Re/Max Gold - Lauren Bushell

10/29/2025

Great recap on what today’s Fed cut means for mortgage rates. 🏠 Still high at ~6.2% today but a lot better than the 7.5%+ we saw a few months back…

Fed Chair Jerome Powell joined the majority of the FOMC to vote for the quarter-point rate cut at Wednesday's meeting in Washington DC.

05/16/2025

Oof. Heads up friends and clients thrroughout CA with State Farm… 👀

The decision means State Farm can raise its rates an average 17% for homeowners, 15% for renters and condominiums, and 38% for rental dwellings starting June 1.

04/18/2025

Interesting notes on the lights and landscaping district in Folsom’s Natoma Station community. L&L’s are often on a property tax bill when mello roos bonds expire, to help with ongoing maintenance costs of the area…streetlights, parks, etc….usually only costing homeowners a few hundred dollars per year. Seems like the older districts in Folsom are now coming up against budgeting issues that may start impacting the city if the collected funds can no longer pay for the maintenance around us. Be sure to stay involved in what’s happening in your neighborhood!

Natoma Station residents vote against light district

03/14/2025

I’ve been talking about this a lot lately with my clients who are beginning home searches, but I think rising insurance costs over the next year are going to be pretty dramatic. The LA fires will not just impact Angelenos, but I think it will impact us all throughout CA, even those in low risk areas. Be sure to watch for notices from your insurance agency on rising premiums so you’re not caught off guard! 🏠

California insurance regulators on Friday granted an emergency request from State Farm to raise premiums by 22%, but there are conditions.

12/10/2024

Came across another article about fraud in real estate transactions - it’s definitely becoming more and more frequent. The best advice I can give on anything in life requiring sending large amounts of money via wire: Trust, but verify. It takes seconds to verify via a quick phone call that the information you received via email is accurate prior to hitting send. Be safe and financially smart out there!

Three days before closing on his Chicago-area condo in September, Cullen Brown received an email detailing down payment wiring directions from the title company working with the seller, one of the final steps before he could achieve his dream of first-time homeownership.

10/29/2024

This story is a perfect example of the exact reason why I talk my clients’ ears off during showings and why I often share my age old warning of “green space may not always be green space”. This pocket of homes in EDH’s Serrano community has several large and not-so-cheap homes currently backing up to an open field and probably a lovely view that these owners may have paid a premium for…aaaaand you know where I’m going with this….

It looks like they may very well soon be backing up to a large looming Costco in their rear view. Plans appear to be underway to develop this area off Silva Valley Parkway into a Costco complex. I love myself some Costco…they took all my money just a few hours ago in exchange for a sample of pizza, but what will these owners soon be experiencing behind their rear fences? Gas station sounds and smells? Parking lot lights at night? Delivery trucks early in the morning? Traffic? Smog? Smells? Yikes. Definitely a change in scenery from what they initially purchased.

I can think of a few other examples in our area where similar things happened. The new gas station in Folsom Ranch sits super close to two story homes now looking at shade/rain structures and lights at night. Owners in Rocklin once backed up to a golf course that went kaput and turned brown with talks of development.

In real estate, the one constant is development will continue. It may not be today, tomorrow, or next year, but that open space may not be open space forever….

El Dorado County Supervisor John Hidahl said Costco bought land straddling Silva Valley Parkway with the intention of building a shopping center and a gas station.

10/22/2024

Hey friends! It’s time to get your V-O-T-E on! 🗳️

09/27/2024

Have you heard about Sacramento’s newest city? Interesting concept with a business hub, bicycle focused center city, etc. But located right by the landfill? Okay…. 🤷🏼‍♀️

Construction crews broke ground Thursday on a new town known as Braden that is coming to Sacramento County.

09/04/2024

Sold to another happy buyer! 🏠

This home inspection turned out to have Kitec plumbing - a faulty type of Pex plumbing known to have defects / and we were fortunate to have a smart home inspector on our side. We were able to negotiate the expensive cost of the $23K replacement and my clients have already scheduled the repair! In just a few weeks, they’ll have peace of mind that they won’t have leaky pipes running thru their walls and floors! A home inspection may seem costly when you’re writing that check but it cases like this, it’s wellllllllll worth it to have that inspection done during escrow!!

09/03/2024

Why should a buyer always do a final walk thru of a home before closing? This. This is why…

My clients are closing escrow tomorrow on a home in Rocklin and I went by today on their behalf since they live out of the area and are simultaneously closing on their current home, busy packing and moving out.

I pulled up to the home today & heard a high pitched noise that definitely wasn’t…natural. I looked around and discovered that the sprinkler manifold was screaming. Dearest neighbors, sorry you’re not sleeping much tonight. 😬 Upon further investigation, several plants are dead, when they weren’t dead a few weeks ago when we were last at the home for inspections.

The purchase contract here in CA talks about lot about condition of the home, and that the home needs to be in the same condition at closing as it was when the offer was made. Welp…between the high pitched squeal and the dead plants….it definitely wasn’t.

I immediately contacted the listing agent - who’s fortunately a super responsive and wonderful agent on the other end - and we quickly work out a game plan. I help shop for replacement plants while the sellers work their late night jobs tonight and can’t make it to the home any time soon, listing agent coordinates, seller reimburses, and handyman repairs…all done tomorrow before closing.

It’s our responsibility to do a final walk thru of condition, for this exact reason. It’s also my job to make sure small problems don’t become big problems. And if I can go to Green Acres, my home away from home, heck…happy to help!! 🪴 🏠 🌱

08/31/2024

Honored to help my past clients again with their real estate goals! 🏠💜