The Puppy
June 28, 2009
Well, my husband finally got me to agree to a new doggie. Her name is Ceilidh — I know he is just trying to screw with me since I will never be able to spell this without looking it up. She is a McNabb Shepherd and should max out at 35 pounds. She loves my feet and her little teeth are awfully sharp. The kitty does not particularily like Ceilidh but she hasn’t pounced on it yet — that will come, I am certain. The only real problem I am having with this little doggie is her difficulty figuring out where she should potty. She really is sweet, she will have her first camping trip with us next weekend. We will see what the fellow campers think — hopefully she won’t whine. Did I mention, she also doesn’t particularily like the leash. Russ has to solve that little problem. It is interesting getting used to a new personality in the house, even if it is just a dog. Here is a picture of her.
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Distressed Homeowners Beware!
June 25, 2009
In our weekly e-mail blast from the California Association of Realtors, we were brought up to date on yet another way that distressed homeowners are being taken advantage of. Apparently there are companies out there who will take your money under the guise of helping you “renegotiate” your loan with your lender. After they take your money, the service that they provide you with is questionable. According to CAR’s report, the California Department of Real Estate reported only 10 complaints last July about these companies. This year they have 750. If you are about to give one of these types of services your business, you may want to check this list and if they are on it, ask them why.
This is not to say that all companies of this type are illegal or unethical. If the DRE has reviewed the company and has approved of them, they perform a useful function and until they prove themselves differently, are reputable. Ask them if they have a license from the Department of Real Estate and if you have a question, be sure to contact the Department of Real Estate. You can find them here. And while you are at it, look at that handsome devil up there in the left hand corner. Looks like he may have been a movie star, huh?
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Inca Power
June 22, 2009
Being in the business of selling houses, I couldn’t help but be in awe of the architecture and craftmanship not to mention the engineering involved with the construction of these little towns dating back to, oh somewhere around 1200 AD. – Pretty amazing!
These are differnt ruins and the salt fields scattered around the Sacred Valley of Peru, including the very recognizable Machu Piccu.
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Encouraging First Time Buyers
June 20, 2009
Today’s post from RIS Media was devoted to helping Real Estate agents try to encourage first time buyers to muster the courage to take the plunge into purchasing a home. There were several different articles pointing out how the climate is so inviting and attractive for this type of buyer right now. Prices are low, interest rates are low and there is that pesky little tax credit of up to $8000 that the US government is offering in order to push hesitant buyers off the fence. The article mentioned once again that this tax credit will only apply to homes that were purchased between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009 (that means CLOSED ESCROW) and that you don’t have to pay this money back — as you had to with the 2008 tax credit. It also mentioned that you don’t have to be a first time buyer, you only have to have NOT owned a home for the past 3 years.
As I said, these articles were really directed towards agents, making the point that if you don’t know what is out there in the way of incentives — how will your clients?
One of the articles was on how much home can a buyer afford to purchase. The author made a great case for making sure that we did not advise potential buyerson the amount that they could afford based on some pat formula made up of monthly income and a standard list of expenses. Each individual borrower is different. His advice is to figure out what the potential borrower’s normal living expenses are (food, clothing, insurance, income taxes etc. etc.) and THEN work around those. This way a borrower/buyer will not be caught with a mortgage that forces him to change his lifestyle. Brilliant, I say. Thank you Ralph Roberts for reminding me that we are working for the buyer (client) not the bank.
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Back Home
June 12, 2009
Yes, and while you are doing the Tango in someplace way south of the border, this is what I am doing back home, via Twitter. Check out this amazing video and keep from smiling if you can. . . .
Isn’t this just the BEST world to be living in?
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