Excerpted from the San Jose Mercury News

Q: Our appraisal of the property we are purchasing states the home is
300 sq ft smaller than stated in all of the marketing. We feel the price
should reflex a smaller home, but the sellers, their agent and even our
own agent feels otherwise. What are our options?

A: Conflicting square footage is the biggest complaint within residential
real estate. Many buyers are faced with multiple numbers from different
sources-for example, the builder, assessor’s office, seller disclosures, agent
promotion, and their own appraiser. If the discrepancy is discovered in
the middle of a sale, most agencies agree this is new information,
triggering a new seller’s disclosure and a new buyer three-day right of
rescission. However, Real estate attorneys defend and prosecute the
“square foot cases” all the time. One school of thought is that since the
house appraised at full value – how have you been harmed? Conversely,
if the home was marketed as a smaller home, when it’s time you become
a seller, it probably would command a smaller price. You would remiss
in not consulting a real estate attorney.


by Pat Kapowich, SiliconValleyBroker.com,
owns KAPOWICH REAL ESTATE in Sunnyvale.
Send questions to pat@SiliconValleyBroker.com

Excerpted from San Jose Mercury News
Market Wise column Saturday April 4, 2008

Do you have a question for the new real estate Q&A Market Wise column in the SJMN? If so, please email them to: info@SiliconValleyBroker.com

The Q/3 2008 Completed Sales Report for Zone 15, Campbell & W. San Jose Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 106 sales receiving 97.83% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $759,500 and an average price of $766,419. There were 235 new listings reported reported for Q/3.

Total Sales: $81,240,458

The Q/3 2008 Completed Sales Report for Zone 18, Cupertino & W. San Jose Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 153 sales receiving 99.08% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $1,100,000 and an average price of $1,0140,913. There were 231 new listings reported reported for Q/3.

Total Sales: $174,559,726

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Q/3 2008 ~ Zone 15 Condos/Townhouses had 56 closed sales receiving 97.99% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $492,500 and an average price of $488,106. There were 112 new listings reported for Q/3. Total Sales: $27,333,950

Q/3 2008 ~ Zone 18 Condos/Townhouses had 55 closed sales receiving 99.24% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $675,000 and an average price of $658,391. There were 92 new listings reported for Q/3. Total Sales: $36,211,530

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Q/3 2008 ~ Single-Family Homes in Zone 15 had an average of 46 days on market (DOM) and 63 cumulative days on market (CDOM). Condos/Townhouses had an average of 65 DOM and 84 CDOM.

Q/3 2008 ~ Single-Family Homes in Zone 18 had an average of 23 DOM and 36 CDOM. Condos/Townhouses had an average of 25 DOM and 34 CDOM.

KAPOWICH REAL ESTATE derives many benefits from its
memberships in the National Association of Realtors, (NAR),
the California Association of Realtors, (CAR), the Silicon Valley
Association of Realtors, (SILVAR), and the Santa Clara County
Association of Realtors, (SCCAOR). Not the least of which is
their statistical information on real estate transactions.

Pat Kapowich,
“Negotiating Smooth Transactions Throughout The South Bay”
SiliconValleyBroker.com

Excerpted from the San Jose Mercury News, SJMN

Market Wise Column

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Q: We are empty nesters in the process of buying a condo while concurrently selling our house. We are aware the sellers of our condo are also buying a house simultaneously. The growing family that is buying our house is also in the process of selling their current residence to first-time buyers. Who knows how many home sales are resting on the shoulders of this young couple on the bottom rung of the ladder? Since we have so many costs and commitments involved in this process, why are we not entitled to more information regarding the progress of their sale?

A: When sales are contingent upon one another, all the licensees should be communicating the progress of their transactions with good faith and fair dealing. If not, your licensee should call their managing broker for answers.

When the dominoes of concurrent home sales fall apart, it s often due to the lack of skills and communication within one of the sales. All the more reason to scrutinize the licensees you ll be dealing with on all sides, as most don t possess the skill-set, training or experience to orchestrate buying and selling simultaneously.

Pat Kapowich for SJMN’s Market Wise Column

Do you have a question for the new real estate Q&A Market Wise column in the SJMN?If so, please email them to: pat@SiliconValleyBroker.com

Buyer Beware?! What About Seller Beware?
How Sellers and/or their Licensees ask for Trouble

These licensees have literally been trained to set up tripods
with blown-up neighborhood maps, color coding the sales in the
area, in order to gain new buyer and seller clients. Yet, they
convince the seller that all this extra work is for them, the seller!

Setting up multiple trip hazards in your seller’s home and
then deceiving them about its purpose, is flat-out immoral.
Outrageous, when you think about it; they were hired to
protect their sellers, not bamboozle ‘em!

Pat Kapowich,
“Negotiating Smooth Transactions Throughout The South Bay”
SiliconValleyBroker.com

At sometime in your life, you or someone in your family will live
under the guidelines of the Homeowner Association. Any and all
Common Interest Developments, (CID), fall under California’s
Davis-Sterling Act.

KAPOWICH REAL ESTATE - Sunnyvale, CA 94086 - Silcon Valley Broker Video

Jacquie successfully reviews the in and outs of this massive area
of real estate law, which is often ignored and/or misunderstood.
These laws mandate an accounting practice that fully discloses
its finances. Which means no more legally “cooking the books,”
through outdated accounting. (Long overdue).

Jacquie is a member of Executive Council of Homeowners
and the California Association of Realtors.

Jaquie Berry
Community Association DataSource
408.226.2437

Pat Kapowich, “Negotiating Smooth Transactions Throughout The South
Bay” SiliconValleyBroker.com

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The October 2008 Completed Sales Report for Sunnyvale Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 39 sales receiving 99.10% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $820,000 and an average price of $743,739. There were 78 new listings reported reported for October.
Total Sales: $29,005,850

The October 2008 Completed Sales Report for Cupertino Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 16 sales receiving 99.35% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $1,120,500 and an average price of $1,133,012. There were 39 new listings reported reported for October.
Total Sales: $16,995,180

The October 2008 Completed Sales Report for Santa Clara Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 33 sales receiving 98.06% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $610,000 and an average price of $619,503. There were 78 new listings reported reported for October.
Total Sales: $20,443,600

The October 2008 Completed Sales Report for Mountain View Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 18 sales receiving 97.63% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $944,250 and an average price of $976,683. There were 25 new listings reported reported for October.
Total Sales: $17,580,300

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October 2008~ Sunnyvale Condos/Townhouses had 13 closed sales receiving 97.34% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $500,000 and an average price of $524,447. There were 26 new listings reported for October.
Total Sales: $10,817,000

October 2008~ Cupertino Condos/Townhouses had 10 closed sales receiving 98.80% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $655,000 and an average price of $688,850. There were 8 new listings reported for October. Total Sales: $6,888,500

October 2008~ Santa Clara Condos/Townhouses had 11 closed sales receiving 98.69% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $364,000 and an average price of $410,727. There were 44 new listings reported for October.
Total Sales: $4,517,999

October 2008~ Mountain View Condos/Townhouses had 14 closed sales receiving 97.82% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $620,000 and an average price of $646,803. There were 28 new listings reported for October.
Total Sales: $9,055,242

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October 2008~Single-Family Homes in Sunnyvale had an average of 30 days on market (DOM) and 35 cumulative days on market (CDOM). Condos/Townhouses had an average of 40 DOM and 82 CDOM.

October 2008~Single-Family Homes in Cupertino had an average of 63 DOM and 75 CDOM. Condos/Townhouses had an average of 28 DOM and 40 CDOM.

October 2008~Single-Family Homes in Santa Clara had an average of 43 DOM and 66 CDOM. Condos/Townhouses had an average of 39 DOM and 39 CDOM.

October 2008~Single-Family Homes in Mountain View had an average of 37 DOM and CDOM. Condos/Townhouses had an average of 39 DOM and 45 CDOM.

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KAPOWICH REAL ESTATE derives many benefits from its
memberships in the National Association of Realtors, (NAR),
the California Association of Realtors, (CAR), the Silicon Valley
Association of Realtors, (SILVAR), and the Santa Clara County
Association of Realtors, (SCCAOR). Not the least of which is
their statistical information on real estate transactions.
We love this stuff!

Pat Kapowich,
“Negotiating Smooth Transactions Throughout The South Bay”
SiliconValleyBroker.com

Excerpted from the San Jose Mercury News Column “Market Wise” 7/18/08

Q: We are having a frustrating time buying a certain house. Our agent says this is the sloppiest sale he’s had in his 20-plus-year career. Evidently, the listing agency is really a loan brokerage, but one would never know it from the wording on the for-sale sign in the lawn. Why would a loan officer be selling a house?

A: Good question. Prior to the Internet, we’d experience an occasional real estate agent geographically trespassing. However, once home listings started being posted on the Web, some licensed loan officers and property managers became industry interlopers, asking, Why should I refer good clients to a real estate agent? In practice, if a loan officer has to ask that question, he/she should not leaver his/her air-conditioned office.

Commercial real estate agents and real estate attorneys know the incredible amount of responsibility and liability they incur when representing homebuyers and sellers. These astute industry professionals routinely refer clients to residential sales agents and even (rarely) will represent themselves as homebuyers/home sellers.

Not so with many licensed property managers and loan officers. Unfortunately, the best interest of the client and the firms they represent take a back seat to the licensee’s short-sighted greed.

Many times it’s the broker who puts his own firm in harms way. But professionals not trainted in the care and practice of a trade and/or don’t know the issues around which the craft will be plied should not gamble with a consumer’s home.

Far too often I see seller’s and buyers who engage such individuals. The result is sellers who lose thousands of dollars and buyers who lose the right house.

by Pat Kapowich SiliconValleyBroker.com, owns Kapowich
Real Estate in Sunnyvale. E-mail questions to him at
pat@siliconvalleybroker.com

Course Title: “The Most Costly Mistakes Made by Buyers, Sellers & Their Agents & How to Avoid Them”

“Great presentation! Crisp & clear” Senzi
“Informative & well organized” Steve
“Unbelievable investment of our time” Matt & Giovanna
“Good info from qualified people” Sam

Description: The number one mistake made when negotiating a residential real estate transaction is when participants lack understanding of the responsibilities of all of the parties and their representatives. Learn how to negotiate a state-of-the-art sales transaction from A to Z. Real Estate Attorney Sam Chuck and Real Estate Broker Pat Kapowich will also review the complex process of buying and selling simultaneously.

Sam Chuck represents buyers, lessors, seller, lenders, homeowners’ associations, and real estate brokers. Pat has achieved real estate’s highest designations, ABR, CRS, GRI & SRES. He is the creator and host of more than 130 consumer-protection cable television programs, Kapowich on Real Estate, as seen from South San Francisco to San Jose. Pat is also a contributor to the Saturday Q & A column Market Wise in the San Jose Mercury News.

Date: Saturday, 02/28/08
Location: De Anza College
Room: TBD
Time: 9AM-12PM
Fee: $38

KAPOWICH REAL ESTATE - Sunnyvale, CA 94086 - Silcon Valley Broker Video

Real Estate Attorney Douglas White, of Hoge, Fenton, Jones & Appel, Inc.,
speaks out on the critical role of the licensee when representing a client.
Many licensees brag about being hired because of their beautiful
brochure and/or presentation folder.

Real estate attorneys often mention that while marketing is important,
the skill-set of the licensee should be scrutinized. While the licensee is
selling their marketing and/or knowledge of a neighborhood, this should
not be the reason a customer becomes a client.

Real estate attorneys often comment the consumer’s focus should be the
licensee’s knowledge of the different contracts, clauses and avoidance of
transactional pitfalls. In addition, the licensee should have deft negotiating
abilities.

After all, the licensee is the consumer’s representative in the marketplace.
The actions of a licensee are a direct reflection on on the client, in more
ways than one. There is nothing worse than a licensee getting in the way
a sale and/or worse, create a legal problem for the ones they were hired
to protect.

Click here to View Real Estate Attorney Douglas White’s
outstanding review of a licensee’s duties to protect ~ Program # 136

Pat Kapowich, “Negotiating Smooth Transactions Throughout The South
Bay” SiliconValleyBroker.com

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The October 2008 Completed Sales Report for Zone 9, Central San Jose  Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 43 sales receiving 97.66% of list price. These closings represented a median price of
$405,000 and an average price of $470,949. There were 104 new listings reported reported for October.  Total Sales: $20,250,830

The October 2008 Completed Sales Report for Zone 11, South San Jose Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 62 sales receiving 100.45% of list price. These closings represented a median price of
$379,000 and an average price of $385,745. There were 123 new listings reported reported for October.  Total Sales: $23,916,200

The October 2008 Completed Sales Report for Zone 12, Blossom Valley Single-Family Homes saw a closing of 48 sales receiving 100.28% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $515,000 and an average price of $525,416. There were 94 new listings reported reported for October.  Total Sales: $25,220,000

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October 2008~ Zone 9, Central San Jose  Condos/Townhouses had 16 closed sales receiving 98.68% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $455,000 and an average price of $421,744. There were 54 new listings reported for October.  Total Sales: $6,747,905

October 2008~ Zone 11, South San Jose Condos/Townhouses had 25 closed sales receiving 102.23% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $202,000 and an average price of $245,859. There were 61 new listings reported for October.  Total Sales: $6,146,480

October 2008~ Zone 12, Blossom Valley Condos/Townhouses had 41 closed sales receiving 98.13% of list price. These closings represented a median price of $325,999 and an average price of $315,170. There were 55 new listings reported for October.  Total Sales: $12,921,999

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Q3 2008~Single-Family Homes in  Zone 9, Central San Jose had an average of 63 days on market (DOM) and 99 cumulative days on market (CDOM). Condos/Townhouses had an average of 46 DOM and 65 CDOM.

Q3 2008~Single-Family Homes in Zone 11, South San Jose had an average of 62 DOM and 49 CDOM. Condos/Townhouses had an average of 25 DOM and 93 CDOM.

Q3 2008~Single-Family Homes in Zone 12, Blossom Valley had an average of 63 DOM and 98 CDOM. Condos/Townhouses had an average of 45 DOM and 90 CDOM.

KAPOWICH REAL ESTATE derives many benefits from its
memberships in the National Association of Realtors, (NAR),
the California Association of Realtors, (CAR), the Silicon Valley
Association of Realtors, (SILVAR), and the Santa Clara County
Association of Realtors, (SCCAOR). Not the least of which is
their statistical information on real estate transactions.

Pat Kapowich,
“Negotiating Smooth Transactions Throughout The South Bay”
SiliconValleyBroker.com