A Seller’s Perspective
Preparing your home for sale
I am in the midst of preparing two listing for sale. The sellers of my La Crescenta listing have lived in the home for twenty years and their adult children need to claim their belongings from the garage. Like most listings, the landscape needs...
Lockbox Pros and Cons
Dear Phyllis, I am now the trustee of my parent’s Washington state home and am now interviewing Realtors. Because the home is vacant, one Realtor suggested a lockbox as this will make it easier to show. The other prefers that he or som...
If escrow was easy, Realtors would be out of business
If escrow was easy, Realtors would be out of business. There are a lot of pieces to listing a home. The first step is to meet with the client to determine their needs. Then I develop a plan of action: how far are we going to go in sprucing up t...
When is the buyer’s deposit at risk?
Dear Phyllis, I am helping my aunt sell her La Crescenta home so she can move closer to my sister who lives in Oregon. Her neighbor is a semi-retired Realtor® and offered to list her home for a discounted commission. Her home sold and e...
Deciphering real estate commissions
Dear Phyllis, We are going to sell our home in the fall. While this may not be ideal timing, this is what works best for us. We have talked with several agents and their real estate commissions varies from 4 ½ to 6%. Our La Crescenta ho...
How long will it take to sell my home?
Dear Phyllis, My husband has retired and we want to move somewhere more affordable. I understand homes in La Crescenta are selling quickly but how quickly? The thought of keeping my home neat enough for viewings puts me in a panic. I am ...
Selling with minimal effort
Ask Phyllis is a blog series of frequently asked real estate questions. Have a question about real estate? Email us here Dear Phyllis, I have been reading your real estate column for years, and love it. I am getting to the age tha...
Selling by owner
Dear Phyllis, Our elderly mother lived in her home for more than 30 years and just passed. Her next door neighbor was very kind and did a lot of nice things for her such as taking trash cans out and in. This neighbor wants to buy her hom...
