18 Comments
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
View More Interest Rates
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
LMAO all the way through the video — the snark was so thick you could cut it! Of course, I about fell out of my chair when you put up the price. Classic!
A one sentence post was enough to send jim the realtor over the deep end. What is this world coming to? 🙂
My point yesterday was that I remember in the early days of this blog there was a much wider variety in price and style. Remember the Oceanside REOs and the Vista pot house?
What happened jim? Did you forget that not all of us need 4k sq feet and gated communities?
You would do your viewers (and yourself) a service by expanding the scope of houses you show in this blog.
That price is insane for a lot in Cardiff; you could buy a decent house in LJ about 2 blocks from the beach for less. I know you were trying to make a point, but c’mon.
You did, however, make me choke on my drink. File this one under ‘classics.’
Jim softballed the point straight at you, and you whiffed it. Here it is again:
The reason you are seeing so many McMansions on Jim’s blog is because that’s what’s coming up for sale. The big McMansion bombers are the ones that were most commonly over-leveraged, and therefore are the ones that are showing up most often on the market as foreclosures, REOs, short sales, and I-need-to-get-outta-Dodge-before-I-lose-all-my-equity sales. Jim’s not hiding anything from you; he simply doesn’t have that in stock.
It’s like walking in to a store and saying, “All I see is vanilla pudding. Why aren’t you putting any chocolate pudding on the shelves?” To which comes the reply, “We didn’t get any. The moment we get some, we’ll put it on the shelves.”
Also, the McMansions most clearly illustrate the Irrational Exuberance of the housing bubble, for which Jim continues to offer info (hence the domain name). Recall the sequence: First existing quality housing got bid up due to easy credit, then new housing (McMansions) was constructed to draw off some of the low-cost money, and finally complete hovels started flirting with $1,000,000 before people started to wake up and say, “Hey, this is nuts!” Thus, it makes sense that we would see the reverse sequence as the bubble deflates. (I am, of course, pulling this entirely out of my posterior, and Jim is free to elide this post at his option.)
$1000/sq.ft.
If you can spend $1000/sq.ft, this is the class of thing you should be looking at. (I’ve posted this link before.)
Jim: You mentioned this is probably priced as a tear-down for a builder. Are teardown costs for brick and cinderblock more costly than wood frame?
Some of the stylistic touches evoke mid-century design details. But the overall effect of the interior is of a county jail.
“Hey, this is nuts!”
What is nuts is that the sub-2000sf track houses that are 30 years old are still selling around $600K–that makes the newer McMansions seem like a good buy!
I looked at one similar to this last year — CLEARLY a tear down — with around the same lot size. The price floored me.
The house is nothing, it’s the lot and location. What makes my stomach churn is that a builder can roll in an put three houses on that lot instead of a single buyer putting up one modest sized house and having some privacy and a yard.
I realize that it’s supply and demand, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t seem inherently wrong to keep shoveling huge houses onto tiny lots to maximize profit.
It just sucks that this worthless house on a great lot can’t go to someone who would build custom and improve the neighborhood without turning the whole thing into another overbuilt sardine can.
/rant of frustrated lot buyer
OMG. I almost puked in my mouth as you were going through that home. WTH are those people on? Really?! Over a million. I feel like I’m taking crazy pills again. No way it that place worth a million. As previous post said, there are some nice places in La Jolla and even Point Loma for that price.
But the overall effect of the interior is of a county jail.
LOL!!!
Watch it sell for $1,050,000.
A quick look at the home search on this site shows 281 detached listings under $400k on the NC map. Granted Jim is running “bubbleinfo.com” and not “homebuyerinfo.com,” the McMansions are the most obvious and often hilarious illustrations of the excesses of the bubble and its disasterflick-like bursting, AND the site is ultimately a tool to help bring business in to Jim, but there must be an interesting bubble-icious story or two in those under-400k listings somewhere. If I was in the market for a home and not just reading for entertainment, the site today would probably not be as informative as it was a couple of years ago.
http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-luxury-home-sales-20110212,0,2968790.story
Josie, Wake up.
If this sells for a million, then a million doesn’t get you much over there. But I’ve seen way better for even less than that. Maybe not in that area, but dollar for dollar, I’d probably pick PL or LJ over this place. No brainer for me. Fully awake.
Well, this goes down as a classic, as I thought you were touring some $250k home in old Vista or something. Wow!
In the seller’s mind, you pay $300k for a lot (split parcel into 3 lots), spend $600k to build a decent 3ksf house, add in $100k of soft costs, and you got a NEW home by the beach for $1mm and just over $300/sf.
Now that doesn’t leave much in the way of profit for a spec guy, but maybe he gets lucky and sells each lot for $400k to end users and makes $300k.
Not saying its a good deal, just that the numbers are not totally out of bounds. Its a 100% 3 lot split and the house is just in the way.
These are 25 foot wide lots–we are NOT Huntington Beach–Best of luck to anyone who thinks they can make it make sence–Maybe $750K???
Cardiff west of the 5 sells for about $500-$600/sf for an older re-sale.
Agreed, I don’t think they’ll have trouble selling this for $1,000,000+. It’s listed by a top agent, he knows the market.
If you could build three homes and keep the list prices just under $1,000,000, you’d beat this:
http://www.sdlookup.com/MLS-110000697-2005_Mackinnon_Ave_Cardiff_CA_92007