Donate to Your Local Salvation Army! It's always good to give back to the community that you live in or to get rid of old things that take up space that you no longer have use for. One way in which I like to give back to the community is to donate goods to the local Salvation Army (I like to purchase items here as well!). One of the nearest Salvation Army Thrift Stores to my home it the one located in Anaheim next to La Palm Park. "The Salvation Army is one of the world's largest providers of social aid, with expenditures including operating costs of $2.6 billion in 2004, helping more than 32 million people in the U.S. alone. In addition to community centers and disaster relief, the organization does work in refugee camps, especially among displaced people in Africa." The Salvation A... 05/03/2011

Anaheim’s 41st annual Cinco de Mayo Fiesta and Carnival at La Palma Park Just a minute or two down the street from my home and office in Fullerton is La Palma Park in Anaheim. During this time of the year La Palma Park is always host to one of the best celebrations of Cinco De Mayo around. The fiesta isn't always on the 5th of May itself and this year was no exception with the parties having started on April 28th this year. The 41st annual Cinco de Mayo Fiesta was no doubt a huge success again this year attracting the locals as well as visitors from all around looking for a good time playing games, winning prizes, listening to music, dancing, and enjoying family and friends. Today they still had a few of the attractions that were featured throughtout the Cinco de Mayo Fiesta. Below are... 05/02/2011

NORTH COUNTY ANAHEIM Coming up May 20-22 is the Greek Festival (405 N. Dale St.).Come experience the sights, sounds and tastes of Greece at the 2011 OC Greek Fest: St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church's 50th Annual Greek Food Festival celebrating the food, music, and culture of Greece! Authentic Greek foods and homemade Greek pastries; traditional Greek dancing and Greek music (live music by Fotia); an outdoor marketplace and expansive 'Zorba's Kidz Zone' with carnival rides & games and other activities for the children-plus more!-are all ready for your visit to Greece right here in Anaheim. For more information you can call (714) 827-0182. BREA Sunday, May 8 from 9:00a to 2:00p at El Torito Grill is offering an all-you-can eat Mother's Day buffet with Mexican dishes, waffles, om... 04/29/2011

This might be a simple question to answer for people that may know about “Walt Disney & Vegas Bob” but for others they might have to read on and view this post to really find out. I can’t really think of anyone that doesn’t know who “Walt Disney” is, but what about this “Vegas Bob” guy? I assume that Vegas Bob must be from or live in Las Vegas Nevada, and acquired the name Vegas Bob from Las Vegas! Well to make a long story short Robert Swetz was given the name “Vegas Bob” from a large group of Associates & Friends at the (Activerain Network), and why did they give him this name? Because Vegas Bob has been bringing to life Las Vegas Nevada through his stories, photographs, videos and more! So What does “Walt Disney & Vegas Bob” have in common? “Walt Disney & Vegas Bob” like to have (FU... 04/28/2011

04/25/2011

Sleeping Beauty's Castle at Disneyland... It was a direct replica of a Bavarian Castle (Neuschwanstein Castle).  However it looked too...  Well... Exact...  So one day, the designers pivoted the top and when Walt Disney say it, he immediately loved it, and there it is! I took this at night, with a normal digital camera.  I just used a lamp post to steady my hand. When you see this landmark in Disneyland, what does it make you think?  Ironically, it reminds me of the Disney shows when I was a kid.  Like Old Yeller or Swiss Family Robinson...... Happy Easter everyone! -Chris 04/23/2011

Photograph taken by Robert Swetz 2011 Last Sunday Vegas Bob and family where celebrating Burmese “Water Festival” New Years in Los Angeles California. The following day VB and family strolled over to a HUGE playground for children and adults that either want to be a kid for the day or just don’t want to grow up. Vegas Bob grew up real fast when he was younger and missed several years when he was real young and then again when he was a teenager. So now that VB has been an adult for quite some time, he just wants to bust loose, be silly and NOT act his age. When Sherry first came to live with us in America back in June of 2010 has really brought back some memories of being a kid. I spend so much time with Sherry that I go to fun places like the one in the photo above, watch cartoons and ... 04/23/2011

Thank you Active Rain for helping me to help others. I'm so excited to be helping a client this weekend close on their reverse mortgage refinance.  Mr. F is 85 years old and still making $1500 house payments.  (He refinanced during the boom to help his kids get into their own homes.) His beautiful wife of over 60 years recently passed away he lost her social security income leaving him with just about $1,500 in income.  The kids have been helping out until recently, job losses and the economy prevent them from doing enough. Mr. F's savings is just about gone. The economy hasn't been good to Mr. A, but he always has a smile and loves his home of 32 years. He doesn't want to leave. The reverse mortgage is going to payoff his existing mortgage, just barely.  But that will leave him with no... 04/21/2011

Why was this wonderful song ever taken out of the schools in America? The song “This Land is Your Land” was written by (Woody) Guthrie many years ago, and was sung by children in schools for many-many years. Then all of a sudden it was not allowed to be sung in schools anymore … WHY? What lame excuse does the United States Government have for not allowing the song “This Land is Your Land” to not be sung in the schools. I love this song along with many other songs that were taken out of schools many years ago, and I think it’s really SAD! Shame on the United States Government to allowing these changes … ;o( “This Land is Your Land” – Why was this song taken out of schools?       04/20/2011

Weekly Video Real Estate Update   April 19th 2010 Keep up with the Real Estate Market changes and Trends. Check out this Video. http://www.patelsupdate.com Compliments of: 04/19/2011

When I was around 5 years old my sister and I use to spend summers with our grandparents for many years when we were growing up. Our grandparents had a beautiful home on Knife Lake in northern Minnesota with around 4 hummingbird feeders on the porch over looking the lake. We spent the day at Disneyland in California Monday and as I was taking some video of the flowers a hummingbird came into the video and I was so excited. My grandparents past away many years ago and if they could see this video with the hummingbird in it there would be some smiles on their faces. Hummingbird video by Robert (Vegas Bob) Swetz 04/19/2011

Welcome to the most current Housing Trends eNewsletter. April 2011. This eNewsletter is specially designed for you, with national and local housing information that you may find useful whether you're in the market for a home, thinking about selling your home, or just interested in homeowner issues in general. Please click on this link to view the Housing Trends April 2011 Newsletter http://mikepatel.housingtrendsenewsletter.com/ The Housing Trends eNewsletter contains the latest information from the National Association of REALTORS®, the U.S. Census Bureau, Realtor.org reports and other sources. Housing Trends eNewsletter is filled with local and national real estate sales and price activity provided by MLSs and the National Association of Realtors, U.S. Census Bureau key market indicat... 04/18/2011

Buying A House And Your House Purchase What does your health got to do with you house purchase, or your Dreams?! I have been working with a buyer on and off for a year. She could not buy a home last year as she was working on saving for more down payment and take care of other loose ends. I did not hear from her for a few months. I got concerned, she does not want to work with me? She finally responded to my email: "Hi Mike:Sorry I haven't gotten back to you.  I had 2 surgeries and I ended up having to retire.  I won't be able to buy a house now.  I want to thank you for all your help.Sincerely...." So I was just thinking, take care of your health. It could avoid you from buying a house, a car, a bike or whatever... Don't Delay On Your Dreams!!   04/16/2011

The market is ever changing.  What you are hearing from the mainstream national media about Real Estate is only one small part of the story. Here is the link to my Video Newsletter: for the latest. http://www.patelsupdate.com My Video Newsletter is loaded with up to date Real Estate News and Advice. Some of its features include: Current Real Estate NewsInterest RatesMortgage AdviceQuestion & Answers Short Sales Foreclosures Plus much more. It is "real time" and changes weekly. Whether you are thinking about selling or buying, or you just want to keep abreast of the market, I hope you find this information useful and informative 04/13/2011

Rocking Out on Legos - Silent Saturday         My little one loves to climb the super-size legos at Downtown Disney.  He's also a bit of a ham and likes to strike a pose or two while hanging out. Despite the problems with the quality of the photo, I decide the subject was too fun not to share. 04/02/2011

Of course from the picture and title of this blog it doesn't take a rocket scientist to guess where I was tonight. I was in Disneyland at the happiest place on earth!! This is Sleeping Beauties Castle, the entry way into Fantasyland where some of my favorite rides are like Alice and Wonderland, and Peter Pan's Flight....I was very happy that the rain clouds cleared up in time to give Orange County a beautiful sunset. 03/25/2011

The Short Sale Closing Process Here is a snap shot of what agents may do to process the short sale closing. These items are in addition to the normal escrow closing process.  Each process varies by States, lenders and sellers. Short sales represents a large portion of sales these days. Processing these closing transactions and escrows for these properties can be a complex task. No two short sales are alike. So each transaction has it own complications. What Is A Short Sale Closing?   A short Sale closing accompanies a short sale -an event that occurs when the net proceeds from the sale of the home or property are not enough to cover the homeowner's obligations and the lender approves the sale, thereby accepting a 'short pay off' What are the key components of a short sale closing? 1. Pr... 03/25/2011

How to Avoid Foreclosure Informative Video - Making Home Affordable. Avoiding Foreclosure - Know Your Options. Feel Free to contact us for any specific questions or info you may have or need. My Business Helping You 03/23/2011

The Discovery time: The smell of dairy farm animals threatening my nose, the buzz of flying insects above my head, the endless sight of green acres of agricultural land (13.1 square miles to be exact) and the always welcome & sizzling sun rays hitting my skin were a combination of perfection, which engraved some of my adventurous memories as a teenager living and riding my bike up and North of River Road into what is now know as the city of Eastvale. How I miss those worry free days. WWW.HOME-ALA-MODE.COM We grow up and Progress happens: The city of Eastvale, once a rural area. was primarily dairy farms and agricultural soil until the late 1990s. At the time, the area started to sub-urbanize to house the arrival of people migrating from bordering OC and LA counties in search for afforda... 03/18/2011

Welcome to the most current Housing Trends eNewsletter. March 2011. This eNewsletter is specially designed for you, with national and local housing information that you may find useful whether you're in the market for a home, thinking about selling your home, or just interested in homeowner issues in general. Please click on this link to view the Housing Trends March 2011 Newsletter http://mikepatel.housingtrendsenewsletter.com/ The Housing Trends eNewsletter contains the latest information from the National Association of REALTORS®, the U.S. Census Bureau, Realtor.org reports and other sources. Housing Trends eNewsletter is filled with local and national real estate sales and price activity provided by MLSs and the National Association of Realtors, U.S. Census Bureau key market indicat... 03/16/2011