Antioch, CA (PRWEB) August 12, 2013

“We are grateful to our talented manager Melody Royal, who has led our Antioch office for almost 30 years, and who will remain as the manager of the office,” said Rich Casto, Chief Strategy Officer of BHG Mason-McDuffie Real Estate. “We welcome Tony Chahal as our new owner/partner in this office.”

“We now have eight great partnerships throughout the San Francisco Bay Area,” said Keith Robinson, COO. “These partnerships are part of our growth strategy and work extremely well.”

When asked why he entered into this partnership, Mr. Chahal said, “I am proud to merge my operation with that of Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie. With everything Mason-McDuffie has to offer, there was no other organization that I met with that came close to their services and culture. The company is widely recognized as one of the most innovative real estate companies in the nation. I am excited to be a partner of this great company, and to be part of its history and its future!”

Mr. Chahal will be joined by 10 agents in the move into the Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie office space at 5887A Lone Tree Way in Antioch.

Resolute Real Estate, Inc. was founded in 2010 by Tony Chahal, who also served as the President and Managing Broker. He was formerly an associate at Prudential California Realty. Prior to that, he was the Staffing Manager at Zip Realty, Inc. where he successfully ran the number one recruiting platform in the company nationwide.

If you are interested in discussing growth opportunities, contact David Gardner at 925-705-1992.

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About Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate

Our heritage began with the founding of Mason-McDuffie Real Estate in 1887. The company is the 26th largest real estate services firm in the nation (REALTrends 500), and Number Two in the San Francisco East Bay (SF Business Times). The company provides comprehensive solutions to home buyers and sellers, and handled 6,500 transactions in 2012, generating $2.8 billion in sales volume. Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate is locally owned and has more than 1,200 real estate professionals with 30 offices in eight counties in the Bay Area and the Tahoe/Truckee region.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/8/prweb11003112.htm

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/business/press-releases/article/Resolute-Real-Estate-Merges-with-Better-Homes-and-4727626.php

OAKLAND, Calif. — Real-estate investors have become a potent force in a moribund housing market, accounting for more than one-fifth of transactions in the San Francisco Bay Area over the past 12 months, according to real-estate data.

Despite record low interest rates, many consumers simply don’t have enough confidence in their economic outlook to buy houses. Investors have kept prices from falling further, real-estate experts say.

“The market would be quite a bit sicker were it not for investors snapping up a lot of the properties,” said Andrew LePage, analyst at DataQuick real-estate service. “They account for a meaningful portion of the demand. To the extent to which there’s at least a temporary floor under this market, they’ve helped to build it.”

Almost half of the Bay Area homes purchased on the open market are distressed — either bank-owned foreclosures or short sales being sold for less than the mortgage. Often these properties suffer from deferred maintenance, making them challenging for an owner-occupant.

Investors play a valuable role in buying and rehabbing such properties and then reselling or renting them out, said Jeff Weissman, a Realtor with Highland Partners/BHG in Oakland. “They clear out inventory and then bring it back on the market in move-in condition, thus improving neighborhoods and giving opportunities to first-time homebuyers,” he said.

Not everyone is enthusiastic about investors. Other homebuyers complain that they get muscled out by deep-pocketed investors who can pay all cash, LePage said.

Sellers prefer cash offers because they’re quick, clean and guaranteed to close. Community groups worry about investors turning into slumlords as they manage fleets of rentals.

Some of investors’ bad rap stemmed from boom-time flippers, who capitalized on a rapidly rising market.

“There is a huge difference between speculation and investing,” said John Robin, a Realtor with BHG/Mason-McDuffie in Berkeley. “Until 2009, most (non-homeowners) buying real estate here in the Bay Area were speculating on appreciation. What an investor does is look at what a property will cost now to purchase and operate, and look at the return every month. If one day they can sell it and make a profit, that’s even better.”

He sees more investors becoming landlords, although there are still plenty of flippers.

With prices continuing to soften, more “ordinary people” are getting involved in real-estate investing, since the barriers to entry are lower, Robin said.

“The biggest growth area is first-time, small investors,” he said. “These are people who may have cashed out (other investments) that they want to put into real estate. Some people use self-directed IRA money to buy real estate. Sometimes it’s families who pool their money together or individuals who have jobs and do this to supplement their income.”

The Obama administration implicitly recognized investors’ value in the marketplace this summer when it called for proposals from investors and others on how to buy, rehab and rent out the legions of foreclosed properties owned by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

But investors are not a single monolithic entity. They come in all types, from the mom and pop who buy a couple of rentals to fund their retirement, to the professionals who deal in dozens of homes a year as a full-time occupation.

Pete McDonough of Pleasanton, Calif., had a secure, well-paying job in sales for a technology company.

But three years ago when he realized how many bargain homes were for sale in the Bay Area, he switched to full-time real-estate investing.

“In a horrible job market, I quit a good job,” he said. “I’ve considerably exceeded my previous salary and I haven’t looked back.”

He had dabbled in buying rental properties for some time, but not in California, where high prices meant it was impossible to rent them out for enough cash flow. But the real-estate downturn made the Golden State much more affordable.

He partnered with Andrew Wilson, who had a background in kitchen and bathroom design, and David Rosen, a real-estate broker. The three put up cash and also attracted some investors. Today they operate a $5 million fund.

Most of their efforts go to buying, fixing and flipping, but they also maintain a small stable of rentals.

Article source: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2016682817_realinvest06.html

Despite record low interest rates, many consumers simply don’t have enough confidence in their economic outlook to buy houses. Investors keep some properties – especially ones that need extensive work – from languishing unsold for months and have kept prices from nose-diving further, real estate experts say.

“The market would be quite a bit sicker were it not for investors snapping up a lot of the properties,” said Andrew LePage, analyst at DataQuick real estate service. “They account for a meaningful portion of the demand. To the extent to which there’s at least a temporary floor under this market, they’ve helped to build it.”

In addition to homes sold through the multiple listing service, an increasingly large share of properties at courthouse-steps auctions – the final stage of foreclosure – are being bought by investors. Some 5,243 properties were purchased by nonbank entities in the 12 months ended in September, according to ForeclosureRadar.com.

Almost half of the Bay Area homes purchased on the open market are distressed – either bank-owned foreclosures or short sales being sold for less than the mortgage. Often these properties suffer from deferred maintenance, making them challenging for an owner-occupant.

Investors play a valuable role in buying and rehabbing such properties and then re-selling or renting them out, said Jeff Weissman, a Realtor with Highland Partners/BHG in Oakland. “They clear out inventory and then bring it back on the market in move-in condition, thus improving neighborhoods and giving opportunities to first-time home buyers,” he said.

Not everyone is enthusiastic about investors. Other home buyers complain that they get muscled out by deep-pocketed investors who can pay all cash, LePage said. Sellers prefer cash offers because they’re quick, clean and guaranteed to close. Community groups worry about investors turning into slum landlords as they manage fleets of rentals.

Some of investors’ bad rap stemmed from boom-time flippers, who capitalized on a rapidly rising market.

“There is a huge difference between speculation and investing,” said John Robin, a Realtor with BHG/Mason-McDuffie in Berkeley. “Until 2009, most (non-homeowners) buying real estate here in the Bay Area were speculating on appreciation. What an investor does is look at what a property will cost now to purchase and operate, and look at the return every month. If one day they can sell it and make a profit, that’s even better.”

He sees more investors becoming landlords although there are still plenty of flippers.

With prices continuing to soften, more “ordinary people” are getting involved in real estate investing, since the barriers to entry are lower, Robin said.

“The biggest growth area is first-time, small investors,” he said. “These are people who may have cashed out (other investments) that they want to put into real estate. Some people use self-directed IRA money to buy real estate. Sometimes it’s families who pool their money together or individuals who have jobs and do this to supplement their income.”

The Obama Administration implicitly recognized investors’ value in the marketplace this summer when it called for proposals from investors and others on how to buy, rehab and rent out the legions of foreclosed properties owned by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

But investors are not a single monolithic entity. They come in all types, from the mom and pop who buy a couple of rentals to fund their retirement, to the professionals who deal in dozens of homes a year as a full-time occupation. Here are profiles of three types of real estate investors currently looking in the Bay Area.

Professional

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/10/29/BU411LMJIV.DTL&type=business

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) October 26, 2011

On October 6, Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie San Francisco Real Estate hosted a delegation of Russian real estate agents who traveled to the San Francisco Bay Area to learn about how real estate is transacted in the United States. The delegation is participating in the Effective Management Program hosted by the Lamorinda Sunrise Club, Lafayette, Orinda and Walnut Creek Rotary Clubs.

Ed Krafchow, CEO and chairman of BHG Mason-McDuffie spoke about how real estate exchanges hands in the United States, from title insurance to mortgage, and also discussed the health of the market. The delegates learned about Mason-McDuffie’s leading edge technology platform from CIO Dave Wilson, the company’s marketing approach and toolset from VP of New Media and Agent Resources Cathy Harrington, and the company’s growth strategy from David Gardner, president of Network Partners. EVP Keith Robinson spoke about company structure and operations.

“There is empirical evidence that no country has ever experienced democracy without strong homeownership. The American dream is damaged but still very alive. Homeownership in America is still a sought-after commodity and will emerge from this depressed economic environment stronger than ever. Realtors help people complete the American Dream,” says Krafchow on homeownership in the US.

For more information on Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate and Berkeley Real Estate Agents, call (925) 924-4617 or visit them online at www.bhghome.com. Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie is located at 2200 Union Street, San Francisco, CA 94123.

About Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate

Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate began with the founding of Mason-McDuffie Real Estate in 1887. In 2010, the company was named the 17th largest real estate services firm in the nation, and number one in the San Francisco East Bay. The company provides comprehensive solutions to home buyers and sellers in the San Francisco, Berkeley and Sonoma Valley areas, and handled more than 7,300 transactions in 2010, generating $2.9 billion in sales. BHG Mason-McDuffie Sonoma Valley Real Estate office is independently owned and operated and includes joint ventures with partners J F Finnegan Realtors, Highland Partners in Piedmont and Montclair, Wine Country Group Realtors in the North Bay, and Tri-Valley Realty in Pleasanton-Hopyard and Ruby Hill. The organization is comprised of more than 2,000 sales professionals in 40 offices.

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: www.prweb.com/releases/prwebreal-estate/san-francisco/prweb8910419.htm

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/10/26/prweb8910419.DTL

Ed Krafchow, CEO and chairman of BHG Mason-McDuffie spoke about how real estate exchanges hands in the United States, from title insurance to mortgage, and also discussed the health of the market. The delegates learned about Mason-McDuffie’s leading edge technology platform from CIO Dave Wilson, the company’s marketing approach and toolset from VP of New Media and Agent Resources Cathy Harrington, and the company’s growth strategy from David Gardner, president of Network Partners. EVP Keith Robinson spoke about company structure and operations.

“There is empirical evidence that no country has ever experienced democracy without strong homeownership. The American dream is damaged but still very alive. Homeownership in America is still a sought-after commodity and will emerge from this depressed economic environment stronger than ever. Realtors help people complete the American Dream,” says Krafchow on homeownership in the US.

For more information on Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate, call (925) 924-4617 or visit them online at www.bhghome.com. Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie is located at 2200 Union Street, San Francisco, CA 94123.

About Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate

Better Homes and Gardens Mason-McDuffie Real Estate began with the founding of Mason-McDuffie Real Estate in 1887. In 2010, the company was named the 17th largest real estate services firm in the nation, and number one in the San Francisco East Bay. The company provides comprehensive solutions to home buyers and sellers in the San Francisco, Berkeley and Sonoma Valley areas, and handled more than 7,300 transactions in 2010, generating $2.9 billion in sales. BHG Mason-McDuffie is independently owned and operated and includes joint ventures with partners J F Finnegan Realtors, Highland Partners in Piedmont and Montclair, Wine Country Group Realtors in the North Bay, and Tri-Valley Realty in Pleasanton-Hopyard and Ruby Hill. The organization is comprised of more than 2,000 sales professionals in 40 offices.

Article source: http://sf.blockshopper.com/news/story/278821-BHG_Mason-McDuffie_Hosts_Russian_Realtor_Delegation