newport beach real estate: Outdoor Luxury Spaces That Provide The Perfect Escape
- 05/27/11 06:27 AM
For many home buyers, the selling point is granite counter-tops in a gourmet kitchen, or perhaps a master suite with spacious closets and dual sinks in the master bath. For these homes however, it's the amenities outside, rather than inside, that may seal the deal. Forget the interior floor plan, these outdoor dreamscapes make each of the home's backyards the "great outdoors."
8914 Devlin Pl Los Angeles CA (above)For Sale: $3,150,000 When you live in a region where average temps don't hover too far outside the mid 70s, it makes sense to have a canopy bed outside. This luxury cabana is … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: Required Mortgage Down Payments Increasing | FHA Loan Limits Dropping?
- 05/26/11 05:59 AM
Fellow REALTORS, its happening. The required down payments for all mortgages are increasing...and at the worst possible time for the housing market. Now that the new QRM (Qualified Residential Mortgage) rules are in effect...to be in full force April 2012...the debate over down payments has heated up. On one side are those who think that the required down payments for all mortgages should increase. The Republican proposal would require most FHA borrowers to put down at least 5 percent. Those who support the idea say that forcing borrowers to have more equity in their homes would better protect homeowners against default. … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: Malibu’s Famed “Shangri-La” Jamming Site For Dylan, Clapton Listed For $4.1M
- 05/26/11 05:56 AM
Source: Last.fm For $4.1 million, you can own a legendary rock ‘n roll property in Malibu named "Shangri-La" where the likes of Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and The Rolling Stones played music, recorded, and partied. There's just one catch: as the new owner, you need to remain the music steward of the property and carry on its legacy as a place for rockers to come, hang out and record albums. In other words, you can't raze it and build a behemoth or develop the land. Shangri-La was recently listed on the Malibu real estate market for $4.1 million - the first time it's … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: How To Lower Your Property Taxes
- 05/26/11 05:53 AM
Home values are down 30 percent from their peak. And they could drop another 7-9 percent this year. Yet property taxes keep going up! Take action and get yours lowered in five easy steps: Know the process When it comes to assessments, every town is different. First stop: your local assessor's office. Find out how they go about assessing properties, what forms you need to file and when the deadlines are for filing that appeal. You typically have 60 days or less from the time your annual assessment was mailed to lodge your appeal. Get a property card While at the town hall, get … (3 comments)
newport beach real estate: 8 Things Your Movers Don’t Want You To Know
- 05/26/11 05:50 AM
After you've spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a new home, hiring a mover can almost seem like an afterthought. But if you're not careful about which mover you choose and which questions you ask before you hire them, you can wind up paying unforeseen charges and moving in with damaged property. A number of federal and state regulations govern how moving companies must operate when contracting a move, and interstate movers are actually required to furnish clients with a copy of Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move, a publication of the U.S. Department of Transportation. We thumbed through the … (2 comments)
newport beach real estate: The Right Way to Use Facebook by Ryan Fletcher
- 05/25/11 05:27 AM
Facebook success secrets - the blueprint to Facebook-type growth in your RE business! Some call it a sickness; I call it a success trait. I find myself constantly taking notes, writing down good ideas: in the car, at a party, pumpkin patch or, in this case, at the movies. I recently found a piece of scratch-paper, buried on my desk, from months back when my wife Melanie and I went to see the blockbuster hit ‘Social Media.' It was a good movie. But, the best part was the extraction of these four business and marketing strategies I'm going share with you … (3 comments)
newport beach real estate: Put on Your Thinking Cap ... and Find the Right House to Hold Open by Denise Lones
- 05/25/11 05:24 AM
This week, I want to discuss why it's so important for you to choose the right house for your open house. It's not just a matter holding an open house because one of your sellers wants you to. I want you to avoid doing that! Instead of letting the house choose you, you need to choose the house! And I'm going to tell you exactly how to do that. First and foremost, not all houses are great candidates for an open house. If a house is in a rural area, or in a physical location that presents challenges, you'll spend a lot of money … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: Realtors Continue to Gripe About Appraisals By Lew Sichelman
- 05/24/11 06:53 AM
WASHINGTON-If the audience's response during a special session on mortgage credit at the National Association of Realtors' Midyear Legislative Meetings is any indication, appraisals are still a big issue for frontline realty agents. When a question was raised about valuations, it drew a collective groan from Realtors who packed a ballroom at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel here last week. And when their leader, Ron Phipps, the president of Phipps Realty in Warwick, R.I., framed their problem, the crowd burst into applause. Agents, of course, would like more customers. So would lenders. But to hear the realty folks tell it, many … (1 comments)
newport beach real estate: SUBPRIME MAY BE BACK, BABY!By Paul Muolo
- 05/24/11 06:51 AM
Is the subprime industry poised for a rebound? Now, I know what some of you are thinking: "Paul, the Rapture is coming and it's finally damaged your brain." Maybe, maybe not. From all those CCD classes I attended as a kid, I know that when the Big Man comes it will be like a "thief in the night." And no one knows when that thief might strike. But even if the world doesn't end this weekend, we might be looking at a subprime Rapture of sorts. Follow my logic here. Very quietly (like a thief in the night, so to speak) … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: Shrinking Servicing Balances Mean What? By Paul Muolo
- 05/24/11 06:42 AM
At the end of March mortgage servicers were processing $9.5 trillion in residential loans, a 4% decline from the same period a year ago. (Figures courtesy of National Mortgage News and the Quarterly Data Report.) Now, 4% may not seem like a huge number, but then again, you have to consider historical trends. The trend I'm talking about is this: Over the past three decades (and probably even further back) mortgage debt outstanding in the U.S. never declined. (Of course, home prices never declined either - that is, until the financial crack-up of 2008.) Indeed, the industry is swimming in unchartered … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: Don't Waste Your Time on Social Media By Brad Finkelstein
- 05/24/11 06:40 AM
When it comes to the social media, one of the themes I have consistently written is that you just can't have a policy of throwing things against the wall and hoping that some, if not all, of it sticks. Your social media presence needs to be a real strategy, one (which like every other marketing effort you make) can have its success or failure measured in tangible terms. Randall Craig, an expert in the online and social media areas, said if your social media efforts are not strategic, all you are doing is wasting your time. For your social media marketing … (2 comments)
newport beach real estate: Cato Institute: A Co-op Can Replace Fannie and Freddie By Brian Collins
- 05/24/11 06:37 AM
WASHINGTON-As the debate continues over the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, at least one prominent conservative think tank director believes lenders can form a cooperative to issue mortgage-backed securities without a government guarantee or backstop. "I don't see any reason why lenders can't just create a cooperative on their own," said Mark Calabria, director of financial regulation studies at The Cato Institute. "I simply don't think they need a guarantee," the former Senate Banking Committee staffer told this newspaper. Several banking trade groups have considered the cooperative structure as a way to eventually replace Fannie and Freddie, which have … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: How To Save Equity In Home If You Can’t Make Payments
- 05/17/11 07:07 AM
A lot of people are hurting these days, losing their jobs, or the ability to pay the mortgage on their homes. Zillow Advice recently had a user post this question: We have equity in our home but can't make payments. If it doesn't sell how can we get our equity? Lots of things weigh in the balance in this scenario: failing credit rating, potential rental fees, moving costs and just plain losing your hard-earned money you invested in the house. This was voted the best answer: If you truly have equity and can't make the payments you want to sell as … (2 comments)
newport beach real estate: Kournikova Serves Up Miami Beach Home For Sale
- 05/17/11 07:04 AM
The most surprising thing about Anna Kournikova's home in Florida? There's no tennis court. Kournikova's home is now listed on the Miami Beach real estate market for $9.4 million; she purchased the Florida mansion for $5 million in 2000. While she's well-known for her tennis playing career, Kournikova is also recognizable due to her striking good looks. At the height of her tennis career, she consistently made the top 10 most searched images on Google. The Russian-born athlete reached number one in the world in doubles in 1999 with doubles partner Martina Hingis. Following several injuries, the tennis player stepped back … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: How To Get A Mortgage After Short Sale (Or Foreclosure)
- 05/16/11 08:54 AM
The guidelines for new mortgages are changing. Everything we take for granted about home loans (and being a home owner) is being debated now in Washington D.C. Its clear that required mortgage down payments will increase along with other key elements that many of us have taken for granted. For example, there is growing support to eliminate the mortgage interest tax deduction. There are also political rumblings behind getting rid of the ‘As American As Apple Pie' 30 year mortgage and replacing it with a 15 or 20 year term. (REALTORS(R) remember, support the NAR. They are the only voice we … (1 comments)
newport beach real estate: Heated Debate: National Association Of Realtors Dues Increase
- 05/16/11 08:49 AM
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) voted to raise dues by $40 starting in 2012 to fund political efforts. This dues increase is called the Realtor Party Political Survival Initiative. How much will if cost you to be a REALTOR(r) in 2012? Starting in 2012 the National Association of Realtors dues will increase from $80 to $120. This does not include the current $35 assessment for NARs public awareness campaign that expires in 2014. Bottom line, agents will be paying the NAR $155 per year starting next year. Of course, agents will also have to pay their state association and in some … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: Breaking News: Defaulted Owners Living Payment Free For 900+ Days
- 05/14/11 09:55 AM
New evidence is out from RealtyTrac (and CNBC) that the banks ARE sitting on homes that...in a normal world...would of been long since been sold as REOs. In other words, the ‘Shadow Inventory' is growing.... Nationwide the average defaulted owner is staying in their home, PAYMENT FREE for 400 days. Lets be clear what this really means. Non-paying owners are keeping possession of their homes (safe to assume they are living in these homes) for 400 days after the NOD is filed. What isn't known is how many months of payment free living they have enjoyed leading UP TO the NOD … (1 comments)
newport beach real estate: Are Banks and Servicers Hungry to Unload REO? By Paul Muolo
- 05/13/11 05:03 AM
Perhaps, one day we will all look back at the past two years and say, "Boy, that was a great time to buy a house - prices were so low, and so were rates." Well, we know the rate part is correct, as for whether we've reached a bottom in home values, the jury is still out. We all keep seeing reports that the Washington metropolitan area appears to be healthy and lower priced homes in California and Florida are selling at a somewhat swift pace. (Anything that isn't lower priced isn't going anywhere.) Meanwhile, National Mortgage News continues to hear … (0 comments)
newport beach real estate: Can You Afford Not To Have Social Networking Policies? By Christopher Bauer
- 05/13/11 04:57 AM
Social networking sites have opened a whole new range of opportunities for ethical problems on the job. Inappropriate comments and disclosures are just a few easy keystrokes away and employees have become desensitized to the visibility, 'searchability' and longevity of their online words and images. Libel and non-disclosure violation risks are problematic with social networking while reputational risks are both constant and extreme. Despite the above omnipresent risks, most companies seem to be yawning their way through the many very real ethical and legal risks presented by social networking posts on (or about) the job. Here are just a few of … (0 comments)
For many home buyers, the selling point is granite counter-tops in a gourmet kitchen, or perhaps a master suite with spacious closets and dual sinks in the master bath. For these homes however, it's the amenities outside, rather than inside, that may seal the deal. Forget the interior floor plan, these outdoor dreamscapes make each of the home's backyards the "great outdoors."
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