by Roberta Murphy Here is an updated blog roll of our favorite luxury and real estate blogs and sites from around the world. Charlotte Real Estate Manhattan Real Estate Michigan Real Estate St Paul Real Estate Cleveland Real Estate News Manhattan Beach Real Estate Long Beach Real Estate San Diego Real Estate Sacramento Real Estate Voice Luxury Clues Unusual Life KristalSellsDenver.com Transparent Real Estate 360 Digest The Real View Phoenix…
by Roberta Murphy Lily Tomlin, where are you??? We’d take your nasal whining anyday over the ubiquitous prompting voices that tell us to tap 1 for English, 2 for Spanish and then 1, 2, 3, 5, 5, 6, or 7 for another computerized menu. Well, fellow agitators, it’s about time we took control of our telephone calls: For those times when you would like to bypass computer-managed calls and SPEAK TO A…
by Roberta Murphy For almost two years now, there have been serious rumblings and grumblings about Option ARM and interest-only mortgages that could put a number of buyers into default. I initially gave the dicey mortgages issue detached interest, because our clients tend to be a conservative lot when it comes to borrowing. We deal with few real estate speculators and most of our clients are solid buyers of primary and secondary homes. My…
by Roberta Murphy This is an issue that should trouble many real estate professionals…. Some months ago, I met with clients and wrote an offer (at buyer’s request) that was substantially below the listed price (599,000 list price:475,000 offer). It was a rare Carlsbad, CA beach condo property with no recent comparable sales. In prior markets, I might have urged clients to target their offer into an acceptable range to avoid the risk of an…
by Roberta Murphy Pay your mortgage with plastic? It’s now a possibility! We us our AmEx cards for groceries, gasoline, every Costco trip and even college tuition. One card provides cash back at the end of each year, and the other accrues points that can be used for airline travel, hotel stays and a host of other indulgences. Imagine earning travel miles, rewards and cash back just for charging your…
by Roberta Murphy We list and sell real estate in good, bad and indifferent markets. Short sales are becoming common, though. So is blood in the streets. People move up, down and out all the time because life is about change and transitions. And each time the real estate market shifts, we regroup and modify strategies for buyers and sellers. There may be some inconveniences and pricing adjustments for…
by Roberta Murphy The Northwest Multiple Listing Service in Seattle has fired a major volley at Redfin. John Cook and the Seattle PI report that Redfin has been fined $50,000 and been ordered to halt home reviews on its Sweet Digs blog, which has over 3000 subscribers. The posts are wriiten by 15 hired hands who have posted around 1000 home reviews in the Seattle and San Francisco markets. According…
by Roberta Murphy I watched Sunday night’s 60 Minutes segment on the real estate industry and blanched when I heard reporter Leslie Stahl guarantee that Realtors get “six percent on every house they sell…it is sacrosanct.” Leslie Stahl dared to tread where no Realtor would ever step, because commissions are negotiable and anything to the contrary would amount to price fixing. If I go through the San Diego MLS, I will see commissions…
by Roberta Murphy One of the questions we frequently answer is: How much is membership at La Costa Resort? This South Carlsbad, CA resort features two 18–hold championship golf courses, world-class tennis facility with 4 clay and 13 hard court surfaces, a state-of-the-art athletic club, a day camp for kids, fabulous pools, a renowned spa, the Chopra Center, two fine restaurants and semi-regular social events for members. All of these…
by Roberta Murphy There is nothing more annoying than to have solicitors intruding into your life by telephone. Millions rejoiced when Do Not Call lists were instituted and we all reclaimed precious time in our lives by joining it. And junk mail? Not quite so intrusive is all the junk mail that clogs our mailboxes, trashcans and landfills. I would be delighted to never receive another offer to refinance my…
