New Listing - Rincon Valley Charmer in NE Santa Rosa - 04/30/11 07:55 PM
 

 
Welcome to 716 Jack London Dr in Santa Rosa, a beautiful Rincon Valley single level home in move-in condition! This 3 bedroom, 2 bath home with an open living area is close to shopping (Olivers!), great schools, Spring Lake, Annadel and Howarth Park. Gorgeous Brazilian hardwood floors flow throughout this home. You'll also find Silestone and Granite counter tops, Travertine tile and French Doors. Entertain in a large private back yard, with a flagstone patio and hot tub.
 
716 Jack London Drive Santa Rosa, CA 95409 $324,900
Open House: Sunday May 1st, 1:00PM - 4:00PM

 
… (4 comments)

Friday Foto - 04/29/11 05:05 PM
 

 
 
My Sony Cybershot point-n-shoot camera has been dropped way too many times, so it was finally time to bite the bullet and buy a new camera. I purchased my first digital SLR and I haven't had much time to play with it yet. Actually, I'm a little intimidated by it.
I decided to go out in my back yard and try out one of the settings for close-ups. I am amazed that I am the one who took this photo. The flower looks like it is floating! This just might be fun after all!
 
… (24 comments)

Brixx Pizzeria Opens In Cotati CA - 04/28/11 08:55 PM
 

 
Cotati is a small town with a population of 7,300 give or take. So when a new restaurant opens, it's BIG news. I couldn't wait to dine at Brixx Pizzeria because they have a pizza on the menu with a warning label. Now that's MY kind of pizza!
Brixx Pizzeria, located in the center of downtown Cotati, has a great selection of beers on tap as well as bottled beer. And their wine list is much better than I expected. An application is in the works for a liquor license, hopefully that will be granted later this year.
… (6 comments)

Even Woodstock Can Dream Big In Santa Rosa - 04/28/11 05:41 PM

 
When I am in Santa Rosa, I love it when I come across a newly discovered Peanuts statue. There are hundreds of them all over town and they tend to take you by surprise when you find a new one.
The four Peanuts characters that have been replicated and uniquely decorated by local artists are (in order) Charlie Brown, Woodstock, Snoopy and Lucy.
Yesterday, I stopped off at Fidelity National Title to drop off an earnest money deposit check. When I pulled into their parking lot, I had to laugh out loud. There was Woodstock "Dreamin' Big" with his … (11 comments)

Personalizing the purchase offer ... a little bit can go a long way! - 04/27/11 08:25 PM
Back in 2005-2006, when we were experiencing a rapid increase in home prices (not value, just prices), a purchase offer was usually accompanied with an letter from the buyer's agent and sometimes even the buyer.
Usually, these letters were pretty sappy. They went on and on about how little Bobby would just LOVE the back yard, and how they would take care of the flower bed.
Some purchase offers were delivered with a bottle of wine. Some with flowers. I even saw one delivered with the results of an ultrasound. There was a baby on the way! How could you NOT … (25 comments)

Wife says YES ... Husband says NO. Husband says YES ... Wife says NO. - 04/26/11 06:01 PM
When I represent buyers in the purchase of a home, about half of those buyers are single. In my experience, it has been less difficult selling a home to an individual and the reason is quite simple. When just one person is required to make a decision, there isn't anyone to argue with.
The other half of the time, I've represented buyers who are married, significant others or registered domestic partners. This can be a little more challenging and sometimes surprising ... especially for them.
Quite often I hear one of the pair saying "YES! THIS IS THE ONE!" while the … (18 comments)

A first for me ... a loan officer attended a signing! - 04/25/11 09:04 PM
I always attend signings when I can. The only two I have missed was one in Colorado (a little far) and another when I had been called to Oregon during a family emergency.
In my 7 years of selling real estate, I have never had a loan officer attend a signing, which here in California is the signing of loan documents.
Why not? They are loan documents, aren't they? I'm not really sure how it ended up being the selling agent who always meets the buyer for signing, but that's the way it is here.
So I was very surprised when … (20 comments)

Burbank Housing - Sonoma County's Non-profit for Low Income Housing - 04/22/11 11:06 PM
I became aware of Burbank Housing when my Mother-In-Law was being forced to move from Sonoma County due to the high cost of rent. She is now living 160 miles away and will be 81 this year.
I helped her fill out an application with Burbank Housing, and she was placed on an estimated 4 year waiting list. That was a little over 3 years ago.
The Burbank Housing project that I like the best is a senior (62+) complex, and is within walking distance from my home office. Charles Street Village has 48 units (apartments) and is located in Cotati, … (13 comments)

Blood Bank of the Redwoods is giving away CHOCOLATE! - 04/21/11 06:09 PM
Blood Bank of the Redwoods is giving away CHOCOLATE! And not just any chocolate either!
Between Thursday April 21st & Saturday April 23rd, all Apheresis & Whole Blood donors who donate blood at any of their blood drives or at the Blood Center will receive a box of See's Candies.
OK, my bad, I should have posted this yesterday because this starts TODAY! Here is the schedule for the cool Blood Bank of the Redwoods Bloodmobile.
4/21 -  3:00PM - 7:00PM   Petaluma Community Center4/23 - 10:30AM - 1:30PM  Exchange Bank in Rohnert Park
If you live closer to the Santa … (9 comments)

22nd Annual Passport to Dry Creek Valley in Sonoma County - 04/20/11 04:46 PM
Save the date! April 30th and May 1st will host the 22nd Annual Passport to Dry Creek Valley. This event has palate appeal for foodies as well as wine lovers! There are many family owned wineries in Dry Creek Valley that will be educating people about pairing wine with food.
Ridge Winery, whose tasting room is insulated with bales of hay, is featuring its "Gourmet Burger Barbeque". The photo at right was taken from their tasting room last month. The Seghesio Winery theme will be "The Big Easy" featuring a Seafood Gumbo. Italian fare will also be prevalent as many winery … (4 comments)

Sonoma County Short Sales, Foreclosures and Traditional Sales - March 2011 - 04/19/11 07:51 PM
Should I buy a Short Sale, Foreclosure or a Traditional sale? In today's market I get asked that question quite frequently, and the answer is always "it depends". In order to determine what "type" of sale might be best for you, you will need to answer these questions first.
How much time do you have to purchase a property? If you have a limited time to purchase, perhaps due to a job relocation, that would rule out most short sales. What type of financing are you qualified for? If the answer is FHA or VA, that will rule out many foreclosures … (2 comments)

Warning Signs ... Some Are Not So Obvious - 04/19/11 03:06 PM
Warning signs ... we see them every day. CAUTION. ROAD CONSTRUCTION AHEAD. FALLING ROCKS. But not all warning signs are so obvious.
We have our own built in warning signs. They are the ones that tell us not to do something, or to do something differently than planned.
I learned to listen to my own internal warning mechanism after I ignored it one evening and ended up in the hospital.
My mind told me over and over "not tonight, you can do it another time" and *crash*, the drivers side of my VW Beetle was broadsided by a Mustang going 45 … (16 comments)

Why do homes settle? - 04/18/11 12:16 PM
Why do homes settle? There are a number of reasons, but all homes settle eventually. The severity of the settlement could be based on several factors, including how well the house was designed and constructed.
Also important, is the amount of attention paid to the foundation and the ground on which the house was built.
Where I live, there is a lot of adobe soil, also known as clay soil. It is pliable in the wet season (ever taken a pottery class?) and hard as rock in the summertime.
When adobe soil gets saturated it expands, causing it to push up. … (10 comments)

I was going to have time to play today ... My SUV had other plans - 04/18/11 09:59 AM

 
I had only one real estate related task I needed to complete this afternoon, then the rest of the day was going to be mine. I rushed over to a listing that closed on Friday to remove my lockbox from the front door. I tossed the lockbox onto the passenger seat and turned the ignition key.
Nothing. I stomped down harder on the clutch, the clutch pedal has to be all the way to the floorboard in order for the car to start if it is in gear. Nothing. Nada. No sound at all!
I called AAA for them … (24 comments)

Sonoma County Real Estate Market Report for March 2011 - 04/18/11 09:58 AM
 
Sonoma County Real Estate Market Report for March 2011
 

 
Sonoma County, with a population of approximately 475,000 residents, is located 50 miles North of San Francisco. The Western border of Sonoma County offers breath taking views of the Pacific Ocean, a fisherman's paradise for crab, salmon and abalone. Wine grapes and dairy products are the two top agricultural bounties in Sonoma County. If you love wine, come for a visit. Some who visit, never leave.
The graphs below will help you understand recent trends in the Sonoma County Real Estate Market. Data for these graphs is derived from … (3 comments)

Santa Rosa Real Estate Market Report for March 2011 - 04/15/11 07:47 PM
 
Santa Rosa Real Estate Market Report for March 2011
 

 
Santa Rosa is the largest City in Sonoma County, with a population of approximately 160,000. Santa Rosa is located 55 miles North of San Francisco and 23 miles East of the Pacific Ocean.
There continues to be a lot of buyer activity this year, including through March 2011. The number of properties that went under contract surpassed April 2010, which was at the height of the first-time home buyer tax rebate. It is also interesting that the average Days On Market (DOM) has been between 82 and 109 … (5 comments)

Apple Blossom Festival and Parade in Sebastopol - April 16 & 17 2011 - 04/15/11 05:47 PM

 
The 65th annual Apple Blossom Festival and Parade kicks off in Sebastopol on Saturday, April 16th and continues through April 17th. This years theme is "Blossoms on Safari". Sebastopol was once known for miles and miles of apple orchards and a fruit processing plant. The plant has been repurposed and most of the orchards have been replaced with vineyards.
Although Sebastopol has changed, their love of their Apple Blossom Festival and Parade hasn't. The fun starts at 10:00AM on Saturday when the parade kicks off. The parade route begins at Analy High School and continues South on Main Street, … (4 comments)

Butter and Eggs Days Parade in Petaluma - April 16 2011 - 04/15/11 05:14 PM

 
The 30th Annual Butter and Eggs Days Parade will take place in Petaluma on Saturday, April 16, 2011. Petaluma, once known as the "Egg Capital of the World", has changed over the years and is better known today as a telecommunications hub. But some traditions are meant to last forever and the residents of Petaluma LOVE this one.
You'll want to get to this event early, the Butter and Eggs Days Parade is so popular it attracts close to 30,000 people each year. The fun starts at 10:00AM and lasts until 5:00PM. Here's the line-up!
10:00 AM - Cow … (6 comments)

Let's get this straight ... what's your name? - 04/14/11 02:37 PM
Details, details details.
One of the little details that sometimes isn't given enough thought when buying a home? Your name. Maybe your friends call you Tom, but is your legal name Thomas? My family calls me Cyndi, but my legal name is Cynthia.
When you apply for a loan, the lender will have you fill out an application that asks for your complete name and social security number. They will use this information to perform a credit check. Use your legal name, not your nickname.
Now ... the name you wrote down on your loan application should match the name your … (23 comments)

Cisco drops the Flip Video Camera? Say it isn't so! - 04/13/11 09:17 PM
Gee, my Flip video camera is only 4 months old and has already become obsolete! Cisco Systems announced they are dropping the Flip entirely. According to the article I read, they aren't even going to try to sell it to another company.
I thought it was kind of odd that Cisco was the brand when I originally checked out the Flip. Cisco had always been a telecommunications company, or so I thought, so what were they doing selling video cameras?
Evidently Cisco wondered this as well, because the Flip is no longer. Mine works fine, I'll keep it until it breaks, … (26 comments)

Petaluma Real Estate Market Report for March 2011 - 04/13/11 05:55 PM
 
Petaluma Real Estate Market Report for March 2011
 
Petaluma, CA is located 40 miles North of San Francisco and 23 miles East of the Pacific Ocean. Some think of Petaluma as two towns, the West side and the East Side, separated by Highway 101.
West Petaluma shares its history of the 1800's while, for the most part, East Petaluma emerged after World War II in the early 50's. When buyers visit Petaluma, they usually find one side more appealing than the other almost instantly. Petaluma has almost 55,000 residents, and the one thing they do really well is throw … (3 comments)

Rohnert Park/Cotati Real Estate Market Report For March 2011 - 04/12/11 09:36 PM
 
Rohnert Park/Cotati Real Estate Market Report For March 2011
 

 
Rohnert Park and Cotati have populations of approximately 43,000 and 7,300 respectively. They are side by side with no buffer, often times making you wonder which City you happen to be in while driving down the street.
Rohnert Park and Cotati are located 45 miles North of San Francisco and 23 miles East of the Pacific Ocean. Cotati has a quaint downtown for socializing, where Rohnert Park is a bedroom community with distinct neighborhoods. The MLS groups these two Cities together, and it only makes sense to do … (0 comments)

Farm Trails' Blossoms, Bees & Barnyard Babies - May 1st, 2011 - 04/12/11 04:19 PM
Save the date! Sunday, May 1st, local farms from Petaluma to Healdsburg will be opening their barnyard doors to the public! This is your chance to get a behind-the-scenes peek at the source of Sonoma County's finest food and agriculture.
Have you ever wanted to know what it would be like to live on a farm? Have you ever seen newly born barnyard babies? This is a great chance to share the country life with the kids and meet the farmers who bring food to your table.


 
Here's how this works. Visit the official web site and map … (15 comments)

Leaving town? Do the right thing and leave your client in good hands. - 04/12/11 03:18 PM
I received a phone call from a woman last night as I was preparing dinner. She found me on my blog from a post I wrote long ago about a nearby condo complex. She explained the REALTOR® she has been working with is out of town and the "replacement" she was assigned to just isn't clicking with her.
She asked if there were any available units in the condo complex, and I told her yes, there was currently one available. I gave her the price, bed & baths and MLS number. We chatted a little bit about the condo amenities and … (5 comments)

Oh the joy of selling a pre-90 day FLIP!! - 04/08/11 05:04 PM
If a property has been flipped in less than 90 days AND the selling price is 20% or more than the last sale, you can expect a special set of requirements from the lender.
First of all, I have yet to see a flip where the selling price doesn't fall into this category. It wouldn't be worth it to the investor/contractor after considering the cost to buy, cost to hold, time & materials to remodel, and cost to sell. If a home is purchased for $200K, you can bet it will be on the market for $240K or more after a … (19 comments)

Cotati Arts Project Unveils First Of Many Scuptures - Athena - 04/08/11 01:08 PM

 
At 8:30AM this morning, the Cotati Arts Project unveiled their fist of many sculptures planned throughout the downtown area of Cotati. The weather was brisk, but the sun was shining, making for a chilly but upbeat morning.
The first sculpture was placed at Cotati's busiest intersection, at Old Redwood Highway and East Cotati Avenue. Athena stands about 6 feet high and faces La Plaza Park, diagonally across the street. Motorists honked their horns as they watched the unveiling, something they do here whenever they see a crowd assembled.
Based on Greek Mythology, Athena is the Goddess of many things, … (2 comments)

Can you tell us why this building looks so familiar? - 04/03/11 08:43 PM

I was out and about in Sonoma County today, it was a fabulous sunny day for a Sunday drive. I stopped at one of my favorite places to get a photo of this building, I've been here dozens of times but never with a camera.
I wasn't the only one there, three people were there snapping photos as well. They were from out of town and had spotted this building from the highway. They were pointing and having a conversation as I walked up to them.
They asked if I was from the area and I said yes. The next … (18 comments)

 
Cynthia Larsen - Sonoma County Real Estate Broker (707-332-2560 www.safehavenrealty.com) Rainmaker_large

Cynthia Larsen - Sonoma County Real Estate Broker

Cotati, CA

More about me…

707-332-2560 www.safehavenrealty.com

Address: 8745 Fehler Ln, Cotati, CA, 94931

Cell Phone: (707) 332-2560

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