Search for Rancho Santa Fe Homes Data / Tips for Buyers and Sellers

Preparing to Sell Your Rancho Santa Fe Home

Experienced agents know what puts prospective buyers off when they view a home, especially Rancho Santa Fe. For example, when buyers find dirty dishes in the sink, notice offensive pet odors or spot obvious stains suggesting a leaking roof they begin to devalue the property. Some buyers may decide to pass on the house completely while others may think about making an offer way below the asking price. So, a good agent’s first step is to help the homeowner see the house as others will see it and take care of problems.

Rancho Santa Fe Real Estate or Homeowner’s Insurance

While it is necessary to have Rancho Santa Fe Real Estate or Homeowner’s Insurance, there are ways to reduce your premium costs.

One: Raise your deductible. Deductibles are the amount you must pay towards a loss before your insurance company starts to pay. You can save costs on your overall policy by increasing the amount of your deductible. For example, according to a Federal Government paper on lowering Rancho Santa Fe insurance costs, you can save up to 12% on your rate if you go with a $500.00 deductible rather than a $250.00 deductible.

Rancho Santa Fe Home Improvement

Don't underestimate how much projects will cost. Expenses usually are added, not subtracted. Homeowners, even Rancho Santa Fe homeowners, routinely go 20% to 30% over budget. Remember, it is common to under budget cost and time.

When remodeling for resale, don't waste time with renovations that won't pay off. If you must have a pool, you still may have to lower your expectations on who will be interested in buying. The National Association of Realtors/Remodeling magazine study has identified four renovations that show the greatest return at resale: improvements to siding, windows, kitchens and bathrooms. Remember you have a lot invested in Rancho Santa Fe.

Bitten by the Rancho Santa Fe Home Improvement Bug?

Before you finalize your decision regarding remodeling versus moving, it is wise to get a professional estimate of your Rancho Santa Fe home’s current value, the actual costs of moving to a different home and the estimated return on investment of the most common types of home improvement. I’ll be happy to provide you with a complimentary analysis of your home’s current value. Simply call or E-mail me whenever you are ready. As for improvements that traditionally bring the highest rate of return on investment, here are some statistics. Kitchen remodeling and adding a bath tends to bring rates of return with averaging anywhere from 85% to 95% return on your dollars spent. Compare that with the 64% return on investment for adding a home office.

Buying a Rancho Santa Fe Fixer-Upper

Finding the right Rancho Santa Fe fixer upper often involves finding a seller who is in financial difficulty and wants to sell in order to protect their credit or to avoid foreclosure. Various government agencies such as VA, HUD, IRS and others offer homes in foreclosure for sale and these homes can make excellent fixer-uppers. Bank owned properties known as REOs, real estate owned, offer good opportunities since financial institutions want to eliminate their real estate holdings by selling foreclosures quickly.

Join my network of Rancho Santa Fe buyers looking for specific types of properties. Call or Email me today.

Buying Rancho Santa Fe Real Estate...Will it Pay?

A frequent question from prospective homebuyers relates to building home equity. Rancho Santa Fe buyers like to estimate how much a home may increase in value based upon past appreciation. One of the many advantages of home ownership is that appreciation is based on the home’s market value rather than on the actual dollar amount invested or the down payment so that a $100,000.00 home that appreciates 5% is now worth $105,000.00. This is one way of building your Rancho Santa Fe home equity but there is more you can do.