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Archive for January, 2009

From MTV Cribs- Tony Gonzales Lists His Manhattan Beach Home

Tony Gonzales of Kansas City Chiefs Lists Manhattan Beach Home

Posted by Ruth Ryon from the Real Estate Channel

Author Bio

(LOS ANGELES, CA) – Update: Tony Gonzales, tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, has listed his Manhattan Beach home at $3.9 million with Gibson International, a new realty firm based in Brentwood.  What stands out is the incredible ocean view from the one of a kind roof top deck.  See below..You can see everything from Malibu to Palos Verdes. There is not another roof top this size with the ammenities it has!!  The also home has three bedrooms, two family rooms, and office. It also has been remodeled.  The home resides in the North Manhattan Beach Sand Section.. Since this post, the three bed home just recently leased but could be avaliable for sale according to its broker Randy Forbes with Gibson International in Brentwood.

Regarding Gibson International:

A new realty firm in this economy? It doesn’t faze Scott Gibson, head of Gibson International. “There are challenges, but they can be transcended,” he said, referring to the high number of foreclosures and other problems in the nation’s housing market.

We are having a lot of fun, and we are fortunate to have people come in with us – close to 50 by the end of this week – who are top agents I can enjoy seeing every day,” Gibson said.

Among them is Randy Forbes Jr., who has the Gonzales listing.

More recently, Gibson was president of Coldwell Banker, from L.A. to Palm Springs and the Santa Ynez Valley, before he spent three years in the real estate business on the East Coast.

Gibson, 53, started in real estate in 1978. He is a grandfather of two. During the passing years, he worked his way up the ladder and learned that there is a place for high-end agents. “There was no attempt to become an elitist,” he said, “but every day, there were opportunities in the marketplace.” Still, he waited for what he deemed to be the right time to open his company.

“Why now?” he asked.  “The idea, the drive and the passion make the difference,” he said.

The Best Seafood in L.A.: Santa Monica Seafood

written by: Don Oh       

I know it’s not manly, but I do most of the marketing for our household.  My wonderful wife always asks me the same question.  Why don’t you make a list and do all the shopping for the week in just one visit? That makes a lot of sense but my mind just doesn’t work like that.  Come on, that means I have to plan ahead, consider 5 lunches, 5 dinners, daily snacks, and then again what’s for breakfast.  Make a list, go to the market, and then cross off the items as they land in the shopping cart.  That’s too confusing for me.  I’m just a man who’s not very organized.  Well, to tell you the truth, I act like a caveman: the Hunter-Gatherer Mentality.

I shop, get the the meat, and bring it home. –Me ultimate provider–.  I get the feeling of satisfaction when I arrive home with the food, just as the caveman must have felt when he came home with his catch of the day.

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Wow Look What We Did on MLK day Jan. 19, 2009

Thanks to my lovely wife Lauren Forbes (Shorewood Realtors), word of mouth, a few street signs, and fabulous mass emails by the various schools-including American Martyrs School, Robinson School (Jack Johnson) and Grandview School (Suzanne Kretschmer), local businesses Space Studio (Lisa Ellerton), Shorewood Realtors, South Bay Brokers (Judy D’Angelo),  South Bay Association of Realtors, The Beach Reporter, and the Neptunian Women’s Society, in just a matter of days we were able to put together a Food and Clothing drive as a Service project idea for Marin Luther King’s Holiday/Birthday–all out of an e-mail from Michelle Obama….

This inspiration also led to the kids and their friends (Megan and Logan Forbes, Sydney and Spencer Hamilton, Anne Marie Dapoz, Lauren Gurbach, Julia DiFiori, Faith Hadley and many more!!) putting together a Bake Sale-to raise money for a local charity–”Noah’s Bark” pet rescue.  After the money was counted, the kids raised over $200. Those kids are quick studies!!!

As for the food and clothing drive: over 300 cars dropped off 450+ bags for the Salvation Army to pick up and 18 tall bins were filled with food for the Westside Food Bank.  The volunteers were incredible and have to be mentioned: Wendi Abrams, Mindy Balgrosky, Aprille Isham, Dawn and Matt Hamilton, Zakiyyah Elamin, Jennifer and Chris Agliozzo, Lora Ricca, Cami and Jackson Wedbush (5th Grade), Jack Johnson (5th Grade), Ben Donohoe (3rd Grade), Michele Donohoe, Hunter Tiedemann (5th Grade), Anne Afzali, Clare Gurbach, Jordan, Bari and Lora Cohn, Gerry Lewin, Carmen Lynne, Janet MacWilliams, John Capellano, Jennifer Wolfe and Randy Forbes! Read the rest of this entry »

A Los Angeles Welcome to “If These Walls Could Blog”

Happy LA New Year

We are very proud of the traditions, the stories, and the lifestyle of our beloved city Los Angeles.  Finally we are  ready to launch Los Angeles’s unique place to find out about it’s past and present, as it relates to our perspective on LA.  If you need a great dentist, an attorney, or just some straight Real Estate Talk, our team of collaborators are made up of real Los Angelenos whose roots in LA go back to the 1800s.  As our wonderful city has evolved, so has the way of delivering its style, happenings, and true authenticity. The best way we could imagine would be to bring it to you in this form.  Everyone loves a taste of the past, hot tips, and a real understanding of where to live and how to make LA feel like a small city.  Who better than our team and guest writers to deliver it to you!

From Malibu to Beverly Hills to Palos Verdes We’ve got You Covered

We are ready to reveal our city’s true identity, individual style, and a few secrets on how to make life a bit easier here. Over the years we have fielded many questions from where to live, to how to really get around, to how to get into the right schools, to the great restaurants, to its many night, golf, tennis, exercise clubs-…., to it’s sub cities and niche neighborhoods, to its best beaches and great markets.

These are just some of the questions we want to answer on a continued basis. Whether you racing to meet you estate planning attorney, going for a real mountain bike ride, or need to find the right school quickly, call upon us for some sage advice.  We will be there to help you relax, understand LA, and enjoy what there is to offer.

Our biography’s sit right under our photos. Please feel free to make a request or comment on anything. We will do our best to answer it spot on.

Yours Truly,

The Forbes Team

Randy, Lauren, Diane, Malcolm

What’s all This Loan Modification Stuff?

By: Malcolm H. Scott

The Reality

With the current economic crisis forever worsening, no one seems to be immune to the onslaught of financial hardship. Whether wealthy or living on the fringe, people have been affected. Some are seeing what they have worked for over the last decade or more disappear right before their eyes. Some seniors have watched their annuities fade away, others have watched their retirement accounts dwindle to nearly zero. Every day hard-working folks, just like you and I, are losing jobs. Some families have seen one of their income earners laid off. Others are hardly able to make house payments, while some are slipping into foreclosure. There is no denying America and the rest of the world are deeply embedded in a catastrophic economic crisis, even those veiled in denial have changed their opinion by now. Read the rest of this entry »

Comparing Depressions…Is there really any Comparison?

By: Malcolm H. Scott

“The Great Depression was, no doubt, depressing”

I thought I’d compile a few paragraphs to give us a glimpse of the past as the majority of us weren’t around back then. Thank God, because it sure wasn’t much fun.

As it turns out the Stock Market Crash of 1929 didn’t create the Great Depression,

it was just perhaps the last tick of the bomb that imploded the whole market and world economy. The SEC, The Security and Exchange Commission had not been created yet and the practices in the 20’s were operating in a rather less-than-ethical space. New Companies like General Motors, seemed to be making everyone rich, operators like Joseph Kennedy, (and a slew of others) were notorious for making the big bucks in questionable practices. Investment scams that inflated values of stocks ( that were eventually dumped by the scammers) and consequently, left the investor pools holding the proverbial bag. These were the scams of the day. Read the rest of this entry »

The Real Estate Mortgage Lending Environment in 2009

By: Malcolm H. Scott

There are communities around the United States that are practically abandoned due to the recent wrath of foreclosures.

Real Estate Development deals have been stopped for lack of construction financing when nearly 90% complete. Businesses that need loans for equipment and expansion are being turned down that once had no problems getting financed. Mezzanine financing on large commercial real estate deals has almost completely dried up. And, the lenders that are still lending more resemble hard money shysters, yielding the kind of fees and interest rates that most would call usurious. Not to mention, the deals are now contingent upon the lender becoming an equity partner too. Thanks for the due diligence, we love being your partner. Surprise!

http://realestate.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=16831437&GT1=35000

The last couple of years probably can’t end quick enough for most of us in the mortgage industry. The same could be said for those of us in real estate. I’m sure there are some securities brokers that wished the windows opened in some of those big office buildings. Most of them didn’t leap, although, there are a few that I would have liked to push out! I mean that in a nurturing and loving way. I’m sorry, after I’m finished standing in the bread line I’ll go see my therapist to suppress this festering resentment I have! Speed-bump?

The times have certainly changed

and with that the lending guidelines have adjusted to our new, not so, “Brave New World.” That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, seeing some folks were giving out loans to pretty much anyone that could fog a mirror. We knew the house of cards was destine to fall sooner or later. When a mortgage back security is leveraged out 38 times or so, a lot was depending on those questionable folks making payments. Of course times got tough, jobs were lost, rates adjusted, home values finally plummeted and here we all are in a heap sorting through the ashes of what we once knew. I could use a hug. Read the rest of this entry »

Safari West- We Know the Owners

Adventure Awaits on the Sonoma Serengeti

It may not be Africa, but it’s close! With

The wildlife park is designed to give the animals the ability to interact and roam about freely, as well as engage our guests in a once in a life time experience — an African luxury safari in the wine country.

Either fly to Santa Rosa or Drive, this week end gettaway is fantastic for adults and or with kids.

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Holmby Park Truly A Hidden Gem

Holmby Park

Chicks dig the long ball!!  Or so they say.  Any real golfer will tell you the big money is made on the short game. I have found a special jewel in Los Angeles to practice that short game and have a great 2 hours of people watching. Just north of Wilshire  Blvd.  on Beverly Glen  is Holmby Park. There you find an eighteen hole golf course for just $6.  All that is needed is 3 golf clubs, 2 wedges and a putter.  So many times here in L. A. you have to call in advance for a tee time , then try to enjoy a lovely 6 1/2 hour round of golf without losing your patience. At Holmby an hour and a half is all that is needed to unwind and polish up on that rusty short game. The greens are a little bigger than a standard size coffee table, and your approach shots vary from 35  to 100 yards.  A par of 54 on this little monster is a great accomplishment.

In the late afternoons this course changes dramatically, an invasion of dedicated walkers over takes the perimeter of the golf course. With back ground chatter, and the loud laughter and giggles from little ones staying focused can be a task and a half. Watch out for the Frisbee tossers , who have mistaken the golf course for a recreational field. Don’t be alarmed or mad it’s just Holmby after 3 pm. On the north side of the park is a child’s playground with at least 50 children having the time of their life. While on the south side of the park the non roar of lawn bowling takes place. All this activity and they decide to build a pitch and putt right in the middle. Sounds like a crazy idea , but it not only works, it fits in perfectly. So if you are a beginner or an old pro who has lost their touch around the green, Holmby Park is the ideal spot to learn or polish up on your skills. Hey for $6 it is guaranteed to put a smile on your face.

P.S.: Acording to a long time local resident, George Bagnall, Arthur Letts founder of the Broadway Department Stores, (who basically “bought Westwood for a dollar an acre”) donated the property as noted by the plaque which sits near the swing set.  It was Armand Hammer who owned Occidental Petroleum, who created a trust to maitain the park and thus “The Armand Hammer Golf Course!”