Timely Real Estate News……………………………………………1 March 2012
********************************************************************************************
Let’s have a Spring Cleaning Party! How to make it fun
It’s a tradition — Spring time is Spring Cleaning Time. Unless you’re the type who wants to do it all by yourself, here are some handy tips to get your spring cleaning done quickly and put it behind you before Summer arrives with the whole family involved. It has been said that if you haven’t used/worn it in past six months, get rid of it. I was told a few years ago by a coach, that the more clutter you get rid of, the more new and exciting things come into your
Life… and it is true.
Pick a day (usually a Saturday) when you don’t have a bunch of competing activities that require/demand anyone’s participation, including soccer or Little League games…
2. Make this into a “party” — invite everyone to bring their favorite CD and alternate playing them so everyone can listen, too. You can even pull out names from a hat as to whose CD gets played first/in what order.
3. Gather supplies before the day arrives….don’t wait for the last minute and have to run out to get something — it destroys the momentum;
4. Have some good snacks and drinks on hand for break times….choose your families’ favorites — you know what to bring.
5. Make chores age-appropriate.
6. Turn off the ringers of cell phones — and enforce the rule that cell phones can only be accessed during breaks and lunch.
7. Take pictures of the event — video and photos. Post on Facebook and/or Twitter. Let them show they’re having fun. 8. And when you’re through, have a Grand Prize (several) — Best Worker; Best Job Done; Most Diligent; Most Creative, etc.
And finally, you may want to take the family out for dinner and a movie (after they clean up, of course). The Spring Cleaning Party can be an easy-to-organize, easy-to-finish event that will bring the family closer together and you will have accomplished a lot, too.
Happy Spring Cleaning Day!
***********************************************************************************************
The Ides of March is not just the name of a popular movie — it’s been around a lot longer than that! The “Ides of March” has been with us for several thousand years and is most noted as the 15th day of March in the Roman calendar, probably referring to the day of the full moon. The word Ides comes from the Latin word “Idus” and means “half division” especially in relation to a month. It is a word that was used widely in the Roman calendar indicating the approximate day that was the middle of the month. The term ides was used for the 15th day of the months of March, May, July, and October, and the 13th day of the other months. The Ides of March was a festive day dedicated to the god Mars and a military parade was usually held. Perhaps the Ides of March is best known as the date on which Julius Caesar was killed in 44 B.C.(remember that?).
Caesar was stabbed (23 times) to death in the Roman Senate by a group of conspirators led by Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longin. The group included 60 other co-conspirators according to Plutarch. Can you imagine the uproar on our cable news channel had that happened today? We’d never hear the end of it.
But leave it to William Shakespeare to bring the “Ides of March” into popular lore. The fateful meeting when Caesar learns of a possible plot against him is famously dramatized in William Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, when Caesar is warned by the soothsayer to “beware the Ides of March.” And who would play Caesar today? George Clooney, of course!
March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb.
Well, we’re waiting. And waiting. No lions anywhere on the horizon. One only has to look outside in the middle of January or February and see the bright, sunny skies and feel the 80-degree weather wrapping around you to understand why Hollywood is located in Hollywood. Why we have a parade on New Year’s Day in Pasadena. We are woefully short of rainfall this year, and frankly, I would love to see the rain falling outside my kitchen window and to see how fresh everything smells after the rain stops. But no rain also spells trouble down the road as we experience dry, draught-like conditions which can lead to increase fire risk.
***********************************************************************************************
The operative key words today in real estate: “Global” and “Connected”
I wouldn’t call myself a techno-wizard by any stretch, but if you’re going to survive in today’s real estate profession, you have to be virtually connected and available 24/7 and you will have to learn to go global at the drop of a mobile phone. We’re all connected today, and the lesson learned came home to land in my lap while driving a client from Japan around last week.
I first met my client via my web site four years ago. At the time, he and his wife were living in Hong Kong, but they wanted to move here to Los Angeles where he had grown up and attended USC. Timing was not right for them to have made the move then. But through the years, we have stayed in touch while they moved around different parts of Asia because of his job. As an investment banker, with one of the biggest lending institutions in the world, he has had an opportunity to be in the forefront of watching and participating in the changing economic situation the world over.
So now that he and his wife and two beautiful children are ready to call West Los Angeles home for the next four to six years, we are looking for a home that suits their needs; one that will also enable the children to attend one of the great private schools in the area. Having a geographically friendly home to the school was at the top of their list. As we were driving about looking at houses, I received a call from an agent who was in Miami on his way to Cuba to play in a baseball tournament for a few days. We were finalizing a transaction where I am representing a buyer who lives in Hawaii; we had to get all the formal sign offs of the transaction by the deadlines, so time was of the essence.
To set the picture straight: I am in Los Angeles….the agent representing the sellers was in Miami on his way to Cuba….the sellers were in Utah at their home….. and my buyer was at her home in Hawaii. Talk about connections. And working globally!
My passenger client was listening to all this conversation going on(something he is used to as most of his business conferences are held in the same manner)….”Amazing….I’m just amazed at how all this gets done, and I’m just sitting here….taking it all in.” “Wow,” he said, “our world has sure shrunk, hasn’t it?” “Yes, you certainly could say that!” I nodded my head in agreement.
Being globally connected — that’s what I call it. Being able to stay connected wherever your client is. This is not unusual these days, we have to consider that we have to be available literally 24/7 — and yes, it’s a challenge.
One of the key attractions on the Westside are all of the wonderful private schools we have here Enrollments are down because of the economy — and many parents have opted for public schools, which remain solid on the Westside. So
those with the ability to pay for these private school, we are seeing openings in these schools that we have not seen in the past. In these challenging times, in order to facilitate a sale and manage the myriad of responsibilities during escrow — one has to stay connected, wherever the client is and wherever I am. It all just comes with our new territory. And frankly, I love it….thrive on it!
******************************************************************************
Good news on the home front — nationwide homes sales up — a strong sign
The National Assn. of Realtors reported that January sales of previously owned homes rose 4.3% in the US, and inventories fell to nearly seven-year lows as lower prices, unusually warm weather and an improving economy lifted demand. This is a good-news report, because it shows that the market appears to be gaining speed. The prices are not necessarily following the level of activity, but if the level of business continues to grow as it appears to do, then I would imagine that given the shortage of good inventory, the natural progression of supply and demand will kick into gear. According to Laurence Yun, the lead economist for the NAR, “Things are genuinely improving,” Yun’s forecasts have traditionally been on target and while these are what we call — trailing stats — they reflect a marked, positive change in the market. As we have seen on the Westside during the past year, we have experienced slow starts in the first three months of the year, only to see a rapid acceleration of sales volume as we move toward the strong selling months of April-June period. “It’s still the case that existing home sales are recovering, albeit only gradually,” said Paul Diggle, property economist at Capital Economics. Sales are up 13% over the last six months and up 38% from their mid-2010 low, “so there’s clearly an underlying recovery in place,” he said. Nationally, the median sales price in January was $154,700, a 2% drop from a year earlier. Home prices are usually weaker in the winter because there are fewer transactions, and the National Assn. of Realtors doesn’t seasonally adjust the price data. Inventories fell 0.4% to 2.31 million, the lowest since 2005. That represents 6.1 months of supply, the lowest since April 2006 and down from 6.4 months in December.
While working with some of my buyers lately, they all have been surprised by the number of multiple offers on properties they are interested in, or properties that have been on the market a very short period of time that already have an accepted offer.
**********************************************************************************************
US Incandescent Light Bulb Phase-out
There seems to be a bit of confusion over incandescent light bulb phase-out
Legislation passed back in 2007 established a phase-out schedule for most incandescent bulbs; starting with 100 watt light bulbs in 2011 in California.5W light bulbs will be phased out next year and the 60W and 40W light bulbs will disappear in 2014.Consumers will still be able to buy 100 watt bulbs for a while, until stocks run out – which is expected to happen around mid-2012. From what I’ve read, some folks have been hoarding the darned things.
Incandescent bulbs are incredibly energy intensive considering only 10% of the electricity they consume is converted to light – the rest is wasted as heat. That wasted heat is money and often coal being burned. Still, some folks say they prefer the type of light they generate .
New packaging requirements have also commenced where the term “watts” is replaced with “lumens”. The reason for this is a watt is a unit of power, whereas lumen is a unit of light.
While packaging will offer some sort of “watt-equivalent” detail as well, here’s how the new ratings translate for clear, frosted and soft white general service light bulbs.
100 watt = 1490-2600 lumens
75 watt = 1050-1489 lumens
60 watt= 750-1049 lumens
40 watt = 310-749 lumens
That information comes from the American Lighting Association; which also lists a table for modified spectrum general service incandescent light bulbs. Additional packaging labeling requirements also offers consumers a greater amount of information to help them make a more informed lighting choice.
The types of light bulbs we can be replace our incandescents with will be either halogen or xenon hybrid bulbs that scrape past in terms of the new efficiency requirements; or Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFL) and LED bulbs – both of which blast past it, with a *quality* LED bulb being the king of efficiency and serviceable life.
CFL’s are well established in the market and very reasonably priced these days. Given the increase of recycling points, the small amount of mercury CFL’s contain has become less of an issue.
LED’s can be a different kettle of fish when it comes to quality in some cases – you just need to be careful what you purchase; particularly given their higher price tag.
There is also a great deal of controversy regarding the handling of the mercury CFL light bulbs.
***********************************************************************************************
What is happening in my personal real estate world? I can only tell you that I am very busy. As I have in the past I am working with approximately 10 – 12 active buyers (ready to purchase something in the next 30 – 90 days), and have two great listings in the Ridge in Mountaingate with some new listings in the wings, including a fabulous Custom home in Bel Air Crest that will be coming on the market in about two weeks for lease at $20,000 a month! Please let me know how I might assist you or someone you know with any of their real estate needs.