Archive for June, 2011

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Intero Hong Kong collaborates with Elijah Investment Management Consulting Co, Ltd.

By Teressa Francis | June 30th, 2011 0 Comments

Leading brokerage company and investment consulting firm bring U.S. properties to interested Chinese investors

Cupertino, California – (June 30, 2011) – Intero Hong Kong of Intero International Franchise Services, LLC, announced that is has expanded its network in the Asia-Pacific region through a collaboration with Elijah Investment Management Consulting (Shanghai) Co, Ltd, whose primary mission is to provide one-stop services for mainland Chinese clients to fulfill their quests to immigrate, settle down with schools (for families with school-age children), and purchase their new homes in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and other countries.

Together with Elijah Investment Management Consulting Co, Ltd., Intero Hong Kong General Manager, Kenny Lo will liaison for Chinese investors interested in acquiring U.S. investment properties. Lo, an Intero real estate agent, has incredible knowledge of both markets and cultures. With this he is a great resource for investors, bridging the Pacific Divide.

“I’m very pleased to have the honor and opportunity to work closely with Elijah Investment and its managing director Shirley Liu in particular. With Elijah Investment’s business connections and fundamental understanding of what the local Chinese buyers want, together we can attract investors from Hong Kong and across the Pacific region to U.S. properties,” says Kenny Lo, General Manager of Intero Hong Kong. “In partnership with an internationally recognized financial institution providing loans for overseas buyers, we just successfully completed inaugural live property seminars in Shanghai and Nanjing promoting high-end properties in the U.S. As of today, we’ve already scheduled some attendees for property tours in California starting this summer. I look forward to close the initial deals through this Elijah Investment collaboration, while anticipating our business momentum to grow.”

“This opportunity couldn’t have come at a better time,” Robert Moles, chairman of Intero adds. “A number of Chinese investors are already waiting to take advantage of opportunities in U.S. and Bay Area real estate markets in particular. The Asia-Pacific region’s economic growth, high real estate prices and rising currencies relative to the U.S. dollar have created a lot of interest in U.S. properties.”

“This collaboration allows us to seek opportunities to expand abroad and represents the Intero commitment to solidifying a global brand presence, a necessary element to thrive and innovate in a real estate business,” concludes Intero Real Estate Services, Inc. President and CEO, Gino Blefari.

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Intero Folsom Lake Grand Opening

By Teressa Francis | June 29th, 2011 0 Comments

As a follow up to last week’s post on Intero Folsom Lake Grand Opening Celebration, we would like to share the event’s success with you! Check out the photos for a glimpse of the celebration!

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Intero Insider: The Rise of the Landlord

By Gino Blefari | June 28th, 2011 0 Comments

While all the focus has been on the data related to single-family housing – home sales, home values, foreclosures – there’s a lot brewing in the market for rentals. Think about all the millions of people who’ve foreclosed in the last few years who went from owning to renting. Think about those who had to downsize due to job loss or a cut in wages.

Yes, there’s a lot happening in the rental market that’s not being talked about much. While home builders were creating massive amounts of single-family inventory during the housing boom, multi-family units took a back seat. To give you an idea of the difference: At its peak in 2007, new construction of single-family homes topped out at somewhere around 1.9 million units that year (according to Census Bureau data). That same year, new construction of multi-family housing (5 or more units) topped out at somewhere around 225,000.

So there’s your low supply situation. Now, what about demand?

Data from the Census Bureau shows that household formation has declined during the recession – most likely because there are more unemployed young adults who are still living at home with their parents, and many of those who lost their jobs had to temporarily move in with friends or relatives.

When jobs pick back up and it’s time to move out, where will these people go? Will they jump into home ownership? Likely not. They’ll be looking for a nice place to rent.

And all those borrowers who defaulted on their mortgages? They’re going to need to rent for awhile too, in most cases.

Now you can see there may actually be a shortage of rental housing coming our way. The building industry may start to pick up pace to meet demand, but what’s the opportunity here for you and me?

Well, first, are you in the market to invest in property? If so, you might want to start by looking at duplexes and smaller homes that could be used as rental properties. Picture yourself as a landlord, not a house flipper.

The rental market is on fire in terms of demand. And by the looks of it, it will continue to be this way for several years ahead. People have to live somewhere and home ownership is still a few steps away from a pretty large pool of the population.

Being a landlord might not be what you’d pictured yourself doing as a real estate investor, but the opportunity to earn extra income speaks for itself.

You can read more about the multifamily opportunity in this post I wrote back earlier this year.

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Intero expands into the Vietnamese community

By Teressa Francis | June 28th, 2011 0 Comments

Owners of the InteroNha Milpitas office, Dylan Nguyen and Steven Tran, opened a new commercial retail development, Vietnam Town, the largest Vietnamese Plaza in California. A grand opening event was held on June 18, 2011.

Dylan and Steven also plan to expand InteroNha Milpitas in the coming months to a second office, Intero Vietnam Town, which will be located within Vietnam Town at 909-990 Story Road in San Jose, CA. This office will be a state-of-the-art commercial business model, that will cater to an Asian market.

The Vietnam Town plaza grand opening had a variety of food, games for kids, jumpers, a dunking tank, lion dance and live entertainment. There were also many booths set up to support the community such as City programs for first time Home Buyers, NSP, HAFA, Home Path, Credit Consultant, Residential, Commercial Lenders, Attorney, and much more. President, Founder and CEO of Intero Real Estate Services, Gino Blefari, gave a speech and expressed the excitement about exposing this Intero Vietnam Town project and its future to all of Intero and their clients as well as the Vietnamese community.

We would like to share the event’s success with you! Check out photos from the event below!


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Every Nickel Counts! The Intero Foundation beneficiary of the Whole Foods Nickel for Non-profits campaign

By Teressa Francis | June 24th, 2011 0 Comments

Save a bag and support The Intero Foundation

During the upcoming months of July, August, and September the Intero Foundation, a non-profit organization funded, promoted and governed by Intero Real Estate Services, Inc. agents is being featured by the Whole Foods Market on Blossom Hill Road, in their Nickels for Non-profits campaign.

Nickels for Non-Profits is the Whole Foods community giving program which features a local non-profit for three months. Every time a customer reuses a shopping bag, a nickel is donated to the chosen local non-profit. The goal of the program is to reduce the use of new bags while increasing funding for a local non-profit.

The Blossom Hill Whole Foods store chose The Intero Foundation as a beneficiary of the five cent bag refund program because they felt the Intero Foundation could reach the most number of people to promote the event and bring people to the Blossom Hill store and also because of the great work the foundation does for kids. Customers who shop at this location and bring their reusable shopping bags for groceries at checkout will be asked by a Whole Foods checker if they would like to donate five cents to the Intero Foundation or receive a five cent credit between July 4, 2011 and September 24, 2011.

In addition, the Intero Foundation volunteer Realtors will be at a table near the entrance several Saturdays each month promoting the Foundation, and handing out reusable grocery bags as well as information about the Intero Foundation.

Thank you for re-using your shopping bags, honoring the environment and supporting both The Intero Foundation and your local Whole Foods Market!

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Intero Insider: Is It a Good Time to Refinance?

By Gino Blefari | June 22nd, 2011 0 Comments

Despite doom-and-gloom reporting, not every homeowner in the U.S. has negative equity right now. And with interest rates still hovering near record lows, those with equity are likely asking themselves whether it’s a good time to refinance. Well, is it? Let’s take a look:

  • Average interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 4.51% a week ago (according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s latest survey), the lowest level since last fall.
  • The average outstanding home loan carries an interest rate of about 6% (Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist Frank Nothaft told The New York Times last week).

So if you took advantage of low rates last fall or in 2009, you probably won’t see much savings by refinancing now. But if you haven’t yet refinanced since 2008, you might want to check in and see what kind of savings refinancing might afford you.

Cashing out: What’s enough equity?

Refinancing used to almost always mean the owner was taking some cash out in the process. That’s because values had climbed pretty steadily (and steeply in many areas) for several years in a row – so most homeowners could afford to cash out to maybe send their kid to college, work on a new addition to the house or remodel. But today, the story is much different.

Even if you have equity, it may not have climbed enough for cashing out to make sense. In fact, the NYT reports that some owners are even putting cash in to up the equity on their homes.

So what’s enough equity by today’s standards? Times have changed and 20% is once again a magic number. Many lenders aren’t even going to allow you to cash out if it means dipping below that.

Refinance options for the equity starved

OK, but what if  you have less than that? Can you still refinance to take advantage of low rates?

The good news is that there are some programs out there that may make this possible. If you have little or no equity, you can ask your lender about the Home Affordable Refinance Program. If you have an FHA loan, you can check out FHA Streamline Finance, which may make sense for you.

So even if your equity is pretty low, there are options. Point is, with rates this low, it’s a good time to sit down and discuss whether refinancing would improve your loan situation. We all know that rates are fleeting and what’s here today may be gone tomorrow.

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Grand Opening of New Innovative Office: Intero Folsom Lake

By Teressa Francis | June 21st, 2011 0 Comments

Announcing the opening of an Intero Real Estate Services franchise office in Folsom, CA

SILICON VALLEY, CA – June 21, 2011 – David Bicknell along with business partner and wife, Melisa Bicknell, will have a grand opening of their new Intero Real Estate Services franchise office in Folsom, CA on June 29, 2011.

David Bicknell, broker and owner of the new Intero Folsom Lake explains: “After careful consideration in choosing a brand with which to affiliate ourselves with, the Intero® management team demonstrated a high level of quality leadership, a proper culture of unwavering values and industry leading support in critical areas such as training and marketing.”

“We are pleased to welcome Intero Folsom Lake to the Intero family, a truly innovative organization that is growing while others are shrinking,” said Intero Franchise Services, Inc. President and CEO, Gino Blefari. “This expansion speaks to our commitment to innovate and thrive in an ever-changing business.”

Previously residing in Morgan Hill, within walking distance of the first Intero office, the Bicknell’s had the opportunity to watch the Intero brand grow and become the fastest growing real estate company since its 2002 inception. The outstanding success of the Intero® brand reassured them that opening their own office, Intero Folsom Lake, under a leading U.S. brokerage, will help them grow and innovate in today’s market.

Intero Folsom Lake, a highly visible retail location on the corner of one of the busiest intersections in Folsom, will feature a similar concept of the Intero Andare(sm) design, a smaller technology-rich and more eco-friendly space designed for today’s mobile REALTOR. Some of its unique features will include a flat panel TV to show properties to clients and wireless access. Additionally, the office hosts Short Sale Seminars for the public every other Saturday at 10am, which include business partner resources such as a real estate attorney, CPA and investment specialist.

Intero Folsom Lake will specialize in residential real estate in Sacramento, El Dorado and Placer counties. The location of this office is very convenient, in that this intersection connects El Dorado Hills, Folsom and Granite Bay.

With currently 10 agents on board, David and Melisa plan to grow their office to 40 agents by the end of the year.

David Bicknell spent many years in senior management positions within the consumer electronics industry, including Director of Merchandising and Operations for Fry’s Electronics and President of BlueAnt Wireless, Inc. Melisa Bicknell spent several years in Human Resources and Training with both a mortgage company and a high tech company, and most recently was a Realtor with the Intero office in Gilroy, CA.

Together, David and Melisa have opened the doors to their new real estate office in Folsom, CA and are focused on creating an energetic office with happy and satisfied agents and clients as the end result.

Intero Folsom Lake
1360 E. Natoma St., Suite 130
Folsom, CA 95630
916-303-4545

The Intero Folsom Lake grand opening follows the recent grand opening of Intero San Jose Evergreen Valley, led by Marvin and Denise Morris.

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Intero Evergreen Valley Grand Opening

By Teressa Francis | June 17th, 2011 0 Comments

As a follow up to yesterday’s post on Intero Evergreen Valley Grand Opening, we would like to share the event’s success with you! Check out the video and photos from yesterday!

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Intero Franchise Services, Inc. further expands presence in California

By Teressa Francis | June 16th, 2011 0 Comments

Announcing the Grand Opening of Intero San Jose Evergreen Valley

SILICON VALLEY, CA – June 16, 2011 – Intero Franchise Services, Inc. announced its continued expansion with the grand opening of a new California location: Intero San Jose Evergreen Valley.

On June 16, 2011, a former Windermere Real Estate office located in the Evergreen area of San Jose, California, led by Denise and Marvin Morris, will transition to the Intero brand. The Grand Opening Ribbon Cutting will be at 2pm.

As a Real Estate broker and owner since 1990, Denise has proudly served Santa Clara County and the surrounding areas. During this time, she managed over 100 agents and a Loan Center with 20 agents as a broker and owner of two highly ranked Century 21 Offices. As the owner and broker of the new Intero San Jose Evergreen Valley office, she is committed to her clients and the community she serves.

Denise’s mission is to build a Real Estate relationship with integrity, loyalty, honestly and hard work. She is a highly trusted Real Estate Broker in the community. She can be counted on for enthusiasm and innovative ideas to achieve to help people achieve their goals.

With currently 15 agents on board, Denise Morris along with business partner and husband, Marvin Morris, plan to grow and create an office of agents who work together as a team and who possess the qualities for success.

Intero San Jose Evergreen Valley
2230 Quimby Road
San Jose, CA 95122
408-223-1511

The launch of Intero San Jose Evergreen Valley follows the recent announcements of Intero El Dorado Hills, Intero Rancho Cucamonga and Intero Scottsdale locations.

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Intero Insider: 3 Hints for Buying Distressed Property

By Gino Blefari | June 14th, 2011 0 Comments

With more and more distressed sales filling local real estate markets in coastal and other post-bubble areas, maybe it’s time for a quick check-in on tips for buying distressed property.

Just because there’s a lot more distressed property in the market doesn’t mean it’s any easier to deal with. In fact, it’s just as complicated and frustrating as it always was. But again, the opportunity is pretty amazing if you’ve got it.

First, what is distressed property? A distressed property is usually one that is either in danger of going into foreclosure or that will be up for sale because the homeowner defaulted on his mortgage. These transactions are quite different from your average home sale because you’re dealing with the bank’s own red tape, which can add a lot of time to close.

Just remember these three things:

Be flexible. When buying a distressed property, it’s good to have flexibility – especially with your move-in date. That’s because closings often can get delayed and the closing date is more or less an “estimated” date. Take a bit of stress off your back by either having a back-up plan (crash at your in-laws’ place for a couple of weeks?) or trying to give yourself an extra month at your old place if you can afford to do so.

Be patient. With a distressed sale, you’re dealing not just with your lender and a seller, you’re dealing with the original lender on the property and its whole chain of command to get things approved and moving. This can be frustrating. But honestly, there’s not a whole lot you can do at times except be sure you’re on top of your own deadlines, deposits, inspections and paperwork, and sit back and be patient.

Work with an experienced agent. OK, so you can’t always sit back and be patient. There will be times when you might need to get a little aggressive to keep things moving. An agent experienced with distressed property will know how to handle those times. In fact, there may even be situations where the best outcome is to decide to walk away and find another property. It’s important to find an agent who knows the process, local market conditions and you (as in, your threshold for stress and panic, your motivations, your limitations, etc.).

Buying distressed property can be a pain, but it’s one that can also come with many rewards. Many markets are flooded with distressed properties so if you’re in the market to buy, now’s the time to consider whether it makes sense for you.

Good luck!

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