LA Resource Guide

This is scary place if you don't really know anyone or know your way around. Click on our resource guide to the government pages and state run agencies you may need. Like how to register your vehicle and get your new drivers license!

A lot of living in LA is driving. A lot of driving in LA is driving in traffic. Not just traffic on the freeways but on the main and side streets. Never forget, as much as we love living here, people want to visit here and have NO idea where they're going. So start driving around the city as soon as you get here and get to know the streets you're going to depend on later. 

Los Angeles offers the same benefits to the top 1% of the world that they offer to the bottom fifty percent of society that ends up here. Opportunity. What does that mean? Opportunity to make your life better or worse. There are people and places throughout LA that will lead to your success or your ruin. The choice is yours.

"This isn't like (enter city name)" - No it's not like the city you left. Los Angeles is its own thing. And it doesn't care about you, even if you're famous. Again, for all the good that LA offers, you have to find the places you love and feel most comfortable. Or you can jump from one bad experience to another.  

Breath in the Pacific Ocean air every morning from Malibu to Redondo, love the city life in Silverlake, all the great family parks and schools in Cheviot Hills, party and play in West Hollywood or simply hide out in the Hills. You'll know it when you drive through it.

Know your directions. I mean it! North is Canada, South is San Diego, East is Vegas and West is that glorious Pacific Ocean. The smart phones offer genius directions around the city, but I beg you, please stop blindly following the phone when you drive around. Look at the streets you're driving on! They're filled with history and great food spots. The more you drive and walk around the city, the better you'll feel.

Entertainment, Tech, Aerospace, Fashion and more. Oftentimes, your industry is relegated to segments of town, so it's great to find a place nearby to live. For instance, a downtown loft is perfect if you're in the fashion industry. 

Pretty much. This city is filled with millions of people coming from somewhere else. You'll be lucky to find a group of people you click with that you can also trust. But they'll be the best people you'll ever meet.

People will always argue New York but Los Angeles is so big you forget that every part of the city is represented by every part of the world. All 7 continents have pockets of pride sprinkled throughout the city. It makes for a soulful city that doesn't get enough credit for diversity and inclusion. 

There has been a war between the Westside and the Valley forever.  In the 60's and 70's, The Valley represented the suburbs kids vs the city kids. The hills and canyons was a metaphorical and literal separation of soft, rich kids from The Sunset Strip, beaches and fun of LA. Like Manhattan with less danger and more drugs. For a solid 20-30 years. Valley kids invaded the city and annoyed everybody else. Meanwhile, if you like the image and ideal of raising your family in a great part of the country, The Valley offers a lot of amazing options.

Honestly, 2 years. The first year is figuring out the vast landscape and the second year is realizing that there's a lot of crappy people in LA. Once you're able to stop taking it personally and understand the freeway system, you'll love it here.

It's always better to own in Los Angeles. There will never be a shortage of people who want to live here from all around the world. The question is can you afford to. It's very difficult, but either way, Buy and Rent in LA has you covered.

The hardest truth about real estate is the finances. The first thing you need is a down payment. Ideally, for every $1,000,000 property, you should have $200,000 to put down and borrow $800,000. Your monthly payment at 4% interest is $3,819.32. Your mortgage should be no more than 28% of your monthly income, which should exceed $10,750.

Renting allows you to (hopefully) save enough money to eventually buy something. Be careful with high rent against your gross income. You want it to be at about 30%. So if you make $10,000 a month, try not spend more than $3,000 on rent. Even though you don't get the money back for renting, you've also saved money on taxes, repairs and other financial  hardships of home ownership. California is also a renter friendly state, so you'll also have a lot of state protections and rights.

 Equity is the difference between what you've paid and what you owe. Your down payment and mortgage payments are EQUITY that you accumulate from paying off your property.

A mortgage lender provides you with your mortgage. What is a mortgage? A mortgage is a type of loan that you borrow specifically for a home or property loan.  It also gives the lender the actual ownership rights to your property until the loan is paid off. Ironically mortgage is an old-timey term that actually mean "Death Pledge."

Escrow is an agreement AND  bank account that exists between buyer and seller. The escrow account holds the deposit until the sale is complete. The escrow account is held by a neutral third party during the home sales process. An escrow account is a bank account that holds the "Good Faith Deposit" until negotiations are complete and the funds are released. Can be an easy problems, a lot of times this is the time frame where the most problems occur.

The smartest thing to do is hire me, of course! First, we prepare and "List" your house or property and "Stage" it so it looks spectacular, we "Appraise" and "Price" it, we "Market" it, field offers and  "Negotiate", enter "Escrow", "Final Inspection" and of course, "Close". Although it seems like it should be easy, the length of time is surprisingly long. Mostly because this is an emotional purchase and experience and every day you prepare for bad news. The more your prepared for this roller coaster process, the more fun you can have.

As a long term investment, there are few opportunities that exist as well as income property. Long term appreciation, tax benefits and use of leverage to potentially increase returns are just some of the benefits. The monthly income is easily calculated and a terrific hedge against inflation.