mission viejo: Huge Increase in Listings in Jan! Has the Shadow Inventory Arrived?? - 02/23/10 04:33 AM
Listings in Mission Viejo for Jan 2010 represent a 25% increase from Jan. 09
Below are the stats.
Jan 09 - 139 listings taken in Mission Viejo
Feb - 135
Mar 136
April 127
May 129
June 150
July 183
Aug 120
Sept 151
Oct 131
Nov 100
Dec 116
Jan 2010 - 174 listings taken in Mission Viejo - 25% increase! -
(of these, only 13 are listed as bank owned and 52 are short sales, 68 standard sales. So if you thought that maybe the banks are starting to dump "shadow inventory", I'd say, not yet (if ever).
Feb … (0 comments)

mission viejo: Short Sale Listing in Mission Viejo - I have 3 offers - but not accepted yet.... - 09/21/09 07:41 AM
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mission viejo: Community Garage Sale This Weekend in Rancho Santa Margarita - 06/11/09 06:52 AM
This Saturday I have the privilege of hosting my neiborhood's annual Community Garage Sale.
It's a LOT of work, and it's not particularly cheap, but I enjoy helping my community and the PR can't hurt my business.
The sale will be Saturday June 13Th. from 7:00AM to 2:00PM
If you are local and interested in coming to the sale, follow the signs in Rancho Santa Margarita located at the corner of Santa Margaria Parkway and Antonio Parkway.
This is a small community of large detached homes, we expect to have at least 15 to 20 homes participating.
Hope to see you there!
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mission viejo: No Answer On Bank Owned Offer - No Communication, No Excuse! - 05/30/09 03:14 PM
So, your client wants you to put in an offer on a bank owned property. You call the agent to find out if there is anything special you need to submit. You call and email the agent to see if there are offers, or if it's even still available. You hear nothing back. No communication at all. So, you figure, hey, the MLS says it's available, might as well take a chance, after all, money talks and, well, you know the rest. You still don't hear anything, but you assume the agent must be busy, it was a great price. You call a few … (0 comments)

mission viejo: FHA POINTS - an old story - 04/23/09 06:56 PM
Years ago, I was representing a seller on the sale of her home. It was customary, even required if I remember right, that on FHA loans, the seller had to pay the points. On this particular sale, mortgage rates were going up VERY fast. We are talking about the mid 1980's. The points on the buyer's loan started out at 1%, then went to 2%, then 3% finally ending up at 4 1/2%!!! POINTS!!!
There were very few buyers then and my seller really wanted the house sold, so she agreed to pay the points.
The one thing that I've never … (0 comments)

mission viejo: Rancho Santa Margarita Narrow Stats 1400 to 1500 SqFt. Mar 08 vs. Mar 09 - 03/31/09 01:09 PM
Ok, so this is a VERY small slice of the market, but for me, it's relative since I have a listing in this size category.
There were 3 detached homes between 1400SqFt and 1500SqFt that closed escrow between March 1 2008 and Mar 31st 2008.
The average sale price was $470,000
There were 4 detached homes between 1400SqFt and 1500SqFt that closed escrow between March 1 2009 and Mar 31st 2009.
The average sale price was $433,225
$470,000-$433,225 = $36,775 or a little less than 8%!!
So, in this very narrow time span, using a very narrow home size and sample, prices aren't … (0 comments)

mission viejo: WOW - Rancho Santa Margarita Detached Home - NOT A SHORT SALE!! - 03/31/09 12:49 PM
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mission viejo: Amazing Location, Great Price and NOT a Short Sale - Check it Out in Mission Viejo - 03/31/09 12:46 PM
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mission viejo: Dirty Grout and How to Fix It with Grout Stain - It Really is Amazing - 03/30/09 04:25 PM
So, your client has 4" ceramic tile in the kitchen. Once all the rage and actually coming back in some areas, but what about the grout. It gets REALLY dirty, even if you are a clean freak.
One of the best things I've found for cleaning it is straight bleach. Be careful with that, bad fumes, lung irritant, and don't get it in your eyes or on your Levi's.
Steam - yep, they sell these little high pressure steamers now days. You can pick one up on ebay for about $140. They work REALLY good, but take a long time.
But … (4 comments)

mission viejo: We are having a sale! - 03/02/09 01:21 AM
Yep - Real Estate in South Orange county is On Sale.
Prices Slashed 10, 20, 30 even 40%!
But wait, there is MORE.....
Interest rates are close to all time lows!
Anyone with money in the bank, a good job with plenty of income can now buy a home at a spectacular price!
HURRY, Time is running out - Grab your piece of Southern California Now before the sale ends!
Hey, sounds like a joke doesn't it? But it's all true, this is a great time to invest in a Southern California Home.
If you don't buy now, you are going … (0 comments)

mission viejo: Check Out This Southern California Location! Once in a Lifetime Home - 02/28/09 03:09 AM
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mission viejo: My Phone - Palm 800W - and why I am tempted to throw it at the wall! - 02/23/09 04:29 AM
Here it goes again - My phone says No Service. My wife's phone shows all the bars. We are both on Sprint. I have a Treo 800W - The "Ultimate" Real Estate phone (not). I "reboot" the phone, no change. Then, I get an incoming call. Call quality is fine. When I disconnect, sitting in the same location, my phone now shows all the bars.
I have blogged about this phone before, and it's never been good. A cell phone is a Realtor's lifeline to his clients. One missed call can mean missing out on a listing or a sale. Those … (0 comments)

mission viejo: Open House - Are They Important - or a Waste of Time - 02/23/09 03:58 AM
Ask a dozen Realtors if holding Open House is important and you'll get a dozen answers.
In my opinion, if the home is unique, holding open houses is very important. But then, to me, every house is unique, so I think holding open house is important for every listing.
Some agents feel open houses are a waste to time, for various reasons. The agent may feel that their time can be spent more efficiently doing other things to market the home, like posting on Craig's List or here on Active Rain. Some feel that only buyer's agents should be holding open … (0 comments)

mission viejo: 27546 Berdun, Mission Viejo, Ca. Location, Location, Location - 02/23/09 03:25 AM
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mission viejo: Help - Multiple Offers - Equity Sellers - Low List Price Strategy - 02/23/09 01:50 AM
I submitted an offer for my clients on a property that was listed below market price. The home is in extremely good condition with some nice upgrades. It's listed for $35,000 to $50,000 below market (at about the $300K level). This is not a short sale, or a bank owned. So why would the agent, (who is very successful) list the property so low? Surely this wasn't an error, so I am guessing it's a shrewd strategy.
When I submitted the offer, the agent told me he already had 5 other offers on the property. This is for a home that had … (0 comments)

mission viejo: Thinking of Selling Your Home Yourself - 02/10/09 10:49 AM
Wow - in this market. It's tough to sell a home even with all of the tools we Realtors have at our disposal. 
There are several reasons why you don't want to take on selling your home as a do it yourself project. 
1. Time - OMG - you are going to spend a ton of time just marketing your home. First, you are going to have to learn HOW to market it, then you'll actually have to do. If you have a full time job, forget it, you don't have enough time. 
2. You are not a Realtor, so you … (1 comments)

mission viejo: Anti-Virus 360 - this IS a Virus... - 02/10/09 10:22 AM
 
Argh - What will they think of next. I help a lot of people with their computers. This Anti-Virus 360 is the latest problem to pop up and it's causing all kinds of issues with peoples computers.  If you are real lucky, you can get it removed without too much trouble, but you'll need to download and install a removal tool.  This virus pretends to scan your system, then reports that you are infected. The only way to delete the infection, is to purchase their anti-virus program (yea, right). It doesn't work, and now they have your money. On top … (2 comments)

mission viejo: Living Off Your IRA and Disabled - 02/01/09 04:43 AM
Most don't know this, because I don't talk about it much, but my wife is totally disabled. She can walk, but she can't work. She lives in constant horrible pain after having 4 failed back surgeries. I don't mention this seeking sympathy, but to bring up a point that some of you may not be aware of.
A totally disabled person can make withdrawls from thier IRA without penalty at any age.
Also, in California, we are allowed to transfer our tax base on our primary residence,  once in a lifetime after we reach 55 years of age, but there is … (2 comments)

mission viejo: Dove Canyon Jan Report and annual report - 02/01/09 03:34 AM
Jan 2009 - we have 33 homes listed for sale in Dove Canyon, Rancho Santa Margarita.
The highest list price of those home is $1,379,000
The lowest list price is $639,000
The Average size per Square Foot is 3,072
Average List Price per Square Foot is $300
There was ONE sale in Jan of 09 - It sold for $264 a Square Foot
There was ONE sale in Jan of 08 - It sold for $275 a Square Foot
Obvisously, not a lot of statistics to go on, so let compare 07 to 08
There were 50 sales in 08
There … (0 comments)

mission viejo: OMG!! Check Out the Latest McDuell Stats for Rancho Santa Margarita!!! - 11/03/08 01:24 PM
 
So, here I am, minding my own business, but wondering if there really were more homes sold last month (Oct. 08) than last year (Oct. 07).
Are you sitting down?
Are you ready for this??
Last month there were 78 sales in RSM - that includes condos and SFRs.
There were only 28 homes sold in Oct. of 2007!!!
That folks is a 278% increase - that is HUGE!!!
Ok - but what about prices you ask?
Well - The average price per sqft in Oct. of 07 in RSM was $348.42
In Oct. of 08, that price dropped to … (0 comments)