Belmont, CA

If you’ve been thinking like we have, you're probably wondering when will the weather get a little warmer.

The wind has been relentless this month. Our Davis weather station located at our home in the Hallmark area of Belmont, has been collecting data since we moved to from Barclay Way in 2001. We’ve been broadcasting it live since January 2002 and it receives more hits than any of our other web pages each month.

A recent software upgrade has allowed us to extract data for analysis and this is my first graph. It illustrates the wind at time intervals for the Month of May, 2008—to date.

Notice that there hasn’t been one day so far this month that there hasn’t been any wind between the hours of 12:45 PM to 11:00 PM!

The positive ions wind can create may actually have a negative affect on the body by raising stress levels. Ever wonder why lying near a stream or waterfall feels so relaxing? Moving water creates negative ions which counteract the effects of positive ions created by the wind. Try washing your face with water after a bike ride. We hear it’s not just the coolness of the water that feels so good; it’s the positive ions being cancelled out by negative ones that have a calming effect. Admittedly these articles are not from scientific scholars, but sometimes experiencing something for yourself is all the affirmation one needs.

After awhile, the wind begins to grow a little tiresome and we’re just waiting for a calm mild day—I know a lull before the storm.

Is crosswalk etiquette dead or did it ever exist?

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This is our city, Belmont California; and this is our office, Carlmont Associates. Here we are smack dab in the middle of Belmont on the corner of Ralston Ave. and Villa--obviously a big enough intersection to get Google's attention.

The cross walk you see here is the topic of today's rant. You see the city installed an illuminated cross walk—you know the ones with the flashing yellow lights imbedded into the street—to assist pedestrians in crossing the road. Well not really to help them get across, but to help them get there more safely by making them easier for drivers to notice.

Clearly in order to get to my office I play the role of both a driver and pedestrian. First, in defense of the drivers, it's really hard to see people when you are staring into the sunset. Spin this interactive camera around and you'll see what we mean. It’s much easier to see the lights flashing in the road than to see a pedestrian standing off to one side—especially when they are often obscured by opposing traffic.

Don’t get me wrong--I think these lights are a great idea. Especially since my night vision isn’t what it used to be. But pedestrians take advantage of the "It's the Law" rule that one must stop for them in a crosswalk. When I'm the pedestrian (which I often am getting to and from our office), before I leap out into the crosswalk and stop traffic like Moses parting the Red Sea, as a common courtesy, I stop to see if the light at the corner of Ralston and Alameda is red or green. If it’s green, I’ll wait patiently and let the cars make the green light and only when it turns yellow will I press the power button to halt all traffic in deference to my presence. Do I have to do this? Of course not. The law is on the side of the pedestrian. Is it the courteous thing to do—of course.

Visit our web page at MorganHomes.com for detailed housing market analysis and I promise, no rants.

Belmont would like to get the word out about the Spring "Green" faire. This is from their promotional material on Craig's list.

"Mark your calendars for Belmont's Spring Garden Faire, Saturday, May 17th at Twin Pines Park, adjacent to Ralston and 6th Avenues in Belmont from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. This fun and information-packed day will prepare you for Spring! Hear environmentally savvy suggestions for your home and business. Be inspired by ideas from local exhibitors and industry experts that will make your Spring gardening and landscaping a success! Come and browse, then take a shuttle ride to the winners of the Beautify Belmont Awards Program along with other notable home and business landscape designs. Vote for your favorite in the garden planter competition on-site. Activities for the kids include a coloring contest and a flower planting station. Play in our jump house. Bring your appetite and check-out our give-aways! It's a great day for family fun and involvement!"

Calendar of Events

Join us in The Twin Pines park Saturday, May 17th and help us go Green! Carlmont Associates is proud to be a part of this important opportunity to learn about ways to help our environment and create a sustainable furture.

From Belmont's Homepage:

Lots of large homes are on the market in Belmont while the inventory of homes for sale is reaching a high not seen since 2003. Just 22 of the 52 homes for sale are listed under $1,000,000; while the median home currently for sale is just over 2,000 square feet, the median home in Belmont is only 1550 square feet.

And Inventory levels have hit near all time highs. There are currently 52 single family homes on the market and only twice in the last ten years has there ever been more-both times the U.S. was in a business cycle trough-the 2001 recession and again in 2003 during a mid cycle slowdown. We expect inventory level to grow even more in May and June of 2008.

In the past ten years there never has been a month with fewer sales than last month-March 2008 where Belmont had only five sales, except for the month before when there were only four sales. Normally, Belmont will have on average 23 per month; percentage-wise that equals only 18% or normal.

If you're a Belmont seller and trying to sell during the peak period to obtain the highest price that window of opportunity has already passed. If you are a buyer interested in Belmont, there's plenty to choose from and we expect favorable buying conditions to continue for at least the next year and probably well into 2010. But timing the market can be a fool's game. While waiting for home values to drop interest rates may rise, offsetting any monetary gain.

Plenty of buyers have been waiting years for an opportunity such as the current buyer friendly market conditions to purchase a home-well, now's their chance.