Posts Tagged Seven Gables Real Estate


Thanksgiving at Orangewood Children’s Foundation…

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We all have our yearly traditions.
We have Easter egg hunts in place of the traditional meaning of Easter.
We have Trick or Treating for Halloween  instead of its traditional meaning.
We have Santa Claus instead of the traditional meaning of Christmas, though even that is widely disputed.

The only tradition that we seem to keep the same is Thanksgiving.  On this holiday, we tend to gather together with friends and loved ones and remember what we have, what we had and what we forgot to be thankful for.  We prepare a massive feast of food that often times sends us into a food coma and we either sit back and watch football or head off to the mall to start Christmas shopping.

That’s what MOST of us do….however there is a large group of people out there that do not have the ability to celebrate Thanksgiving as we do;  they don’t have the stable family life that we associate with when we gather together to celebrate.

We have been blessed to work with one such group this past year:  Orangewood Children’s Foundation.
We go there once a month and stock cabinets with food, clothes, and hygiene supplies.  We think outside of ourselves and we are thankful to them for allowing us to be a part of their ever growing organization. The need is great and we are always hopeful that the givers are greater! Take a look at what we’ve done in the past and see how you can participate in the future.

We are having a Thanksgiving Feast on November 17th and would love your participation.  What can you bring or what can you donate?  With the weather getting cooler, we are looking for blankets, lightly worn jackets and any cold weather accessories to donate to the kids. Won’t you consider being a part of this?

Thankfully Yours,
Amanda

Is Waiting Really Better Than Buying a Home Right Now?

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Every day I scour the internet looking for trends and real estate news.  Most of the time, I come across some really great articles. But more often than not, I find articles like this from CreditLoan.com. It seems as if bad news sells and the more “down” the story, the more readers flock to its sites and then make the assumption that the end is near.

The Wall Street Journal recently gave 10 good reasons why NOW is a great time to buy a home. I found them interesting and agree with them.  I don’t play the stock market and I’m not a financial analyst, but let me tell you why I think today is a great time to buy a home in laymen’s terms:

  1. Interest rates are at all time historical lows. This means that you can afford to buy more of a house than you could back in the late 80’s where interest rates were as high as 13%.
  2. You invest in your community. In this time of connectedness (thanks to the internet), establishing roots seems to have made a comeback.  Even local Realtors realize that being HYPER-LOCAL offers advantages to community growth.
  3. You will be buying a piece of the American dream. Homeownership used to be something to aspire to.  It told the world that you had made it.  Yet in times of subprime loans and the monetary fiasco we currently face, many people lost sight of that and started treating their homeownership like a crazy weekend in Vegas!
  4. Speaking of the crazy monetary market, if you had invested in Real Estate (assuming you didn’t refinance the heck out of it) your “investment” would have grown 43.4% in the last 10 years over bond and stock purchases according to MSN.com & Case Shiller.
  5. Sense of pride. Ask your parents why they bought their homes; for that matter ask someone that is over 55 and they will tell you the stories of how they scrimped and saved to buy a home so that they could have something that was THEIRS. Something that they could pass on to future generations.
  6. Building memories. Do you recall Thanksgivings at Aunt Bertie’s house or Christmas at Uncle Earl’s?  Do you remember the feeling of family, closeness and togetherness?  You can’t buy those, or pay for them.  There is something special created in a home.
  7. Tax advantages. Obviously you want to speak to your tax person, but here are just a few ways that you can benefit from owning your own home from HouseLogic.com.

What are your thoughts?  Do you believe all the hype or are you going to jump on the opportunity that is happening now? Whether you agree or disagree, I welcome your feedback!

The Wooden Floor

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Friday, I was on caravan for the city of Santa Ana with Sandy DeAngelis.  She is what I aspire to be when I decide to grow up! She is knowledgeable, resourceful, a true joy to be around and I am thankful to be a part of her Real Estate team. We started talking about Real Estate (what else is new) and then about community.  She then started to share with me about an organization that I had never heard of.  It is called The Wooden Floor. Have you heard of it? She started to bubble over with excitement when she was telling me about who they are and what they do for the community.  I couldn’t help but become inspired and look deeper into who they are.

The Wooden Floor, “Formerly known as St. Joseph Ballet was established in 1983 to serve underprivileged youth in Orange County.”  Watch an 11:00 minute video giving you a glimpse into their cause here.

Hard to imagine that Orange County, one of the richest counties in California would have such a need, but the need is rampant.

On Saturday October 9th, 2010, The Wooden Floor hosted “Keep the Promise,” a wine tasting benefit to raise funds for their community. One young lady involved in the program had the opportunity to give her testimony.  Her name is Meyby.  In her words:

“Through the dance program, I have excelled to the top level 10 class.  The discipline and focus in dance helps me in all areas of my life.  I am enrolled in the tutoring program that also helps me with my homework and keep my grades up. I don’t have to go through the difficulties my parents had.  Here you get to create a new future-one that has never been seen before.  Thank you for supporting The Wooden Floor.”

I was so inspired by seeing the power behind this program that I “liked” them on Facebook and now follow them on Twitter as well (@TheWoodenFloor).

This Saturday, October 16th The Wooden Floor will once again be holding auditions and it is reported that people will line up at the front doors starting at 4:00 IN THE MORNING.

Now there’s an organization filled with hope and inspiration.

Thank you Sandy for opening my eyes, yet again, to such a wonderful cause!

Orangewood- September Food Drive

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The time is almost upon us and we are feverishly getting ready for our monthly visit to Orangewood Children’s Foundation next week!

Why am I sharing this with you?  Because this is where YOU come in!

Please contribute to a wonderful cause by donating canned and non perishable food items such as:
Mac & Cheese
Soups
Tuna
Top Ramen
Pasta
Cereal
Oatmeal
Beans
Chili
Stews
These are just a few items to spark ideas in you!

We are also hosting a “Baked Potato Bar” for the kids and need condiments…
What do YOU like on your baked potato?  Bring that!

You can drop off your generous donations on September 29th at:

Orangewood Children’s Foundation
1575 East 17th Street
Santa Ana, CA 92705
map

OR you can drop off your items at either one of our office locations:

12651 Newport Ave, Tustin map
5481 E. Santa Ana Canyon Road, Anaheim Hills map

Thanks again for your community involvement!

Orangewood Foundation-July Event-Back to school Gear

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Orangewood Children’s Foundation

Orangewood Children's Foundation

Once upon a time, we all were in school.  We all dreamed of lazy summer vacation days, and then we all dreamed of reuniting with our friends at school in order to get caught up over what happened, showing off new clothes…the smell of new pencils and notebooks…Ah…Youth!

Of course today’s youth are exposed to a different culture…they have iPads, iPods, laptops and DELL notebooks….

None-the-less, they still look forward to going back to school to be with their friends.

Not everyone could afford new school supplies…then or now….and this month we are looking to help out these youngsters by providing them with much needed school supplies to get their year off to a great start and this is where you come in!

What can you contribute to the Orangewood Foundation that will make an impact on these kids?  We’re not talking about buying laptops etc (though we’re not discouraging that either), just the basic necessities.  Target, Walmart even CVS are replete with aisles of school supplies…stroll the aisles and then contribute what you can.

New pencils, pens, notebooks etc…whatever your budget will allow.

Feel free to drop them off at our offices:

12651 Newport Avenue, Tustin or

5481 Santa Ana Canyon Road, Anaheim Hills

Look forward to seeing you there!

Orangewood Children’s Foundation June Event

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Orangewood Children’s Foundation was founded in 1981 and has embodied what it means to be Children’s Advocate.  

We at Seven Gables are lucky to have found our way to them!  We look forward to our monthly visits to the Foundation on 17th Street in Santa Ana. 

A flurry of activity always ensues just a few days beforehand.  Agents asking what they can contribute and if they can show up and help cook for the group of kids!

 Junes festivities were no different!  The theme was “Emergency Preparedness Kits”.

Along with many staples, several people donated clothing items, as well as necessities in case of an emergency. 

The food as always was great!  Seven Gables provided the mile long sandwiches and there was no shortage of sweets, salads and fruit to go around!

We thank everyone who participated to make it such a great success!  

July’s theme is “Back to School Supplies” .  Want to donate?  Pick up some school supplies and drop them off at any one of our offices:

12651 Newport Avenue Tustin or 5481 Santa Ana Canyon Road, Anaheim Hills. 

 Summer Success!

Pam always ready at the helm!Taking a pic of me taking his pic!

 

Filling this full of goodies for the kids!They always have to hold me back from eating the sweets!

 

They always have to hold me back from eating the sweets!

 

Orangewood Children’s Foundation June Extravaganza…Emergency Preparedness Kits

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If you have been following along, you know that every month we at Seven Gables work with Orangewood Children’s Home.  Each month has its own theme and this month the theme is EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS…

Seven Gables will be contributing Submarine Sandwiches as well as supplies generously donated by our Community Minded Agents.

If you want to contribute a food item, we could always use side salads, fresh fruit, brownies and chips. We’d love to have them!

For the emergency kits, we are looking for the following items:

Bottled water,

Band-Aids

Ice packs

Medical adhesive tape

Cotton balls

Hydrogen Peroxide

Ointments

Masks

Flashlights

Batteries

Glow sticks

Gloves

Blankets

Back packs

Freeze dried food

Radios

Hand sanitizer

Maps

Garbage bags

Soap

Matches etc…

You can deliver your contribution on June 30th by 9 a.m. or sooner to any one of our three offices located at:

12651 Newport, Tustin CA 92780

5481 Santa Ana Canyon Road
Anaheim Hills, CA 92808

18210 Yorba Linda Boulevard Yorba Linda, CA 92886

Your generosity and contribution are truly appreciated!

Buying a House? Where do you begin? Part One

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Real Estate…it’s not as easy as some people would like to believe it is.  Sure, you will always have your Do-It-Yourself types, and for a weekend project that isn’t too complicated, it’s a great way to save some money though I’m going to suggest that there are some things you should never attempt to do yourself.  Brain surgery comes to mind, as does filling a cavity or doing a root canal, and even reroofing your home or replacing all of the electrical wiring.

When you’re a buyer looking to purchase your home, there’s something you should know about the buying process.  One thing is that you need to hire a local Realtor with a good reputation that will help you navigate the murky waters of purchasing your home.

A good Realtor will have a vast list of contractor’s, lenders and home inspector’s that will make your life easier: a team of professionals that he or she is happy to recommend over and over again.

A buyers agent will sit down with you and have a “Buyer’s Consultation” and help you determine what your time frame is, if a short sale is a good investment for you, explain the contract to you so that you know and understand what you are signing, give you time frames for inspections, loan contingency removals, your final walk through, etc.

A professional Buyer’s Agent will have you sit with a reputable lender to discuss how much house you can comfortably afford.  This seems to be the scariest part of the transaction for some.  You have to have your credit “pulled” and find out what your FICO score is.  This will determine what your loan rate will be, which will in turn determine how much home you can purchase.

The lower your credit score, the higher the rate, the lower the price of the home you will be able to buy.  Make sense so far?

Next comes the fun part: getting in the car and actually looking at homes that fit your needs!  This can take some time so be sure that you are clear with what you need and want.  It will make it a little easier at the end of the day when what you want, matches what you need.

Stay tuned for part two!

Please welcome our newest Addition…Dan Shusterman!

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One of my primary responsibilities as President of Seven Gables Real Estate is to seek out the best and brightest talents in the industry—people with the right moral and professional compass— and invite them to join the Seven Gables family. It’s a task I relish, one I take very seriously.
It’s my belief that when we bring someone who is the right fit into our firm, we all benefit……and our market share statistics increase.
After several weeks of meetings, I am proud to announce that Dan Shusterman, a top producing Orange County Realtor for the past 12 years, has decided to leave the Coldwell Banker Tustin office and join Seven Gables.

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His track record speaks for itself. At Coldwell Banker, Dan ranked among the top two percent of sales agents nationwide and was also recognized as the number one agent in both sales and unit volume for the inland offices.
Dan’s remarkable real estate career began in the automotive-related industry. Focusing on customer relations and service, he built a strong client base and quickly became one of his company’s top sales professionals. That experience laid the foundation for the highly lauded national and international real estate career that followed.
His extensive market share that will now benefit each and every one of us, blankets North Tustin, Tustin Ranch, Orange and vicinity.
What drew Dan to Seven Gables? As a top producer who has been working on building his own personal brand, Dan wanted to align himself with a company that stood for the same ideals he does. One that has built a local reputation based on the work of its roster of superstar agents—people whose sales and service records, negotiation skills and personal reputations are well known and respected. In other words: all of you.
As Dan explained it, for his own personal and professional growth, he needed to join a firm that has a vision he can assimilate with. He needed to be surrounded by other like-minded agents who are part of—and contribute to—that vision. Brand was also important to Dan as well as customer service.
You are going to like Dan. He not only upholds a level of professionalism that distinguishes him as a Realtor, he maintains standards and core values that clearly mirror those upon which we as a company operate. It’s as certain as the sunrise that his reputation and industry leadership will make him an outstanding addition to the Seven Gables organization.
Dan Shusterman will be working out of our flagship office here in North Tustin. When you see him, join me in extending him a very warm Seven Gables welcome. His direct line is 714.665.7194; his email is dans@sevengables.com.
–Mike

Client Satisfacation is our Top Priority!

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I don’t know if you were aware of this, but here at Seven Gables, we have a Concierge/Client Services Center.  We reached out to our past clients and asked for recommendations on contractors, tax consultants, window washers, curtain makers, lawyers etc.  You name it, we probably have someone that was referred to us by a satisfied client.

Next we reached out to our agents.  We asked who had they worked with in the past that they would recommend again?  Someone of integrity, honest, reliable and priced competitevly.

Next we looked for two quality people that would have the commitment to answering any questions that come in from the community, offering their services, knowledge and expertise without a cost!

They answer the phone with a smile that can be heard on the other line, and they are ever resourceful.  I’d like to introduce you to them!
They are  Karen Cannon and Vicki Melin.

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Stay tuned for a great story about how our Concierge Services helped out our Marketing Director!