When I look  at REO’s in Sonoma County, I look for possible damage that has been quickly covered up to help sell the property. Also the agents who perform the repairs to the property often have very little information regarding the property. After all the goal of the listing agents is to sell the properties as quickly as possible and the agents  choose not to find out anything regarding the  history of the properties..

Therefore, it is the responsiblity of the buyer and his or her agent to make sure that the property has been permitted for the structures currently on the property. Looking closely at an unusal cement walkway leading to nowhere is a clue that maybe a pool was there and the second home on the property was really just zoned for a pool house. Obviously, the listing agent does not research these conditions and prefers to remain in the dark. The buyer’s agent must insist that the buyer  researches  the property at the proper City or County agencies to ascertain whether the REO is really what it appears to be. I happen to really enjoy the challenge of determining the value of these  properties. When I graduated from U.C.L.A. I went to work as an Administrative Assistant for the City of Los Angeles. I am very comfortable researching with my clients at the Sonoma County Permit and Resources office all the available information regarding the properties.

I have been very successful in finding REO’s for my clients in Sonoma County that have required very few repairs.  One property that was listed originally for over two million the buyers were able to buy it as an REO for just over a million .

Nevertheless, I highly recommend for investors and for clients who plan in living in the property to look closely at the REO’s that are now available. There are many diamonds in the rough that can make great investments. Especially now is the time to buy. The economy is obviously turning around and there are many buyers currently looking to buy. Don’t wait too long since I believe this is the bottom of the decline in home prices in Sonoma County and now is the time to take the leap into home ownership. Call me  at 707 495-4356 to discuss your concerns about home ownership or investment properties. The rental market is fantastic and will continue to support higher rents;  plus the cost of purchase money is at historic lows. ACT NOW.

Beautiful single story view property located on its own knoll in the exquisite  town of Healdsburg. The new owner will enjoy all the benefits of design and elegance that was created in 2001 with a professionally designed kitchen, gorgeous landscaping, a  small vineyard of Merlot grapes, and exceptional views of Alexander Valley and the hills beyond. When you walk into the home, a private entry foyer greets you. Next  you enter the great room which features a gas fireplace surrounded by custom built-ins and  10 foot high ceilings add to the feeling of  spaciousness and a wall of windows floods  the interior with light . You are greeted with the sunny southern exposure of the gorgeous backyard  which was professionally landscaped  and includes a large patio as well as a covered deck  where you can enjoy the view. A high hedge defines the boundary of the backyard and provides privacy to enjoy a glass of wine with your evening meal throughout the year.

The home is designed with two separate master suites on opposite ends of the home which truly is helpful since you can expect to have lots of visitors coming to enjoy the exceptional quality of life of Sonoma County and especially the town of Healdsburg.  From my own personal experience over the past 36 years I have seen Healdsburg change from a sleepy agricultural town to a world renowned hamlet featured in articles throughout the world. We boast the finest restaurants including Cyrus where I have enjoyed the highest quality of food and service. Besides Cyrus there is Ravenous on North Street,  Willi’s Seafood Food Raw Bar on Healdsburg Avenue, Bistro Ralph on the Plaza, just to name a few of the highest quality restaurants in Sonoma County and perhaps the world.

This exceptional .7 acre property is located just a few miles from Healdsburg’s famous square. One can walk from your new home to downtown and enjoy your morning coffee at the Flying Goat Coffee on Center Street where the locals gather every morning to enjoy conversations with each other. Another favorite  Mexican restaurant is El Sombrero on Center Street where I have enjoyed the best the town has to offer in Mexican cuisine without the fuss of a fancy place.

Another benefit of this home is the exceptional professionally designed kitchen with a center island featuring a huge slab of  light yellow Zodiac . The highest quality of appliances are featured along with a gorgeous  limestone tile floor. The highest quality of flooring is featured throughout the home as well as the 10 foot ceiling which adds to the feeling of spaciousness. The office is separated from the living area by a wall of gorgeous glass that serves to reduce any noise from the great room. The home is furnished with exceptionally beautiful furniture which one could purchase separately so that the property may be bought as a “turn key”.

This property is proudly offered at $1,139,000.

OWNERS LIKED PROPERTY SO MUCH THEY CHOSE TO KEEP IT AND MOVE BACK INTO THE REDWOOD COVERED PROPERTY

Once every fifty years or so, an opportunity comes along to own your own Heavenly fifteen acres in West  Sebastopol filled with its own Redwood forest, two year round streams, a  meadow,  an apple orchard and two ponds. The property  was built in the 50′s in the style of a main lodge and several cottages  and is named Willowbrook. This exquisite property boasts a lodge home with redwood logs decorating its exterior and interior along with three additional  one  bedroom cottages  in  a similar style.  A paved road leads to this serene setting just one mile north of Bodega Highway on Furlong Road. The quiet is punctured only by the sounds of the two streams, the rustling of the trees and the diverse wildlife of native birds whistling in the trees. The property boasts a sun drenched swimming pool with its own huge flagstone patio with steps leading down to another patio next to the bubbling year round stream. From the deck off the pool cabana, one can enjoy the view of the Redwood forest, stream and huge ferns growing in its own grotto like setting.

The fifteen acres are gifted with both the warming sun in the meadow, the ponds, and the pool area as well as the apple orchard on the other side of one of the streams. The lodge is kissed by the sun, while behind the main home  a redwood grove grows with its cool  shadows creating a cool area to relax.  A trail leads around the lodge through the forest to the beautiful pool area which enjoys the warming rays of the sun.

Priced at $1,175,000.00

Please call Realtor Sheila Giovan at 707 495-4356 for a private showing. All showings must be arranged through the selling agent.

Stunning West Dry Creek Valley 40 acre Estate Bulding site with spectacular views of vineyards and Dry Creek Valley below.  Cleared and ready for the most discriminating buyer who is looking forward to building in the most gorgeous area of the wine country in Healdsburg.  The property is located on the bench line on the western side of  West Dry Valley directly behind the award winning Raymond Burr’s winery.  All trails and roads have been improved so that you can tranverse the entire property.  The southern part of the property boasts a possible building site already leveled and with an additional extraordinary view. No matter what you goals are, this property is a rare find of a buildable site,  existing 12000 gallon cement water tank, existing new well drilled in November  2009 as well as other water sources, and a new septic system has been designed and permitted by the County  and is ready to be installed.  Electricity is on the property attached to the antique home  which can be used to live in while you are building your dream home. A seasonal stream and beautiful trees add to the serenity of the parcel.

In addition, this property enjoys ideal Healdsburg weather  conditions where the sun rises over the eastern part of Dry Creek Valley and lights this property so you can have your morning coffee in the sunlight. The views  from the older antique home are spectacular of the well manicured  valley below.

If you are thinking of building in the wine country,  this is the property that you must see and bring a glass of wine to stop and enjoy the views.

The price is $1,350,000.

Please contact Sheila Giovan at 707 495-4356 for a private showing.

Beautiful view from knoll overlooking the Russsian River Valley

SOLD, TOO LATE TO BUY THIS FABULOUS VIEW PROPERTY

10.33 acre estate parcel has remarkable panoramic views of the Russian River Valley with vineyards in every direction. Features include 3 bd/2 bath ranch style home, huge renovated barn with cement floor and office. The barn can easily hold 10 cars. Additional amenities include tennis court, smallcottage, large covered patio surrounded by adult shade trees and garden. Six acres are planted with award winning Pinot Noir grapes which are leased and provide great views and income ($10,000) per year. In addition, 3 ½ acres+- are ready to be planted by the new owners with the added bonus of free tertiary water on site. The property is totally private , located on a hilltop with exceptional views and yet not visible from the main road. A Must See!

VisualTour of this listing.

Offered at $998,500.

This is the time to start looking at Short  Sales in Sonoma County. Short Sale homes and investment properties are homes and condos that the owner has missed a minimum of two  bank payments.  Hopefully, once the owner has missed two payments, he or she should enlist a realtor to see about selling the home before the foreclosure is final. The owners  market the homes in hopes of selling them before the bank forecloses on the home. In addition, the homeowner’s credit  is less effected by a short sale property than a foreclosed property. Therefore, it behooves the owner to try to complete a short sale as soon as possible.

Short sale homes run the full gammit of prices from $200,000 to the millions. Today  I ran all the Short Sales in Sonoma County for all homes that are currently in Short Sale status from $200,000 to 2 milion. There are currently 669 available homes and condos in Sonoma County.

Short Sales in Sonoma County

Once the Short Sales are listed, you have the opportunity to bargain for the homes. At this point,  the Buyer has the opportunity to look at the property. The Buyer actually ends up dealing with Bank or Savings and Loan which owns the First mortgage and perhaps the Second mortgage as well. The owners often do not realize that they are not in the driver’s seat anymore.  The Banks are the ones that decide to accept an offer or reject it. The drawback from Short Sales is that the Buyer must be prepared to wait several months to complete the deal. It is exasperating to deal with the Banks, however,it is worth the wait when the Buyer gets the house at a greatly reduced price.

Why look at  Short Sales?

The obvious reason is that the price is so much cheaper than a regular sale where there isn’t any problem with delinquent loans. The owners of regular houses do not want to address the huge depreciation in their property as reflected by the hundreds of thousands less in asking price on REO’s and Short Sales. It is very difficult to explain to current property owners that their home prices have followed the REO’s and Short Sales down in pricing. Therefore, it is much easier to look at realistic pricing of  Short Sales!

Playing the Game of Short Sales

I refer to the Short Sale Experience as much like a game. The property isn’t sold until the lenders decide to accept the offer. The property owner has no input into the agreed price between the buyers and the banks. The banks can wait and extend the period when they are accepting offers. And in addition, if your offer is accepted, the bank can accept another offer that is better than yours. The bank has the right to take a better offer even  if the property is listed as CC, Contingent-Show. Therefore, I recomment that we look at properties that are listed as CC because you too can pump the last price that was offered.

669 Short Sales Available in Sonoma County on December 21, 2008

My proposal is to list my favorite homes on my blog that I select  to entice prospective Buyers to call me and see these excellent buys in Sonoma County. You can Google me to see my background in Sonoma County and the articles that have been written about me in the Press Democrat. I also have built two custom  homes from the ground up and I am familiar with the costs to remodel homes with my list of trusted contractors. My full name is Sheila H. Giovan and I can be reached at 707 495-4356 mobile phone. I am associated with Healdsburg Sotheby’s International Realty at 409 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg.

Making your own Search for Short Sales

Also, you can run a search for yourself on my winecountryranches.com which you can name the exact areas that you are interested and the price. It is tied to the MLS(Mutliple Listing Service) and therefore is updated to that moment. It is an ideal way to search for properties that meet your criteria.

I have lived in Sonoma County for over thirty four years. I am very knowledgeable about  Sonoma County. I have a passion for the beauty and uniqueness of this area of California. I look forward to working with you if you decide to look at these great bargains!

One last thought, how long will these REO’s and Short Sales last? At this time the Press Democrat is still publishing daily lists of homes to be auctioned at the court house steps. Until these postings of delinquent property owners stop, we will be seeing more Short Sales and REO’s to look at and buy at greatly reduced prices.

Let me give you some examples in  the market right now. Call me to see any of these homes.

260 Clear Ridge Drive in Healdsburg is an example of a property that is vacant and is an REO currently listed for $820,999. The original list price was over $1,500,000. This home was built as an expensive spec house that missed the elevated prices of a few years ago. This home features beautiful views and is very modern in design. It would be  great for a second home in Healdsburg for entertaining.

3783 Shillingord Place in Vistara in Santa Rosa is listed for $899,000 and was priced substantially above a million. It has a spectacular view from the top of Founttaingrove. This is very well priced for a Vistara subdivision home where almost  all the homes have sensational views.

9964 Troon Court in Oak Hills Estates is another beautiful home that is listed currently at $944,000.  Oak Hills Estates is a million dollar luxury neighborhood in Windsor located on huge lots and each home is individually designed mostly by architects. It features 4281 square feet on just under a half acre.

This is just three examples out of hundreds in Sonoma County of luxury REO homes.

My plan is to list my favorite homes that I select each week to entice prospective Buyers to call me and see these excellent buys in Sonoma County. You can Google me to see my background in Sonoma County and the articles that have been written about me in the Press Democrat. I also have built two custom homes from the ground up and I am familiar with the costs to remodel homes with my list of trusted contractors. My full name is Sheila H. Giovan and I can be reached at 707 495-4356 mobile phone. I am associated with Healdsburg Sotheby’s International Realty at 409 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg.

I have lived in Sonoma County for over thirty four years. I am very knowledgeable about  Sonoma County. I have a passion for the beauty and uniqueness of this area of California. I look forward to working with you if you decide to look at these great bargains!

One last thought, how long will these REO’s last? At this time the Press Democrat is still publishing daily lists of homes to be auctioned at the court house steps. Until these postings of delinquent property owners stop, we will be seeing more REO’s to look at and buy at greatly reduced prices.