Swap Meet to Offer Repossessed Homes
Following the logic of simple demographics, a pair of real estate brokers this weekend will launch a novel approach to selling houses based on the presumption that the majority of potential home buyers in Los Angeles are Latino.
Brothers Carlos and Alex Izbicki will offer houses for sale from a booth at the Panorama City Indoor Swap Meet.
In a space set up next to a clothing retailer, the enterprising salesmen will display pictures and listings of government-repossessed homes from throughout the San Fernando Valley.
They envision the swap meet location as an ideal way to introduce the largely Latino clientele to the opportunities for home ownership in a low-pressure environment.
“We’re going there to tap into the demand of the home buyer,” Alex Izbicki said. The swap meet location is meant to offer a more accessible way for a home shopper to find a residence. “People don’t feel pressured to buy,” he said.
They don’t offer a sales pitch, he said, just a couple of books, pictures and a map of locations so that buyers can check out the homes on their own. Loans are being guaranteed by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp., also known as Freddie Mac.
Contrary to a popular view, most of the government-foreclosed homes the pair are offering were not lost by their previous owners because of the Northridge earthquake, said Alex, who along with his brother is a listing agent with Century 21.
“It has to do with a downturn in the market in the past five years,” he said.
Because of that, a lot of homes are going unsold, despite the availability of low payment plans.
“Why aren’t these selling?” he asked. “It’s because someone doesn’t know about it.”
The swap meet is at 14650 Parthenia St. in Panorama City.
For more information, call (818) 364-7586.
The grand opening for the brothers’ booth--the Freddie Mac Indoor Swap Meet--will be Sunday from 9 to 5 p.m. It will be open weekends thereafter.
