market trends

LA Times Snippet on Touluca Lake

LA Times Snippet on Touluca Lake

The San Fernando Valley has not experienced the pace of price increases of some other areas. But it's not a surprise that Toluca Lake and Studio City are standouts.

The area has long been attractive to Hollywood executives and wealthy families looking to be near elite private schools. More recently, Studio City has become a hot spot for young urban professionals amid an explosion of bars and restaurants.

2016 Mortgage Interest Rate Forecast

2016 Mortgage Interest Rate Forecast

2016 marked the beginning of rising interest rates across all industries. For the last 10 years, the Federal Reserve has been assisting the market in order to promote buying. This year that program ends, and we start the slow and steady rise of interest rates. While most industries are seeing a dramatic increase in interest rates, the Real Estate industry has remained steadfast at low and consistent rates which should carry us through 2016. 

I had a Q&A session with John Musso, who is nationally ranked 2nd at Wells Fargo Home Lending, to get to the facts about new interest rates. Here’s why the housing market shouldn’t be freaking out about the interest rate changes.

Preparing Your Home for El Niño

Preparing Your Home for El Niño

It’s time to clean out your gutters and board up your windows. Weather forecasters are predicting the return of El Niño. El Niño is a “super storm” that last wreaked havoc in 1997-98 causing over $500 million in damage. Weather forecasters are now predicting El Niño’s return this winter. 

In Los Angeles this means heavy and sporadic rain with extreme winds and a chance of flooding. It also means that it’s time to prepare your home from potential damage. It’s important to recognize that small problems now can turn into expensive repairs later. So, how do you prepare for El Niño this season?

A Stale Home? Might Be Fresh for You

A Stale Home? Might Be Fresh for You

Today’s real estate market might seem to be back at the all time high levels that we encountered five years ago. As a buyer you might think that you should wait and see if the market goes back down before buying. But there might be another approach to keep in mind. This might be a tremendous opportunity to purchase what some in the business call a stale home.