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When you counter, do you tell them what the current highest is?  How many agents call you to understand the bigger picture? Ie, what is truly important above price with things like rent backs, closing time, seller situation, etc.  I have had my agent call the sellers agent to truly understand...

My biggest problem with the agent model is the vast majority of agents suck.  Heck IHB started as a place to make fun of the horrendous listings.  Automatically assuming an agent will get you a better offer or even do a better service than you doing it yourself is false.  Especially with the...

MLS gets you way more eyeballs and exposure.  If your condo is empty, then a discount MLS agent would be ideal as its mainly pictures, listing, and lockbox.  The rest is done by the buyers agent. The redfin estimate is really meaningless.  You can easily do a basic comp analysis on redfin by...

These houses look great but look so out of place.  I remember the early modern houses in Mar Vista.  It took a full 10 years before they looked normal and stopped looking completely out of place.  Modern looks good when there is a lot of variation in a street.  A lot of Turtle Rock looks stuck...

Good analysis Soclosetoirvine.  One thing I factor into my calcs is the principal payment.  I assume a 5 year hold minimum and on the 97 Ardmore example, that would be about $10K a year in principal.  Obviously there are other costs like vacancy and repairs.

I have walked onto Irvine construction sites a few times now without anyone stopping me.  Just show up and start poking your head around.  Also, find the foreman or super and build a relationship.  A couple of baseball tickets or something like that will get you far.  One more tip...take a...

If it is due to cabinets sinking, then it isnt a stone issue and its a poor installation and builder is back on hook. Look at cabinet bottoms and see if you can spot any warping.  Ours was obviously sinking down so it was easy to spot.  The biggest area to show it was the floor of the cabinet...

Get a level and check the surface and then keep your eye on the level for a few days.  My guess is that your cabinets are sinking a bit and that is what caused the crack.  We have a farmhouse sink and cabinet maker didnt build the proper support so it is pulling the slabs down.  Dealing with...

For those who had recent projects, can you share scope of work and total cost? 

Order blueprints from the city.  Takes 30 days to get them and useful to have on file.  You have to go to city and fill out form and pay a small fee IIRC. Also look for hidden storage areas during your framing walk through.  We have a huge area under our stairs that has been great for storage. ...

USCT, pics look great.  Do you hire pro or do them yourself?  Btw, you are one of the few agents that doesnt plaster your mugshot everywhere like on the virtual tour site :) 

Many sites list out advantages and disadvantages between both.  The average consumer will value copper more and when there is copper, you will see the listing agent highlight it due to the perception. I have heard plumbers and GCs swear by both so I really look at it from a cost point of...

Yes, there is a thread dedicated to this subject:http://www.talkirvine.com/index.php/topic,2700.0.html There are many agents that offer a big chunk of it.  I have seen 50-80%+ back to the buyer.  Ask the agent you work with or give a shout out to IrvineRealtor or USCTrojanCPA. 

Relationships go a long way.  Build a relationship with the sales agent.  If something does come up, they will be your advocate to get the deposit refunded. And remember to take an agent to sign in and give a big chunk of that rebate to you.

IIRC, some builders will provide you an unfinished house if you are a cash buyer.  They don't offer much in terms of cost savings but it does save on time and you arent ripping things out. Also, a good middle option is a full service GC or utilizing a design/build firm.  It won't be as cheap as...

USCT - have you run any stats on your listings?  How often do they close above list? 

Restraint??  The adult started this.  Kids cutting across the lawn is annoying but you don't grab someone and hold them.  Sure he is a cop but he was off duty and acting solely as a citizen.  And he wasn't going up against 16 kids.  Most were pleading to let the kid go and a few even were...

Isn't escrow cheaper than an attorney?

My understanding is that to have a loan, you would still need an escrow officer in the middle right but will not need an RE agent representing either party.  Is that correct?

Yes people can still google but how many people really do?  And how long does it take before the bad juju goes away?  I guess it would be weird if someone types your address in google to get to maps and they find an article like that...