2019 | Brezsny Associates

How many homeowners have the faintest idea about what shape their sewer lateral pipes are in?

December 24, 2019Time for a quick show of hands... how manyhomeowners have the faintest idea about whatshape their sewer lateral pipes are in? If youdidn’t raise your hand, pay attention and read on...this is info that could have an impact onyour largest asset. I know. Sewer laterals aren’t exactly the kind of warm and fuzzy topic you look forward to reading about over a cup of coffee on a Saturday morning. It’s a dirty job but someone’s got to do it. Might as well be me since...

Sewer Lateral Inspections and Mandated Repairs

December 16, 2019Last week we covered the basics of the new “stealth” sewer lateral regs calling for video inspections on each home sale. Email me at getreal@ serenogroup.com for a copy of the new rules. Did I mention that everyone hooked up to the County sewer is required to have their laterals flushed every18 months? It isn’t clear what the punishment is for not cleaning those lines but from the vantage point of someone who interacts with lots of homes and homeowners, what’s clear to me is...

Here’s a recent example from the real estate trenches: a widowed woman in her 70s decid- ed to sell her house in Mid County

December 11, 2019After some recent lofty columns on the exis- tential nature of downsizing, it probably feels like I took a U turn a few weeks back when I descended into the bowels of the County’s new sewer lateral regulations...but this is my last column on that subject, I promise. If you’re coming into the sewer conversation late, email getreal@serenogroup.com to get the backstory and an outline of the new rules SC County is playing by. For now, let’s look at some ways the new regs could...

How did we ever manage to sell homes back in the days before staging was a big thing

December 2, 2019Today’s Question: How did we ever manage to sell homes back in the days before staging was a big “thing?” When sellers and agents weren’t inclined to put much effort into painting and primping new listings before they went on the market? Did all those places I sold back in the ‘90s and 2000s just sell themselves? By today’s standards, they were a motley assortment of fixer-uppers and former rentals that had been rode hard and put on the market even harder. Ranch homes that...

How high the bar is set when it comes to presenting your home these days

November 25, 2019Continuing...talking about the relatively new“big thing” in real estate known as “staging your home” and how it has become anindispensable part of the prep process for mosthomes coming on the market. Even average orrelatively inexpensive ones. We’re also talking about how high the bar is set when it comes to presenting your home these days. And how much thought, time and effort (not to mention real cost) actually goes into primping (not pimping) it before hitting the MLS. So what happened? Why are so many...

How staging has gone from being an afterthought to integral

November 18, 2019Continuing our discussion...How staging has gone from being a fashionable afterthought, reserved only for the most elite homes, to something that’s now considered integral to the successful sale of any home. And why, if it’s been awhile since you’ve experienced the real estate market from a Seller’s perspective, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to re-familiarize yourself with the essentials of staging as you’re beginning to get your own staging ducks in order. Suffice it to say: prepping and staging a house is harder than...

- Terry Brezsny Ballantyne

The Lighter Side of Hair

November 15, 2019It's funny about hair. We all admire a beautiful head of lush hair on a head. But put just one hair in your soup and watch people recoil. How can one hair be horrible and thousands be attractive? Ladies, we spend lots of time and money in our youth getting a bikini wax, only to watch, as we age, our south of the border hair goes gray and scraggly. Or your eyebrows are disappearing and they need tint or colored wax to frame your face....

Home price appreciation is strong and say hello to the next wave of homebuyers – Millennials

November 14, 2019CoreLogic reported that home prices rose 0.4% in September and 3.5% year over year. The year over year reading dropped slightly from 3.6% in August and is a sustainable and meaningful level for wealth creation. The states with the highest increases year-over-year were Idaho (11.8%), Utah (8%) and Maine (8%). CoreLogic forecasts that home prices will appreciate by 5.6% in the year going forward, which is slightly lower pace from the 5.8% forecasted in the previous report. Frank Martell, the President and CEO of CoreLogic...

Let’s return to something we talked about last year..

November 5, 2019Let’s return to something we talked about last year...when the frenzy of the market was fraying people’s reserves of rational thought. And I noticed a widening gap between the public’s popular imagination about how real estate works and how it actually plays out in real life. There are two parts: 1) Every single Santa Cruz seller fantasizes about wealthy buyers swarming over the hill to pay lots of money for their house. 2) Not all Santa Cruz sellers are willing to do what it takes...

There are some long-held beliefs about real estate that have proven resistant to change over the years

October 28, 2019Right on the cusp of another summer...and right on cue, the market is experiencing the same noticeable downshift that’s been a regular part of its seasonal cycle for the last six years. Sellers who’ve been a little tardy getting their homes ready for the market may be in for a surprise when they find this “shift” moving in a direction that’s different from the one they were expecting. There are some long-held beliefs about real estate that have proven resistant to change over the years,...

The reality of the summer market rarely lives up to the expectations most sellers have

October 22, 2019Continuing from last week...talking about the seasonal downshift in the market that accompanies the start of summer, despite a pervasive myth to the contrary. One that says it’s better to list a home in June, July and August. When the sun is shining, and the influx of families wanting to buy houses before the school year starts ramps up to fever pitch. Except that the reality of the summer market rarely lives up to the expectations most sellers have. Here’s why... There aren’t enough young...

Here we are…right on cue

October 15, 2019Here we are…right on cue. It’s the 6th day of summer and, not uncoincidentally, we’ve been talking about the seasonal downshift that often happens right about now, despite all the ad hoc wisdom that likes to insist that summer is the best time to sell a house. That’s when the weather is warm, the catfish are jumpin’ and the prices are high. But if you want to hear why that just isn’t the case anymore, read my recent columns that deconstruct the myth of an...