Don't buy any big items while in escrow

While you are in escrow to buy a home, you are going to be tempted to start buying things for your new property.

Don't do it!

Right before you are scheduled to close escrow, your lender is going to rerun your credit, look at how much debt you have, and look at your overall financial situation.

Buying big-ticket items like a new washer and dryer or stove and putting that purchase on a credit card could stop you from getting a loan.

You want to be careful with that because your lender will take into account your "debt to income ratio".

If your debt amount starts climbing up, that’s a red flag to the lender and they may deny your loan.

All big-ticket items need to be purchased AFTER you close escrow.

Once the deal is done it doesn't matter how much debt you rack up... it will not affect your home loan.

Episode 32 of The #AskDanielLosAngeles Show

On this episode, I answer the following four real estate questions:

1) When applying for a mortgage, I've heard that applying for other types of credit before the mortgage is finalized can hurt your credit. Is this true?

2) We are already in escrow to sell my home, but I'm now having second thoughts on selling. How can I back out of the deal?

3) I recently went to get pre-approved for a home loan. The lender said he can't get me a loan because my credit score is too low. How can I raise my score?

4) My agent is having a hard time selling my home. I just don't think he is the right person for the job. What is the process to fire him?

We have almost 20,000 followers on Instagram... join us! @DanielLosAngeles

This weeks cheapest home to sell in Sherman Oaks

This 2 bedroom, 2 bath corner lot home was the cheapest home to sell this week in Sherman Oaks.

The home is 1,554 sq ft has hardwood floors, brick fireplace, and galley kitchen.

Do you think this was a good deal?

Burbank's cheapest price per square foot home

The price per square foot on this home is $460.40.

This is currently the cheapest price per square foot home for sale in Burbank.

The Beverly Hillbillies mansion sells for $150 MM

The Bel Air mansion that played the Clampett’s Beverly Hills home in the 1960s television show, The Beverly Hillbillies, just sold for a reported $150 million—a record-setting price not only for Los Angeles but California.

The buyer is Lachlan Murdoch, American Media Mogul, Rupert Murdoch’s son.

The main house measures roughly 25,000 square feet.

The lot size is approximately 10 acres.

There is a 75-foot pool and a 12,000 bottle wine cellar!

What an awesome property!

For sale home inventory has gone down 11.2%

The shortage of homes that are for sale in Los Angeles is accelerating.

Inventories in November dropped 11.2% annually.

This comes at a time when low-interest rates are increasing buyer demand.

The housing shortage is felt most at the entry-level of the market.

Traditionally, housing inventory goes down in the 4th quarter of the year... but 11.2% is a big drop.

Inventory should pick up slightly in the first quarter of 2020.

Do I need to hire a professional cleaning company before moving out?

Was your home professionally cleaned just hours before you officially accepted a buyers offer on your home?

If so, make sure to get your home professionally cleaned right before you deliver your sold home to that new buyer.

Was your home in need of a deep clean at the time the buyer’s offer was accepted? Good!

No need to get a professional cleaning company to come out and clean the home.

The point here is to deliver the home to the buyer in substantially the same condition that it was in when you accepted the buyer’s offer to purchase your home.

Keep your home in the same condition throughout escrow

When selling your home, the purchase contract says that throughout the escrow process, the home has to be "maintained in substantially the same condition as on the date of acceptance.”

That means whatever condition the home was in at the time the buyer’s offer was accepted, good or bad, is how the home should stay throughout escrow and is how the property should be delivered to the buyer.

There is no need to go above and beyond when it comes to cleaning the home before moving out.

Although getting the home professionally cleaned before vacating is a nice gesture to the buyer, simply keeping it in the same condition that it was in when the home went into escrow is good enough

Video recap of our 2nd Annual Pie Giveaway

Dear Friends and Clients,

Thank you to those who participated in our 2nd annual Thanksgiving pie giveaway!

It means a lot that you entrusted us to provide the delicious dessert for your Thanksgiving feast.

The best part was getting to reconnect with friends and past clients and hearing about everyone's Thanksgiving plans.

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and an amazing New Year!

Which month is better to put a home up for sale: Jan. or Feb.

This home buyer pattern happens every single year.

Buyers stop their home search in December and pick it back up again in January.

To get top dollar for your home, take advantage of this rough data and choose to list your home for sale in January instead of February.

More buyers on the market lead to more competition.

If your home is priced right, that will lead to multiple offers for your property.