Category Archives: Home for Sale

Just Sold in San Jose for $2,250,000

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For this home I sold in San Jose for $2,250,000, I was the agent for the buyers. I actually sold them a townhome 22 years ago! The way the listing agent set up for offers was a bit chaotic, because he posted on MLS that there was an offer date, but the seller was open to preemptive offers. Frankly, that just makes for confusion. As a buyer’s agent, it makes for a situation in which it is hard to guide buyers. Typically, the sellers do wait for the offer date so that they can receive all of the offers possible, rather than accepting an offer in advance, and then wondering if they could have received a better offer if they had waited. But, some sellers do take a preemptive offer quickly if they think it is the best they will receive. It’s a dice roll.

In these situations, if the seller will take the preemptive offer, then great, we will write an offer and try to get it accepted before the offer date. If the seller decides to wait for the offer date, then I feel it puts my buyers at a disadvantage to make an offer that the seller just holds and does not accept. Plus, it makes for concern that the offer will be ‘shopped’ and then our offer not as competitive on the offer date. Of course, we can modify our offer on the offer date, but it’s best not to submit a preemptive offer that the seller won’t even work with until the offer date.

So, from Day 1, I kept in touch with the listing agent, just to make sure the home did not sell from under our feet. We did not want to submit a preemptive offer if the seller was not going to actually accept it. The listing agent did get 2 offers within the first couple of days being listed, but the seller seemed to be holding off on decision making, so I just kept in touch with the listing agent to make sure we didn’t lost it before we even were able to make an offer.

Days passed and then the seller did decide to just wait for the offer date, so that is when we submitted our offer. At that point, there were 5 offers on offer day. We were NOT the highest offer, but our price and terms were solid and I had kept in touch very closely with the listing agent. The buyers wrote a wonderful letter to the seller. The seller told the listing agent that it did make a difference. And, the sellers wanted the home to go to a family that would love and care for the home as they did. So, in combination with our offer being solid in price and terms, and also the letter that touched the seller, and that I was keeping in good communication with the listing agent, they came back to us rather than just taking the highest offer in hand. I believe we ended up matching the highest offer, or at least was VERY close, because the seller decided to work with us.

A few quirky things that happened in our transaction that I want to bring up that may help others…

Home insurance has been interesting, to say the least. So, I tell my buyers to get the home insurance set up right away to ensure they can get home insurance and at a decent rate and such. Buyers may need time to shop around, so home insurance is something to jump on quickly. And, some big names have left CA, at least for now, so there are less choices.

In this case, a situation came up that I have never had an issue with in the past. It may be just a one off, but nonetheless, I will bring it up in case it can help someone in the future. The buyers are putting the home in a Living Trust, very common, home insurance and lenders to this all the time. We thought everything was in order, but closer to closing time, there was a discrepancy for the home insurance and lender in regard to the name on title. They needed to match, and one was the Living Trust name and one was the owner’s names. And, that became an 11th hour situation that could have so easily been avoided if it was noticed earlier in the transaction. Key point…if you are putting the home in a Living Trust when you close, make sure you tell the insurance agent upfront and ensure that the names match for the insurance and the title. If worked out upfront, it won’t become an 11th hour matter.

Also, in CA at least, there is a lending law that requires the buyer to wait 3 days after they receive the Closing Disclosure (CD). This time period can NOT be waived. It is supposed to give the buyers a chance to review the documents and have ‘proper’ time to review and let things sink in. Frankly, the 3 days are a pain in most cases and more-so upset buyers and all the other parties to the transaction, because most of the time, we are all in a rush to close, and it can be very frustrating to have to wait for the required 3 days. In an 11th hour rush situation, make sure to sign the CD ASAP because that could also cause a delay in closing. In this case, the buyers signed it after the cut off time for the day, and then was not able to sign the day they were supposed to sign and had to wait until the following day. I thought it was signed, and found out after the fact. I will definitely follow up on these 11th hour rushes to ensure the CD truly gets signed in time for the cut off.

Another situation that actually ended up causing a 1 business day delay, to take us through the weekend in this case, so essentially 3 days, is that the listing agent is local, but for some reason used a San Diego title office. I have no idea why. So, it was impossible to do a same day signing, funding and recording, because the office was too far away to provide the original documents the same day. We have a MILLION local title offices. Frankly, too many! So, it just seems a bit silly to choose a title company that far away, when we already have too many to choose from locally.

My final thought I want to bring up is to sellers and listing agents. Sellers and listing agents, please give ALL of the proper information at closing. It is NO fun for buyers when we have to chase down sellers for information we should have received at closing. In this case, we were told there was a physical key to the front door smart lock, which in fact, the seller didn’t have one. We found this out after closing. We didn’t have the proper master codes, instructions, etc for changing codes.  On closing day, it was a bit of a mess, trying to chase down keys, information, instructions to change smart lock codes, that needed a master code in order to change, devices that open the locks so that they can be changed, etc. I asked for this information a week in advance and again on closing morning. I was informed that everything we needed would be there, but it was not. So, then the texting back and forth began…for days…And, some of the information the seller just didn’t have at all, which would have been nice to know before closing. Basically, not having all of the keys and information a buyer needs for their new home puts a damper in the excitement on closing day.

The good news is that this home is absolutely beautiful and has amazing views! It has many awesome features that makes this home truly unique and special. A wonderful entertaining home for sure. I’m certain that many wonderful memories will be made there.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3450-Valley-Vista-Dr-San-Jose-CA-95148/51074830_zpid/

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Just Sold in San Jose for $1,999,900…

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For this home I sold in San Jose for $1,999,900 I was the agent for the buyers, who were referred to me by their brother, who I also sold a home to a few years ago. The home search was a journey. The market very hot and there were homes we competed for that had up to 45 offers! Insanity!

For this home, it’s located on a busy street, so the competition was much less fierce. The home itself is big and beautiful, really the only downside being on a very busy road. Even the competition for this home was fierce, we were neck and neck with another offer that was apparently the exact same offer, and apparently, the only difference was that we put in a 21 day closing, rather than a 30 day closing. I was told by the listing agent that was the only real difference between us and the competition and they chose our offer.

One thing I want to point out is the sales price, because this may be helpful for other buyers and sellers in the city of San Jose. San Jose has a luxury city transfer tax called Measure E. For homes sold over $2m, there is an addtional transfer tax added that the buyer and seller typically split 50/50. For $2m-$5m the additional tax is $7.50/1000. So, it’s not chump change. The balance of using sales price and this luxury tax calculation is only going to be a benefit when the sales price is very close to $2m for the numbers to be beneficial to sell under $2m, otherwise, it won’t even matter. So, there are some strategies that will work when the price is close to $2m to take advantage of maybe using some terms and such to avoid this luxury tax and still net out the same or better.

First and foremost, trying to close a transaction that needs a loan in 21 days is typically going to be a stressfest because frankly, even if the lender says it can be done, it’s very hard to get a deal closed with a loan in less than 30 days. Yes, it can be done, but it’s going to be a bumpy ride in most cases. And, this case was a roller coaster ride to the finish with the loan.

When you are buying a house, leave your money alone! It’s best not to move money around. Every single move to/from accounts needs to be tracked, explained, etc. And, that goes for within the US and also internationally, if you have money in banks and such outside of the US. Banks track every single penny and you have to explain every single transaction. And, for anyone that moves around money, that can turn into a logistical nightmare.

Also, a loan preapproval that is “underwriter preapproved” can be really essential in these strange times with banks being pretty picky in our current environment, where the ‘standards’ are not so ‘standard’. In this case, the underwriter decided not to use bonus income, which was quite a shocker, and can impact the loan amount.

The loan part of this transaction was quite stressful and it was just one thing after another with the underwriter overseeing this file, but at the end of the day, we got it done and now the buyers own this beautiful home!

Just Sold in San Jose for $1,999,900!

Just Sold in San Jose for $1,999,900!

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Just Sold in Fremont for $750,000…

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For this townhome that I sold in Fremont for $750,000, I was the agent for the seller, who was referred to me by our family friend. This was an interesting time to be selling, to say the least. We initially started communication in November, when the market was slow, nothing happening, homes sitting on the market, interest rates shockingly high to buyers after such low rates, buyers that were looking wanting a bargain, etc.

The seller told me her target price and I was not convinced in the least that I could make that happen. So, I asked her if she could wait out the market, see how things go, and I would let her know when the market started to pick up and when I felt I could hit the price she wanted to get for her home. She was not in a hurry to sell.

And, that is what we did! I watched the market, waited to see what would happen after the first of the year. January picked up a bit, and then in February, the market was really starting to change and become more of a seller’s market. And, once I thought I could hit that price, we connected and got the home prepped for sale and on the market!

The timing was great! We received 4 offers after the open house weekend. We had a great offer with a buyer that WAIVED all contingencies and was super strong. And, we were able to acheive getting the price she wanted for the home! Yay!

The transaction itself with the buyer was great! It was super smooth. The main issue was the HOA. The HOA dragged their feet big time on multiple occasions and nickeled and dimed the seller. It was horrible. At the end of the transaction, I was mainly thankful to not have to deal with the HOA anymore.

One thing I do want to bring up about this sale that may help others in the same situation, is that this home had a fire in the past. And, one thing that did come up for the buyer was securing insurance. The buyer was able to get insurance and in the end, it was all good. But, that is something a buyer may want to work on quickly once in contract, if a buyer buys a home that had an insurance claim to get a jump start on it.

Just Sold for $750,000

Just Sold in Fremont for $750,000!

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Just Sold in San Jose for $1,200,000!

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For this home I sold in San Jose for $1,200,000, I was the agent for the seller. I have sold a number of homes with this family and this sale was dear to me because it was a client that I worked with many years ago who passed away (the reason for the sale). The family members wanted me to be the realtor and even said my client who passed would have wanted me to be the realtor. So endearing and heartwarming! I just love this family! This home was owned almost 50 years by the original owners!

The timing for putting a home on the market was questionable at best, in that the interest rates went up and the market had drastically slowed down. And, it was at the cusp of not quite knowing exactly what buyers would be willing to pay in the market coupled with the higher interest rates. We priced the home where I felt the home would sell fast in this unpredictable market and we did quite well! It was important to the seller that the home sold quickly…so…no pressure at all…LOL.

Given the uncertainty of the market, we didn’t post an offer due date, only asked to get through the open house weekend for exposure purposes. It was pretty incredible in that we had a good open house weekend, with lots of positive feedback, but no offers. Then Tuesday came along, and lots of calls, emails, etc but no offers. Wednesday came along and out of nowhere we had 3 offers! Competition! And, the home sold for OVER the list price with the buyer waiving ALL contingencies. Go figure! Basically, if any of the 3 buyers would have made their offer on Monday or even Tuesday, they would have been able to get the home for a lower price, but….yay for the seller!

The transaction itself was very smooth and seamless. And, we were able to sell and get this done quickly for the seller.

Just Sold in San Jose for $1,200,000

Just Sold in San Jose for $1,200,000

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Just Sold in Fremont for $1,200,000

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For this townhome I just sold in Fremont for $1,200,000, I was the agent for the buyers, who were referred to me by clients that bought a home with me in the past.

This is a crazy story. The buyers had been casually looking at open houses and we chatted on the phone as our initial introduction. I sent them some listings and they went to open houses that weekend.

There were 2 townhomes in the same community that came on the market at roughly the same time that they liked, but both homes back to a street that is fairly busy, both were the same overall floor plan.

Although the market was not as crazy as prior months, there were still homes getting multiple offers. Both of these townhomes had offer dates within a day of eachother. For the 1st home, they were still deciding and let that one go. But, after taking more time to consider the busy street, driving by in the evening, getting a sense of the street, they decided to go for the 2nd one.

There was 1 other offer they competed with and our offer was actually LOWER than the other offer, but the agent was also the seller, and we had a lot of communication and I kept in touch and she just felt more comfortable with our offer and presentation, so rather than countering us to match the other offer, they accepted our offer at the lower price! Also, the other place received 2 offers as well and went for WELL over the one we went for, so the buyers ended up getting this home for LESS than the other one and also LESS than the very recent comp that has just sold. And this was their very first offer on basically their very first weekend with me as their agent!

The craziest part is that I never even met these buyers before they went into contract! Due to the circumstances and timing, and the fact they went to the open house weekend, then was casually there to see the neighborhood in the evening and the seller happened to be home and let them in for a second look, and then offers were due shortly thereafter, we had only talked on the phone and communicated via text and email! So…I sold a home to clients I never even met in person!

Even after 27 years of being a realtor, I still to this day have 1st experiences and this was a first to sell a home to clients I didn’t even meet in person first.

The transaction itself was super smooth and easy with no hiccups.

Just Sold in Fremont for $1,200,000

Just Sold in Fremont for $1,200,000

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Just Sold in Santa Clara for $3,650,000!

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For this home I just sold in Santa Clara for $3,650,000, I was the agent for the buyers, who were referred to me by their sister, who is a client that I have worked with 3 times in the past!

These buyers had been looking for about 6 months for ‘the one’. There were a few homes they almost made an offer, but this home ended up being the very first offer they made for a home.

The competition was FIERCE! There were a number of offers, but the top 3 offers, including our offer, were really determined to get this home and were battling it out.

I do have to say, the seller for this home was pushing the limit and the patience of the top 3 buyers. The seller actually wanted to keep trying for more money, even after all the offers were in, and the seller did NOT reach the price they hoped to reach.

The seller sent a counter to the top 3 offers, of which all 3 were not that far off from the price the seller wanted, I think it was more the principle of the matter of asking for a higher price than any of the offers even came in at.

And, frankly, the buyers almost bailed due to the seller’s approach to being so greedy and wanting more than any of the buyers even offered.

But, at the end of the day, they did love the home and the location, knew what it took to get this home, and for the delta between the price the seller wanted and their highest price offered, it wasn’t a huge difference and they decided to go for it and we got it!

The transaction itself was very smooth and seamless. The buyers are moving from Washington state, so mostly they were out of state during the transaction, except for the final walkthrough and closing to pick up the keys.

Just Sold in Santa Clara for $3,650,000!

Just Sold in Santa Clara for $3,650,000!

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Just Sold in Sunnyvale for $1,600,000…

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For this home I just sold in Sunnyvale for $1,600,000, I was the agent for the seller, who was referred to me by an agent I know who lives out of the area. The seller interviewed me and a couple of other agents. In those interviews, at least one other agent pumped up the pricing pretty high, so it was a little tough for me to encourage the price I thought the home would sell for. It can be challenging when other agents do not know the market values and then I come along and have to nicely burst that bubble without actually losing the listing to another agent!

Since other agents had really pumped up the price, the seller was pretty set on those high prices, which is understandable. So, we did list higher than I thought was a good idea. But, it is a bit of a Catch 22 for me as an agent, in that if I don’t price it along those lines, and then the seller doesn’t get that pricing because they feel we priced too low, it looks bad on me. And, they feel we should have priced higher to get what they wanted, when in fact, it doesn’t work that way.

At some level, I have to price where they want to be and try my best to get that number, or higher, and then reconvene if things don’t go as the seller hopes they will. Most sellers go with my pricing, so this situation almost never comes up for me. But, because other agents were ‘off’, it just put me in a bit of a predicament this time.

We listed the home for the price range the seller hoped for and I did do my best to get that price, of course, but predictably on my end, we had no offers after the open house weekend, even in this crazy market.

The sellers were pretty surprised to see no offers after the open house weekend, asked me what we should do, I advised we go with the price I suggested, had another open house weekend, and woudn’t you know, I had an offer that was OVER the listed price I advised, and done deal! Sold! Frankly, the sale price wasn’t even that far off of what we listed in the first place, but it attracted the right buyers. It was a great offer, over the list price, waived all contingencies, and a super smooth transaction.

The reasoning behind my pricing is that the home is on a very busy street, plus the home is only 2 bedrooms. For sure, if the home was 3 bedrooms (and I did explain this to the sellers), then we would have gotten the pricing they wanted in the first place, but the buyer pool is MUCH lower for a 2 bedroom home than it is for a 3 bedroom home. There is just no comparison for buyers looking for at least 3 bedrooms, and FAR fewer buyers that are willing to buy a home that has only 2 bedrooms, especially at this price point. Plus, this home is unique. Bedrooms are downstairs and the main living area is upstairs. So, with all that in mind, that’s why price came in where it did. There is nothing I want to do more than to EXCEED price expectations of a seller client, but sometimes expectations are just too high…

Just sold in Sunnyvale for $1,600,000

Just sold in Sunnyvale for $1,600,000

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Just Sold in Fremont for $505,000…

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For this condo I just sold in Fremont for $505,000, I was the agent for the sellers, who bought this condo with me as their buyer’s agent about 3.5 years ago! They were ready to make the move from a condo to a SFR.

The condo market during the pandemic has not been as predictable as the SFR market, condos are not as ‘hot’ as they used to be, even though the SFR market is crazy. Also, this condo is technically a 1 bedroom, but has a great room upstairs that can be used as another bedroom/office/den/etc. I really wanted to make sure with the marketing and advertisting that buyers didn’t miss that there was indeed a 2nd room and would consider this condo who may need that 2nd room, but see the 1 bedroom in the main specs and just pass it by.

So, I advertised it as 2 bedrooms, but disclosed right in the listing itself that it was actually 1 bedroom with a 2nd room, and let buyer’s decide if that 2nd room worked for them if they truly needed a 2nd bedroom, or that the 2nd room worked for their needs.

It was a hit and success to advertise as such because it brought out many buyers who would have not even given it a chance if they would have thought it was just 1 bedroom with no other usuable 2nd room to utilize as a bedroom/office/den/etc.

We received multiple offers and sold for OVER the listed price, which is very impressive for a ‘one’ bedroom condo in the pandemic market! The transaction itself was super smooth and seamless. The buyer waived ALL contingencies and had a huge down payment. I feel we received a higher price than if we would have advertised just the 1 bedroom and hoped for the best, that buyers would actually look a little deeper to click on the listing and notice the 2nd room on their own…I was pretty doubtful buyers would do that if they were looking for at least 2 rooms.

Sold in Fremont for $505,000!

Sold in Fremont for $505,000!

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Just Sold in Monte Sereno for $2,088,954…

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For this home I sold in Monte Sereno for $2,088,954 I was the agent for the buyers. This was the 5th time we have worked together! Wow! Love it! This is a new community so the transaction was quite smooth and seamless. We were able to work in some things that the buyers wanted that were not part of the original upgrades, so that was nice to be able to get a few things the buyers wanted that weren’t part of the intial plan and the builder was willing to work with us. And, we were able to negotiate on price, which is unheard of these days and in this market.

I wasn’t expecting the call from my clients that they wanted to buy a home locally. I had recently sold their home in Fremont and they mentioned they may be going out of state. Their plans drastically changed, so to my pleasant surprise, they bought this home and are staying in the area. 🙂

Just sold in Monte Sereno for $2,088,954

Just sold in Monte Sereno for $2,088,954

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Just Sold in San Mateo for $1,320,000!

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For this home I sold in San Mateo for $1,320,000, I was the agent for the buyers. This was our 2nd time working together. They wanted to buy a bigger home with a yard. The market for this area and price point is super hot, so competition is fierce. We got lucky on this home. The seller was pretty attached to her home and the personal letter from my buyers really made an impact. We also wrote a solid offer, of course. We did face fierce competition, but we got it! The transaction itself was super smooth and seamless. All went very well!

Just Sold in San Mateo for $1,320,000!

Just Sold in San Mateo for $1,320,000!

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