It's been a while since I had the chance to post a blog - I apologize. Life got in the way. It has a funny way of doing that. My husband and I have been busy ever since the earthquake hit Haiti. He leads a disaster relief ministry at our church, and has been attending meetings and sending out/answering e-mails on a constant basis. Our little troubles pale in comparison to what has happened there. A few days after the quake, our relief team was able to get a group of 8 men into Haiti via the Dominican Republic. They visited Port-au-Prince and were shocked at the devastation (some of these guys had been to Thailand after the tsunami and the Gulf Coast after Katrina). It looks like the Lord has led us to a city of 40,000 souls 50 miles southwest of PAP, a town called Jacmel. Hit just as ha... 01/25/2010

Whittier Home Prices are Rising Today's issue of the Whittier Daily News reports that home prices in Whittier and Los Angeles County are rising. The newspaper revealed some interesting facts about the real estate market in Whittier, California. Home prices for Los Angeles County have increased 5.6% over home prices from one year ago, with a median price of $338,000. Prices for Whittier homes increased 1.5% over a year ago, with a median price of $340,000. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Thank you for reading the blog post, Whittier Home Prices are Rising.  If you like my blog, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed to get the latest Whittier and Southern California real estate news from Bob Willis. For Whittier real e... 01/23/2010

The lyrics should have been something like "It hardly ever rains in sunny Southern California, but when it does, man, it's a mess!" ... If you have been following the weather reports you know what's currently going on in the usually so sunny SoCal: floods, mud slides, water spouts, etc. - not really things you'd expect in this area, but as you can see, they do happen.  Even though you might think this would be the worst time to buy a house it is actually a great time! Right about now you probably think I'm nuts, right? But, there actually is method to my madness ... and I'll tell you why: Most people try to purchase a home during the warmer months, with Real Estate in this area typically picking up around April all the way through late August and into early September (to get settled in ... 01/21/2010

During a face to face prequalification this past Saturday, I got to talking to a client. It turned out my prequalification amount was about $85,000 lower than the last one she had gotten. As we discussed further, I tried to work with her numbers to try to figure out how to make it work at a higher loan amount, but couldn't find a way. My back end ratio was up at about 56%. In layman's terms, that means 56% of her gross income (before taxes) would go to her monthly bills. These monthly bills do not include utilities, groceries, car maintenance or car insurance. In other words, she'll be lucky to be able to afford to live once she gets in to this house. As I apologized for not being able to qualify her for more, we discussed the perils of such a prequalification. I explained her income ha... 01/21/2010

Providing Maximum Exposure for 6237 Western Ave Whittier CA 90601 - Whittier Home for Sale My goal is to sell this home, so I market it in many ways, in order to get the greatest number of potential buyers to see it.  Already, the address is number one on Google.  Try Googling 6237 Western Avenue Whittier.  Two of my blogs appear first in the Google search for 6237 Western Avenue Whittier.  Check out the other two blog posts on 6237 Western Ave here and here.   You can also see that the Google results show 6237 Western Avenue Whittier featured on the Localism website.  So now, you can see that there is already Maximum Internet Exposure for this first time home buyer home in Whittier.  Today, I brought agents from my office, Prudential California Realty Whittier, to view the home at 6237... 01/13/2010

Future Whittier Home Seller - Do You Want Your Whittier Home to be Number One on Google? I just listed a home for sale in Whittier California on Friday.  It is now Sunday. On Saturday I wrote a blog about the new listing at 6237 Western Avenue, Whittier, CA 90601.  It is an ideal Whittier home for first time buyers. Google the address.  Go to Google.com and type in "6237 Western Avenue Whittier". As of right now, you will see that my Active Rain blog about the property is Number One out of 5,600 pages. When you sell your house, wouldn't you like your address to be Number One on Google searches? _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Thank you for reading the blog post, Future Home Seller - Do You Want Your Home to be Number ... 01/10/2010

First of all, happy new year to all of you! I think we all are looking forward to a better decade than the last one. There is some good news on the home front - we finally have a "negotiator" assigned to our case, and hope to hear something from her soon. The listing expired on our house, and we decided not to relist quite yet (plus we want to see how many expired packages we get!). Out of the 50-60 applications that Scott has filled out, he finally had a call and will go in for an interview!!!! After nine months of rejection after rejection, he is smiling. "Someone actually wants me," he told me yesterday. The job is a "Community Advocate", someone who assists developmentally disabled adults with learning life skills and getting jobs, among other things. The pay isn't much, but it is g... 01/05/2010

From smack dab in the middle of Los Angeles County, Whittier's Hellman Park is the best place to get a full 360 degree view of the entire County of Los Angeles.  Your hike starts at the top of Greenleaf Avenue in Whittier, at the intersection of Orange Drive.  Park in the parking lot at the entrance of Hellman Park.   01/02/2010

I just got over Christmas and now New Year's is heading straight at me! As most of you know, 2009 is a year I'd rather forget. Scott was laid off, I switched offices, we are still trying to sell our house and we are in the middle of an attempted loan modification. For the first time ever, I won't be able to make this month's house payment. Our once stellar credit rating will no doubt take a huge hit, which will pretty much mess up any future home purchases or even renting or leasing a place. There are always bright spots along the way, Our health is pretty good. We have reliable transportation. Our kids are not in jail. So I guess we are pretty blessed. You know those old cartoons that portray the year ending as a white-bearded old man who looks ready to kick the bucket? And then the ne... 12/28/2009

I went to Parnell Park today to see if I could take a few pictures of the animals in the little zoo.  Well, since the zoo was closed, I was only able to take a few pictures through the wrought iron fence.Here is a picture of a goat.Here is a view of the backside of the Shetland ponies.Now, the biggest surprise of all was the new, big bird that was out of its cage.  It was the biggest bird I have ever seen.  And, it was pulling the largest worm I have ever seen out of the ground. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________Thank you for reading the blog post, Whittier Parnell Park Has a New Bird in the Zoo. I help home owners sell in the following towns in the greater Whittier area: La Habra, La Habra Heights, La Mirada. 12/23/2009

Whittier homes come in all price ranges.  My earlier post today showed Whittier home prices by neighborhood.  This post will focus on prices by zip code. Here are today's average prices for Whittier homes that have sold in the past six months, according to zip code. December 23, 2009 Zip Code Avg Sale Price Zip 90601 $389,158 Zip 90602 $348,820 Zip 90603 $448,794 Zip 90604 $334,182 Zip 90605 $335,446 Zip 90606 $286,075 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Thank you for reading the blog post, Whittier Homes for Sale - Prices by Zip Code. If you like my blog, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed to get the latest Whittier real estate news. For Whittier real estate, see this website. Thinking about selling your home? Go to ... 12/23/2009

Whittier homes come in all price ranges. Home owners in Whittier, who want to move up to a nicer home, will typically follow the trend that was started when Whittier was still a farming community.  They will choose to go to more expensive neighborhoods, where homes tend to be a little nicer.Let's take today's average price for some of the neighborhoods in Whittier.December 23, 2009 Neighborhood Avg Sale Price West of Norwalk Blvd. $291,234 South Whittier $303,345 Sorenson Park $304,283 Palm Park $309,091 Uptown $353,402 Whittwood $377,715 East Whittier $398,391 Michigan Park $523,692 Spy Glass $554,375 Mar Vista Heights $575,985 Friendly Hills $713,887   You can see the progression in prices from the south and west up to the north and east, culminating in the most expensive homes in Fri... 12/23/2009

Okay, here's another "walking the dog revelation". First of all, you gotta rent this movie called "Door To Door" with William H. Macy. Saw it last night and I guarantee that whatever you are going through, watching this will give you hope. Okay, back to the story. Got up earlier than usual this morning to walk Annie, so it was still dark when we started. About halfway through the route the sun started to rise.  There's some clouds in the sky (unknown what kind, but not cumulus. Maybe stratus?), and at one point the combination of just the right amount of sun and just the right angle on the clouds and WOW! Thirty seconds of absolutely the most beautiful sight you'll ever see! Too bad I only had 30 seconds to view this awesome show. So about 15 minutes later I notice someone walking towar... 12/18/2009

The City of Whittier has many beautiful parks to offer, but Penn Park (named after William Penn) is definitely my favorite! It is located at 13950 Penn St., Whittier, CA 90602, tucked away from any traffic noise and surrounded by many, very beautiful homes. I think the pictures will speak for themselves ... and for those of you who are thinking about relocating to Whittier, these photos were taken December 8, 2009 - notice the weather? :-) Penn Park is a perfect place for your family functions - it features 75 picnic tables, bbqs, a play structure, public restrooms. There is also a beautiful little stream, small pond, and a small waterfall feature towards the back of the park - very nice and shady, great place to walk or sit on a bench in the summer. Another nicely shaded area of Penn P... 12/13/2009

Christmas has come to the beautiful City of Whittier! The Season officially started with the 15th Annual Grand Illumination on December 4th. The next milestone will be the 56th Annual Christmas Parade on December 12, from 10am to 12 pm (go to http://whittieruptown.com/wua/?page_id=2 for more information provided by the Whittier Uptown Association and a little YouTube video of past events). The motto of this year’s Parade is “Commitment to Community” and will feature many local businesses that help make the City of Whittier such a wonderful place to live in. The parade runs down popular Greenleaf Ave, from Hadley down to Mar Vista. I will be there taking photos so be sure to check back in next week! As the parade ends around 12pm, you'll have plenty of time to grab a bite to eat at one o... 12/09/2009

I was on my morning walk with my yellow lab "Annie", complaining to myself about how cold it was. It was 42 degrees, and I was bundled up like Randy in "A Christmas Story". I know that in other parts of the country 42 degrees would be a heat wave, but here in Southern California, that's cold! Walking my usual route, I noticed all of the leaves on the front yards of the houses that I passed. I love that sight, and it really brings home to me the cycles of life in nature and in our own. We start off like Spring, all fresh and new and green and full of life. Then we pass into Summer, where things heat up and life can be a challenge. Fall arrives, and we slow down a little and seem to enjoy life more as we shed excess stuff. Now Winter sneaks in and it grows cold and the beauty of Spring is... 12/09/2009

This Saturday marks the 56th annual Christmas Parade in Uptown Whittier California.  Starting at 10:00 a.m., the parade route starts at the intersection of Greenleaf and Hadley.  The theme for this year's parade is Commitment to Community, and will be filled with floats, marching bands, drill teams and many different groups from the community. When the parade ends at Mar Vista Street, children, young and old, will be able to see Old Saint Nick, all dressed up in his finest red coat. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Thank you for reading the blog post, Whittier California Christmas Parade Coming to Uptown on Saturday.  If you like my blog, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed to get the latest Whittier real estate new... 12/07/2009

This Market Report is for the Whittier, California neighborhood known as Whittwood.  Here is information about Whittwood homes for sale, as well as homes that have sold in Whittwood. First, let me tell you what part of Whittier I am talking about.  The Whittwood area is bordered on the west by Colima Road, on the north by Whittier Boulevard, on the east by First Avenue and on the south by Lambert Road.  Basically, the Whittwood neighborhood is centered around the Whittwood Town Center, south of Whittier Boulevard.  All homes referenced in this article are within this Whittwood neighborhood. This Market Report on Whittwood Homes for Sale will focus on Single Family Residences in this Whittier, California neighborhood. As of today, there are 5 Single Family Residences for sale in the Whit... 12/07/2009

This Market Report is for Whittier, California. This Market Report on Whittier Homes for Sale will focus on Single Family Residences in Whittier, California.  It does not include condominiums or Multifamily Residences. As of today, there are 236 Single Family Residences for sale in the Whittier area. 96 homes were sold during the month of November.  Over the past three months, 315 homes were sold. The average home sale price over the past month was $357,309, at an average cost per square foot of $233.54. 296 homes are currently in escrow, which is significant because more homes are in escrow right now than are for sale. It would take 2.5 months, at the current rate of sales, for all the current Whittier homes on the market to sell.  A Sellers' Market is when there is less than 5 months ... 12/07/2009

Every year, the U.S. Marines come by our office to pick up toys as part of their Toys for Tots program. The Marines will be picking up all of the toys on Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at Noon at the Prudential California Realty office at 16218 East Whittier Blvd., Whittier, CA 90603.  Click here for a map and directions.  Please make sure to bring your unwrapped gift, for a boy or girl, to our office before December 16.  If you can't make it to the office, just give me a call, and I will drive to your house to pick up your toy donations. 11/27/2009