Has it actually arrived?

After waiting two and a half months, it appears summer just may visit Alameda after all!

I was showing property Thursday morning and for a moment I thought I was coming down with something. It was then I realized the sun was out, the skies were blue, the wind was almost non-existent. I was so excited I actually stopped mid-sentence to announce I was warm! I'd almost forgotten what it was like to stand and feel the warmth of the sun on my skin, it was wonderful. I then actually looked up, and there it was, that beautiful robins egg blue sky with bright white clouds sailing along. I'd been walking around with my nose to the ground and arms tightly wrapped around myself just trying to avoid the chill of the wind for so long, I couldn't remember the last time I'd just taken the time to enjoy a summer sky.

Of course we keep waking to those grey skies and it seemed the fog came in as cold as ever this evening, but I'm going to keep the faith and believe the sun will win again tomorrow. Besides, it has to. Pirates in Paradise is finally here and we all deserve to have some real fun at the Waterfront. Don't forget to head over and take a spin out on the Estuary. I can't get there until the afternoon so I'm hoping I won't miss the Police Department take on the Fire Department to see who gets to claim the Estuary as their own. Of course the fact that the organizers announced the event will benefit the Alameda Education Foundation only makes it sweeter. So come on sun, don't let me down!!

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Mark your calendars! September 26th marks this years' Alameda Legacy Tour and it should be exceptional. Eight extraordinary homes will be available for viewing; each having gone through an amazing renovation and restoration process. Homes will be open between 11 and 5 with refreshments served in one of the lovely garden settings. By the time you've finished you'll understand one of the reasons being a Realtor in Alameda is such a great job.

The Legacy Tour is self-guided so you can start at anytime and visit the homes in whatever order you'd like.  The tour is hosted by the Alameda Architectural Preservation Society and the Alameda Museum. Tickets can be purchased in advance online for $30. You'll receive the official tour guide with your purchase.

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Now I need you all to wish me luck. I'm headed to Margie and Don Sherratt's Annual Blackjack Tournament benefiting the Boys and Girls Club. It's been awhile since I've played but last I checked I can still add up to 21. Still, I wonder if they allow you to use your Blackberry at the table, that calculator app certainly comes in handy!

Subtle changes in the market

The end of July early August have brought some interesting changes to Alameda's real estate market. We experienced a sudden surge of single family homes coming onto the market at the end of the month.  This increased our months of inventory on the market from 2.8 at the end of June to 4.7 months at the end of July. At first glance this appears to be something to be concerned about, however if August continues in the same manner it began, I believe we'll be back to levels we've seen throughout the summer by the end of this month.

Granted, I've always been accused of being a bit of an optimist, but my conclusion is based on several factors. The first I've already mentioned as it is likely the increase in listings at the end of July has skewed the months on the market sharply upwards. But that isn't the only factor. July brought a sharp decline in average days on the market  to 27, the lowest point we've seen in well over a year. This means houses are not sitting on the market as long as they were, or in other words, buyers are on the move! This pattern has continued into August as we've watched the number of homes pending increase from the high 70's into the low to mid 90's.

The other good news is pricing continues to remain stable. The average price per square foot remains strong at $391.00 and average price sold and average list price are hovering around $650,000.

The best news clearly is interest rates. Finding rates in the 4.5% range is the norm. Whether you're considering buying or refinancing, now is really the time to get serious. If you're considering either, please let me know and I'll help make it happen!!

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Alamedans rock!

This summer the Alameda Education Foundation has been collecting school supplies and backpacks for students in need. Most people don't realize there are over 900 students attending AUSD without permanent housing, I know I didn't.  These students are among the 30% who qualify for the free or reduced lunch program. Your generosity will allow each of these students to start the school year with the supplies they need to be successful.

We've been collecting supplies all summer at the Alameda Towne Center's Summer Beat concerts. I was dropping off 3 fantastic backpacks from Marilyn Shumaker at tonight's concert (Thanks Marilyn!) and witnessed a woman dropping off 2 shopping carts full of supplies! I looked around and our donation box was almost full.

If you haven't had a chance to drop off supplies, we'll be at the Summer Beats concerts through the end of this month. You can also catch us at the Crab Cove concert tonight or you can drop supplies off at Tuckers, Color me Mine and the Bank of Alameda Park St branch. Oh heck, call me and I'll be happy to pick up and deliver supplies for you!!

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All righty then, that's it for this week, have a great weekend and hope to see you tonight at Crab Cove!

Just sign here....

In real estate that's the goal. Whether the signing occurs at the beginning of a new deal when you're representing the sale of your client's home or the end of a culmination of work with your buyer as they make an offer on the home they're purchasing, getting the best terms in place and obtaining signatures on a contract is a key business goal.

It's also very exciting. The circumstances' surrounding a sale or purchase of a home is usually the result of a life change for your client. Sometimes it's the result of loss, but usually it's because you're representing someone who's reached a new stage in their life. However, getting those all important signatures can prove to be a challenge in and of its self, and quite often, very inefficient.

Technology certainly has helped. Initially the fax machine made a huge step forward. We could send and receive contracts over the phone, obtain signatures and move onto the next stage. However, it also created several problems. Machines would be busy or out of paper; pages would go missing or get jammed and need to be resent; the same document would be sent so many times it would be come illegible and a new set would have to be signed at closing. Then came scanning, a huge step forward. But your clients needed the capability to receive, print, rescan and return. Plus you often wound up with lengthy contracts having to be printed several times over as each party would prepare sign and resend. In either case, it can be very easy for missed signatures or initials to occur requiring a re-routing of the necessary pages.

Finally a technical solution is available making it easy to receive and send signatures from any number of signers and multiple locations. DocuSign, an electronic signature system, provides a web based program that should be in every Realtors tool chest. Any document can be sent securely to one or more people - an e-mail account is required - who can open, read and then click to assign initials, dates and signature where required. Once completed a pdf copy of the form is saved and the originator is notified signing has been completed. You can even predetermine the order in which signatures are obtained when more than one party is involved.

Most importantly, signatures obtained using DocuSign's are fully compliant with federal e-sign regulations and are 100% legally binding. Of course, many banks are still operating in 1950's mentality when it comes to technology and will require a "wet" signature on contracts. Let's face it, the banking industry has certainly proven they know best when it comes to legal compliance!

Seriously, the final benefit of using DocuSign is the environmental savings. These days you can easily have 20-40 pages or more in a purchase contract. Even if you scan documents, the simplest of deals could result in a minimum of 3 sets printed out. Now apply that across the number of sales that occur (we'll ignore those that don't make it to escrow) and your easily talking about hundreds of thousands of pages each year.

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Now for a personal note. This weekend my family will be gathering together to celebrate my father's 85th birthday (he was 50 when I was born - amazing!!) Reaching 85 is certainly momentous, but during that time my Father earned a Masters when few did; raised 7 children during the 50's, 60's, 70's AND 80's, including 5 girls who never believed they couldn't (or shouldn't) excel in any and all subjects; impacted space exploration from the Apollo Space Program to the Hubble telescope; and is now in the 60th year of one of the strongest marriages I will ever witness. And the most imprtant thing he'll want you to know is he couldn't have done any of this without my Mother.

My father taught me my love for the Olympics, red wine, dark chocolate, mince meat pie, dry wit and my desire to be able to speak knowledgeably about anything I find interesting (okay, he may have overdone that one!)

So Happy 85th Birthday Daddy!! I love you very much!!