Shasta Association of REALTORS®

The mayor of Shasta Lake City, Greg Watkins, and Councilwoman Delores Lucero addressed the membership of the Shasta Association of Realtors on June 30 to let us know of their vision for the future of their hamlet. The mayor is himself a lifelong resident,and it quickly became apparent he was most interested in applying a historical and common sense approach to development in Shasta Lake City. Among the interesting topics they discussed was the availability of new and in-fill lots in the city that could be developed for “about half” the costs in nearby Redding. They also showed a progressive attitude about encouraging mixed-use business development, and as an example pointed to Shasta Lake Flooring having an apartment over their retail establishment.

The city is also hopeful that a major retailer will look seriously at the site they have put aside at the interchange of I-5 and Shasta Dam Boulevard. Speaking of sales tax, their relatively low base of retail sales means their city budget has not been as impacted by the economic downturn as much as neighboring Redding . In fact, they have put aside $3.8M for the the new Sheriff’s substation to be built on the 11 acre Civic Center site that was formerly Shasta Lake Middle School. That project is underway. The mayor talked about the restrictive hillside development rules put in place after the town was alarmed by the extensive Deer Creek Subdivision excavation. In the mayor’s opinion, the rules may have been an overly broad reaction, and he says they are hoping to modify it to meet specific site circumstances. Put their can-do attitude together with their municipal utility’s 13 cent per kilowatt hour electric rate, and you have a recipe for encouraging builders and businesses to seriously consider Shasta Lake City for their projects. Click to Shasta Lake City’s website below.

Attorney Tim Ferris of the Leverenz and Ferris Law firm addressed the general membership meeting of the Shasta Association of Realtors on June 23 2010. Having recently returned from a review of several recent legal topics for the California Association of Realtors. He described several recent cases and their implications for our local REALTORS. Tim also elaborated on the many implications for homeowners doing a Short Sale, or as he put it, “the little shop of horrors.” Agents listing Short Sale properties probably found this information thought provoking. When is a loan truly “non recourse?” And years from now, when companies attempt to collect on those recourse debts, what liability will fall on the listing broker? Tim is an entertaining and enlightening speaker, turning somewhat dry legalities into wry observances on our litigious profession.
Refreshments were sponsored by Lisa Justason (800) 443 5599 of Buyers Protection Group Home Warranties. Lisa reminds you that they offer a Green upgrade to their home warranties, where any replacement of a clients hardware will be upgraded to a more environmentally friendly alternative.
For those unable to attend, we have made arrangements for you to listen to the presentation as a webcast at the player link below. It was another excellent and educational program from the Shasta Association of REALTORS. Skip Murphy

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The world of mortgage lending is always in flux. Today, more than ever, the rules and requirements are constantly shifting. That’s why the guests of the General MLS meeting on Wednesday June 16 2010 were so important. These 3 lenders represent a broad range of different areas of expertise, but share a common goal of trying to get your clients into a home with the mortgage that best suits their needs. The underwriting environment has become increasingly tough since the recent meltdown of the housing market, and that’ s making things ever more difficult. It quickly became apparent that this was a topic of great interest to the membership, and we also heard from other mortgage professionals in the audience.
Topics ranged from the ever tightening loan standards, to new loan products, and to the hot hot topic of Short Sales. Judy has provided us with training on how to use the Equator program for dealing with Bank of America Short Sales, and we are presenting that here for our membership (Thanks Judy!)EquatorShortSaleTraining
There were questions and comments and expressions of frustration. Tim Berry revealed a key take-away from all turmoil REALTORS and Mortgage Lenders must deal with to get through a transaction. Change is constant, and the lender landscape is what it is, so you might as well get used to it, and learn how to keep your spirits up in the face of adversity. It was a good reminder. If you were unable to attend, we have made arrangements for you to hear the presentation as a webcast.
Addtitionally, REALTOR Deborah McCarty spoke on behalf of the Green Committee about the importance and cost effectiveness of adequate roof ventilation. It was another terrific presentation from your Shasta Association of REALTORS.

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What do you get when you pack 25 pounds of economic wisdom, 25 pounds of real estate experience, 25 pounds of fluent communication, and 25 pounds of pure energy into a single package? Well, the sum of the parts might only equal a hundred pounds, but this particular hundred pound dynamo delivered a TON of insight to our members. Of all the programs we have delivered, this one is the single most requested webcast ever. Even if you were there to witness Carole with her amazing speaking abilities along with her powerful grasp of this complex subject, you’ll want to hear it again. If you weren’t there, you’re in for a treat.

From her website: Carole Rodoni was formerly President of Fox and Carskadon Real Estate, Chief Operating Officer of Cornish and Carey Real Estate, and President of Alain Pinel Realtors. She is a renowned speaker on the economy and real estate and is currently the President of her own consulting company — Bamboo Consulting.

Carole has served on the Board of Regents of Santa Clara University, is a Member of the Board of Directors of BayNet and CondoWorks, and has been a guest columnist for the San Francisco Examiner. She also is a frequent guest speaker on several radio and TV programs across the Bay Area.

The webcast is about an hour, but will absolutely fly by. I have never heard a more succinct or well presented summary

of the economic events of recent years that led up to our current condition. Then, she offers insights about what to expect going forward, and those ideas carry serious weight. As you listen, marvel as we did that she delivered it all without pause and without notes! Impressive indeed, and quite inspirational in itself. This was a presentation to remember. We need to express our sincere gratitude for sponsoring the talk to Becky Edwards of First American Natural Hazard Reports (530) 510 1255. Thanks Becky! Skip Murphy

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The Association hosted Bob McManus on MArch 24th. He gave a presentation on Short Sales and Foreclosures to a rapt and packed house at the Board Office. Bob McManus has more than 20 years of experience and leadership in real estate and mortgage financing. He has taught thousands of real estate agents how to become profitable in any market, how to meet their financial goals and above all, do it with balance and integrity. His systematic approach is extremely simple and easy to follow. He has taught thousands of people who are ready to take control of their financial freedom both privately and publicly.

An area of particular interest to Bob is the default market. Through research, Bob discovered there was not one single publication or resource that fully explained the foreclosure, short sale or REO process. Realizing there was a niche to be filled, Bob started the Bob McManus Group, a company with a clear vision toward helping people reach their financial freedom.

As a Real Estate Broker, Bob has a systemized program that is truly simple to follow and proven. His book, Say Yes to Wealth , provides incredible insight into the fundamentals of the default market. Bob makes the puzzle clear and concise. Bob’s dedication is evident in his coaching program and in the success of his clients.

Everyone in attendance agreed it was a terrific program, and offered unique insights into default sales. Skip Murphy

As a REALTOR you are expected to be a community expert. Just as you must educate yourself about our school system, utilities, and taxes, you should also know about our local mass transit, and demand response system. Our featured guest at the Shasta MLS General Member ship meeting is Evelyn Peterson of the Redding Area Bus Authority. Do you know what it costs to catch the ride in your neighborhood? About how often do the buses run, and how far apart are their stops? How much to

transfer to a different city? All these questions and more were answered at the meeting. We’ve made arrangements for those who were unable to attend to listen to the meeting on a webcast. The talk runs about 14 minutes, and is time well spent. Your MLS Program Committee is making sure you are informed as a local transit expert. You can find the webcast down below the RABA map. You can also get more information at their website:
http://www.rabaride.com/
Thanks to all who helped with this great presentation. Skip Murphy

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We have until March 26 to convince Google that Redding is the community they need to wire for high speed internet. Being selected would really put us on the map for clean tech development, and would be an unmatchable local economic boost. Please click on the link to nominate our community, and share with everyone you know.

http://www.google.com/appserve/fiberrfi/public/options

The featured guests for the March 10 General Membership meeting was the Hawkins Company of Boise Idaho.They brought a presentation about developing the 90+ acre northeast corner of Knighton and I-5. Many will recall this as the proposed Auto Mall property that was turned down a few years ago. As one of just a few relatively undeveloped interchanges for busy Interstate 5, the site is an important one. Their plan is to develop the property adjacent to Interstate 5 into a large retail center called Knighton Plaza.
The Hawkins Company is a longtime skilled developer of retail and commercial properties. They explained that their intent is to develop and hold the property. They hold retail developments across much of the Western U.S. As such, they point out that their interests are long term, and that the locale thus becomes “their” neighborhood. As stakeholders in the community, they are interested in the whole of the community and it’s highest and best use. If they were to go ahead with the project, the Hawkins Company investors will be paying for the necessary improvements to the I-5 / Knighton Road Interchange.

Hawkins Companies develops and maintains commercial properties across the country. They showed some slides of existing projects they have completed, which looked very modern and architecturally interesting. They brought some artistic design idea examples that they intend to implement on the Knighton Road project if approved. Perhaps the best local example of the style might be the newer retail shops on Dana that include Chipotle Grill, that occupy the area that was once the Ben Franklin store. They took care in pointing out that the scale of the project is such that it will attract tenants that have no other suitable location in the area, despite the surplus of commercial retail space currently available in the greater Redding area. These new large businesses could bring new jobs to our area, hopefully attracting new business from busy I-5, and with an increase to local payroll, sales tax, and property tax base. They are acutely aware of the concerns of the Churn Creek Bottom residents, and hope to take positive steps to mitigate those objections. If you were unable to attend the meeting, we have arranged to have the talk recorded as a webcast, although you’ll have to imagine what the slides looked like as described. Another great and informative MLS program. Skip Murphy.

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On Wednesday March 4, the General Membership Meeting of the Shasta Association of REALTORS featured Jonathan Bell of USLending (530) 366 8658.

He offered information about Energy Efficiency Home Loans (EEM). These loans allow a homebuyer to add funds on their home mortgage specifically to upgrade the home’s thermal efficiency and energy usage. Jonathan has worked hard to become a local expert on the subject, and has lined up a group of specialists to do the work before and after COE.

In a typical scenario, your buyer wants to buy a home built with older, lower energy standards. Using an EEM, the buyer can add up to about $13K in improvements to insulation, HAVAC, etc. to bring the home up to modern energy standards. The Home Energy Rating System (HERS) audit reveals that improvements can save substantial money on their monthly utility bill, which offsets any increase in the monthly mortgage payment created by the EEM. In addition, rebates and tax advantages can apply. Unlike a 203(k) loan, the improvement work is done after COE and the entire upgrade process is transparent to the seller, and painless to the buyer.

So, in addition to providing substantial long term financial benefit to the buyer, the EEM enables more local homes to be upgraded to a more environmentally friendly state and reduces their carbon footprint. Jonathan showed examples of how the program has worked on his own home, reducing his power consumption and monthly outlays. A WIN-WIN program, all around. You can help spread the word about EEM. We’ve arranged to have some of his presentation available here to you as 2 pdf files at the links below:

EEM-Financing
EEM

Another great REALTOR educational opportunity, and one that’s good for our clients and our environment. The meeting was moderated by Esther Auerbach, and refreshments were provided by Lisa Justason (800) 443 5599 of Buyers Protection Group Home Warranties. Thanks Lisa!

On Wednesday February 24, the membership received a presentation from an attorney for our association, Tim Ferris. He outlined some recent case law decisions that had bearing on real estate transactions. In addition, he outlines some of the wholesale changes made to the new RPA form. “In summary, the large print giveth, the small print taketh away.” You’ll want to make sure you are using the new forms. There is some good information on prescriptive easements, appraisals, mortgage modification fraud and more. All well worth your listening time. We’ve made arrangements for the remarks to be available to you if you were not able to attend the original presentation, and so the webcast is at the bottom of this post. Another informative presentation from your MLS. Skip Murphy.

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