pursue that strategy. Others need to buy a home today. Between the two, we all know which agents prefer to work with.On the other hand, sellers haven't quite gotten the word. A potential seller called me yesterday to say she would like to sell her home AS IS -- and let me add that Chris Ann Cleland was right in that some sellers don't know the extent of those words. She said her home needed work and had no updates. In pondering a sale, she suggested that she remove the carpeting and install ceramic tile or else just deduct the cost of... 11/11/2018

What I reiterate in my personal blog about today about the journey to Sacramento from Kona will not apply much, I predict, in the future. Primarily because Alaska Airlines now has flights directly to Sacramento from Kona. Hawaiian Airlines does not. Hawaiian flies to Maui and to Oahu but not directly to Sacramento.Not only that, but after settling in yesterday after the flight attendants offered a Mai Tai or whatever other choices there are, I dunno, we didn't push away from the gate for 90 minutes. We could have had a saucer of mac nuts, something. People on the plane were wondering if we would have to change planes or stay in Honolulu. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: The Journey Home to Sacramento from Kona, Hawaii. 11/09/2018

Could not resist this adorably cute photo I shot at the Kona Bark Park yesterday. The pooch on the left is some sort of rare breed that my friend Linda rescued. When she adopted Honey Bun, the dog was afraid of everyone. Now, a few years later, she suffers only from separation anxiety, so Linda takes him everywhere she can. The other dog? I don't know the breed of that dog but he looks like a miniature lion. He is smitten with Honey Bun and would not leave her alone. Like he found his perfect mate. He ignored all of the dogs at the park. In a way, that behavior is not so far off from first-time home buyers who find their perfect home. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: How to Find the Perfect Home in Sacramento.Heading back to Sacramento today. 11/08/2018

While I dislike dealing with passwords, I now password-protect just about everything. In fact, I just discovered yesterday that my website has protocols that only 30% of the other websites have, which caused my VPN to block it. The company that hosts my website is fairly advanced. So the hosting company had to back down the IP a notch to allow VPN traffic through. I guess the VPN is not as sophisticated as it appears.However, I simply refuse to put a password on my wireless printer in Hawaii because I'll undoubtedly screw it up. It's easier to just unplug the thing. But you would not believe what happened to me. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Do You Know Your Neighbor Can Print on Your Printer? 11/07/2018