L.A. real estate news and insights.
Jeff Bezos, the owner of Amazon, bought the most expensive home sold in Los Angeles in 2020 - $165,000,000
•8 bedrooms
•9 bathrooms
•13,612 sq. ft. of living space
•9.4-acre lot
The property has its own 9-hole golf course, several guest houses, and a tennis court.
What was the best thing you bought on Amazon this year?
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Here is the most expensive home to sell this week in Studio City.
Asking price: $2,299,950
Selling price: $2,260,000
I'm not seeing a panic with home sellers over the #coronavirus.
Only 3% of sellers nationwide have decided to remove their home from the market and cancel their listing.
I bet most of these homeowners that canceled decided to refi at historic lows rather than sell.
I'm sure some canceled over corona fears.
I would assume that during regular times, cancellations hover around the 1% - 2% range. Inventory of for-sale homes is still low, but over the next few weeks, you can take advantage of lower buyer competition over corona fears.
Over the last 12 months, housing inventory has gone down 21.8% in the Los Angeles area.
That means there are a lot fewer homes for sale now then there was a year ago.
I expect this trend to continue because low-interest rates will cause there to be an even stronger than usual buyer demand this #Spring.
It's not the end of the world if you have to get P.M.I., but it should be avoided if possible.
If you can put at least 20% down when buying a home.
By doing so the lender won't require you to get P.M.I.
P.M.I. stands for Private Mortgage Insurance.
Typically when buying a home, you have to pay P.M.I. if you put less than 20% for your down payment.
PMI protects the lender, not you if you stop making payments on your loan.
Think about that... the insurance is to protect them, but you have to pay for it!
Depending on your loan amount, it can cost you $200, $300, $400, on top of your mortgage payment.
You should avoid this if possible
Put at least 20% down and you will avoid paying P.M.I.
If I have brought you any value through my real estate content, it would mean the world to me if you referred me to your friends who are looking to sell their home this Spring.
They can text me at 818-445-7953.
Thank you!
The better you know the market, the faster you can identify a good deal.
Track properties that interest you, see what they sell for, and go to open houses.
This will give you an overall feel for the market.
Then connect with a seasoned agent that will guide you the rest of the way.
The #coronavirus has scared #WallStreet and the #FederalReserve.
To stabilize the market, the Fed called an emergency meeting today and cut the interest rate.
Interest rates for home buyers have dropped to the low 3% range.
When my dad was selling properties back in the 1970s, interest rates were at 17%.
As long as you and the listing agent agree on the given amount of time, your listing agreement can be however long you want it to be.
When you list your home for sale with an agent, the first thing you need to do is determine how long you are going to give that agent an opportunity to sell your home.
The length of time is determined by you and the agent.
Nothing is set in stone.
You can do a year, 6 months (this is average), you can even do a 1-day listing agreement.
I have done plenty of 1 day listing agreements.
I use that when I want to show a home 1 time to 1 of my buyers.
If the buyer refuses to send cash as their deposit, find another buyer.
Remember, the deposit is sent over within the first 3 days of opening escrow.
If the buyer is this difficult to work with just 3 days in, imagine how hard it will be for the rest of the 30 day escrow period.
As soon as you accept an offer for someone to buy your home, the buyer has to send over an all-cash good faith deposit.
This deposit is typically 3% of the purchase price of the property and is held by the escrow company in an escrow account just in case the buyer breaches the contract and you want to try to collect for damages.
If the buyer wants to send over anything but cash as their deposit, say no!
I have heard of buyers trying to use necklaces, #Rolex watches, and all types of other items for their deposit.
There are a few problems with this.
1) Will the escrow company hold a physical item as a deposit?
2) What is the true appraised value of the item?
3) Is that item real and authentic?
Because so many problems can arise out of this, only accept cash as your deposit.
If the buyer refuses, find yourself another buyer.
On this episode, I answer the following four real estate questions:
1) The buyer for my home wants to use their Rolex watch as their good faith deposit. Is that even possible?
2) How long does a listing agreement usually last?
3) How many homes should I view before buying one?
4) My lender told me I will have to pay PMI. What is that?
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