The Standard Relationship Disclosure Packet:

Wouldn’t it be great if we exchanged disclosure packets at the beginning of every life relationship?

*For those of you who aren’t real estate professionals, every home sold yields a substantial stack of paper called the disclosure packet. This is where the home seller tells the truth about what changes have been made to the house, what issues may arise with the house—basically everything that buyers might want to know about the house as they decide whether or not to invest in it.

The Standard Relationship Disclosure Packet (henceforth referred to as the SRDP because real estate professionals are second only to military recruits in the use of acronyms) would list useful things to know about a new friend or sweetheart before you choose to weave your lives together. The SRDP would include but not be limited to the following:

Specific Terms of Contract:

In which we define why we are here and what we plan to do about it.

Statement of Common Interest:

In which we notice how our dreams, hobbies, and habits intersect.

Notice to Disclose Intent to Convert:

In which we are upfront about all the ways we plan to change each other.

Notice of Security Bars:

In which we discuss how heightened emotional security measures have been implemented due to past violations.

Likelihood of Blanket Encumbrance:

In which we admit we will probably steal the covers.

Political, Religious, and Emotional Hazards Report:

In which we define our belief systems and establish firm boundaries.

Termination Rights:

In which we define when it makes sense to call it quits and how we would plan to go about it.

Notice of Closing Terms:

In which we decide when to admit we’ve made a life-connection and wish to waive our termination rights.

What other disclosures do you wish were exchanged at the beginning of relationships?

Wait, What? Seven Things You Probably Don’t Want To Know About the Snails in Your Garden

1. Question: “Why are there so (insert expletive) many of them??!!” Answer: Many snails are hermaphroditic, so when two snails mate both snails can lay eggs. Snails lay about 60 eggs at a time and can do so up to six times a year. A particularly fertile snail couple could produce 720 baby slimers a year.  

2. Snails have teeth. They have hundreds, sometimes thousands, of tiny teeth set in a ribbon-like structure called a radula. On a quiet night, if you listen very closely, you can hear the tiny grinding sound.

3. Snails keep the same shell all of their lives. A snail hatches from its egg with a small, weak shell. The newborn eats its egg and the calcium helps harden the shell. The shell grows with the snail until it reaches full adulthood.

4. Some people use snail slime as a face cream. Yes they do.

5. Snails can shut the front door. The bottom of a snail’s body is called a foot. Some species develop a tough part of the foot called an operculum. When the soft parts of the snail’s body are retracted into the shell, the snail seals itself in with the operculum. The operculum grows to fit the size and shape of the shell’s opening.

6. Once a snail colony makes your garden home, there is little you can do about it. Well, there’s plenty you can do about it but not much that works. Some popular methods of trying are beer traps, copper barriers, eggshells, night squashing or relocating raids, and chemicals. When all else fails, you can grow plants snails don’t like to eat. Snails, unfortunately, cannot be trained to eat only weeds.

7. Can’t beat ‘em? Eat ‘em! Escargo, anyone?

For more on these swirl-backed slime trailers, visit www.snail-world.com and good luck if you are battling them in your garden.

Absobloominglutely! Spring Flowers and Gardens in the Bay Area and Beyond

Plant life is a big part of life in the San Francisco Bay Area this spring.

From backyard labors-of-love casually tossing their scents and shadows onto neighborhood sidewalks to professionally cultivated affairs that are worth every penny spent to see them—there’s some sprouting satisfaction for you whether you are a casual bloom-gawker or a serious gardener.

Here are a few places in the Bay Area and beyond where you can find lush greens to celebrate the new spring season:

San Francisco Flower and Garden Show San Mateo, CA 

If you have a great yard space and are looking for garden inspiration, this is the event for you. The show offers how-to sessions, innovative products, and all things green-themed for the green-thumbed. Wednesday, March 21, through Sunday, March 25. Click the link above for tickets and directions.

Daffodil Hill Volcano, CA

If you are lucky, one of the resident peacocks might fan by for a cameo appearance while you are sharpening your shutterbug talents among the over 300,000(!) blooms of Daffodil Hill. Patience, flower lover—as of this writing, Daffodil Hill is under snow. All signs point to a big bloom soon, though. The local Chamber of Commerce’s best guess for the bloom is the end of the first week in April. No entrance fee. Free parking. Before you buckle up the whole crew, call (209) 296-7048 to confirm that the park is open when you plan to visit. You’ll be rewarded with the cheeriest snapshots in your album and the kind of memories that come from beautiful afternoons with people you love.

Luther Burbank Home and Gardens Santa Rosa, CA

To protect the new fruits, vegetables, and flowers he cultivated, Luther Burbank locked his plant seeds in a safe, searched the pockets of his workers, and discouraged visitors. Now, the doors to his house, gardens, and a greenhouse are thrown open for the inquiring public during tour season, beginning this year on April 1. Take the docent-led tour to get the most out of your visit.

Pick-Your-Own Farms, Various Locations

Until your own backyard garden springs to life, you can collect fruits and vegetables at pick-your-own farms across Northern California.

Micke Grove Regional Park Japanese Garden Lodi, CA

Bridges over sun-dappled creeks, adequately spooky trees, and stepping stones create a quiet, lovely place to reflect and be inspired if you are on your own or walking hand-in-hand with your partner. If, with the other hand, you are holding the sticky little paw of someone significantly smaller and decidedly less mellow, you also happen to be steps away from a child-friendly zoo and amusement park. For a small parking and entrance fee, the world is yours.

Some Bay Area plant-destinations are so well-known that locals only need to be reminded, usually by out-of-town guests, to make the annual effort to see and support them--Berkeley Rose Garden and San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers are two of the most-loved and most-visited.

Whether you find the perfect plant in your own backyard, across one bridge, or a day-trip away, have fun taking in the beauty of our Northern California plants and flowers.

*For a list of Bay Area public gardens visit www.bayareagardens.org.

Living Large with Less

by Rebecca Nemeth

  
Anyone who’s looked for their first home in Albany, Berkeley, El Cerrito, or Kensington (or wants to downsize into something more manageable) has noticed that we have homes in an array of sizes. While most homes here begin at 900 square feet and go up from there (typically up to about 3,000 square feet), we do have a few that are teensy. I’ve seen a few as small as 500 square feet.

Why would someone build something so small?
Sure, its possible that people just had less “stuff” in 1920 than they have now, but have you noticed that even smaller “tiny houses” are getting increasingly popular now?

The historic precedent – Why Albany has some Relatively Tiny Homes
In Albany, for example, the city subdivided some lots into parcels of 3,800 or 3,300 square feet, and even as small as 2,500 square feet. Fortunately builders like Charles MacGregor took on building nice quality homes on these small scale lots in the 1920′s and 1930′s. This allowed people who were probably then “blue collar” homeowners to afford a nicely built home with details like dining room built-in cabinetry, curved archways, recessed niches, and beautiful fireplaces. The layouts follow a typical Craftsman style, with logical layouts that don’t waste space, and that integrate the kitchen, living room, and dining room into more open public spaces than Victorian homes did. These single story homes were usually 850 to 1,000 square feet, huge compared to today’s 65 (yes, 65) to 500 square foot Tiny Homes.

Urban planners and environmentalists will tell you, small is beautiful. Here are a few reasons why.

Smaller homes make it easier to have strong, interconnected communities. Smaller homes can be built closer together, on smaller lots (such as the semi-urban lots that are common in Albany and Berkeley), making it easier to support something like Albany and Berkeley’s Solano Avenue, an old school type of Main Street with locally-owned businesses, and an array of city parks. You’ll find many neighborhood shopping districts and parks like these throughout the 1920′s era parts of the East Bay.

Smaller homes make it easier to have good public transit. Because more people can live closer together, the community can support an excellent, robust public transit network with features like our BART trains and AC Transit buses.

Smaller homes are better for the environment. From an energy conservation standpoint, smaller homes use fewer resources to build, require less energy to heat and cool, and the owners will be using furniture and items that serve double or even triple purpose (so they’re buying less furniture, etc.).

Smaller homes are easier and more affordable to build yourself (vs. a larger new home).
Plans for many smaller homes are readily available online, especially if you’re interested in the micro-size Tiny Homes that have become more popular in recent years. Cheap building plans, designs with an eye to energy efficiency and easy of use, fewer materials needed, and fewer “man” hours needed to build a home = a less expensive home.

Smaller homes more affordable to own. A smaller home = a smaller purchase price. That means you may be able to pay all cash and not have a mortgage, or have a very small mortgage. A smaller purchase price = smaller property taxes. And smaller homes also = smaller utility bills. Every heating and lighting dollar can go into usable space instead of that huge atrium or “living room” people don’t actually live in.

Smaller homes may be the best fit for the available empty lots and suit what city building codes will allow. In our area, any lot that could be built on in conventional ways has been built on. But you may find some smaller lots, or some that would accommodate a smaller home in part of the lot. Also, most cities limit the amount of living space you’re allowed to have relative to the size of a lot (for example, in Albany that ratio is 55% of the lot size). Many cities also have set-back requirements, which state how far from a house must be from the lot line or the neighbor’s house.

For more information check out these articles and blogs on Tiny Homes. Many include plans for building your own tiny house.

Yahoo article on “Five Tiny Homes You’ll Love”: http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/5-tiny-homes-youll-love-big-time.html
Tiny House blog: http://tinyhouseblog.com/
Tiny Green Cabins: tinygreencabins.com/
Tiny House Design: www.tinyhousedesign.com/
Tiny Texas Houses: tinytexashouses.com/

Sky Camp: Let Your Imagination Soar

by Tom Knight

Imagine, if you will, you are returning by air from the East Coast, preparing to land at the Oakland International Airport. As you cross the last row of hills on your descent, suddenly the vast open space of the Bay Area appears below… the bay, San Francisco in the distance, bridges, miles upon miles of houses, buildings, highways and byways stretching out far below you in all directions. Suppose it’s night: the twinkling lights sparkle like a vast illuminated electrical quilt and the dark space of the bay is like a black cat stretched out asleep in the center. Imagine you freeze frame that moment and live in a place with that sensational airplane view locked in, a place with that instant of recognition that you are home. There is a place like that: Sky Camp.

Imagine you live on the edge of the forest full of ferns and wildflowers. You hear the echo of owls hooting through the night woods, see red tailed hawks soaring on the afternoon updrafts below you, just as you remember seeing on your last visit to Big Sur. You have miles of hiking trails beginning in your backyard, the solitude of the wind in the trees punctuated by the chatter of the Steller's jays. Yet, you are not quite lost in the wilderness. You gaze out from your perch at the panorama of civilization a thousand feet below. There are no cars passing by. You live at the end of the road, the top of the hill. You live on the fringe of the urban jungle. There is a place like that: Sky Camp.

Imagine the warm winter sun on your outside deck, a quiet beginning of your day with your first cup of coffee and croissant. In your garden patio, sheltered and bright, your Adirondack chair puts you in the relaxed reclining mode for happy hour. Rhododendrons above, roses below, who needs Golden Gate Park? A fresh Acme seeded baguette from the Berkeley Bowl, some camembert from Marin County’s Rouge et Noir, a bottle of spicy Zinfandel from Amador County’s Renwood Winery, some fresh cherries from Frog Hollow. “Eat local” they say. “Slow food” they say. You’re there: Sky Camp.

The floors are wood, the walls are wood, the open beamed ceiling is wood. Is this a cabin in the pines of Tahoe? You throw another log in the wood stove and gaze awhile out the floor-to-ceiling windows. No. You’re on the urban fringe, living on the edge of the beautiful Bay Area. You are at the top of Panoramic Hill. You are where daydreams come easily. You are at Sky Camp.

Not just a house or a place. An experience for a life time. Sky Camp. Imagine it yours.

For images from Sky Camp: http://PanoramicSkyCamp.com

Confessions of a California Seafood Lover

by Tom Knight

You can get fish in the middle of Nebraska, but there’s something lacking: THE SEA. When your restaurant is on pilings over thirty feet of water with fishing boats parked outside, it’s reassuring that your catch of the day might actually have been caught THAT day. Not to mention the ambiance accompanying the food: salty fresh air, screaming seagulls and diving pelicans… I call it the “ocean entertainment” factor which somehow just seems to make the food taste better.

My wife and I have carried on an old family tradition for many years: The SUNDAY DRIVE. Often we do not have any destination in mind, just a direction to point the car as we head out on the highway. Somewhere along the way our appetite kicks in and the hunt is on: fresh seafood on the water’s edge! Over the years we have had terrific fun discovering great seafood restaurants in the Bay Area and beyond. Lately we had the idea to make a list. Here goes…

Seascape Café, Trinidad. It’s a long ways out there, but the fresh crab omlette breakfast makes it worth the drive. The wharf is right at the café. Walk out a ways after your meal. What did you notice that’s different from other coastal stops? The ocean is crystal clear. Purple and orange starfish are abundant.

Arena Cove Restaurant, Pt. Arena. We recommend a stay at the Coast Guard Inn B&B where we once rode out a hurricane. Great clam chowder and excellent sunny views from the second floor dining room. This place has the feel of a small fishing village which is little changed over decades.

River’s End, Jenner. One of the most spectacular views of any coastal eatery, this place has a commanding view of the mighty Russian River entering the sea. Check it out in the winter after a series of storms. And check out the food. My wife says “best scallops ever!” This is definitely an upscale seafood restaurant, so plan to spend some time savoring the cuisine. It’s a dining experience.

Tony’s Seafood, Marshall. Your guaranteed attitude adjustment on Tomales Bay. It’s small and they don’t take cards, so bring cash and a good appetite. This is the real deal for local oysters. Give me a crab salad, a bunch of sourdough bread and a carafe of white wine… whatever my troubles were, I’m leaving this joint happy. Come early, it can get crowded.

The Point, Rio Vista. The Delta is a place which time has passed by. We have searched for years to find some fresh seafood right on the water, and this place is definitely hard to locate, but worth the effort. Some of the best crab cakes at very reasonable prices. No tourists here, only locals who know the score.

Nantucket, Crockett. This is the best place I have ever found which combines my two passions: train-watching and seafood. Be careful crossing the tracks, 49 AMTRAK trains a day roll by the back door. There a couple of tables on the outside deck where you can see ships passing on one side and trains on the other. Does it get any better than this? Under the Carquinez Bridge, just south of the C&H Sugar Refinery. Nothing fancy, just grab a beer and some fried calamari with a friend… you’re set!

Seafood Peddler, San Rafael. My grandson Dominic thinks this place has the best fish and chips ever, and it’s hard to disagree. We keep coming back to this place and enjoy it every time. Good food, good service, good location (try lunch on the outside deck if it’s sunny) and a very satisfying Bay Area fresh fish experience. Your dependable Marin County seafood eatery on the canal, with boats passing by.

The Ramp, San Francisco. This is the “anti-tourist” on-the-water spot to eat in the City, just off Third Street in the Potrero Hill neighborhood. Ships in drydock, an industrial area, it’s not what you would expect for such a fun place. It’s a favorite local hangout with great drinks, warm here when it’s cold elsewhere in the City. Good food and lots of laughter. Just describing it makes me want to be there again. Perhaps this is where Otis Redding composed “Dock By the Bay.” A terrific S.F. secret!

Crow’s Nest, Santa Cruz. This well known popular hangout at the Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor can be a little noisy and rowdy on Friday nights, but that’s part of the fun isn’t it? If you can get an outside table at sunset you are in for a treat. The splashing waves on the breakwater and sailboats gliding in and out can be mesmerizing. A giant prawn cocktail and a chilled Boony Doon white wine and you’re set.

Nepenthe, Big Sur. Perched high a cliff hundreds of feet above the sea, no place has more drama than Nepenthe. Folks, it’s SPECTACULAR. Sit yourself down at the south facing outside bar, get one of the special menu drinks and gaze down the coast. You may find yourself mingling with the rich and famous who frequent this place, and it’s not cheap. Coastal atmospherics are more than worth it.

Olde Port, San Luis Pier. When the schools of mackerel are swimming, this place at the end of the San Luis Bay Pier just past Avila Beach provides a ringside seat to the most amazing feeding frenzy we have ever seen: hundreds of pelicans diving into the water, packs of hungry sea lions lurching out of the water like dolphins, thousands of screaming gulls fighting for scraps. It’s a watery chaos in all directions. Drive slowly out on the creaky wharf. The seafood is a fresh as you can find and a great local wine list.

I missed a lot of places, but I gave you our favorites. Others where we have enjoyed dining include The Dead Fish in Crockett, Yankee Pier in Larkspur and Lafayette (neither on the water, but great food), Skates in Berkeley, Trader Vics in Emeryville (where the Mai Tai was invented, really), The Tides in Bodega Bay, and the Moss Beach Distillery near Half Moon Bay.

Maybe you have a favorite not on our list. If so, please let me know, tom@berkhills.com. We are always on the prowl for the next new culinary adventure. Happy Dining!

Front Row Seats to the 2013 America's Cup in San Francisco!

Sharing our spectacular sunsets is one of the joys of selling real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2013, the view of the Bay will offer something even more thrilling: The America's Cup yacht race!

Staplenews.com reports, "Rather than holding the races miles off shore, which was the case in Valencia and in Newport, where the Cup was held from 1930 to 1983, San Francisco Bay offers a natural amphitheater."

We couldn't agree more. Like a Greek theater, the East Bay's naturally sloped topography will make many of the view homes feel like luxury box seats overlooking the main event.

In the current market, some of these luxury view homes can be purchased at a relative bargain. Berkeley Hills Realty currently has a panoramic view home listed in El Cerrito for under $700,000. 8379 Terrace Drive in El Cerrito is a custom built home with an exceptional vantage point for the 2013 America's Cup; binoculars included!

Looking forward to 2011 in the East Bay!

As local real estate agents, we enjoy sharing everything we love about living in the Bay Area. If you are interested in obtaining a complimentary 2011 Calendar of East Bay Events, please contact Berkeley Hills Realty at (510) 524-9888, or email broker@berkhills.com. Or, tweet us at @BerkeleyHillsRE. Here's to fond memories from last year, and to all the new memories waiting to be discovered in 2011!

Persimmon Pudding

Courtesy of Barbara Conheim, Berkeley Hills Realty

1 cup pureed persimmons
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 pound butter (or margarine) at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar or 1 cup honey
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons rum (or brandy, or milk)
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2-1 cup chopped nuts
1 cup raisins

Put persimmon puree in small bowl. Stir in baking soda (mixture will stiffen). Set aside. (The following steps may be performed in a food processor). Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl. Add eggs, vanilla, lemon juice and rum; beat well. Add flour, cinnamon and salt; stir to blend. Add persimmon mixture; beat until well mixed. Stir in nuts and raisins. Grease the inside of a two quart mold. (A Coffee can may be used.) Place the mold on a rack in a deep baking pan or pot. Add water to the baking pan or pot until it is halfway up the mold. Remove mold and fill with pudding mixture. Close mold with well fitting lid or seal tightly with foil. Bring water to boil over medium heat. Immerse the mold the mold in boiling water and cover. Steam for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, test with toothpick. Remove mold from baking pan or pot, place on a rack to cool. With blunt knife or suitable implement, free pudding from mold and turn onto serving plate.

Note: This recipe appears in From Our Home to Yours, A Collection of Favorite Recipes
from the Berkeley Association of Realtors. The cookbook is available for purchase from the Berkeley Association of Realtors at a cost of $15.

Rightsizing Your East Bay Home

Money can't buy you love... but setting aside financial stress can bring you happiness. The economic downturn has added stress to many Bay Area pocketbooks. But, for many it has also granted new perspective. There seems to be a paradigm shift in the East Bay market away from "keeping up with the Joneses" and toward "seeking a simpler life." Michael Jansen of Small Living Journal writes the following:

Downsizing is a common discussion point among those seeking a simpler life. Learning to live with less and reducing your impact and dependence on your surroundings can bring you more peace, freedom, and happiness. Many people seem to have chosen lives so complicated and costly that their surroundings actually provide more of a burden than a benefit. For these folks downsizing will be the direction they will travel if they desire a simpler life. Finding the balance between too much and too little is rightsizing.

The East Bay holds some wonderful "simple life" advantages. Known for the Berkeley Bungalow, the area has an eclectic supply of "rightsized" homes. Our climate and local offerings also contribute to this quality of life equation. The idea of shopping for the evening's meal can be a great adventure in an area with ample access to farmer's markets, fresh bread and specialty cheese and meat markets. Buyer's location preferences have shifted toward such urban amenities. A big Bay view has always been valued, but now often takes a second place to a high Walk Score. Our Bay Area lifestyle gives rightsizers reason to rejoice!

If rightsizing appeals to you, your new home search starts with one basic question: What is important to you? Often a determination of what is important is achieved by the process of elimination. Start with the dream and then whittle it down to the necessities:

1. Write down everything you every imagined a home could be. Then, prioritize that list. The things you need for health and safety get the highest points. Things that make a positive impact in your daily life are next. Bells and whistles fall to the bottom.
   
2. Next, analyze your prioritized list against your life goals. Ask yourself questions that are meaningful to the life you want, such as: Would one less bedroom allow you to travel more? Could you live with less yard if it meant you could walk to work or BART? Adjust your list accordingly.
3. Finally, take your list to your Realtor. Talk to your Realtor to see if the sacrifices are worthwhile. In some instances, downsizing may put you into a more competitive price bracket and your sacrifices may not buy you the desired benefits. Conversely, you may not have to give up any space to "downsize." You may find that accepting some disadvantage in the location (BART or busy street for example) may allow you to keep your square footage requirements high while you lessen the expense. See one rightsizing example at www.1116KeyRoute.com.
   

Your Realtor can also help you calculate the costs of moving. A purely lateral move (neither upsizing nor downsizing) may cost as much as 10% of your home's value through costs associated with the transaction. To realize a financial benefit , your new home will have to cost 90% less than your current home's worth. Your Realtor can give you an indication of your current home's value to use as a starting point. Looking at the available inventory in a lower price point will give you further education. Let us help you to live the life you have always wanted. Your dream house should be about YOUR dreams.

Happy Earth Day!

Be kind to Mother Earth and take a hike! Berkeley Hills Realty has walking maps of Berkeley and Oakland which include many fabulous pedestrian pathways. For a complimentary copy of Berkeley’s Pathways or Walk Oakland!—while supplies last—stop by our office:

Berkeley Hills Realty
1714 Solano Avenue (between Tulare and Ensenada)
Or contact us at 510-524-9888

A Week for Giving Thanks

At a time when "unprecedented" is being used to describe numerous economic events, an $800 Billion stimulus package was announced this week. The intent is clear enough: to encourage spending on new mortgages with interest rate reductions, and easing the terms by which Americans can incur more consumer debt. There is something curious to me about the premise. Interest rates were already quite attractive, hovering around 6% when historically the number to beat was 7%. In working with first-time buyers in particular, I see the dramatic differences between those who have been able to save money, and hence have had the 20% down payment required in this newly conservative lending environment, vs. those who have been unable to save.

Encouraging additional spending is clearly what economists feel is required at this juncture to reenergize an economy traumatized by huge swings in major indicators. We’ve grown eerily accustomed to the stock market being either up or down several hundred points each day, oil prices that were in "unprecedented" territory falling to half those amounts within a few months, foreclosures dominating sales in many areas and unemployment at levels not seen for decades. The intensity of the news and the volatility of major indicators are truly enough to have all of us on edge, uncertain, cautious.

I would love to assist buyers in purchasing homes in our wonderful East Bay area with its continued strength. So while I would normally welcome measures that would make it easier for buyers to enter our housing market, I can't help but feel that this latest measure, including $200 Billion set aside to make it easier for consumers to get further into debt with credit cards, is contrary to the best long-term interests of families as well as the over-all economy.

Some of those would-be buyers are convinced that our housing market will devalue further, and are unwilling to enter it until prices even in Berkeley, Rockridge and Albany are in bargain territory. It almost seems that some of these folks must be sure that the seller is experiencing pain before they are willing to buy. So far no precipitous drop in sales prices has occurred, and without that mythical crystal ball no one knows for sure if it will. My personal belief is that we may see a bit more softening, reflecting itself primarily in homes taking longer to sell. My guess is that we'll see much more optimism in our housing market after the inauguration. Bargain hunters might want to take advantage of these last months of a lame-duck administration and seasonal slowness mixed with the likely interest rate advantages from these latest stimulus attempts.

I'm currently in contract with buyers who wanted to establish a home together and were actively looking over the past few months. They know there is some risk that the value of their new home could go down soon after they purchase, but they are confident in the long-term stability of this area. They are looking forward to painting the walls something other than white, and planning a garage conversion to add space when they eventually have children. In this week of Thanksgiving I thank them for injecting some optimism in my daily experience. I thank them for being clear that buying a home is something quite different from buying stocks, and that while it is an important financial commitment, the emotional commitment is just as important, if not more.

So while this year has already brought us economic upheaval unseen since the Great Depression, even as we enter into the Not-so-great Recession we still have much for which to be thankful. We do see foreclosures in our area, but still in small numbers, especially as compared to some neighboring counties where the majority of properties are foreclosures or short sales. We live in an area of intense natural and architectural beauty. We are surrounded by an endless variety of delicious items. The life of the mind is active here. And let us not forget, even as the sun forces its way through the fog, it sets behind the Golden Gate, in this area that trully is paradise.

Places Worth Caring About

The original noble purpose of this blog was to explore new ways to encourage and cultivate good citizenship in our communities. A new era is upon us. Fuel prices are increasing and fringe topics such as "New Urbanism" and "Living Locally" are gaining mainstream popularity. Suddenly it seems that community just might be what saves our planet and the human race. We knew it was a noble cause.

The East Bay is unique. There are no big box stores in Berkeley. For years I have heard its citizens proudly differentiate themselves from suburbia. Our urban centers have neighborhood or street names like Rockridge and Piedmont Avenue. It hasn't always been clear why this is better...until recent social studies sought to duplicate and distill its charms.

From the Charter of the New Urbanism:

We advocate the restructuring of public policy and development practices to support the following principles: neighborhoods should be diverse in use and population; communities should be designed for the pedestrian and transit as well as the car; cities and towns should be shaped by physically defined and universally accessible public spaces and community institutions; urban places should be framed by architecture and landscape design that celebrate local history, climate, ecology, and building practice.

To get a sense of the places we have created as a nation-- and the places we need to build and care about in the future, watch the following James Howard Kunstler discussion titled, The Tragedy of Suburbia. Please note that the F-word is used in his speech. Do not watch if you would find this offensive. The video takes approximately twenty minutes. If you want to skip any offensive language and get to the heart of the matter, the last four minutes are worthwhile.

BHR Agents Maintain Pathways in the Berkeley Hills

BERKELEY, CA – June 2008—Pulling weeds can give you calluses, but when you’re maintaining one of Berkeley's hilly pathways, you feel like a community trailblazer. On a recent Saturday, several Berkeley Hills Realty agents did trail maintenance on Glendale Path in the North Berkeley Hills. The morning’s work was cool in both senses of the word.

Guided by master path maker Charlie Bowen of the Berkeley Path Wanderers Association, the BHR volunteers cleared weeds from native woodmint and Juncus rushes on Glendale Path, an unusual three-segment path that runs down from Arcade Avenue and Fairlawn Drive past Queens Road to Campus Drive.

Glendale is just one of the hundred-odd paths that link the winding streets in the Berkeley and Oakland hills. The pathways were originally laid out to join the streets, which mostly run horizontally, along the contour lines. Whether paved paths or secret trails, they are fun to use and popular with neighbors. They are also vital escape routes in case of natural disaster, so keeping them in good shape is important.

In Berkeley alone, there are some 136 paths, steps, and walkways. They appear on the excellent map published by The Berkeley Path Wanderers Association, at www.berkeleypaths.org. Oakland’s network of paths is shown on the "Walk Oakland!" map published by the City of Oakland, www.oaklandnet.com/government/opsp.html.

For a description and history of paths in both cities, see William Rodarmor's article "Paths of Least Resistance" in the Summer 2004 Berkeley Hills Realty newsletter, at www.berkhills.com.

Happy after a good morning of Glendale Path stewardship: Steve and Sandy Patel-Hilferty, Nancy Mueller, Daniel and Una O'Connell (our littlest helper), Jane Allen and Kim Brown, from Berkeley Hills Realty.

Ordinary Beauty in the East Bay

I came across an interesting post on beauty and its price tag on the Daily Kos. Here is an excerpt:

One of the most interesting social and journalistic experiments related to this took place last year and involved a busker named Joshua. Joshua played his violin in the L'Enfant Plaza metro station in Washington, D.C. For nearly an hour, Joshua performed for approximately 1,110 people who passed by. Just 27 of them made contributions that totalled about $30. Only seven people paused to listen for more than a minute. The rest of the commuters walked by, without listening or donating.

The funny part is that Joshua is actually Joshua Bell, a world-class violinist. The pieces he played in the subway are some of the most difficult works a violinist can master. But that day, his performance earned him about $30.

I can't help but wonder if it might have been different here in the East Bay. The author goes on to say:

...This experiment seems to indicate that we value what we can quantify: We value an exceptional violinist only when we buy a ticket to his or her performance that takes place in a traditional setting. The same musician playing for free in the subway is invisible.

Our conspicuous consumption of all things luxurious and our disdain for anything less than elegant seems to go way beyond the world of music. Some women covet Birkin bags that cost $60,000(my wife asked for one of these I laughed so hard milk almost shot out of my nose lol)! Even Oprah's favorite things, listed monthly in O magazine are well beyond the means of most of her readers. (A pillow for $150? A $48 candle?) The funny thing about all of this is that anyone who would recognize, and be impressed by, a Hermes ashtray -- is the same person who would own one. So who impresses whom?

Although we are not immune to the vices of consumerism, these luxury goods are not so coveted on the streets of Berkeley. Berkeley women are still known for choosing the comfort of Birkenstocks over the status of Jimmy Choos. People here not only embrace-- but often come out in defense of "ordinary beauty." We have the tree sitters in Berkeley, and the artists of the re-purposed landfill at Albany Bulb. I also think of my colleague who traversed the East Bay and took hundreds of photos just of Wisteria. Home prices in the East Bay are high, but its good to know that the people here can not be bought.

Wisteria Hysteria

by Arlene Baxter

I am only partly kidding when I attribute pockets of tremendous strength in our area to the wisteria being in bloom. There is something about wisteria adorning the side of a classic Berkeley brownshingle that simply cannot be improved upon. This week we can find wisteria on wood trellises and arbors, wisteria draping elegantly in front of a window. Three different types of it drape Maybeck’s First Church*, softening the concrete pillars with its amazing contrast of color, shape and fragrance. Another Maybeck landmark, the Kennedy music studio, is wearing a wrap of white wisteria along a balcony.
This has been a remarkably beautiful spring. It starts with the narcissus and expands to other bulbs: crocus, freesia, bluebells, tulips. The flowering trees this year provided a breathtaking display from white, to pale pink to deepest, richest magenta. But it’s the wisteria that many of us wait for.

When the new Haas School of Business was built a number of years ago now they built two trellises in front, facing Gayley road. Landscapers theoretically could have planted any climbing vine. But the choice was obvious, or one could say, essential. This is Berkeley after all; it needed to be wisteria.

The different varieties and hybrids allow us to be overpowered by its beauty over the course of several weeks. My neighbor has the densely packed form that was mostly bloomed out by last week. For the wisteria in my yard, draping gracefully over a small trellis, this is THE week. I stand under it, inhale deeply, and the perfume provides a mini-vacation for my senses.
I gave a tour of local homes to visitors from Indiana last week, and it was the wisteria that wowed them. We were supposed to be focused on houses, but we kept sharing announcements of the latest “wisteria alert.” They very much enjoyed the cherry trees. The echium was just starting to cover its spikes with intense shades of blue. I was able to drive them by a lovely display of tulips. Camellias were blooming in profusion. But it is the wisteria they will remember.

* The First Church of Christ, Scientist, considered by many to be Bernard Maybeck’s greatest masterpiece, is at the corner of Dwight Way and Bowditch in Berkeley. It is the only building in Berkeley that has been designated a National Landmark.

If you're a fellow wisteria enthusiast, you may enjoy my album of East Bay wisteria views from the past week.

All photos copyright © Arlene Baxter 2008.

Multiple Micro Markets

By Arlene Baxter

A month ago in this space we reported on a jaw-dropping example of over-bidding in what the mass media still describes as a “buyers’ market.” A two-bedroom, one-bath home in Rockridge, listed for $799K had received 17 offers. It sold this week for $930K, 16% over list. Yesterday I was one of six agents presenting offers on a property in North Oakland, and I routinely hear of colleagues who are presenting one of three to six offers on homes. That’s unremarkable for those of us selling in Albany, Kensington, North Berkeley, Elmwood or Rockridge. What was a bit unusual in this case was that the house was just one block off a part of Telegraph Ave. with fairly high crime statistics. And only a few blocks away several homes are in foreclosure, and others have had several price reductions.

The home I presented an offer for was very charming with lovely period details and a tastefully updated kitchen, a feature that often translates into considerable interest. The overall charm, plus a full basement, tantalized my clients, despite the fact that the price seemed quite high for the location. A dozen other buyers were attracted as well. And so, to be as competitive as possible, my clients decided to do a pre-inspection. At the high-point of the market this was one of several practices used to gain some advantage in the bidding. Some other aggressive practices were pre-emptive offers, and relative offers, both of which have re-emerged this spring. Conducting inspections in advance of presenting an offer allows buyers to go in without an inspection contingency, as they’ve already truly inspected the property. It means they have also spent around $600, and they and their agent have spent another four hours or so bonding with a property that they may not be able to buy.

Within the written disclosures, items may be mentioned as “possible areas of concern.” That’s a very different perspective than when a highly knowledgeable inspector points to a roof with missing shingles and says “this roof is shot: it needs replacing.” That was the recommendation for our charming bungalow. We also were shown a leaking, rusting water heater and an ancient boiler for a radiant heat system. It needed earthquake retrofitting, demolition of a chimney and various other smaller fixes‑-some inexpensive to deal with, some that could lead to a domino effect of other requirements. So my clients backed off from what they had anticipated offering. That put them in third place out of six, evidently well behind the first two offers.

The question on everyone’s mind is Why? Why, in a general atmosphere of doom and gloom regarding the lending industry, and when increasing numbers of short sales and foreclosures are appearing on the market, are there still pockets of such strength here in the East Bay? I believe it’s a combination of factors:

1). Sub-prime loans never were much of a factor in the hotter locations

2). We have no room here to build new developments, the property types that have suffered the most in many parts of California

3). This is an area of intrinsic desirability. It is physically beautiful. It has interesting topography. Within minutes we can be in the woods of Tilden or at the Bay. And we are surrounded by mostly attractive, and in some cases positively gorgeous homes. As Realtors we have the opportunity to represent beautiful architecture, including the works of some true masters. That gives our jobs, as well as our clients, a kind of satisfaction that does not exist in the areas where foreclosures now dominate.

4). We have easy access to interesting, colorful, delicious things that are hard to find in so many areas. The large population of immigrants attracted to the San Francisco area has produced remarkable cultural diversity in our part of the East Bay. In practical terms that has resulted in the broad availability of many types of ethnic music, phenomenal ethnic cuisine at reasonable prices and celebrations from many cultures that have become now part of our experience.

5). Berkeley especially, but other academic settings within the East Bay as well, have attracted huge numbers of people who are attracted to “the life of the mind.” And finally. . .

6). It’s the wisteria. I am only partly kidding. More to come. . .

All photos copyright © Arlene Baxter 2008.

Three Moves are as Good as a Fire

Moving is stressful. There is so much to do. Packing alone can seem insurmountable. It's spring cleaning times 1000. The good news is that (like spring cleaning) it is a chance to clear clutter and get rid of the stuff you have that you don't really need. There is a saying that three moves are as good as one fire in terms of helping reduce the burden of excess. For those of you who are moving, we're with you. For those of you immersed in a good seasonal purge, happy spring cleaning. For those of you looking for less stuff and more fun, here's some fabulous motivation:

Tip for Clutter Busters: Don't send your stuff to the landfill. Find it a new home. Post it here:

Blue Skies and a Bloomin' Bay Area

Today is a day for play with temperatures in the 60s, blue skies and blossoms.

Beneath these fruit-tree boughs that shed
Their snow-white blossoms on my head,
With brightest sunshine round me spread
Of Spring's unclouded weather,

In this sequester'd nook how sweet
To sit upon my orchard-seat,
And flowers and birds once more to greet,
My last year's friends together.

- William Wordsworth, from “The Green Linnett”

The Subprime Scape Goat

Excerpt from the March 2008 Atlantic Monthly, The Next Slum?, by Christopher B. Leinberger:

The decline of places like Windy Ridge and Franklin Reserve is usually attributed to the subprime-mortgage crisis, with its wave of foreclosures. And the crisis has indeed catalyzed or intensified social problems in many communities. But the story of vacant suburban homes and declining suburban neighborhoods did not begin with the crisis, and will not end with it. A structural change is under way in the housing market—a major shift in the way many Americans want to live and work. It has shaped the current downturn, steering some of the worst problems away from the cities and toward the suburban fringes. And its effects will be felt more strongly, and more broadly, as the years pass. Its ultimate impact on the suburbs, and the cities, will be profound....

...Some experts expect conventional suburbs to continue to sprawl ever outward. Yet today, American metropolitan residential patterns and cultural preferences are mirror opposites of those in the 1940s. Most Americans now live in single-family suburban houses that are segregated from work, shopping, and entertainment; but it is urban life, almost exclusively, that is culturally associated with excitement, freedom, and diverse daily life. And as in the 1940s, the real-estate market has begun to react.

Excitement, freedom and diverse daily life are all hallmarks of the Bay Area. Add a temperate climate and picturesque park lands and it is no wonder our real estate values have held strong. National headlines belie the strength of our local market. Many have found it hard to rationalize our local market against national statistics. Our sales volume is down because buyers and sellers are hesitant to make a move in an area that feels like an isolated anomaly. This Atlantic Monthly article gives credence to the virtue of our housing stock. There is science behind what is happening in the market place. Now is the time to move out of the suburbs. Be on the forefront of a trend that is quickly gaining momentum and take advantage of incredible interest rates and market opportunities that exist today.