homesmillbrae.com

A mortgage firm that brings financial planning into the client’s home buying decision-making process has built itself into a $3-billion-a-year loan originator with $2 billion in servicing.

Using proprietary software, Opes Advisors of Cupertino, California, shows would-be borrowers how purchasing a house fits into their total financial picture, currently and years into the future.

Many of the firm’s 169 loan officers are Series 65 investment advisers, so they are able to operate the firm’s software and are licensed to offer financial advice. Opes also employs four full-time financial planners, said Chief Executive Officer Susan McHan.

There is never any attempt to sell any financial service other than a mortgage, McHan stressed. But for clients who wish to go further, Opes has a wealth management division run by McHan’s co-founder, Jonathan Lee, who also serves as chief technology officer. A third principal, Chief Financial Officer Mark Duvall, joined the company shortly after it was started in 2004.

The two co-founders, who met at a local business group meeting, came together from different walks of life. McHan’s 28 years in mortgage banking included co-founding Elliot Ames, a high-end lender in the San Francisco Bay Area which was sold to First Horizon in 1999. Lee was a pioneer in cloud-based computing and the founding CEO of Corio, which was acquired by IBM.

As they talked, they realized they shared a common belief that there was a fundamental hole in the loan origination process — while a mortgage is supposed to be a part of someone’s entire financial picture, no lender was able to show how buying a house and financing it fits into the whole. Nor were financial services firms equipped to analyze the future impact of their clients’ real estate decisions.

“It’s not really a groundbreaking notion, but you need to consider your total financial picture whenever you make a major financial decision, especially one like your home mortgage,” said McHan. “It’s just that nobody was doing it.”

DIAGNOSTIC HELP

Opes is not only a full-service mortgage bank offering a complete range of competitively priced loan products, it also is a financial advisory firm offering financial planning and investment management with some $300 million in assets under its direction. Its 463 employees work in 39 locations in seven states in the Pacific Northwest — California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming.

The premise behind Opes Advisors is simple: Doctors gather all the information they can to help in their diagnosis. And Opes loan officers do the same.

“We gather all the pertinent information that makes up a client’s financial life, something the other mortgage companies don’t do,” McHan said. “And that’s essential to a client’s financial health.”

At Opes, loan officers, also known as “mortgage advisers,” work in tandem with SEC-registered wealth advisers to analyze a client’s real estate decision and offer qualified financial advice.

Sometimes, a client sits down with the loan officer alone, other times with both professionals, to gather the necessary information to not only obtain a mortgage but also put together a complete financial profile, from their other investments to their daily expenses.

For competitive reasons, McHan won’t reveal how many of its loan officers have a Series 65 license.

The educational process to obtain an investment adviser license is offered to loan officers as a benefit to improve their skills and take their careers to the next level. If the loan officer does not yet have a Series 65 license, or doesn’t want one, the client can ask for the services of a wealth adviser to provide additional guidance.

Once all the necessary data is plugged into the Opes Advantage software, which the company built on its own, a buyer can see how buying — or selling — would affect his or her financial future.

SCENARIO MODELING

Take, for example, a hypothetical young couple considering buying their first house in the San Francisco Bay Area. Brad, 33, and Amanda, 32, are currently renting a place for $5,000 a month. Brad earns $215,000 a year; Amanda pulls down $110,000. Together, they have saved $300,000 in cash, plus they have put away $215,000 for retirement. And their non-housing lifestyle expenses run about $90,000 annually.

Given that information and a few other things, the Opes program shows that if they decide not to buy, their holdings that can be converted to cash quickly will not last past age 84. It also finds that they likely will outlive their liquid assets and, with no home equity to rely on, they will probably need other sources of income in retirement.

But what if they decide to buy a $1.1 million condo?

Under this scenario, the program predicts their liquid investments will last until Brad and Amanda reach 100 and they will have accrued $9.1 million in liquid assets when they reach retirement age versus $8 million if they continue renting. Furthermore, they will have built $8.7 million in equity.

Better yet, perhaps, a mobile version of the software allows clients to view the results of the application/planning session whenever they are looking at homes. So, if our fictitious couple should decide on a higher priced house instead of a condo, for example, they can make the necessary changes in key data and see how their financial future might change.

“They can model different what-if scenarios by changing a few basic assumptions and see the results immediately,” said McHan.

SEE COMPLEXITIES

What if a couple who is considering buying a house plans to have kids sometime down the road? The Opes software includes an index of average expenses associated with children, including the cost of private schools and college.

The index is one of several life expenses accounted for in the Opes Advantage program so clients can see how buying a house fits into their life goals. The software can be adjusted for current market conditions, inflation, deflation, taxes and other factors.

“Our brains are pretty adept at approximating a single variable’s future consequences. But we find it difficult to predict the outcome of numerous variables. It becomes too elaborate a calculation,” said McHan. Her firm’s software “shows the relationship between the variables and lets you see your life in all its complexity across a multitude of different situations.”

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Article source: http://www.financial-planning.com/news/lenders-tech-approach-blends-mortgages-with-financial-planning

SF police union a no-show for new chief from LA

By Matier Ross

December 21, 2016
Updated: December 21, 2016 6:00am

• 
  
  
  

  Mayor Lee picks William Scott, LAPD veteran, as SF police chief

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  East Bay officials fume at NFL’s dismissal of Coliseum deal

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  SF parks commissioner’s cozy appointment backfires

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  Jerry Brown fears for Earth’s future under Trump

While the news conference was long on the call for change — bringing policing “into the 21st century” in the use of force — it’s worth noting there was virtually no mention of the chief’s other duties … like fighting crime.

Net gain: The Golden Gate Bridge suicide net, which was in danger of collapsing under the weight of spiraling costs, is back on track — thanks to a sleight of hand play by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission that brought $40 million in Bay Bridge toll money into the mix.

Bay Bridge commuters were asked to come to the rescue when Golden Gate officials discovered that hanging a mesh steel net under their bridge could cost upward of $200 million when all is said and done, way over the original $76 million estimate.

The soaring costs had bridge Director Denis Mulligan diving for dollars in every direction. While he found extra money from Caltrans and from the bridge district itself, they were still short $40 million with a hard Dec. 16 deadline to approve a bid to build the net looming.

They found it, thanks to the cash-rich Bay Area Toll Authority, the arm of the MTC that collects tolls on the Bay Area’s seven state-run bridges — but not the Golden Gate, which runs its own operation.

The Toll Authority had more than enough money to cover the $40 million gap. But the money came from bridge tolls, and under state law it couldn’t be handed directly over to another bridge authority.

So the MTC came up with a “money swap.”

They took $40 million in federal money that was to go into buying new BART cars and moved it over to help with the suicide barrier. Then they transferred $40 million in toll money over to BART to make up for the federal funds that went to the barrier.

“This is the way we could get it done,” said MTC spokesman Randy Rentschler.

“Now is not the time to quit,” said Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty, who sits on the 21-member MTC.

And with the new money in hand, the contract was awarded to a joint venture of Oakland’s Shimmick/Danny’s Construction, with work expected to begin next year.

Whoop-de-doo: Not a lot of smiles from either side after the city on Monday said it had won a $60 million, out-of-court settlement in its building code case against the San Francisco Academy of Art.

While the deal to bring 33 of the for-profit school’s 40 buildings into planning code compliance was heralded as a “win-win” by both sides, the news was announced at separate news conferences where the testy feelings on both sides soon bubbled up.

“This was a case where the academy — a private, for-profit company — amassed a real estate empire while thumbing its nose for a decade at planning and building department code requirements,” said City Attorney Dennis Herrera.

Academy of Art attorney James Brosnahan, who had been brought in to reach a settlement, conceded that the school had expanded “probably too rapidly,” but said there was no need for Herrera to file the lawsuit last May.

“We would have settled on these terms without the city attorney doing the whoop-de-do,” Brosnahan said, “but if he wants to claim credit for something that didn’t need to happen,” so be it.

Real estate bet: The $13 million sale of a penthouse atop the sinking Millennium Tower certainly is raising eyebrows among owners of neighboring units in the downtown high-rise.

On the one hand, tech veteran Craig Ramsey’s purchase of the two-bedroom unit from the estate of late Silicon Valley investor Tom Perkins gives neighbors reason to hope they won’t take a bath on their own units.

On the other, it could make it tougher for the homeowners association to claim big damages if it green lights a lawsuit against the developer.

As for Ramsey, he told the Wall Street Journal that he believes he made a good investment — considering that Perkins paid $9.4 million when he bought the place in 2009 and spent another $9 million to build it out.

“I’m willing to take whatever risk there is to benefit from a depressed environment.” Ramsey told the paper, adding that he is confident the Millennium will soon be repaired.

Article source: http://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/matier-ross/article/SF-police-union-a-no-show-for-new-chief-from-LA-10809670.php

Where’s San Francisco? Where’s San Jose?

Realtor.com’s 2017 housing forecast rubs a crystal ball to predict the nation’s 100 top markets — and if you’re used to seeing the Bay Area at the top of “hot” housing lists, this new set of rankings may surprise you. The San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward metro sits in the 37th position for 2017, while the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara metro occupies the 39th spot.

Why so low?

The rankings are based on the projected price appreciation for each given market as well as its volume of sales. And while San Francisco and San Jose do well in the price category, with projected housing appreciation of 8.41 percent and 8.26 percent, respectively, sales activity looks dismal. The two metros are expected to barely eke out sales increases next year: The number of homes sold are expected to go up just 1.17 percent in San Francisco and 1.26 percent in San Jose.

Compare that to Arizona’s Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale metro, ranked No. 1 for 2017 — it will show a healthy mix of appreciation (up 5.94 percent) and sales (up 7.24 percent), according to the forecast. The extended Bay Area boasts just one metro in the Top 10 markets: Sacramento, where realtor.com projects price increases of 7.18 percent, along with sales increases of 4.92 percent.

While the Bay Area is otherwise shut out, five of the Top 10 markets are on the West Coast: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (No. 2 on the list); Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade (No. 4); Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario (No. 5); Tucson, Arizona (No. 9); and the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro metro in Oregon and Washington state.

Jonathan Smoke, realtor.com’s chief economist, projects that the national market will moderate in the next year, with median prices rising 3.9 percent and existing home sales increasing just 1.9 percent. Tight inventory, it seems, is a national problem.

Smoke also predicts that the post-election uptick in mortgage rates “may price some first-timers out of the market.”

Yet he and the rest of the data team at realtor.com forecast that millennials (at 33 percent) will dominate the 2017 pool of buyers, with baby boomers (at 30 percent) close behind. And the team sees millennial buyers flocking to Midwestern “hotbeds,” including Madison, Wisconsin; Columbus, Ohio; Omaha, Nebraska; Des Moines, Iowa; and Minneapolis.

Article source: http://www.mercurynews.com/2016/11/30/national-housing-forecast-for-2017-bay-area-misses-the-cut-for-hottest-markets/

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Tom Perkins, a venture capitalist and Silicon Valley pioneer, is selling one of his homes for $16.5 million.

Tom Perkins, a venture capitalist and Silicon Valley pioneer, is selling one of his homes for $16.5 million.

Photo: Realtor.com

Tom Perkins, a venture capitalist and Silicon Valley pioneer, is selling one of his homes for $16.5 million.

Tom Perkins, a venture capitalist and Silicon Valley pioneer, is selling one of his homes for $16.5 million.

Photo: Realtor.com

Tom Perkins, the co-founder of Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, spoke with Adam Lashinsky, (not pictured) Senior Editor at Large, Fortune, at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, Calif., on Thursday, February 13, 2014, about his controversial letter to the Wall Street Journal about the War on the 1%. less

Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez, The Chronicle

The estate of Tom Perkins, a venture capitalist and Silicon Valley pioneer, is selling one of his homes for $16.5 million. Perkins, who died in June at the age of 84, was a founder of Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers and was worth an estimated $8 billion.

The late billionaire’s French-style mansion, designed by architects Julia Morgan and George Kelham, is located in the affluent Marin County enclave of Belvedere, about 17 miles north of San Francisco. The six-bedroom, 7.5-bath home features postcard-worthy views of San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge.

The 8,885-square-foot manor was built in the 1920s and renovated by Perkins, who bought the property in the early ’70s with his first wife.

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The home boasts such classical elements as a Tudor archway with fleur-de-lis plaster, 16th-century “linenfold” wood paneling, and carved limestone fireplace imported from a Belgian chateau, says Curbed. There’s also a children’s wing with two bedrooms, two baths, and a playroom; a formal dining room that seats 18; and a salon with bridge views.

On just under an acre of land, the property has a pool, pool house, greenhouse, and three-car garage with a one-bedroom apartment above.

Founded in the early ’70s, Perkins’ legendary venture capital firm was one of the first on a street that’s become synonymous with raising money: Sand Hill Road in Palo Alto. His firm was an early investor in Amazon, Google, and Genentech.

This article “Estate of VC legend Tom Perkins lists his Bay Area home for $16.5M,” appeared first on Real Estate News and Advice from realtor.com.

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/realestate/article/Estate-of-VC-legend-Tom-Perkins-lists-his-Bay-10800961.php

/EINPresswire.com/ — SAN FRANCISCO, CA–(Marketwired – December 19, 2016) – Local photographer James David Lee has joined Zephyr Real Estate as Lead Photographer. After free-lancing for 10 years and with a strong background in real estate photography both in Southern California and the Bay Area, Lee is filling Zephyr’s need for a full-time photographer.

As Zephyr continues to expand its reach into the Greater Bay Area, the need for high quality, quick-turnaround photography has grown exponentially. Lee’s expertise includes more than three years with Pacific Union as Marketing Manager where he was extensively involved in multi-media marketing/advertising and training as well as building the photo/video libraries.

Prior to that, Lee was employed in Southern California by a Beverly Hills boutique realtor and Coldwell Banker’s Beverly Hills-South office. He also has several years’ experience as a free-lance photographer specializing in real estate, architecture and lifestyle.

“We are fortunate to have someone of James’ caliber join our team,” commented Melody Foster, Vice President of Marketing. “As we grow, it’s important that our photo and video libraries grow simultaneously for the mutual benefit of our agents and clients.”

Lee received a degree in Fine Arts with a concentration on creative photography at California State University in Fullerton. He enjoys cycling and Mid-century furniture plucking with his family in Oakland.

About Zephyr Real Estate
Founded in 1978, Zephyr Real Estate is San Francisco’s largest independent real estate firm with nearly $2.3 billion in gross sales and a current roster of more than 300 full-time agents. Zephyr’s highly-visited website has earned two web design awards, including the prestigious Interactive Media Award. Zephyr Real Estate is a member of the international relocation network, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World; the luxury real estate network, Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate; global luxury affiliate, Mayfair International; and local luxury marketing association, the Luxury Marketing Council of San Francisco. Zephyr has six offices in San Francisco, a brand new office in Greenbrae, and two brokerage affiliates in Sonoma County, all strategically positioned to serve a large customer base throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. For more information, visit www.ZephyrRE.com.

Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/12/16/11G125475/Images/James-Lee-Zephyr-0d74e53af681960da7726fdce1a7b477.jpg

Article source: http://www.einnews.com/pr_news/358675583/noted-photographer-james-lee-joins-zephyr-real-estate-staff