Tina To's Real Estate Blog

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What is APR, why it is different from the interest rate that my loan agent/bank representative disclosed to me?

Almost all the time APR is higher than the actual interest rate that the loan agent quote you.  APR is actually a sophisticated jargon that the Bank wants to intimidate/scare you?  Just joking.

Let me demonstrate how APR comes up and you will understand.

If I say I loan you $100 and you pay 5% interest so your interest payment is $5

But what if you pay $5 interest but I am giving you $90 because $10 is your closing cost, then now your interest rate will be: 90 divided by 5 x 100% = 5.5%

This is exactly how the bank calculate your APR.  But then you say I even pay points to lower my interest rate and how come my APR is even higher?  It is because then your closing cost is higher.  Instead of $10 closing cost, maybe now you are paying $20 closing cost so your interest rate is still 5% but your APR will be 6.25%.

Thank you for checking in.  I am a real estate agent specialized in San Francisco and Peninsular area and will be happy to help you buy or sell your house.

Last week I made use of free family pass again to go to Cartoon Arts Museum which is located at Mission and 2nd Street.  The standard charge for adult is $8 and for kid is $6.  It shows a good cartoon history and have a good deal of collection.  However, there is nothing hands on and not really too fascinating for the young kids.

However, it is free.  So have you tried yet?  If you live in San Francisco, go to any public library and see what is still available for the free activity that you can enjoy with your family within this week.

Go to http://www.sfkids.org/checkoutSF for detailed information.

Thank you for checking in with my blog.

I am a real estate agent who specified in San Francisco and Peninsular area.  I would like to share as much as I can all the interesting local information with you.

“Oh , we are experiencing the worst depression!”  ARE WE? ? ?

If you are Jewish and aged over 50, your parents may had been ran away from the Nazi Camp or forced to run away from homes.  If you came from China and aged over 50, you should have experienced the Cultural Revolution.  The point is if you asked those people, which period is worse, now or then?  What is your hinge?

Yes, we have a high unemployment rate.  Yes, a lot of people lost their homes because of foreclosure.  Yes, the government is keep on cutting budgets.  Yes, our economic growth is a negative figure or close to zero.   But how many years have our ancestors live a “simple” life before the Industrial Revolution kicked in?  Could we call those years the worst?  Would our ancestors said so?

During the 1929 depression, a lot of people hid themselves in the theaters and enjoyed the extra low ticket fee.  A lot of family actually felt those were the time they felt the closest as parents were jobless and had plenty of time with their children.  Can we still enjoy some of those side “benefits” today?

So, cheer up.  This is not the end of the world.  We are not at our worst period and so will not be tomorrow.

Thank you for checking in with my blog.  By the way, if you are thinking of making use this golden chance of low house price, low interest rate in San Francisco or Peninsular, feel free to contact me.  I have over 20 years experience helping people acquire their first home.

最近當我去借書時，無意間發現三藩市居民可以憑有效圖書証去取一個免費旅遊紙，圖書館職員會告訴你有什麼參加的單位尚有位讓你一家人（二位大人，四位低於１８歲小朋友）一起免費去的勝地。地點包括有：免費船河﹑科學館等。。詳細情形請上以下網頁www.SFPL.org/checkoutSF

In case you are thinking of what you want to send your girlfriends/ motherfriends

you may like to send this one.  I recieved this one from my friend and I think it is amazing.  Please click onto “rising mother of the year” to see.

rising mother of the year

Have you ever forgot familiar words or names or the location of keys, eyeglasses or other everyday objects?  According to the Seven Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease from www.alz.org, the Alzheimer’s Association, this is the typlical symptom of the Second stage of Alzheimer.

Recently I have read a book “Jan’s Story” by Barry Petersen.  Barry’s wife has an early onset of Alzheimer at age 55.  But during the early stages. Barry had not taken the opportunity to go to places where they always wanted  to go, do things that they had longed to do because Barry thought he still have “time”.  However, Alzheimer’s disease really do not have a timeline and full of unknown, the disease can progress suddenly without any warning.  Barry regretted a lot but who does not.  I guess regarding this, Barry is not alone.  We always put up things that we think we still have time, aren’t we?

There is also another debatable issue that despite Barry and Jan had married for 20 years and love each others ever since, Barry was encouraged to look for a new partner, another sole mate.  This would be extremely difficult if Barry was in the Chinese society.  Traditional Chinese values eternal love and that eternal love means loyalty.  Barry should not physically depart his wife not mentioning mentally.  Barry also spells out clearly the meaning of marriage that is there is love between husband and wife and they take care each others, be each other’s soulmate.   This is a pretty high standard to uphold and  I think at least 50% of married couples had not reached.  Many couples are together out of needs but not out of love.   At least this is true to one of my friends’. 

What is your opinion regarding this?  If you have time, I would recommend you to read this book Jan’s Story by Barry Petersen which will come out in June 15, 2010.  (The one I read is Advance Reader’s Edition , meaning not finalized in editing and I bought it from the   Main Library in San Francisco.)

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

REO  is the short form for Real Estate Owned.  The real meaning is the lenders, usually the banks, have taken over the properties and are actually owners of the properties.  When the properties put up to the market for sale, the lenders/banks had already come up to an agree upon for sale price so usually if the buyers offer the asking price, it will be approved.  However, some lenders/banks will still listen to the sale experts marketing strategy, i.e. to ask for a ridiculously low price to encourage strong competition and thus beat up the sold price.  Anyway, the buyers involved usually can close the escrow within a reasonable time like a normal sale.

Short Sale means even after the sold price of the property is still too short to pay the mortgage.  In this case, the individuals are still owners of the properties and not the lenders.  However, since the homeowners cannot bring additional money to pay back to the bank/lenders, the sold price has to be approved by the lenders.  Since in this case, it is the homeowners who initiated to sell the property to avoid foreclosure, the lenders/banks involved had not yet came up to an agreed upon price prior to the property put for sale in the market, every offer has to be reviewed by the lenders/banks involved.  Thus it usually takes a much longer time for closing.

Tina, although she was a rabel as a teenager, she actually is quite traditional.  She gives me a new angle of looking at parent-children relationship.  I totally agree with her that when our children uplive our hopes and will, we would proudly say, they are my sons/daughters.  But when they walk some weird path (at least from the parent’s point of view), she would call her child – friend.

Do you have a friend or have a son or a daughter?

When Tina’s only daughter told her mother she wanted to change into the male, Tina just asked her daughter to do more researches and discussed with her later.  Tina, is quite traditional in this area.  She considered changing sex was against the nature.  However, she compromised with her daughter’s decision.  And her daughter became her “friend”.

Parents:  Have you ever noticed the way you say “your” or “my” when you addressed your son/daughter with your spouse?  Let me give you an example.  When my son did something wrong, I would subconsciously, told my husband, “go get YOUR son”.  But when my son showed me his report cards with all As, I would say, “come, look at MY son’s results.”

How many of you are like me?  Picture below is My son and Your son.

I was inspired by reading the book “Journey of a Thousand Miles: My story” by Lang Lang.  I read this in Chinese version.

For those who are not interested in music, particularly piano, may not know who is Lang Lang.  Lang Lang is the youngest famous pianist in this century so far.  I am not going to summarized his story because you can check it out from his book by which I believe should be the English version and/or should be the original.

Lang Lang won the first place as young as 5 years old.  After he watched the cartoon “Jerry and Tom”, he could replay the background music when he was only 3 years old.  Before he could read words, he could read notes.  He was recognized and had been set a goal as “the great pianist” as young as he was 3 years old.  I said set the goal because this goal was not set by him but by his parents.  His parents had sacrificed a lot to help him to reach where he is now.  Aged 9, Lang Lang left his mother and moved to Beijing together with his father.  His mother had to stay at work in Sheng Yang to support them financially.  In order for Lang Lang to be further trained and reach his parents? Lang Lang’s? goal, Lang Lang’s father became Lang Lang’s full time supervisor – to supervise and gaurantee Lang Lang had practised to his maximum ability and strength.  Lang Lang had practised mimumum 7 hours daily, 7 days a week since childhood.  All Lang Lang has is piano practice and nothing else. 

Lang Lang is very talented but unfortunately to say, Chinese has too much political reasons to restrain his growth and development.  Lang Lang’s father finally took Lang Lang to USA and Lang Lang’s talents and efforts had successfully earn himself the scholorship into the famous Musical Institute at Philapdelphia.  He later became very successful and recognized by the world.  HOWEVER, WHEN HE WANTED TO RETURN CHINA TO PERFORM, HE HAD BEEN VIGOROUSLY REFUSED TO DO SO.  The reason is he had not earned enough competitions and was not famous in China.  In China, an artist’s role has to be realized by the number of  trophy that artist has. !!!

The real reason:  Lang Lang is not from a rich family.  He does not has any Chinese official to back him up.  In the strong sea of competition, not only in piano, or in music but in all areas, athelets and other competitors may be pre-selected already.  If Chairman X’s son has certain talent, the selective board should make him the first place and if only the first place can join the international competition, then he has to be the one and try all the streams to block other OSTACLE “Lang Lang” OUT.  As throughout this book, you will see Lang Lang had met many people (all are Chinese, a few even his teachers)  said “Lang Lang, for sure you will not win!”  trying to down put him, making him not to win.

I, myself, am Chinese but fortunately I was born and raised in Hong Kong.  I could not say that I have the best education, but I have the freedom to speak, to think and to act.  I bet Lang Lang, in some way, is quite disappointed with his ‘MOTHER” – China because only recently his talent and achievements were recognized.  China, actually, has the resources and abilities to help Lang Lang to achieve what he acheives today, but refused to do so despite Lang Lang and his father’s vigorous efforts.  I feel shame on this and the pain is, this has not ceased yet.

China has literally abandoned Lang Lang in his early years.  On the other hand, it is America who saved him and allowed him to be what he is.  This is many Chinese’s American dream and this is also many immigrant’s dream.

You cannot control the length of your life, but you can “widen” it.

You cannot control the weather, but you can control how you feel. – Some people feel sad because it rains and they cannot go out.  Some people feel good because it rains and they can enjoy their home more.  Who are you?

You cannot change how you look (to certain extent) but you can always smile.

You cannot change others but you can change yourself.

You cannot predict tomorrow but you can make good use of today.

You cannot win everything but you can always try your very best.