You May Be able To Reduce Your Property Taxes! Orange County Property Tax Assesment Information

Orange County Housing Inventory is Creeping up – Fullerton Housing Too!

The push to get everyone in escrow by April 30^th to qualify for the federal tax credit has ended and it seems the mad rush is over.  So what’s been happening since?  People must want to know because everyone has been asking me!

Inventory is creeping up, that’s what’s happening!  Even though our interest rates are at historic lows, we are still seeing a little less buyer activity. The serious buyers are still out there but they expect a lot for their money.

If you’re a potential seller, don’t worry! Homes are still selling!  Buyers are savvy and though they aren’t receiving the federal tax incentive, the serious ones are out!  There are plenty of ways to ensure your home sells for the highest possible price.  If you would like any tips or hints, I am happy to help!

Check out what the Fullerton housing inventory has been doing for the past year.

Fullerton Inventory is Creeping Up

Home Owners! Watch Out for this Direct Mail SCAM!

If you are a home owner, you might have received a pretty official looking letter in the mail. It could have come from the “Recording Compliance Board” or the “Title Compliance Office”; I have seen a couple different versions.  I even received one in the mail!

It might ask you to send a processing fee anywhere from $140.00 to $160.00 to reconvey your deed or to order a copy of your grant deed.

Sure, it looks legit and official but don’t take the bait!  All they are offering to do is send you a copy of something that you can get for FREE!  Any of these documents are a matter of public record. Any Realtor® can obtain them for you.

For copies of your grant deed or any other recorded document, please contact me!  I would be happy to get that for you….FREE OF CHARGE of course!

See my Real Estate Reality Check about the real estate scam at www.fullertonstories.com.

*************************************************************************************

Cristal Drake - Prudential California Realty

Your Real Estate Resource!

Realtor®, CDPE, ID# 01272061

714-423-7525  

cristaldrake@gmail.com 

Cristal Drakeis a Fullerton Resident and Realtor® specializing in North Orange County foreclosure sales, equity sales and short sales. All information in her blog is believed to be accurate but is not guaranteed. Copyright 2009 all rights reserved.

Open House – Downtown Fullerton! Sat. Feb. 20 from 1:00 to 4:00

Vintage Home Near Downtown Fullerton For Sale!

Stop by and see this great vintage home in an amazing Fullerton Neighbhorhood near downtown! I hope to see you there from 1:00 to 4:00!

Fullerton Real Estate – No Bobby, The Appraiser is NOT the Devil…..

When I took a listing on in the highly sought after Downtown Fullerton area, I knew I had my work cut out for me. This lovely home on Jacaranda showed wonderfully and though we listed it right at Christmas time when most buyers typically stop shopping. We were able to get it sold right away with multiple offers.

The work wasn’t so much in the listing, but in getting the Appraiser to see the value too! I mean I had just sold a home for the highest price in quite some time in the neighborhood and now I had to make sure the apprasier agreed! 

The dreaded words….Appraisal!  I have heard appraisers referred to as “deal killers” for brining the value in too low.  Since the fall of the real estate market, it is tougher than ever for them! 

This is not the appraiser!

Sure, we listed on the high side.  I was confident we could get what we were asking for.  At our open house, the residents of this lovely Downtown Fullerton neighborhood all came by and echoed the same sentiment, “We hope you can get the value, it will be so good for the neighborhood”.   I must admit, I got nervous…for about a minute.

Lucky for me, I worked for a major lender years ago and had extensive appraisal training. I would work closely with what we called the Appraisal Review Department and learned exactly what they were looking for and how they wanted the value justified.  Trust me, I did not forget.

When the appraiser called about appraising the home, I made sure I made it as easy as possible for him.  Often times, Realtors just show up and unlock the door.  I guess that is one way to do it but by making sure they understand the upgrades, the neighborhood, how you came to the value, the offers….etc….you would be surprised at how much they appreciate the help and in UNDERSTANDING WHY THE VALUE IS THERE!

Appraisers have a tough job right now.  They have much stricter guidelines now and are held accountable for every little thing. Their job is stressful to say the least!   This was just reiterated by an appraiser that called me (because the home on Jacaranda has now closed and is showing as a comparable sale).  She was trying to justify the price on something else in the neighborhood and she was floored when she saw how much my home sold for.  We talked a long time about how hard it is for them right now.  Since I know every single home in the neighborhood, and what they all sold for, I was able to help her and explain how we were able to justify the sold price on our Jacaranda home.

Appraisers are not trying to be bad guys or deal killers. Sometimes they just need a little help in justifying the value. The least we can do is try to help! It is good for them…..and our sellers!

If you are interested in hearing more about values and appraisals or anything else relating to Fullerton real estate or real estate in North Orange County, please contact me.

Fullerton Real Estate – October 2009 Sales Stats – Not Too Much Has Changed….

Anyone that has been actively searching for a home in Fullerton (especially their first one) knows exactly what I am talking about.  Inventory is still VERY low in Orange County.    Fullerton Real Estate seems to be in especially high demand, see for yourself!

Fullerton Home Sales October 2009

The Fullerton homes that are in the highest demand are the ones that are less than $500,000.  These homes can command dozens of offers!  Trust me, I know, I had to really jump through some hoops to get an offer accepted for a buyer on a great craftsman home in Downtown Fullerton. There were 48 offers!  Yes, 48! Check out the stats on Fullerton homes that are less than $500,000.

October 2009 Fullerton Home Sales under $500,000

I know you can read but this graph shows the activity for Fullerton Homes that were priced below $500,000 in October 2009:

• 116 homes listed in Fullerton
• 99 went into escrow
• 75 closed

Look at October 2008!  There were three times the listings and about half the sales of October 2009!

I am guessing that most of the ones that did not go into escrow were most likely short sales that received multiple offers but the agent just never changed the status of the listing to reflect this.What does this mean?  It means that buyers are having a tough time right now.  If you are thinking of moving up, this is a great time!  There is a lot more inventory for the move up buyers. You may now even qualify for the extended tax credit.

If you have questions about Fullerton Real Estate, the Tax Credit or anything at all, I would love the opportunity to answer your questions. It is a crazy market right now and you need to be sure to ask someone who knows!

A New Addiction In Downtown Fullerton!

I have some friends that for the past five years or so have gone to Italy every summer.  I haven’t been able to make it to Italy with them but one thing they constantly raved about (amongst many) was GELATO!

I guess you had to try it to understand it.  Lucky for me, I didn’t have to got to Italy, (though that would have been nice) It came to me, right here in little ol’ Fullerton!

Frati Gelato Cafe opened late 2007 and I really didn’t pay much attention to it until I was recently at the new Mercantile Flea Market in Downtown Fullerton.  It was hot and I needed a cool treat. Plus one of my “Italy” friends had been talking about it.

OH MY GOSH!  One taste and you are hooked.  This is not your mass produced stuff!  The master Gelato Maker spent 20 years in Italy perfecting this science and makes it right ther on site!   This stuff is so rich and creamy that it must be a sin!  Upon further reasearch, I found out that it is not!

It turns out that this Gelato has about 1/3 the fat of ice cream!  It is so creamy and delicious, you can taste the high quality ingredients.  These aren’t your traditional ice cream flavors either.  They change daily and seem like unusual combinations but just ask for a taste and you will soon find that those “unusual flavors” are actually the best ones!

So, since finding this place, I seem to find myself there around three to four times a week.  I can’t help it; Especially since it has been so hot!  Once you walk into this extremely clean and cool place and you instantly feel better.  Then you get that tasty treat in your hand, it’s over.  You really need sit at one of their little tables and enjoy it there.  I am even finding myself making business deals there!  Everyone is happy when they are having Gelato!

Frati Gelato Cafe is located in Downtown Fullerton’s SOCO Disctrict at 122 W. Commonwealth, Fullerton, CA 92832.  www.fratigelatocafe.com

I guess in a world of temptation and bad things we can get addicted to, Gelato is really not such a bad vice! Enjoy!

Cristal Drake – Fullerton Area Realtor – Re/Max North Orange County – Fullerton, CA – 714-423-7525