Blog - Ellen Vera

Sellers

A Warning About Offer Letters

This is a warning about the offer letters you may get from developers. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report I was recently pulling together some information for a client who wants to sell her home, and I came across something important. Today I want to give you […]
Market Update

2021 Real Estate Recap & Predictions

Here’s a recap of our 2021 market and a look ahead at 2022. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Today we’re going to take a look back on the 2021 real estate market in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, as well as share a few […]
Buyers, Sellers

How To Start Your ADU

Now that SB-9 and 10 have been signed, here’s how to start on your ADU. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Recently we discussed the changes brought about by Senate Bills 9 and 10 when they were signed by the governor. Those bills may allow you […]
Buyers, Sellers

What to Know About Home Insurance

Today Charlotte Russell joins me to answer key questions about home insurance. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Today I’m joined by special guest Charlotte Russell, who has her own insurance agency in Redwood City, California. She’s here to help answer some great questions about home insurance and […]

Sellers A Warning About Offer Letters This is a warning about the offer letters you may get from developers. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report I was recently pulling together some information for a client who wants to sell her home, and I came across something important. Today I want to give you […]

Market Update 2021 Real Estate Recap & Predictions Here’s a recap of our 2021 market and a look ahead at 2022. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Today we’re going to take a look back on the 2021 real estate market in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, as well as share a few […]

Buyers How To Start Your ADU Now that SB-9 and 10 have been signed, here’s how to start on your ADU. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Recently we discussed the changes brought about by Senate Bills 9 and 10 when they were signed by the governor. Those bills may allow you […]

Buyers What to Know About Home Insurance Today Charlotte Russell joins me to answer key questions about home insurance. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Today I’m joined by special guest Charlotte Russell, who has her own insurance agency in Redwood City, California. She’s here to help answer some great questions about home insurance and […]

Sellers How To Avoid Capital Gains Taxes on Real Estate Here are a few handy IRS tax laws that you may be able to take advantage of. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Are you thinking about selling your home but have concerns about capital gains taxes? Market values have been shooting up over the last few years […]

Sellers How We Handle Multiple Offers on a Listing Here’s a look at how we handle multiple offers on a listing. We’ve been lucky in the San Francisco area to enjoy a strong seller’s market. It’s not uncommon for houses to get multiple offers, just like how one of ours recently received eight. But these contracts are 10 pages long each. How do agents […]

Uncategorized Ballenberg: A Swiss Masterpiece Here’s a quick virtual tour of the Ballenberg museum in Bern, Switzerland. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Ballenberg is an open-air museum in Switzerland that displays traditional buildings and architecture from all over the country. Located near Brienz in the canton of Bern, Ballenberg has over 100 […]

Buyers Senate Bills 9 and 10 Could Shake Up Our Communities Here are the basics of Senate bills 9 and 10 that could affect us. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Here in California, two pending housing bills could shake up our local communities: Senate bill 9 and Senate bill 10. SB-9 is the Duplex Measure. This bill […]

Buyers What’s Motivating People to Move? Here’s why so many people are moving and how it’s affecting the market. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Most people these days are motivated to buy or sell homes by life changes. Whether it’s a marriage, a divorce, a birth, or a death, these lifestyle changes create […]

Buyers New Study Shows Why People Are Leaving California A new study sheds light on why people might be leaving California. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Today, I’d like to talk to you about a study done by United Van Lines. They have been doing a study for 44 years on which states people are leaving […]

Market Update How the 2021 Market Compares to Years Past Here’s a quick, mid-year update about our real estate market. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report We’ve been happy to see inventory levels rising year over year. It often gets lost in the news that more homes are coming on the market every year, but with homes selling […]

Buyers This Market Favors Those Who Sell First The benefits and drawbacks of buying first and selling first. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report If you own a home and are looking to buy a new one, should you buy first or sell first? Today, I’ll go over both options. If you try to buy […]

Buyers What Are the Risks & Benefits of Rent-Backs? Here’s what you need to know about rent-backs. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report What are the risks and benefits of rent-back agreements? To answer that question, let me first explain what a rent-back agreement is. A rent-back is when the seller of a home continues to live […]

Buyers Real Estate Investing in a Nutshell Here are the basics of real estate investing and why it’s beneficial. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Investing in real estate helps you build wealth to create a legacy for you and your family. Buying a duplex, single-family home, condo, townhome, or commercial property provides many benefits. […]

Market Update An Update on Our Market’s First Quarter Here’s our latest San Mateo County and Santa Clara County market update. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Today we’re sharing all the stats from our 2021 first-quarter real estate market. One piece of great news is that we’re seeing more active inventory across the board. We saw […]

Sellers How to Prepare Your Home for Sale Here are three cheap projects to get your home ready for sale. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report How can you get your home ready for the market in order to sell it for the highest possible price? We tell all our sellers to keep in mind that […]

Sellers Prop 19, Part II: Inheriting a Tax Basis Here’s how Prop 19 flips the script on property tax basis inheritance. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Can you still inherit a property at its existing tax basis under Proposition 19? Prior to Proposition 19, the rule was that when you inherited a property, you’d simply take […]

Sellers Sellers: Take Advantage of Prop 19 Here’s how Proposition 19 benefits you as a home seller. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report Proposition 19 was voted in last year and goes into effect on April 1, 2021. What benefits does it offer you if you’re thinking of selling your home? If at least one […]

Market Update March 2021 Market Update Here’s all the latest information about our local real estate market. Search All Homes on the MLS Here Receive a FREE Home Value Report What’s happening in our current real estate market? Well, sellers have the upper hand right now because low inventory and motivated buyers have made a strong seller’s market. Buyers are contending […]

Market Update Today’s Interest Rates Versus Years Past What is driving the housing market today? The price of borrowing money. We are hearing so much about interest rates … because we haven’t seen rates like this before.