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The All-star Game 2014 Congratulations to the American League!!
The All- Star Game 2014, Congratulations to the American League! As most of you who read my blog post know I am a die-hard Red Sox fan ( American League) Today was forgetting the Arch Rival New York Yankees. It was a celebration of the Midsummer Classic recognizing the best of the best by the fans and team members. Managing the American League was of course John Farrel Manager of the Red Sox, but today it was all about Derek Jeter and his 14th All Star Game passing the Torch to Mike Trout. Fourty year old Jeter is one of the classiest sports figures in MLB. I took these photos before the game started. Go figure Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels became MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the game. A true talent following in Jeter’s footsteps…. clearly this was a moment for both to enjoy as well as fans of baseball! Now if you are looking for an All Star Realtor to represent you in your purchase or sale then reach out to me! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue Organizations....
read moreWhat advice would you give to the buyer if you were in a Multiple …
What advice would you give to the buyer if you were in a Multiple Offer situation? Often times we are in a competitive situation and we need to help the buyer get the property. What do you say to the buyer? My answer is very simple to this question. I tell the buyer when they are in a multiple offer situation simply decided what is it worth to them to get the property. If they offer let’s say $5 or $10,000 above the asking price it should be the amount that when they go to sleep tonight and wake up in the next morning and they did not get the property and they will not feel bad, that they should have offered more. They are happy they gave the best offer i.e.: what they thought it was worth for them to get it for. Needless to say I was thrilled that the Seller chose my buyer’s offer even though she only went a little over the asking price i.e.: only $6000 more. The seller and the agent liked her Credit Score… over 805 FICO and a large down payment. Clearly this was a winning formula! Sadly this is not always the case. This time it was and both buyer and seller were thrilled! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read more8715 Wiley Post Ave, Westchester, CA 90045 JUST SOLD!
8715 WIley Post Ave, Westchester, CA 90045, JUST SOLD! I represented the buyer, she was a first time home buyer and the challenges, the ups and downs are food for future blog post! Needless to say once she survivied the 30 day Escrow which became 40 days. She was Thrilled! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreWelcome Signs in Los Angeles: Welcome to Westchester!
I have noticed there are more and more Welcome Signs by different communities. This one happens to be Westchester. Lately it has been picked up as one of the Trendier Neighborhoods. There are eight distinct sections of Westchester: 1. West Westchester 2. Loyola Village 3. Kentwood 4. Emerson Manor 5. Westport Heights 6. Marlow Burns Tract 7. Osage 8.. Manchester Square The Values are somewhat different in each pocket. If you would like more information about the values or if you would like to buy or sell a home in Westchester feel free to reach out to me! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreSpeechless Sundays: Chachi in the grass!
Speechless Sundays: Chachi in the grass! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreWordless Wednesdays: How to stay cool in Marina Del Rey…
How to stay cool in Marina Del Rey, CA, how about a nice cold Pilsner Beer from Victory?:) If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreArthur Schwarz’s New York City Food: an opinionated history and more..
Arthur Schwartz’s New York City Food: an opinionated history and more than 100 Legendary Recipes Those of you who know me, not only do I collect books, but I also collect cookbooks. I have been meaning to write about this acquisition for some time now. This cookbook I have acquired over the past six or so months ago. Life and business took priority hence no blog post about it. Diane and I were at the Los Angeles Festival of Books this past April; I managed to find it, in a bargain book section. This is a fantastic book. To give you a little back ground: Arthur Schwartz was born and raised in Brooklyn and this is his book. It reads like a Ken Follet Novel but it is not fiction. It is New York City Food History combined with his background history and cultural history and it includes Recipe from “The beginning” such as what the Dutch ate when they came to New York to the famous places such as “Delmonico’s” and he bring us to places and eateries many just dream about. Places like “Lundy’s” a great seafood restaurant that started as a fish market and sadly closed in 1979. Loved his analogy:” …If the Dodgers leaving for Los Angeles in 1957 was the beginning of the end of Brooklyn’s hey-day…….then Lundy’s closing in 1979 was the end of the end….” I could go on and on, it is a fun read reminiscing about classic places some still here others gone. Besides being a writer Arthur Schwartz is a well respected Food Critic who has sampled the food in all these places. If you love history coupled with food history and the cultural nuances what made New York City the Restaurant Capital of the world, you must put this book on your must find and read list. I cannot wait to finish it and make some great recipes of the By Gone Institutions! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreWho pays the commissions, the buyer or the seller? This question is…
Who pays the commissions, the buyer or the seller? This question is a bit loaded. I find that in my experience this question always comes up from first time home buyers. In California the seller agrees to pay the commissions. One would think end of story, thank you got my answer. In reality there is a lot more to this question. The interesting part is both the seller’s and the buyer’s agents are vested in the outcome of a transaction. Commissions are only paid when the transaction closed. Hence both buyer’s agents and sellers agents want to make sure the there is a successful closing. There are some different roles for both agents. Their Fiduciary Responsibly is at odds. The Listing Agent is 100% looking for the financial interest of the Seller and in the mean time the Buyer’s agent is looking 100% for the benefit of the buyer’s interest. This is what we call Fiduciary Counsel and Fiduciary Responsibility. This is where the expertise, knowledge and value come into play from each Realtor. The better your Realtor is, the better the outcome will be of the transaction. Not only do Realtors gather data, but they are involved in interpreting them as well. Realtors provide the buyer as well as the seller with their expertise and it make a great difference in the getting the desired outcome of a transaction. Top notch Realtors work hard for their clients, because they have a reputation for quality and they want to protect their own good name. Most importantly they want to continue in getting future business by referrals. I often see that sellers try to compromise their own interest by asking to discount the commissions of the brokers or going to a discount broker. This can compromise and ultimately cost the seller far more than what they could save on commission. This is what I call penny wise and pound foolish mentality. As a full service Realtor, my clients can email me from all over the world and get a relatively quick response from me, because I understand their concerns and needs vs. a discount broker will not have the same motivation as I do, since they are mostly making their money by volume. I do not have a lot of transactions in a year hence I am vested in providing a fantastic service to insure success for all parties involved. When you work in volume that means there are some things that fall to the wayside, such as interpreting trends and directions. I have time to look at the data, I am not chasing after discount volume. So if you want top notch representation keep in mind what you pay for is what you get. There is a difference between attorneys who charges $250 per hour vs. one who charges $1500 per hour. There is also a difference in a Realtor vs. a Discount Broker. In closing the real question should be are you a discount broker or a full service broker. Along the same train of thought the internet Brokers cannot substitute this with their websites, such as the Zillows and Redfins of this world to use an example! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach...
read moreThe Winners of the “What events in your life/world lead you here”!!!!
The Winners of the ‘What events in your life/world lead you here where you are today’ Contest on Active Rain! One of the hardest things to do as a Realtor is to do a self analysis and then share it with everyone who is willing to read your post. We are so focused on our client’s needs and wants and often we forget to reflect on our own lives. Needless to say I was very intrigued by wanting to know what my fellow Active Rain Members had to say about this subject. In case you missed it, here is the link to the post and all the submissions are in the comments. (http://actvra.in/4hmL ) There were three Judges who submitted a list of their top ten choices in order of their preferences. Needless to say, I was asking for this, because my concerns were that they would all have different choices and I would have a difficult time narrowing the list. Interestingly the top six or seven posts had all the same names just not in the same order. The top four was virtually identical in different order. I was amazed and surprised. Clearly I should have known better, we have a great community and the Posts spoke not only to the Judges, but to all of us. Here is a post I just recently wrote about the contest and the Judges (http://actvra.in/4jZ2 ) There seems to be a fire theme in the Winner’s CircleJ Rain Silverhawk’s Post spoke to us without audible words and I have re-read her post a few times and it really touched me. http://activerain.trulia.com/blogsview/4413307/the-phoenix-rising-from-the-ashes She is the Winner of these Contests! Tom White’s sharing of his story, via a campfire resonated well with not just the Judges and me, but the community as well. http://actvra.in/4jZ8 he is clearly a very close second in the contest. Mike Wong’s first negotiation of the family real estate transaction was a very close third in the selection process http://actvra.in/4hZr . As far as I am concerned the real winners are the Active Rain Members and all the other people who have the opportunity to read these great posts. We are so lucky that they shared with us what got them here today. Please enjoy these posts as well as the others if you have the time. They are worth the read. Thank you Dick Greenberg, Lisa Friedman & Rene’ Fabre with all your great input and help and forgive me if I did not follow your advice as you would have preferred. Thank you to all the participants for your sharing freely how you got here today! All the best to everyone! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreWhat I have learned hosting my first Active Rain Contest Endre Barath
What I have learned hosting my first Active Rain Contest by Endre Barath, Jr. In my opinion: The first and foremost priority should be that you pick a subject which intrigues the community, if you do not, then there will be little participation. Needless to say I was wondering how the turnout would be. Clearly I had no reason to worry we started out slow but ended up with 81 entries to the contest. Second, please work closely in the beginning with Kerrie, since she will know what you are forgetting to put in your original post and needless to say she determines how many points will be awarded. Plan in advance at least three to four months; the schedules will already be booked for the various Challenges. Then approach some great Active Rain members and ask them to be judges. Now all I can say is I am truly lucky to have had the support from Dick Greenberg, Lisa Friedman and Rene’ Fabre. They were so conscientious and caring to select the best posts it just made my life so much easier. Needless to say do not think that you are done. Well not really, keeping track of who submitted posts and try to read along as you get the posts is also important. Take some notes and try to put them in some initial draft order you will be glad you did from the beginning because that is also important. Then as the posts start rolling in you will discover that your orders might change. Needless to say all participants want to get the credit for their submission. This is also a critical aspect of the contest because you do not want to miss someone that would be a travesty. Do not wait too long and submit the list to Kerrie so all the participants can get their submission credits. Finally reevaluate the posts and wait for the judges to give you their submissions. Stay in touch with the judges and let them do their work. Do not micro manage them, after all they are all Realtors, Trainers, Title Gurus or Business Owners and they prefer working independently to create the best product : in this case the difficult task of choosing a winner. Finally be prepared that when you do end up hosting a contest you will get extremely busy with your own work just as if you were going on vacation. So not only are you going to be busy on Active Rain but all your own work will dramatically increase as well. Also if you are asked to be a judge the same effect will happen. No matter how slow things were when you committed to doing the job it will be the polar oppositeJ I have also learned that I will do my best not to submit my post in the last minute of the contest rather I will try to submit them a few days before the deadline. I do not want to overwhelm the judges and the host of the contest. In conclusion: this post should help you host an Active Rain Challenge! The best part of hosting a contest you really get to know your fellow Active Rain members, at least those who submit a Post to...
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