Selecting the Best Offer for your Sellers - How Much Weight to put on Offer Price - 03/30/09 11:58 PM
It isn't always as simple as taking the highest offer when accepting the "best" offer for your seller.
You want to make sure the accepted offer is a successful escrow all the way to the end, so consider some of the following when choosing the best offer besides looking at offer price:
What kind of loan is the buyer getting?  Is it appropriate for this kind of property?  Will it fly for this kind of property?  Is it a reputable lender?  Have you contacted the lender yourself to check the financial strength of the buyers?
"Over Asking" price - a good … (3 comments)

REO Properties - READ YOUR BANK ADDENDUMS - 03/30/09 11:44 PM
When representing a buyer on REO properties, always make sure you read the bank addendum that is generated with an offer acceptance AT LEAST 3 TIMES.
There are terms and conditions in there that can be very costly to your buyers if you overlook them. 
Most common are per diem charges, which are basically late charges averaging about $100 per day that your buyer will pay for each day the escrow closes late.  The funny thing is the delays can actually be on the listing side, so you need to stay on top of things and GET IT IN WRITING that the … (0 comments)

$10,0000 Tax Credit for New Construction - State of California - 03/29/09 10:46 PM
Tax Credit for New Home Purchase
In addition to the updated items identified on this page, we have updated Form 3528-A and the instructions for line 6 and Part III. If you have already faxed a completed application, you DO NOT need to resubmit a new application.
This tax credit is available for qualified buyers who on or after March 1, 2009, and before March 1, 2010, purchase a qualified principal residence that has never been occupied. The buyer must reside in the new home for a minimum of two years immediately following the purchase date.
Tax credit amounts
California … (0 comments)

Energy Efficient Windows - 03/26/09 11:24 PM
Energy-Efficient Windows
Technology Snapshot & Benefits:Significant economic savings can come from modern windows. Unless recently upgraded, your windows are likely a major source of heat loss. In cold climates, windows transfer heating energy out of the building through both conduction and radiation. Additionally, depending upon how weather-tight the frame and seals, windows may transfer energy by convection as well. This situation is reversed in hot climates, with windows allowing heat into a building and forcing expensive cooling systems to work overtime.
Typical walls in homes are insulated to a level of R-11 to R-19, yet a single pane of standard glass has … (1 comments)

Bamboo Flooring - 03/26/09 11:21 PM
Bamboo Flooring
Technology Snapshot & Benefits:Bamboo flooring is a cost-effective and environmentally sensitive choice among traditional hardwood flooring options. An appealing building material, it is very durable, strong and long-lasting. Bamboo, a grass product and not a wood product, is harvested every 5 years without damaging the actual bamboo plant, and does not require pesticides due to its hardiness. It comes in four different types of flooring: natural, carbonized, vertical, and horizontal graining. The United States Green Building Council's LEED program recognizes bamboo flooring as a green building material and permits points for the use of this flooring.
Estimated Cost Savings:The … (0 comments)

Water Heating - Instantaneous Water Heaters - 03/26/09 11:16 PM
Water Heating - Instantaneous Water Heaters
Technology Snapshot & Benefits:Easy economic savings can accrue from instantaneous or the "on-demand" type of water heaters. In contrast to the traditional method of keeping 40 to 80 gallons of hot water at-the-ready in an insulated tank, "on-demand" heaters produce hot water only when it is needed. Since hot water is generally required for less than a few hours each day instead of 24, owners and occupants can easily benefit from high efficiency modern designs that provide hot water on demand. Less fuel is required for a given volume and temperature of water, with corresponding cost savings and … (0 comments)

Loan Modifications - Some Scoop - 03/22/09 01:56 PM
Some highlights to keep in mind regarding loan modifications:
1. If the homeowner isn't working / does not have current employment, more than likely there's not much for them.
2. Some possible scenarios are:
A lowered interest rate for a temporary time period
Forbearance - a temporary suspension of payments to give the homeowner some breathing room, which may be followed by a repayment plan to catch up on missed payments.
There are mortgage counselers available through the US Dept of Housing and Urban Development - free of charge.
The Making Home Affordable plan, there may be a reduction in principal … (0 comments)

Tennis Court Properties in the Los Angeles area - 03/22/09 03:54 AM
If any of you have referral clients looking for tennis court properties, I offer a good combination of knowledge.
Not only am I a Top-10 agent, but I am also a USPTA Certified Tennis Professional with a good knowledge of tennis court properties and tennis facilities.
Whether it be a home with a private tennis court, or a home or condo within close proximity of a tennis facility, I can assist your buyer and offer good insight on many levels.
… (1 comments)

Lock Bumping - Spread the word to your clients!!! - 03/22/09 03:22 AM
Lock bumping is the term for a very common technique used to open pin tumbler style locks that are installed in over 90% of homes and businesses worldwide. A specially designed key known as a bump key is all it takes to open virtually any lock of it's type. The Lock bump key (also referred to as a '999' key) is easily produced by simply filing down the points on a blank key or any other key designed to fit in the key hole of a particular style of lock. The points are filed to the lowest depth in each groove … (0 comments)

Silent Seconds - 03/22/09 03:07 AM
The County of Los Angeles provides downpayment assistance in participating cities and designated census tracts of unincorporated areas in Los Angeles County. If the home purchase is in participating cities of Los Angeles County, this program provides 20% of the purchase price or $90,000, whichever is less. If the home purchase is within designated census tracts of unincorporated Los Angeles County, this program provides 25% of the purchase price or $90,000, whichever is less.
… (1 comments)

FHA Minimum Property Requirements - 03/14/09 10:48 AM
I remember doing my first FHA deal and learning about FHA minimum property requirements in the middle of the deal. 
Things such as the property cannot be located within falling distance of a utility tower, if the property has a pool it must be full with clean water at the time of FHA appraisal, there can be no exposed wires showing anywhere in the home,etc. led me to finding out exactly what FHA requirements are so that I have that knowledge ahead of time.
In other words, FHA approved properties must be deemed 100% safe and habitable by FHA standards.
I thought … (6 comments)

Short Sale Nightmare Stories - 03/13/09 10:58 AM
Just want to share a short sale nightmare story.
Last year, I had a short sale.  Typical waiting period, then my buyer received the approval from the lender on the short sale.
The escrow rolled through quickly, all inspections and appraisals went smoothly.
We scheduled the final walk through for a few days before closing.  The listing agent never attended the inspection, nor the final walk through.
Escrow notified us that they will be closing a day or two early about 3 days before closing, so immeditately the next day we did the final walk through.
My buyer and I were … (3 comments)

FHA Energy Efficient Mortgages (EEM) - 03/13/09 10:38 AM
You can actually fold the cost of adding energy-efficient improvement into your client's mortgages with an Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM).  And of course this will lower their utility bills significantly.
The cost of the improvements that may be eligible for financing is either 5 percent of the property's value (not to exceed $8000) or $4,000, whichever is greater.  FHA loan limits do not apply to the EEM, but loan amounts may not exceed the projected savings of the energy-efficiency improvements. 
Homebuyers must submit a Home Energy Rating (HER), contractor bids, and a FHA B worksheet.
… (1 comments)

Green Features in a home easily and inexpensively - 03/12/09 07:15 PM
Most people think that adding green or sustainable features into a home is costly.
There are many ways you can improve the sustainability of your home inexpensively.
Passive solar features can be improved with awnings, patio covers and foliage.
Indoor air quality can be greatly improved with good ventilation.
And in turn, many of these features can be solicited when marketing a home for sale.
Checkout www.ecobroker.com
Ralph Gorgoglione
Certified Eco-Broker
… (0 comments)

Short Sale Expertise in Los Angeles Market - 03/12/09 08:48 AM
I have extensive experience in short sales.
My last short sale (on the listing side) had two loans, and I was able to get it into escrow within 32 days of listing with full acceptance from both lenders!!
The key was having the short sale package complete and ready to go with all of the sellers paperwork and the complete buyer's package.
Having been in the computer and web design field prior to real estate, I was able to create a private web page for the lenders to be able to download all of the files in PDF, which avoided the … (0 comments)

Great buyer incentives - 03/11/09 04:30 PM
There are great buyer incentives now!
Our local board has teamed up with the California Association of Relators to offer a $4000 grant to first time buyers.  This is a grant that DOES NOT have to be repaid.
For info on this grant, CLICK HERE
There is also a $10,000 incentive for purchasing new construction, as well as an $8000 tax credit for properties purchase between Jan 1st and Dec 1st!!
Give me a call if you want any further details on local buyer programs and incentives available for your referral clients.
… (2 comments)