1. Smart sellers ask for what their home is worth. You need to set your asking price based on the market value of your Santa Cruz home. The bank wants to get as much money as possible for their properties. Their asking price for foreclosures is as close as possible to the current market value of the home.

2. Smart sellers make sure their home is in its best possible condition.  Before your home goes on the market, touch up paint, replant the garden, and service appliances.  If a foreclosed home is selling for significantly less than other homes in the area, it is usually because the home needs major repairs.

3. Smart sellers give information to their potential buyers.  Tell potential buyers about home improvements and repairs, renovations, and the condition of major appliances. Don’t keep information from your buyer. Foreclosures are sold “as is” which means the bank is not making any guarantees about the property’s condition. Furthermore, lenders are exempt from disclosure laws so they aren’t required to tell buyers about any major problems with the home.

4. Smart sellers do what they can to expedite the closing. You should make the selling process as easy as possible for your buyer. Buying a foreclosure is a complicated process that can take weeks or months to complete. Most buyers simply cannot wait that long and deal with the extra paperwork involved.

5. Smart sellers know they may need to adjust the price.   If your home stays on the market while others sell, you may need to adjust your asking price or offer something extra, like a home warranty, to the buyer. The real estate market is constantly fluctuating, and it is possible for your home’s market value to decrease while it is on the market.

Don’t let competing foreclosures keep you from selling your home. Let me help you sell your Santa Cruz home for top dollar. Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Paint 

2. Appliances 

3. Home warranty

1. Buying a home you cannot afford. If you cannot afford to pay for your home, you risk losing it in a foreclosure. To determine if you can really afford a home, you have to look at more than the asking price. Not only do you need to make your monthly mortgage payment, you also need to pay for your home’s regular maintenance.

2. Buying a home without doing your homework. Appearances can be deceiving, especially with homes. What appears to be beautiful stucco can disguise a rotting wood frame. A fresh coat of paint can cover mold and water damage behind a wall. This is why you should always have a home inspected before you buy it.

3. Buying the first home you see. Sellers do their best to make sure their homes look as appealing as possible. It’s easy to fall in love with just about any home you see. Remind yourself that there are plenty of other homes for sale and make sure you see them all. There’s no point spending your hard earned money when you haven’t seen all the available possibilities.

4. Buying a home that doesn’t fit your lifestyle. If you spend a considerable amount of time in your backyard entertaining guests and relaxing on weekends, you want a home that gives you the space to do that. Likewise, if you’e rarely home except to sleep, you don’t want to spend your weekends mowing an oversized yard.

Let me help you avoid mistakes when buying Santa Cruz real estate. Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Maintenance

2. Stucco 

3. Backyard entertaining  

Here’s how:

1. Choose a location. The best spot for a koi pond is one that you can easily access from your Santa Cruz home and gives your fish adequate security. You need to be able to reach the pond to take care of it. You also want your fish to be safe from wild animals and extreme temperature changes.

2. Dig a hole. Measure your pond frame. Dig a hole 2-3 inches larger than the pond frame. Make sure you dig deep enough. The frame needs to fit inside the hole. You always add sand to level the pond and fill gaps.

3. Fill the hole. Place a pond frame or pond liner in the hole. Level the pond by adding sand. Make sure the pond is firmly inside the hole and does not rock when you add pressure. Fill the pond with clean water and add chemicals to remove chlorine.

4. Decorate. Line the edges of the pond with decorative rocks and tropical plants. Add lily pads and other aquatic plants to the pond. Install a pond fountain to aerate the water and fill your backyard with the sound of running water.

5. Add fish. Give the water in your pond a few days to rest before adding the fish. When the water is ready, choose the fish based on your pond’s size. Your local koi dealer can help you determine how many fish you can safely add.

Give yourself another reason to enjoy your Santa Cruz home by adding a koi pond. Are you looking for a home to call your own? Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Koi

2. Chlorine remover

3. Aquatic plants

A staged home is neat, clean, and devoid of personal items like photographs. This makes your home more appealing to buyers. It’s possible, however, to get carried away while preparing your home for sale. Here are 5 staging mistakes to avoid when selling your Santa Cruz home.

1. Installing new, expensive carpet. If your carpet is shabby and stained, you should replace it. However, you don’t need to purchase top of the line expensive carpet if you plan to sell your home. Instead, look for a moderately priced carpet that looks better than what you have.

2. Painting the walls to match your décor. New paint is a quick and inexpensive way to update your rooms. However, neutral colors are better when you’re selling your home. Buyers want to picture their belongings in the home and neutral colors allows that to happen.

3. Cutting down mature trees so your home is more visible. Dead, overgrown plants and trees do detract from your home’s curb appeal. However, completely removing trees or over-trimming them is a bad idea. Mature trees are valuable.

4. Filling empty walls with family portraits. Don’t let empty walls in your home scare you. Buyers want to picture themselves in your home. For this reason, you need to get rid of personal items like family portraits and customized artwork.

5. Installing custom organizers. We all dream of organized garages and closets. While an organized home is much more appealing to buyers, there’s no good reason to spend the money on professionally designed organizing systems. Just get rid of the clutter and make it look as neat as possible.

Taking the time to stage your home before you decide to sell it is a smart move. Let me help you prepare your Santa Cruz home so it sells faster and for top dollar. Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Carpet 

2. Paint 

3. Closets

• Online games. The Alliance to Save Energy has put together a great website to teach your kids how to save energy at your Santa Cruz home. On the website, kids play games in which they search for “energy hogs.” For example, they match items inside refrigerators as they learn how important it is to keep the refrigerator door closed. After completing all the games, kids are given the title “Energy Hog Buster.”

• Set aside one night each week as “black out night.” This is a great way to spend time together as a family and conserve energy at the same time. Select a time to turn off the lights, television, and video games. Choose a simple meal that can be prepared without electricity like sandwiches, salad, or cereal. Play board games, read books, or work on crafts until the sun goes down. Work by candlelight and go to bed earlier than usual.

• Create a weekly challenge competition. Kids love competing with other people, especially adults. Choose a new goal each week, like “who can take the shortest shower” or “how many lights can you turn off at night.” Keep track of everyone’s progress and reward the winner by letting them choose what to have for dinner one night.

Make going green at home a family affair. I can help you buy or sell a green Santa Cruz home. Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. The Alliance to Save Energy 

2. Crafts 

3. Dinner

• Buy a home you know you can afford. If you struggle each month to make your mortgage payment, you are more likely to find yourself facing a foreclosure. Do yourself a favor and determine how much money you can afford to spend on a Santa Cruz home before you start looking for one.

• Whenever possible, plan ahead. A solid financial plan can be a lifesaver during difficult financial times. If you know you’re going to lose your job, set aside money to cover your mortgage payment while you’re looking for new work.

• Talk to your bank. Your bank doesn’t want to deal with a foreclosure any more than you do. Explain your financial situation and ask them for an extended grace period or temporary delay in payments. This can give you a chance to get your finances back in order.

• Pay your mortgage first. If you don’t pay your credit card, you will be slapped with late fees and possible account closure. Skipping several mortgage payments can cause you to lose your home. When you pay your mortgage on time each month, you also have more leverage to negotiate with your bank.

• Refinance your home. Refinancing your home at a lower interest rate can significantly lower your monthly payment. If you’re struggling to pay your payment because your adjustable rate mortgage went up, try switching to a safer fixed rate mortgage.

• Sell your home. It is difficult to sell your home and move, but it is certainly a better alternative than foreclosure. Once your home is in foreclosure you have to move anyway. Selling your home helps you avoid damaging your credit in the process.

Don’t wait until it’s too late to stop foreclosure. I can help you sell your Santa Cruz home. Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Financial plan

2. Grace period 

3. Refinance your home

Fortunately, there are a few simple tricks to help you save water in the bathroom of your Santa Cruz home.

• Turn off the water. Show your children how to turn off the water while they brush their teeth. Explain to them that there’s no reason to let water run if they are not actually using it. Encourage everyone in the family to take shorter showers. You can even make it a competition to see who can take the shortest showers each week in your Santa Cruz home.

• Install a flush regulator. Your local home improvement or hardware store should carry a flush regulator that lets you control how much water you use. You can also do the same thing by filling a 2-liter bottle with water and placing it inside your toilet’s water tank. This simple addition reduces the amount of water your toilet can use.

• Purchase a dual flush toilet. Dual flush toilets look like standard toilets, but they have two separate flushes: half and full. These toilets use between 40-70% less water than traditional toilets. You can find dual flush toilets at your local plumbing supply store or through an online dealer.

Small conservation changes at home can make a big difference in our world. Let me help you find a green Santa Cruz home. Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Home improvement

2. Dual flush toilets

3. Showers

• DO talk to the real estate agent. The Santa Cruz real estate agent is there to answer any questions you have about the home and neighborhood. Ask about the neighborhood amenities, school zones, shopping and theatres.

• DO follow reasonable requests. If the agent or homeowner asks you to stay out of a particular room, do what they ask. Pay attention to the open house time frame - arrive after the event starts and leave before the event is over. You are a guest in the home.

• DO walk around the home. The whole point of an open house is to give you a chance to see inside available homes. You do not need permission to walk into bedrooms or through the garage. As you walk through the home, make notes about what you like and don’t like.

• DON’T look in medicine cabinets or drawers. It is simply impolite to look through the homeowner’s personal belongings. You have no reason to look at anything other the room layouts and closet sizes. Put yourself in the owner’s shoes—would you want people rummaging through your sock drawer?

• DON’T try to negotiate at the open house. This is not the time to make offers. If you are seriously interested in the home, call your Santa Cruz real estate agent after the open house is over and let her negotiate for you.

• DON’T take anything from the home. The homeowner is taking a great risk in letting strangers walk through their home. Respect their home and property. Stealing is never appropriate behavior.

If you’re looking for Santa Cruz real estate, open houses are a great way to explore what is available. Let me help you find open houses that meet your needs and price range. Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Find a movie theatre 

2. Closet organizers

3. Garage organizers

• Choose a look. Watch home decorating television shows, read magazines and books, and look at store displays for ideas you can use at your Santa Cruz home. If you know what you like, you can often recreate these looks with less expensive materials.

• Give old items a new purpose. Many items in your home can be transformed to fit with your new room. Refinish or paint tables and cabinets. Recover pillows. Replace the hardware on your cabinets and drawers for an updated look.

• Paint is an economical way to transform the look of any room in your home. Add a few coats of paint to create an entirely new look. Bright tropical colors can liven up a room, while soft, pastel colors create a sense of serenity.

• Rearrange your rooms. You may be surprised by how much you can change the look of your rooms by rearranging furniture and artwork. Consider switching furniture between rooms for a brand new look.

• Cover your furniture with slipcovers. Slipcovers are quicker and cheaper than buying new furniture. They come in a wide variety of colors and fabrics, so you can find one that will match your new décor.

• Shop discount stores. Discount department stores offer everything you need for your home at a lower cost than their counterparts. You can find linens, drapes, candle holders, decorative accessories, and much more.

• Old calendars and art books are a great source of beautiful artwork for your walls. Add inexpensive frames, and you have can have the look of elegant art for a fraction of the cost.

You don’t need a big budget to decorate your home. Thinking of buying or selling your Santa Cruz home?  I can make the process easier.  Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Home decorating television shows

2. Hardware

3. Slipcovers

• What activities do I enjoy? Make sure you buy a Santa Cruz home in a location that gives you the opportunity to do what you like. If you enjoy sailing, find a home near the ocean. Likewise, if you prefer to spend your time fishing, look for a place near a river or lake.

• Will my family be able to visit me? Your children and grandchildren will want to visit you after you move. They also need to be able to reach you easily in the event of an emergency. Consider the location of airports and train stations and the cost of tickets as you choose a home.

• Do I like the area year-round? Unless you plan to split your time between two homes, you need to make sure you like the area year round. In many popular retirement spots, everything seems to shut down in the “off season,” limiting your social and cultural activities. You also need to make sure you can live with the weather. For example, Florida is beautiful during the winter, but are you prepared for the summer heat?

• Can I afford to live here? Check the cost of living and government taxes. States like Washington, Florida, and Texas have no income tax. Oregon and Pennsylvania don’t charge sales tax on certain items. Georgia and South Carolina tend to have lower gas prices. Choose a place that works best with your budget.

Are you planning to move after you retire? I can help you find a Santa Cruz home. Call me today at 831.662.6522 or email me at lauren@laurenspencer.com

LINKS:

1. Fishing 

2. Airport codes 

3. Cost of living