For Sale By Owner: How agentless transactions can turn into royal nightmares
Posted by Bonnie in Uncategorized on March 11th, 2009
By Carol Lloyd, Special to SF Gate
Friday, July 20, 2007
Last week I wrote about the benefits of selling your own home. After decades of the National Association of Realtors claiming that working with an agent brought buyers more money even after the commission, a new academic study found quite the opposite: that buyers who sell homes without an agent can profit mightily from their hard work and entrepreneurship. But before sellers jump into the For Sale By Owner fray in search of fatter profits, it’s worth listening to those who have jumped before them and have injuries to show for it.
Most tales of real estate gone wrong entail an accusation — deserved or not — about the agent. But nothing screams stress like a real estate nightmare without an agent to blame.
“It’s been insane, I’ve had three different lawyers, and I’m out at least $10,000 dealing with this,” says Alan Jacobson, a newspaper design consultant.
Bringing Up Baby
Posted by Bonnie in Uncategorized on March 10th, 2009
Becoming a parent doesn’t have to mean moving to the suburbs. City lovers will find plenty of housing options in these family-friendly SF ’hoods.
by Nicole Beckley
posted July 13, 2007 2:07PM
Photo by Stefanie Michejda
Finding the perfect home in SF can be a challenge for anyone, but couples starting a family are looking beyond the baby bustle of Noe Valley and turning a progressive eye toward other neighborhoods, such as the more industrial Potrero Hill. “We’re in the middle of a baby boom,” says Bonnie Spindler, of Zephyr Real Estate (415-474-4445, bonniespindler.com). “There are so many couples having babies that you’re finding strollers in a lot more places in the city than you used to.”