DixonTeamOC.com » Huntington Beach

Huntington Beach “Surf City Marathon”

kendixon — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 20:19:58 +0000

Every year Huntington Beach California hosts an amazing event called the Surf City Marathon. The Huntington Beach marathon has several different running options including a full marathon, half marathon 5k and even a 1 mile fun run for kids and their parents. One of the signs of a healthy community is large community events and this is just one of the many in Huntington Beach.

Over 20,000 runners (according tohttp://www.ocregister.com/news/marathon-233042-year-beach.html) from all over the world come to participate in the Huntington Beach Marathon. Our very own Daniel Hatmaker fromDixon Team OC was among them. Two years ago both he and Ken Dixon ran the full marathon… in the rain. Fortunately, according to him this was the best weather he’s seen at the Marathon yet. A nice clear and sunny day made for great conditions for Daniel to complete his half marathon.

This event doesn’t just benefit the runners though. This year, much of the proceeds went to benefitFree Wheelchair Mission, who urged runners to “Run for mobility”. Their mission, “Transforming lives through the gift of mobility” is one that for so many years was never addressed. Through their program, less than $60 can buy a wheelchair (made from bicycle wheels and a plastic patio chair) for someone who doesn’t have the use of their legs. They do this in parts of the world where wheelchairs are a luxury and without them people are forced to crawl or sometimes can’t move themselves at all. If you didn’t run the marathon but would still like to support their mission you can click here to buy a wheelchair for someone in need.

So if you’re looking at homes for sale in Huntington Beach, you picked a great place because you’re about to become a part of a great community that loves to give back to those who need it most and knows how to have fun in the process!

Check out www.dixonteamoc.com for more Huntington Beach news or contact Daniel if you want to run next year!

Posted on Huntington Beach Real Estate | Orange County Real Estate

Huntington Beach “Surf City Marathon” is a post from: DixonTeamOC.com

Where to Buy a House or Condo in Huntington Beach

kendixon — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 04:59:07 +0000

The Wrong Side of the Tracks

I recently read a blog on ActiveRain.com (http://activerain.com/blogsview/1466639/how-would-you-answer-this-question-) that asked real estate professionals how they would answer this question:

“What areas of town should we stay away from when considering buying a new home?”

This is a pretty loaded question for anyone to work with especially a real estate professional. There are a lot of implications when you say someone should stay away from a particular neighborhood as opposed to a different one. Not to mention that there are legalities here when you take the Fair Housing Act of 1968 into consideration. A Realtor should never make any suggestions or lead a client to or away from a property due to the agent’s opinions of the the neighbors ethnicity, income levels, education levels or any other reason. It’s just not fair to the client to have their agent’s values essentially pushed upon them. I was not able to find anywhere in the Fair Housing Act that it would be illegal to suggest or recommend against a particular property though.

There are lots of condos for sale in Huntington Beach but ultimately what you’ll consider a good or bad neighborhood has more to do with your tolerance for your neighbor’s junk than the actual statistics of the community, which you’ll probably forget as soon as you read them and may have been made up in the first place. Did you know that 60% of all statistics are made up on the spot to make a point? Did I get you on that one?

I can totally agree with the motives behind asking this question. I would much rather raise my children in a neighborhood that doesn’t struggle with lots of gang activity and where they’ll grow up with friends who plan on attending college. But there is an unknown factor here and it’s you. I believe that the way a neighborhood is and the way it effects your family has as more to do with you than it does the neighborhood itself.

People often look at neighborhoods with golf greens for lawns and luxury cars in the driveways and say “Now this… is a nice neighborhood”. Alternatively they may look at a place with older buildings and bars on the windows and say “This neighborhood is terrible”. The biggest factor as to whether or not you’ll enjoy living in a particular neighborhood has a lot to do with the relationships you create with your neighbors themselves. In some parts of Huntington Beach it’s not uncommon for neighbors to not ever see each other or interact. Yet, in less desirable neighborhoods in Santa Ana you might see neighbors out talking with each other or even working to improve their neighborhood together. This is certainly not always the case, I just bring it up to issue you a challenge. How can we stop seeing “Good” or “Bad” neighborhoods and start seeing people, and their junk (don’t we all have some of that?).

So the next time you’re looking for homes or condos for sale in Huntington Beach or Orange County, don’t look to see that every kid has the new Apple iPad in their hands, maybe a soccer ball is a sign of a healthy community too. Thanks for reading, for more visit www.dixonteamoc.com.

Posted on Huntington Beach Real Estate | Orange County Real Estate

Where to Buy a House or Condo in Huntington Beach is a post from: DixonTeamOC.com

HUD Temporarily Waives 90 Day Flip Rule for FHA Loans

kendixon — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:04:38 +0000

In an effort to stabilize home values and improve conditions in communities where foreclosure activity is high, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan today announced a temporary policy that will expand access to FHA mortgage insurance and allow for the quick resale of foreclosed properties. The announcement is part of the Obama administration commitment to addressing foreclosure. Just yesterday, Secretary Donovan announced $2 billion in Neighborhood Stabilization Program grants to local communities and nonprofit housing developers to combat the effects of vacant and abandoned homes.

“As a result of the tightened credit market, FHA-insured mortgage financing is often the only means of financing available to potential homebuyers,” said Donovan. “FHA has an unprecedented opportunity to fulfill its mission by helping many homebuyers find affordable housing while contributing to neighborhood stabilization.”

With certain exceptions, FHA currently prohibits insuring a mortgage on a home owned by the seller for less than 90 days. This temporary waiver will give FHA borrowers access to a broader array of recently foreclosed properties.

“This change in policy is temporary and will have very strict conditions and guidelines to assure that predatory practices are not allowed,” Donovan said.

In today’s market, FHA research finds that acquiring, rehabilitating and the reselling these properties to prospective homeowners often takes less than 90 days. Prohibiting the use of FHA mortgage insurance for a subsequent resale within 90 days of acquisition adversely impacts the willingness of sellers to allow contracts from potential FHA buyers because they must consider holding costs and the risk of vandalism associated with allowing a property to sit vacant over a 90-day period of time.

The policy change will permit buyers to use FHA-insured financing to purchase HUD-owned properties, bank-owned properties, or properties resold through private sales. This will allow homes to resell as quickly as possible, helping to stabilize real estate prices and to revitalize neighborhoods and communities.

“FHA borrowers, because of the restrictions we are now lifting, have often been shut out from buying affordable properties,” said FHA Commissioner David H. Stevens. “This action will enable our borrowers, especially first-time buyers, to take advantage of this opportunity.”

The waiver will take effect on February 1, 2010 and is effective for one year, unless otherwise extended or withdrawn by the FHA Commissioner. To protect FHA borrowers against predatory practices of “flipping” where properties are quickly resold at inflated prices to unsuspecting borrowers, this waiver is limited to those sales meeting the following general conditions:

All transactions must be arms-length, with no identity of interest between the buyer and seller or other parties participating in the sales transaction.
In cases in which the sales price of the property is 20 percent or more above the seller’s acquisition cost, the waiver will only apply if the lender meets specific conditions.
The waiver is limited to forward mortgages, and does not apply to the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) for purchase program.
Specific conditions and other details of this new temporary policy are in the text of the waiver, available on HUD’s website.

Posted via email from DixonTeamOC’s posterous

HUD Temporarily Waives 90 Day Flip Rule for FHA Loans is a post from: DixonTeamOC.com

Tornado Hits Orange County, Huntington Beach, Seal Beach

kendixon — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 15:06:27 +0000

http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474978003992

Posted via email from DixonTeamOC’s posterous

Tornado Hits Orange County, Huntington Beach, Seal Beach is a post from: DixonTeamOC.com

How to Save Money Buying an Orange County Home

kendixon — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 22:47:53 +0000

How to Save Money Buying an Orange County Home is a post from: DixonTeamOC.com