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I’m really excited to share this episode of an interview I did with Joshua Medcalf of www.TrainToBeClutch.com. I recorded this episode for the California Supplemental Exam Podcast and enjoyed it so much, I thought it would be perfect to release here as well. A free bonus, you’ll get to see my boys as I record the intro for this episode.

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• I’m joined by Performance Enhancement Coach, Joshua Medcalf, of TrainToBeClutch.com
• We discuss techniques to help you get the most out of your studying time and tips on developing efficient study habits including creating positive affirmations, your heart’s beliefs, and the power of positive mindset.

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• This is how a 3 year old does positive affirmations [See Video]
• Contact Joshua at joshua.medcalf@gmail.com or 918.361.8611
• I announce the new “Ultimate Whole Enchilada” coming on January 1. You can pre-order now to take advantage of pre-order pricing Ultimate Whole Enchilada
• Check out my new podcast with fellow green architect, Eric Corey Freed, at www.greentawk.com
• Upcoming Seminars for January 2012  – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Want to hear  more about my personal journey, check out “the pursuit of mindful living”
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

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I’m an Entrepreneur and VERY excited to share this episode. I discuss the reason that I am officially calling myself an entrepreneur as well my focus for 2012.

I’m going to be focusing on www.PodcastCoach.com and the podcasting network and adding a few more shows.

I also discuss the importance of surrounding yourself with like minded individuals. I’d like to give a shout out to my co-host for GreenTawk, Eric Corey Freed, www.organicarchitect.com, a shout out to Femi Abodunde, a social media activist and friend, and Karen Jashinsky, fellow entrepreneur and founder of o2maxfitness.

I also share a recent parent/teacher conference about my son, Jake, and how I’m so over the moon with my boys and the amazing relationship I have them.

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I discuss Knowledge Statement # 46 – Knowledge of Bidding and Negotiation Services

• Change to the Show Format…..Again
• MAJOR update to the Study Materials is underway. Check out the Products Page for more info
• The CSE Podcast will be on hiatus in December
• What’s happening with the CSE Podcast in the New Year?
• Check out my new podcast with fellow green architect, Eric Corey Freed, at www.greentawk.com
• Upcoming Seminars for January 2012 – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Want to hear more about my personal journey, check out “the pursuit of mindful living”
• Find us on itunes

Watch the Video version by clicking above  or Listen to the High Quality Audio version by clicking below

• How does the Occupy Wall Street Movement connect to the Sustainability Movement?

• A look at the methods used in each and how effective they are
• The things each movement (OWS and Eco) can learn from one another
• “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” – R. Buckminster Fuller
• http://www.moveyourmoneyproject.org

BOOKS MENTIONED IN THE SHOW:
The Third Industrial Revolution
Jeremy Rifkin

The Great Disruption
Paul Gilding

Hot: Living Through the Next Fifty Years on Earth
Mark Hertsgaard

The Long Emergency: Surviving the End of Oil, Climate Change, and Other Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-First Century
James Howard Kunstler

World Made by Hand: A Novel
James Howard Kunstler

Dark Age Ahead
Jane Jacobs

Subscribe to the show on iTunes GreenTawk Podcast on iTunes.

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Subscribe on iTunes

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Podcast Coaching: Interested in beginning your own Podcast Journey? I provide podcast coaching services to help you begin your OWN podcast or to enhance or improve your existing podcast. Please checkout the Services page. I also sell podcasting equipment, be sure to check out the “Podcast Your Passion Packages” on the Equipment page. I encourage you to leave any questions or comments below. I look forward to helping you discover YOUR passion for podcasting!

Subscribe To Podcast Coach:

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About this Episode:

I discuss Knowledge Statement #19 including the California Coastal Act, California Clean Air Act, California Public Contract Code, Field Act, and Hospital Facilities Seismic Safety Act.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• California Coastal Commission
• California Coastal Commission Brochure
• California Air Resources Board
• California Public Contract Code
• Field Act
• Seismic Retrofit Program – SB1953
• Upcoming November Seminar
• Find us on itunes 

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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About this episode:

We continue our discussion of the excitement and buzz at Greenbuild a couple of weeks ago. We discuss the Opening Plenary  by Thomas Friedman, the panel with Rick Fedrizzi, Founding Chair of the USGBC, a New York Times press release from the future, and Eric’s love for Adam Levine of Maroon 5. Some of the links mentioned in this episode:

• Video of Thomas Friedman’s Opening Plenary
• Bio of Thomas Friedman
• Bio of Rick Fedrizzi Founding Chair of the USGBC 

Watch the Video version by clicking above

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About this Episode:

• I introduce the Video component of the podcast and will be providing video recordings along with the audio podcasts
• I discuss Knowledge Statement #20 – Knowledge of architect’s responsibilities and requirements for practicing in California
• I discuss the Architects Practice Act including, the purpose, definition of responsible of control, standard of care and when architects must stamp and sign drawings
• I reference the following CAB’s newsletter:
• Spring ’07
• Winter ’08
• Check out my new podcast with fellow green architect, Eric Corey Freed, at www.greentawk.com
• Upcoming Seminars for October and November – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Want to hear more about my personal journey, check out “the pursuit of mindful living”
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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012. The Pursuit of Mindful Living: Turning 40 and Going Thru Changes

Yes, I’ve turned 40 and I’m going thru changes! That is an understatement, to say the least. I loved recording this episode, it may be my most insightful yet. I think we are all going through some kind of change with everything that is going on today.  I also discuss the following relationships in my life:

• Relationship to Wendy
• Relationship to my Boys
• Relationship to my Business
• Relationship to Myself, both the Mental and Physical

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About this episode:

About this episode:

I discuss the importance of choosing the right microphone for your particular podcast based upon your needs and budget. I also demonstrate the following mics and make recommendations as to the most appropriate types of mics for hobby or business.

Logitech AK5370
Logitech H360 Headset
Shure SM58
Heil PR-40

Subscribe on Itunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/podcastcoach.com/id466180580

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Podcast Coaching: Interested in beginning your own Podcast Journey? I provide podcast coaching services to help you begin your OWN podcast or to enhance or improve your existing podcast. Please checkout the Services page. I also sell podcasting equipment, be sure to check out the “Podcast Your Passion Packages” on the Equipment page. I encourage you to leave any questions or comments below. I look forward to helping you discover YOUR passion for podcasting! Subscribe To Podcast Coach:

About this Episode:

• I discuss AIA Document B203: Standard Form of Architect’s Services: Site Evaluation and Planning
• Check out my new podcast with fellow green architect, Eric Corey Freed, at www.greentawk.com
• Upcoming Seminars for October and November – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Want to hear more about my personal journey, check out “the pursuit of mindful living”
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this episode:

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About this episode:

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About this episode:

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Podcast Coaching: Interested in beginning your own Podcast Journey? I provide podcast coaching services to help you begin your OWN podcast or to enhance or improve your existing podcast. Please checkout the Services page. I also sell podcasting equipment, be sure to check out the “Podcast Your Passion Packages” on the Equipment page. I encourage you to leave any questions or comments below. I look forward to helping you discover YOUR passion for podcasting! Subscribe To Podcast Coach:        

About this Episode:

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

011. The Pursuit of Mindful Living: It is An Online, Online World

it has been a couple of months since my last release of an episode and I explain why I have been purposely away. I also discuss my seminar business, www.cseprep.com as well as my new venture, www.podcastcoach.com and my desire to move more into the online world. I also discuss the reason I’m excited to be adding a couple more shows to the scmn.tv lineup this fall.

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About this episode:

• In the first episode of the Podcast Coach, I discuss the 12 Ps of Podcasting. This is the 28,000 foot overview of the entire process of podcasting, from the intial Purpose to the final P (The final P is the MOST IMPORTANT P, listen to find out what it is). The first 8 Ps deal with more of the nuts and bolts planning of the podcast. The final 4 are more about the bigger ideas of podcasting and how it can help your hobby or business. If you’ve ever been curious about podcasting, this is a must listen to episode!
• Not only am I celebrating the release of Podcast Coach, but also this is the 100th podcast episode that I have produced!
• Questions or Comments? Please call into the voice mail listener line at 1.800.476.5579.

Right Click Here to Download mp3 Podcast Coaching: Interested in beginning your own Podcast Journey? I provide podcast coaching services to help you begin your OWN podcast or to enhance or improve your existing podcast. Please checkout the Services page. I also sell podcasting equipment, be sure to check out the “Podcast Your Passion Packages” on the Equipment page. I encourage you to leave any questions or comments below. I look forward to helping you discover YOUR passion for podcasting!

About this Episode:

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

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About this Episode:

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #5: Knowledge of stakeholders (e.g. environmental groups, citizens’ advisory committes, neighborhood & community organizations)
• Chris from San Francisco sends an AWESOME link to AIA commentaries http://www.aia.org/contractdocs/aiab081438
• Like us on Facebook – Click the right sidebar “like” button on www.cseprep.com or www.facebook.com/cseprep
• Upcoming Webinar August 10 & 17
• Upcoming Seminars for August, September, & October – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Want to hear more about my personal journey, check out “the pursuit of mindful living”
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #52: Knowledge of procedures for performing project closeout
• Certificate of Substantial Completion
• Partial Occupancy and Use
• Certificate of Occupancy
• Notice of Completion
• Final Lien Releases
• Role of Architect
• Role of Contractor
• Role of Owner
• CAB News – CIDP to be discontinued
• Kate sends in a question about contract administration
• Feedback from a recent test taker
• FAQ from the California Building Standards Commission website
• Like us on Facebook – Click the right sidebar “like” button on www.cseprep.com or www.facebook.com/cseprep
• Upcoming Webinar July 20 & 27
• Upcoming Seminars for July, & August – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Want to hear  more about my personal journey, check out “the pursuit of mindful living”
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

010. The Pursuit of Mindful Living: Why Attitude is Everything

in this episode i talk about attitude and how attitude really is everything if you think about it. i also talk about a couple of recent hikes.

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About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #35: Knowledge of architects role and responsibilities in coordinating an entire project team
• Dino sends in a voicemail about when a written contract is not required and the old candidate study guide
• Download the “Old Candidate Study Guide” with YMCA project scenario
• Facebook Fan Page – Join the Community www.facebook.com/cseprep
• Upcoming Webinar July 20 & 27
• Upcoming Seminars for July, & August – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Want to hear  more about my personal journey, check out “the pursuit of mindful living”
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

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009. The Pursuit of Mindful Living: Respect

in this episode i talk about RESPECT and something i am trying to maintain during this time of transition. I also introduce my ‘77 Newport 30’ sailboat which is in Marina Del Rey, California.

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About this Episode:

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

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008. The Pursuit of Mindful Living: Failure is Not an Option

in this episode that I recorded on Memorial Day, I finally record my first “walkcast” as I go for a nice hike in the Angeles National Forest. I discuss something that has been heavy on my heart in regards to my transition and also discuss why failure is not option. There is a question in this podcast that I  that am asking feedback about, please send feedback to david@residearchitecture.com. I also take a moment to remember the two most important people who have helped shape my life and who I am today.

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About this Episode:

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

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007. The Pursuit of Mindful Living: A New Beginning

this is my New Beginning. It has been a looong time since I last posted an episode but I am back and really excited to jump back on this train called life and “the pursuit of mindful living.”  In this episode  I describe where I’ve been and what I’ve been up to the last 8 months and also talk a little bit about the major life transition that is happening right now. I also share my thoughts on a movie I recently watched called “I am.”

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About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #21: Elements of Legal Contract as Required by the Architects Practice Act
• I share advice for those of you who are feeling overwhelmed on how to begin
• Bryan sends in a great question that many candidates are wondering about
• Upcoming Socal Seminar, Saturday May 21
• Upcoming Seminars for June, July, & August – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Online Multiple Choice Exam Simulator -  Update
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #38: How practicing within the standard of care limits professional liability exposure
• $200 April Amazon Giftcard Feedback Contest Winner is chosen and announced!
• Upcoming Socal Seminar, Saturday May 21
• Upcoming Seminars for June, July, & August – Sign up now http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Carina send in feedback about the Study Guide
• Dustin sends in some very touching feedback about the CSE podcasts
• Brian and Lisl send in feedback about the discussion Essential Services Buildings and Hospitals
• Link to OSHPD that Brian provided http://www.oshpd.ca.gov/FDD/seismic_compliance/
• Online Multiple Choice Exam Simulator – BETA testing: How to become part of it and start practicing online. The details;
  • Online Multiple Choice Exam Simulator will formally launch at the end of May/early June, but you can become a BETA tester and gain access to the online tests in 2 Weeks PLUS gain free access once the Multiple Choice Exam Simulator goes public, here’s how;
  • Send to david@cseprep.com 20 Multiple Choice Questions w/ 4 answers and the correct answer noted. Please make sure these are orignal and thoughtful questions
  • You will be invited to begin participating in the Online Exam Simulator in about 2 weeks which should have a bank of 300 – 500 questions at that point
  • Once it goes public, you will receive FREE 30 day access
  • Send in your 20 Multiple Choice Questions to david@cseprep.com
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #1: Conditions of the Natural Environment in California
• Online Multiple Choice Exam Simulator – BETA testing: How to become part of it and start practicing online. The details;
  • Online Multiple Choice Exam Simulator will formally launch at the end of May/early June, but you can become a BETA tester and gain access to the online tests in 2 Weeks PLUS gain free access once the Multiple Choice Exam Simulator goes public, here’s how;
  • Send to david@cseprep.com 20 Multiple Choice Questions w/ 4 answers and the correct answer noted. Please make sure these are orignal and thoughtful questions
  • You will be invited to begin participating in the Online Exam Simulator in about 2 weeks which should have a bank of 300 – 500 questions at that point
  • Once it goes public, you will receive FREE 30 day access
  • Send in your 20 Multiple Choice Questions to david@cseprep.com
• $200 April Amazon Giftcard Feedback Contest – Help me improve my materials! Whether you’ve already taking the Exam or are still studying, YOU can Enter to Win a $200 Amazon Gift Card by submitting your recommendations/suggestions for improvement to david@cseprep.com
• Upcoming SoCal Seminar, Saturday May 21
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #10: Essential Services Buildings Seismic Safety Act of 1986
• Download the Act here in one document; RIGHT CLICK Here to Download ACT;
• $200 April Amazon Giftcard Feedback Contest – Help me improve my materials! Whether you’ve already taking the Exam or are still studying, YOU can Enter to Win a $200 Amazon Gift Card by submitting your recommendations/suggestions for improvement to david@cseprep.com
• Upcoming NoCal Seminar, Saturday April 30
• Upcoming SoCal Seminar, Saturday May 21
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• Why am I being selfish today?
• I received my first two reviews on itunes!
• $200 April Amazon Giftcard Feedback Contest – Help me improve my materials! Whether you’ve already taking the Exam or are still studying, YOU can Enter to Win a $200 Amazon Gift Card by submitting your recommendations/suggestions for improvement to david@cseprep.com
• Knowledge Statement #13: Bracing of Non-Structural Elements
• Upcoming NoCal Seminar, Saturday April 30
• Upcoming Webinar Wednesdays, April 20 & 27
• Upcoming SoCal Seminar, Saturday May 21
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• Audience Feedback and Questions
• $200 April Amazon Giftcard Feedback Contest – Help me improve my materials! Whether you’ve already taking the Exam or are still studying, YOU can Enter to Win a $200 Amazon Gift Card by submitting your recommendations/suggestions for improvement to david@cseprep.com
• What’s the deal with CAB making us wait 90 days
• Christine offers a suggestion about interviewing Agencies
• Takeshi sends in a suggestion about the Project Scenario
• Kevin gives some kudos about a recent LIVE! seminar
• Mark and Xie send in quick thoughts after taking the exam
• Michael from NY sends in thoughts about the review of contracts
• Edward discusses the removal of Section 135 from the Architects Practice Act
• Shannon also sends in removal 135 plus some other Practice Act information
  • CAB Newsletter Winter/Spring 2009 http://www.cab.ca.gov/pdf/newsletters/winter-spring09_nl.pdf
• Lisl offers a suggestion about painting a broad overview before diving into review of contracts
• Sue sends in several questions about Architect’s responsibilities
• Gordon brings up the ‘ole “specifications over-rule drawings” debate
• Upcoming NoCal Seminar, Saturday April 30
• Upcoming Webinar Wednesdays, April 20 & 27
• Upcoming SoCal Seminar, Saturday May 21
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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About this Episode:

• Completion of our discussion of AIA Contract B201: Standard Form of Architect’s Services: Design & Construction Contract Administration
  • Articles 2.4 – 7
  • Help me improve my materials! Whether you’ve already taking the Exam or are still studying, YOU can Enter to Win a $200 Amazon Gift Card by submitting your recommendations/suggestions for improvement to david@cseprep.com
• Upcoming NoCal Seminar, Saturday April 30
• Upcoming SoCal Seminar, Saturday May 21
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

Right Click Here to Download mp3

Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• AIA Contract B201:  Standard Form of Architect’s Services: Design & Construction Contract Administration
  • Articles 2.4 – 2.6
• Help me improve my materials! Whether you’ve already taking the Exam or are still studying, YOU can Enter to Win a $200 Amazon Gift Card by submitting your recommendations/suggestions for improvement to david@cseprep.com
• Upcoming NoCal Seminar, Saturday April 30
• Upcoming SoCal Seminar, Saturday May 21
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

Right Click Here to Download mp3

Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• AIA Contract B201: Standard Form of Architect’s Services: Design & Construction Contract Administration
  • Articles 1 – 2.3 (Design Development Phase Services)
• Next Seminar, LAX Saturday, March26 http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Upcoming NoCal Seminar, Saturday April 30
• Find us on itunes

Like what you’ve heard? I would greatly appreciate you leaving a comment here and/or submitting a review to itunes.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

• AIA Contract B102: Standard Form of Agreement between Owner and Architect without a Predefined Scope of Services
• Next Seminar, LAX Saturday, March26 http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Upcoming NoCal Seminar, Saturday April 30
• Question from Jim about how the CSBC is different than the Model Codes
• Question from Jim about Association under the Architects Practice Act
• Find us on itunes

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About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #25: Americans with Disablities Act
• Upcoming March SoCal Seminar & Webinar
• Upcoming NoCal Seminar
• Clarification of the 25 Q&A Guide and 200 Q&A Guide
• Question from Paul about getting the audio companion on to his iphone
• Question from Audrey about clarification between the 2007 Test Plan and latest California Building Code
• Question from Takeshi about accessibility
• Voicemail feedback from Alvin about predeisgn services and climatic conditions
• Americans with Disabilities Act website http://www.ada.gov/
• CalDag website http://caldag.com/
• Find us on itunes

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About this Episode:

• Candidates have begun taking the Exam!
• Knowledge Statement #11: California Building Standards Code
• Click for more info California Building Standards Commission Website
• Click for the Guide to Title 24
• Click for more info on California Code of Regulations
• Find us on itunes

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About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #31: Approval from Regulatory Agencies
• Candidates are scheduling their exam on the PSI website!
• NoCal Seminar Update: Discount Extended & Holiday Inn Oakland Airport http://www.hioaklandairport.com/
• Webinar Scheduled! http://californiasupplementalexam.com/webinars/ **Please note that if you’ve already purchased the Whole Enchilda and would like to participate in the Webinar, send an email to david@cseprep.com and I will send you a discount link (difference between Webinar and Whole Enchilada already purchased)
• Voicemail feedack from Alvin about Knowledge Statements #15, #17, #18, #21, #31
• Questions from Josue about submitting to agencies
• Comments from Jerry, Paul, Christine, and Takeshi
• Find us on itunes

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About this Episode:

• Knowledge Statement #3: Health Issues related to Buildings
• Latest Update from CAB http://www.cab.ca.gov/
• Find us on itunes
• Southern California Seminar a Success!
• Northern California – February 26, discount extended! http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/
• Check out my Approachable Architect Podcast episode All About Mold

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About this Episode:

• January Seminar (SoCal) and February Seminar (NoCal)
• CAB Test Plan (2007) remains for the new format
• Knowledge Statement #50: Procedures for Implementing Changes During Construction

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About this Episode:

• The studio has moved!
• Takeshi sent in a question about LLCs and S-Corp
• Upcoming January Seminar discount extended
• NoCal Seminar happening in February
• Knowledge Statement #49: Conflict Resolution
• My Personal Arbitration Story

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I’m very happy to announce a Northern California Seminar that I will be conducting on;

February 26, 2011 in the Oakland/San Fran Area.

Please visit the Seminar Page for more info by clicking http://californiasupplementalexam.com/seminars/

I’ve also added an option for you to purchase the Seminar package without committing to a Seminar Date right now. Look for the LIVE! Seminar Today package link on the seminar page as well.

About this Episode:

• Tony sent in a question about lateral load systems
• Takeshi sent in a question about the Design Professionals Lien
• Knowledge Statement #18: Design Professionals & Mechanics’ Lien
• Roger Waters’ The Wall Tour
• January Seminar Info

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I’m happy to announce the January Seminar has been scheduled. I’m looking forward to diving in to the revised format!

Next LIVE! Seminar:

Saturday, January 22, 2011 in Culver City, CA

The LIVE! Seminar is designed to discuss and review ALL 55 Knowledge Statements of the 2007 California Architects Board Test Plan including the reference materials listed on CAB’s website. We will also have time for a Special Question and Answer Period so be sure to bring any and all questions. Candidates will also be given a written multiple choice exam that we will review in class. Highlights include;

• Seminar held 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
• Covers ALL 55 Knowledge Statements
• One Hour on each Category
• Special Question & Answer Period
• Take and Review Multiple Choice Exam
• PLUS Instant Access to “The Whole Enchilada” when you sign up, start studying TODAY!

SEATING IS LIMITED, visit the SEMINAR PAGE to SIGN UP TODAY!

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About this Episode:

• CAB update, click to visit CABs Website. Note: this link is now accessible from their website, mystery solved!
• Knowledge Statement #6: Comfort Control, Safety and Security, and Sustainability

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About this Episode:

• a fond fairwell to the era of the Oral Format
• what is an RSS feed
• soon to be released Premium Membership Program
• what to expect in upcoming podcasts
• Knowledge Statement #9: California Environmental Quality Act

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About this Episode:

In this episode, I discuss some fantastic feedback I have received from candidates who have purchased my new study materials (and one not so fantastic comment). I also conduct a 2 question consultation with John, whom I never met before or spoke with before the podcast. I also discuss my thoughts on “dress code” for the day and most importantly, MINDSET.

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In this video, I explain exactly what you should be focusing on right now for those taking the oral exam next week.

About this Episode:

In this episode, I reveal my new products page at CSEprep.com which allows for Instant Download of study materials. I also address a comment about giving additional number of items and my thoughts on that. I reveal three tips that will be extremely helpful to those in their final week of preparation for the exam. Finally, I review two questions and give suggested answers discuss the best way to formulate responses.

Do you want to become part of next two upcoming shows I’m offering candidates who are taking the oral exam in November a free 2 question phone session in which I will ask you two questions and critque your answers and give you valuable feedback. The only thing I ask in return is to include your session in an upcoming episode.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

About this Episode:

In this episode, I introduce the ONLY podcast dedicated to the California Supplemental Exam and give some great advice to the candidates who are taking the last of the oral format on November 15, 16. I reveal the 2 MOST important points that candidates must be aware of for the oral format. I also have one of my students and candidates, on the show and I ask him three questions and critique his answers. You’ll want to hear this if your taking the oral exam in a couple of weeks.

Do you want to become part of one of the next two upcoming shows? I’m offering candidates who are taking the oral exam in November a free 2 question phone session in which I will ask you two questions and critque your answers and give you valuable feedback. The only thing I ask in return is to include your session in an upcoming episode.

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Questions or Comments? Call in to the voicemail feedback line at 1.800.476.5579 and hear your question, in your voice, on the air!

016. the reside real estate podcast – fannie, freddie, fha oh my! with david garrett, mortgage banker

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in this episode, i’m joined by my preferred lender, david garrett. david is a mortgage banker from garrett mortgage and dg financial, inc. he has been doing loans in california for a long time now. he provides loans for residential and as well as commercial properties. listen as we talked about mortgage bankers, mortgage brokers and banks. we also discussed the two large government-sponsored agencies fannie mae and freddie mac and more. getting a loan is not a laid-back course of action; you’d like to listen to this episode so you’ll learn something that could help you get through the process. for more information about david, you can visit www.garretthomeloans.com

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: are you looking to purchase a home? i specialize in working with homebuyers and first time buyers on the westside of los angeles. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com

015. the reside real estate podcast – Troy Lindquist With Alternative Energy Solutions

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in this episode, i’m joined by professional stager annie pinsker-brown of stage to sell and we talk about the importance and benefits of staging and as a seller, why there’s a need for you to stage your home before putting it on the market.  if you are thinking of selling your home or currently have a home on the market that is just “sitting”, you need to listen to this episode. for more information please visit www.stagetosell.biz

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: are you looking to purchase a home? i specialize in working with homebuyers and first time buyers on the westside of los angeles. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com

Hello and welcome to the Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. Today I want to talk to you about an article that recently came out of CNNMoney.com and it is titled, “Unemployed? Get a Federal Loan to Help Pay Your Mortgage“. An interesting program and what homeowners will be able to do is apply for a no-interest government loan for up to $50,000 to pay your mortgage and cover your arrears. What it will do is it’s going to offer assistance for up to two years and it will be forgiven if the homeowner stays in the house for five years. Let’s take a closer look.

To qualify for the program, homeowners must live in Puerto Rico or one of the 32 states not in the Hardest Hit Fund area. So, if you’re one of the states in the Hardest Hit Fund area, this program will not be available to you and some of those states include California, Nevada. Florida, Michigan and Arizona, where the original 5 when the Hardest Hit Fund was created in earlier this year in February.

And to qualify for the program if you live in one of those 32 states or Puerto Rico, you have to be at least 3 months behind on your payments but have a reasonable likelihood of being able to make payments again in the near future within two years. And, you also have had to suffer a 15% drop in income, but must have been able to afford your home before the income drop.

It is called the “Emergency Homeowners Loan Program” and they’re expecting to start taking applications before the end of the year, so, you can Google the Emergency Homeowners Loan Program and find out more information about it. And I think over the coming month or so, they’re going to release some more details about it.

That is going to do it for me today. My name is David Doucette, thank you so much for checking out the Reside Daily Bite.

Welcome to the Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette and today we have our weekly market report and we’re going to look at the 6 communities of Santa Monica, Westchester, Mar Vista and Palms, Venice, Culver City and West Los Angeles.

And the chart we’re going to look out today is called the “Supply and Demand by Month” and we are going to look at the last 12 months of history.

So, let’s start over here at September 2010. Last month there were 618 homes for sale and 92 homes sold.

Let’s take a look at where we were last year in September; we have 594 homes for sale and we had 108 homes sold in September 2009.

So you can see here the number of homes that have sold (you can follow my cursor across), it’s a little bit up and down; been hovering around the 100 homes per month. Certainly, last January and February, it’s down to about 50 homes per month. Then it is slowly climbing from March, April, May, June, where it was over a hundred units a month. And then in July, August, it started to dip. In September, it’s a little more than August. Be curious to see what happens in the coming months.

And as for the units for sale (the homes for sale), you can see as you follow my cursor, we dipped in December, January, February -which is typically the slower time; we see less activity. Then as summer approaches, you can see a lot more homes are coming on the market and now that’s starting to dip again.

Traditionally we’ll see over the coming months, fewer homes come on the market but with the state of things now, I’ll be curious to see what happens.

That’s our Supply and Demand by Month for today’s Reside Daily Bite. I’m your host, David Doucette, thank you so much for checking us out.

Hello and welcome to the Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. And some very exciting news coming out of the interest rate department last week. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that interest rates have dropped, on a 30-year loan, to 4.19% – that’s the lowest rate we have seen in decades.

And a couple of interesting things about the interest rate, they’re also predicting it may actually go lower. And there’s a program there predicting that the Feds are going to be buying more treasury bonds that’s going to drive down the loan rates even more to try and boost the economy. Some are speculating that it could go lower than 4% on a 30-year fixed; some are predicting it’ s going to hover right around that. Either way, it’s great news for anybody who’s looking to buy a home right now.

And what’s interesting about the interest rates, is last spring the experts were talking about the end of this year the interest rates are going to be up by 6%. So buy now…buy now…buy now. Well, that hasn’t happened, probably because of some kind of double dip that were experiencing, I don’t know. I’m not saying that there’s a double dip.

But I want to put the interest rates in perspective. 10 years ago in October 2000, interest rates were at 7.8%. In 1990, interest rates were at 10.17%. Check this out, in October 1980, interest rates were 13.79%; and October 1981, interest rates were at 18.45%. Now, in October 1981, I was 10 years old, so I have no idea what’s the interest rate and all that stuff is happening. My parents had already bought their house years ago that I grew up in. Crazy, crazy stuff.

Today, interest rates are at 4.19% and predicting to even go a hair bit lower.

That is going to do it for me today, thank you so much for checking out the Reside Daily Bite.

034. the approachable architect podcast – what is a short sale? with toni patillo, short sale specialist, la city short sales

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in this episode, i’m joined by toni patillo, short sale guru, la city short sales and negotiator jason jerzewski, as we discuss what is necessary to qualify for a short sale as well as discuss the art of negotiation.  if you are considering a short sale, this episode will point you in the right direction. you can find more information about toni at www.lacityshortsales.com.

like what you’ve heard? please submit a review to itunes.

ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES: i specialize in providing architectural design services for environmentally friendly, healthy, high performance, and energy efficient homes including major remodels, second story additions, and new construction. please contact me at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residearchitecture.com if you would like to discuss your project. www.residearchitecture.com.

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: looking to buy your first home or move into another home? i would love to help you find your next home. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com. www.residerealestate.com.

Welcome everybody to the reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. I want to let you know about a podcast that is currently on my website, residerealestate.com/podcast called “What is a short sale?” I have the good fortune of having in the studio (in the office) to interview, Toni Patillo of LA City Short Sales.

Toni is the broker record at Keller Williams, Santa Monica -the office that I worked with. She has been focusing on short sales for the last 3 years. It is 98% of her business right now and she has it down to a system. She has negotiators on her team and she is a fantastic resource; a wealth of knowledge.

I encourage you to check out the podcast on my website, again at residerealestate.com/podcast episode no. 14 called “What is a Short Sale?” We talked about what a short sale is and from the seller’s perspective. If you’re thinking or if you know somebody who’s thinking of trying to do a short sale, you want to hear this episode because we talked about some of the things that need to be in order for you to be considered for a short sale. So, definitely check that out. It’s a great podcast; I think it’s about 40 minutes or so.

And that is going to do it for me today and my name is David Doucette, thank you so much for checking out the reside Daily Bite.

014. the reside real estate podcast – what is a short sale? with toni patillo, short sale specialist, la city short sales

Right-Click Here To Download mp3

in this episode, i’m joined by toni patillo, short sale guru, la city short sales and negotiator jason jerzewski, as we discuss what is necessary to qualify for a short sale as well as discuss the art of negotiation.  if you are considering a short sale, this episode will point you in the right direction. you can find more information about toni at www.lacityshortsales.com.

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: are you looking to purchase a home? i specialize in working with homebuyers and first time buyers on the westside of los angeles. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of the Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette and today, I want to talk to you about a trend that was reported in the New York Times recently about Refinancing into Shorter Loans and their saying homeowners  are starting to do that and it is becoming more of a trend. And the Gold Standard has always been a 30-year fixed loan. What we’re seeing with refinancing is people are refinancing into a 15-year loan. So, what that means is less time to pay-off their home; it’s going to be higher monthly payments but a lot more of your monthly payment is actually going to go towards the principal on the loan rather than the interest.

And I went to my trusted source on the internet, BankRate.com and they have a comparison chart that you can go and plug in. So, I plugged in for just a $500,000 loan. Today’s interest rate is 3.625% per 15 year and the 30 year is 4.25%; so the 15 year is typically going to run about half a point lower than the 30 year. But your monthly payment on a $500,000 loan (this is just the mortgage itself) is about $3,600; on a 30 year loan, it will be about $2,500. So $3,600 and $2,500; a difference of about $1,100 a month.

So, what that means is (this is where we see the big numbers), total payments are $649,000 on a 15 year loan and on a 30 year loan, $885,000. So, $885,000 up here and $649,000 here. It’s really about $240,000 difference between the 15 year loan and the 30 year loan…so, very interesting.

And what the article says is the people that are doing this are the ones who can afford to do it -typically ones that are making more than $250,000 a year, obviously. It’s going to depend on what area you live in but they’re also saying the people who are doing it are the ones who are pretty secure in their lifestyle and pretty set with the home that they’re in.

And so, I think it’s a great option if you can afford to do it or if you know somebody that can afford to do it. You can save on a $500,000 mortgage. You can save $240,000 over the life of that loan. Plus, in a 15 year loan, it’s now paid off in 15 years which can now free up some money to send 2 boys to college, which is something that I’ll have to be thinking about in about 15 to 16 years.

So, that’s going to do it for me today, I want to thank you so much for checking out the Reside Daily Bite.

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. Today, we have our weekly market report for our 6 neighborhood communities here on the Westside of Los Angeles: Santa Monica, Venice, Palms and Mar Vista, Culver City, Westchester and West LA. What we are going to look at today is the median sold price of homes last month, September, versus where we were a year ago. So, it’s a good way to get an indication on what’s going on in the market and what’s going on in your neighborhood and you’re going to quickly find out that not all of the neighborhoods are doing the same thing.

So, let’s jump right into it here…we have our Median Sold Price by Month -that is the average sale price of homes that are selling. And we’re looking at Santa Monica first. What you can see here is September of 2010 (so last month right here) compared to September of 2009. The average sale price a year ago is $1.625M. That dropped a little bit to $1.574; change of about $50,000. So, it’s down to about 3% from where we were a year ago. Not a big concern here and you can even see August of 2010 is a good month for Santa Monica.

Let’s take a look at another community…West LA. Again, here we are at September 2010 and compared to September of 2009. In 2009, average sale price was $725,000; September of 2010 is $706,000. Change is about $19,000 or down 3% -again, not a huge concern.

Let’s take a look at another community…and here, we’re looking at Culver City. Average price a year ago is $632,500; last month is $620,000. So, a change of about $12,000 and down about 2%. And you can see the activity in Culver City -it had a very active summer.

Let’s go to Venice. This is where we’re down about 38%. So, average a year ago was $1.125M and last month was $700,000. That’s a change of about $425,000; down about 38%. The reason could be is there’s a multi-million dollar homes on the canals and on the oceans that just haven’t been moving recently. And that may be one of the causes of the drop at 38%. Again, it’s compared to where we were a year ago to where we were last month.

Let’s take a look at Westchester. Westchester is up 9% -it’s been healthy. A year ago, $690,000 and last month is $750,000. So, up about $60,000 or 9%. Pretty healthy for Westchester.

And then Palms/Mar Vista -very interesting. Here we are 2010 of September and here, 2009 September. So, a year ago, we were at $735,000. Now, last month, we were at $880,000. A change of about $145,000 or 20%. Some nice activity with Palms and Mar Vista and you can see here, pretty active summer for Palms/Mar Vista but in September…very active month.

So as you can see, the neighborhoods or real estate is hyper local. The six neighborhoods we’ve just looked at…they all touch each other on the Westside of Los Angeles and you can really see the different activities in each neighborhood. So, when we are hearing home reports in CNN or CSMBC, we have to take that with a grain of salt and remember to look in our own backyard to really get a sense of what’s happening.

That is going to do it for me today. My name is David Doucette, thank you so much for checking out the Reside Daily Bite.

Mortgages: Congress holds conforming loan limits at nearly $730,000

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of the Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. And today, some interesting news or some good news coming out of Congress; this was reported in the Mercury News in the Silicone Valley at MercuryNews.com and you’ll see a link to that on my website at residerealestate.com. The Reside Daily Bite will have a link to this news article below the video.

The title is “Congress holds conforming loan limits at nearly $730,000“. That is very good news and it says, “Lawmakers have voted to keep the maximum size of loans guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration at the current level through the end of 2011.” So, this is really good news for the more expensive areas such as the Bay Area, also here on Los Angeles, on the Westside. This is great news because the average home price right now for single family home, depending on the neighborhood, is around $650,000 to about $800,000. This is a very much needed extension that we received and without it the limits would have fallen to about $625,000.

It’s very good that we have this and I just want to read a couple of quotes. One of the gentleman publisher of a trade publication called Inside Mortgage Finance put a kind of a funny quote… “Nobody wants to oppose or upset the Realtors and the home builders in an election year”. So, it was kind of funny.

They’re predicting it will help about 60,000 borrowers annually. Again, very good news for the Westside of Los Angeles.

That’s going to do it for me today. My name is David Doucette, thank you so much for checking out the Reside Daily Bite.

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette and today, we’re going to talk about Zillow and their Zestimates. Before I jump into that, I just want to let you know, if you like the kind of content that you’re seeing here today, you can head over to www.facebook.com/resideFAN and you can like us over there. I also encourage you to send this link to any of your friends and associates who you think might find this information helpful, especially today’s video. If you have any friends that are thinking of selling their home, this is a very good one to send them because we’re going to be talking about Zillow and their Zestimates.

So let’s jump right into it. We’re on the Zillow homepage. Zillow is one of the most frequented US state websites on the internet, with over 12M visits per month -so they got a lot of activity over there. It’s not an appraisal website and I think sometimes, homeowners can think that it is somehow related to an appraisal or the actual value of their home…and it’s not. And now, I’m going to show you why, here in a minute. If you scroll to the bottom of their website, you will see “Zestimate Values & Accuracy” and what a Zestimate is, is a Zillow created thing through some formula that they have come up with and that they have developed. Let’s click on that and that’s going to take us to “What’s a Zestimate?”page- Zestimate home valuation is Zillow’s estimated market value. And they say it’s not an appraisal. It’s only Zillow’s estimated value but what I want to point out here is really the lack of accuracy in this for homeowners trying to establish real market value of their home.

Let’s look here…we have, “within 5% accuracy of the sale price; within 10% accuracy of the sale price; and within 20% accuracy of the sale price; and also the median error”. And you can go and look at your metro areas.

Here, we have Los Angeles – only 30% of the homes or 30% of the time will it be accurate within 5% and that might sound pretty good but I’m going to explain why it’s not in a minute. 54% within 10% of sale price; within 80% accurate within 20% of sale price and a median error of 9.0%; again, this might sound like okay within the margin of error but, within 20% of sale price…if your home is say, have a market value of $750,000. 20% of $750,000 is $150,000, so, it could be between $600,000 and $900,000 -that’s a huge window.

But I want to talk about this 5% column because a 30% accuracy…you might think 5% is pretty good. It’s not. And I want to tell you why. In our marketplace here on the Westside of Los Angeles, homes are selling within 1-2% of the list price -that’s right, 1-2%. So, you need to make sure your home is priced at market value if you want it to sell. What often times happen is, realtors and homeowners will establish a list price above market value and what’s going to happen is that, home typically will sit on the market until they have enough price reductions to bring it down to market value and then it will sell. Again, homes are selling on average within 1-2% of list price.

So, if we look at this 5%…it’s only 30% accurate. I, as a homeowner can’t really count on that at all. Really, the only way to know the real market value of your home is to pay an appraiser to appraise your home or have an experienced real estate agent show you comps of what is recently sold in the area -recently sold, that’s what we want to see (typically within the last 3 months). We could go back as far as 6 months but typically, we want to see what sold in the last 3 months to determine market value.

So, if you’re using the Zestimate, just be careful. And if you’re really thinking of selling your home, do not use the Zestimate; contact your realtor to have them do a comparative market analysis. If you have any questions or comments on this one, feel free to email me david@residerealestate.com. That’s going to do it for me today, thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.

Welcome everybody to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette and I am throaty; my voice is about 75% and I was out of the office yesterday, so, there was no Bite yesterday. I was home sick and I did have just a little thought of recording a Bite at home but that would have been a disaster so, I didn’t.

Today’s bite is an interesting one. It’s an article that came out last week out of the San Diego Tribune titled, “Downsizing is Booming“. And it’s interesting because the first line says, “Goodbye, McMansion. Hello, bungalow, condo or suburban split-level.” So, what they’re saying is, really, the era of McMansion is over and people are going to be living in smaller homes and being a little more mindful of their space in a living.

That’s a trend I predicted a few years ago and started to see some of that as an architect; and I think we’re going to see more of that as we move along were people, rather than trading up to their homes, they’re probably going to stay in their home and maybe renovate their kitchen or knock down a wall or do something to their existing house. Smaller renovations are kind of what we’re seeing right now as people adjust to the market and to the economic that we are in.

I actually think it’s a good thing. I think it’s an opportunity for us as Americans to reprioritize our habits and a lot of what we’ve been doing. The articles say, “Median home size has dropped 6 percent since 2007, in large part because cash-strapped Americans can’t afford to buy, heat or maintain larger homes.” So, it is interesting when you buy a larger home it’s not just a larger purchase price that you have to deal with. You have the larger utility bills, the heating cost, and the cooling cost. So, a lot of people have been realizing this and what some people are doing in these bigger homes is, they are going to the short sale process (or have gone to the short sale process), renting in the interim and then their plan is to buy a smaller home in a couple of years.

So, I think living within our means is going to be a new cool. It’s a great article actuall…if you go to the San Diego Tribune -titled, “Downsizing is Booming“. It’s kind of a lengthy article but it is really good. And, I think that’s it. I’m about 75% here today.

That’s going to do it for me today, for The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host. Thank you so much for checking us out.

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette and today, I want to talk to you about an article that came out of the Orange County Register last week, entitled, “1 in 3 Unlikely to Qualify for Mortgage“.

So, what they’re saying is, 1 in 3 people will not qualify for mortgage and it was in an analysis that was done by Zillow; and they mentioned some credit score numbers. But what’s interesting is, borrowers with credit scores under 620, who requested purchase loan quotes for 30-year fixed, conventional loans were unlikely to even get a single loan quote on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace; even if they offered a relatively high downpayment of 15-25%.

According to MyFico.com, nearly 1/3 of the Americans, or 29.3%, has a credit score that low. Very interesting. And then it also says, not surprisingly, the analyst found that the lower interest rates went to borrowers who are among the 47% of Americans with primo credit scores of 720 or higher (So 720 or higher, you have a great credit score). And they give a little box here, if you’re above 720, your interest rate could be at 4.3% versus if it’s 620 to 639, you’re at 4.9%. So, a difference of 0.6% – that’s a lot. Let’s see, what Stan Humphries, Zillow’s Chief Economist said, “We’re getting in an area of historically low mortgage rates, reaching levels not seen in decades. Coupled with 4 years of home value declines, homes are more affordable than we’ve seen for years. But the irony here is that so many Americans can’t qualify for these low rates, or can’t even qualify for a mortgage at all”.

So, the lesson in all of these is making sure you talk to your lender -the very first thing you do if you’re considering buying a home. You want to know exactly how much you can afford based on your current income and the money that you earn. So, very first step before you even go out start looking at homes, looking at the right price range, make sure you are working with your lender. If you need any lender referrals, I have 3 very good lenders that I work with.

That’s going to do it for The Reside Daily Bite today, my name is David Doucette. Thank you so much for checking us out.

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host David Doucette and today, we have this week’s weekly market report for the Westside of Los Angeles for the communities of Santa Monica, Venice, Mar Vista/Palms, West LA, Culver City and Westchester. You can also visit my website to download and print out this report. And that is residerealestate.com/blog and look for episode 059 and you can download it right there. Alright, let’s jump into the activity today. I want to talk specifically about Santa Monica.

Download the Market Report for the Week of October 2

In Santa Monica right now, we have 28 homes for sale under $1.2 M (the market we’re looking at); so, we have 28 homes for sale. We have 18 that are currently in escrow.  So, they’re in various stages of either home inspections or funding of the loan. We’ve had 17 homes expire or listings, I should say, expire in the last 6 months. We’ve had 54 closed transactions in the last 6 months. And the average sale price is $858,031. The average list price of the sold homes is $867,545. And I explained last week the ratio of the actual sale price to the list price of that sold home –and that’s 98.9%. Again, very important that sellers price their homes at market value. The average square footage is 1,371 sq ft. The average price per sq ft is $620. And the average days on the market is 54, which is pretty good. It’s a pretty active market here on the Westside.

Alright, let’s check out some activity the past week for Sept. 26^th to Oct 2^nd. We’ve had 55 new listings come on the market last week, which is a lot of activity. The week before, we had 40 come on. Also, -which I don’t like to see- 47 price reductions. That’s a lot of price reductions and there’s several reasons why we need to have price reductions but oftentimes, the list price is just unrealistic when it comes on to the market and I think it’s part of our job as realtors to educate the homeowners so we can price their home at market value. Accepted offers last week was 39 -that’s up 6 from the previous week. And then, sold, that is 18 -and that’s up 5 from the previous week. So, good market activity for the week of September 26^th to October 2^nd.

Again, you can download this at residerealestate.com/blog. Look for episode 059. That is going to do it for The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host David Doucette. Thank you so much for checking us out.

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite. I am here with Lee Fox of Koodooz and we’re getting ready to record a podcast interview. So, this is a little mini trailer of what you’re going to hear on the podcast. And Lee, what are we going to talk about today?

Lee: I guess it depends on the questions you ask me. We’re going to talk about youth empowerment, philanthropy and how to leverage the passion points of kids to have some community outcome.

David: And tell us in 3 sentences (because we’ve been talking for a little bit,) the mission of koodooz.

Lee: The mission is to heighten awareness for the impact that kids can have. I’d love to give the example of a little girl that wanted to do something for the BP oil spill and she contacted the Audubon society and said, “Hey, I can draw really well”. And she drew greeting cards -here own designs- raised a $175,000 to help rescue animals. So, these are the kinds of opportunities I want to bring to life for all kids.

David: Wow, very cool. So you guys can tune in to the podcast to hear more of these kinds of stories and you can find that at residerealestate.com/podcast and Lee, really quick, how do people find you?

Lee: www.koodooz.com -that’s my website, otherwise, I’m on Twitter @koodooz

David: That’s okay and if you’re wondering what koodooz, how she came up with that, I’m curious too and you’re going to have to tune in to the podcast to find that out. That’s is going to do it for us today, thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite

013. the reside real estate podcast – lee fox with koodooz.com

Right-Click Here To Download mp3

in this episode, i’m joined by professional stager annie pinsker-brown of stage to sell and we talk about the importance and benefits of staging and as a seller, why there’s a need for you to stage your home before putting it on the market.  if you are thinking of selling your home or currently have a home on the market that is just “sitting”, you need to listen to this episode. for more information please visit www.stagetosell.biz

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: are you looking to purchase a home? i specialize in working with homebuyers and first time buyers on the westside of los angeles. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com

033. the approachable architect podcast -Troy Lindquist With Alternative Energy Solutions

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in this episode, i’m joined by energy analyst, troy lindquist, of alternative energy solutions. troy specializes in producing calculation for compliance with california’s energy code as well as provides third party verification and testing for LEED homes as well as other green building programs. listen in as we discuss the importance of sealing the envelope, testing of insulation and duct leakage as well as troy’s recent trip to the burning man festival. for more information about troy, please visit www.title24energy.com.

like what you’ve heard? please submit a review to itunes.

ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES: i specialize in providing architectural design services for environmentally friendly, healthy, high performance, and energy efficient homes including major remodels, second story additions, and new construction. please contact me at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residearchitecture.com if you would like to discuss your project. www.residearchitecture.com.

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: looking to buy your first home or move into another home? i would love to help you find your next home. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com. www.residerealestate.com.

Happy Friday everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. Today, I want to talk to you about the Consumer Confidence Index. It’s still going to be a happy Friday after we’re done talking about it.

The Consumer Confidence Index is a number that is used to measure the confidence of how consumers feel about the economy based on their spending and saving habits. It’s a very important number because the Federal Reserve will look at that number when they’re deciding whether to make changes in the interest rate. The stock market pays attention to that number, as well. So, it’s a very important number.

How do we come up with it? Who does it? Well, the Conference Board, which is an independent economic research group, is the ones responsible for coming up with a Consumer Confidence Index and they do that based on 5,000 households; they do it monthly. And the reason I’m talking about this today, is they just released September’s number. It’s down from August by about 5 points. So, where we are right now (September); it is at 48.5. Our Consumer Confidence Number right now, in the United States, is 48.5. In August, it was 53.2. We’ve come down about 5 points.

Now, what does that mean? Well, we have to put it in historical perspective to really understand them. In September of 2000, the Consumer Confidence Index was up around 142. In September of 2007, it was down to about 112. That’s when it really started to quickly go down for about the next year and a half to about 50 or so. The lowest of the Consumer Confidence Index was March of 2009. It was 26.9.  We’ve been making our way up and in May of 2010 (so, May of this year); we were actually at 62.7. We’ve been kind of coming down a little bit since May and hopefully we’re going to see that numbers start to come up. It comes out monthly. It’s very important number to follow and you’ll probably hear it on the news. And, that is the Consumer Confidence Index number.

It’s still happy Friday here. I want to thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.

Welcome everybody to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite. The title of this show today is called “Good Realtors Work, Great Realtors Network” and the evidence of that today (you didn’t know that, did you?) is I’m here at a Tweetup event that my co-host, Michele, and myself  put together. We did that to basically take Twitter, bring it offline, make more of a relationship here on the Westside community and build some relationships here.

So, Michele, how do you like doing the group?

Michele: It has been so great and I’ve made so many great friends and so great business relationships and actually got some business from it. I think, small, tight, focused networking is really the way to go. It doesn’t really do any good to meet 50 people in a night and just splatter your business cards all over. You have to really connect with people and find out what people do and how you can help each other.

David: Yeah. And it’s very cool because we’ve been doing this, I think, 5 months now and we’re getting a lot of people coming back. So, it’s a lot of that familiar faces. And Debra, who is one of our members, is doing the presentation tonight. And Debra is…well, I’ll let Debra… what are going to talk about tonight?

Debra: Well, tonight, I’m going to talk about the importance of networking and kind of like what Michele just said –is essential. If you’re going to network, you need to network live, as well as online, and find ways to leverage the real life relationships for online purposes. And when you’re networking online, find ways to expand those relationships. I kind of agree with what you’ve (Michele) just said but I have to add a little caveat towards this because I do the media-bistro networking events and we get hundreds of those. It is okay to meet a lot of people and then, trade business cards and connect with them online (Facebook and on Twitter) the next day. That way, you start developing rapport.  So the next time you encounter the same group of people, maybe you pick 5 or 10 that you meet in the event and develop a relationship. You go and see these people again and then, you pick a different batch. I do these networking parties and it’s so funny…I see my friends, and I give them a hug and say, “Thank you, it’s great that you came. I have to now go talk to people I don’t know”.

David: And that’s really what all this is about. You’ve mentioned it -rapport, relationships. That’s what we are building and that’s what a great realtor will do; because a great realtor needs to be in a community, establishing relationships. So if I need to refer an organizer to one of my clients, I refer Michele or if I need somebody who needs to put a blog together or write, I can refer to Debra. So, thank you for coming tonight.

Michele: And if I need a great realtor, I would definitely refer to David.

David: Oh well… I’ll take it, I’ll take it.

Debra: Yeah, I’m waiting to make my fortunes so I can have you (David) sell me a house and then, you (Michele) can organize it.

David: There you go.

Debra: And in the meantime, if any body needs a personal trainer for writers, my Twitter url is “writeononline”

David: Oh yeah, @writeononline…

Debra:  @writeononline (WriteOnOnline.com) If you’re a writer, an expert, an entrepreneur and you need a little bit of a shove in the right direction, you call me.

David: And what’s your Twitter, Michele?

Michele: I’m on Twitter: @orgmish. That’s o-r-g-m-i-s-h

David: And I’m on Twitter @residedavid. That’s going to do it for The Reside Daily Bite today; thank you so much for checking us out.

I discuss some overall figures, statistics and analysis for Westside housing Market. Also included in the discussion is the recent activity this past week for homes under $1.2 million in the communities of Santa Monica, Venice, Mar Vista and Palms, West LA, Culver City, and Westchester.

Download the Market Report for the Week of September 25

Welcome everybody to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite. I’m your host, David Doucette and today, we have our market report –our Westside market report for the week ending September 25th. We are going to look at homes under $1.2 million in the communities of Santa Monica, Venice, Mar Vista and Palms, West LA, Culver City, and Westchester.

So, let’s jump right into it. We’re definitely seeing some good market activity here on the Westside. Right now, there are 303 homes for sale; for pending escrow, we have 136 homes and what that means is, those are homes that are in the escrow process, homes that buyers have put offers in on and the seller has accepted. So, they’re in various stages of home inspections or getting their loan funded.

We’ve had 147 listings expire in the last 6 months (I think that is a little higher than I would like to see). We’ve had 471 homes closed in the last 6 months; again, this is under $1.2 million in the 6 neighborhood communities. The average list price is just over $754,000. The average sale price (what it has sold for) averaged $743,000. And, the ratio between the two is 98.6%.

Now, I’m going to explain this list price to sale price. Very important, if you’re a seller or thinking about selling watching this, you need to pay attention to this statistic. What the list price is? This is the list price of the home that sold the average (that’s what it was at) –this is $743,000 (it’s what it sold at).

If you look across the board, you can see all of these numbers are within 1-2% of the list price of the sold homes. So, what that means is, homes are selling within 1-2% of the list price of market value. The issue here is, if you’re a seller and you price your home above market value, chances are, it’s not going to sell until you do price reductions to get it down to market value because as you can see by this chart, buyers are buying within 1-2% of market value. So, definitely pay attention to that. The average square foot -the average size of the home- is 1,457 sq ft. The average price per square foot is $515. And, the average days on market is 54. This is pretty good, especially in today’s environment; this is a pretty good number.

And let’s jump over to Westchester here for a second. Look at this, 30 days on the market in this community. The larger home here is 1,652 sq ft, so your money or your purchase price can go a little further in the areas of Westchester (as you can see: $426/sq ft).

Let’s check out some activity this past week. 40 new listings in the market; 27 price reductions (again, I was just talking about pricing it at market value); and, 33 accepted offers (so that means 33 people have opened escrow in the past week). That certainly is a good sign and we’ve had 13 properties closed escrow in the past weeks –that is a good sign as well.

You can find this video, not sure where you’re watching it, but you can find it on my website, ResideRealEstate.com, look under Reside Daily Bite. Look for episode number 55. You can download this chart and print it out so you can keep it as a reference.

My name is David Doucette. I want to thank you so much for checking out, The Reside Daily Bite.

After the successful Coastal Clean Up Day last Saturday, I’m presenting to you the results of the cleanup. The total number of volunteers who came out clean the beaches and some of the peculiar items recovered from different coastal clean up sites.

Hello and welcome everybody to another exciting episode of The Reside Daily Bite and let me tell you it is hot – it is hot today. It’s probably almost 90° here in Santa Monica, so to our friends in the valley…it has to be a hundred. It is hot, summer has finally hit; we’ve had a pretty cool all summer long. So now, September 27^th, we’re having our summer.

So, I wanted to give you the results of coastal cleanup. As you know, I’ve been videoing a little bit–letting you know about that. The totals are in and I’m very excited to report  more than 14,000 participants ( that is more than 14,000 volunteers), which is an all-time number of volunteers, collected more than 100,000 lbs of ocean-bound trash (that is more than 50 tons of trash! )

14,131 volunteers from 9am to noon at 65 sites throughout the county, covering 101 mile. Very cool!

Amongst some of the unusual items found this year are 3 bowling balls cut in half in Coyote Creek Trail and Cerritos; a vibrator discovered in Lake Machado; a goat skin hide and mummified cat in Tujunga Wash; a submerged gas burning stove at the Redondo pier dive site and several crack pipes in Santa Monica, Venice and Malibu. Also, a floating bag of marshmallows in Marina del Rey –a kayak site. It was a record breaking day; a great day for Heal the Bay. I was very happy to be a part of it.

That’s going to do it for me today, on this hot, hot Santa Monica Tuesday or Monday (it’s so hot I don’t even know what day it is; there’s like mirage all around).

My name is David Doucette, thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.

012. the reside real estate podcast – home staging with annie pinsker brown, stagetosell.biz

Right-Click Here To Download mp3

in this episode, i’m joined by professional stager annie pinsker-brown of stage to sell and we talk about the importance and benefits of staging and as a seller, why there’s a need for you to stage your home before putting it on the market.  if you are thinking of selling your home or currently have a home on the market that is just “sitting”, you need to listen to this episode. for more information please visit www.stagetosell.biz

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: are you looking to purchase a home? i specialize in working with homebuyers and first time buyers on the westside of los angeles. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com

It’s been a huge success – the 26th Annual California Coastal Clean Up Day. Many partook in picking up trash littered around Santa Monica pier and beach last Saturday, Sept. 25, 2010. I interviewed some of the people to ask the kind of trash they found scattered along the pier.

Thank you for all those who came out and contributed in cleaning up California coasts. And a big thank you to HealtheBay.org!

Hello everybody, it’s David Doucette and welcome to another episode of the Reside Daily Bite. We are here at Coastal Clean Up, Saturday morning in Santa Monica, California. We’re at the pier and we are cleaning up a lot of trash. We probably had over 400 people come here, so far. I have given probably 30 or 40 safety talks. It’s been fantastic; it’s been a busy morning. And now, we’re going to go interview people; find out why they came down here and find out the kind of trash that they picked up.

–

David: Welcome, we’re here with Nick, who is captaining the dive site here at Santa Monica pier. We’d been pulling out some interesting things. Nick, tell me what you’re looking for as they bring back the trash.

Nick: Well obviously, anything that they find. The point of getting out there today is to bring anything that shouldn’t be in the environment – plastics, bottles, as we’ve seen here, a lot of clothing items and strange rocks with vials taped to them. So, who knows what you’ll find.

David: Yes, we were uncovering a strange rock with a vial and then we stopped because we don’t know what that is. And Nick, is also from Heal the Bay so, we are doing a lot of great work here and we’ll continue to do that. I guess one of the things you’re looking for is any wildlife or crabs that have crawled into any bottles or cans?

Nick: Exactly! That’s one of the biggest problems with the debris when it gets into the ocean –as animals get tangled up in it and lot of times they ride back into the trash bags. So, we want to make sure that all that life does get back into the oceans (got to keep your eye out because there is always some wiggling).

David: Alright, thank you Nick.

Nick: My pleasure.

–

David: Alright, so here we are with my co-site captain, Art. We got pretty much everybody registered. They’re out and about. Now, they are going to be coming back with their bags. Art, what are we going to do?

Art: Okay, so first of all, when they come back, we actually are going to weigh the bags, so we know how much recyclables are were and how much trash are were on the beach. We are also going to pick what is the most unusual something that people had picked up. Actually, as of this point, it is two books from the Santa Monica library; so, those will be returned promptly. Everybody’s having a great time; it’s been a great day out here. I estimate, so far, we’ve had at least 300-400 people. It’s just wonderful; we’re cleaning the beach so families could come out here and enjoy the beach and not have to sit on some cigarette butts, plastics and all these other stuff. So, great day, David’s been great and Christine has been great. So next year, they’ll have their own site.

David: Right! Art has trained as well and now we’re going to get hit with another rush of everybody coming back to weigh their garbage ins. So, let’s go do that. Thank you Art.

–

David: So, here we are looking at some of the debris that the scuba divers pulled out from Santa Monica pier.

–

David: I’m standing here with Satish. And Satish, where did you drive from today?

Satish: From Hollywood.

David: From Hollywood, and how was it out there?

Satish: It was pretty quiet for a Saturday morning, I think.

David: What kinds of things were you finding in your group to pick up?

Satish: It was mostly cigarette butts and plastics like forks and knives and there are a lot of plastic caps, some food wraps but otherwise, we didn’t find anything peculiar or anything very dangerous.

David: Do you want to hold your bag up?  Let us see how big it is.

Satish: This is the recycle one. We have the separate bag for the regular trash.

David: Okay, great! Well, thank you for coming out. I’ll tell you how much I appreciate that.

Satish: My pleasure, thank you.

–

David: Alright, we’re here with some more volunteers, Leo and his group. Leo, tell me where you guys came from and I see you are all “Changing Tomorrow”. Tell me what that is about.

Leo: Yes, that’s “Chances” and actually acquired by Astellas, they are in the business of manufacturing medicines for cancer.  I decided it would be fun to take my nieces and nephew to come out and volunteer. Get away from the city for a bit and help out.

David: And what kinds of things did you picked up today?

Leo: Lot of recyclables, lot of plastics, lot of glass, cigarette butts and pretty much it.

David: Anything unusual?

Leo: Not really, not that I could think of. Crab legs, backbone of something…

David: Is this your first time doing this?

Leo: Yes, sure. Actually, yes it is.

David: So, we’ll see you back here next year?

Leo: I don’t mind. You want to come back? (to fellow volunteers)

David: You had some fun? (volunteers nod) Alright, thank you so much for coming.

Leo: No problem, thank you.

–

David: So what we’re doing now is, Art is weighing each of the bags and we’re keeping a tally of how much trash we are collecting.

–

David: Alright, I’m here with Marianna O’Brien. And Mariana came out today; she’s one of the volunteers. Did you have fun?

Marianna: I did, thanks.

David: What kind of stuff did you pick up today?

Marianna: Lots of little pieces of plastic and cigarette butts and some glass; all different kinds of things.

David: Did you find anything unusual?

Marianna: Toys, like Hello Kitty rings and other products that probably shouldn’t be in the beach.

David: Okay, and you said you’re a teacher here in Santa Monica?

Marianna: I am.

David: Very cool. Did you see any of your students here?

Marianna: I didn’t. I was looking for them but really, I was focused on the ground. At first, I was looking for them but then I got into looking for the pieces of trash. I hope that they’re here. I know Santa Monica high school has a lot of students who come and work with Heal the Bay. So, they’re probably here, I just didn’t see them.

David: Okay, how many cigarette butts did you pick up?

Marianna: Twenty-one.

David: Twenty-one, great. Well, thank you so much for coming out today.

Marianna: No problem, thank you.

–

David: Alright, I’m here with Jeffrey and Ashten, couple more of volunteers who came out to clean the beach today. Did you have fun?

Ashten: Yeah, we did. It was different because I’ve never done this before.

David: What made you  want to come out today?

Ashten: School, my teacher. I’m in marine bio class and she basically told us that, you guys do this to help the environment -with the beaches and stuff- so, I decided to come out today.

David: What kind of stuff did you pick up?

Jeffrey: We got a cigarette tip, not a cigarette –the cigar tip. We found one cigarette butt and we’ve got one bottle. We got like, little trash.

Ashten: Yeah, like little, tiny papers. We actually saw a person who found a Corona bottle, full of beer, in the sand. So that was just like, wow, this makes it a really big change for the environment if people come out and actually do this.

David: It really does. So, you’re going to come out next year?

Ashten: Yeah, I want to. I want to try and help the environment as much as I can especially the beach since we live here;  it’s just, why not take care of it.

David: Cool. Thank you so much for coming out.

Ashten: You’re welcome.

–

David: So here we are, we’re finishing up our Coastal Clean Up Day. They’re still coming in; they’re still bringing their bags in. You can see our bags of trash are growing over here, which is a good thing because a few hours ago that was all over the beach. So, we’re very excited about that and that is going to do it for me today…

Alright, so this is going to conclude our Coastal Clean Up Day. You can see, I am in front of almost 500 lbs of trash that we picked up this morning (that volunteers picked up this morning). And, we were expecting about 300-400 people to show up here at our site –Santa Monica pier. We actually had almost 1,000 people show up. We got them through in a 3-hour period. We had a staff of volunteers here; we had safety talks, which is one of the things I was responsible for. So, it was really great. We weighed all the trash. Everybody had a good time. And, I want to thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.

Become part of one of the most participated volunteer marine activity of the year – the 26th Annual California Coastal Clean Up Day. Taking place on Saturday, September 25, 2010 from 8:30-9am until noon. Heal the Bay, Clean the Beaches.

Hello everybody, welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite – Happy Friday. We’re getting ready for Coastal Clean Up Day tomorrow, which is happening in LA County. And I’m sitting here with my two co-captains Art Salter and Christine Vicente. We’re going to be at the Santa Monica pier tomorrow. Art has been doing it the last 5 years. So, Art, tell us what we are going to do and what to expect tomorrow.

Art: Okay. Well, first of all, Saturday morning, it’s just the first life cart station north of the pier. We are going to be picking up trash to help heal the bay, clean the beaches. We’re going to start at around 8:30 to 9:00 up to 11:30. We’d love everybody to come out. You don’t need any experience. We will have a waiver for you to sign. We will tell you what to pick up, what not to pick up. We’re just going to have a lot of fun. We hope that everybody comes out and helps us pick up trash. We will have certain bags for recyclable and some for regular trash. And, what we will do when we are done (after the people go out, the volunteers to pick up trash) is that, we will weigh the trash and weigh the recyclables. Then, we are going to report to Heal the Bay and if you watch your evening news on Channel 2 or Channel 9, you will see how much trash is on the beaches. It’s pretty amazing what we find at the beach. Even though Santa Monica is a non-smoking beach, we do find a lot of cigarette butts. We find a lot of beer cans plastic holders that the pigeons and other birds chew on. They actually choke on it and die. We try to have a good time; it’s going to be a beautiful day at Santa Monica, so, come on out and help us clean up the beach. Christine, you have anything to add to that?

Christine: I just want to say that I’m really honored to be a part of this and to be learning from Art, the coastal clean up site expert. I’ll be representing Professionals Emerging as Business Leaders Committee at the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce and we will be having a nice group of people from Pebble to support the Coastal Clean Up Day; so, this is going to be exciting. We hope you guys come out and help us. Thank you.

Art: Thank you.

David: Alright, thank you guys. Very excited! Come on out tomorrow, 8:30. We’ll be there, look for one of us three at Santa Monica pier. Thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.

032. the approachable architect podcast – west coast green

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in this episode, i’m joined by my frequent co-host eric corey freed and we discuss the upcoming west coast green expo in san francisco. eric will also being making the world debut of his new talk about the gulf oil spill. listen in as we discuss all that will be happeining for three action packed days at fort mason in san francisco. for more information visit, www.westcoastgreen.com.

like what you’ve heard? please submit a review to itunes.

ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES: i specialize in providing architectural design services for environmentally friendly, healthy, high performance, and energy efficient homes including major remodels, second story additions, and new construction. please contact me at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residearchitecture.com if you would like to discuss your project. www.residearchitecture.com.

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: looking to buy your first home or move into another home? i would love to help you find your next home. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com. www.residerealestate.com.

Here are some tidbits on 2010′s market trends; the main two factors to consider to get our housing market moving; and how realtors can benefit from social media strategies.

Welcome everybody to another episode of the Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. I’m very excited today for a couple of reasons: (1) you can see we have a new look. We’re a little more widescreen and that is because I have a new flip video camera, the Kodak Zi8. Now, the Kodak is very similar to the Flip video, both are HD but the Kodak has an external little jack that you can plug an external microphone in, like a lapel mic or a boom mic. I really like that feature, that’s why I chose the Kodak.

I’ve also eliminated the Reside Daily Bite intro and the music. So, that really gives you 10 seconds back of your day and I’m happy to do that and I promise to not take that 10 seconds and then, incorporate it into more talking time. So, I really am giving you those 10 seconds back.

What I wanted to talk to you about today is, this week in Los Angeles, it is social media week and a good agent friend, David Bruce, put together a panel the other day called, “Google versus Facebook”. We talked about how realtors can best use the internet and Google and Facebook to really reach out to their sphere of influence and also to reach out to people they don’t know. And DB -if you’re watching -great panel, great job putting that together. DB also invited Rick Cunningham, who is an owner of several West Side Keller Williams franchises. Rick gave his real estate outlook and that’s what I wanted to talk to you about today, specifically, the Month Supply of Inventory. The month supply in the West Side right now is about 4 ½ month supply. What that means is, traditionally, if it’s a 6 month supply of inventory or less, it’s a seller’s market –meaning that’s the amount of time it would take to sell the existing inventory. If it is 6 months or more, then, it is a buyer’s market –meaning there’s a lot of inventory out there.

What we’re seeing now, (we’re 4 ½ month supply of inventory) it should be a seller’s market – it really isn’t. It’s a funny market right now. The buyers are on the sideline. The buyers are waiting. There’s definitely activity here on the West side. But overall, in general, the buyers are waiting, the buyers are being hesitant. And there are two main factors, not just in our marketplace but in other areas in California, that are really affecting this and we’ll talk about those. And those two are: (1) the unemployment rate in California is above 12% – and that’s high. We’d like to see that more at 5 ½ % or below. So, we have the (1) high unemployment rate; (2) consumer confidence is low.

What is happening is: we have unemployment high up here; we have consumer confidence low here. What we need to do to get the housing market really moving again: bring down the unemployment rate, bring up the consumer confidence. That will get the housing market going again. We know it’s a funny market. It’s a funny time. This isn’t going to happen overnight. It’s going to take some time for this to happen. But that’s really what we need to happen. And, that’s really a good indication if you want to see what’s going on and following the market. Really follow our unemployment rate here or maybe even in your own state and also, follow the consumer confidence. That’s really going to help out.

That is it for me today. My name is David Doucette, you can email me david@residerealestate.com. Thank you so much for checking out, the Reside Daily Bite.

This is a tutorial of Top Producer’s Market Snapshot, a unique service I offer to my friends, assoicates, and clients. You can view homes currently for sale and recently sold as well as view graphs and data for market conditions and community data.

Welcome, my name is David Doucette from Reside Real Estate.com and I am here to present to you “The Market Snapshot Tutorial”, which is an awesome tool to help you stay on top of what’s happening in your neighborhood. You can see homes currently for sale; currently on the market; homes that have recently sold; you can see community statistics and all kinds of other good information. The tutorial is coming up, right now!

Alright! The first step in looking at our Market Snapshot is, first, we will receive an email and that will come from david@residerealestate.com and the subject line will read “Market Snapshot”. So, we want to go ahead and click on that. It will bring us to this screen- let us know the report is ready for our review. And then down here…it’s going to tell us some of the things that are included (including data such as sold homes, properties for sale, inventory counts and even days-on-market); so, a lot of good information coming from this Market Snapshot.

Now, we want to go up here to the “View It” button and click that, then, it’s going to bring us to the Market Snapshot “Welcome” page. We’re going to click the “View Market Snapshot”, which is going to bring us to the “Market Snapshot” page. Now, a little orientation here on this page…here is the Market Info tab (and that is currently what we are on). We also have the Community Info tab and the School Info tab. Over here, you can see we have the “Asking and Sold Prices”; we also have “Sold Homes for Sale”; and then we can expand these…and now we have “Asking Vs. Selling Price” and the “Time on the Market”, “Number of Days on the Market” and also, the “Number of Homes”.

Let’s jump back over to our Market Info tab – where we still are. This map is the meat of the Market Snapshot and what you want to do here is, place your cursor in the middle and just move it around and you’re going to see it start to populate. This is in zip code in Santa Monica (90405) and my office is actually located right here on the south side of Sta. Monica airport. So, what we’re looking at here is, -if you look at the key down here…these blue diamonds were listed in the last 14 days; the green diamonds were listed 15 days or more. So, both of these are the active listings currently on the market; and the reds are what had been recently sold. And, what’s really cool about this is…let’s go up here and we can see $1.75M for this house on Marine Street; now, we can “Click to View Details” and this brings up the information. This ties right into our MLS and here’s the description of the home; the number of days on the market (34 days on the market); price/sq. foot, which is one that I’m always looking for to see if something is priced at market value.

What’s great about Market Snapshot -whether you are a buyer or a seller or you’re just a home owner and you want to know what’s going on in your neighborhood, this is a great tool for that. This is why I send this out to my friends and associates; this is just a great tool just to keep an eye on what’s going on. Now, let me zoom in over here…let’s say, I live on 14th Street and I want to see the house my neighbor had just put on the market. So, I can see, “Oh, they put it on for $890,000”. Well, let’s check out this home that has been sold –we know this because it is in red. Let’s “Click to View Details”…this home was on the market for $1.249M for 59 days. It was actually sold above its asking price at $1.275M on July 29th.

And, this is a great tool for the nosy neighbors; it really is, because you can really get a lot of information on what’s happening in your neighborhood. This is why I really like the Market Snapshot. You can also go down to the “Snapshot Scheduling”. It defaults to once a month or every 4 weeks. You can click “Edit the Schedule” and it will bring up another screen where you can change it to: every 2 weeks, every 6 weeks, every 8 weeks or never- if you don’t want to get it again.

I’ll just briefly click on the Community Info tab because I just want to show you this a little bit. Let’s go down here and I’m gonna click on “Shopping and Groceries” and as you can see, we have “Public Services”, “Places of Worship”, “Recreation and Leisure”, and “Food and Drink”. I’m just going to start clicking on a couple of these – and you’re going to see the map starts to populate. How cool is that! So, you can really start to see what’s in your neighborhood and again, we can zoom in and really see what’s going on and…look at that, it tells us what that is and tells us what these things are. So, this is a very cool tool. I hope everybody finds it useful and if you have any questions, feel free to email me: david@residerealestate.com. This is going to conclude the Market Snapshot tutorial and I want to thank you so much for checking it out.

I discuss the importance of looking at the price per square foot in your neighborhood to get a good idea of market value, especially when your considering buying or selling a home.

Hello and welcome everybody to another episode of the Reside Daily Bite, I’m your host, David Doucette. Today, I’m happy to bring out the board – the board is back! It is Tuesday, so here in LA area, we do – our brokers- open on Tuesdays and I want to talk briefly about the price per square foot.

And what is it? It’s the asking price of a listing price divided by the size or the square footage (gives you the price per square foot). Wherever you are, not just in L.A., you should really be looking at the price per square foot. Some agents are very good at this, some agents are not.

I want to give you a couple of examples. I went and saw five homes today or five I’m going to tell you about (I saw more than that), all in the same general neighborhood. This one at $302/sq ft is priced a little low and the price point, under about 750 thousand is where I was looking today. Another one, we had $438/sq ft, $411/sq ft and $433/sq ft. This is actually about the range of homes in the neighborhood that I was looking at for a 2-bedroom, 1- or 2-bath home.

So, the reason I wanted to record this, is because, I went and saw a house that was not within this range, nor $500, but $695 per square foot. Now, that’s not to say there are no homes in certain areas or in the neighborhood of L.A. that might have that price or that asking price. The majority don’t. If you want to sell your home (2-bedroom, 1-2 bath), generally, you’re going to be in this price range. But the $695? It’s the last home I saw (already I know it may be overpriced), so, I’m expecting a completely done kitchen, a completely done, modernized interior, still, it is overpriced to $695 (even if that was the case!). The kitchen needed to be redone – it was a nice house, don’t get me wrong – but this $695… was overpriced. It should have been in this range or maybe around $500/ square foot.

But the point of this is, for you, the buyer, if you’re working with your agent, make sure you are discussing price per square foot. And what’s funny is the agent told me as I was leaving, “We have priced this aggressively” – those were his words. I bit my tongue and walked out. I certainly didn’t want to get into it; it is clearly overpriced. So again, know your market; know the price per square foot where you’re looking because this bothers me when I see listings like this.

I’m going to do a quick stat – hopefully the tape’s not going to run out. If you remember the stats we did yesterday, we had 124 listings expire in the last six months. We had 20 new listings come on last week. So let’s say, that’s 80 listings a month. Then, it would be 480 listings over the past six months; 124 of those have expired – that’s ¼ of the listings. So, ¼ of the homes you’d be seeing out there might be overpriced. But…that ($695) is overpriced!

My name is David Doucette, feedback 1-800-476-5579. Thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.

I discuss some overall numbers for the Westside Market as well as discuss what has happened in the last week.

Happy Monday everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. Today and on Mondays, what I’m going to do is cover some market analysis of what’s been happening on the market here on the Westside of Los Angeles. I’m going to be doing this every Monday. This report is also going to be on my website (ResideRealEstate.com) and you can check out the blog page.

The areas I’m going to cover (I’m going to stay under the price point of $1.2 Million) are Santa Monica, Venice, Mar Vista/ Palms, Culver City and Westchester. I’m going to give you some overall statistics right now of where we are in the market and then, I’m going to tell what’s happened this past week.

So, where we are in the market right now? There are 259 homes for sale, actively on the market right now. There are 145 homes that are in escrow. There have been 124 homes that have expired in the last 6 months – which I think is a lot (that means, the homes didn’t sell). There could be variety of reasons of why they didn’t sell, but most of the time, it’s because that they were not priced at market value, they were priced out of the market or above market value.

A good agent should help you, if you’re thinking of selling your home, price your home correctly. There’s been 444 homes sold in the last 6 months (again, this is just the communities of Santa Monica, Venice, Mar Vista/ Palms, Culver City and Westchester, under the $1.2 million price point). Average days on the market is about 51 days, as what we are seeing right now.

So, let’s talk about what’s happened in this last week.  New listings: we’ve had 20 new listings come on the market in the past week. We’ve also had 20 price reductions. Remember when I was just saying about the expired listings. These homes that are having the price reductions, they basically came on the market above market value and the sellers were unrealistic or the agents were not properly doing their market analysis to determine the list price. But, 20 homes, just in the past week have had price reductions. I don’t really like to see that but that is the nature of the market we’re in right now.

There had been 32 accepted offers in the past week –so, this is encouraging news. It means escrow opens; so then all the inspection periods and the loan funding and all that are going to take place. And then, we’ve had 10 solds in the past week ( Solds meaning escrow has closed; it’s final; the new owner is moving into the house).

Now, what’s interesting here is, the accepted offers is 32, the solds is 10. It is taking longer for escrows to happen. Typically, it used to be 30 days. We might still be able to get them in 30 days but it’s more often than not, 30 pushing 45 days, sometimes even longer. The banks are just requiring a more sort of thorough process with the lending.

So, here is the chart (hopefully you can see it so the light’s not blinding). So this is going to come out every Monday. I’m going to put it on my blog- ResideRealEstate.com/blog.  I’m also going to put it on my Facebook fan page – facebook.com/ResideFan.

That’s my market report for today. Questions or comments: 1-800-476-5579. I want to thank you so much for joining me on today’s Reside Daily Bite.

Show your support by visiting www.healthebay.org and clicking the alert button and call your senator today! it takes 15 seconds

Happy Friday everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. Today, a couple of things I want to talk about a great organization: HealtheBay.org. And, this flyer right here is for the upcoming Coastal Clean Up which is happening on September 25th from 9 to noon all along the coasts in California. So, if you live near the coast (and it’s also happening in some inland areas as well), I encourage you to check that out and I will be giving more information on future episodes about that.

Speaking of Heal the Bay, there’s a very important bill in the Senate right now (in the California Senate) – the AB 1998. We want this bill to pass because what it’s going to do is have California be the first state in the country to ban single-use plastic bags (grocery stores, drug stores, those kinds of bags). This would be great! There are a lot of organizations behind it, including the California Groceries Association. And we as Californians used 19 billion (that’s with a B!), 19 billion single-use plastic bags a year and many of them are finding their ways into the ocean. If we can cut that out, that would be huge.

For more information, go to HealtheBay.org. On their homepage, go to the right side (there’s an alert button), click that page and there will be instructions; a phone number for you to call your local state Senator and give your support for the bill; and you can also email.

Also, on the HealtheBay.org page is a mockumentary that you should see – the life of a plastic bag narrated by Jeremy Irons.

So hopefully, we can get this bill passed. Tell your friends. If you see this video, share it and get your support behind AB 1998.

My name is David Doucette. Feedback: 1-800-476-5579. Have a great weekend and thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.

I’m finally back after a 3 month absence and just finished an amazing 3 days with tom ferry and his success summit! lots of great ideas and topics coming along the way!

Like what you see? tell a friend and check out our youtube channel

Hello and welcome everybody to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. I am super pumped today; I’m super excited. For those of you who have been following The Reside Daily Bite, you have probably noticed that I have not put out an episode for about 3 months. What happened is, I decided to take a break from all social media, from Facebook, Twitter, The Reside Daily Bite, podcasting and focused on some time management issues; spending some time figuring out how to make all of these to work.

As many of you know, I’m married, have two little boys and trying to find time for everybody has been a struggle. I am in the process of figuring this stuff out. But the reason I’m super excited, the reason I am super pumped is I just finished a 3-day seminar with Tom Ferry. If you don’t know Tom Ferry, he just released the book called “Life by Design” and he is a very big coach in the real estate world. He is also expanding his business in outside of the real estate market. We had just spent 3 days in Anaheim –today was actually day 3. I’m back in my office recording this because one of the commitments that I am making to myself and to you my viewers is The Reside Daily Bite’s comeback. I have a whole bunch of ideas to talk about and I’m really excited about that.

We’ve just spent 3 day masterminding with about 3,000 other agents from all over the country. I think we had a very good showing from Canada and we had, I believe, 1 or 2 people from Australia. Tom called it the “Success Summit” and I would say it was very much a success. I got a lot of great information. I got a lot of homework to do. I have a lot of business planning to do. But one of the things that I thought was interesting (that stuck in my mind) is, to go home and throw out half of your clothes or donate half of your clothes. That’s actually one of the projects that I’m going to work on very soon because I know there’s a lot of clothes that I have in my wardrobe that just take up space in my closet. So, I’m going to get rid of half of my clothes. That’s the challenge for myself right now.

What does any of these have to do with real estate? It’s just I’m excited and you are going to be getting more information from me –market analysis, statistics, short sale info, and foreclosure info. My mind is racing a mile a minute and I should probably just end it right there. So, I am going to do that.

I want to say thank you to Tom Ferry and the Success Summit. I’m sure some of those agents that I met are going to be watching this video because I’m going to tweet it out. I’m going to put in on my fan page. If you want to become a fan: facebook.com/resideFan or you can follow me on Twitter (residedavid) or you can call our voicemail listener feedback line at 1-800-476-5579.

My name is David Doucette and I’m going to see you tomorrow.

006. The Pursuit of Mindful Living: How Do You Spell Love?

in this episode i discuss where i have been the last three months and also describe one of the biggest A-HA moments of my life and how i’ve changed my priorities to put me on a path to pursue more mindful living.

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like what you’ve heard? submit a review to itunes

tweet about your pursuit of mindful living using the hashtag #tpoml.

Subscribe To The Pursuit of Mindful Living Podcast:

011.  the reside real estate podcast – credit repair with larry and jordan carnahan, american credit repair

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in this episode, i’m joined by larry and jordan carnahan of american credit repair and we talk all about the importance of your credit and credit score and also how to go about repairing your credit. they are also true proponents of customer service and getting the word out to consumers about how they can help improve their lives. for more information please visit www.americancreditrepair.net.

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: are you looking to purchase a home? i specialize in working with homebuyers and first time buyers on the westside of los angeles. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com

031. the approachable architect podcast – solar systems and lease options

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in this episode, i’m joined by attorney and “in the green legal” owner, raina bayas, and ryan pickering of akeena solar. we discuss raina’s business model of working with green businesses and delve into the world of solar panel systems and talk about the costs of purchasing a system outright along with the associated rebates as well as leasing options. BUT one very exciting program that is out now is the PACE program. this just may revolutionize the way solar systems are sold and allow many homeowners to install solar panels on their homes. you can find more information on raina at http://inthegreenlegal.com and more info on ryan at www.akeena.com.

like what you’ve heard? please submit a review to itunes.

ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES: i specialize in providing architectural design services for environmentally friendly, healthy, high performance, and energy efficient homes including major remodels, second story additions, and new construction. please contact me at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residearchitecture.com if you would like to discuss your project. www.residearchitecture.com.

REAL ESTATE SERVICES: looking to buy your first home or move into another home? i would love to help you find your next home. contact me to schedule a free 45 minute buyer’s consultation. i can be reached at the studio at 310.391.9191 or david@residerealestate.com. www.residerealestate.com.

I discuss a great resource for credit repair and talk with larry and jordan carnahan from americancreditrepair.net. they are passionate about helping people get their credit back on track. tune in to episode 011. of the reside realtor online radio show.

Hello everybody and welcome to another Reside Daily Bite –Happy Friday! I’m your host, David Doucette. Quick bite today. I just had in for an interview earlier this morning from AmericanCreditRepair.net, Larry and Jordan Carnahan. Let me tell you folks, if you are having troubles with your credit (your credit score is funky), you need to call these people and you can get all the information on my podcast which will be posted later today. I will put a link to this show note but, it’s AmericanCreditRepair.net. Their number: 310-829-9900 and you can talk to either to Larry or Jordan.

We talked about credit repair. It’s a 55-minute podcast interview. We talked about credit scores. We talked about the importance of credit scores and how to start rebuilding your credit. Definitely, you’re going to want to give these guys a listen. The reason why I had them into the office or into the studio for an interview is they did a presentation over Keller Williams, Santa Monica. So, I want to let you know I’m not paid by them…I’m not getting any sort of referral fee by them. I just think it is great information; it’s a great service and they do things a lot differently or they do things differently than 95% of their competition. You can hear all about that in the Reside Realtor Online Radio Show, the podcast that will be episode no.11.

That is going to do it for me today; 1-800-476-5579 or feedback at ResideRealEstate.com. I’m David Doucette. Thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite and have a fantastic weekend.

Here is a great resource for those homeowners considering a “short sale”, www.makinghomeaffordable.gov and the youtube channel video called “your graceful exit”.

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of The Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. Today, I’m going to give you a great website, a great resource if you’re finding yourself considering a short sale situation. Now, if you’re wondering what a short sale is, you can tune in to yesterday’s daily bite when I explained what a short sale is.

The website I want to show you… (And I’m going to do some kind of…my cool camera guy here) the website is called MakingHomeAffordable.gov and it’s a great website. But also, if you go to YouTube channel, which is what this is right here, and search for “makinghomeaffordable.gov”, look for the video titled, “You’re Graceful Exit”. It gives you great information on what exactly a short sale is. Do you qualify? What are the next steps? So, I wanted to share that with you. If you find yourself in the short sale process here in California, I’d love to talk to you and see if I can help you out. You can email me here of course, david@residerealestate.com

If you have any feedback: 1-800-476-5579 or feedback@residerealestate.com. My name is David Doucette. Thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.

I discuss what is a short sale and the requirements to be considered for a short sale.

Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of the Reside Daily Bite; I’m your host, David Doucette. We’re going to do a quick bite today. I’m going to jump on a call but I want to talk about short sales and what exactly a short sale is.

Short sales are often times mentioned in the same breath as a foreclosure, but, they’re two totally different things. I’ll cover what a foreclosure is on another bite but a short sale is essentially when somebody wants to sell their home and the amount that they owe on it is more than what the house is worth. So for example, somebody might have paid $600,000 for their home two years ago, they need to sell it now -it’s only worth $400,000. Now, there’s a gap in that mortgage difference. In a short sale, there are 2 recipes or 2 ingredients that need to be to qualify for short sale.

Number 1: Your house, obviously, has to be under water

Number 2: You as the homeowner have to be in dire state; there has to be financial hardship that you are currently in or it’s coming up, it’s imminent

You need those 2 ingredients to consider a short sale. Let’s say, you owe $600,000 on your house. It’s worth $400,000 but you have $500,000 sitting in the bank. They’re not going to allow you to qualify for short sale (and you need the sell). You could sell it as a normal transaction. And then the $200,000 difference…the bank would expect you to make that up (with the savings that you have).

So, short sales… your house has to be under water -meaning you have to owe more than what the house is worth and you have to be in dire state. You have had to exhaust all of your financial resources –lost your job, a whole host of things. That’s a short sale. Tomorrow, I’m going to give you a great website for short sale information.

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My name is David Doucette. Thank you so much for checking out The Reside Daily Bite.