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Eagle Ridge and the missing Phantom Ghost of Halloween
The tradition of the Phantom Ghost of Halloween started a number of years ago here in the community of Eagle Ridge.
It was a few weeks before Halloween on a dark evening when there was a knock on our door.
My little girl and I looked at each other; we didn't expect anyone! Who could that be? We carefully checked and opened the door but nobody was there. We looked up and down the street but not a soul in sight. Then we spotted the little bag on the doormat. It was a gift from the mysterious Phantom Ghost of Halloween. The bag held goodies and instructions; we were to mark our door so others would know we were struck by the Phantom Ghost of Halloween and copy the instructions and make three goodie bags for other neighbors. We promptly complied and before Halloween many of our neighbors were struck by the Phantom Ghost of Halloween.
The following year the Phantom Ghost came back for a visit and on Halloween we were amazed at the number of neighbors spread throughout the community who were visited by this Ghost. A tradition was born.
Something happened this year however; I have not spotted any doors struck by the Phantom Ghost of Halloween. Where is he? Is the economy wearing us down so much that we stop caring about Halloween and traditions? Just a few years after the tradition started I noticed that he didn't appear as usual and my daughter and i made the first three bags. Today I have to admit that it is too late to do so. Now that our children are almost grown up who will decorate for Halloween now?
Sponsor your Local Business – The Simple Skillet
Many years ago in another lifetime when my children were very young as a busy mom I would plan our meals for the coming week on index cards going through many cookbooks and spending a "good" time with them and generating shopping lists on the back. At the end of the week I would file them and start all over again. Over the years our meal choices changed when we became vegetarian and my database of recipes didn't work so well anymore. I am glad to discover that I don't have to start all over again because now there is The Simple Skillet a much better system; it is computerized and customized.
Chris Louie had a vision to help other busy people with the planning of healthy and balanced meals and thanks to that vision The Simple Skillet was created. If you are feeling overwhelmed by the daily chores, activities and the running around which leaves you little time to plan and cook a meal I have a solution for you. Join the Simple Skillet meal planning service for less than a dollar a day and forget the drive-thru of the fast food restaurant for your next dinner.
The Simple Skillet is a web based company located in Gilroy, California. Chris Louie launched her company and website last year and already it has grown quite a bit both in numbers and members.
The Simple Skillet is a site that plans healthy meals and offers helpful information from nutritional facts to grocery shopping lists.
Membership benefits include
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a balanced and nutritious meal plan. Members receive six dinner and side dish recipes with dessert or beverage.
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Automated grocery list which saves time; forget the multiple trips to the grocery store
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Customizable menus which are easy to make
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helping the Simple Skillet with their fundraising efforts (more on that later)
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you never have to worry about what to cook for dinner.
Chris and her staff have made it easy for busy families to get together for a healthy family dinner.
The Simple Skillet is now sponsoring a fundraiser for the Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. Subscribers will receive a 15% discount of the annual subscription price ($48.00) and the Second Harvest Food Bank will receive 20% of the cost of the subscription. Enter code “secondharvest” when subscribing to the Simple Skillet online in order to get the discount. You can also donate money to the Second Harvest Food Bank on her site.
Chris now offers a free 30 day trial to her meal planning service.
For more information on her company and benefits contact Chris or visit the Simple Skillet website.
Morgan Hill Centennial Recreation Center has outgrown their fitness facility after three years and is expanding.
The Centennial Recreation Center on 171 W. Edmundson Ave, in Morgan Hill started the expansion project this week and expects completion by April 2010. This beautiful environmentally green facility has outgrown the fitness facility as is evident at peak hours. During the summer months the facility is packed all hours of the day and the parking lot is full all the time because of all the many activities offered in the direct area.
Thanks to the residents of Morgan Hill who voted to fund the local redevelopment agency in the 1990s the city now has a wonderful parks and recreation program. The Centennial Recreation Center, (also called CRC), Aquatic center and dog park are a direct result of their forward thinking.
Morgan Hill has improved a number of park and recreation facilities, such as the aquatic center and soccer complex adjacent to it; the dog and skate board park both across the street of the CRC. The only problem I see with the expansion project is that the parking problem will only get worse.
As a resident of Gilroy I couldn't imagine why the city of Morgan Hill needed another recreation facility with indoor pool when they had a beautiful and expensive state of the art aquatic center on the east side of town. Little did I know at the time how important this facility is for not only the residents of Morgan Hill but surrounding communities such as Gilroy and San Martin who are benefiting too. For years I wanted to belong to a fitness facility but every time I showed up at my local gym to sign up I turned home without a membership. It just didn't feel right for me. When I toured the CRC a few days before opening day in October 2006 I felt at home right away and signed up as a member. I had some concerns that it would be too far away for me to regularly work out but it is not. As a matter of fact I run into acquaintances from Gilroy all the time.
The facility opened at a cost of almost $28 million. It is roughly 52,000 square feet and with the new construction they are adding about 2000 square feet to the fitness facility which will add more cardiovascular machines and enlarge the free weight area. Currently the center has some 3000 members. It is operated by a unique partnership between the City of Morgan Hill and the YMCA of Santa Clara County.
Visit the city's website for a sneak peak at drawings of the expansion.
The facility is bright and clean and spacious. When you enter the building from either the parking lot or the W. Edmundson side you step into a large lobby, which is the center of the community dividing it into the fitness center on one side and the Kids Zone, Senior Center, Teen Center on the other side. The staff is wonderful and offer personal training, classes such as Zumba, Kickboxing, Yoga including classes for beginners, boot camp, spin classes, Pilates, and more. It also offers classes for seniors and families. The Fitlinxx computer system keeps track of my fitness goals and keeps me motivated. The large gym hosts a number of leagues but also has open gym and is my daughter's favorite place for a game of volleyball. The center also hosts health and wellness fairs
The Morgan Hill CRC now has its own Facebook fan page.
Housing Crisis Investigation - And YOU thought you had problems in the current real estate market - guess again!
Just about everyone has been affected by the sluggish economy and the problems in the real estate market.
Take for instance this very well-known person, as a matter of fact he is considered the spill of the economic recovery or chaos depending on how you look at it, who is also a victim of the economic and housing mess we find ourselves in.
I just saw a funny video clip on the Agent Inner Circle on the problems of the housing market which I wanted to share with you if you hadn't seen it already.
It is a clip from The Daily Show
Anja Kerstens
Eagle Ridge Realty
Oktoberfest at Eagle Ridge Golf Course Community
A few dedicated Eagle Ridge women are organizing the second Oktoberfest at Eagle Ridge which is sponsored by the Eagle Ridge Home Owners Association. This evening of fun and fine food will take place on September 4, 2009 at the Eagle Ridge Golf Clubhouse on Club Drive. There will be a "No Host" bar, German food, German beer and dancing with The Internationals. The cost is $55 per person but Eagle Ridge residents will get a $10 discount since the Home Owners Association is sponsoring the evening. You can make arrangements by contacting the Home Owners Association of Eagle Ridge at 408-846-9735.
The Eagle Ridge Home Owners Association sponsors several events a year. The Social Committee also organizes the annual New Year's Eve Party, and earlier this year a Casino Night
Eagle Ridge residents get together regularly for organized events such as Bunko evenings, book club, gourmet dinner club, walks, tennis, golf, etc. I would say that we have a pretty nice community here in the foothills of Gilroy. One can get involved as much or as little as one wants.
Anja K. Kertens
Eagle Ridge Realty and Signature Homes and Estates
Eagle Ridge Market Update
Eagle Ridge Golf Course Community in Gilroy is definitely a very desirable place to live. The proof is there: homes listed for sale in Eagle Ridge are selling quickly. In the last 6 days 4 homes went under contract ranging in price from $605,900 to $834,900 (another Eagle Ridge Realty listing) and ranging in size from 2808 to 4095 square feet.
Currently there are 18 homes under contract and 13 active listings ranging from $525,000 to $1,099,000.
If you would like to live in this very desirable community contact us for a showing or free Market Analysis of your current home.
First Time Home Buyers Beware - You are running out of time.
 Prices are down, sales are up and many first time home buyers are back and ready to purchase their first home. If you are a first time home buyer you don't want to wait too much longer because the deadline for the $8,000 first time home buyers tax credit is approaching soon. This tax incentive is expiring on November 30th at 12 midnight. First time home buyers will have to complete the purchase of the property under contract before this deadline.
That means that first time home buyers will have to find a property AND be under contract before the end of September 2009. It takes 2 months on average to close a sale; mortgage approvals take longer, appraisals are also delayed under the new HVCC regulations that took affect on May 1, 2009 and properties for sale receive multiple offers often close to or more than list price.
First time home buyers: don't delay and wait until time is running out. Now is the time to look for your first home.
If I can help you find property or you need more information on this or other subjects please feel free to contact me.
Anja Kerstens
Perfect Photo Opportunity at Carmel Beach
The beach in Carmel is just a short drive away from Gilroy, California but the difference in temperature can be very great. Gilroy was steaming with temperatures in the 90's this weekend but Carmel was breezy and a bit cool. Perfect to escape the heat.
Our dog is so much part of our family that we pick Carmel as our favorite beach because she can have as much fun as we do. She hates the pool but loves the beach and will play with the waves and the us until it is time to go home. Most of the time we end a perfect day at Carmel beach with a dinner in Carmel. Carmel has some great restaurants which cater to your pet too. Carmel is very dog friendly and many stores and restaurants offer a bowl of water and treats for your four legged friend.
This dog got some shades on and was the perfect model for many visitors who stopped by to shoot her picture. Of course she could go anywhere.
You think you have a cute dog? What about this one?
This Golden loves the water but hates the pool.
Anja Kerstens
Real Estate market Trends - prices and sales are increasing
After one year of falling prices and home sales the market is hotter than ever. This spring the increase in sales activity was higher than we normally see in the spring. In Santa Clara County sales are up 29% but prices are down 26% compared to the same period last year.
I had the pleasure of attending one of the very fine seminars at the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors yesterday and listen to NAR's Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, Ph.D. as he talked about current Real Estate markets, his interpretations of the statistics reflecting both past and present trends and where he predicts it will head in the near and far future.
In the last few years real estate prices dropped so fast and so steep that buyers got out of the market and cautiously followed the implosion from the side lines. Now thanks to government incentives such as the $8,000 first time homebuyer credit and $10,000 new construction purchase credit, and other factors such as low prices and plenty of inventory, has brought the buyers and inventors back to the real estate market and they are ready to purchase. As a matter of fact sales numbers are higher this spring than the same period in 2008.
Currently a large portion of the inventory is distressed properties such as bank owned (and thus foreclosed) and short sale properties. There is still a fair amount of "conventional" sales (not distressed).
It takes longer to close distressed properties and there are a few good reasons for them.
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Short sales need approval from lenders and we all know how long that can take
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the government has put new regulations in place such as the HVCC (Home Valuation Code of Conduct). Currently only Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have adopted this code. Many appraisals are now done by appraisers appointed by the lenders who may not be familiar with the geographical area and appraise properties much lower than the actual value is; the fees paid for appraisals by the homebuyers are up but appraisers receive less for their services. NAR (National Association of Realtors) is working hard to get the HVCC code suspended.
Dr. Yun noted:
that it is interesting to know that the real estate markets in most parts in the country didn't experience the “burst bubble” effect because there was no real estate bubble. Only the markets in California, Nevada, Arizona, Florida (basically desert states) and other states on the East Coast who experienced a real estate bubble are now feeling the effects of the “burst bubble”
What are the trends in your market? Do you agree with this statement?
Eagle Ridge Market Update - Eagle Ridge homes for sale.
The inventory is similar to last month here in Eagle Ridge. Buyers are out and we have more visitors to our open house showings. In addition we are seeing multiple offers on listed properties. Our most recent closing last month received one of the highest sale price of any resale home here in Eagle Ridge in the last year. We were able to negotiate top dollar for your seller.
Currently there are
- 16 active listings in inventory ranging in price and size from $525,000 (4 bedroom/3 1/2 bath - 2,222 square feet) to $1,099,000 (5 bedroom/3 1/2 bath - 4,729 square feet). If I compare this to last month I conclude that the listing price on the low end of the market has dropped slightly and it increased from $924,000 to $1,099,000) for the upper end of the market
- 16 properties are under contract. Listing price ranges from $539,875 (4 bedroom/2 1/2 bath - 2,417 square feet) to $925,000 (5 bedroom/4+ bathroom - 3,772 square feet).
- 5 properties closed in July and 1 in August. Sold price ranges from $585,100 to $879,000. Three homes sold over asking price and 2 for slightly less. That leaves one property which sold for asking price. Average days on the market this month: 45. Two of these sales were Bank owned properties; two were short sales and two conventional sales.
All in all I think the numbers are looking very good.
Anja Kerstens
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Anja Kerstens - Signature Homes and Estates
Gilroy,
CA
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Eagle Ridge Realty - Silicon Valley Golf Course Properties
Address: Gilroy, ca, 95020
Office Phone: (408) 848-2516
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