Who remembers 2008? People thought we were all gonna die because they switched on the Large Hadron Collider, Breaking Bad premiered, Barack Obama was elected, the financial system collapsed and led to a worldwide recession that ruined people’s lives and that we’re just barely getting out of. Good times. Wait. That last thing? That wasn’t… CONTINUE
Buyer Beware, You’re in for a Scare
Imagine the scene. You’re on your way to your tech job in SF when crossing the street for your morning Starbucks, you almost get run over by a PostMate delivery person, jumping back just in time to avoid death by bike. This happens pretty much every day, but something snaps. You’re fed up. With coding,… CONTINUE
The Mountain (Coming this Summer…)
🎬 EXT. POMONA – PARK – MORNING A sunny morning in the park. It’s fairly empty, but a few families are dotted about the area. A little GIRL bends over the lip of the fountain to splash some water on her face, looking to quell the California Summer heat. As she starts to straighten out,… CONTINUE
Who’s Got the Power?
🎶 It’s getting’, it’s gettin’, it’s gettin’ kinda hectic… Today’s entry has a soundtrack. The situation is bizarre from the outset. In the city of Mountain View, a battle rages between energy giant PG&E and the California Station Homeowners Association – a battle that has the new Jose Antonio Vargas Elementary School opening without electricity…. CONTINUE
FHAntastic Rulings and Where to Find Them
2019 marks ninety years since the Great Depression began. The various financial crises our nation has weathered in the recent past weren’t easy, by any means, but a little research into the Depression is enough to make the past feel truly alien. Go back in time not even a century ago, and you’d likely be… CONTINUE
Hacked Off
Ever noticed how you can’t take one step without stumbling over a hacking story? It’s in our elections (allegedly), on our screens with shows like Mr Robot, even in our food… in a way. Isn’t it about time we get some of that action going in real estate? Well, look no further than 924 Bel… CONTINUE
Dr Strangetimes or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Climate Change
How’s that for a provocative title? People with one brain cell pinging around their skull will tell you there’s nothing to worry about. That the world’s always cycled through periods of climate change. They’ll tell you that the planet’s always survived the upheavals. And they’re right, of course. To quote George Carlin, “the planet has… CONTINUE
Sweet DREams are Made of This
Inspired by the Department of Real Estate’s recent decision to file against eXp Realty of California for a number of simple, eye-wateringly easy to avoid violations, why don’t we run through some of the most common ways people run afoul of the DRE so we can all start paying attention and stop losing money and… CONTINUE
Clash of Titans: Realogy vs. Compass
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to tonight’s headline fight! In the red corner, weighing in at almost $2.5 billion in total equity, the heavyweight champion Realogy! Still in the midst of a doping scandal courtesy of his manager, NAR, he’s still raring to go. In the blue corner, the tech dealer turned real estate player, the… CONTINUE
Picky, Picky, Picky – Traps in a TDS?
We were recently involved in a case where a $73,000 dollar purchase deposit was forfeited when a Buyer backed out of a deal after waiving all contingencies. Or at least the Seller thought so. Turns out that the Buyer had a smart (or a smart alecky) lawyer, who came up with this … novel …… CONTINUE
Stairway to Heaven ? Or Hell ?
There’s a lady who’s sure All that glitters is gold And she’s buying a stairway to heaven… Today’s a doozy, folks. Mortal peril! Revenge! Forbidden love! … well, okay. Two out of three. Strap in. In 2009, real estate agent Pinda Hall showed two prospective buyers around a Lafayette home owned by Aurora Loan Services,… CONTINUE
On The Fence
You’ve just bought a house in a great little neighborhood. Street full of restaurants with cuisine from Albania to Zimbabwe, gym around the corner, more indie coffee shops than you can shake a vegan, gluten-free stick at. Eminently rentable. You go out to the garden and notice the fence, which you’d overlooked before for the… CONTINUE
