Country Living

High Tech 2 ;)

2010-12-23T21:51:00.000-08:00

High Tech!

2010-12-23T21:50:00.001-08:00

Nice Country Homes !!

2010-09-30T09:52:00.000-07:00

Los Angeles has always been home to some of the world's most expensive real estate. But forget Beverly Hills, 90210: The new hot spot for multimillion-dollar mansions is Duarte, 91008.

Bradbury, Calif. (91008)

Duarte, Calif., home to the 91008 ZIP code, is a small suburb northeast of downtown LA, near the Los Angeles national forest. The median cost of a house in this tony town is a whopping $4,276,462, making it the most expensive housing market in the country. It ranks No. 1 on Forbes' annual ranking of America's Most Expensive ZIP Codes.

A scant 1,391 people live in 91008 ZIP code, and only 12 homes are currently on the market. So a single high-priced listing (like the mammoth nine-bedroom, built this year, that's selling for $19.8 million) is enough to skew the median price skyward.

Ranch - Horses Ranch.

2010-02-26T00:09:00.000-08:00

Owners want it SOLD. Drastic reduction in price. Investment property or a place for your ranch and horses. 12+ acres of prime property in Romoland / Nuovo area. Close to I-215, 74 & Nuovo Road. Zoning RA-1 (RESIDENTIAL, AGRICULTURE, 1 acre minimum). Property has had all testing done; Percolation Test, Topography and Survey. Property received the Pre-Application Review (PAR) from the Riverside County. APN 309-200-003 TOTAL OF 8.23 ACRES AND APN 3009-200-004 4.34 ACRES TOTAL 12.62 ACRES.

Derection: Menifee to Long Street

Opportunity for developers, Prime location near Scott Rd and Leon. Just approx. 3 miles from I-215 and close to Winchester Road. This is in a huge developing area and this property is in the path of progress with shopping centers, housing development growing all around. Neightboring area currently have hundreds of new homes. All flat & gentle rolling, Ideal rectangular shape. All utilities in front of the street. (Buyer to verify the zoning and perform due deligence for all pertinent info with Riverside county)

Directions:

I-215 to Scott East to Leon, Left on Leon, Right To Loretta Road.

Build your own estate home here on 1.77 acre Flat Estate lot situated near Bear Creek Golf community. Lot is on corner of Claremont St and Grand Avenue. Lot cleared and has a pad and ready for building of approx. 3000 to 5000 sq. ft home. Mountain vistas, hills and valley views, All utilities are on the property. (water meter, electricity, telephone, wired for internet). This area is surrounded by estate homes but no HOA. Close to town, shopping, schools, entertainment and I-15 is approx. less than 2 miles away. (Buyer to verify zoning and perform due diligence for all pertinent info with Riverside County or Wildomar City)

Directions:

I-15 to Clinton Keith West, Right On Grand Avenue, Corner Claremont St.

Best Country To Live In

2009-10-19T23:47:00.000-07:00

The World's Best Places to Live 2009

No. 1: Vienna, Austria

Getty Images

No. 1: Vienna, Austria

Mercer score: 108.6*
2008 rank: 2
GDP: $325 billion (2008 est.)**
Population: 1,664,146 (total city); 8,210,281 (total country)
Life expectancy: 79.5

*The rankings are based on a point scoring index established by Mercer Consultings 2009 Quality of Living Survey, with Vienna scoring 108.6 and Baghdad scoring 14.4. Cities are compared with New York as the base city, with an index score of 100. The quality-of-living survey covers 215 cities and is conducted to help governments and major companies place employees on international assignments. The survey also identifies those cities with the highest personal safety ranking based on internal stability, crime, effectiveness of law enforcement, and relationships with other countries.

**The World Factbook. Gross domestic product is denominated in international dollars, which is based on Purchasing Power Parity.

America's Famous Home Towns

2009-09-07T13:25:00.000-07:00

Birth Place of Famous people, movie stars, actors etc.

I guessed the first one correctly !! Ofcourse you know who was born here, in Fairmount, Indiana,

James Dean: Fairmount, Indiana
The original live-fast-die-young movie star, on whom so many future actors would model their images, died tragically in a car crash on September 30, 1955. A monument and plaque to Dean stand on Highway 46 in Cholame, Calif., but most fans choose instead to celebrate the young actor's life by following the James Dean Trail across Fairmount, Ind. The journey actually starts in nearby Marion, where a plaque marks the location of Dean's birth in 1931, then continues to sites that include his boyhood home, high school, even the shop where he purchased his first motorcycle. Unlike so many stars whose fame eclipses their humble origins, Dean was buried in his hometown, at the Park Cemetery in East Fairmount.

How about Gary, Indiana? Winterset, Iowa? Tupelo, Mississippi? you get the idea....

http://travel.aol.com/travel-ideas/domestic/galleries/americas-famous-hometowns?ncid=AOLCOMMtravdynlprim0590&icid=main%7Cmain%7Cdl4%7Clink3%7Chttp%3A%2F%2Ftravel.aol.com%2Ftravel-ideas%2Fdomestic%2Fgalleries%2Famericas-famous-hometowns%3Fncid%3DAOLCOMMtravdynlprim0590

US Highway 50.

2009-09-06T19:31:00.000-07:00

The most famous US Highway that everyone talk about - Route 66 - not too much is known about US Highway 50.
Today I watched Tom Brokaw on Dateline, NBC he talked about US Highway 50 and towns along the highway and the chaning lives of the people during the tough economic time.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31589862/ns/dateline_nbc/

You can also watch the show on USA Network.

http://www.usanetwork.com/highway50/videos/index.html

http://www.usanetwork.com/highway50/

http://www.route50.com/

"The Route That Gives The Traveler Most Is U.S. 50 Coast to Coast."

A site created by Wulf Berg

Visit US 50 Coast to Coast !

The Wine Country Dream Job

2009-06-05T18:29:00.000-07:00

I saw this on TV this morning.

“Really Goode Job” — a six-month job paying $10,000 a month plus accommodations!

The Wine Country Dream Job -

Murphy Goode Winery
Murphy-Goode is a family-owned winery located within Sonoma Country’s Alexander Valley.

http://www.areallygoodejob.com/

http://www.murphygoodewinery.com/

We live in the wine country in Southern California. I told my sons about this job and our oldest son is perfect for this job. lol

Sweet Fragances and Sweet Honey,

2009-04-19T21:34:00.000-07:00

While driving around in De Luz in the last few months I noticed that there are so
many boxes of bees around in many of the avocado groves. What's give. Oh well I should have known. I bought this Temecula Valley avocado honey for $7.99 at Tom's Farm. Now I know how they got those honey. Pretty smart indeed. All they do is put the boxes of bees there and hope that no one steal them and wow those honey clinging to the honeycomb and dripping .....

The bees can bring in lots of honey, local honey from the local avocado groves.

Avocado farmers used to have to rent the bees to pollinate their groves, now the bee
keepers are asking the property owners to put their boxes of bees on or near the
avocado groves when avocado trees are blooming profusely.

Talking about blooming, it is that time of year again for the heavenly smell in the
evening here in the Temecula Valley. Those gloriously, perfumery smell are the sweet scents of the blooming citrus blossoms on the trees from the groves around our ranch!!
I am glad that we still have the citrus groves around, I would really miss the chance of having the lovely fragrance in the air during spring time.

I know that citrus groves were blamed for harboring the glassy-winged sharpshooter which first appeared in California around the late 90s. The glassy-winged sharpshooter live in citrus groves and it spread the pierce disease that killed
2000 of acres of vines in the vineyards.

Without grape vines and the wine growers we would not have a wine industry but without the citrus groves, we would not have the sweet fragrance of the citrus blossom.

On the Net:
http://www.newser.com/article/d974tr003/california-grape-growers-see-progress-against-

disease-as-self-imposed-fees-fund-research.html

Pierce's Disease Control Program: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/pdcp

Top Of De Luz Hill.

2009-03-19T23:17:00.000-07:00

JUST LISTED:

A beautiful and a healthy 10 acres Avocado grove.

This property in De Luz is 7 minutes to town.

360 degree home pad on top of the grove. Water, Electricity, Propane Gas, Telephone and Internet Connection already on the property. Property is paved and gated. Owners has a well that you might be able to negotiate and share with.

Income producing and lovingly cared for by the owners.

(Owners live next door)

Opportunity knocks for you to own this property with NO HOA, no restriction to build your own home as you wish.

Temecula, CA 92590

Top of the hills property has 360 degree incredible paranomic views. Property is high above Grid Valley with views of San Luis Rey Downs golf course and located near I-15 and Highway 76

2008-12-04T15:44:00.000-08:00

Byers Road, Sun City, California I took this beautiful photo.
My client is looking for an investor to acquired this property. It is an MDR and ready for the development of a duplex or a fourplex. How about a senior housing?

Sun City is known for sunny spot for senior living here in Southern California.

This is a spectacular view from this professionally managed 'avocado grove' / estate home site on Monsarate Hill in Bonsal / Fallbrook.

It is a peaceful country living location but it is close to I-15 and highway 76.

It cant get any better than this.

Barona Vineyards & Estate Homes Right next to San Vicent Golf Resort.

Another great investment. CALL me to preview these properties.

(951)751-1796 Jieranai Maier

Barona Vineyads & Estates

2008-11-04T00:39:00.000-08:00

Barona Vineyads & Estates

Ramona Oaks Road, Ramona, CA 92065

I just listed a beautiful property in Ramona. It is in a great location with varying topography and utility. The property is located next to the San Vicente Inn & Golf Club & Resort which is a championship golf course designed by Ted Robinson. The facility has tennis courts, an Olympic size pool, Jacuzzi, jogging trails, and two equestrian centers and a restaurant as well as spa facilities and a fitness center. The north side of the property is surrounded with established and newer estate homes. The city of Ramona is called "the Valley of the Sun". It is San Diego County's fastest growing unincorporated region with picturesque views of the beautiful mountains and valleys.

The seller has a plan for vineyards and estate home sites located within the Ramona Valley AVA (American Viticulture Area). The Ramona Valley has been designated an American Viticulture Area. The density regulations allow one dwelling unit with a 4 acre min. The property is professionally Appraised at $3,850,000

The property owner is hoping to find investors to form a partnership with them so they can proceed to develop this property into a 100 vineyards and at least 10 estate homes. They already had the property surveyed and soil study for that purpose.

If you are interested to find out more information about this property please contact me.

Jieranai Maier
(951)75-1796
jericarmel@aol.com

Temecula West Hill / De Luz Real Estate News

2008-09-17T00:14:00.000-07:00

An increased presence in DeLuz by Tarbell, Realtors agent & associates has created an influx of buyer interest. My two new listings and our weekend open houses, and buyer tours, are producing greater buyer previews and offers on these estate properties as the numbers show.

A Tarbell agent from our office also placed the pending offer on one of the REO properties on
Via Tornado.

43900 Big Sky $399,900 Pending 9/5/08

26410 Via De Larga Vida $569,000 Pending 8/18/08

25175 Via Escondido $764,900 Pending 8/27/08

45215 Via Tornado $1,175,000 Pending 8/12/08

45160 Via Tornado $1,225,000 Pending 8/31/08

47355 Via Vaquero $755,044 SOLD 8/28/08

20 acres Vacant Land on Via Tornado Sold for $1,500,000 6/2008.

We are continuing our efforts every weekend.

Come by and visit us at our 2 open house on Saturday and Sunday.

28070 Via Santa Rosa, Temecula, $1,599,000 4.5 acres with small orchard.

45090 Via Tornado, Temecula $1,549,000 8.6 acres with avocado grove.

Sellers, to maximize your home previews, and marketing, list with Jieranai Maier at 951.751.1796.

Buyers, to arrange for a preview appointment, call June Parr at 951.760.2417.

10 Things Millionaires Won't Tell You

2008-09-04T22:11:00.000-07:00

10 Things Millionaires Won't Tell You
1. "You may think I'm rich, but I don't."

A million dollars may sound like a fortune to most people, and folks with that much cash can't complain — they're richer than 90 percent of U.S. households and earn $366,000 a year, on average, putting them in the top 1 percent of taxpayers. But the club isn't so exclusive anymore. Some 10 million households have a net worth above $1 million, excluding home equity, almost double the number in 2002. Moreover, a recent survey by Fidelity found just 8 percent of millionaires think they're "very" or "extremely" wealthy, while 19 percent don't feel rich at all. "They're worried about health care, retirement and how they'll sustain their lifestyle," says Gail Graham, a wealth-management executive at Fidelity.

Indeed, many millionaires still don't have enough for exclusive luxuries, like membership at an elite golf club, which can top $300,000 a year. While $1 million was a tidy sum three decades ago, you'd need $3.6 million for the same purchasing power today. And half of all millionaires have a net worth of $2.5 million or less, according to research firm TNS. So what does it take to feel truly rich? The magic number is $23 million, according to Fidelity.

2. "I shop at Wal-Mart..."

They may not buy the 99-cent paper towels, but millionaires know what it is to be frugal. About 80 percent say they spend with a middle-class mind-set, according to a 2007 survey of high-net-worth individuals, published by American Express and the Harrison Group. That means buying luxury items on sale, hunting for bargains — even clipping coupons.

Don Crane, a small-business owner in Santa Rosa, Calif., certainly sees the value of everyday saving. "We can afford just about anything," he says, adding that his net worth is over $1 million. But he and his wife both grew up on farms in the Midwest — where nothing was wasted — and his wife clips coupons to this day. In fact, most millionaires come from middle-class households, and roughly 70 percent have been wealthy for less than 15 years, according to the AmEx/Harrison survey. That said, there are plenty of millionaires who never check a price tag. "I've always wanted to live above my means because it inspired me to work harder," says Robert Kiyosaki, author of the 1997 best seller Rich Dad, Poor Dad. An entrepreneur worth millions, Kiyosaki says he doesn't even know what his house would go for today.

3. "...but I didn't get rich by skimping on lattes."

So how do you join the millionaires' club? You could buy stocks or real estate, play the slots in Vegas — or take the most common path: running your own business. That's how half of all millionaires made their money, according to the AmEx/Harrison survey. About a third had a professional practice or worked in the corporate world; only 3 percent inherited their wealth.

Regardless of how they built their nest egg, virtually all millionaires "make judicious use of debt," says Russ Alan Prince, coauthor of "The Middle-Class Millionaire." They'll take out loans to build their business, avoid high-interest credit card debt and leverage their home equity to finance purchases if their cash flow doesn't cut it. Nor is their wealth tied up in their homes. Home equity represents just 11 percent of millionaires' total assets, according to TNS. "People who are serious about building wealth always want to have a mortgage," says Jim Bell, president of Bell Investment Advisors. His home is probably worth $1.5 million, he adds, but he owes $900,000 on it. "I'm in no hurry to pay it off," he says. "It's one of the few tax deductions I get."

4. "I have a concierge for everything."

That hot restaurant may be booked for months — at least when Joe Nobody calls to make reservations. But many top eateries set aside tables for celebrities and A-list clientele, and that's where the personal concierge comes in. Working for retainers that range anywhere from $25 an hour to six figures a year, these modern-day butlers have the inside track on chic restaurants, spa reservations, even an early tee time at the golf club. And good concierges will scour the planet for whatever their clients want — whether it's holy water blessed personally by the Pope, rare Mexican tequila or artisanal sausages found only in northern Spain. "For some people, the cost doesn't matter," says Yamileth Delgado, who runs Marquise Concierge and who once found those sausages for a client — 40 pounds of chorizo that went for $1,000.

Concierge services now extend to medical attention as well. At the high end: For roughly $2,000 to $4,000 a month, clients can get 24-hour access to a primary-care physician who makes house calls and can facilitate admission to a hospital "without long waits in the emergency room," as one New York City service puts it.

5. "You don't get rich by being nice."

John D. Rockefeller threatened rivals with bankruptcy if they didn't sell out to his company, Standard Oil. Bill Gates was ruthless in building Microsoft into the world's largest software firm (remember Netscape?). Indeed, many millionaires privately admit they're "bastards in business," says Prince. "They aren't nice guys." Of course, the wealthy don't exactly look in the mirror and see Gordon Gekko either. Most millionaires share the values of their moderate-income parents, says Lewis Schiff, a private wealth consultant and Prince's coauthor: "Spending time with family really matters to them." Just 12 percent say that what they want most to be remembered for is their legacy in business, according to the AmEx/Harrison study.

Millionaires are also seemingly undaunted by failure. Crane, for example, now runs a successful company that screens tenants for landlords. But his first business venture, a real estate partnership, went bankrupt, costing him $20,000 — more than his house was worth at the time. "It was the most depressing time in my life, but it was the best lesson I ever learned," he says.

6. "Taxes are for little people."

Most millionaires do pay taxes. In fact, the top 1 percent of earners paid nearly 40 percent of federal income taxes in 2005 — a whopping $368 billion — according to the Internal Revenue Service. That said, the wealthy tend to derive a higher portion of their income from dividends and capital gains, which are taxed at lower rates than wages (15 percent for long-term capital gains versus 25 percent for middle-class wages). Also, high-income earners pay Social Security tax only on their first $97,500 of income.

But the big savings come from owning a business and deducting everything related to it. Landlords can also depreciate their commercial properties and expenses like mortgage interest. And that's without doing any creative accounting. Then there are the tax shelters, trusts and other mechanisms the superrich use to shield their wealth. An estimated 2 million Americans have unreported accounts offshore, and income from foreign tax shelters costs the U.S. $20 billion to $40 billion a year, according to the IRS. Indeed, "an increasing number of people want to establish an offshore fund," says Vernon Jacobs, a certified public accountant in Kansas who specializes in legal foreign accounts.

7. "I was a B student."

Mom was right when she said good grades were the key to success — just not necessarily a big bank account. According to the book "The Millionaire Mind," the median college grade point average for millionaires is 2.9, and the average SAT score is 1190 — hardly Harvard material. In fact, 59 percent of millionaires attended a state college or university, according to AmEx/Harrison.

When asked to list the keys to their success, millionaires rank hard work first, followed by education, determination and "treating others with respect." They also say that what they absorbed in class was less important than learning how to study and stay disciplined, says Jim Taylor, vice chairman of the Harrison Group. Granted, 48 percent of millionaires hold an advanced degree, and elite colleges do open doors to careers on Wall Street and in Silicon Valley (not to mention social connections that grease the wheels). But for every Ph.D. millionaire, there are many more who squeaked through school. Kiyosaki, for one, says the only way he survived college calculus was by "sitting near" the smart kids in class — "we cheated like crazy," he says.

8. "Like my Ferrari? It's a rental."

Why spend $3,000 on a Versace bag that'll be out of style as soon as next season when you can rent it for $175 a month? For that matter, why blow $250,000 on a Ferrari when for $25,000 it can be yours for a few weekends a year? Clubs that offer "fractional ownership" of jets have been popular for some time, and now the concept has extended to other high-end luxuries like exotic cars and fine art. How hot is the trend? More than 50 percent of millionaires say they plan to rent luxury goods within the next 12 months, according to a survey by Prince & Associates. Handbags topped the list, followed by cars, jewelry, watches and art. Online companies like Bag Borrow or Steal, for example, cater to customers who always want new designer accessories and jewelry, for prices starting at $15 a week.

For Suzanne Garner, a millionaire software engineer in Santa Clara, Calif., owning a $100,000 car didn't make financial sense (she drives a Mazda Miata). Instead, Garner pays up to $30,000 in annual membership fees to Club Sportiva, a fractional-ownership car club in San Francisco that lets her take out Ferraris, Lamborghinis and other exotic vehicles on weekends. "I'm all about the car," she says. And so are other people, it seems. While stopped at a light in a Ferrari recently, Garner received a marriage proposal from a guy in a pickup truck. (She declined the offer.)

9. "Turns out money can buy happiness."

It may not be comforting to folks who aren't minting cash, but the rich really are different. "There's no group in America that's happier than the wealthy," says Taylor, of the Harrison Group. Roughly 70 percent of millionaires say that money"created" more happiness for them,he notes. Higher income also correlates with higher ratings in life satisfaction, according to a new study by economists at the Wharton School of Business. But it's not necessarily the Bentley or Manolo Blahniks that lead to bliss. "It's the freedom that money buys," says Betsey Stevenson, coauthor of the Wharton study.

Concomitantly, rates of depression are lower among the wealthy, according to the Wharton study, and the rich tend to have better health than the rest of the population, says James Smith, senior labor economist at the Rand Corporation. (In fact, health and happiness are as closely correlated as wealth and happiness, Smith says.) The wealthy even seem to smile and laugh more often, according to the Wharton study, to say nothing of getting treated with more respect and eating better food. "People experience their day very differently when they have a lot of money," Stevenson says.

10. "You worry about the Joneses — I worry about keeping up with the Trumps."

Wealth may go a long way toward creating happiness, but the middle-class rich still can't afford the life of the billionaire next door — the guy who writes charity checks for $100,000 and retreats to his own private island. "What makes people happy isn't how much they're making," says Glenn Firebaugh, a sociologist at Pennsylvania State University. "It's how much they're making relative to their peers."

Indeed, for all their riches, some 40 percent of millionaires fear that their standard of living will decline in retirement and that their money will run out before they die, according to Fidelity. Of course, it may not help if their lifestyle is so lavish that they're barely squeaking by on $400,000 a year. "You can always be happier with more money," says Stevenson. "There's no satiation point." But that's the trouble with keeping up with the Trumps. "Millionaires are always looking up," says Schiff, "and think it's better up there

http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/105626/10-Things-Millionaires-Won%27t-Tell-You

Foreign visitors to U.S. hit record in summer

2007-11-23T22:46:00.000-08:00

There is a bright spot on the US's economy inspite of the doom and gloom in the other sector such as housing and construction business.

On Monday Nov 19, 2007, the U.S. Commerce Department said that a record number of foreigners visited the United States this summer. The visitors spent unprecedented amounts of money. As a matter of face, the 14.3 million visitors who came to the United States this summer spent a record $30.7 billion, this is 14 percent more than in summer 2006. Visitors' spending exceeded previous records in each of the three months from June to August.

International visitors have spent $78.4 billion in the United States during the first eight months of 2007, up 11 percent from the same period last year and on track to surpass the record set in 2006 of $107.9 billion, the department said.

This summer's tally showed a 16 percent rise in visitors from Western Europe, a 12 percent increase from the United Kingdom and an 8 percent gain from Eastern Europe.

Visits from Asia increased 6 percent in June, July and August with gains of 37 percent and 30 percent respectively for India and China, the Commerce Department said.

(Reporting by Doug Palmer; Editing by Cynthia Osterman - Reuters)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071120/us_nm/usa_visitors_record_dc

Discount travel.

2007-11-06T22:08:00.000-08:00

 
Great Travel Discount




Save Up To 70% On Your Hotel Stay

Save on airline flights & Purchase Tickets on Travelocity.com


Reserve a Rental Car on Travelocity.com

Reserve a Hotel Room On Travelocity.com

Plan and book your cruis and vacation

World Best Beaches

2007-07-10T04:44:00.000-07:00

The world's best beaches
By Paul EdwardsApril 24, 2005

The Sun-Herald

Best of the best: Phi Phi Leh, Thailand.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Beaches--Islands/Beaches-of-bliss/2005/02/14/1108229895514.html

Best Beaches

Myrtle Beach,

South Carolina

Miami, Florida

Cancun, Mexico

Kaanapali, Hawaii

Honolulu, Hawaii

San Diego, California

Boracay Island, Philippines

Key West, Florida

Sydney, Australia

Santa Barbara, California

http://travel.yahoo.com/beaches

The New 7 Wonders Of The World

2007-07-09T17:03:00.000-07:00

The Great Wall, China

Petra, Jordan

Christ Redeemer, Brazil

Machu Picchu, Peru

Chichén Itzá, Mexico

The Roman Colosseum, Italy

The Taj Mahal, India