Montclair Action Group will be collecting various "Much Needed" school items at the Montclair Famer's Market Through D Sunday August 23rd. The items. The supplies will be distributed to the Oakland Schools that are the most under resourced. To help

This Saturday, August 8th, the Laurel Street Fair is going on from 1-6PM near Mac Arthur Blvd. There is a Farmers Market, a Large Kids zone with Rides, Animals and Games. Various Artists providing Music and Enetertainment. Local Merchants and various food booths. The weekend Weather is heavenly so come on out and have a fun/inexpensive experience at the  Laurel Street Fair.

Sunday, August 9, 12:30-4:30 pm, Free Second Sundays at the Oakland Museum, Family Explorations! Be Creative! Join the museum and the Oakland Public Library in celebrating the end of the Library's Summer Reading Program. Check out mystifying magic with Timothy James; art activities; cartooning with author Oliver Chin; dancing on our outdoor stage; scavenger hunt with prizes; interactive story times; and free frozen treats from Dreyer's at the end of the day (as long as supplies last). And there's more! At the end of the day, a ceremony honors all the children who completed the Summer Reading Program. Included with museum admission.Growing Up in Oakland Free Youth Film Festival.

(The picture is of us and our girls having our own local campout in the backyard!)

Are you facing foreclosure?

You May Have A Better Way Out!

There are countless hardships that can turn home ownership from a joy into a burden.  The loss of a job, medical bills, or an unexpected hike in monthly payments can all make a mortgage unaffordable.  But ignoring the bills will not make them go away, it will only make things worse.

If you need help, there are approaches that can help, but you may not be familiar with them.  One of these is a "short sale."

In an approved short sale, the lender agrees to accept less than is owed for the property, and the homeowner is relieved of the debt.  A lender may be willing to do this because it spares a lot of hassle and expense involved in executing a foreclosure.  And typically, a short sale does far less damage to the homeowner's credit than a foreclosure does.

If you would like to explore the possibility of a short sale for your property, avoid foreclosure, and potentially save your credit rating, please complete the form below.  A qualified short sale agent will be in touch with helpful information.

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Prepare for Moving Day the Month Before

You finally fell asleep and began to dream. In your dream, moving day had finally come. Unfortunately you had underestimated how many boxes you needed. You also ran out of tape and lost all of your permanent markers that would have allowed you to label the contents of the boxes. While your children were running around wildly (since you packed all of their toys without thinking), one of them had run into the corner of a table, meaning that he needed to be taken to the hospital for stitches. You had no idea where his medical records were because all of the boxes were unmarked, leaving you hopelessly searching through box after box. The movers were paid by the hour, and you had already surpassed the cost you had hoped would cover them. Your alarm clock finally brings you out of your nightmare, huffing and puffing.

Moving day should not be that stressful. Here is a practical guideline to help you make your moving day as stress free as possible by starting a month before.

Do You Need a New Mattress?

After a long day at work, you come home and try to figure out finances for the future. How in the world are you going to cover all your regular expenses as well as the expenses of both selling your current home and buying your dream home? Your eyes, mind, and body are screaming for sleep. The moment has finally arrived. You can now crawl into bed. The mattress seems to suck you in because you've slept on it for so long, and at last, you rest.

Morning came all to fast. At the sound of the alarm clock, you jump out of bed to stop the annoying noise. As you stretch, you begin to feel the results of sleeping on your twelve-year-old mattress. Your back aches. Your shoulders are tight. You actually feel more tired then when you went to sleep the night before.

Perhaps it's time you invest in a new mattress. You may be thinking, "Getting a new mattress sounds great, but I can't afford one right now. We have enough expenses as it is." Well, finances may be tight but take a moment to think about your health.

Why Should I Invest in a New Mattress?
Have you thought about how important a good mattress is for your overall wellbeing? You use your mattress everyday. In fact, you spend one-third of your life sleeping on that surface? Your mattress is supposed to realign your neck and back from the stresses of the day. Is your mattress performing that duty?

Take a realistic look at your mattress. Can you see the outline of your body? Does your mattress sage more than an inch and a half anywhere? Is your mattress over 8-10 years old? Can you feel the coils in your mattress when you lay down? Are there coils popping out? Is your mattress heavier than when you bought it? That may sound like a strange question, but did you know that your mattress gains a pound each year from the accumulation of dead skin cells, dust mites, and other disgusting elements? And worse yet, all of these elements are common allergens.

Now, how about your body? Has your body changed from age, an accident, a dislocated disk, or significant weight loss/gain? Most of these body changes will affect the kind of mattress that your body needs. Do you wake up more tired than when you went to sleep? That question alone could very well indicate that you need to invest in a new mattress.

How Do I Choose A Mattress?
The following steps will help you make a wise choice for your specific health needs.

1. Choose Your Mattress Size. You may desire a king, but perhaps you may not be able to afford it or be able to fit it into your bedroom. The following chart will give you the universal measurements.

2. Choose Your Comfort Level. Use a scale from 1-10 to measure the softness and hardness of each mattress. One is very soft (no support) and ten is rock hard (not comfortable). The categories of comfort are as follows: extra firm, traditional firm, cushiony, plush. But don't stop there. Try foam, pillow-top, water, adjustable, and air mattresses. Figure out what type of surface you like, and then determine if that surface will meet your health needs (back support especially). Usually the mattress with a higher coil count and thicker padding means higher quality. Unfortunately, the pillow top mattresses that are "in" right now tend to leave body impressions and sage much more quickly than other mattress types.

3. Lay Down on Your Mattress. Spend at least 15 minutes lying down on the mattress from head to toe in your normal sleeping position. Don't just sit on the edge and dangle your feet. You may feel awkward laying fully down on various mattresses in the store, but you will be amazed at how your body will either accept or reject the mattress for you. Listen to your body after those 15 minutes. Do you have trouble getting comfortable? If your shoulders, hips, or lower back begin to feel uncomfortable, the mattress may be too hard or soft for you.

4. Inquire About the Coil Count. The coil count for a quality mattress should start at 300 for a full mattress, 375 for a queen, and 450 for a king. The higher number of stronger coils usually equals a higher quality mattress.

5. Buy a New Box Spring Too. You may be trying to save a few pennies by simply getting a top mattress and using your "in-good-condition box spring" at home. Do not cut yourself short. You will actually cut the life of your mattress in half by skimping on the box spring. The two are made to work together.

6. Buy From a Reputable Store. Talk with people who have recently purchased mattresses. Where did they buy their mattress? Were they satisfied with the store's policy? Call the better bureaus office and ask for a few suggestions in where to start.

7. Make Sure the Company has an Exchange Policy. Do not buy from a store that will not let you exchange the mattress for another model if you are not completely satisfied. Many mattress stores have a policy that enables you to exchange the mattress within 60 days. Remember how important this sleeping surface is for your health.

8. Understand the Warranty. Most companies offer a 10-year warranty, but check the proration. The proration is the percentage of the original purchase price that the mattress manufacturer will refund if your mattress is defective. Some companies reduce the amount that they will cover by each year you own the mattress.

9. Consider Your Price Range. A basic queen set will range from $500 to $700 dollars. A better quality will cost $700 - $900. Top quality mattress sets start at around $1,000.

10. Never pay full price. You can often receive 10 to 20 perfect off the quoted price. And if you spend more than 500 dollars, they should throw in a frame and free delivery.

11. Talk With Those Who Have Gone Before. Talk with friends, family, co-workers, and anyone else you can find. What are their suggestions about what kind of bed to buy? See if you can find other people with similar health issues to see what has or has not worked for them. Ask your doctor for recommendations on what would suit your needs.

12. Make Sure Consider Your Significant Other. Take your significant other's needs into consideration. Do you like to spread out? Make sure you get a big bed. Does your significant other move a lot which wakes you up at night? Make sure you get a shock absorbent mattress. Do they have bad allergies? There are beds that cater to those needs.

Buying a new mattress should take you awhile. This is a big decision and a large investment that should last you about ten years. But don't stress. Simple consider the 12 suggestions above and you will be well on your way to making a wise choose.

Laundry Rooms are a New Status Symbol

In the new homes, the washers and dryers are no longer stuck in the dark, basement corner of the house. Homeowners are demanding more out of their laundry rooms than ever before. Why? Well, most American families throw 8-10 loads of laundry in the washer per week. Plus, on average 20 million women and 10 million men spend hundreds of hours each year washing and drying clothes. These are the people that want their laundry rooms to be practical, organized, large enough to accommodate day-to-day needs, and well decorated. Laundry rooms are actually becoming the newest status symbol, seeing as some laundry rooms are worth more than $30,000.

Many families are actually making the laundry rooms into the messy chore, craft, sewing, and even gardening project rooms. Laundry rooms are in need of more than the typical cabinet, washer, and dryer. People want a folding station. They are now looking for DryAire drying cabinets, where sweaters and delicates can dry in a couple of hours rather than a couple of days. They want the SinkSpa, which is a jetted sink where hand-washables are washed by water jets. They desire ironing stations: including an adjustable board, place to store the hot iron, and automatic shutoff controls.

Now, perhaps you are simply looking for ideas to spice up your own laundry room. Maybe you're trying to figure out ways to make your rental property a winner. Or, perhaps you're getting your home into selling shape. Whatever your goal, the following will help you figure out ideas in how to make the laundry room pleasurably livable.

Before you start making all these plans to upgrade. Sit down in the laundry room for at least 15 minutes and really take some time to figure out your needs. What annoyances do you run into right now? Do you have any spot to hang clothes when it rains? Do you struggle to get the clothes from the washer into the dryer? Do you really need a utility sink? Do you tend not to iron because you have no place for the ironing board? Does the room need a more cheerful paint color? Does the floor need to be replaced?

1. Obtain a Practical Washing Machine. Some washers have a finger faucet under the rim, allowing you to easily wash detergent off your hands. Other washers feature "reminder chimes," signaling you that the clothes are done. A few of the newest washing machines have some very practical features: a quick-wash cycle that enables you to wash the shirt you need for the party in record time, a virtually noiseless direct-drive washing system, a delay-wash feature that starts the washer up to 19 hours after you load it, and a steady-spin feature that keeps the washer spinning, even if the load is unbalanced.

2. Install Cabinetry. Before you install anything, sit in the laundry room and figure out your current needs. Do you need open shelving units or cabinets with doors? Do you need spaces for various laundry baskets? Where can all of the detergents, spot removers, and dryer sheets be easily reached? Will you add a countertop to fold clothes?

3. Storage. An alternative to cabinetry is to Install Wire shelving. The wire shelving is strong, durable, easy to install, fits to your needs, and doesn't rust easily.

4. Ironing Station. Either set up an ironing board station or install a built-in ironing board. Both set-ups should have a permanent spot for the hot iron.

5. Laundry Sorting Baskets. Use laundry-sorting bins to organize your laundry by color and cycle. If you desire your family to follow your new system, make sure the laundry bins are clearly marked, such as "darks, delicates, towels, whites, dry cleaning, cold wash" etc. The more you organize, the more time you have to do other things.

6. Easily Accessible. If you are remodeling or building your home, make sure that your laundry room is easily accessible from the main activity areas of the house.

7. Windows. Install another window or two in your dark and dreary laundry room. Many people like their laundry windows to overlook the backyard play areas. Bay windows with a ledge not only take the "laundry room" feel away but also provide a usable ledge for baskets and folded laundry.

8. Change the Lighting. Change the one-light in the center of your ceiling to attractive track lighting.

9. Hanging Space. Many clothes require drip-drying, so either hang a rod or two near the floor drain or hang string from one side of the room to the other. Whichever way you choose, make sure that it is practical and out of the way. When using hangers, choose the plastic ones rather than the metal ones, as they tangle less and do not rust. If you have wire shelving, you can also easily hanging clothes from those. You could also place a rod next to the dryer that is equipped with plastic hangers to immediately hang items when they come out of the dryer.

10. Usable Space. Rolling carts are a practical addition to the laundry room. You can slip a thin one between the washer and the dryer, which can hold the detergent, stain stick, bleach, dryer sheets, etc. This keeps deep space usable and practical.

11. Small "Catch-all" Basket. Get a small basket to put next to the washer to keep items that are still in the pockets such as lipstick, money, receipts, etc.

12. Trashcan. Make sure that at trashcan is nearby to unload the lint tray, throw away used dryer sheets, and wrappers found in pockets

This Saturday, August 8th, the Laurel Street Fair is going on from 1-6PM near Mac Arthur Blvd.

There is a Farmers Market, a Large Kids zone with Rides, Animals and Games.

Various Artists providing Music and Enetertainment. Local Merchants and various food booths.

The weekend Weather is supposed to be heavenly so come on out and have a fun/inexpensive experience at the  Laurel Street Fair.

The Grand Lake Festival "Lakefest"
When: Saturday & Sunday, August 1 ­ 2, 10:00 a.m. ­ 6:00 p.m.
Where: Lakefest, Lakeshore Ave. from Lake Park Ave. to Mandana Blvd., Oakland
Cost: Free! There will be face paintings and crafts for kids, live music and food from local Vendors. This is the 2nd year of the festival

People used to buy a home only once or twice during their lifetime. That is no longer the case, with large families downsizing later in life and relocation being the key to career advancement for many people. The average family moves at least once every ten years, which means that there are always plenty of homes available for sale.

There are many tricks for finding the perfect home and buying it on your terms. This article will arm you with information that can take the hassle out of buying a home.

Financing - Things to Consider
Potential homebuyers usually go to their lender and complete the prequalification process. The lender considers their debt-to-income ratio and determines how much they can afford to pay. The lender usually overlooks your day-to-day spending habits and preferences. If you are like most people, you have a lifestyle to which you are accustomed, including hobbies, travel, vehicles and possibly even children.

The lender will not consider large expenses like college tuition, weddings for your children, or luxury vacations. Likewise, the lender will not ask you about your hobbies or your plans to purchase new furniture. Nevertheless, these are important considerations when you want to buy a home, because they impact the amount of money that you can spend on housing while still maintaining your lifestyle.

Prepare a budget ahead of time that will help you determine how much you can and want to spend on your mortgage payment each month. Unless you plan to change your lifestyle, you must have an accurate understanding of your financial habits. Often people buy a home as a result of a life change. Such changes are usually accompanied by expected changes in lifestyle and spending habits. Anticipate those changes and how much you will have available for your monthly mortgage payment.

Pre-Approval - Why it Matters
Potential buyers should never make an offer on a home until they have been pre-approved for a mortgage by their lender. Sellers prefer to work with buyers who are pre-approved, because when those buyers make an offer on a home, they intend to buy it.

Needs and Wants
Before you start shopping for a home, know what your new home has to have. If you need three bedrooms, do not waste your time with two-bedroom homes. However, if you need two bedrooms but would prefer to have three, consider two-bedroom homes that meet your other requirements.

When you know what you need in a home, you can narrow your selection process to those homes that meet your criteria. Sometimes this is advantageous, but it can be limiting.

Also consider the specific type of home that you need. If you are an aging adult, you probably cannot maintain a large lawn and garden, nor climb onto the roof when it is leaking. A home that is part of a community with a maintenance team might be necessary. Condos and townhomes might be a good solution. Similarly, if you have large dogs that need running space, a townhome or condo probably will not work for you. Choosing the style of the home is an individual decision and one of the first steps in finding a home that meets your needs.

Conclusion
Following this simple advice will help you shop for your next home as a very well-educated buyer. Knowing what you need and how much you can afford to spend ahead of time is the key to successful and happy homeownership.

Given the considerable amount of time needed to look at homes, complete the paperwork required, purchase a new home, and move, you probably will not want to move again soon. Make sure you pick the right home the first time! Hassle-free shopping and home buying is possible, but you need to know how to prepare for the process and identify the home that is best for your lifestyle.

".....you have to sell your present home at exactly the right time in order to avoid either the financial burden of owning two homes or, just as bad, the dilemma of having no place to live during the gap between closings...."

Unlike the experience of buying a first home, when you're looking to move-up, and already own a home, there are certain factors that can complicate the situation. It's very important for you to consider these issues before you list your home for sale.

Not only is there the issue of financing to consider, but you also have to sell your present home at exactly the right time in order to avoid either the financial burden of owning two homes or, just as bad, the dilemma of having no place to live during the gap between closings.

Six Strategies

In this report, we outline the six most common mistakes homeowners make when moving to a larger home. Knowledge of these six mistakes, and the strategies to overcome them, will help you make informed choices before you put your existing home on the market.

1. Rose-colored glasses

Most of us dream of improving our lifestyle and moving to a larger home. The problem is that there's sometimes a discrepancy between our hearts and our bank accounts. You drive by a home that you fall in love with only to find that it's already sold or that it's more than what you are willing to pay. Most homeowners get caught in this hit or miss strategy of house hunting when there's a much easier way of going about the process. For example, find out if your agent offers a Buyer Profile System or House-hunting Service, which takes the guesswork away and helps to put you in the home of your dreams. This type of program will cross match your criteria with ALL available homes on the market and supply you with printed information on an ongoing basis. A program like this helps homeowners take off their rose-colored glasses and, affordably, move into the home of their dreams.

2. Failing to make necessary improvements

If you want to get the best price for the home you're selling, there will certainly be things you can do to enhance it in a prospective buyer's eyes. These fix ups don't necessarily have to be expensive. But even if you do have to make a minor investment, it will often come back to you ten fold in the price you are able to get when you sell. It's very important that these improvements be made before you put your home on the market. If cash is tight, investigate an equity loan that you can repay on closing.

3. Not selling first

You should plan to sell before you buy. This way you will not find yourself at a disadvantage at the negotiating table, feeling pressured to accept an offer that is below market value because you have to meet a purchase deadline. If you've already sold your home, you can buy your next one with no strings attached. If you do get a tempting offer on your home but haven't made significant headway on finding your next home, you might want to put in a contingency clause in the sale contract which gives you a reasonable time to find a home to buy. If the market is slow and you find your home is not selling as quickly as you anticipated, another option could be renting your home and putting it up on the market later - particularly if you are selling a smaller, starter home. You'll have to investigate the tax rules if you choose this latter option. Better still, find a way to eliminate this situation altogether by getting your agent to guarantee the sale of your present home (see point number 5 below).

4. Failing to get a pre-approved mortgage

Pre-approval is a very simple process that many homeowners fail to take advantage of. While it doesn't cost or obligate you to anything, pre-approval gives you a significant advantage when you put an offer on the home you want to purchase because you know exactly how much house you can afford, and you already have the green light from your lending institution. With a pre-approved mortgage, your offer will be viewed far more favorably by a seller - sometimes even if it's a little lower than another offer that's contingent on financing. Don't fail to take this important step.

5. Getting caught in the Real Estate Catch 22

Your biggest dilemma when buying and selling is deciding which to do first. Point number 3 above advises you to sell first. However there are ways to eliminate this dilemma altogether. Some agents offer a Guaranteed Sale Trade-Up Program that actually takes the problem away from you entirely by guaranteeing the sale of your present home before you take possession of your next one. If you find a home you wish to purchase and have not sold your current home yet, they will buy your home from you themselves so you can make your move free of stress and worry.

6. Failing to coordinate closings

With two major transactions to coordinate together with all the people involved such as mortgage experts, appraisers, lawyers, loan officers, title company representatives, home inspectors or pest inspectors the chances of mix ups and miscommunication go up dramatically. To avoid a logistical nightmare ensure you work closely with your agent.