Seller’s Resources & Advice

May 19th	Do Open Houses Work in the Santa Barbara and Montecito Areas?
2008	Categories: Seller's Resources & Advice

As a real estate agent here in the Santa Barbara and Montecito area, it is almost impossible to sell a home unless you get people in to first see the home.  With this said, one of the main first questions a Realtor is asked upon listing a home for sale is...how will their property be shown. That begs the question: Are open houses a big selling tool? Answer: No/Not really/ Barely/It can be... Most likely you will get some version of this answer from a seasoned real estate agent. The problem for many agents is that the majority of home... Read more

Tags: home seller santa barbara, montecito open houses, open houses, real estate agent santa barbara, realtor, santa barbara open houses

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Apr 22nd	Are Short Sales a Good Path to Santa Barbara Real Estate Ownership?
2008	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice, Seller's Resources & Advice, Short Sales

At the beginning of 2008, I wrote a few articles about short sales and foreclosures in our local areas here in Santa Barbara, Goleta and Carpinteria.  At that point, we had only seen a handful of foreclosures in our areas and most of these were in the entry level condo market from the $300,000 to $650,000 price point as well as track homes from the $590,000 to $800,000 price point.  Short sales were also just starting to creep up in our local areas within the same market and price points. Now in the last several weeks, we have started to see a definite increase in short... Read more

Tags: santa barbara real estate, short sales carpinteria, short sales goleta, short sales santa barbara, short sales santa barbara real estate

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Apr 14th	Search the Santa Barbara, Montecito and Goleta CA MLS for Free
2008	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice, Santa Barbara, Seller's Resources & Advice

Searching the Santa Barbara, Montecito and Goleta area MLS is now easy and free. More and more buyers and sellers are wanting to start there search for real estate on the Internet, in the own comfort and privacy of their homes.  If you are looking for the MLS here in Santa Barbara, Montecito, Goleta CA and surrounding areas, you have found the right place. SantaBarbaraRealEstateVoice provides you with all the tools you need to start your information gathering about real estate in our area for free, with no obligations or sign-ups.  You can search via any of the single criteria below as... Read more

Tags: goleta CA mls, mls in santa barbara, montecito ca mls, santa barbara area properties, santa barbara ca mls, search montecito mls, search santa barbara mls

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Mar 5th	Search The Santa Barbara Area MLS…and More!!
2008	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice, Santa Barbara, Seller's Resources & Advice

Question- What has been the biggest change in Real Estate in the last few years (outside of the sub-prime fallout)? Answer -  The amount of real estate information that buyers and sellers can gather on their own by going online. A few years ago, the standard features for a Realtor were to simply have a static website with contact info, some pictures of a few properties, offerings of a CMA and some links to various "resources".  Buyers had to start the early process of their search by contacting a Realtor and asking a bunch of questions...Today, buyers and sellers want to be equipped with more... Read more

Tags: real estate information, santa barbara area listings, santa barbara area mls, santa barbara real estate, search santa barbara mls

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Feb 18th	Plan for your Santa Barbara Remodel Now, so that you don’t go Crazy Later
2008	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice, Seller's Resources & Advice

Many of us have heard our share of drama stories and even read articles about the drama involved with many Santa Barbara home remodels.  Whether it is a simple kitchen make-over or a complete addition to your Santa Barbara home, here is a quick planning strategy to hopefully save you wasted time, energy and money. Start with a wish list, even if this will have to be dwindled down in the future.  This is surely one of the most fun activities in the entire remodelling process, so have a great time and get creative.  Keep all of your notes, drawings and cut-outs... Read more

Tags: building codes santa barbara, contractor, permitting process santa barbara, realtor, remodel, Santa Barbara, santa barbara home, santa barbara remodel

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Feb 15th	Santa Barbara Real Estate Voice, Your Online Real Estate Resource
2008	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice, Santa Barbara, Seller's Resources & Advice

Santa Barbara Real Estate Voice is an online resource for Santa Barbara Real Estate, Montecito Real Estate and the surrounding areas.  When you work with a real estate agent to sell or buy a home, it will in all likelihood be the first or second largest financial decision of your life!!  That is a very big decision.  With that in mind, Santa Barbara Real Estate Voice is here to help you with finding information for all your real estate related questions and needs for Santa Barbara, Montecito, Summerland, Goleta, Hope Ranch, Carpinteria and the Santa Barbara Wine Country. You can search the Santa Barbara... Read more

Tags: Carpinteria, Goleta, Hope Ranch, market statistics, market updates, montecito real estate, neighborhood info, santa barbara area listings, santa barbara area mls, santa barbara real estate, schools, Summerland

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Dec 27th	5 Crucial Tips to have your Santa Barbara Home Ready for Sale in a Slow Market
2007	Categories: Santa Barbara, Seller's Resources & Advice

When times are good, getting top dollar is not a problem for most Santa Barbara sellers. In fact, many buyers prefer the home to look more on the shabby side since they feel this appearance will be represented in a lower asking price. Now with many sellers having an extremely difficult time getting top dollar, owners can take some critical steps in improving their chances of getting a good offer. 1) Curb Appeal for your Santa Barbara Home: Just like that special someone you meet for the first time, first impressions are extremely important. If you want to sell your home for as... Read more

Tags: homes, Santa Barbara, santa barbara home, sellers

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