DeLeon Insight- September 2025 Cover Page

The DeLeon Insight – September 2025



Construction Techniques – Insulated Concrete Forms (“ICF”)

By Michael Repka Over the past decade, the building industry has become more environmentally conscious while also striving to find ways to improve the quality and durability of homes. One construction technique that has seen increased popularity…

Cash is Still King

  Many times over the past year, I have learned that the winning offer for a home was an all-cash offer. Fortunately, some of those winning offers were made by buyers I had the good fortune to represent. After another one of my buyers’ all-cash…

Tax Topics—Deductions for Pass-Through Entities

By Michael Repka, Esq. (LL.M.—Taxation, NYU School of Law ‘01) On December 22, President Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”) into law. This sweeping legislation dramatically lowered corporate tax rates, encouraged multi-national…

Lakewood Village may be the next Birdland

  It was an exciting day in April 2017 when Apple employees began moving into Apple Park, commonly known as the “Spaceship”. But it had already been an exciting past five years for homeowners in the Birdland neighborhood of Sunnyvale,…

Real Estate and the Millennial Home Buyer

  The American Dream has not changed for Millennials. It is very much the same dream our parents might have had: a career, a family, and a home. It’s just taken us more time to get there because we grew up in a world where unpaid internships…

The Peril of Pocket Listings

by Michael Repka, ESQ As the most active listing agent in Silicon Valley, I receive many phone calls from people interested in selling their property. The majority are interested in taking all steps necessary to achieve the highest possible sale…

Attracting Palo Alto Buyers to Menlo Park Listings

by Michael Repka | CEO & General Counsel At first blush, some homeowners in Menlo Park may assume that they should limit their search to Menlo Park-based listing agents when selling their home. Their reasoning is that a local Menlo Park agent knows…

Why Buyers Love Palo Alto So Much

By Ken DeLeon | Founder While I appreciate all of Silicon Valley, Palo Alto is the city I love the most and which I call home. From the moment I interviewed at Wilson Sonsini twenty years ago, I immediately fell in love with our amazing city. Over…

The Allure of Double-Ending

By Michael Repka, ESQ | CEO & General Counsel On a financial level, it is understandable why real estate agents want to represent both the buyer and seller on the same transaction: it means double commission. Naturally, agents want to justify…

A Shot Across California’s Bow

By Michael Repka, ESQ | CEO & General Counsel (LL.M.—Taxation, NYU School of Law) Since the earliest hints at the substance of President Trump’s new tax proposal, there has been one element that has remained consistent—the elimination…