About Los Angeles County, CA

Why working at home can be MORE productive than going to the office

11-07-09

David Dee, San Gabriel Valley (Los Angeles) & Orange County CA Real Estate

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Mobile: (626) 203-5676
Secondary: (714) 520-4899

"Why working at home can be *MORE productive" than going to the office"

I did a test run the past two weeks to make myself more productive. I went to the office for one week straight and worked from home the other week. I realized there is a BIG difference as far as production is concerned. Some may find that working at the office is better than working from home.

Working in the office does have its benefits. If you have a question, you can just drop by a colleague's office and ask a question or two. If you need to speak with escrow, they are a few steps away. You can learn a few new things by talking with other agents in the office. For example, if you have a particular situation you're having problems with you can run it by someone for an opinion. With its benefits there also comes a trail of disadvantages.

One of the main things in the distractions you get while in the office. People will stop by and chat. There is also office gossips. Gossips...really? Oh yes there is. I just don't feel that there is much progress being made by working in the office.

On the other hand, working from home provides you with the peace and environment to be more productive. There is no distractions. Yes, the bed and sofa is across the room for relaxation but if you have self discipline that is not an issue at all. I find that I accomplished more things and feel that I can tackle more jobs in a shorter time frame than going into the office. A big plus is that there is no need to beat the traffic and the time saved can be used to get other things done.

A drawback of working from home can be that you do not have the interactions with colleagues to address certain issues you may have. Well, my friend, that can be solved just by a phone call to your broker. Another great alternative is to browse through Activerain! Yes, there are many answers to questions you may have just find logging in and doing a quick search. The info is invaluable! So, as you can see, there is not much of a disadvantage when you factored that in. We are in the business of selling homes so why not work where we start each morning....right at Home!

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Sending a client to a Lender (who's also a realtor) for a Loan Approval

11-07-09

David Dee, San Gabriel Valley (Los Angeles) & Orange County CA Real Estate

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Mobile: (626) 203-5676
Secondary: (714) 520-4899

"Sending a client to a Lender (who's also a realtor) for a Loan Approval"

When clients buy a home, they go to a Realtor.

When clients need a loan, they go to a Lender.

What happens when the lender you refer to is also a Realtor? Well, that was a situation I recently encountered. I had a client who was looking to buy a home but does not have an approval letter. They asked for a referral and an agent within my office mentioned that he used this one particular lender who is really efficient. I spoke with the lender and interviewed him before sending my client over. So, I sent the client there and we got an approval letter to start the house hunting.

All is fine until I later discover that he also is a Realtor. My suspicion aroused when I realized that it was very difficult to get a hold of him. He later mentioned that he is normally out on the field showing properties so hence the delay in response. I was flabberglasted to say the least as I was wondering why is he showing properties when he should be working on the loans. He stated that his broker allows him to do both Loans and Real Estate.

I don't know how everyone feels but I find that to be "double dipping". I would not mind him doing the loan and real estate as long as the loan gets done. Knowing how real estate is a contact profession, I don't see how a lender can juggle doing both simultaneously. Based from my experience, the communication was great initially until he started getting "busy" showing properties. There were items and conditions needed for the loan and I could not get a hold of this lender to finalize the details.

A Jack of All Trades but a Master of None. Personally, I feel that if someone is a Lender that should be the only thing they do. If they are a Realtor, they should stick to selling homes. When the two lines of the industry gets crossed, there is a conflict of interest. The best thing to do in this situation is to find a Lender who strictly perform the duties of Lending.

4 Comments

What to do in Santa Clarita, Ca.?

11-07-09

Laura Coffey, ABR, QSC

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Office: (661) 284-5004

What to do in Santa Clarita, Ca.?

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Wondering what to do this Saturday in Santa Carita? There is always Magic Mountain but if you are looking for something different why don't you try one of the following?

7:00am Hike: Bridge to Nowhere (Adventure Pass); Towsley Canyon

8:30am-12:30pm Adobe Photoshop Elements (Register); Golden Oak Adult School

9:00am Castaic Lake Bird Walk; Castaic Lake Park Office

9:00am-1:00pm Farmer's Market; Castaic Sports Complex

10:00am-11:00am Total Aquarience Water Exercise; Santa Clarita Aquatic Center

10:00am-3:00pm Holiday Boutique; Valencia High School Multipurpose Room

10:00am-5:00pm Day of Days Fan Event (Free); Universal Studios Hollywood

10:00am-9:00pm Hart Rampage; College of the Canyons

11:00am Children's Storytime (Free); Borders Valencia

11:00am-12:00pm Family Nature Walk (Free); Placerita Nature Center

12:30pm-5:00pm Rose Show (Free); William S Hart Park

1:00pm-4:00pm Saugus Train Station Open (Free); Heritage Junction

6:30pm-9:30pm Murder Mystery Dinner Train: Viva Lost Vegas; F&W Railway

7:00pm Symphony of the Canyons by COC Orchestra; Santa Clarita Performing Arts Center

7:00pm-9:00pm Ballroom Dance Night (Register); Santa Clarita Activities Center

If your in the mood to look for a new house please always give me a call. I would be more than happy to help you out. 661 284-5004 or visit www.laura4homes.com

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Market Report on Homes for Sale in Whittwood, Whittier, CA – November 6, 2009

11-07-09

Bob Willis

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Mobile: (562) 639-9400

This Market Report is for the Whittier, California neighborhood known as Whittwood. Here is information about Whittwood homes for sale, as well as homes that have sold in Whittwood.

First, let me tell you what part of Whittier I am talking about. The Whittwood area is bordered on the west by Colima Road, on the north by Whittier Boulevard, on the east by First Avenue and on the south by Lambert Road. Basically, the Whittwood neighborhood is centered around the Whittwood Town Center, south of Whittier Boulevard. All homes referenced in this article are within this Whittwood neighborhood.

Whittwood Map

This Market Report on Whittwood Homes for Sale will focus on Single Family Residences in this Whittier, California neighborhood.

As of today, there are 3 Single Family Residences for sale in the Whittwood area.

Seven homes are currently in escrow.

Two homes were sold during the month of October.

The average home in Whittwood that sold in October took 32 days to sell.

The average home sale price was $398,750, or an average cost per square foot of $305.56.

Over the past six months, 31 homes were sold in Whittwood, with an average sale price of $378,690, a cost per square foot of $259.91, and 31 days to sell.

It would take 1.5 months, at the current rate of sales, for all the current Whittwood homes on the market to sell.

A Sellers’ Market is when there is less than 5 months of supply. Whittwood is currently in a very strong Sellers’ Market. This Sellers’ Market actually applies to all homes for sale in Whittier, CA that are priced under $500,000. Whittier homes for sale that are priced above $500,000 are more plentiful; and the higher the price, the more advantageous it is for the buyer being able to have more leverage and less competition from other buyers.

If you own a home in Whittwood, it is a very good time to sell. Demand is high, and there are lots of buyers in this price range looking for their first home.

Below are details of Whittwood Home Sales over the past year.

Whittwood Home Sales

Whittwood Homes Average Price

Whittwood Homes Cost Per Square Foot

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Thank you for reading this Market Report on Homes for Sale in Whittwood, Whittier, California. If you like my blog, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed to get the latest Whittier and Southern California real estate news from Bob Willis.

For Whittier real estate, see Whittier Welcomes You, or my other website about Southern California Real Estate. Want to have MLS access to beat other buyers to your dream home? Sign up with no obligation at my ListingBook website.

I provide service for Whittier real estate, as well as for La Habra, La Habra Heights, La Mirada, Norwalk and Santa Fe Springs.

I can be reached via email at bob@willisrealtor.com or by phone at (562) 639-9400.

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Copper Basin Homes For Sale --News

11-07-09

Rosalie Mathis

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Office: (480) 310-1774

Mobile: (480) 310-1774

We at Rosiesellshomes.com were sent this article and felt that we could share it with you.

At the beginning of November, Sacramento's new policy of borrowing from the taxpayers (interest free, of course!) went into effect. It's technically not a tax increase, but it certainly seems like one with the chuck of your paycheck for state taxes going up 10%! Though, it only seems to translate to an extra $20-80 per month for middle class families.

But, for all practical purposes, it's a tax hike. And of course, conservatives, like my orange county neighbors, are outraged (though somewhat subdued by the prospect of getting their money back later). Of course, conservatives would favor tax and spending cuts instead.

Cuts are inconceivable at this point. With a $26 billion deficit, what is there to cut? Two-thirds of California's budget goes to education and health care. Sure, there's wasteful spending here and there than can be optimized, but even slashing those away will barely scratch the surface of the 2009-2010 budget deficit.

For clarification, let's put this into perspective. The budget deficit is $26 billion. The entire budget for the next year is $119 billion. That's over 20% of the entire year's expenditures that would have to disappear.

To Read the rest of this article Please go to http://www.examiner.com/x-29280-Orange-County-Public-Policy-Examiner~y2009m11d6-Cutting-Government-Spending-Cant-Save-California

Thanks and have a great day!

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