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Imagine, if you will. You got that great job offer in Nashville you were hoping for. However, you live in Long Beach, California. Moving out is a no-brainer, and you’re excited at the options you can afford.

But, what to do with the Long Beach home you own? Should you sell it? Should you keep it as an investment?

We get this question all the time. Especially in the Los Angeles/Orange County area. All concerns seem valid: the fear of not being able to afford a comeback, after selling your home. Two, your attachment and affection to your home. Or you consider renting out you... read more >>

Imagine, if you will – you’re about to sell your home. You’re speaking with local agents you are familiar with, asking them about the closing costs of the sale. They list insurance, escrow fees, transfer taxes, and… commissions.

They list a commission between the 5 or 6% range. Come to think of it, your home is valued roughly at a million dollars - that’s $50,000 in commission. Your home is great and should be an easy sell. You’re an astute business person and ask yourself; what value do real estate agents offer, and why are the commissions so high... read more >>

Imagine, if you will: A house you love just came on the market. You might want to make an offer: should you go through the “listing agent” or find your buyer representative? Your sister (an attorney) tells you to go through a separate agent. Your boss (the savvy real estate investor) recommends going through the listing agent.

What do you do now?

When a seller lists a home, they sign up with a broker to be their agent to represent them in the sale. This brokerage, referred to as the “listing agent”, has a fiduciary duty to look out after and act in the be... read more >>

Imagine if you will: after months of searching and bidding on multiple properties; you are finally in escrow on the home of your dreams. You were one of three offers but this time they went with you. You feel you have done everything right and have even started to tell your friends about the move.

Then, you get a call: the home does not appraise. You agreed to pay $1,000,000 with a 20% down payment, and the appraisal came in at $950,000. You are $50,000 off. What do you do?

In real estate, an appraisal is an opinion of value done by a state license appraisa... read more >>

Imagine, if you will: you list your home in a hot seller’s market, and you expect a bidding war. But when it goes on the market, all you hear is crickets. Or worse, you get one offer at full asking price, yet you were counting on getting more.

You were advised to “list low and watch frantic buyers bid it up,” but now all you have is an offer at the asking price that is lower than you are willing to accept. That is a problem. What do you do now? 

To better understand sales pricing strategies, choosing a listing price is more than just picking the value. It ... read more >>

Imagine, if you will: you pull up at your appointment to show a vacant home you have for lease. To your surprise, you find a strange car in the driveway. Then, someone is standing in the living room with their moving cardboard boxes. You have no idea who this stranger is but, they claim to have rented your home from someone else. What happens now, and how do you prevent this from happening again?

A fake rental scam is when a prospective tenant rents a home from someone who has no right to do it.

Rental scams happen all the time, and it is a huge problem. Scammer... read more >>

Imagine, if you will: you are thinking of selling your condo, which you love but have outgrown. But then you hear all this talk from other sources about properties “selling over list.”

You wonder, what does “list” means? And other terms you might hear like “list price.” How it affects you? We explain this to you.

The listing price is the price that a property owner is asking for a property that is for sale.  It is also referred to as the asking price. 

When a property owner lists a property for sale, they ... read more >>

Imagine, if you will: you find that perfect place and you are ready to make an offer. Then you see the homeowner’s association dues and they seem high. You wonder, what is included in those HOA dues?

One of the most common questions people ask real estate brokers is: What is included in the HOA dues?

HOA dues are periodic assessments, typically monthly, charged to the owners of common interest development to cover the common area expenses. The dues are the expenses that everybody shares who owns a property in that community.

HOA dues cover expenses b... read more >>

Imagine, if you will: you are happily receiving rent every month from the tenants leasing out your Ocean Blvd condo you used to live in. Everything seems great.

Then you receive a violation notice. Turns out your tenants threw a crazy party resulting in various noise violations and complaints.

Now the HOA board is asking YOU to show up to a hearing. After reading more closely you discover that you may subject to significant fines for something you did not personally do. Now it is your problem!

Tenant HOA Violations - Homeowners’ asso... read more >>