Norma and Don Flaskerud

This year, a trip to Ireland to visit family was purposely scheduled during "down time", Thanksgiving week, a week when most folks are concentrating on family and dinner preparations. We had our assistant put a new listing on the market that Monday while we were gone, assuming it would take at least a few weeks to sell in the current market conditions. We admit our seller did everything right; he priced it where we recommended, $399,000, he put in new attractive frieze carpet and painted the interior a fashionable taupe with white trim, new neutral tone linoleum in the kitchen, and cleaned it to perfection. The 1949 vintage kitchen and '60's bathroom showed as well as dated interior could. The owners, now living in assisted living, had made improvements including removing the wall heater for central heat, replacing dated windows with newer style dual pane, a new driveway and garage door. The end of the court locale, newer roof, pleasant backyard all added to its attractiveness. www.PleasantHillRealEstate.com for photos.

Traveling through Ireland we found hotels offered internet connections so nightly we checked email. That Tuesday, the day after Nancy Lane came on the market we found an email in our in box that a Realtor's client wanted to buy the house, that he knew we were abroad but they wanted the house and wanted us to figure out a way for their offer to be reviewed. I emailed him back we would be online early evening Ireland time (as it was midnight in US when I got that email, 8 am Irish time) and offered for him to e-fax the offer to us. I also sent our Irish cell phone number. That afternoon, driving along the rugged coastline of northwestern Ireland our cell rang; it was him calling at 5:30 am US time! What an early riser he was! We promised to be online to handle his offer by 11 am his time and continued on our tour of the NW coast of Ireland, enjoying windy, blustery, rainy conditions.

That evening we enjoyed a lovely hot dinner with my cousin Michael McMenamin and his wife Brenda, then turned on their computer only to realize they did not have the ability to open attachments so we left for the local internet cafe. Well, small town Ireland? 7 pm? Closed! Desperate, Don suggested we check into a local hotel offering internet service. Minutes later we were at Jackson's Hotel, a local landmark in business since 1946! The desk clerk cheerily told us they had wireless internet in the lobby and we were more than welcome to sit there on their comfy couches by their blazing fireplace (did I mention it was cold in Ireland, way up north in Donegal County?) and use their internet connector. Happily we turned on our laptop and discovered one offer and another agent eager to send over an offer on Nancy Lane after we emailed him our efax. Over the next hour we were able to review both offers by email and phone with our seller in California, and do a small counter offer to the more attractive of the two offers. With amazing ease we sent the counter offer to our seller to sign and a copy to the buyer's agent. Waiting for a return of same another email came in about an interested buyer and the request we wait an hour for their offer. A call to the agent revealed they were well qualified buyers who were offering an additional $15,000 over the current highest offer so our seller elected NOT to sign the counter offer we sent him and to wait for offer #3.

We were enjoying the beautifully decorated lobby of Jackson's Hotel, Christmas lights blinking. Mr. Jackson himself stopped by to chat, enjoying our first hand California real estate story unfolding right before his eyes. His beautiful red Irish Setter Murphy had the run of the hotel and stopped by for a pet now and then .

We let the eager Realtor at home know our counter to his client would NOT be signed after all as we awaited a third offer; his emails flew into my inbox! "Don't sell it without talking to me first! Our offer is so strong........I have already opened escrow.....We can close sooner." And then the clincher...."I just spoke to my buyer and he increased his offer, a lot!" Once we got that in writing and reviewed the third offer the seller decided to accept the very first offer, again.........as the buyer and his down payment and other terms were super strong and he had increased his offer so high as to compete with the third offer (even though we NEVER gave him a clue how much the third offer was for; we honor privacy in offers.)

It was a successful three hours we spent that night at Jackson's Hotel in Balleyboffey, County Donegal, Ireland! We will never forget that night of the twinkling lights and blazing fireplace, the friendly Irish Setter, the welcoming Irish, and the three families all bidding to buy our little 3 bedroom, 1 bath listed home in Pleasant Hill, CA. Working on vacation CAN be a good thing!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you!

In the town of Pleasant Hill is a neighborhood with an ambience so many crave; it is known far and wide as Poet's Corner. Why? Because many of the streets are named for famous poets of yesteryear. Known for charming late '40's moderate homes that have been expanded into rambling ranchers on large, level lots and tree lined streets, homes in this enclave often sell for tops dollar. Reminscent of simpler times, of growing up when Father Knows Best was a hit show, when post war young families moved to the suburbs and began families, the mid-century neighborhood still evokes feelings of security and family and mom and apple pie. This home, our newest listing, is a combination of the charm of yesteryear with curb appeal in keeping with the charm of homes on Beatrice, yet offers the latest and greatest that the new century has, with almost the entire house being built or remodeled since 2005.
Over 2300 of single story square footage hardly puts a dent on the .3 acre level lot, offering not only a spacious lawn in front but one in back as well. Irrigation is from Poet's Corner's unique irrigation system allowing lush green lawns. You must visit http://www.413beatrice.com/ for a photo tour! After walking up the paver driveway and walkway, to the slate covered front porch you will enter a formal living room with a classis white mantled fireplace. Hardwood floors lead into the formal dining space, off the kitchen. Down the hallway, past the remodeled full bathroom, are four bedrooms. The three childrens rooms are cheerfully painted in pale blue, yellow and pink and offer hand painted wall murals, creating a childlike wonderland of beauty. Just down the hall is a grown-up master retreat: it offers a very spacious bedroom and a spa-like bath with jetted tub, separate tiled shower, dual sinks vanity set in handsome tiles, a private commode and his and her walk-in closets.
The gem in this and the heart of any house is the kitchen. Stunning cherrywood cabinetry, Kitchen Aid Architecture Series appliances include stainless steel gas cooktop, dual convection ovens, microwave, stainless tiled backsplash, solid surface granite counters, a wonderful island with dining stools and plenty of room to create lovely meals. The custom cabinets offer storage features galore. A walk in pantry and a built-in computer desk complete the setting. Yet, with a dining bar and formal dining this home also offers a spacious casual dining area in the great room, adjacent to both the kitchen and the spacious family/media room. With plenty of room to sit and relax or watch your favorite shows, the media center offers built-in cabinetry for the TV and audio. The home has three separate speaker set ups too. Convenient to the family room is a half guest bath. A full laundry room and a two car finished garage complete the interior offerings.
To describe this property as having a park-like backyard is not an exageration. Paver patio for barbeques, out door dining, accent lighting lined paths, an expansive lawn, play areas, veggie garden, and a pristine side yard including two storage sheds, are just words describing an amazingly beautiful setting. Come and explore this beautiful piece of Poet's Corner; make it yours. It can be. Call now for a private showing: 925-676-5859. Next on my blog: my first experience with Dim Dim, a free web based conference call system. Watch for it!




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Posted By Don and Norma Flaskerud to Pleasant Hill Real Estate and Area at 5/29/2008 08:47:00 PM

Wow! How long has it been?

We put a new listing on the market last Monday and sold it Wednesday here in Pleasant Hill, CA, 35 miles inland from San Francisco, CA. Pleasant Hill is a nice suburban town of about 30,000 primarily built up from farms to residential homes after World War II, with many neighborhoods built in the late 40's, mid 50's on into the 60's, 70's and 80's. There are a few newer, upscale neighborhoods but the town is primarily older home stock, very well maintained, and an affordable closer in, Bay Area town.

At the height of the market our listing might have sold for $725,000. Depreciation reared its ugly head and our clients sold for near their $632,000 asking price. To get this price and to sell so quickly they worked tirelessly to fix up the house: paint and new interior doors, decluttering, staging to perfection, a new stove, even so far as renting a refrigerator that fit better in their kitchen than the one they owned! www.8Upson.com

The fact is we do not have a lot of "nice" homes for sale! We have short sales, bank owned, distress situations, but normal, improved, well situated homes are few and far between. When one comes for sale it gets a lot of attention!

Buyers are out in droves looking for bargains, wanting to take advantage of lower interest rates, ready to buy, whether they think the market has bottomed out or is near to doing so. One of our buyers recently made an offer on a home JUST on the market and lost out as they did not think it quite worth the asking price though someone else did and offered full price. The market is getting quite competitive among buyers as inventory remains low. Just thought you would want to know!

Walnut Creek Restaurant Review

My two friends and I are on the search for the BEST restaurant. Planning to create our own Top 100 Restaurants here in our San Francisco East Bay with a focus on the East Bay, more specifically central Contra Costa County, we have visited yet another well thought of Walnut Creek dining establishment, San Franciscan, on North Main Street across from Prima and Stadium Pub.

Impressed by the busyness of the restaurant on a Tuesday night, we surely did not enjoy the large group enjoying cocktails, standing about in half the dining room adjoining our table, chatting heartily while we tried to chat over our cocktails. Flooded with relief when they sat down quietly to dine, we settled in perusing the abundant, varied menu. Impressed with the tasty sounding choices, with an emphasis on sea food, though offering many steak, chicken, pasta and other dishes, the array was tempting and sounded wonderful. One friend, craving cracked crab, was served a wonderful large dish of steamed crab (out of Washington? Why?) which she cited as delicious. The overall dinner however was graded down due to a poor side dish of overcooked, flavorless corn on the cob. My other friend said her dinner of Ahi was perfectly cooked but the overall experience was marred by it being over-peppered, leaving her with a burning mouth scattered with crushed peppercorns. My nut crusted sole with crab stuffed artichoke hearts, two creamy side accoutrements, baked potato and fresh steamed green beans was a great attempt at a yummy meal. The servings were generous; I could NOT finish it and did not leave hungry! The sauces were thin rather than thick and creamy, the crab filled artichoke hearts were a bit dry, maybe over cooked, while the baked potato was very overdone. How a fine dining establishment can ruin a wonderful baked potato is beyond me. I wondered if they had their B Team cooking since it was a Tuesday night.



We were surprised at the vibrant crowd enjoying the elegant white table cloth dining room. The tiny bar was full, and crowded against dining tables. The menu offered so many moderately priced enticing dishes I am tempted to go back again, to see if the execution would be better on another night. Dinners were priced in the $20 range while seafood salads were in the high teens. Our Mojito cocktails were delicious for $7.



Grade? All three of us gave it 7 out of 10, with one friend adding in a half point, to 7.5, for the excellent cocktail!



Our prior choices and grades?

Bo's Barbeque of Lafayette offers well cooked, barbequed meats which a cave man might appreciate. Our finer tuned palettes found it a bit much and side dishes wanting. None of us are eager to return to this highly rated barbeque restaurant.

Nibbler's in Pleasant Hill was a delight with all dishes delicious, enjoyed equally by all three of us. Side note: one of us went back since and had a disappointing experience. I look forward to taking Don there some time soon.



We continue our search for a wonderful restaurant; please send in your recommendations!
Visit us at Pleasant Hill Real Estate.com for the latest home listing for sale. www.PleasantHillRealEstate.com