Your Home is not an Ear of Corn

Family at home preparing a meal

There is a Supermarket mentality on the part of a good number of buyers today that equates buying a house with shopping for the advertised loss leader at the local market. A buyer told one agent "When corn is 5 for a Dollar, I buy corn. When corn is 4 for a Dollar, I do not buy corn. If the house costs $ 450,000 I buy the house. If it costs $ 460,000, I do not buy the house".

Okay, it worked for her, because she clearly did not care about the house itself and bought a short sale backing to a busy street. Price was everything. She closed on the deal at $ 450,000. She is now memorialized in this agent's memory as "The Corn Lady". Little did she know that this term became synonymous for a buyer who buys "today's special".

Now, let's consider the use of corn. You eat it today and the next day it's... well...disposed of from a different part of the body.

 

Your home is not like an ear of corn. Ears of corn are pretty much the same size with same nutritional value. If you line up 20 ears of corn, there is very little variation. Home buying for your own enjoyment should take into consideration ALL aspects that are important to you.  There is always a reason why a property sells at a low price. Most of the time it's location or condition.

 

When you search for your Dream Home in Irvine or surrounding area, let me help you find a place you truly want to come home to!

Real Estate Matchmaker

How Buyers get the Best Results from their Realtor

As an active Realtor in Orange County, California, I occasionally hear a complaint from a prospective home buyers that they called other real estate agents and they did not answer their phone or did not call back. "You are the first agent who answers her phone!" they say. So far, so good. You finally reached the right agent to help you find your home!

It takes two to tango

Now begins the dance between client and agent. Just as it takes "two to tango", the home buying process works similarly. If the partners pull in different directions, each spends useless energy and both will end up frustrated with each other. Nobody wins a prize in this competition!

How you as a home buyer can make sure the home search and purchase of your dream home has a happy ending:

1. Once you have met an agent  with whom you feel comfortable, stick with that agent. Why re-educate  several Realtors in what you want in a home? A good Realtor will either  simply not work with a buyer who "spreads his love around wide",  or will put in minimal effort. The buyer is the loser. If the agent knows you two are "going steady", you make it to the "A LIST". You deserve being on it; do what you ought to do to get  make the list.


2. You now work with the agent of your choice and she knows what you desire. Your task as  a buyer is to actually be ready to buy.


3. Obtain or provide a reliable lender's pre-approval letter and proof of funds (copy bank statement). No ifs, ands or buts. If you give the agent more than one excuse why you do  not have it, have not made the time or effort to get it or plan to get it "when you find the right property", the agent will not expend undue effort in helping you and instead spend more time with serious buyers. Yes, good agents will not consider you a serious buyer if you do not know how you will pay for a home purchase!


4. When the Realtor calls or emails you about a new listing and asks when you have time for a showing, respond promptly. Agents do not like to preview homes and waste time on buyers who will not schedule an appointment reasonably soon to see the home. The  timeframe depends on how hot the market is. Let your Realtor guide you. Remember the tango?


5. When your agent shows you a home with the features you desire, in the price range that works for you,  and you clearly like the home, don't wait for all your friends and family to give you the go-ahead to write an offer... unless of course they front the money for the purchase! And if that is the case, you better had told your agent about that little tidbit, right?

A serious homebuyer who follows these steps will have a loyal, hardworking professional at his or her side. Whether it's a slow dance or a spirited samba, I aim to adapt to the client.

Call me if you are searching for a home in Irvine, Costa Mesa, Tustin or Newport Beach and surrounding cities!

WAITING LIST FOR SINGLE STORY PLANS

Vista Filare is one of very few communities featuring detached single level homes (not townhomes!) at affordable prices. These patio homes currently sell at between $ 450,000-$ 500,000, depending on location and upgrades. I actually have somewhat of a  waiting list of qualified buyers who are looking to buy!

Larger 2-story models have recently sold between $ 610,000 for "Plain Jane" into the mid $ 680,000s for totally upgraded homes.

Sylvia Jonathan (714) 856-7003

California law "favors" tenants

What exactly does that mean?

Historically, tenants have  been disadvantaged for centuries in relationship to property rights, which are held by landlords. Until recently, that is. The last 20 years or so have seen rising regulations to protect tenants from “oppressing” or “capricious” landlords (my words)

Every year, there are changes in Tenant-Landlord laws. And every year I encounter clients, owners as well as renters, who are in situations that should never have happened to them. Some are landlords with difficult or defaulting tenants, some are tenants with scofflaw landlords. Sadly, the scofflaw landlords are more common. But are the landlords truly scoffing the law, or simply ignorant? A lawyer told me once that ignorance of the law does not make a citizen immune from prosecution or fines if he or she breaks it.

Let’s address the common sense problem affecting landlords and tenants:

The most common issues between  tenants and landlords I encounter are related to

• · Security deposit amount and refund at termination
• · “Non-refundable” deposits (no such thing in California)
• · Notice of change of tenancy
• · Notice of termination of lease
• · Wrongful tenant eviction after foreclosure

If you are a landlord using a simple lease form from an office supply store, think twice. Some owners do things the way they have always handled their rentals, unaware of changes in the law. Othertimes an owner is renting out his home for the first time without doing too much due diligence. If you are a tenant dealing with a landlord directly without representation of a knowledgeable Realtor®, know your rights. Chances are the landlord may not know them. 

The lease forms used by California REALTORS® have been crafted by a panel of attorneys to protect both landlords and tenants, and they are updated when laws change.