The Difference a Year Makes

We’ve been watching home prices climb in our area, but it’s official: home prices are up nearly 15% in some area, marking a 5-year high. This returns us to the prices we saw in the summer of 2008.

What does this mean for you?

It’s a great time to sell, but also to buy. This increase shows that buyers have more faith in the strength of the housing market. While the beginning of 2013 was marked by cautious optimism, now that summer has arrived, it’s clear that more and more people are of the opinion that the market has taken more than just a temporary turn.

While inventory remains low, the rise in price will likely entice many sellers to enter the market, giving buyers more choice. And although interest rates have inched up, they still remain low overall.

All in all, this is a great opportunity to make your move!

**Data pulled from the UT-San Diego**

 

Community Focal Point: Nori Lights

www.NoriLights.com

858.444.6295

After nearly being hit by a car in 2011 while riding his bike at night, Christopher Flynn had an idea.

Because the car approached him from the side, his front and back lights did not provide enough visibility to the driver of the car. So, he invented the prototype of Nori Lights, a way to illuminate the shape of the wheels on the bicycle from the side.

He posted a video on Youtube of the prototype of his invention and immediately realized that these lights were something cyclists desperately needed. Nori Lights could save someone’s life.

Two years and a Kickstarter campaign later, Nori Lights were ready to hit the market.

According to Chris, “the Nori Lights are made up of a set of 4 LED pods, each containing 2 finely tuned high intensity UV LEDs, where each pod is connected to a central power supply containing 2x AA Lithium batteries. The pods mount onto the front and rear forks, and align with the side of the rim of each wheel. Using a new breakthrough technology in phosphorescent glow-in-the-dark material, we include in each Nori Light system 4 strips of our special Nori Glow Stripes. Each stripe is placed on the side rim surface of each wheel, and as the wheel rotates, the Nori glow stripes pass by the light from the activating UV LED pods and create a continuous glowing effect, highlighting the contour of the wheels.”

A San Diego native who graduated from the Art Institute after studying 3D animation and visual effects, Chris has been everything from a professor to a graphic designer to a visual effects artists, working on such films as the Shrek series, Captain America, Titanic, and more. Chris considers himself to be an inventor at heart. The Nori Lights, named after his grandfather, represent his dedication to one of his many passions.

**EXCLUSIVE Offer!** The Nori Lights price is normally $85.99 +shipping/handling. But use coupon code coastal20 to take $20 off your order total!

Visit the Nori Lights website (www.NoriLights.com) for more information and view this informational Youtube video about the product. You can also like Nori Lights on Facebook.

Want to see your business featured here? Contact us!

The Pinteresting Five: Man Caves

How the man cave became a thing, we’re not sure. But it’s obviously here to stay. We’ve rounded up five of our favorite images of this unique home addition on Pinterest.

Restaurant of the Moment: Bongiorno’s Pizza

Bongiorno’s Pizza

524 Stevens Avenue Solana Beach, CA 92075

(858) 755-2646

www.bongiornos-sb.com

After a day at the fair or the beach this summer, stop by Bongiorno’s Pizza in Solana Beach. Located off Via de la Valle, it’s just minutes from everywhere you want to be.

Boasting authentic New York style pizza, Bongiorno’s offers some of the most outstanding pizza in North County, if not in all of San Diego.

Hidden inside a small shopping plaza, the shopfront isn’t much to look at. You can dine in, but the table and chairs are few. Most people seem to call and pick up their pizza to go. You can order your food by the slice, but we recommend ordering a whole pizza.

Whether you try one of their signature flavors or create your own, their pizza is fresh, flavorful, and packed with quality ingredients. You’ll be tempted to eat the whole thing yourself.

Design Trends: Writing on the Wall

Like some of our past trend spotlights, this trend is certainly not a new one. However, it is gaining traction in the age of DIY. From paintings to prints to pictures to wood cuts to light-up signs to over-sized scrabble tiles, writing, calligraphy, and letters have emerged as a hot home trend. Recent years have provided an influx of vinyl wall lettering, cut-wood letters, canvasses, and other mediums that encapsulate that hand-made feel. Whether you blow up a special poem, quote, letter, or ticket and put it on your wall or assimilate a copy of your child’s name in your handwriting in his or her nursery, there’s something about lettering that feels uniquely human. Wherever it’s found, lettering provides a personal and whimsical touch.

1031: Why It Might Be Right For Your Real Estate Investments

1031 Exchange Investments:

What They Are and How You Can Benefit

What is a 1031 Exchange?

-A 1031 exchange allows you to essentially “exchange” a sold property for a purchased property (or properties), tax-free.

How does it work?

-In following certain rules for buying and selling investment property, business-use property, and residences and by using a qualified intermediary, you may qualify to pay NO taxes!

What is a qualified intermediary?

-A qualified intermediary is someone who assists you with the transfer of money from any sold property into a purchased property, allowing you to potentially qualify for a tax free exchange.

Why should I choose a 1031 exchange?

-1031 exchanges can allow you to grow your overall wealth. Over time, your profits from 1031 exchanges can compound to greater and greater earnings.

Nine types of 1031 Exchanges

1. Residential Properties

2. Multi-Family

3. Home Office

4. Tenancy in Common (TIC)

5. Triple Net Leases (NNN)

6. Condo Hotels

7. Oil & Gas

8. Raw Land

9. Foreclosure

How do I get started?

For more information or to get started, visit 1031 Exchange Advantage Inc.

The Pinteresting Five: Summer Porches

This week, we’re loving outdoor porches. The five featured below are the perfect mix of shade, shelter, and sun, while still giving you ample place to relax. View the pin sources on our Pinterest board.

CPP Tip of the Month: June

For those with investment properties, visit the 1031 Exchange Advantage site before you sell to learn about tax savings through a 1031 exchange.

Design Trends: Natural Decor

Going along with our previous aesthetic, Shabby Chic, natural decor embraces the natural world and focuses on bringing a bit of the outside in. This often goes hand in hand with shabby chic.

Natural decor can take the form of stones, sea shells, twigs, straw, grass, plants, leaves, feathers, birds nest, skulls, bones, antlers, horns, fur, hide,  sand, and more. Whether you’re doing your house in a top to bottom theme or just incorporating a little as an accent, let us inspire you. Best of all, bringing the outdoors in is pretty inexpensive and involves a nature walk or two.

Restaurant of the Moment: Eddie V’s

1270 Prospect St  La Jolla, CA 92037
(858) 459-5500
www.eddiev.com

Classy, upscale fish restaurants with great views seem almost a dime a dozen in La Jolla. Eddie V’s manages to transcend the rest.

Rooftop dining with ocean views that somehow manages to escape the plague of the iconic fishy smell of La Jolla is a good start. Delicious food is even better.

Every seafood dish is perfectly and expertly prepared. Even the sides don’t lack for culinary care. From truffle mac and cheese, to roasted fingerling potatoes, to the jumbo shrimp appetizer, to the lemon sole, the food is fresh, flavorful, and exquisite. Round off your meal with some great appetizers and drinks. And don’t even think about skipping dessert. The bananas foster is phenomenal. People in the dining group raved about it as being “the best dessert they’d ever had”.

Make sure to make reservations. The restaurant can get quite busy, especially on the weekends.

Jumbo shrimp at Eddie V’s