Marlon Gamez
REALTOR ® in Orange County.
Years of connecting businesses and facilitating products to clients has taught him the
value of authenticity, of service, integrity, loyalty, the value of effective
communication, and to strive for immediate solution to challenges., the end
goal is to help his clients achieve their desired results by providing unique
service and the utmost value. His dream has always been that of becoming a
great Realtor, now pursuing his dream by helping others accomplish theirs. He is able to communicate fluently in English, Spanish, and partially Mandarin Chinese.
Married, and currently resides in Orange County with his family.
Member: National Association of Realtors
Member: California Association of Realtors
Member: Pacific West Association of Realtors
Military On The Move Certified
Varios sitios en California ofrecen comidas gratis debido al cierre de escuelas, para que los estudiantes tengan acceso a alimentos nutritivos
Un gran número de familias en California dependen de las escuelas a las que asisten sus hijos para que estos reciban al menos un alimento completo, pero con las escuelas cerradas a causa del coronavirus, este beneficio también ha sido suspendido.
Afortunadamente, hay sitios escolares con comidas gratuitas para niños en todo el estado. El Consejo de Productos Lácteos de California, en colaboración con la Junta de Procesadores de Leche de California y el Senador Estatal de California Dr. Richard Pan, creó un sitio web donde las familias pueden encontrar una lista de lugares con comidas gratuitas disponibles, proporcionadas a través del servicio de comidas escolares.
“Durante estos tiempos difíciles, millones de niños y sus familias que viven en comunidades de California necesitarán apoyo y acceso a alimentos nutritivos”, comentó Shannan Young, Directora del Programa de Acceso a Alimentos de Dairy Council of California.
La página informativa Sitios de Comidas Escolares que Ofrecen Comidas Gratis para Niños en Todo California, está destinada a servir como un recurso de referencia para encontrar ubicaciones actualizadas de servicios de alimentos en todo California. Considerado un servicio esencial, los servicios de nutrición escolar permanecerán abiertos incluso con órdenes de no salir y permanecer en casa.
“Los niños son el corazón de las familias y nuestra población más vulnerable”, dijo Steve James, Director Ejecutivo de la Junta de Procesadores de Leche de California. “Al transmitir la información sobre la disponibilidad de comidas escolares gratuitas y nutritivas en todo California, podemos mitigar la incertidumbre que las familias pueden sentir y ayudar a garantizar que ningún niño se quede sin ser alimentado”.
“Asegurar que todos los niños tengan acceso a comida es una alta prioridad”, expresó el Dr. Richard Pan, Senador del Estado representando el área de Sacramento. “Ningún niño debe de irse a dormir con hambre. A través de la colaboración con socios comprometidos con mejorar la salud de los niños y las comunidades de California, podemos trabajar para dar a los niños acceso a alimentos nutritivos durante este tiempo desafiante”. EC
Some Highlights: Believe it or not, there are lots of things you can do to prep your house for a sale without even going to the store. Your real estate plans don’t have to be completely on hold even while we’ve hit the pause button on other parts of daily life. Tackling small projects from cleaning the corners you may normally skip to tidying up your yard are easy and necessary wins if you’re thinking of listing your house and making a move.
Every day that passes, people have a need to buy and sell homes. That doesn’t stop during the current pandemic. If you’ve had a major life change recently, whether with your job or your family situation, you may be in a position where you need to sell your home – and fast. While you probably feel like timing with the current pandemic isn’t on your side, making a move is still possible. Rest assured, with technology at your side and fewer sellers on the market in most areas, you can list your house and make it happen safely and effectively, especially when following the current COVID-19 guidelines set forth by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
You may have a new baby, a new employment situation, a parent who moved in with you, you just built a home that’s finally ready to move into, or some other major part of your life that has changed in recent weeks. Buyers have those needs too, so rest assured that someone is likely looking for a home just like yours.
According to the NAR Flash Survey: Economic Pulse taken April 5 – 6, real estate agents indicate, not surprisingly, that there’s a noticeable decline in current homebuyer interest. That said, 10% of agents said in the same survey that they saw no change or even an increase in buyer activity. So, while buyer interest is low compared to normal spring markets, there are still buyers in the market. Don’t forget, you only need one buyer – the right one for your home.
Here’s the other thing – people are spending a lot of time on the Internet right now, given the stay-at-home orders implemented across the country. Buyers are actively looking at homes for sale online. Some of them are reaching out to real estate professionals for virtual tours and getting ready to make offers too. Homes are being sold in many markets.
There Is Less Competition Right Now
The same survey indicates that 56% of NAR members said sellers are removing their homes from the market right now. This can definitely work in your favor. If other sellers are removing their listings, your home has a better chance of rising to the top of a buyer’s search list and being seen. Keep in mind, listings will pick up again soon, as 57% of the respondents note that sellers are only planning to delay the process by a couple of months. If you need to sell right now, don’t wait for the competition to get back into the market again.
This year, delayed listings from the typically busy spring season will push into the summer months, so more competition will be coming to the market as the pandemic passes. Getting ahead of that wave now might be your biggest opportunity.
Your Trusted Real Estate Advisor Can Help
Real estate agents are working hard every single day under untraditional circumstances, utilizing technology to help both buyers and sellers who need to continue with their plans. We’re using virtual tours to show homes currently on the market, staying connected with the buyers and sellers through video chats, and leveraging resources to complete transactions electronically. We’re making sure the families we support remain safe and can keep their real estate needs on track, especially as life is changing so rapidly.
Bottom Line
Homes are still being bought and sold in the midst of this pandemic. If you need to sell your house and would like to know the current status in your local market, contact a local real estate professional to create a safe and effective plan that works for you and your family.
During times of distress, homeowners should be aware of a common fraud known as “foreclosure rescue fraud.”
In this scheme, someone may offer false promises of being able to save your home from foreclosure or guarantee a loan modification with a reduced mortgage payment. Common elements of this fraud include the fraudster:
Review information from the CDC to keep you and your family safe
Requiring you to sign the title to your home to them.
Asking you to sign unfamiliar documents and/or share your personal information.
Charging you rent to stay in your home and /or potentially promising you that you can purchase your home back when your financial situation improves.
Loan modification scams may operate similarly as fraudsters collect an upfront fee and promise to work with your loan servicer to obtain a modification with a reduced payment on your behalf.
If you have been contacted by someone other than your loan servicer (the company listed on your mortgage statement) who is offering to provide mortgage assistance, do not provide your information.
To help avoid fraud:
Spot imposters. Scammers can make any name or number appear from anywhere in the world either via phone or internet.
Be suspicious. If someone has contacted you asking for personal or sensitive information, do your homework to verify the validity of the request by researching the person or the company.
If you have been contacted by someone claiming to represent Freddie Mac, report it here. Freddie Mac will never reach out to offer a refinancing opportunity or new loan over the phone.
If Freddie Mac owns your mortgage and you are a homeowner that has been affected directly or indirectly by COVID-19, mortgage relief options are available.
El Gobernador Newsom anuncia beneficios adicionales de desempleo para los trabajadores afectados por COVID-19, a medida que las reclamaciones de desempleo alcanzan niveles récord
El gobernador Gavin Newsom anunció hoy que a partir de este domingo, los trabajadores de California que reciben beneficios por desempleo comenzarán a recibir 600 dólares adicionales además de su monto semanal como parte de la nueva Compensación Adicional Pandémica (PAC) iniciada por la Ley CARES. Esto se produce cuando un número récord de reclamos de desempleo se presentan semanalmente en el estado.
Este es un beneficio importante que ayudará a los californianos y a pequeñas empresas, especialmente a aquellos que luchan económicamente como resultado de la crisis del COVID-19.
«Muchos californianos sienten los efectos de esta pandemia y este beneficio adicional es muy importante para nuestros trabajadores, por lo que han necesitado recursos durante este momento difícil», dijo el gobernador Newsom.
En las últimas cuatro semanas, California ha procesado alrededor de 2,3 millones de reclamos de seguro de desempleo, que es más que el número total de reclamos presentados en 2019. Solo para la semana que finaliza el sábado 4 de abril de 2020, el Departamento de Desarrollo de Empleo de California (EDD) procesó 925.450 reclamaciones, lo que representa un aumento de 2.418% con respecto a la misma semana del año pasado.
Además, el EDD pagó un total de casi 684,3 millones de dólares en beneficios de desempleo a los californianos necesitados en las últimas cuatro semanas, apoyando a las familias y sus economías locales.
Para obtener más información sobre cómo solicitar los beneficios del seguro de desempleo y lo que los reclamantes deben saber sobre estos nuevos pagos adicionales de 600 dólares, visite el sitio web de EDD.
«Quiero agradecer a nuestros socios federales, así como a todos en nuestra Agencia Laboral y al personal del Departamento de Desarrollo del Empleo, que trabajan las 24 horas para garantizar que los trabajadores de California tengan los recursos que necesitan para superar este momento difícil». añadió el gobernador Newsom.
Every which way you turn, everyone in every industry has COVID-19 on the brain – and rightfully so. States, cities, and companies are issuing statements about how they are handling everyday needs during the Coronavirus outbreak.
As a proud member of the real estate industry, First Team is here to help homeowners, real estate agents, and those in the industry stay informed about the best way to navigate these unprecedented times. Real estate has been deemed an essential business by the state of California, and below are the tools necessary to overcome the obstacles that COVID-19 may have put in your path.
We’ll be updating this list, so continue to check back. And if you have information to share with the community, email us at marketing@firstteam.com.
Mortgage Relief Available for Homeowners:
Homeowners who have a mortgage backed by the federal government have a variety of relief available in the event of financial hardship.
Borrowers of “federally-backed mortgage loans” experiencing financial hardship due, directly or indirectly, to the COVID-19 emergency can request a loan forbearance on their payments (regardless of loan status and without penalties, fees, or interest) for at least 180 days (with a potential additional 180-day extension).
Wondering if your home loan is owned by federal government agency Freddie Mac? Use this tool to find out: ww3.freddiemac.com/loanlookup
Multi-family borrowers with a loan that was current as of February 1, 2020, may request a similar forbearance for up to 30 days, with two additional 30-day extensions.
During the forbearance period, no fees, penalties or interest may accrue on the borrower’s account, beyond the amounts scheduled or calculated as if the borrower made all contractual payments on time and in full under the terms of the mortgage contract. Application for the forbearance is made by submitting a request to the borrower’s servicer and affirming financial hardship due to COVID-19.
If you are facing difficulties in making your payments but your loan is not federally backed, call your mortgage servicer to find out if they are providing any aid at this time. If you are unsure of who to call, look at the last statement you received and call the customer service number listed on that document.
Agent, Contractor, and Other Small Business Resources:
There are forgivable SBA loans available for independent contractors, and unemployment insurance that will now be extended to independent contractors. Important information and updates are available from the state and California Association of REALTORS for how these resources affect real estate agents and others in the industry specifically.
CAR has created a COVID-19 disclosure that is available for anyone involved in a home purchase or sale. The disclosure protects the best interests of all parties under the new operating procedures during the epidemic. First Team Real Estate agents have a company version to provide to buyers and sellers as well.
The federal government is providing significant relief for small businesses – including real estate agents – suffering from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about eligibility specifically as a real estate agent: www.carcovidupdates.org/relief-faq-for-agents.
For more information on Disaster Loan Assistance from SBA, for businesses, private non-profits, homeowners, and renters visit covid19relief.sba.gov.
Independent Contractors will be able to apply for Unemployment the EDD is working on implementation procedures. Check here for the California Unemployment Insurance Program for general information about the program: edd.ca.gov/Unemployment
For more resources on buying and selling your home during the COVID-19 epidemic in California, reach out to a local First Team Real Estate agent.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Grace KeisterGrace Keister is the Digital Engagement Strategist and website content manager for First Team Real Estate. Graduating from the University of California, Irvine with a degree in English and Sociology, Grace is a native Southern Californian. In her 6 years with the company, her role has grown from blog creation to social media management, digital agent support, and more.
Several counties in Washington state have extended the deadline to pay property tax, including King County, where Seattle is located.
“Due to the financial hardships caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, King County…has extended the first-half 2020 property tax deadline to June 1,” according to a statement released by Dow Constantine, King County Executive. Taxes were originally due on April 30.
Florida has also extended its deadline for property tax payments. Levies are now due April 15 instead of March 31 in all counties, the state’s Department of Revenue announced last week.
Some counties are waiving fees and other penalties for late payments.
Take San Luis Obispo County in California.Taxes are due April 10, but homeowners “can request a waiver from property tax late charges incurred due to Covid-19 hardships,” Jim Hamilton, the Auditor-Controller-Treasurer-Tax Collector for San Luis Obispo County, said in a statement.
Municipalities in California, like Fresno, are also considering waivers.
New York City is offering relief for struggling homeowners, as well.
The city’s new initiative, the Property Tax and Interest Deferral program, allows homeowners to defer or reduce property taxes because of “extenuating circumstances.” To qualify, tax payers must have a federal adjusted gross income of $58,399 or less, and own a condominium or a one- to three-unit tax class 1 residential property.
All of a sudden, Houseparty is everywhere. The video-chatting app, which makes it easy for as many as eight people to share a virtual hang, has been around since 2016, but for obvious reasons, it has surged in popularity this month: Today, Houseparty is the iOS Store’s fifth most downloaded free app in the United States. (It has already hit #1 in the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain.) If you don’t have it already, chances are good that someone you know will invite you to join it soon.
So what’s the appeal of Houseparty, and what are the potential downsides? As its name suggests, the app is basically a virtual version of a massive get-together. If your friends are “in the house,” you can chat them up one on one—or you can gather a group in a room to talk or play games, either locking that room’s door or leaving it open for new people to walk in and join you. Here is what you need to know.
1. Instant video chat with friends
The benefit: Houseparty draws on your personal contact lists (from your phone as well as from Facebook and Snapchat) to help you create a network of friends on the app. The app then tells you who is using it and who has used it recently. If one of your friends is on at the same time as you, hit the “join” button next to their name to be connected to them right away. The drawback: Because friends can start conversations without any notice, make sure you’re ready to be seen when you’re using the app: You could be zapped into a conversation at any time. If you have a lot of contacts, you may want to be selective about which ones you put on your friend list; you could limit it, for example, to people you really wouldn’t mind seeing anytime. (Also, allowing any app to access your contacts raises privacy concerns—but Forbes’s cybersecurity reporter finds no major red flags, and offers some tips on how to minimize your risk.)
2. Spontaneous group hangouts
The benefit: Houseparty allows groups of up to eight people to chat at once. But compared with other apps like Zoom, it has a casual, spur-of-the-moment vibe. You don’t need to plan anything in advance or send anyone an invitation; you can instantly join any open group that contains at least one person you’re friends with. That makes it a good way to expand your social circle, like going to a real-life party with one friend you know. The drawback: You may not want people you don’t know butting into your chat time with friends. To control that, you can use the lock button at the bottom of the screen to close the group off. And if your kids are using the app—or if you’re a kid yourself—be mindful of the stranger danger that can come with meeting a bunch of new folks online.
3. Notifications when friends are on
The benefit: If a friend you want to talk to isn’t using the app at the moment, you can hit the hand-wave icon next to their name to let them know you’re around; they’ll get a notification on their phone and have the option to join you or not. The app also sends you notifications by itself to let you know when contacts of yours have joined the app or when friends of yours are using it. The drawback: If you have a lot of friends and/or contacts, you’ll be getting a lot of notifications about them. To manage this, hit the smiley-face icon on the upper left of the main screen. That will give you the option to turn off notifications completely or to mute them for individual friends. And if you’re not necessarily in the mood to chat but just want to see who’s around, you can use the app without anyone knowing by pressing the app’s icon on your phone a little longer than usual and hitting the “Sneak Into the House” option.
4. Games with friends
The benefit: One of the Houseparty features that users enjoy most is the availability of simple games to play during chat sessions. When you click on the dice on the upper right if your screen, you there are four options: a trivia challenge and games that are essentially versions of Pictionary, Heads Up! and Apples to Apples. (The Pictionary one is the most fun.) If you’re looking to pass a little time with your buddies, these can be a major plus. The drawback: The games themselves are not as well developed as they could be; after a few rounds, you’ll be getting an annoyingly large number of repeat questions and clues. Given the app’s new popularity, we hope that its developers will expand on this aspect of the experience soon, since it is one of the app’s major draws. (In the Heads Up! game, at least, you can add fresh categories for 99 cents a pop.)
5. Easy recording
The benefit: If someone you want to chat with doesn’t happen to be around, Houseparty makes it simple to record and send them a brief video message—and get a notification when they read it. Also, the app makes it easy to record your chat sessions by hitting the ellipsis on the bottom left of the screen. The drawback: Houseparty doesn’t tell you if someone else is recording your conversation, so be careful if you’re chatting with someone you don’t trust—which is good advice under any circumstances, really.
To take full advantage of Houseparty, you’ll need to use a phone or tablet. A desktop version exists, but it lacks most of the features that make the app worthwhile.
ORANGE COUNTY TRENDS 