I caught up with Sacramento Realtor Chris Little recently and asked him to share a few thoughts on what is going on in the real estate market. In the video interview below (or here) Chris talks about prices, affordability, low inventory and other facets of real estate. Chris knows the market well and he’s been a huge advocate for progress in the Sacramento area too.

Chris Little was appointed to the American River Parkway Advisory Committee in 2007 by the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors, and was also appointed to the 65th Street Redevelopment Advisory Committee in 2008. He received the Civic Affairs Award from the Sacramento Association of Realtors for community service, and he has been a Director through the Sacramento Association of Realtors since 2009 (and he’s the current 2012 President-Elect). I mention these things because community service is extremely important to me, and Chris is a great example. Catch up with Chris Little at 916-698-1961, www.ChrisLittleSells.com or Twitter.

If you have any questions or Sacramento area real estate appraisal or property tax appeal needs, contact me by phone 916-595-3735, email, Facebook, Twitter or subscribe to posts by email.

I wanted to share some photos of five common FHA condition issues I come across during appraisal inspections. If you see something like this at a property you’re selling or buying, it’ll likely require correction before FHA will guarantee the loan.

Green Pool Water: Yes, this is deemed a health issue. The water shouldn’t be green, right? Besides, if you cannot see the bottom of the pool, you never know if there is damage at the bottom anyway.

Empty Pool: An empty pool might be a skateboarder’s paradise, but it’s an obstacle to obtain financing due to being considered a safety issue. A pool like this one (covered, but empty) typically has to be filled up before the close of escrow. The lender will most likely ask the appraiser to go back out to the property to verify the pool has been filled (not verify whether it is actually working like it should since most appraisers aren’t pool experts).

Paint Cans Hiding in the Crawl Space: There is no rule from FHA saying paint cans cannot be in a crawl space, but when I see something like this, it’s a red flag because chemicals should not have the opportunity to seep into the soil. Since calling out potential health or safety issues is sometimes a subjective decision for the appraiser to make, it’s important to contact HUD on occasion as well as reach out to fellow local appraisers to say, “would you call this out too?” In this case, all that needs to happen is for the containers to be removed from the crawl space. That’s easy enough, right? By the way, regarding the attic and crawl space, a bit of debris is fine, but anything excessive could likely be an issue requiring repair.

Security Bars without Safety Release: If there is no safety release mechanism on a set of security bars, that’s an obvious safety issue that’ll need to be corrected before FHA can guarantee the loan. Usually the bars are removed and then the appraiser will go snap a photo to show the lender the bars were removed.

Dangling Wires: Electrical wires hanging from the ceiling or walls is a big deal since even small wires can cause a huge jolt and be life-threatening too. If you see wires like this in a house heading toward FHA financing, expect to have to solve the problem by installing a new fixture (or doing electrical work if need be).

I hope this was helpful. Let me know if you have any questions. I’ve written quite a few FHA appraisal articles in case you wish to learn more about what to expect during the appraisal process.

If you have any questions or Sacramento area real estate appraisal or property tax appeal needs, contact me by phone 916-595-3735, email, Facebook, Twitter or subscribe to posts by email.

I met up with Realtor Steve Ostrom today to talk about what’s been happening in the Sacramento real estate market. Steve focuses on Roseville and Rocklin, but he also lists properties all over Sacramento. He sits on the Board of Directors at the California Association of Realtors and he really knows his stuff. Steve and I talked about inventory levels, multiple offers, distressed sales, flippers and more. The main question was, “What’s happening in the real estate market?” Watch or listen to our conversation below (or here) to get a glimpse of how the market has felt lately in the Sacramento area.

What do you think? Have you seen something similar? Why do you think inventory has been down?

By the way, this video marks the debut of my beardless look for 2012. I suppose it’s a resolution of sorts, but I decided it was time for my “distinguished” beard color to go away – at least for this year. Since shaving the gray, not one person has said, “Ryan, you really shouldn’t have done that,” so I know it was the right season to let the razor win. I know you don’t come here to hear about my face, but I just wanted to put this out there publicly so there is some internet accountability in case you see a beard creep back into my life this year.  Anyone make a similar resolution?

If you have any questions or Sacramento area real estate appraisal or property tax appeal needs, contact me by phone 916-595-3735, email, Facebook, Twitter or subscribe to posts by email.

Would it bother you to live next to a high voltage tower? I snapped these photos recently while in a neighborhood in the Sacramento area. You can see these towers are very close to the houses (within 100 feet easily in some cases). While someone selling the property might be tempted to say the house “backs to open space”, the view is clearly obstructed and dominated by the presence of the tower, so any “open space” premium is likely watered-down a bit, right? In appraisal terminology, we’re dealing with external obsolescence, which is a reduction in value caused by an undesirable factor outside the property.

How have you seen buyers respond to a location near a power tower? What do you think is the main turn-off in the minds of buyers? Visual pollution or a potential for health risks due to electromagnetic fields?

If you have any questions or Sacramento area real estate appraisal or property tax appeal needs, contact me by phone 916-595-3735, email, Facebook, Twitter or subscribe to posts by email.

I mentioned a couple weeks ago about getting a new phone for my appraisal business. Well, during some time off last week I bought a myTouch 4G by T-Mobile. This is definitely an upgrade from my G1.

The features I like most so far about the myTouch4G include: the internet speed is so much faster than my previous phone, it plays flash videos, tethering, two camera lenses, there is a flash on the camera, it’s very easy to sync with Google apps, the flashlight app is far more than just a lit-up screen, it has a decent camera and a great video camera, no dropped calls yet, and there are seven screens. It doesn’t have a pull-out keyboard, which I thought would be a deal-killer for me, but I’ve adjusted quite easily to the on-screen touch keyboard.

Here is a video overview of the myTouch 4G below (or an external link). 

On the job I anticipate using the following apps and features the most: Square (to accept credit card payments by phone), flashlight, video, camera, email and internet of course, social networking to connect with clients, Google Voice, Google Calendar, and Google Maps. The phone does have a video chat feature, but I don’t know that I’ll really use that during the business day.

Having the right technology for business these days is very important to me so I can stay in touch with clients and be a quick resource as needed. What tech gadgets make your business run smoothly?

Dear Investor on the Phone-

We spoke today for ten minutes or so while I was driving in the field. We discussed you searching for a duplex, triplex or fourplex in the Sacramento area. I know it’s not been easy to get a contract accepted these days because of the multiple offers (even on fixer residential-income properties). Despite the troubled economy, there’s competition out there because investors still have cash to make these deals work, don’t they?

Anyway, as we discussed on the phone, I have some potential leads for you, so make sure to give me a call. I know this seems a bit odd to write a note publicly, but that’s the way you found me in the first place. Unfortunately your email did not come through and your phone number listed as “blocked” on my cell (so I cannot call you back).

I hope our paths cross for business or networking. Best of luck to you.

Sincerely,

Ryan Lundquist
Lundquist Appraisal Company
Real Estate Appraiser
TEL: 916-595-3735
ryan@lundquistcompany.com
www.lundquistcompany.com