Mark Wisterman's Paradise & Lake Oroville Real Estate Blog

There are  just a little over 60 days until the November 2010 elections. And while it is my policy to not engage in partisan political rhetoric on this Lake Oroville real estate market blog site, I still feel it is important to engage my readers in government policy discussions that effect them as home owners, home sellers and home buyers.

The discussions we have had concerning my position on the recent tax credit is the best example of  the type of “political” discussion I prefer to have on this site. And, as always, I appreciate your comments on my posts whether your comments are made here, or on Facebook, or Twitter, Trulia, Zillow, or anywhere else these blog posts are seen on the World Wide Web.

With the election day fast approaching, I feel, that the current political climate and economic situation in which we find ourselves, should give you have an opportunity to your voice opinion on some of the candidates running for seats in elections that I believe have a major influence on our Oroville housing market.

Below you will find a “ballot” that I have put together to let you do just that. This ballot can also be found on the side bar at the far right hand side of this site so you can easily find the ballot if you want to come back later to vote.

If you would like, you may also leave comments on this post about any of the candidates running for these offices. But beware, I am the moderator of the comment line and only supportive, substantive, comments for your preferred candidates are allowed. And because I am sick and tired of negative campaigns; no negative, mean spirited comments will be allowed.

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Oroville real estate, oroville homes for sale, Oroville California, chico listings, Oroville listings, paradise listings, Paradise Ca homes for sale, Butte County home for sale, Oroville properties, houses for sale, gridley property

After two consecutive days of “the sky is falling” reporting about the real estate market, I thought you all might appreciate some time meeting with our resident Lake Oroville Real Estate psychiatrist to help deal with this “tragic” news. 

Free Real Estate Market, meet Dr. I Told You So

Dr. I Told You So: What seems to be the problem today, Free Market

Free Market: I’m  just exhausted, Doc.

I Told You So: Really? Tell me why.

Free Market: Well, every time I try to do my job, something, or someone, interferes with me.

I Told You So: Didn’t we have this conversation about 10 years ago?

Free Market: Yes, when a bunch of meddlers forced me to loan money to people who would never have been approved for a loan, had they let me do my job. 

I Told You So:  So, how has it gone since then?

Free Market: Well, I hit my head real hard when I fell of the cliff. Since then they have been trying to put me on disability, thinking that I am no longer capable of doing my job.

I Told You So: Let me get this right, they attempted to disable you, Free Market.

Free Market: Yes.

I Told You So: Didn’t I tell you that there is no way to disable you? That the only way to stop you is to take you over?

Free Market: Yes, but how come nobody else seems to understand this?

I Told You So: Who is nobody? Read the rest of this entry »

The game hunting world is all abuzz this morning as word spreads that Lake Oroville resident Pat Butler set a world record by bagging the largest Tule Elk while bow hunting on Grizzly Island  yesterday. 

According to reports from the hunting grounds, Butler, an owner of  the ever popular Wagon Wheel Market, here in the Lake Oroville real estate market,  took the 8 x 8 elk during the afternoon hunt. By late afternoon representatives from the Department of Fish and Game certifed it as the largest elk ever taken by hunting with bow and arrow, granting Pat world record status for his efforts.

I think there is elk jerky in my future!!!!!!!!

Congratulations Pat.

You knew it wouldn’t be long before I made it easier for you to utilize your smart phone to access this blog site, search for properties in the Lake Oroville, Paradise  and Chico California real estate markets, and get the latest in interest rates and other real estate news and advice.

Today I am announcing the launch of my very own iPhone app that is now available for download at the App Store. With this highly sophisticated, but easy to use, app you now have not only my contact information in the palm of your hand but you can now access all the services of my blog site with just the touch of a button. No more addresses to remember and no more passwords to forget. This is just another investment I am making for you in order to provide a service, that nobody else in the Lake Oroville real estate market will,  in order to make current and relevant real estate information readily available to you.

See my current listings, check out my latest blog post, or even find my Facebook, Twitter, and Linked-In pages. Spend as much, or a little time as your prefer because there is NO COST to you to download this App. Check back often, though because updates and come cool additions are coming soon.

And unlike many of today’s apps this app will be compatible with Blackberry and Droid users. Look for the rollout annoucement for these phones on the site sometime before Labor Day.

Download your app at the iTunes App store and search for AgentNTouch. After downloading, launch the app and in the Agent I.D. box enter 5303704691.

I would greatly appreciate your feedback and suggestions. My goal is to always be an AgentNTouch.

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Today’s news that new homes sales are at their worst level in recorded history comes on the heels of yesterday’s report that existing home sales we down more than 2% while the “experts” were expecting an increase of almost 6%, is great example of what I am afraid is going to be another 6 months to a year of pain for sellers and homeowners.  I hope I am wrong , but I fear that I am not.

But, wait!! I thought the government’ s tax credit program was supposed to stabilize the market. If you listened to, and believed what,  the National Association of REALTORS® and the California Association of REALTORS® have had to say about the credits, you should be seeing a recovery by now. But, what we are beginning to see, on a National basis, (which is what most of us read and hear about) is a rapid move of the market toward the place it would have already gone,if  the people who should know better would have been honest about the ultimate impact of these credits they were supporting.

Instead these groups landed on the side of  getting a quick “fix” instead of thinking long term. Now we have to look even longer term because the inevitable has been prolonged.

Now let’s be honest here. I and my office associates, here in the Lake Oroville and Paradise real estate markets,  no doubt benefited from the temporary increase in sales that resulted from the credits. Our sales numbers increased like everyone else’s.  I would, however, have gladly sacrificed the short term benefits in order to re-establish a viable, vibrant and free real estate market. One that has staying power.

As it is we are saddled with the hangover from the housing version of  Cash For Clunkers, or as I prefer to call it:  “Funds For Foreclosures”

If you think that I am all gloomy and doomy about this market you are wrong. I think that expiration of these tax credits now allow us to come back to reality and now focus on the real cause of this market today. UNEMPLOYMENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Maybe a softer real estate market going into election season will be one more reason to finally get us the changes we need in order to get  our country’s, and our state’s, economic engine restarted.

As they say, Everything Happens for A Reason.

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Wow, it has been a very long time since we last got together on what was the leading real estate blog site in the entire northern end of California.

What’s that you ask? Where have I been?

If you must know, I have been in the same place I have been since the beginning of this blog. In my Lake Oroville Real estateoffice; attending to the needs of my clients; brushing up on the lastest real trends, expanding my knowledge through a couple of certification programs that allow me to be of even more help to those struggling with their home mortgages; and spending a little more quality time with family and friends.

What I haven’t been doing, as I am sure you have noticed, is blogging. It seems that I have a ton of ideas of which to write about, but I have just simply been unable to sit down and do it. I feel like I have had “blogger’s block.”  If you have never heard of this debilitating ailment before it is because I just made it up and am sure that I am the first to suffer from it. I am sure though that the cost to treat this disease will be covered under the new national health care plan!!!!

A few of my Facebook friends and I were joking around during the peak of my blogging activity one day and the word “blogarrhea” was used to describe my prolific blog postings. Now however, it seems that I have been suffering from “blogstipation.”  

No longer though. Today I am taking control of this disease and will no longer let it deny you the opportunity to once again read the most relevant real estate news and advice of the day. It is true, I have a lot of work to do to catch up. But I am undaunted by the tasks that lie ahead.  Beginning today I am back, and I thank you for your loyalty to me and this blogsite.

Now……..back to work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the 200th  post for thisLake Oroville & Paradise, CA real estate market blog. For a milestone such as this you might think that I would have something profound to impress upon you about the housing market in the Lake Oroville and Paradise, California areas.

To tell the truth, I actually considered that. But I came upon something yesterday that changed my mind about how to celebrate this monumental moment.

The hard drive on the computer that I use in my day to day operations is getting a little full. Ok, it is almost totally full. The hard drives on all my computers are  like my garage and storage area at my home.  I have a hard time throwing anything out. After all, I might need that stuff someday.

But, the time had finally come to clean house in a cyberspace sort of way.  As I was deleting files to make room for those that are now more important,  I came upon some old ad copy that I had written more than 10 years ago for listings that we were marketing back in the days when I was working with Bob Beever Realty.

Given the condition of the housing market in Oroville and Paradise, I thought you might enjoy a look back at some of those ads. See, I told you I might need them some day!!!

Ad copy for 9/30/99

 HARD TO FINDfive acres with well and 3 bd septic. Close to airport, golf, fishing and boating at Afterbay. Power readily accessible. Owner will carry with low down. Asking $45,000

 BANK REPO! 3bd 2ba 1980 mobile on 4 level acres. Has potential but needs work. Seller willing to finance for a long long long time with low low low down. Only $34,900

 TRIPLEX close to downtown. Seller motivated to sell quickly. Almost no vacancy rate. Assume favorable financing or ask seller to carry some paper. All offers considered. $114,900

 BEAUTIFUL VALLEY VIEW: Level to gentle sloping 5 acre parcel. Power close, minutes to lake, and you can almost see forever from here. Just $37,000

 ALMOST DESPERATE sellers need quick sale on this gorgeous property. Over 2700 sq ft incl. finished basement, 2 kitchens, 2 fireplaces, 24X48 shop, fenced pasture, small citrus grove. All on five acres close to town. Recently reduced to $198,000

 OUT OF TOWN SELLER can’t play landlord anymore. This home would make good rental or be perfect for buyer on small budget. Only $35,500

COPY FOR 12/3 – 12/4 1999 Read the rest of this entry »

 Now, before you get too excited about the change in sales for the Paradise real estate market compared to last week, you need to know that I have made a change in the areas that I am tracking for you.  Due to popular demand I have now added the Magalia area to my Paradise CA weekly reporting.  Reporting on a larger geographical area will smooth our the wild swings in the numbers that sometime occur with smaller samples of numbers. Stay tuned for future reports.

Have you ever had one of those days, weeks, or years when you finally get so fed up with something that your head almost explodes. Well, I am having one of those moments right now, in good old Lake Oroville, CA. and I guess I am going to have to be the first one to do something about it since it seems that nobody else wants to.

Below is a letter I just mailed off to the California Department of Real Estate, in the hopes that something can finally be done to bring some of these REO agents back to reality. I am absolutely tired of these agents hiding behind the excuse that a bank owned listing exempts them from doing their job. They must be held accountable for their inaction.

February 16, 2010

California Department of Real Estate

Attn: Enforcement

P.O Box 187000

Sacramento, CA 95818-7000

Dear Sir/Madam:

Over my nearly 16 years in the California real estate business, I have seen a continuing deterioration in the care that many licensees take in the performance of their duties as required by the laws and regulations under which they operate.

With the enormous numbers of foreclosures that have come to the market over the past 3-4 years has come a likewise increase in the number of licensees who fail to fulfill their duties under their license. The biggest violations have to do with the lack of disclosures being made by listing agents for their bank owned listings.

In the past, if an agent neglected to provide me with the appropriate disclosures, a simple phone call to the agent fixed the problem. The missing disclosure would either be faxed or e-mailed to me promptly. This is not the case in today’s market environment. There are an ever increasing number of agents who either refuse, or ignore their duty of disclosure. In particular, many agents are not performing any type of diligent visual inspection, and the problem seems to be growing.

Enclosed are three examples of what we have received in our office lately from agents who have neglected, or ignored their duty to disclose. Each of these from agents representing REO listings.

While it gives me no satisfaction to resort to lodging this complaint with your department, I feel I can no longer sit silently by while our industry continues to shoot its reputation in the foot. I am sure that I will most likely suffer some repercussions from my fellow REALTORS for lodging this complaint, but at some point someone has to stand up for the right thing; not the popular thing.

If there is anything I can do to shed further light on these cases please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours truly,

Mark S. Wisterman

Broker/Owner

DRE# 01181168

A few years back I had the opportunity to help a nice couple sell their Lake Oroville house. It was a house they had lived in for a very long time. They had raised two children to adulthood there and were now enjoying  visits from their grandchildren.

One day as the transaction for the sale of the property was coming to a close I had occasion to meet with them about their transaction. During our conversation the wife was telling me that she felt bad about selling the property. When I asked her why, she said that she felt sad that she was selling her “home.” At that point I said to her, “You’re selling your house, you get to take your home with you.” She was puzzled by my comment until I explained that her “home” was simply contained within the house. Her home was all the memories she enjoyed in the house. All the photos, the furniture, the keepsakes and all those things hanging from refrigerator magnets, along with all the memories while living there, were all things that she gets to take with her to her next house, to turn IT into a home.

Over my nearly 16 years in the Lake Oroville real estate business I have seen many sellers struggle emotionally with the sale of their property. In fact, so much so,  that it can sometimes actually negatively affect their decision making process. Negotiating from an emotional standpoint is never a good thing.

For some sellers, and prospective sellers, this little bit of advice I am going to give you may not be what you want to hear but I think it is vital to your ultimate goal of selling your property.

The minute you decide to sell your dwelling you need to put it out of your mind that you are selling your home. The thought that you are selling your home needs to be replaced with the thought that you are selling a house. A house is a commodity and you need to do the best you can do to make this your mindset from the time you decide to sell through the entire escrow process.

To do otherwise runs the risk of making  decisions that could cost you the opportunity to sell at the best price. It can actually cost you an opportunity to sell at all.

Nearly every REALTOR® can tell you a story of a seller who was  ‘offended’ by a buyer’s offer because of an emotional attachment to their house. What normally happens in these instances is that the seller will either reject the buyer’s offer or be totally inflexible during the negotiation process, resulting in the buyer deciding to buy a different house.  Inevitably the frustrated seller eventually either takes the house off the market or ends up selling it for much less that the original buyer’s “offensive” offer.

Becoming emotionally detached from the property you are selling can be be very difficult. But, as hard as this may be for some of you to hear or read,  for your own financial well being, is something that is necessary to accomplish.

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