Living in Burbank [Insider's Guide]
Burbank sits in the San Fernando Valley's eastern section, just 13 miles north of Downtown Los Angeles. It is perhaps best known as home to numerous motion picture, television, and animation studios. A plethora of adjunct businesses, like ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on January 22, 2021 in Communities
Condo Living: All the Pros and Cons
Condo living offers a low-maintenance lifestyle that is oftentimes more affordable than owning a single-family residence. This article details some of the pros, cons, and tossups of condo living and compares it to other options like living in a ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on January 18, 2021 in Buying a Home
West Hollywood Neighborhood Guide
West Hollywood is known world-wide for being the home of the Sunset Strip and heartbeat of Southern California’s LGBT community. The city has plenty of nightlife, shopping, dining, and fun. Its central location -- bordering Beverly Hills, ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on January 5, 2021 in Communities
Carroll Avenue Los Angeles: History and Homes
Carroll Avenue has the highest concentration of Victorian Houses in Los Angeles. Why is that? During the boom years of the late 1800s, Angelino Heights became one of the city's first residential districts (and thus one of the oldest). The ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on December 26, 2020 in Communities
Living in Pasadena, CA [Insider's Guide]
Pasadena lies eleven miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the San Gabriel valley. It is not merely a suburb of Los Angeles; it is its own city with a vibrant business community and highly regarded art museums, residential architecture, and ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on December 25, 2020 in Communities
The Ultimate Guide to Los Angeles Architecture
The styles of homes in Los Angeles are closely tied to the city's history and evolution. At the time of its founding in 1850, Los Angeles was scarcely more than a semi-lawless pioneer outpost with encampments near the Los Angeles River.
As ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on December 18, 2020 in Communities
Living in Pacific Palisades [Insider's Guide]
One of the most exclusive and sought-after neighborhoods in Los Angeles, Pacific Palisades draws affluent professionals, many from the entertainment industry looking for a quiet retreat with easy access to the beach and mountains. It can be ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on December 8, 2020 in Communities
Best Things to Do in Griffith Park [Insider's Guide]
Named after controversial mining magnate and philanthropist Griffith J. Griffith, the 4,310-acre Griffith Park is the second-largest city park in California. Griffith originally acquired the property, having bought the area that was Rancho Los ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on November 29, 2020 in Communities
Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Guide
An accessory dwelling unit (ADU) is a secondary residence that occupies the same property as a primary single-family residence. ADUs can be freestanding or attached to the main residence and cannot be sold separately.
Depending on where you live in ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on January 20, 2020 in Buying a Home
5 Great Recreational Bike Rides in Los Angeles
Los Angeles is a notoriously auto-centric city. Traveling by car here reigns supreme over other forms of transportation. However, that is slowly changing thanks to the Los Angeles County Bicycle Plan and other initiatives that aim to change and ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on July 25, 2019 in Communities
How Long Does it Take to Buy a House?
Knowing how long it takes to buy a house can help set your expectations and minimize stress before you start your next real estate journey. One thing is sure: homebuying is not an activity that real estate professionals will tell you is geared for ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on May 16, 2019 in Buying a Home
Closing Costs in California Explained
Who Pays Closing Costs in California?
Closing costs are a combination of service fees and taxes collected at the final stage of a real estate transaction.
When you buy a home in California, several businesses and local government entities get ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on March 16, 2019 in Buying a Home
Things to Know BEFORE Moving to Los Angeles [2021 Guide]
Thinking of moving to Los Angeles? If the city's population is any measure of how much people like it, then there's substantial evidence that living in Los Angeles is pretty great. 3.9 million people live within the city limits and 18.7 million ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on February 13, 2019 in Communities
What Does a Realtor Do?
Most Realtors complete real estate transactions behind the scenes, only involving their clients when necessary. Realtors do this intentionally, as they understand that their clients hired them so that they need not be concerned with the day-to-day ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on February 6, 2019 in Buying a Home
Sierra Interactive Review: Real Estate Websites by Sierra Interactive
On November 15, 2018, I finished migrating one of my real estate websites to the Sierra Interactive platform. What follows is a Sierra Interactive review based on setting up and deploying RubyHome.
If you're considering Sierra Interactive, feel ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on January 11, 2019 in Articles for Realtors
California Jumbo Loans: Mortgage Limits & Requirements
What is a California Jumbo Loan?
California houses come in all shapes and sizes. Depending on the amount you need to borrow and the property location, you may need to finance your home with a jumbo loan. A jumbo loan in California is mortgage that ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on December 27, 2018 in Financing a Home
Change of Address Checklist
Among the myriad of moving tasks, changing your address is one of the most important. Missing mail, unpaid bills, or service disruptions are the last things anyone wants to happen during a move.In fact, the earlier you can notify people, government ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on December 8, 2018 in Selling Your Home
What are the Best Suburbs of Los Angeles? [Insider's Guide]
More often than not when people say "Los Angeles" they are referring to the entire Greater Los Angeles area, which is enormous (L.A. County alone covers 4,751 square miles). It would be a mistake to lump every city, suburb, district, and ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on September 25, 2018 in Communities
Living in the Hollywood Hills [+ Neighborhood Video Tour]
Planning a move? Check out all the homes for sale in the Hollywood Hills.
For a moment, let’s pretend there are only two kinds of people in the world: beach people and hill people. If you love panoramic views and being surrounded by ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on August 30, 2018 in Communities
Living in Santa Monica - Here's What it's Like [Insider's Guide]
Santa Monica’s quality of life ranks high, making it one of Southern California’s most coveted places to live. People move to Santa Monica to be close to the beach, to enjoy a more relaxed lifestyle, and to take advantage of all its ...
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Posted by Tony Mariotti on July 22, 2018 in Communities