Despite the lowest mortgage rates since May, applications for new home loans continued to taper off, according to a Mortgage Bankers Assn. survey released today. Seasonally adjusted applications for purchase loans decreased 4.7% during the week ending last Friday compared with the week before. In the refinance market, applications were down by 1.4%, according to the trade group’s weekly survey. Rates for traditional 30-year fixed mortgages dropped below 5% in mid-September, helping to trigger a mini-boom in mortgage applications, particularly for refinance loans. It seemed some people had been biding time waiting for the ultra-low rates of last spring to return. But recently, fewer people across the country have applied for new loans even though rates have continued to decline, suggest... 11/19/2009

Finally, the City of Beverly Hills has joined the City of West Hollywood in banning the declawing of cats. This week the Beverly Hills City Council voted 5-0 to approve the declawing ban except in the case of medical emergencies. The City of West Hollywood instituted the ban back in 2003. The City of Santa Monica has recently voted 5-1 to adopt the ban. What surprised me was that the California Veterinary Medical Association opposed the ban, claiming "The decision to declaw a cat should be made by the owner in consultation with their veterinarian." Last month the Malibu City Council voted against a motion for a citywide ban.They did however adopt was a Resolution opposing declawing, but I think they did not go far enough! What also surprised me was that the California Veterinary Medical... 11/18/2009

Heart and Sold, written by top selling Los Angeles real estate broker Valerie Fitzgerald, takes you on a journey through the emotional and tangible challenges of regaining one's personal power while building and maintaining a successful business. The book recounts Fitzgerald’s personal journey from unemployed single parent to entrepreneur, philanthropist and corporate executive in the competitive L.A. real estate metropolis. From beginners just getting started to seasoned agents -- or anyone in business looking to take their game to the next level -- this step-by-step guide teaches readers the art of selling. Order it now on Amazon.com. Heart and Sold shows readers how to: Manage clients with style Choose the right company and the best mentor Establish a stellar reputation in their fie... 11/16/2009

 Take a close, hard look at the new $6,500 federal tax credit for so-called move-up home buyers that passed the Senate and House recently. Though it's been getting second billing to the original $8,000 credit for first-time purchasers -- now extended by Congress through June 30 -- the $6,500 credit for current homeowners just might have your name on it.How does it work? When will it be available?The new credit is available now. It took effect Nov. 6, the day President Obama signed the legislation that created it. This means that if you fit the key criteria -- you've owned and lived in your home for a consecutive five out of the last eight years, and your adjusted household income doesn't exceed $125,000 if you file taxes singly or $225,000 if you are married filing jointly -- you can cl... 11/16/2009

First-time buyers made up a bigger share of the housing market in 2009 than any other year on record, according to a study released this afternoon. The number of first-time home buyers rose to 47% of all home sales from 41% of transactions in last year’s study, and was the highest on record dating back to 1981, according to the Washington-basedNational Assn. of Realtors. Home sales have been fueled in recent months by cheap foreclosure properties. Both investors and first-time buyers have jumped into the market to snap up these heavily discounted digs. For first-time buyers, one major incentive fueling the spree has been a tax credit extended last week by the Obama administration and expanded to include move-up buyers. The Realtors group lobbied heavily for the legislation. Paul Bishop... 11/14/2009

Many say time is one life’s most important luxuries.   Celebrities and the well-heeled are becoming more socially conscious - sharing their time, leveraging their power in the press and redefining what luxury means in the process.   On Wednesday, Ashton Kutcher bought wife Demi Moore a brand new Prius for her 47th birthday - trading in her ’04 model. Many would think what an unlikely gift from one superstar to another when Ashton could buy his wife any car in the world. What statement is the couple making? Perhaps the environment only has so much time if we don’t change how we treat it.   Time is precious and it's a limited commodity. In the last year you might be finding yourself spending more time trying to make ends meet, close a deal, make buyers and sellers come to agreement. You ... 11/13/2009

The Carlyle Residences is a brand new 24-story crescent-shaped luxury condominium tower that's located at the center of Wilshire Corridor’s “Golden Mile" in Los Angeles, CA. Built by ELAD Properties and developer of New York City’s Plaza Hotel, the building has 78 private luxury residences ranging in size from 2,700-5,000 square feet, each with its own private elevator entrance for residents privacy and security. Whether you are looking for a solid real estate investment, need a residence in Los Angeles as your U.S. home base when you visit family, children and clients, or seeking a maintenance free primary or secondary home with the most modern amenities and 24-hour concierge access/valet/doorman…The Carlyle Residences is the answer. The high rise luxury condominium offers its resident... 11/12/2009

Millions of additional people may be able to take advantage of the new and improved first-time home-buyer tax credit now, and it's not just for first-time home buyers anymore. You may qualify. President Obama signed legislation Friday to extend unemployment benefits to American workers. The law also includes provisions that vastly expand the number of people eligible for home-buyer credits by boosting the income eligibility limits, giving buyers more time, creating a $6,500 credit for longtime homeowners and launching more-accommodating rules for members of the military. Here are the details. The $8,000 credit If you were locked out of the first-time home-buyer credit in the past simply because you earned too much, there's good news. Now you can qualify for the full $8,000 first-time ho... 11/11/2009

Congress's extension and expansion of the $8,000 tax credit through next June 30 should take the pressure off first time home buyers who've been rushing to close deals before the November 30 deadline.   That deadline is now gone. Everybody's got until next June 30 to settle on their purchases. But here's something in the expanded program that hasn't gotten much attention: The new $6,500 federal tax credit for so-called "move up" buyers took effect immediately upon enactment. That means that potentially hundreds of thousands of Americans who fit the key ownership and income criteria for the new credit are eligible for it … right now. What are those tests? Number one: You have to have owned and used your current home as your principal residence for five consecutive years out the past eigh... 11/09/2009

Though the housing market is displaying some signs of health, economists say they could be misleading. Home prices in Los Angeles County edged up in October, while sales volume continued a slow downward drift after sizzling through the summer. The increasing prices represented the continuation of a trend that started in May after a slide of almost two years. The median price of a home was $340,000, up $5,000 from the month before, according to data supplied to the Business Journal by HomeData of Hicksville, N.Y. Adjusting for the difference in the number of selling days per month, sales volume dipped slightly – about 1.2 percent – representing the second monthly decline in a row. Experts viewed the rising prices as further evidence that the real estate market has stabilized, at least te... 11/07/2009

In recent years, millions of Americans looked at their houses and saw big, fat piggy banks. And it occurred to them to take out big, fat new mortgages. Few did it on the scale of Ronald Burkle.   Mr. Burkle, the grocery-store billionaire, has $56 million in loans against two houses, including $9 million added last year. One is his iconic Beverly Hills mansion, "Green Acres," a 44-room Italian Renaissance palazzo built in the 1920s by silent-film star Harold Lloyd that more recently was a favorite overnight rest stop for Mr. Burkle's buddy, Bill Clinton. Mr. Burkle declined to say how he is using the money. There is no indication he needs it to pay the water bill. Traditionally, the super-rich didn't really bother with mortgages. Home loans were for people who carry lunch buckets, not ca... 11/07/2009

450 Maple Drive #501 4 Bed 3 Bath $2,349,000 HOA Dues $875 pm         261 S Reeves Drive #PH7 3 Bed 2 Bath $1,695,000 HOA Dues $1552 pm         261 S Reeves Dr #PH4 2 Bed 2 Bath $1,500,000 HOA Dues $1075 pm         430 N Oakhurst Dr #305 2 Bed 3 Bath $   999,000 HOA Dues $619 pm         141 S Linden Dr #103 2 Bed 2 Bath $   819,000 HOA Dues $625 pm         133 S Rexford Dr #201 2 Bed 3 Bath $   799,000 HOA Dues $600 pm         324 N Palm Dr #403 3 Bed 2 Bath $   799,000 HOA Dues $726 pm         200 N Swall Dr #352 2 Bed 2 Bath $   699,000 HOA Dues $1062 pm         235 S Tower Dr #206 2 Bed 2 Bath $   699,999 HOA Dues $654 pm         225 S Tower Dr #101 2 Bed 2 Bath $   499,000 HOA Dues $500 pm         431 N Doheny Dr #1 2 Bed 2 Bath $   429,900 HOA Dues $977pm Average List Price: $1,02... 11/04/2009

As strong market reports on manufacturing, construction and contracts to buy new homes show renewed optimism, The Carlyle Residences, a development of The Elad Group of New York’s Plaza Hotel, sees an influx of international buyers contributing to analysts’ reports. “The building appeals to many demographics,” says Tom Elliot COO of Elad Properties West, “and a high percentage of recent sales have been with foreign buyers.” The latest figures from the National Association of Realtors show that existing home sales were strong in September, which means that conditions have improved for five of the past six months. Last month, sales were up 9.4 percent from the level recorded in August, and also 9.2 percent higher than the figures recorded in September 2008. Read the full story at Valerie... 11/04/2009

From SeattlePI.com Undoubtedly consumers have better access to information on real estate listings today than back in the days when they had to search through want-ads. No one can deny that. But I think that most consumers think that what they have is better than what it really is. They think that because they don't have access to professional tools. They don't know what they're missing. Recently I did a quick review of five local websites aimed at consumers. All the sites were owned by members of the NWMLS. Thus, Zillow, Trulia, Google, etc. were not included. What I found was that no one site was clearly better than the others, and that all the sites have deficiencies. For example: Of the five sites, only one allowed you to enter precise amounts for your price range. One site had sta... 11/01/2009

Perseverance Pays Off - Holmby Hills House Sells for $13,200,000 Originally listed at $27,500,000 this 12,000 sq ft 9-Bed 9-Bath has finally sold in Holmby Hills (in the Bel Air/Beverly Hills area of Los Angeles) for $13,200,000 - 50% of it's original Asking Price! The MLS describes the property as a "Grand 1930's Hollywood Georgian, completely remodeled." The house includes a hidden wine-cellar, screening room and sauna. The property was originally listed in May 2008 and was on the market for 429 days before it finally sold ..... proving that Perseverance Pays Off, give or take a few million in the pricing. (Listed by Stephen Resnick of Westside Estate Agency and Sold by Eric Hassan of Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills)      10/30/2009

1-800-GOT-JUNK? The World's Largest Junk Removal Service! Let us remove your junk! We enthusiastically satisfied hundreds of businesses last year. Do you have stuff sitting around left behind by your tenants or have tenants that want to get rid of stuff? We professionally remove all unwanted items, including: Electronic Waste including computer equipment, phones, printers, copiers etc. Furniture and file cabinets Paperwork Patritions (we provide disassembly) Excess inventory Why choose 1-800-GOT-JUNK? On-time service - We provide a 2-hour appointment window. Up-front rates - We will give you a quote before any work is done. Clean, Shiny Trucks - We represent you and your business professionally Friendly, Uniformed Drivers - Our employees are well trained professionals. E-Waste - Certifi... 10/23/2009

Valerie will be on a panel Saturday, November 14 from 1:30 to 3 p.m. at the San Diego Convention Center during the NAR Conference (read below for details.) For more information about Valerie Fitzgerald visit http://budurl.com/VFGcom. This year, the Forum will focus on how industry professionals can form strategies and excel in working with distressed properties, such as foreclosures, REOs and short sales. Our panelists this year include: Facilitators John Featherston, President & CEO, RISMedia; Chairman & Co-founder, RISMedia’s Top 5 in Real Estate Network Allan Dalton, President & Co-founder, RISMedia’s Top 5 in Real Estate Network Panelists Gino Blefari, Founder, President & CEO, Intero Real Estate Services Tami Bonnell, President, U.S. Organization, EXIT Realty Corp. Jon Cook, Presi... 10/23/2009

The median price of homes in Beverly Hills has increased by 123% The number of properties sold has increased 55% The properties on the market in any given month where a buyer could have written a first position offer to purchase it at any time during that month.  Different from Months Supply of Inventory below.  The number has increased 3%. The number of properties going into contract on any given month shows the sales activity.  This has increased 108%.   These figures show how long it would take to sell the present inventory based on the present monthly sale rate. The number of properties on sale on the last day of the month is the remaining inventory.  This figure is divided by current sales rate for the month as determined by the number of properties going under contract.  This show... 10/13/2009

Beverly Hills House Sales - In Escrow as at 10/11/2009 72 Beverly Park Dr 11 Bed 18 Bath $22,500,000       1240 Bevedict Canyon Dr 6 Bed 6 Bath $7,995,000       620 Walden Dr 5 Bed 7 Bath $7,595,000       9752 Suffolk Dr 7 Bed 7 Bath $6,995,000       631 N Crescent Dr 6 Bed 4 Bath $6,900,000       624 N Hillcrest Rd 5 Bed 5 Bath $5,250,000       716 N Oakhurst Dr 6 Bed 5 Bath $4,449,000       625 N Elm Dr 5 Bed 5 Bath $3,700,000       507 N Arden Dr 4 Bed 5 Bath $3,450,000       248 S Almont Dr 5 Bed 5 Bath $2,950,000       1800 N Beverly Dr 5 Bed 6 Bath $2,950,000       1642 Lindacrest Dr 4 Bed 4 Bath $2,795,000       1160 San Ysidro Dr 3 Bed 2 Bath $2,700,000       2365 Bowmont Dr 3 Bed 3 Bath $2,699,000       1150 San Ysidro Dr 4 Bed 4 Bath $2,675,000       245 Camden Dr 6 Bed 6 Bat... 10/12/2009

If interest rates on 15-year fixed mortgages have never been lower -- and rate trackers say that's the case -- why aren't 30-year loans setting records as well? To be sure, 30-year fixed rates have fallen near all-time lows, well below 5% for borrowers willing to pay some upfront fees known as points -- a great deal if you're among the lucky borrowers who qualify. But they were lower still last spring, according to surveys by the Mortgage Bankers Assn., Freddie Mac and bankrate.com. By contrast, all the surveys concur that rates for 15-year fixed mortgages have already reached their lowest point on record -- and keep falling.  Freddie Mac, for example, says 15-year rates fell to record territory the week ending Sept. 17, when they averaged 4.47%. They have continued falling in three sub... 10/11/2009