There is an abundance of practical advice you can find online. My approach is a bit different. I am looking at it from the mindset viewpoint. I would like to invite you to give me your feedback on my views. I love to learn from your perspective. Let’s get it started, shall we?

1. First ask yourself, what do I want that I don’t have now? Understanding your clear whys for selling your home is the first step and a very important one for your success.
2. Don’t worry about things you can’t control such as location or floor plan. Highlight the benefits of your home, and romanticize the experience. I will tell you a story. I had a seller who had failed to sell his home for 5 years with 4 different agents. His attention was so focused on the problems he thought he had such as a reverse floor plan, the driveway sloped downwards, an unusable backyard and an outdated kitchen. He wanted to upgrade his kitchen and spent much of his time interviewing contractors. In other words, he was looking for love in all the wrong places. While I was sitting in his kitchen table interviewing for the job, I noticed the kitchen and family room were facing the east. I screamed with joy. “that’s it” Let’s call the patio “sunrise patio”. We did the open houses between 6:30 a.m. to 8 a.m. We highlighted the sunrise view. Our target buyers would be people who were early risers and were inspired by an amazing sunrise every morning. This small change leads to his successful sale. We focused on the benefits & Romanticized the experience.
3. Kyle Cease said “Nobody has ever broken your heart. They break your expectations. There are gaps between a seller’s perception of the market and a buyer’s reality. At the beginning of this year, homes were selling in 2 minutes with plenty of offers and in some cases $1 million over the asking price. Fast Facts: in some markets, the home sales are down, and Inventory is up. The price appreciation is slowing down. Instead of having the expectation of yesterday’s price, be open-minded and have the right perspective. The price appreciation in Santa Clara County is 47% increased compared to the last peak, and a jaw-dropping 250% from the last bottom of our market.
4. Pricing is everything in this market. The price is nothing but a bundle of benefits. It is not about how much you can sell your house for, but it’s about what buyers can buy instead of yours. With increased inventories and more selections for the buyers to choose from, it is critical that the price is right from the beginning. Everybody wants what everybody wants. Therefore, it is important to bring as much attention to your house as possible.
5. Hire the right agent.

• First, imagine what a successful sale feels like, what results you would like to see, and what process you would like to go through, in your mind. Be clear on what you want in an agent. When selecting an agent, make the decision on things the agent can control like the marketing and negotiation, not the things they can’t control like the price the market will bring you.
• An exceptional agent will dig deep and ask lots of questions based on what you want. They understand you are a team.

Let’s summarize the winning mindset for the sellers.

1. Define your why
2. Highlight the benefits of your home and bring romance to the process.
3. Keep your prospective in check and have the right expectation.
4. Pricing is everything, so get it right in the beginning.
5. Hire the right agent to work with you as a partner.

I am going to leave you with this. In every occupation, the best people create the systems that make them successful. The right process will produce the best result. Good Luck!

Old Palo Alto is  one of the most prestigious and affluent neighborhoods in the country, ranking 6th amongst the most expensive zip codes in the nation. The median home price here is $4.4M, which has more than doubled in the last 10 years. Interestingly, on the north side of this area, the turnover rate has gone up almost 3/4 of a percent, an historic 15 year high!  So, if you want to move into this neighborhood, we have a unique window of opportunity with more homes to chose from.

This neighborhood is beautiful! The sweet fragrances of magnolia, azaleas, hydrangeas, and roses fill the treelined streets. Take an early morning walk through this parklike setting and enjoy the blessings of the day!

Old Palo Alto lies between Embarcadero Road to the north, Oregon Expressway to the south, Middlefield Road to the east, and Alma Street to the west, near to prestigious Stanford University. If you’re looking for city fun, the Palo Alto and California Avenue Caltrain stations are a short stroll away, providing easy access to beautiful San Francisco, or an easy commute to San Jose.

We have an eclectic mix of architectural styles here, from Eichler, tudor, modern, and craftsman. In addition, the lot sizes range from 10,000 sf to half an acre. This may explain the difference between the median price, at $4.4M, to average price at $5.3M.

This Old Palo Alto neighborhood is an attractive draw for tourists and residents alike.

Not only is it beautiful, but several of Silicon Valley’s best-known innovators – including late Apple CEO, Steve Jobs and Google co-founder, Larry Page – have called this neighborhood home. Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Steve Young also reportedly owns a house in Old Palo Alto.

Located near the neighborhood’s northern boundary, the Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden features 2.5 acres of plants and trees and is free to the public and open seven days a week. Adjacent to Gamble Garden is the Palo Alto Lawn Bowls Club, which offers free Sunday classes and holds tournaments throughout the year.

Neighborhood children attend Walter Hays elementary school, Green Middle, Palo Alto High school, all within the  Palo Alto Unified School District, which is the #1 ranked school district in California. The high score is due in part from their academic rigors, but also on account of diversity.

Thank you for watching!

Number of Home Sold in Jan 2019

A total of 590 homes (SFR 437, Condo 153) were sold in Santa Clara County in January, 2019.

Compared to last month’s sales of 817 homes sold, it is 18% less than Dec. 2018.

Compared to last year’s same time, it is approximately 10% less homes sold than a year ago.

Inventory Update

Inventory is up 25% from last month (1159) and more than doubled that same time last year to 1458 vs. 652 (Jan. 2018); this explains the days on the market.

More inventory, taking longer to sell.

Days On the Market

With less than 652 homes for sale the same time last year, it took less than 10 days to sell homes. Now, It took approximately 55 days to sell a home this month compare to 32 to 35 days last month.  It is more than a 55% increase in days on the market compared to last month, and it takes 6 times longer to sell compared to this time last year.

Because homes were selling fast, many sellers might expect a speedy sale, but it takes a little bit of patience.

Prices

Now, let’s look at the average and median home prices.

For Single Family homes, the average is $1,406,746, the Median Price is $1,170,760.

For condos/townhouses, the Average Price is $804,000 and the median price is $780,000.

It is about 2% less than the last month and 3% less than this same time last year.

Sales Price to List Price

It was 100% for SFR, and 99% for condos. This didn’t change much from last month.

It is interesting to note, the Original List to sales ratio is 95%.

Compared to 113% for condo, 109% for SFR, Jan 2018, on the average, you will get the list price.

One of my listings was not an exception to the rules, although we got multiple offers on my listing, the price was not higher than the list price.

In front of her amazing painting ” the fragility of beauty” at Gallery House, Palo Alto

“Life is pulsating and vibrant. We need to live it everyday to the fullest. That’s why I call it “fragility of beauty because it can be over in a flesh”

Magdalena Bogart, the painter

Life is a beautiful paradox. I am falling at my own feet.

I heard a quote that goes something like this.

“I am not what I think I am.

I am not what you think I am.

I am what I believe you think I am.”

I thought our soceity demands mothers should cook.

Because of that, I was a miserable mother  believed who should cook but don’t cook.

I felt guilty not cooking for my family.

I felt anger becuase  i believed my family expect me to cook. In reality, no one expected me to cook except I.

I understand guilt is costly emotion.  I choose not to feel guilty about it.

I still don’t cook much, but when I do, I do it for love, not out of guilt.

Be you. Do you. For you.

Backyard Brew is a wonderful gathering place on California Ave. It is hidden, but once found, it is like your secret place. How often do we trip over $1 to pick up a penny? Slow down your life a bit and visit #backyardbrew, and taste India, one of their drip coffee. They blend fresh and brew it every day. They want to inspire you to make your own blend.  If you are looking for consistent  taste, this place is not for you. If you are open to a surprise, however,  Backyard Brew is for you.  the owner, Ryan says, “all you have to be in life is being curious”

How do we get paid? I Attornys vs Realtors

Attoneys charge by the hour.
Realtors, on the other hand, only get paid when our clients succesfully get what they want.
Realtors get rewarded on your successful result not on our efforts.

Agree or disagree? please leave comments below.
For more updates, please like and subscribe share.
Thank you for watching!

#YoungJacobShow #RealtorPay #SiliconValley #LifeStyle

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How can you double your money in 8.5 year? Rule of 72 explained in 3 minutes.

Appreciation rate in Silicon Valley Real Estate revealed. Opportunity Knocks.

 

#YoungJacobShow#HowToDoubleYourMoney#SiliconValley

 

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How can you take an advantage of real estate appreciation by using this rule?

Einstein says  “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it … he who doesn’t … pays it.”

Question is which side of fence you are on; earning or paying?

WHAT IS THE RULE OF 72? The rule is  a simple method of estimating how long it will take compounding interest to double an investment.

For example,

If you invest $1 at 1% interest, I will take 72 years to double your money

If you invest $1 at 4% interest, it will take 18 years to double your money.

Since I am a realtor, I studied the appreciation rate in bay area since 1984. On average, the homes appreciated 8.55% per year past 34 years

Assuming you are buying 2 million dollar house in Palo Alto, based on rule of 72, how long will it take to double your money? $2million at 8.55% your money will double in 8.4 years. Remember, you are not investing the whole 2 million unless you are paying cash. You probably invest 20% of the purchase price and you get to live in your appreciating asset.
What does this mean?

If you are a buyer who are on the fence whether you shoud buy a home or not,Ask yourself two questions,

1. Do I like it enough to make an offer?

2. Can I afford the payment?

If both answers are yes, and you are negotiating the price, let’s say the gap between what seller wants and what you want to pay is $100K.

Don’t let 100K stop you from getting what you want and an opportunity to double your money in 8.4 years.