The "Newest" New Listings
If you go to the New Listings Report and click on the MLS # of new listings from yesterday, it may reply with a “property not found” message. There’s a problem syncing up the listing information between multiple sources that I use. The vendor that provides the property details piece is not updating the listing data as fast as the program I have that creates the New Listing Report. I’ve contacted the vendor and hope that they will be updating their listing data earlier in the day.
Unfortunately, I’m doing things that no other Realtors are doing so vendors don’t realize they may be messing something up when they do something like delaying when they update listing info. Most Realtors only have one MLS search product they get from a vendor and they don’t do any custom reports on their website. So, it doesn’t matter to other Realtors when the listing data is updated.
I’m pushing the envelope on a lot of things I do with my websites and unfortunately run into things like the above situation when I try to integrate products from multiple sources. Most of the time, I can get vendors to understand what I’m trying to do and change their processes so it doesn’t affect what I’m offering to you all.
I could change my program to not create the New Listings Report until later in the day but then you wouldn’t see the most current info. Until I can get the vendor to update their data earlier, you can always contact us if you see a New Listing on the report and want more details.
Point Buchon Trail in Los Osos
(submitted by one of our North Coast agents)
At last – I set aside a few hours to enjoy this trail that opened in its entirety, last summer. Incredible! The trail is about 7 miles round trip and winds along the coast. Although not as flat as the better known Bluff Trail of Montana de Oro, it is not a difficult walk. The hardest part is getting up the hill to where it begins, (and where you need to check in). It took us about 2 hours to complete- but we were moving along fairly rapidly, so you might want to allow for a little more time to stroll, chat, picnic and enjoy.
Point Buchon is not part of the Montana de Oro State Park, but is located at the southern point of that park. The land is privately owned by PG&E and as you near the southern end of the trial- you will see the Diablo Canyon Plant.
After leaving, we stopped at the Bluff Trail pull-in to rest and have some snacks. Gazing out into the Pacific- we spotted a whale and watched her play, splash and swim around for a while before moving on. Wow!
Granted- we may not have a movie theater in Los Osos, (or a sewer…as of yet), but we have awe-inspiring natural wonders second to none!
Shots Fired into Lopez High School
There were 6 shots fired into Lopez Continuation High School on the Mesa in Arroyo Grande over the holiday weekend. Police are calling the drive-by shooting as vandalism.
I’ve blogged in the past about the gang problems in Santa Maria and how we are getting gangs moving North and also coming South too. I wouldn’t be surprised if this vandalism was gang related which if so is really sad for all of us residents. We haven’t put enough resources to try to slow them down when times were good and now with the economy mess, are we going to cut existing resources too?
I guess it’s going to have to get worse before gang prevention becomes a priority (sigh). Kudo’s to all those teachers and workers that are trying to make a difference in the lives of some of these kids that have already got into gangs or think they need to.
Zillow Q4 Home Price Chart
Zillow released their report on homes prices in Q4 today. Here’s a map of our area. The different color triangles show how much homes went down in a city (the darker the color, the higher percentage prices dropped).
Madonna Inn on TV Show
One of my daughters told me that SLO and the Madonna Inn was featured on “The Girls Next Door” on the E! Channel recently. Here’s a clip I found of it.
Is the Rain Helping?
The latest rain is raising my hopes that we won’t end up with a bad year with rainfall.
Here are sites with good weather info to track where we are:
This site has good local rainfall data for the day and season average.
This pdf report shows how full Lake Nacimiento and San Antonio Reservoir is.
Light, Bright and Airy Home Staging Tips
Staging for Rain! Wow we have gotten some rain this winter around here! If your house is on the market it is essential that you keep the rain hazards and mud to a minimum! Here are some quick tips for success:
- Make sure you have a great front door mat!
- If the rain and or mud is really bad, ask people to take off their shoes in your house.
- Make sure that your gutters and ditches are working properly, nothing causes alarm quite like flooding!
- If you have pets that go in and out of your house during this weather, check their feet too!
- Keep your heat on at least slightly, it will make your house seem homier during showings, if its a warm oasis out of the cold of rain.
- Keep your eyes on your roof through the rainy season, it would be terrible to find out you have a leak from a potential buyer!
Happy Selling, stay dry!
To contact me directly, please email me through my website: www.LightBrightandAiry.com
SLO Deli – Grinders
I’ve heard about a sandwich shop that had opened in SLO called Grinders but never went to it until today. From the article I read, a Grinder is some East Coast thing. Since I’m a California native and never ran across a Grinder in my trips to the East Coast, I thought it was going to be something like a Philly Cheesesteak or Chicago Pizza, neither I’m very fond of.
What I discovered a Grinder to be is a REALLY big sandwich. They have 2 sizes, regular and half but I’d name them Huge and Big. The regular is 18″, half is 9″. A 9″ comes with 8 oz of meat and they have a “lite” version that comes with 4 oz and is about a dollar cheaper.
If you agree on the same type of sandwich, a half-sandwich would be a meal for 2 people and would be cheaper than 2 footlong subs at Subway. Bread choices are a (soft) french bread, sourdough, or wheat. I got their half Italian Grinder (called East Coast (something)) and it cost me $7.49.
There is limited seating inside so it’s probably better to get it to go, maybe even calling it in ahead of time. It’s at the corner of Broad Street and Upham. If you’re in downtown SLO, get on Broad Street going South and it’s about 7 blocks from Marsh Street.
Check it out!
Century 21 Hometown Acquires Re/Max Ocean West
I think we’re going to see more Brokerages closing their doors or being acquired this year. My Brokerage (Century 21 Hometown Realty) recently acquired Re/Max Ocean West with offices in Santa Maria and Pismo Beach.
I recently did some Sold statistics for 2008 by Brokerage and some Brokerages only had a few Solds for 2008 which I’m sure isn’t enough to help pay to keep the doors open. 2009 isn’t starting out much different than 2008 in regards to the number of Solds which will only make it harder for Brokerages that have already been struggling to survive.
If you are currently under contract with a Brokerage, having them being acquired is not an issue as your agent just becomes part of the acquiring Brokerage. But, if the Brokerage shuts their doors, you might have some problems. It all depends why they are going out of business. If it’s because they can’t afford their office space anymore, then they probably will still have their license so they may still be able to finish the transaction. But, if their license was suspended or revoked, then you’re going to have to figure out what to do as they won’t be able to assist you anymore.
What I would do on any Listing Agreement is add a clause that allows you to cancel the agreement at any time. Then, if Brokerage closes their doors, you can cancel the listing agreement and resign with a Brokerage that is going to be around (like C21 Hometown Realty!). I don’t see too much of a benefit for a homeowner wanting to sell their home to be locked into a 6-12 month listing agreement with a Brokerage that no longer has an office.
The Return of Alpha Bits!
Ok, I’ll admit that it doesn’t take too much to get me excited and here’s proof. Alpha Bits have returned to the Central Coast! My wife found them at Scolaris the other day. They’ve been off the shelf for a couple years. Yummy!
