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Oakland, CA Real Estate News

By Jason Wheeler, JasonWheeler.biz
(JasonWheeler.biz)
Do something new this week and come join us for one of our life changing events throughout the Bay Area. You will likely become a product of the people that you spend your time with! Come spend time with several self made millionaires and successful Investors and Business owners at one or our events this week in the CA Bay Area. These Workshops are normally valued at $100 per ticket however we have a few extra vouchers and would love for you to join us. Wed Evening Hilton Garden Inn Emeryville This is a powerful overview of our Real Estate Investment Solutions. We are exploding and looking for sharp people that deserve a better life. Come and learn how to create massive success! Business attire is strongly suggested. Arrive early to network 6:30-7 with entrepreneurs and investors of the...
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By Lynn Bratchett, Community Realty Property Management
( Broker Lic #01859798)
Real estate agents assist people in selling and buying homes.  Anyone in California who holds a real estate license must have some knowledge of finance in order to pass the state licensing exam. The average real estate agent, however does not need to have an abundance of knowledge quite frankly to practice real estate.  The average real estate agent is the one who avoids educating themselves about real estate finance and will miss out on collecting those extra commissions because of that lack of knowledge.  Knowledge of real estate finance can not only help to close difficult transactions but may also leave a knowlegable agent with a plethora of referrals in the future. The word "Mortgage" dates back to 1066 in England when the French used the "gage" system.  Real property used as colat...
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By Katrina Davis
(George & Company)
Are no money down loans still available? I don't know! But I do know that if you're a first time buyer, you can still get 99.5% financing! All you have to have is a 640 credit score! The .5% could could be a gift from a family member and the seller could cover all the closing cost. That means if someone was buying a house for $200,000, they'd only have to put down $1000! Isn't that amazing? I can't think of a better time to buy! Great loans, great interest rates, homes priced at an all time low!!!   IT'S DEFINITELY A BUYER'S MARKET!
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By Katrina Davis
(George & Company)
Under 5%, Mortgages May Be Near The Bottom By JAMES R. HAGERTY, Wall Street Journal The Federal Reserve is going to extraordinary lengths to push down long-term interest rates, including home-mortgage rates. But those hoping mortgage rates will fall sharply from current levels, already historically low, may be disappointed. Mortgage firms Thursday were quoting rates averaging 4.75% on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, according to Zillow.com, a real-estate information service. That is down from more than 5% two days ago and about 6% in mid-November. But further big declines will be hard to achieve, partly because the mortgage-lending market has grown less competitive in the past year as hundreds of small banks and independent mortgage lenders have collapsed. The big banks that dominate the...
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Here's a good article I found on people getting scammed who are going into foreclosure. How terrible is that people are going through a hard enough time as it is and people are trying to make money off of their suffering! Foreclosure prevention: Don't get scammed NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- When mortgage borrowers fall behind on payments and run the risk of losing their homes, they sometimes grab the first lifeline tossed their direction. Often that lifeline is a TV or Internet advertisement making grand promises - and has more than one string attached.> "The challenge used to be to encourage people to reach out for help," said Marietta Rodriguez, director of National Home Ownership Programs for the community organizer NeighborWorks America. "That's not the message anymore. Now it's borr...
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By Rebecca White, Real Estate Agent - San Francisco
(Alain Pinel REALTORS)
Ouch-the backlash! I am befuddled by some of your comments (to my last blog post). Yes, it is good to get comments but part of being an independent contractor is just that--being able to make choices and some difficult decisions.   I have tracked a number of homes that have gone down, down, down in price. This one on Church was $112,000 when I first saw it. It was marketed by several brokers and went down to $85,000, less, less, $50-something and finally sold for $34,639. OMIGOD-the land or sewer or whatever is worth more than that!! I showed it several times to no avail. In November of 2005, there was a loan amount of $312,000 and it is assessed for over $200,000. Someone got an amazing bargain!!!   Fortunately, when some of these are REOs, the asset manager can offer bonuses and highe...
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By Rebecca White, Real Estate Agent - San Francisco
(Alain Pinel REALTORS)
Wow, it wasn't easy but I canceled my listing of the little house that didn't sell in East Oakland.   Cute house--needed work, but great potential.   It is a sad state of affairs when price becomes irrelevant and some places won't sell no matter how low they are priced. Lowering the price of one acts as a downward spiral on the surrounding home prices.   No showings, no phone calls, nada. All someone would have had to do was buy, fix up with $20-30,000, rent out with cash flow and wait 3-5 years to triple their investment.   Of course, no one can predict the future, but I can be optimistic, right?
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By Michael Greenslade
(Better Homes & Gardens | Mason-McDuffie Real Estate)
city or town where property is located: Oakland California neighborhood where property is located: Trestle Glen price the property is currently listed at: $ 425,000 homes in the same neighborhood are selling for: $ 460,000.00 to $563,000.00 difference in value between this property and the comps: $ 35,000.00 to $138,000.00 probate / short sale / R.E.O. / 1031 exchange / traditional: days on market 30 On visual inspection of this property I have noticed that the following repairs would make a difference.  Here is a list of suggested projects along with the estimated costs involved. Please consider the cost price estimates to be for supplies only.  These postings are for contractor investors or serious do-it-yourself homeowners. What is most amazing about this property is it's size.....6...
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By Pacita Dimacali, Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA
(Alain Pinel)
Our Oakland Association of Realtors sent a notice to our members about a rash of break-ins at some of the most prestigious areas where staging homes is normal when a home is listed for sale. What makes this very disturbing is how brazen the thieves are. Here's the notice, and what the association recommends as precautionary measures. Oakland Association has recently received several emails regarding a rash of break-ins in the Oakland Hills area.  In the past week several agents reported break-ins in staged vacant houses in Montclair and Piedmont although other break-ins have occurred throughout Oakland with REO's.  Some of the streets where these thefts occurred are Moraga, Mandana, Scenic, Monte and Estates.   Some lockboxes were removed by bolt cutters and thieves came back with keys ...
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By Rebecca White, Real Estate Agent - San Francisco
(Alain Pinel REALTORS)
Wow, I am so bummed. For the first time, I am unable to sell a normal listing. This is neither a short sale nor an REO—well, it is a probate and according to the attorney, the court won’t allow more than a 6% commission. This means if I were to lower the price again to a mere $75,000—though not convinced that it would sell at this price—my net commission would be less than $700!!!   Since I am now dating my company’s broker, he told the owner and she told me to cancel the listing. The reward isn’t worth the risk to them? Or me?   I find all of this difficult to believe for two reasons. First, when I sold real estate in Oregon 10-12 years ago, I sold many condos and land in the $50-70,000 range. My biggest sale was considerably less than $300,000. Despite the “nickels and dimes”, I was a...
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5925 Ocean View Drive, Oakland Offered at: $930,000 SALE PENDING Continue your search for more homes in Oakland's Rockridge neighborhood or all of the East Bay Area. This is a lovely traditional home in the Rockridge (known for the best commute to San Francisco and points beyond). When you first enter this home, you will notice the light from the large windows in the living room and dining room, French doors from one to another plus the fireplaces with interesting mantels in each room. Other architectural detailing include the arched ceilings and the sitting room off the master bedroom. This home has a very versatile floor plan; use the lower area as a master bedroom suite with access to the garden OR by incorporating the lower kitchen area you would have a wonderful au pair. There are...
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Dear ActiveRain Member, In response to requests from many of you for market data, I have prepared a comparison of residential real estate sales in Oakland for Q4 2006, Q4 2007 and Q4 2008.  The numbers tell a very interesting story.    OAKLAND RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE SALES Q4 2006 Detached Homes   Condos / Townhouses # Sales 618   # Sales 139 Dollar Volume $390,481,793   Dollar Volume $63,581,313 Average Sales Price $631,848   Average Sales Price $457,420 Median Sales Price $550,000   Median Sales Price $425,000           OAKLAND RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE SALES Q4 2007 Detached Homes   Condos / Townhouses # Sales 360   # Sales 110 Dollar Volume $226,219,210   Dollar Volume $47,740,090 Average Sales Price $628,387   Average Sales Price $434,001 Median Sales Price $535,250   Median Sales Pr...
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By Pacita Dimacali, Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA
(Alain Pinel)
My partner Gary encountered a woman at the dog park, who mentioned that one of her favorite places to eat in Oakland Hills area is Pastino's Pasta & Pizza at 4207 Park Blvd. Always looking for a good place, we set out to eat at Pastino's. Since this is somewhat a "hole in the wall" in the midst of other fine dining, we didn't worry about how we dressed, which was fine by us We were immediately seated by an super-friendly and attentive guy named George. I ordered a seafood canneloni but they just ran out of it. So George said he'll make up for that by serving me and my brother complimentary (and bottomless!) glasses of chianti. George served me the chicken/spinach/mushroom version in a creamy sauce that was to die for! My brother had the special of the evening, the seafood linguini, whil...
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By Cathy Lee, ASP, IAHSP, RESA Danville, CA
(CL Design Services Home Staging)
Mike Aguilera, Communication Expert and Business Coach, presented "The Art of Networking" at Oakland's Association of Realtors office Thursday afternoon hosted by AREAEB. The session was fascinating and full of strategies we instantly could apply to our businesses. Studies show only 7% of face to face communication is based on words spoken.  The majority of communication is generated by body motions, gestures and voice tonality. All of this is sensed at a subconscious level.  Mike says that the way you communicate to yourself affects the way you communicate to the world.  Your self-talk words and thoughts affect the way you feel, the way you communicate to others, and even your health. According to Stanford Research Institute, 85% of our success is related to people skills (communicatio...
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By Rosemary Brooks, The Mother & Daughter Realty Team
(BMC Real Estate - 209-910-3706)
Description This is an investor’s dream. Located in Oakland. This is a 2 bed/1 bath, 792 sq ft living space/lot 4487 – with 1 carport, corner lot – with security enclosed fence, built: 1912. It has a neat curb appeal in the Stoneburst community. Call agent for more information!MLS# 80107280 (Metrolist) Features Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 1 Parking Spaces: 1 - carport Year Built: 1912 Lot Size: 4487 School District: Oakland Square Footage: 792 Agent Name: Rosemary Brooks/ D'Adrea Davie Broker: Family Realty Group / Joseph Bradley MLS #: 80107280 Location 10401 Pippin Street Oakland CA 94603 Powered by vFlyer.com vFlyer Id: 2169907 ↑ Grab this Headline Animator   R E D U C E D   TO   $79,900!
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By Pacita Dimacali, Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA
(Alain Pinel)
Whenever we find REOs in good locations or areas with good potential, we can almost bet that there will be multiple offers on the property. As such, we prepare ourselves and our clients that we should be aggressive in our offer. Taking a look at Oakland CA, our neighboring city, I looked for detached single familyhomes that closed escrow since November 1, 2008. Here's what I found: How many closed escrow? Total closed: 214 Price and Size Lowest sale: $49,500. Listed at $49,900. This was also the smallest property with 605 sq ft of living space, 1 bedroom/1 bath Highest sale: $680,000. Listed at $825,000. This had 3472 sq ft of living space, 4 bedrooms, 4 baths. Interestingly enough, this was also the largest home among these sales, and located in a most desirable area of Montclair Days ...
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By EastBayWaterDamage.com Certified Professional Restoration
  This Oakland California home experienced a leak in the plumbing which upon first appearances did not appear to have caused much damage; however, mold remediation by Environmental CPR was necessary as you will see below. This laminate hardwood floor may not look damaged but there is a hint of what's lurking under the flooring.  There is mold growth at the base of the drywall which indicates that the floor was probably wet and that water probably got under the laminate flooring.   After pulling up one strip of the laminate flooring up against the wall, it is now obvious that there is severe mold growth under the laminate flooring.  As you can see in the photo below, the laminate wood floor was installed over a vinyl-plastic cushion and that was installed over some type of felt paper whi...
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By Regina P. Brown, M.B.A., Broker, Instructor
(MBA Broker Consultants)
Before I married my husband, I had never heard of Sweet Potato Pie.  Or black-eyed peas.  Or collard greens with turnips.  Or hot-water cornbread. If you haven't had the opportunity to experience sweet potato pie, it looks EXACTLY like pumpkin pie.  But don't be fooled; the texture is thick and hearty, unlike the smooth, creamy texture of its cousin the pumpkin pie.  Both are classic American favorites, depending on what region or culture you're from. Today, this Thanksgiving day, I'm thankful for: The food feasts of cultural variety we can choose from The opportunity to work with folks from all cultures and backgrounds Having a career in which I can help families make better financial decisions for their future Being able to work from my home office and set my own schedule Living in a ...
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By Michael Wayne Jackson, Broker - Seniors Real Estate Specialist Novato
(Coldwell Banker)
Who would have though that the Raiders would beat Denver at Mile High Stadium. This was not a nail biting close game either. I think the Raiders woke up and said we are going to play at 100% and make no mental errors or the Broncos under estimated what Raiders team would show up on Sunday. I'm normally changing the channel on th Raiders right about the beginning of the second quarter. Both the offense and defense showed up I could not beleive it. Now lets see if they can do it again next week.
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By Pacita Dimacali, Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA
(Alain Pinel)
The buyer of an REO property backed out of contract. My clients moved into first position. My buyer's bank has to approve the loan based on the appraisal that they order. If the bank doesn't approve the loan, my buyers will back out, too. When my clients' bank's appraisal was completed, it was at $175K, which is less than the $228K my clients' offered price. We presented the appraisal to the REO agent, who countered that the previous buyer had an appraisal done, and it came to $210K. In this price range, the $35K gap between appraisals is significant. Since the appraisals were completed just days apart, whose appraisal will carry more weight -- the appraisal for the buyer who backed out, or the appraisal for the buyer who is now in contract? We are trying to get the foreclosing bank to ...
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