Since we’ve just finished the third quarter, I’d like to go over some numbers from the Santa Clara County market so that you know what’s going on in Silicon Valley real estate moving into the fourth quarter.

There are a little over 1,700 homes on the market right now, including single-family homes, townhomes, and condos. Of these homes, the median list price is $980,000 while the median sales price is about $902,000.

For homes that are active on the market, the average days on market is about 59 days in the entire county. For the homes that did sell, the average days on market was about 30 days. The total sales for the last month of the quarter was a little over 1,200 sales, which is down by about 4% from the previous month.

What do all of these statistics mean to you as a home buyer or seller?

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If you find a home that meets your needs, jump on it now.

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If you’re a buyer, you have a little bit more inventory to choose from and interest rates are still historically low. We’re also not seeing quite as much competition on the market, so your odds of getting into a bidding war are much less likely than they would have been earlier this year. So if you find a home you like that fits your needs and is in a great location, jump on it and make an offer.

On the flip side, if you’re thinking about selling your home, don’t worry; homes are still selling. Homes are sitting on the market a bit longer in some areas, which may call for a more aggressive pricing and marketing strategy. Overall, we need to adjust our expectations a bit, especially as we approach the winter months. For this reason, you should be sure to plan your sale accordingly. In any case, if it’s time to sell your home, you can definitely do so and get a great price for it.

This is just a brief overview of what we’ve seen in the market this past quarter, so if you have any other questions about whether it’s the right time to buy or sell a home in Santa Clara County, give me a call or send me an email. I’d be happy to help you!

What’s the difference between a buyer’s agent and a listing agent? Obviously, the listing agent deals more with listings and home sellers and the buyer’s agent focuses more on home buyers, but the duties of each agent are actually very different.

The primary focus for a listing agent is to assist the home seller in marketing their home. Their job is to ensure that the home that they are selling shines in the best possible light, to put the home on the MLS, get buyers to see the home, and negotiate offers with those buyers.

A buyer’s agent's primary duty is to take buyers to see homes, find them homes from the MLS, and help them identify what they’re looking for in their next home while being knowledgeable in all aspects of the market.

Because the duties of these two types of agents differ drastically, certain personality types tend to work better for each job. Listing agents tend to be more aggressive and focused on marketing while buyer’s agents tend to be geared more toward customer service and be consulting-oriented.

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One agent can’t protect the best interests of both the buyer and seller.

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Each agent has a fiduciary duty to their respective clients as well. The listing agent has a responsibility to the home seller to get the most money possible and the best terms for their home, while the responsibility of the buyer’s agent is to get the home buyer the best home for the best price on the best terms.

Why is this important information for you to have? If you’re considering buying a home, you may be tempted to call the listing agent for a property you like and work with them to complete the purchase. This is a bad idea because since the listing agent has a duty to the seller to get them the highest price on their home, it is not likely that they will keep your interests in mind during the transaction.

I definitely recommend hiring an individual agent to represent your side of the transaction. If you’re selling your home, hire a listing agent that has experience with listings and project management. On the other side, if you’re buying a home, be sure to hire an agent that deals exclusively with buyers. Hiring an agent to represent both sides may set you up for a potential disaster and a lot of conflicts of interest down the line.

If you have any questions about the duties of buyer’s agents and listing agents or would like to know how to choose the agent that best fits your needs, give me a call or send me an email. I’d be happy to help you!

I just wanted to talk to you for a minute about a new website that we just launched. This site is going to allow you to search for homes for sale as soon as they are listed on the market.

This site is updated instantly with our local MLS and provides a ton of different information about each home on the market. We’ll let you know the nearby schools and provide you with video tours of properties when they are available. This is in addition to all the other information you typically get on listings like bedroom/bathroom count, square footage, etc.

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Let us know what you think!

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You can check the site out at www.buysellprg.com. Go ahead and check out the site when you get a moment. Let us know what you think. If you have any questions for us, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you.

Today I have Angel Orozco from Skyline Security and he’s going to be talking about home security systems and how they can actually help your home sell in Silicon Valley. Skyline Security has been around for fifteen years and they specialize in all of the newer and more advanced security systems. Many of these are controlled via smartphones and they can be used commercially or residentially.

Technology is huge in security and Skyline offers fully automated technology. Using your phone to set your alarm is extremely convenient, and you can even lock doors with their app. You can secure your entire home from your phone. Motion sensors can detect movement and they also have sensors to detect glass breaking.

 

We have just formed a partnership with Skyline Security and anyone who buys a home from us will get a free installation from Skyline Security. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Angel.

We look forward to hearing from you!

If you plan on selling your current house and buying a new one, there are a few things you need to take into consideration.

The first question to ask is whether you need the equity from your current property in order to purchase a new property. If the answer is yes, we suggest you list the property you’re living in first, in order to have the purchasing power necessary to buy your next home.

If you have the cash in the bank to buy your next home without having to sell, it’s a great position to be in. In that case, you can go ahead and start looking at properties before you even list. However, you should be aware of the possibility that you might have two mortgages at the same time.

Regardless of what you end up doing, it’s crucial to be aware of market conditions. Here in Silicon Valley, it’s a very competitive market; there is a lot of inventory and there are a lot of buyers. In this situation, putting an offer on a home that is contingent on you selling your current home is not going to make you look as powerful as someone else who has already sold their home and has some money in the bank.

In this market, sellers need to be aware of something called rent-backs. Basically, a rent-back is a situation in which the seller asks the buyer to rent back the property from the new buyers. This agreement extends the closing so that sellers can remain in their house, while paying rent to the buyer, as they finalize their new living situation. Many sellers have found this to be a great way to purchase a new home without having to move more than once.

If you have questions about how you can make your move as smooth as possible, or if you have any questions about our local market, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to give you a hand! 

When it comes time for you to hire a real estate agent, you have almost too many options. Today we are going to discuss the top 5 questions you should be asking any real estate agent before you hire them, so you can filter through the plethora of agents out there in order to find the right one for you. 

There are a lot of part-time agents out there; unfortunately, they don't have the necessary time or experience to provide good service. Here at PRG Real Estate, we are all full-time agents, and we are always working our hardest to give you the best service possible.

A lot of agents attempt to do everything themselves. This is not an efficient process, which is why many solo agents aren't able to give their clients the service they deserve. We have a team of specialized individuals that is designed to make your transaction one smooth process. Our support staff is in place to free up time for our agents so they can spend that time helping you buy or sell a home.

We survey all of our clients each year and ask their honest opinions about working with us. We appreciate all the feedback that we get, positive or negative, and use it to improve our business. Any agent you hire should be doing the same.

Marketing listings is crucial in our market, and we know that. That's why we have our own personalized marketing plan which details our proven strategies and cutting edge marketing techniques that will net top dollar for your home.

A good agent should have happy customers that want to come back and do business again, or refer their friends and family members. About 30-40% of our business comes from referrals and previous clients, and we take great pride in that.

Thanks for joining me today. If you have any questions about this topic, or are looking to buy or sell in Silicon Valley, give us a call or send us an email. We would love to hear from you!

What does the real estate market look like in Santa Clara County? Currently, there are just over 1,000 active homes on the market. The average sales price is $860,000, and homes spend an average of 69 days on the market. In more desirable areas, homes are on the market for one or two weeks!

Inventory is extremely low right now, with about one month of inventory on the market. Since there is a shortage of inventory, home values are going up. Many sellers are receiving multiple offers, especially in desirable areas with good schools and great amenities nearby.

Interest rates remain at all-time lows, hovering in the high threes and low fours for a 30-year fixed mortgage. Buyers have a lot more purchasing power right now, so take advantage of these low rates.

What does this mean for you? If you're looking to sell, you can get top dollar for your home so long as you are priced correctly and have an aggressive marketing plan.

For buyers, the market is quite competitive. It might take a little while to get you into a home, but we can come up with a plan to get you to the closing table. Plus, those interest rates are fantastic!

If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!