Sacramento Appraisal Blog

Market trends and real estate appraisals for divorce, estate settlement, loans, property tax appeal, pre-listing and more. We cover Sacramento, Placer and Yolo County. We're professional, courteous and timely.

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5 New Year’s Resolutions for the Real Estate Community

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Have you ever dropped the ball on one of your New Year’s goals? We’ve all been there. That’s why I want to suggest some goals that are actually highly attainable. Here are some suggestions for New Year’s resolutions for the real estate community. I see these things all the time, so I thought it would be worth mentioning. By the way, I’m a humble guy and this is coming from a good place. Let’s improve in big and small ways to find profound success this year.

  1. abbreviation for Carbon-Monoxide-Detector - by sacramento appraiser blogAbbreviate Carbon Monoxide Detector Correctly: If you didn’t know, carbon monoxide detector is shortened to CO – not CO2. If you want some clever ways to remember that, check out 5 Ways to Remember Carbon Monoxide is “CO” instead of “CO2″.
  2. Pronounce “REALTOR” Correctly: I am not a grammar snob by any stretch, but I wanted to point out a common error. REALTOR is often pronounced as “REAL-A-TOR” even though there is actually no extra “A” in there. It is correctly pronounced as “REAL-TOR”.
  3. share-posts-on-social-mediaMore Listening on Social Media: The online sins of the real estate community are overselling and self-promotion, so listening to conversations and a focus on building relationships on social platforms is definitely something relevant. Join the conversation by asking questions, being personable and sharing helpful information rather than overly promoting your products.
  4. Step off the Toxic Platform for Appraisers or Agents: There is often enmity between appraisers and real estate agents – as if they are mortal enemies. Part of this is understandable because both parties are doing different jobs for the same transaction, but it crosses the line when either party speaks from a platform of hostility toward the other group. I hear agents bash appraisers and talk about them like they are village idiots. Likewise, I hear appraisers talk about real estate agents like they are uneducated morons. This is not professional – especially in a public forum. We can do better. Yes, there are issues with low appraisals as well as subpar agents, which means there is a place to complain. However, when complaining becomes a shtick or lifestyle, that’s not a fun place to live. If you find yourself continually ranting about appraisers or agents, it may be worth finding ways to step off that toxic platform and avoid being a perpetual complainer. Besides, it’s good for life and business to be positive.
  5. Other: What resolution would you suggest for the real estate community? Comment below.

I hope this year is unfolding well for you so far. Happy New  Year!!

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A recent TV interview on using video in business

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I did an interview recently for a television news story in Sacramento. The piece focuses on the power of using video in business, and it highlights a gelato company and my appraisal business. Here is a clip without the news titles (the news station puts those on). I love the very end where reporter Kerry Shearer surprises the audience with how he shot the video. Watch below (or here). Enjoy.

As the story mentioned, my YouTube channel has 90,000+ views from over 200 videos. Check out my YouTube account here if you’d like to get a glimpse of some of my videos.

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

Nine Sacramentans I’m glad I met on Twitter

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Do you remember when internet dating sites first started out? Didn’t it seem a bit odd then that people would first meet online before they ever met in person? Now it’s so commonplace though that most of us know quite a few people using sites like this, or have friends who met a spouse online.

Just as people connect on dating sites these days, things have changed for business too since we have the opportunity to build relationships with others through vehicles such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter (and so many others). I don’t think we need to put our whole focus on spending all day online, because we definitely need to get some “Facetime” with people (and get work done too). But building an online presence and being where people are at is really important for business.

Let me highlight Twitter for just a minute. I’ve been using Twitter for over a year now and I’m really grateful for the relationships I’ve built. Honestly, at first glance I thought Twitter was some sort of platform to post self-focused disconnected “buy from me” type marketing messages, but it can actually be a very relational tool (if used properly). With that being said, meet some people in the Sacramento area that I’m glad to have connected with on Twitter (most in person too after meeting on Twitter).

@GenaRiede I think I found Gena’s blog first and then started following her on Twitter. She has great search engine rankings in the area and is continually cranking out content. Gena has been a real estate blogger since April 2006 and has 174 real estate videos to date. She was a RE blogger before the blogging bandwagon came to town.

@SuzannePhan A multi-media journalist for News 10, she’s constantly connecting with locals and trying to stay on top of current stories. She recently covered a story in my home town, and our paths were able to cross for a brief interview. Check out her website.

@TheBeamGuy This guy knows his stuff when it comes to Mid-Century Modern (MCM) homes in the Sacramento area (He is a licensed contractor). I linked to him on one of my posts on Streng homes. Seriously, he really has a niche speciality. Check out his website. 

@DavidYaffee David is a local Realtor, and I like his resourceful real estate videos. We’re actually shooting a video together this afternoon. I’m glad to have connected with David recently through Sacramento Tube. Check out David’s site / blog.

@RosevilleRockLnVery funny RE marketing gal. Heather is a gifted networker and so good with words. She and her husband make a great RE team and they are hard workers for sure. Check out the Ostrom website.

@BrightFarm Barbara helps people excel in their “elevator pitch”. Last year she and some others joined me in reading through the book “Crush It” for a business book club. Check out Barbara’s website. It’s fun to finally meet people in person after first having met on social media.

@PlumasLaker Gary and I actually connected after he found one of my blog posts on Plumas Lake. After talking back and forth about real estate, we became Twitter and Facebook friends. We share common passions for community building. I filmed him for a Good Neighbor TV post too. Really good guy (and now an elected official too).

@geewhizkid Andy is a solid person. He is a technical writer for VSP and is deeply involved in the community. I suppose technically we met in person for an hour at a meeting before becoming friends on Twitter, but that’s almost close enough to say we met on Twitter, right? We went to Kansas City together for the All-America City awards. We brought home the “All-America City” award for Rancho Cordova of course, but I won’t forget the lamb ribs that Andy and I enjoyed at Jack Stack in KC. 

@JenniferBourn Jennifer’s forte is branding and internet marketing. She actually did a post sort of like this on her blog a number of months ago, so I definitely want to credit her with the inspiration for this post. That’s what creative people do – they inspire. Seriously, Jennifer has some great content.

I like Twitter, but it’s not tweeting my stuff that gets me going, but rather the opportunity to connect with real people. I know this post might seem kind of off-topic for an appraisal blog, but business is all about relationships, and these are things I am constantly thinking about throughout the week.

Where do you build relationships with people online and in the real world?

Let me know if you have questions, insight, or any real estate appraisal or valuation consulting needs. Contact me at 916.595.3735, on my company website, or on Twitter or Facebook.

Crime, real estate, and an appraisal in Sacramento

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I’m working on an appraisal right now in an area of the 95815 zip code of Sacramento that has had some crime challenges lately. There have been multiple murders within the neighborhood boundaries over the past year. It’s sad of course to see this type of activity in any area, yet always interesting from a real estate standpoint to research neighborhood happenings and make sure to understand what is going on in the local market. Heavy crime might impact market value, right?

Honestly, I find it kind of earie to google street names in this particular neighborhood and read more about specific murders. There are also online local news videos at my disposal too. On top of that, I can scroll through the Sacramento Police Department’s Twitter account and find at least one tweet that describes a situation that happened very close to the subject property.

If you live in an unincorporated portion of Sacramento County or the City of Rancho Cordova, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department has a valuable online crime mapping tool. For reference, I used this tool to do some research near the corner of Watt & Arden in the Arden-Arcade area of Sacramento. I included a snippet of the past 90 days of crime within one mile of this intersection based on the Sheriff’s crime mapping tool. Each icon on the map stands for something, whether vandalism, burglary, assault, etc… Check out this crime map tool and let me know what you think.

How have you seen crime impact a community or real estate? On another note, where do you get your crime information from? Local news? Newspaper? Social media?

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