By Jenn Pfeiffer, Realtor® | Greenbrae, Marin County & San Francisco Real Estate Expert
Realtor of the Year 2024 | Marin IJ Best Realtors Honorary Mention 2025
Mortgage rates have been moving in waves lately, and many homebuyers across Marin County, Greenbrae, and San Francisco are asking the same question:
Why are mortgage rates rising again after briefly dipping below 6%?
While the recent shift can feel confusing, the reality is that mortgage rates respond to a handful of major economic forces. Understanding these factors can help buyers and sellers make more confident decisions in today’s real estate market.
As a Greenbrae-based Realtor serving Marin County and San Francisco, I’m breaking down the key drivers...
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From our friends at the kcm blog
Homeowners looking to sell usually want three things: plenty of interested buyers, strong offers, and a short timeline. Spring is the season that most often delivers all three.
So, if a move has been on your mind this year, this is the window where momentum tends to work in your favor. Here’s what makes this season so powerful for sellers.
1. More Buyers Will Be Looking
Typically speaking, in the housing market, there’s no more popular time to move than the Spring. Historically, data coming out of ShowingTime proves that’s when buyer activity peaks each year. Take a look for yourself (see graph below):
And this year, there’s more than just...
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By The Jenn Pfeiffer Team | Jenn Pfeiffer, Realtor & Certified Probate Real Estate Specialist
When a homeowner passes away, their assets—including real estate—must be legally transferred to heirs or beneficiaries. This process is known as probate.
Before any assets can be distributed, the court ensures that all outstanding debts and taxes (including mortgages) are paid. In many cases, this means the property must be sold through a probate sale, with proceeds used to settle the estate and distribute any remaining funds to heirs.
If you’re considering buying a probate property—or navigating one as part of an estate—here’s what you need to know.
Who’s Involved in a Probate Sale?
A probate sale involves several...
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From our friends at the kcm blog
Let’s be clear: selling your house is absolutely possible right now. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), roughly 11k homes sell every day in this country.
And the sellers who are making their moves happen all have one thing in common: they’ve adjusted their strategy to match today’s market. They’re realizing inventory has grown. Homebuyers are more selective. And buyer expectations are higher.
The sellers who struggle are usually approaching today’s market with yesterday’s expectations. Here are the three biggest mistakes they’re making – and how to avoid them.
1. Pricing Based on What Their Neighbor Got a Few Years Back
Setting your price is the most important decision you make...
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From our friends at the kcm blog
There’s one decision you’re going to make when you sell that determines whether your house sells quickly, or it sits. Whether buyers make an offer, or scroll past it. Whether you walk away with the maximum return, or you end up cutting the price later.
And that’s your asking price.
The #1 Mistake Sellers Make Today: Trusting the Wrong Number
If you’re thinking of moving and trying to figure out what your house may sell for, it’s tempting to start with an online home value tool. They’re fast, free, and easy. And you don’t have to talk to anyone. But here’s the problem: they don’t know...
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From our friends at the kcm blog
After a long stretch where buyers were competing for too few homes, inventory has made a comeback over the past year. And depending on where you live, that’s opening up your options in a meaningful way.
According to Realtor.com, the number of homes available for sale in January was the highest it’s been since 2020. Here’s why that’s such a big deal. Getting back to pre-pandemic levels signals a slow and steady return to what’s typical:
Now, it’s worth noting, nationally we’re not there yet – and having more inventory improving won’t suddenly “fix” the market. But the growth we’ve seen lately still changes how competitive the...
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From our friends at the kcm blog
There’s finally a little good news for anyone who’s been priced out or sitting on the sidelines.
Buying a home is getting more affordable.
Monthly payments have started to come down, and the squeeze buyers have been feeling for the past few years is slowly loosening. Now, that doesn’t mean everyone can suddenly afford a home, but with how tough the market’s been, the improvement we’re seeing matters.
Affordability Is Finally Moving in the Right Direction
One of the best ways to see this shift is by looking at how much of a household’s income it takes to buy a home.
According to Zillow, housing is typically considered affordable when...
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From our friends at the kcm blog
If you’re planning to buy a home this year, you may be focused on the spring market. And hoping that when spring does hit, you’ll see:
Mortgage rates drop a little more.
More homes hit the market.
But here’s what most buyers don’t realize. Buying just a few weeks earlier could mean paying less, dealing with less stress, and feeling less rushed.
Here are three reasons why accelerating your timeline over the next few weeks could actually be a better play.
1. Holding Out for Lower Rates May Pay Off
A lot of buyers are hoping mortgage rates will fall even further. But that’s not the...
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From The Jenn Pfeiffer Team
California quietly rolled out a new probate law on April 1, 2025, and while it may help some families avoid the probate process, it also highlights something we see all the time: there’s no substitute for good estate planning.
Here’s the short version — and why this matters if you own a home in California.
Why Probate Is Such a Big Deal
Probate is the court process used to distribute someone’s assets after they pass away. In California, it often takes a year or more, can be expensive, and delays heirs from accessing property, selling a home, or settling an estate.
That’s why avoiding probate — when...
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From our friends at the kcm blog
Want to know the #1 thing homeowners regret when they sell without an agent? It’s that they didn’t price their house correctly for their current market.
According to the latest data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), those sellers agree pricing their home effectively was the hardest part of the process.
Top 5 Most Difficult Task for Sellers Who Didn’t Use an Agent:
Getting the price right
Preparing or fixing up the house
Selling within the desired time frame
Handling all the legal documents
Finding the time to manage all aspects of the sale
And that makes sense. Pricing isn’t as simple as picking a number from an online estimate...
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