Kathy Wall

Vacant Homes a Target for Homeless and Criminals
February 10, 2011 · · 2 Comments

I was scheduled to do an open house at one of my listings in a terrific San Francisco neighborhood today.  When I arrived at the property and unlocked the door, the first thing that I saw were 2 men’s socks and a bunch of dirt, along with something that looked like a dirt clot, but later turned out to be a rock.  

Since this house has always been immaculate, I knew that something was radically wrong, so instead of entering the house, I first called the owners.   When I was unable to reach them, I decided to call the police.    Although it turned out that the intruder had already left, I’m so glad that I did call them, because it turns out that they were able to get really good evidence of who had entered.

This home had previously been “staged” and furnished, but the owners had requested that the staging be removed due to cost concerns, so it is now completely vacant.    Although we kept the front drapes closed so that people would not notice that it was vacant, someone clearly noticed, broke a downstairs window and spent at least one night in the property, apparently ripping down one of the drapes and using it as a blanket.      Read more

Lee Ginsburg

Learning to Budget! Kudos To The Teacher.
December 28, 2008 · · 6 Comments

As many of you are aware my Prudential office in San Bruno, Ca. is the largest single independent Prudential office in the country.  We are very progressive and have kiosk in several of the regional malls in the area.  As I had my shift just before the holidays, a young boy, I’d say about 12 or 13 was looking at some listings.  I let him look for a while and then approached.  He told me he was 30 years old and looking for a rental for his family of 4 with a $60,000 annual income.  I did a double take and he explained he had a home work assignment to balance a family budget including housing.  I helped him find a few rental homes in the area.  The reason for me writing about this, I thought it was a great assignment; Reality, Life.   I think this should be taught in detail to all high school seniors and to all purchasing a home.  I believe saving should be part of a family budget.  The savings could be for a down payment, home maintenance, vacation, rainy day, etc.  Read more