Real Estate Reality Shows

Real Estate Reality Shows

Just about everybody has watched HGTV's real estate reality shows at one time or another.  Ever wonder just how real, or how current, those reality shows are?  Maybe I am just a bit calloused being in the real estate business, but when I watch them I often have to laugh; they sometimes just seem soooooo UN-real!

A Realtor® friend of mine Ines Hegedus-Garcia in Miami Shores Florida wrote an enlightening article HGTV in Miami Shores - Real or Fiction over at Miamism.com about the reality behind one of the homes in Miami Shores which was featured on the "My House is Worth What" show.  While watching the show Ines and her husband Rick recognized the featured home as one they had shown back in 2006, two years prior. 

The Real Estate expert on the show suggested a price of $840,000; the Realtor actually listed the home at $949,000 in January of 2006, yep $109,000 more than suggested on the show.  The home (purchased 3 years earlier for $430,000) actually sold, after 6 price reductions, in January of 2007, over a year later, for $735,000.  Yeah, that's a far cry from $949,000, but still a tidy profit.  This is a great example of a seller overpricing and  "chasing the market down". Had the seller priced the home more realistically, earlier in the listing, they likely would have netted more from the sale. 

Ines was kind enough to post the property history which details the price reductions during the course of the listing:

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Posted on 2008-02-15 @ 6.00:00 am by Laurie.Manny

Separate Property- Whats Love got to do with it?

Separate Property - Whats Love got to do with it?

One of the pitfalls in relationships is that many eventually end. When real and personal property are involved it can be difficult to muddle through it all. There are ways to protect both your personal and real property - before this happens¦

How does Separate Property affect Long Beach Home Ownership?

Why do people combine households without understanding what is involved in the dismantling of these relationships? Whether you are getting married, combining households or registering as domestic partners, the issues involved with home ownership and personal property are quite serious. When these relationships do not work out it is critical to have your paperwork in order.


This is easier to say than to do, I understand. It is a difficult subject to tackle with somebody you are in love with and are thinking about spending the rest of your life with. How many relationships actually last forever? It is reported that the divorce rate in America hovers in the 50% range.


From: Divorcerate.org

The divorce rate in America for first marriage, vs. second or third marriage
50% percent of first marriages, 67% of second and 74% of third marriages end in divorce, according to Jennifer Baker of the Forest Institute of Professional Psychology in Springfield, Missouri.’

According to enrichment journal on the divorce rate in America:

• • The divorce rate in America for first marriage is 41%
  • The divorce rate in America for second marriage is 60%
  • The divorce rate in America for third marriage is 73%

LaborLawTalk.com states the average divorce rate for the state of California is 75.54%, based on Court Statistics Reports for 1996-2004. These are staggering numbers and should not be ignored.

What is Separate Property?

Nolo defines separate property: In community property states, property owned and controlled entirely by one spouse in a marriage. At divorce, separate property is not divided under the states property division laws, but is kept by the spouse who owns it. Separate property includes all property that a spouse obtained before marriage, through inheritance or as a gift. It also includes any property that is traceable to separate property ” for example, cash from the sale of a vintage car owned by one spouse before marriage-and any property that the spouses agree is separate property. Compare community property and equitable distribution.




Property owned prior to and brought into a marriage is considered separate property. In order for it to remain ‘separate property’it must never be commingled with marital or community property. Once separate property is commingled with marital or community property it becomes community property and cannot be undone.


Some states, such as California, have a separate property rule that says that all property brought into a marriage, including gifts and inheritance, which is kept separate and apart from community property remains the separate property of the spouse that owns it.

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Posted on 2008-02-15 @ 5.01:01 am by Laurie.Manny

Long Beach Home Staging-Define Your Long Beach Homes with Color!

Staging Your Long Beach Homes

Are you considering selling your Long Beach Home?  Have you considered the value a professional home stager will bring to the table? You should.  With so many homes for sale on the market in Long Beach it has never been more important for your home to show well.  This is the third in a series of articles on staging your Long Beach Homes by Diane Concialdi of  DC Redesign.  This portion of the series addresses bringing your home to life with color. Here you will find great tips for you to consider prior to placing your homes for sale on the market; we hope you are enjoying the series.

Define Your Long Beach Homes with Color!

Each year we are presented with a new palette of color choices for apparel, home furniture design, décor, appliances, automobiles and more.  Home decor changes for 2008 are a warm range of colors with a rustic feel combined with modern, natural products such as bamboo and anything clean and green.
 
If you're uncertain as to what colors to choose for your room palette, here's a tip:  pull colors out of your favorite tapestry, pillows, curtains or piece of artwork. Designing a room this way works every time. Don't forget black; it completes the look and pulls it all together.
 

Colors in softer grays, putty, stone and granite colors or browns, greens and sunset colors like oranges and yellows create an earth-like landscape for your home.  Use soft pewter-blues with tan hues to create the feel of the beach or colors in greens. Tone-on-tones for whites, beiges or lighter browns and neutrals combined with a wall in a dark richer color add dimension to your rooms.
 

Start with darker colors for floors, move upward for the lighter colors on the walls and don't forget the ceilings. Using the same color for your entire room including the ceiling also works!  Paint has different sheens so be sure to use the right one.  Flat paint camouflages imperfect walls; eggshell and satin give a more formal look and high gloss should be used for woodwork and doors.
 

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Posted on 2008-02-10 @ 3.21:19 am by Laurie.Manny

Chasing the Market Down - Are You Guilty?

Are you “Chasing the Market Down”?

 

Before your Long Beach home was listed you reviewed your neighborhood comparables, current market conditions and the location and condition of your home with your Long Beach REALTOR®; then determined your listing price of $750,000.   You were aware that prices in most markets nationwide have been declining and that declining prices would necessitate price reductions, if your home didnt sell in a timely manner. Your REALTOR® explained that not reducing your price could cause you to chase the market down.
 

Your home is placed on the MLS, is advertised in the local paper, is placed on many important Internet real estate listing sites, lovely fliers have been placed in your home and the sign is up in your front yard.  Several showings occur the first week, a few the second, one buyer comes through with their agent the third week.  Whats up with this?  Why are so few buyers coming to see my beautiful home?  Calling the REALTOR® to have a little chat with them and find out what is wrong.

Shortly after your home went onto the MLS the Long Beach real estate market took a steep decline.  A consultation with your REALTOR® revealed two new comparable listings in your community priced well below your current list price at $725,000 and $705,000.  At about the same time a couple of other comparable homes for sale, in your neighborhood, had reduced their listing prices to $720,000 & $710,000.  You were now priced high on the market at $750,000, on the market for 21 days and your REALTOR® says, in need of a large price reduction.

While you knew that you would likely have to reduce your price you didnt think that a $50,000 price reduction would be in order just 21 days after placing your home on the market; you resist and only agree to a $25,000 price reduction, after all that is a lot of money out of your pocket - right?  You are now sitting on the market in your area at $725,000. Your competition is priced at:

1. $705,000
2. $710,000
3. $720,000
4. $725,000

You are now one of the two highest prices in your neighborhood, congratulations!  Are you surprised when two weeks go by and only two buyers are interested in viewing your home? 


Your REALTOR® calls you and tells you just what you have been waiting to hear, an offer has been received, when can they come by to discuss it?  Excited you inquire “How Much did they Offer?”  Your blood begins to boil when you are informed that the buyer has offered $675,000 and has requested 3% in closing costs, your 2 large plasma TVs and the dining room furniture which cost you a small fortune.  Bellowing into the phone you instruct your REALTOR® not to bother coming over - just decline the offer.  You do not want to hear about a counter offer, this buyer is trying to rob you and is clearly out of their mind if they think they can buy a home in your neighborhood for that price!  The gall of that buyer!

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Posted on 2008-02-01 @ 6.58:19 pm by Laurie.Manny

Soap Opera at the Prestigious Historic Villa Riviera Condominiums?

LONG BEACH SOAP OPERA!

Hey Dynasty and Dallas don't have anything going on that we can't compete with here in Long Beach!

The Alamitos Beach historic Villa Riviera Condominiums, an elegant 134 unit condominium on the corner of Ocean Blvd and Shoreline Drive, has been covered by a black shroud for many months while undergoing long overdue repairs. About 15 layers of paint are being removed from the building.  In 2006, it is reported, the building was cited by health officials, due to the lead content flaking and affecting the quality of life in the surrounding neighborhood.

Located at the edge of Downtown Long Beach this stunning icon of Long Beach is reported to be having difficulties with it's residents due to bitterly opposing views on just about everything related to the building. Reports state that health and fire inspectors and police have had to intervene on several occasions. 

WOW, a real live soap opera, right here in Long Beach. Damn they even called the police demanding a mental-health exam on one of the owners and a RIP message was placed on on a former board member's door! 

Move over Krystal and Alexis - We've got Game!

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Posted on 2008-01-29 @ 3.05:35 am by Laurie.Manny