Leo Nordine’s advice: Rent now, buy in 2010

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Advice from L.A.’s ‘king of foreclosures,’ Hermosa Beach real estate agent Leo Nordine: Now is the time to rent and save your money. The time to buy is 2010.

Check out this excellent profile of Nordine by Ann Brenoff on latimes.com. Nordine, a favorite of this blog for some time, is an unusual figure in L.A.’s real estate world: a soft-spoken, low-key contrarian -- and big wave surfer -- who works in his bare feet, prefers to sell mainly foreclosed houses, and is wildly successful. Don’t let the Zen/surfing vibe fool you; his secret is his work ethic. He has sold 3,500 bank-owned houses over the last two decades. In the attached video, Nordine describes himself as an ‘atypical’ agent:

‘Try to find another Realtor who has been telling everybody not to buy. ... For someone out there who’s renting, I’d recommend saving as much money as possible. Pay down all your debts as much as possible. And seriously look at buying around 2010.’

--Peter Viles

Your thoughts? Comments? E-mail story tips to Peter Viles
Photo Credit: L.A. Times

Hat tip: When I began writing this blog 19 months ago, a number of readers -- including Sunsetbeachbuy and, he thinks, Mr. incomestream -- first suggested I talk to Leo and include his thoughts on the blog. Great tip.