Month: September 2006

Keith Byrd

My wife and I took a walk out Poly Canyon a few weeks ago (before Poly started again). We were amazed to see them busy working on the new village. Once completed, Poly plans to raise the school attendence another 3000+ students. That should make the downtown merchants happy!

Keith Byrd

MLS Map Search Tip

Have you noticed the “Email Search” in the upper right corner of a MLS Map Search on my site? What this is good for is if you want to easily bring up a map that I don’t currently have defined in my menu choices.

After you move the map to where you want to display properties, zoom the map to the level you want, and choose other criteria (like price range), click on “Email Search” and send the email to your own email address. What you’ll get sent is the URL for that map you have displayed. Then click on this URL and Bookmark it (or add Favorites) in your web browser. You can then go directly to this map when you want to view the current properties for sale for that area.

Keith Byrd

If you are listing a property on the Central Coast and want to have your home listed on web sites, make sure your agent is not choosing to delete your property’s street address. This is an option when they enter the listing.

Without a street address, the sites that map MLS listings won’t know where to map your property. I see more and more properties being listed without street addresses being displayed on websites. The Listing Agents may think this is a way to get people to call them to ask for the address so they have a chance of “double-ending” the transcation and making twice the commission, but what it’s really doing is limiting the marketing exposure of the property.

Keith Byrd

There’s lots of coverage about the upcoming Dalidio Marketplace vote in the local press lately. The Tribune had a front page story recently and today’s New Times has Mr. Dalidio on the cover. With all the talk about the stores that could be part of the Marketplace, Santa Maria is busy bringing stores (and tax revenue) to their city. The most viewed news article on the Santa Maria Times website is the announcement of Steve & Barry’s clothing store coming to the Town Center Mall. Macy’s also just went in and a 14-screen theatre is projected to be finished in 2007. See the Times article here.

I must admit, everytime I drive in Grover Beach and experience the state of their roads, I wonder how other cities in SLO County can stop this from happening as we keep losing retail tax revenue to Santa Maria.

Keith Byrd

Home sales in the San Francisco Bay Area fell 24.9 percent in August compared to August 2006. In addition, median prices dropped in real estate research company DataQuick Information Systems reported today, and median prices dropped in three counties compared to year-ago levels.

Full Article Here

Keith Byrd

If you were in SLO today, you may have noticed the groups of new Poly students. This is the start of the Week of Welcome (WoW). I have fond memories of my WOW week…the sewer tour, the hot tubs, my first visit to downtown, and bonfires at Port San Luis. Every year they put a map together with advertisers on it and coupons around the edge. You can get some good deals if you pick one of these up. This year there is a 20% off coupon for Copelands, 19 cents loaf of french bread at Food 4 Less, 2 for 1 at the Palm, Free tire rotation at The Tire Store, and more. I was at Poly today and they have them right when you walk in the door at the El Corral Bookstore.

Keith Byrd

I hear often from Realtors and borrowers wanting to know if I think rates will go down. Rates are at a 30 year low (see link below). They have dropped a hair, but overall they are stable for the time being. Down a bit or up a bit, rates are LOW. It does definitely help with purchase power to have the lowest rate possible, but remember to beware a rate that seems too good to be true…as it could cost you a great deal later.

www.mortgage-x.com/general/indexes/average_contract_rate.asp