13137 Margate, Sherman Oaks is closed

13137 Margate is a darling Mellenthin in Sherman Oaks and is now owned by my buyers, Sang and Anh.  The escrow couldn't have gone better -- yes, real estate miracles are possible.  First, the house is adorable, redone, and in a terrific neighborhood. There were several offers, but Sang and Anh were obviously the prevailing party.  But then it appraised for over their sales price!  That's rare, and makes us all feel so much better, yes? 

Then, even though it wasn't a high-down-payment transaction, Mike Hartunian of Prospect Mortgage got this loan done and closed in 3 weeks without being asked.  Way to go, Mike!  We had stellar cooperation from listing agent Jay Schoenfeldt of Brick and Mortar R.E., too.

I don't want to paint an entirely rosey picture though.  Sang and Anh and I were on the hunt for over a year.  We all got to know each other so well that they even became friendly with my husband. (Sang gave my huz an electric guitar in December which has changed huz's life for the better.  My life, not so much.)  This was the 3rd house they really liked that they could afford and the 2nd one that they offered on.  And of course we were looking at a lower price range when we started.

I'm looking forward to sitting in Sang and Anh's new backyard later this month and saying, "Sang, please pour me another."

6212 Auckland, North Hollywood closed yesterday

6212 Auckland in North Hollywood closed yesterday.  I represented the buyers and it was a very smooth transaction.  This house had been flipped by a group of professional flippers who were really great to deal with.  Seriously!  And of course, the stalwart Dana Dukelow at Prospect Mortgage was wonderful, as always.

Here's what was different about this transaction.  For the first time ever, I never once spoke to the listing agent.  I only talked with his staff.  And again for the first time ever, I never once spoke with the escrow officer either, although she did leave me a voicemail when the transaction closed.  Why? In the harsh economic climate, we're seeing many companies consolidate (if they remain in business at all).  These companies need to do a high volume of business to survive.  And alas, a high volume business and high-touch customer service don't usually go together.  I predict that we will see more consolidation in the industry, however.

Everybody makes mistakes, even title companies and management companies

Long, boring story short and boring: my buyer client has an accepted offer on 1809 Peyton in Burbank, but the condo must "go" FHA in order for him to get a loan.  Fine.  Reams and reams of paperwork need to be submitted to FHA and the condo documents have to be examined in very close detail.  Fine.  But it's been about 60 days now, and the listing agent is really steaming over how long this is taking. Fine, but don't tell him that.

Just yesterday, the FHA folks noticed that the preliminary title report from the title company was wrong -- it had a map of a building down the street. Considering how much title insurance costs and how many people view the title company documents, this is pretty surprising.  And, the building's management company had certified that the complex had 46 units in it when it only has 42.  Nice to know they are collecting the HOA dues in that building.  Aberdeen has made several paperwork mistakes in this transaction, but you'd think they'd at least know how many units are in one project.

So these conditions have now been caught and remedied by the lender at Prospect Mortgage, Dana Dukelow, and his staff.  But the listing agent would still like to kick us out of escrow.  Stay tuned...