Many folks who purchase a cabin in Big Bear as a second home, at one time or another, entertain the notion of using it as a vacation rental to generate some extra income. While this may seem like a great idea on the surface, there are many things to consider before you take that next step.

1. Is your cabin in a location that is favorable to becoming a profitable rental? The farther away from Big Bear Lake and the ski resorts you get ( Snow Summit and Bear Mountain ) the less desirable your cabin becomes to the rental crowd. Convenience is very important to most renters and a cabin that is more than a few miles away from the local attractions is most likely not going to rent very often. If the thought of renting your place ever crosses your mind, make sure you address it with your Realtor from the onset. Your local Big Bear Lake Realtor will be able to point you to the neighborhoods with the best rental potential.

2. Most renters are not going to treat your home with the same respect you do. It’s a sad fact of life, but most people are not all that respectful when it comes to someone elses property. Many renters are not going to view your home as a cabin that somebody else owns and loves. They are going to view it like a hotel room that they paid a fair amount of money to rent and that gives them the right to treat the cabin in whatever manner they choose. Rental cabins, on the whole, experience a lot more wear and tear than a cabin that is only used by friends and family. A good rental company is key in preventing abuse of your home. You want to choose a company in Big Bear Lake that will charge a good safety deposit and actually respond to any complaints regarding your home.

3. Unless your cabin is a lakefront or right next to the slopes, the odds are it is not going to rent enough to actually turn a profit. Most rentals make just enough money to pay the property taxes and a few mortgage payments. Especially if you plan on using your Big Bear Lake Ca home during the busy times like Christmas, New Years, Thanksgiving, and The Fourth Of July. These periods generate the most income for rentals and if your home is not available, you will miss out on the major money making days.

These are just a few things to keep in mind if you are planning on renting out your Big Bear Lake Ca home. I am not saying it is a bad idea or that it is impossible to make money. I am just trying to point out that it is not as easy as it first appears. it takes planning and sacrifice to come out ahead in the rental game. If you are going to do it, make sure you ask your Big Bear Lake Ca Realtor to recommend a reputable rental company with a good track record. 

(To find out more about Big Bear Property, please call me at (909) 587-5605 or visit my website at www.mypropertysolution.com)

(To find out more about Big Bear Lake, CA Homes, please call me at (909) 587-5605 or visit my website at www.mypropertysolution.com)

Buying a home in Big Bear Lake, California is a dream for many. As far as Big Bear homes go, bank-owned homes are really something worth looking into. More often than not you can get a great price on these Big Bear homes. But sometimes there is quite a bit more red tape to cut through. 

Banks do not have complete records of the homes history. Therefore, they are immune from disclosure rules. They do not have to deliver buyers historical information about these Big Bear homes. The house could have mold or water-warped floors, but the bank has no responsibility to inform the buyer because more than likely they are unaware of these problems. 

A quality home inspector is crucial when shopping one of these Big Bear homes. Your inspector should completely check every aspect of the property to a neurotic extent. 

Faulty wiring could cause a fire down the line. an intelligent inspector will keep an eye out for this sort of issue. Leaky roofs may be another surprise you don’t want to experience in a later rainy season. Good inspectors will inspect every detail that is key to enjoyable home owning, even down to appliance functioning. 

With all the tempting Big Bear homes available, as with any California homes for sale, it is a smart idea to spend a few hundred dollars on a thorough inspection before you commit to a purchase that is a few hundred thousand dollars. 

It is a good idea to start off on the right foot and not be motivated to make a foolish decision by an attractive price tag. New homes fresh out of construction can also suffer from questionable work. Be sure to have these inspected well also. A good price may seem like a great deal. But a real deal comes from a well-informed decision at such an opportunity.

(To find out more about Big Bear Lake, CA Homes, please call me at (909) 587-5605 or visit my website at www.mypropertysolution.com)

(To find out more about Big Bear Lake, CA Homes For Sale, please call me at (909) 587-5605 or visit my website at www.mypropertysolution.com)

It’s easy to understand why Big Bear homes have many different appeals to many different people. A lot of people who buy up here remember their vacations in Big Bear Lake, CA and want to pass on the family tradition. 

Others enjoy being outside in nature and taking part in all of the activities in Big Bear year round from skiing to hiking to snowboarding to biking. And many also love to come up the mountain for the great sense of relief they feel as they climb the hill farther and farther away from the metropolis below. Big Bear Lake has everything that you’re looking for.

Big Bear Lake, California has two world-class ski resorts, Bear Mountain and Snow Summit. And the great thing about Big Bear is that these resorts are near everything, while being tucked away from the main road. Wherever you are in Big Bear Lake, you’re not far from a ski slope. And there is also the magical snowfall for the holidays. 

If the snow is sparse for the year, the resorts have their snow-making machines pumping out fresh powder around the clock. When the snow piles up on the roads, you might get a little worried about getting around in your car. But never fear, the city is on the case and clearing traffic before you’re even ready to step foot outside in the morning.

But Big Bear has a full four seasoned year. The summer is wonderful as well. Big Bear Lake is open to the public, and there are plenty of opportunities for hiking, biking and off-roading too. Unlike Lake Arrowhead, all visitors are welcome to make use of Big Bear Lake. 

There are free public launch ramps with free parking lots available for day long fishing trips on the water. And Big Bear Lake is a prime location to catch some mean fish. The water is restocked on a regulars basis, with some real prize-winners.

Big Bear Lake, CA is an amazing place to have a home for vacation or permanent residence. I can’t say enough good things about this wonderful valley community nestled in the San Bernadino Mountains. 

So if the circumstances in your life should ever permit a rip or a move to Big Bear Lake, I hope that you would seize the opportunity. I would be delighted to welcome you to the neighborhood.

(To find out more about Big Bear Lake, CA Homes For Sale, please call me at (909) 587-5605 or visit my website at www.mypropertysolution.com)

In today’s market, many of the listings are either bank owned properties or short sale properties. Which begs the question ” What is the difference between short sales and REO’s?” The main difference is, short sales are properties that banks are allowing owners to sell for less than what is owed on them, while Bank Owned ( REO ) properties are homes that have already gone into foreclosure and are owned outright by the bank. The real question should be ” What are the differences in purchasing them and which is the easier transaction?” The simple answer is, REO’s are far and away easier to deal with. Let me give you some examples.

The first case involves a great family from North Hollywood who had been looking up here for over a year. They had initially wanted to buy a lot and build a new cabin. However, prices had dropped so much that it was cheaper to buy an existing home than to build a new one. So, we began looking for deals on pre-existing cabins. The cabin we found is super clean and situated on a great lot with a ton of beautiful oak trees. Priced at $149,900 price tag, it was a great deal. The problem , it was a short sale listing. I warned them of the many issues that usually accompany buying a short sale, but they liked the house enough to take the chance.

As many of you may or may not know, the majority of short sales do not close successfully. The blame for this can usually be laid squarely on the shoulders of the listing agent not knowing how to do them, but taking the listing anyways. If the listing agent doesn’t do his homework and put in all the work ahead of time, a short sale is a nightmare. In this particular case, the listing agent assured me that he had done all the footwork and the bank was on board with the short sale. With this information, we decided to offer $120,000 cash for the cabin, knowing it would probably be refused and we would have to come up to make the purchase.

A month and a half into the process  we still hadn’t heard back from the bank. At this point It was apparent that the listing agent was full of it and hadn’t done what he needed to do to get a short sale done. I had a bad feeling about what was going on and told my clients that all we could really do was wait and see what the bank would do. After another two weeks, the listing agent called me to say that the bank had just taken the listing away from him and never given us an answer to our offer. I knew the odds were in our favor that sooner or later, I would be seeing the home again as a bank owned listing. I told my clients to be patient and that I would check the MLS everyday until it appeared.

As I predicted, a week and a half later it came on The MLS for $130,000 as a bank owned property. I called my clients as soon as I saw it and we immediately wrote an offer on it for $115,000 cash. The bank came back the next day at $117,000 cash and we snatched it up. In addition, the bank repaired some broken pipes under the house that the original owner most likely would not have been able to afford to do. Basically, the bank took a two months and did nothing when it was a short sale. Once it was a bank owned, we bought it in two days for less money and had repairs thrown in as a bonus. Bank owned One, Short sales Zero.

The second situation is almost a carbon copy of the first. My clients put in an offer of $340,000 on a short sale listed at $389,000. Once again, we waited patiently for almost two months while the bank had the home reappraised ,numerous BPO’s done, and whatever else they do. In the end, after two months, they rejected our offer and let the home go into foreclosure. Like the last time, I watched the MLS and saw the home come up as a bank owned property for $390,000. My clients and I both felt the home was overpriced and we should wait and watch it to see if it would reduce. After two weeks, it hadn’t sold and we decided to make our move. We came in at $333,000, and waited for a response from the bank. This time it took one day to get their answer, which was no. After a week of wrangling, we put the home into escrow for $339,000. So, we got a lower price in only a week when it was bank owned. Bank Owned Two, Short Sales Zero.

As you can see, short sales are fraught with uncertainty and are very difficult to get closed. I have seen statistics that show that short sales only close successfully 20-25% of the time. The banks, in many cases, would rather have the homes go into foreclosure and lose thousands of dollars, than sell it at a smaller loss in a short sale situation. Once the home goes into foreclosure, the situation changes drastically. The bank has already taken the loss and is resigned to trying to recover as much loss as they can. Instead of dealing with a listing agent, a seller, a bank, and anybody else holding paper on the house, you are only dealing with the listing agent and the bank. There is really no comparison. If you have a choice, I would pick the bank owned property every time.

Izzy Barden

izzy.barden@mypropertysolution.com

(909) 587-5605

To find out more about Big Bear Homes, please call me at (909) 587-5605 or visit my website at www.mypropertysolution.com