Carol Simonson's Blog

Granny gets a little ticked off...at them there media folks!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Sat, 16 May 2009 14:21:53 -0700

You know what really ticks this old bird off? (Of course you don't, so that's why I'm asking you!)

I get ticked off when the media just blurts out some figure that is erroneous or has nothing to do with the cost of tea in China!

Remember when they interview that fellow from Redfin? I mean, the interview was filled with a bunch of nothingness which just left anyone with a brain- scratching their heads from disbelief, and the only question you can think of is "What the heck was the purpose of that gibberish being televised?"

Much of the news media is totally irrelevant, they're a bit like the SEAGULLS that fly in from the ocean somewhere, only to drop a load of (You know what) and then head back out to sea as if there was no actual purpose for the flight at all...other than to diddle on my patio furniture!

That's sort of what the media does with so many news items...they drop headlines loaded with crap on the public...then before you know it, they're gone and its on to a commercial or the weather...disappearing back out to sea...just like the seagulls!

Recently a client called me to confirm new and alarming information regarding what she has just heard on some national television morning show. Property down 60 percent! Wow, where the heck were they talking about...Siberia?

What the irresponsible news reporter didn't bother to explain was the difference between number of sales reported verses the sales prices, nor exactly where these prices were down. The difference...HUGE!

But the media doesn't bother with explaining that difference! I often wonder what the heck happened o responsible journalism. Instead of the children's computer game "Where's Waldo" how about Where's Walter? (As in Cronkite) we need some responsible news reporting!

(FYI: Attention all Realtors under the age of 12, click on link) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Cronkite

In my community, sales prices are down about 30 percent in some areas of town. Yet, in other areas of town, prices are down only about 5 percent, still in some areas the prices are up 5 percent. How confusing is that for people to understand. However, sales volume (NOT PRICES!) are down about 35 percent in our area. That being said, sales volume in some of our neighborhoods are record high this month, including a few sales taking place only hours after the property is listed, and garnering multiple offers and prices over asking price...go figure? Where's that news reporter with those particular figures? Those flipping seagulls lurking in dark corners where you least expect them to be...don't even ask about the dad-burn Pelicans and the mess they leave!

You can imagine my client being alarmed by the news reporter announcing that property sales were down 60 percent...when she thought she knew the truth about our local marketplace.

So many folks watch the national news programs, and rarely do any reporters distinguish the difference in these not-so-subtle aspects of the real estate market. Firstly being that all real estate is not the same. Homes in Missouri are not ever going to be equal to homes in California, as typical homes in California are never going to be equal to the penthouse at Trump Towers in New York City...there are way too many variables. Having Donald for a neighbor being only one of them! (He can't get enough of Granny's blog by the way!) Another link for any 12 year old Realtors out there. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_trump

I think that the national news folks need to make clear what they are talking about when they make their seagull type proclamations on air. Especially since real estate is still all about the condition of a specific property, as well as all real estate being about location, and all locations NOT being equal.

They also need to differentiate what they mean by sales being down (Or up!) because as we all know, sales volume has to do with the number of properties that have closed escrow, and sales prices has to to with the PRICE paid for a property.

That is when the buyers and sellers of the world get confused...they need to be educated as to the differences...and that they should only listen to more localized news reports when it comes to their real estate comparables, breaking it down by county, city, neighborhood and finally comprables withing their own tract of homes and their identical model of home.

Anyway...THATs the type of irresponsible reporting that this old gal gets ticked off about, all those...blanket comments made by mainstream media...blankets that don't cover the whole country and blankets that don't exactly reach both sides of the bed.

That's the kind of stuff that grinds my dentures!

Carol...aka...Granny

Property values are about to rise again like they used to!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Fri, 15 May 2009 12:41:08 -0700

I think there is a BIG surprise awaiting folks when it comes to rising property values...and it s right around the corner!

Property values and appreciation are going to escalate again...just like they used to!

Really...I'm not kidding, I'm serious as a heart attack.

If you are a real estate speculator looking for a quick red hot investment...this might be a bit disappointing.

But...if you are a home buyer, from planet earth, this is good news that brings a bit of stability back into the world of home ownership...stability AND sound, reliable property appreciation!

Remember what it was like when you could buy a home, and then it was valued at $50,000 (Or more) than you paid for it six months earlier?

Those were the days...right?

I have good news for the real estate industry. We'll never see that type of artificial property appreciation again...because it truly was artificial.

So...why would I say that very soon property values will rise again like they used to?

Because THAT is exactly what we are going to see in the tomorrows that follow these current, yet extremely volatile, real estate market conditions.

Real estate appreciation will begin to appreciate the way it did a few decades ago, back in the 1960's and 1970's, when life was more realistic and when folks bought a home to live in, not a home strictly as an investment tool. I often wonder exactly when it was when our homes morphed into investments tools, rather than simply being a home.

Back in the 1960's, you could buy an average home for about $18,000. You might live in it for ten years, paint and carpet it, plant a few trees and add some wallpaper in the bathroom for an added decorator touch...and then, by the time the 1970's rolled around and your family had outgrown your original home, you might be VERY LUCKY to sell it for $20,000! An appreciation of a whopping $2,000 after all those years of mortgage payments, taxes and improvements. That was approximately a 1% per year property value increase over a ten year period of time...it seemed like a LOT of money back then...in fact, it very nearly felt morally wrong to sell your home for more than you'd paid for it ten years earlier.

AND...you couldn't wait to get that $2,000 check cashed...all the while wondering what sort of dummy would pay $20,000 for a house that you paid just $18,000 for just a decade earlier. You couldn't get old fashioned sayings to quit running through your mind over and over...stuff like..."Boy, there's a sucker born every minute" along with this feeling like you'd just taken advantage of someone, so in between moments of counting all those dollar bills (TWO THOUSAND OF THEM!) you also felt a little bit like you'd done something wrong by selling your home for more than you'd paid for it a decade earlier.

Of course, you moved to a new $26,000 home (Very upscale, almost twice the size) and the seller of your new home probably felt the same way about getting the $26,000 out of you! From zero to sixty you discover you have gone from suckOR to suckER...in they eyes of the sellers of your new home...AND they can't wait to get your check cashed because they think YOU are the real dummy since they'd only paid $24,000 for the house a couple years earlier!

Fast forward ten more years and those young folks that bought your first home for a ridiculously expensive $20,000 (Suckers!) - they just sold the house and moved on...but they sold it for $139,000, and again, that same house sells twenty-five years after that for a whopping $649,000! (You can't help but wonder who THAT sucker must have been?)

Then, last year while visiting friends in the old neighborhood, you drive by the old house to see if it's still the prettiest on the street, it's been added on to and remodeled over the years, but it had this fantastic view of the surrounding community and a pool and the most lovely manicured lawns, you want to drive by it because you feel sort of nostalgic about the "Old" place you'd paid $18,000 for that cozy home back when what now seems to be a million years ago. As you ascend up the hill towards the house, you see a real estate sign in front of the house and your heart begins to race as you pull up to the front of the house to grab a flier from the "Take One" little plastic box. You marvel at the photographs of the remodeled and expanded kitchen (It used to be so small!) and then at the bottom of the page, you see the sad words. BANK OWNED FORECLOSURE!

You can't help but wonder if YOU are the cause of the whole messy thing...all because you'd sold that house for two thousand more than you paid for it. Could it all be my fault?

Friends tell me that the old place finally sold in foreclosure at $404,000...they're still talking about what a good deal the most recent buyers got on purchasing that foreclosed property...the one with the fabulous view, pool AND the newly remodeled and expanded kitchen that didn't even exist back in the 1960's.

We were talking about this the other evening and I'm sure you are all thinking the same thing as I was..."I wonder if I could have held out and got $21,000 for the old place?" Oh...isn't that exactly what you were thinking?

And yet...I digress!

The truth is that we are headed back into the days of property values increasing they way that they used to increase. Slowly and cautiously. We'll never again see the recipe that created this current real estate mess...and that's a good thing. The days of 20-30 percent home appreciation are over, at least in my lifetime...and in your lifetime too! Once the real estate economy has recovered to a point of stability, we'll again see the appropriate property value increases of 1-3 percent per year. That's what is realistic in the real world...it was a GOOD thing back in the 1960's and 1970's, nobody was complaining...including those who made the whopping $2,000 after owning a home for ten years...it was a windfall I tell you!

Property values WILL rise again...JUST like they used to!

Carol...still...wondering...what if I had held out for $21,000?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2xblcNxCng&feature=PlayList&p=59CB0633BC0C7C12&index=0

Some Realtors are so slick…they’re downright slimy!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Sun, 10 May 2009 19:15:56 -0700

DO YOU KNOW ANY AGENTS LIKE THIS ONE?

It's amazing to me that the general public seems to have pegged all REALTORS in the category as this fellow. Click on link below:

How can we get a campaign going that will finally eradicate the current opinion the public has with regards to REALTORS?

We've tried ethics rules...only some abide!

We've tired reporting violations...they pay the fines and settle back into their lackadaisical old ways.

What can we do...Seriously...anyone with good ideas?

Carol

Urgent for REALTORS “Eyes” only...don't get caught looking stupid!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Sun, 10 May 2009 16:30:31 -0700

Greetings Brother and Sister REALTORS!

This is sort of important...it will help you look and sound MUCH better when out among the public...and perhaps when you are around your coworkers...maybe even your broker!

Today...the old lady (Me) wants to help you with a tiny issue that the majority of Realtors miss...and it makes you look and sound sort of...well...stupid!

I'm sure you don't want that!

They say that image is everything, and let me tell you, no matter how smartly you are dressed or how impeccably groomed, irregardless of how much you paid for that designer handbag or brief case...if you SAY SOMETHING STUPID...suddenly you'll be considered...less than bright.

Sadly, this mistake is made by most real estate agents when they speak.

You don't have to feel bad, much of the public makes the same mistake!

Still...a good number of folks do know how to pronounce a word...and this is where Realtors, as a group, slip down that slippery slope of sounding less than brilliant.

Imagine physicians referring to themselves as a PhysiciaR...or PhysiciaM.

We'd all laugh at them becaue they'd sound sort of stupid...right? Not to mention that if a Physican doesen't know how to pronounce their own occupation, it does less than promote a feeling of confidence...instead it leaves you scratching your head in bewilderment...and praying that they won't end up as your surgeon!

Well...it's time to spread the word with my brother and sister REALTORS that the proper pronunciation of the word REALTOR is just as it is spelled...now sound it out loud to yourself...

R E A L T O R

try that again....REAL...just pronounce that part of the word...real...real as in authentic...or the REAL deal!

Easy...right?

Here's the part that becomes a bit sketchy though.

Say Real (Say it out loud) and then add the remaining letters to that...TOR!

REAL+TOR

There is NO letter "I" in the word REALTOR, and yet many, many of you pronounce the word REALTOR as it if was spelled REALITOR! There is no "I" in the word...and no, there is no secret, hidden "I" it's never been pronounced or spelled with an "I" in the word...if you say REALiTOR, you are sounding a bit odd to anyone who knows how to spell or read. Unless, by some change you happen to be from Texias, Oklahomia, or perhaps Coloradi...heck folks, even people from up in Canidia know how to pronounce REALTOR!

Real sounds just like it is spelled, REAL and the TOR happens to rhyme with the words MORE or even DOOR...Real Tor.

No "I" anywhere in the word ...I promise.

Now wouldn't it be nice if you could properly pronounce your own occupation appropriately?

It's hard to think why anyone would want to buy or sell real estate through someone who can't even pronounce their own professional designation and membership!

It's just a thought, but it might even help the way the public perceives us when they take notice that suddenly, REALTORS know how to pronounce the word REALTOR!

Trust me...you'll sound a lot smarter too!

I want you to be your best, experience the greatest success...and to sound fairly bright along the way!

Carol

http://money.cnn.com/2009/04/29/news/economy/obama_economy_100days/index.htm?postversion=2009042911

PS: by the way, no letter "I" in Realty either, just in case you work at a real estate office that contains that particular word...REAL-TY. The ability to pronounce the word should be an prerequisite to joining the National Association of Realtors...unless you are actually joining the National Association of REALiTORS which I have never heard of!

Optimistic ecomomic signs... polls indicate recovery is on it's way!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Fri, 08 May 2009 13:10:17 -0700

I'm a pretty optimistic person; in fact, you could say that I am quite optimistic and positive to the tune that it bothers a lot of naysayers. I, on the other hand, say to heck with naysayers anyway!

Locally I have seen quite a change in our real estate economy with homes selling in multiple offers again, and I am not talking about foreclosed or short sale properties, I am referring to median priced homes that had been taking 5-6 months to sell...just this week I was involved with one that had multiple offers within four hours of being listed, including some over asking price! Good solid properties priced right are flying into escrow here in some Southern California communities. That is a fairly reliable sign that our local marketplace is recovering and on the mend. A positive indicator indeed!

I stopped watching the news programs that preached doom and gloom and began spreading positive reinforcement that we will recover and be back on our feet again, we are Americans, and getting up on our feet is what we do...we've a history of pulling our nation up by the bootstraps...we can do it again.

I think about how horrible the GREAT DEPRESSION was, with the stock market crash, all the homeless and unemployed folks back then, only to be followed by the great dust-bowl drought when so many folks left their farms and migrated to populated areas where they begged for jobs, stood in lines that were miles long...just for a bite to eat, while leaving everything they had behind, lost farms, lost personal property and even some lost family members...but the one thing they didn't lose was HOPE for a better day.

It must have been horrible for those folks to find themselves broke, jobless, homeless, and virtually foreigners in their own land. But they did what Americans have always done, they pulled themselves up by the bootstraps (Bootstraps sometimes being the ONLY thing they had left) and they started over again.

I remember reading stories of bread lines and soup kitchens all over the nation, feeding the impoverished, as well as stories of neighbors looking out for each other, caring for one another. If anything, I hope that we all learn to be more compassionate and considerate to those who, unlike many during the great depression, find themselves in a similar predicament today.

It may sound like rhetoric, but we really are only as strong as our weakest link, and the time has arrived that we extend a hand to our hurting neighbor, and perhaps learn a lesson or two from those who came before us and survived hard times, those who experienced hard times and not only survived, but eventually thrived as they recovered and stood proudly on their own two feet, bootstraps pulled tightly!

That's what makes us responsible citizens and it is the authentic American way.

I know who we are, I have hope...and a little evidence...that we will rise again, and perhaps, with a lesson or two learned about how to prioritize and differentiate true priorities and being able to distinguish between wants and needs (BIG PROBLEM) while possessing a new and enthusiastic desire to get back to some of the basics that made this the country so highly desirable to the millions of souls who have immigrated to America during the past 200+ years.

We're Americans, we can...and we will recuperate and be even stronger; it's a part of who we are!

Click on the link below to view the CNN Money Magazine's Optimistic Economic Poll.

Carol...the eternal optomist!

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-condos29-2009apr29,0,1238189.story

Now you pay the price when your neighbor doesn’t pay his bills!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Thu, 07 May 2009 21:31:52 -0700

I've been hearing rumors and quiet stirrings about this for the past few weeks now, and it turns out to be true!

In fact, when a neighbor doesn't pay his mortgage payment or home owners dues, it very likely will keep you from getting a loan on your own home, and this goes for new purchases AND refinancing a property that you already own!

As outrageous as this sounds, as it turns out...it's sadly true!

To learn more, just click on the link below to read the full story as written in the Los Angeles Times.

Here's hoping we all begin to realize that when our neighbors get hurt...it might hurt the whole neighborhood!

Carol

http://www.car.org/tools/smart/clients/taxcredit/

$18,000 Buyer's Stimulus Package available NOW!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Tue, 05 May 2009 18:56:40 -0700

Good news for buyers!

There is a buyers stimulus package available to first time buyers AND former homeowners who have not owned a home within the past 36 months here in California. Up to $8,000.00 tax credit originating from the Federal Government and an additional $10,000.00 from the State of California, if you are buying a house or condo in the State of California, a total of $18,000.00!

I would imagine that other states are offering their own version of a buyers stimulus package.

You can read all about the qualification guidelines at the link below:

Would love to have feedback on what other States are offering buyers, It probably varies much between regions and states that have been hit hardest with the foreclosure mess.

Good news is...good news!

Carol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OU2WljQ6O94&feature=PlayList&p=A0830512F0F717EC&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=17

Woman Realtor turns $1,000 into $66 Million!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Tue, 05 May 2009 14:08:30 -0700

I so enjoy it when any hard working Realtor achieves success. But when it happens to a woman, a single mom at that, well...it warms my heart.

I so agree with Barbara that when you get over the fear of making mistakes, when you stop being afraid to try new things...because...its then, that the doors to success open up...it was that way with me.

Even when I did experience failures, I could still recall what my previous successes tasted like and how it felt, I had it stored in my memory bank and that let me know that it was possible...again. So I never quit trying...even when things were extremely bad in the real estate market.

Yes...things have been pretty gosh darn difficult in the world of real estate before this current chaos was dumped into our laps, historically the real estate market morphed and was good again, then bad, then good again, and then not so good, again! It is that type of repetitive and historical adjustments that take place in the real estate market that triggered someone to coin the phrase...Real Estate Market...and not unlike the STOCK MARKET that continually fluctuates...thus goes the world in real estate market.

How many people do you think could, or would buy a home in a climate when the average home loan was at 16-18 percent for a 30 year fixed rate? (Some were in the 20 percent range!) Back then, we were all wishing, hoping and of dreaming of the good old days when mortgages were low...as in only...9%.

Back then it was crazy days...mixed with some extremely sleepless nights!

I was always reinventing myself and the way I managed my personal real estate practice...until the Internet came along and someone told me to get a website. I sort of thought THATwas a wacky idea, back then...now...not so much!

Fast forward a few decades and let me tell you, those historically high interest rates don't matter so much today, in fact, today, interest rates have been lingering around record low levels. The low interest rates alone were a shot in the arm in the real estate market, pumping blood back into an industry that nearly stopped breathing altogether compared to the way things had been when the interest rates went through the roof as high as cats backs!

Yes there are obstacles to buying and selling real estate in today's climate, but I have to tell you that properties are selling, and they are not just the foreclosures littering the marketplace that sell...real homes and every day folks continue to enter into and complete transactions.

When you think that THIS current market is bad, remember that not unlike a bowling ball sized kidney stone, with help, this too shall pass!

Now...if someone else can achieve that, so too can you, it just takes effort and consistency and perhaps thinking outside the proverbial box a bit.

Years ago, I read somewhere that 10 percent of the agents are responsible for 90 percent of real estate transactions, and that the remaining 90 percent of Realtors had to scratch their way into their share of the 10 percent of business that remained. Not a pretty fact, but still...today...that fact remains, 10 percent of the active agents are responsible for 90 percent of the real estate sales.

I knew exactly which group I WANTED to be included in, but I was also sadly aware of the group that I currently held membership in...and yikes...that was the other group.

Enjoy the video link below, showing exactly what is possible to accomplish, and take advantage of the slower market to spend a few moments reinventing yourself, your systems and your ideas about what you can really accomplish in this industry...even in the current marketplace, you just need to look at the positive angles, they do exist.

Click on the link below to watch the video interview.

Carol

Guess who came down with the SWINE FLU...sort of!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Sun, 03 May 2009 05:09:19 -0700

Well, on Tuesday I started not feeling very good, Tuesday evening was even worse.

What you might not know about me is that...I always try to talk myself out of getting sick.

I tell myself stuff like "No, you feel perfectly fine, you just need a bit of a nap." and other stuff like that that seems to work most of the time.

I went to bed feeling sort of puny, but still fell asleep as I repeated the mantra in my mind YOU ARE NOT SICK...YOU ARE JUST TIRED, YOU ARE NOT SICK...and I was tired...so I just answered back with something like bla, bla bla. Then drifted off to sleep.

My Mother always said that I never listened...apparently not even to myself!

I woke up at approximately 2:15 AM, it was then my stomach decided to not listen to me and lets just say...I had to hug the toilet like only a drunk would have previous first hand knowledge of.

This lovely scenario continued throughout the night and into the following day.

It was really bad...I mean, I thought I saw God at one point...but I think it was just the memory of this Fuller Brush guy with a long beard that frightened me when I was a small child...a century or so ago!

Of course, the television news was plastered with the news and alerts regarding THE BIG BAD SWINE FLU which of course, after heaving up half a swine during the course of the middle of the night...you sort of begin believing that death is imminent.

At least that's how I felt. imminent...somebody call the coroners office...I'm slipping away fast.

Now...there is one more factor that you have to take in mind. Women, no matter how gosh darn old we get, don't necessarily want to admit their true age (Mine is up there in the neighborhood of Methuselah) nor their true...their true...ahem, their true...weight! Told you it was tough!

So...I'm slightly on the "Porky" side...which is right about the time vanity and absolute embarrassment meet at the crossing point Nobody, and I mean nobody...wants to be the one to tell an old fat lady that she has ANYTHING described as THE SWINE FLU!

It's just not the proper thing to do...and nobody wants the job...I think it has to do with fear of shooting the messenger...but I could be wrong about that. Doubtful though!

Turns out that last night, when I began to finally feel a bit better, the WHO and CDC have begun downplaying the issue with the Swine Flu...even trying to give it a NEW name. I mean, really, a doctor walks up and tells a fat lady that she might have the B-12009 flu, that's not nearly as intimidating as an undertaking as telling a fat lady that she has the SWINE something or another.

I had a lot of the symptoms too.

Headache.

Nausea.

Vomiting.

Upset Stomach.

Muscle Aches.

Still...I never actually started snorting like an old sow...which, let me tell you...THAT was a HUGE relief!

Turns out I just had the run of the mill flu...run of the mill? That's what the nurse called it. She obviously didn't see the (Run of the mill) CLAW marks around the outside of my porcelain toilet bowl!

And yet...I was sort of nervous when I started snorting lightly and occasionally oinking. I guess it was just the piglet flu!

Carol...who is feeling better and five pounds thinner!

Explanation of The Four Agreements

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Sat, 02 May 2009 20:53:21 -0700

I mention this because irregardless of the manner in which you currently live your life or occupy your professional time, The Four Agreements, once fully understood and put into practice, will change your life for the better and you will find people seeking you out of the woodwork...so in the end, if practiced diligently...the Four Agreements can be VERY GOOD for your real estate practice...sometimes it really pays to be decent, fair and good!

Occasionally someone asks me this, so I thought I'd post it here since I was just asked again the other day...

What Are The Four Agreements?

The four agreements as I understand them originated in a book by Don Miguel Ruiz, several years ago. This was first brought to my attention some years back.

I purchased the book and read it...it was interesting and a good guide, but not until the book was re-released about 5-6 years ago that I fully understood the depth of the meaning behind it all.

It came out as a CD narrated by Peter Coyote, and it was the LISTENING rather than reading (As I had already read the book) that truly reached me and set me free from so much of the bondage and limitations placed on us by other people's mistaken ideas. Ideas that other people insist that we all accept as our own truth, rather than have us critically utilizing our own thought process to determine what we do or don't actually believe.

What struck me most after listening to the CD was that so much of the unnecessary junk in our heads was originally put there by well meaning parents and teachers over the years. It set me fee on MANY levels.

The Four Agreementsare a good choice for anyone to incorporate into their life, they sound simple, but listening to Peter Coyote explain each agreement in depth is what truly explainsthe entire agreement, rather than simply a sentence of words, it becomes significant and meaningful on an entirely new level.

Agreement #1: BE IMPECCABLE WITH YOUR WORD.

That probably sounds a bit like "Don't tell lies" and of course, it does encompass that, but the meaning grows so much deeper after you listen to the full explanation of the agreement. For instance, Don't say anything that can harm someone else...and that includes your own self, as in when you say something like "I CANT learn how to do that" or I'm so dumb!" Being impeccable with your word also means using your words carefully. Its kind of like the golden rule about "Doing unto others" only it's Golden with sparkly glitter included in the full meaning.

Each of the four agreements have meanings that are far reaching and deeper than "Just the surface words."

Agreement #2: DON'T TAKE ANYTHING PERSONALLY.

This is such a difficult thing to do, it sounds simple but it's true meaning lies deep inside of our own mental makeup. Basically, you have to learn that you cant actually take anything personally because it's not necessarily about YOU! If someone doesn't like you...That not authentically about you at all, it's actually about how that particular person feels about something you might personify that they don't like about themselves. Several years ago, a friend discovered that her husband had been "Messing around?" and was terribly distraught. Now it is true that a bond was damaged, in fact, this act did irreparable damage. BUT...my friend did figure out, eventually, that her husbands actions had virtually nothing to do with her and everything to do with his own moral character...or lack of it. Once she realized that, she set him free and began taking very good care of herself...now she has found the love of her life and would never go back to her first husband who obviously cared more about himself than he ever did about her. But it was hard to put that lost dream to bed once and for all...though in time, she did...and that one act brought her a wealth of happiness that she enjoys today. I cant imagine what would have happened if she was still hanging on and in misery over her first husbands ill behavior. Although it felt like it was at the time, his behavior really wasn't about her. Obviously her feelings of betrayal and hurt WERE authentic emotions she experienced,but his poor judgment and choices were not at all about her. He has since married two more times and is in the middle of a nasty divorce with the third wife...who I am certain suffers from believing his behavior is actually a reflection on her and about her...though...it not...its ALL about him...still!

Agreement #3: DON'T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS.

This...this one is really a huge issue that I had. When I was a young girl, I assumed a LOT of things. Trust me on this one, as I have aged, THIS has not held up well with me, but I believed that my beauty and figure would remain forever! How laughable is that? I also believed that a certain boy would save me and take me far, far away from my goofy family. He didn't! Boy was I disappointed! I also thought I'd be a millionaire the very first year I got into real estate...and that everyone knew what I was thinking without me having to tell them out loud...and that the world would be waiting for me with open arms from childhood through old age. Don't assume anything...except that a slight mustache will appear around your fiftieth birthday...because TH ATS the one thing you can assume...everything else...you need to let go of!

Agreement #4: ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST.

Okay, I hear you...you think that you always do your best...right? Well...let me tell you something...ALWAYSdoing your best requires a heck of a lot of energy. It's not simply an idea or a concept or a grouping of words. It's action baby...and you have to keep that particular ball juggling ALL THE TIME or you will find your life among the ruins of the rest of the mediocre group.

Over the years, I have ordered large quantities of The Four Agreements on CD from Amazon.com and passed them out to friends...even strangers. One person that I did not know well, put the CD in their car glove compartment and didn't open it up for more than a year. They were traveling across country with their family and noticed the unopened CD in the glove compartment of the car, out of boredom, they played the CD. Upon returning home from their trip, I received a lovely card in the mail, signed by the husband and wife, ANDtheir two teenagers, thanking me for the CD and telling me how listening to it changed their lives...and stopped a lot of squabbling in the car for the duration of the holiday.

I hope you will give this a listen, buy a CD and learn how to clear your head from all the mumbo jumbo that has blocked your access to success because I am certain of one thing...

YOU really have no right to NOT be a total success...in life, in your relationships and career, and in all you do!

Expect Success! Go ahead...anticipate it...know it is coming your way right NOW!

Best Wishes,

Carol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OF8-9UCjPz8&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=34

Listen to various chapters of THE FOUR AGREEMENTS at the links below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bXO9FRw-CA&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=32

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sr-62C5GP2k&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=36

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJPAboCB9KM&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=31

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOysDHciW08&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=29

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdcMCPZJFYA&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=33

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vDt3b-PmEE&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=28

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKb_S61NMDY&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=40

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxeojE37uXY&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=30

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcUkTzPGVVI&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=39

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4nf4qwlkBg&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=41

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyLjeYFSBks&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=42

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMX3Tx_2mds&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=43

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9G2Gt8I8Mw&feature=PlayList&p=8DC91F1111634DDF&index=44

How to invite active rain members to be my associate?

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Sat, 02 May 2009 19:17:14 -0700

I got this active rain account a couple of years ago and then never did anything with it...until now!

Can anyone tell me how to go about inviting other members to join my blog? I think it's called "Invite Associate?" I tried and it askes for the persons email address...well...I dont know that...I know the name of course, but their email address...is there any other way?

Am I just too old for this stuff...or what?

Thanks for any help in advance.

Carol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGwTywKE9Ys

Videos of Your Bank Bailout Money Brilliantly in Action…AKA…Banks Behaving Badly!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Sat, 02 May 2009 13:06:12 -0700

Someone recently asked me why I would take money out of the bank and put it in a credit union, as if a credit union was somehow less trustworthy than a traditional bank?

I just stared at them in utter amazement at the stupidity of their question! But you know, I have to admit that I used to actually sort of have a love affair with my former traditional bank...years ago...I thought they were marvelous at my money management...and to be truthful...the actually were...back then... now, not so much!

After monitoring the manner in which most banks "Operate" during the past few years, I can't believe anyone would have a penny of their hard earned savings in a bank. Banks today, in my opinion, operate as if our hard earned savings are made out of printed "Monopoly" play money or as if it had originated off the proverbial Money Tree that nobody seems to be able to actually locate! I sort of think that my savings deserves a better system of safety and appreciation.

It sort of makes me shake my head in amazement when you think about the young parents today who are trying to teach their children responsibility...in the face of such blatant irresponsibility, which some banks (Not all) seem to be undeniably addicted to. Whoever made this decision, to manage foreclosures poorly and tear down new housing developments wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, I believe that that is a given. As well as it's further evidence that if the banks refuse to be suitable guardians of their own assets, which in turn, has made me certain that they won't be fit guardians for my hard earned money... thus...my rather abrupt exit and then my running all the way to the local credit union with my shiny lot of pennies is entirely justified!

By the way, I've never necessarily been any type of a proponent for Credit Unions...until now...but when you realize that unlike banks, Credit Unions are owned by the depositors and they (Credit Unions) didn't make all those crazy loans because the money the do make available to loans, is only lent to other members of the credit union, and in a very closely managed and responsible manner.

I wonder where we would be if the banks used credit unions as a business model? My credit union is healthier than any bank I know of...they are churning out profits...which in turn...comes back to the shareholders...which now...is me! Trust me...this old lady likes this deal much better!

If I were a stockholder in a bank...you better believe that at the next stockholder meeting...heads would roll!

And I mean that in only the most loving way!

I wish I had these stories and these videos to earlier...it's just one more way to judge how the banks are doing...and exactly how brilliantly (Oh Brother!) that the banks are managing the billions of dollars bailout money lent to them by folks like you and me...if we only had hindsight we would have let them fall and accept responsibility for their actions.

Like children who are never required to accept the consequences of their behavior...the banks won't ever change because they really don't have to...and until they are held accountable, why should they be responsible?

They think that we'll be there to bail them out...again! Unfortunately, while the banks have not learned their lesson, I think that taxpayers have, and it would not be prudent for anyone to hand out another penny to a bank...I'm thinking along the line of riots in the streets if that scenario were to replay again after the last bailout!

Click on link below to view the two YouTube VIDEOS of new construction homes being destroyed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsgOaCZ2Lag

Click on the link below to read the full Wall Street Journal Report: "http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124112509277274533.html

Carol...still walking away and scratching her head...out of bewilderment!

www.PaperEagleProductions.com

www.RainDroplettes.com

Going Green is easy, while keeping some of the green in your pocketbook!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 13:47:24 -0700

Let me preface this by stating that I don't think you should quit marketing altogether, (NO WAY!) I think you can eliminate some of your more expensive and BROWN marketing, (newsletters, fliers and post card mailing) while it all continues to work together creating a certain form of synergy through cross marketing yourself...just adjust your portions, more email and blog marketing and less of the other, while continuing to cross market your real estate practice.

I was thinking about marketing materials the other day when my old mind (Yes, thoughts still pop up inside my head on the rare morning when I have eaten all my Wheaties breakfast cereal) Writing a blog is one responsible manner in which you can continue with your marketing while being financially and socially GREEN all at the same time!

On the financial level, keeping a blog is generally free...and more importantly, free from postage costs which are going up...AGAIN! Not to mention that you don't have to get in your car and drive to the printer/copy store or drive to deliver the marketing materials to the post office for mailing...thus saving our planet from unnecessary fossil fuel consumption ...and keeping more green in your own pocketbook!

Not to mention that when your competitors see you constantly closing more transactions in a less than fabulous economy...they'll be green with envy...as they walk around scratching their heads in total wonderment!

The synergy created with traditional marketing methods and your personal website, supplemented with email and blog postings as a form of cross marketing will keep you in the pink...while being green on multiple levels!

That's pretty cool, in fact, it's WAY cool!

Plus...as it turns out, you CAN teach an old dog new tricks...this blog thing is fantastic, I think it's the way to go, and when you link up to your own website...it's like magic fairy dust sprinkled on your real estate practice!

Carol...still a mentor after all these years!

www.PaperEagleProductions.com

Never listen to the naysayers…AKA…Pollyanna lives...sort of!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 01:57:44 -0700

Okay, I know I'm being silly about this (To a degree) while everyone should "Heed Caution" rather than throw caution to the wind...I'm of the particular school that likes some occasional wind throwing!

And yes, I am also aware that Sarah Palin can probably see the whole world economy going to hell in a hand basket...from the very front porch of her pit bull-lipstick-free Governor's Mansion in Alaska!

But!

(You know me...there's always going to be a...but somewhere!)

When things began to turn south last year, I was in the middle of three escrows that were not only threatening to turn into dust...it's a miracle they all three closed, but they very nearly fell apart as time marched on, nearly every single day, hour by hour as the news networks reported bad news, bank closings and other things that seriously went bump in the night.

I had one couple with a dog, and an developmentally challenged elderly brother who lived with them in their care. These folks bought a home from me via the internet (They never saw the home, only some photos!) as we emailed and faxed contracts and disclosures back and forth for the first few weeks of the escrow process, and then they moved across country to start a new life here in California with the husband focusing on his new job. They anticipated staying in a hotel two or three evenings as escrow was to close and record a few days after they arrived here...well...that had been the plan!

How on earth the loan ever went through was a miracle and still unknown to me. This wonderful couple packed everything up, called the moving van and told them to meet them in California in a week when their escrow closed on the new house out here closed...then they'd be moving into their new home (The one they'd never seen before!) in an unfamiliar coastal community, several states across the country.

They arrived here in California in the middle of the very week when the financial crises began to rear its ugly south facing head, where...they were to quickly discover that they no longer had a loan in place. The poor folks, dog AND brother and an inadequate amount of clothes and dog food in some luggage all stuffed into a hotel room for WEEKS, and every single day their loan looked less and less likely to ever come about...as the rules changed by the minute, day and week...never knowing what the heck was happening...all the while, the news networks, news papers, internet and other media preached doom and gloom for us all. Like we really were all going to hell in a hand basket...only someone forgot the actual basket, which made it even scarier!

To make matters worse, the wife was forced to stay in the hotel with her brother and the dog all day long as they had not moved her car, only the husband's vehicle...and he used the car while at work on his new job that took him away from the cramped hotel room...all day long...day after day, far away from the wife who was nearly inconsolable while the husband had the car, approximately 40 miles down the freeway!

As time marched on, the dog decided that after years of being housebroke, NOW was the time to act out and become unruly and untrained in this foreign, yet cramped hotel room. And the poor brother became agitated beyond belief and soon began to have seizures that I believe were related to the stressful living conditions...stuffed into a hotel...and the uncertainty of weather or not they even had a loan or a home to eventually move to...ever!

I'll just disclose to you that these are nice folks, our telephone conversations and our emails had been extremely pleasant and cordial...and I was right there when they finally arrived here in town, with an appointment to drive them to the beach to FINALLY get a chance to see their new home...the one they'd never seen...the one they were supposed to be closing escrow on in a couple of days! They were blown away when they finally saw the house in person, loving it even more than they had from the photographs, and the house was far nicer than they even imagined...and we got a great deal on the place AND the owner threw in all her designer furnishings and decorator items...it was high end art work and Kreiss furniture...nothing but the very finest silk fabrics. To say the least, my buyers were thrilled...brimming with anticipation to get moved into their new home, especially after they saw the ocean from the balcony and could hear the surf pounding just outside!

Add all that to their anticipation of a new life in a new home that would be theirs in only a few short days...weighted by their weary souls from the move itself, and the cramped quarters in the hotel...they were, to say the least...highly motivated to get the escrow closed. This after surviving the hurricane that destroyed most of their town a month earlier...and now a new type of hurricane was about to cross their path.

On that first Monday after arriving in California, as the husband began the first day on his new job, the telephone calls began. The loan (Which had already FUNDED...for the love of God!) had to be "Readjusted" according to the lender...and then after that, new additional paperwork and unheard of documentation was requested from out of the blue. (Stuff you never had heard of in previous escrow transactions) And then after that, suddenly they had to prove that this account that these conscientious folks had set up with their daughter as a signer on the account (Just in case anything ever happened to them?) the lender now had to know WHY their daughter was on the account and they had to prove that it was their account and that the daughter was just a signator on the account, rather than it might have been the daughter's account and my buyers were just signers...crazy little delay tactics by the lender. Day after day it was new, unheard of procedures on the part of the lender, verification issues, HOA issues, Fannie issues, Freddy issues...and just to round it off, we even had a George issue and I think we ALL know who THAT fellow was!!!

It lingered on day after day and week after monotonous week...I'm sure some of your folks experienced the same treatment last autumn as the world began to crash and burn and many, MANY escrows fell apart and new home mortgages disappeared from the face of the earth. As I said, I had three of these escrows all within the same weeks as the financial world turned and adjusted, and then readjusted before landing and eventually coming to a screeching halt!

All of my escrows finally closed that month...but I can tell you that severe emotional trauma took place regarding everyone during this time period. None of us knew exactly what was happening day by day, my telephone was like a suicide hotline extension for a couple of these poor folks...just about all of them in tears...including me!

I mean, I just felt terrible about these folks who were jammed into the hotel room with the brother (A very sweet fellow by the way) and the dog who decided to forget the house rules...it was horrible to see...and worse to listen to on the phone when they turned to me for guidance.

Guidance...from me...guidance?

Heck...I was feeling just as shaky and uncertain about what ball was going to drop next, and I felt like I would learn one new rule, but yet another new one would come down the pike and I'd have to forget the first new rule because that had been all changed with some new Fannie Mae or Freddy Mac guideline that was different than the previous new guideline that had just been deemed "The New Way" only hours earlier...yet now completely done away with by "The NEW, new way!" Or, the lender changed the rules...or some other horrible financial news was reported and everything had to be re-learned yet again! Honestly, I learned more unnecessary stuff during a few weeks last autumn than I leaned during my entire life in academia...and most of it was total malarkey!

To make matters worse, the agent that was representing the seller became an entirely uncooperative, threatening menace of an idiot with unnecessary yet constant artificial pressure to get my clients to sign of the loan contingency! We'd signed off on all other contengencies, but NOT the loan contingency because things were so gosh darn wild...like the wild west kind of wild back last year when the financial seams began to unravel..with all of as witness in unison to what we were so shocked over and didnt quite understand.

Still...I could not advise my buyers to sign off on their final loan contingency until I was certain that they actually had a loan since this was new water and very rocky financial times that I had never experienced. THIS made the seller and the seller's agent behave in a slightly out-of-this-world kind of CRAZY and they began to close down communications and made threatening remarks, in fact, their behavior reminded me of a certain pack animal that some people refer to as a mule...but in this particular case it reminded me more of a two-word phrase that starts with the letter "J" and rhymes with lass.

I finally told one of them to go ahead and put the house back on the market if they wanted to, NOBODY on this planet was interested in buying a house that week...and if they had been...it had better be a cash deal as there was NO MONEY available for a mortgage anywhere! That sort of quieted them down a bit as they realized that they didn't have any better options.

Meanwhile, my clients, oh my goodness, these poor folks crammed into that little hotel room ...it was just awful for them, plus the fact that they had to pay for a mortgage out of state on a home that hadn't sold and was sitting vacant, add to that the hotel and all the meals out three times a day for three people AND the dog, (Don't forget the dog, running around, barking, tinkling and barfing all over the place out of his own frusteation...as well as a visit to the new and unfamiliar doctor because the brother was slightly coming unraveled around the edges. AND when the furniture showed up and couldn't be unloaded, they had to pay a bazillion dollars a day to have the truck sit there...loaded with all their belongings...which sort of ticked off truck driver who could not leave with his truck loaded with their stuff loaded on the back...with just one more day, and then another, and then another, and then a promise that we'd be closed by next week...and then the next, and the next!

The other two transactions in escrow during this time were equally as complicated and vicariously slipping away...but this one is the one that found me arriving at home each evening in tears...I felt just horrible for those nice folks!

They drove across the united states in a few short days, when the pulled out of their former driveway, the world was a friendly, rosy kind of place...when they arrived in California...it was more than an earthquake that shook their souls to the core...people became downright inhospitable...and I'm being VERY generous here!

The husband told me that the only good thing that happened was a total accident in many ways. They hadn't sold their former home yet, but the seller of the property they purchased here in California would NOT accept a contingency sale of a property from some other state of course. My buyer didn't have all the cash to come up with a down payment and closing costs on the new house (Which was substantial with a capital "S" and followed with a LOT of zeros!!!) Therefore, he decided that rather than cashing in other accounts, he'd just borrow the money from himself and close out his 401k. (He got the cash out of his 401k within days of it losing the majority of its value and turning into a 201k-LMNOP if you know what I mean) That was the only silver lining during this entire time period, albeit a very fortunate particular shade of silver.

Not that I think things are stable now...I'm not a TOTAL idiot...just a partial one...still, things are a HECK of a lot better than they were last autumn, even though things are still tighter than Dolly Parton's...well...never mind! But other than all this new unemployment and then there's this new epidemic with foreclosures and short sales, we didn't have nearly any last autumn...now we have a LOT of them scattered around. And I know it's still not wonderful out there, I see the mess, I notice the business going under and that most folks have had to tighten their belts and curb their spending habits.

Actually, I'm personally financially conservative and think the lessons we are learning; curbing our spending and not listening to everything that Wall Street and Madison Avenue tell us we "MUST HAVE or we'll be losers, or somehow less than the Joneses" is sort of a good thing...it's just too bad it took so much hurt, loss and turmoil to teach these life lessons to most people.

In the end all three of those escrows closed and everyone moved into their new homes...eventually! We are all alive...that's the good news...we survived it all. I heard stories of a few suicides and a bunch of people who turned to drink...SOME WORSE, during that unstable time. Personally, I considered becoming a heroin adict...but I dont know any dealers, plus, i'm not particularly thrilled with the concept of sticking needles in my arms (Or any other place) and, I never looked that great with gaunt, dark shadows under my eyes anyway.

But just between you and me...I will admit to eating an entire can of ready-made frosting with a spoon...right out of the can one evening. Plus, it kind of made me feel sick...I dont even like frosting, I have NO IDEA where that can of frosting came from AND...I have a feeling I had had it in the pantry for about ten years...or longer! AND...it didnt even tast good, or certainly not good enough. Belive you, me...that is NOT a trick you partake in twice!

With all this recent news about the swine-flu, I just want to add that the canned frosting-flu isnt a whole heck of a LOT better to have to go through. Although, seriously...The canned frosting-flu may not kill you...it sort of makes you wish it had! Although your milage may vary...what it did do is make we wish to God that I'd tried heroin, instead!

So I ask you...exactly how pathetic is that?

Next time I'll find a reputable heroin dealer and give it a go...for the sake of my stomach!

And during these last several months, I have seen many lazy realtors exit the business because they are not made of the fabric required to work hard or to deliver quality service to their clients in a tough market...or they lived too close to the edge and ran out of money because they didn't save for a rainy day...or they were just pansies, whatever their particular reason for leaving the industry has been. My message is DON'T QUIT, don't you dare walk away from a great career because you cant earn what you earned five years ago...hang in there, it's going to get better. It sure has for me...and there's nothing that makes me uniquely special...not by a long shot!

When I go into my real estate office I hear a lot of negative comments by other agents as they drink coffee and gripe about a lack of business, "It's horrible out there" and stuff like "We're all going under"

You know all the doom and gloom talk and the works from folks of that ilk.

And me...I just quit listening to them all...I opened my eyes and I have tuned it out completely. I keep thinking that every day is a bright day to list and sell real estate, I refuse to listen to the negativity of the other agents, the media, and even friends and family who want to be negative and roll around in that dirty pool of doubt and endless lacking, weak mentality.

I personally know quite a few of those folks who have managed to NOT close one escrow in the past year, and a handful who have done nothing for TWO YEARS!

I, very carefully, decided to take a long look at those folks, and then I made up my mind that I didn't want to be like that and I didn't want to listen to or focus on all that negative energy they're all doling out.

And consistently, I have closed deal after deal as they all sit around scratching their heads wondering why I've continued to function and do so well. So...I figured I'd share my big SECRET with the whole world and post it on the internet in Active Rain...for all to share in...are you ready for my secret, why I have been so successful in the light of the constant bombardment of negativity being thrown out there in the universe?

Get ready, go get a pen so you can write this down...it's quite monumental and you can feel free to link up to my message and share it with others if you want...so here goes...why have I done so well during the past year?

I chose to do well...I made a critical and conscious decision to NOT be like the moaners and groaners.

That's it...really, I chose it...I decided to walk down a different path!

I only had two choices really, I could chose to not do well, or I could chose to do well!

Half empty...or half full...I chose half full...or more accurately, I chose full-full.

I mean, really, when I looked at all of it, I didn't have much of a choice to make...I just moved forward and chose to continue with my business as if it were the best time in the world to list and sell real estate.

Funny thing is...it IS a fantastic time to buy real estate, and if you aren't upside down in your house...it's even a good time to sell your house...things ARE happening people...if it happens for me, it can certainly be happening for you...I'm not special...I just chose to be productive rather than unproductive.

I remember a lesson I learned when I was a young woman about 30 years ago, someone shared this quaint story about gardening...well, it was either gardening or full scale farming...I don't remember which?

But here's the deal...if you plant tomatoes from seeds, voila...you get tomatoes! It happens every single time, plant tomato seeds...and you get tomatoes. It's like magic; it just happens that way every single time. Even if you WISHED that your tomato seed would grow pineapples...I still think it would probably continue to grow tomatoes.

Oh...and if you plant pea pods...you ALWAYS get peas from them...and you never get carrots from tomato seeds or from pea pods! It's a flipping miracle when you think about it...way cool!

So...I just decided that there was no way I was going to live my life planting and cultivating a bunch of doom and gloom wherever I went, I was going to plant positive, loving energy wherever I go. I'm told that my aura (Whatever the heck that is) exudes positive loving energy. And it is true that people have always been sort of drawn to me (And I promise that I'm not anything special...I'm just like everyone else...except I don't let in the negativity...I don't allow it in my life and I never plant the seeds for doom and gloom)

Why?

Because it is true that you reap what you sow!

If you're busy planting pea pods, you'll eventually be eating peas from your garden, and nobody has ever planted carrot seeds and then went out to harvest melons from their carrot seeds...it doesn't work that way!

Still...if you choose to sow gloom and doom...you'll always get that too!

So...go make 2009 a prosperous and banner year of POSITIVE seed sowing and gather from a bountiful harvest this next autumn. What you do today...will show up in your garden before too long.

My best wishes to you all...and by the way, happy gardening!

Carol

The Original Condo Queen

www.PaperEagleProductions.com

Carol’s idea regarding putting an end to the current foreclosure mess now!

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:55:11 -0700

Why not nip this foreclosure in the proverbial bud right now?

The banks could turn the loans for those borrowers who found their interest rate has adjusted and now their monthly mortgage is unaffordable, by converting those mortgages into a 40-50 year fixed rate mortgage, thus making it more affordable to stay in their homes right now and stopping the foreclosure process in it's tracks.

Then at a later date, borrowers could be allowed to refinance or convert their mortgage back to a standard 30 year mortgage as soon as financial times are better again in a few years, thus halting the vast majority of the foreclosure mess immediately...at least for those homeowners who desire to stay in their homes.

Of course, that won't do much for folks who just want to walk away and forget about it, but those particular folks are only adding to the mess, they are not the majority.

This would also be beneficial to landlords who find their adjustable rates reaching a height that causes them to not cover their mortgage with the going market rate of local rents. There are a LOT of landlords out there who are sinking fast too...this plan could also put a stop to that mess as well. It seems like an answer (Even if only a temporary answer) to a great portion of the current mortgage hemorrhaging and home losses and banking failures that are currently underway.

Also, perhaps a streamlined and functional (F-U-N-C-T-I-O-N-A-L...a new term for the banking industry to learn) manner in which the foreclosure process takes place today. I see homes that have owners living in them for a year or MORE while not making any payments...only to later go into the short sale process for yet another six months and still not sell, then after the owners vacate the property, the home sits abandoned for an additional 3-6 months before the bank eventually offers it for sale at a much reduced price, and then when it does finally enter into an escrow, the escrow period goes on and on for months sometimes because nobody knows who is suppose to sign off on what...and half the time the escrow companies that he banks choose are two hundred miles away from the subject property. The entire process is a dysfunctional and disjointed mess.

The big banks may not feel they owe the public any fiduciary responsibility (Even after billions in bailouts and still they are tight with lending money...what's up with that?) but they do owe a fiduciary responsibility to their stockholders, and the above scenario certainly does NOT serve the stockholders well. Why on earth would we ever begin to think that the banks will serve the public well...let alone pay back their bailout money! I'm sure the banks will finagle a cleaver method to get out of that responsibility when the time comes.

Maybe that's a big part of the problem, business has become as addicted to irresponsibility as some individuals!

Carol...shaking her head as she walks away in utter disgust!

Westlake Village or Thousand Oaks

Carol Simonson (ReMax) — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 19:21:16 -0700

Is it Westlake Village

Or...is it actually Thousand Oaks?

Settled snugly on the western edge of Los Angeles County, the city of Westlake Village is 10 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean and 40 miles west of downtown Los Angeles. Occupying only 5.4 square miles, averaging 900 feet above sea level, the community is framed by the Simi Hills to the north and the Santa Monica Mountains to the south. For more information, please feel free to visit my website or call me direct at (805) 390-8875, www.carolsimonson.com

About 3,000 years ago, Chumash Indians moved into the region and lived by hunting rabbits and other game, and gathering grains and acorns. On-going excavations, archaeological sites, and polychrome rock paintings in the area provide a glimpse into the social and economic complexity of the ancient Chumash world. In 1770, Captain Gaspar de Portola led a party of Spanish explorers and missionaries, traveling north on the route that became known as the El Camino Real. The party camped near a Chumash village, believed to be the site of present-day Westlake Village. Father Juan Crespi, chaplain and diarist of the expedition wrote: "We are on a plain of considerable extent and much beauty, forested on all parts by live oaks and oak trees, with much pasturage and water." When the Spanish finally did settle the area, they were given huge land grants, the largest of which was Rancho Simi, given to the Pico family. When Mexico won independence from Spain in 1821, California became a territory of Mexico, and a few more land grants were given. When California was admitted to the union in 1850, most of the land that later became Ventura County was divided among only 19 families. The picturesque future Westlake Village site among rising knolls, arroyos, barrancas and ancient oaks was recognized as the central part of two Mexican land grants: Rancho El Conejo and Rancho Las Virgenes. In 1881, the Russell brothers purchased a large portion of the land for cattle ranching. According to Patricia Allen, historian and family descendant, Andrew Russell beat the competition in buying the land by racing across 6,000 acres on a fifteen-minute trip in a buckboard, and sealed the deal with a $20 gold piece. The price per acre was $2.50! The area continued to be known as the Russell Ranch although it was sold in 1925 to William Randolph Hearst and again in 1943 to Fred Albertson. The Russell family leased back part of the land to continue their successful cattle ranch operation while the Albertson Company used the vast acreage as a movie ranch. Many movies and television shows were filmed here, including "Robin Hood", "King Rat", "Laredo", and various episodes of "Tarzan", "Buck Rodgers", "Gunsmoke", and "Bonanza".

In 1963, the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company bought the 12,000-acre ranch for $32 million and, commissioned the preparation of a master plan for a "city in the country". Prominent architects, engineers, and land planners participated in designing a unique, integrated community that has become a nationally acclaimed model for the planned community concept. "The city in the country" was named Westlake Village and soon became recognized as one of America's most successful suburbs and finest areas to live, work and raise a family.

Today, a population of 28,600 resides within this beautiful, natural environment of award-winning neighborhoods, thriving businesses, and enviable lifestyles. The original master-planned community of Westlake Village is transected diagonally by the Los Angeles and Ventura County line. The Los Angeles County side, consisting of 3,456 acres, was incorporated in 1981 and became the 82nd municipality in Los Angeles County. The Ventura County side, comprised of the remaining 8,544 acres (The larger portion of Westlake Village) of the original Russell Ranch, was annexed into the City of Thousand Oaks in two portions in 1968 and 1972. Today, both sides of Westlake Village identify as a single community inspite of the fact that the county boundary separates Westlake Village between Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. The wisdom of the master planners in preserving, protecting and enhancing the natural environment of the area is evident today in the consistent growth and vitality of Westlake Village. Residents and businesses receive high quality community services operated on a contract basis with private and public agencies and overseen by a 5-member elected City Council and an appointed City Manager. Under the protection of Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, the city consistently maintains one of the lowest crime rates in the nation. Although the city is almost built-out, (99.5%), with it's new city hall and library complex completed, as well as the new Four Seasons resort hotel and spa, the little town of Thousand Oaks where I grew up, has finally become a grown up city with a plethora of community facilities and accoutrements that have transformed our area into a fine example of Southern California Living that accompanies our lifelong open space community lifestyle.

Please feel free to visit my website at www.OriginalCondoQueen.com where you will find neighborhood developments along with homes for sale, free MLS access search and home floor plans of our various communities, as well as access to local home and condo rentals that are currently available.

To get to know even more about the Westlake Village & Thousand Oaks area homes and condo communities, call Carol for a free area tour 805-390-8875.

Nobody knows more about the Townhouse and Condo market than The Original Condo Queen ...

Carol Simonson

Call Carol's Cell Anytime (805)390-8875