Palo Alto Market Update

According to the MLS here is the state of the market for 10/28/2010...

Active listings:  88

Pending Sales:  60

Active Short Sales:  1

Active Bank owned: 1

Pending Short Sales: 1

Pending Bank owned: 0

Sold Short Sales 2010: 2

Sold Bank Owned in 2010: 1

What does this mean? Despite the reports of doom and gloom in the media for the national real estate market, and despite the hysteria on many web sites, as of now, the Palo Alto market is not being influenced by distressed properties.  This does not mean that it will not be in the future, but so far in 2010 there are not a lot of distressed properties on the market. So if you are looking for a bargain, this is not the place to find it. Not only are there not many distressed properties, but the ratio of listings to pendings is very healthy. There are still a number of homes in the upper price range, over 3,000,000 that are not selling easily, but otherwise the market is still quite active and healthy.  What this says to me is that Palo Alto is a very desirable place to live, and there are enough people with jobs and money to support the market in Palo Alto.

Marcy Moyer

www.marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

marcy(at) marcymoyer (dot) com

D.R.E.  01191194

What To Do This Halloween (Part One)

Halloween is upon us this weekend and the Bay Area offers plenty of different ways to celebrate.  Here are a few family-friendly ideas.

 Halloween on the Farm - Lemos Farm (Half Moon Bay)

When my kids were younger, a visit to Lemos Farm was a Halloween-must, and I'm thrilled to see the tradition continues.  Head up there for the afternoon, get in on some last minute pumpkin shopping and take a ride on the spooky ghost train.  ( Open Daily through Halloween: 9 AM to 5 PM.  Free admission, but prices for events vary.)

Day of the Dead Celebration --  (Palo Alto, Various Locales)

Another place I seemed to take my kids just about every weekend was the Palo Alto Junior Museum, which is co-hosting Palo Alto's 2nd Annual Dia De Los Muertos Celebration.    Events throughout the day include storytelling at the Children's Library with Olga Loya, mask-making at the Palo Alto Art Center and, at the Junior Museum, kids can contribute to an alter honoring extinct animals. (Sat. the 30th from 1 - 5 PM.  Free admission)

Halloween Concert at Stanford -- Stanford University (Palo Alto)

If you like your Halloween to have a little more culture, check out the Stanford Symphony Orchestra and the Standord Wind Ensemble's presentation of "a chilling evening in the spirit of All Hallow's Eve." (Sunday the 31st at 8 PM.  $10 General admission, $9 Seniors, $5 Students)

The Not So Hidden Cost of Homeownership or Why Palo Alto HOA Fees are Not So Unreasonable

HOA fees are high, and in Palo Alto they tend to be even higher than in surrounding areas. So are homeowners getting ripped off? Is someone behind a curtain making thousands of dollars off the backs of people living in townhomes and condos? The answer is an emphatic NO.  

HOA fees are set to cover the costs of maintaining and fixing the development. If there is a professional management company hired to do this then they will get paid about 10% of the HOA fee.  That is the only money that does not go directly to the upkeep of the building. 

Different developments will have different fees because they cover different things.  The basics that are covered are usually insurance and exterior maintenance like the roof, painting, landscaping, and exterior utilities. Many complexes also cover water, garbage, and sewer. Some cover cable service or gas for heating.  If there are common amenities like pools or parks those are covered.  All developments will have a reserve fund to cover the cost of future repairs and replacements.

If you own a single family home in Palo Alto you may have the following expenses:

• Fire insurance  $100 a month
• Earthquake insurance: $100 a month
• Gardiner  $130 a month
• Water garbage sewer: $100 a month

So you can see that you are already over $400 a month without your utility bill.

What if the house needs painting or the roof needs replacing? These cost money. It can be $4000 or more to paint the exterior every 10 years. That averages about $35 a month you should save up.  A roof replacement is about $15,000 every 20 years or $40 a month you need to put aside.

Now, looking at these figures the HOA fee does not look so bad to me.  

I am not saying that everyone should go out and buy a condo instead of a single family home.  There are plusses and minuses to both.  What I am saying is that it costs money to maintain a house, and it costs money to pay an HOA fee. The costs are not that much different. So if you are planning on buying  the decision about condo vs single family home should be based on the bigger differences. Things like location, lot size, age, square footage, future appreciation, are much more important considerations than most HOA fees.

In Palo Alto and the surrounding communities you can get a newer and larger condo or townhome than a single family home. The newer it is the more expensive. There are a lot of condos/townhomes in downtown PA, and not as many single family homes.  There are more single family homes in south Palo Alto than condos/townhomes.  The condos/townhomes that are new in south Palo Alto are not in the best locations.   There is more room to play outside in  a single family home.  There are pet restrictions in most condos/townhomes.  The newer townhomes/condos are more energy efficient.  These are some important considerations in your home search.  You are not going to get away without paying insurance, utilities, and maintaining your structure, so the HOA fee is not as important as your lifestyle choices and what you can afford in mortgage payments.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com 

D.R.E. 01191194

Palo Alto Open House This Weekend! Location, Location, Location...

Welcome to this lovingly upgraded 2 story Midtown Palo Alto townhome in a fantastic location.  

Exterior View 

OPEN HOUSE THIS SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, 

October 23rd and 24th, 1:30-4:30.

This home boasts pergo flooring throughout the home, corium kitchen counters, stainless steel appliances, a built in entertainment center, granite faced fireplace, granite vanity top in the half bath, and a spectacular back patio and deck. 

Additionally there is a large kitchen, separate dining room, step down living room, and three bedrooms plus 2.5 baths. The complex has all new hard scape with gorgeous walkways and planters.  


There is also a pool and spa, and underground parking with an elevator to the main level. The HOA fee of $575 covers exterior maintenance including the roof, painting, pool, and landscaping, water and garbage, and earthquake and fire insurance.  

Fantastic schools include Palo Verde Elementary, JLS Middle School, and Palo Alto High School (buyer to verify.) 

Come see this gem, you will not be disappointed!

Menlo Park Ca Short Sale Green Home at a Great Price!

Welcome to this beautiful Green Home in a friendly enclave of 37 3 year old homes. It features solar panels that produce more electricity than the home uses, an on demand water heater, extensive insulation, granite counters in the kitchen and bathrooms, solid surface bathroom surrounds, wood and tile floors as well as high quality carpets, an attached two car garage, and fenced back yard. All this at a very affordable price and a short sale with an experienced short sale agent and only one loan.  Disclosures available at www.marcymoyer.com

Best of Palo Alto #2

Every year the Palo Alto Weekly releases their “Best of... List” and this year got me thinking, “What do my family and I consider the best places to eat and shop in Palo Alto?”  This is an an ongoing series about personal favorites in my city.


BEST COFFEE



This is an easy one -- Philz Coffee on Middlefield in midtown.  And while I know it gets a lot of flak (Long waits, pricey cups, no lattes, it’s not Le Creme) let me just say this, “some things are worth the wait, and the price.”


Yes, three dollars is more than a cup of coffee at Starbucks.  Yes, you’re going to have to wait much longer than you would for something from a coffee pot at 7-11, but there is a reason this place has consistently been voted “The best coffee” in San Francisco...It’s.  Absolutely.  Fantastic.  Coffee.

Philz brews its coffee one cup at a time, using a neat filtering system that’s as fun to watch as it is to taste (okay, drinking it is more fun).  And although the wait is longer than at other places, the baristas are all extremely friendly and coffee-knowledgable, so the time passes right on by.

Probate Referees: Why Are They Used?

At the beginning of probate when there is a petition to administer the estate the court will appoint someone to be the personal representative of the estate. This is often the person that was named as the executor in the will, unless that person is unavailable, unwilling, or there is a challenge from someone else. Once the personal representative is appointed, the court will also appoint a probate referee.  This person is charged with valuing the estate including the personal property and real property. There is a form that the personal representative is supposed to fill out within 60 days which gives the value of the estate for both tax purposes, and in order to settle the estate.

The referee will determine the fair market value for the estate and in the case of a probate sale that needs court confirmation the general rule is that the offers should be within 10% of this value.  It is possible to sell the home for less, but a little trickier and often involves re-doing the appraisal. The sales that require court confirmation can not be confirmed until the referee has valued the estate. 

 If the personal representative has full authority to sell the real property without court confirmation then the sale can go through, but the probate can not be completed and the monies distributed until the referee has done his or her job.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in probate in San Mateo County or Santa Clara County, please feel free to contact me. I am an experienced probate realtor.

Menlo Park Ca Short Sale Green Home at a Great Price!

Welcome to this beautiful Green Home in a friendly enclave of 37 3 year old homes. It features solar panels that produce more electricity than the home uses, an on demand water heater, extensive insulation, granite counters in the kitchen and bathrooms, solid surface bathroom surrounds, wood and tile floors as well as high quality carpets, an attached two car garage, and fenced back yard. All this at a very affordable price and a short sale with an experienced short sale agent and only one loan.  Disclosures available at www.marcymoyer.com

Palo Alto Open House This Weekend! Location, Location, Location...

Welcome to this lovingly upgraded 2 story Midtown Palo Alto townhome in a fantastic location.  

Exterior View 

OPEN HOUSE THIS SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, 

October 16th and 17th, 1:30-4:30.

This home boasts pergo flooring throughout the home, corium kitchen counters, stainless steel appliances, a built in entertainment center, granite faced fireplace, granite vanity top in the half bath, and a spectacular back patio and deck. 

Additionally there is a large kitchen, separate dining room, step down living room, and three bedrooms plus 2.5 baths. The complex has all new hard scape with gorgeous walkways and planters.  


There is also a pool and spa, and underground parking with an elevator to the main level. The HOA fee of $575 covers exterior maintenance including the roof, painting, pool, and landscaping, water and garbage, and earthquake and fire insurance.  

Fantastic schools include Palo Verde Elementary, JLS Middle School, and Palo Alto High School (buyer to verify.) 

Come see this gem, you will not be disappointed!

Silicon Valley/Bay Area Short Sale Up Front Pricing: How It Can Help Both Buyer and Seller

HAFA does it, and now Bank of America is trying it. What is it?  In a short sale the seller owes more to the bank than their home is worth. In order to sell the home the bank or banks have to agree to accept less than property is worth to satisfy the loan.  The problem is that no one knows what the bank will accept until they get an offer and that offer is analyzed by the lenders.  Since this often takes many months it can often lead to foreclosure at worst, and incredible frustration at best.

  

HAFA short sales which were started by the Obama administration can give you the amount the bank will accept ahead of time so that the seller, agent, and buyer know how to structure the offer in order to get it approved.  The seller still needs to qualify, and having a vacant home eliminates the qualification.  Bank of America is now beginning to try this method as well, and it should cut down the amount of time it takes to do a short sale, which in most cases is anything but short.

As a Silicon Valley/Bay Area short sale specialist I can help you buy or sell a short sale property. Feel free to contact me for help.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

BEST OF PALO ALTO # 2

Every year the Palo Alto Weekly releases their “Best of... List” and this year got me thinking, “What do my family and I consider the best places to eat and shop in Palo Alto?”  This is an an ongoing series about personal favorites in my city.


BEST STEAK


I don’t eat steak much anymore, but my son sure loves it.  So I had him fill in for me on this one.  He says...


“I can’t really vouch for Sundance (the Weekly’s pick) since I haven’t been there since I was about ten (when it was The Mining Company). But for the absolute, no-questions-asked, unbeatable best steak in Palo Alto, you’ll find it behind a counter at a deli in a mall.  I speak of course of the granddady of deliciousness, the one and only...Fred’s Steak at Schuab’s Meat and Poultry in the Stanford Shopping Center. 


Fred’s steak looks like it sat in the oven for about ten hours too long but fear not for its burnt appearance is merely a delectable ruse.  The secret recipe (which makes it look like a giant piece of coal) has been in the Bay Area since the late Fred Schuab himself started selling his “marinated sirloin” in Los Gatos in the fifties. 

And while a quick google search will turn up plenty of foodie-detectives trying to uncover the mystery of what makes the marinade so irresistible (Worcestershire?  Coffee?), nothing compares to the real thing...whatever it may be.”


-Dan

My Contribution to Shoring Up The Values of Foreclosed/ Short Sale Homes In The Bay Area Distressed Property House Sitters

( This post is only partially in jest and partially serious )

While places in the Bay area  like Palo Alto and Menlo Park only have a few foreclosures, other cities like San Jose or Daly City can have up to 10% of the homes for sale foreclosed, and 30% can be short sales at any given time.  The foreclosed homes are generally vacant, and some of the short sales are also.  The problem with this is that the longer a home is vacant and not maintained because either the owner is a bank or has no money, as in a short sale owner, the less valuable the home becomes. Now with the problem of foreclosure moratoriums in some states the vacant home problem will get worse.

My solution?  Distressed Property House Sitters

I think that the banks who own the properties, or who hold the notes should hire house sitters for these vacant properties.  They could be like home stagers, but live there instead of just leaving their furniture.  This could provide employment and homes for many people who now have neither, and help protect the bank’s assets.

Of course there would need to be rules, like the home can be shown at any time, and any changing of clothes needs to be done in a room with a closed door. Also, as much as I love dogs, it would probably be better to have a no pet policy, but I think this could be a win- win situation for both parties. 

This could also help the busy listing agent by taking some of the burden of maintaining a vacant property off their shoulders.

Anyone agree with me?

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

BEST OF PALO ALTO # 1

Every year the Palo Alto Weekly releases their “Best of... List” and this year got me thinking, “What do my family and I consider the best places to eat and shop in Palo Alto?”  This is the first installment in an ongoing series about personal favorites in my city.

BEST BURRITO


Chipotle is the burrito of choice for the Weekly.  And while you shouldn’t get me started on how much I love a Chipotle burrito bowl, for me the best burrito is new-comer Sancho’s Taqueria on Lytton.   Sancho’s was opened at the end of last year by Adam Torres (a former cook at the Michelin-starred Village Pub) who also heads a Sancho's in Redwood City and La Tiendita in East Palo Alto.

Although the burritos are gigantic, they certainly don't sacrifice quality for quantity.  What makes them the best is the absolutely to-die-for refried beans they serve.  With fresh meat and seafood, plenty of vegetarian options, and an comprehensive salsa bar, Sancho’s is going to be around for a long while.

*Found this Sancho's burrito photo on the wonderful Silicon Valley dining blog Foodgal.  

There is Gold In That Silicon Valley Probate or Trust Sale

Have you ever noticed that homes where there has been a death on the property sell for less than a comparable home where there has not been a death ?  In California it is mandated that if there has been a death on the property it must be disclosed. There are many people who do not want to buy a home if there has been a death because either they think it is bad luck, or they feel that other people will think it is bad luck, and therefore have bad resale value.

Problem: with the incredible growth of home hospice, as well as an aging population, a lot more people are dying at home.  Most relatives do not tell their family members to go die somewhere else so the house is worth more. No, they provide loving hospice care so that people can die in peace in familiar surroundings.

Solution on the horizon.  More and more buyers are saying that they do not care if someone has died, but they are worried that a future buyer will care or their parents will say it is a bad investment.

If you understand the premise that real estate is long term investment and not a short term road to riches for most people, then you can see that the younger generation of buyers are not nearly as worried about ghosts as their parents. Over time, the parents will be gone, and this generation will probably have very few people who are concerned about a death on the property.

The point of this:  If you buy a Silicon Valley probate or trust sale and there was a death on the property you will probably get a great discount.  The homes I list where there has been a death are selling about 10% less than homes where there has not been a death.  If you sell again in 10-15 years there will probably be many fewer buyers who care and you may make 4-7% just on the death in house issue plus any appreciation earned over time and for modernizing a home.  On a $600,000 that is $24,000 to $42,000 just for buying a Silicon Valley probate or trust sale where there has been a death. For a million dollar property that is $40,000 to $70,000.

So, maybe it is time to re-adjust your thinking about what was once considered a major flaw in a property.