This Week with Wendy

Environmental Stewardship Starts at Home with Marcus Brener

What can homeowners do to help protect their corner of the world?

For most of us, our day-to-day decisions affect our immediate environment, but Marcus Brener has made a career out of making physical spaces better. 

Marcus is ​​the director of Renewable & Energy Efficiency Services at Energy Experts International and has a fascinating career spanning two countries. He was born and raised in Calgary, Canada, where he started his professional career in the oil and gas industry — but then love called.

He says he was fortunate to work in many areas of the industry in Canada - until he chose to move to California for love! He is a devoted husband and father to two remarkable young women. These women also impacted his career trajectory. 

At the end of 2007, he broke away from the oil and gas world. After a lot of reflection, he said he decided that it was important to make a difference by making the planet better for his little daughters.

By 2009, he gained some great education in the renewable and energy efficiency world and started a consulting business. In 2014, Marcus approached the president of Energy Experts International with an idea. He’s been there ever since. 

Marcus shares with Wendy his ideas on how homeowners can save on energy costs, ways to achieve energy efficiency and what to expect when you purchase an electric vehicle. 

For more on Marcus' work, go to Energy Experts International. 

Doing Good as an Investor with Roy Allen

Is there more to investing than simply making a good return?

Certainly, Orange County real estate has proven to be a sure bet, and with it have come thousands and thousands of homeowners who have chosen to parlay their gains as investors in companies and other institutions. 

But what if these investors could translate their investments into social good? That's the mission of Wendy Ross' guest, Roy Allen. 

Roy is a distinguished economist who advises family offices and institutional investors with a particular focus on ESG (environmental, social and governance) and mission-based investing.

After earning his degree in Economics from the University of Arizona, this overachiever jaunted off to Europe to play professional basketball and get his master's degree from the London School of Economics.

In this wide-ranging interview, Wendy talks with Roy about the different financial models of real estate investing, how and why Orange County is different than other parts of California and the United States, and his views on housing and homelessness as an ESG investor. 

Make Your Bedroom Your Favorite Room Again with Tiffany Yelverton

Is your home a pleasure center?

No doubt, we live in a hot real estate market. Tiffany Yelverton wants to make sure your bedroom is just as exciting. 

Tiffany is the founder and Chief Sexinista of Entice Me Soirees and Sexy Survivors, based in Long Beach, California. She is known as The Sex Toys Scientist and Orgasm Guru to many in the medical field. 

Her mission is to facilitate provocative conversations about sex, self-love, confidence, and relationships to close the pleasure gap. Tiffany educates and entices people to have more pleasurable, fulfilling and healthy sex lives. As a master sex coach, she facilitates workshops, luxury retreats, private Sexy Soirées and consultations. 

Tiffany has helped men and women connect with themselves, at their sexual core, to feel sexier in and out of the bedroom. Learn more at Entice Me and Sexy Survivors.

An Experienced Take on Interest Rates with Dennis Hensling

What the he*$! is going on with interest rates?

When interest rates rise — and other things impact the purchasing power of potential homebuyers — you need someone who's been there, done that to see you through. 

That's why Wendy Ross engaged Dennis Hensling for this episode about mortgages. He is a full-service mortgage banker/broker with over 29 years of experience serving 14 states, offering the most comprehensive array of products in the marketplace.

He discusses with Wendy how he provides clients with the right solutions to close transactions at competitive rates and breaks down what we need to know about the impact of rising interest rates on home buying and selling. 

Learn more about Dennis and his company, United American Mortgage Company, here. 

Residential Construction Legal Ins and Outs with Mahyar Ghassemian

But do I really need a contract?

That's one of the evergreen questions seemingly every homeowner asks when embarking on construction - a question that far too many contractors even ask! 

Wendy Ross has seen it all from her perspective and dishes on residential construction with Mahyar Ghassemian in this episode.

Mahyar is the founder and managing attorney of Ghassemian Law Group, a boutique law firm that focuses on construction and business law. She also has a masters’ degree in physics and spent a year as a faculty member at California State University, Long Beach, where she taught physics and electronics laboratory courses before moving into the corporate world. Her technical expertise is the reason why she focuses on construction law.  

Learn more about Mahyar and Ghassemian Law Group here. 

Residential Real Estate: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly with Anthony W. Burton

Is the devil really in the details when it comes to residential real estate?

Nothing can ruin a dream home faster than residential legal disputes.

As Wendy Ross' guest Anthony W. Burton shares in this episode, California's thorny and overlapping web of state statutes, local regulations, zoning ordinances, homestead laws, tax codes, lease and rental agreement laws, eviction laws. and other rules and regulations — we did say thorny and overlapping, didn't we? — make it untenable to engage in real estate transactions without the advice of a competent attorney. 

That's why Wendy counts on Tony. Together, they dive into residential purchase agreements and "the good, the bad and the ugly" surrounding these issues. 

Learn more about our guest and his law firm, AWB Law, P.C., here.  

Creating a Home Gym with Hannes Sheen

If health is the first wealth, then how can our homes support our wellness?

During the pandemic lockdown, fitness moved from crowded gyms to spare bedrooms — and experts say we may never go back. 

But what happens when homes are suddenly called to serve multiple purposes, as we've experienced since March 2020? We adapt, of course. 

Few people have had to adapt more than inventor and natural bodybuilding champion Hannes Sheen. 

This renaissance man not only invented leather technologies, a type of adaptation born of innovation, he's also had to adapt to life-threatening illness, including two emergency brain surgeries, rebuilding his mind and body one dedicated decision at a time. 

During this interview with Wendy, Hannes lends practical and inspiration information about physical fitness and how to build a home gym, regardless of the space available. 

 

 

Organize Your Home as a Sanctuary with Dr. Regina Lark

Do You Live in Chronic Disorganization?

A home should be a place for peace. Yet many homeowners cite their home as a source of stress because of disorganization, clutter or even hoarding. And when it comes time to move, good organization can create a sanctuary that enables homeowners to feel rested and recharged - especially important for seniors. 

Few experts in America know this better than Dr. Regina Lark.

In 2008, Dr. Lark founded A Clear Path: Professional Organizing and Productivity. As a Certified Professional Organizer CPO®, Regina is a specialist in boomer and senior move management, residential organizing, and life transitions. With an additional Certification in Chronic Disorganization, she works with clients who are challenged by ADHD, hoarding, procrastination, and time management.

Learn more about Dr. Lark's work and find additional resources at A Clear Path. 

Busting the Housing Crash Myth with Rick Sharga

Are We Heading toward a Housing Crash? 

We are a nation still scarred by the Great Recession, and nowhere is the memory of losses more evident than in the housing market. So when the pandemic threw our economy into an event-related tailspin, talk turned to whether we would enter another boom-and-bust residential real estate cycle. 

Short answer: We're not.

And for the longer answer, host Wendy Ross sat down with Rick Sharga to explore the potential for a massive wave of foreclosures and evictions and analyze why this pandemic housing market is different than the recession. 

Rick is one of the country’s most frequently quoted sources on real estate, mortgage and foreclosure trends. He serves as the executive vice president of RealtyTrac, a real estate information company and an online marketplace for foreclosed and defaulted properties in the United States. Every month, RealtyTrac publishes a U.S. Foreclosure Market Report closely watched by economists, real estate industry professionals and other market observers. 

Learn more at realtytrac.com.

Serving Orange County’s Veteran Community with Antoinette Balta and Nick Saifan

How Can We Give OC Heroes the Home They Deserve? 

We all want to give returning military veterans and their families the homecoming they deserve but transitioning to civilian life can be difficult for many, especially in Orange County. 

That's why Wendy Ross and Veracity Real Estate Co. support local veteran-serving organizations and affiliated businesses. In this episode, Antoinette Balta and Nick Saifan discuss veteran housing and veterans issues in Southern California.

Antoinette is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Veterans Legal Institute. She is a former Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellow, 2018 Presidential Leadership Scholar, and spent 6 years in the California State Guard. 

Nick Saifan is the founder and chairman of Vendaval Corp. and spent 24 years in the military - both U.S. Navy and the U.S. Army. He retired from the Army in 2008 as a Captain after serving his country with distinction, He served in various conflicts such as Iraq and is recognized for his service to his country. 

Learn more about these issues by visiting Veterans Legal Institute and Vendaval.