After 5 days with 10,000 other Keller Williams agents in Atlanta, I'm refreshed, rejuvenated, and ready to hit the road running. What did come to my mind was the market- the Market is the market, what you do with it is the ONLY thing you can control.  So how do you work in this market?That's just it - you WORK!  Personally, I've never been more busy, investors and first time buyers especially are seeing opportunities that didn't exist a year ago.Home owners who need to sell need my help now more than ever, and I'm here to help.  Some agents shy away from Short Sales-- yes, ok, they can be a real pain, but they can also make a HUGE difference in the life of a client!  Isn't that really what this business is all about - helping others achieve their financial wealth goals?  I love this mar... 02/15/2008

I'm seeing it -- buyers are out looking. I've gotten more calls to go look at property in the past 2 weeks than the past 2 months. I know it's spring, the holidays are over, etc..... are buyers looking to buy or are they just surveying the crash site? Most buyers are looking in the bottom range of home, hoping to find a great buy on a foreclosures or bank owned property. Is this what you're seeing? If you're looking to purchase one of these homes and you're not looking NOW you better start. I forgot - I'm in California, Tracy to be exact, the Central Valley. Home buyers are looking at homes for sale in Tracy and Mountain House. Mountain House is getting HOT HOT HOT! 01/22/2008

Affordable Housing in Tracy -- and Mountain House.I picked up the Tracy Press and read an article on "Affordable Housing." The description of "Affordable Housing" was that developers should be given incentives to build UP instead of out.  Keep in mind, Tracy is located in the Central Valley where there is farm land, grazing land and foothills.  I'm not suggesting we want urban sprawl or that growth shouldn't be systematic and orderly.  However, if home buyers wanted multiple housing units stacked one on top of each other they'd purchase homes in the Bay Area.  They'd choose to have 4 - 6 lane roads, tons of traffic, over crowded schools, inflated crime rates, etc.The last time the City of Tracy decided "affordable housing" was necessary the streets were impacted, our schools got over c... 01/07/2008

Here they are right of the presses ---- as of January 4, 2008 ---881    Active Local  99    Pending   32    Sold in past 30 days 63     Active Rural  5      Pending  1      SoldPendings are UP!  What does that really mean besides people are buying homes?  It means BUYERS are BUYING!  This is great news for the Tracy area.  Whoo hooo...   01/07/2008

One of the very best feelings in the entire world happens when you help very deserving people accomplish a goal they never thought they'd accomplish.Here's their story --- names have been changed --- 2 adults, they may have immigrated to the United States, English is not their first language.  The couple worked very hard to make a home for their family.  Their children are grown and have children of their own.  Never in their wildest dreams did M & M  think their dream of home ownership would come true..... but it has.  I was a part of this miracle and what a great feeling. The perfect storm of a declining market made the American Dream possible.  A CalHFA loan at 6.37%; a $75,000 City of Tracy Down-payment Assistance program that won't need to be repaid for 30 years or until they refin... 01/07/2008

Top 5 blogs for 2007 Here is number 5:A Soldier Family's Chronicles will pull at your heart stringsgive you pride in our countryreality storiesinsight of what it is like for our troops away from their families.    Here is number 4:My Tech Opiniongreat advanced techie tipseven though they are advanced, you can still do themrealtors should just follow 10% of what they say & you will go sooooo farrrrrr    Here is number 3:Thirty Day Challengefor the SEO curious in yougreat tips to get more website hitsexplains how to sort out the internet's many dimensionsyou can access all the information without doing a rush of 30 days   Here is number 2:Mashable...social networking newsexplains what is new & creativehow can we utilize it for ussocial networks such as facebook, twitter, digg, mashable to... 01/05/2008

What do these have in common?  Spring -- nope it's not really spring, BUT the SPRING market will be upon us soon.  Traditionally buyers start looking the first full week after New Year's Day.  Buyer's Market -- yes BUYER's MARKET -- when would you like to buy, for years we had severe Seller's Markets -- you had to make numerous offers to purchase a home, and then you paid well over the listing price.  So Ms. Buyer -- do you want to do that again or would you prefer to take your time looking, find the home of your dreams and negotiate for the best price?Taxes -- yes we all pay them.  However, if you own your own home you have a HUGE deduction - INTEREST!  Are you renting?  Have you spoken to a qualified lender to see if you can afford to buy a home?  If not, you should.  Prices are at al... 01/05/2008

What would you do in this situation.You have the listing - a short sale -- you know the owner is no longer making payments to the bank, and has no issues with the bank foreclosing on the property.  You go to the property to take photos and meet with the renters.  Yes, the renters are still paying rent, the rent is not being paid to the bank, the owner is pocketing the rent and not paying the mortgage. This is a 3 year old property and the renters have been there since day 1.Do you advise the renters?  They point blank asked if they should continue to pay rent? Bottom line, if they stopped paying rent the seller probably wouldn't have time to evict them prior to foreclosure proceedings, and the seller probably won't report anything on thier credit report, wouldn't they be doing the same... 12/30/2007

Someone asked me this morning what does "blog" actually mean. The original term was "weblog" as in a log of events or thoughts recorded on the world wide web. It was later shortened to the term we now use, blog.  Not too important but slightly interesting. 12/17/2007

Yes, foreclosures are up. Yes, people are losing their homes, yes the new is ALL over this information. Everytime I open the newspaper, turn on the news or listen to the radio all I hear is DOOM and GLOOM. But is it really all that bad?Are their positives? Yes, for the first time in years housing is affordable in Tracy, California. I've heard laments for years about how young people can't buy in thier home town, this is no longer the case. Currently I know of 2 buyers on is buying a home and her payments including insurance and taxes will be less than $900/month. WOW! What about the couple that have saved and waited their entire lives, and now are buying thier first home? CALHFA is now available for first time buyers, interest rates are the lowest in years.Is there a good reason not to... 12/12/2007

Whether you choose to sell your house or rent it out till the market gets "better", it is tough to decide.  If you are moving to a different city because of a job transfer, you might want to think about your comfort level of being far away from your old house being rented out.  If you think you would be okay with it, hiring a property manager to handle the possible issues with a tenant could ease your mind.  If you rent it out, you would have to think about for how long you would like to do that.  The current tax laws say you have to live in it two of the last five years (as your primary residence) to have $250k (single) or $500k (married) excluded in your capital gain.  Maybe you might want to choose to sell now especially if the housing market where you are moving to is a buyers marke... 12/10/2007

1-888-995-HOPE Do you know what this number is for? Have you tried it? No it is not some silly scheme. It is the number of the US Housing Department, this is the phone number the President of the United States said to call if you need help with your mortgage. I've not tried it, and I'd love to hear what they say if you call it. I do know that there is plan in the works to FREEZE interest rates from adjusting for up to 5 years. WOW -- will that help? It's anyone's guess. At this time the experts are on both sides of the fence. There are those that think this is a temporary stop gap measure that won't fix the mortgage crisis problem, and those that think this is the best thing since sliced bread. Being that I am not a lender, Real Estate Attorney, Financial Advisor, etc -- all I know or t... 12/06/2007

Twas the days before ChristmasAnd all through the nationNot a Buyer was BuyingDespite the homes that were waiting.Buyers were waiting to find a great deal,trying to find the perfect steal.Buyers were saying "We'll wait until springthat's when we'll be ready to do our thing."Yet whining and crying around the earth we'll hearwhen home prices rise in early next year.Oh Dear, Oh dear what did we do,now can we still afford a home old or new?We missed our chance to buy a great housethe markets a rising, don't we feel like a louse. So what of the buyer, who's smart as a foxthe one who's not waiting, Until the New Year RocksThere's foreclosurers, short sales and deals aplentyAnd Sellers with plans to move on are ready The gift of Homeownership is for everyoneprices are low, so buyers have funhu... 12/06/2007

Oh my goodness, where did the year go? It's almost December 1st, I know that means that Christmas is right around the corner. Do you know what else it means? 2008 is only 32 days away? So how did you do on your 2007 New Year Resolutions? I typically don't make resolutions, that way I don't disappoint myself. However, this year I did set some goals. Did I accomplish them, nope. Can I blame the Market? Nope, the results rest with me. Should I have worked harder and smarter in March, April when the market really started to turn, you betcha. Now what, now I will have a long talk with myself, peering into the mirror and vow to make different choices next year. So, 2008, look out because here I come. I've got resolutions, goals and a PLAN for the future. (Don't ask me what those all are, I do... 11/30/2007

Amazing as it it to fathom, there is money available for FREE or close to it, especially for first time home buyers. No really there is. The City of Tracy,like many others, have grant programs and down payment assistance programs. Numerous banks now have grant programs available for first time buyers also. Yes there is criteria, such as income, credit rating, etc. However, if you are currently renting isn't it worth your time to contact a competent REALTOR and ask about these options? Where is your future? Is it in your rental unit or is it starting the journey toward your dream home? 11/26/2007

Clients come first -- even before our families..... True or False???Is this a true statement? I know we all immediately say "Absolutely, my family and kids come before my clients." but do they really?Is that what are actions show our families? I know I've had some "thoughts" about this recently. Since when my phone rings I answer it, when someone wants to see a property, I go show a property, when someone wants me to do a CMA I go straight to the computer and start working. I know that I think -- "Oh we can go to the movies later, or out to dinner, or play cards, or or or.... " So really - does my family come first? Not lately. Yes this is hard to admit, for the woman who has always been overly busy and a 'stay at home' mom. I am cutting myself some slack, I know that in the Tracy Real ... 11/23/2007

Happy Thanksgiving! HAPPY THANKSGIVING! This year many families are stuggling, in fear of losing thier homes. yet through it all, I know that they will prevail. I know of one such family personally. They lost their mother, wife and now they are losing their home. Yet, they are strong. They just called and a very compassionate land lord is opening their home to this family. Yes, their credit stinks, yes they have been through 18 months of pain and suffering, but I know that they still have much to be thankful for. They haev each other. I have never seen such a strong family! I feel responsible for their success, but I'm not. I just thankful for the chance to get to know them. Susan Goulding 11/21/2007

Happy Thanksgiving! HAPPY THANKSGIVING! This year many families are stuggling, in fear of losing thier homes. yet through it all, I know that they will prevail. I know of one such family personally. They lost their mother, wife and now they are losing their home. Yet, they are strong. They just called and a very compassionate land lord is opening their home to this family. Yes, their credit stinks, yes they have been through 18 months of pain and suffering, but I know that they still have much to be thankful for. They haev each other. I have never seen such a strong family! I feel responsible for their future, but I'm not. I just thankful for the chance to get to know them. Susan Goulding 11/21/2007

 DRAT!  Why, oh why, didn't I pay attention when I was in Ms. Smith's High School Creative Writing class?  I'm crying the blues now.I like to blog, I'm coming close to loving it, obsessing about it.  I wake up in the middle of the night, my notebook beside the bed and scribble in the dark a thought, a great blog, a wonderful topic that is keeping me awake.  Usually when I actually start to write, it just doesn't come together in print like it does in my head.  Sort of like a good "hair" day.  Some are good, some you just go out in public and say "here I am World, like me like I am or don't."I'm still lamenting not paying closer attention in Creative Writing, heck who knew it would be so important NOW! 11/12/2007

How is it to sell a Short Sale?  Honestly, it's not.  Buyer agents are a bit gun show to nake an offer on a short sale.   Banks still are not quickly responding to offers, however it is getting better. Here is what I've noticed, and I'm going to start tracking it even more closely.  Short Sales are selling for LESS than a Foreclosed property!  WHAT??? Say that again. I have not tracked every short sale, however, I know of at least 2 homes that the short sale list price was substantially less than the price when the home came back on the market with the REO.Buyers ask your agent --- show me properties that are short sales.  Especially if time is on your side.... use it wisely! 11/11/2007