How Much Money Does It Costs To Sell A House in California?

If you’re thinking of selling your own home without the help of a real estate agent, then you are probably doing your up-front research and thinking about what expenses you might incur. In this blog post we’ll review the costs of selling your house yourself in Minnesota, Colorado or Seattle!

Selling a house. If you sell through an agent, you’ll incur costs such as commissions and fees, on top of all the regular costs, which is why some people choose not to sell their house through an agent but instead sell it themselves.

If that’s the case, it’s good to know what you will incur in terms of costs of selling your house on your own in California. This list will help you…

#1. Making those repairs

Often, the biggest costs associated with selling your house is the one you didn’t realize you’d have to pay – repairs and upgrades! You see, many homeowners want to sell their house exactly like it is. Many don’t want to buy a house like that!

Sellers try to put a lot of effort into doing the renovations on their house just so a buyer will even consider buying it! It’s a home you want to sell, and you don’t want to spend a lot of money on it, and yet many sellers are forced to spend tens of thousands and weeks or months of time on fixing it up.

#2. Campaigning!

Another cost you’ll incur is a marketing cost. This is a cost that most agents will cover themselves. But without the help of an Realtor, you’ll have to pay for marketing costs yourself.

There might not be a lot of costs, or these costs could be very high; it depends on how popular your house is to sell. You need to get the word out there so you might be paying to do so.

#3. All Those Expenses

Agents charge a a hefty commission for their services. And if you don’t sell with the help of an agent then you won’t pay those.

However, there are other fees that aren’t associated with the agent that you may have to pay – such as attorney fees, titles fees, closing fees, etc. (It depends on where you’re selling in California.

#4. The Most Valuble Asset

One of the biggest expenses of selling your home yourself in California is not monetary, it’s time. If you’re selling your home yourself, you’ll need to make your repairs, market the home, show the home, negotiate with buyers, and complete the paperwork.

This all takes effort and all that time could have a financial cost if you have to take time off of work, for example. So make sure you factor it into your consideration.

All In All

Selling your California house yourself lets you save money on commissions and fees while remaining in control of the process. However, there are still costs so make sure you’re aware of them.

If you want to work with a legitimate real estate company in California, contact us today!

What’s My Home Really Worth in San Francisco, California?

What are things I should look for when getting market value of a San Francisco house?

Most people have trouble figuring out what to sell their house in San Francisco for. This is probably because they feel as if it’s anybody’s guess as to what a house is worth. That’s not the case at all. Every house, in ever market has a great value estimation for what their house can sell for. Whether you’re selling a house in San Francisco, Denver or Roseburg, this blog should help you figure out the market value of your house.

Now let’s get into the real deal information of the actual tips to determine what your home’s worth in San Francisco, California.

1. Hiring An Appraiser in San Francisco

If you want it done right, simply hire a professional Appraiser. During a home sale, the bank that makes the home loan normally selects an appraiser to render an opinion about the value of real estate as of a specific date. They’ll use actual properties that have sold for the basis of their evaluation. This isn’t a “I just think it’s worth $400,000 amount because it’s got a nice kitchen” process. It’s a calculated disciplined approached with real numbers. Watch the video below to find more about “How To Hire an Appraiser” by Morris Invest:

Should I Use The Square Foot / Price Method?

This is simply dividing the price the house sold for by the total square footage of the house sold.  The reason why the price per square foot method is a poor method to determine market value is because every home is unique in San Francisco.  While homes are similar in terms of size, bedrooms, bathrooms and location location location add or subtract value as well. There are so many factors that aren’t taken into consideration when using the price per square footage way of determining market value if this is done by an amateur.

My Friend Said I Should Use Zillow, Is That Accurate?

There are many homeowners who really think that “free online home estimators” are going to be 100% correct. Sometimes they can be drastically off!  If I were to receive a dime every time I heard a San Francisco home seller say, “But I know Zillow said my home is worth more,” I’d be the next Bill Gates by now. Okay not that much but it would be a nice vacation at least.  Anyhow, one of the worst methods to determine the market value of a home is using online market value estimators like Zillow.

There are several websites that offer home value estimators just like their are tons of websites offering free credit scores. When is anything every truly free when it comes to finance services? Some of the most popular websites that homeowners visit to find out the value of their home are now household names and used daily and people are confused as to why no buyers show up to their San Francisco open house.

If you think about it for a moment, how can a website that is not located in your local area and that has never been inside your home determine the market value of your home.  It’s impossible for a homes market value to be accurate since these online websites have no clue what is currently happening in your local real estate market or what the condition of your home is.

There is currently a lawsuit going around as to whether Zillow’s home value “Zestimates” are accurate or not and are scaring off buyers.  Don’t just depend on an algorithym that’s automated to tell you the truth about your own house. You have to remember it is virtually impossible to know the exact neighborhood and condition of every house in your neighborhood just based off that.

In Conclusion

At the end of the day, use a professional such as a real estate appraiser or real estate agent to determine the value of a house. “You get what you pay for”, for a reason!

If you’d you’re a home seller curious about what your home is worth, hire a professional to guide you along the process.

-California Estates Realty in San Francisco, CA

Are California Realty Companies Legit?

 

Are these sell your California house in 30 days Realty companies legit?

We’ll cover the things you have to look for before choosing a real estate agency in San Francisco.

Listing and selling houses is a valid and respectable profession that can help communities and house sellers in many ways. But just like any other line of work – a minority of house buyers in any market are the ones who make the rest of us look bad.

There are people who are really great, ethical folks who improve their neighborhoods one property at a time.

And then there’s shady, dishonest people who put money ahead of the well being of their clients and who would sign a listing agreement to sell out their own parents with one hand while stabbing you in the back with the other.

We’ll help you avoid these “crummy real estate agents” so you can work with honest, ethical, and reputable Realtors who can list your house for a fair all cash offer and close on your schedule.

What Reputable California Realtors Are Doing

• Helping folks improve their lives by getting money they need. People often need to liquidate the equity in their house to cover unexpected medical expenses or to relocate to work at a new job. We can make that happen in just a few days.
• Creating local jobs. We work with plumbers, contractors, electricians, brokers, title reps, loan officers, administrators and many other folks along the way. Our listings help create real jobs for people around San Francisco California.
• Increasing the value of San Francisco areas. When we improve a house, we’re helping to increase the value of the entire community. We often repair abandoned and neglected houses, turning them into beautiful homes for families. That activity strengthens San Francisco.

That’s fueled by silly “reality” shows that amp up the drama because the reality of what we do on a daily basis is actually pretty boring. Don’t let HGTV fool you into thinking it’s all glamorous.

Making Sure You’re Working With A Real Deal Local Agency

When you talk with a local Realtor looking to represent you, ask them some of the questions below to see they’re reputable, knowledgeable, and honest.

• How do you help your clients?
• What do you do for people?
• Can you tell me more about your services?
• How long have you lived in San Francisco?

Look for shady signs of ways that those very few Realtors tend to use.

• Guarantees to Sell within 30 days or it’s free! – Nothing in life is ever that easy when it comes to money. They say this to get you to sign a listing agreement, hoping you won’t read that what they mean by “sell within 30 days” is really, “under contract” within 30 days. All it takes is one of their buddy’s to pretend they’ll buy the house but then can easily back out before their inspection is due making it look like, “Welp, you had a buyer in less than 30 days, in the contract I’m no obligation to waive my commission because I really meant under contract, not bought and sold.”
• Pressuring you into a fast Listing– When you interview a real estate agent and are nervous because of emotions, a shady Realtor may very well sense that and try and pressure into signing documents you may otherwise won’t do. They’ll use high pressure sales tactics and do everything they can so you sign on the dotted line. Only for you to wake up the next day in a 180 agreement you can’t get out of without paying a hefty fee.

Most Realtors like this are desperate for money. They are hurting for business which is why they want the quick buck.

True Realtors who run honest and ethical San Francisco house listing services, however, are building long-term businesses based on relationships and involvement in the community they grew up in. You can always sell to a local house buying company in your area. Whether that’s in Denver, San Francisco or Dallas. Make the right move!