I have been to 999 Doheny on several occasions to check out units for either lease clients or potential buyers. Typically I always end up leaving disappointed, as I have not once seen a unit in the building that I or anyone I know would be interested in. Whenever people ask my opinion of this high rise, I am usually quick to dismiss it for the reasons I just mentioned above. I think the building is very well kept, the location is superb, and it definitely exudes that full service lifestyle. Ultimately I came to the conclusion that there just wasn't much that would work at 999 Doheny for my rich kids that are in the  $700,000 and under price point, so I basically wrote it off. Today's real estate/life lesson: never write something or someone off because they or it might pleasantly surpri... 10/15/2009

2010 California Marriage Protection Act ..... Extending the protection afforded to marriage by Proposition 8 "RescueMarriage.org is the brain-child of concerned Christian and political activist John Marcotte, who felt strongly that Prop 8 did not go far enough in protecting traditional marriage. With the help of attorney's and friends, Marcotte is attempting to ban divorce in the State of California." What a great way for supporters of Prop 8 to further their goals.  After all, if gay marriage is bad for traditional marriage then divorce must be even worse. 10/13/2009

At an important speech to The Human Rights Campaign, President Obama promised to end "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". He also pledged to work to rescind "The Defense of Marriage Act" and sign the "Matthew Shepard Act". However, he fell short of supporting marriage for same-sex couples. I believe President Obama is sincerely moving gay rights forward in Washington and is committed to promoting equality for all ... but as most gay rights activists agree, there is no definitive timeline for these important issues to be resolved. Fox News was quick to issue an article highlighting The Liberty Counsel which criticized the the president for his appearance at the HRC fundraiser. The Liberty Council said in a written statement: "The president's speech appears to be a payback for HRC's endorsement of h... 10/11/2009

First and foremost, I want to apologize for the lack of posts over the last couple of weeks. I have been extremely busy working with buyers, sellers, and launching my new project, Metropol.  It's been all work (which has been awesome) with little time to update my blog. The dust has settled, clients are happy, and Metropol has now had a successful grand opening this week! It's time to get back to business keeping the rich kids of LA updated on what's happening in the real estate world. I thought my first post should be about a quirky little project that just launched about 2 weeks ago. It had seemed like we had reached our cap on new construction for the most part, but then I was pleasantly surprised to see a new building being launched. Consisting of 12 units ranging from about 1870 sq... 10/10/2009

West Hollywood House Sales - Pending House Sales as at 10/10/2009  907 N Alfred Street 1 Bed 3 Bath $2,350,000       8935 Keith Ave 3 Bed 2 Bath $1,795,000       551 Huntley Dr 3 Bed 2 Bath $1,699,000       435 Westmount Dr 3 Bed 2 Bath $1,099,000       8921 Aschcroft Ave 3 Bed 2 Bath $949,000       943 Edinburgh Ave 3 Bed 2 Bath $898,000       733 N Vista St 3 Bed 2 Bath $849,000       8491 Waring Ave 2 Bed 2 Bath $695,000       617 N Kings Rd 3 Bed 2 Bath $680,000       1155 N Fuller Ave 3 Bed 1 Bath $650,000       901 Larrabee St 1 Bed 1 Bath $489,000 Interesting notes about a few of these properties in escrow.... 907 N Alfred Street is definitely something unique. Described on The MLS as "An astounding architectural of oxidized iron,glass,concrete pillars & huge sand blasted wooden... 10/10/2009

West Hollywood Condo Sales - PENDING CONDO SALES as at 10/9/2009        1100 Alta Loma Dr #1405 2 Bed 2 Bath $1,995,000       8703 West Knoll Dr #PH1 3 Bed 3 Bath $1,349,000       8703 West Knoll Dr #301 2 Bed 2 Bath $1,200,000       1100 Alta Loma Dr #801 2 Bed 2 Bath $999,000       7917 Willoughby Ave #PH7 2 Bed 2 Bath $995,000       1100 Alta Loma Rd #603 2 Bed 2 Bath $899,000       841 Westmount Dr #15 2 Bed 2 Bath $849,000       850 N Croft Ave #402 2 Bed 2 Bath $849,000       841 Westmount Dr #9 2 Bed 2 Bath $825,000       8455 Fountain Ave #309 3 Bed 3 Bath $799,000       1248 N Laurel Ave #PH1 2 Bed 2 Bath $799,000       935 Westbourne Dr #304 2 Bed 2 Bath $699,000       1006 Carol Dr #3 2 Bed 2 Bath $699,000       818 N Doheny Dr #702 2 Bed 2 Bath $699,000       8121 Norton Ave... 10/09/2009

President Barack Obama has won the Nobel Peace Prize for "extraordinary efforts to to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples" - BBC News I believe this is a great day for President Obama and all Americans. The world has acknowledged that President Obama's "diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population". Head of the Nobel Committee, Thorbjoern Jagland, said that President Obama was awarded the prize less than a year after he took office because the committee "would like to support what he is trying to achieve". Americans should value the fact that our country can once again hold its place as a respected member of the world commun... 10/09/2009

West Hollywood Condos Market Report for September 2009 (August 2009) Average Selling Price: $523,000  ($509,560) Average List Price: $539,300 ($538,774) Median Price: $494,500 ($450,000) Total Sold in Dollars: $12,551,000 ($15,796,000) Number of Units Sold:  24 (31) Lowest Price Condo Sold: $230,000 ($299,000) Highest Price Condo Sold: $835,000 ($880,000) Average Days on the Market: 107 (93) (Statistics obtained from The CLAW MLS and rounded off for ease of comparison. Statistics are deemed reliable but are not guaranteed) 10/08/2009

This is a first for me .... I'm writing a blog, 37,000 feet in the air in an A320 Jet, flying Virgin America from Los Angeles to Washington. This is awesome. The in-flight internet connection (called Gogo) is incredibly fast and is even quicker than my high-speed connection in my office and home. Checking my email realtime while flying on a plane is amazing. I've even received a faxed document (PDF) that I've forwarded to another agent and attorney .... This technology is mind-boggling! Now I'll order some more champagne and continue to enjoy the flight ....      10/02/2009

CAPITALISM: A Love Story - A Must-See Film by Michael Moore This past weekend I had the opportunity to see the movie. I found it funny, sad, powerful and frightening. Michael Moore's new documentary "Capitalism: A Love Story" lays out the case why we need to seriously re-examine the merits of Capitalism - the economic & social system in the United States of America. The movie is not about being a Republican or Democrat. It's not about Socialism. It's about Democracy - equality and freedom. The subject matter is so relevant, so important, that it deserves public debate - Civil, coherent debate!! 09/29/2009

The FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) needs money .... but hasn't decided if it should get it from its member banks or draw on its credit line with the Treasury. The FDIC's fund has fallen to a 17-year low of $10 Billion, which represents a mere 0.22% of insured deposits as at June 2009 (according to Bloomberg.com). What's really scary is the fact that the FDIC issued an open letter in May this year stating "Staff currently projects approximately $70 billion in losses due to insured depository institution failures over the next five years, the great majority of which are expected to occur in2009 and 2010." Although the FDIC has a standing credit line of $100 Billion with the Treasury (with a special law providing as much as $500 Billion for an emergency) its weighing up the ... 09/26/2009

"Existing Home Sales fell unexpectedly by 2.7% in August this year breaking a four month streak of increases", according to a report on CNN Money.com. I was curious as to what caused this drop and what was really going on behind the statistics. So I read further .... For starters we all know that bad news sells, so a negative headline about a 2.7% drop in sales gets our attention. Of similar significance, in my opinion, and far less likely to stir media buzz, is the fact that housing inventory fell by 10.8%, "representing an 8.5 month supply, down from a 9.3 month supply in July". Doesn't this indicate the "slack" being taken up? That's good news, but I haven't seen any news media highlighting this fact! 09/25/2009

Wells Fargo Closing Guarantee - For Real or a Marketing Gimmick? Wells Fargo makes a bold statement on their website about their "Closing Guarantee" .... "We will close your loan on or before the closing date stated in your original contract or we'll write a check equal to your first month's principal-and-interest payment". Wells Fargo is late on funding a client's loan and despite my repeated emails to the Loan Processor and Manager, neither of them have responded to my inquiry as to whether the bank will honor their guarantee for my buyer. Their website goes on to say "Our Wells Fargo Closing Guarantee reflects our commitment to excellence." I think a simple returned call or reply to an email in a timely manner would reinforce their pursuit of excellence. 09/24/2009

Have you ever heard of a bank's BPAG? Today I received an email from a Mortgage Loan Specialist at Wells Fargo claiming that the bank's BPAG needed an additional 7-10 days to underwrite a client's loan. I'd never heard of a BPAG so I asked the "Loan Specialist" to explain it. He said BPAG is the "Builder Project Approval Group" - "a specialized group of underwriters that go into a more in-depth look into the Condo Association to ensure that they are financially sound". I googled BPAG (and Builder Project Approval Group) but found nothing that matched what the Loan Specialist had told me. I did however find matches for "The Book and Paper Arts Guild" and "The Botley Parish Action Group". 09/24/2009

Sold, Sold, and Sold again .... 1277 S Beverly Glen #107, Los Angeles, CA 90024. It's not uncommon to resell a property within a few years, but I recently sold the same condo for a third time in 6 years which must be something of a record. In 2003 I represented a Buyer who purchased the condo. It was listed for $425,000 and within 9 days (and after multiple offers being received) we were in escrow for $444,000. In 2005 the Owner relocated for work reasons. I listed the condo for $719,000 and it sold for $710,000. This time around it took 63 days to sell. In April 2009 I listed the condo for $629,000 and after 97 days it sold for $575,250. This activity forms a clear picture of what happened to condo prices in Westwood/Los Angeles between 2003 and 2009: 2003: $444,000 - representing an i... 09/21/2009

Afghanistan - "It's good to be the king" Do you remember Mel Brook's "History of The World" where he played King Louis XVl, the self-indulgent husband of Marie Antoinette? It seems like history has a way of repeating itself. While the country of Afghanistan is in shambles and thousands of brave American soldiers are risking their lives to stabilize the country, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary (the Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United Nations), has recently purchased a multi-million dollar apartment in the luxurious Trump World Tower in Manhattan. The New York Observer reports that "The Permanent Mission of Afghanistan to the United Nations has a lovely new apartment. According to two deeds filed Friday, the group spent $4,235,000... 09/12/2009

"BOOM" - What was that? A few minutes ago I heard a sonic boom as the space shuttle entered the earth's atmosphere and prepared to land at California's Edwards Air Force Base. I knew the landing had been delayed but I forgot it was happening this afternoon. Wow - it was really loud! The windows and glass sliders in my condo shook from the impact.  Our cat ran under the bed! I thought we were having an earthquake - but fortunately everything was okay. 09/11/2009

Republican Hypocrisy Continues .... Mike Duvall Resigns as O.C. Assemblyman Conservative Republican politician Mike Duvall (R-Yorba Linda) has resigned his position as Orange County Assemblyman after KCAL-TV Los Angeles aired a videotape of the Orange County GOP lawmaker bragging about his sexual conquests to a colleague at an Assembly Appropriations Committee hearing. Duvall, a staunch conservative, has been a "pro-family values" proponent and in 2008 blasted efforts to permit same-sex marriage. Chapman University awarded Duvall the "Ethics in America Award" for his “demonstration of the highest standards of ethical integrity” while a member of the Yorba Linda Chamber of Commerce. Duvall's brand of "Republican Family Values" stinks of the same hypocrisy displayed by other Republicans w... 09/10/2009

Rob Miller for Congress - "Defeating the man who yelled 'liar'" "Representative Wilson's behavior tonight exemplifies everything that is wrong in Washington," Democrat Rob Miller said in a statement provided to CNN. "Instead of engaging in childish name-calling and disrespecting our Commander-in-Chief, Joe Wilson should be working towards a bipartisan solution that makes quality, affordable health care available to each and every South Carolinian - CNN Political Ticker I'd never heard of Rob Miller before last night's fiasco, but now that I know there's a viable candidate to oust Wilson, I'm excited to learn more about this prospect. Rob Miller (born in Charleston and now living in Beaufort) is a retired Marine who served two tours in Iraq as a captain. Miller says his priorities are im... 09/10/2009

Rep. Joe Wilson yells out at President Obama "You Lie!" "During President Obama's major health care speech on Wednesday, South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson (R) yelled out "You lie!" when the President said the legislation would not mandate coverage for undocumented immigrants" - Associated Press. Republican Congressman Joe Wilson's outburst was "totally disrespectful .... and he should apologize immediately," said Sen. John McCain in a CNN interview shortly after the President finished his speech. I believe this behavior is an embarrassment to his office and unacceptable from a member of Congress. Not only did Wilson show disrespect for the President, but he showed his contempt for all the members of Congress as well as the American Public. Regardless of one's political affiliations, it is ... 09/09/2009