Eric Michael Abrams

Every so often I come across a video that moves me. Given that I rarely travel without my "Flip" camcorder in hand, or without my Nikon D700 by my side (I was raised by a professional photographer, after all), today was one of those days.

I'm in the rather unique situation, lucky, some might say, of having the opportunity to travel between Tucson, Arizona and the San Francisco Bay Area on a regular basis. Having spent over 20+ years living in Tucson, alone, in addition to several more years in other Arizona towns, such as Bisbee, Douglas, and Scottsdale, I have a certain affinity for the desert and the rich history that it holds.

While some grew up watching cowboy movies on T.V., I was fortunate enough to live in the very towns and areas where some of the most famous shootouts of all time actually took place. I don't find glory in the true violence this region's history is based on, rather I find comfort in the classic "good versus bad" endings, where in this case "good" prevailed. There are so many countless memories I have of riding my bicycle (I was a professional cyclists, as some of you may or may not know), on the very roads that infamous characters, such as Doc Holiday and Wyatt Earp used daily, during their patrols of the "Wild West," that I can sometimes close my eyes and remember the very smell of the desert air, after a monsoon shower. It was a clean, natural smell, untouched and undeveloped by humankind, which is a rarity in the world most of us call home, and to that regard, it was pure magic.

What a place to grow up in and around, and what fond, fond, memories I have. The desert is an honest place, where the truth of man seems always to be found. The desert is a soft environment, harsh only to those who disrespect her. But to those who love her, as do I, and to those who grow to know her cycles and her needs, she's a virtual paradise, filled with the most beautiful flowers, the most delicate of streams, and the most tremendous sunsets in all the wide world.

Most see the desert as a lifeless, sandy, and dirty place, devoid of greenery, water or life. That may be true of the Sahara, but it's so far from the case in the American Southwest, that one can argue it's soil is as fertile as any in the world

But that's not the subject of this blog. Rather, this is a quick bit about Bisbee, a sleepy town in Southeastern, Arizona where not more than 3,000 people call home. It's a place 5,000 feet above the desert floor, with four seasons, pine trees, and real snow in the winter. It's also a place my father called home for some years, during my youth, and with that said, by association, a place I too called home.

Originally founded as a copper town, there were riches made, and there were riches lost. But, the copper has long since dried up, and the miners, for the most part, have long since left. Today Bisbee is a town of artists, and of intellectuals, a town where one can purchase a true craftsman bungalow for $100,000 and get to know your neighbors first names. There are few towns like Bisbee, anywhere in the world. It's a place that greatly shaped the person I am today and where I learned lessons of honesty and ethics, that assist me in each transaction I participate in.

I hope one day, in the not too distant future, I'll again have the chance to own a home in Bisbee. It's the perfect place to relax, after a hard work week in the bustling towns of Tucson or Phoenix, Arizona, as it's but a few hours from each city. So, while you're all wondering about the video that struck me so, here it is. It's not much, just a short 1 minute and 30 seconds down memory lane. But to me, it's much more. To me, there's a deeper meaning, and that's something I certainly can't convey in this blog. But if ever you get a chance to travel to Arizona, be it Phoenix or Tucson, take the time to travel to Bisbee. It will be worth your while.

And lastly, since this is a real estate blog, I will travel to Bisbee, upon request, to assist a client with purchasing a vacation home or a primary residence. So, here's that moving picture, you've been waiting so long for, if you've made it this far in my blog, at least, which for a person reading about the delicate nature of the desert, a foreign environment to most, is saying quite a lot...

Enjoy and as always, thanks for following along.

Recently I moved into a 2,000 sqft+/- home, built in 1934 with no insulation to speak of, no energy star appliances, just your typical inefficient home, by today's standards at least.

The former owners/tenants spent $300 each month on average for their gas and electric utility bills thanks to PG&E, which charges San Francisco Bay Area residents amongst the highest utility rates in the nation. Upon moving in we were concerned. Were we going to be looking at $500.00 per month utility bills? How were we going to fit this home's "baggage" into our budget?

Well, we did what we'd always done, and without modifying any of our previous habits, the time soon arrived when our first billing cycle was coming to an end. I was trepidatious in opening the bill, in fact fear is probably a better word to use. But, to our shock, the first month's bill was $51.00! I thought it was surely a mistake and that I should call the utility company, as I felt unethical about not paying what we "really" owed.

So, I made the promise to myself, that I'd do so, if the next month's bill was significantly off kilter. Again, to our shock the next month's bill, June, 2010, was only $41.00. I knew we had settled in and we had most certainly been in the home more often, rarely eating out and as is par for the course, much of a Realtor's work is often conducted on the computer at home. So, I called PG&E to make sure we were on the "up and up." Low and behold, there was nothing wrong with the bill. In fact, we had used so few kilowatts that we qualified for a promotional 15% off our next month's bill! I was stunned.

So how'd we do it, and how can you do the same? I started to think back, maybe what's normal to us is not so normal to the rest of the country, so for what it's worth to all those out there looking for ways to reduce the bills and have a bit more money in your pocket this summer, here's our "trick."

1) We started by purchasing a few compact florescent bulbs for the nightstands in our bedroom, instead of traditional light bulbs. They use 20 watts each, instead of 40-watt light bulbs and last thousands of hours.

2) We also experimented with our fridge and freezer using a thermometer. The recommended setting was an arbitrary setting 1 through 7. The setting that kept ice cubes frozen and food fresh was remarkably: setting "1."

3) We then moved onto the hot water heater, which runs off natural gas. The recommended setting was also arbitrary and numbered 1 through 5. Here you can experiment. Incredibly, ours, was manufactured in 1991 and it's still running strong, 20-years later! I set the heater's level to just above the pilot-light setting, and it works like a charm. We take showers in the A.M. and by the P.M the water is super hot for a second shower.

4) Washing dishes by hand is another routine it saves an incredible amount of electricity, water, and natural gas as you're not using as much hot water. Best of all, it takes 5-minutes. per day, at worst. It also keeps toxic chemicals off of your flatware, which are produced when most dishwashers operate.

5) We also unplug our entertainment center each night or when not in use. Such devices, use extreme amounts of electricity even when turned off, in fact I've read that many cable television boxes use $8.00 worth of electricity per month, even when turned off. Don't believe it? Touch the box when it's on or off. If you feel heat, that means it's consuming electricity and costing you money.

6) Another item we've gotten into the habit of performing is running our washing machine and dryer in the evening. It's far less expensive to run a load of laundry in the evening verses the day time. Electricity rates can be 30% to 50% less expensive, after 8 p.m., in many parts of the country, compared to peak hours, which are normally around 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can find out more information about your particular utility company's fees, by visiting their website.

7) Last but not least, turn it off ("TIO"). If you're not in a room, why keep the lights on? Switch them off. Bugs can see in the dark, and some even prefer it! So, unless you're really afraid of monsters, turn off those lights, if you're not in the room! It takes less than a second, but it's something we're all guilty of from time to time. If a room has 3 or 4 bulbs, you may be guilty of wasting 300 to 400 watts per hour. That's a lot of juice!

Some will say you must purchase new appliances, insulate your roof, and pay for an energy audit in order to save money on your utility bills. I say "nonsense." Sure those things can help, but they will also cost thousands of dollars to complete. Rather than spending that money, you might as well start off with a few common sense tips like TIO, and be amazed at the amount you'll save each month. You'll not only help conserve our limited resources for generations to come, but these simple steps will save you hundreds of dollars per year, with little effort. In doing so you'll most certainly be reducing your carbon footprint, which is a measurement of the total amount of greenhouse gasses one puts off into the environment. That footprint is usually measured in tons. The less electricity you use, the less electricity a specific power plant must produce, and the less green house gases and particulates you are personally responsible for.

So there you go, 7-small steps that will put you on a carbon footprint diet, and that's something we all can use. Give it a try and while you're at it, let me know how it's working for you.

I'd love to learn about your own personal results. Thanks for following along as always,

I've been contacted by the San Francisco Chronicle quite a bit, and as of late I've been featured in a section called "Sound Off," that's published on Sundays and also posted on sfgate.com.

But the question the Chronicle reporter asked me today really through me for a loop. It was one of those situations where I was damned if I did, damed if I didn't, so I went with my gust instinct and answered as honestly as I could.

San Francisco Chronicle: Q: If you had to pick one street in Oakland that is most desirable to homebuyers, which one would it be?

A: I would have to say Trestle Glen Road in the lower hills. It's a tree-lined street adorned with well-manicured homes of all styles and ages, from 1920s-era craftsman bungalows to 1950s-era Spanish revival houses.

Many sections of it are more affordable than people think, and because of its proximity to Piedmont, there's a very low crime rate. If you live on Trestle Glen, you're also likely within walking distance of a Trader Joe's, Block

buster, numerous restaurants and easy access to the Lake Merritt recreation area.

But it's a tough street to get on because demand there is very high these days.

-Eric Abrams,

Highland Partners

Prudential, Piedmont

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/06/13/REFU1DT7L9.DTL#ixzz0qz3bWOm9

It's always a tough question when someone asks you what the "best" of this is or the "best" of that is, as it's so very personal, but the idea of the column is to stir debate and with that, I believe the point was made!

Oh, and yes, this is the size of the picture they used! Believe it or not! It's huge! Nonetheless, I'm honored to have been contacted by the Chronicle and to read the comments of other Chronicle readers.

Best,

Eric M. Abrams

California Real Estate Broker

510-332-6314

Ericmabrams@gmail.com

CAR# R01862927

What beautiful weather the San Francisco Bay Area has been awash in, these past few days. The warm in Piedmont, CA and Oakland, CA have been tempered by a sleep inducing breeze off the Pacific Ocean, coming up through the Bay, across Emeryville, Oakland, and into Piedmont, finally hitting my window in the tranquil neighborhood of Redwood Heights.

It's been perfect walking weather and as I stroll with my standard poodle, aptly name

Berkeley for his free spirit, I can't help but notice the beautiful details that make this neighborhood so special.

I thought I'd share a few of them with you, so you too can see why this overlooked neighborhood is but just one of the the gems that the East Bay real estate market has to offer, with 3 bedroom homes on quiet tree lined streets starting at less than $600,000.

Even in this mixed market, that's a hard value to match. One thing that stuck me on this walk were the numerous advertisement for Lucy's Muffins, a local Redwood Heights weekend "Muffin Delivery Service" for several streets in the neighborhood, such as Jordan, Monterey, and several others. When was the last time you lived in a neighborhood, complete with weekend muffins on demand?

A few other things struck me, one was an old Tudor in major need of TLC that I've had my eye on. To my surprise it is pending! With my California Real Estate Broker License and business cards in hand, I strolled into the back of the home which was situated on two lots and discovered an entire crop of mature corn, almost ready to be harvested! Corn, in the middle of Oakland and Piedmont! I couldn't believe my eyes! With a few great memories in mind, and the sun setting upon the hills that surround Redwood Heights, Berkeley and I walked back, but not before we passed a concrete lion statute, that stands guard on Atlas Avenue. Poor Berkeley, first spotted the lion and was terrified a few days ago, but tonight, he was a trooper.

Much like those in the Piedmont and Oakland Real Estate Industry, he ignored his fear of the unknown, and continued on his path where he knew his reward awaited, a peanut butter filled Kong!

And with that, my night was complete.

Thanks for following along,

Eric Abrams

California Real Estate Broker

ericmabrams@gmail.com

510-332-6314 text messages welcome

http://www.PiedmontRealEstateBroker.com

C.A.R. r01862927