Did you know that undisclosed payments in a Short Sale Transaction may be illegal? According to The California Association of Realtors undisclosed, specifically those payments that are paid outside of Escrow may violate the Law. In particular it could be a violation of RESPA, or it could be considered Lender Fraud and a violation of licensing laws just to name a few. An example they site is, when a Short sale Seller's Senior Lender authorizes a payment to eliminate a junior lien. This would seem OK, but then the junior lender demands that the buyer pays an additional Dollar Amount outside of escrow. This is a Risky scenario for the Buyer, but to conceal this additional payment from a federally-insured senior lender may constitute lender fraud. My question is would you want your buyer ... 03/18/2010

 What is Beverly Hills, CA? It is a destination for the tourists, the rich, the famous and the infamous. One thinks of the zip code 90210, and the TV Show of the same name. When we think of Beverly Hills, we think of Glamour, Movie Stars and an Affluent Society. Beverly Hills is a destination place. People from all over the world want to visit and or live here. Beverly Hills was a prosperous location long before the entertainment industry discovered it. We might be wondering what the reason was. The answer is water. Southern California has fantastic climate all year around, but water is the most precious commodity and Beverly Hills was blessed with it. The primary reason for Tourist visiting Beverly Hills, from all over the world is to come here and to see the movie stars, where they ea... 03/10/2010

The Beverly Hills home sales statistics below are taken directly from the MLS and are for single family homes.  They don't take into consideration condos, income property and private sales. 8 properties sold in February, the same as in January '10 but 4 more than in February '09.  The most expensive was $16,500,000 and the least expensive was a mere $3,162,000. The median price of $9,400,000 is way up from $1,687,500 in January, and $3,200,000 in February '09. Days on the market for sold listings was 115, up from 98 in January, and 141 in February '09. There has been little change in the Beverly Hills market over the last two months, except for the price of the homes sold.               03/08/2010

Beverly Hills Homes For Sale - Open Houses 3/14/2010 (1pm-4pm) If you're not represented by a Realtor/Broker and would like additional information on any of the Open Houses scheduled, please do not hesitate to call or email me: Stewart Penn - Penn Properties -  (310) 844-6515 - stewart@pennpropertiesla.com 1700 Green Acres - 5 Bed 7 Bath (9163 sq ft) - $9,799,000 590 Haynes Ave - 4 Bed 5 Bath (4100 sq ft) - $7,900,000 1133 Tower Rd - 5 Bed 8 Bath (6350 sq ft) - $6,995,000 1107 N Hillcrest Rd - 4 Bed 4 Bath (4389 sq ft) - $4,795,000 9860 Whitwell Dr - 6 Bed 7 Baths (6910 sq ft) - $$3,795,000 1446 Lindacrest Dr - 4 Bed 4.5 Bath (3875 sq ft) - $2,750,000 273 S Palm Dr - 3 Bed 2.5 Bath (2225 sq ft) - $1,695,000 9477 Gloaming Dr - 4 Bed 3 Bath (3089 sq ft)  - $1,640,000  124 S Swall Drive -... 03/08/2010

Beverly Hills Condos Open Houses - Sunday 3/7/2010 (1:00pm - 4:00pm) If you're not represented by a Realtor/Broker and would like additional information on any of the Open Houses scheduled, please do not hesitate to call or email me: Stewart Penn - Penn Properties -  (310) 844-6515 - stewart@pennpropertiesla.com 140 S Oakhurst Dr #PH1 - $2,595,000 277 S Spaulding Dr #101 - $1,200,000 433 N Doheny Dr #303 - $999,000 304 S Elm Dr #205 - $765,000 140 S Oakhurst Dr #103 - $595,000 Information from the CLAW MLS is deemed correct but not guaranteed. Search The MLS: Stewart Penn - Realtor for homes, condos & lofts in Los Angeles - Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Homby Hills, Santa Monica, Malibu, Brentwood, Century City, Westwood, Beverly Center, Miracle Mils, West Hollywood, Sunset Strip, Hollywood, ... 03/07/2010

Valerie Fitzgerald joins Fox 11 Los Angeles and shares tips for buying or marketing your home. Valerie Fitzgerald specializes in luxury residential real estate in Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Brentwood, Santa Monica and Malibu. Valerie has more than 20 years of real estate experience and is known for her solid reputation in the West Los Angeles brokerage community. She’s also the author of the book published by Simon and Schuster Heart and Sold: How to Survive and Build a Recession-Proof Business. Buy it here. Subscribe to this blog: Valerie Fitzgerald Group Blog Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ValreFitzgerald Follow me on Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/ValerieFitzgeraldRealEstate3 3 03/06/2010

Recently the National Association of Realtors® launched HouseLogic, a new, comprehensive consumer Web site about all aspects of homeownership. HouseLogic helps homeowners make smart decisions and take responsible actions to maintain, protect and increase the value of their homes. “Backed by the resources and industry insights of NAR and its Realtor® members, HouseLogic will engage and involve consumers throughout the lifecycle of homeownership,” said NAR President Vicki Cox Golder, owner of Vicki L. Cox & Associates in Tucson, Ariz. “It makes sense that, as the first, best source for real estate information, NAR should collaborate with today’s consumers to help them make the most out of owning a home. HouseLogic will help us do that.” The free Web site helps homeowners plan and organiz... 03/05/2010

Beverly Hills Condos Sold in February 2010 - (January)Average Selling Price: $1,212,500 ($924,000)Average List Price: $1,192,000 ($975,000)Median Price: $812,500 ($816,000)Total Sold in Dollars: $4,850,000 ($12,012,000)Number of Units Sold:  4 (13)Lowest Price Condo Sold: $525,000 ($518,000)Highest Price Condo Sold: $2,700,000 ($1,470,000) **Sold by Penn Properties**Average Days on the Market: 140 (76) MLS Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Photo courtsey of the CLAW MLS. 03/01/2010

Take Your Real Estate Game To The Next Level Looking for strategies to strengthen your real estate business in this new real estate market in which we're living? Valerie Fitzgerald’s Heart & Sold Mentor Program is the answer. In response to wanting to share her tool kit with other real estate agents and entrepreneurs, Fitzgerald launched the Heart and Sold Mentoring Program -- an authentic, transformative, mentoring experience to help move people's business forward using proven strategies Fitzgerald has tapped that are effective and efficient.    With cumulative real estate sales over $1 billion, Fitzgerald has dominated the Beverly Hills and West Los Angeles real estate markets for more than 20 years. She's topped tens of dozens Top 10 and Top 100 real estate lists across the U.S. and... 02/26/2010

  Become a part of the Valerie Fitzgerald Group... Do you want to work with one of the top selling real estate agents in West Los Angeles? Do you currently hold your California real estate license? Are you a buyer's agent? Do you have some experience under your belt? Are you smart and motivated?  If you've answered yes, please fax your resume to 310-271-9204 to be considered for this position.   Questions? Email tragoddess12@gmail.com. About Valerie Fitzgerald Valerie Fitzgerald is the president of The Valerie Fitzgerald Group and specializes in luxury residential real estate in West Los Angeles in neighborhoods like Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Brentwood, Santa Monica and Malibu.  She is the author of Heart and Sold: How to Survive and Build a Recession-Proof Business (Simon and Schuster).... 02/25/2010

Search MLS for properties in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Brentwood, Century City, Westwood, Beverly Center, Miracle Mile, Hollywood Hills, Sunset Strip, Hancock Park, Sherman Oaks, Studio City and throughout the greater Los Angeles area. Search MLS: Stewart Penn - Realtor for homes, condos and lofts in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Brentwood, Century City, Westwood, Beverly Center, Miracle Mile, Hollywood Hills, Sunset Strip, Hancock Park, Sherman Oaks, Studio City and throughout the greater Los Angeles area. 02/24/2010

Architecture as Art - 1169 Loma Linda Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210 Designed by Malibu-based architect Ed Niles, this 7500 sq ft home features 5-Bed and 6-Baths and a 6-car garage. "Perhaps the most dramatic and unique estate in Beverly Hills. A modern vision in glass and stainless steel. This gem is destined to become an icon of the city." - MLS Description. It's available to anyone who can afford the List Price of $11.9 Million. This awesome looking Beverly Hills home is jointly listed by Coldwell Banker (BH North) and Hilton & Hyland. 02/24/2010

Beverly Hills Condos Open Houses - Sunday 2/21/2010 (1:00pm - 4:00pm) If you're not represented by a Realtor/Broker and would like additional information on any of the Open Houses scheduled, please do not hesitate to call or email me: Stewart Penn - Penn Properties -  (310) 866-1818 - stewart@pennpropertiesla.com 140 S Oakhurst Dr #PH1 - $2,595,000 277 S Spaulding Dr #101 - $1,200,000 140 S Oakhurst Dr #303 - $999,000 433 N Doehny Dr #303 - $999,000 304 S Elm Dr #205 - $765,000 140 S Oakhurst Dr #103 - $595,000 Information from the CLAW MLS is deemed correct but not guaranteed. Search The MLS: Stewart Penn - Realtor for homes, condos & lofts in Los Angeles - Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Homby Hills, Santa Monica, Malibu, Brentwood, Century City, Westwood, Beverly Center, Miracle Mils, West ... 02/20/2010

By Valerie Fitzgerald Everyone’s got a story.  And when people hear mine, they become inspired.  America’s story is written by people who have reinvented themselves after encountering adversity and facing it head on.  I’m no different. How I went from a chicken farm in South Dakota to a professional model in Manhattan, from an abused, single mother to a billion dollar agent to celebrities in Beverly Hills, has become a journey that encourages others.  I’ve reinvented my life many times, and I eventually carved out my best niche. When people ask me what are the keys to my personal and professional success, I think to myself “trial and error and a lot of hard work.”  However, people want a concrete blueprint to follow, something tangible they can grasp and implement on their own. To creat... 02/19/2010

Hi Everyone, My apologies for late notice, but I'm joining Tim and Julie Harris. To listen visit http://ow.ly/197LA Thanks,Valerie Fitzgerald 02/19/2010

Reporting from Washington - With all the bad news about underwater homeowners and strategic walkaways, you might think that U.S. homeowners' equity holdings are continuing to slide. But a little-publicized recent statistic on real estate is that home equity is again on the rise. Is that some piece of rosy propaganda put out by housing lobbyists to stimulate more home buying? Not unless you consider Federal Reserve economists to be shills for the real estate industry. The Fed conducts massive ongoing research into mortgage balances and home-value changes in hundreds of local markets around the country, and reports its findings quarterly. According to the Fed's most recent "flow of funds" survey, homeowners' net equity grew by nearly $1 trillion from the recession's nadir in the first qu... 02/16/2010

9200 Wilshire Blvd, ideally situated between Palm and Maple Drives in Beverly Hills, was meant to be a prestigious mixed-use condo development in the heart of Beverly Hills. The project, commonly known as "The Legacy Project", went through several public hearings before finally being approved after appeal to the City Council. The former owners (Legacy Partners) sold the unbuilt project to Real Estate Developer HDS Group and partner First Equity Group for $54 Million in 2008. At the time it was projected that the condos could command a price of $2000 per sq ft. As outrageous at that may have seemed, the Developer obtained finance from Broadway Bank. Fast forward to 2010 and a foreclosure sale was held after the owner lost the property to the bank after defaulting on the loan to the tune... 02/15/2010

    The Beverly Hills home sales statistics below are taken directly from the MLS and are for single family homes.  They don't take into consideration condos, income property and private sales.   8 properties sold in January '10 up from 2 in January '09 and down from 12 in December '09. The most expensive was $3,575,000  and the least expensive was $1,180,000.  Both were in the flats. The median price of $1,687,500 down from $2,413,500 in January, 09 and $2,465,000 in December '09. Days on the market for sold listings increased to 98 against January '09 and decreased from 110 in December '09. January is usually a slower month and we wait with interest to see the monthly trends. 02/12/2010

Sales of previously occupied homes in the U.S. were robust during the last three months of 2009, climbing 13.9% from the previous quarter, a national group said Thursday. Total existing-home sales, including single-family and condominium units, increased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.03 million in the fourth quarter, a 27.2% increase from the fourth quarter of 2008, according to the National Assn. of Realtors. Distressed property -- either bank-owned homes or those sold by homeowners who can't make their payments -- accounted for 32% of all transactions in the fourth quarter, a decline from 37% a year earlier. Sales increased from the third quarter in 48 states and the District of Columbia; 32 states saw double-digit gains. Year-over-year sales were higher in 49 states and ... 02/12/2010

Is your work the means to an end or the epicenter of your life? Most businesspeople, on a conscious or subconscious level, want superiors, peers and other constituents to believe they are one of those unselfish corporate types who do whatever it takes for the good of the company. Everything comes in second place: family, friends and one’s very existence, including creature comforts such as adequate sleep and eating three square meals at a table, not a desk. If that is you, then you have checked the “live to work” box. But wait a second, does this really make a modicum of sense? When I interview management candidates, after I have determined the interviewee might be a fit, I always ask: “What comes first, your family or your job?” Those who immediately respond “my job” move down multipl... 02/09/2010