Scandals involving cheating have tarnished many professional sports for years but what happened last weekend shows the honesty and character that typify the game of professi

Nathan Olney, who made a brief venture to Redding looking for gold, left a legacy behind by naming a 10-mile creek in West Redding where he prospected for a few months. He headed to Northern California in 1848 after news of gold strikes in Californ

In a recent post, I discussed the demise of 2 of the 5 title companies that served Redding/Shasta County. Now, the three remaining title insurance companies are in the red. First American is the largest title insurer in the country and, despite aggressive

HUD released a report recently that found a 55% increase in the number of households receiving foreclosure prevention counseling from 2006 to 2007. Predictably, 2008 should be a much bigger year for homeowners seeking help. Of the 136,

Realogy, a global real estate brokerage and franchise company, is trying to refinance a portion of its $6.5 billion debt. Their brands include Coldwell Banker, Century 21,

HUD Secretary Steve Preston announced RESPA rule changes to aid future borrowers by clearly disclosing rates,fees, any prepayment penalties and the prospect of increased monthly payments. These revisions are in response to many borrowers making “u

The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced this week a new program to assist certain homeowners in refinancing out of unaffordable home loans. The program targets homes that can be pre

In October 2007, 144 homes sold. This year, that number increased to 178. The largest number of sales were in the $200,000-$250,000 bracket with 49 homes sold. Almost 90% of the homes sold were listed at $350,000 or less. The number of active home lis

Cities across California are wrestling with the problem of blighted homes in foreclosure and have, in some places, passed ordinances with a fine system to punish banks

Homeowners hoping to refinance out of a risky loan into a fixed-rate FHA loan better hurry. In February, a Federal Stimulus Package temporarily raised the FHA loan limits to $729,750 t

The push for homeowners in financial trouble to seek loan modifications has had mixed results. A recent study by Alan M. White of a sampling of subprime loan modifications indicates that less than half the loans saw a reducti

Virtually every buyer asks this question when presented a property of interest for possible purchase. The answer your agent gives you could be wrong if the listing agent has eng

Last week, the California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. announced busting up a mortgage scam that preyed on desperate SoCal homeowners.  These homeowners were “ripped of

I couldn’t resist blogging about this new invention. Ever wanted to save time and space in a cramped bathroom? Want to free yourself of a load while doing a load? Now you can, with The Washup! The Washup fits over your toilet and

On November 4th, the Federal Reserve issued an urgent press release regarding a fraudulent scheme that has recently come to their attention. Apparently, consumers are

According to a local appraiser, who regularly shares his market statistics with me, October stats contained both good news and bad news about the local real estate market. There were 104 home sales for the month of October with an average sales

In a cost-cutting move and to stifle rumors they were poised to enter the real estate sales business, Zillow has decided to surrender all but two of it’s brokerage licenses. Zillow had contract relationships with brokers across the country ̶

Prior posts discussed what red flags to look for and the types of scams that are sweeping the state adding insult to injury for distressed homeowners. Following are brief descriptions of several scams uncovered in California detailed in an article relea

The staggering increase in foreclosures in California has created opportunities for con artists to perpetrate fraud on vulnerable home owners. Part I detailed red flags to be aware of to pre

The California Association of Realtors (CAR) released a Q & A today focused on scams taking advantage of homeowners in foreclosure. Once a Notice of Default is recorded in

Inman News reported today on three surveys completed by Zillow, Realogy and advertising firm J. Walter Thompson that indicate recent government actions to “unfreeze credit markets” should cause consumers to participate in a housing recovery. The r

Inman News reported today that the Bush administration would like to allocate $500 billion for a loan guarantee program that could provide lenders incentive to modify up to 3 million at risk loans

Blame it on the stock market tanking, the upcoming election, the world economy or any number of issues impacting our financial markets today but the Consumer Confidence Index dropped by a staggering 23.4 points to a record low of 38.0 (base

Real estate agents are frequently accused of saying “it’s a great time to buy or sell”, regardless of how the housing market is really doing. For a renter considering a purchase, the current economic turmoil can cause confusion when tr

Dial-A-Human claims to help visitors “avoid annoying computers.” You know, the ones that answer the phone with a myriad of options to direct your call to

In order to meet the standards as a TREE CITY USA town, a city must meet the following criteria: A tree Board or Department A tree care ordinance

State Assemblyman Doug LaMalfa addressed a group of Realtors this morning at the Shasta Association of Realtors. His primary topic of discussion centered around the state budget that was

Most people are not familiar with land contracts of sale, but that is how the State of California handles loans to veterans using the Cal-Vet loan program. Unlike a deed of

Dick Gaylord, President of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), gave a keynote speech to California Realtors at Saturday morning’s Board of Directors meeting in Long Beach, the town where he lives and works. He said he will be part

More and more states are passing laws that require real estate agents to provide mandated levels of service to consumers despite raising the ire of the Department of Justice (DOJ). DOJ’s antitrust division has monitored this trend and has stated

An ongoing dispute involving a Realtor in Sarasota Florida and the Sarasota MLS involves alleged reverse domain name hijacking, cyber-squatting, trademark dilution and infringement of the Sara

One strategy home sellers occasionally choose, to buy another home despite being unable to sell their existing home, is converting it to a rental. This will be more difficult to accomplish with a new rule change by the Federal Housing Administration

Back in the 1960’s, Lake California began as a remote, large-scale subdivision situated on a prime piece of real estate adjacent to Cottonwood Creek and the Sacramento River. Potential buyers were recruited from the Bay Area and flown in for a quick

It costs on average $1,900/year to pay for a homes energy needs. However, you can save money and the environment by cutting back on unnecessary energy use. Realtors have focused o going

Inman News reported last week that Zillow, an online valuation and listing site, laid off 25% of its workforce. Founder Rich Barton, stated “Unprecedented economic events….have made a prolonged recession likely, in our judgement.” He w

Sales of homes are up by 65% from September last year and home prices dropped 33% year-to-year. Riverside County home sales increased 106% and prices are nearly 37% off last year’s level.  San Diego County fared worse with a 50% increase in sales and

Regardless of who takes over leadership of our great nation, many huge problems most be addressed in the near future by our new President. The magnitude of the financial problems facing our c

Imagine my surprise when author Joseph A. Michelli jumped on stage in a white Nehru suit, sporting a dark mustache and goatee, comically promoting his new book about

Many elements came together to create the current housing crisis according to chief economist for the California Association of Realtors, Leslie Appleton-Young. The following factors contributed to the current crisis: Lack of personal

Leslie Appleton Young, California Association of Realtors lead economist, addressed a packed room of Realtors from all over the state yesterday at the state convention. She was admit

Eric Estrada can be seen on late night TV promoting California Pines. In SoCal, the Penny Saver has real estate ads pushing prime land in Northern California to retire on. Sound too good to be true? It usually is!

Several local chefs are donating a variety of soups to a fundraiser scheduled the day before Halloween. The event will take place at the Veteran’s Hall from 5-7:30PM at 1605 Yuba Street. Chefs from Rivers, Market Street Steakhouse, Cathy’s Del

The focus on the housing crisis has spurred many new laws at the state and national level. Here is a summary of the new laws: REAL ESTATE LICENSE NUMBERS- Starting July 1st, 2009, California agents must disclose their DRE license numbe

The 2007 American Housing Survey is a joint effort by the US Census Bureau and the Department of Urban Development that is issued every other year. The survey highlights housing characteristics of the 128.2 million ho

I always knew REALTOR.COM was number one with consumers but didn’t know how popular other real estate websites were until reading an article published today by Inman News. Some s

Phase One of the Cypress bridge replacement/expansion is almost done. The south span is nearly complete and eastbound traffic will be switched to the new bridge. The traffic switch was sch

HotPads launched a new feature that displays foreclosure activity within congressional districts. The following districts have the highest foreclosure rates: Dennis Cardoza, D-Stockton (4.59%) Mary Bono Mack, R-Palm Springs

Bats are one of the misunderstood critters that inhabit the Redding/ Shasta County area. Halloween is just around the corner so here’s some bat facts to share with friend

Homeowners delinquent on payments or in foreclosure should immediately call their lender and apply for a loan modification. Lenders are ready to talk and may facilitate a work out which could help those in need keep their homes. If you have applied and been a

Redding and Anderson City Council candidates answered questions from concerned Realtors and stated their reasons for running for election or re-election for office. Incumbents for Redding City Council, Ken Murray and Dick Dickerson were joined b