Glendale is part of the Safe Place program which is a youth out reach program.   The program educates thousands of young people each year on the dangers of running away or trying to resolve a difficult or threatening situation on their own.  When kids see this sign, which is typically displayed in front of a youth friendly business, library or fire station, they can take comfort in knowing that they have immediate access to the help they need. 

For more information you may call 888-641-2297 or visit www.nationalsafeplace.org

        

We all heard about the recent tragedy in San Diego County regarding the rape and murder of Chelsea King.  Officials believe she was murdered by registered sex offender John Albert, who is now in custody.  It is also believed that John Albert had something to do with the disappearance of Amber DuBois.

As tragic as this news is, it has served as a reminder to me of just how important it is to go over the Megan's Law Disclosure with all of my client's.  The disclosure is now part of the purchase agreement and I stress to all of my client's that it is important that they log on to www.meganslaw.ca.gov to see if there may be a registered sex offender in the neighborhood of the home they are purchasing.  I also remind them that they need to do so within their contingency period.

I recommend that you click here and search so see if there are any offenders in your neighborhood.  As responsible citizens of our community it is important that we all do our part to keep our neighborhoods safe for our children.  For more information about Megan's Law you may also contact your local Police Department

        

I enjoy going to the movies which is why I look forward to the Oscars every year.  Here are my picks for this year's awards:
Best Actor
Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart

Best Actress
Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side

Best Supporting Actor
Stanley Tucci in The Lovely Bones

Best Supporting Actress
Anna Kendrick in Up in the Air

Best Picture
The Blind Side

        

Are you thinking of adding a room, building a fence, replacing doors or windows?  If so, the City of Glendale requires that you obtain a permit.  For more information, contact Building & Safety at 818-548-3200.  Click here to read about the pitfalls of not pulling a permit. 

If you think your neighbor is doing work without a permit you may contact Neighborhood Services and they will be more than happy to check for you 818-548-3700. 

        

The Glendale City Council voted 4-1 to uphold the Planning Commission's denial of the zoning exception and therefore Eve La Rue's gate must come down.  But it may not even matter to the actress now, all of the media attention made the exact location of her home public to the world and she moved out in fear of her safety.

 

        

Tomorrow the Glendale City Council will be making a final decision as to whether or not actress Eva La Rue will have to take down her gate.  The actress installed the gate in an effort to protect herself from a known stalker however, the gate is not in compliance with the current city code.

Do you think the gate should come down?

        

Friday night a friend of mine invited me to a show at the Club Nokia.  We met at my office at 6:30 and headed downtown to LA Live.  We arrived at 7:00 which left us with plenty of time to stop in at the Yard House for a cocktail and a bite to eat.  The show started at 9:00 and I was home at 11:30.

If I lived in say, Santa Clarita, I would have had to leave much earlier than 6:30 to make it all the way downtown on time and that would have cut into my work day.  I also would not have made it home by 11:30 which would have been bad because I had to work on Saturday. 

Living in Glendale (which I consider the best suburb of L.A.)  allows us to conveniently enjoy all of the great things Los Angeles has to offer without all of the hassle.

        

The last time we had rain I noticed that several of my neighbor's neglected to turn their automatic sprinkler's off.  Since we are expected to have rain over the weekend and tomorrow is one of our allowed days to water, I just want to remind all of you to switch your timers over to Rain mode. 

Environmental responsibility requires us all to work together to make our planet a better place.  Seemingly small changes can go a long way towards saving our planet!  Have a great weekend!

        

Today a friend of mine sent me a text message saying that she just drove past my childhood home. In the message she wrote, “If those walls could talk LOL” 

Throughout my career I have had people stop in at an open house and tell me that they grew up in the home.  I always enjoy hearing the stories they have to tell. 

One of the things I always take into consideration when I go on a listing appointment is the length of time the owner has lived in the home.  The majority of my clients are leaving a lifetime of memories behind.  As a REALTOR it is important for me to understand that selling a home is an emotional process for many.  Here’s what my client’s have to say…

“It wasn’t easy selling the home we raised our family in, but Chris made the entire process much easier than we anticipated with her genuine warm heart and true professionalism.”

Charles and Eleanor

If you are thinking of selling your longtime Glendale home call me today!

 

 

        

The Federal Reserve has issued some new guidelines that go into effect on February 22, 2010.  Below is a quick rundown of some of the new guidelines:

• Banks must give 45 days notice before raising the interest rate on future purchases.
• Your interest rate on existing balances can't be raised until you're in default for 60 days.
• Your monthly statements going forward will reflect how many years you'll be in debt if you only make minimum payments.
• Any annual fees must be capped at 25 percent of your card's limit.
• If you have multiple interest rates on your account, anything you pay over the minimum balance will be applied to the highest rate first. But beware, if you only pay the minimum, the money will still be applied to the lowest balance first.
• Teaser rates on new cards must be honored for one year.
• Two-cycle billing will no longer be allowed. This was a sneaky way that banks would charge massive interest if one month you paid in full and the next month you didn't.