If you've been waiting for mortgage rates to come down before buying or selling a home, the last six months have probably been frustrating.

On February 23, the national average for a 30-year mortgage briefly fell below 6%, reaching 5.99%.

As of September 3, that average has climbed to 6.88%.

So, what happened? And perhaps more importantly for buyers and sellers in Placer County, what could cause mortgage rates to move up or down from here?

The Fed Doesn't Directly Control Mortgage Rates

This is probably one of the biggest misconceptions about interest rates.

Since February, the Federal Reserve has met four times and has not raised its short-term interest rate once. It kept rates unchanged at every meeting.

Yet during that same…

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I recently met with some new clients who were referred to me by a past client.

They've lived in their home since the 1990s and are now planning to sell, move out of state and downsize into a smaller home.

Like many people who have lived in the same house for decades, they've accumulated a lot of belongings along the way.

Furniture. Tools. Clothes. Boxes in the garage. Things from when the kids were younger. Things they haven't used in years, but never really had a reason to get rid of.

Now they're faced with sorting through all of it while also preparing for a move to a smaller home.

It's a big job, but it's also completely manageable if you start early and take it one step at a time.

And if you're planning to sell, decluttering…

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When people start thinking about selling a home, most of the conversation naturally revolves around real estate.

What is the home worth? How much equity do I have? Where am I going next? What will my next home cost?

Those are all important questions, but there's another one that can be just as important:

What are the tax consequences if I sell?

I've helped many clients sell longtime primary residences without owing federal capital gains tax on the sale because their gain fell within the primary residence exclusion. I've also worked with homeowners whose properties appreciated so much that their gains exceeded the exclusion, sometimes substantially.

I've seen this particularly with longtime homeowners who purchased their homes decades ago…

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After what feels like weeks of triple-digit temperatures across our area, many homeowners are about to receive one of the least exciting pieces of mail they'll get all year, their summer electric bill.

While we all appreciate a cool house when it's 105° outside, the cost of keeping it comfortable can vary dramatically from one home to another.

When people think about buying a home, they naturally focus on the purchase price and monthly mortgage payment. But the ongoing cost of owning a home can vary just as much, and energy efficiency can play a major role in both monthly affordability and long-term value.

Whether you're looking at homes in Rocklin, Lincoln, Granite Bay, Loomis, Auburn, or one of the surrounding communities, energy-efficient…

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When buyers tell me they're looking for a home in Winchester Country Club, one request comes up again and again:

"We'd really like a newer single-story home."

It sounds like a simple request, but it's actually one of the hardest combinations to find within the community.

If you've been following the market for Winchester Country Club homes for sale, you've probably noticed that many of the available homes were custom built years ago, while many of the newest homes feature multi-level floor plans. Winchester remains one of the premier luxury communities in Meadow Vista, offering larger homesites, mature trees, and a peaceful foothill setting while remaining within an easy drive of Auburn, Roseville, and Sacramento.

A Rare Opportunity

My…

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As we move through the second half of summer, the Placer County housing market continues to show remarkable resilience.

While July brought the typical seasonal slowdown from June, buyer demand remained strong enough to keep inventory below where it was a year ago. Home prices continued to appreciate, well-priced listings attracted strong interest, and Placer County remained firmly in a seller's market.

Whether you're buying or selling in Rocklin, Roseville, Loomis, Lincoln, Granite Bay, Auburn, Newcastle, Penryn, Meadow Vista, or elsewhere in Placer County, understanding the latest market trends can help you make better real estate decisions.

If you've been following my monthly market updates, you may also want to read my June 2026 Placer County…

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Why First Impressions Matter More Than Ever in Today's Placer County Real Estate Market

This week I spent the morning at one of my upcoming listings while the photographer was capturing the home.

As I watched the drone fly overhead and the Matterport camera scan each room, I couldn't help but think about how much selling a home has changed over the years.

Growing up, I watched my parents build their real estate business in the early 1990s. Back then, marketing a home was much simpler—and much more limited.

Many listings didn't include photos at all.

Buyers relied on a written description, local knowledge, newspaper ads, and often a drive-by to decide whether a home was worth seeing in person.

Today, that seems almost unimaginable.

…

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Whether you're buying or selling a home in Placer County, one of the biggest misconceptions is that success begins and ends with the MLS.

For buyers, many people assume every available home can be found online.

For sellers, many people assume that once their home is listed on the MLS, the marketing is done.

In reality, that's often just the beginning.

Recently, I mailed the letters pictured below to homeowners in a neighborhood where one of my buyers would love to live.

Why?

Because the home they wanted had already gone under contract.

Rather than simply waiting and hoping another similar home would hit the market, I decided to see if there were homeowners who had already been thinking about selling but just hadn't taken the next…

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Summer is one of the best times of the year to enjoy your home. Whether you're relaxing by the pool, spending the day at Folsom Lake, or hosting friends for a backyard barbecue, this is the season when your home gets plenty of use.

It's also when the long stretches of hot, dry weather we experience throughout Placer County put extra strain on many of your home's most important systems.

The good news? A few hours of preventative maintenance now can improve your home's efficiency, help you avoid expensive repairs, and protect one of your biggest investments.

Here are some mid-summer maintenance tips that are especially worthwhile for homeowners in Roseville, Rocklin, Lincoln, Granite Bay, Loomis, Auburn, and throughout Placer County.

Keep…

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As we move into the second half of the year, the Placer County housing market continues to show remarkable resilience.

While more homes came on the market in June, buyer demand remained strong enough to keep inventory well below where it was a year ago. Homes are continuing to sell at a healthy pace, well-priced listings are attracting attention, and we're still firmly in a seller's market.

Let's take a look at what happened in June.

Inventory & Sales Activity

Inventory continued its normal seasonal climb, but demand remained strong.

June Highlights

  • Homes for sale increased 9.7% compared to May.
  • Inventory remains 8.5% lower than June 2025.
  • 485 homes sold, virtually unchanged from May.
  • Closed sales were 20.6% higher…

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