Casa Fresco › Sell to us
Sell to us directly, without listing.
If you own a property on the Central Coast or in Fresno County and would rather not list it, tell us about it. We look at recent sales, walk the property and, if it fits what we buy, make a written offer for it as it sits.
You may get more for the property by listing it. Read what we are, and what we are not before you decide.
- Buyer
- Casa Fresco, buying for its own account as a principal. Nobody at Casa Fresco is your agent.
- Owned by
Sam Fox Brennan, California real estate broker, DRE #02178674.
Eduardo Cota, co-founder of Modern Perspective Plumbing, a licensed California plumbing contractor (Cota Companies LLC, CSLB Lic. #1102487, C-36). He prices the work a property needs.
- Counties
- San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Fresno.
- Office
- 407 Traffic Way, Suite B, Arroyo Grande, CA 93420
Situations where a direct sale makes sense
A property does not have to be distressed to be sold this way. Each of these is a reason an owner might prefer one buyer to a listing.
- Inherited property or an estate. A house nobody in the family wants to manage, often out of the area, often with belongings still in it. We deal directly with whoever has authority to sell: the executor, trustee or administrator.
- Probate and trust sales. These run on the court’s or the trustee’s timeline, not ours. We write our offer to fit that process and work through your attorney.
- Tenant-occupied rentals. Long-term tenants, or an owner who is done being a landlord. We can buy with the tenants in place and take over the leases and deposits as they stand. As the new owner we take on the landlord’s obligations under state and local law. Do not give anyone notice on our account.
- Deferred maintenance. The roof, the plumbing, the kitchen: work you would rather not spend the money and the months on.
- A date you have to meet. A move, a divorce, a tax deadline, a business decision. Tell us the date you are working toward.
- Owners starting a 1031 exchange. Your 45 and 180 days start the day the sale closes, so the closing date matters more than usual. Talk to your qualified intermediary before you sign anything. Casa Fresco does not provide tax or legal advice. How the exchange deadlines work.
Where and what we buy
We buy in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Fresno counties: houses on lots with room for a second unit, older houses in Fresno County that need renovation, buildable lots, small apartment buildings and tired commercial or industrial buildings. If yours is something else, send it anyway.
A direct sale, start to finish
Tell us about it
The address, the situation and what matters most to you: price, timing or being done with it. Nothing more is needed to start.
We run the numbers and walk it
Sam pulls recent closed sales near the property. We walk it and price the work it needs. If it is not something we buy, we say so.
If it fits, we make a written offer
A number in writing, for the property as it sits. The offer names the buyer (Casa Fresco, or a company we control) and states that one of its owners is a licensed real estate broker.
Closing
Title and escrow as normal. The offer says how we are paying and lists any contingencies, so you can see what the closing depends on before you sign.
What we are, and what we are not
We are the buyer. Casa Fresco buys property for its own account, as a principal, and we intend to make a profit on what we buy.
We are not your agent. One of our two owners, Sam Fox Brennan, is a licensed California real estate broker (DRE #02178674). When we buy, he is one of the buyers, and nobody at Casa Fresco represents you.
Our offer is a buyer’s price. It is not an appraisal or an opinion of what your property would bring on the open market. You may get more by listing it.
Before you answer, we encourage you to get independent advice: your own agent, an attorney, an appraiser or family you trust.
The trade-off in a direct sale
What you skip
The listing, the staging and the open houses. You are not asked to fix anything first.
What it may cost you
Price, most likely. An offer for a property as it sits is usually lower than the same property could sell for after repairs, on the open market, with buyers competing for it.
If price matters more to you than time or trouble, talk to a listing agent first. If you would rather keep a share of what the property becomes than sell it outright, read about partnering on a project.
Questions to ask before selling direct
- Is your offer below what I would get by listing?
Probably. Our number has to cover the work the property needs, the cost of holding it and a profit for us. Whether a sale without repairs or showings is worth that is your call. Before you make it, ask an independent agent or appraiser what the property would bring if you listed it.
- Who is the buyer?
Casa Fresco, which is owned and run by two people: Sam Fox Brennan and Eduardo Cota. The buyer named in the offer is Casa Fresco or a company the two of them control. The About page has more on both of them.
- Are you my agent?
No. Sam Fox Brennan is a licensed California real estate broker (DRE #02178674), but when Casa Fresco buys he is one of the buyers and acts as a principal. Nobody at Casa Fresco represents you, and anything we say about price comes from a buyer. Because Sam is licensed, the written offer states that one of the buyers is a real estate broker. You are free to hire your own agent or attorney to review it, and we encourage you to.
- How do you decide what to offer?
We start with what the property should sell for once the work is done, from recent closed sales in the neighborhood, or what it should rent for. Then we subtract the cost of the work, the cost of holding and reselling it and the margin we need for taking the risk. The offer is what is left: a buyer’s price, built to leave us a profit. It is not an opinion of what your property would bring on the open market.
- Will you buy it as-is?
Yes, if it is a property we want to buy. Deferred maintenance, an old roof, a dated kitchen: we price the work and the offer reflects it.
- Can I talk to an agent, or list the property, while you look at it?
Yes. Telling us about a property commits you to nothing. Until you sign a purchase contract you are free to list it, take other offers or do nothing at all.
- Can you buy a property in probate, a trust or an estate?
We can. Depending on the executor’s or administrator’s authority, the sale may need a notice to the heirs or a court hearing where other buyers can bid. Executors and trustees owe the heirs or beneficiaries a duty to get a fair price, so we expect you to have our offer checked against an appraisal or an independent broker’s opinion of value. Casa Fresco does not provide tax or legal advice.
Tell us the address and the situation. We read every message and respond personally, usually within two business days.
- Call(530) 635-8196
- Emailcasafrescogroup@gmail.com
- Office407 Traffic Way, Suite B, Arroyo Grande, CA 93420