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Waterfront Living: Fast Facts About Floating Homes and Houseboats

If you love being on the water, you may be considering buying a houseboat or a floating home instead of a more traditional residence. Before you venture out into open waters, here’s what you need to know about buying a houseboat or floating home, including the differences between the two, how to approach financing and the pros and cons of owning them. What’s the difference be...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
What Is Seller Financing?

Seller financing is when you get a mortgage to buy a home from the home’s seller instead of a bank. Let’s review when this approach is suitable, as well as pros and cons for buyers and sellers.   When to Use Seller Financing Seller financing is rare overall, especially in a hot real estate market where sellers have their pick of buyers. Seller financing becomes more...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
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5 Things to Know Before Taking the Plunge on a Pool

If you’re in love with swimming pools and the lifestyle that comes with them, you’ve probably been pouring over home listings with pools as summer gets into full swing. Pools can be a great addition to a home, and even add value when you are selling. But they’re not for everyone. While some people consider them the ultimate luxury, others would just as soon run from the tim...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
Absorption Rate Analysis: July 2023 is Dropping It Like It’s Hot… Because It Is

Leave it to the hottest month on record to deliver a breath of fresh air to Southern California homebuyers. While it’s not exactly unanimous, 10 of the 12 neighborhoods we monitor dropped closer to a buyer’s favor. And we’re not talking about minor drops in most cases. One neighborhood even sank a surprising 18 percentage points! Of course, we’re coming off mon...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
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5 Home Projects That Might Not Bring The Return You Expect

One of the best things about owning a home is the ability to change things up, whether it’s knocking down a kitchen wall to open up space or filling your backyard with your favorite fruit trees. That freedom also offers unlimited opportunities to make mistakes, at least when it comes to spending money on home improvements that don’t add the value you’d hoped for. ...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
LA Cars Provide a Strange Refuge You Rarely Find in Other Cities

LA drivers spend a lot of time sitting in their cars. It’s an unavoidable side effect of being an Angeleno. Those of us fortunate enough to own our own mechanical chariots will often find ourselves sitting stationary on the freeway several times a week. It’s why LA drivers share a rare bond with their cars you won’t find anywhere else. This brings us to a strange phenomenon di...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
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Looking for the Best Japanese Garden Los Angeles Has to Offer? Here Are 8!

You may not associate Los Angeles with the same kind of hustle culture as cities like New York and Chicago, but it’s still a major city. So, it pays to know where you can escape when the long hours at the office and traffic jams are chipping away at your serenity. And rare is the place that can deliver Zen quite like a Japanese garden Los Angeles hides like a jewel amongst its twisting fr...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
9 Tips for a Sustainable Home

A sustainable home is one that is built in a way that conserves resources, is energy efficient and water wise and one that reduces your carbon footprint. Creating a sustainable environment is on the top of everyone’s mind these days. Being aware of the best changes you can make and products you can buy that save energy and resources is so important when it comes to reducing waste and help...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
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The Surprisingly True Story of the Nude Beach Los Angeles Tried, and Failed, to Maintain

By most accounts, Los Angeles is a pretty liberal city. We’re just not the most progressive city when it comes to nudity. Don’t want tan lines? Then you’ll need a private pool, a tanning salon membership, or a lot of boldness and luck. Because it’s been decades since there was a nude beach Los Angeles residents could visit without driving for hours. But those new to the ...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023
Downtown LA Empty Office Space Finds New Life with UCLA Acquisition

We’ve talked a great deal on this blog about repurposing empty office space for residential units. But we’ve not touched on another trend that’s been sweeping the nation. Colleges and universities across the nation are acquiring underperforming commercial space in the name of higher education. The latest example is happening right here in our backyard. UCLA announced thei...

  • calendar_month August 3, 2023