Pending Home Sales Up in May, Continue Pattern of Strong Annual Gains
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Douglas Pemberton
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Showing posts with label laguna Niguel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label laguna Niguel. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Monday, December 26, 2011
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Is it Still worth it to remodel? Yes it is!!!
Remodeling your home,,, Is it worth it? Yes it is.!!!
| The home-sale market has taken a beating in the last few years, which begs the question: Does it makes sense financially to invest in home improvements? Remodeling Magazine's annual “Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report for 2009-10,” published in agreement with the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, indicates that remodeling still pays off, but more so on less expensive projects. Most high-end remodeling projects don't return dollar for dollar on the investment even in a good market. That is, unless homes are appreciating at a fast clip. In this case, you might get your money back due to appreciation. But the profit on the sale might not be as much as it would have been if you hadn't done a high-end renovation. Just as today's homebuyers are making pragmatic decisions, so are today's homeowners when it comes to making improvements. Most of the remodeling projects with the largest return were for such things as replacing exterior siding and windows. On average the cost involved was less than $14,000, according to Remodeling Magazine. These projects returned from 71 to 83 percent nationally depending on the materials used. The project that paid back the highest return was a midrange front-door replacement that cost approximately $1,200 and returned an average 128.9 percent nationally. Sellers may wonder why it would make sense to invest in an improvement just for the sake of selling if it won't repay the amount invested. In today's challenging home-sale market, these improvements may be warranted for the home sell at all if there is a lot of inventory in your neighborhood. Buyers expect more for their money and gravitate to listings that are in the best condition for the price. HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Be judicious about how you spend your money fixing your home up for sale. For example, if your kitchen is a disaster, it makes more sense to do a midrange than an upscale renovation. According to the “Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report,” a midrange minor kitchen upgrade will return an average of 78.3 percent nationally. A major upscale kitchen remodel will pay back only 63.2 percent. The national average returns on remodeling investments do not give an accurate picture of the renovation returns that might be typical in your neighborhood. For instance, the payback for Honolulu homeowners for most of the 18 remodel projects analyzed returned 100 percent of the investment. San Francisco was close behind with 10 projects paying back the full investment. The cost versus value report recommends the following cost-effective improvements you might consider to prepare your home for the market: tidying up the kitchen cabinets using organizers will make your cabinets roomy; add an inexpensive tile backsplash to a tired kitchen, and use inexpensive tile to give an old bathroom a new look; add a breakfast bar by cutting an opening between the kitchen and family room; and install granite tile rather than slab. Other suggestions include: Replacing outdated light fixtures; freshening up the basement; giving the kitchen cabinets a new look by reconditioning and adding new knobs or having cabinet doors and drawers replaced; updating a bathroom without replacing tile by changing the medicine cabinet, light fixtures, vanity, cleaning the grout or replacing it and adding glass shower doors. The findings of this report were based on a survey sent to 150,000 appraisers and real estate agents in the summer of 2009. The survey included information about the cost and description of the remodel projects and median price data for the 80 metropolitan areas surveyed. Some 6,233 survey respondents estimated how much value the improvements would add to the house at resale in the current market. THE CLOSING: Before starting any fix-up-for-sale projects, seek your real estate agent's advice so that you don't waste money on improvements that won't pay back much in your area. Dian Hymer, a real estate broker with more than 30 years' experience, is a nationally syndicated real estate columnist and author. Contact us Cynthia Peeden or Douglas PembertonRealty Executives OC Coastal SouthOCEstates@gmail.com 949-429-7476 or 949-273-0018 |
Thursday, April 22, 2010
San Clemente seeks bike solutions on 2 traffic-heavy routes | city, cameron, camino - News - The Orange County Register
San Clemente is calling in experts to come up with the best way to provide safe passage for bicyclists on two of the most challenging roads to ride in town. 
On a 5-0 vote Tuesday night, the City Council agreed to pay Fehr & Peers Transportation Consultants $64,300 to:
A cyclist heads south on El Camino Real in San Clemente. The city is studying how to make the road safer for cyclists riding between Avenida Pico and Dana Point on PCH and between Camino Vera Cruz and El Camino Real along the busy Pico corridor.
PAUL BERSEBACH, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
• Find the best way to get bicyclists safely between Camino Vera Cruz and El Camino Real along the busy Avenida Pico corridor.
• Recommend the best way to engineer a safe bikeway between North Beach and the Dana Point city limit along El Camino Real (Pacific Coast Highway). (Click here to see map)
City Engineer Bill Cameron said he would like to see a Class 1 bikeway – separated from cars – for as much of the Pico route as possible.
"Pico is our most heavily traveled road," he said. "I'm a cyclist and I don't want to ride on that street."
The city expects to receive options with cost estimates attached. Solutions could involve routing the bikeway along a storm-drain channel or even tunneling under I-5, which would be expensive, Cameron said. The city would apply for grants and work with the California Department of Transportation and the Orange County Transportation Authority to incorporate bicycle improvements into a proposed widening of the Pico freeway undercrossing.
On El Camino Real, the city needs to decide whether to have protected bike lanes on each side of the highway or use a single, two-way protected lane like Dana Point has. Cameron said he would want San Clemente's to be wider.
There's also the question, Cameron said, of how bicyclists should negotiate the intersection of El Camino Real and Avenida Estacion, which will get a traffic signal. Right of way is limited in that area.
Cameron said the city expects some partially engineered answers in time to meet a June 9 deadline for a grant application.
Pete van Nuys, a San Clemente cycling expert, questioned whether the city is going too fast. He said he doesn't like what he called the Dana Point "cattle chute" approach and that he could envision a Class 1 trail halfway up the Marblehead Coastal bluff.
Brenda Miller, a local bicycle enthusiast and city planning commissioner, said the city needs to ensure connections to neighborhoods such as the Marblehead Coastal development and Shorecliffs. "Do it right rather than twice or thrice," she said.
Cameron said a route halfway up the bluff would be nice, and Marblehead Coastal developers show a walking trail there in their plans. Only the Marblehead Coastal stretch of bluff north to Camino Capistrano is suitable for the trail, Cameron added.
Though the city hopes to apply for an El Camino Real grant by June, Cameron said the city has longer to deal with options for Pico.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Wine festival comes to Dana Point this Weekend
DANA POINT More than 200 wines will be poured at Doheny State Beach when the California Wine Festival adds Dana Point as one of its locations for a three-day celebration starting Thursday.
When Don Fritzen and his wife Kami, who own Evergreen Events LLC which runs the festival, were looking for points north of San Diego to add as a location for the festival – which marks its seventh year in Santa Barbara in July – they found that Dana Point had the five things essential for such an event: sand, sea, wine, food and music.
And, at Doheny State Beach – where the main event occurs on Saturday – there's plenty of it.Plus a sixth: parking.
"We found what we wanted. (Parking) doesn't sound very romantic but it's a beautiful beachside park (with a) large grassy area and we're expecting a couple of thousand people" who all drive, said Don Fritzen.
Having San Diego as a festival stop before, Evergreen Events looked at Malibu for a festival stop and worked its way south and discovered Dana Point.
"We're expecting a great festival in Orange County this year," said Fritzen in a news release. "Orange County is 'Wine Lover Country' with a reputation for supporting wine events like no place else. We're really excited about the new Festival and the high level of enthusiasm in Orange County!"
About 100 exhibitors will be on hand Saturday, including some 60 wineries, Fritzen said. Fine Orange County restaurants and microbreweries, including Left Coast Brewing Company, Inc., of San Clemente, will also be present.
"We have a loyal following among the wineries and people who attend follow (the festival) from venue to venue," Fritzen said.
Cost for the Saturday's beachside 1 to 4 p.m. event is $75 at the gate, $59 in advance, and buys unlimited food and wine sampling. Two smaller events also are planned at the Ritz-Carlton on Thursday and at the Dana Point Yacht Club on Friday.
For detailed information on all events and times or to purchase tickets visitwww.californiawinefestival.com or contact info@californiawinefestival.com.
Dana Point luxury home sells for $6.9 million in less than a month
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 9 White Water Lane The home's reserve price was $6.9 million, though the final cost is currently undisclosed. The sale – conducted through New York-based Concierge Auctions and Coast Sotheby’s International Realty – attracted about 160 prospective buyers. And, more than 9,000 people from 48 countries clicked onto the Web site to view the property. “I am extremely pleased with the outcome," said Kelly Burt, the seller of the home at 7 White Water Lane. “Concierge Auctions exposed the property to a global audience of qualified buyers and accomplished my objective of selling in an accelerated period of time amidst a very challenging market.” A second home at 9 White Water Lane – also owned by Burt – is slated for auction on May 20 at 2 p.m. at a reserve price of $7.9 million. At more than 11,000 square feet, it features a Spanish-revival style, with six bedrooms and eight baths. An online auction of two separate Strand properties by Newport Beach-based LFC Group of Cos. closed on April 1. Sealed bid offers on the properties at 49 Beach View and 15 White Water Lane are being reviewed. Each had a minimum bid of $7.5 million. The Strand at Headlands sits on 121 acres of beachfront terrain between Laguna Beach and San Clemente. Property offerings include a private Beach Club, a 90-room luxury resort and spa, and 24-hour gated security. | ||||
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