Spring is definitely here in the Sierra Foothills.  Everything is blooming and green and it's almost short-sleeve weather.  The increase in vehicle traffic - as well as foot traffic - is very evident throughout Amador County.  I recently started volunteering on weekends at the Sutter Creek Visitor's Center and was pleasantly surprised to see how many people were out enjoying the beatiful weather.  Probably have of all the people who stopped in the Visitor's Center were either on their way to Dafodil Hill, or had questions about it.  Evidently it's beautiful again (after recent snow-suppressed Springs) and the word is spreading rapidly.

We have also noticed a significant increase in foot traffic and phone calls in our offices lately.  With the good weather, people seem to be coming out of real estate hibernation.  There hasn't been a better time to buy a home for at least a decade and although other markets in our region are still struggling, Amador County has not been hit nearly as hard by the so-called mortgage crises.

If you're not paying attention to the "bigger picture", it's easy to get sucked into the negative news that the media loves so much.  (i.e. it's easy to see a 200% increase in foreclosures in the state when you go from 1 foreclosed home to 200.)  If we all avoided the temptation to believe whatever the media tells us - and then pass on the bad news - I personally believe we'd all be better off.  My wife and I have significantly cut down on the amount of time we spend watching the news and I can tell you that we both have much less stress in our lives - and the world around us seems a much less gloomy place.

One of the local (Sacramento) TV news stations recently visited Amador County to see what our secret is.  It seems that while doing research for a segment on the awful state of the housing market that they discovered an anomaly: among approximately 15 counties in the Sacramento region, Amador was the only one not to show a decrease in home sales prices in 2007.  In fact the statistics showed that Amador County posted a better than 5% increase in the average home sales price!  The stats can obviously be more easily adjusted here than in the valley simply because we have fewer homes to sell than Sacramento, Stockton and neighboring markets.  However, no matter what the stats are attributed to, Amador County remains a pretty safe bet if you're looking for a real estate purchase. 

So I'm finally joining the Blog World!  (Actually I have another profile I need to delete.  Anyone know how?)

This initial post will be short to avoid putting anyone to sleep.  As my profile states, I'm a third generation Amador County Realtor.  My mother's father was one of 5 brokers in Amador County in 1958 and he ran a successful brokerage, Sierra Scotty Realtors, until the mid-80's when my father bought the company from him.  My dad has been in the business since 1977, earned his brokers license in 1980 and has owned and operated two real estate companies since then.  He is currently the co-owner/broker of Coldwell Banker Award Realtors.

Our company has three locations in Amador County: Jackson (our "main" office), Pioneer, and Ione.  When people ask where I work I say, "you mean, where is my desk located?".  My desk is located in the Ione CBAR office, but "where I work" is a much larger area.  I cover all of Amador County and parts of El Dorado, Calaveras, Sacramento and San Joaquin Counties.

I pride myself on being a "straight shooter".  One thing you can count on when working with me is that you're going to get the truth.  I am a terrible liar and don't beat around the bush when it comes to something as serious as real estate.  The real estate process is usually an emotional one and it doesn't do anyone any good to hear anything but the facts.  As I often tell my friends and clients, I may not tell you what you want to hear, but I will tell you what you need to hear.  I love what I do and truly take my clients' needs to heart.

Many of my clients have become close friends and I hope that if you and I have the chance to meet the same will be true.