Lynne Pope, REALTOR®, BEACH HOMES Redondo Beach Real Estate-Los Angeles CA

White Butterflies -angel messages are a reward to me and a message. Not long after my mother passed away I saw a white butterfly in an unusual place and I caught the idea..the feeling it was a message from mom. She lived in Tampa and I lived in Los Angeles. I always felt her call before it came. I have that with a lot of close friends. We feel it first and the call comes soon, every time. So it was no surprise that I soon learned it was a new way to feel mom sending a message to me. Its spiritual.

Did you ever try and follow a butterfly? Impossible. They flit over and fly away. Its like mom to stop in give me a lift and then move on. My grand-kids know all about my mom and me and white butterflies.

They get as excited as I do when we see one. Its a visual proof we like to have around that life is eternal.

It appears short or long however you view it but the butterfly is a comfort to me in the richest deepest sense of the word. I adore my mom. She taught me to love Truth. She was an English teacher in High school. She always said Truth is the one thing nobody can ever take from you. Only I can treasure Truth and only I can lose it. Its my open doorway to happiness. Truth is simple and amazing. As you see Mom and truth are synonymous for me.

Those white butterflies. They sometimes are a pair. They had another name once "flutterby"

I read that somewhere. It feels right.

Check out a butterfly next time it flutters by and see what you think?

What about that? This week in Glendale a story evolved on a house for sale. It was listed for 449,900. 3 bedroom 2 bath. So many people came that they had to wait to go through the house during viewing times (The agent had to guard that the cats did not get out) They asked for sealed bids there were getting to be so many. They had never in 30 years seen this reaction on a house.

There were 28 offers. 10 were over 500K and the highest offer was 550K. 27 dissapointed buyers. 27 people and counting are really really upset over trying to buy a house right now. Hearts broken.

This was not a trick or agent manipulation. There were few comps sold in the area.

This was not a short sale or bank owned.

It was nice, cute, it had wood floors and so much potential. It was lovely.

Also, it needed work, the yard (big) was mostly dirt and rocks. It had not been painted in a long time,

How many buyers thought of all they could do...if only they could get...this one.

Buyers are buying...if they can get one.

What they are. Short sales....are really long sales in time. The short part is the owners problem in that the loan is short of what someone will pay for the house. One makes an offer, it can sit there for several months before a response from the bank.

Each bank seems to handle them differently, and the first and second many be with 2 different banks (that's more time). The buyers make offers get tired of the wait and go find another property. The bank is finally ready and the buyer is gone, Or worse is when you make an offer and wait a month or 2,3,4 months and a few days before they get to the file a higher offer or better terms comes in and knocks yours out of the place. Lenders helping FHA buyers with 3.5 % down are frustrated because the bank will pick the one with more money to put down and FHA gets the last place in line to be chosen.

I have had 2 short sale listings and 1 short sale buyer. And we all survived, houses got sold and bought and they got good deals on prices like back to the value that it was several years ago, in 2003 and 2004. If you have the ability to try it and wait the short sale may be for you. The good interest rate is what often upsets the short sale person waiting. They think.."I am missing out waiting here and that pushes them to find another property.

Sometimes we see a short sale where the bank has already gotten word of the price they will take. I like those because a lot of the wait is over and you can step in. It also means they had an offer that fell through. Rarely is it the fault of the house either, more common is that the buyer found another one. There are some agents and lender/agents(don't get me started on those) who are letting greed take over their behavior. They want to take the whole pie instead of a slice.

More short sales are out there now than ever and it is a definite major part of the inventory. It is like a bank owned in that there is little to no money to ask for any repairs. Termite work is also rarely included and part of the expense the buyer will have to take on. Prices vary on that. 2 to 4 thousand is common. Again, that is nothing to the deal on the house saving easily 40,100, even 400 thousand dollars from the amount the owners paid for it.I wont even talk about millions but that too is happening. Monopoly anyone?For example, in Redondo Beach, one short sale closed just under 450K and the prior owner paid 800K.

The bank owned properties are getting multiple offers and selling fast wherever they are. People will look up bank owned Torrance, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and all the nearby areas to what we call the South Bay. I doubt they will look up short sale Redondo Beach or Gardena.

Clutter busting and wholesale mortgage

So much I didn't know. I didn't know that this is one of the top things on people list with excercise, time with family and paying off debt! What if you could see a link to debt and clutter?

Remember the joke of how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. That is a big part of dealing with the job. Focus on one room, or area at a time and a short interval or specific one ok, from 1-4 I am devoting to this job. ( I had one room of stuff for 3 years-just things from 3 careers that I couln't get to) I cleaned it up on one day. 3 trash cans full later I feel great. I actually emptied out the room before bringing anything into it.

There are professionals. Clutterbusting.com is the one I hired. Brooks Palmer is the gifted, amazing talented person that saved my inner life. His book Clutter Busting-Letting go of whats holding you back, is a great read. It would be a good book for any pack rats you know and love. He helped me chip away at the iceberg of hidden dreams under the clutter. I am just beginning to breathe more freely. It is emotional. He came over to my house in Redondo Beach two times to get me started. He can now come to you anywhere in his book.

On a Practical and basic level there are stores to help too. The container store, the 99cent store and LOWE'S.Contact me to sign up with the realtor/client reward program. They have discounts offered and a newsletter for you.
Lowe's advice link below.

https://www.lowesrealtorbenefits.com/newsletter/pdf/012008.pdf

Brooks Palmer lives in Chicago. He has an active business in LA and comes 4 times a year to help LA packrats. Or is it the ratpack! Sounds kind of cool. He spoke at a book signing at the Bodi tree. I found him through the referral of a friend.
Here is one line from his book....if you hesitate, trying to decide whether something is worthwile, It's clutter.

Guess what? As a realtor and Interior designer I can help others stage their homes. I can "see" through other peoples stuff. I live in Redondo Beach. I have a LIST of the very best, or the very lowest price, on everything you can imagine in this area. Electrical, Plumber, lawns, fireplaces, furnaces, roof, general contractors, flooring.
My website at www.teamatthebeach.com you will find:

Real estate information, our local house values in Redondo Beach, or across the whole country, tips for home selling and buying, a wholesale mortgage company...That is right. A whole page devoted to you with an iteractive portal to put in your numbers and see their offer for you! Save money now on investment property or a new home with the best loan out there...Wholesale!

Controversy on billboards and wrapping buildings in Los Angeles is at an all time high as we have the all time low in incomesl.People are trying to figure out how to get their ads out there is the papers are closing down. You read about the guy who broke all the rules and defies anyone to stop him/ He starts with a big Statue of Liberty. or some national treasure.monument whatever. Then when the rule is fought down the new wrap will be a paid ad. Proliferation of bad taste.

M ypal Adam Janero wrote some great blogs on billboards recently. Check it out at...

http://www.recenteringelpueblo.com/labels/Development.html

Our church pays for the bus bench ads outside our building to keep it in line with advertising appropriate for a church. Think of the irony the church with bus bench ads for some really- weird stuff.

Notice the big ads in our cities....do they add anything?

The overnight skin over buildings are also covering up exits and windows to buildings.

The owners are asking for some problens.