If you do find yourself falling behind on your mortgage take action by calling your lender or a credit counselor. Some lenders have allowed for a freeze in the adjustment of the variable rate, but again making the initial contact is the first step. The best case is that the lender will work with you and give you the relief. Most lenders would prefer dealing with you than having to put the property in foreclosure. For a non-profit HUD approved counselor contact Hope Now at 1.888.995.HOPE. (4673) or www.995hope.0rg

If there is no other solution than to sell the home, than you must consider that today’s market value will not be what you would of expected in the last year.  Not all areas are created equal, you should contact a Realtor for a price opinion or call an appraiser to find the current value.  If you can settle with the price, list it for sale and be prepared for competition with lender owned and fixer homes currently on the market. You may want to consider renting your home until favorable conditions for selling come along. 

It has been said that you should not make a large investment in an election year. 

A home purchase is for long term stability. Most homes historically appreciate with time.

No matter which party holds the Presidential office you can bet that they will not disappoint voters by cutting off mortgage deductions. 

There are other variables that you should consider, such as price location and loan terms. These will have a direct affect in your financial future. 

At this time housing stock is ripe for choosing prime properties and interest rates are the best they have been in years. 

People looking to upgrade or first time buyers have much to take advantage of.

Don’t let the myth keep you

 from achieving the important things in your life. 

HOME OWNERSHIP Should you buy or should you rent? This has become a complicated question for thousands of consumers. Not only is this question loaded with personal and lifestyle considerations but financial issues as well. For some, buying is the only sensible thing to do and for others, renting is much more convenient. Most homeowners enjoy the pride of owning such a large investment, and others enjoy having a place to call “home”. There are several advantages that go along with homeownership. Here are a few: 

Tax Breaks Federal tax laws strongly favor homeowners. Mortgage interest and property taxes are generally tax deductible on your federal return. This can in turn provide you with an enormous tax benefit.  Capital gains benefits allow the homeowner to profit without paying taxes when selling their main residence. Please consult your legal or tax expert for restrictions and application of this popular tax benefit

Ability to Borrow Against Equity As a homeowner, you can borrow against the equity in your home using either a second mortgage or a home equity line of credit. The interest of such loans may be tax deductible, regardless of how you use the money. Many homeowners use home equity loans to consolidate other high-interest loans, to make repairs and improvements, and even to fund a child’s education.

RenovationsAs a homeowner, you have almost unlimited ability to adapt your living space to suit your individual tastes and needs. You can paint, wallpaper, decorate, landscape, and even have the potential to add more rooms. The possibilities are virtually endless.

Leverage  When buying a home, you will probably use some of your own money ( your down payment) and a large amount of someone else’s (borrowed funds from your bank or other mortgage lender). If you are buying your second home, you can leverage the appreciated equity or profit into the purchase of your next home. Buying a house is a huge decision for a large investment. Your neighborhood real estate professional is a good place to start when considering a purchase of a home. 

 

The Huntington’s newest edition to the botanical gardens is the Liu Fang Yuan which translates into the Garden of Flowering Fragrance. Take time out of your busy schedule to smell the flowers.  The authentic Chinese garden’s architecture includes a man  made lake, bridges, pavilions, and covered walkways. The tiniest details such as rocks from the  China’s Lake Tai and windows framed from which to view the landscape add to the extravagance.  Sit and enjoy the the scenery with the San Gabriel Mountains in the backdrop.  Stop by the Tea Shop and sample some delicious teas and Chinese food.  The sight, sound, and aroma culminate into an engaging experience into Chinese culture.

Thank you for visiting our blog! We would like to invite you, our readers to interact and share your feelings about your city. If you could leave a comment  with the three best words to describe your home town, we would love to share them with everyone on a monthly post. It does not matter where you are, whatever part of the country, describe your home and let everyone get to know how you feel about your city! 

Example comment:

John Smith - Downey

Greatest City Ever!!!

Take a little break, You Deserve It.

Schlossadler International Wines

is having a wine tasting

at no charge.

_____________________________________________________________________ 

On Saturday, March 1, 2008

1625 Ord Way, Oceanside, Ca  92056

12:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Must RSVP  Ania (800) 371-9463  Ext. 815

Anai@Schlossadler.com

_____________________________________________________________________

They have just received 32, 568 bottles of Wines from Germany, Austria, France and Spain.

We have personally tasted their wines and they are Great! 

Check them out at www.Schlossadler.com

LOVE, LIVE & DANCE

It is a long term commitment when it comes to owning a property.

 Yes, prices go up and down. But you must remember the history of real estate,

the longer you stay in it, the better the return.

By: wespeakrealestate

What is Proposition 8?

Thanks to you California Voter’s Proposition 8 was passed in 1978: A constitutional amendment that allows a temporary reduction in assessed value when a property suffers a “decline-in-value.” (To read the law associated with Proposition eight, Revenue and Taxation Code, Section 51- at     www.boetaxes.ca.gov/property

It is when the current market value of your property is less than the current assessed value.

Help is here.

The Los Angeles County Assessors is applying Proposition eight for property owner whom purchased their home between July 1, 2005 and June 30, 2007. They will look at sales of comparable properties that sold near the lien date of January 1, 2008.

You must file a claim form for a Decline-in-Value Reassessment Application (Prop. eight) with the Assessor between January 1 and December 31 for the fiscal year beginning on July 1. If December 31 falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, an application is valid if either files or mail and postmarked by the next business day. For questions and forms please write the following information:

The assessor office Online:  www.assessor.lacounty.gov
Email: helpdesk@assessor.lacounty.gov
Phone Call: (213) 974-3211

Office will complete this review by June 1, 2008 and will modify in writing those property owners who qualify for the reduction.

If the sale date is not with in the dates noted or is other than a single home or condominium, it will not be included in the review. But if you believe the assessed vale of the property shown on the 2007-08 tax bill is more than the fair market value as of the 1st of January 2008, you may file an application at the time through the 31st of December 2008.

St. Valentine, who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday?  

The history of Valentine’s Day 

The month of February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains residuals of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. Presently, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred One legend declares that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men; his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret.When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.  Other stories, suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.  They claim that Valentine actually sent the first ‘valentine’ greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl, who may have been his jailor’s daughter, who visited him during his confinement. Previous to his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed ‘From your Valentine,’ an expression that is still in use today. These legends, certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It’s no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.  While some believe that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death or burial — which probably occurred around 270 A.D — others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February in an effort to ‘christianize’ celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February, February 15, was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.  To commence the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at the sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would then sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification.The boys then sliced the goat’s hide into strips, dipped them in the sacrificial blood and took to the streets, gently slapping both women and fields of crops with the goat hide strips. Far from being frightened, Roman women welcomed being touched with the hides because it was believed the strips would make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city’s bachelors would then each choose a name out of the urn and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage. Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine’s Day around 498 A.D. The Roman ‘lottery’ system for romantic pairing was deemed un-Christian and outlawed. Later, during the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds’ mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February — Valentine’s Day — should be a day for romance. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. The greeting, which was written in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England. Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.

How do you say Love 

Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.

Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.

My bounty is as boundless as the sea,
My love as deep; the more I give to thee,
The more I have, for both are infinite.

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

Young love is a flame; very pretty, often very hot and fierce, but still only light and flickering. The love of the older and disciplined heart is as coals, deep-burning, unquenchable.

Age does not protect you from love. But love, to some extent, protects you from age.

Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward in the same direction.

Love has no desire but to fulfill itself.
But if you love and must needs have desires, let these be your desires;
To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.
To know the pain of too much tenderness.
To be wounded by your own understanding of love;
And to bleed willingly and joyfully.

The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.

-Helen Keller

Love does not dominate; it cultivates.

Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place.

Love is life. All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love. Everything is, everything exists, only because I love.

Love is like quicksilver in the hand. Leave the fingers open and it stays. Clutch it, and it darts away.

I have learned not to worry about love; but to honor its coming with all my heart.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
so I love you because I know no other way
than this: where I does not exist nor you,
so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.

Lenders are changing their guidelines again, and one of the biggest problems facing potential buyers today is coming up with enough money for the down payment and closing costs. The amount of money you have available can greatly limit or increase your purchasing and negotiating power. Rather than saving all of the money yourself, look at these options that may help.

Here are some sure ways to accumulate the necessary funds that are acceptable to most lenders. This can help determine the best loan program to suit your needs. There are still programs that require lower down payments and assist with closing costs. Check your city and county down payment assistance programs for availability. Many bank owned properties are helping buyers with closing costs.

1. Have your parents give you the money as a gift. 

Documentation will be required to prove that the money is actually a gift and not just a phantom loan. Any taxpayer is permitted to give up to $10,000 per year to another person without having to pay a gift tax.  Your mother could give you $10,000 and give $10,000 to your spouse. Your father can do the same. This would give you $40,000 for a down payment and closing costs. (NOTE: Unless you are putting down at least 20% or are obtaining government-insured loan, 5% of the sales price must be your own money.)

2. Borrow against your 401K or insurance policy. 

You can also cash out your 401K but you will be subject to withdrawal penalties and payment of taxes. If your borrow against it, the loan payment will be counted as a debt.

3. Sell or borrow against an asset. 

Sell an asset such as a car can help increase the amount of money you have available. Borrowing against an asset is also acceptable as long as you qualify with the additional debt.

4. Obtain a low point or zero point loan. 

This will reduce the amount of your closing costs substantially. In some instances, the lender can also pay all or a part of your non-recurring closing costs.

5. Ask the seller to pay for all or a part of your non-recurring closing costs. 

Your real estate agent can assist you with this when you make an offer on a home.

6. Ask the seller to carry back financing. 

If the seller does not need all of the equity in their property, they may be willing to carry some of the financing which will reduce the amount of your down payment

7. Consider different loan programs. 

 There are a wide variety of programs that require lower down payments and assist with closing costs. There are also city and county down payment assistance programs you can check into.

Just remember owing is always better than renting.

 So you are moving. Well try the following suggestions for a little peace of mind.    

• Provide the post office with your forwarding address two to four weeks ahead of the move.
• Notify your credit card companies, magazine subscriptions, and bank of your change of address.
• Create a list of friends, relatives, and business colleagues who need to be notified about your move.
• Arrange to disconnect utilities and have them connected at your new home.
• Cancel the newspaper, or change the address so it will arrive at your new home.
• Check insurance coverage for the items you’re moving. Usually movers only cover what they pack.
• Clean out appliances and prepare them for moving, if applicable.
• Note the weight of the goods you’ll have moved, since long-distance moves are usually billed according to  weight. Watch for movers that use excessive padding to add weight.
• Check with your condo or co-op about any restrictions on using the elevator or particular exits for moving.
• Have a “first open” box with the things you’ll need most, such as toilet paper, soap, trash bags, scissors, hammer, screwdriver, pencils and paper, cups and plates, water, snacks, and toothpaste.
  
  Plus, if you’re moving out of town, be sure to:
  
• Get copies of medical and dental records and prescriptions for your family and your pets.
• Get copies of children’s school records for transfer.
• Ask friends for introductions to anyone they know in your new neighborhood.
• Consider special car needs for pets when traveling.
• Let a friend or relative know your route.
• Empty your safety deposit box.
• Put plants in boxes with holes for air circulation if you’re moving in cold weather.

Embrace change, Change is good.