San Luis Obispo County 2011 1st Quarter Solds - SFR Statistics

Here are all the solds and median prices for the 1st quarter of 2011 in San Luis Obispo County. These stats are for all single family residents (SFR).

Arroyo Grande – 65 Solds @ $465K Median Selling Price

Atascadero – 51 Solds @ $320K Median Selling Price

Avila Beach – 3 Solds @ $765K Median Selling Price

Bradley – 9 Solds @ $287K Median Selling Price

Cambria – 28 Solds @ $425K Median Selling Price

Cayucos – 11 Solds @ $650K Median Selling Price

Creston – 2 Solds @ $347K Median Selling Price

Grover Beach – 28 Solds @ $277K Median Selling Price

Los Osos – 22 Solds @ $330K Median Selling Price

Morro Bay – 34 Solds @ $400K Median Selling Price

Nipomo – 51 Solds @ $340K Median Selling Price

Oceano – 15 Solds @ $244K Median Selling Price

Paso Robles – 144 Solds @ $275K Median Selling Price

Pismo Beach – 19 Solds @ $720K Median Selling Price

San Luis Obispo – 52 Solds @ $511K Median Selling Price

San Miguel – 15 Solds @ $220K Median Selling Price

Santa Margarita – 5 Solds @ $110K Median Selling Price

Shandon – 7 Solds @ $143K Median Selling Price

Templeton – 14 Solds @ $344K Median Selling Price

San Luis Obispo County – 575 Solds @ $350K Median Selling Price; 

Low = $32,900 – High = $2,995,000

Most Solds = Paso Robles @ 144

Highest Median Price = Avila Beach @ $765K

Lowest Median Pirce = Santa Margarita @ $110K

Please feel free to call me if you would like further explanation on any of these stats, or if you have any real estate questions at all. I simply see my mission as striving to be as helpful as I possibly can to area home owners. I hope these stats provide the information you need to be an informed home seller or buyer.

Erich Salas

The CA Real Estate Doctor

805.801.1747

Squeezing Every Last Dollar From Your Home Sale: FINAL

HERE ARE MY FINAL VITAL TIPS AND STRATEGIES ON HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR INVESTMENT WHEN YOU PREPARE TO SELL YOUR HOME. READ THIS REPORT AND MAXIMIZE YOUR RETURN ON INVESTMENT.

A Special Report Prepared By Erich Salas

Home improvement “don’ts”

There are several things you can do that can actually lower the value of your home or make it more difficult to sell. Here are a few rules to keep in mind:

Do it well, or don’t do it at all

You may be tempted to do a lot of work yourself to save money. That’s fine if you know you can do a good job. But if doing it yourself means a sloppy paint job or bubbles in the vinyl flooring, then I suggest hiring a professional. Hiring an expert can often be cheaper and faster in the long run. This is especially important when dealing with electrical systems or plumbing problems.

Don’t over-improve

Any project that raises your home’s value by more than 20 percent above similar homes in your neighborhood should be reconsidered. The reason is simple. Say your home is typical in a neighborhood of $100,000 homes, and you make $50,000 in improvements. Buyers looking for a $150,000 home are looking in neighborhoods where that is the norm, not the exception.

Any project that raises your home’s value by more than 20 percent above similar homes should be reconsidered.

Don’t plan on moving soon if you’re spending a lot

You probably won’t recoup your investment if you plan to move in less than two years. If you plan to move sooner, spend less money and focus your efforts on the most egregious problems. For example, turn a bad kitchen into a decent one rather than a chef’s kitchen.

Don’t make unique improvements

Sure, you may love the built-in bookcases on every wall of your guest room, but prospective buyers will probably view them as a nuisance to tear out—which means they’ll be less willing to meet your price.  Also, avoid remodels that make unusual use of a particular room. Anything that limits flexibility will limit interest in your home.

Don’t create a mess

Make sure your floor plan will make sense when you’re done. Be careful not to make changes that impede the natural flow of the house—closing off halls, doorways, etc. Room additions in particular are often done very poorly. If it looks like something tacked on to the original house, don’t do it. Adding a bedroom whose only connection to the rest of the house is through another bedroom should also be avoided.

As you can see, squeezing every last dollar out of your home sale can be a fairly involved process. But when you consider the end result—a quicker sale and top dollar for your efforts—I think you’ll find that a few well-chosen home improvements are worth both the time and money.

Please feel free to call me if you would like further explanation on any of these topics, or if you have any real estate questions at all. I simply see my mission as striving to be as helpful as I possibly can to area home owners. I hope this special report provides the information you need to be an informed home seller.

Erich Salas

The CA Real Estate Doctor

Kiwanis of Greater Pismo Beach's 24th Annual Sight Read Aloud Contest

EMPOWERING SUCCESS IN CHILDREN

The Sight Read Aloud Contest began in the late 1980’s as the Nanny Britt Sight Read Aloud.  Nanny Britt, whose real name was Pat Whitaker, created a children’s reading program which she hosted on radio and television.  The reading competition was an extension of her program.

The Kiwanis Club of Greater Pismo Beach became an early sponsor of the contest by offering to help organize and fund the event.  When Nanny Britt moved out of the area a couple of years later, the event was in danger of folding.

However, with the encouragement of Dr. Ned Van Norman, then President of the Greater Pismo Beach Kiwanis, the Kiwanis members voted to carry on the tradition of Ned’s favorite club project.  Ned continued to serve as chairman of the event for several years.  When Dr. Van Norman passed away in 1992 at the age of 40, the club renamed the contest in his honor.

In this years contest over 250 students from grades 1 thru 6 competed in this event. All grade levels were randomly divided into two judging sessions because of the large number of participants.  The two first place winners in each grade walked away with $100 savings bonds. The savings bonds were donated by Rabobank, N.A., Coast Hills Federal Credit Union and Santa Lucia Bank.  Plus, each of the top five finishers in each grade were recognized with medals for their efforts.

2011 SRA Winners

This years school participation winners are; 1st Place = Coastal Christian, 2nd Place = Shell Beach and 3rd Place = St. Patrick's .

Individual winners for each grade are as follows;

1st Grade 

1st Place: Chloe Shearer - Dorothy Lange  and Keira Owens-Rinehart - Fairgrove 

2nd Place: Isabella Gallagher - St. Patrick's and Aiden Wolstenholm - Fairgrove

3rd Place: Karina Bernfield - Dorothy Lange and Melody Goldiner - Grover Beach

4th Place: Max Martin - Harloe and Phoebe Mitchem - Ocean View
5th Place: Erika Schiesl - Shell Beach and Lorelai Murray - Grover Beach

2nd Grade

1st Place: Anna Kreowski - Shell Beach and Benjamin Feldman - Dorothy Lange

2nd Place: Hudson Reynolds - Shell Beach and Eliana Nunley - Ocean View

3rd Place: Siona Patel - Shell Beach and Victor Ortiz - Dorothy Lange

4th Place: Magnus Miller - Fairgrove and Jadyn Oates - Harloe

5th Place: Aidan Murphy - Harloe and Anna Salemo - Ocean View

3rd Grade

1st Place: Keyan Patel - Shell Beach and Helena Bolle - Branch

2nd Place: Jasmin Davila - Dana and Hannah Lowry - Shell Beach

3rd Place: Nicholas Flom - Shell Beach and Zineb Kammermeyer - Grover Heights

4th Place: Julliett Villa - Branch and Ethan Zelenke - Harloe

5th Place: Jaden Higgins - Coastal Christian and Kevin Untalan - Oceano

4th Grade

1st Place: Amy Ross - Shell Beach and Lucian Covarrubias Fairgrove

2nd Place: Sarah Yamaichi - St. Patrick's and Hunter Milliman - Shell Beach

3rd Place: Emily Olsen - Harloe and Esmee Sinor - Harloe

4th Place: Samantha Wolff - Coastal Christian and Karla Mejia - Fairgrove

5th Place: Abigail Hermenegildo - Harloe and Elizabeth Osburn - Grover Heights 

5th Grade

1st Place: Rebecca Schwind - Shell Beach and Jordan Schleifer - Dana

2nd Place: Jacob Racho-Luis - Coastal Christian and Julia Graham - Grover Heights

3rd Place: Casey Crouch - Fairgrove and Quin Etnyre - Shell Beach

4th Place: Cassie Mattina - Branch and Emily Osburn - Grover Heights

5th Place: Amina Assal - Shell Beach and Cheyenne Taylor - Grover Heights

6th Grade

1st Place: Jordan Benham - Coastal Christian and Jessica Swope - Dana

2nd Place: Nicholas Soares - Coastal Christian and Aimie Olson - Harloe

3rd Place: Christopher Kight - Fairgrove and Cali Singleton - St. Patrick's

4th Place: Kyle Continente - St. Patrick's and Jacob Benson - St. Patrick's

Congratulations to all the winners and thanks to all the participants and volunteers that make this annual event so great. The Kiwanis of Greater Pismo Beach's members devote many hours prior too, during and after this contest to make it all happen. A special thanks to Dena Van Norman, Ned’s wife, who has remained involved in the program since her husband’s death. She was a judge at this year’s event along with Ned’s mother, Susan Daughtry. Both ladies are teachers in the Santa Maria-Bonita Unified School District.

Without volunteers like this, our community wouldn't be as great a place to live as it is today. THANK YOU!!!!

Erich Salas

Co-Chairman

www.SightReadAloud.com

Squeezing Every Last Dollar From Your Home Sale: Part SEVEN

HERE ARE VITAL TIPS AND STRATEGIES ON HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR INVESTMENT WHEN YOU PREPARE TO SELL YOUR HOME. READ THIS REPORT AND MAXIMIZE YOUR RETURN ON INVESTMENT.

A Special Report Prepared By Erich Salas

How To Maximize Your Return When You Sell Your Home

Trends to watch

A more recent hot remodeling trend is the “great room”—combining the kitchen, dining and         family room into one larger living area. While lagging behind kitchen and bath remodels, it is definitely a trend on the rise. Living rooms, family rooms and formal dining rooms, on the other hand, are diminishing   in popularity.

Another relatively new wrinkle is the home office. With more home-based businesses and more companies allowing employees to telecommute, more people are looking for office-ready space in their homes. A recent survey conducted by Builder magazine found that nearly a third of buyers in their 20s, 30s and 40s plan to use a room as a home office. Other rooms that are showing up on more buyers’ wish lists are exercise and media rooms.

Questionable projects include fireplace additions and installation of elaborate security systems. You can find professionals who will argue for and against both of these projects. But with concerns about home safety on the rise, security systems appear to be moving into the “desirable” column.

Many of these projects are relatively inexpensive and will easily pay for themselves. With some projects, you may not recoup your investment, but you will have removed impediments to a sale. If you don’t take care of things like leaky plumbing, drafty windows or outdated light fixtures, you’re giving a buyer ammunition to use against you during negotiations. 

Erich Salas

The Real Estate Doctor

Squeezing Every Last Dollar From Your Home Sale: Part SIX

HERE ARE VITAL TIPS AND STRATEGIES ON HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR INVESTMENT WHEN YOU PREPARE TO SELL YOUR HOME. READ THIS REPORT AND MAXIMIZE YOUR RETURN ON INVESTMENT.

A Special Report Prepared By Erich Salas

How To Maximize Your Return When You Sell Your Home.

Now let’s take a closer look at improvements on a room-by-room basis, starting with your two most important rooms.

Kitchens and bathrooms have long been the top two remodeling projects, and you can expect them to remain so for years to come. They are the rooms that most consistently make or break a sale. A new or updated kitchen, a sparkling bathroom…these are features that help to sell a home.

The kitchen

 If you can get away with a remodel rather than a new kitchen, do it. Because the kitchen is so important, sellers sometimes over-improve them to the point where there is no chance of recouping their investment when they move. Don’t fall into this trap.

Add a new coat of paint, refinish the cabinets and counters, change drawer pulls and handles, install new appliances, put down a new floor—but don’t gut and start over if it isn’t necessary. When adding new appliances, be aware that many buyers consider brand name to be an important factor.

If you don’t paint everything, at least repaint the ceiling bright white. You’d be surprised how much it can lighten up the room. Another great way to brighten a kitchen is to add a skylight.

If you do choose to put in a new kitchen, keep in mind what sells. Buyers are looking for lots of cabinets and counter space, new appliances, and an easy flow between the sink, food prep areas, stove and refrigerator. Think sunny, spacious and clean.

Because the kitchen is so important, sellers sometimes over-improve them to the point where there is no chance of recouping their investment when they move. Don’t fall into this trap.When you do make changes to your kitchen, think sunny, spacious and clean.

The bathroom

New fixtures, wall tile and flooring can make a big difference. If the bathtub is in poor shape, you can replace it, but a less expensive option may be to re-enamel it. If you keep the old tub, at least regrout and recaulk it. A good bathroom remodel or expansion can easily return more than 100 percent of its cost when you sell.

If you’re feeling ambitious, adding a half-bath or second bath to a one-bathroom house is another option to consider, space allowing. Whatever the family size, one bathroom never seems adequate to most people.

A good bathroom remodel or expansion can easily return more than 100 percent of its cost when you sell.

Bedrooms

For most people, the master bedroom is the third most important room in the house. If you have a large home with four or five small bedrooms and the floor plan allows for it, you might consider combining two rooms into a master bedroom. If you have a two- or three-bedroom home and a decent-sized lot, you might consider adding another bedroom.

Erich Salas

The CA Real Estate Doctor