“One of my new year’s resolutions is to start investing. Do you recommend stocks or bonds?” ***ANSWER: With both markets being so hammered, either may be good to invest in. Not being a stock expert, you don’t really want me advising you about stocks. But I can share with you 5 advantages that real estate

“Last week you explained how short sales work. You mentioned a short sale package that goes to a lender. What goes in the package? ” ***ANSWER: To show that you can no longer afford to keep the home, the bank requires a “short sale package” from you containing: – A “hardship” letter …explaining what has

“Question. We’re starting to look for our first home. When will you actually need money from us to buy a home?” ***ANSWER: There are four times where you need to write checks: 1. Loan Application: Your lender may charge fees to apply or check your credit. Should be under $100 2. Offer: You’ll need to

“I need to sell my home, but I owe a lot than what it’s worth. So to sell, I need to do a short sale. How do short sales work?” ***ANSWER: Simple question. Complex answer. People need to do a short sale when they want to or need to sell and the proceeds from a

“Hi Gary. I made an offer on a bank foreclosure in Spring Valley a few days and haven’t heard back. My agent has been calling the listing agent at least once a day and still can’t get an answer. What do you think is going on?” ***ANSWER: Nothing special. My bank-clients typically respond to offers

“Do you think it’s a good time to invest in real estate?” ***ANSWER: Yes. OK, you’re going to expect that coming from a real estate agent. In my defense, you may have noticed I’ve not been parroting the standard Realtor line of, “It’s a great time to buy a home” the past 3 years as

“Hi Gary, My wife and I want to sell our home in La Jolla. We live part of the year in Phoenix and part in San Diego. We want to get the $500,000 principal residence exclusion. How do we know which one is my principal residence?” ***ANSWER: According to industry journal California Real Estate Magazine,

“Hi Gary. I have a question about real estate investing. Can you buy and flip fixer uppers doing a 1031 exchange?” ***ANSWER: No. If you buy a property and sell it a short time later without renting it, the IRS considers it “dealer property” and it’s not eligible for a 1031 exchange. Please verify with

“You’ve been talking about questions to ask when you’re deciding on an agent to sell your home. What about just asking how long they’ve been in real estate?” ***ANSWER: Thursday, one agent who was also a mortgage broker (bad news already!) told me it was illegal for the bank/seller to ask his client to prequalify

“Hi, do you think the bank will consider an offer of $150,000 for this place? According to the latest statistics, Julian homes have taken a 75% hit.” ***ANSWER: Julian has not dropped even close to 75%. The statistic you refer to is based on one June home sale, which is not statistically significant. When you