Private Firefighting

by | Jan 14, 2025 | Disasters | 0 comments

Instead of insuring the rebuild after a fire, it is in everyone’s best interest to find ways to prevent homes from burning down. The Bel Air Fire of 1961 led to the banning of the wood-shake roof, and homes built today have little or no overhanging eaves and what they do have is closed off. Can concrete homes built by 3D printers be far behind?

These fires should lead to a rapid expansion of private firefighting, and while we’re at it, private police/security should be a booming industry too.

A good article on the former:

Link to free WSJ article

Jan. Listings Contest – The Guesses

by | Jan 13, 2025 | 2025, Contests | 0 comments

Me and Billie Jean King at 2022 Playoffs

The final guesses on the number of NSDCC January listings are in – here they are:

211 – Eddie89

213 – Shadash

216 – regina

246 – Anne M

267 – Surfrider

280 – doughboy

293 – Joe

296 – Tim DeRoche

303 – Tom

307 – Jun

311 – SN

317 – CB Mark

318 – Nick

328 – Majeed

337 – natalie

353 – Derek

355 – Skip

365 – Leo

401 – Dr k

417 – Susie

421 – Giving Cat

There have been 64 new listings this month, as of this morning.

Last January’s count was 241, so 400+ might be a stretch now. Will we get to 300?

Inventory Watch

by | Jan 13, 2025 | Inventory | 0 comments

The pendings line is barely noticeable on the graph above because it mirrors the 2024 line closely. The number of pendings dropped because so many sales are closing – there have already been 43 NSDCC closed sales in January, and we should exceed last January’s count of 102 sales fairly easily.

But the change in active listings is the lowest of the last three years – only a slight uptick. It would take a real crush of new listings for the active count to get to 400 by the end of the month, and the fires will probably delay any surge this month.

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LA Fire – How To Help

by | Jan 12, 2025 | Bubbleinfo TV, Disasters, Local Flavor, Local Government | 0 comments

The first responders have done an incredible job evacuating so many thousands of people at a moment’s notice. It will be one of the major stories of this fire because of how few casualties there are – it’s been a miracle.

How you can help:

You can support the Red Cross by making a donation online, by calling (800) 733-2767 or texting REDCROSS to 90999.

GoFundMe has created a centralized online hub housing all verified fundraising pages related to the wildfires. The hub will be updated with accounts as they are verified by the GoFundme team. At the top of the hub is also GoFundMe’s Wildfire Relief Fund 2025.

The California Community Foundation distributes grants to affected communities through its Wildfire Recovery Fund. The foundation’s team utilizes data from CalFire and CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index to ensure their grants target the neediest communities with both intermediate recovery and long-term support. You can make a monetary donation online or by mailing a check to the “California Community Foundation” at 717 W. Temple St., Los Angeles 90012. Include “Wildfire Recovery Fund” in the memo.

Musicares, a nonprofit safety net of health and welfare services for the music community, is offering anyone in the music industry (with five or more years experience in the music business) with immediate assistance including $1,500 financial assistance and $500 food vouchers. Contribute to Musicares efforts by making an online donation.

Best Friends Animal Society, has activated two pet pantry locations in Los Angeles that can provide essential supplies including pet food, cat litter, pet beds and other necessary items as well as human sanitary products for those who have lost everything. Contribute to the pantries here: donate online. All funds go toward emergency assistance to pets impacted by the wildfires in Los Angeles. Donations top this fund are also directly supporting pet lifesaving work in the area.

There is also a call for supporting the Los Angeles Fire Department by donating to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation. The foundation is seeking monetary donations to equip firefighters battling the wildfires with items including emergency fire shelters, hydration backpacks and wildland brush tools. Click here to donate.

My favorite video of a local fire – no homes were lost!

L.A. Fire Impact

by | Jan 10, 2025 | Disasters | 4 comments

Jackie said I should do a post on the fires, but I don’t have any personal knowledge of what’s happening or have anything to add to what we are seeing on television.

But I’ll add a couple of thoughts.

The Cost of Insurance Will Increase Dramatically – If You Can Get It. The unwillingness of major insurers to underwrite policies in California has caused more dependence upon the California Fair Plan, which has $200 billion in reserves and $300 billion in exposure:

Another concern is what the fires could mean for the California FAIR Plan, the state’s last-resort insurance plan for those who lose or can’t find traditional coverage.

Over the past half-decade, the number of homeowners on the plan — a state-mandated insurance pool with buy-in from private insurers — has more than doubled to around 350,000. That’s pushed the FAIR Plan toward the brink of insolvency.

Many who lost homes in the L.A. infernos were likely on the plan. According to an analysis of FAIR Plan data, there are more than 26,000 FAIR Plan properties in ZIP codes impacted by the fires across Los Angeles County.

If insurers cannot cover those liabilities, it’s possible they could pass on those costs to all of their home and business customers in the form of higher premiums.

“We are one event away from a large assessment — there’s no other way to say it,” California FAIR Plan President Victoria Roach told lawmakers last year. “We don’t have a lot of money on hand, and we have a lot of exposure out there.”

The insurance industry will probably have major changes in store besides premium hikes. The deductible amounts could go much higher, and forget about getting the guaranteed-replacement policies.

One great alternative is private firefighters. They are on the job in L.A., and we’ve seen them in Rancho Santa Fe during the last fire here. Instead of insuring to rebuild your home, how about preventing it from burning down instead? For many, that would be worth the extra cost.

Open Space Is A Major Liability. Cities like Carlsbad are proud of having major portions of their cities dedicated as open space. I’m sure the gnat-catchers are benefiting, but what about the people? Everyone complains about the high cost of housing. Can’t we live with a smaller patch of open space and build more homes? It would reduce the city’s liability from fires and provide more housing opportunities!

Above is Denk Mountain, also known as Dead Mountain. It’s just scrub brush and a few trails for hikers and mountain bikers. There are probably a few thousand people every year who enjoy those benefits, but the vast majority of the 110,000 people who live in Carlsbad have never heard of it and would be radically affected if another fire comes blowing over it like it did in 1997.

Or how about Calaveras? Look at the homes surrounding this open space just waiting to get burned up some day. Try to get fire insurance for one of these canyon-front homes today!

Another benefit? Make the home builder put all the power lines underground while they are at it, which would make everyone happy!

We’ll carve out some trails too, don’t worry. But is the beauty of these areas that great? Not really – not when a nickname is Dead Mountain. Let’s pave paradise – for our own good!

Some have said they have never seen anything like these fires. But it’s happened before:

Our First Listing of 2025

by | Jan 8, 2025 | 2025, Bubbleinfo TV, Jim's Listings and Sales, Why You Should List With Jim | 9 comments

Check out our new listing!

506 S. Freeman St.

3 br/2 ba, 992sf

YB:1944

LP = $1,399,000

Are you looking for an updated beach bungalow that is walking distance to everything downtown Oceanside has to offer? This is it! Hardwood floors, like-new kitchen and baths, new paint, 2-car garage, big backyard with detached office plus lemon, fig and avocado trees – wow! Great candidate for adding an ADU.

Recent comps include 208 S. Ditmar 2br/2ba 1,106sf closed for $1,385,000 on 12/16/24; 310 S. Tremont 3br/2ba 940sf closed for $1,375,000 on 10/24/24; 713 Stanley 3br/1ba, 996sf closed for $1,300,000 on 9/19/24.

https://www.compass.com/listing/506-south-freeman-street-oceanside-ca-92054/1750199079927778353/?origin=listing_page&origin_type=copy_url&agent_id=5b51d51d9474a8364b9a8353

Two hours after listing input:

 

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