piedmont: I've Moved! - 08/27/09 09:15 PM
After more than three years here, you can now find my blog at
http://tinyurl.com/PiedmontHome
Hope to see you there!
… (1 comments)
|
piedmont: How to Green Up your Real Estate Practice - 08/25/09 11:06 PM
I've been doing some file clean up and came across a Google doc I put together last year as part of a panel on Green Real Estate Strategies at the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing last October. Here's the URL to my factsheet on steps you can take to "green" your … (1 comments)
|
piedmont: New Buyer Resources - 08/25/09 07:06 PM
If you're a new buyer in this market, you'll want to be prepared, now more than ever! I can offer you:
· A free, comprehensive list of all open houses in the East Bay (not just those in the Chronicle, etc.), sent to your email box before noon each Saturday;
· Free email … (1 comments)
|
piedmont: A Good Time to Sell? - 08/22/09 01:15 PM
You know me well enough to know that I'm a straight shooter, more interested in making sure you have the right advice and insight than in getting a check in my pocket. My reputation depends on that. And it's important to know when market trends are counterintuitive. "Everyone knows" that now's … (1 comments)
|
piedmont: What I've Been Up To-- - 07/01/09 09:19 PM
This quarter, I've closed all my transactions (it's not uncommon for deals to fall through these days!), assembled market info for clients trying to decide how best to meet their real estate goals (should we sell now or later? Buy first and sell second?), wrote ''green real estate'' stories and the … (2 comments)
|
piedmont: Repaint the House - 07/01/09 09:09 PM
We repainted our trim in Piedmont not long ago (now have a Warm Brick thing going rather than Forest Service Green). The brown paint for some trim and the gate has a touch of red in there, which feels like Mexican mole sauce if you stare at it long enough. Yum!!
… (0 comments)
|
piedmont: Put September 15th on Your Calendar Today! - 07/01/09 09:05 PM
That's the deadline for submitting an application for a downward adjustment in your property assessment (resulting in a reduction in property taxes). Two great resources are:
--the county assessor's site, which includes all the forms and deadlines, and
--this video</a> from the state Board of Equalization, which walks through the process … (1 comments)
|
piedmont: Market Downturn Hits Piedmont Market - 07/01/09 08:58 PM
2Q09 Market Update
After several years of steady prices (sales prices had been quite flat at around $600/sf since our market peak in November of 2005), and a winter and spring of very few sales and prices all over the place, this spring market makes the market direction clear: Prices are … (0 comments)
|
piedmont: Feds Create Two Mortgage Aid Programs - 03/13/09 12:15 PM
Ten days ago, the Treasury Department announced two housing programs for households having difficulty paying their mortgages. The programs target two different groups:
--those who could handle payments if only they could refinance to today's low interest rates, but can't because their first mortgage is more than 80% of the current … (2 comments)
|
piedmont: Interim Piedmont Update - 11/24/08 03:54 PM
Let me start out by saying that it's VERY hard to draw hard conclusions from the nine transactions that have closed since the first of October.
Some good news--No major banks have failed in the last few weeks. Several of the largest lenders have recently implemented foreclosure moratoria (maybe not good … (2 comments)
|
piedmont: 3Q08 Piedmont Market Update - 10/10/08 12:16 PM
For months I've been describing trends in surrounding areas of the region, state and nation--declining median prices weighted down in part by short sales and ''real estate-owned'' properties in many markets, tightening mortgage standards at all points of the income and property price spectrum, and so on. Overall, there's been a … (1 comments)
|
piedmont: What's All This about Smart Metering? - 07/28/08 12:20 PM
It boils down to the notion that you "can't manage what you can't see."
Someone had a story in the last couple of weeks about the town of Brighton in the UK. It's adopted smart meters which give real-time feedback on energy usage in the house. A nice console on the … (1 comments)
|
piedmont: Saving Water for the Garden - 07/26/08 08:01 PM
I remember years ago, when I was running Redefining Progress in the City, a rep from Tree People in LA came calling. Sounds very crunchy, I know, but he made a key point that I've remembered ever since: We in California get gobs of rain in one season and none the … (0 comments)
|
piedmont: East Bay Market Update - 07/08/08 10:56 AM
Despite unsettling events in the housing and mortgage markets as recently as today, the East Bay appears to be doing better than much of the rest of the state and much of the country, according to data from a variety of sources. Berkeley prices are about 5 percent below the $829,000 … (2 comments)
|
piedmont: Finally....... - 07/04/08 11:47 PM
That handy list of green rebates for Alameda County residents from the 1Q08 newsletter can be found here, and my list of home improvement and maintenance vendors can be found now or later at www.drop.io/MaureenKennedyUsefulStuff. The password is MaureenKennedy (case-sensitive).
And as always, I'd love to help you or your friends … (0 comments)
|
piedmont: 1Q08 Piedmont Market Update - 04/01/08 12:52 AM
So What's Going on in this Market??
Only 11 homes sold in Piedmont this past quarter, compared to 18 homes during the first quarter of 2007 (and 21 during 1Q06). The average price per square foot settled in at $606/sf, lower than last quarter's $631/sf, but consistent with the pattern of the … (0 comments)
|
piedmont: Tax Ruling for Second Home Owners Who Might Want to Sell - 03/13/08 01:55 PM
A colleague in Vail just sent me a great summary of a recent IRS ruling regarding Section 1031 exchanges for second homes. The piece addresses the question of under what circumstances could you treat your second home as an investment property, and thus exchange it for a new investment property, including, … (0 comments)
|
piedmont: Celebrating St. Patrick's Day in Style! - 03/04/08 02:47 PM
Well, I'm Irish-American, so it seems obvious to celebrate with a "green" initiative! I've got ten great nylon reuseable shopping bags made by ChicoBag to give away--in green or Piedmont purple, of course. These stuff into themselves with a zipper, and have a handy 'biner attached so you can use it as a … (1 comments)
|
piedmont: Truitt and White Homeowner Seminars - 02/07/08 10:43 PM
While tracking down the low-e film, I realized that Truitt and White sponsors free seminars on topics like energy efficient windows, and seismic upgrades for wood-built homes. Click here for a current line-up.
… (0 comments)
|
piedmont: Who's on Top? - 02/07/08 10:40 PM
Who sells more Piedmont real estate? You may be surprised! In 2007, for homes selling above $1 million (the average sale price is about $1.5 million), Pacific Union closed more seller-side transactions (volume and total sales) than did The Grubb Company (and that doesn't include my 2007 activity with Prudential!). Moreover, … (0 comments)
|
;)
;)
