How to Protect Yourself in a Wire Transfer

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When it comes to wire transfers, you have to be very careful. We rely heavily on technology for transfers, but sometimes technology that is supposed to protect you can end up hurting you.

You will likely receive instructions from your escrow company, and they will detail how much money will be needed to transfer for the transaction. You should not receive an account number at this time, just instructions on the amount of money needed.

You will want to double check the amount with the escrow company over the phone.

Once you have double-checked, you’ll want to speak with someone at the bank to find the Fed reference number, and that will tell you the correct account number to transfer the money to.

After checking in with the bank, contact the escrow company and let them know that you’ve initiated the transaction. Communication is the most important part of this whole process. By staying in touch during the escrow process, you can protect yourself much easier.

If you have any further questions about how to safely wire money during a transaction, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I look forward to hearing from you!

How to Stage Your Home to Sell this Spring

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Today we are excited to talk about staging your home for sale. It’s an important step in any home’s preparation for the market, and knowing the right steps to take is crucial. We’ve got some great tips to help you get ready to sell right now.

The first thing we look for when staging a home is to see if it’s organized. We want your home to look almost like a model home, clean, organized, and free of personal items. By putting family photos and other things of that nature away, it helps the buyer see themselves living in the home.

We work with some great home stagers, and recommend that our sellers have a consultation with them. They are able to use your pre-existing furniture and decor and arrange it in an updated manner. They also may recommend adding some area rugs, natural lighting, or re-painting. They have an eye for what buyers are looking for.

For vacant properties, we like to use photographers. Once the company that we use has taken photos of your vacant home, we then add furniture in digitally to give it a better look online, where the buyers are.

Finally, make the home smell good. Eliminate pet odors and other bad scents by lighting candles or using air freshener. Be careful not to use too much, however, buyers might start to think you’re hiding something.

These are just a few of the top tips that we suggest you take into account when preparing your home to sell. If you have any questions for us, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

Real Estate Market Update for Southern California

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Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation

What can you expect from the real estate market here in Southern California? Well, heading into 2016 you can expect a seller's market because of a low volume of inventory. Your home will sell if you price it correctly and have it in good condition. It's a great time to be a home seller in Orange County - and it's not even spring yet!

There are almost 4,400 homes available in Orange County, which may sound like a lot but that number will increase to 8,000 in the summer. In San Clemente, there are 198 homes for sale, but in the last 30 days 72 of them have sold. The average price in that area is $1 million. This goes to show that homes are selling quickly in all price ranges.

How is inventory affecting the current value of your home? It's raising the value, because when fewer homes are available, buyers are usually willing to pay more for them. However, the increase in interest rates will drive prices down as we head into the summer. Buyers will not be able to afford as much home, and that will hurt your sale price.

As a whole, right now is the time to buy a home in Southern California. Interest rates are going to rise, and the market is only going to get more crowded. You can buy an affordable home without too much competition.

Sellers will have an opportunity to sell for maximum value right now. Rising interest rates will push more buyers on the market, and this could create bidding wars that will bring you top dollar.

If you're looking to buy or sell in 2016, please don't hesitate to contact me. The spring selling season will be here before you know it!