Petalumahomes.com Blog

Sonoma County’s beleaguered housing market is showing some new features for spring: stronger sales, lower inventory, a bump in prices and multiple offers on higher-priced homes.
The median price for single-family homes rose nearly 8 percent in April to $345,000, according to The Press Democrat’s monthly housing report compiled by Pacific Union International Vice President Rick Laws. It amounted to the highest monthly price since May 2011, when the median was $354,000.
Buyers last month purchased 434 single-family homes, up 22 percent from a year ago.
Sales for the first four months of the year are the strongest since 2005, when the nation’s housing bubble was still in expansion mode. And while no one is predicting soaring prices or the end of a historic foreclosure crisis, agents and brokers expect the strong sales to continue.
“This is going to be the best year we’ve seen since at least 2006,” said Laws. “This is how we’re going to recover.”
The county ended April with 999 single-family homes for sale, the lowest number for that month since 766 homes were available in April 2005.
The inventory of homes for sale is half the amount it was a year ago.
“That’s a pretty dramatic decrease in the number of listings,” said Tim Freeman, manager of Coldwell Banker in Santa Rosa. The entire San Francisco Bay Area is reporting similar trends for sales and inventory, he said.
County home values peaked in 2005, with an annual median price of $595,000. Prices began a steep slide in 2007 and hit an annual low last year of $325,000, a level last seen in 2000.
Since the slide began, buyers often have faced competition for condominiums and starter homes priced below $300,000. But this spring agents and brokers are reporting multiple offers for homes priced between $500,000 and $900,000.
While starter homes remain the most active part of the market, agents now are reporting more sales at the top end, too.
Last month buyers purchased 29 homes for $1 million or more in the county. That was as many sales in that price segment as occurred in the previous three months combined. It amounted to the best showing for any month in more than three years.
Nearly 10,000 county residents have lost their homes in foreclosure in the past five years. Agents said the suffering is far from over, but generally they doubt the market will be flooded with distressed property in the coming months.
Foreclosures and short sales, where the home price is less than the amount owed on the mortgage, made up 42 percent of all last month’s sales, the lowest portion since August 2011.

On May 19, another sign of the impending summer will be upon as the 26th annual Saturday Farmers’s Market kicks off a new season at Walnut Park (Petaluma Boulevard South and D Street).

Starting at 2pm, there will be more than 50 booths selling farm fresh produce, fresh eggs, local meats, flowers, cheeses, baked goods and much more.

There will also be a jumpy house, pony rides, face painting and hand made arts and crafts. Vendor and entertainment go on until 5:30pm. Come out and enjoy the day with your family in a beautiful park setting! The Saturday Farmers’ Market runs through November 17. The Wednesday night market will open June 6.

Vendor space is still available for farmers only. For more information contact Erica Burns-Gorman or Kelly Smith at (707)762-0344  or email petfarmersmarket@aol.com

Are you ready for Bike to Work Day 2012? Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition hopes to see you, your family, your friends, and co-workers out there in numbers on May 10th (and all month long), enjoying the many benefits of bicycling for transportation.
Don’t worry if you’re not working that day, you can still pedal to the store, to a softball game, to the movies — anywhere you need to go!
To help entice you, our partners will set up Energizer Stations throughout Sonoma County to serve anyone on a bike coffee, snacks, good cheer, and our collectible canvas giveway bags. Visit an Energizer Station between 6-9a.m.
After work, party with fellow bicycle people at a Bike Home Celebration. So far, there are parties planned in Sonoma, Windsor, and Santa Rosa. We’re hoping to add a few more.
Throughout May, celebrate National Bike Month by forming a team of 5 and joining the Team Bike Challenge.

Click here to find your a.m. Energizer Station and p.m. Celebration!

http://www.bikesonoma.org/

As the current market changes so does the number of properties being purchased at auction and “flipped”.  These homes look great but how about what you cannot see…
Home flippers often buy dilapidated houses, fix them up, then sell them  again as quickly as possible with the intention of making a tidy profit. Flipped houses look shiny and new inside, but what’s going on  underneath all the new drywall, carpet and paint?
Very few homebuyers seem to trust flippers, and with the cheesy “repairs” or “cover-ups”  done over the years, it’s easy to understand why. Some home flippers take the same shortcuts. Here  are the telltale signs of a flipped house:
                 Interior
The interior of the home looks great. The kitchen has all new or repainted cabinets, stainless steel appliances, granite  countertops and a tiled floor. The first-floor bathroom has been  completely redone, and a second-floor bathroom was recently added, or  possibly a basement bathroom. They look great — all new carpet, paint,  light fixtures, outlets and switches throughout the house, and possibly  all new windows, too.
When  looking at flipped houses, you might notice poorly designed kitchens  (i.e., cabinet doors and drawers that are blocked by other cabinets), nail  holes that aren’t filled, appliances installed without an accessible outlet, and loose/unsecured countertops or base cabinets.
Bathrooms will often have vanity cabinets that are way too small for  the space because the flipper bought the “special buy” vanity, top, and  faucet combo on sale at the nearest home improvement store.
The handrails are new, but they might come right out of the wall if  you pull on them. Sometimes they are attached only to drywall.
To read the article in it’s entirety click the link below.
http://www.inman.com/news/2012/04/13/faults-you-may-find-with-a-flipped-house

Our 2012 Parade will take place on April 28th from 10am to 5pm!
Our theme this year is “River of Dreams: Then & Now”.   

Schedule of Events                          

• Festival, Kids Areas, Food and Vendors – 10am to 5pm
• Petaluma Farm’s Cutest Little Chick in the World Contest – 10am on Kentucky
• Cow Chip Tossing Contest – 10:15am in front of McNear’s, 23 Petaluma Blvd N.
• Beer & Wine Booths – 11am to 3:30pm
• Clover Kid’s Pre-Parade – 11:30am
• Main Parade – 12:00pm
• The Mighty Groove will be performing after the parade from 2-5pm!
• Radio Disney Road Crew will be on hand with music, games and prizes from 2-4pm on 2nd street at C!
  

Interesting video from the Rick Davidson President & CEO of Century 21.

C21 Market Update: April 2012

                    Have an old bike you don’t ride anymore? Donate it to a good cause.
Bay Area retailer Mikes Bikes, which has a store in Petaluma, is collecting bicycles it will then ship to Africa through an innovative project the company launched five years ago.
Founded in 2007, the Sistershop Project identifies potential entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa, then provides them with seed capital, training and inventory to start their own bicycle shop.
Since launching, the project has collected thousands of bicycles, helped open bike shops in Ghana, Botswana, Lesotho and Namibia, and given locals a source of transportation, jobs and a place to get their bikes fixed.
“What we learned from other people involved in bike donations to Africa was when bikes get broken or flat, there was no shop or mechanic and the bikes would get left by the side of the road,” says Matt Adams, one of the owners of Mike’s Bikes.
Bikes can be dropped off year round at Mike’s Bikes, located at 264 Petaluma Blvd. North. For other Bay Area locations, visit www.mikesbikes.com