The Weekly Newspaper of Inglewood
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 70, No. 11 - March 18, 2021
Sending Well Wishes to Mayor Butts
Mayor Butts is now out of the hospital after experiencing a cardiac event on March 8th, 2021. Mayor Butts made this statement earlier this week. “On March 8th, 2021, Monday evening at approximately 5:30 pm, I experienced a serious cardiac event while in my office
at City Hall. I was transported to UCLA Medical Center by LA County Paramedics where I underwent a life-saving emergency medical procedure that was successful. I was released from UCLA at 3:30 pm, Thursday March 11, 2021. My condition is good. I will return to work
Friday March 12th. I want to thank everyone for their well wishes. Special thanks to my wife Judy, the LA County Paramedics, and the surgeons, RN’s, nurses and care-givers that took care of me.” We wish Mayor Butts a speedy recovery. Photo courtesy City of Inglewood.
Bill Ruane from front page
Excellence” award, one of “only three agents
in the entire RE/MAX network of 130,000” to
be so honored, Sanders emailed. Ruane also
picked-up the industry’s prestigious “Pinnacle
Award” in 2020. Both awards recognize high
echelon, top producing agents.
On winning realty top producer accolades,
Ruane chuckled and said, “staying number
two or three is great, because if you are #1,
the only way that you go is down, right?”
Sanders’s mother, Sandra Sanders, established
the RE/MAX Palos Verdes office in 1984,
and, emailed James Sanders, “had the vision
to establish a brokerage with an environment
for the real estate agent that is positive, professional,
and supportive in order to deliver
the best possible service to their customers.”
Ruane continues to embody the aspirations
established by Sandra Sanders more than
three decades ago. James Sanders said that,
some 37 years later, he and his siblings have
attempted to “foster the same values as their
mother, and have gained momentum, a loyal
following, and a shift to a more efficient online
and digital support that has taken RE/MAX
Estate Properties to new levels.”
Sanders said that RE/Max Estate Properties
“has been the #1 real estate firm in sale volume
in the South Bay since 2010,” and that the
company “recently earned the Los Angeles
Business Journal’s distinction of being one of
the Top-Family-owned businesses.”
Ruane is not only a top producer in the South
Bay and the United States, but in the entire
world of real estate agents working under the
RE/MAX umbrella. “Bill is amazing,” Sanders
said. “His production, and how he cares for
his clients, is unbelievable. He is the number
three agent in the world and number two in the
United States out of all the RE/MAX agents.
And has probably been in the top five agents,
worldwide, for the past ten years.”
Sanders believes that Ruane is successful
because “he works hard, he gives good service,
and he can ‘compartmentalize’ client’s needs.
Sanders said that Ruane is unique in that he
“doesn’t stress-out over anything,” noting that
Ruane constantly has multiple deals in the
works. “He did over 100 transactions in 2020.”
Sanders said. “He seems to know the market
better than anybody I know,” continued Sanders.
“He has specialized knowledge in the Beach
Cities,” Sanders noted, with Ruane expanding
his empire to include listings in, among
other areas, Westchester, Marina Del Rey, and
Venice. “He is just a great guy,” Sanders said.
“We, as a company, as you can imagine, take
care of him. He has a lot of balls in the air.”
RE/MAX is a worldwide realtor network,
boasting 130,000 agents. Of the approximately
70,000 stateside agents, Ruane ranked #2 in
the U.S. in 2020 and #3 worldwide. “That
is pretty impressive,” said Sanders. “He is
always thinking ahead, thinking what he can
do to give back to the community and how
to help others.” Sanders noted that the RE/
MAX team racked-up more than four billion
dollars in sales in 2020 and completed more
than 4,000 transactions.
Discussing the state of the real estate market
in March of 2021, Sanders said that RE/MAX
had approximately 500 properties in escrow,
pre-pandemic, but that once the realities of
COVID-19 hit, 30 percent of the proposed
buyers, he said, canceled. “Scary times,” he
said. “The world was going to end…I think
a lot of people felt that way…We didn’t
know what was going to happen. Who knew
that” he continued, as the COVID pandemic
escalated, “people would actually realize the
value of having a home?”
Sanders noted that, currently, the clamoring
to own a home has led to a low inventory of
available properties because many people now
look at their home as their office, their workout
facility, and, at least at this point, their
children’s classroom, all the while (mostly)
following social distancing guidelines, somewhat
quarantining with their family members.
“Homes became (more) valuable,” Sanders
said. “People are really seeing the value of
(homeownership), as more than just as an asset,
but as a place to raise a family, go to school,
work-out, and cook. It has changed the whole
perspective of what owning a home means.
And that is why we have low supply, high
demand, and prices are coming up.”
Towards the end of our interview, Ruane
was asked, if he had not chosen the real estate
pathway, what other profession may he have
pursued? He laughed and paused a bit, “that’s
a good question,” he said, before answering
that “I don’t know in what other career they
would have tolerated me.”
Suffice to say that the buyers and sellers
that Ruane has worked with and for over his
career are very satisfied that he stuck to the
field of real estate. Summed-up Sanders: “Bill
is the consummate professional, always taking
care of his clients.” •
Finance from page 3
retirement distribution
Just because you had taxes withheld on your
retirement or IRA distributions doesn’t mean
you’ve fully paid taxes on it. This is a very
common misconception. The income and
withholding are still reported on your tax return,
along with any other sources of income you
may have, including Social Security benefits
if you receive them. It’s important to gather
all that information together to discuss with
your tax professional whether you may still
have a tax obligation for 2020.
Myth 6: There’s no longer a tax penalty for
not having healthcare coverage
While the tax law went into effect in 2020 to
remove the federal penalty for not having health
insurance as required under the Affordable
Care Act, you still have a responsibility to
reconcile your advanced premium tax credit
when you have insurance through your state’s
Health Insurance Marketplace. Plus, some
states do charge penalties if you don’t have
health insurance. If you get healthcare through
a marketplace, you still may get credits and
must report it on your taxes. Ask your tax
professional if you need help understanding your
healthcare coverage as it relates to your taxes.
“If you have questions or concerns about your
taxes this year, don’t wait until the last minute
to get professional help,” advises Mark Steber,
Chief Tax Information Officer at Jackson Hewitt
Tax Services. “Making errors on your taxes can
cost you both time and money - not to mention
stress and anxiety! Work with a tax pro who
is up-to-date on all the latest changes and can
advise you on your situation.” •