This new technology allows me to showcase your home online by creating a website exclusively for your property. This site includes all the information about your home as well as virtual tours and aerial views (and is even smart phone friendly!).

It also allows me to utilize mobile technology giving potential buyers quick and easy access to the property information 24 hours a day from any mobile phone. Buyers can simply text for more property information from the comfort of their cars, while sitting right outside your house. A rider attached to the For Sale sign provides easy-to-follow texting directions as well as the website information for your home. The buyer immediately receives information about your house and I, as your Realtor, receive their phone number allowing me to call and follow up with them.

Additionally, I promote your house on my personal website as well as on many other real estate sites, ranging from Craig’s List to Trulia and everywhere in between.

You know you want to try it…

TEXT “28518″ to 79564

VISIT http://1213DarlingWay.epropertysites.com/

…and let me know what you think.

This graph shows homes for sale, sold and pending in Sacramento, Placer, Yolo and El Dorado Counties from October 2009 to March 2010. It tells us a few things:

-Winter was slow! Home sales in January and February were down.

-Inventory is up! This is great for buyers who can take advantage of the large inventory.

-The Spring is here! Pending home sales are way up (yes, homes are selling!) as are sold homes.

All signs are pointing to an ending of the cold real estate winter. Bring on the Spring!

The graph to the right shows the average price at which homes were listed and the price at which they actually sold. Again, it is a combined average for Sacramento, Placer, Yolo and El Dorado Counties.

While the listing price for homes is decreasing, the average price at which they are being sold is staying stable. It seems people are starting to realize pricing your home to sell reduces the time it sits on the market. Even as the inventory is increasing, prices are staying stable. This is a good sign for sellers!

Let’s agree to leave the harsh winter in the past and embrace the warmth of the coming Spring. It still may be a good year for real estate after all :)

State lawmakers approved the bill late last week. The bill, SB 401, by Sen. Lois Wolk (D-Davis), bans state taxes on up to $500,000 in forgiven mortgage debt and also prevents the state from taxing federal stimulus funds as additional business income when steered to renewable energy firms.

The state Franchise Tax Board estimates approximately 100,000 Californians will be spared from $34 million in state taxes through 2012 as a result of the new law.

The tax relief plan only applies to people who lost homes in which they actually lived. According to the Franchise Tax Board, investors are not beneficiaries of the tax break and still must pay state taxes on the forgiven debt. State officials say qualified taxpayers don’t have to do anything to get the tax break. Those who qualify for federal relief will automatically get the state relief.

Old and historic houses are notorious for their lack of closet space. If you have cramped storage areas, add do-it-yourself wire and laminate closet systems to bedrooms, pantries and entry closets. Companies such as ClosetMaid allow you to measure and redesign your closets online. You can also get design details and parts for these systems at many large home-improvement stores, like Home Depot. Most closets can be updated in a weekend or less. In the end, your closets will be more functional while you’re living in the house and will make your home look more customized to potential buyers if you ever decide to sell.

Check Back Tomorrow for…

Day 1: GET STARTED IN THE KITCHEN

Day 2: MAKE A MEMORABLE ENTRANCE

Day 3: UPDATE THE BATHROOM

Day 4: LET THERE BE LIGHT

Day 5: MAKE THE OLD LOOK NEW

Day 6: DE-CLUTTER AND CREATE STORAGE

Day 7: CONSIDER CURB APPEAL

Congratulations Pamela for achieving the prestigious 100% Club Award with RE/MAX!

What does this mean to you? Pamela has shown through the ups and downs of the real estate market that she get results. Not only in 2009, but for the past 20 years! Regardless of the market, whether you are looking to buy or sell a home, Pamela truly can make your real estate dreams come true!

The bill, AB 183, was first proposed by Governor Schwarzenegger in his State of the State Address in January and was easily passed by both houses of the legislature. Yesterday a spokesman from the Governor’s office assured that the governor still supports the bill and will sign it into law.

The bill allocates $100 million in tax credits to first-time home buyers and an additional $100 million to buyers who purchase a new, unoccupied home. This tax credit would provide up to $3,333 off state taxes for each of the next three years. In order to qualify for the tax credit, buyers must close escrow or reserve a credit between May 1 and December 31, 2010.

If you or someone you know is interested in taking advantage of the federal tax credit before it runs out or the state tax credit once it’s in effect, please give me a call. I love referrals and I would love to help you find the home of your dreams!

Consequently, the HVAC industry has shifted to the refrigerant R-410A, commonly known as Puron. This is important information for homeowners! Why? Because when your air conditioning unit needs to be serviced, or replaced…and it eventually will, you will learn that only a limited amount of new R-22 is being manufactured (to meet the servicing needs of equipment manufactured before January 1, 2010). After 2020, production of R-22 will be prohibited and only recovered, recycled, or reclaimed supplies of R-22 will be available for servicing existing equipment. So, in the future, R-22 supplies will be more limited and costs may rise.

If you don’t currently have a home warranty on your home, you may want to consider adding one…for approximately $380/year, it can buy a lot of peace of mind.  If you already have one in place, I’d suggest you contact your provider to ensure that they will provide proper coverage for your unit, now that the new legislation has been put in place.

Jessica assured me that “in the event that a heat pump or air conditioning unit needs to be replaced, FNHW will, when necessary:

-          Replace covered components that are necessary to maintain compatibility with the replacement unit.

-          Replace the indoor furnace or air handler, evaporative coil, transition, plenum, indoor electrical, duct connection, accessible refrigerant and condensate drain lines and thermostatic expansion valve (TXV).

-          FNHW will replace air conditioning and heat pump systems with R-410A once the R-22 inventories are no longer available in the marketplace.”

For more information, please visit the EPA’s website: www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/phaseout/homeowners_faq.html

Paragraph 5C of the California Residential Purchase Agreement reads, “MEGAN’S LAW DATABASE DISCLOSURE: Notice: Pursuant to Section 290 46 of the Penal Code, information about specified registered sex offenders is made available to the public via an Internet Web site maintained by the department of Justice at www.meganslaw.ca.gov. Depending on an offender’s criminal history, this information will include either the address at which the offender resides or the community of residence and ZIP Code in which he or she resides (Neither Seller nor Brokers are required to check this website. If Buyer wants further information, Broker recommends that Buyer obtain information from this website during Buyer’s inspection contingency period. Brokers do not have expertise in this area.)”

This paragraph is nestled into the contract between disclosure language regarding Natural and Environmental Hazards and Condominium/Planned Unit Developments, and is often given little attention from homebuyers eager to purchase the home of their dreams…it’s so much more fun to focus on where the Christmas tree will go (amazingly, one of the first questions many homebuyers ask)!

I recently had the privilege of working with an adorable young couple who was in the market to purchase their first home. We looked at several homes together, and they narrowed it down to the one they wanted to call “home.” We wrote an offer, the offer was accepted, and the disclosure process began…the very first thing they did was get online and check the Megan’s Law website to ensure that they were moving into a neighborhood where they would feel comfortable raising a family. Much to their surprise, and mine, they learned that there were four registered sex offenders living within 1/4 mile of the home! After much thought, reflection, and prayer, they made the decision to withdraw their offer, and they were well within their rights to do so. That’s what the disclosure process is all about!

The good news is that my clients found another home that they loved even more, and the other home sold the very next day to someone else who was not discouraged by the fact that some of their neighbors were registered sex offenders. Win, Win!