An article by the Sacramento Bee sent chills through me this morning. It wasn’t long ago that the South Lake Tahoe fires had forced me to cancel all appointments and stay home just in case we had to evacuate. I live in Pollock Pines, and everyone thought it was pretty safe around here, but nevertheless - I have a dog. And the thought of him caught inside a burning home… well, you know.

So this article from the Sacramento Bee made me wonder if we shouldn’t be doing something about clearing some of the brush around the home, just to make it safer. If you live in the foothills, or the hills, you should read it. If for nothing else than a good Halloween scare. Boo!

And oh yeah, I also learned I’m an “urban refugee.”

Last year Bridget and I sponsored a Blogathon for Hunger, which, interestingly enough, raised no money online even though it was a blogathon, and raised a little bit of money offline.

This year I’m returning to the scene of the accident to see how much money I can can raise for this year’s Hunger Walk, sponsored by the  El Dorado County Food Bank.

I was feeling pretty badly about the donations a couple of hours ago.

What a difference a couple of hours make.

Last year online we raised $0.  This year thanks to the generous donation of New York Realtor, Laurie Mindnich (blog) — not only did we raise more than zero dollars, we reached our goal of raising $200 for the El Dorado County Food Bank.

But we don’t have to stop there.  Let’s see if that donation form still works if we go past our goal.

Remember, the El Dorado County food bank contributes $9.00 of food for every dollar in cash donations they receive.

Thank you, Laurie Mindnich, and congratulations on your achievement award! 

For those of you who are already here and enjoying the snow, good for you! For those others who wonder what it’s really like, here’s a picture from my house - I took it last week as it was snowing. It was my first snow up here in this new home and it’s beautiful.

If you’re considering moving uphill to Placerville or beyond, take a look at the picture and imagine yourself here.

Then, give us a call! There are a lot of homes to look at. I’m sure we can find you something you’d absolutely fall in love with!

The good news for Amador County in October is that inventory has declined somewhat from last month’s 14.76 months, but the numbers are still higher than Sacramento, El Dorado, etc., at 13.84 months.  The average home sold through the MLS in Amador County in September for $325,238, approximately 94% of the average list price of $345,170.  This year’s average was down 10.6% from last year’s, but on a sold price per square foot basis, the decline was only 3.9%, since this year’s “average home” was 1452 square feet, 7% smaller than last year’s average of 1561.  The average sold price per square foot was $224 this year, compared to $233 last year.

This year thirty units sold in Amador County, down 9.1% from last year’s figure of 33 units.

Homes in Amador County are taking longer and longer to sell.  The average home that sold in Amador County did so after a 194 days on the market — over six months.  Last year that figure was less than four months (113 days).

Placerville seems mostly unaffected by the recent real estate downturn unless you consider the number of homes that have actually sold.

Last year, 355 single family residences sold for a median price of $425,000. Days on market averaged 73. This year, 242 homes have sold for a median price not too far from last year’s - $417,500. That’s a drop of just 1.76%

The days on market and number of sales tell the bad side of the story. The homes sold this year stayed on the market for an average of 84 days - 15% longer than last year and the number of sales dropped by 31.8% - but these are only numbers so far and we still haven’t reached the end of the year. The 31.8% is likely to get better but we don’t know by how much.

There are currently 33 homes pending sale and 320 homes active on the market between $179,900 and $6,500,000.

We’ve recently had a price reduction of over $40,000 on this beautiful Placerville home on almost four acres. This home features many upgrades including laminate floors and newer appliances. The low maintenance front yard awaits your finishing touches, while the pool and the deck out back are already a paradise among the pines.

This home will be open this Wednesday, 9AM to Noon, for the Placerville Realtor® tour, but all are welcome to stop by and check it out as well.

Beautiful Home Among Stately Pines — Price Reduced

Location: Pleasant Valley

This is a beautiful home on picturesque acreage. Plenty of room for a growing family or for vacation home with 1950 square feet and four bedrooms. Back yard features pool, a seasonal creek, and a large deck, with low maintenance landscaping and the smell of pines. Open floor plan with bright and lovely kitchen and a pantry. Plenty of parking and room for a boat or RV, etc. Large master bedroom with walk-in closet. Minutes from downtown and highway 50. Must see inside to appreciate.

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Contact Information

John Lockwood

(530) 672-9160

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Asking Price: $389,000.00

Property Location

3400 Fort Jim Road
Placerville, CA 95667
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Features

Bedrooms: 4

Bathrooms: 2

Parking: Ample

Year Built: 1999

Lot Size: 3.856

Garage Size: None

School District: Placerville Union

Square Footage: 1950

Agent Name: John Lockwood

Broker: Elite Properties

MLS #: 70087796

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Appliances

Range/Oven

Dishwasher

Sink Disposal

Satellite

Interior Amenities

Kitchen Island

Wood Stove

Pantry

Exterior Amenities

Swimming Pool

Secluded setting

Large Front and Rear Decks

Low Maintenance Landscaping

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VFLYER ID: 1243384

What the heck happened in September?

Will someone tell me what happened to unit volume in September? In El Dorado County it was down 25.3% from last year, while in Sacramento County it was down 43%.

I don’t know about you, but for me, selling fewer houses is bad for business.

OK, ok, on to the El Dorado County numbers:

The average home sold for $494,933 in September, down 11.3% from last year’s average of $557,866. The median price dropped 10.2%, from $484,250 last year to $435,000 this year. As if reading its mind, the sold price per square foot also dropped 10.2%, from $250.61 last year to $225.07 this year.

As we mentioned already, unit volume dropped 25.7% — the actual numbers involved are 144 units last September, and 107 units this September. On the plus side, there are 157 units pending, so it’s looking like in October / things may pick up.

Average days on market remained constant at 76 days in September of 2006 and September 2007.

Bank owned foreclosures (REOs) accounted for less than one percent of the units sold in September 2006 (one unit out of 144). This September, of 107 units sold, eleven were REOs (10.3%). Of currently active properties, 5.8% are Real Estate Owned.