Alhambra Code Enforcement

They suck. Within two weeks after close of escrow, Alhambra Code Enforcement went ahead and posted this notice on my door like some CDC quarantine order.


It made me look like some bad neighbor who doesn't care about his property. I called their office and was told that the realtor brokered an agreement between Alhambra Code Enforcement and the seller to have the property maintained. But I was not made aware of that. And maybe the city did not realize that it was a short sale! To recapitulate:

1. The seller was losing her home. Why should she pay for maintenance?
   
2. The bank was losing money. Why would they pay for maintenance?
3. The buyer (me) was not told.
   

The Happiest Place On Earth

Disneyland may be the happiest place on Earth, but its surrounding area in Anaheim is not bad either...

This is the Embassy Suites hotel in Anaheim near Downtown Disney.


They serve free alcohol during happy hour 5-7PM.

My wife and I decided to make a tiny vacation of her overnight stay for a teacher's convention. It was one of the best times we've ever had. I had a Long Island iced tea. She had a Margarita on the rocks. After that, we couldn't stop laughing. Then, we were supposed to go for romantic stroll just before dark. Instead, we stayed inside our room and watch John Tucker Must Die. I actually liked the movie. It was simple and stupid. No thinking required. No thinking possible after a couple of drinks anyway...

At Last

At last, we got the house. After so much anticipation, anxiety, disappointment, joy, and heartache, the Winchester home is ours. The loan is approved, and we are getting the keys today. It's enough to make me think of Etta's song...

You smile, you smile
And then the spell was cast
And here we are in heaven
For you are mine at last...

It's easy to sing songs now, but the obstacles were difficult to overcome and lessons learned are valuable.

To start, we were cheated by Bank Of America. Amy Woo (aka Sr. Loan Agent, aka Wicked Witch of the West) charged us a non-refundable $200.00 application fee. She is so greedy that she did not even have the courtesy to tell us that the application fee could be waived if we applied online. Obviously, she was only looking to pocket some cash or bonus from the transaction...

Bank Of America in Alhambra, CA has the worst customer service. They only want to attract and bait customers like me (and you). They do very little to help you. And they certainly don't help you save money. Go to Washington Mutual or Citibank instead. It can't be any worse...

In order to secure a home loan, I went to a loan broker, Elaine from Sunwest Funding (they don't have a web site :( Being raised by my parents to save money, going to a broker would have been unthinkable. But I am actually pleased with the results... Their service goes above and way beyond what a bank will do. Let's just be blunt here: banks don't really give a crap about you...

Elaine and her team actually help their customers! It's no joke. The application fee is about $400.00 but only if they can secure your loan. They will tell you exactly what you need to do, what docs you need to provide, and if something does not seem right, they will help you fix it. They actually help you! I cannot stress that enough. Banks, on the other hand, seem to think that ordinary folks like you and me know everything about the loan process... She even helped us save some money and find ways to increase our credit score by providing counsel on money management. You'll never get that from a bank...

If I were to compare the bank and the broker, it's like day and night. Here are a few reasons:

The bank will not call you. You're not worth the phone call.
The broker will call you, and at your convenience.

The bank will not give you status updates.
The broker will call you to let you know if everything is Ok or if there is a problem.

The bank will wait until the last day to ask for documents that you do not have.
The broker will ask for all relevant documents from the very start.

The bank will say the stupidest things...
Bank: "You only gave us 10 canceled checks. We need 12 (from the last 12 months)"
Me: "I only have 10 because I paid the last 2 in cash"
Bank: "Well... I still need 12 canceled checks from the last 12 months"

Bank: "I need you to sign your signature with your middle initial"
Me: "But I've never signed with my middle initial. If a signature has my middle initial, then it's not my signature"
Bank: "But I need your signature with your middle initial"

Bank: "Yes, 10% down payment is acceptable"
(One month later)
Bank: "You need 20% or the underwriter will not approve it"

Now a quick shoutout for Sunwest Funding, Elaine, and Yoko:

Sunwest Funding Inc
923 E Valley Blvd
San Gabriel, CA 91776
626-280-6666

And Sieu, the realtor who made it happen:

Treeline Realty
9168 Las Tunas Dr
Temple City, CA 91780
626-248-3615

Maxima Enim, Patientia Virtus

Just something for my wife to know... in due time...

Winchester Short Sale

We're going to get the house! Our offer on the short sale was finally accepted After 2 months of waiting and more waiting and not hearing anything. The waiting and not knowing is the worst part...

We both had doubts if we were ever going to hear from them. We were so doubtful that we entertained the notion of looking at other properties. Out of many that are listed, we actually looked at only a handful. Here are some worthy of mention or notoriety...

• There is a brand new 2-story SFR on Montana St. in Monrovia, but it is near a freeway underpass and a railroad track. I don't like freeway underpasses... vagrants urinate there!
• There is a brand new 2-story SFR on Monro Vista Ave. in Monrovia, but it is in an industrial area and the neighborhood looks scary.
• There is a SFR on Electric Ave. in Alhambra, but it was a fixer-upper The neighborhood is in the desirable northern part of Alhambra (near the South Pasadena border). But my wife saw inside the property and said it is filthy and a tattooed wanabee gangster lives there...
• There is a SFR on Vega St. in Alhambra, but it was also a fixer-upper. I was surprised to hear my wife say that she was serious about getting the property even though it was going to be a lot of work: new floors, new kitchen, new baths, etc. At least$50K worth of upgrades and repairs. I think she wanted it simply to deny her hated enemy who was also looking at it at the same time...
  
• There is a nice SFR up a hill on Orange Grove Ave. in Alhambra with a view overlooking Cal State LA. A nice old lady lives there. The property is nice, but it is priced above our range.
  
• There is a SFR somewhere on Gleason St. in Monterey Park, but it needs to be razed The house had fallen into disrepair and the inside was completely ruined. The paint was peeling and the floor was warped due to water damage. The entire house smelled musty...
• There is a really nice SFR on Holly Oak Dr. in Monterey Park. It is in a quiet neighborhood and has a good-sized lot. Unfortunately, it already had multiple offers! It's hard for me to imagine that buyers would get into a bidding war especially when this is a buyer's market...

Soon we will enter escrow. This was the best news I've heard in a long, long time.