Mortgage Pre-approval Affects Credit Dear Phyllis, My daughter hopes to buy a home and she is early in the process. Even so, her Realtor insisted she get prequalified before showing her any homes. The Realtor explained to my daughter that if she found a home she loved, she would need a pre-qualification letter to submit […]
How To Select My Trustee Dear Phyllis, Having read your column for years, I know how important it is to have a living trust. And I recall you mentioning that it’s preferable to have just one trustee or an odd number so that there can be a tiebreaker in the event of a disagreement. I […]
Evicting A Family Member Dear Phyllis, I am an “Ask Phyllis” fan and hope you can help me. My parents had a vacation home in Palm Springs. For years, our extended family enjoyed weekends there. About ten years ago, my brother got fired and needed a place to live. My parents had him move into […]
Selling An Out Of State Fixer Dear Phyllis, My cousin passed away and I am the trustee of his estate. He never married and never had children. Several cousins are the beneficiaries. His home is in Oregon and there is a roof leak. I have three young children and can’t spend too much time away […]
Dealing With Squatters Dear Phyllis, I love your Dear Abby-like real estate advice column. Not to go on a rant but during COVID my tenants didn’t pay rent for six months. They finally moved out of my La Crescenta rental. Then while I was having the home painted it became occupied by vagrants. Have you […]
All About The Earnest Money Deposit Dear Phyllis, Your column is one of the first things I look for in the CV Weekly. I know real estate has changed since I purchased my home. However, I didn’t realize it had changed so much. My daughter had her townhome in escrow. The buyers inspected and everything […]
Ask Phyllis! Requirements For Disclosing Violent Death Dear Phyllis, My daughter has a home in Valley Glen, which she purchased nearly five years ago. It was disclosed to her that the former owner had committed suicide, and that’s why the home was being sold. The real estate agent that represented her has told […]
Keys at Closing Dear Phyllis, My son just closed escrow on a home in Valley Village. The seller had passed away, so the trustee was responsible for everything. Although the market has cooled, my son paid $12,000 over the asking price. It was an “as is” sale, and there were numerous issues with this nearly […]
Selling a Haunted House Dear Phyllis, My daughter attended college in Texas, and we decided to purchase a home instead of her renting. It was one of the oldest houses in the neighborhood. Financially it was a good move. Here goes: My daughter and her roommates decided the house was haunted. They made a running […]
Realtor’s Long Vacation Dear Phyllis, I used to really look forward to your real estate question and answers. However, much of it seems repetitive. I have a new topic for you which I think your readers will find interesting. My son has been working with a family friend with a real estate license who is […]