PASADENA, CA VIDEO TOUR

Take a moment to learn about Pasadena's culture, restaurants, shopping, entertainment, and lifestyle.  Brough to you by Pasadena real estate agents Ramiro and Erica Rivas of the John Aaroe Group.


To Buy or Sell in the Pasadena Area, Contact Me:  
Ramiro Rivas ~ John Aaroe Group
Pasadena Real Estate Agent
626-497-4606
Ramiro@SoldByRamiro.com

SELLING TIPS: BUYER INCENTIVES

The worst thing that can happen when selling a Pasadena home is watching it sit on the market, week after week, month after month, with no one making a purchase offer. Buyers may look at the home but they simply don't come through with a contract. For sellers, every extra month on the market is another wasted mortgage payment they could be making toward a new house.
Why does this happen? Most often, it's because the sellers have priced the home above the market. Reducing the price is usually necessary.

There are other ways to bring Pasadena buyers to the contract table. They're called "incentives," and you can use them to ensure the fast sale of your home by plugging them into your marketing plan at the outset.

I know lots of ways to ensure that you sell your Pasadena home quickly at the right price. Please give me a call or email for a FREE consultation.

For Buying and/or Selling Real Estate, contact me:
Ramiro Rivas – Pasadena Homes for Sale
626-497-4606
Email Ramiro

PASADENA REAL ESTATE: 2009 HOME VALUES

Pasadena Real Estate: Market Update
2009 Home Prices on For Sale vs. Sold

Having pulled the median prices, month-by-month, of the Pasadena Homes that sold and the Pasadena Homes for sale that were active, it shows a slight increase in the home prices through 2009. Luxury listings tend to stay on the Pasadena real estate market longer which is why the average median price of Pasadena Homes for sale on the market is considerably higher than the median price of the homes that sold each month.

Search for: Pasadena Homes for Sale and Pasadena Condos for Sale

RAMIRO@SOLDBYRAMIRO.COM
626-497-4606

KELLER WILLIAMS PASADENA
445 S. FAIR OAKS AVENUE
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA 91105

Penelope's Cafe, Books & Gallery

1029 Foothill Boulevard, La Canada Flintridge, CA 91011

Penelope's La Canada is a garden cafe, book store and gallery that has been in business since 2001. Providing a homey setting, you can lunch in their beautifully landscaped garden, or take a seat by one of their inviting fireplaces and browse through their inventory of books they have for sale. Penelope’s Cafe features both new and used hardcovers and paperbacks, as well as a small selection of used magazines.

Bring your kids Saturday mornings at 10:15 for childrens' story time, and browse among their interesting and eclectic selections of visual art, wood carvings, jewelry, ceramics, specialty foods, and skin care products, just to name a few. Those of you who were patrons of La Canada’s former Tudor Cottage will feel right at home at Penelope's.

Penelope's Cafe features live entertainment every Saturday, as well as the occasional Friday, from 11:45 am to 2:45 pm. Its large indoor and outdoor dining areas provide the perfect atmosphere for that bridal, baby, or wedding shower.

Hours: Tue-Fri. 7:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Sat. 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. www.PenelopesCafe.com (818) 790-4386

RAMIRO RIVAS & ASSOCIATES
WWW.LIVINGLACANADA.COM

Pasadena Photos: Funny Google Maps Street View Photos

Funny Pasadena Photos
Google Maps - Street View

The search engine Google, like many other popular engines use satellites for aerial mapping of the world and its neighborhoods. Google decided to one up everyone with it's Google Street Views feature.

Recently, I was checking out a neighborhood for one of my Pasadena home buyers and I cam across the funniest thing. This Pasadena Foreclosure located at 1216 E. Orange Grove Blvd, Pasadena, 91104 priced at $479,900 has a hilarious image on Michigan Avenue.

Siesta Time

Reminds me of of a bad hangover!

Quick and easy instructions for Google Street Views

1) Go to: www.Google.com

2) Select: Maps

3) Enter the address you want to view in the search bar and click "Search Maps" button.

4) Select "Street Views" on the pop-up address bubble.

5) Click on the arrows and enjoy seeing the world through a voyeur window via www.Google.com

***Extra tip: use the four directional arrows at the top left to change your POV (Point of View)

Search for Pasadena Homes for Sale

PASADENA RESTAURANT: SITAR INDIAN CUISINE

"Authentic Indian Cuisine with a modern touch."
If you are seeking Indian cuisine in the Crown City, Sitar Indian cuisine is a great Pasadena Indian restaurant to go to dine, featuring authentic Northern Indian dishes. With an affordable lunch and dinner menu, Sitar offers a weekly lunch buffet Monday-Friday from 11:00am-4:30pm and a Champagne brunch on Saturdays and Sundays that are also from 11-4:30pm.

Sitar Indian Cuisine offers a richly-varied menu of fresh, natural ingredients, traditional, whole-some sauces and flavorful spices. In a vibrant setting, it is one of the Pasadena restaurants that serves food that is natural and freshly-prepared daily on the premises with no additives or preservatives.

If you are looking for Pasadena banquet halls, Sitar also offers a full service banquet facilty that seats approximately 250 guests. The hall, which is adjacent to the restaurant, accomodates events such as wedding receptions, birthday parties, business conferences, etc. If needed Sitar provides full, extensive planning options to personalize any event, from valet parking, to in-house lighting, djs, red carpet set up, dance performances, live music, furniture rentals, and much more.

Sitar Indian Cuisine. 618 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA (626) 449-5954
www.sitarindiancuisine.com Hours: Sunday-Thurs. 11am-10pm. Fri & Sat. 11am-11pm.


RAMIRO RIVAS & ASSOCIATES
WWW.SOLDBYRAMIRO.COM

Pasadena Photos: Pasadena City Hall

Aside from selling Pasadena Real Estate, one of my favorite past times is photography. Thankfully I get to shoot from condos to estates in my line of work. This blog will be the first of my Pasadena photo blogs.

Enjoy,

Ramiro Rivas, Pasadena Realtor

Pasadena City Hall

After leaving Pasadena King Taco, I was amazed by the amazing presence of Pasadena City Hall. This historic icon is what Pasadena is all about. I highly recommend taking a late night stroll to feel it's romantic architecture.

Search Pasadena Homes For Sale

Search Pasadena Homes For Sale

THE SAN FERNANDO VALLEY VS. THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY

A home in North Hollywood with a decorative lighthouse tower in the front yard.

A three-story tower in Pasadena that people live in! This was actually a water tower that was converted into a house by a renowned architect in 1924. It was a foreclosure home that was just recently on the market for sale. The current owner's bought it in February '09 for $320,000.

The 405 Freeway in Van Nuys.

Angeles Crest Highway in La Canada.

A lion statue at a residence in Northridge that needs light to see.

You wouldn't want to be near this statue in the dark. A scuplture in the Chinese Garden at Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens, San Marino.

All in good fun. Both are great places to live. Click the logo to search for homes in the SGV AND the SFV:

RAMIRO'S HABANERO CHALLENGE, DONA ROSA PASADENA

According to Wikipedia.com, "The habanero chile (Capsicum chinense Jacquin), sometimes incorrectly spelled 'habañero', is one of the most intensely spicy species of chili peppers of the Capsicum genus"; and so it is for anyone to wonder why Pasadena Real Estate Agent, Ramiro Rivas, would take on the challenge of eating one of the world's hottest chile peppers at Dona Rosa Pasadena. At least he was compensated by the restaurant with a margarita on the house for providing entertainment to Dona Rosa's manager, waiters, and the onlooking patrons that became his audience while experiencing sweat and tears. I'm just glad my associate had a camera available to document the moment.