Clint & Mindy Cronic

So yesterday we got up and went to the Redding Farmer's Market at City Hall. It was a great morning...all the fruit and vegetables you could imagine in one location, waiting for you to bring them home to eat! So we walked around, selecting our produce like we were professional buyers for a posh restaurant when it hit me that we really DO have a choice as to the legacy we leave our kids. It must have hit Clint as well because as we left (with my fresh lemongrass in hand...what do you use it for anyway????) he informed me that we were going to really start recycling. He and Austin went to go get a 2nd garbage can and we began!

Well here it is 24 hours later and what is in the cans? A full recycle bin (needs to be emptied) and a garbage can the same size that is only 1/4 full! WOW...I am totally amazed. The items that are in the garbage can are mostly food scraps which makes me wonder...should we try worm casting or a compost pile? Maybe that is going too far but it is amazing how BIG our footprint is on the earth and how easy it is to shrink it with just being aware!

I challenge all of you to try this...set up a can for recycling inside the home and see which fills first! I bet if you are avidly recycling you will see just how much we do waste on containers, storage and packaging that will be pulled out of our landfills if we just watch!

Let me know how it goes!

One major area we focus on when representing buyers is the home inspection. If you are thinking of buying a home you should be familiar with what a home inspector is and why you would hire one. First, a home inspector does just that-inspects the home. Generally a licensed home inspector will help you to determine the major problem areas (if any) and help guide you to get further inspections if necessary. In our area home inspections generally cost under $350 and provide a level of comfort to the buyer (who generally pays for the inspection if they so desire).

The five areas that you want to ensure your home inspector inspects are: roof, electrical, foundation, plumbing and inspect the attic. The inspector will review the electrical panel and outlets to ensure they are grounded, crawl under home if possible to check foundation, run dishwasher, sinks and toilets for leaks, look in the attic for insulation and/or pests. Not all home inspectors are created equal so ensure you are hiring a reputable inspector and that they are licensed! Also, a good home inspector will refer you to other inspectors (ie a roof inspector) as needed.

This is a small price for some great peace of mind for one of the largest investments you'll ever make!

On Sunday, Federal officials unveiled the elaborate plans to takeover Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two giants in mortgage lending backers in the United States. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac currently back over $5 trillion in home loans, not directly lending the money but backing the money that is lent by mortgage lenders.

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Well this week has been the rush to get all of our buyers that have been working under the Nehemiah program (a grant program given by sellers to buyers of FHA loan homes) into escrow before the program goes away permanently. I think we were successful and learned a lot along the way. Although we were skeptical about how it worked (seller made a grant to the Nehemiah foundation who in turn granted the money to buyers) it did help a lot of first-time buyers who otherwise wouldn't have been able to gather a down payment. Okay..here's today's real estate market update:

Residential Listings: There are currently 1877 active listings and another 368 listings that are pending (in escrow). Last week there were 1893 active listings with another 376 in escrow which was up from 1,702 active listings 3 months ago!

To read the entire post about the local Redding Real Estate Market click here

The Redding, California real estate market has seemed to pick up over the last 3 weeks. After viewing a home 2 times for one client the day we went back for the 3rd visit the home went into escrow after being on the market only a month. Another client has seen a couple of homes recently go into escrow that they were considering which is a sign that buyers are trying to actually get into a home before interest rates rise due to uncertain economy.

Residential Listings: There are currently 1893 active listings and another 376 listings that are pending (in escrow). Last week there were 1886 active listings with another 393 in escrow which was up from 1,702 active listings 3 months ago!

To read the entire post about the local Redding Real Estate Market click here