Today I’m excited to let you know that you’re invited to our upcoming event: Random Acts of Kindness.

Random Acts of Kindness is an event where my friends, clients, associates, and family all come together and get connected.

The event is a fundraiser to benefit a number of groups.

This fundraiser will help donate to the Challenged Athletes Foundation, Iraqi war veterans, kids getting back into the game of life through sports, and other people who are in need.

If you can’t make it to our event, you can still donate by clicking here.

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All donations are welcome.

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All donations are welcome—whether it’s $1 or more, anything helps to make a difference.

If you’d like to come out for food, drinks, fun, and a chance to give back, please join us at this event. Additionally, there’s free valet parking.

Random Acts of Kindness will take place on August 30th from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Tower 23—located at 723 Felspar Street.

We hope to see you there.

If you have any other questions, would like to donate, or would like any other information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

For her, and many others, Carlos is that person.

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The successes most important to Carlos are the ones that come in the form of satisfied clients.

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Matthew says that, because of this, “He was able to do what he said he was going to do.” He also says that Carlos only “promises what he can deliver” and that “his communication is extraordinary.”

Other clients had praise for Carlos, as well. According to Jan and Mike Neil, “You are foremost and number one in his mind” while you are working with him.

All of these people are real clients who Carlos has gone above and beyond for. So, if you are thinking of working with him, remember them when making your decision. Diane, who has known him for 25 years, says she recommends Carlos “110%.”

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you, soon.

You may have played the game of Monopoly and you know that the way to win that game is to have the most amount of properties and cash in the bank. Life can sometimes be a game as well, and we live in the perfect city for investing in rental properties. You might have thought about investing, and I wanted to share three things to consider before you invest.

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Have a one-year plan and five-year plan and stick to them!

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Be selective when you buy. You need to make money when you buy the property. Often investors see a home at a low price and think they’ve found a good deal. However, you need to do your homework and research the area to determine whether it’s a good deal or not. Remember, price is what you pay, value is what you get.

Have an exit strategy. While investing in a rental property can be a great way to earn profit, don’t let it become such a large part of your portfolio that losing returns on it can ultimately bring you down with it. Have a one-year plan and then a five-year plan and stick to those plans.

Be ready for the unexpected! Things can quickly take an unexpected turn, and you need to be prepared for it. Houses can be a great investment, but are often full of unseen costs that correspond with those investments. So be prepared and able to address those issues when they present themselves.

If you have any questions about this or any other real estate topic, give me a call or shoot me an email. I’d be happy to help!

Summertime is here; the days are longer, the weather is warmer, and everyone seems to be more relaxed. We all think of long, lazy days when we think of summer, but did you know it’s a great time to sell your home?

San Diego is in a pretty hot market right now. Home prices are up and mortgage rates continue to remain relatively low. We are at the top of this real estate market cycle, and there’s never been a better time to sell your property.

There are three main reasons why summer is a great time to sell your home:

1. Buyers are more relaxed. There aren’t any major holidays and school is out, so buyers are simply less stressed.

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Buyers are more relaxed during the summer.

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2. They have vacation homes on their mind. In San Diego, that means big business. People are looking for the perfect summer home or that income property. Income properties are a pretty hot commodity right now in our market.

3. Better weather means more traffic. When the weather is nice, you can expect 15% more traffic coming through your home. More traffic means more buyers.

If you’re interested in getting your home on the market this summer, just give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!

The Internet is a great place to start your home search and find some information on what your home is worth. However, I hear from my friends and clients every day about how frustrating it is to sort out all of the information that they find online.

Popular sites like Zilow, Realtor.com, and Trulia can be great places to start out, but studies show that in cities like San Diego, the prices on those sites can be off by as much as 10% to 20%. In our market, that can mean a difference of anywhere from $50,000 to $200,000 off the actual market value of your home.

So, what can you do?

First off, don’t believe everything you read. If you are a buyer searching for homes, you can find some basic information online, but make sure that you go on multiple sites. Local sites like mine pull information directly from the MLS so you know that all the information you are looking at is up to date and accurate.

Buyers also need to get a pre-approval so that you can save time on your home search and know how much your loan limit is. In our market, having a pre-approval gives you negotiating power that will help you edge out the other buyers. Being pre-approved tells sellers that you are ready to buy.

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Don’t believe everything you read on sites like Zillow or Trulia.

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You also need to stay calm. If you’re looking at homes on Zillow, don’t fall in love too fast. The prices may be wrong and, sometimes, the house may be listed as available even though it already sold months ago! An experienced agent like myself can guide you to the right homes.

If you are selling your home, you need accurate information to determine the value of your home. If your home is unique and you’ve made improvements, then you need a proper appraisal so that you get every dollar out of the sale of your home.

So, do your research. Check out multiple home value tools to get a range of what your home might be worth in the current market.

You should also check out the comps, or comparable properties. A real estate agent can do a comparable market analysis to see how your home stacks up against other similar, recently sold properties in your neighborhood. That is the most accurate way to determine what you can get for your home in this hot market.

Ultimately, you need to be careful when you are looking at homes online or if you are trying to find your home value with sites like Zillow or Trulia. If you have any other questions about finding accurate real estate information online, just give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!

San Diego is slowing down for the second month in a row. What does that mean for you? Although the news has to be shocking these days to capture the public’s attention, I’m here to give you just the facts and only the facts about what is really happening in the real estate market.

The latest numbers show that San Diego County home prices rose 5.7% this year, just below the national average of 5.9%, but not by much. We are slowing down, however. This time last year, home prices were increasing at a 7% higher rate than the national average.

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The market is strong for the time being.

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According to the experts, higher home prices and increasing mortgage rates will shrink the number of households that can actually afford to buy a home and force prices to decline.

The great news for you is we aren’t there quite yet, and the market is holding strong for the time being. If you have equity in your home, it’s a great time to think about selling. If you’re not sure what your home is actually worth, I can show you an accurate home valuation right here on my page.

If you have any other real estate questions or if you’re looking to buy or sell in San Diego, give me a call or send me an email today. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

There is nothing more devastating than dealing with the loss or illness of a family member. That difficult time can turn into a nightmare if you haven’t taken care of the necessary planning ahead of time.

I was recently working with a family who had just lost their mother and, when selling her estate, they realized there was no will or trust in place. Now they have to deal with the challenges of probate, which costs a lot of time and money.

There are three things you can do now to make sure that your loved ones are protected after you’re gone:

1. Talk about it now. Don’t wait until there is a tragedy or illness to have the difficult conversations with your family. Be open and honest about what you want to happen to your home and your investments.

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Be open and honest about what you want to happen to your home and investments.

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2. Put it in writing. Make sure that you have a will or trust. It’s smart to put your wishes in writing so that your children and other beneficiaries are not left trying to sort out everything while they are in mourning. Not having a will can complicate relationships and cost your loved ones thousands of dollars in attorney’s fees. Have a frank and open discussion about your estate plans with the people who you love, who should be in the know.

3. Consult a real estate professional to ensure that your plans and assets are protected. A real estate agent can help you determine whether a revocable or irrevocable trust would be best.

This can be a very difficult topic to navigate, but it is important to take these three steps in order to protect your family. If you have any other questions or need further guidance on this topic, please don’t hesitate to give me a call. I am here to help you.

Your cleanup day is almost here! You need help, so I’ve got some great tips to share. I really enjoy helping others write their real estate success stories. As promised, I am here to give you some tips on how to organize and motivate the people in your neighborhood for your own community beautification project. Here are three things to keep in mind when planning your cleanup:

1. Show me the money. You don’t have to pay people in cash, you just need to share with them how much value will be added to their home by cleaning up the neighborhood. The nicer it looks, the more home values go up.

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The world is in need of positive community stories.

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2. Shout it out. Post on local neighborhood Facebook groups or even on Craigslist to increase turnout. Make a flyer, walk the neighborhood, and introduce yourself to some neighbors you haven’t met before. Let them know when and where the dumpsters will be located. You can also contact your local media to let them know and ask if they could get the word out. The world is in so much need right now of positive community stories. The local media loves those stories and are happy to share them. Start making your own positive news story today.

3. Be positive. Your energy will spark others to want to take action. Maintaining a positive attitude is one of the keys to ensuring success.

If you have any questions for me, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

You decided to beautify your community—congratulations! You have the drive and the goals, but you don’t have any of the resources yet. Here are three great tips to help you get started:

1. Reach out to local waste management companies and ask them to donate a dumpster for the day. Many waste management companies will donate dumpsters during the weekend for all of the neighborhood’s trash.

2. Contact local business owners and ask if they are willing to help sponsor the event. Maybe they can throw in some money, food, flowers, or rocks in exchange for advertising and posting on social media. Let them know that you will pass out flyers and post on social media to spotlight their company as they help the community clean up.

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You can find free supplies on Craigslist.

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3. Search Craigslist for free items like dirt, rocks, or plants. A lot of people have things that they just want hauled away. If you have a truck, then you have access to some free resources.

Community beautification projects help increase home values in your neighborhood and lower the crime rate. Next, we’ll talk about how to organize and motivate others.

In the meantime, if you have any questions, just give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!

Happy holidays everyone! I am here today with my daughter, Bella, and my wife, Jeanette. We wanted to take this time to wish you all a happy, healthy, and prosperous holiday. From our family to yours, we wanted to wish you the best this season.

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Have fun spending time with your loved ones this holiday season.

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Have fun spending time with your friends, family, and coworkers this holiday season and know that we are grateful for all of you. Happy holidays, Feliz Navidad, and merry Christmas. We look forward to seeing you in 2017.