Sacramento CA Real Estate Podcast with Thomas March Thomas March

Turn on the television or scroll through Facebook, and chances are you’ll see at least one advertisement for a group or “guru” who promises to teach you how to “get rich quick” through real estate investing. The truth is, much of what they’re selling are high-risk tactics that aren’t a good fit for the average investor. However, there is a way to make steady, predictable, low-risk income through real estate investing. In this blog post, we’ll examine the tried-and-true tactics that can be used to increase your income, pay off debt … even fund your retirement! WHY INVEST IN REAL ESTATE? One of the basic principles of real estate investment lies in this fact: everyone needs a place to live. And according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ most recent Consumer Expenditures Survey, housing is typically an American’s largest expense.1 But there are other reasons why real estate is a great investment choice, and we’ve outlined the top five below: 1. Appreciation Appreciation is the increase in your property’s value over time. History has proven that over an extended period of time, the value of real estate continues to rise. That doesn’t mean recessions won’t occur. The real estate market is cyclical, and market ups and downs are natural. In fact, the U.S. housing market took a sharp downturn in 2008, and many properties took several years to recover their value. However, in the vast majority of markets, the value of real estate does grow over the long term. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index, which tracks U.S. residential real estate prices, released its latest results on August 29 with the headline “National Home Price Index Rises Again to All Time High.”2 While no investment is without risk, real estate has proven again and again to be a solid choice to invest your money over the long term.  2. Hedge Against Inflation Inflation is the rate at which the general cost of goods and services rises. As inflation rises, prices go up. This means the money you have in your bank account is essentially worth less because your purchasing power has decreased. Luckily, real estate prices also rise when inflation increases. That means any money you have invested in real estate will rise with (or often exceed) the rate of inflation. Therefore, real estate is a smart place to put your money to guard against inflation. 3. Cash Flow One of the big benefits of investing in real estate over the stock market is its ability to provide a fairly steady and predictable monthly cash flow. That is, if you choose to rent out your investment property to a tenant, you can expect to receive a rent payment each month. If you’ve invested wisely, the rent payment should cover the debt obligation you may have on the property (i.e. mortgage), as well as any repairs and maintenance that are needed. Ideally, the monthly rental income would be great enough to leave you a little extra cash each month, as well. You could use that extra money to pay off the mortgage faster, cover your own household expenses, or save for another investment property. Even if you only take in enough rent to cover your expenses, a rental property purchase will pay for itself over time. As you pay down the mortgage every month with your rental income, your equity will continue to increase, until you own the property free and clear … leaving you with residual cash flow for years to come. As the owner, you will also benefit from the property’s appreciation when it comes time to sell. This can be a great way to save for retirement or even fund a child’s college education. Purchase a property when the child is young, and with a little discipline, it can be paid off by the time they are ready to go to college. You can sell it for a lump sum, or use the monthly income to pay their tuition and expenses. 4. Leverage One of the unique features that sets real estate apart from other asset classes is the ability to leverage your investme

The current trends are all about utilizing rich color, maximizing texture and creating comfortable interiors you can’t wait to relax in. Use these trends to get inspired to makeover your home’s interiors and create spaces you love that also appeal to your personal style. Remember, if you plan to sell in the next few years, you may want to avoid doing anything dramatic and instead incorporate small changes that would appeal to buyers. Why are these trends gaining popularity? The underlying theme of these trends is creating a home environment you love; one that appeals to your emotions and feels like a retreat from the stresses of the world. Although the home is a place where you can relax and spend time with loved ones, work expectations are beginning to blur the line between work and home. Even if people don’t work from home specifically, many are stretching their work hours into their evenings and weekends to complete work projects. It’s no wonder the Nordic concept of hygge (most often pronounced “hoo-gah”) has become a hot trend. A centuries-old concept, incorporating hygge in the home means creating simple and comfortable spaces that make you feel cozy and safe and appeal to your senses.1 The emphasis is on simplicity and fostering positive experiences, whether you’re spending time with family, reading a good book or catching up on work emails. WARM AND RICH COLORS. Whether you want to play with a bold color or stick with neutrals, one thing is clear—paint is the foundation of a great design. Painting your interiors has a return on investment of about 75 percent and is a relatively inexpensive project to complete, costing between $25 to $100 for paint alone.2 If you’re thinking of refreshing your home’s interiors with a coat of paint, popular colors include warm taupe, fresh green and dark tones. These colors are popular choices because they evoke feeling of warmth and coziness when you walk into a room. Wondering how to pair these colors? Taupe is the perfect alternative to traditional neutrals, such as gray and white, and goes well with cool blues, earthy greens and deep shades of wine.  Green goes well with other earthy shades, such as copper and moss, as well as deep plum and bright pink. If you’re hesitant to paint your walls green, incorporate it into your home by way of accent pillows, rugs, lamps, vases and other accessories or add a few house plants.                  If you’re interested in adding more drama to a room, include bold, dark colors.  Dark shades add color and sophistication to any space. Plum and dark gray pair well with pale blues, warm whites and light gray. Try one of these Colors of the Year: Poised Taupe – Sherwin Williams             Greenery - Pantone Shadow – Benjamin Moore RICH MATERIALS. Lux materials create a space in which you can’t wait to kick off your shoes and relax at the end of the day. The Danes use a mixture of materials and pattern as a way of adding character and interest; however the overall look still needs to adhere to a color palette to prevent it from looking distracting. Natural materials and textures allow you to maximize the comfort of the bedroom, living room or family room. Wood accents give rooms an earthy feel. Incorporate rustic wood sculptures, trays and furniture into your space. Choose furniture made with sustainably harvested wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) or use reclaimed wood for an environmentally friendly alternative. If natural elements aren’t your style, but you want to add more visual interest to your room, try mixing patterns. Although it may have been avoided in the past, mixing stripes, florals and geometric prints actually help ground a space as long as the patterns feature complimentary colors or different shades of one color. If you’re worried about going overboard and making your room look “busy,” focus your mix in one area of the room. For example, add thro

You can't avoid paying taxes, and we all need to pay our fair share. However, paying your fair share shouldn't place an unjust burden on you. As a homeowner, your tax burden is doubled because you pay both income and property taxes. To decrease that burden and boost your tax savings, take advantage of these homeowner tax deductions. As a result, you can use your tax savings to go on a vacation, increase your child's college fund, build upon your retirement fund, or complete another home improvement project.  HOME IMPROVEMENT TAX DEDUCTION You spend so much of your time at home, and you try to make it as comfortable a place to live as possible. If your home needs some upgrades, consider improvements that will help foot the bill for themselves.  Switching out your old windows for energy-efficient ones could earn you $200. This credit expires this year on December 31st. So, this year will be your last chance to take advantage of getting tax credit for making your home more energy efficient.  Also, installing equipment that uses renewable sources of energy makes you eligible for the Renewable Energy Efficiency Property Credit. The credit covers 30 percent of the cost of equipment and installation. This credit also expires this year on December 31st.  MORTGAGE INTEREST AND REFINANCING If your mortgage payment makes you cringe each month, you’ll be glad to know you can deduct taxes on the following: * Interest towards mortgage * Mortgage payments for additional property * Rental properties * Refinancing and home equity lines of credit (HELOC) up to $100,000 of debt. If you own multiple properties, the mortgage interest on additional property is deductible as well. The cool thing is that it doesn't have to be a house. It can be a boat or RV; as long as it has cooking, sleeping, and bathroom facilities, it counts as additional property. Regarding using your second home as a rental, you need to vacation at least 14 days at the property or spend more than 10 percent of the number of days you rent it out. Furthermore, you can claim points on your mortgage the year you paid them if the following happened: * The loan was to purchase or build your main home * Payment of points is an established business practice in your area and the points were within the usual range PROPERTY TAXES Now, this is the big one. The amount of property taxes you paid for the year shows up on your lender's annual statement. You must deduct them as an itemized expense on your Schedule A tax form. First-time homebuyers, look at your settlement sheet to see additional tax payment data. You may deduct the portion of property taxes you paid during the first year of your homeownership.  PROTESTING YOUR ASSESSMENT TO LOWER YOUR PROPERTY TAXES Many homes get overvalued because assessors err in valuing a home and homeowners don't pay attention to these mistakes. Consequently, homeowners unwittingly pay more than they should in property taxes. However, if you’ve owned your home for more than a year, you can potentially lower your property tax burden by showing that your home has been overvalued, meaning that your tax assessment claims your property is worth more than it is. Even if the number on the tax assessment seems close, you should still consider protesting your property tax. Typical savings from a successful tax protest is over 15%! According to SmartAsset, the national median property tax paid is roughly $2,839.00. That's about 1.192 percent of a home valued at $238,200.00. If you're able to reduce your assessed value by 15 percent to $202,470.00 and consequently save 15 percent on your tax bill, your new tax bill will be about 2,413.00. That’s a savings of $426.00! To get started protesting your property tax, read your assessment letter. Your assessment letter will list data about your property and the assessed value of your house and land. Make sure your assessment letter has the correct information about your property. Understanding that assessors c

There are many great Placer and Sacramento area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (916) 529-5342 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions. Did you know that in a recent survey 68% of buyers said they were not satisfied with their real estate agent's home buying process? Statistically, 70% of buyers choose to work with the first agent that they come into contact with. When you look at it this way, it's no surprise that so many people are unsatisfied with their agent. For instance, 85% of sales agents have no specific certification or designation related to working with buyers. I am a certified home buying expert advisor. What does this mean? Well, it means we have a proven, repeatable system backed by market research to find the best home negotiated at the best price and terms. This system has been featured on major news networks, such as CNBC, CNN, MSNBC, CBS, Fox News, and ABC, So, if you're looking at hiring the first person you come across, chances are you won't be working with someone who has the skills necessary to accomplish your goals. Did you know there is no single price of a home? The value is determined by 115 different variables. Our proprietary VIP Elite Buyer Preferred System has identified over 80 variables involved in the home buying process. These need to be managed correctly to ensure you find the perfect home. Without a proven system, you risk overpaying when you buy, or possibly missing out on your dream home altogether. If this is the first time you've heard this, you're not alone. Most agents don't even know about these variables and the process. Our One of a Kind Buyer Elite Preferred System is a guarantee of sorts that you are going to have success. I am a certified negotiator, which means my team has the skills to negotiate the best price and terms for your home. We are so confident we'll get the job done right that we guarantee to save you at least $5,000 on your home purchase or we'll pay you $1,000 out of our pocket. We're really invested in not just finding you a home at a great price, but finding you the right home. Our one of a kind Love It or Leave It Guarantee protects you, as we've seen that some buyers are unsure about their purchasing decisions. We'll get your home at the best possible price, plain and simple. If you purchase a home and aren't happy with the home within 24 months of working with us, we'll either buy it back from you or sell it for free. That's how sure we are about our services. If you're interested in these one-of-a-kind programs, give us a call or shoot us an email. We would love to make your real estate dreams a reality! *Not all properties qualify and some conditions apply

.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; height: auto; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; } There are many great Placer and Sacramento area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (916) 529-5342 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions. If you want to be an informed buyer or seller in the Sacramento area, you need to be familiar with market trends and conditions. To keep you up-to-date, I want to share the latest numbers for Sacramento County: Homes for sale: 3,016, up 4.2% Homes sold: 1,620, down 9.2% Pending sales; 1,968, up 18.4% Average price per square foot: $186 Inventory: 1.9 months, up 18.5% Average days on market: 40 days, up 11.1% So, what do these numbers mean for you? Well, for one, it means we have more homes on the market, which means multiple offer situations are down and it's a less competitive market for buyers than it once was. For sellers, the sooner you list, the better, as the market seems to be normalizing. If you have any questions about how you can take advantage of current market conditions, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, don't hesitate to give me a call or shoot me an email. I would love to hear from you!

.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; height: auto; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; } There are many great Placer and Sacramento area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (916) 529-5342 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions. Today I just wanted to give you a brief real estate market update for the Sacramento area. If you're planning on buying or selling anytime soon, you should find this very useful. As of June 15th, we had 2,894 homes for sale, which is a 10.5% increase over last month. 1,713 homes sold last month, which was a 12% increase over last month.  There were 1,842 homes pending, and that is a 26% increase over last year at this time. The average days on market was 30 days and there is only a 1.7 month supply of homes.  Placer County is a little different. We're seeing 1,287 homes for sale, which is a 5.3% increase over last month. However, 655 homes sold, which is a 12.9% increase over last month. Also, 631 homes went pending for sale, which is a 3% increase over last year. The average price per square foot dropped a little bit, but it's still very high. Inventory is still very small, and we only have 2 months of inventory.  What does this mean for you? We're in a stable market with appreciation. We don't expect interest rates to increase as dramatically as we had previously thought, and this is great news for buyers. Because it's an election year, we don't believe rates will rise as sharply as they have in the past.  Inventory is still very low, so it's a good time to sell, especially in the next month or two. Buyers will be pulling out of the market in the next few months, and you may have to wait until spring to get top dollar on your home. If you're looking to buy, you'll need to make strong offers and act quickly on homes that you like. Inventory will be declining soon, so make sure to start your home search soon. Also, prices will only continue to rise as time goes on, so the sooner you buy, the better off you will be.  Hopefully this has been helpful to you. If you're looking to buy or sell in Sacramento, please don't hesitate to contact me. If you're looking for more detailed information on your neighborhood, please ask us and we can provide that to you!