Fran Gatti - Crescent City CA Real Estate

So you made it to Crescent City, CA and you're wondering now what? There are plenty of things to do in August.

First thing to do is go to South Beach. South Beach is a large stretch of beach that greets you when you first drive into Crescent City.

There is plenty of parking.

There is also plenty to do.

How about Boogie Boarding at South Beach? I advise you wear a wet suit. They are available for rent or purchase at several local establishments.

You can make your own pool or play in the sand...

Take the dog for a stroll...

Visit with friends and get a tan...or sunburn in this case...

Or share the moment with your main squeeze.

There is also surfing, kite flying and swimming at South Beach.

Then head over to Bistro Garden to eat dinner and watch the sun set.

I recommend the Marinara Chicken with Gorgonzola Sauce. It comes with garlic mashed potatoes, veggies, Caesar salad and french bread. We topped it off with a glass of wine. Yummy.

South Beach is another reason to visit Crescent City. Come see us soon in Del Norte County...Where the Redwoods meet the Sea.

I am here to assist you with your real estate needs!

Brought to you by Fran Gatti at Bus: 707-464-5400, Cell: 707-218-8162 Email: fgatti@charter.net Website: FranGattiHomes.com My Blog: Fran's Blog Fran is the #1 buyer's agent for 2007per CCMLS

The Britt Festival in Jacksonville, Oregon is just a short car ride, 1 1/2 hours, from Crescent City and that's where I was this past weekend.

If you live on the North Coast and haven't been to the Britt Festival, it's worth the drive. Go check it out.

My husband, Garry, and I purchased tickets to see George Thorogood on the Britt Festival website a month or so ago and anxiously looked forward to the performance.

Like so many of my client's, I too have been affected by the downturn in the housing market and the economy. Going to see George is probably the only trip we will be taking this summer, so it was very important to me that we had a great time.

As you can see by the pictures, we had fabulous seats on the lawn directly in front of the stage,

This location was earned, however, by a lengthy wait in line that started at 1:30 pm for a 7:00 concert.

As we visited with other die-hard fans in line, we were surprised to see that the first two people in line were actually two 13 year old boys. I didn't think too many kids that age even knew who George Thorogood was and there they were at the front of the line.

That mystery was solved at 3:30 when two men showed up, whipped out their wallets and handed the two young men a pocket full of cash.

Garry, a fifth/sixth grade teacher, went over to talk to the boys about what had transpired.

It seems that quite a few enterprising young people in Jacksonville are employed throughout the Britt season in the occupation of "line sitting." For their efforts of guaranteeing their employer of the moment first place in line, they received $80 a piece. Not too bad for a 13 year old. However, they sat in line from 11:30 pm, Friday, to 3:30 pm on Saturday. I may be joining them if the market doesn't improve!

The opening act was Buddy Guy, who, at 72, is unequaled at playing the blues. Unfortunately, I didn't realize I had my camera with me until George came on stage.

Garry and I ran to take a potty break and while we were gone, Buddy Guy walked off stage, toured the small venue while playing his guitar, and STOOD ON OUR BLANKET AND LET OUR FRIENDS STRUM HIS GUITAR!

Everyone sitting around us was grateful we left for the bathroom so Buddy could stand on our blanket.

Jacksonville, Oregon is a very lovely historical mining town that is definitely worth a visit. Volunteers walk around in period dress and answer questions for passerby and there are many shops and restaurants with excellent food and interesting items. Bella Union restaurant is worth the trip by itself (try their pomegranate martini), and the Britt Festival, which goes all summer long, makes the trip a top flight day.

Jacksonville is only 1 1/2 hours from our home in Crescent City, so we made it a day trip, but there are several bed and breakfasts, Inns, and hotels close by if you decide to stay overnight.

The Britt seats 2,200 people, and has a very intimate feel to it.

We brought in our food and beverages (alcohol is allowed to be brought in, or you can purchase from concession), but you can order pizza from Bella Union and have it delivered or enjoy great food at the concession stands inside the venue if you prefer.

Check out the Britt website to see what other performances are being offered this summer. I know Steve Miller is coming up and the season kicked off with Crosby, Stills and Nash.

Del Norte County is just a short drive away from so many enjoyable places to visit and has no smog, no traffic, mild weather, and no water-rationing!

Have a great summer!

I am here to assist you with your real estate needs!

Brought to you by Fran Gatti at Bus: 707-464-5400, Cell: 707-218-8162 Email: fgatti@charter.net Website: FranGattiHomes.com My Blog: Fran's Blog Fran is the #1 buyer's agent for 2007per CCMLS

Del Norte County is undeniably California's hidden gem. Why?

Most Californian's are not even aware that Del Norte (pronounced Del Nort) county even exists let alone that it is home to some of the most spectacular beauty in God's creation.

Del Norte County is home to Fern Canyon, part of the many State and National Parks in this region. Its lush green beauty makes you think of prehistoric times. You almost expect a dinosaur to come walking out of the greenery.

Why is Del Norte so green and lush? We get about 70 inches of rain a year...which translates into NO WATER SHORTAGES! Water rationing is unheard of here. A good majority of the county residences are on wells and let me tell you, our well water is fabulous.

Our local chamber of commerce has come out with a snappy saying, Del Norte County...where the redwoods meet the sea, and boy is that appropriate.

If you hike the Damnation Creek Trail off of Highway 101 South, you will see miles of redwoods that literally go right down to the ocean. It is a lovely hike, but not for the faint of heart.

The hike is a mile or two of switchback trails headed, for the most part, downhill to the ocean, then straight uphill coming back to your car. My friends husband had to carry her the last 1/2 mile uphill on his back to get her out of there (no joke).

Del Norte County is also home to the mouth of the Klamath River, known for salmon and steelhead fishing.

The Klamath River overflowed it's shores in the 60's and wiped out most of the town. They chose another townsite when rebuilding.

This picture of the mouth of the Klamath River was taken from Requa hill.

We are also home to the Smith River, the only undammed river in California and a big draw for fishermen, rafters, kayakers, and campers.

It is estimated that 75 - 80% of Del Norte County is owned by State and National Parks, County Parks, Native American Reservation, Conservation, Fish and Game, etc. Most of these lands are enjoyed regularly by nature lovers.

We are home to Lake Earl wildlife refuge, the largest wetland--5000 sq. acres--outside of Alaska on the west coast.

Notice the absence of smog in these pictures. That's because THERE ISN'T ANY! Yep, no smog at all...ever.

To recap:

• There are miles of unadulteraed coastline
• Two of the premier fishing rivers in California
• It is a nature's lover paradise
• Hunting, fishing, kayaking, rafting, boating, scuba diving
• Harbor
• No traffic
• No smog
• No road rage
• mild weather year round
• we now have a Starbuck's!
• And so much more, just check out past blogs.

Crescent City/Del Norte County Market Watch - Yuk!

Well...not much good to say here, but we actually stack-up better than the rest of California and many other areas in the U.S. such as Florida (I had to say something positive, so there it is).

Our sold residential listings dropped from 15 in April to 11 in May, and the DOM (days on market) increased from 193 days, to 221.

There are 274 active residential listings, with an average DOM of 177 and a median price of $295,250. 46% of the listings are over $300,000, but only 17% of sales since the first of the year have been in that price range.

IT IS STILL A BUYER"S MARKET. What are buyers buying?...listings under $200,000. Several of May's sales are mobile homes in parks and there are several more showing on our pending list, so if you have a mobile in a park that you want to sell, now is the time, if it is properly priced.

If you are in the market for an upper end home, well, holy cow, now's the time. With 46% of the listings in that price range, but 17% of sales, do you think there might be some anxious seller's who are willing to negotiate? Heck yeah.

Sellers - The more inexpensive properties that are properly priced are selling, but you can still sell your upper-end home if it is priced right. Now is not the time to listen to your son, neighbor, or bridge partner on how much your home is worth (unless they are an experienced real estate agent). Now is the time to ask your agent for a market analysis based on the current market with the most recent comps available. Go over the data with your agent and price your home in the lower 50% of the price range if you want to sell. If you are dead-set you are going to get your price, darn it, or "I'm not selling," then you won't sell, so just pull your home off the market and wait for inventory to shrink and prices to rise. It will happen eventually.

Here's the market at a glance:

	5/08 # Sold	5/08 Median	5/08 Average	5/08 Avg DOM	4/08 # Sold	4/08 Median	5/07 # Sold	5/07 DOM	5/07 Median
Residential	11	230,000	208,191	221	15	210,000	25	193	225,000
Vacant land	3	217,500	157,000	281	0	0	5	312	85,000
Commercial	1	310,000	310,000	31	0	0	0	0	0
Multi-family	0	0	0	-	0	0	0	0	0

I am here to assist you with your real estate needs!

Brought to you by Fran Gatti at Bus: 707-464-5400, Cell: 707-218-8162 Email: fgatti@charter.net Website: FranGattiHomes.com My Blog: Fran's Blog Fran is the #1 buyer's agent for 2007 per CCMLS

Crescent City/Del Norte County real estate market report for April ~ Not as good as March!

I'm sorry this report is so late. If you don't know already, I have moved to RE/MAX this week, which has slowed my blogging down a bit.

So what's happening? 15 homes sold with a median price of $210,000, which is the only increase over March's market watch. The pent-up demand of investors and first time home buyer's is still driving our market, so if you have a home in that range, now is the time to list.

There are 265 homes listed and with 15 homes selling last month, the absorption rate is almost 18 months, keeping us squarely in a buyer's market.

The days on market for April's home sales was 187 days, another step-down from March's 127 days.

Am I ever going to say anything good? Yes, there are 265 homes on the market with a median price of $289,500 and average days on market of 178. If you are thinking about buying a home, now is a good time. Especially if you are looking at homes in the over $400,000 range where only 3 homes have sold since THE FIRST OF THE YEAR! Do you think there might be some anxious seller's in that price range, especially when the over $400,000 listings comprise almost 30% of the active residential listings?

Here are the stats for April:

	4/08 # Sold	4/08 Median	4/08 Average	4/08 Avg DOM	3/08 # Sold	3/08 Median	4/07 # Sold	4/07 DOM	4/07 Median
Residential	15	$210,000	$206,427	187	18	$180,000	13	118	$213,000
Vacant land	0	0	0	0	3	$70,000	5	530	$135,000
Commercial	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Multi-family	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	83	$213,000

I look forward to assisting you with your home sale or purchase. Put the power of RE/MAX and the #1 Buyer's Agent in Del Norte County behind you for a successful transaction.

Brought to you by Fran Gatti at Bus: 707-464-5400, Cell: 707-218-8162 Email: fgatti@charter.net Website: FranGattiHomes.com My Blog: Fran's Blog Fran is the #1 buyer's agent for 2007 per CCMLS