News About Rancho Santa Fe Homes and Condos


Qualifying the Buyer for your Rancho Santa Fe Property


Either you or your agent will want to weed out potential buyers who cannot afford to purchase your Rancho Santa Fe home. Items to investigate include the buyer’s debt and credit history, current income and employment, the availability of cash for a down payment, the time the buyer needs before closing on the home and the buyer’s level of interest in your home as compared to other properties.


Rancho Santa Fe Real Estate Cycles


In the business cycle of real estate, there are buyers' markets and sellers' markets...and some markets in between. It is all based on supply and/or demand. Rancho Santa Fe is no exception.

There are times when the economy is brisk and everyone feels confident about his or her prospects for the future. As a result, they spend money. People eat out more, buy new cars, and... they buy houses, namely Rancho Santa Fe.

Then, for one reason or another, the economy slows down. Companies lay off employees and consumers are more careful about where they spend money, perhaps saving more than usual. As a result, the economy decelerates. When there are fewer people in the market to buy homes. This is true for the Rancho Santa Fe real estate market as it is for all markets nationwide.


Rancho Santa Fe Homebuyers Quandry


Before you begin your next home search, make sure the Rancho Santa Fe you have is Market Ready. If painting or landscaping or repairs need doing, get them done. If you are going to go out house-hunting you may save yourself a lot of heartache and headache if your house is ready to be listed at a moment’s notice.

In many cases the amount you expect to realize from your existing Rancho Santa Fe real estate will determine the price you can afford to pay for your next home. Start with a Comparative Market Analysis so you will know about how much you can afford to spend.


Rancho Santa Fe Real Estate Title Insurance


Buyers in the Rancho Santa Fe market can be tempted to save money by foregoing a title search but the risks are heavy because title problems are many and varied. Some typical problems that title searches have uncovered include a second mortgage on a home that does not appear to have been paid off. The sellers borrowed money years ago from a parent who insisted that a second mortgage be recorded. The loan was repaid but the title wasn’t cleared. Another typical Rancho Santa Fe problem occurs when an owner had work done on the property but for one reason or another failed to pay the contractor in full. The contractor filed a mechanic’s lien on the property and it has never been removed. These are liens on the property and if you take title to a property without clearing these liens or encumbrances, you may be responsible them.


Tips for Buying or Selling Rancho Santa Fe


Most experienced real estate agents and brokers already have Websites that showcase their local MLS data so your Rancho Santa Fe can show up online as soon as it is listed. On the other hand, if you are selling on your own it will take time or a considerable advertising budget to get your individual Rancho Santa Fe property to show up on the major search engines where prospective buyers will find it. You could tap into one of the several For Sale by Owner Websites but that would limit your market of buyers.

Buying real estate in Rancho Santa Fe is also much easier when you work with a real estate agent who knows the area and the market. While there is a great deal of information online about real estate asking prices, it is not always so easy to find out what a property actually sold for. And even then, specific terms of a sale often make a difference in how to interpret the sales price.


Rancho Santa Fe BARGAINS


A bargain exists in the mind of a buyer when entering into an agreement to exchange goods when the buyer thinks the price is favorable. Bargains can always be found in the Rancho Santa Fe market if a buyer is patient and willing to wait for a truly motivated seller. In economic downturns many people believe that foreclosures and short sales are automatically bargains when, in fact, this may not be the case.



Rancho Santa Fe Village Office
Office: (858) 756-5600
6119 La Granada / P.O. Box 2708
Cell: (858) 395-5600 (Ken)
Rancho Santa Fe CA 92067
Cell: (858) 442-7824 (Kathy)
Kathy@CrosbyandHewitt.com