Random thoughts on art, technology, stuff, and occasionally Real Estate: December 2006

Grace's last day with us was December 22.  Grace will be leaving January 8 for Cambodia, serving as a missionary for her church.

While I may not share her beliefs, I truly respect and admire anyone with the courage and conviction to live their faith.

May the Lord bless you and keep you, Grace.

Although I own and love several DSLR cameras, sometimes a small compact camera is just what you need -- it's light and easy to carry, and less intrusive for an informal gathering of family or friends. 

But most compacts come equipped with wrist straps.  And I don't like the wrist strap method of carrying because it is not "hands free".

So, I was delighted to stumble across these lanyard style neck straps for compact cameras on Amazon

I ordered several.  They are made by Canon and the package says "for use on Canon cameras", but a string is a string and you can poke it through the strap hole on any small camera.

Ahhh... much better ...

Jay and Medford, this question is for you ... but I am writing it as a blog post, since maybe other people have come across this, and have some tips.

Subject property is a 1903 "Builder's Craftsman" (In this part of L.A. that means "Poor Man's Craftsman", since the architecture mimics the general Craftsman appearance but lacks the fine  (and costly) detail work).

Anyway, the carpeting has been removed, and we discovered that a rather thick layer of putty (I think it's putty) had been applied to the entire surface of the floor.

This was probably done in the 1970s, maybe, to prevent the floor from squeaking under a brand new shag carpet.

So how would you guys approach this?

     1.  Just leave it be until the professionals arrive with a floor sander?

     2.  Chip, chisel and scrape it by hand?  It does chip off easily in some areas - in other areas not.

     3.  Run a hand-held belt sander lightly over it?

     4.  Dampen it a tad first? Then scrape?

I realize no matter what approach, the final result will not be a "perfect" floor.  And it this particular house, the "distressed floor" look will be just fine.

And gentle readers, please take this advice.  Do not give in to the temptation to putty your floors.

Most folks here know I have been a Zillow-supporter all along .....  But an interesting sidebar to Zillow's introduction of property listings is the comparison with Trulia and Propsmart.

Galen first mentioned it, (I think) on Rain City Guide.  Greg at Bloodhound examined the idea further.

I think Trulia intended to make listing input easier with their feed system.  But they actually made it more difficult for the smaller brokerage.

It will be interesting to see how Trulia responds......  I wonder if Propsmart isn't out of the race, and will fall into a more specific niche-type position...... 

And finally, be aware that Zillow's "Zestimate" appears prominently on the listing information page.  Some clients may be uncomfortable with this if the asking price is considerably higher that the "Zestimate".  If this is the case, try directing their attention to the "Valuation Information" section at the bottom of the page.  Chances are your asking price will fall into the "Value Range".

Yo, David, any chance of displaying the "Value Range" info in the same font size and color as the "Zestimate" ?  That alone might calm some concerned agents!

A few years back, when California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) made a major overhaul of their standard form purchase contract, the form became a "Purchase Agreement and Joint Escrow Instructions".  I thought (and still do) this was a great idea.  If the purchase document  also serves as escrow instructions, it eliminates the problem of an unintentional conflict between "boiler plate" verbiage in the purchase contract and "boiler plate" verbiage in the escrow instructions.

Most escrow companies copy the C.A.R. contract, add their own three or four pages of instructions, and that's that.  There are a few hold-outs, though:  Escrow companies that have decided NOT to incorporate the standard purchase contract into their instructions.  One I know of adamantly insists that using the C.A.R. purchase contract as joint escrow instructions makes the escrow holder a party to the contract.

I'm curious:  What are brokers in other parts of California seeing?  Do most of the escrow companies you deal with incorporate the C.A.R. contract with their instructions?  Or not?

One of our agents (Agent C) is holding an Open House today, Saturday December 2, from 12:00 to 3:00 at this sweet  little house (Yeah, "sweet" is a cliche, but it's also true in this case.)

So what's the problem?  1:30 today is the showdown game between USC and UCLA at the Rose Bowl.  Somehow, I had got it into my old gray head that the game started at 5:00 PM.  OOPS. 

Oh well, I'll try to talk Agent C into at least taking along a radio tuned to 710AM  (or 570AM) ... And we'll just figure if anyone in L.A.  is out on the street after 1:30 that they must be a serious buyer.  :-)

If any Rainers in the L A area want to check it out ... the property address is 2043 North Avenue 52, Los Angeles, 90042.  On a private cul-de-sac at the crest of the hill before you drop down into Eagle Rock.

Here's our blog for the property:  http://www.2043northavenue52.com/

I'm gradually refining the idea of a separate blog for each property ....  You might say it's still in the Beta stage.