Calling All Easter Egg Hunters

Calling all Easter Egg hunters to the upcoming hunts in the Lamorinda area!  The hunts will be held at:

Moraga – Saturday, March 15th, 10:00 a.m., Moraga Commons;

Orinda – Thursday, March 20th, 11:00 a.m., Orinda Community Center Park;

Lafayette – Saturday, March 22nd, 9:30 a.m., Lafayette Plaza.

If anyone knows of other local hunts, please post them here as comments!  (Some day I will figure out how to do a linked calendar on this site.  I’m old but I’m learning.)

Introducing “Talking House”

A few weeks ago, I got a call at my office from a telemarketer.  He told me of a great new product for marketing homes–”Talking House.”  I had a few minutes, so I let him do his spiel for me, fully expecting to tell him no when he had finished.  But, after listening, I was intrigued.

He asked me what I thought of being able to market a house over the radio–of allowing buyers to drive in front of a house and to hear a message about the features of the home over their car radio!  I had to say that it sounded great.  I had to try one of those gadgets.

So a week or so later, I received a giant box from the UPS man.  Still skeptical, I hooked up one of the receivers in my home, recorded a message and then sat in my car to see if I could hear a description of my house.  To my great surprise and pleasure, it worked!  I could hear myself over my car radio.  And the reception is surprisingly clear–it is not quite as clear as a local radio station signal, but easy to hear.  I was convinced.

The receiver looks a lot like a TV satellite or cable box, and you just record a message like you might on an answering machine.  A Talking House sign is put on your front lawn, instructing interested buyers to tune into the station where your message can be heard. 

So I have decided to offer this service free to any of my sellers, and I am also making the receivers available for rent to homes which are for sale by owner.  In this slower market, I have to think that any house utilizing this new technology will receive a lot of buzz in the neighborhood and attract prospects like bees to new flowers. 

I’m happy to do a demonstration for you if you want to see it, whether or not you’re selling your home.  And if you are selling your house without any agent, you should definitely give this technology a try!

Bringing Up Kids with Perspective

So what do kids have to do with real estate?  Well, this question came to me this morning when I got an e-mail from a client who is going to be looking at homes over the next year.  She is concerned about buying too nice of a home in light of concerns that her children are getting too spoiled. 

I totally understood.   I live in Orinda.  And, although I love Orinda, my kids (who are 7 and 9, going on 27 and 29) have definitely had their perspective on life altered by the opulent lifestyle around them.

My daughter, Grace, asked me the other day why we aren’t going to France over spring break.  Hmmm–I paused.  How does a mother respond to that?  I have to admit that I gave the stereotypical answer–”when I was your age, I was lucky if I got to…!”  But on further reflection, I realized that I need to better address this problem with my children.  There is no getting around it.  

But I think the answer to this problem can be a plus to our children.  We need to teach them that trips to France only come to those who work hard, who are diligent and reliable and who work hard at school.  Yes, there are those in my community of Orinda (and in other local communities) who inherited their wealth.  But usually even those born of money have to work hard to keep it or to keep their family business thriving.

And, money can be a curse.  I have a personal family history to prove it.  My grandfather inherited a large trust fund at the age of thirty.  His parents had both died and they left he and his sister a large sum.  But instead of using the money well, my grandfather stopped working, bought new cars and motorcyles ever other week, and eventually drank himself to smithereens, living out his final days in a fleabag hotel paid for by dividends from his remaining stock holdings.

So, alas, there was no trust fund for me to inherit, but the good news is that I have a great and real lesson in the family to teach my children–nothing comes without a price. 

The bottom line is that we can all enjoy the beautiful communities in which we live, but we don’t have to lavish our kids with everything their friends have (although I have to admit that taking a trip to France doesn’t sound bad!).  And, hopefully, they will want to work hard so that their families can enjoy what they had.

Happy Tuesday…

My Very First Real Estate Post

Well, this is my very first blog post.  I doubt anyone will read it but me.  However, that has never stopped me from writing before.  Some of you know that, in addition to my real estate endeavors, I am also writing a novel.  Yes, and few have read that as well.  So writing into the ether is nothing new for me.

About real estate, we are all glad that spring is coming.  Housing prices are down and the Stimulus Package was passed.  Which means that it’s a great time for buyers. 

But I am not just going to write this blog about real estate but also about the communities in which the local real estate is located.  And, I’m going to highlight interesting aspects of our towns, whether they are for sale or not.

Happy Monday!