October has arrived in Orange County, and with it, Halloween activities. Though the spooky, costume-filled holiday doesn’t officially take place until the last day of the month, many OC residents choose to celebrate all month long. If you’re a Halloween enthusiast, allow us to fill you in on where to celebrate the holiday this month in Orange County. As your OC real estate agents, we are here to keep you in the loop with all things related to the OC area!

Plan your costume and mark these Halloween events in your calendar:

1. Bring your older kids to Haunt at Heritage Hill at the Heritage Hill Historical Park in Lake Forest. From 6 to 10:30 p.m. on Oct. 14 and 15, you can enjoy a haunted house, mazes, goblins, music, stage performances and a classic horror movie screening. This is recommended for kids 12 and older, as it is meant to scare! Wear your costumes! 

2. If your family is looking for a fun fall activity, without the scares, bring them to Spooktacular Fun Days at The Great Park in Irvine. This is open on Oct. 15 and 16, and Oct. 22 and 23, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day. Pick out pumpkins from the pumpkin patch and then enjoy treats, games, crafts, food trucks and more. Registration is required. Costumes are recommended! 

3. Head to Huntington Beach for Walk & Trick or Treat for the Animals! This will take place at Huntington Beach Central Park East. Bring your dogs and enjoy a walk, with trick-or-treat stops along the way for both kids and pets. There will also be games, food, costume contests, bounce houses and more. Proceeds help the OCSPCA save animals! 

4. Another chance for your dogs to strut their costumes is at Yappy Howl-O-Ween on Oct. 27 from 4 to 7 p.m. Head to The Ritz-Carlton in Laguna Niguel and show off your dog in costume. A panel of judges will determine the winners in numerous categories, such as Dynamic Duo, Most Creative, Cute and Cuddly and Best in Show. 

5. Laguna Hills Community Center has Halloween activities for kids young and old on Oct. 29. Bring kids ages six and under to Ghostly Affair from 5:30 to 7 p.m., which includes games, trick-or-treating, costume prizes and more. Then from 8:30 to 10 p.m., kids ages seven and older can enjoy A’Maze’ingly Haunted Hills, where kids can make their way through a haunted Laguna Hills maze!

6. On Oct. 31, bring the whole family to Main Street Halloween Fest in Downtown Huntington Beach for a fun, safe Halloween evening! Enjoy trick-or-treating, a photo booth, a petting zoo, rides, costume contests, pony rides, inflatables, music and more. Come dressed in costume and enjoy a community event that helps support local businesses as well.

7. Trick-or-Treat Through the City takes place in Irvine on Halloween. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., head to Pretend City for trick-or-treating at different stations throughout the city, and for the special Halloween Bug Bash. Dress in costume! Event is included with museum admission. 

This is just a selection of Halloween events taking place throughout Orange County. You can view the entire list here. Enjoy your spooktacular October here in OC! When ready to accomplish your Orange County real estate market goals this month, contact us, your Orange County real estate agent. We promise no tricks, just treats as you accomplish your home-buying and/or home-selling goals!

Classic details and amazing views are the hallmarks of this spacious Robinson Ranch home. Situated on an over 7,000 sq. ft. lot, this expanded Carmel floor plan model in the Trabuco Ridge development features a gourmet kitchen, a hobby room and beautiful views of the Saddleback Valley and surrounding hillsides. A covered front porch compliments the stone exterior of this two-story home. Step inside the expanded foyer onto rich wood flooring that continues throughout the main living areas and the bedrooms. Host large and intimate gatherings in the spacious living room featuring a cozy fireplace surrounded by an intricate mantle. Large, sun-filled windows and a vaulted ceiling create an open and inviting atmosphere. The adjacent formal dining room makes entertaining easy. Guests will enjoy a beautiful fireplace while French doors provide easy access to the patio. Prepare your favorite meals in the recently remodeled open concept gourmet kitchen offering a 5-burner gas range, double ovens, dishwasher and trash compactor. Designer quality cabinetry, and a center island keep all of your cooking essentials organized. Granite counter tops, porcelain travertine tile and recessed lighting finish the room. Enjoy smaller meals at home in the breakfast area featuring three walls of windows overlooking the backyard. Unwind around the wood-burning fireplace in the family room complete with built-in shelving and cabinetry for displaying books, pottery or artwork. A bedroom with direct access to the bathroom offers comfort and privacy for your overnight guests. Follow the wooden staircase to the second level fireside master suite complete with a vaulted ceiling, elegant wainscoting, a walk-in closet with custom organizers, and large windows with incredible views of the hillside. The luxurious master bathroom offers dual vanities and several windows for plenty of natural light. Melt away stress in the large soaking tub surrounded by custom tile. Three additional generous sized bedrooms share a nicely appointed full bathroom. A work room with built-in shelving and cabinetry is perfect for any hobbyist! Step outside onto the spacious covered patio surrounded by mature landscaping and take in the amazing view or relax by the fire pit with friends and family. The BBQ island with a grill makes outdoor dining easy! Don’t miss the attached three-car garage for all of your vehicles and toys. Dual heating and A/C systems and dual pane windows combine to keep you comfortable all year and keep utility costs low. Robinson Ranch residents enjoy a unique living experience including access to the exclusive Trabuco Highlands Community Center with an oversized pool, spa, sport courts, play fields, a playground and more!

As your Orange County real estate agents, it is our job to keep you informed on local real estate trends and statistics, to help you make better choices when buying an Orange County home, selling your Orange County home, or both. Today, we’d like to also offer you tips on how to price your home properly when selling, for the best possible outcome!

The Orange County real estate market has been on fire for a while now, with constant increases in prices and sales. However, it saw a slight cool down in July. Home sales were down in July compared to July 2015, but prices still continue to increase and were 5 percent up from a year ago. Because of this, cash sales were down, which is good news for OC homebuyers who need to finance!

The number of Orange County homeowners in positive equity increased. Only 1 in 18 homeowners are in a negative-equity situation. Escrow is on the rise as well. Pending home sales were up 8 percent in Orange County!

Thirty-four percent of homes sold above the asking price in July, the same as a year ago, but down from May’s record 38 percent. So, as you can see, the market is in great shape for sellers, but sales are still down, and there aren’t enough homes on the market to meet the demand of buyers.

As Orange County real estate agents, we believe this is a prime time to sell your OC home, but pricing it properly is key! For more stats on the OC real estate market, check out this OC Register article. Here are some tips OC Register offers for pricing your home or investment property to sell:

• Research what other homes or investment properties similar to yours have sold for in the area. Look for properties that are similar in size, location, freeway access, etc. for the best comparison.

• Research what current homes or investment properties similar to yours are listed for on the Orange County real estate market right now. Note how many there are, what they are priced for, how long they’ve been on the market, and if they’ve dropped in price over time.

• Research the current conditions of the market. The stats that we shared above offer a good start!

Check out the OC Register article about pricing to sell. As your Orange County real estate agents, we can help you with all of this research and information, so you can save yourself time, money and stress! We can also use our experience and expertise to help you price your Orange County home to sell right away, so that you can receive your best offer as soon as possible.

Contact us when ready to begin the home-selling process for your Orange County home or investment property, or contact us to learn more about 1031 exchange options for your investment property. We can help you with whatever path you decide to take!

If you are switching out investment property in a 1031 exchange for the first time, you might choose a property based on emotions, or you might just go with the first property you find because of time limit stress. At Diversified Investment Strategies, which is Hakola & Associates sister company, we can help you through this process, so that you choose the property that is right for you and the type of exchange that is best for your future.

There are a lot of factors to take into consideration. Here are a few you should work through with a professional before purchasing an investment property:

• Determine the annual rent you can expect to receive from a residential rental property. If the property is already rented out, checking this information is simple. If not, do some research on similar properties in the area. At DIS, we can help you out with that!
• Estimate the annual expenses of owning the property. This includes taking many factors into account, such as projected vacancy costs, real estate taxes, utilities that you’ll be paying, property and liability insurance and potential repair costs.
• Calculate your annual net income. This is the annual rent minus the annual expenses.
• Calculate the property’s capitalization rate, or “cap rate.” This is the annual return you can expect for your investment. Divide the net income by the cost of the property. At DIS, we can help you with this as well!

The higher the cap rate, the better the annual return on your investment will be. However, cap rates can vary by how the net income is derived, meaning which costs are used or not used, so we must make sure to evaluate the costs carefully to get a true cap rate. You should also consider worst-case scenarios and what the cap rate will be if your investment property is vacant. Will you still be able to afford it?

Check out this NOLO article for more information on cap rates and choosing investment property. The best decision you can make is to work with professionals who are familiar with all of this!

If you are trying to defer federal capital gains taxes with a 1031 exchange, this is our specialty at DIS. We understand that it can seem stressful to find a Qualified Intermediary before selling your current property, and then to have to find potential replacement property within 45 days of selling and then close on property within 180 days of selling.

Still, you don’t want to impulsively exchange property that you will later regret! At DIS, we have a comprehensive team of tax advisors, attorneys, real estate brokers, FINRA registered representatives and registered investment advisors to help you with the entire 1031 exchange process! We can help you determine the appropriate investment strategy, such as a DST, UPREIT and other options.

Here are some of the benefits of a 1031 exchange:

• More to Invest – When federal income taxes are deferred, you have greater leverage and more equity available for reinvestments.
• Less Management – Options such as a DST, 721 UPREIT or Triple Net NNN offer you passive ownership property possibilities, with little to no day-to-day management responsibilities.
• Diversification – One property can be exchanged into many. For example, your property can be exchanged for condos, single-family homes, multi-family homes, Triple Net NNN investments, commercial real estate and more!
• Greater Earning Potential – Since more of the capital is reinvested than would be if taxes were paid, there is more opportunity for greater earning potential.
• Compounding Effect – Deferred taxes can continually create a positive compounding effect by reinvesting on each exchange. The deferred tax liability can be forgiven upon death, giving your heirs a stepped up basis on inherited property.

Contact us at Diversified Investment Strategies or at Hakola & Associates and we’ll help you choose the 1031 exchange that is right for you!

The online Rubik's solver program can find easily the moves to sove a scrambled cube.

Summer isn’t over yet in Orange County! Get out and enjoy all the fun events and activities taking place around the OC area. As your OC real estate agents, we are here to fill you in on some upcoming events for you and your family or friends to enjoy. These are also great ways to get out and meet others in the area if you just relocated!

1. If you haven’t visited the OC Fair yet, now is the time to do so! It ends on Aug. 14. Stop by for a day of fun riding the carnival rides, eating the extensive fair food, enjoying free live entertainment, and viewing the extensive exhibits, from livestock to hand crafts and woodworking. There are also concerts and action sports you can purchase tickets to. 

2. Sawdust Art Festival is taking place in Laguna Beach now until Aug. 28. This fest promotes renegade artists and craftsmen as they sell their unique wares. You can witness glassblowing, participate in workshops, listen to live music, let the kids paint and more, all while shopping for new décor for your Orange County home! 

3. Catch a free outdoor movie in Orange County. Head to Segerstrom Center for the Arts’ Argyros Plaza for ‘Labyrinth’ tonight at 8 p.m. Another option at the same location is the Pacific Chorale’s Choral Festival on Aug. 14 at 5 p.m. This is free as well! Listen to 400 singers from the area as they join the Pacific Chorale to perform Brahm’s German Requiem in English. 

4. Knott’s Berry Farm’s theme park hosts Ghost Town Alive each year, and this is their 75th anniversary! Head there daily, now through Sept. 5, to enjoy a mock ghost town called Calico. You can play a role as stories and adventures unfold in this old west down. Who will win, the cowboys or the bandits? It’s different each day, so go play a part and find out! 

This is just a selection of what sort of events are coming up in the Orange County area. You’ve always got the ocean right here to cool off at as well, whether it’s surfing, swimming, kayaking or just dipping your toes in! Orange County is the place to be in the summertime.

Ready to relocate here and buy an OC home? Ready to sell your OC home or your investment property? Ready to do both? As Orange County real estate agents, we can help you with all of your real estate goals! Give us a call and we can get going with the process.

Once you get through the home-buying process in the Orange County real estate market, you deserve a sigh of relief! As your OC real estate agents, we know what a big step this is, and we understand how great it feels when it’s over. However, it’s also important to prepare for your big move, so your feeling of accomplishment doesn’t suddenly turn into anxiety and stress.

Here are 10 tips that Better Homes and Gardens recommends you do before your move, so that your actual move runs as smoothly as possible:

• Connect the internet – Most people want internet in their homes right away, since we’re constantly interacting on multiple devices, but many people forget that this needs to be set up ahead of time. Call your local service provider and set up an appointment several weeks out to be on the safe side.

• Set up electricity – Energy will likely be disconnected in your new home prior to your move, so call your local energy provider beforehand to give them the information they need to set up your new account. This should be fairly simple, and that way you won’t be stuck unpacking with flashlights!

• Contact movers – BHG recommends contacting movers three to four weeks out. The longer you wait, the more you might have to adjust your personal schedule to meet theirs. Even if you aren’t hiring movers, but have family or friends helping, make sure to give them advance notice too.

• Deep clean – If you have access to your new home, it’s ideal to give it a deep cleaning before you move anything in. That’s so much easier than trying to clean around things! Scrub inside cabinets, vacuum and steam clean carpets, scrub bathtubs and showers, clean windows and baseboards and so on.

These are some great tips for before you move into your new Orange County home! When it comes to packing, incorporate these six hacks from Realtor Magazine to make the process go faster and with fewer to no casualties. After the move is complete, the BHG article has five tips for your post-move as well.

Still need help buying an Orange County home, selling an Orange County home or both? Contact us! We’re your Orange County real estate agents, standing by to help you accomplish all of your real estate goals this summer. There is no better time to get started than right now.