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March 27, 2012 at 10:24 PM in reply to: OT: Anyone got a good optometrist and good dentist in Carmel Valley or Mira Mesa area #740649
XBoxBoy
ParticipantWe live in la jolla on mount soledad, and needless to say, a lot of the houses in la jolla are built on fill. (ours is not, but across the street where the views are better, are all on fill, dirt that was probably scrapped from our lot.) Depending on how nervous you are about things, how steep the canyon you are on is, etc. I would suggest a couple things.
1) During escrow hire a soils engineer to do a report for you. This might be a bit expensive, but could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars later. And a house built in the 60’s probably had minimal compaction done.
2) Ask the soils engineer to give you a sense of what re-compaction would cost. Alternatively, many people in our neck of the woods have been putting in caissons and truss beams. Apparently they are about half the price of having the site re-compacted.
3) If possible, look into insurance issues. If you are on a canyon it might be very difficult to get homeowner’s insurance for two reasons. 1) Fire, and 2) landslides. For instance I can tell you that AAA wouldn’t even consider quoting anywhere near Mt Soledad. (We ended up going with Geico)
just my two cents.
XboxBoy
ParticipantFor what it’s worth. I wouldn’t sign a buyer’s agent agreement when buying a house. (I’ve bought twice and both times worked with an agent without signing an agreement) From my experience they are not normally demanded of buyer’s, and I don’t see a reason to make a legal commitment when I don’t have to.
As to the fees, I can only say I would definitely run away and find another agent when I saw those.
Participant[quote=ljinvestor]IMO, you just need to find a buyers agent you can trust and let them collect the 2-3%[/quote]
This might be a bit harsh, but… I don’t think the OP needs to find someone they can trust. What they do need to do is to firmly understand there are four sets of interest in any real estate transaction. The seller’s interests, the seller’s agent’s interests, the buyer’s agent’s interests, and the buyer’s interests. At no time should anyone really “trust” the other to look out for their interests. Each party needs to look out for their own interests.
As a buyer that means becoming knowledgeable about the market you’re looking in, comps, expenses, etc. Gain as much knowledge about what the stages of escrow are as you can, etc.
But a buyer should not trust their agent with all that they are thinking. For instance, a buyer shouldn’t tell their agent, “heck, I’d go another 10k without walking away.” As a buyer you want everyone in the transaction to be aware that you can and will walk away if you don’t get a deal you feel is fair.
Lastly, if you really feel you want to trust other parties in the deal, trust them to look out for their interests. So, yes if your agent thinks you are going to walk away from the deal, then I think it’s fair to trust that your agent will do whatever he can to make the deal happen, even if it means a slightly reduced commission. But trusting your agent to represent your interests doesn’t seem that wise to me.
XBoxBoy
ParticipantWhile I wouldn’t describe it as relating to my current mood, Barber’s Adagio for Strings has always been one of the works that I could really relate to. Here’s a phenomenal piano performance of it.
(And something that will crush all your stereotypes of piano players)
XBoxBoy
ParticipantBillfan,
This has been one of the more interesting threads in a long time. I’m hoping that you’ll keep us updated as to how things work out, who is helpful, who is not, etc. Needless to say, I’m not envious of your situation, but I am very curious to see how it gets resolved.
Thanks for sharing,
XBoxBoy
ParticipantThe level of adoration in this article reminds me of the types of things that were said about Alan Greenspan, right before everything went into the crapper. Sure hope it’s just a coincidence.
XBoxBoy
Participant[quote=Bubblesitter]What is surprising it that normally conservative UT editorial is backing this,
Bubblesitter[/quote]Bubblesitter, don’t be so naive. Doug Manchester is the financial backer of the MLIM LLC. You know, the folks that bought the UT last fall. One of the biggest developers in the county buys the local paper, and now that paper is a shill for boondoggle projects that Doug Manchester will make a killing on. Gee… now that’s a surprise.
No wonder this city is called enron by the sea.
November 21, 2011 at 12:40 PM in reply to: Health Care: What do you think about Walmart’s(etc) smokers and fat tax for workers #733313Participant[quote=DataAgent]I remember reading that gays have more medical problems and as a result pay more for medical care. Not true?[/quote]
Gay’s (and intravenous drug users) are still way more likely to be HIV positive and there is a strong correlation between HIV and high medical costs. I don’t know if any companies actually charge gay’s higher rates though.
November 21, 2011 at 12:37 PM in reply to: Health Care: What do you think about Walmart’s(etc) smokers and fat tax for workers #733311Participant[quote=GH]Or a brown TAX OR a black tax or an old tax or a young tax. [/quote]
There is already a significant difference in the rates paid by young vs old. So, half of your statement is already there.
ParticipantGot a link to the whole show? I think the video on the link above is just a couple minute teaser.
September 20, 2011 at 3:26 PM in reply to: OT: Reliable installer of bullet resistant auto glass #729558ParticipantFlu, why don’t you just get a armored BMX.
http://www.bmw-security-vehicles.com/security_vehicles/en/index.html
ParticipantFor what it’s worth…
My wife and I wanted an umbrella policy, and we found that getting a homeowners/auto/umbrella bundle through Geico was the best deal. But shop around, because every company has differences. (For instance AAA wouldn’t even write us a homeowners policy since we live in La Jolla.)
XBoxBoy
August 14, 2011 at 9:48 AM in reply to: ok: can someone tell me what good is left for the health care reform #719113ParticipantFlu, Flu, Flu,
You’re looking at this all wrong. This isn’t about bringing benefit to you, this is about bringing benefit to big companies that make campaign contributions.
[quote=flu]What I have seen so far is:
1)My out of pocket insurance expenses have increased significantly.
[/quote]
So that’s a benefit for the profits of the health insurance companies.[quote=flu]2)The amount of coverage has decreased significantly[/quote]
Nothing like cutting costs to help the bottom line![quote=flu]3)Company has reduced what it pays to insurance but passed more of the cost on to individuals.[/quote]
Well, just like bringing benefit to health insurance companies, it’s important that we bring profits to companies like the one you work for, allowing them to reduce their costs and push those costs onto you. Remember that it’s these big companies and big banks that are so vital to our economic growth. Why without them we would be having high unemployment and stagnant growth. We must not allow them to suffer.
[quote=flu]4)And now lower appeals court is saying not everyone needs to pay for a mandatory insurance plan….[/quote]
Well this last bit is truly shocking and shows you how disfunctional our system is. How in the world can insurance companies survive and be profitable if we can’t require everyone to purchase an insurance plan? Really something should be done about this.
August 14, 2011 at 9:48 AM in reply to: ok: can someone tell me what good is left for the health care reform #719871ParticipantFlu, Flu, Flu,
You’re looking at this all wrong. This isn’t about bringing benefit to you, this is about bringing benefit to big companies that make campaign contributions.
[quote=flu]What I have seen so far is:
1)My out of pocket insurance expenses have increased significantly.
[/quote]
So that’s a benefit for the profits of the health insurance companies.[quote=flu]2)The amount of coverage has decreased significantly[/quote]
Nothing like cutting costs to help the bottom line![quote=flu]3)Company has reduced what it pays to insurance but passed more of the cost on to individuals.[/quote]
Well, just like bringing benefit to health insurance companies, it’s important that we bring profits to companies like the one you work for, allowing them to reduce their costs and push those costs onto you. Remember that it’s these big companies and big banks that are so vital to our economic growth. Why without them we would be having high unemployment and stagnant growth. We must not allow them to suffer.
[quote=flu]4)And now lower appeals court is saying not everyone needs to pay for a mandatory insurance plan….[/quote]
Well this last bit is truly shocking and shows you how disfunctional our system is. How in the world can insurance companies survive and be profitable if we can’t require everyone to purchase an insurance plan? Really something should be done about this.
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