City tearing down house to build freeway, moving from Merced to Livermore/Pleasanton (real estate)

[cindyay]

We live near highway 99 in Merced, CA. The county/city will be assessing the value of our house in a couple of years, maybe sooner, and tearing it down to build more freeway so we are looking to move to Livermore/Pleasanton.

I have 2 questions:
Do you have any knowledge or tips as to how to increase the value of our home before they tear it down so we get at least what we paid for or more? We paid 350K. We've lived there 10 yrs and lots of minor things have gotten damaged. Should we fix these or not since it will be torn down in the end? My sister thinks we should do light renovation to improve value but does this work? If so, what should we work on?

2nd question:
Is now a truly good time to buy real estate? Sorry if this sounds dumb but I know very little and would like to get started asap. Who should I contact in Livermore/Pleasanton. I've looked at Trulia and seen a LOT of foreclosed homes. Is it a good idea to buy an REO one?

note: even though I put I or we bought the house, I meant to put my sister did and our whole family lives there; I am just helping to get us out and move to a new home.

Thanks, if you can give me any info on any of my questions.

I'm so glad I found this forum, so many knowledgeable people!

[Adriatica]

Originally Posted by cindyay

Do you have any knowledge or tips as to how to increase the value of our home before they tear it down so we get at least what we paid for or more? We paid 350K. We've lived there 10 yrs and lots of minor things have gotten damaged. Should we fix these or not since it will be torn down in the end? My sister thinks we should do light renovation to improve value but does this work? If so, what should we work on?

No, it's generally not worth it to improve a home in this situation. You would be better off putting that money toward a down payment on your next house for sure.

[Axxlrod]

I'd advise you to have an attorney involved when the govt. does appraise your house and present you a value for it. The govt will try to *********. They want to pay you as little as possible for your house.

[EscapeCalifornia]

What happens if the house is worth less than the mortgage?

[cindyay]

wow! thanks for letting me know. my sister kept saying that yes we should spend money so it can look better. thanks so much for the letting me know about the attorney part.

if anyone else has ANY tips, please let me know.

i started looking on movoto, instead of trulia, and found that watsonville has nice houses out in the country, which is what my parents want and they seem to be at good prices. does anyone know why, has it always been this way?

thanks so much again.

[MIKEETC]

Originally Posted by Axxlrod

I'd advise you to have an attorney involved when the govt. does appraise your house and present you a value for it. The govt will try to *********. They want to pay you as little as possible for your house.

Perhaps . But then again, that's not the government's money - that's your money and my money. Tax dollars are paying for her house. Do you want to pay more than the house is actually worth? I don't. If the comps in the general area say the house is worth xx dollars then she should get xx dollars. No more and no less.