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Beverly Hills, CA Real Estate News

By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
In an interview on The Creating Wealth Show, Matthew Montagu-Pollock, the head of Global Property Guide, discussed his observations of the current state of the world’s real estate markets. From Australia to South America, he outlines what investors should be paying attention to in order to formulate smart investment strategies. From www.nuwireinvestor.com. Australia and New Zealand Real Estate Matthew launches this guided investment tour in Australia and New Zealand where favorable lending rates have helped markets buck the latest downward trend. Unfortunately, rates suppressed in the interest of economic recovery inevitably rise, and prices haven’t fallen far enough to warrant “a happy investor strategy.” As with much of the world’s property market, Matthew recommends delaying entry 3...
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By COMPASS PALM SPRINGS | Stewart Penn, COMPASS Palm Springs - Broker Associate
(COMPASS)
Stewart Penn | Penn Properties | 310.844.6515 200 Swall Drive #PH1, Beverly Hills, CA Magnificent Penthouse in Full-Service Building 2BR/2BA Condo $3,500/month Bedrooms 2 Bathrooms 2 full, 0 partial Sq Footage 1,440 Parking 2 dedicated Pet Policy No pets Deposit $7,000 DESCRIPTION Magnificent Penthouse in full service, security building in the heart of Beverly Hills. Spacious bedrooms on either side of the unit, each with their own marble baths and large organized walk-in closets. Master bedroom accesses the patio. Formal entry with coat closet. large living room has a fireplace and built-ins and opens onto a large patio. Well equipped kitchen with eat-in area. Freshly painted. Laundry room. This wonderful security full service building has a heated pool, spa, mens and womans sauna, fu...
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By Stewart Penn - BRE# 01339266, Stewart Penn - Associate Broker
(Windermere Real Estate - Palm Springs)
Stewart Penn | Penn Properties | 310.844.6515 200 Swall Drive #PH1, Beverly Hills, CA Magnificent Penthouse in Full-Service Building 2BR/2BA Condo $3,500/month Bedrooms 2 Bathrooms 2 full, 0 partial Sq Footage 1,440 Parking 2 dedicated Pet Policy No pets Deposit $7,000 DESCRIPTION Magnificent Penthouse in full service, security building in the heart of Beverly Hills. Spacious bedrooms on either side of the unit, each with their own marble baths and large organized walk-in closets. Master bedroom accesses the patio. Formal entry with coat closet. large living room has a fireplace and built-ins and opens onto a large patio. Well equipped kitchen with eat-in area. Freshly painted. Laundry room. This wonderful security full service building has a heated pool, spa, mens and womans sauna, fu...
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By Dom Naidoo, Malibu to the Marina Real Estate
(Westside Properties)
Shannon grew up in the Windy City where she developed a strong desire to experience the world and immerse herself in its different cultures.  After graduating from American University in Washington, D.C., she spent time living in Turkey, Jordan, and Morocco.  While abroad, Shannon developed close friendships that eventually became part of her network of high net-worth and foreign business associates.   Shannon began her career on Wall Street as a trader for an institutional stockbroker.   A few years later, she realized that it was time to combine her business savvy with her passion for working with people. Shannon moved to Los Angeles to pursue her true calling: devoting herself to putting people in their dream homes.    Over the past few years, Shannon has placed her high-profile clie...
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
With mortgage rates near record lows, homeowners are applying to refinance their loans at the highest rate in seven months, the Mortgage Bankers Assn. said Wednesday. The volume of refinancings jumped 17% last week as the average contract rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage sank to 4.80% from 4.83% a week earlier, the mortgage trade group said. It was the highest volume since  October, according to the group's weekly report on home loan applications. Refinance applications had begun to surge two weeks earlier as global investors worried about the European debt crisis fled to the perceived safety of U.S. Treasury securities. That drove down the yield on Treasuries and mortgage rates followed, as they generally do. Although the latest surge is powerful, it doesn't compare with the tidal wav...
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By Christophe Choo, Locally Known - Globally Connected
(Christophe Choo Real Estate Group - Coldwell Banker Previews)
Christophe Choo of the Christophe Choo Real Estate Group at Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills takes you on a tour of L.A.'s most exclusive private jewelry salon.Tallarico Precious Jewelry8442 Melrose PlaceThe PenthouseLos Angeles,  CA  90069Don & Judy Tallarico(310)782-6000www.TallaricoDesigns.comDmt@TallaricoDesigns.comThe Christophe Choo Real Estate GroupBeverly Hills Real Estate - http://www.ChristopheChoo.comColdwell Banker Previews InternationalBeverly Hills301 North Canon Drive, Suite EBeverly Hills, California 90210Direct line: (310)777-6342Email: Christophe@ChristopheChoo.comLooking for homes, condominiums or investment properties in the Los Angeles Westside areas such as Beverly Hills, Bel Air Holmby Hills, and the Hollywood Hills?  Find ALL the homes & properties for sale at: Bev...
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
Even though the home buyer tax credit expired on April 30, 2010 and won’t be renewed, there may never be a better time to buy a home than today, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Many outstanding opportunities still exist for home buyers, but they may not be around forever. “The home buyer tax credit was just one of many factors motivating Americans to buy homes,” said NAHB Chairman Bob Jones, a builder and developer in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. “But buyers can still take advantage of today’s low interest rates and competitive prices to get a home they may not have been able to purchase just a few years ago.” Besides mortgage interest rates that have been hovering at near-record lows, homes in many markets have become more affordable. Prices have moderated fro...
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By Christophe Choo, Locally Known - Globally Connected
(Christophe Choo Real Estate Group - Coldwell Banker Previews)
Learn more about Christophe Choo and the Christophe Choo Real Estate Group at Coldwell Banker Previews International Beverly Hills. The Christophe Choo Real Estate GroupBeverly Hills Real Estate - http://www.ChristopheChoo.comColdwell Banker Previews InternationalBeverly Hills301 North Canon Drive, Suite EBeverly Hills, California 90210Direct line: (310)777-6342Email: Christophe@ChristopheChoo.comLooking for homes, condominiums or investment properties in the Los Angeles Westside areas such as Beverly Hills, Bel Air Holmby Hills, and the Hollywood Hills?  Find ALL the homes & properties for sale at: Beverly Hills Real Estate - http://www.ChristopheChoo.comLos Angeles Homes  http://www.ChristopheChoo.com
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
The Obama administration recently announced that its program to prevent foreclosures has continued to make slow but steady progress, with the number of homeowners who have received permanently modified mortgages up about 13% in April 2010. The 295,348 permanent modifications amount to about a quarter of the 1.2 million trial modifications started under the program, which began last year. During the trial, banks and mortgage servicers reduced a homeowner’s monthly payment for 90 days, with a median reduction of about $500. If the homeowner made the payments and submitted additional paperwork, the servicer made the modification permanent and became eligible for cash incentives from the government. The Los Angeles-Orange County area now accounts for the most active trial and permanent modi...
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
Changes taking effect June 1 are part of Fannie Mae’s ‘loan quality initiative’ to cut down on slipshod underwriting and fraud by borrowers. If you’re thinking about applying for a home mortgage this year, here’s some important news: Beginning June 1, your lender is likely to order a second full credit screening immediately before closing. The last-minute credit report will be designed to find out whether you’ve obtained — or even shopped for — new debt between the date of your loan application and the closing. If you’ve made applications for credit of any type — for furnishings and appliances for the new house, a car, landscaping, a home equity line, a new credit card — the closing could be put on hold pending additional research by the lender. If you’ve taken out new loans that are s...
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There are ample reasons why one would want to live in Beverly Hills, but one of the biggest is for the school system. Beverly Hills Unified School District is considered by many to be one of the finest in the country and most certainly in Los Angeles County. For all of you older rich kids, do you remember on the original 90210 when Andrea used to take the bus from the Van Nuys to BH every day so that she could get a stellar education at the fictitious West Beverly  (side note: apparently Beverly Hills is now an ocean front community - perhaps the big one hit and we lost all of West LA -  as the new West Beverly on the CW's 90210 is on a cliff over looking the ocean, but I digress...not that I watch it or anything...)? Anyway, the BH school district was like a swat team looking for a mur...
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
RealtyTrac® (www.realtytrac.com), a leading online marketplace for foreclosure properties, has released its U.S. Foreclosure Market Report™ for April 2010, which shows that foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on 333,837 properties in April, a 9 percent decrease from the previous month and a 2 percent decrease from April 2009. One in every 387 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing during the month. “There were two important milestones in the April numbers that show foreclosure activity has begun to plateau — but at a very high level that will not drop off in the near future,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “April was the first month in the history of our report with an annual decrease ...
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
Home values in most U.S. markets continued to decline in the first quarter of 2010, as the Zillow Home Value Index fell 3.8 percent year-over-year, and 1 percent quarter-over-quarter, to $183,700. However, home values in several large California markets show signs of having reached a bottom, according to the first quarter Zillow Real Estate Market Reports. Housing market conditions varied across the country, and home values in most markets (106 of the 135 tracked by Zillow) continued to decline on a year-over-year basis. Additionally, negative equity across the country remained high, with 23.3 percent of single-family homes with mortgages underwater, up from 21.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009. Foreclosures reached a new peak in March, with more than one out of every 1,000 (0.11 ...
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There was a flurry of activity over the holidays from buyers trying to meet the deadlines for the $8000 Federal First Time Homebuyer's Tax Credit, which has now left the building along with Elvis. If you were one of those people who either didn't find your dream pad in time or are now just beginning your hunt, you may be in luck! As of May 1st, Cali has introduced a $10,000 tax credit for first time homebuyers or for buyers who are not property virgins, but are planning on purchasing/owner occupying new construction. Let me just preface this post by saying that I am not an accountant nor an expert on taxes. I did however place a call to my accountant so that I could give you the the quick and dirty, Cliff's Notes version of the bill (AB 183). Here's the skinny as I understand it: The St...
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
Freddie Mac recently released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.00% with an average 0.7 point for the week ending May 6, 2010, down from last week when it averaged 5.06%. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.84%. The 15-year FRM this week averaged 4.36% with an average 0.7 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.39%. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 4.51%. The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 3.97% this week, with an average 0.7 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.00%. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 4.90%. The 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 4.07% this week with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it a...
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
Pending home sales increased again in March 2010, affirming that a surge of home sales is unfolding for the spring home buying season, according to the National Association of Realtors®. The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in March, rose 5.3% to 102.9 from 97.7 in February, and is 21.1% above March 2009 when it was 85.0; this follows an 8.3% increase in February. The data reflects contracts and not closings, which usually occur with a lag time of one or two months. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said favorable affordability conditions have been working with the tax credit. “Clearly the home buyer tax credit has helped stabilize the market. In the months immediately following the expiration of the tax credit, we expect measurably lo...
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By COMPASS PALM SPRINGS | Stewart Penn, COMPASS Palm Springs - Broker Associate
(COMPASS)
If you're not represented by a Realtor/Broker and would like additionalinformation on real estate in Beverly Hills, Westwood or Century City, please do not hesitate to call me: Stewart Penn (310) 844-6515 or email me: stewart@pennpropertiesla.com
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By Valerie Fitzgerald, Luxury Real Estate in Beverly Hills & West LA
(Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage)
Many first-time buyers are unprepared for the financial burdens of homeownership. Lenders to tell them the maximum they can afford based on their incomes with little regard for the "extras" such as utilities, upkeep and improvements. You're told what your monthly nut for principal, interest, taxes and insurance — the all-important PITI — will be. But likely because you won't know exactly what the other costs will be until you actually move into your new place, they are rarely mentioned. And as a result, borrowers who mortgage themselves to the hilt often find themselves "house poor." They own a home, all right, but they can't afford anything else. Sometimes not even the heat or hot water. Rookies who are transitioning from an apartment are usually better prepared than those who are maki...
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By Michelle Minch, Home Staging Los Angeles and Orange County, CA
(Moving Mountains Design Home Staging, Pasadena, CA)
Last week I was asked to stage this beautiful $6.9M luxury Beverly Hills home. While I stage many high priced luxury homes, its not often I get to stage one that is fully furnished with beautiful furniture but no accessories and artwork.This was an occupied home staging project. Beverly Hills home staging is in a league by itself. The homes are exceptional and so are the expectations.The home, as I said before, was beautiful, but without accessories, plants and artwork it had no life. Moving Mountains Design added life and excitement by adding appropriately high end accessories and artwork. Here's a couple of before and after pictures of our Beverly Hills home staging project: Media room before home staging by Moving Mountains Design Media room after home staging by Los Angeles home sta...
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