It's another gorgeous day in Big Bear. The sky is deep blue and the air is a little crisp. The tulips and daffodils in my yard are blooming. They are so interesting. Many of the Tulips I brought back from my trip to the Netherlands commonly known as Holland. I brought back some wonderful Dutch cheese, Gouda. We know it as Gouda but over there it is pronounced like Houda. It is not pasteurized in Holland so it can't enter the USA in the same form as we buy it. The reason I mention the difference is that the cheese there is so much better tasting than it is here. I was so sorry when I ate the last of it because short of another trip to The Netherlands I couldn't replace it! Perhaps I will go again!

Our bank owned property inventory has almost dried up. We haven't received any new ones for a long time, and what is left is not selling! I hear we will have new ones soon but I am still waiting. In the mean time the lack of bank owned properties for sale has helped the average cabin for sale in Big Bear. They are the good deals now and buyers are looking at them. In my opinion they always were good deals (with guarantees) and I don't see why buyers want to buy some of the bank owned anyway.

Spring always brings lots of new property on the market and that is what we are seeing. Although, the inventory of cabins for sale is about the level we had in 2007. It is down and that is a sign of real estate recovery. The market has been improving since about the end of February and I believe that we are in the turn around here in Big Bear. It will be a slow recovery but it is happening. And, the government money isn't even in the market place yet! It just shows that normal supply and demand in the market place will correct itself if you leave it alone. I would certainly rather see that than money spent that will effect generation of our children and grandchildren. Let the government stay out of business and business will take care of itself! You may say that business got us into this mess, but I would challenge that statement with the government was part of this scam on housing. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac which are government were part of the triangle. Consisting of the lenders, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the stock brokers. The government didn't stop it and now look where we are. Without the help of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac this would thing couldn't have happened. There lies the problem..we have the fox tending the hen house once again with all the government intervention into the private sector. How can we expect them to fix the problem when they created it? Enough said!

If you have been thinking about buying or selling in Big Bear now is a great time. Don't miss the opportunities! Until next time, BB

As always it's another terrific day in Big Bear. The trees and shrubs have buds on them and they will be out in another month. It will be gorgeous. Don't miss the lilacs, they are beautiful in Big Bear. They thrive here in the elevation as well as the cold!

Did I mention we are having a home buyers fair on Saturday, May 2, 2009 at the Northwoods Hotel. There will be lenders there, free credit reports, credit help, tax info and a cavalcade of homes currently for sale. I will be speaking about home ownership as will several other people. There will be a Spanish speaking couple that will tell about how they have acquired two homes in Big Bear with just hard work and perseverance. It will be great fun and if you can attend please do! On the following day, Sunday we will have a caravan tour of many homes in different price ranges and different areas of our valley. It's going to be a wonderful weekend of learning about real estate in more depth and the opportunity to see a large variety of affordable homes on the market.

I hope we will see you at this event. If you do come please tell me that you read about it on my blog. I am always interested in who reads the information I write. We contune to have very low prices and great interest rates so now is the time to buy!

Until next time, BB

I drove down to Palm Springs last Thursday afternoon to spend Easter weekend. I took the back route turning off at the cement plant on the highway 18 back grade and turned off at Camp Rock Road and then on to Old Woman Springs Road and headed towards Yucca Valley. The reason I mention the directions is that it was such a beautiful drive.

The high desert floor was blanketed with small, light yellow flowers. Wild flowers. As far as the eye could see were these little, pale yellow, flowers. It was beautiful! Occasionally it was punctuated with golden California poppies! It was a sight to behold! I don't know how long the flowers will last but I hope you can get out to the desert and see them.

While I was enjoying my home in Palm Springs and trying to get some
R & R a funny thing happen. There were lots of phone calls relating to real estate. I had my phones transferred to Palm Springs so business went on as usual. I received two offers and talked to many buyers who saw my signs in front of listings. I expected it to be very quite over the Easter holiday but it wasn't! Could it be true that we are at the turn around and we just don't know it yet? I believe we are and that the great prices we see today won't last long! I don't know about other areas except, perhaps, Palm Springs but Big Bear sales are improving everyday and the market is becoming stronger. If you continue to think about buying a cabin, this is the time! Don't let this period of low prices get a way from you. As I said before even the bank owned properties are not coming on the market now at the low prices they were last year.

I look forward to helping you with a purchase or just to answer questions. Feel free to call or e-mail. Until next time, BB

We had a bit of snow yesterday and it has been bone chilling COLD! It is so cold that even the slight amount of snow we received remains in the needles of the pine trees. But that is spring in the mountains, you never know what to expect.

I want to mention an observation. The bank owned listings coming on the market currently are not the good deals that they were this time last year, or even three months ago. What happened? I am not certain. Perhaps the banks are not as desperate as they once were, now that the government (you and I) is handing them money and guaranteeing their loans.

Many of the most recent listings are no real buys because they are as high or higher than they were when they were last listed, before the foreclosure. Maybe the banks are not worried anymore and are willing to hold on until the market turns. Or, has the market turned in their eyes? If you were here wanting to buy a cabin today I would show you a few bank owned properties but I would lean heavily on the open market of individual sellers. They are the best deals right now. And, the best part is that they come with some guarantees! How about that for a concept!

The market is changing. I think the hot, hot deals may be behind us. But we still have hot deals, but they won't be around for long. As I said, the market is changing.

Another friend of mine went to the auction again and reported back that the best houses were pulled prior to the auction and what was left didn't sell at low prices. He thinks he is better off looking at houses on his own and forgetting the auction. It is a fun experience to go to the auction but the deals have faded.

I continue to believe that this year will be the turning point. It may have already happened. So my advice is if you want to purchase a cabin in Big Bear now couldn't be a better time. If you wait you may buy on the upswing and pay more than you needed to. What I am saying is get on up here and start looking! The deals of a lifetime are here now, so don't miss out!

Until next time, BB

My cousin attended an auction last Saturday down in Victorville. I was interested to hear what happened. There was a big crowd. To bid you had to register and have a five thousand dollar cashiers check which, by the way, would be part of the auctioneer's fee for service. My cousin brought his computer and was able to pull up the properties as they were coming on the auction block. He could check the price the property was last listed for and compare the difference. He had a good idea of how much less the properties actually sold for.

He felt that for the most part they sold for less than the last listed price; however, when you add back the $5,000 to the auction company and then figure what the bank may have taken if you made an offer prior to the auction it was probably a wash. You may make offers to the bank up to five days prior to the auction. As I have said many times, don't go to the auction with the intention of purchase a property unless you have conducted a thorough investigation. Because, all sales are final! You don't get an inspection period after the gavel has fallen. I think what happened at this auction in Victorville supports what I have said in the past. You don't have to go to the auction to get a great deal! They are all around us! Bank owned and private sellers, they are almost all good deals. Prices remain at a low and are excellent buys at this time. If you plan to go to the auction just do your home work. If you would rather come to Big Bear and look with an agent we can help you.

A friend of mine that sold his cabin in Sugarloaf back in '07 as a for sale by owner called me this week from Georgia, his new home. He had sold the property himself without the aid of a licensed real estate professional. The problem is there was no contract. The buyer and seller went to an escrow and the escrow officer prepared the paperwork and they made the sale. My friend was carrying a note of about $35,000 and did an AITD wrap around loan so that the buyer made the payments to the seller and in turn the seller paid the mortgage company. Now, two years later the buyer is complaining about things that are wrong with the house as well as items not disclosed to him by the seller. My friend called me for advice. I asked him if he had filled out all the disclosures required by the state of California and given them to the buyer. He said the escrow did everything!

He has a problem! An escrow is only a neutral third party that handles the transfer of the property and does what is directed by the two parties. They do not handle disclosures. That is the responsibility of the seller. Sadly, my friend will probably never get the money that the buyer owes him. The buyer has a good case to sue in court because the seller did not comply with the law regarding disclosures and he did not mention any of the problems with the house to the buyer. I reminded my friend that yes, it is expensive to have an agent represent you, but in the long run it's CHEAP! It's too late to help but he has learned a good lesson.

When I was a kid we had the old tube television because that was before electronics morphed into what we have today. When we had trouble with the television my father would take random tubes out of the back of the set and take them to the Shopping Bag market three blocks from our home. He would go to the machine for checking TV tubes and check to see if the tubes were good. Then he planned to go and buy new tubes and the television would work again.

That was all well and good but when he got back home somehow the tubes didn't fit where he thought they had been. He even had some tubes left over! Wow, how did that happen? My sister and I sat on the floor anxiously awaiting a picture on the screen, but it didn't appear.There was a lot of *#&@** ! spoken and my father was agitated. My mother was more upset because she knew he couldn't fix the television and we had a least part of a picture before he began his repair work. She had words for him as well!

In the end my mother called the family television repair man and he came right out. After looking in the back of the set he asked what had happened to the television? The tubes were in the wrong place and some were missing. My sister and said that Daddy tried to fix it! At that point my father came into the room and admitted he had botched the job.

The repair man said to my father, "Boyd, I will make a deal with you. I won't ever drive trucks if you won't repair televisions"! My father owned dump trucks and that is why the repair man said he wouldn't drive trucks. In other words let the professional handle the transaction and forget about doing it yourself. The problem toady is that everything is so complicated you need a professional unless you want to take the chance of ending up in court! The money you think you are saving may cost you many times more than you ever expected! Allow the professionals to help you. It is a bargain in the long run!

Until next time, BB