For longtime Oakland, CA homeowners, the annual showing of the Christmas lights at the Oakland Mormon Temple has been a special holiday event. Sitting high atop the Oakland hills, next to Joaquin Miller Park and Highway 13, the temple is visible from much of the eastern San Francisco Bay area.

While it is beautifully lit with handsome lighting during the year, the lighting becomes truly spectacular during the Christmas season.  Colorful lights adorn every tree, pathways are highlighted, small waterfall like ponds are enhanced, and everything shines and glows as you travel through the lovely gardens and displays. 

Parking is on site or immediately nearby, but many neighborhood residents from nearby Redwood Heights homes and Oakmore homes walk over…

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Take it from an experienced Alameda Real Estate Agent, holding a sucessful Open House in your Alameda home is one that requires just a bit of pre-planning to make sure that you get the best response from your potential buyers. Here are some ideas for preparing your home in the competitive Alameda Real Estate area:

1. Clean Your Home Thoroughly:  While this seems obvious, many sellers are not aware of the importance that a clean and shiny home has to buyers.  Things that sellers they are used to, and see everyday around their home, like pet odors or piles of laundry in rooms, are complete turn offs to visitors, and causes them to skip many rooms and areas of the home because of their atmosphere. The most efficient solution is to have the family focus on…

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In Part 1, we talked about some practical tips designed to make moving day a bit easier for your move into your new Oakland home.  In Part 2 - we will consider some simple, yet, important personal and family issues that need to be part of the same plan.

1. Consider The Impact Of The Move On The Children: It is obvious that there is going to be a great deal to do in terms of a broad array of paperwork to be signed and dealt with, plus arranging for the children to attend a new school, addressing how the new home will be decorated, what needs to be bought to complete this, and who is going to do it.  Often in all of this, no matter what their age, the children are often just asked to be patient, and to decide what they want to take with them, and just…

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Once I have completed and processed any homes for sale in Oakland, CA I realize that the thought of moving can make the buyers anxious about the issues revolving around the actual move itself.  In Part 1, I will suggest some tips to assist you in the actual packing preparation.  In Part 2, we will talk about the family and pet preparations.

To pack and move in a way to protect all your goods, and save time and money in moving costs, take the following steps:

1. Make a Floor Plan: Your first step, before packing, is to make a floor plan of your new home.  On this floor plan, map out each room.  Actually measure out the room to decide what furniture will go where, and whether it will fit as you hoped.  Many new homeowners are surprised that their new…

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Whether you are searching for an Oakland home, perhaps in Redwood Heights or Rockridge , there are four items that you may want to consider that are often overlooked when viewing potential homes.  Here are things to pay attention to:

1. The Parking Situation:  In many of the older Oakland neighborhoods, street parking is a challenge. Many of these homes were built when the family had only one car.  Today, with family teens getting their own cars, one home can require 2-3 parking spaces. It is often something that is not considered when viewing the home initially.  It is important to check to see if your car fits into the garage of the house, as well, so you can be assured of at least one parking spot in addition to street spaces.

2. Your Commute:…

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In the past, we have talked about having a clean, clutter free and odor free home when putting it on the market.  While all of that is true, there are three things that can often get overlooked, and are, if left in place, unappealing to future buyers.  The good news is that they can be corrected in a short period of time. 

1. Outdated Ceiling Fan,  Kitchen Appliances, Ranges and Dishwashers--Most sellers should realize by now that current buyers are expecting at least a partially updated kitchen.  Since families spend much of their time in and around the kitchen, old worn out equipment becomes a burden both physically and financially. Additionally, quality counter tops are now among the requested items in many neighborhoods.  It becomes important to…

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As you begin to consider purchasing your new home, your choice of neighborhood, no matter what part of the San Francisco Bay Area tht you choose, becomes paramount.  I want to assist you in every way to find the very best home for you and your family.  It takes time to find the neighborhood that best suits your needs.  Not only do we want to find it for your use now, but we also want to have it be suitable enough so that its resale value is assured.

Here are some thing we will consider when looking for the right place to call home:

1. Does It Have Good Access to Employment, Shopping and Transit?  Will it be a hassle to drive to work everyday or to catch public transit?  Are there reasonable shopping areas nearby to meet your needs for food,…

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Whether you are considering selling your home, or just want to dress it up a bit for the Fall, there are some easy things that you can do that will change the front of your home, and, with a bit of planning, will not cost you a great deal of money. Whether you live in Piedmont, Berkeley or Alameda, the principals remain the same.

The key is to step away from your home. Drive or walk away from your house, and then come back with the idea of seeing your home from the eyes of a stranger or potential home buyer. Ask yourself what impression are you giving them? Check and repair the following:

a. Remove all debris from the front of the house. Include the gutters, the sidewalks, the garden beds, and the all the yards, both front and back.

b. Weed and…

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When buying your home in the Oakland Rockridge area, or the Redwood Heights, or even the Trestle Glen area, you will find that some things are common among all home purchases.  It is important that you place yourself in the best possible position to purchase the home that you decide you want to have.  Here are some suggestions to put you at the top of the list:

1. Do All Your Financial Homework First--Make sure that you have enough funds to qualify for that purchase.  The rule of thumb followed by most lenders is that your total debts including housing costs, should be no more that 38% of your gross income(before taxes), and your ultimate housing debt alone should be no more than 33% of your gross income(before taxes). While there are other issues,…

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When the time comes to sell a home, both the sellers and the buyers should be prepared to consider ordering a professional home inspection as part of the process.  There are a number of reasons for this.  For the buyers of an Alameda home, a home inspection is a reasonably priced way to assure that they are getting the full picture of the condition of the home that they want to purchase.  The sellers, however, should consider ordering a home inspection before they put their home on the market.  This is worthwhile, because it allows them to have a sense of what issues need dealing with.  With this information, they can decide which repairs really need attention, and which they are willing to negotiate about with the potential buyers. 

Depending on the…

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