For those of you who are clients or mine or regular readers of my blog, you already know I am participating in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer walk this year and for 3 days in September I am walking 60 miles. The team I am part of is called “Sole Sisters”
Well, today I also just booked a fundraiser for our team at the Montclair Bistro, in the Oakland Hills http://montclairbistro.com/
It’s called Celebrity Bartender and it is on Thursday June 26th beginning at 6 p.m. During the event, the Montclair Bistro has generously offered to donate 20% of the profits towards the 3 Day Breast Cancer team “Sole Sisters.” I am the celebrity bartender and if you order my “ drink of the night” not only will you be supporting a good cause you will get the featured drink at a discounted price. Of course, it will be full bar and complimentary Hors d’oeuvres will be served during the event. We will also have a raffle, (winners announced at 9 p.m.) to raise money to fight breast cancer.
For those of you who have already donated to the cause, thank you so much! It is your donations that fuel us to walk 15-20 miles every week in training for the event. Plus, did you know every time I represent a home buyer or seller in 2008 to buy or sell a home, I donate $150.00 of my commission to help fight breast cancer?
If you would like a reminder of this upcoming event sent to you, please send me an email at elisa@rockridgedigs.com Subject: 3 Day Fundraiser.
Looking to donate but can't attend the event? Go to my homepage at www.rockridgedigs.com and you’ll see the donate banner located on the right hand side of the website.
Otherwise, I hope to see you on the 26th of June at the Montclair Bistro - 6 p.m.
Are you a new home owner in need of tools to help you personalized your new digs? Go to www.oaklandrentals.net online or stop in to see what tools they have available for rent. Their address is 2969 MacArthur Blvd, Oakland CA 94602. Rentals are offered on an hourly and a daily rental basis . Tools range from stump grinders, air compressors, and post hole diggers, to forklifts , bobcats, and mini-excavators. Many times you need a professional contractor, but for the times you know how to do the job but just don’t have the right tools, now you know who to contact without the expense of purchasing a new tool. What ever you choose to rent don’t forget-Safety FirstJ
You may be eligible for a temporary reduction in you property taxes. If you belive the market value of your property is less than the assessed value and you live in Alameda County contact the Assessors office online www.acgov.org/assessor and request the form titled 2008-2009 INFORMAL REQUEST FOR “DECLINE IN MARKET VALUE” (PROP 8) REASSESSMENT where you will find more detailed information such as deadline dates and the appeals process. The Office of Assessor, Alameda County is located at 1221 Oak St., County Administration Building Oakland, California 94612-4288. Phone(510) 272-3787 / Fax (510)272-3803.
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Bay Farm Island, Alameda - We invite everyone to visit our open house at 3455 Hazel Lane on April 20 from 2:00 PM to 4:30 PM.
Property information
There are times in one’s life where moving seems like a good idea. Getting married, the birth of a baby, or even growing old and living in a large home by yourself can sometimes make you wonder if one should sell their house and make a move. Moving later in life can be a hard decision to make and as with any decision, the more information you have, the easier it will be to decide if making a move makes sense for you and your family.
Many senior communities provide different levels of care as well as the choice of privacy or social activities. Assisted living facilities are usually located within or near urban areas and are designed for ambulatory seniors. Most facilities require residents to pay a non-refundable entrance fee and month to month rent for an apartment or studio that includes housekeeping, meals, recreational activities, entertainment and shopping trips.
Although this is not a complete list of bay area communities, below are a few local senior community websites and contact numbers to help you decide if a senior community is right for you.
Alameda County Social Services (phone list available)
www.alamedasocialservices.org/public/contact/adult_and_aging.cfm
Bay Area Community Services (affordable home care services)
www.bayareacs.org 510-601-1074
California Association for Area Agencies on Aging www.c4a.info
Center for Elders Independence, www.cei.org 510-433-1150
Congress of California Seniors www.seniors.org/resources.asp
Contra Costa County Senior Services www.cchealth.org/services/seniors
800-510-2020 or 925-299-0834
Family Caregiver Alliance www.caregiver.org
National Association of Area Agencies on Aging www.n4a.org
Subsidized Apartment Housing for Seniors-Alameda County (phone list available) 800-510-2020 or 510-577-3530
Occasionally through the Realtor Magazine that arrives at my office once a month I find articles or links that I think are beneficial to home owners.
Here are a few links I'd like to share:
HomeMinders is a quick automated service where you can set up a personalized maintenance schedule for your home. It includes email prompts, a record of purchases, and contact numbers for contractors in your area and more. The annual subscription costs $29 and more information can be found at www.homeminders.com
Thinking of adding a deck or maybe updating your electrical? Before calling a professional, many home owners like to do a bit of their own research online. If this is you, visit http://www.pillartopost.com/home-repair-cost-upgrade-guide.aspx to find out some of the costs you can expect.
The National Association of Home Builders/Bank of America 2007 Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components can be found at the link below: www.nahb.org/fileUpload_details.aspx?contentID=72375
This is an invitation to join the Sole Sisters this September in a very special event called the Breast Cancer 3 Day.
I will walk 60 miles over the course of three days with thousands of other women and men.
If others decide to join my team, they too will walk 60 miles this September 5- 7.
The net proceeds will support breastcancer research, education, screening and treatment through Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the National Philanthropic Trust Breast Cancer Fund.
I've agreed to raise at least $2,200 in donations. So I need your help. Would you please consider making a donation? Keep in mind how far I'm walking - and how hard I'll have to train. You can give online at www.The3Day.org. Just follow the link below to visit my personal fundraising webpage and make a donation. You can also call 800.996.3DAY to donate over the phone.
My mom and Aunt are both breast cancer survivors. According to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, approximately 200,000 American women will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year, and nearly 40,000 will die from the disease. That's why I'm walking so far. To do something bold about breast cancer. I hope that you'll share this incredible adventure with me - by supporting me in my fundraising efforts or joining the team.
Sincerely,
Elisa Uribe
P.S. Every time I represent a home buyer or home seller in 2008 buy or sell a home, I will donate $150.00 of every commission I earn to this cause.
Click here to visit my personal page.
If the text above does not appear as a clickable link, you can visit the web address:http://08.the3day.org/site/TR/Walk/SanFranciscoBayAreaEvent?px=1573049&pg=personal&fr_id=1188&et=jJ6himptPRmDMVFaJIOMDg..&s_tafId=1386
Click here to view the team page for Sole Sisters
If the text above does not appear as a clickable link, you can visit the web address:http://08.the3day.org/site/TR/Walk/SanFranciscoBayAreaEvent?team_id=18730&pg=team&fr_id=1188&et=60QeLnQKghfKDvIHQet_6w..&s_tafId=1386
HomeMinders is a quick automated service where you can set up a personalized maintenance schedule for your home. It includes email prompts, a record of purchases, and contact numbers for contractors in your area and more. The annual subscription costs $29 and more information can be found at www.homeminders.com
Resources: Visit http://www.pillartopost.com/home-repair-cost-upgrade-guide.aspx to find out how much a repair will cost.
It’s safe to say every home owner in California has wondered if they should purchase earthquake insurance at some point in their lives. According to the California Earthquake Authority (CEA), they recently dropped their rates because the organization has built up a substantial cash reserve in the absence of a major quake in the last decade. To view the insurance premium calculator that bases rates on zip code, seismic risk, and construction specifics go to www.earthquakeauthority.com .
If you have researched other companies and have any comments, please let me know.
Back in October 2007 I wrote a blog about Airport Noise in Upper Rockridge and Montclair. Monica Singh, the Noise Abatement Specialist in Oakland responded to my complaint from October 22 at 10:07 p.m. I had reported that there was an excessive noise over my residence due to operations from Oakland International Airport and through my inquiry, the Oakland noise staff investigated the noise events that I reported.
Apparently our house is in the arrival pattern of the jets approaching runway 29. Of course the weather determines how loud planes sound but since we are in a valley and our house is higher than other homes with hills next to us, it propagates the noise. I was given several 24 hr maps showing arriving and departing flights over my house. Apparently the dates I reported excessive noise, the weather was very bad but the planes were in fact higher than 5000 feet above, which apparently, if they fly below 5000 feet, then there is need to be concerned.
I truly believe they appreciate the concern regarding the operations at Oakland International Airport and do make every effort to operate as quietly as possible while meeting the air transportation needs of the community.If you have a particular complaint and you would like to speak with someone at the Noise Abatement office, please contact the Noise Hotline at (510) 563-6463. It helps them understand and evaluate how noise is effecting people in the community.
Whether you are buying a home for the first time, or upgrading your current residence, homeownership is one of the most important decisions a person will make in their lifetime. There are many factors to consider when embarking on this venture and choosing a Realtor who is looking out for your best interest is a key factor.
Communication is so important. Many home buyers turn to their computer to help them make the decision which agent they should use. Although it is a great start, viewing a Realtors website is not enough. Why? Because you need to make sure you and the agent you choose can communicate easily. Knowing a Realtor is willing to take the time to listen to your needs will make the process of home ownership much easier. A reputable Realtor will not hesitate to share client testimonials, don’t be afraid to ask.
Once you have found a Realtor that you feel comfortable working with, write out your goals on paper. How soon do you want to buy? Do you need to sell a home first? If you do have a home to sell, have you arranged for an equity line of credit? Are you going to move into a rental first? Your goals will have a tremendous impact on choosing the best location for you and your family, as well as the best type of property for your current situation. With this information at hand, your Realtor can help you determine the best time for you to buy a home.
Next, your Realtor can help narrow down a selection of homes. Most people prefer an automatic email of properties, giving you first hand information every time a new property hits the market that meets your criteria. If you prefer a phone call, let your agent know in advance.
Don’t think the service you should expect will stop there. Weekly, agents have the opportunity to search for homes with you in mind. Narrowing the search of homes will make it easier for you to spend less time viewing homes that did not meet your criteria.
Next be prepared for your Realtor to navigate you through negotiations, writing and presenting the purchase offer, and guiding you through the contingency period.
Homeownership imparts a rewarding vehicle for building wealth and a strong financial future. The Realtor you choose should be there not only when your deal closes, but should also provide you with ongoing service to keep you informed of the market and prepare you for the day you decide to sell.
Already have a Realtor? The highest compliment you can pay your agent is to refer them to a friend or family member. If you like a Realtor who does not specialize in your area, ask them to refer you to professional Realtor they know and trust.
Elisa Uribe is a Realtor working at Wells and Bennett Realtors in Oakland, CA. To view what her past clients have said about their experience in using her as an agent, view her testimonial page at www.rockridgedigs.com or call her direct (510-485-7272) to ask any questions regarding your specific situation.
I read this great article the other day Wait! Stop! It's All Too Much, by Martha Beck that pointed out the human brain was not designed to handle the world we inhabit. We are overwhelmed with the increasing demands for our attention. On top of life's day to day demands, for some people, searching for a home can become overwhelming.
Animals survive in nature because they focus intently on well-camouflaged targets and screen out extraneous information and ignore everything else. Human beings do the same thing. Her examples ranged from trying to find a friend in a crowd of people, or multi tasking until you hear something so attention grabbing you lose the thread of the other streams of information. Once your brain assigns equal importance to everything it is reviewing, you go blind to everything else.
I found this article interesting because it occurred to me that this can happen when a buyer is searching for a home and can't find one. I recently met a young couple who had a list of features they wanted in a home and had been looking for over three months at countless homes in the neighborhood. They were not working with an agent, and after a friend of theirs at work recommended they call me, we started our search together.
At our first meeting I asked if there were any homes they had been interested in, and suggested we tour a few homes they had already seen, so I could verify we understood each other. Well, the day we toured, the first home on our list, was the home they liked best and I could see why. It had every feature they desired. The rest of the day we spent touring the remaining homes on our list. As we moved from house to house it became apparent the first home was the one they wanted but they had a case of attention blindness.
Their attention blindness came from giving equal importance to every house they saw, and comparing the homes, which made them blind to finding what worked for them. Their brains were trying to focus on too much. Adding a Realtor's perspective, helped them to define what was truly important in choosing a home. The good news is they are now happy homeowners and will be hosting a Thanksgiving dinner for their families in their new home.
For a dramatic demonstration of attention blindness, enter the following link into your browser: http://viscog.beckman.uiuc.edu/grafs/demos/15.html. It shows a click of two teams playing basketball. This is important. When you watch the clip, count the number of times the white-shirt team passes the basketball. This is crucial. After you watch the clip, read on. If you are still reading and you haven't watched the clip, you are going to spoil the surprise.
Did you watch the clip? Seconds into the video clip, a person in a gorilla suit walks into the frame, thumps his chest, and walks off. Most people are so busy counting the white-shirt passes; they just don't see the gorilla.
Fires caused by gas leaks are one of the major threats when earthquakes occur. Emergency response teams are overloaded during the aftermath of an earthquake and often times cannot respond to all emergencies. Protecting your home and encouraging your neighbor to protect their home with emergency gas shut off valves will dramatically reduce the amount of damage that can occur.
Many of NBI’s clients have used Earthquake Plumbing's services and have been very pleased. They even go so far as to say they are one of the finest “emergency gas shut off valve” companies in the Bay area. You can view their information at www.EQPlumbing.com or call them at (925) 933-4800 and find out for yourself.
Did you know Contra Costa County mandates that emergency gas shut off valves be installed on all homes sold when the property is located within the county’s jurisdiction?
The other day I received an email from NBI letting me know they offer a "walk through-crawl through" inspection for homeowners homes in the 510 and 925 area code. For $199 NBI created this limited inspection specifically designed to determine if any damage has occured as a result of the last few earthquakes. They say the inspection will incude a full roof and chimney inspection, an inspection of the interior and exterior of the home and a full subarea inspection to determine if there is any damage to the foundation, support members, or the plumbing. The offer is for homes under 4000SF and runs until the end of November. They can be reaced at 1-800-466-2466.
At first I thought I was the only one bothered by the increase of planes traveling above our houses in Upper Rockrdige. That is, until I read a comment in Ginny Prior, The Town Crier's article in the Montclarion on Friday Oct 5, 2007. One person mentiones they phoned the airport and was told it was an increase in private aircraft, or from Federal Express carriers. Having seen the planes, I would disagree. She says, if you want to complain, go to 510-563-6463 or go to
www.oaklandairport.com. I wrote my complaint today in the "contact us" section of the site, and I'll post on my blog what I discover once they respond. If you have any comments regarding the airplane noise or can share any insight, please post. Thanks!