The Palo Alto Children's Theater A Palo Alto Tradition

The Palo Alto Children's Theater started in 1932 and has grown to be a mainstay of the Palo Alto community by being one of the first and only children's theaters in the nation that has a fully-equipped theater exclusively for young people. It is located at 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, 94301. The Palo Alto Children's Theater has so much opportunity for youth in Palo Alto.

The Palo Alto Children's Theater hosts Hot Dog Suppertime shows for their summer shows. It is when you can bring a picnic for your family or the Friends of the Children's Theater; a volunteer organization; will have food to purchase which includes hot dogs, hamburgers, veggie burgers, chips and soft drinks at the show. The shows are performed at the Roy Ginsburg Magic Castle Stage at Children's Theater and the gates to Secret Garden open at 5:45 pm. Performances run approximately one hour. Children ages four and up are recommended. Tickets are $10 for children and $12 for adults. Tickets can be purchased over at the box office either in person or on the phone at 650-463-4970.

The next Hot Dog Suppertime Show is The Real Story of the Three Little Pigs and is performed by the Wingspread Company. This parody challenges the truth of the story of the three little pigs by putting the Big Bad Wolf on trial and letting the audience be the jury by deciding if he is guilty or not guilty. It runs from July 31, August 1-4, 7, 8-10 at 6:30pm.

The Wingspread Company is Palo Alto Children Theater's summer stock program. You may audition if you are 16- 24 year olds or if you have completed all four levels of the Summer Conservatory.  The auditions are typically held in April and May and scheduled by appointment.

Palo Alto Children's Theater presents The Playhouse shows one weekend of each month from September to May for 3-6 year olds by local high school students. These folk or fairy tales are performed on Saturdays at 10:00 am & 12:00pm and Sundays at 12:00pm where audience participation is always encouraged. The shows are 45 minutes. Tickets are $10 for children and $12 for adults at the Magic Castle Stage.

The Playhouse shows are sponsored by the Teen Arts Council, An organization and initiative of the Palo Alto Children's Theater, whose focus is to provide teens with creative arts programs to express themselves. They even have a grant board that offers financial assistance to teen's creative projects.

Palo Alto Children's Theater Mainstage Season will be announced in August. The season runs from November to March. Tickets are $10 for Children and $12 for Adults.

Something to keep in mind for next summer are the classes that Palo Alto Children's Theater offers. The summer classes are available for preschool to teens of 18 years of age. Most summer classes begin in the beginning of June and end in August. Space is limited so calling as soon as possible to reserve a spot is suggested. This includes Private Vocal sessions available for teens.  For more information you may also call 650-463-4930, Tuesday - Saturday, 9:30-6:30 pm. http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/gov/depts/csd/theatre/classes.asp They also offer classes throughout the year.

If you have a child that would like to audition for a play, they normally have to be 8 years old to high school age. There are scheduled audition dates for each play that are posted online. No experience or appointment is necessary. All that is needed is a memorized one minute monologue. If it is a musical, you will also need a short song and be dressed to dance at the audition.

If you wanted to Volunteer for Palo Alto Children's Theater in sewing, set construction and painting, baking & selling brownies at performances, assembling programs or inputting computer data you can call 650-463-4930. They would be more than happy for your generous help.

If you have any questions about other great activities for children on Palo Alto please feel free to contact me.

If you would like to search for homes in Palo Alto click here

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

BRE 01191194

650-619-9285 

Palo Alto Buyers, Don't Let the Home Warranty Contractors Say No

When buying or selling a home in Palo Alto many people are advised by their agents to purchase a home protection plan. These plans are insurance policies against breakage of many systems and fixtures in the home. The executive summary is if something breaks during the term of the policy, (one year which can be renewed) you can call the insurance company and they will send an independent contractor out to fix or replace the broken item. The owner just pays a $50-$60 fee for the service, and all other expenses for that item are covered. Sound great right?

Well, there can be some problems. The most common one happens if the person who purchased the plan did not get the code upgrade. This is essential, and if you do not purchase it and your home (like almost all homes in Palo Alot is more than 15 years old) then the plan becomes almost useless. Building codes change all the time, so you must get a policy that pays for the the repair to include upgrading to current code or the contractor will not make the repair. For example, if your water heater breaks, and the installation of a new one requires a code upgrades like on a higher platform or with more ventilation, the contractor will not install a new water heater because they will not perform work that is not up to code. The owner would have to pay for the upgraded installation and the insurance company would pay the cost of the new water heater, which is only a small portion of the total charge. If you buy a code upgrade the entire replacement would be covered.

However, sometimes your new Palo Alto home will have problems when you first move in. This is not that common, but it happens. If something breaks when you first move into your Palo Alto home and you call the home warranty company, the contractor may say it is a pre existing condition and want you to pay. This just happened to one of my clients and I was able to solve the problem.

My client just bought a Palo Alto condo and right after moving in one of the shower heads stopped getting water from the spigot. There was a property inspection done by the seller which stated that all the plumbing fixtures were in working order. We did a final walk through and tested all the shower heads and they were all working. I purchased a home warranty plan from Fidelity which I have found to be the most responsive company. My client called the insurance company, they sent out a plumber who said this is pre-existing and she had to pay for it. I called my service rep at fidelity, Michelle Bolgna, and she had me send her the property inspection. The plumber was over ruled, and they paid for the repair.

Since most homes in Palo Alto right now are being sold with no contingencies after the seller has ordered and paid for the inspections getting a home protection plan is even more important than ever. The buyer does not have to prove they did their own inspection, just that there was an inspection. That way, if there is a needed repair shortly after moving into a new home in Palo Alto, as long as the repair is in the contract and the home inspection did not find it broken, you can get it covered.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Palo Alto please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Should I Use An Air Freshener When Selling My Palo Alto Home

Many Palo Alto real estate agents and stagers may suggest using a plug in type air freshener when selling your Palo Alto home. Is this a good idea?

The way a home smells can have a profound effect on how buyers feel about your home. However, some buyers are allergic  to the perfumed smell that comes out of some air fresheners, and some buyers will be concerned that you are trying to cover up a bad smell, like a musty odor.

There are arguments for and against using artificail smells. If you want my opinion, here it is:

1. If you can fill the house with fresh flowers while you are selling your Palo Alto home, that is better than an artificial air freshener. This is easier to do in the spring and summer. However, you can get good flowers all year round at Trader Joe's or the Farmers markets on Sat and Sun.

2. If you have pets with strong odors, like Basset Hounds, or very old and smelly cats then it is a good idea to get an air freshener. These smells will go away when you move so you do not have to worry about being accused of covering up a material fact of your house.

3. If some of your furniture in the home you are selling in Palo Alto is old and musty it would be worth removing it and having your home staged with more modern looking and less smelly furniture. Then add some fresh flowers or a little potpourri to give a better emotional hit from the house.

4. If your home is musty smelling because of water damage, wet soil in the crawl space, or unseen mildew then the decision is a little harder. If you believe your home will be torn down you may have a different decision than if you think the home will be lived in as is or perhaps remodeled. If your home is a candidate for tear down, like an old 2 bedroom one bath Midtown home, then it will be more pleasant to have an air freshener while it is for sale.  if the Palo Alto home you are selling smells but it is large and beautiful and just musty smelling, as many older Palo Alto homes are, do what you can to find the source and get it re-mediated before you sell your Palo Alto home. The investment will be worth it!

So the bottom line is if you are selling your Palo Alto home it should smell as good as possible. Fresh flowers are best, but if you decide to use an artificial air freshener, try to get one that smells as natural as possible. Citrus and jasmine may be better bets than cinnamon or roses.

If you have any questions about selling a home in Palo Alto please fell free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto

www.marcymoyer/com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

D.R.E. 01191194

Palo Alto Seniors Have Many Options

There are many people living in Palo Alto who have been here for a long time and have a lot of equity in their homes. They may not have huge retirement income, but there is money in the value in their home if money is needed. The question is what is the best thing to do if a senior needs money? Sell, rent, reverse mortgage?

There is no correct answer. Each option has pros and cons. The first thing to do would be to speak with an accountant or financial adviser to understand the tax consequences of the different options. I just want to give you some broad information about each of these options to help you make an informed decision based on what is best for your particular circumstance.

Reverse Mortgage: The mortgage company will give you a monthly amount, or a lump sum. The interest and fees are paid when the home is sold. These costs are high, but they are ultimately paid by the heirs, not the home owner, under many circumstances. You get to live in your house, off of the money you have in equity. However, once you leave the home for 3 months or longer (in most cases) the home must be sold and the bank repaid. This means if you go into a nursing home for 3 months or longer, the home is sold and the owner pays any capital gains tax at that time as well as paying off the fees and interest on the loan.

Rent Out your home: Rentals in Palo Alto are scarce and are fetching large sums. You can probably rent your home for enough money to pay for care in assisted living. You would not have to sell your home and pay the capital gains tax so there would be more equity preserved for your heirs. However, you are still responsible for any repairs that may be needed, which could be expensive, and you will need someone to manage the property once you move out.

Sell: Prices in Palo Alto are back to their peak levels. Homes rarely sell under a million dollars, with 1400 square foot Eichlers and ranches easily selling in the 1.4-1.6 million dollar range. That is plenty of money to pay for expenses if you need assisted living. However, once you sell you need to pay capital gains tax, and you need a safe investment that pays you income to help pay the expenses you need in your retirement living situation.

This is never an easy decision, and it requires excellent profession advice to determine what is best for your situation. My best professional advice is make this decision early so that your plans can be carried out in a systematic way rather than after a crisis has occurred. This will enable you to focus on a change in health or family circumstance, not "What do I do now?"

If you have any questions about buying or seling homes in Palo Alto please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto
www.marcymoyer.com
marcy@marcymoyer.com
650-619-9285
D.R.E. 01191194

What To Do When The Accepted Palo Alto Home Offer Does Not Appraise

This is a common problem. The market is appreciating and homes are selling for more now than they were 6 months ago. Good news for Palo Alto sellers, right? It can be, but there are pitfalls.

If the offer you accept is higher than the market value of closed sales, not the ones that are pending, and you know it sold for $300,000 over asking, then you may run into issues if that offer is contingent on an appraisal. The appraisal will look at closed sales in the last 3-6 months, not rumors about the house around the corner.

When you get your 10 offers, and one is higher than all the others but contingent on an appraisal, just remember it is not going to appraise at the offered value and there may be another round of negotiations.

There are several ways to deal with this that should be discussed with your Palo Alto agent at the time that you look at offers. You can:

• Take a cash offer that is not contingent on an appraisal. 
• Ask the buyer of an offer with a loan to agree to make up the difference between the appraised value and the offer price. 
• Cross your fingers and hope the appraisal comes in at the offer price and if it does not, negotiate the price you are willing to take and the buyer is willing to give. There may be other things about this offer you like so it may be worth it to take the most the house will appraise for even if it is less than another offer that does not have an appraisal contingency. 

What you should not do is pretend this is not an issue and not deal with it with your Palo Alto agent up front.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a house in Palo Alto please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty
www.marcymoyer.com
marcy@marcymoyer.com
650-619-9285
D.R.E. 01191194

Palo Alto Market Update, April 8th: Single Family Homes

As of today this is the snapshot of the Palo Alto single family home market: 

136 Active listings

32 Pending sales

8  Closed sales this week 

What does this mean? There has not been much change in inventory this week in active listings. There's been 3 more pending sales which is a 10% increase. This may be because of the slight easing up of jumbo loans. B of A has a loan with 20% down up to a million and a half dollar loan. Again, the over 2 million market is very slow with 48 active listings and 6 pending sales. Under 2 million there are 89 active listings and 26 pending sales, less than a1 to 4 ratio of pending to active, which is not terrific, but about average for many other surrounding cities. Another lesson for this week, if you list a house far enough below comps it will still sell with multiple offers over asking price. 

Here are the solds from the past week on MLS: 

Address	City	Beds	Bath	DOM	CDOM	LOE	SqFt	$/SqFt	Lot(SqFt)	List Price	Age	Sale Price
SOLD
800 E Greenwich Pl	Palo Alto	5	4+	28	28	34	5,069	$798.97	10,454	$4,098,000	6	$4,050,000
1444 Pitman Av	Palo Alto	4	2 1/2	34	34	14	2,500	$680	7,875	$1,850,000	53	$1,700,000
425 Alder Ln	Palo Alto	5	3 1/2	20	20	29	2,893	$501.21		$1,495,900	1	$1,450,000
3474 Kenneth Dr	Palo Alto	4	2	5	5	36	1,659	$754.07	6,534	$1,249,000	52	$1,251,000
2672 Kipling St	Palo Alto	3	2	10	10	28	1,533	$815.39	5,662	$1,095,000	53	$1,250,000
3390 Greer Rd	Palo Alto	5	2	15	15	30	1,965	$610.69	7,381	$1,388,000	52	$1,200,000
3070 Ramona St	Palo Alto	3	2	25	25	24	1,411	$761.87	6,000	$1,089,000	54	$1,075,000
405 Oregon Av	Palo Alto	3	1	58	58	29	1,230	$853.66	8,125	$1,138,000	59	$1,050,000
3244 Waverley St	Palo Alto	2	1	7	7	29	925	$1,054.05	6,250	$998,000	59	$975,000
AVERAGE VALUES				22	22	28	2,132	$758.88	7,285	$1,600,100	43	$1,555,667

 

Pittman was originally listed for $1,975,000. 

Greer was originally listed for $1,488,000. 
 

If you are interested in finding the final selling price of any home, anywhere, you can do it on my web site. Go to www.marcymoyer.com and click on Cyberhome Home Valuation. You can then type in any address next to the search icon and get the county records. 

If you need anything else please feel free to contact me. I am here to help you. 

Marcy Moyer Intero Real Estate

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285