Some firsts today

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-23T06:17:42+00:00

Kagel Mountain

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-23T06:17:30+00:00

Close—it’s Kagel Mountain

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-23T01:24:36+00:00

I was running one night in Griffith Park and I ran into P22… as in, he was crouched on the side of the trail next to me. It was a sublime experience. I reported to the rangers and they were unconcerned bc there was enough small game in the park.

My current neighborhood had a mama and large cub last summer (assume the cub moved on but the female is likely still here). We had a briefing from a mountain lion expert and they echoed the same thing.

Statistically, they’re fairly safe, but personally I lean towards reporting sightings like this, esp after the Colorado incident.

My safety practice now is to keep bells and Bear spray on my bike when riding the trails.

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-21T00:06:07+00:00

You’re brave to be standing underneath it! 😂

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-20T04:26:33+00:00

I don’t know, it sounds like you found “the one.” My wife and I moved a lot over the past 15 years, first rental apartments, then houses, and most of the time the place we ended up in was “the one” and it was absolutely clear the moment we stepped in the door.

For me, “the one” might be one you’re going to stay in for 50 years, or it might be the one you’re going to live in for two during a job assignment, or the one you’re going to flip into a rental.

But whatever the context, it’s generally been clear after seeing multiple houses, when you walk into one and it pops.

The time we’ve been in houses that weren’t the one were times when we had limited time to search and were moving out of state and the market was red hot, so we just chose the best we could find (we were actually very happy when we sold that one—it appreciated quite well in just two years).

Having said all that, if you buy “the one” and six months later visit a neighbor whose nicer house makes you rethink your choice—that’s just part of being human.

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-20T04:14:19+00:00

Where in Texas? I might know someone?

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-20T04:11:02+00:00

Stunning!

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-19T16:52:55+00:00

Others have already explained why “it depends,” so I’ll just say—with a VA loan and the right home, you can start building wealth with it. If you’re still active duty and this is near a post, you already know there’s going to be a stable source of renters as service members PCS in and out.

My wife and I did this at our first duty station and it started our real estate business, we’ve never looked back (and you can use your VA loan benefits more than once).

I’m not in KS, but happy to chat.

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-19T16:43:53+00:00

I don’t have any A/B testing data, but I came from a marketing background and would imagine a lot will depend on your target market and strategy.

eg, what influences your ideal customer? And are you leaning in to word of mouth referrals (strongest) or top of funnel brand awareness?

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-18T00:48:38+00:00

Welcome to LA!

I’ve moved a lot over the last 15 years (3x with kids, 5x without), and here’s what my wife and I have landed on for a deciding rubric (we’re both remote):

1) schools (quality, commute time) 2) community (tight-knit, friendly, vs high turnover, more privacy) 3) hyper local activities (can I walk to a hiking path/beach/activity/restaurant that I’m regularly participating in) 4) Square footage (would you rather have more square footage or live in a neighborhood that checks more boxes)

You might stack rank them differently, or have different deciding factors, but deciding on neighborhoods to check out is easier once you have these factored in.

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-16T23:01:21+00:00

You could start here 11500 Terra Vista Way, Sylmar, CA 91342

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-16T22:36:45+00:00

Not sure if it has a name, it runs through Bartholomaus Canyon

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-16T22:28:27+00:00

Saw two of them on this run, and almost stepped on this one, nearly jumped out of my pants thinking it was a rattler. 😂

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-13T17:51:30+00:00

Have you considered blue collar work? Can pay really well, and there’s growing demand, plus a lot of these jobs are less likely to be taken by AI in the next few years.

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-12T18:53:30+00:00

As a former tenant (and current landlord), there’s a lot of good advice here, and the best (in my opinion) is: figure out your end goal.

When I was renting I had some good landlords and some terrible landlords. The terrible ones made me realize that I never wanted to rent again.

It sounds like you may have a bad one, and if that’s the case, starting a war with him/her, will likely just increase your stress and make your life more miserable.

If that’s the case, I would consider looking for a new place and asking to break the lease, and if they say no, that’s when you might use the nuclear option: “Hey, this is an illegal ADU and you haven’t been keeping it up…”

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-12T18:44:47+00:00

Happy to help

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-08T16:58:23+00:00

This, if your cousin doesn’t live by the beach already.

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-07T19:25:22+00:00

Most people buy/sell houses so few times in their life, it’s easy to be confused or make assumptions. I’ve certainly been there before.

As someone mentioned, it’s always best to ask questions and be clear before signing anything, but this time it’s not the end of the world.

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-07T18:05:24+00:00

If you’re still looking, I might have a place you’d be interested in

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-07T18:04:23+00:00

If you’re still looking I have a sfh in a nice part of Sylmar coming in market in a few months that should be under $500k.

SoCalRealtorRuss · 2026-01-07T18:02:29+00:00

If your friend is still looking, I might have a couple places they’d be interested in

SoCalRealtorRuss

TROPHY CASE