We are providing this information from the HAFA, Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives program.  The program take full effect August 1, 2010.  The assets that are considered protected are retirement assets.  The qualified retirement accounts are 401k, 403b, 457, IRA or pension fund.  These are the guidelines set forth by Freddie Mac.  There may be some exceptions and adjustments as the program begins to gain momentum after August 1st 2010 through 2012. Please visit our site for more info: www.WestsideHomeSolutions.com This designation is professionally recognized and provides current training and resources for the Treasury Departments, HAFA program.  As a homeowner make sure you are working with someone that has this designation even if they have experience.  This designation provide... 07/22/2010

One of the reasons we moved from the beautiful (but hot) desert of Phoenix is I love summer. Today, the temperature in Santa Monica is 71 degrees. This makes me want to get out & do something. Last year I went to Saturdays off the 405 at the Getty. Listening to great live music, seeing timeless works of art all amidst gorgeous views was food for my soul. I found this great site with all of the Free Summer events in Los Angeles. From Downtown to the beaches of Santa Monica, it's all listed here. Hope to see you at a few of them. 07/22/2010

Looking for ocean front property in Santa Monica, The Pacifican at 801 Ocean Ave. is an excellent choice. Amenities include a pool, spa, and exercise room. Four units sold over the past year with a median price of $1,132,500.  Days on the market for homes sold was 72.  There are presently no units for sale.  There is a 2 bed 2 bath 1,621 sq. ft unit for lease at $5,800. Search Santa Monica Properties for Sale and Lease 07/21/2010

The Oceanaire at 535 Ocean Ave. in Santa Monica is one of the exclusive ocean front properties in Santa Monica.  Built in 1963 by architect Quincy Jones, the building was remodeled in 1991.  The units take advantage of the light and the building provides a resort-like atmosphere. 5 units have sold in the past year with an average price of $2,094,200.  Average days on the market for those properties was 72.  There are currently no units in escrow.  Average price sold vs average list price was - 91.21% There are currently 2 properties for sale.  One is a 2 bed 2.5 bath 1,585 sq. ft. unit for $2,195,000 with homeowners of $1,333 per month. This unit has been totally remodeled.  The other is a 3 bed 2 bath 1,899 sq. ft. unit for $1,899,000 with $1370 homeowners. There is one 2 bed, 2 bath ... 07/19/2010

I am happy to announce the addition of Karen Proctor to the Westside Properties team! Karen comes with a lot of great referrals from local professionals. She is an experienced agent and knows what it takes to be successful in Real Estate. Here is something from Karen's bio: Karen obtained her real estate license in 1978 and through the years she has worked for large and small companies.  Having lived on the Westside for the last 35 years, she has an intimate knowledge of the area and its history.  Over the years she has learned it is not the size of the company if the property is priced right and marketed it will sell.Karen specializes in the marketing and sales of single family homes, condominiums, investment properties throughout the Westside.  Karen is a member of the Beverly Hills G... 07/14/2010

Thursday, July 8, 2010 Konono No.1 - Congolese Trance Dance-Tronica Can you imagine “Stomp” with an electronica vibe and dance groove that won’t stop? That’s Konono No. 1, a band founded over 25 years ago by Mingiedi, a virtuoso of the likembé, a crude "thumb piano" central to Bazombo trance music from the region near the border of Congo and Angola. Click to read more ... Westside Properties is a full-service real estate boutique brokerage based in Pacific Palisades serving the entire Westside of Los Angeles.  We proudly represent the finest properties throughout the Westside. We work as a team and combine our extensive real estate experience, powerful resources and connections to benefit you whether you are looking you buy or sell a home in today's exciting and lucrative real estate ma... 07/07/2010

Santa Monica Condos - Santa Monica Realtor Santa Monica Condo Sales for June 2010: Number of Units Sold: 34 units closed escrow Average Days on the Market: 49 Median Price: $689,000 Average List Price: $863,000 Average Selling Price: $825,000 Lowest Price Condo Sold: $300,000 Highest Price Condo Sold: $2,400,000 Total Sold in Dollars: $28,067,000 Search The MLS - Stewart Penn - Realtor for homes, condos & lofts in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Santa Monica, Malibu, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area. Information obtained from The MLS is deemed accurate but not guaranteed. 07/07/2010

The Santa Monica Housing Market statistics below are taken for the MLS CLAW and are for single family homes only.  They do not include condos, income property, or private sales. May was a good month for Santa Monica home sales, and June was not a big change.  The number of homes sold was up by 17 over June, the average price was down 5%, but with such a range in home prices in Santa Monica, this is not a reliable gage. The average sold price vs the average list price did not really change, and again, with the range in prices in Santa Monica, $79,000 is not to far off the listing price. Days on the market of homes sold was up by 13 and homes under contract were down by 12.  The months supply of inventory, i.e. market absorption rate, that Santa Monica is still not quite a seller's marke... 07/05/2010

by Jodi Summers   Locally, our real estate news is positive. According to UCLA Anderson senior economist Jerry Nickelsburg, described California as, “…A divided state, as coastal California recovers while inland California, devastated by the collapse of the real estate market, continues to languish.”   We are lucky to be on the coast, as our market in Santa Monica is beginning to rise again. Comparing Santa Monica single family residence sales from Jun-08 vs. Jun-10 the number of sold properties by month is up 23%. And what’s even more interesting, is that the price seems to be rising more quickly than sellers are realizing. Contrasting Median For Sale vs. Median Sold from Jun-08 vs. Jun-10, you’ll note that the median price of for sale properties is up 1% BUT the median price of sold p... 07/01/2010

The all new, hip, Santa Monica Place is scheduled to open on August 6th, 2010. The shopping center has been totally gutted and redesigned to give it a fresh, new, modern design.  Open to the skies the center has attracted the only Bloomingdale's SoHo concept store outside Manhattanm a brand new Nordstrom, and many exciting specialty stores.  There will be a rooftop dining deck taking advantage of the tremendous Santa Monica ocean views. Santa Monica Place, combined with Third Street Promenade and Santa Monica Pier will continue to make Santa Monica one of the most desirable entertainment destinations in the City. 06/23/2010

    The Santa Monica Housing Market statistics below are taken from the MLS CLAW and are for single family homes only.  They do not include condos, income property, or private sales. May was a good month for Santa Monica home sales.   Although the number of homes sold was down by 7 over April, the median sold price was up 2% and the median sold price vs the median list price difference was down signficantly, i.e. the May sold price was much closer to asking price over April. Days on the market of homes sold was up by 11 but the homes under contract was up by a whopping 37.  The months supply of inventory, i.e. market absorption rate, indicates that Santa Monica is moving towards a sellers' market. Search Santa Monica Homes for Sale to $2 Million Search Santa Monica Homes for Sale over $... 06/06/2010

Rate Alert - Great rates on VA Loans, VA Jumbo Loans, VA Streamline IRRRL refinance and VA Jumbo Streamline IRRRL Refinance Great rates for VA Loans, VA Jumbo Loans, VA Refinance, VA Streamline IRRRL refinance and VA Jumbo Streamline IRRRL Refinance.  The continued volatility in the Euro Money markets, plus the Korean Crisis and doubts about the Economic Recovery in the US have driven US VA Mortgage rates.   VA Loan rates and VA Jumbo rates for VA loans over $417,000 are at their lowest point ever now.    If your current VA Rate is too high (5.25% or higher),  please give us a call to get started and lock in your low rate.    These rates may not last, this is a limited time opportunity alert due to market conditions!  Do not delay, the market is changing daily. We offer VA Loans, VA Jum... 06/04/2010

by Jodi Summers   Congratulations to us! Experts across the board say our home values may have hit bottom. As you know, the U.S. housing rebound has depended upon where you live. This map shows the year-over-year change in home prices for the 20 metro areas covered by the Index…and Los Angeles made the top 5! San Francisco, one of the nation's priciest markets, posted the largest gain -- 16.2% over the past year. San Diego (10.8% ), Cleveland (6.7% ), Minneapolis (6.5% ), L.A. (6% ), and D.C. (5.6% ) also posted significant gains.   The Case-Shiller Home Price Index Housing prices concludes that prices have held up better in wealthier and more productive regions with a well-educated (122 colleges + universities in L.A. County), multicultural population; offering professional (medical) a... 06/02/2010

Recently my Company was called by a Home Owner who is thinking of placing her Santa Monica Townhome on the market for sale in the next few months and was inquiring as to the services we could provide for her.  These Home Owners actually live out of State and the unit is currently a income rental property, so they needed to find a Home Staging Company that could handle everything for them since they were at such a distance. I explained the process of how we can handle all repairs and upgrades such as painting, refinishing floors, lighting selections and installation as well as how Platinum Home Staging, Inc. is fully Insured and that we only work with reputable, also fully Insured, Contractors.  Further, we talked about the process of actually Staging the Home to sell and I very happily ... 06/02/2010

By Jodi Summers As the new homebuyer’s tax credit era draws to an end, it may go down in history as a concept that revived the residential housing market. Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the group, said the federal tax credit that was to expire at the end of this month had been a “resounding success.” To keep the momentum rolling, California is now offering a statewide credit, for as much as $10,000 for first-time buyers and those purchasing newly built homes, still a weak point in the market. But for the most part, the downward spiral of 2008-2009 has ended, and now, in the L.A. area, home sales and prices are in a slow rise up from the bottom. Around Southern California, DataQuick news reports that, “The market is still tilted toward low-cost distress sales, but not by as much as pr... 05/09/2010

Single Family Open Houses in Santa Monica,  Sunday, May 9th - 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. Search Santa Monica homes for sale 05/08/2010

The Santa Monica Housing Market statistics below are taken for the MLS CLAW and are for single family homes only.  They do not include condos, income property, or private sales. April was a healthy month for Santa Monica home sales.   Over March, the number of homes sold was up by 10, the median sold price was up by $415,000 and the median sold price vs the median list price difference was down by $622,000, i.e. the April sold price was much closer to asking price over March. Days on the market of homes sold was down by 12.  Overall promising figures.  Given the median home prices in Santa Monica, it is unlikely the ending of the federal tax credit was a factor in these statistics. Search homes in Santa Monica 05/03/2010

The report below is taken from the MLS and is for Santa Monica single family homes only.  It does not include condos, income property and private sales. Overall the Santa Monica Housing Market is looking quite promising.  The number of homes sold, median price for those homes and the median price of homes sold vs list price are all up quite significantly.  Days on the market of homes sold have dropped by 19%.  Months supply of inventory remains the same, and although homes under contract are up by 18% the monthly inventory has dropped which is a continuing problem for home buyers, as fresh homes, specifically regular sale homes are difficult to find. Santa Monica Property Search   04/21/2010

Yelp has a great promotion coming up offering discounts at local businesses and restaurants in Santa Monica. The promotion runs from April 24 to April 30 and is sponsored by the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce and Buy Local Santa Monica. Visit Yelp to see the participating businesses, and get your coupons to take advantage of this great offer. Looking for property in this great city? 04/21/2010

It's amazing how bombarded we have become over the last few months with prospective home buyers wanting to contact us in regards to purchasing homes in the Santa Monica area. We all know that the Home Buyers Credit is due to expire very soon, and due to this a lot of people are scrambling to get in contact with an aggressive buyers agent. A good amount of these people need assistance now, to be able to buy their homes as soon as possible. These people truly need an agent whom has the time and experience to respond to these inquiries. We have learned that persistence has proven to pay dividends with these inquiring families and individuals. If you are serious about having the ability to increase the amount of prospective home buyers you contact each month, we would love the chance to ta... 04/15/2010