Come November, Californians will vote on whether or not to adopt the Affordable Housing Act. It is not too early to begin discussing the details and the effects of this ballot initiative.The initiative, as summarized by its proponents in the signature-gathering phase, does this:Repeals state law that currently restricts the scope of rent-control policies that cities and other l...
Full Story >When was the last time you took a close look at your service from the client point of view?Much is made of "Im Number 1" sales awards which celebrate the number of deals closed, but is the same level of attention paid to professionalism in service delivery?Length of time on the job, slick marketing, and the number of properties sold each year do not automatically indicate high ...
Full Story >Everyone wants to renovate. And now more than ever, they want to do it themselves. According to Remodeling magazine, "Big-ticket remodeling activity, already enjoying record economic conditions, is growing at its fastest pace in four years and should rise 5.1 this year alone." Those numbers are based on Metrostudys latest Residential Remodeling Index RRI.In addition, "TheRRIas ...
Full Story >Close to job. Great schools. Projected growth. Theyre all reasons why someone might consider buying a home in a certain area. But heres one more important reason: Because someone wants to pay you to move there.Thats right. You could actually make money moving to a new areahellip;if youre willing to go where the interest is."The idea has spread where a strong economy, an aging p...
Full Story >Every six weeks or so the Federal Open Market Committee, or the FOMC, holds its two-day meetings to discuss the current economy with an eye on the future. The FOMC has various responsibilities but one of the actions it can take is to adjust the cost of funds.More specifically, it can adjust the Federal Funds rate. The Fed Funds rate is the rate at which banks can charge one ano...
Full Story >Its never too late to secure your financial future. At BuildingWealth.org, a public service offered by the Dallas Federal Reserve, you can learn how to reach your life goals by budgeting, saving and investing, building credit and controlling debt.When you understand the difference between assets and liabilities, you know that owning a home, contributing to a retirement plan, an...
Full Story >Question: I built my own house. At first I stuffed receipts into a folder but toward the end when things got hectic, I forgot. I probably have receipts amounting to a quarter of what I believe I spent, land included. How can I establish a credible basis when it comes time to sell? The good news is the house is probably now worth a million and I think I spent less than 150k. War...
Full Story >The bluehammer home improvement calculator allows you to provide estimated costs for home improvement and repair projects for your clients. Its easy to use and can be accessed on all your connected devices. You can use it in a variety of ways to benefit your clients and gain business.Give clients an accurate cost of ownership, while they tourWith bluehammer, agents have the opp...
Full Story >Coldwell Banker just rolled out some exciting new tech thats meant to help determine when someone is about to list their home for sale. What may sound Big Brother-y to some is being lauded by others as the Big Data answer to next-level real estate success. Call it the high-tech version of going door-to-door asking if owners are looking to sell their home. Also, call it a great ...
Full Story >When youre selling your home, you need every advantage you can get. And there are few homes that are magically market ready without a little help. If your home needs a touch more than a little help, its time to get focused. After all, listing your home when its not in the right condition to sell will probably only end in frustration. And, in this case, frustration means: your h...
Full Story >Depending on where you live, a patio might not be the kind of thing you think about during the cold, and maybe snowy, winter months. But a patio is what many people enjoy on a sunny warm afternoon. It just feels good to sit outside and sip some iced tea or lemonade. Thats the picture your real estate agent would want to capture when listing your home for sale.Patios are appeali...
Full Story >Question: What do you think about placing a time limit on the board meetings? There are some members that believe that there should be no time limit and others that believe there should be.Answer: Generally, board meetings should not go longer than two hours. This seems to be the average time limit for sustained human concentration. Board meetings should always have a set agend...
Full Story >Whether you live in a house or condo, chances are you dont have enough storage space. Custom built-ins are a great way to make the most of every inch, to solve design problems and add a sense of order.Built-ins around the fireplace open shelving on top and closed on the bottom and systems to accommodate media components are among the most common. However, the skys the limit for...
Full Story >The column that follows below, has appeared before on these pages screens?. It was last published four years ago. But, like false news, the real estate myth of prohibited language continues to be circulated. The persistent influence of uninformed people is, indeed, a force to be reckoned with. So, here we go again.Some myths take on a life of their own. Not only do they refuse ...
Full Story >When the temps rise, so does water usage. And that means a larger impact on areas that are already struggling with drought conditions, not to mention the impact on your wallet, regardless of where you live."Summers rising temperatures often coincide with rising outdoor water use, primarily due to an increase in lawn and landscape watering," said WaterSense. "While using water e...
Full Story >Home office are one of the most in-demand home features today and continue to rise in popularity as more and more people work from home or bring their work home. A new report from Upwork found that nearly two-thirds of companies today have remote workers, and, according to Forbes, more and more Americans are quitting their day jobs to start their own businesses.But creating a h...
Full Story >The following is Part 3 of a four-part series.nbsp;Part 1: Builder/Realtor >Part 2: What Experienced Realtors Like Abut Selling New HomesRealtor Ed called to tell me he sold a new home, after showing resales for six weeks.ldquo;Irsquo;ve been doing it wrong for 16 years,rdquo; he said, but I did something I learned recently, and it worked.ldquo;What did you do?rdquo; came the o...
Full Story >Free at last The backbreaking work of moving large furniture from one side of the house to other is finished. No more packed boxes line the house. Its a great feelings of accomplishment. Enjoy your reprieve for a night as youve earned it. After giving yourself a day of rest its time to get back to work1. Get Connected to your New Neighborhood: Probably the most anxious part of ...
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