Buying A Home - What Is That Noise!?!

You've found the perfect home, closed escrow and just finished moving in. As you happily fall asleep, all seems well in the world. An hour later, you bolt up in bed to an ear splitting sound. All is no longer well in the world.

An Unholy Racket

If you saw the movie "My Cousin Vinny", you know what I'm talking about. For those that haven't, the movie centers on a lawyer, Vinny, who comes to the south to defend his nephew against criminal charges. Every evening, Vinny goes to sleep only to be awoken by some blasting noisy. When house hunting, you need to make sure you don't get "Vinny'd."

When you find an area or home you like, make absolutely sure you drive the area looking for any potential noise producers. Roll down the window, turn off the radio and just listen. You might be surprised at what you hear.

If you run across railroad tracks, you better figure out how close they are to your prospective home. Make sure you are near the house when a train goes by, so you can get the full effect. While trains and plains are obvious sources of noise, you also need to consider more subtle situations.

Weekend vs. Week Days

Many homebuyers look at houses early on Saturday and Sundays. This makes sense since you have to work for a living, but it can result in some nasty surprises. The characteristics of a neighborhood on weekends are entirely different than during week days. Make absolutely sure you check out the property during both time periods. To guard against "partying" neighbors, make sure you check the area during evenings as well.

They say home ownership brings peace of mind. Check your neighborhood to make sure this cliché will apply to you!

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More than 40 states signed onto a proposed $25-billion deal with major mortgage servicers over faulty foreclosure practices. New York, Nevada and Delaware joined California in holding out for better terms.

More than 40 states signed onto a proposed $25-billion settlement with major mortgage servicers over faulty foreclosure procedures, but California, New York and other key states were still not among them.

California has until Monday to share in a multi-state deal with banks to obtain mortgage relief and reforms. Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, who walked away from talks last year, says the door remains open.

With a Monday deadline at hand, California officials have resumed direct talks with the Obama administration about joining a multibillion-dollar, multi-state mortgage settlement with the nation's largest banks, a source said Sunday.

The talk show host pays $12 million for the 4,088-square-foot house with four bedrooms and four bathrooms. The ocean-view home sits on 1.26 bluff-top acres with beach access.

In one of the more talked-about transactions in town, actors Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have sold their Malibu beach house to daytime host and comedian Ellen De Generes for $12 million.

The four-bedroom, five-bathroom house built in 1920 for industrialist James Wigmore lists for $2,875,000.

A decorative cast stone entrance opens to this restored Spanish Colonial Revival-style house in Pasadena's South Orange Grove area. Built in 1920 for industrialist James Wigmore, the house retains such original details as coffered wood ceilings and arched doorways.

They don't believe they can sell their property for what it's worth, so they're spending money on making their homes more comfortable.

Do you fit any of these descriptions?

A biennial research report by the National Assn. of Realtors indicates that a handful of real estate agents and brokers and their clients either don't know the law or don't care to follow it.

When it comes to lawsuits, real estate agents and brokers tangle mostly among themselves.

The president aims to help about 3.5 million people with good credit who are unable to refinance at historically low rates because their homes are worth less than their mortgages.

 

The White House hopes to help millions of homeowners lower their monthly mortgage bill with a $5 billion to $10 billion plan to set up a streamlined refinancing program for people who are current on their payments.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index of 20 large U.S. cities fell 1.3% in November from October as foreclosures continue to drag down the housing market.

Three straight months of home-price declines in the biggest U.S. cities showed that foreclosures remain a significant drag on a housing market that is entering its fifth year of deterioration.

L.A. Clipper Chris Paul may be quick down the court, but he moves pretty fast when it comes to buying multimillion-dollar real estate too.