Info, observations, and other random stuff about San Luis Obispo County
I was at the SLO Farmers Market tonite and heard about the ribs from a relatively newcomer to Thursday nights. Creekside Brewing has a bar-b-que at the South end of the market, past McLintock’s. I tried their pork ribs and I haven’t tasted a rib this good in a long time. It’s got a rub spice on it so it’s not one of those ribs where the taste is all sauce. Really tender too. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it again!
If you’re down at future Farmers Markets, give them a try.
If you’ve seen the movie Avatar and wondered what your Avatar may look like, you no longer have to wonder. McDonald’s has a web application where you can upload a photo and it will create the Avatar from it. Ok, so it’s not perfect but it’s kinda entertaining for the few minutes it will take create it.
Here’s mine…I don’t think I have any chance of being in Avatar 2 though 🙂
http://www.avatarizeyourself.com/?mId=33955266.3
Will it become a thing of the past?
With the new RESPA rules of 2010, it looks like escrows of 45-60 days may become the new norm, if a loan from a financial institution is involved. RESPA is the Real Estate Settlement Protection Act administered by HUD.
As always, in an effort to simplify things and make them clearer… these new rules, intended to protect the consumer, will require, among other things, that the loan originators re-issue a Good Faith Estimate (GFE) to the client if changes or variances occur from the original GFE. In addition, the GFE must now include any and all potential charges that the buyer may be subject to, even ones that are paid by the seller as standard practice.
Of course, we all agree, and strongly support the belief, that the client needs to know about any and all issues related to their loan and their purchase. The effect on the escrow period comes into play with the requirement that the consumer be given 10 business days after re-issue of the new GFE. 10 business days equates to 2 weeks, at best.
It will be interesting to see how these new rules are interpreted and implemented by the various lending institutions over time. Putting additional pressure on the escrow time period are last year’s new rules and regulations regarding appraisals and appraisal reviews. These appraisal changes have an impact, with many transactions, on the length of time needed for an escrow to close.
For now- do not be surprised, whether you are the buyer or seller, if you find the required time to close a transaction growing longer. As your agent, I will guide you through these continually changing issues so that your transaction is a smooth one.
Lynn Bates, North Coast Realtor including Morro Bay, Los Osos, Cayucos, Cambria, Keith Byrd’s Real Estate Team, 805 458-4409.
We just listed another Premier listing! This Arroyo Grande home is in the Ranch Grande neighborhood and is 3900 sq feet.
For details, photos, and our “Fly Through Video Tour” in High Definition, check out the property website.
Yogurt Creations offers a flavor alert either via email or text message. I applaud them for using the Internet and messaging to do this. They have stores in Arroyo Grande, Atascadero, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Maria. The alerts will tell you when and where your favorite flavor is available!
http://www.iloveyogurtcreations.com/
In 2009, Cambria had a total of 98 sales of SFR, single family residences. Of those, 10 sold for over One Million Dollars.
So far in January of 2010- there have been 8 sales in Cambria and 3 of those sold for over One Million Dollars.
Two of these million dollar sales were in Lodge Hill, one on Kenneth Drive and one on Drake Street; and one was in Leimert on Chelsea Lane.
For more information about these properties or any others in Cambria and on the North Coast, call Lynn Bates, Cambria & North Coast Realtor, Keith Byrd’s Real Estate Team. 805 458-4409.
Over 400 birders come to Morro Bay each year to participate in the Annual Winter Bird Festival. This year’s festival was last week-end, January 15-18th and included workshops, boat excursions and other events.
Morro Bay is a designated State and National Estuary, located on thePacific Flyway and is considered a globally important bird area. We consistently rank in the top 5 % of the Audubon Society’s Annual winterbird count, with over 200 species of birds who either winter or live hereyear round.
I am a beginning amateur birder- if such a designation exists. Although I don’t have binoculars- yet- with all the beautiful birds that I see on my walks- I am drawn to learning a bit more about them.
Here are a couple of snapshots of some of the more frequently seen Morro Bay coastal birds.
Lynn Bates, Morro Bay & North Coast Realtor, Keith Byrd’s Real Estate Team, 805 458-4409.
I added a really cool calculator just now at the bottom of the property listing detail pages on our MLS search. It’s a Closing Calculator that will compute how much you’ll need to pay in escrow fees and other closing costs.
Check it out!
The B-52’s must have liked it when they last appeared at Chumash Casino a few years ago as they are coming back for a show on Friday, February 28th at 8 pm. I saw their last show and it was a good one if you like the band.
Will all this rain you’d think that the water levels at the local reservoirs would be rising. Well they are, but not as much as I would have hoped for.
Here are some levels as of today:
– Lake San Antonio capacity has gone from 35% as of Saturday to 37% as of today.
– Lake Nacimiento has risen from 16% on Sunday to 27% as of today.
– Lake Lopez is at 51.5% capacity, in late November it was at 50%.
Hopefully we’ll continue to see increases as the runoff continues.