$199,000.00 - 2-bedroom condo in Fremont Villas is a good dealLocation: Fremont VillasGood value, good location, good amenities, good condition.This condo is located in Fremont Villas, a park-like complex with beautifully landscaped grounds, mature trees, and lots of mini-green belts. Wonderfully located near city amenities and BART, with easy access to major citY amenities.The residents enjoy a nice pool and clubhouse, and have reserved covered parking. While guests will have little trouble finding off-street parking.The unit is on the upper floor, and as such benefits from lofty ceilings and ample natural light. The balcony is large enough to accommodate a barbecue. The kitchen is well equipped with newer appliances. For even more convenience, the unit has laundry hookups including a ... 12/10/2009

Sunday was our day to tour a few Fremont Christmas tree lots for our favorite Charlie Brown tree.  Well, it didn't really turn out to be Charlie Brown at all.  We went to a new spot first.  We know the trees are costly this year due to the lack of rain!  Of course, we know our trees don't come from California anyway, esecially they aren't local here in Fremont.  The problem was, no trees were great, but they were very expensive.  Of course, we ended up at regular stop.  Regan's Nusery in Fremont. CA.   Usually we have our three children with us when we start the Christmas tree hunt.  We gear up with Hot Chocolate and warm clothes.  This Sunday was especially cold due to the Canada winter srorm watch.  It was almost to the point of thinking snow was going to start blowing as we tretched ... 12/07/2009

I tweeted using Openbeak for the blackberry earlier today while I was in the Niles area of Fremont . I was on my way to meet with Pat Montellano, a purveyor of fine collectibles such as plates, cups and all things art deco like syrup dispensers over at A Time For Tea in the Niles area of Fremont, of which I happened to have a recent affinity for. I talked to Pat a few months ago asking her if she had plans to pick up any dispensers. She said she would and for me to write my name on a list, so I did. Last week I got a call from Pat claiming that she found a few of the 50's art deco syrup dispensers for me while she left the Niles area of Fremont and went on her road trip into the Midwest. When she returned, she asked me what colors I had in mind. I wanted to know if she found any with sa... 12/07/2009

Last week I brought a client into a new subdivision in Fremont called Gramercy at Park Lane West in the Irvington area. After locating the sales office, and after filling out my broker form, I escorted my Fremont home buyer into the Gramercy at Park Lane West's Lanesborough Loft and then the Devonshire model home in what is called the Westerley at Park Lane West. Those were as large as they were stunning. But most of this is written about the Gramercy. It has been a while since I have walked into a new home subdivision, but I must say, I was quite impressed. First, the staging furniture was excellent as well as the accents. Sure there was the cardboard computer on a desk, but that is to be expected. Who's going to put either an outdated 40lb monitor on the table? or risk placing a Power... 12/04/2009

Subscribe In the last year with the help of the tax credit, there has been a rise in first time home buyers. The National Association of Realtors says the percentage of first time buyer is up to 47% in 2009 compared to 41% in 2008 and 36% in 2006. The unemployment rate is close to peaking and is projected to ease to 9.5% by the end of next year. Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-11-17/housing-a... 11/30/2009

After a few late appointments at my real estate office, I hopped in the car (could have walked) and drove to Washington High school Gymnasium where the Huskies were playing the Livermore High school team. As you can see in the final scoreboard, the Huskies bit the Livermore High School team 70 times while the Visitors nipped back a mere 33. It was good sportsman's ship to see fallen players helped back up after a fall from the opposing side more times than one. All in all, a good night out with the family. Better luck next time Livermore. 11/24/2009

Some of you know that from 1987 to 1999 I worked for UPS, a driver in fact. I delivered packages out in the Mission San Jose area of Fremont. In the morning deliveries to businesses came first, then some residential, then business pick ups, then go back out and deliver residential again. I saw a lot homes to say the least. , About mid route, I also delivered to a small business center where I would find my new dentist Dr. Karen Gianotti, my insurance agent Mike Qutermous at State Farm, my Optometrist, Dr. Marvin Mah (I may need glasses soon) and the VCA Mission San Jose Pet Hospital where we take our pets. They are all there in the Mission San Jose Business center on the corner of Luzon and Washington Blvd. I especially grew fond of where one of my driver buddies lived off of Luzon and ... 11/18/2009

Bijan Restaurant - Fremont, CA (Alameda County, California) Bijan Restaurant is located a couple miles west of I-680 on Mission Blvd. in Fremont. It's in the Lucky Shopping Center behind the ARCO gas station and you need to make a u-turn at the next light if you're coming from the 680 freeway. Bijan Restaurant has belly dancing on Friday nights and it's pretty cool when the belly dancer balances a sword on top of her head while she's dancing! If you feel like eating Persian food in Fremont, I recommend going to Bijan Restaurant...they have good food, good service and a clean restaurant. They also have outdoor dining with a covered patio, which is a nice option. The last time we ate at Bijan Restaurant, we shared a Hummus ($5.95) and it was a generous portion for two, which we both reall... 11/15/2009

On average, the "sold" prices for real estate owned homes in Fremont over the last 3 months or so have been selling for over the asking price. I ran just a quick list of all the homes that sold during that time, averaged the sales prices, averaged the listing prices, subtracted for the difference then divided the difference by the listing price. It sounds like a real estate question from the state exam. Doesn't it? Anyway, below are the results. Asking Price Avg. Sold Price Avg. Avg. Difference % Over Asking $434,138 $458,711 $24,573 5.66% We have not heard a lot of the "we bought our home for half the listing price" kinds of stories in our office. Actually, in order to get the house--most of the time, one has to offer over the asking price. Please remember that these are averages and o... 11/14/2009

Good Morning Fellow Readers: It is interesting to read all  the blog posts, well as much as possible anyway!  Some posts are personal, some are more technical.  All in all, its a way for the readers and visitors to meet and greet the industry from their lap top!  For me, I get to experience this from our local hang out in Fremont called Suju's.  A local coffee shop that is spacious, has lots of tables to congregate at, comfy couches and chairs and a  ambiance. Best of all, the coffee is freshly roasted in the back of the room and the Internet is FREE!  In most of my net-working groups I attend, mixer's I crash, and areas of Fremont I shop, I seem to run into at least 1 or 2 acquaintances at Suju's.  It is a great local hang out for college kids, high school kids, entrepreneurs, and YES ... 11/13/2009

Just real quick--the number of homes for sale in Northgate, Centerville, Mission Hills and other areas of Fremont are shrinking. Usually this is followed or accompanied by rising prices. In my last blog post, I simply laid out the fact that the home prices in Fremont were getting a bit of a boost upward. So, this could be the culprit. What do you think? Let me know. 11/10/2009

If you go to my site TriCityHome.com, you will find distressed homes for sale in Antelope Hills Fremont. No matter where you are in the US, you are effected by the decreased value of homes. Antelope Hills is nice but not immune to the crunch. Just go to my site and wait for the thumbnails (small images of homes that change on the screen) to appear. There you will find distressed homes for sale in just about all categories and price ranges. The site uses IDX scripting, so I cannot embed it here, but go and try the site. It is just a click away. 11/09/2009

Homes for sale in Glenmoor are showing changes in pricing, and this area has always been one of the most desired places to live in Fremont CA that have home values from 500k up to over 1 million. I like the area too, but I happen to live in the Parkmont area of Fremont. Glenmoor homes for sale have also felt the effect of the price drop. Homes sales since 2007 have dropped on average of 35%. Some areas only fell 30%. That would be Glenmoor. But recently there has been an increase of about 5% take a look at this chart. It's hard to see, but it shows that over the last 180 days, home prices in Glenmoor increased by about 5%.Other areas hit by the 30% instead of 35% are:ParkmontNilesMission San JoseIndian HillsThey are recovering at the moment. Let's see. Next blog post I will post the sup... 11/08/2009

At the time of writing this post, loan rates were down to about 4.5%. Unemployment was up to over 10%. Tempting as the rates may be, some people are scared to commit to a home purchase because they might be out of a job soon. I spoke with a high level executive at B of A, and they are trying to do something about that. They actually have a home buyer protection program where they will pay 6 months of your home loan (P&I) if you get hurt or lose your job. Not a bad deal, but you do have to commit to the loan. Walking away from a loan hurts the economy as you know. I know this next point isn't exactly related, and I am a bit off topic, but I added a link to our site that allows you to see pictures of our office. Nothing new, I know, but we have found that those buyers who come in the offi... 11/06/2009

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If you have found a short sale in Fremont and are getting discouraged at the pace of things, find out if the home you are buying has a B of A loan on it. If it does, you are in luck, well sort of. I know there have been horror stories about B of A. My father-in-law who also is a broker has a few of his own. But, I do not (yet). I have a short sale in the Parkmont area of Fremont and the buyer really wants to get going. I think they are feeling that they may miss out on the new buyer credit. I was introduced to a VP of B of A a while ago, and he has now been authorized on the account and the short sale is moving quickly. There are a few strings attached. If you as a buyer have a loan approved already with a non B of A provider, you will have to dump them. The VP wants the loan in order t... 11/04/2009

Subscribe How to Buy a Bank owned home This is a UTUBE video I thought you all would like. I thought it was funny and entertaining. It hits close to home in regards to bank owned homes and the "foreclosure specialists" assigned to list them.. 11/03/2009

We were given the MOD (Multiple Offer Disclosure) from on of the major banks today. We offered a fair amount for a property for sale in Fremont, and got the MOD in return. It is the bank's way of flushing out any possible chance for a bidding war to get it's last word or dollar in. The notice only states that the bank is "letting you know" that they know there are multiple offers on the property. It sometimes comes with an attachment from the listing agent saying that any Counter Offer (extra bid from us or you if you are the buyer) needs to be in writing and so on. We called their bluff today and stood our ground. The buyer simply acknowledged the MOD and sat back and is now waiting. Lets see those cards Mr. Lender. I'll keep you informed. Thanks for reading. Why not take some free thi... 11/02/2009

It's a Fremont short sale actually. My point however is to remind home buyers in Fremont that your short sale deal needs to be well-cared for while it is in the bank's "system." Many brokers and agents feel a bit indifferent about referring to the bank's process of handling a short sale anything remotely close to a "system." It's a bit of a sore subject among us real estate professionals. In a recent blog post, I mentioned that B of A was going to assist in one of my short sales. A VP was personally going to see that it got done fast. Last week I received a call from B of A. It turns out that my short sale file was sitting in the wrong department for a significant length of time. It was discovered by none other than the VP himself. It was quickly remedied and then brought to my attentio... 11/02/2009

Subscribe when the economy gets bad and people get desperate, some people have no scruples and will try to scam any way they can. If you are trying to get a mortgage, beware of online scams who are trying to just get your information so they can steal your identity and ruin your credit and your life. Also beware of brokers or lenders who tell you one rate and then give you another (higher rate). Be sure you do business with a "Realtor" or someone else you know and trust. Realtor's have specific ethics they have to abide by. Some people are already finding ways to scam the tax credit, and it makes it tougher for those of us who are trying to complete honest business transactions. keep heart there are good, honest, people who will help you get the mortgage you need. 11/02/2009