Pushing Dirt

The Appeal of Manufactured Homes in Pacific Real Estate with Michelle Bolotin

“​​There is a sense of freedom. It's like a movie set: you can build it up and take it down,” says Michelle Bolotin, a real estate agent specializing in manufactured homes. Born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, Michelle eventually left to live in New York and travel the world. After returning to Los Angeles, Michelle gained a new appreciation for the California lifestyle, specifically within the world of manufactured homes.

To Michelle, manufactured homes are works of art, attracting an exciting cross-section of people from bohemian types to young couples to people in their 90s. Although there has been a stigma against these types of homes, Michelle has noticed that times are changing. With a desire to live in nature and enjoy a more accessible lifestyle, manufactured homes have become an attractive option for people who want to live well in Los Angeles at more affordable prices.

Tune into this week’s episode of Pushing Dirt for a conversation with Camilla and Michelle about the appeal of manufactured homes. Learn more about the people attracted to these communities, the freedom this type of living provides, and how everyone is looking for a place to belong.

 

Quotes

• “In LA, people are just often in clumps of age. And out in the desert, you really see a cross-section of people who are incredibly young or just wanted to have a bachelor pad or people who are starting a family. And then you see people who are in their 90s, but basically, athletes. So, you see a bunch of people, but most of all, you see people who are really interested in a certain lifestyle.” (07:25-07:58)

• “You don't have to pay real estate property taxes, and you don't have to pay homeowners association dues, but you pay rent, which is protected under rent control. So, it's just a different idea.” (10:46-10:59)

• “It does attract a real bohemian type, but also people, young couples, that really never thought they could afford it. They thought they'd have to live 20 miles outside of Los Angeles in order to live here.” (31:23-31:36)

• “Everybody's sort of looking for their village where they belong, but they also want to be in a big city. And the beauty of LA is that it doesn't have a city center. It just has many. And it's true for any sort of metropolitan city in the world.” (33:11-33:29)

• “​​There is a sense of freedom. It's like a movie set, you know, you can build it up and take it down.” (36:36-36:42)

• “So many professionals in LA do it. They live in these because things are taken care of, so they can work. But at the same time, they live in a great place, and they can be connected to people or they cannot.” (55:10-55:23)

Connect with Michelle Bolotin:

Website: http://www.michellebolotin.com/

IG: @michellebolotin

 

Connect with Host Camilla Rantsen

IG: @camillarantsen

LinkedIn: Camilla Outzen Rantsen

Facebook: Camilla Outzen Rantsen 

TikTok: @camillarantsen

Twitter @camillarantsen

 

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

The Joys of Boutique Living with Angel Tena Redondo

“If you work hard, you’re going to get results,” says Angel Redondo Tena, hotel developer from Madrid, on what he loves about the work culture in the United States. Angel came to the US ten years ago to work in hotel development. Throughout the past five years, Angel has been working on an exciting new project he refers to as “Boutique Living,” a modernized version of an extended stay hotel that enhances the guest experience through the use of technology. Jurny, the app that accompanies Angel’s vision, enables guests to control every aspect of their stay, from booking and checking in to accessing the wifi and thermostat.

Angel is passionate about travel and has fond memories of traveling as a child all throughout Europe. He believes hotels should provide a warm experience where people can immediately feel at home and not be bogged down after hours of travel by outdated systems like check-in lines and easy-to-lose key cards. Jurny makes finding a beautiful, all-inclusive place to stay as easy as booking an Uber. In addition to creating a better guest experience with a plug-and-play model, Jurny provides a greener, more sustainable alternative for hotel owners who are struggling to keep up with costs of managing and staffing a whole hotel when occupancy fluctuates. Angel explains how Jurny was developed, his first experience testing the app himself, and how it differs from the traditional extended stay hotel model. 

Tune in to this week’s episode of Pushing Dirt for a conversation with Angel Redondo Tena about Jurny, a contactless, fully-automated, green way of exploring the world. Hear more about how Angel’s love of travel led him to a role in hospitality, how his work has helped hotel owners retain their properties during the pandemic, and how millennial digital nomad culture led to his development of boutique-style, extended stay hotels.

 

Quotes

• “Millenials are the digital nomad. They embrace technology, and they don’t want to live in the same place. They are working from wherever they are, so they are also spending a lot of money on travel. They are demanding this product, so it’s like a perfect storm.” (11:44-12:24)

• “We customize the interior design of the rooms, the look and vibe, based on the property, the neighborhood, and the demographic that it’s going to go into.” (21:30-21:44)

• “We approach developers and hotel owners, and we offer our fully automated and contactless solution for them at no cost. So, the upgrade of the hotel will be at no cost and then we will manage as an operator the hotel for them.” (25:56-26:15)

• “The problem with hotels is you always need the same amount of people whether you have really high occupancy or low occupancy. With this, it doesn’t matter if you are fully occupied. The costs are variable. There are no fixed costs.” (30:00-30:15)

• “I think somebody should do a cool budget hotel because everybody likes nice things and to be warm, and when you are on the road, those things matter.” 

 

Connect with Angel Tena Redondo

LinkedIn: Angel Tena Redondo

IG: @urjurny

 

Connect with Host Camilla Rantsen

IG: @camillarantsen

LinkedIn: Camilla Outzen Rantsen

Facebook: Camilla Outzen Rantsen 

TikTok: @camillarantsen

Twitter @camillarantsen

 

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Clearing and Cleansing Haunted Homes with Lucinda Clare

“You often have to work out what is coming from the house and what is coming from the people that are living in it,” says Lucinda Clare, actress, writer, and psychic. Coming from a long line of mediums and spiritualists, Lucinda first discovered her psychic abilities when she was eight years old. Although predominantly an actress and writer, Lucinda uses her otherworldly talents to help homeowners clear the ghostly presences disturbing their homes. 

To Lucinda, ghosts were not beings she was raised to fear. She recalls that her relatives even knew a ghost woman inside their castle that was so lovely, they would raise their glasses to her. It wasn’t until she moved to Hollywood that Lucinda realized many people view ghosts as evil entities. However, she recognizes that the supernatural strongly influences our spaces and that not all of it is positive. Lucinda now fulfills a service that many people need but may not advertise: de-ghosting homes. 

Tune into this week’s episode of Pushing Dirt for a conversation with Camilla and Lucinda about real estate and the paranormal. Learn more about Los Angeles’ ghostly energy, Lucinda’s ability to cleanse haunted homes, and how not all ghosts are meant to be feared.

 

Quotes

• “I was actually brought up to not be afraid of ghosts; they were seen as friendly things. And then you get to Hollywood, or you see all those movies and you go, oh, so ghosts are bad things. And then you go into houses and feel the presence of somebody who's died there.” (5:06-5:24)

• “When you go into a house to help, if someone can't sell it or they’re thinking of buying it but it feels kind of creepy or one of these sorts of issues, you often have to work out what is coming from the house and what is coming from the people that are living in it.” (10:07-10:24)

• “There's this energy, like the people around you, like the air is thick with it and maybe I'm just out there, but you can't deny that in LA there is like a heartache mixed with a love story. It's just a strange city.” (25:55-26:18)

• “I think there's just such extra energy, even if it’s not a ghost. There's just energy that, sometimes I'm like, am I haunting myself?” (30:14-30:23)

• “We've relegated living people to ghosts and zombies. That is a crime in itself.” (34:50-34:58)

 

Connect with Lucinda Clare

IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0042161/

Purchase Lucinda’s Book: https://www.amazon.com/English-Psychic-Hollywood-Lucinda-Clare-ebook/dp/B0055CS5F0

Tidal: ​​https://tidal.com/browse/artist/23902542

 

Connect with Host Camilla Rantsen

IG: @camillarantsen

LinkedIn: Camilla Outzen Rantsen

Facebook: Camilla Outzen Rantsen 

TikTok: @camillarantsen

Twitter @camillarantsen

 

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Balancing Beauty and Livability with Carla Toutz

“I really believe that when you’re in your home, it should feel like you’re on a vacation,” says Carla Toutz, interior designer and founder of CT Home. Carla first discovered her love of interior design when she was eight years old, and her mom would constantly find her reorganizing the furniture in her bedroom. Carla explains that doing this allowed her to gain a sense of control over her space and to create a more comfortable and calming environment for herself.

To Carla, one of the most common misconceptions about interior design is that it is only accessible to people with a large amount of money to spend. Instead, Carla explains that you can always find ways to create magic in a space, even if it’s on a budget! While Carla certainly admires the luxurious spaces featured in publications like Architectural Digest, her main goal as an interior designer is to find the perfect balance between beauty and livability for her clients. A space should elevate your life, but it should also facilitate your day-to-day needs.

Tune into this week’s episode of Pushing Dirt for a conversation with Carla about creating chemistry in your indoor space. Learn more about Carla’s personal style, how she collaborates with her clients to bring their unique visions to life, and how to create the perfect coffee table moment!

 

Quotes

• “My love for interior decorating started when I was 8 years old. I honestly think it was due to a chaotic household that I grew up in. My mom said she would come home, and I would have rearranged my furniture at midnight….It was sort of giving me a sense of control, and it gave me a sense of how I could make where I had to be at the time more aesthetically pleasing to calm myself as a child.” (2:38-3:14)

• “I really believe that when you’re in your home, it should feel like you’re on a vacation.” (4:12-4:16)

• “I like things to be functional….It should look really beautiful, and it should elevate how you feel about your life, but it should also work with your life.” (11:00-11:15)

 

Connect with Carla Toutz

• Website: www.cthomela.com

• IG: @ct_home_la

 

Connect with Host Camilla Rantsen

• IG: @camillarantsen

• LinkedIn: Camilla Outzen Rantsen

• Facebook: Camilla Outzen Rantsen 

• TikTok: @camillarantsen

• Twitter @camillarantsen

 

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

The Impact of COVID on Real Estate with Lilian Pfaff

"We are interested in architecture homes, contemporary, but especially historical homes," says Lilian Pfaff, author, architecture historian and partner at Suprstructur. After studying art history in Hamburg, Lilian quickly became fascinated with the world of architecture. Lilian eventually left Germany for Los Angeles, where she followed her passion for California modernism and historic preservation.

As a realtor and an academic, Lilian has an informed perspective on COVID’s effects on the real estate market. Since many people could not travel this year and were forced to slow down, there has been a deeper focus on the home. With an increase in first-time home buyers, remote workers leaving cities and at-home renovations, Lilian and Camilla recognize that we are learning to "hold on for a minute" and appreciate the life our houses provide.

Tune into this week's episode of Pushing Dirt for a conversation on COVID and real estate, Los Angeles housing politics and the history of female architects. Through Lilian's contextualization of California architecture, discover the true value of real estate today.

 

Quotes

• “We are interested in architecture homes, contemporary, but especially historical homes, and to teach the students from the beginning something about the value of history and the value of historical architecture, which can inform their contemporary practice.” (13:10-13:30)

• “I think COVID taught us all to see what we have, what values we have, to hold on for a minute, to enjoy nature, the family time, the walks around the neighborhood, and just not run around like crazy and travel and be everywhere and nowhere. So I think we are forced to be by ourselves at home.” (13:47-14:16)

• “Europeans are always like, ‘It's an ugly city.’ And I'm like, that's just such a random statement. But what it is, it's an uneven city in its architecture. And that's what's exciting about it. You can really do and be and have anything you want to be. And it's very much, like, the American dream, and it's the Wild West.” (14:59-15:20)

• “Everybody talks about affordable housing and building houses and everything. But we are always behind in our amount of what we build per year.” (30:43-30:54)

• “It's funny how there's a direct link between real estate and mental health.” (36:36-36:40)

• “At the beginning of the 19th and 20th century, when female architects were allowed to study, then there were all these women craftsmen, women artists who contributed. So, that was really the beginning where women got into design aesthetics and things like that in California and in the US. In Europe, it's totally different.” (48:18 -48:43)

 

Connect with Lilian Pfaff

IG: @lilianpfaff

Website: https://www.suprstructur.com/

 

Connect with Host Camilla Rantsen

IG: @camillarantsen

LinkedIn: Camilla Outzen Rantsen

Facebook: Camilla Outzen Rantsen 

TikTok: @camillarantsen

Twitter @camillarantsen

 

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

The Emotional Side of Real Estate with Eric Smilay

Welcome to Pushing Dirt, where host Camilla Rantsen discusses all things real estate. On the inaugural episode, Camilla chats with real estate agent Eric Smilay about the constantly changing world of Los Angeles real estate and the emotions that come with it. 

A lot has changed since Eric first began his real estate career in 2005. The Eastside has risen in popularity, styles have changed, and there is an increasing desire for walkable, New York-style neighborhoods. However, Eric and Camilla agree that one thing remains constant: “real estate is an investment, but it's emotional.”

Tune into this week’s episode of Pushing Dirt for an enlightening conversation on Los Angeles real estate trends, the realtor/client relationship, and how our houses frame our lives. Through Eric’s astute market observations, discover what is important to you on the search for the perfect home.

 

Quotes

• “Even if I sell you a house today, there's 30 to 45 days and a myriad of ways that could fall apart, right? There's inspections, appraisals, getting the loan – so you want to have somebody that can walk you through it….Some people are very patient and they're willing to hold your hand and go line by line to the contract if you want, and then other people will get frustrated. So you got to matchmake with the right agent, just like the right house.” (14:19-14:40)

• “So I think a lot of people need to not only take the price into account, but the interest rates and the lending market as well. That's very key. So, that's still fueling real estate right now.” (23:32 - 23:39)

• “I do think that is a little bit of the future of LA real estate: going more vertical, more dense, you know, more walkable neighborhoods, more New York style. Hollywood's doing that a lot with mixed use buildings. Where, you know, there's a coffee shop right downstairs, maybe a dry cleaner around the corner. You literally can walk more.” (34:46 - 35:06)

• “I just think that rentals are always going to go up. Like, that market is always going to go up. But real estate is an investment, but it's emotional.” (37:45 - 37:54)

• “​​You are really everything as a realtor. Like, you're an actual agent...and you are a therapist, and you're also probably the person who's almost like a parent, you can’t have it. It's a very interesting thing. And I think that's why we get so involved and emotional, and it's a lot of money, but then it's also where we're going to live and have our lives, you know, the framing for our lives.” (52:27 - 53:00)

 

Connect with Eric Smilay

https://www.smilayproperties.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SmilayProperties

IG: https://www.instagram.com/esmilay/

 

Connect with Host Camilla Rantsen

IG: @camillarantsen

LinkedIn: Camilla Outzen Rantsen

Facebook: Camilla Outzen Rantsen 

TikTok: @camillarantsen

Twitter @camillarantsen

 

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm