I ran into two of my favorite realtors today, and they were willing to seize the moment.
We turned on the camera and talked about real estate, based on our cumulative 72 years experience!
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Jim Klinge
Klinge Realty Group
Are you looking for an experienced agent to help you buy or sell a home?
Contact Jim the Realtor!
- 682 S. Coast Hwy 101, Suite #110
Encinitas, CA 92024 - (858) 997-3801 call or text
- klingerealty@gmail.com
CA DRE #01527365, CA DRE #00873197
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Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Jim & Donna Klinge helped us sell our home of 30 years in Ocean Hills. We were very happy with their service and would HIGHLY recommend them to anyone looking for an Honest, Knowledgeable, Skilled, Informed Efficient realty team. Both Jim & Donna were so helpful in different ways and complemented each others skills. Please refer to a more detailed review that we wrote on YELP. Thank You Both for all your help!!!Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. A+ thank youTrustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Many years ago, we purchased a home in Carlsbad, using a realtor that was recommended to us - Jim Klinge. Fast forward to 2025, we recently had the privilege of selling 2 homes in Carlsbad, CA and didn't hesitate to reach out to Jim and Donna Klinge of Klinge Realty Group to guide us through the sales. The transactions were very different, each with its own unique situation, opportunities and challenges. From start to finish, Donna and Jim helped navigate the pre-sale preparation, the listing, showing of the house, buyer negotiations, the final close and all of the paperwork and decisions in between. What stands out with both transactions is the professionalism of Jim and Donna (and their team), wonderful communication (timely, relevant, concise), their deep understanding of market dynamics (setting realistic expectations), their access to top-notch contractors, and last, their ability to guide us across the finish line successfully. We wouldn't hesitate to use Jim and Donna in the future and highly recommend them for anyone looking to buy or sell a property in North San Diego County.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We sold a home with Jim and Donna and from beginning to end they were consummate professionals. Their initial walk through the property resulted in a list of items to be repaired or updated. They supplied a list of vendors and job quotes to do the repairs and updates. We originally wanted to sell ‘as is’ and just get it over with. They gave us a selling price for ‘as is’ and options for doing a few updates/repairs to doing it all with the selling price for each option. We agreed to do all they suggested and we sold for the exact price they predicted. For every dollar spent we got back more than $2 back in the selling price. And they got that price in a rising interest rate environment! Donna and Jim are extremely detailed and guide you through ever aspect of the sale. There were no surprises thanks to their guidance. We couldn’t be more pleased with their representation. Thank you Donna and Jim, Jerry and MaryTrustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We have known Jim & Donna Klinge for over a dozen years, having met them in Carlsbad where our children went to the same school. As long time North County residents, it was a no- brainer for us to have the Klinges be our eyes and ears for San Diego real estate in general and North County in particular. As my military career caused our family to move all over the country and overseas to Asia, Europe and the Pacific, we trusted Jim and Donna to help keep our house in Carlsbad rented with reliable and respectful tenants for over 10 years. Naturally, when the time came to sell our beloved Carlsbad home to pursue a rural lifestyle in retirement out of California, we could think of no better team to represent us than Jim and Donna. They immediately went to work to update our house built in 2004 to current-day standards and trends — in 2 short months they transformed it into a literal modern-day masterpiece. We trusted their judgement implicitly and followed 100% of their recommended changes. When our house finally came on the market, there was a blizzard of serious interest, we had multiple offers by the third day and it sold in just 5 days after a frenzied bidding war for 20% above our asking price! The investment we made in upgrades recommended by Jim and Donna yielded a 4-fold return, in the process setting a new high water mark for a house sold in our community. In our view, there are no better real estate professionals in all of San Diego than Jim and Donna Klinge. Buying or selling, you must run and beg Jim and Donna Klinge to represent you! Our family will never forget Jim, Donna, and their whole team at Compass — we are forever grateful to them.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. WeI had the pleasure of working with Klinge Realty Group to sell our home in Carmel Valley, and I cannot recommend them highly enough! Jim and Donna demonstrated exceptional professionalism, offering expert guidance on market conditions and pricing strategy, which resulted in a quick and successful sale. Communication was prompt and we were well-informed throughout the entire process. For anyone looking for a dedicated and knowledgeable real estate team, look no further! ---Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Donna and Jim Klinge of Klinge Realty Group have our highest possible recommendation. From Donna and Jim’s first visit to our house through closing their advice and counsel was candid and honest in all dealings. They kept us fully informed throughout the process. The house sold less than three days after listing with a two-week closing. My wife and I have sold several houses during our lives. This was by far the best experience. Klinge Reality is a premium service realtor. You can’t make a better choice for someone to sell your home fast and for top dollar.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Donna and Jim provided exceptional support and professionalism throughout the entire process. We couldn't have been happier with their efforts. They made our house shine, and thanks to their expertise, it sold above the listing price in the very first weekend! Truly a fantastic experience from start to finish.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. This year has been difficult on our family, mainly due to having to sell our home. Thankfully we knew God had a plan for us and working with the Klinge team was a key part of it. It was an obvious decision to work with them again after such an amazing experience when purchasing the same home we needed to sell. The challenge was, how will we do this in so little time with so much going on? Jim and Donna held our hand every step of the way. Whenever an unexpected issue arose they found and provided a solution. Never once did we feel pressured to make a decision and the Klinges were always reassuring after providing the information that the decision was ours to make. Despite the curve balls, they never panicked and exemplified the “can do” attitude, making us feel optimistic and taken care of. Their expertise and professionalism was superb. But of all the reasons to work with the Klinges, the most impactful and valuable is their compassion and genuine care for their clients. We pray that we can one day purchase our forever home and you better believe that Jim and Donna will be representing us - as long as they will have us of course. Thank you again Klinge team! Your execution, experience, and care are unmatched.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Jim and Donna were fantastic! Jim understanding my needs, recommending potential places, pointing out the pros and cons of each property was invaluable. Then when the offer was accepted Donna’s organized guidance through the inspections, paperwork etc made the whole process seem effortless. So grateful that I had them on my side!Load more
Is that Yanni or John Tesh in the background?
David Miller, on bubble info.com with JTR. classic!!! now there is someone working as hard as JTR. Good to see you from out here in CO!
Out here in CO? – the commentariat wants to know!
Let’s tell the truth about David – I told your in-laws the truth, and he high-balled them and got their listing.
Almost a year later it sold for less than my price.
Is there a good local rent index, or do you have to go on anecdotal evidence?
I’d like to know the details of the rent vs. buy calculation that you are making here, especially if you could provide some examples from neighborhoods like Mission Hills, Point Loma, La Jolla and Del Mar where buying is comparable to renting.
It seems to me that the bargains (to purchase) are pretty hard to come by, it isn’t that easy to find a house where the cost to buy comes out equal to rent, even if you have 20% down.
In the “rest” of San Diego, it does look like a good idea to buy, but in the prime areas you have to get very very lucky in your purchase.
Also – if you are going to stay in the house 20 years or more, it is very easy to say that buying makes sense. But is staying put 15 or 20 years a reasonable assumption in a rent vs. buy calculation, when most people average more like 7 years?
One reason I didn’t buy into the bubble hype was due to the Rent v Buy analysis. That calcuatlation is coming back into equilibrium………….BUT………. my personal feeling is the pendulum will swing far into the BUY side… much more so than today’s current price point. But at least if you buy today you can justify it a bit more per RvB calculation.
Imagine those that got into adjustable mortgages that kept going up and up…and they lost the house (and are now renters) now start seeing their rents go up and up and up.
I do think you eventually got to the root of the problem. It’s the down payment. One guy says hey you’re renting living month to month and rent keep going up you start cutting back in other areas. If you’re in that situation you can never save a downpayment, you’re always going to be renting whether it’s cheaper to buy or not.
We have investors all over this county thinking I’m going to buy these places for cash and rent them out to people and then sell when they appreciate. Effectively what you’re saying is I’m planing on selling to the guy I’m renting to for a higher price sometime down the road. How do you do it if they are living pay check to pay check. One idea would be investor owner financing, rent to own schemes, or some bank deciding to do the zero down thing again.
How are you ever going to get a first time buyer pool and then a move up buyer pool if you’re squeezing the rental market prices higher such that that’s the majority of a persons budget. I just don’t see the leap to higher housing prices in that scenario. The people that are going to be able to pay those higher prices are not the people you are renting to but other would be investors.
I do think there’s a underlying trend to shy away from debt and that deleveraging process timeframe much be much longer than most people expect. We’ve been hearing just another year until inflation hits, just another year until lending loosens, just another year before rates go higher, I think it’s going to end up being wrong.
@WC
I found this, (select “rent list price” on left if not selected)
http://www.zillow.com/local-info/CA-home-value/r_9/#metric=mt%3D46%26dt%3D1%26tp%3D5%26rt%3D14%26r%3D9%252C395056%26el%3D0
its only for past 2 years but does show 14% yearly increase for SD area, so 1% per month sounds about right. Compared to past 2 years, it shows a decline in rents, but chart looks wacky.
Heh, you guys look like you are competing to see who can lean back the farthest….
Interesting stuff. Love the shop talk. Seems that lack of financing and a smaller buyer pool is driving SD rents higher. In the face of all the other fundamentals being negative. Would it follow that when and if financing starts to ease up, that we will see rents go back down?
$3000 a month? I’ve cut it down to $300 a month… it’s called Mom’s basement. She cooks and does all my laundry and I have plenty of spending cash to do whatever I want when I want. Who could ask for more? :o)
Seriously though, how does higher unemployment factor in here? What about a depleted 401k due to unexpected stock market dips? Potential buyers tend to hold cash when times get hard. I’d like to see some hard data to bolster the rental numbers they are talking about.