• Enjoy the Sunshine!
• A Thanks to Everyone
• Remodeling Your Home
• More Tech Stuff
• Resources for Buyers and Sellers
• The Market

Here we are in March, no rain, high temperature, people walking around in shorts, sandals and smiling a whole lot. Its' a great day!

Thanks everyone for your continued support and referrals. Your friendship and goodwill are at the heart of my business. Particularly since last year almost 90% of my business was from referrals from past clients or friends. As I continue to build my business, if you know of someone who would appreciate the level of service I provide, please call me with their name and business number and I will be happy to follow up and take great care of them.

REMODELING YOUR HOME

This month I would like to offer you helpful information if you are considering remodeling your home. Remodeling Magazine has provided me with information on costs of remodeling bathrooms and kitchens and the resale value plus the percent of the cost recovered at the time of a sale. Their website is www.remodeling.hw.net. The information also describes how to form a budget. If you would like a copy of this, please email me and I will send it right out. And, if on the day I receive your request, and I have conquered scanning on our new copy machine, I could even email the information directly to you. Let me know. .

MORE TECH STUFF

A friend of mine suggested I use what is called a 10 minute email program. This is great if you are shopping a lot online or having to respond to requests by giving your email address. This certainly avoids spam. Check into http://10minutemail.com/10MinuteMail/index.html - they offer a 30 day free trial.

Zillow has just published a report on the home values for Berkeley- Their headline: Zillow Buzz: Berkeley home values increased by 5 percent. Check it out. Keep in mind this company has some serious legal problems for undervaluing property in some locations. In reading through this report, it is published by zip code and I question the accuracy. Past clients have used Zillow as a benchmark for pricing, only to be defeated when submitting an offer; others have used this site for evaluating their property when listing, only to find Zillow greatly undervalued the property.

Let's move on….
Our Berkeley market is strong. We don't have many short sales or foreclosures and there are price ranges that are definitely more active than some.

Here are some statistics:
Berkeley, since January 1, 2008,
Price range over $500,000: There have been 10 sales closed, 21 are pending and there are 50 active listings on the market. And get this - of those 50 active listings, 24 are over $1,000,000. So many of my clients are in the $700,000 price range - we definitely need the federal stimulus package to kick in soon. That will allow loans to be at a better interest rate and financing in general more affordable.

I would be happy to talk to you about this if you want more information.

1625 Shattuck Avenue., S. 101, Berkeley, CA 94709
Diane@DianeVerducci.com | Direct: 510-982-4409

Copyright © 2007, Diane Verducci.
All Rights Reserved

This is not intended as a solicitation if your property is currently listed with another agent. Diane Verducci and Pacific Union believe all information to be reliable, but assumes no legal responsibility for its accuracy. Third-party links are provided as a convenience. Diane Verducci and Pacific Union Real Estate does not control and are not responsible for any of these sites or their content.