Posted by Justin Davy | April 8, 2009
Have you recently had your home mortgage modified? Or know someone who has? We’re looking for reaction to the Obama plan regarding homeowner mortgage refinance and/or loan modification. Specifically, one of FrontDoor’s editors would like to interview individuals or households who have applied for a loan modification or worked with a loan modification company or attorney. We would like to discuss experiences, challenges, successes with obtaining a modified loan for an article in a national, minority-focused finance publication. Please respond via email to Kristin Alm (kalm@scrippsnetworks.com) by 5 p.m. ET Friday, April 10, and we’ll be in touch ASAP. Thanks for your help!
Posted by Annalisa Burgos | April 7, 2009
If you’ve got $150 million to burn and you’re a huge fan of classic TV series like “Dynasty” and “Beverly Hills 90210″, we’ve got a home for you.
The widow of legendary TV producer Aaron Spelling is downsizing and has listed their 56,000-square-foot monster mansion in Los Angeles at a whopping $150 million.
Dubbed “The Manor,” the estate spans nearly 5 acres on South Mapleton Drive in the exclusive Holmby Hills neighborhood. The three-story home features a dozen bedrooms, two dozen bathrooms, a high-tech screening room (for watching all those great episodes of 90210!), library, gym, doll museum, bowling alley, wine cellar and a beauty salon/barber shop in the finished attic. The estate includes 16 car ports, a tennis court, pool/spa complex and several gardens. And best of all, the Playboy Mansion is nearby!
You’d think that with a recession going on, buyers would bulk at the price tag. But that doesn’t seem to be the case.
“We already have interest from both local and foreign buyers, even though it is very early in the process,” said Sally Forster Jones of Coldwell Banker Previews International, who shares the listing with Hilton & Hyland/Christie’s Great Estates. “The Manor is a property unlike any other. A property of this pedigree comes on the market once a decade, if not, once in a century. For that reason alone, discriminating buyers recognize it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
If this McMansion is out of your price range, Candy Spelling is selling another property in nearby Century City for a mere $4.8 million. The more “modest” home in the gated Century Woods community has 5 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms.
If that one isn’t for you, check out thousands of other homes for sale in Los Angeles. With home prices in the City of Angels falling (as they are in many markets), you’re sure to find a home perfect for your price range.
And if you’re not buying but are just really into cool homes, check out “Cool Houses Daily” on FrontDoor.com. These homes are too cool to miss and they’re for sale!
Posted by Annalisa Burgos | April 2, 2009
As they say, April showers bring May flowers. And in real estate, it seems like all the elements are in place for a perfect storm heading into the prime Spring season.
News headlines are proclaiming “falling home prices” and “interest rates at record lows.” Throw in record levels of foreclosures on the market, and you’ve got a trifecta for a Spring homebuying spree.
We already started to see the trend in February, when the National Association of Realtors’ reported a 5.1 percent jump in existing home sales, citing a surge in distressed home sales. And with the latest S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index showing home prices in 20 major cities down 19 percent from a year earlier, this trend is likely to continue.
Speaking of home prices, what are today’s sellers supposed to do when trying to price their homes? Yes, they’re supposed to be using comps to determine fair market value. But if you’re competing with foreclosures, short sales and just desperate (er, motivated) sellers, it screws up the whole paradigm. Not sure if you can really call all this “fair.” Unfortunately, that’s the reality of selling in this market. So if you have no choice but to sell now, buck up, get realistic, research what’s happening in your market and try these tips on how to price your home to sell, courtesy of FrontDoor Insider and San Diego Realtor Kris Berg. And real estate guru Barbara Corcoran shares her top 4 must-do tips, including one on pricing your home.
Home values aren’t what they used to be. But the ways to determine home value won’t change. Sellers, get back to the basics and check out FrontDoor’s Home Seller’s Guide, specifically steps 7 and 8.
And buyers, we’ve got tips for you too. FrontDoor’s Top 10 for April features our Top 10 Bargain Markets for Homebuyers. And check out steps 9-10 of FrontDoor’s First Time Homebuyer’s Guide. Just because prices and interest rates are falling doesn’t mean everything is an automatic bargain. You’ve still got to do your due diligence.
Happy house hunting and selling!
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