Is it just me or do these things drive you crazy, too?   When I can HEAR someone chew and pop their gum….Puh-leeeeze!  Gum is supposed to be a secret between you and your mouth.  Is it a new language or something?     When you hold a door open for someone and they don’t say thank you; actually…when you do ANYTHING that a normal person would thank you for but the person you did it for just looks at you like you’re from another planet.  What’s this world coming to?   When someone, male or female, wears something so tight you can read their DNA.  Are you really serious?      When my husband (Gotta luv him) speeds up after a car pulls right in front of him.  I should have drove, right?   When they leave the security tag on merchandise but of course it doesn’t go off when you leave the ... 04/19/2011

Where or where is the Easter bunny?      In Ventura County, the Easter Bunny is visiting a lot of different places:     In Camarillo, it is the Easter Eggstravaganza and Craft Fair at the Camarillo Community Center. There will be egg hunts, craft vendors, food and carnival booths, pony rides and a petting zoo. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 23, 1605 E. Burnley St. Free. 482-1996; www.pvrpd.org     In Oxnard, the inaugural Downtown Oxnard Farmers Market Easter Bunny Day at Plaza Park will feature an egg hunt with the Easter Bunny at 11 a.m., an egg decorating contest, face painting, live music, a barbecue and a raffle. 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 21, Fifth and B streets. Free admission. 643-6458.     The Fillmore & Western Railway's Easter Lunch Train will feature a ride through the Santa Clara Rive... 04/16/2011

Baddest on the Block When it comes to selling or buying homes in Oxnard, Ventura, Camarillo, or Port Hueneme, the one that I want to buy or sell has to be and is going to be the "Baddest on the Block." And I can help you set the stage for this cool respect. It is going to have "Street Cred" (curb appeal). When you walk or cruise by, it is going to say "Look at me. I can be yours. This is love at first sight. Come on in, I have more for you to see inside." It is going to be "Sweet." The plants and the landscape are just going to pop with delightful colors inviting you in. We can have good times inside or out. This home will "Sing" with new paint and polish and welcome you to stay awhile. The lack of clutter will help you envsion your stuff here. This home has been cared for, as you can s... 04/12/2011

     Sorry!  For you "A" type personalities that need a graph, I don’t have an Oxnard Homes For Sale graph for you; simply because I tend to provide information in a way that it works for me.  It’s not that I can’t make a graph it’s just that when it comes down to this kind of information all I want to know is what the bottom number is.  So I narrowed it down for everybody.   Here you go:      There were 134 Oxnard residential closed sales in March 2011.  That compares to 149 in March 2010.  Of those 134 sales in March, 26 were all cash (That’s right folks; some people still have money to spend).  The least expensive all cash residential purchase in March 2011 was $85K.  The most expensive was $975K.  This compares to 43 Oxnard Homes all cash sales in of the 149 sales in March 2010 of w... 04/09/2011

     Is it a great time to buy an Oxnard Home?  All real estate markets are local.  There is no doubt that like many other areas the Oxnard real estate market has transitioned to a buyer's market.  Buyers may have apprehension about buying out of concerns that if they continue to wait to make an Oxnard home purchase perhaps prices will drop even further.  With foreclosures increasing and all the continued media coverage about the weakened housing market, it is no wonder some buyers remain on the fence. However there are some exceptional buying opportunities available for buyers to take advantage of.        If you're a ready buyer looking for an Oxnard home for sale you're being smart by paying attention to everything you hear and read about our local real estate market.  However, don't ... 04/08/2011

I'm the officially cool Qool Oxnard Real Estate Professional now that I have a QR code.  They say it's the newest real estate rage but QR codes have been around for a while.  I guess I just move in slow motion. There are several ways I'm going to use QR codes. 1. To market myself 2. To use the newest technology available to clients 3. To market a client's home 4. To be the Qoolest agent in my Oxnard Real Estate office            Now that I'm an officially Qool Oxnard Real Estate Professional because I have a QR code if you find me using my new Qool code and need to buy or sell a home, using this code makes you a preferred client.  Call for more details.      If you want to be cool Qool you can generate your own FREE QR code here.  How Qool is that!!!!!   04/05/2011

     I’m not a professional food reviewer; I’m happy to be an Oxnard Real Estate Professional in the Oxnard Beach and Marina area, but I know a good meal when I have one.  And I certainly had one this past Saturday at Sugar Beets Restaurant and Bar in Downtown Oxnard.  I’ve been to lots of restaurants in my life and a salmon dish is routinely one of my preferred menu choices.  I’ve had some pretty good dishes at other places.  It wasn’t like a huge jump for me to order the Cedar Plank Salmon off the Sugar Beets dinner menu.  Before I tell you how that went I have to also mention that for an appetizer I ordered their Crab and Corn Cakes.  Now, if that was an indication of what to expect with the Cedar Plank Salmon, I knew I was in for a real treat.  They were pretty darned good!         ... 04/04/2011

      Oxnard Beach and Marina is one of the best secrets of the California Coast.  Approximately sixty miles northwest of Los Angeles, located between Malibu and Santa Barbara, the Oxnard Beach and Marina area offers an envious lifestyle and climate.  With twenty miles of un-crowded coastline, beautiful homes, award winning schools, golfing, sailing, nearby shopping and many coffee shops, sandwich shops and restaurants to suit your style and budget, Oxnard is a great place to call home.       Known for our Annual Strawberry Festival, an annual event that attracts thousands of locals and visiting guests each year, Oxnard has a beach and marina home for just about every budget.  Whether you're looking for a beach home, boat dock home, gated community home, senior living community or just ... 04/02/2011

     My husband is in the kitchen cooking.  Actually, that's not news worthy.  He cooks all the time.  What would be more news worthy is if it were me in there doing it.  Before we got married I made it very, very clear that if he expected a wife that would cook every day I would be a great disappointment... I'm not the one.  I suggested we remain friends.  I didn't try to wow him with great dishes before we got married.  I didn't try to convince him that I would try to cook after we got married.  I just told him the truth.  "As much as I love you, It's just not going to happen," is what I said. He still wanted to marry me.  Ladies, don't be jealous, you can get one too. Cooking was one of the first jobs I retired from.  It was an early retirement, that's a given. I was thirty four when... 04/02/2011

    Okay, so I consider myself a social person.  But I’m a bit socially awkward when it comes to all this social media stuff.  Activerain, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, 4Square.  It's like going on a first date, you're excited about where the relationship will go.  Then you meet the person and realize you really want to date them again and again.  You start telling your friends about them, mentally making out the guest list for your future wedding, "inviting" your "fans," people who "like" you and making sure that everyone that matters is "Linkedin" to this new experience. You're looking forward to your "happily ever after."       It's official folks, I'm falling in love.  All this social media stuff has me head-over-heals!  I think I've become a bit of a social media polygamist.  Don't ... 03/25/2011

I love Christmas!  For hubby and I, one of our favorite Christmas traditions is visiting Christmas Tree Lane up in Oxnards Historic District.  If you've never seen this area, it is all about some of the finest historic homes from the city's oldest homes dating back to 1911.  The homeowners here have taken great pride in the charm of this historic neighborhood and surrounding community and that pride is reflected in the ten blocks of carefully restored homes ranging from Craftsman, Spanish Colonial, Period Revival bungalows and eclectic homes. The 144 homes in this district were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999 because it has one of the highest ratios of contributing structures: meaning the homes have not been greatly modified and because the neighborhood has ma... 12/09/2010

  The Annual Oxnard Christmas Parade, Christmas Around the World, will feature community favorites and special guests.  With more than 90 entries that include marching bands, equestrian units, local non-profits and businesses, the community will share in the holiday spirit that is so present in Downtown Oxnard.     The parade will take place on Saturday, December 4, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. and will begin on 9th Street and will travel north on A Street to 5th Street.  After turning 5th Street around Plaza Park, it will then head right onto C Street and ending at C Street and 3rd.    The parade is a free family event with plenty of room for everyone.  Parade attendees and participants are encouraged to visit Santa in Plaza Park after the parade and enjoy the delicious food offerings and shopp... 11/30/2010

Ventura County Good Old Fashioned Family Fun Series #13 Born Learning Trail Ventura County children are having fun at the Born Learning Trail, created and built by United Way volunteers who wanted to provide Oxnard residents with an educational, fun place to take their young children. Enjoy the crisp, cool autumn air outside with your children on the Born Learning Trail located in Oxnard. This interactive trail provides 10 outdoor games to play with your children along the trail. The games are listed on posts for parents and caregivers to play with young children. The Born Learning Trail was installed by the United way of Ventura County, and is designed to enhance early learning by engaging children's language and literacy skills within a fun activity. The signs are listed in English an... 11/13/2010

I've been blogging a lot lately in a concerted effort to help my entry to a coastal community with some strict CC&Rs. Two agents dominate the entire development and I think there's room for one more very qualified agent...ME!!! I love this neighborhood that I call home and want to attract buyers here that can enjoy a walk across to the beach, tennis courts, some units with ocean views, so many units that have stunning upgrades and have become frustrated in not being able to door knock or drop important area information off to the owners. Some people have suggest some great ideas and I'm taking under consideration a few of them, but in the meantime, Would it be terribly rude to find a list of owners who I may personally call to introduce myself to not only as a resident, but someone who ... 10/21/2010

I must admit, some of the things my associates do in this industry leave me scratching my head and make me wonder who these people are working for. This morning I took my workout routine outdoors as I knew a storm was on its way in and I wanted to make the most of living on the beach without getting wet! I love living at The Colony and all the amenities here, but can't help but notice when there's anything going on in my neighborhood that's industry related. Quite a few of the residents here at The Colony use their property but once or twice a year and have decided to wait the market out before selling by leasing. As a courtesy, a wise agent always offers to place the property on the MLS as a free service to the owner and typically will help in negotiating and obtaining a guaranteed lea... 10/18/2010

I'm in a position to deal with an unrealistic seller and their broker. There's a way over-priced listing that my buyer is interested in, but understands that the seller is living in La La Land at over $250,000 market value. There are several ways to deal with this like head on into calling the listing broker and seeing why they would even come close to accepting such a fallacy and asking if their sellers are just grooving on having strangers come into their home to look. I know that sounds harsh, but so is the list price on a beautifully decorated condo at the beach.                                      Heck, I could see adding MAYBE $25k above value for the view of the ocean that is observed only from the patio (no window views, you must go outside). And perhaps another $50k for interi... 09/19/2010

I've been in the business long enough to know what works and what doesn't...BUT find myself at a total loss when it comes to strict HOA rules relating to Realtor marketing and how to break through the proverbial glass ceiling. Here's the dilemma, I've got a beautiful condomium complex located steps from the beach in Oxnard, CA. I want one of those listings so bad that I can taste it. Why? Because I live there! I know the values like the back of my hand, love living life there where the air is clean as well as the beaches. I enjoy all the area offers and would love to see other people enjoying this lifestyle. Here are the basics...NO door knocking. Okay, I'm good with that one as I've always felt that rap rap rap on the door is intrusive. I have no problem greeting neighbors and telling ... 08/30/2010

I don't know about you, but I've noticed a serious downturn in activity here in Ventura County. Available homes are getting harder to find; even those that should be in a short sale status. We are coming close to the end of our "selling season" and if there are any serious buyers out there, now is the time to take advantage of the prices AND most importantly the low low low interest rates. Once again housing has become affordable and there's the hope and promise of the American dream that finally makes some sense. Gone are the days of 100% financing if you could fog a mirror and greed has been replaced by (some) empathy toward the homeowner's who were caught up in the bubble. The one thing I still can't figure out is your average Joe who still can't see past his or her nose when it come... 08/23/2010

Well you know the rest and I won't quote that one here. What I will tell you is that it gets really old dealing with listing agents who have a great property that's grossly overpriced. I mean like a property that at a maximum in this declining market that is possibly worth $550k and is listed at $774k and has been on the market over 420+ days. I believe I've written about this property before, but I had the opportunity to preview it merely because I wanted to see the ocean view that seemed to bring its list price somewhat into reason. The only problem being is that there isn't a view from anywhere in the home. The view is from the outdoor patio. Nonetheless, the property was stunning on the interior! Upgraded, updated and simply stunning. The viewing instructions on the subject property... 08/20/2010

I close escrow today on a short sale in Oxnard, California. This was the "typical" short sale with Chase where much of the chase happened to be chasing Chase in an effort to stabilize my Seller's position in this crazy recovery. We played a lot of cat and mouse games because while I was chasing Chase, Chase was chasing my Seller for more payments adding subtle hints that their short sale would seen in a more "favorable" light if they continued to make payments toward the 2nd lien holder (surprise, also Chase). First off, let me be the one to shed a little light on the subject by informing you, the reader, that the collection department at Chase has nothing to do with the short sale department. I tend to form a close bond with my short sale clients (I almost used the word "people" here, ... 08/20/2010