Sacramento & Bay Area · Practical Guides

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Real numbers, no fluff. Practical guides for selling your house — written by people who actually buy houses, not marketers.

Guides for actual sellers

Each one answers a question we actually get from Sacramento and Bay Area homeowners.

Permits & Title

Selling a House with an Unpermitted Addition in California

Garage conversions and added bedrooms that never got a permit stop appraisals, lenders and insurers cold. What disclosure requires, and the three ways out.

Jul 14, 2026 · 9 min read Inherited Property

Prop 19 and Inherited Homes: What California Heirs Actually Pay

Proposition 19 ended the parent-child exclusion for most inherited homes. What reassessment costs, the principal residence exception, and the one-year clock.

Jul 9, 2026 · 10 min read Property Condition

Selling a Soft-Story Building in the Bay Area

San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley mandate seismic retrofit. What compliance costs, what the recorded notice does at sale, and how buyers price it.

Jul 2, 2026 · 8 min read Property Condition

Sewer Lateral Compliance When Selling in the East Bay

EBMUD requires a private sewer lateral certificate at sale. What the test involves, why old clay pipe usually fails, and who ends up paying.

Jun 24, 2026 · 7 min read Tenant Issues

Selling a Rent-Controlled Property in Oakland and Berkeley

Rent control follows the building, not the owner. What transfers to your buyer, what Costa-Hawkins does not exempt, and why vacancy is not a strategy.

Jun 17, 2026 · 10 min read Liens & Title

Selling a House with a Leased Solar System

Leased panels put a UCC-1 filing on your title and make your buyer credit-qualify twice. What each path costs, and what to sort out before listing.

Jun 10, 2026 · 8 min read Liens & Title

Mello-Roos and Special Assessments When Selling in Sacramento

CFD special taxes in Natomas, Elk Grove and Roseville shrink your buyer pool by cutting what they can borrow. Disclosure duties and whether payoff pencils.

Jun 3, 2026 · 7 min read Trust & Verification

Natural Hazard Disclosure: Flood, Fire and Liquefaction Zones

What each zone designation actually does to insurance, financing and price around Sacramento and the Bay — and why the map you bought under may have changed.

May 27, 2026 · 9 min read

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