Is the Real Estate Glass Half Empty or Half Full?
We have all seen, heard, and read in newspapers and the TV about the national, regional and local housing market blues. It is enough to become, well, discombobulated. But what about our precise geographic area; where that red head pin↨ from our GPS unit lands directly on the thatched roof of our houses? What about my home, with the new counters, crown molding and hardwood floors; what are my own personal opportunities? Where exactly does my most important investment; my home, stand today? What can I do, what shouldn’t I do?
Homeowners and you first-time buyers take heed; despite what the naysayers and media are telling you; there are some great opportunities to be had in today’s real estate market. It all depends if you consider the glass being half empty or half full. To explore this notion further, let’s find out what the true local experts think about all this. To find a localized expert, I didn’t have to go far or look very hard, as one name immediately came to mind: KAMRAN. Before finding out what this iconoclastic real estate veteran thinks about our homes and the opportunities that are available to all of us, let’s first take a look at his experience and track record to find out why he deserves the epithet “Your Area Specialist!”
You’ve already seen his name on your own front door, when you are writing your grocery list on his notepad, including real estate signs in your neighborhood with sold signs attached. He is omnipresent. His picture is just about everywhere, and there’s a good reason that. For the calendar year of 2007; rankings that were based on figures submitted by regional offices of National Re/Max; the tallies showed that KAMRAN of Re/Max Premier Realty placed 18th out of approximately 122,000 real estate agents nationwide, or if you prefer percentages; KAMRAN placed ahead of 99.9999% of his competition; at the very tip top of the mountain summit. This same ranking system for the time period of January through July 2008, indelibly evinces KAMRAN and his skilled staff are currently running 15th out of approximately 105,985 other Re/Max agents nationwide, or the top 0.00014%. These are not typos. This practiced real estate pro and his consummate staff knows their business and knows it well. Real estate in south OC is their forte.
KAMRAN is synonymous with; SOLD, CLOSED, SIGNED, SEALED & DELIVERED!
It doesn’t matter if he’s negotiating on multi-layered escrows; negotiating with banks on getting short sales approved on properties with 1st, 2nd and 3rd loans; successfully negotiating with the IRS and the Franchise Tax Board to obtain lien releases on properties; working out qualification issues, sub-prime induced credit problem and/or down payments; fast sells, bank-owned, one point here, another ½ point there, warped floors, nauseating leaky faucets, pesky flying termites, or the dreaded mold: KAMRAN has faced it, he is more than prepared for it, and he will solve it to make your transaction go through, and to make your wallet happy.
With over 20 years of real estate experience in the local OC market, KAMRAN has personally seen the ups and downs of the housing market, much like the current mountain peak and valley deep vacillations of Wall Street and the overall world economy. He keenly improvised and streamlined his skills during the savings and loans crisis of the late 80’s and the defaults of the early 90’s. KAMRAN has seen upfront and firsthand and understands the housing market in our area of south Orange County, which is needed to get homes sold in today’s market. This is what KAMRAN has to say about the current real estate market, and how he supports his view that the glass is half-full, rather than being half-empty;
“We live in a desirable area; the demand has always been high to live in south OC and most would, if they could, choose this wonderful area of Orange County to call home. Therefore, I firmly believe that the market will come back and it will, as hard as it may be to accept today, be stronger and go higher than the last high. This, of course, will take some time and unfortunately may not happen soon enough for some. But for homeowners who have the ability to take advantage of the opportunities that this market presents, the benefits will be bountiful.”
“Opportunities have arisen in all segments of the real estate market; whether you are considering moving to a larger home or if you planning on downsizing to a smaller home. If your need for more space has grown, it is much more advantageous to make the up-move to a larger home in a down market. This idea, as hard as it may be to accept in the current environment, is a solid plan to make some serious gains when the market cycle changes and the value of the larger home goes up more than the value of the smaller home. Additional advantages to this idea of selling a smaller home and trading up to a larger home in a down market are that you get to start at a lower property tax basis of today’s value for the larger home, along with the fact that you get to take advantage of today’s historically low interest rates, avoiding the uncertainty of where interest rates will be in the future.”
“It is important to point out, that everyone needs to look at their own personal finances and exclusive needs. If you are a victim of the subprime mess, propagated by Wall Street and the greed of the overall markets and you do not believe that you can wait out the market, it is important to act sooner rather than later. Time is of the essence and there are many options available to you through your mortgage company. Whether you choose to work with your lender on a loan modification plan or to work with a realtor on a short sale, you should explore all of your options and talk to a loan or a real estate professional to get the right information and proper advice as quickly as possible. The key here is to act fast and not lose valuable time. Many who fall in the foreclosure trap could have avoided such an unnecessary event, with huge negative consequences, if they had acted sooner.”
“The advice is the same if you’re somewhere in-between the above scenarios and you own a home but are not comfortable with the payments and want to downsize. Again, you should act sooner rather than later before the situation gets more serious. In this scenario of downsizing, you still have the benefits of starting at today’s lower property tax basis and locking in an interest rate close to the historical lows.”
“In conclusion, for those with the ability to sell the smaller home and purchase the larger property, the rewards will be great and measurable in many ways: greater appreciation of the larger home; starting at a lower property tax base based on today’s values; and locking in at today’s historically low interest rates. If this is not on option and foreclosure is breathing down your neck, or if you are uncomfortable with your monthly mortgage payment and want to downsize; talk to your lender or an experienced realtor to explore all of your options, whether a loan modification is the solution for you, or to find out if you qualify for a short sale or any other option.”
As it pertains to short sales, Kamran has successfully negotiated over 300 short sale transactions, which required a lot of experience on how to negotiate with lenders to reduce the amount of the mortgages with 1st and 2nd loans, as well as successfully negotiating the release of IRS liens and Franchise Tax Board liens on properties. If you think short sale is the way to go, make sure you ask your real estate agent what kind of short sale experience he or she has had. Short sale negotiating is a time-consuming process and experience is vital to succeed in this field of real estate.
KAMRAN started his award winning real estate practice over two decades ago in 1988, just prior to the last major down cycle in real estate, which was the result of the savings and loan crisis of the 1980’s. He sold his first property near the Aliso Creek and El Toro roads. Within days of the first sale, he started selling other homes on the same street, and soon after homes on the other side of the road in the area now called “Aliso Viejo.”
KAMRAN attended Fountain Valley High School followed by a stint at Saddleback College, and subsequently Long Beach State University. At CSULB he studied electrical engineering while simultaneously managing a restaurant. Attending university full time, while working 40+ hours every week was tough, however; it helped develop his strong work ethics and enabled him to manage long workdays in real estate. He attributes his stellar achievements in real estate to a strong work ethic, coupled with hands-on experience and time-earned knowledge, which can only be gained through more than two decades of focused efforts in learning the local real estate market.
KAMRAN and his beautiful wife Maria have been happily married for 18 years and have four children. Their oldest is now a freshman in college; with one each in high school, middle school, and elementary school. All four are soccer players and KAMRAN and Maria enjoy going to their soccer games and spending time with the family, “to do the little things in life that really matter.”
You can contact Kamran at 949-727-3737 and/or email him at kamran@kamran.info. Or better yet, just get his number off the FOR SALE/SOLD sign recently impaled on your next-door neighbor’s manicured lawn with the red arrow aiming directly at your soon-to-be former neighbor.
