San Leandro, CA

Bay-O-Vista Neighborhood is located in the rolling hills east section of San Leandro. This is generally the most expensive area in this town of only 75,000 people. Situated right in the middle of the San Francisco bay, it has easy access to the Bay the San Mateo and the Dumbarton bridges. Only 20 minutes to downtown San Francisco, 10 minutes to Oakland International Airport and 45 minutes to San Francisco Airport.

Bay-O-Vista offers homes that are very spacious, typically ranchers with an average of about 2,200 square feet mostly in one level, most homes here have at least 3 bedrooms, two full bathrooms, two fireplaces and a spacious 2 car garage and boast very generous sized lots. The streets are wide and the views are impressive. There is no public transportation in this area, nor miradors or places for the general public to come and enjoy the views of the bay, this helps keep Bay-O-Vista a very quiet, and low traffic area.

The most impressive part of Bay-O-Vista are the panoramic bay views, in the distance you can see the bay and in a clear summer night, (like in the picture below) you get presented with a show of lights at dusk, sunsets are the best part of the day for the views. At the back of the hill, the views are of the park and the lake.

The natural boundaries of Bay-O-Vista are; on the west side Highway I-580 and on the east side Anthony Chabot Park. On the South is the border with Oakland. Bay-O-Vista Family fitness, Tennis and Swim Club located right in the neighborthood gives preference to those who live in the area. The location is ideal for those sports aficionados, there are within walking distance a semi private park and picnic area at the end of Estudillo Avenue, hiking trails, fishing and boating are offered by the Chabot Park year round.

The real estate in Bay-O-Vista maintains very good values, most of these homes are either custom or semi custom with a bevi of features that are very unique. There is a mansion that has 6,700 square feet, 6 bedrooms, 4 full bathrooms, 2 half bathrooms, 2 kitchens, family and rumpus rooms plus an indoor swimming pool with a retractable roof, topping that with a beautiful view of the bay and the San Francisco skyline. As of mid 2009 this home was on the market for only $1,400,000. This is only one of the many custum homes that are very unique to this great area.

Most of the people who are the original owners bought their lot and had the house built to their specifications. Bay-O-Vista residents are very proud of their neighborhood. It is by far the very best area to live in San Leandro. Call, us, we would love to take on a tour of available homes for sale in Bay-O-Vista.

The process of sale of real property through Probate Sale with Court Confirmation is a court regulated series of steps that must be clearly and carefully managed. The deadlines are unforgiving, the documentation is specialized, the time elements are critical and the court's oversight must be honored at all times by all parties.

If you bought a house with a tag that reads: "Probate Sale with Court Confirmation" required. What is the one question you don't want to hear at the court confirmation hearing? Are there any over bidders? After being in escrow for 30-45 days, having your loan approved, maybe even having the moving van packed and ready, someone might stand up in court to answer that question and buy the same house on the spot, or at least make you pay more for it. Being ready to deal with this situation could bring this type of purchase to a happy ending.

A Probate sale is a legal proceeding used to liquidate and settle a person's legal and financial affairs after death. Here in California, these sales are conducted in the Superior Court of the decedent's county of residence at the time of death. Court confirmation is either chosen or required, there are probate sales that do not require court confirmation and are handled just like any other sale.

Why is there a Probate? How much does it cost? When does it happen? How long does it take? These are all valid questions that are better left for an attorney to answer, that is why you should not take this information as legal advise.

From the Realtor's point of view, if you see a house for sale with a label: "Probate Sale With Court Confirmation" be aware that this tag affects the offering price, the condition of sale, the paper work used and most important of all... you will not know whether you bought it or not until about 30-45 days after you get your offer accepted, and you'll need the judge's gavel to confirm that you are the new owner. Understanding the following steps ought to help you stay on course:

* The offer must be written on a Probate Purchase Agreement form. These documents clearly specifies some of the most important time elements involved, plus it clarifies the differences between 3 different Probate Sales.

* An offer on a Probate Sale with Court Confirmation must be at least within 90% of the asking price which is the Probate Referee's Appraisal Value. Offers below that will not be accepted.

* A 10% deposit must be presented with the offer; often times it must be a cashier's check issued in the name of the decedent's estate. Buyers with no down payment VA, or FHA loans with minimum down payment might not have a chance.

* Once the offer is accepted it will have a "conditional acceptance" and the time periods for physical inspections and appraisals begin at this point. After the buyer's removal of such contingencies a court date for the confirmation hearing of the sale is scheduled.

* On the day of the court hearing (which is 30-45 days after removal of contingencies), all parties must show up in court. During this hearing, the previously accepted bid may be overbid by another buyer, this interested party must appear with cashier's checks in hand and be ready to raise the price under the supervision of the judge.

* Buyers must fully understand the overbidding process, each court will handle the rules differently, but for the majority it is A) 5% above the accepted price plus $500. Or B) 10% of the first $10,000 plus 5% of the balance of the accepted offer. In each case the judge will announce the minimum amount of the overbid after that; it could be $1,000 or $10,000 depending on the price range. The winning bidder must deposit at least 10% of the final price with a cashier's check.

Any person who bids in court must make an unconditional offer. Obtaining financing or approving inspections should not be a condition of the offer. In the event the buyer defaults after a court confirmed sale, the buyer may lose the deposit. If the court confirms the sale to an over bidder rather than the original buyer, the original buyer's deposit shall be refunded.

Real estate commissions are also subject to the approval of the court, and the rules are very different and very clear. If the over bidder has a Realtor, or worse, if there are other bidders with Realtors, what happens with the commission? Is the first purchaser's Realtor entitled to a commission if his buyer is not the winning bidder? What happens if the over bidder does not have a Realtor? Once you are involved in this type of sale, either as a buyer or a Realtor, or Executor, you better know how the rules apply to you. A Realtor should encourage the home buyer to familiarize himself/herself with this process.

Above all: AVOID THE PROBATE PROCESS... CREATE A TRUST! Sorry, I did not mean to shout! But you'll better not get caught dead without a will; your family will make you pay for it! (By not cleaning your grave yard for example)It will save them lots of time and money so have your affairs in order just in case, no matter how young or healthy you think you are. AMEN!

Antonio & Alexia Cardenas, "The Realtors In Motion" GRI, CRS. Serving the East shores of the San Francisco bay. Alameda and Contra Costa counties, particularly the cities of: San Leandro, Castro Valley, Hayward, Oakland, San Lorenzo, Pleasanton and Dublin. Visit us at: www.listedbyantonio.com Call us, we'll come and TANGO with you! (510) 326-4263

My mother is having her roof redone.

This is the same house that my Grandmother purchased from the builder developer / mayor of San Leandro Earl Derry. It was Earl Derry's very own home until 1946 when Grandma purchased it.

My father grew up in this house. I grew up in this house.

I did the same thing to my house a few years ago. You can see it in the picture above. Mom's house is the one with the old roof being peeled away. My house is the brown house with the brown singles two houses to the right.

In my restoration of the house I made a mistake on the roof color. When looking up from within the attic, I would assume that the orignal roofing layer was cedar or redwood shingles. When the layers of my old roof came off I noticed I had it all completely wrong. The roof color was a hunter green painted shingle.

So It got me to wondering were the other homes in Derry, Weaver & Derry's Cherry City Tract in San Leandro also hiding painted colored shingles.

Back to my mom's house pictured above, I remember when I was a kid, seeing the red asphalt shingles that my grandmother must have had installed. My parents added the oversized brown/tan shingles in the 1970s.

Well with modern codes, and this being the fourth roof, the old existing three layers had to come off, there they were.....RED painted shingles. It would make perfect sense to have that red roof. The red brick walkway and front entry porch. The red bricks around the large front window. Even red bricks on the banding of the driveway as seen in the picture below. I remember there being red fabric awnings on the side breakfast nook windows too, A red roof makes perfect sense.

The picture above shows the history of the roof. From the right to the left, The original wood shingles painted red. In the middle are the "coral red" shingles that my grandmother must have put on in the 1950s. To the far left are the oversized brown tan shingles that my parents added in the 1970s.

So my question is, have any of you ever come across anything like this before? Is painted shingles really a rare thing?

The new roof, A 40 year landmark architectural series "resawn shake" brown/tan mix asphalt.

Here is a list of homes for sale in San Leandro's North Side. Please use this list to see if there is anything that catches your interest. If you are currently not working with another Realtor, give me a call and I can get you additional information and arrange to show the property to you.

Michael Greenslade DRE 01824328 (510) 334-7800