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Who hosts your Website? Who handles your Emails? What is DNS?
Who is your Website Host? Who handles your Emails? What is a DNS? What is good Customer Service? Many questions are running through my head. As your read this, you are probably wondering what prompted these questions? Since the beginning of the New Year I have had been hampered with tech issues. It started out on January 1st, I received an email from an old client who wanted me to make me aware that my website https://www.endrebarath.com was down. She was gracious enough to send me an email from France that she thinks the problem is with my Domain being expired. She discovered it as she tried to read my monthly Newsletter and decided to click on my web link. Needless to say it was at 11:30pm here in Marina Del Rey and a phone call to GoDaddy.com turned into an unusual authentication drama and by about 1:00am we finally got it sorted out. For the past two days I have been having problems with my E-mails. Logging in has been difficult, then when I log in, the emails do not want to load up or they move at an extremely slow and frustrating way. I have been stressing about this now for two business days. This brought up the question, what can I do? Do I have options? What are my options? Being a Realtor, I understand that when clients are not satisfied they can and will go to someone who can provide them with good service. That brings up another point: What is good service? My take is simply clear communication, fast response and correcting the problem as expeditiously as possible and keep the client informed. So I am just thinking out loud, let me know where I am going wrong. When a web site is down it would be nice to be notified at least a few days before via email that if you do not renew you will not be on the World Wide Web. Seems to me it would be in the best interest of the company to make sure I will renew. After all it translates to revenue to them. When my listing is about to expire, I try to reach out to my sellers and discuss extending the listing. In other words I would be salvaging the listing with the hopes of ultimately selling the property. Why would it be different for big company like GoDaddy.com? So when they are aware that there are issues with the Email Servers, why not send out a quick note: we are aware that there is a problem as soon as we identify it we will give you and update and let you know how fast we anticipate the issues to be resolved Why wait until thousands of disgruntled clients start calling and jamming the phone lines which takes away resources from other areas to calm down the clients? Why does it come to this? All could have been avoided. So a multitude of questions were running through my head and I figured the best place to turn to and ask is this Community for answers! So with that said: who is your E-mail Carrier? Who hosts your website? How satisfied are you with their service? Please share with me when you have a moment!...
read moreLos Angeles Homes for Sale are at an all time low. Why is that?
Los Angeles homes for sale are at an all time low. Why is that, you ask? Great Climate, Land of Opportunity is that the reason? Los Angeles Homes for Sale are at an all time low. Critical shortage of home inventory is a problem for buyers, their agents and the sellers as well, if they are considering buying up. Only sellers who move out of area are not affected, since they decided to move out of the Los Angeles area and have somewhere to go. What are the causes of the shortage? This shortage of inventory is caused by a multitude of factors: 1. Of course is that interest rates have been artificially kept low to an almost unbelievable sixty (60) year low and buyers can get great deals when it comes to loans, 2. Buyers have realized that “the bottom” has been reached, 3. The elections are over no matter who you were supporting and it does not matter if your candidate lost or one. The important fact it is that the uncertainty is over and done with, 4. The Media is now writing positive news about Real Estate, hence fueling the buying surge. As an example this was in yesterday’s Los Angeles Times (http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-harney-20130106,0,6997483.story ) 5. The most important reason for the shortage is “underwater home owners” as long as sellers have little or no Equity in their home, they cannot sell and become move up buyers. Why are sellers not listing their homes for sale you might ask? The answer is not a mystery; Lenders have tightened up the ability to get a Home Loan. Buyers need to have real down payments to buy a home. Let’s be realistic most of the current home owners who are upside down came and bought a home with little or no money down. Let me clarify it, at least in the Greater Los Angeles the majority of the potential sellers fall into this category. Hence even if they become “Standard Sellers” vs.” Short Sale” or as some people call them “Distressed Sales” they are in no position to buy. They only have two options: 1. to stay in their home or 2. Become Renters again. So you ask: what is the solution? Well stay tuned that is another blog post for a future date. 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 moreThe Greek Theater is the most intimate outdoor Theater in Los Angeles!
The Greek Theater is one of the most intimate outdoor Theater in Los Angeles and probably the world. The Greek Theater is located inside Griffith Park and there seems to be some controversy about how many people it seats. According to Wikipedia about 5700, according to Los Angeles A-Z Encyclopedia the Greek seats 4600 people and according to the Nederlander Website who are managing it today say that it holds 5900, either way you can see that it is great for a small venue. (They are accurate because in 2006 there was a huge renovation project to make the Greek look like the Original Façade in 1929 when it opened) The land was donated by Griffith J Griffith in 1896 to the City of Los Angeles (the person after whom Griffith Park was named). Griffith had a great vision to preserve certain parts of Los Angeles in its natural state, hence the five square mile land is preserved for future generations and the Theater sits in a natural bowl inside the park and is ideal for small intimate concerts. As you drive on Franklin Ave unless you are familiar you could miss it. The Theater is nestled inside Griffith Park. Hence you have to drive through a very nice Old Hollywood Style upscale micro pocket of homes, which we call Los Feliz. Many famous entertainers have performed in the Theater. I will mention a few: Sting, Elton John, Paul Simon, Pink Martini and many more, but most of you will agree with me that one person has made the Greek Theater a household name and that person is: Neil Diamond with his Album of his iconic performance at the Greek Theater named ‘Love at the Greek’. I have written a few blogs about the performances of Pink Martini http://actvra.in/HCK as well as the return performance of Neil Diamond to the Greek celebrating his 40th Anniversary of his original performance http://actvra.in/GSM now if you would like to learn more about the Greek Theater & its history check out this link http://www.greektheatrela.com/about/the_greek.asp 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 moreHow is the Marina Del Rey, CA 90292 Luxury Condominium Market?
How is the Marina Del Rey, CA Luxury Condominiums Market? It has been refreshing to go out to a function this evening and be asked: how is the Real Estate Market. Have not heard this type of questions in a positive frame in years, hence it was fun to say”… The market is fast. ..Inventory is short, more buyers than sellers hence prices are increasing…” Then to be asked how is the Luxury Condominium Market now that was even more interesting. I was happy to report that the high end market is moving and confidence is back. The key points to remember are that the property needs to be well priced, and properly staged for the current market. In English that means that well priced and properly marketed Condominiums do sell. Condominiums that are overpriced or have something intermittently wrong will sit on the market and sellers need to be patient to find the right buyer. Today’s Buyers still want a Deal, in other words a good value. If a Seller & the Listing Agent cannot demonstrate the Value the buyers will move on! If you are looking for a knowledgeable, internet savvy agent to sell your home please reach out to 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 moreWordless Wednesday: Lange Foundation Graduates reunite !
Wordless Wednesday: Lange Foundation Graduates reunite for Volunteer Appreciation Day! These two happy graduates of the Lange Foundation share a moment together. These photos were taken at the Volunteer Appreciation Afternoon in December and two happy, successfully placed adoptees get to see and meet each other again! 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 moreA casual walk in Marina Del Rey, CA 90292 on January 1st, 2013!
A casual walk in Marina Del Rey, CA 90292 on January 1st, 2013! Last night we decided to get up early and watch the Rose Parade on TV. Well we got up early and watch the countdown to the Rose Parade too. Then we decided to take it easy all day. I made small bites to eat. Will post about them laterJ Diane kept saying after about 2pm that ’… it is starting to warm up let’s go for a walk…’ So by the time we went out it, was about 3:30pm and the temperature was somewhere around the ‘50’s. So a little walk turned into an hour and a half stroll. Luckily today I only had about a handful of client emails to handle so it was a very casual and relaxing walk. Check out these pictures and seeing them you understand why we are so grateful to live in Marina Del Rey, CA. After all it is January 1st, 2013. Happy New Year to all my friends, clients, relatives and those who read my blog! 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 morePhotographic reflections of the North End of Boston,MA Little Italy…
Photographic reflections of the North End of Boston, MA! Little Italy for the locals! For those of you, who are not familiar with Boston, MA? The North End is the “Italian” part of the city, also known as “Little Italy”. These pictures were taken at Café Vittoria (http://www.vittoriacaffe.com/ ) which has the best Cappuccino outside of Italy in Boston, MA. On a side note: Café Vittoria was the First Italian Café in Boston, MA. The Cream Puff is from Mike’s Pastry, which is next door to Café Victoria. Interestingly the culture of the North End is just like in Italy. The merchants do not mind if they do not have something on the menu. They either run across to the other establishment which has it, or tell you that it is OK for you to run across and bring it back. In this particular instance our friend requested a Cream Puff and everyone knows the biggest and best is at Mike’s Pastry. Hence I went next door while everyone else ordered Cappuccino’s and Cannoli’s at Café Vittoria. Sadly as of this writing Michael Mercogliano, the “Mike” behind the famed Mike’s Pastry in the North End has passed away on December 12th of this year. Mike’s Pastry in addition to the Cream Puffs, also has the Best Cannoli’s which you can order if you would like through the internet (http://www.mikespastry.com ) in case you cannot do it in person on Hannover Street in Boston, MA. Quick story for you: when Bill Clinton was running for President for the first time, the then Mayor of Boston, MA Ray Flynn told Governor Clinton if he wanted to carry Boston in the General Election he needed to make a trip to the North End and particularly to Mike’s Pastry. Needless to say the rest is history. BTW Bill Clinton took 100 Cannoli’s on the plane with him in order for his staff to enjoy the pastries as wellJ 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 moreOutdoor Ice Skating during the winter in Culver City, CA 90230
Outdoor Ice Skating during the winter in Culver City, CA 90230 I have written many a blog posts that there are Four Seasons in California for those non believers and the misinformedJ. Here is one to refresh your memories ( http://actvra.in/LvV ) Needless to say I felt that it was time for everyone to see with their own eyes. This winter has been particularly cold for us here in the Greater Los Angeles area. No we did not get too many cold day warnings, never the less there were a few times when the Weather Reporters suggested we bring in our outdoor plants and our pets for the night. I am amazed that people would need to have their pets outdoors, but that is another blog post from your Pet Friendly Realtor. As I was heading to Trader Joe’s in Culver City I saw children and adults enjoying themselves at a skating rink right across. Needless to say I parked my car and camera in hand went to take some pictures. As you can see by the time I accomplished this task they were just freshening up the ICEJ and children and adults were anxiously waiting for this task to be completed. Hope you enjoy these pictures and now believe me there are four seasons not just in Culver City, CA but in California in general. Most definitely in the Greater Los Angeles we have four seasons and I do not mean the Hotel ChainJ. 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 Organisations. ...
read moreEleven steps sellers need to consider when they receive an Offer
Eleven critical step sellers need to consider when they receive an Offer from a potential Buyer: I have written a blog post a long time ago (December 2008 to be exact) that sellers need to respond to offers ( http://actvra.in/NBc ). Since that time I have seen a lot sellers and many offers, hence I thought I would like to share what I think sellers should do when they receive an offer if they want to have a smooth and successful negotiation which will ultimately lead to a successful acceptance: 1. They should thank the buyer for taking the time to submit a 30 page offer with proof of funds and or a preapproval letter. (California has a lot of disclosures hence the 30 pages) 2. They should also let the buyer know that they will review the offer and get back to them soon. 3. Then, the sellers should rearrange their priorities, life, family and the usual distracters and place number one priority on reading the offer and thinking about the offer. 4. Once they read the offer they should write down questions that they might have and then contact their Listing Agent. 5. Once they discussed the answers to their questions with the Listing Agent. Then they should discuss on what type of Counter Offer they would like to present. 6. This is an important point: Then take a break, think about the offer, sleep on the answers and the potential draft counter offer. 7. Once they are comfortable with the offer make some minor modifications to the counter offer and then finalize the counter offer and submit it to the buyer. ( I am a firm believer that this can be accomplished in 24hrs) 8. I am confident if a Seller looks at an Offer with the attitude of” how would they feel if they submitted an offer and what would they expect in return?” The idea of “do as you would like to be treated” than they will give a fair response that both parties can work with. 9. Keep in mind if it is a low or not desirable offer it is “not an insult” it is the beginning of the negotiation process. If you do not respond you basically stop the negotiation at the beginning. 10. Most importantly keep in mind that this is business and maintain even attitude and do not get on an emotional roller coaster ride. 11. Of course most importantly remember the goal i.e.: the objective is to sell your property. Therefore be part of the solution and not the problem! 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 Organisations....
read moreNativity Scene for Pet Friendly people in general: Wordless Wednesday
Special Nativity Scene for Pet Friendly people in general! As most of you know I am a Pet Friendly Realtor, hence I get many articles as well as pictures about our furry friends. This picture I thought was very appropriate, since it is the Holiday Season and well worth spreading around. Even if you are not religious it is still a funny picture. So enjoy itJ 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, Marina Del Rey, Venice or Malibu. Feel Free to give me a call at 310.486.1002 or emails 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 Local Animal Rescue...
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