Welcome to my new website

Welcome to my new and improved real estate website. I invite you to look around and see what is available. As your Sacramento, California real estate expert I can provide you will all of the information to accomplish your real estate goals. Looking for a new home for yourself or your family: Quick Search Know exactly what you are looking for in your new home: Advanced Search You want me to find your dream home for you so you do not have to do the searching yourself?: Thinking of selling your home? Let me go to work for you and find out your home's exact value: Save your search!Saving your search is an important step if if you would like to be able to quickly refer back to your search at a future date.  More importantly I will be able to quickly notify you directly of any new listings that come available on the market that match your search criteria.  The beautiful thing is that you can make as many of these saved searches as you would like. First, you must be registered on our website. This is easy. It only requires your first and last name, an email address and a password. Register Here. To save any search, simply perform a search using the Quick Search or Advanced Search, click on the “search” button, and then click “save search”, which is located in the top right hand corner just above the search results. This will prompt you to title your saved search and provide you with the option of being notified by email.  Check the box to be notified by email of new listings that match your search. To look at or edit your saved searches, you must be logged in. On the homepage, top right hand corner is where you can view your saved searches. Click this link and you will then see all the searches you saved, you can delete them, edit the email notifications and more. If you would like any assistance, please do not hesitate to Contact Me or call me directly at 717-816-4011

Thinking About Buying a Foreclosure?

With the housing bubble burst and the subprime mortgage crisis, millions of homeowners found themselves unable to make their mortgage payments. Many found themselves owing more on the house than the home was worth. Many just walked away from their homes. As a result of these complicated issues, millions of homes were foreclosed. While this isn’t the only reason for which homes are foreclosed, it has been a widespread one. With all the foreclosed properties, there has also been extensive interest in buying these properties at a bargain price. It is true that foreclosed properties can be priced at a significant discount, but they are also a much riskier investment. Before making an offer on a foreclosed property, do your due diligence. Things you must do before buying a foreclosure: Do a title search - make sure that when you purchase a foreclosure that you are the only person who has any ownership claim Check for liens - find out if there are any liens against the property because you will be responsible for paying them Check for a second mortgage - you don’t want to be surprised by an extra mortgage that you will need to pay Know how good of a “bargain” you’re getting - foreclosures are sold “as is” and in many cases you will not be able to do a proper inspection. You may end up paying thousands of dollars repairing the property before it is fit to be lived in. It is also important to consider that there are different types of foreclosure properties and each type comes with its own advantages and disadvantages. The different types of foreclosure purchases are: Pre-foreclosure Auction Real Estate Owned (REO), also called “bank owned” Pre-Foreclosure A pre-foreclosure is when you buy the home directly from the homeowner, before the bank officially forecloses. This type of purchase does not require as much capital as other foreclosures. Also, since you are purchasing straight from the homeowner, you will be able to gather all of the necessary information, such as inspection reports, title information, etc. that may not be available with other foreclosure properties. Once you take over the mortgage, you will be responsible for all future payments as well as any overdue back payments. Auction A foreclosure property will usually end up at an auction. Real estate auction practices vary by state but common practice is for the auction to be held on courthouse steps, in front of the foreclosed home, or at the county clerk’s office. Real estate auctions offer the best chance for a great deal but also hold the greatest risk. Auction properties are sold as is, with no opportunity for potential buyers to perform inspections. When buying a home at auction, the buyer must pay cash, usually a cashier’s check. It is also possible that there may still be tenants living in the home. In such a case, you would be responsible for the often costly eviction process. REO Once a foreclosure has gone to auction and failed to sell, it becomes a Real Estate Owned, or bank owned, property. Most homes do not sell at auction, most fail to even get any bids. An REO property is the least likely of the foreclosure properties to represent a bargain, but it is also the least risky. The property can be fully inspected, any title issues can be found and dealt with, and the sale can be subject to a mortgage. REO properties also tend to be in better condition than other foreclosure properties. Another thing to keep in mind when purchasing a foreclosure is that some states have a redemption period that allows the original owner to buy back the property by paying the remaining balance owed. You may be able to have this redemption period waived, so check the state laws on this topic before purchasing. Still interested in buying a foreclosure property? If so, always do your research before purchasing!

The Functions of an Escrow

Buying or selling a home (or other piece of real property) usually involves the transfer of large sums of money. It is imperative that the transfer of these funds and related documents from one party to another be handled in a neutral, secure and knowledgeable manner. For the protection of buyer, seller and lender, the escrow process was developed. As a buyer or seller, you want to be certain all conditions of sale have been met before property and money change hands. The technical definition of an escrow is a transaction where one party engaged in the sale, transfer or lease of real or personal property with another person delivers a written instrument, money or other items of value to a neutral third person, called an escrow agent or escrow holder. This third person holds the money or items for disbursement upon the happening of a specified event or the performance of a specified condition. Simply stated, the escrow holder impartially carries out the written instructions given by the principals. This includes receiving funds and documents necessary to comply with those instructions, completing or obtaining required forms and handling final delivery of all items to the proper parties upon the successful completion of the escrow. The escrow must be provided with the necessary information to close the transaction. This may include loan documents, tax statements, fire and other insurance policies, title insurance policies, terms of sale and any seller-assisted financing, and requests for payment for various services to be paid out of escrow funds. If the transaction is dependent on arranging new financing, it is the buyer’s or the buyer’s agent’s responsibility to make the necessary arrangements. Documentation of the new loan agreement must be in the hands of the escrow holder before the transfer of property can take place. A real estate agent can help identify appropriate lending institutions. When all the instructions in the escrow have been carried out, the closing can take place. At this time, all outstanding funds are collected and fees- such as title insurance premiums, real estate commissions, termite inspection charges- are paid. Title to the property is then transferred under the terms of the escrow instructions and appropriate title insurance is issued. Payment of funds at the close of escrow should be in the form acceptable to the escrow, since out-of-town and personal checks can cause days of delay in processing the transaction. The following items represent a typical list of what an escrow holder does and does not do: THE ESCROW HOLDER: serves as the neutral “stakeholder” and the communications link to all parties in the transaction; prepares escrow instructions; requests a preliminary title search to determine the present condition of title to the property; requests a beneficiary’s statement if debt or obligation is to be taken over by the buyer; complies with lender’s requirements, specified in the escrow agreement; receives purchase funds from the buyer; prepares or secures the deed or other documents related to escrow; prorates taxes, interest, insurance and rents according to instructions; secures releases of all contingencies or other conditions as imposed on any particular escrow; records deeds and any other documents as instructed; requests issuance of the title insurance policy; closes escrow when all the instructions of buyer and seller have been carried out; disburses funds as authorized by instructions, including charges for title insurance, recording fees, real estate commissions and loan payoffs; prepares final statements for the parties accounting for the disposition of all funds deposited in escrow (these are useful in the preparation of tax returns). THE ESCROW HOLDER DOES NOT: offer legal advice; negotiate the transaction; offer investment advice. Your local title company should be happy to provide additional information. Article by CLTA

Required Reporting to the I.R.S.

Sellers of real property will have certain information regarding the sale reported to the Internal Revenue Service. This required reporting is a consequence of the Tax Reform Act of 1986; it is intended to encourage taxpayer compliance and aid in audit and enforcement efforts by the I.R.S. To help you better understand this subject, the Land Title Association has answered some of the questions most commonly asked about Required Reporting to the I.R.S. Who is required to report to the I.R.S.? Sellers of real property, under guidelines established by the I.R.S., are required to have their gross proceeds from the sale reported on a Form 1099S. When a settlement agent is used, the I.R.S. makes this agent responsible for the delivery of the information on the Form 1099S. The settlement agent generally will be the escrow agent or title company; however, it may be an attorney, real estate broker or other person providing settlement services. What is an I.R.S. Form 1099S, and what will be reported? The Form 1099S is the reporting form adopted by the I.R.S. for submitting the information required by law. The information will be transferred onto magnetic media by the settlement agent who will store the information and make the required report to the I.R.S. The settlement agent is also responsible for keeping a master copy of all transactions reported. In general, information required by the I.R.S. falls into the following categories: The name, address and taxpayer ID number (social security or tax identification number) of the seller(s) A general description of the property (in most cases an address) The closing date of the transaction The gross proceeds of the transaction (even though gross proceeds do not correspond to taxable income) Any property involved as part of the transaction other than cash or cash equivalent The name, address and taxpayer identification number of the settlement agent. Real estate tax paid in advance that is allocable to the buyer. On what type of transactions is a Form 1099S required? Currently, typical homeowner transactions covered include sales and exchanges of 1-4 family residential properties such as houses, townhouses, and condominiums. Also reportable are sales or exchanges of improved or unimproved land, commercial or industrial buildings, condominiums, stock in a cooperative housing corporation and mobile homes (manufactured homes) affixed to real property. Specifically excluded from reporting are foreclosures and abandonment of real property and financing or refinancing of properties. What happens if the seller(s) refuses to provide the taxpayer identification number for the Form 1099S? The settlement agent is required to request the transferor’s taxpayer identification number(s) (TIN(s)) before the time of closing. You may request a TIN on Form W-9 or use an alternative written request. The IRS has included sample wording of an alternative written request in the instructions for preparation of Form 1099S. Should the seller fail to provide the identification number and certify its correctness, the settlement agent may choose to: Delay the closing of the transactions until the information is furnished, or Complete the transaction and report to the I.R.S. that an attempt was made to obtain the information from the seller. How is the sale reported when there is more than one seller involved or when multiple sellers do not own equal interests in the property? Multiple sellers may allocate the gross proceeds among themselves for purposes of reporting. If there is no allocation, an incomplete allocation or conflicting allocations, then the entire gross proceeds will be reported for each seller. Where can I go for further information on taxation of real property? The I.R.S. provides free publications that explain the tax aspects of real estate transactions. You may wish to order: Publication #523 “Tax Information on Selling Your Home” Publication #530 “Tax Information for Home Owners” Publication #544 “Sales and Other Dispositions of Assets” Publication #551 “Basis of Assets”   To place your order, phone toll-free (800) 829-3676. Article by CLTA