<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>
<rss version="2.0">
    <channel>
        <title>San Diego Real Estate Blog</title>
        <link>http://www.sellingsd.com/blog/</link>
        <item>
            <guid>http://www.sellingsd.com/blog/website-that-walks-the-walk.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.sellingsd.com/blog/website-that-walks-the-walk.html</link>
            <author>dennis@sellingsd.com (Dennis DeSouza)</author>
            <title>Website That Walks The Walk</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
One of the most pleasing innovations in today's online realty marketing, is the addition of the application Walk Score. This excellent tool, for those who don't know, simply awards points for the ease of access to key amenities, in relation to a specified address. With astonishing ease and speed, one can check out just how close a prospective property purchase is to public transit, local stores, schools, restaurants, bars and so on. Should you wish to live in a neighborhood that allows for frequent car-free forays, and that provides super convenience for a range of day to day facilities, Walk Score offers invaluable help. So, imagine you see a house that you like the look of on the La Jolla real estate listings on sellingsd.com. Simply click on the 'view details' button below the property. Choose the Walk Score search in the 'next steps' bar beneath the property photos, and a map will immediately appear on your screen. The property location is clearly marked, with an adjacent list of all the closest amenities, and their distance from your chosen house. On the bigger map version, easily displayed by clicking on the link, one can find out further information relating to each individual amenity, be it a cafe, library or bus stop. Of course, there are a few caveats that need to be taken into account when using Walk Score, and users are urged to treat the results more as a guide, rather than relying too heavily on the information supplied. One can't really expect this tool to take into account such local elements as street design, absence of sidewalks, volume of nearby traffic, or the safety of a neighborhood. However, it will, with a considerable degree of accuracy tell you just how far certain things are from any given starting point. But, be warned, the software cannot currently interpret changes in topography, or take into account lakes and rivers that may lie in the way, so a good amount of human interpretation should be included when mapping a walking route!Simply put, Walk Score offers users a great way to rate a neighborhood, quickly and easily. It saves home seekers a good deal of time otherwise spent trawling around areas, and even helps residents learn more about their own community. The desire to spend less time stuck in traffic is no longer a preserve of traditionally 'green' Americans; an ever-increasing number of US citizens are now looking for healthier, more cost-effective lifestyles. And if it encourages more people to seek alternatives to personal vehicle use, and to support local business, then surely everyone will benefit.


&nbsp;


Written by the Dennis DeSouza writing team.
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 08 Jul 2010 12:53:37 -0500</pubDate>
                    </item>
        <item>
            <guid>http://www.sellingsd.com/blog/reason-to-be-cautious-when-selling-your-own-home.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.sellingsd.com/blog/reason-to-be-cautious-when-selling-your-own-home.html</link>
            <author>dennis@sellingsd.com (Dennis DeSouza)</author>
            <title>Reason to be cautious when selling your own home</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 




&nbsp;&nbsp;Most home owners have contemplated doing a for sale by owner and avoiding a real estate agents commission homeowners&nbsp;should be aware&nbsp;of the challenges&nbsp;of &nbsp;selling your own home.


Many clients have hired me after losing valuable time and money attempting to sell their&nbsp;San Diego&nbsp;home on their own. What may seem like a fairly simple process, can become a frustrating and potenitally costly undertaking. Below are some of the areas of concern that you should be aware of when attempting to sell your own home.



1.&nbsp; Marketing that does not work.






Most San Diego homeowners simply&nbsp;do not have at their disposal the necessary&nbsp;resources to effectively market their own home properly. Working with an experienced San Diego County&nbsp;real estate agent,&nbsp; usually means your home will be exposed to a large group of potential buyers, both through digital and print advertising, virtual tours, and online listing portals.




2.&nbsp; Making sure your home is priced right.




To sell your home for the most money, pricing your home correctly is of uptmost importance.&nbsp; Many home owners who try to sell their own homes price too high, resulting in their home sitting on the market for a very long time with little activity. When a home sits on the market for an extended periodof time ti unfortuantely aquires what I like to term "age condition" where buyers and other Real Estate agents begin to question why the house has not sold. The first conclusion all come to is that there is something wrong with the house. This usually is not the case but a common problem with overpriced homes.




3.&nbsp; Not having all your documents.




With all of the new documents needed in today's transaction most home owners will simply not have all the documents they need often leading to legal nightmares after the transaction as well as risking having a sale fall apart.


4.&nbsp;&nbsp;Potential legal liabilities


Not knowing the legal issues&nbsp;including&nbsp;proper&nbsp;disclosure can become a real issue for homeowners. Most home owners are not up to speed with all of the legal issues and ramifications that come with selling a home. Hiring an experienced San Diego agent will help reduce this risk significantly.5.&nbsp; Wasting time with buyers who cannot obtain a mortgage. 


&nbsp;In today's tough mortgage market many buyers cannot qualify for a mortgage or worst yet they get a "pre qual" letter from a lender that is very different from a commitment letter. Most "pre qual" letters are not worth the papaer they are printed on. Most experienced Real Estate agents can sniff out the difference between the two fairly quickly.At the end of the day most home owners would have saved themselves a ton of aggravation and actually saved money by hiring an experienced San Diego Real Estate professional. If you would like have a no obligation, hassle free consultation please feel free to email me at: Dennis@SellingSD.com or call me directly at 858 344 4068. 


&nbsp;


&nbsp;
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Mon, 31 May 2010 21:51:03 -0500</pubDate>
                    </item>
        <item>
            <guid>http://www.sellingsd.com/blog/san-diego-real-estate-fraud-scandals.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.sellingsd.com/blog/san-diego-real-estate-fraud-scandals.html</link>
            <author>dennis@sellingsd.com (Dennis DeSouza)</author>
            <title>San Diego Real Estate Fraud Scandals </title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
The eyes of the world's media have been firmly focused on the San Diego area in recent times, in light of a number of high-profile real estate fraud scandals. In fact, if the news reports were anything to go by, anyone would think that this part of California is suffering from some kind of foreclosure scam epidemic. The sad truth is, that in difficult times many people are desperate, and can fall easy prey to those who see easy pickings on the back of a national tragedy. Whenever there's a potential for money to be made from human disaster, parasites and modern-day pirates are never far away. The good news is, at least, that with a number of these cases having come to court, it will hopefully highlight the issue of active fraudsters, and make those more vulnerable home owners aware of the potential pitfalls of trusting uncredited 'assistance'. The way that many of these unscrupulous scamsters work, is to charge unsuspecting householders exorbitant fees, of several thousand dollars, for loan modifications that are rarely completed. Despite claims of high success rates, most of these companies actually have little, or no, record of positive achievement. Other duplicitous deals involve using 'straw buyers' to purchase homes at more than the asking price, based on pending bogus repairs or disabled access renovations. They receive 100% mortgages and then walk away from the properties, pocketing the excess. The operators of these insidious businesses vary, from educated and utterly convincing 'professionals', to gang members running often simple, but effective, operations usually involving other people's identities. Unfortunately, these criminals' acts can have a much wider effect than at first seems apparent, and the ripples caused by their repugnant rip-offs, continue to make the waters of the housing market decidedly unsteady. The empty homes left behind in the wake of these scams impact upon the local communities, and devalue the properties in the immediate and nearby neighborhoods. Consequently, more people may find that their mortgages exceed their home's value, causing a further wave of foreclosures.It isn't always easy, in trying circumstances, to find the best route through the mortgage minefield, but homeowners are constantly reminded to seek professional assistance when struggling to make payments on a mortgage, or when selling a home. Never agree to transfer the title of your home, no matter what promises are made, and have any documentation that requires your signature thoroughly checked by a trusted, independent source, to ensure that you are not being misled. Thankfully, the majority of homeowners manage to avoid falling victim to these types of tricks, and better still, the law takes these matters very seriously. It is becoming increasingly difficult for many of these untrustworthy characters to ply their odious trade, and more San Diegans can rest assured that hard-hitting penalties and severe custodial sentences will act as a deterrent to those thinking of making a quick buck from others' misfortunes. 
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Wed, 26 May 2010 17:10:21 -0500</pubDate>
                    </item>
    </channel>
</rss>