Blog
Beverly Hills Board of Realtors aka BH/GLAAR Recognition of Veteran Military Members
The Beverly Hills/ Greater Los Angeles Association of Realtors have opened up their arms and hearts by: “Embracing Our Warriors” Clearly I remember a time when we as a nation looked down on those who served. Protecting our Freedom and Service to our Country has returned quite some time ago. President Ronald Reagan has restored Pride in our Country and Pride in those who served. I was honored with this Certificate. Due to a heavy client commitments I was unable to attend the Recognition Luncheon, so you can imagine my surprise when a few weeks later I received this in the mail with a very touching cover letter.I was grateful to have received it. I have and will continue to proudly support other Military Veterans who are looking to buy a home. They can be assured that the service they will receive will be over the top. This is clearly my way of thanking them for their service to our Country. As Veteran’s Day is approaching please remember those who are serving and those who served to protect this great Nation. If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreWhat is the most challenging part of an Escrow?
What is the most Challenging par of an Escrow? Observations by a Los Angeles Realtor, Endre Barath,Jr. There is so much discussion that it is finding the right home is one of the hardest things to do. My answer is always that is the easiest part of the Transaction. If you ask the right questions, most buyers will tell you what they want… The more challenging part is getting the offer accepted where both buyers and sellers feel like it is a “good deal” for both of them. It is particularly challenging when it is a Seller’s Market and you happen to represent the buyer. On the other hand it is challenging when it is a buyer’s market and you represent the seller. The hardest part is when the seller thinks it is a seller’s market, but the market has cooled or changed to a buyer’s market. The harder part in my opinion is managing the expectations of the buyers and sellers. The better you manage the expectation levels the smoother the transaction will go. I am a firm believer the continuation of moving the documents is key. It is a clear indication that both parties are operating in good faith. So getting back to the original question: what is the most Challenging Part of an Escrow? In my opinion is negotiating the request for repair. This is where buyers need to be realistic and sellers need to be reasonable too. Clearly it makes a difference if there is a back up offer on the table or if there is not. That will determine the stance the seller will take. Once the Request for Repair is negotiated. Then it is clearly just waiting for the Loan Documents and the buyer’s signing them. Ultimately then one just waits for the Loan to Fund. Let me know what your thoughts are about this question. If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreObservations about Technology and our lives, by Endre Barath, Beverly Hills Realtor
As I am learning about how to use my New Lenovo Yoga PC Windows 8.1, at the same time I am also learning how to use my WordPress Website https://www.endrebarath.com, and at the same time I am learning on how to use my new Lexus RX 350. The technology is amazing but very overwhealming. While this technology learning curve is taking place in my life, the everyday occurances must be handled as well. The Inspection of the Roof by the buyer in my Escrow and let us not forget the Sewer Inspection, the Fireplace Inspection, the General Inspection, the Foundataion inspection….anyway I could go on and on. At the same time negotiating with another seller and their neighbor (not in the mls) trying to buy their home to enlarge the estate. All good but challenging. Then at home adding a sewer clean out to the sewer line. Then socializing a feral kitty who decided to move in to our back yard, clearly keeps me jugling a lot of events. What I found amazing is in all this is, that my laptop would communicate with my HP Printer and work it out without me getting involved. Wow truly amazing. Then my Samsung Galixy S-5 started communicating with my Lexus RX 350 and amazingly I can now answer my phone in my car. Wow,truly increadible. The technology is just so much smarter than the operators, well at least this operator. The printer communicates with the laptop, the phone communicates with the car. The printer communicates with Hewlett Packard home office, they in turn email me that my toner is low by different colors. I replace the black they tell me that the Magenta is not new, but a bootleg copy. I reach out to Staples that I was sold a fake toner. They are investigating…. Anyway I could go on and on and talk about my ATT U-Verse Internet, TV and Phone System, but you would be worn out or be exhausted. So I will stop and let you know I am so lucky to be living today that I do not need to do much but observe as all these machines are talking to each other. I am hoping that they are not conspiring against me as I used to see in some science fiction movies that the Computers have taken over…. Please tell me that I am foolishly concerned for no reason. Nothing to worry the technology is here to help me not eliminate me:) If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreMonday evening musings from your Beverly Hills Realtor Endre Barath,Jr.
Sometimes there are Technical Glitches and a post does not leave the draft stage in a timely manner. Sadly this post falls into that category, did not leave the draft stage. Then we follow a busy day and next thing you know it is almost Tuesday and the Speechless post becomes a not so speechless post. Anyway it becomes a Monday Evening Musings. All day I was showing properties and in the mean time trying to keep my Escrow together. Needless to say next I will need to follow up on many unanswered emails:))) If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreCustomer Service: The first step is Timely response to inquiries!
Customer Service: The first step is Timely response to questions, I pride myself in quick response to questions how about you?? I have always prided myself in providing quick and accurate responses to questions. It did not matter to me if it was Voice Mail, Text or Email. When I got out of my meetings or showings, I would get back to the person who sent me an inquiry. Just to be clear, I did not discriminate if it was a potential buyer, potential seller or an agent. Where I would prioritize would be is in the price of the listing or sales inquiry. I would place the highest priced in the highest order, clearly my fiduciary responsibility. Needless to say, if you called or emailed or texted me you would get a response relatively quickly. This has always been my’… Motus Operendi…” Buyers, Sellers and Agents all expect a quick answer back. Now with today’s technology of smart phones, emails etc. there is no real excuse not to get back to someone within 24 hours. I always try to get back to everyone within three to four hours… I generally have eleven to fifteen listings, depending when you reach out and my goal is to sell them fast for the most amount of money and not just to keep them in my inventory! The only way I found it to sell the listings is if I made myself available to answer questions quickly and not delay the response… Nothing annoys me more is when you raise a question and you do not get a response. I find that is the worst customer service. Hence I do not like that feeling and I would not want the people who reach out to me experience the same negative sensation. So if you are looking for a knowledgeable, quick to respond to your questions and needs Realtor, in the Greater Los Angeles area you found him. So please reach out to me directly. Ironically there are many agents, buyers and sellers who do not follow this credo….clearly we would not be a good fit. I have clients in Europe and Asia and they do not want 24 hours later response to their questions, hence I am up late and up early responding to their questions and need. Not all agents were made equal…test me out I look forward to your next communication. In addition to timely response, there has to be courtesy to all. I find that attitude can be a deal killer… If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue Organizations....
read moreKuleto Winery: a must visit destination in Napa, CA
Kuleto Winery: a must visit destination in Napa, CA Often we look for excuses to make time to visit friends and places, because we are so caught up with our day to day activities and often we forgo these visits due to our dedication to our work. On the other hand being a Greater Los Angeles Realtor has its benefits. One of those benefits immediately comes to my mind. You get to know your clients and sometimes a relationship blossoms and friendships develop. Well this is what happened here. For years we have been invited by our friends to visit their home. You would think with them living in Wine Country should be a no brainer for us to visit immediately. Needless to say, because I am a workaholic it was hard to break away and at the same time family issues that came up unexpectedly, prevented this from taking place sooner. Needless to say we finally went for a quick trip to visit our friends. The short trip consisted of a visit from Thursday to Saturday. Keep in mind our next visit I will stretch it by a couple more days! At their suggestion we went to Kuleto Winery in St. Helena, CA. 94574. I must admit I have never heard of this Winery,( shame on me). Kuleto Winery is not just a great Winery it is an experience one must add to the “Bucket List”. Those of you who read my Blog Posts know I love good wine and Kuleto Estates is more than that. Besides tasting some world class wines, it is an experience unmatched that I have ever experienced in wine tasting. The Staff does not rush you, instead they pour ample amounts of wine and pair them with a great cheese assortment which enhances the experience. Needless to say you do not need to go to three to four Wineries as some people think you should. My advice is to you is, to visit one outstanding winery and forgo the mediocre ones. After all you can always buy those at home! Also after visiting one, trust me on this one, if you are not spitting out the wines you will not know how good or bad the next winery will be. (This is the voice of experience talking) Kuleto Winery is high up above the Silverado Trail and the slow drive up is worth every minute. The property covers about 850+ acres of land with hills and valleys and two manmade lakes. Keep in mind without water there is no winery. Please check out the enclose link and take my word, that there was not one bad wine that I tasted, just some were better than others. http://www.kuletoestate.com/ If you are wondering if they ship to your State, rest assured that they ship to most States. Therefore you have no excuse not to buy and taste them. From what I understand after January some of the States that were on the “not allowed to ship” list will be allowed to receive wine. As far as I am concerned I can hardly wait for our shipment to arrive. We have ordered a few bottles of wine that we really loved, just to name a few: The Chardonnay, The Syrah, The Cabernet Sauvignon and a...
read moreSpeechless Sunday: On the way to Wine Country!
Speechless Sunday: On the way to Wine Country! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read moreMalibu,CA. 90264, the coveted Zip Code’s: Land Values Skyrocketed!
Well Malibu,CA 90264 the coveted Zip Code’s Land Values hav Skyrocketed When you give advice to your clients and they do not listed, how do you feel? I spend a great deal of research, time and energy making sure that I give the best advice to my clients. Well interestingly enough last year one of my Foreign Clients came and we went to Malibu, CA. We were looking at vacant lots. We found a few lots in the coveted 90264 Malibu Zip Code. Perfect Ocean Views, the Best Part was the project was shovel ready. To give a little history, in Malibu and any place that is near the ocean needs Coastal Commission Approvals. That means “…three years to never …”is the joke amongst Malibu and vicinity Realtors, who understand the entitlement process. Well, long and short of it, my client flew back to Asia and did not buy. I was sad and disappointed that I was unable to show him what a fantastic value this lot had. Clearly you buy it for $5 million dollars and you can start building as soon as you close escrow….No three year waiting period, just build and re-sell the finished product for around $12-15million…. The Broker and I had conversations that this lot will sell for more money and my clients are making a mistake…I agreed …but last time I checked I could not put a “gun” to my buyers head to convince them what a great value this was. How ironic, today I saw an email blast from the Broker and the Lot sold for $9,000,000. Clearly the anticipated upside is huge…forget my thought of $12-$15million for the finished product…it will be closer to $25 million…. Just as a courtesy I sent the email to my client who did not buy, just to make him aware that the advice I gave was solid. So now back to my original question: How do you feel if you were in this situation? Just the land value doubled in less than 12 months… If you are looking for a Realtor who gives you straight forward, no sugar coated advice…than please reach out to me! To answer my own question I look at the facts and say where did I go wrong that I was not able to provide solid, convincing data and reasons why they should buy? I feel terrible that I could not convince them and they could have been making three times the profit I was anticipating…. If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue Organizations. ...
read moreBerkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties celebrated …
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties celebrated the FIRST YEAR Anniversary! Hard to imagine, but today, September 23, marks exactly one year since the launch of our new brand name, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties. It has been an incredible year, full of challenges, successes and change I would have never imagined. Berkshire Hathaway has created a completely new history and is forging a unique and brand-new future. I am so thrilled to be part of this new beginning. Most people think it has been longer than one year, we have made such a strong impression on the Greater Los Angeles community, people think we have been here for many years prior to this one. I am truly energized and excited to be part of this Great Brand Name and I look forward to being here for many more years. If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue Organizations....
read moreSpeechless Sundays: Pet Friendly Realtors understand your needs!
Speechless Sundays: Pet Friendly Realtors understand your needs! Well sometimes you just want to climb walls and if there is another option how about climb Security Screen Doors? Just on a side note Diane and I decided to get a Security Screen Door, not because of the neighborhood we live in but because we know what Jill is capable of doingJ! If you are a consumer who is considering buying or selling a home, investment real estate, vacation homes, or beach properties in Southern California, Los Angeles, Century City, Westwood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or email me at homes@endrebarath.com or visit one of my websites at https://www.endrebarath.com Your Pet Friendly Realtor. I contribute a portion of my commission to Local Animal Rescue...
read more