Did You Know?... Some Little Known (or unknown) Things About LA's San Fernando Valley

I'm just going to write some bullet points here that include some fun facts about our valley...I will call this the "Did You Know?" blog

Did You Know?  Toluca Lake is really a community in North Hollywood

Did You Know?  That President Reagan married Nancy in 1952 in Studio City's Little Brown Church (it holds about 40 people)
                                                                  

Did You Know?  That the San Gabrielle Valley was once known as "Gabrielino"?

Did You Know?  That Burbank is it's own city...and Studio City is not a city?

Did You Know?  The house where "The Brady Bunch" was filmed is still looking great and located in a neighborhood in Studio City? (I don't think the people that live there would like me to advertise the address so I won't put it here...but if we are out looking at houses, ask me and we will take a drive past it)

                                                  

Did You Know?  Valley Glen is really a community in Van Nuys?

Did You Know?  Bob's Big Boy in Toluca Lake/Burbank was built in 1949 and is considered an iconic symbol of modern design for the time that it was built? You can see some amazing classic cars there every Friday from 3-10PM at the car show.
                                                                 

                                                               
Did You Know?  That Studio City was originally a part of North Hollywood? Maybe that explains why there is such a large distance between Hollywood and North Hollywood today....

Did You Know?  The valley made tract houses famous and a lot of that started in areas like Panorama City?                                                            

Did You Know?  The red clay roof tiles (called Terracotta) that are all over the roofs our Spanish-styled houses here in the valley, were believed to have been made, back in the day, with the workers placing clay over their thighs to give the tiles the arch shape.
                                                                    

Did You Know?  The El Portal Theatre was opened in 1926 and is still a working theater? Now the famous Academy of Television and Science is situated just across the street from this landmark.
                                                                   

Did You Know?  Encino is typically 10 degrees warmer than Hollywood, which is just 14 miles away?

Did You Know?  One of the world's most famous people, Michael Jackson, spent most of his childhood, along with his family, in their home...right in Encino?
                                                                    

Did You Know?  The price of single family homes in the valley can range anywhere from around $300,000 to well over $10,000,000?

Did You Know?  There is a sushi bar in North Hollywood where the waiters wildly sing and dance to today's hit music while serving you sushi? Tokyo Delve's is not the place for the early-bird-dinner-special-clients, if you get my drift.

Did you Know?  Mary Astor and Frank Sinatra were both once residents of Toluca Lake.  This famous estate, locate at 10051 Valley Spring Lane,  is still here and if the walls could speak, I bet they'd have a lot to say.
                                                           

Did you Know?  And yet another world known musican lived here too. 4326 Forman Ave in Toluca Lake is where Bing Crosby once lived.  Seems like Tolcua Lake was the happening place to live (and still is)


For more fascinating information about parts of the valley, it's history, architects, and developement, check out this webiste.  It is a goldmine of information http://preservation.lacity.org/files/SO-SC-TL-CP%20Survey%20Report%202.26.13.pdf


If you have any more little known facts about our communities here in the valley, feel free to email me and I will add them on here.

Pinterest: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (photos of homes)

One of the things I've always enjoyed, even as a child, was going to open houses. I loved to see how other people's homes looked; how they decorated, how the kitchens were laid out, or how they missed the mark on design all together. So, I have decided to start a Pinterest page on the things I see in the homes around town. I hope some of the photos you will find inspiring for your own home. Others will just be lovely ideas or great architecture. The rest will just be for fun. So come follow me on Pinterest as I take you around Los Angeles to see some of our homes.

                       Pinterest: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly







 

A Greener Home: Earth Day Tips On How You Can Make Your Home More Earth Friendly

I've reached out to my readers and clients on things that they do to make their homes greener and I have put those suggestions, along with other, here for you to read. Sometimes just doing the small things around your home can really go along way. Especially if a lot of people are doing them. So let's start with some of those simply tips:

*Turn off the lights in a room if you don't need them on
*Turn off your faucet when brushing your teeth
*Unplug the things that don't need to be plugged in. Even a phone charger that is plugged into the wall when your phone isn't attached to it, is wasting energy.
*Wait till you have a full load of laundry or dishes before doing a wash.

Now here are some tips my readers and clients use around their homes:

Dawn from North Carolina writes "Clean with vinegar. If you don't like the smell you can add orange peels to cover up the vinegar odor plus it adds an extra grease cutting ability."

Becky from North Hills admits "Before bed, my husband pees right after I pee, and then we only have to flush once! Haha! Saving water 1 pee at a time!"

My personal thought on Becky's suggestion is that this might not be for everyone...but if you do want to save the Earth one flush at a time, I would suggest adding this tip to making your home a greener place: Try waiting till your husband or wife is ready to take a shower and save some water by taking only one...together. 

I personally use vodka to clean and sterilize floors and counters. I use a steam mop on my floors and lightly sprinkle a cheap vodka while mopping. I also clean my counter tops with good old fashion soap and water. 

*When your dish sponge starts to get an odor, don't toss it out, just put it in the dishwasher with the dirty dishes and run a cycle. Good as new! 

*Solar panels aren't just for the fancy green home owners anymore. Did you know that you can rent them for your house now? And if you own a condo here in SoCal, you are allowed to put them on your roof there too. Now this is exciting! 

*How about a rainwater cathment systems? These are wonderful sources for watering your yard and plants. They even have an association where you can learn more about the systems at http://www.arcsa.org/ 

*Don't forget that even though you may not be using an appliance at the moment, if it is plugged in, even if it's off, it is using energy. So unplug everything that isn't necessary. 

*reuse your paper towels. When you wipe the counter, wash it in water and wipe the floors too. They can be reused time and time again. 
 
*And those reusable bags you use at the grocery store...can't we use these or other similar bags when we go to clothing stores or places like Target? Sure we can! I wouldn't use the exact same ones you use for food to put clothes in but just buy a few extra for these types of shopping trips! 

Do you have any great tips you use around your home that make you a greener person? I would love to hear and share them with others so please add your own comments on here and let's start working towards a greener, more Earth friendly, home. 

                                                                   

 

Just Sold!

A big congratulations to my clients Paul and Sana on their new beautiful home in Porter Ranch! We got them a lovely home and I can't wait to see it when they put their personal touches on it!

Casey Kasem's Home is For Sale- And Here Are The Top 40 Reasons You Should Buy It

That's right folks...Casey Kasem's home is for sale. He and his wife, Jean Kasem, have listed their sprawling Holmby Hills home (say that 3 times fast) and if you have a cool 40, well technically 42 million, you could be the next owner. And here are the top 40 reasons you should want to own it. This is quite funny!!! Check it out here Top 40 Reasons To Buy Casey Kasem's House

                                                                             

And they forgot to add the #1 best reason you should buy Casey Kasem's $42 million House....It is listed by my office and I'm sure our agents will be putting on the pressure for a lunch on the house when it is sold!

Things You Should Say And Things You Should Not Say To An Agent At An Open House

Have you ever wondered what may be good, or not good to say, to an agent at an open house? Do you think that just because they ask, that you should have to answer them? Oh no, be careful what you say. So here are some things you may hear an agent at an open house say or ask you while you are there and here is what is okay to let them know or perhaps not:

Do you have an agent?- You probably will hear this all the time. Go ahead and tell them and be honest. If you do, maybe even mention who it is since they may know each other or maybe the open house agent is expecting you since your agent said you would be stopping by. And if you don't have an agent, feel free to let them know as well. Especially if you get a good feeling from this agent. Maybe you can work together. But if you would rather not, simply tell them you don't have one and are not looking to work with one at the moment either.

Do you live in the neighborhood?- You may have just as many neighbors stopping into an open house as you have buyers. It's perfectly normal for them to want to see how someone has decorated or maybe upgraded some things. So go ahead and let the agent know you live across the street. It's always nice for us to meet the neighbors too.

What do you think about the house?- Don't be cruel if you think the house is a hot mess. After all, this is probably still someone's home and not everyone likes the same cup of tea. But you can be honest in a diplomatic way.

Is this home something that may interest you?- Sure...go ahead and tell them. And if you happened to walk into a million dollar house and your price range is more around $500k, you can tell them that too. I mean, looking at million dollar houses can just sometimes be fun and we are aware that there is no price tag out front that could have lead you to know the price before you walked in.

Will you sign in with your name and contact info?- Sure. Go ahead and leave it. Especially if you want to be contacted for things like future open houses, other houses that just came on the market or just so I can thank you for stopping by my open house and see if there were any unanswered questions you may have. 

What is your price range?- Now here's the one you may want to not answer. Don't forget, we are in the sales business and unless you hire us to help you purchase this home, our job is to work for the seller and get the highest price we can for them. So if this house is listed at $850K and you tell me your price goes up to $900k, I may go into the deal with a peak at the cards you are holding and that won't be the best move for you. So, if you are interested in this home, keep the numbers to yourself so that you don't reveal too much to the wrong person.



                                                                             

Should I Remove The Contengencies In My Offer?

It is almost April of 2013 and the housing market out here in Los Angeles has become very competitive. There is a larger difference between the number of houses on the market and the number of buyer out there. Some of the areas I specialize in are getting large numbers of multiply offers on homes that are marketed well and buyers are needing to step it up if they really want a particular house. So what are some of the things that I'm seeing buyers are doing in hopes to get their offer accepted? Well, there is the almighty all-cash-king. This one seems to help the sellers accept an offer pretty frequently. But there aren't a lot of buyers out there that can buy a house with all cash, so what are the rest doing to gain a seller's interest? Well, quite frankly, some buyers are removing some or all of their contingencies on an offer to keep themselves in the running for owning a home. So what does removing contingencies really mean and is it something I should do in order to get a house? Well folks, this is a very slippery slope I'm about to discuss here.

First off, there are three major contingencies in a Purchase agreement, or an offer. There is the loan contingency, an appraisal contingency, and an inspection contingency. According to Merriam Webster's dictionary, the definition of contingent is-dependent on or conditioned by something else. 
These contingencies are put into the contract to protect the buyer from unknown obstacles that can occur during the purchase. Buyers are not 100% guaranteed that they will be able to get the loan they were pre approved for on any house. There are a lot of factors that determine whether or not a lender will actually give a loan. Therefore, there is a contingency for obtaining the loan. Same goes with an appraisal which is directly tied in to getting the loan. A lender needs to know that the value of the house is there before they give that amount of money out for a loan on a home. So, same thing again as before...that is why there is an appraisal contingency. And so on with the inspection contingency as well.

So, let me say it again...the contingencies are there to protect a buyer.  Just as a deposit is there to protect a seller. And guess what is at risk if you remove contingencies?...you guessed it. Your deposit.  But let's say that you've heard that if you remove a contingency that there are still time periods and other things in the contract that are there to protect you as a buyer. Well, yes and no. These decisions of removing contingencies should only be considered on a case by case, person by person situation. I would not feel comfortable as a Realtor just suggesting to anyone of my clients that they do this without fully explaining what it means and what the consequences could be.  And I surely would not throw this out blanketly as a strategic maneuver to get an offer accepted. Try to imagine like this: When purchasing a home you place your deposit in a box behind three brick walls. And lets say those walls represent those three contingencies.  If you start off your offer with one or more of those walls missing, that is the level of protection your deposit has left.  Now this way of going about writing an offer can work out very well for the right person, but please have this talk with your Realtor and get all the facts you can before moving forward with these options. And, just so you know, there are other ways of getting your offer accepted in this competitive market. After all, in the past month, I have had two offers accepted in a multiply bid situation and neither of them removed any contingencies and neither of them were the highest offer. I'm not going to give away my secrets here but if you are out looking to purchase a home right now, maybe you should give me a call!

                                                                             

Buying and Selling a Condo and The Hidden Challenges

No matter what you are thinking of buying or selling, there can be challenges. But condos hold different challenges than single family residents do. If you are looking to sell your condo, there are some key questions your Realtor should be asking you that are huge factors regarding a buyer being able to qualify for a loan to buy the condo. Here are a few things we need to know:
1. How many of the units are rented and not owner occupied?
2. How many owners are delinquent on their home owner's dues?
3. And if an investor owns more than one unit in this complex, how many do they own?

These things can create some challenges when it comes to selling your condo. And anyone looking to buy a condo needs to be working with a lender that is aware of these issues from the start so that you don't get yourself half way through the transaction just to find out that you can't get the loan. There are more things regarding the units we are going to be asking about but the ones listed above seem to be the ones that are most easily overlooked that can create problems. Please feel free to call me and ask about how to sell your condo and how to overcome some of these issues.

Here is a great site with some information on this subject that you may find very helpful http://www.realtor.org/topics/condominium-approvals

Bob's Big Boy is Hosting Tip-a-Cop

This is a great fundraiser held at Bob's Big Boy in Sun Valley. Money raised goes to support the Jeopardy Program for at-risk youth. It will be held on April 4, 2013 from 11AM-7PM. Come bring family and friends and support our community. It really is a great event!! Find out more info at this link   Tip-A-Cop

How Can I Tell What My Home Is Worth?

So you are selling your house and you want to know what the comps (comparable sales) are so that you can get an idea of what your home is worth? Or maybe you are looking to buy and a comp would help you better know about the price range of the house or houses in a certain neighborhood. Well, there are certain internet sites (that will not be named here) where people do their own research on comps...and they are very inaccurate sources. I personally, do not recommend my clients use these internet sites because for the most part, they get their information by using property tax records of recently sold homes near by. But let me tell you about the things that matter when looking for a comp and why these sites don't work in the real world. In most of Los Angeles most of the time, we will look for recently sold homes, typically these days ones that sold in the past 2 months. And then we will look within a mile radius of the house. Looking for a home that is similar in square footage, about 20% more and less than the subject home. But here are some factors to consider once you find these recent sales:
Upgrades and improvements: Has this house recently been remodeled? If so, what type of materials did they use? Maybe laminate floors or hard wood? Tile counters or stone? New double pane windows or a new roof?
Number of rooms: Sometimes this matters, and other times not. Here is when it may matter. If you have one house that is a 3 bedroom at 1,500 Sqft that is just fine. But what if the house you are looking at is 1,500sqft and has 5 bedrooms? Well, that might make some of the rooms about the size of closets and, for most people, unusable. This would leave someone needing to probably knock out a wall or two in order to make the bedrooms usable.
Lot Size: So you are thinking that you have a large lot on the house your are interested in huh? I mean 10,000 sgft is a good deal of land in LA. So you are looking at another similar house that also had a large lot too. BUT, here in LA, we also have hills. And the house you are looking at, while it may have 10,000 sqft, most of it is on a steep slope and completely unusable.
Location, Location, Location: All other things being equal about a house, if your home is on the corner of a busy street, it will not be comparable to another that is in a quiet cul-da-sac. Just as if your home is on a street with other nice homes, it will not be comparable to one that is next to apartment complexes. If you are looking at a house on the boarder of a city, you may not want to use the home sales from the other city, even if it is just a few blocks away. Some cities have higher rated school systems than others and that can make a home's value change.
Amenities: A home with a pool will have more value than one without. If you are looking at condos, a private attached garage will help the value over a condo that has a community parking area. Having a fenced in yard may increase your value over no fence at all.

So, when looking at what a comparable property is to one you may currently own or are looking to buy, I can assure you that the online sites will not be your best source of information for that. Ask your Realtor for a better idea since they have the experience and knowledge to inform you about this very thing.  And feel free to call me if you are curious about your home's current value and we can go over this together. 

Real Estate Lingo In Layman's Terms

Do you find yourself listening to someone about real estate and just nodding your head when certain terminology is used just so you don't feel silly about asking the real question on your mind: "What in the world is this person talking about?"  Well...read below some of the most frequently used terms in real estate and what they mean.

Broker's Open- typically during the week real estate agents will hold an open house for other real estate agents to come see what is new on the market. This is a great time for us to be able to get into the houses and see what they look like in person and become familiar with the homes for sale in our area. As a buyer, don't be shy to walk into these if you see an Open House sign out front. After all, this is all ultimately for you.
Caravan- This falls under the "Broker's open" category. When we go out to see these houses that are open for brokers to see during the week, sometimes we simply say we are going on caravan.
Under Water- this is when someone owes more on the loan than the house is currently valued at. For example: John Doe owes $500,000 on his loan but his home has been appraised at the value of $450,000
Short Sale- If a home is "under water" or someone owes more money on that home than it is worth and the house needs to be sold, it would be called a "short sale". In this type of sale the lender may accept less than the amount owed on the property.
Over, At, or Under Asking: This is just a short way of referring to an offer put on a house. If the person selling the house is asking $500,000 and he received an offer of $510,000 it is said to be "over asking"

Vesting- You may here this when someone is asking you how you would like your title to be held. This refers to your name being put on the title and "how your title will be held"  which refers to things such as "a single woman", "an unmarried man", "joint tenancy" and other similar terms. This will be something your escrow officer will ask you but for tax purposes, you should ask a CPA how you should do this before you buy a home. 
Escrow- Here in California we use Escrow companies as a neutral party to help during the transaction of buying a selling property. Escrow companies hold funds (such as deposits) and handle all the paper work involved with a transaction. You may hear terms such as "In Escrow" which, simply put, means the time between when an offer is accepted and when the transaction is complete and the sale is made. (don't forget, not all states go about a real estate transaction the same way so if you don't live in Southern California, this may not be a familiar term to you.)
Dual Agency or Dual Representation- This is when both buyer and seller are represented by the same real estate agent. I wrote an entire blog on this subject. To find out more, read Dual Representation: Good or Bad? 
Held In Trust- This is something that everyone should find our more about! If you own property, and you pass away, there are a number of things that could happen to your property. One of the things that could happen is referred to as "probate".  Probate involves lawyers, courts and a lot of money and time.  To avoid probate, property owners will create a Living Trust and then transfer their property's title under the name of this Trust. I know this is the most simplistic explanation of a very large subject but, I hope, if it's not something you are familiar with, that it's something you research more.  
Free and Clear- when you hear someone say that a title of a home is "free and clear" this can mean that the person who owns the home does not owe any money for a loan on that home. It should also infer that there are no liens on the house but all of these matters should be looked into by a title company to truly know whether these things are correct.
Lien- Well, first off, if you have a mortgage or loan on your home, you have a lien on your home. A lien is a document used to secure a payment if you are in debt to someone. If you have a loan, then you are in debt to the bank where you got the loan. There are other types of liens though as well. Mechanic's Lien- if someone does work on a home and doesn't get paid in full, they can put a mechanic's lien on a home
Judgment- this can get complicated but, if it is decided in court that one person owes another money, someone can formally file a judgement against the person who owes the money.  This judgment can become a lien on the person's property that owes the money.
Tax Liens- if someone owes the government taxes, the government can put this type of lien on a home
Wet Signature- In this modern day of computers, we use online programs that allow our clients to sign documents over the Internet. Sometimes we need them signed with a pen instead and this is called a wet signature.
Contingencies- You will hear this term mostly used when referring to a Purchase agreement, or an offer. There are certain things in the sale of a home that must happen in order for the sale to go through. These things are known as contingencies. An example of one is: if John Doe is buying a home and using a loan to do this, he needs to be able to secure this loan. The sale of this home is said to be "contingent" upon John Doe getting this loan.
Equity- This can be looked at like a math equation. The value of a home minus the money owed on it equals equity. So if you have a $500,000 home and owe $300,000 on that home, then you have $200,000 in equity.
At-Value appraisal- This is a very misunderstood term and many people interpret this term at face-value (no pun intended...okay, just kidding, pun intended) If you hear that the appraisal of a home came in "At-value" this does not mean that it is valued at the exact dollar amount of the accepted offer. It simply means the value of the home is at or above the accepted offer amount. You may or may not hear the exact amount a home is valued at unless that amount is less than the accepted offer amount.
As-Is I actually wrote a whole blog on this term that you can read below.
But what the term is meant to imply is that the home is being sold in the condition that it is currently in. This term can go a lot deeper so for further explication, please read my other blog about this Sold As-Is

I hope this helps and if you are thinking about buying or selling your home and don't understand the lingo or terms that you may hear your agent say, please ask what they mean. An important part of our job is to help you understand as much as you need to know about the process of buying or selling. If you have questions regarding a loan or terms referring to loans, feel free to call Michael Razak. He is an excellent loan broker and can help you understand about that part of a transaction. http://2933208649.brokersite.com/Default.aspx

And if you can think of any other terms you hear that you may not be familiar with, I bet you are not alone and I would love to hear from you so that I can add them on here.

                                                                          

Tax Deductions With Home Ownership

I just saw this article and I thought I would add it on here. These things are very important to remember around tax season and they can really put more money back in your pocket if you remember to include them in with your taxes. Some of the most forgotten home related tax deductions are:
1. State sales taxes, including on major home improvements
2. Refinancing points -- including previous refi points when you re-refinance
3. Energy-saving home improvements
4. Charitable donations
5. Moving expenses to take your first job

                                               You can read the full article here  

  http://homes.yahoo.com/blogs/spaces/most-overlooked-home-related-tax-deductions-203157385.html 



 

Sold As-Is

Have you run across a house where the agent tells you that the house is sold as-is? Or maybe you are marketing your home and saying it is sold as-is? What does this mean as a buyer and what should everyone expect with an as-is home sale? Well, just to get right to the root of this, on the Residential Purchase Contract that we use here is southern California, there is a section called "Condition of Property" where is states the home will be sold in it's present physical "as-is" condition...So to have someone say they are selling their house "as-is" is really just reiterating what is already stated. But does that mean that we, as buyers, can not ask for anything to be fixed or monies for repair?

Here is the answer to both buyer's and seller's questions when it comes to "as-is" and asking for things after an inspector gives you a report: As a buyer, you may ask. The seller is not obligated to do any repairs or give credits or money. As a seller, you can advertise that your house is being sold "as-is". This does not mean a buyer can not make requests. Don't forget that any buyer who sees your home, is looking at is from a non-professional-inspector's point of view. They can only see things in your home that are noticeable and only make educated guesses about what those things may be. But when an inspector comes in and gives their professional report on a home, things may be discovered that a buyer would have no way of knowing about previously. And that can affect a buyer's opinion of whether or not this home is still a good purchase. Your best bet as a buyer and seller is to give a little wiggle room on both sides. If you think that, as a seller, you can put your foot down and say that you will not make any repairs, you risk the chance of loosing your current buyer, as well as others that come after. And as a buyer, if you think that the seller should absolutely make repairs or give you money, you risk loosing a home and having to find another. So my advice is, to both buyers and sellers, do not go into any transaction with a hard-fast stance on how you intend to go about a sale. Things change, discoveries are made, and people change their minds. So try to work with knowing these things and your home buying and selling process with go a lot smoother.

Remodeling: Cost VS Value in 2013

Are you thinking about making some changes to your home? Have you been wondering what changes will bring the most value to your home? Well I just found this great article and website that gives a lot of information on the cost vs value in today's market. When you look at the chart, under the type of project, you can click on that name, such as "kitchen" and it even breaks it down even further into different high or low yielding layouts and materials. Check it out!

http://www.remodeling.hw.net/2013/costvsvalue/national.aspx

                                                                          

Southern California Home Price Surge

If you are interested in this article, it is because you have been aware of the recent surge in home prices. When comparing a home's value in some areas, you can no look back any further than one month for comparable sales because the market is changing so rapidly. Here is a great article from the LA Times with an interactive map that shows the median home price increase within any certain neighborhood. This is great! Check it out....

http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-recovery-markets-map-20130308-dto%2c0%2c7204398.htmlstory#.UTvC9n6r6_w.email