BanCorp Realty: Orange County's Real Estate Blog : November 2014

Saturday, November 22, 2014

Important changes to California Residential Purchase Agreement

In Monday November 24th 2014 there are sweeping and wholesale changes being made to the California Residential Purchase Agreement and Joint Escrow Instructions, and it is extremely important for all parties to the transaction to be familiar with the alterations and amendments. It is imperative that the South Orange County listing agents and selling agents (as well as their) brokers who will be representing the buyers or sellers have taken some new instructions prior to completing these new forms as to not place their clients in harm’s way or at any type of financial risk.

While it would be difficult to list all of the changes that are being implemented, just one of major ones is how the wood destroying pest report is disclosed. Another one is how solar panels installed on a home that are leased on home would transfer over to the new owner. If your South Orange County Realtor who will be creating this document is not familiar with the new verbiage, they could not only be leaving money on the table, they could put the entire transaction at risk as they possibly could be giving the buyer or seller the ability to rescind the contract at any point of the escrow, even putting the buyers initial deposit at risk.

It is extremely important that the South Orange County professional know exactly what point of the transaction that the transfer disclosure statement needs to be delivered as well as the seller property questionnaire. Was you home built before 1960? If your Real Estate Agent hasn’t asked you to sign an earthquake information booklet, something is wrong. There are important addenda and advisories that must be disclosed early on during the escrow process or your agent is not complying with the Residential purchase agreement. Having your real estate professional stay on top contingency removal throughout the escrow process is paramount to a successful close of escrow.

Before signing your RPA form make sure that the real estate company you are working with is fully compliant with the new wholesale changes that have been made to this important document and other related disclosures.

Orange County Cities and Communities BanCorp Properties Serves In:

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Information to consider prior to launching South Orange County home improvement project.

Which types of home improvements give the best type of return on your Orange County home?

If you are considering upgrading or remodeling your kitchen, or possibly adding designer windows or plantation shutters, undoubtedly you want to get your investment back if you plan on selling your home in the near to short term. When it comes to home improvements in South Orange County, some are certainly more profitable than others as it relates to getting your money back. As you will see below, kitchen and bathroom projects will normally get most of your money back when you sell your home, room additions and pools don’t do so well…

There are a numerous variables that determine how well a project will pay back. Much of the value depends on the current market conditions in your South Orange County community. If the market is sizzling and homes are selling quickly, obviously you would expect a higher return on your than you would secure in a otherwise slower market.

The scope, size and type of South Orange County home improvement project you complete and how it conforms to other homes in the neighborhood can have an enormous influence on payback too. If you put your money into the wrong type of improvement (such as over improvement), you simply won’t get your money back. But if you're intelligent and savvy about what you do, you can make get a majority of your money back. The payback will be better on improvements that are in demand and conform to neighborhood standards. Adding a third bathroom in a neighborhood where most homes have two bathrooms will give a high return on investment. Building a large addition that makes your home twice as big as the other homes on the block probably won’t pay back very well. Likewise, the popularity of a project will factor into how much it pays back. An improvement heavily customized to your wants and needs won’t pay back as well as something more common to other homes in the neighborhood.

Another factor to consider is the cost of the improvements. If you can do the work yourself, you can save significantly on the cost of the project and greatly improve the chances of getting a good return on the investment. However, if you aren’t skilled at home improvements and the work is shoddy – don’t expect any return or payback on your investment. The people who are buying the South Orange County homes for sale are sophisticated and they won’t miss something like this.

The list below is compiled from several published surveys and shows typical payback for some popular remodeling projects:

Kitchen remodeling – 90%
Bathroom Addition – 90%
Bathroom remodeling – 80%
Install central heating – 90%
Install central air – 75%
Add a deck – 70%
Replace windows – 70%
Room Addition – 55%
Build a pool – 45%

Orange County Cities and Communities BanCorp Properties Serves In:

Monday, November 10, 2014

Smart and practical South Orange County home improvement (remodel) tips.

Here are a half-dozen tips which will provide a useful yard-stick or template to follow if you are considering a fair sized remodel or home improvement on your South Orange County home – knowing in advance that you plan on selling the home in the near future, hoping to secure a profit on the investment you are making on this investment.

1) Match flooring, counter-tops and appliances to the rest of the neighborhood.

Using low-end products and materials in a high-end neighborhood will temper and even reduce the market value of your home. Vice-versa, putting high-end granite or for example travertine flooring in a lower priced neighborhood won’t inflate your Orange County homes sale price much over the last comparable sale.

2) Do the home improvement right the first time.

If you aren’t a professional installer or remodeler then hire one! The sophisticated buyers in the Orange County housing market will spot shoddy work at first glance. No one will pay top dollar for amateur workmanship.

3) Don’t overbuild or over-improve for your community of neighborhood.

A 4,000 square foot home nestled within a neighborhood of 2,000 square foot homes won’t fetch double the market value. Likewise, no one is going to pay full price for a mansion located in a trailer park. If you are planning a major remodel or room addition with plans on selling down the road, use common sense.

4) Don’t be too trendy – it is okay to be predictable.

People’s tastes change frequently, especially the trendy ones. Just because a new color scheme looks catchy today doesn’t mean it will look similar in a year or two. We are not referring to superficial items such as paint which can be easily changed, but rather to higher end items such as flooring and counter-top choices.

5) Build out existing rooms before thinking about adding on another room.

A remodel that could turn a storage area off the kitchen into a pantry would reap a much higher return on investment than adding more square footage on the home in the form of a room addition or similar.

6) Addition by subtraction.

Have a four bedroom house and only two children and want to convert that fourth bedroom into a huge walk-in closet and extra storage area? Probably not a good idea… It might make the wife happy, but it eliminates a bedroom and it will certainly reduce your property value.

Orange County Cities and Communities BanCorp Properties Serves In:

Mission Statement

BanCorp Real Estate Group provides and administers superior real estate services and product expertise. At each level we strive to be the client’s first choice. We continue to succeed treating our clients and the communities we serve as we would wish to be treated – the real golden rule.

We will continue to lead from the front the mutual trust, honest, integrity and authenticity in the delivery of our service. Our achievements are realized through our commitment to O.N.E. unified purpose driven resolve – Truth in Real Estate.

Saturday, November 22, 2014

Important changes to California Residential Purchase Agreement

Before signing your RPA form make sure that the real estate company you are working with is fully compliant with the new wholesale changes that have been made to this important document and other related disclosures.

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Information to consider prior to launching South Orange County home improvement project.

Which types of home improvements give the best type of return on your Orange County home?

The list below is compiled from several published surveys and shows typical payback for some popular remodeling projects:

Kitchen remodeling – 90%

Bathroom Addition – 90%

Bathroom remodeling – 80%

Install central heating – 90%

Install central air – 75%

Add a deck – 70%

Replace windows – 70%

Room Addition – 55%

Build a pool – 45%

Monday, November 10, 2014

Smart and practical South Orange County home improvement (remodel) tips.

1) Match flooring, counter-tops and appliances to the rest of the neighborhood.

2) Do the home improvement right the first time.

If you aren’t a professional installer or remodeler then hire one! The sophisticated buyers in the Orange County housing market will spot shoddy work at first glance. No one will pay top dollar for amateur workmanship.

3) Don’t overbuild or over-improve for your community of neighborhood.

4) Don’t be too trendy – it is okay to be predictable.

5) Build out existing rooms before thinking about adding on another room.

A remodel that could turn a storage area off the kitchen into a pantry would reap a much higher return on investment than adding more square footage on the home in the form of a room addition or similar.

6) Addition by subtraction.

Have a four bedroom house and only two children and want to convert that fourth bedroom into a huge walk-in closet and extra storage area? Probably not a good idea… It might make the wife happy, but it eliminates a bedroom and it will certainly reduce your property value.

BanCorp Realty is a division of The Irvine Holding Company