Tips for Holiday Decorating on a Budget

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The holidays are approaching. Today, we thought we'd do something a little different and share this festive video on holiday decorating tips from HGTV. Designer Angelo Surmelis shares several great ideas to spread holiday cheer throughout the home. Here are some of our favorites.

Pay attention to the mantle. If you don't have some already, buy some kind of garland to drape over the mantle. Next, use leftover ornaments and candles to add light and texture. When choosing ornaments and candles, ensure they are in the same color-palette. This helps make your mantle a great focal point!

Use smaller Christmas trees. Every house has their main Christmas tree. In addition, you can also purchase smaller, inexpensive, eco-friendly trees to place throughout the home. Decorate these trees with strips of fabric from a T-shirt in holiday colors to save money for the main tree.

Use what you have. Be resourceful. Adding a plate charge and place mat to your everyday dining set adds some jazz to your table. Fresh-cut flowers and candles will help finish the look. You don't need grand, expensive candles -- a little candlelight goes a long way!

As you can see, it doesn't take much to make your home feel more festive. If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

Should I Sell During the Holidays?

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If you’re a seller, people may have told you now isn’t a great time to list. However, I’m here to assure you otherwise. It’s definitely an opportune time to sell in Temecula!

Because many people keep their homes off the market, there’s less competition for you. Your home has a better opportunity to stand out now compared to the spring.

Secondly, there are serious and highly motivated buyers. They need to buy before the end of the year. They’re not window shopping.

If you’re considering waiting until February to list, give it more thought. You might have a better shot now. Give us a call today if you have any questions!

Hear From Our Buyers How We Were Able to Help

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We believe that when we help people buy or sell a home in Temecula, we are giving them the keys to a wonderful place to live. It’s the place we have chosen to raise our family, and we want to help others be able to raise their families here as well. Today, we’re going to talk to some of our satisfied customers about how we were able to help them purchase a home in Temecula with little stress and big results.

When the government changed regulations while Matt Moyes was in escrow on the house he wanted to buy, the whole thing fell apart. We were able to help Matt implement a plan B and save the home. He is now the happy owner of a great property in Temecula.

Kirstin and I have both been in this town for many years. We know all the developments, communities, and neighborhoods. We have great relationships with local Realtors, lenders, and mortgage companies as well.

We are a smaller boutique office, so you are not going to get lost in a crowd. We are all cross-trained in all aspects of real estate so if one agent can’t answer your question, another agent most certainly can. We aren’t pushy, we aren’t going to force anyone to buy or sell if they aren’t ready. We go through a detailed process with all of our potential buyers to make sure they are getting exactly what they are looking for.

I was in the Marine Corps, so I deal a lot with marines that are coming back home and purchasing a home. I have to work with these people through the computer, without them being able to see any properties in person. So far, my clients have been 100% satisfied the first time they see their house in person. That’s because we take pride in what we do, and we are committed to satisfying our clients’ needs.

If you have any questions for us, or are interested in buying a home in Temecula, please give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

How Can We Help You Manage Your Investment Property?

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Did you know that Realty Works offers help in more than just buying and selling properties?

One of the other services we offer is property management, which has two sides to it - the tenant side and the property owner side. For property owners, we have a great flat rate fee to get your property managed professionally. It's only $99 a month!

To learn more about our great property management services, visit www.RealtyWorksPM.com or give us a call! We would love to hear from you!

The Best Place to Live in Temecula

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Today I want to provide a brief real estate market update for one of my favorite places in Temecula: Harveston Lake. This is a fantastic development if you want to buy a home in Temecula. There is a lake, walking trails, a clubhouse, and more.

Temecula has a lot of beautiful parks, but this one just might be the best. If you're interested in viewing a property, please contact me because they're going to sell fast.

Now for a market snapshot of the area: 
-36 homes are currently on the market
-The average listing price is around $440K
-Homes in this area are all less than 10 years old, and they have 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, and a 3 car garage

Again, if you want to buy or rent in Temecula, please consider Harveston. It's a wonderful place to live in Temecula and it's going to be filling up quickly.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions about real estate in Temecula!

Temecula Short Sales Are on the Rise

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Today I'd like to talk to you about the short sale process.

 Right now we are experiencing a resurgence of short sales. Ten years ago, people were offered a loan modification in order to avoid a short sale, so we haven't seen as many short sales in the past few years. 

 

Now those low payments are coming to an end, and many homeowners can no longer afford their mortgage payments. Their homes are still underwater, so they are opting for short sales now.

If you are considering a short sale, or just have questions about the short sale process, give me a call or send me an email. I'd be happy to help you.

How Can a Short Sale Benefit You?

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A short sale is what happens when the mortgage on your home exceeds its value. When you owe more than your home is worth, the only way to make money on the sale is through a short sale. This must be approved by your lender first.

I thought short sales were over with, but in the last month I have been hearing about them more frequently. People who didn't opt for a short sale in 2010 had their home loans modified so that they could stay in their homes for greatly reduced prices.

However, those home loans are now resetting, and the new payments are quite a bit higher. When these homes become un-affordable, people start to call me and ask about the short sale process. 

I'm an expert in the process of short sales. I have more than eighteen years of experience with them. There are no out-of-pocket expenses in a short sale, and the banks in California cannot come after you for any deficiencies after you've sold. 

Please don't hesitate to contact me for any reason. I would be more than happy to help you with any and all of your real estate needs.

How Can a Reverse Offer Help Get Your Home Sold?

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Lately, many people have asked us what a reverse offer is. Today, we'll explain what that is and how it's used!

A reverse offer is a strategy we use to get your home sold faster. It's one of the ways we make a transaction happen in a situation where there doesn't seem to be an audience for your home. Typically, an agent will market your home and get people to take a look at it, but sometimes the selling process turns into a waiting game, where the agent and seller are simply waiting to see if anyone will make an offer.

To avoid sitting around waiting for a buyer to make a move, we use a reverse offer, where we reach out to a buyer and make them an offer. We acknowledge that they took a look at the house and make them an offer. We've found that being proactive like this often helps get a home sold! 

The key is to avoid sitting around waiting on buyers to make a move - the power is in your hands! If you have questions about this process, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, give us a call or shoot us a quick email. We would love to hear from you!

How we helped Chris buy a home using our knowledge of the area

"We got a house! Her knowledge of the area helped a lot. When we were looking at houses, she had the information ready to go. She had everything lined up in a very professional way. She definitely made sure that we were taken care of!"

How we helped Nadia find a home by always being available

"We got outstanding results from her! We are very pleased with our house. We didn’t feel like we had to compromise on anything that we wanted. We were out of town, so we couldn’t go look at houses during the week or anything. During weekends, she would spend entire days with us just looking for a house. I felt like she made us a priority. We never had to negotiate a schedule. If there was a day we could go, she went out of her way to make sure that she was available for us."

How to Sell Your Home Using an Open House

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Realtors have been using open houses to sell homes for a long time. It's an old-fashioned way to sell a home, and sometimes it can be rather ineffective. 

We have integrated technology with old school methods to improve the process of an open house. We put out around 15-20 signs for an open house, and we also mail postcards to the entire neighborhood for an exclusive viewing that begins before the public showing. 

On top of this, we have a system where our ISA's call everyone in the neighborhood to ensure that people know about it and show up. We like to create a buzz around the property, and we also use social media to do this by running ads on multiple platforms.

We really pride ourselves on the fact that we market our open houses aggressively. We employ a lot of agents at our open houses in order to trap as many leads as possible, because a lot of leads come in and out of the door, never to be seen again.

As always, please contact us if you're looking to buy or sell in the Temecula area!

What Unexpected Costs Should You Prepare for When Buying or Selling in Temecula?

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Today, we want to share some information you'll surely find helpful. There are some costs associated with buying or selling real estate in the Temecula/Murrieta area that we want to clue you in on.

If you haven't sold a house in the last couple of years, one unexpected cost that might pop up is an up-front payment for your Homeowners Association documents. In the past, that was paid during escrow or at the end of escrow, but now the HOA companies are having you prepay that up-front to generate those documents. Typically, the price is around $300-$400, but we've seen some reach as high as $900, so be aware of this fee! 

You might also have to pay private transfer taxes that trigger up the sale of a property. We live in the Harveston area, which has a Community Enhancement Fee that calls for a transfer tax each time a home is bought or sold that goes to a charitable organization in the area. The transfer tax is one quarter of 1%, so out here it could be anywhere from $700 to a little over $1,000. 

If you're a buyer who is getting a loan to purchase your next house, your lender will probably ask you to have an impound account. The impound account consists of money you have to pay up-front for your taxes and insurance. It's typically six months of taxes and a whole year's premium on your homeowners insurance. Have that money ready! If you're running low on funds or can't afford to have all that an impound account calls for, reach out to us and we'll help you with that. 

If you have any questions about real estate, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, we're your team! We would love to help you in any way possible!

Temecula Real Estate Market Update

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Today I'm going to give you a brief overview of the real estate market here in Temecula and Murrieta. 

Overall, we're seeing a neutral market with good inventory levels and steady prices. This means that if you're looking to buy or sell, now is a good time to do so. 

I want to urge buyers to enter the market even more so than sellers because interest rates are currently below 4%, and they may not remain this low for much longer. If you buy a home with these low rates, it could save you thousands and thousands of dollars on your home loan. 

Another important thing to consider is that you'll need a good team of real estate professionals to get the best possible deal. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you need assistance buying or selling in the Inland Empire this summer!