11965 Ericas Way

11965 Ericas Way 92040
2 bedroom 2.5 bath 1806 SqFt 
$649,000

Welcome to Eucalyptus Hills! This custom built home has dream views and over two acres of useable land. The home features upgraded kitchen with new granite counters, stainless steel appliances, custom tile back splash, and new cabinets. The kitchen flows into the living room for ease of entertaining. Living room features stone fireplace, 60in Pioneer Kuro Plasma with surround, two double doors to the back yard and big windows to take full advantage of the views.  The master bedroom has a walk-in closet, attached bathroom suit, and double doors to the back yard. Eucalyptus Hills is known for its views of mountains, san Vicente Dam, and out door activities. San Vicente Dam is only 7 miles away. 

10 Things You Absolutely Need To Know About Buying A Home

Ready to buy a home? Buying a home is one of the most significant financial decisions you’ll make in your lifetime. From figuring out pricing to why you should consider a realtor, here are 10 Things You Absolutely Need To Know About Buying A Home:

1. Use a trusted realtor. We all know that realtors get a cut of the sales price of a home which makes some buyers hesitant to use a realtor: they believe it drives up the overall cost. Keep in mind that the seller, not the buyer, pays the commission. Cory Wilcox, real estate agent at Keller Williams in San Diego, says that potential buyers should keep in mind that a listing agent (the agent representing the seller) doesn’t protect your interests and “that agent would simply pocket both sides of the commission.” That means that you’re not saving money. A savvy realtor who works for you can protect your interests and guide you through the buying process – from negotiating a price to navigating home inspections.

2. Remember that a house purchase involves a contract. When you’re buying a house, there are papers to sign. And more papers to sign. Many of those papers – which are actually contracts – look like “standard” home buying contracts with no room for negotiation. That isn’t true. Contracts are meant to be negotiated. You don’t have to sign a standard agreement. If you want more time to review your inspection, wish to waive a radon test or want to make a purchase subject to a mortgage approval, you can make that part of the deal. That’s where a savvy realtor can help. See again #1.

3. Don’t necessarily buy for the life you have today. Chances are that buying a house will be one of the bigger financial commitments you’ll make in your lifetime. Before you agree to buy what you think might be your dream house, consider your long-term plans. Are you planning on staying at your current job? Getting married? Having kids? Depending on the market and the terms of your mortgage, you may not actually pay down any real equity for between five and seven years: if you aren’t sure that your house will be the house for you in a few years, you may want to keep looking.

4. Think about commitment. I’m not talking just about your mortgage. When you get married, the laws of your state generally determine how your assets are treated – and ultimately how they’re distributed at divorce. The same rules don’t necessarily apply when you’re not married. That means you need to think long term. When you buy a house with your significant other who is not your spouse, make sure you have an exit plan if things don’t go the way you hope. It’s a good idea to have an agreement in place with respect to titling, mortgage payments and liability, repairs and the like: it’s best to get it in writing (and yes, I’d recommend getting a lawyer).

5. Look beyond paint. It’s often the case that your dream house has that one room that you’re already fantasizing about changing. Willmes says to remember that it’s fairly inexpensive to fix cosmetic issues (a bit of paint or some wallpaper) but making changes to kitchens and baths can be expensive. She says, “People tend to focus on the cost of cabinets, appliances and counters but sometimes forget about the cost of labor which can double to triple the cost.” That doesn’t mean that you should give up on a house in need of a significant fix but you should factor in those costs when determining whether you can afford to buy.

6. Buy the house you know that you can afford. This can be different from the price that your mortgage company believes that you can afford. When my husband and I bought our first house, we were approved for a mortgage of about three times more than we ultimately ended up spending. Fresh out of law school and working for established firms, our finances looked good on paper. But we dialed back our expectations because we weren’t convinced that our income and expenses would remain at those levels. We were right: two years later, we started our own business just as the economy turned south. The less expensive house meant that we could still make our payments even with less income in pocket. So what’s the best ratio to use? Some lenders suggest that you can afford mortgage payments totaling about 1/3 of your gross income but others suggest closer to 28% for housing related costs including mortgage, insurance and taxes. There are a number of factors including your projected income, interest rates, type of mortgage and the market. Ask your mortgage broker to help you understand what’s in play.

7. Don’t fixate on the purchase price. The purchase price is just one piece of owning a house: be sure to consider all of the costs associated with your potential new home. That includes the cost of insurance, homeowner association fees and real estate taxes – depending on where you live, those can quickly add up. And it’s not just home improvements that can cost money: maintenance costs dollars, too. It’s a good idea to ask questions about upkeep for extras like swimming pools, fancy heating and cooling systems and out buildings. Finally, Willmes suggests that you make sure you’re comparing apples to apples: a condo with a large fee that’s priced low may be more costly than a higher priced one with lower fees while a cheap home with high taxes may cost you more a month than a more expensive one with lower taxes.

8. Consider your student loan debt. Following the housing crisis, lending laws tightened. Student debt isn’t merely an annoyance: it’s treated like real debt. Aleyna Groves, a licensed Mortgage Broker at Movement in Ca, explains that a major revision to FHA guidelines in 2015 negatively affects many first-time homebuyers with student loan debt. Prior to this change, a borrower with student loans deferred for more than 12 months could discount that debt from their liabilities: now, for purposes of determining purchasing power, a borrower is charged with 2% of the outstanding balance of the student loan regardless of deferment status (in a non-FHA, or conventional loan, it’s just 1%). If your student loan is in deferment and you’re planning on buying a home, Griesser suggests enrolling in a properly documented income-based repayment plan so you have the documents your lender will need to properly assess your ongoing liability.

9. Don’t get carried away by the home mortgage interest deduction. Many taxpayers are tempted to buy more house than they can afford by figuring that they’ll save enough with the home mortgage interest deduction to make up for it. The mortgage interest deduction is only deductible if you itemize on your Schedule A: only about 1/3 of taxpayers claim the itemized deduction. You itemize if your deductions exceed the standard deduction: for 2015, the standard deduction rates are $12,600 for married taxpayers filing jointly and $6,300 for individual taxpayers (those rates stay put for 2016). Assuming that you do itemize, remember that your out of pocket will still be more than your tax savings (if you’re in a 28% bracket, paying $5,000 more in interest will only “save” you $1,400 in taxes). And you can’t count on the same level of savings forever: mathematically, the longer you own your house, the less you will owe in interest. That’s good for building your equity but it means a smaller deduction come tax time.

10. You don’t have to buy a house. There’s no rule that says you have to buy a house by the time you’re 35 – or ever. Buying a home is a big decision and while it can be a sound financial investment, it’s not for everyone. There is a lot to consider, including the housing market, interest rates, timing and your future plans. You might want more flexibility or mobility, or your career and family plans may be in flux. If you’re not sure about a neighborhood, consider renting as a test drive: a realtor can help you with that, too (see again #1). Even then, you don’t have to pull the switch: there are healthy rental markets throughout the country and in some areas, young professionals are choosing rentals over homebuying to preserve cash and remain mobile. That’s showing in the stats: last year, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that the home ownership rate was 64.9%, not counting borrowers in risk of default. In contrast, ownership in 2010 was nearly 69% (downloads as a pdf): for purposes of context, a one-percent change in the ownership represents well over a million homeowners. For more on the decision to buy versus rent, check out my book, Home, Sweet Rental: Busting The Hype Of Homeownership, available on Amazon.

San Diego Is the New HOT Spot for A-List Celebrities!

        Who knew San Diego had so many A-List Celebrities?

Scott Eastwood

Here is Scott Eastwood cruising down PCH enjoying his Encinitas, Ca life style. Encinitas is small beach town that is known for it fitness, health eating, and beach life style. Encinitas is not only home to A-List Celebrities but is also home to the famous Self-Realization Fellowship. Scott Eastwood calls encinitas home for "It's a really healthy, active lifestyle," the 29-year-old told KUSI of why he chose Encinitas. "...The people in North County are just amazing — good people." 

Shannon

Shannon, mother to Kardashian matriarch Kris Jenner, is a tall, slender woman in her “mid-70s” who leads a quiet life in the sleepy beach town of La Jolla, just north of San Diego. She’s recognized occasionally on the street as the grandmother to the Kardashians and has appeared a few times on the family’s E! reality-TV show, Keeping Up With the Kardashians. She has been snapped alongside granddaughter Kim on several shopping trips.

But Shannon stays largely out of the limelight. When she greets me at her cozy store, Shannon & Co., the day before the Fourth of July, she looks elegant in a pair of high-waisted red pants and a Gucci belt, Ralph Lauren sneakers, a white T-shirt, and a blue-and-white-striped sweater—in theme, of course. There are no assistants or paparazzi, no publicists, and no fans. “Kids tear the place apart!” she says of her usual clientele.

A small mom-and-pop store she founded in 1980, Shannon & Co. is filled with light that streams through two big windows edged with Spanish tiles. Inside, circular racks are packed tightly with kids’ clothes, for boys as old as 7 and girls as old as 14. There is a miniature baseball jacket, pink pajamas printed with palm trees, “nana blankets” hand-knit by a friend, and a tiny fireman’s costume. The carpet, business cards, and notepads are all leopard print—a “family signature” since 1985, she says—and a large picture of Kim Kardashian at age 7 hangs on the wall.

Bill Gates

Microsoft founder Bill Gates has purchased weight-loss icon Jenny Craig’s 229-acre thoroughbred training center in Rancho Santa Fe, which he plans to turn into a grand prix circuit for hunters and jumpers.

Gates, whose teenage daughter jumps horses competitively, paid $18 million for the facility in a deal that closed Sept. 12. It’s one of the highest prices secured for a property this year in San Diego County, where Gates also owns a home in the Del Mar Country Club. A spokeswoman for the Gates family confirmed the deal to buy the ranch Wednesday in a statement to U-T San Diego.

“The family has enjoyed visiting the San Diego area with friends and family for many years and has purchased the Rancho Paseana property in Rancho Santa Fe, California,” she said.

Craig closed the facility in May 2013 for financial reasons amid upheaval in the horse racing industry nationwide. At the time, Inglewood’s Hollywood Park was approaching its fall season, and talk was that some of the races would be shifted to Del Mar after it closed. They ultimately were, and Del Mar hosts its second opening day this year on Nov. 7. Before it shut down, Craig’s horse ranch was being used as training grounds for top quality thoroughbreds, but mostly was known as a “layup” facility for horses to enjoy downtime and rehab from injuries.

Craig had been trying to sell the property called long before it closed. In 2010, she put it on the market for nearly $30 million. The price tag was reduced to almost $25 million before it was pulled off the Multiple Listing Service entirely in fall 2012. The property was not listed when it actually sold, said listing agent Catherine Barry, of Barry Estates in Rancho Santa Fe.

Craig, who declined to name the buyer, said she has many happy memories of her time at the ranch but that it was expensive to maintain. She said it was time to put it behind her as she is on to a new chapter in her life.

“I was happy that the buyer is someone who can afford to turn it into the showplace it was meant to be,” she said. “It will be kept as a horse barn so the neighbors will be thrilled ... the person who bought it will make it like it can and should be.”

The property includes a white fenced, three-quarter-mile dirt training track, four 30-stall barns and rehab equipment for injured horses. Barry said the parcel also features two apartments with a French motif. She said Craig received offers that involved building a golf course or a hotel on the property, but she wanted to keep it for its original purpose: for horses.

“At one point she was thinking maybe she should look at potentially doing some subdivision ... but her dream was always to sell it to someone else to keep it for horses,” said Barry, who also declined to name the buyer.

Forbes reports that Gates, whose net worth of $81 billion makes him America’s richest man, has spent money on horses before. A few years ago, Gates leased a home in Palm Beach, Fla. for $600,000 so his daughter Jennifer could be near Wellington’s Equestrian Festival, according to Forbes. Further, the Daily Mail reports that around that time Gates leased four elite jumping horses for $50,000 to $75,000 each for his daughter to train.

Carl Hilliard, a former Del Mar City Councilman whose horses have competed at Del Mar, said it was a loss to the equestrian field when Craig closed the facility some years ago.

“There are a number of training facilities and they range from very good to not so good, and this was one of those that was very good,” said Hilliard, whose thoroughbred Johnny Eves won the 2007 Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita. “There’s a lot of hunter-jumper facilities in Rancho Santa Fe, so this is sort of a center for it.”

Hilliard said his preference is for the facility to be used for thoroughbred training, but that would require a lot of work, such as enlarging the stables.

Once known as Rancho del Rayo, the property originally belonged to former San Diego Chargers owner Gene Klein, who built it in 1985. The Craigs bought the facility in 1995 for $6 million, public records show.

The $18 million sale price is among the highest secured in the county in 2014. A home at 420 Avenida Primavera in Del Mar sold for $22.9 million in June. Last year, the most expensive home sold in the county was at 1936 Ocean Front in Del Mar, which sold for $18.75 million.

Cory Wilcox, a San Diego Realtor with Keller Williams, said unique properties like Craig’s ranch command a higher price.

“Estates like that, are very hard to put a price on,” she said. “The fact that it will not be developed is a win for the community.”

Craig also recently listed her home at 2936 Ocean Front in Del Mar, for $39.5 million. That home is still on the market.