Glass is more than full, well Cachuma is more than full…
After a much needed rain Cachuma lake has finally reached its capacity. The lake has gone up 20ft in the last week which is pretty impressive considering Cachuma was down 40ft in early December. We now have 5-6 years of water supply; so get your boats and lake gear ready because it going to be a beautiful green Summer!

Did you know that there is a way to keep your original tax base if you move from one property in Santa Barbara County to another property within Santa Barbara County?  If this sounds interesting; here are a few facts.

What Are Proposition 60 and 90?
These propositions provide a one time property tax benefit by preventing reassessment when a senior citizen (age 55 years or older) sells his/her existing residence and purchases or constructs a replacement residence worth the same or less than the original property.  This proposition either applies to the principal claimant of the original residence or a spouse who resides with the seller who must also be 55 years of age at the time of the sale.

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“COMMEND A FOOL FOR HIS WIT, OR A ROGUE FOR HIS HONESTY, AND HE WILL RECEIVE YOU INTO HIS FAVOUR.” Henry Fielding So honestly - was “rogue trader” Jerome Kerviel really solely responsible for costing French Bank Societe Generale $7.1 Billion Dollars…and for helping to trigger last week’s massive sell-off in global Stock markets? Or is the junior trader being played a fool, becoming the scapegoat to cover up financial mismanagement by the bank itself?

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Think you can’t live in Santa Barbara for under under $650,000?  … Think again.

Let’s face it, who wouldn’t want to live or retire in Santa Barbara?  For many people, Real Estate prices in Santa Barbara seem so prohibitive, they are content to rent just to be here. Some are spending thousands of dollars on rent and receiving no equity in a property. There IS another way to have it all!!
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San Marcos High School will be hosting the 2008 Career Day on February 20th. Career Day gives high school students the opportunity to meet professionals from a verity of different occupations in order to explore what career they would like to purse in the future. I along with three other Village Properties agents will be speaking on the amazing experiences of working in Real Estate. Feel free to have your kids stop by.

A good way to start is by visiting homes for sale in the vicinity of your home. See how they are presented. Are they clean? Are they staged? Do they have pets and consequently pet odor? After you visit several homes, you will see what jumps out at you as clean and appealing or uninviting and cluttered. It is always a learning experience to see how other homes are kept. Then go back to your home and clean, clean, clean. If it’s broken…..have it repaired. If you think it’s clean……..clean it again. When people are deciding whether or not to buy your home as opposed to the one down the street or across town, an inviting and organized home is always a winner.

DeAnn Bauer and I have teamed up as Village Properties EcoBrokers and Green Ambassadors of Future Friendly Homes. We are very involved in the Santa Barbara Community and attend many board meetings, forums, and events covering a wide array of green topics. Since there are so many green inspired events to choose from, we will list some of the upcoming events on our calendars and look forward to seeing you there.

Check out the latest events…

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I don’t know if you have had a chance to see our Company’s listing on Glen Albyn above the Mission. If you haven’t, you should consider it.  The current price reduction as of today makes this house incredibly attractive at $1,395,000.  Some of the things that I really like about the home are; it has easily accessible flat parking – no small consideration in the Mission Canyon area; also the living room, dining room, kitchen and patio flow nicely together for good entertaining, but what really makes this home special is the additional living space that they have created for working out and guest space/media space. On top of all of that the house feels fresh, pretty and nicely presented. A lot for your money!

AARP defines a senior as a person age 50 or older and states, every 7 seconds an American turns 50!

The Seniors Real Estate Specialist designation was developed to focus on the needs of home buyers and sellers age 50 and older. It is awarded only to Realtors who have successfully completed the SRES education program.

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Yes – South Coast properties are still receiving multiple offers, even in today’s market!  And they aren’t located just in Montecito.  Santa Barbara is faring equally well in attracting Buyers looking for value and upside potential.

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