Adopt-A-Turkey Project seeks to end the misery of commercially-raised turkeys by offering a compassionate alternative for Thanksgiving. Since 1986, Farm Sanctuary has rescued more than 1,000 turkeys, placed hundreds into loving homes through our annual Turkey Express adoption event, educated millions of people about their plight, and provided resources for a cruelty-free holiday. For a one-time $30 donation, anyone can sponsor turkeys residing at Farm Sanctuary. Sponsor a turkey and receive a special adoption certificate in your name – or give sponsorships as gifts for family and friends. Donations are also needed to support our lifesaving efforts to promote a compassionate Thanksgiving and protect all farm animals.

For more information, visit the Adopt-A-Turkey Project website or call 1-888-SPONSOR. Let’s start a new Thanksgiving tradition together.

At the Parade, the CLRG and Papitto Properties sponsored PAWS through Fido and Co., Hillcrest’s boutique “canine country club.” Dog lovers and supporters from all over the city watched the Parade with their fur buddies, and some of those pups even participated in Fido’s costume contest! A fun time in the name of a great cause.

The Cynthia Lingg Real Estate Group and Papitto Properties would also like to congratulate all of the military personnel who participated in the parade. With the imminent repeal of DADT and the Uniform Code of Military Justice that bars gay and lesbian people from serving openly in the military, active LGBT servicemembers were able to march openly in an LGBT Pride Parade for the first time ever. We salute you!

You might have noticed on our home page that there’s a new little square code, called a QR code. You might have seen them around . . . on other sites, on flyers, in newspapers, on pretty much everything. They’re kind of like snazzy versions of barcodes, and they offer quick shortcuts to all kinds of information directly from your smartphone.

All you have to do to get it to work is make sure you have a scanner app downloaded to your smartphone, scan the QR code, and then you’ll be taken to our featured property of the week where you can check out more detailed information about one of our listings.

Just launch the scanner app on your smartphone, scan the QR code, and your mobile browser will do the rest! Try it now to check it out.

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10. The News Sounds Bad for A Reason

A man walks slowly down a flight of stairs, sometimes pausing or retracing his steps until he reaches a floor, occasionally pausing or taking a step back before methodically proceeding upward.

A man hurtles down a terrifically high flight of stairs. Ignoring the safety railings, he runs recklessly and then loses his footing, tumbles down several flights of stairs in a spectacular crash.

Which is the more dramatic story? The second one, of course. Bad news sells newspapers, and even if the news is very positive for some home buyers, that bad news story scares buyers and sellers.

9. Uncle Sam Wants You . . . To Be A Homeowner!

Wouldn’t it be great if the government kicked in some money to help make home ownership more affordable? Because of deductions on mortgage interest and property taxes, the practical effect is that the government is subsidizing your home purchase. In fact, home ownership provides two of the best ways to reduce your tax bill.

8. Long Term, Owning Usually Beats Renting

San Diego is a perfect example of a city where it’s more cost-effective to buy than rent.

7. Home-Ownership Builds Equity

Some people just don’t have the discipline to set aside money each month to save and invest. In this case, a home is more than a shelter, it acts as sort of an automatic savings account. You can build your savings in two ways. First, each month a portion of your payment goes toward the principal to build equity in your home. Second, U.S. home prices have always appreciated over the long term.

Can you think of a better way to save money by spending it?

6. Market Timing Is Far From Perfect

No one has a crystal ball when it comes to figuring out when the market has hit bottom, but, as we’ve written before, San Diego exhibits many of the signs of a recovering real estate market.

5. There’s No Such Thing As “The Real Estate Market”

At least not in a national sense. Instead, all real estate is local. In reality, the national real estate market is made up of thousands of local neighborhoods, each with its own unique circumstances.

4. Finding Value Is Easier In A Tough Market

In any market, it’s important to consider value along with price. Supply and demand dictates that real estate values are easier to find in slow periods and become harder to find when markets heat up. In a tough market, you might be able to afford some items on your house wish list — central air, 2-car garage, patio, etc. — that yo might not have been able to afford.

3. There Is More Than One Yardstick

How slow is the real estate market? It depends whom you ask, and how they measure. For many real estate professionals, it’s important to know the details of housing price trends. For home buyers, it’s more important to put the broad numbers in perspective. And as important as these are, what’s happening in your neighborhood and your personal situation are even more important.

2. The Concession Stand Is Open

Home buyers can always ask for concessions, but in today’s market they have increased leverage to get them. In many parts of the country, buyers are not only getting price concessions, but often help with closing costs. Agents who understand the nature of seller concessions can often help buyers get a better deal above and beyond reductions in sale price.

1. Financing Is Favorable . . . For Now

In historical terms, mortgage financing is still a great bargain. From 1980 to today the 30-year fixed rate mortgage has ranged from more than 18 percent to less than 6 percent. If you’re waiting for home prices to come down another $10,000, you may pay more in the long run if mortgage rates rise in the meantime — the total cost of buying a home rises more than $70,000 when interest rates rise a single percentage point.

Buying a home is a long-term investment, and there’s more to consider than the just the purchase price. When you’re looking for a bargain, don’t lose sight of the big picture. If you try to time the market to save a few thousand on the price of a home, you could end up with a higher monthly payment and total overall cost of home ownership.

[source: eNeighborhoods]

But a new article by David Crook in the Wall Street Journal does provide us with a bit of help by outlining key market indicators that are strong signals of a recovering market. And San Diego, you’ll be happy to hear, is currently is signalling loud and clear — now is the time to buy in San Diego. So we might not have a crystal ball, but perhaps a nice pair of eyeglasses? Let’s use them to take a look at those key indicators.

EMPLOYMENT

There has long been a relationship between local employment rates and the real estate market. Crook writes, “Clearly, the No. 1 factor in determining whether a community has passed through the worst of the housing debacle is its current state of employment.” Using North Carolina as example of a state with counties that have hit bottom and are on the upswing, Crook explains that the state’s top three counties that are less than double-digits off home price highs are also cities that are beneath the state’s May unemployment rate, “Although North Carolina’s unemployment rate [9.7%] is higher than the national average [8.7%], all three communities are lower [9.1%] than the state rate.”

What does North Carolina have to do with San Diego? This: California’s May unemployment rate was 11.4, while San Diego’s May unemployment rate.

Great news. And it gets better.

RENTS

Crook goes on to explain that rents are also a leading indicator of real estate values in a given area, “Home prices in most communities that have best weathered the downturn tend toward the low-rent end. That is, they have lower price-to-rent multiples, and house hunters will often find it cheaper to buy properties than to rent them.”

And wouldn’t you know it — according to Trulia’s most recent “Rent vs. Buy Index.” San Diego is ranked “Much less expensive to buy than to rent.”

See? The news gets better and better! With unemployment rates that are lower than the state average combined with lower price-to-rent multiples is even more proof that San Diego is most definitely on the upswing. Now is a good time to buy in America’s Finest City. And if it’s a good time to buy that means it’s also a good time to think about selling.

[image:Getty]

WSJ’s Ruth Simon and Jessica Silver-Greenberg write:

Despite all the gloom, however, there are growing indications that it is a good time to buy. Mortgage rates, which fell to 4.55% for the week ending June 2, according to Freddie Mac, are near 50-year lows . . . A historic glut of homes, meanwhile, has created a buyer’s market . . . .

The authors go on to explain that “if you exclude distressed sales, [home] prices were off just 0.5%. So if you are in a market that isn’t battered by foreclosures, you may be close to a bottom already . . . Moody’s Analytics predicts that the number of distressed sales will begin to fall in 2013, and that prices will begin to edge upward then.”

Waiting to buy, then, with the hope that prices will drop even further could cost you more in the long run. Now is a generational opportunity to buy a home: 50-year lows for mortgage rates? Check. Bottom of the market? Check.

The Cynthia Lingg Real Estate Group has more than 20 years of experience. We’ve lived through the ups and downs of the market right along with you, and we’ve watched it closely with a professional eye. We know how to guide a Buyer or Seller through the complicated process of buying a home, especially in these economic times. For any question or concerns about buying or selling your home, please contact us. We love questions!

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The featured Guest Speaker was Elizabeth Kucinich, who is perhaps best known as wife of U.S. Congressman and former Democratic Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich, but is a force of justice in her own right. Elizabeth is director of public and government affairs for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM).

While at the Papitto/Gallagher residence Mrs. Kucinich discussed how legislation can help end animal experiments, improve medical training, and stop the destructive agricultural subsidies, PCRM combines the efforts of medical experts and grassroots individuals to enact change at every level. Both Papitto Properties and the Cynthia Lingg Real Estate Group have long supported animal rights and were thrilled to host an event so close to their hearts and lives. And both Real Estate agencies have pledged 10% of every real estate transaction (upon the close of escrow) to PCRM and APRL.

How can you help? Become a voice! Help stop animal cruelty. Visit www.PCRM.org and www.APRL.org to learn more about what you can do help our fur friends.

We’ve pulled together a handy checklist to help minimize the stress and make your move an efficient and satisfying process. After all, moving means you have something to celebrate — a new home!

6 Weeks Before Moving

__ Inventory everything to be moved
__ Gather everything you’re not moving and have a garage sale or give to a local charity
__ Contact more than one moving company to get several estimates
__ Choose your moving company. Be sure to arrange the form of payment (cash, check, credit card) ahead of time
__ Get boxes, cartons, and packing material to start packing . . . NOW
__ Contact insurance agent to transfer or cancel coverage
__ If you’re relocating for work, check with your employer to see if they will cover any moving expenses

4 Weeks Before Moving

__ If you receive newspaper or magazine subscriptions be sure to notify them of your change of address
__ Contact utility companies to set turnoff dates at your house. Be sure to ask about deposit refunds
__ Contact the utility companies for your new home to set up new services
__ Dry clean clothes to be moved and pack in protective wrappers
__ Collect everything you have loaned out and return everything you have borrowed
__ Service power mowers, boats, snowmobiles, etc. that are to be moved and drain all gas/oil to prevent a fire in the moving van
__ Check freezer and plan use of food for the next 2-3 weeks
__ Remove all jewelry and other valuables to a safe deposit box or other safe place to prevent loss during move

If you’re moving to a different town . . .

__ Check with doctors and dentists for all family records and prescriptions
__ Check with your vet for pet records and immunizations
__ Get children’s school records

1 Week Before Moving

__ Fill out Post Office change of address forms (either at the Post Office or online)
__ Check and inventory all furniture for dents and scratches — notify moving company of the inventory and then compare on final day
__ Cancel pool and gardener services
__ Pack a separate carton of tools and cleaning utensils
__ Mark all boxes that you pack with the room they will be going to in the new home
__ Organize at least one room in the house for packers and movers to work freely
__ Keep packing!

If you’re moving to a different town . . .

__ Have your car serviced for the trip

Moving Day

__ If you have children, hire a baby-sitter
__ Plan to spend the entire day at the house — last minute decisions need to be made by you. Don’t plan on leaving until after the movers have gone
__ Remind movers of fragile items
__ Make a final check of the entire house — basement, closets, cabinets, garage, attic, etc.
__ Approve and sign the Bill of Lading
__ Double check with the driver to verify that they have the right address of your new home
__ Give the driver your phone number, and be sure to get his
__ Disconnect all utilities
__ Lock all windows and doors and advise your agent and your neighbors that the house is empty

At Your New Home

__ Check to make sure all utilities are working correctly
__ Check pilot light on stove, hot water heater, incinerator, and furnace
__ Make sure all appliances are working properly
__ Ask mailman for any mail he may have been holding for you
__ Have your new address recorded on your driver’s license
__ Visit city offices to register for voting
__ Unpack!

If you have any additional tips you’ve learned from your own moves, let us know in the comments! We’ll be sure to include them in the checklist!

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Recently, HomeGain.com released the results of a nationwide home improvement and home staging survey. HomeGain surveyed nearly 600 real estate agents nationwide to determine the top 10 low cost, do-it-yourself home improvements for people getting their home ready to sell. Below are the result of the top 5 home improvements that Realtors recommend to home sellers, based on the average cost and the average return on investment.

1. Cleaning and de-cluttering
Remove any items, clear countertops, organize closets, and make your home sparkle!
COST $290
RETURN $1,990

2. Brightening
Clean all windows inside and out, replace old curtains, update lighting fixtures, and remove anything the blocks light from coming in.
COST $375
RETURN $1,550

3. Home staging
Rearrange furniture, bring in new accessories and furnishings, add artwork, and even play soft music. (Learn more about home staging here.)
COST $550
RETURN $2,194

4. Landscaping
Pay attention to both the front and back yards by adding mulch and plants and making sure current plants and grass are well-tended.
COST $540
RETURN $1,932

5. Repair Electrical or Plumbing
Fix leaks, remove any mildew stains, and ensure that all plumbing is in good working order. Update the electrical with new wiring for modern appliances and fix any light or outlets that don’t work.
COST $535
RETURN $1,505

Spending your money wisely on your home means you can take even more with you when you sell!

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What this means is this: If your home was originally assessed at $17,000 and was currently appraised at $400,000 and you want to buy a home within the same county (or other participating counties), say, for $395, 000, you can sell your home, but the new one, and that new one will be assessed at $17,000. Which means much lower property taxes.

Certain requirements need to be met, of course, including:

1. You, or a spouse residing with you, must have been at least 55 years of age when the original property was sold.
2. The replacement property must be your principal residence and must be eligible for the homeowners’ exemption or disabled veterans’ exemption.
3. The replacement property must be of equal or lesser “current market value” than the original property.
4. The replacement property must be purchased or built within two years (before or after) of the sale of the original property.

If you’re thinking about moving and you’re over 55 or disabled, moving could be a lot less expensive than you think!

For more information on check out the California State Board of Equalization or give us a call at 619.840.7979.