In Long Beach, What Can You Buy Under $300,000?

There have been several articles talking about this price range in the last few years since the market downturn.  With both limited inventory, and an increase in the real estate market, there is a declining number of single family homes available under $300,000 in Long Beach, California.  There are 47 listings as of July 1 in this category, in various areas of Long Beach.  One of the best values in this range is really Windward Village, a secure planned unit development (PUD) park which offers open space and recreational facilities. 



Windward Village Home--Click on photo for info 

As of July 1, 2013 (check for any updated information) the home in the photo is listed in the MLS for $239,000, and at the listed 1600 sq. ft. for 2 bedrooms and 2 baths, is an unbelievable value. 

Windward Village homes may qualify for FHA, VA or conventional financing, and because it's a PUD, the new owner owns the land too.  Individual lot sizes vary from 2500 sq. ft to 3800 sq.ft., equal to or more than lot sizes in Belmont Shore.  While older models feature the carport style, newer models offer closed door garage parking.


Community Center

The complex has a 24-hour guard entry where all entrants are checked in by staff; there is a community center for activities and gatherings, an outdoor pool, grassy green areas, outdoor play areas for children, basketball  and tennis courts, car wash center, guest parking, and a putting green. For the unit shown above, the HOA dues are only $188/month.  Contrast that figure to the average condominium HOA fee of $250/month elsewhere in Long Beach, without all the recreational facilities.
Because these are manufactured home purchases, there are some differences from a regular single family home process which are normal to this type of purchase, such as the foundation system. But because it is a PUD and the owner owns their own land, there is absolutely no space rent, a monthly cost of $900 or more per month in similar complexes.

The common areas are very well kept with well-maintained and patrolled asphalt roads, and has the feel of a small single family residential community. It's a great opportunity while prices are still low, and nowhere else in Long Beach can you buy your own private home and have such advantages.

Please contact me about this complex!

Long Beach Summer 2013 Schedule for Concerts in the Park

Stearns Park





Did you know that Long Beach parks rate as the 22nd best among the 50 largest cities in the United States?  Park size and access are among the reasons for such a favorable review.  According to the Trust for Public Land, 78 percent of Long Beach residents live with a 10-minute walk of a park (the national average is 64 percent). Long Beach spends more ($125) than the national average per resident.  The city has more than 3,100 acres for recreation, equivalent to 9.7 percent of the city's 50 square miles.


Stearns Park, one of many LB parks

See below for this summer's Concert in the Park schedule, offered by one of the few cities that has its own municipal band led by Larry Curtis:

Theme: Star Spangled Special
Tuesday, July 2:	Whaley Park
Wednesday, July 3:	Los Cerritos Park
Thursday, July 4:	Marine Stadium
Friday, July 5:	El Dorado Park West
Sounds of Cinema
Tuesday, July 9:	Bluff Park
Wednesday, July 10:	Los Cerritos Park
Thursday, July 11:	Marine Stadium
Friday, July 12:	El Dorado Park West
Cartoon Musical Madness
Tuesday, July 16:	Bluff Park
Wednesday, July 17:	Los Cerritos Park
Thursday, July 18:	Marine Stadium
Friday, July 19:	El Dorado Park West
The Voices
Tuesday, July 23:	Bluff Park
Wednesday, July 24:	Los Cerritos Park
Thursday, July 25:	Marine Stadium
Friday, July 26:	El Dorado Park West
Swing is the Thing
Wednesday, July 31:	Los Cerritos Park
Thursday, August 1:	Marine Stadium
Friday, August 2:	El Dorado Park West

See more at  http://www.longbeach.gov/park/recreation/lb_municipal_band.asp

Checking Your Credit Report is Important for Buying Long Beach Real Estate

According to DS News, 22% of Americans have never checked their credit report, according to Findlaw.com survey conducted in March, with about 1,000 participants.

Unfortunately, there is always potential for errors and negative information to be entered onto your credit report. And even though credit reports and scores as they currently exist came into usage in very recent history, after the economic downturn in the 1990s, they now have a major influence in our lives.

Obtaining a mortgage is one of the best known times when credit scores are reviewed, but also employers check credit scores to evaluate job candidates, insurance companies evaluate prospective insureds, and auto loan makers also pull credit.  I was once in the position of paying all cash for an automobile with a guaranteed check, yet the auto dealer still consulted my credit score online before finalizing the deal to make sure my overall profile fit who I said I was--they didn't want another "buyer" driving a new car off the lot on a phony check, never to be found again.

Protecting your credit, and your credit cards, may take additional work.  You may be at risk if you pay restaurant bills--where you have to give up your card momentarily while it's taken away out of your sight by the waiter for processing--and it's out of your hands.  It's an opportunity for a dishonest person to write down your card account number and use it later.  I rarely ever have had such problems to worry about, but this happened to me recently when I discovered my account number had been used by someone else to establish an account for, guess what, checking their credit at an Equifax site and I was billed a small amount monthly.  It went on for some time before I caught it (another reason to balance your account every month) and fortunately I got my money reimbursed.  But of course I had to cancel that card, write checks for a few days, and wait for a new card to be issued.  It was a time in which I was reminded that this is increasingly a plastic card world.  Writing checks is less common, and in fact there are some circumstances where checks or cash are not accepted and merchants want payment only by your credit card.  So keeping your credit in good shape is so important.

My bank offers a service where I now have credit card alerts sent to my email so that I can spot a problem right away--if you have Smartphone or mobile tablet, you don't have to wait until you get to a desktop computer to check your email or messages. It's working great. 

Here is the entire article at DS News.