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Doom and gloom news are always sensationalized. So from time to time, it helps to have a reality check. Kudos to First American Title Company who shares with us the Market Watch newsletter by a dynamo of a woman, Carole Rodoni. Carole is a sought-after speaker (and the much-revered ray of hope for the battered northern California market). We ...

Folks who haven't yet discovered Alameda may want to come to one of the most fun events in the island -- the monthly Antiques Faire by the Bay http://www.antiquesbythebay.net/. It's billed as Northern California's largest antiques and collectibles show with over 800 dealers. According to theri website, everything sold at the show must ...

I submitted an offer on a short sale listing last week. I thought it was a strong offer --- full price, 10% down payment, 1% initial deposit, AS IS, standard contingency periods. When I followed up with the listing agent to find out what the seller would like to do --- accept, counter offer or reject --- it appears she bypassed the seller. She ...

As of today, in our local MLS. there are 12,041 active listings of which 2636 are REO (bank-owned) or 22%, and 2852 are short sales or 24%. Siince January 1, 2008, 1151 REOs closed, compared to 102 short sales. Because of the painfully slow process of getting an acceptance, rejection or counteroffer to a short sale offer, I am more inclined to ...

No matter how many times you try to explain what a short sale is and what is involved, it is always a good idea to set expectations at the very beginning. Then follow up with a written explanation -- be it an outline, an email, a question and answer ---- anything that the Buyer can refer to because invariably, there will be some ...

DISCOVER ALAMEDA I live in Alameda, and many of my clients commute to San Francisco. When they couldn’t afford to buy in the City, they decided to look to East Bay. It doesn’t take them long to fall in love with our island that is so private and secure, yet so conveniently located for easy access to other cities. Alameda has great ...

I have searched several sites, blogs, etc. for a concise answer to the question on the effect of a short sale on one's credit score. It was mind-boggling to find so many different answers. And I am just as befuddled. For sure the credit score has to be negatively impacted since banks will surely report late payments. To approve short sales, a ...