Sandy Vickrey's Winters, CA Blog

Saturday, April 24, 2010 marks another Youth Day for the history book.  It really sounds like it is going to be fun and there is a lot of excitement in the air around town.  The Class of 1960 is celebrating their 50th Class Reunion this weekend and 51 of them are in town to celebrate.  They all have t-shirts on commemorating the event and they are marching in the parade, think they will take Sweepstakes?  Be sure to make plans and come and help us celebrate, you can go to the Asparagus Festival on Sunday.  Join in the fun and come see your friends or make new ones.  It should be great!

Positas Road, Winters, closed on Wednesday, April 21, 2010, two days ahead of time!  Positas Road is located West of town, just west of where Pleasants Valley Rd meets Highway 128.  It is a small private road with about 10 parcels and awesome views.  I am sure the new owner will love it up there.  The house was 1304 square feet with 3bedrooms and 2 baths and was built in 2001.  It sold for $392,000. with a $3000. credit to the Buyer in lieu of any repairs.     That is a very nice comparable sale for everyone. 

Hope to see you all tomorrow at Youth Day.

Well, it looks like this is my 102 blog!  Never did I think I would make this day/blog.  I have to admit it has gone by so quickly and it wasn’t as hard as I though it would be.  I have actually enjoyed sharing what happens in Winters with you both real estate wise and just the fun things that happen in town.   So, I will remind you that this Saturday is Youth Day.  The fun begins with the Rotary Club Pancake Breakfast at the Community Center.  Then the Kiddie Parade kicks off the parade at 9:45am at the corner of 4th and Main.  Any kid can join in the fun, if you meet the age limits of course.  Then the Main Parade starts at 10am.  It is always a lot of fun and you never know who or what you are going to see.   After the parade the festivities continue at City Park with lots of things for everyone.  Be sure to come on down and enjoy the fun.   Looking forward to seeing you there.

Last week we had not one, but two new listings come on the market.  The first one is at 1006 Suffolk Pl and is a little over 1200 square feet.  It is a 3/2 which needs some work.  Unfortunately, is smells of cat pee.  The really cool thing is that it backs up to Dry Creek so it  has no rear neighbor and has a great view of the foothills.  The other new listing popped up Saturday morning.  It is located at 304 Edwards St.  It has three bedrooms downstairs and two bedrooms upstairs.   It is a quaint older house that has been added on to and has 2 HVAC systems.  Let me know if you are interested in taking a look at either one of them.  Have a great week, Youth Day is next Saturday, don’t miss the parade and fun at the park.

Check out the article that was found in a Marin County newspaper.  Looks like everyone is discovering Winters.  Thought it was a nice article and they got it all right!

http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_14832296?source=email

Sitting here with my hubby watching day 2 of the weekend Master tourney ( yes I know it is really day 4).  What a day yesterday, some really great shots.  Looks like htis one coudl come down to the wire.  If any of you play golf you know how the game goes.  Some of those shots I could really identify with!  Yes, I can land in the trees, hit a tree and end up in the beach.  Love it when those guys make me feel a little normal.   Will Phil wear the Gree JAcket again?  Could be, will have to wa

Well it is all over, well, at least the first half  is.  Duke beat Butler in what was an awesome game.  I was really hoping that Butlee would pull off the miracle and when by one in the last second of the game.   But, no miracle this year.  So tomorrow, we are on to the girls game.  West coast team, Standford vs east coast team, U Conn.  Should be another good game to watch.  Nothing much happening in the  real estate world so  we might as well watch the basketball game.  Have fun watching the game.

Please tell every dog or cat owner you know. Even if you don’t have a pet, please pass this to those who do. This article was sent to me by my brother, Stan, a real dog lover.

“Over the weekend, the doting owner of two young lab mixes purchased Cocoa Mulch from Target to use in their garden. The dogs loved the way it smelled and it was advertised to keep cats away from their garden. Their dog (Calypso) decided the mulch smelled good enough to eat and devoured a large helping. She vomited a few times which was typical when she eats something new but wasn’t acting lethargic in any way. The next day, Mom woke up and took Calypso out for her morning walk . Half way through the walk, she had a seizure and died instantly.”

Although the mulch had NO warnings printed on the label, upon further investigation on the company’s web site, this product is HIGHLY toxic to dogs and cats.

Cocoa Mulch is manufactured by Hershey’s, and they claim that “It is true that studies have shown that 50% of the dogs that eat Cocoa Mulch can suffer physical harm to a variety of degrees (depending on each individual dog). However, 98% of all dogs won’t eat it.”

Snopes site gives the following information:

“Cocoa Mulch, which is sold by Home Depot, Foreman’s Garden Supply and other Garden supply stores contains a lethal ingredient called ‘Theobromine’. It is lethal to dogs and cats. It smells like chocolate and it really attracts dogs. They will ingest this stuff and die. Several deaths already occurred in the last 2-3 weeks. Theobromine is in all chocolate, especially dark or baker’s chocolate which is toxic to dogs. Cocoa bean shells contain potentially toxic quantities of theobromine, a xanthine compound similar in effects to caffeine and theophylline. A dog that ingested a lethal quantity of garden mulch made from cacao bean shells developed severe convulsions and died 17 hours later. Analysis of the stomach contents and the ingested cacao bean shells revealed the presence of lethal amounts of theobromine.”

Below is a quote from an article in the San Francisco Chronicle about the new home buyers tax credit.  It seems that the verdict is still out as to whether or not this applies to current escrows are only those who go into contract May 1, 2010 or later.  I tried several times yesterday to call the California Association of Realtors attorneys for clarification on this and the lines were always busy.  Then I resolved myself to call our local Assocation of Realtors and was just referred to another website with no answer.  As you can see from the link below it looks like everyone is waiting word from the Franchise Tax Board.  Wouldn’t you think they could write a bill  specifically states this such and the current federal rule states.  Too bad there is so much confusion.  Looks like we are “still waiting”.  I need to know so I can advise my clients as some of them might be better off closing in May instead of April.   

“First come-first served eligible taxpayers must close escrow between May 1, 2010 and Dec. 31, 2010, or after December 31, 2010 and before August 1, 2011, pursuant to an enforceable contract executed on or before December 31, 2010.

Watch for clarifications from the states Franchise Tax Board“

The following is an article that came to me via First American Title.  Always want to give credit where credit is due.  The one question everyone has is ” does this apply only to those people who go into contract after the Federal Tax Credit goes away on April 30, 2010?  In other words, non “double dipping”.  I need to call the CAR attorneys on this one as a lot of people are confused.  Anyway you look at it, it  is a good thing but the time constraint here is “when the money runs out”, not the dates.  Very important to remember, ie act quickly. 

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a new bill this week that would extend the $10,000 homebuyer tax credit to Californians. The state legislature on March 22 passed assembly bill (AB) 183, which gives the Franchise Tax Board authority to extend $200m in tax credits to homebuyers in the Golden State. Buyers of new, unoccupied homes are allocated $100m in credits, and first-time homebuyers of existing homes get another $100m. The credit is extended from May 1, 2010 to Dec. 31, 2010. The credit is available to buyers on a first-come, first-serve basis, and it’s applied in equal amounts over a three-year period. According to the governor’s office, the initial $100m tax credit approved in February 2009 lasted just four months