Elizabeth Weintraub • Sacramento Short Sale Agent • Land Park

How many foreclosures and short sales are located in 95818, Land Park and Curtis Park? This ZIP encompasses a few streets north of Broadway and within earshot of the W / X Freeway. It also includes the neighborhoods of Curtis Park and Land Park.

According to Realist, there are 93 foreclosures and short sales in Land Park and Curtis Park. If that sounds like a lot it is because it is a lot. Some of those are not on the market. Some of the homes in Land Park are bank-owned homes, sitting in shadow inventory. Many are west of Riverside and east of Freeport, too, where the boundaries creep closer to freeway and / or train noise.

But those 93 homes are comprised of homes in which a Notice of Default has been filed, which doesn't necessarily mean they will go all the way through foreclosure. Within a certain time period, homeowners have the right to make up those back payments, and many of them do. But some are homes that are definitely headed to auction, even though they might be listed as a short sale. That's because some lenders will not postpone a trustee's auction, even if there is an offer on the table, and that poor short sale agent and his or her sellers just don't realize it.

Some of the preforeclosures will head to auction because the sellers hired the wrong agent, perhaps an inexperienced agent who doesn't understand the fine nuances of the file. Each short sale is unique. While it is possible to predict what will happen in about 50% of the short sales, the other 50% need daily reaction to solve problems that surface. If a seller is dealing with a specialized situation or a GSE, an agent's lack of experience could cause foreclosure all in itself. It's a dangerous spot to be.

When I pull up the stats in MLS for the ZIP 95818, I see 11 foreclosures, meaning bank-owned homes, and 26 short sales in various status states. Some are pending, some are active short contingent and some are active short sales.  The difference between the 37 foreclosures and short sales in MLS and the 93 in Realist account a little bit for the homes that are simply in default, but not all of them.

My foreclosure tracking website shows me that 57 homes are in foreclosure. Of those 35 in Land Park and Curtis Park are either bank owned or at the auction stage. There are a potential of 45 short sales mixed into those numbers, yet only 26 on the market. Of course, some of the 26 are not in default.

What this tells me is many sellers do not even try to do a short sale in Land Park or Curtis Park. They head straight for foreclosure. And that's a shame, especially when they could hire a Sacramento short sale agent who specializes in Land Park and Curtis Park to do their short sale. I live in Land Park. I've been selling short sales almost exclusively for 6 straight years, and there's very few circumstances I have yet to handle. But I can tell you this. If I can't close your short sale, nobody can. That's not true the other way around.

Graph: Trendgraphix

It astonishes some people when I mention that I had once gutted and remodeled a kitchen in 2 weeks. But then that's only people who don't know me. Those who know how obsessed I am with detail don't sit in awe of my organizational skills because they know that just comes with the territory.

I seem to have an unusual knack for putting together a game plan and executing that plan accordingly. And I adore home improvement projects. Remodeling and real estate are two of my passions. As such, I can recognize quality work, too.

The sellers of this Land Park short sale home hired superb contractors -- Abrahams Construction of Land Park -- to do their home remodel. The cabinets in the kitchen, hall and master-suite bath are custom and maple, crafted by hand. The kitchen is a showplace. You've got a Dacor gas range, a huge butcher block island, a Bosch dishwasher, Kohler farm sink, marble counters, a built-in refrigerator, a convection oven and a microwave, plus beautiful glass pendants; it's breathtaking.

There is a wine closet in the hallway, central heat and air, plus a whole house fan, and lots of built-in storage. The floors are basically all hardwood, which is what you would expect in a home built in 1946. The addition -- master suite and bath -- has dual pane windows. Most of the rooms sport crown molding. The master shower has subway tile and a ceramic floor, plus a walk-in closet. All together, this home has 3 bedrooms and 2 baths.

French doors in the master lead to the big back yard. There is a paved patio, raised garden beds and a two-car garage. It sits on a very wide street among other spectacular homes in Land Park. Best of all, it's affordable for a first-time home buyer.

816 8th Avenue, Sacramento, CA 95818, is exclusively offered by Lyon Real Estate as a short sale at $325,000. Call your Land Park agent, Elizabeth Weintraub, at 916 233 6759, for more information. Weintraub is a top-producing Sacramento short sale agent, too. For a private showing, call Linda Swanson at 916 607 0111.

Photos: Elizabeth Weintraub

I've been pretty busy lately listing short sales throughout Sacramento and in Land Park. In fact, I just listed another short sale home in Land Park last night. This is a home that had previously been on the market for a long time, listed with several other real estate agents at prices that buyers for homes in Land Park would not accept.

Since this weekend, I've taken 3 new short sale listings, which I will negotiate for those sellers personally. At all my appointments lately, after I explain how the complete short sale process works, I've noticed the same thing happening, right after I say that it's pretty much like any other non-short sale listing with one exception.

That exception is within 7 to 14 days, the sellers will probably be in escrow as an active short contingent.

When I tell sellers that prediction, their eyes open wide. I can see the shock in their expressions and sense their disbelief. And I know why. It's not an unusual reaction. It's a tough market. Sellers who have had their homes on the market, month after month without any offers, often feel they are facing a long road with no real destination. Sellers who own homes in severely depressed neighborhoods, which are not in the Land Park area, sometimes feel that the rug is being pulled out from under them, and they fear that no buyer will want their home.

The words: 7 to 14 days before you'll be in escrow, doesn't always register with sellers. In fact, when I explain that not only will they be in escrow, but they will most likely have multiple offers to choose from, their jaws drop.

But it's true. It's not like I have a crystal ball or anything; I just see it happen again and again and again. I've been a Sacramento short sale agent for a long time. The procedures that apply to regular listings are slightly different than how I handle short sale listings. I market those listings with other objectives in mind because the target audience is a bit different. But I can accurately predict how long it will take before a short sale seller is in contract.

Back-on-the-market listings, not so much. They are another story. But new short sale listings, yes. The basic reason why the days on market would generally run past 2 weeks is when the home is occupied by a tenant who requires an appointment. But soon as that tenant moves out, bam, offers roll in. Or the home requires too many repairs, which limits the type of buyers. Not every buyer wants a fixer upper.

If you're looking for a short sale agent in the Sacramento area, give me a ring or drop me an email. I'd love to speak with you.

Almost unheard of in Sacramento -- as we are at the mercy of the Sacramento River and the American River, not to mention the Folsom Dam -- but some parts of Sacramento are not located in a flood zone, and neither is this Land Park short sale. It's located high on a hill. I live a few blocks away and have researched the time it would take to vacate during a possible flood. I have 8 hours before my home could be underwater, and I'm talking about flood waters, not a short sale situation.

This Land Park home boasts all the charm of a Tudor inside: oversized fireplace, crown molding, hardwood floors throughout, except the family room and baths, which are tiled. Curved archways. Barrel ceilings in the living room and front bedroom. It also has modern updates. The kitchen is remodeled and features a spacious breakfast nook, but it also has a formal dining room. The family room is located through French doors from the dining room.

A unique feature is the pass-through from the kitchen to the family room, with additional dining offered along the tiled counter on the other side of the kitchen. The mastersuite overlooks the pretty back yard.

Where can you buy a home in Land Park for less than $200 a square foot these days? Come check out 917 McClatchy Way; it has approximately 1,454 square feet plus a garage. It's offered as a short sale at $289,000. On tour exclusively for Lyon Real Estate agents between 10 AM and 2 PM on Wednesday, June 17th.

Photos: Elizabeth Weintraub

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

917 McClatchy Way, Sacramento, CA 95818

Offered at $289,000, subject to third party approval as a short sale

Elizabeth Weintraub, 916.233.6759

Lyon Real Estate

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Elizabeth Weintraub is an author, columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown and East Sacramento. Weintraub is also a Sacramento Short Sale agent who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout Sacramento. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you.

The Short Sale Savior, by Elizabeth Weintraub, available in bookstores everywhere and at Amazon.com.

Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Elizabeth Weintraub, has the answers to your Sacramento short sale questions.

 

 

One of the things about online marketing is it may cause confusion among some home buyers and sellers. It's often hard to immediately pinpoint who the listing agent is for some of the homes you see for sale. Sometimes agents can't figure it out, either.

An agent called me earlier this week to inquire about a short sale Sacramento listing on Robertson Way in Land Park. I tried to explain that I do not have a listing on Robertson in Land Park. I have 18 listings -- 16 of which are Sacramento short sales -- but none is on Robertson. She refused to believe me. "Your photo is on this listing," she said, and continued to insist that Robertson was my listing, regardless of what I had to say about it. Finally, she turned to her buyer and asked where the buyer found the listing. "On the internet," the buyer responded.

The agent hung up before I could find out exactly which website the had buyer pulled that listing from as I market on a number of sites.

Then yesterday another person called me to say somebody had broken into a listing on Pomegranate. He wanted me to know the front door was kicked in and thugs were stripping the foreclosure home. "You should call the police," I said.

The caller said the police don't care and won't do anything about vandalism or the stripping of foreclosured homes. Why did he call me? Pomegranate isn't my listing. I asked whose name was on the sign in the yard? There was no sign in the yard. The caller had picked up my name online. Fine, I'll call the listing agent myself. I looked up the listing in MLS and called the listing agent's assistant to let them know their foreclosure listing may be getting stripped. They called the police.

I don't know if internet marketing is a blessing or a curse. But if you're looking for a Sacramento short sale agent or to sell a short sale in Land Park, rest assured that I'm your agent. Call me. I answer my phone.

Elizabeth Weintraub is an author, columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown and East Sacramento. Weintraub is also a Sacramento Short Sale agent who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout Sacramento. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you.

The Short Sale Savior, by Elizabeth Weintraub, available in bookstores everywhere and at Amazon.com.