PruCalVoices » Bernadette Ramirez http://www.prucalvoices.com Conversations in Real Estate Mon, 28 May 2012 20:10:39 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 What If My Offer Is Rejected? http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PrucalvoicesBernadetteRamirez/~3/kOrGo1NKYjU/ http://www.prucalvoices.com/2012/01/what-if-my-offer-is-rejected/#comments Wed, 11 Jan 2012 01:18:10 +0000 Bernadette Ramirez http://www.prucalvoices.com/?p=4769 Oddly enough, I  get asked this question most often before clients write offers. This usually goes along with the fear of commitment or loss. Either way, clients are usually inquisitive of this before even writing an offer or deciding on what terms to offer.

If your inquiring about rejection before you write your offer, you should ask yourself how that would make you feel? Is this property your dream home, starter home, vacation home, investment? I think depending on where your interest  lies with investing in that particular property will then come the answer to your question, “what next”?

If the outcome is not what you predicted or wanted then maybe you should ask your realtor why; what was the seller looking for in an offer? How can I learn from this to increase my chances of acquiring my next property of choice? Of course the best advice comes from those with their hands in the market every day so to speak! So….. don’t be afraid to ask your favorite realtor here at Prudential in San Bruno, ” WHAT SHOULD I DO?”

Lets get your best offer in first, then and only if we have to, will we deal with rejection TOGETHER:) Otherwise, BEST OF LUCK with your offer!

Bernadette Ramirez
Prudential California Realty
I WORK FOR YOU!
You can reach me @ 650-871-3639

]]> http://www.prucalvoices.com/2012/01/what-if-my-offer-is-rejected/feed/ 5 http://www.prucalvoices.com/2012/01/what-if-my-offer-is-rejected/ What’s the difference between inspections and the”final walk-through”? http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PrucalvoicesBernadetteRamirez/~3/H2E3sgeiaY0/ http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/12/whats-the-difference-between-inspections-and-thefinal-walk-through/#comments Mon, 12 Dec 2011 18:10:51 +0000 Bernadette Ramirez http://www.prucalvoices.com/?p=4816 Inspections are the buyers right. You as a buyer have the right to inspect the home if your offer is accepted by the seller. This is your chance to find out as much about the property as you can. Depending on what type of investment you have in mind, would depend on what type of inspections you should get on the property. Areas, weather, years, all of these things need to be taken into consideration when deciding which inspections to do. Using your due diligence and inspecting the property is very much to the buyers advantage and at times to the seller as well.

The final walk – through is done at the very end of the transaction a few days before close of escrow. You can refer to your purchase agreement for future reference. You can find more elaborate information regarding the final walk- through in the section labeled “Final Verification of Condition” again, verbiage may vary depending on which agreement you use.  The walk- through is used to solely verify the terms and conditions of the contract have been executed by all parties of the agreement. NOT to re-negotiate terms and conditions!

Remember, these terms are not always clear or at the very least create more questions, we are always here to answer any questions you have. As tech savy as we are these days its just silly not to ask when you can have the answer at your fingertips!

Bernadette Ramirez
www.BarForU.com
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]]> http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/12/whats-the-difference-between-inspections-and-thefinal-walk-through/feed/ 1 http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/12/whats-the-difference-between-inspections-and-thefinal-walk-through/ How Much House Can I Afford? http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PrucalvoicesBernadetteRamirez/~3/z7fMVY8pxAM/ http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/11/how-much-house-can-i-afford/#comments Mon, 14 Nov 2011 18:45:02 +0000 Bernadette Ramirez http://www.prucalvoices.com/?p=4761 Well that depends…. how are you planning on purchasing your home? Do you have cash? Are you planning on getting a loan; if so, have you received a pre-qualification letter from your lender yet? Once you establish the way you will be funding the purchase of your home then we can figure out which steps you will need to complete to accomplish this.

Cash is pretty self explanatory. Lets talk about financing a bit. A serious buyer, in need of a loan to purchase a home will need to contact their lender for a pre-qualification letter. This is most often wanted, to be included in your offer package, when submitting to the banks in a short sale, reo and even Sellers in a regular sale. If you are in need of a lender remember, to make things easier on you, Prudential San Bruno, has a really good Mortage Company relationship that works  in house , Guarantee Mortgage 650.589.1000.  What else can I say but they are nothing less than awesome!

 Actually getting a pre-approval often times can speed the home buying process up. Your lender will need to evaluate your debt to income ratio in order to establish how much house you can actually afford.   

Although your lender can tell you how you qualify, I think the actual answer to this question comes within you and your family.Do not forget to ask yourself, no matter how much you qualify for, what is the maximum monthly mortgage payment you are compfortable with. Ask your agent what type of  inventory in the area desired is available for the amount you decided you where compfortable with making each month.  See what that gets you:)

We can always discuss your options when its convenient for you!

This is where I encourage you to call your lender and wish you the very best of luck!

Bernadette Ramirez
www.BARforU.com

]]> http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/11/how-much-house-can-i-afford/feed/ 3 http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/11/how-much-house-can-i-afford/ What Do I Get When I Buy A House? http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PrucalvoicesBernadetteRamirez/~3/DcOhoFzOh9A/ http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/10/what-do-i-get-when-i-buy-a-house/#comments Tue, 11 Oct 2011 20:38:30 +0000 Bernadette Ramirez http://www.prucalvoices.com/?p=4589 Well that’s a pretty loaded question. I think it depends on why you are buying. Lets break it up into pieces.

Are you investing or is this home going to be your primary residence?

If you are looking at purchasing a home for investment purposes, it’s probably a good idea to make sure it has a good return on it. Also… you want to make sure with the rent you are not only able to pay the mortgage (be sure to check if your property taxes are included in your mortgage payments). You will also want to make sure that the amount of rent you charge is comparable to the area and to your mortgage payments. Ideally you would like enough rent to cover the mortgage, property taxes, and maintenance.  In the perfect world you would like your tenant to pay enough rent yet the rent be atractive enough to keep them as long term tenants to relieve as many out of pocket expenses for you. Inevitably there will be some sort of repairs or maintenance that will be your responsibility as the owner to remedy  some of which you can write off :)     

If you are purchasing a home for your Primary Residence you will probably want to shop around a bit to make sure you are buying the best for your money. Ideally you want your mortgage payments to be low enough to live comfortably and still be able to pay all of your other expenses in life, i.e. Utilities, maintenance/ repairs, etc.

Owning a home is a big responsibility. Rather your buying to live or rent, your responsibilities are almost the same. You are responsible for mortgage, maintenance, repairs, if you have a tenant, it behooves you to educate yourself on tenant laws.

As a matter of fact in many areas these days the mortgage vs. rent are very comparable, more often the rent is higher monthly than the mortgage payments. Why not own then?

The benefits of Owning: Yes along with the huge responsibility of owning comes  some really good perks! You of course would have to check with your tax  officer; however, being a home owner you should be able to write off many things ( mortgage, repairs, maintenance, etc. ), again discussing with your tax officer is essential to prevent any tax consequences in the future.

Also you get to build the best thing of all, EQUITY. Equity is something a home owner receives whether they use the home for a primary residence or a rental. Equity is something you build as you pay down your loan.  The equity in your home can stay and build for many years to come. Pay off the home and don’ t owe anything. Also equity can be  used if you are buying something else,i.e. another property. Depending on the situation ( length of ownership,payments,  how much equity) you can pull the equity out and use it for the purchase of another property. Equity is like a built in loan. You can use it later for another investment.

Bernadette Ramirez
http://www.barforu.com/

]]> http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/10/what-do-i-get-when-i-buy-a-house/feed/ 3 http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/10/what-do-i-get-when-i-buy-a-house/ Buyers… Buyers… Buyers, Here’s a little food for thought for you… http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PrucalvoicesBernadetteRamirez/~3/OusoQKLT5DU/ http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/04/buyers%e2%80%a6-buyers%e2%80%a6-buyers-here%e2%80%99s-a-little-food-for-thought-for-you%e2%80%a6/#comments Fri, 29 Apr 2011 21:25:03 +0000 Bernadette Ramirez http://www.prucalvoices.com/?p=3586 Working on a day to day basis with buyers can be rewarding most times; however, at times working with buyers can be tedious, tiring, relentless, and at times down right exhausting! Does this mean I’m doing my job? Yes, but it also means buyers need to change with the times. There’s been a drastic change within the real estate world just in the last few years. Competition in the market continues. Now buyers should be jumping out of their seats with overwhelming joy that our INTEREST RATES and PRICES are the bomb right now! WHY are you waiting? I couldn’t even tell you how many times I have encountered buyers who THINK they are ready to buy until they actually get out there and look. Then it’s like most of the buyers out there turn into kids in a candy shop whose parents told them they are limited to just one, only worse, they not only can’t choose but they turn the candy over to look at the calories and fat content on the nutrition information only with houses. Could you imagine what that’s like for your agent?

Now that I have your attention, humor me just for one minute,    place yourself in your agents’ shoes. I PROMISE this will help you in all of your real estate endeavors. Imagine what that’s like for us as agents to show you the buyers a selection of properties that fit the criteria you set forth for you and your new home with tweaking here and there along the way and not one of those is the right home for you. Imagine how many showings does it take for you to find your dream home? These homes although they may be move-in ready are not perfect. A home is what you make of it. If you think you are going to walk into a home and say “this is it, this is the home I always wanted” WAKE UP! Accept the fact that no house is ever perfect. Make a list of your top priorities and focus in on those things that are most important to you. Let the minor ones go. Don’t loose sight of the why you wanted to buy a new home in the first place. It yields BIG benefits!

Remember buyers you hire us for our expertise, experience and knowledge in the home buying process. Only you know what will make the right home for you and your family. There is nothing more pleasing/ satisfying to an agent than finding the right home for you and your family’s happiness.

There are so many homes available out there waiting for new, fantastic, wonderful people to walk in a see their potential. However, like many other places there are a great deal of these homes that are not brand new. Most of the homes and yes more than likely the home you actually purchase will need a little TLC directly from the new owners. Like anything else you own, your car, snowboard, bike, motorcycle, they all need a bit of your taste, love and care to make it your own! So does your new home. Don’t get so caught up in the physical aspects of the house and loose site of the important things like, location, amenities and noise level are just a few important aspects that could have a big impact on your quality of life in your new home.

Don’t get me wrong, I love buyers. I love working with buyers but sometimes it behooves us to hear what we don’t necessarily want to hear. What doesn’t break us makes us stronger, right?

So please take your kids to the candy shop tonight, let them pick one of their favorite candies then tomorrow go look at houses with your agent. Slap a big smile on your face and think with a little TLC of my own would this make a great home for me and my family. Although it may not be the perfect dream home, without the millions it would cost to build that dream home of yours could this home be enough to make your families dreams come true?

Bernadette Ramirez
http://www.barforu.com

]]> http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/04/buyers%e2%80%a6-buyers%e2%80%a6-buyers-here%e2%80%99s-a-little-food-for-thought-for-you%e2%80%a6/feed/ 6 http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/04/buyers%e2%80%a6-buyers%e2%80%a6-buyers-here%e2%80%99s-a-little-food-for-thought-for-you%e2%80%a6/ San Bruno Farmers Market Is Comming Back….. http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PrucalvoicesBernadetteRamirez/~3/iKWZeDHIYqg/ http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/04/san-bruno-farmers-market-is-comming-back/#comments Fri, 08 Apr 2011 22:48:24 +0000 Bernadette Ramirez http://www.prucalvoices.com/?p=3497 The San Bruno Farmers Market is coming back. The Farmers Market located on the historical San Mateo Avenue between Jenevein and Sylvan starts on May 1,2011 and is scheduled to go thru September 25, 2011.

The farmers market has a wonderful selection of the freshest picked fruits, vegetables, nuts, berries and much more.
This wonderful market is a memeber of the Pacific Coast Farmers Market Association.

Curious what else you can find at the farmers market?  Visit  http://www.pcfma.com for more information and event locations!

Happy Shopping:)

Bernadette Ramirez
Prudential California Real Estate
www.barforu.com

]]> http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/04/san-bruno-farmers-market-is-comming-back/feed/ 2 http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/04/san-bruno-farmers-market-is-comming-back/ MEET & GREET http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PrucalvoicesBernadetteRamirez/~3/erb0h9P-boI/ http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/02/meet-greet/#comments Sat, 05 Feb 2011 23:00:29 +0000 Bernadette Ramirez http://www.pruvoices.com/?p=3289 February 19th Hillsdale shopping center is hosting a Meet & Greet event. It’s an all day event lasting from 10a.m.- 4p.m. It should be really fun and interesting!

Free admission

Over 30 family related businesses

Child fingerprinting

Free face painting

Location: Hillsdale shopping center, San Mateo

For more information: 650.344.5200

Hope to see you there!!!

Bernadette Ramirez
http://www.bramirez.prucal.com/

]]> http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/02/meet-greet/feed/ 2 http://www.prucalvoices.com/2011/02/meet-greet/ It’s That Time of Year Again!!! http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PrucalvoicesBernadetteRamirez/~3/ESl2eoO-AEI/ http://www.prucalvoices.com/2010/12/its-that-time-of-year-again/#comments Mon, 13 Dec 2010 16:09:22 +0000 Bernadette Ramirez http://www.pruvoices.com/?p=3164 It’s almost here… the best time of year! Christmas is right around the corner and seems to sneak up every year. Be prepared this season, block out a time this week/end to write a list, check it (at least twice) as you accomplish all of those holiday tasks we love doing so much. To help keep you in the mood visit the attached holiday site to see the homes lit with the most cheer; www.lightsofthevalley.com! Pick the County and City of your interest and enjoy!
I encourage you to check out my holiday contest this year! All it takes is the best holiday picture you have… family, friends, kids/babies, loved ones, pets! There will be a winner for each of the following categories: Cutest picture (the kind that makes you go awwwwhhhhhhh…..); funniest picture (the kind that makes you laugh from your belly); and the last category would be for the most interesting picture (the kind that makes you wonder…) The winners will be posted on my website [www.BarForU.com] ALL of the contestants will be put in a holiday virtual album on my website for everyone to enjoy Good Luck! (submit your pictures by email, text, mail, or in person)
For those who need a little help in the gift giving area I have attached a list of 25 gift basket ideas to give this holiday to ensure you pick the right gift for the right person. Good Luck and may your holiday be filled to the top with Love and Cheer!      
Gift Baskets for Adults/Children: mix and match!
1. Wine glasses with different colored ribbons, different sizes and decorations.
2. Basket of cheese & a bottle of wine, bottle opener
3. Bread Basket filled w/cheese, salami, mustards,
4. Italian Basket: Fill a pasta bowl with a variety of pastas, sauces and spices, maybe a jar of olives (black/green).
5. Cookie Jar filled with cookie dough and chocolate chips, raisins and nuts.
6. Baskets with disposable cameras see what happens!!!!
7. Accessories bag, filled with socks, undies, deodorant, etc. Who can’t use those?
8. Accessories bag filled with clips, hair ties, lip gloss, perfume!
9. Purse, filled with $$$$, wallet, lip gloss, key chain.
10. Ski basket, filled with a wax, lip balm, gloves, scarf, goggles, sore muscle patch!
11. Brief case filled with calendar, pens, calculator, pad of paper, coffee mug.
12. Casserole dish filled with, potatoes, beans, cilantro, chili powder, oven mitts.
13. Powerless Basket filled with a deck of cards, flashlight, candles, beef jerky, tea.
14. Fish bowl, with fish food, plants, fun rocks, $ for whatever new fish they pick.
15. Expecting basket w/: wash cloth, rubber duck, warm/soft towel, robe, bubble bath.
16. Movie basket, popcorn, movies, candy, hot chocolate.
17. Bucket of puzzles, brain teasers, games
18. Beauty Bag: nail polish, nail decals, nail files, nail polish remover, cotton balls.
19. Ice bucket w/: shot glasses, bottle opener, beer mugs, peanuts, pretzels.
20. Big serving plate w/: apron, bbq sauce, bbq utensils, butcher knife.
21. Car kit w/: flash light, air fresheners, music, travel mug, napkins, Kleenex.
22. Pizza basket: dough, cheese, meats, veggies, spices, pizza cutter.
23. Goody Basket: fresh baked goods, empanadas, rum balls, gingerbreads.
24. Phone accessory it: case, sticky covers, car chargers, and a list of new Apps!
25. Gift card basket: Cheap gift cards to several different places for variety!
Warmest wishes,

Bernadette Ramirez
Call me for any Real Estate needs!
530.409.8504

www.BarForU.com

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