Market Update We recently moved from San Diego to Thousand Oaks, CA. Tim’s knowledge of the area was impressive and allowed us to weigh different communities. He was always attentive to our priorities and responded to all communications promptly. He went the extra mile for us when we couldn’t make it up to see a house and did a FaceTime walk-through while he meticulously went through the house. He has a vast knowledge of house systems and can speak with authority about HVAC, pool systems, etc. He is a nice guy with a great sense of humor and has a cracker jack staff supporting everything from scheduling viewings to the many forms that come with making an offer, etc. We recommend him highly! – Lori. V - Buyer Tim is the most professional and knowledgeable real estate agent / broker we have ever dealt with. Tim understands the ins and outs of the most challenging market conditions and trends. We recently closed on our third transaction with Tim over the last 20 years and, amazingly, we were able to complete each one very successfully. What stood out above all else was Tim’s ability to have all the right professional help at our doorstep when we needed it, including staging consultants, inspection repairs, window cleaning, painting, appliance specialists, and an invaluable handyman. We know that getting these services promptly is no small thing these days, and we really appreciate it! – Cathleen N. - Seller n County Line Gazette N Grab On, Hold Tight Since we last visited the market, a lot has happened. Inventory in the Conejo Valley, which had risen to 342 available listings in October, has now declined to just 198. This is the real estate equivalent of water running uphill. This just doesn’t happen in March. Spring is when inventory swells to accommodate the rise in buyers looking to move before the next school year. To put this in perspective consider that there were 347 homes for sale in March 2020 immediately preceding the Covid shutdown. That’s 75% more available homes for sale than we have today. Let that sink in a moment. A year ago, there were 136 active listings and we called it a housing crisis. Let me tell you, 198 is still a housing crisis. In the crisis of March 2022, there were 354 total homes on the market, including those under contract, and prices spiked. Today, there are 366. But for now anyway, prices are not spiking... but neither are they going down any longer. This is a markedly different situation than appeared to be on the horizon when I wrote issue #49 last December. At that time, it appeared the rising rates were going to drive home values down as they had already done from Spring to Fall of ’22. So what’s next? With the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, we may see the Fed being forced to pause out of fear of fostering another banking crisis. But as long as inflation continues to run hot and the value of real estate hold firm, the Fed is going to remain on a path of raising rates and at some point, something will have to give and prices will have to come down. A few weeks ago I wrote an offer for a client on a home that had 47 offers! It wasn't anything special, just a house. It ended up selling for $155,000 over ask, 5 day close, all cash. Not exactly a Buyer's market. Yes, right now (again) it's a great time to be a seller. n www.1000OaksRealEstate.com Tim@1000OaksRealEstate.com www.TheRealEstateConversation.com Testimonials Volume Number 50 • 2 Bedrooms • 2.5 Bathrooms • 1420 SqFt • Sold for $595,000 • 4 Bedrooms • 3 Bathrooms • 2290 SqFt • Acre Lot • Sold for $1,715,000 Baby Boomer Corner Get a Trust I have written about Trusts before, so I apologize if I’m repeating myself. If you do not have a Living Trust, you need to get one. There, I said it. Why? There are a number of reasons you want to have a Trust. It makes processing inheritance easier and much cheaper than having to go to probate. No Will or Trust means the court is in charge. No one wants that, least of all your surviving family. But even a Will requires probate and this means added cost and hassle. A Trust also has the added benefit of allowing you to dictate who’s in charge after you’re gone. But the biggest reason to get a Trust is the stepped-up cost basis of your real estate. When your property is held in Trust and one of you passes away, the government wants an assessment of value for your real estate at the time of death. This is for the purpose of determining the value of the estate. More importantly for the surviving spouse, the cost basis gets reset to the value at time of death. For example, let’s say you bought your home for $180,000 in 1978 and when your spouse dies, it’s worth $1M. If title is held “As Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship,” the deceased’s half gets a stepped up basis to half the value or $500K. Think of it as acquiring his/her half at market value. But only half resets . The remaining half stays at the original or $90K. Then, if in a few years the surviving spouse needs to sell the home and it’s now valued at $1.2M, they gets hit with the tax bill. This is because she can only take the $250,000 deduction which her gains exceed. When property is held in Trust and one party passes, the whole home steps up to the value at time of death thereby reducing the tax bill in our example to zero and this is why you need a trust. n Recent Sales 10600 Wheatfield Shadow Hills (LA) Custom remodeled Craftsman. 4082 Milano Place, Moorpark 1140 Calle Arroyo, Lynn Ranch 2727 El Oeste Hermosa Beach One of the last great bungalows. Original 1953 owners. 2 bed/2 bath with views of Catalina, The Queen’s Necklace, and, of course, the ocean. Sold for land value. Call for price • 5 bed • 3.5 bath • Pool • Horse Property • $1,750,000 When Your Elderly Family Needs You There comes a time in our lives when we have to make provisions for elderly family. Finding an assisted living location is one thing and costs can vary wildly depending on services. Rather than discuss that in this space, I want to focus on your paperwork. Your “Aunt Jane” owns real estate that she to sell it to cover assisted living expenses. If she can no longer really handle it herself, here are a few things to know. If you step in and she does not have a Trust, you will need a specific Power of Attorney (POA) allowing you to legally help. If she is incapacitated, there’s not much you can do but go to court to conserve her. If she’s still got her capacity, she can sign the POA, which will allow you to represent her interests and transact the real property. It’s important, though, that the POA “survives incapacitation.“ I had a situation a few years ago where my client had her husband’s POA but he’d become memory impaired. The POA she downloaded from Legal Zoom did not survive incapacitation and she had to cancel an escrow and pay some money to the buyer who no longer had an able seller. The husband passed a few short months later and we sold, but prices had dipped 5% from when we’d sold it originally. Ugly. If Aunt Jane has a Trust, then she’ll want to resign as Trustee and appoint you as Successor Trustee. This allows you to sign the papers as her Trustee, hire a Realtor and close escrow, effectively alleviating her need to handle the details. At some point, you may want to consult with a tax specialist beacuse you may end up owing capital gains tax. This is where a trust is so helpful. ( see “Baby Boomer Corner” previous page ) The main thing here is that, if you are going to help out your elderly family, get the paperwork done in advance. Without proper paperwork, you cannot transact the real property no matter how badly they need the cash. n Cool People and Interesting Ideas 50 th Issue Coupons! Call and show this issue of the Gazette and receive these incredible discounts! Wolfe Roofing • (805) 480-9494 • Wolferoofcoo@aol.com 10% off your roof tune up – after this winter, you need this! Godiva’s Secret • 877-567-9447 • www.GodivasSecretWigs.com 15% off your entire order! Promo Code: WIG4U Carpeteria Ventura • 2501 E. Main Ventura • (805) 648-5041 • Norvan@carpeteria.com 15% off your material purchase. Wow! Escalera Pest Control • (805) 920-8842 • Heather@escalerapest.com Free termite inspection and 10% offer material on any repair including rebuilding your rotted deck! n www.TheRealE stateConversation.com 850-A Hampshire Road Westlake Village, CA 91361 PRSRT STD U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 55 Thousand Oaks, CA Each Dilbeck office independently owned and operated. If your home is currently listed with another broker, this is not a solicitation as it is not our intention to solicits another broker’s listing. Our 50 th issue! Welcome to our Gold Anniversary issue! No. 50! Wow! That is really some kind of feat if I do say so myself. Our inaugural issue was March 2005 and my comments on the market then sound awfully familiar: Everything is selling. I note that while I thought we were in for a nice run that spring, with interest rates rising, I predicted we would see a slow down by year end. Not a bubble burst but a slowdown ending, “one heck of a party.” Sounds pretty familiar, doesn’t it? The more things change the more they stay the same... This issue is packed with valuable insight and information. As a special treat in honor of our 50th issue, I am including some truly amazing one of a kind, super valuable coupons to use for deals on home repair, event catering, and even wigs from my very best clients, friends and trades. You don’t want to miss this! • Market Update: Grab On and Hold Tight • Baby Boomer’s Corner: Why You Must Have a Living Trust • When Your Elderly Family Needs You • New Listings and Recently Sold • Cool People (Incredible 50 th Issue Discount Deals!) Tim Greetings