It's that time of year again to begin looking for inspirational ideas for renovating or redecorating  your home.     While countless trips to local service providers and big box retailers can be fruitful, its always nice to be able to see many of them in one central location!

If you live in the Bay Area, mark your calendar for the 2008 Spring Homes Show in San Francisco which will be held later this month at the Cow Palace.  Event and venue details are as follows:

EVENT:    San Franciso Spring Home Show

WHAT:   Conference featuring the latest information on remodeling, redecorating and landscaping.     Hundreds of exhibitors will be in attendance to showcase and demonstrate their products and services.

WHERE:  Cow Palace, 2600 Geneva Avenue, San…

Even traditionally stable Marin County hasn’t totally escaped the credit meltdown.  Sales for single-family homes priced under $1 million were down 21% in 2007, as compared with 2006, and condo sales were down 32%.  Hard as it is to imagine, just under the $1 million mark is the target price for first-time home-buyers looking for real estate in Marin County.

Luxury home sales remain invulnerable.  Sales for Marin County homes priced over $1 million jumped by 32% last year, while $3+ million house sales were up a whopping 65%.  This has skewed the sales figures for Marin; the median home price rose 9% last year, to $1,025,700 despite the fact that sales volume declined.  The median price for a condo has crept up to $570,000, up 4%, while sales have…

If the result of a recent poll of Marin County residents is a reliable indicator, Marin may be the first county in California to form a countywide power authority and plug homes and businesses into a green grid that is powered by wind, sun, and gas generated by waste products.  In the poll, 74% of the 1000 people questioned were in favor of forming a Marin Cooperative for energy, and 58% said they would be willing to pay more for green power.  Estimates project that the average household would see a $6 per month increase in their electric bills if Marin goes green.

Under the plan, Pacific Gas & Electric would continue to read meters, maintain equipment, bill customers, and deliver electrical power, but the Marin agency would arrange the source of…

A recent study evaluating the health of California families and children has given Marin County high scores. In the 2008 State of the State’s Children report, Marin ranked above other counties throughout the state in 27 out of 31 categories, including high scores across the board for meeting educational goals and state standards.

The study ranked Marin County as number 1 in the percentage of elementary school students that meet or exceed state standards in English and Math.  The 2007 school year statistics show that 72% of Marin students scored at the Proficient or Advanced level in Math; and 68% were at Proficient or Advanced in Language Arts, as compared to the statewide averages of 52% and 43% respectively.

These scores aren’t surprising, as…

Marin County’s reputation as being innovative and progressive has once again received national recognition.   Recently the American Planning Association acknowledged Marin’s efforts to involve the community in sustainable living, and named Marin County as the winner of its 2008 National Planning Excellence Award for Implementation.  In announcing the award, a spokeswoman for the Association is quoted as saying “Marin County’s contribution to sustainable living merits national attention.”

Reducing Marin’s dependence on nonrenewable resources is at the core of the new 30-year planning blueprint recently adopted by the county.  Targeted goals include reducing carbon emissions, protecting farmlands and open spaces, and promoting thoughtful, sustainable…

Imagine making a profit of $27.5M on the sale of your house.  That is what a Belvedere California man is set to do when escrow on his $65M home closes next month.  After purchasing the house for $5.5M in 1995, mining mogul Robert Friedland, spent nine years and $32M renovating the house before deciding to put it on the market.  Even by Marin standards $65M is impressive.  Admittedly the neighborhood is exclusive -- homes for sale in Tiburon are pricey and real estate in Belvedere California is even more expensive, but this sets a new record – not only for Belvedere and Tiburon, but for all of Northern California.  To date the record for a home sale in Northern California was set in 2000 with the sale of a home in Woodside for a cool $52.5M.

What will… Read Full Post

"Happy Holidays....now take those Christmas lights down" is a message that select residents of Dillon Beach are hearing this holiday season. 

Located just northwest of San Francisco in Marin County, Dillon Beach is a small beach-front town popular with vacationers and Bay Area homeowners looking for a second home on the Pacific Ocean.     Many residents of this intimate, sea-side community are also members of the Dillon Beach Neighborhood Association.     

According to the neighborhood CC&R's which have been in place for more than 20 years, homeowners are prohibited from utilizing exterior lighting unless the lighting is for safety or security.   Translation: No holiday lights permitted on the exterior of homes in Dillon Beach.

Despite the…

To mitigate damage in its loan portfolio, Washington Mutual is closing its home loan center in San Rafael this week.  The bank will, however, continue to finance homes in Marin County through its Corte Madera office.  Other mortgage companies in Marin aren’t as fortunate, however.  GreenPoint Mortgage in Novato, for example, has been shut down and other brokerages are laying off employees.

This leads to the question “What should I do if my mortgage lender goes bankrupt?”  Since your loan will, in all likelihood, be sold to another institution you are still obligated to the terms of the mortgage.  The new lender will provide details as to where to send payment.  In the meantime:

Make your payments  Send the monthly installment to the same address… Read Full Post