SCE announces plan to use commercial rooftop solar installations to provide power to 162,000 homes.

Southern California Edison (SCE) has announced a new project that will place 250 megawatts of advanced photovoltaic generating technology (solar panels) on 65 million square feet of commercial rooftops in Southern California, which will generate enough power to serve approximately 162,000 homes.

This project, which will focus on commercial buildings in the Inland Empire, San Bernardino and Riverside County areas, will likely start its first installations in August of 2008. The goal is to provide energy during the peak hours during the day, when the sunlight is most abundant and energy usage is its highest, especially during the hot summer months. These solar installations will be connected to existing neighborhood circuits, thus eliminating the need for additional towers or power lines.

The total project cost is estimated to be $875 million. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has been asked to approve the installation of these solar units over the next five years. According to Mike Peevey, the CPUC president, this project "clearly illustrates once again Edison’s leadership position in the development of new renewable technology."

Press releases and other propaganda aside, this is a great way to create new solar energy sources without affecting the overall landscape of a neighborhood. Nothing will be seen of this project other than the solar panels on commercial rooftops, which weren’t a pretty sight to begin with. There will be no extra towers, no power lines to run through the residential neighborhoods, and the sunny Southern California weather will be put to good use in producing new, clean energy. This project also supports California’s renewable portfolio standard requiring that 20% of the state’s electricity be generated with renewable energy by 2010.

I have only one question regarding this project: Can something like this be used in the Santa Clarita area instead of the proposed wind power project that will require an abundance of new ultra-high towers that will have a negative effect on the landscape of many residential neighborhoods? Seems a solar project would make more sense, with plenty of available commercial rooftops in the Valencia Industrial Center.

Operation Light Exchange will be coming to the Los Angeles area on May 3-4, offering free light exchanges.

Operation Light Exchange is coming to the Los Angeles area on May 3-4 to exchange inefficient halogen and incandescent light fixtures for brand-new flourescent lamps. You can participate in this free event by going to the WalMart parking lot at 17150 Gale Avenue in the City of Industry between 8:30am and 1pm both days. I recommend that you arrive early - they exchanged over 10,000 lamps at the last event.

Bring in your old lamps, and they’ll give you new Energy Star lamps… for FREE!

The lamps are exchanged for like-kind lamps with the Energy Star rating, so if you bring in a table lamp, you’ll get a new table lamp (with bulb) in exchange. They’ll also exchange floor lamps and torchieres. You only need to bring the lamps themselves, not the lamp shades.

Here’s what they’ll accept in the Operation Light Exchange program under the current rules:

• Halogen Torchiere Floor Lamps
• Incandescent Table Lamps
• Incandescent Desk Lamps

The lamps you’ll receive in exchange are manufactured primarily by Sunpark, Maxlite, and Greenlite. And they’re not ugly institutional-looking things either… click here to take a look!

Free and Easy: There is No Catch!

We’re conditioned to think that anything "free" means that their must be some sort of catch, but in this case there is none. All you need to do is prove you’re in SCE territory (bring a driver’s license or monthly bill), be over 18 years old, and show up at the event. That’s it! There is a limit of 10 lamps per household, so don’t collect all the lamps from your neighborhood in hopes of exchanging a bazillion lamps at the lamp exchange.

Santa Clarita high school students will spend their summer on tour with several World Class Drum and Bugle Corps.

As summer approaches, twelve thirteen talented Santa Clarita high school students are anxiously awaiting their opportunity to spend the summer months on tour with several top-notch World Class Drum and Bugle Corps. While their shows aren’t quite the same as the dance scenes in High School Musical, these students will be playing music, dancing, spinning, training and competing on a very high level for the entire summer preparing for shows that will absolutely knock your socks off.

Long, hot days, often with 12 hours of practice or more, will be rewarded by the thrill of competing against the best Drum and Bugle Corps in the nation for the ultimate prize: The DCI (Drum Corps International) World Championships in Indianapolis this August and a chance to perform in front of 60,000 screaming fans on Finals night.

Along the way, the members of these Corps will partipate in day after day of competitions as they tour the country. For the Madison Scouts, a World Class Drum and Bugle Corps, their schedule includes 12,000 miles of travel across 16 states and 33 performances before they reach the finals. At times, they will have 5 days in a row of competitions! Other World Class Corps will have similar schedules, while the Open Class Corps have schedules that aren’t quite as arduous.

Santa Clarita high school students will be participating in a variety of corps, some local, some far away, some World Class, some Open Class. Here’s a list of this summer’s rock stars:

The World Class Drum and Bugle Corps represented by our Santa Clarita youth are the Blue Devils, Madison Scouts, Pacific Crest, and Santa Clara Vanguard. The Open Class Drum and Bugle Corps represented by Santa Clarita students are Mystikal and the Velvet Knights.

Tour fees and schedules vary, but in general those participating in the non-local World Class Corps will be required to make a larger commitment, both financially and time-wise, to their chosen Corps.

For example, Madison Scouts members are required to pay dues in the amount of $2,000 and partipate in various fundraisers to help offset the overall costs of the summer tour. Their move-ins start on May 23, with all members living "in residence" with the corps (as in sleeping on gym floors together) for the entire summer. They have a full cook-crew to prepare all meals during their training camps, move-ins and on tour, with menu items including yummy-sounding ice cream cones with brownie mix in them. Santa Clara Vangard has similar requirements, with dues of $2,200 and move-ins starting on May 16. Both of these corps also have several required weekend camps (Friday night to Sunday afternoon) through the Winter and Spring months (November through early May), so airfare costs will also add up for these kids.

In contrast, Mystikal members are required to pay a tour fee of $1,000, and their schedule leaves most weekdays open for daytime work and summer school so they sleep in their own beds at night. Typically Mystikal will be away from home for the last 10 days of the summer tour. Pacific Crest has a schedule similar to Mystikal’s, with weekday rehearsals from 2pm-8pm to allow for daytime jobs and summer school, plus weekend camps during April and May. They will tour for 3 1/2 weeks at the end of the season. Dues for Pacific Crest are $1,900 per summer.

Teaching Our Youth to be Productive, Motivated Adults

Most of the drum and bugle corps are now co-ed, with the exception of the Madison Scouts and the Cavaliers, which have boy scout origins and remain all-male corps. Each of the corps will have its own mission and objectives, but generally all corps will have a strong emphasis on education, leadership, confidence-building, accountability, goal setting and performance skills. While many of their members will not pursue careers in the music field, they do take with them these very important skills that will remain with them for the rest of their lives.

Frank, an alumni of the Madison Scouts, had this to say about his experience from 30 years ago: "If we apply the Madison philosophy to our every day lives when we are in the workforce, we will be successful. Meaning that if we all do what we are supposed to do and apply ourselves to our passion, even when we are tired and miserable, you will be successful. I can tell you that all these years later, I still push myself to my limits every day as a sales person because of my years in corps. I’ll stop and make one more call or get in a little early to check on progress of my projects in production because my experience in Madison. It took a few years removed from corps but I finally realized how valuable my experience was in corps."

Think about it: We’re sending 13 Santa Clarita students off to an adventure that can help mold them into successful, motivated adults. Many of these kids will remain with their chosen Corps for several years (minimum age requirements will vary by corps, but typically will be those who are age 16 by June 1 and they cannot be 22 before June 1 in their final year). My son will be the youngest member of the Madison Scouts this year, since he will be turning 16 only days before the June 1 cutoff. That means that he will have the opportunity to spend several years with the Scouts, improving on his leadership skills and building on his experiences year after year. Each fall he will return to school and be able to use his experiences to help motivate his fellow students, helping him to develop his leadership abilities, and helping his friends to strive for better results as well.

These Students are Asking for Your Help!

As you can see, each of these twelve students is making a huge commitment to the drum and bugle corps activity this summer. They are giving of their time, sweat, and possibly tears at times in order to participate in this life-changing activity. They have all requested that I do what I can to help get the word out that sponsorships are the key to allowing them to continue participating in drum corps and learning the leadership and other skills that will last them a lifetime. Dues for the World Class Drum and Bugle Corps run about $2,000 per year, plus most of these students also have travel (airfare) costs to bear. While dues and travel costs for the more local Open Class Corps are not as high, these students also need your help in meeting their financial commitments.

Annual costs for each summer tour run about $1,000,000 for a typical World Class Corps that spends almost the entire summer on the road. Dues usually cover about a third of this, with 150 members each paying about $2,000. The rest of the funding for each year’s tour comes from fundraisers, alumni and sponsors. Costs for each tour include transportation (vehicles, fuel, and maintenance), housing (typically gym floors), food (usually prepared by a cook crew), salaries for staff (most of whom are underpaid), equipment (drums, horns, pit instruments, color guard equipment), uniforms, and other administrative costs.

If you can help out at all, whether with a $20 contribution or a corporate sponsorship of one (or some) of these students, you will have a huge impact on their lives. While I cannot give out their contact information in this format, I can give you the contact information for the various drum and bugle corps as well as the local band directors. In addition, I have the ability to contact most of these students directly, so I’ll be happy to pass on any messages to them. Here’s a directory of the corps and the local band directors for those of you who would like to assist our local "rock stars" this summer:

• Blue Devils
  • Website: http://BlueDevils.org
• Madison Scouts
  • Website: http://MadisonScouts.org
  • Fuel-A-Thon Fundraiser:
    • http://squidoo.com/madisonscoutsfuelathon
  • Raffle: Win a 4-night trip to Disney World in Orlando including airfare, a 42-inch plasma HDTV, $750 cash, and more! $10 per ticket, drawing to be held August 8. Only 5,000 tickets will be sold. More info here.
• Mystikal
  • Website: http://Mystikal-Corps.org
• Pacific Crest
  • Website: http://Pacific-Crest.org
• Santa Clara Vangurd
  • Website: http://SCVanguard.org
• Velvet Knights
  • Website: http://VKYAO.org
• School Band Director Contacts
  • Hart
    • Anthony Bailey: abailey@hartdistrict.org
  • Saugus
    • Robert Gibson: rgibson@hartdistrict.org
  • Valencia
    • Erin Stankey: estankey@hartdistrict.org
  • West Ranch
    • Jason Marshall: jmarshall@hartdistrict.org

Watch Your Favorite Corps From Home, 24-Hours a Day!

DCI has just announced thei new Fan Network program, which for a measly $69 allows you to watch your favorite corps 24 hours a day. This program will provide live streaming video for selected shows (currently Madison, Wi; Stanford, CA; Denver, CO; San Antonio, TX; Atlanta, GA; Bloomington, IN) as well as backstage videos from "embedded" corps video crews and access to mulimedia files from DCI’s historical vaults. If you want to see what your kids are up to, or are just a drum and bugle corps fan, click here to sign up for the DCI Fan Network.

The Fine Print: I’ve attempted to include all Santa Clarita area high school students who will be participating in the Drum and Bugle Corps activity this summer by contacting all of the school band directors. If you (or your child or student) was inadvertently omitted, please forward me their info and I’ll modify this post to give proper recognition to all of our Santa Clarita rock stars.

Students: If you learn of specific fundraising efforts that you’d like to feature, let me know!

Press/Media: These students would absolutely LOVE to be featured in the local media. Contact me and I’ll help you to contact the students for interviews or statements. Thank you!

Valencia and Stevenson Ranch show double-digit median price increases compared to 2007.

Santa Clarita, CA single family home sales statistics for February 2008 have arrived!

The area with the largest decrease in median home prices was Castaic, closely followed by Newhall. Interesting to note is that these two areas showed the highest increases for October 2007.

Only two areas showed median price increases, with both the Stevenson Ranch and Westridge zip code 91381 and Valencia’s zip code 91354 reporting double-digit increases over the February 2007 numbers.

Compared to Los Angeles County’s October numbers, there was a decrease in the total number of single-family homes sold county-wide at 2,428 homes sold in February 2008 vs. 2,917 in October 2007, 4,444 in August, 4,629 in July and 5,049 in May, with a 14.5% decrease in the median price from February 2007 county-wide.

Remember that February is still considered to be part of the "slow season" in the Santa Clarita area. Home sales will typically drop from month-to-month from September through December and then slowly start to pick up in January, so we need to look at prior year comparisons as well to get the most accurate picture of the Santa Clarita real estate market.

The number of homes sold in Santa Clarita per DataQuick’s statistics for February was 122, compared to the October 2007 sales of 99, as August sales of 209, July sales of 216, and to the May home sales of 186.

Below is a table of the home sales for the Santa Clarita area for February 2008 by zip code. Remember that these are MEDIAN home prices, which means that half of the homes sold were above these prices, and half the homes sold were below these prices. These numbers are for single family homes only (no condos or townhomes). The percent change is from February 2007 to the current year’s numbers.

When the median price for an area goes down, this could mean that the current trend is for the lower priced homes to be selling more frequently than the higher priced homes in the area, or that more REOs and short sales are being sold in an area, and does not necessarily mean that home prices are declining at these rates overall. When only a handful of homes has sold in an area, then the median price has less meaning since there’s not enough data to calculate a true cross-section of that area.

This month, both Newhall (91321) and Castaic (91384) experienced the largest dips in the median price of single family homes as compared to the February of 2007. Both Stevenson Ranch and Westridge zip code 91381 and Valencia’s zip code 91354 (which includes Tesoro del Valle, West Creek and West Hills) had double-digit increases over last year’s median prices. These numbers will differ somewhat from the MLS figures, since they include all recorded home sales, while the MLS will exclude FSBOs and most new home sales.

Here’s a quick look at February 2008 Santa Clarita single family home median prices vs October, August, July, May, April and March 2007 median prices:

On the foreclosure front, we’re definitely seeing more bank-owned (REO) properties and short sales closing escrow than in prior months. You can see a summary of Valencia and Canyon Country regular sales, short sales and REOs here. While buying these homes takes a lot more patience and a better trained Realtor than a standard home purchase, those willing to ride the foreclosure roller coaster can often reap some big rewards.

Sales statistics are only a starting point for determining how the real estate market is doing. If you’re thinking of buying or selling in the Santa Clarita area, you’ll need more detailed information in order to make an informed decision. Be sure to call Santa Clarita Realtor Linda Slocum at 661.670.0349 or email her for more detailed market information and personalized home searches.

Looking for homes in the Santa Clarita area? Try our Neighborhood Home Searches to help find that perfect home! You can also get an instant Market Snapshot of your area to check on recent listings and sales as well as current trends.

The Madison Scouts annual charity raffle has begun, where you can win trips, a plasma TV, cash and more!

The Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps has announced its annual fund-raising raffle, with some very exciting prizes!

Madison Scouts Raffle Ticket Prizes

This year’s Madison Scouts Charity Raffle Grand Prize is 4 nights at your choice of Caesars Palace in Las Vegas or Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort in Orlando FL, including airfare for two. You also get two 4-day park passes for Disney World with the Orlando trip.

Second Prize is a 42" Plasma HDTV; Third Prize is $750 cash; and there are many other prizes as well, including $250 cash, an iPod, gift certificates, and other cash prizes ($100 and multiple $50 prizes). The drawing will be held on August 8, 2008. Only 5,000 of these $10 raffle tickets will be sold, so the odds are good that you’ll be able to win a great prize while helping an amazing organization with its fundraising efforts.

Who Are the Madison Scouts?

The Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps is a member of the World Class division of DCI (Drum Corps International). The drum corps activity in participation with DCI is a global youth activity with "far-reaching artistic, educational and organizational influence" and is Marching Music’s Major League^TM.  

Those participating in the drum corps activity at this level, and particularly with the Madison Scouts, will have an opportunity to learn and grow under the direction of a world-class staff, as well as developing invaluable life skills that will truly help to shape their future. The Scouts pride themselves in their commitment to a strong value system, providing superior performance training, character building and leadership development, and training in the value of teamwork and good sportsmanship.

The 150 members of the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps will partipate in 27 drum and bugle corps competitions this summer in 16 states before reaching their final destination of the DCI World Championships in Indianapolis in August. You can see their complete tour schedule here.

They will travel over 12,000 miles, and in between performances they will be travelling via bus to their next destination and spend their nights on gym floors to keep tour costs to a minimum. Still, a typical summer tour costs upwards of $1,000,000, and raffles like this one help to cover the costs of each year’s summer tour.

How Do I Purchase Raffle Tickets?

Raffle tickets can be purchased through me (Linda Slocum) or through my son (Kevin Slocum), who is a student at Valencia High and a member of the Madison Scouts Color Guard this year. Why not take this opportunity to win a fantastic trip to Orlando’s Disney World or a 42" Plasma HDTV for a small $10 donation? You can contact me at 661.670.0349 or at Linda@SantaClaritaRealEstateBlog.com.

City Council to oppose California Property Owners and Farmland Protection Act.

The Santa Clarita City Council is set to take action on its official opposition to Proposition 98, the California Property Owners and Farmland Protection Act, at tonight’s City Council Meeting.

One of the issues that the Santa Clarita City Council uses as an excuse for opposing Proposition 98 is the fact that it phases out local rent-control ordinances. Why should the local City Council be concerned about this, since we don’t have rent control in the Santa Clarita area?

The City also takes the position that the Proposition 98 provisions may prohibit the government "from constructing public water projects, enacting land use regulations to protect the environment, and invalidate regulations intended to protect the public’s  health,safety and welfare." Say, what? This is certainly a unique twist to the wording of Proposition 98.

So what provisions does Proposition 98 include? The main opposition to this proposition are in regards to limiting a government entity’s ability to seize private property via the eminent domain process. More specifically, it states that "Property may not be taken by government and then used for the same purpose that it was used for prior to seizure. For example, if residential housing is taken, the government cannot then use it for residential housing" according to Ballotpedia’s summary of the propostion. And that, in a nutshell, is why the City of Santa Clarita opposes it.

Let’s look at Downtown (Old Town) Newhall and the current eminent domain proceedings there. We have retail buildings along Spruce Street that are being "bought" by the City under threat of eminent domain (or pending ghost town, depending on your point of view), in order to build a proposed library there. There is no guarantee of a library, so in all likelihood the City will be building new retail and office space in the area once the current occupants are removed. In this case, the Proposition 98 provisions would come into play, since they would be taking retail properties and converting them to "new" retail properties instead of to another use.

Clearly the City of Santa Clarita wants to be able to exercise as much authority as possible when invoking eminent domain provisions, but is this what the taxpayers really want? Do we want to give our City Council carte blanche authority to take privately-owned properties at will, just to hand them off to some as-yet-unknown developer?

Given the recent FormsGate scandal and the many accusations flying about various City Council members (and hopefuls) about how much they seem to be in developer’s pockets, I would think that the residents of the City of Santa Clarita would want to limit this "taking" of property to a more reasonable level.

If you don’t want to give the Santa Clarita City Council carte blanche authority to seize property, attend tonight’s City Council meeting and let your voice be heard!

City Council to oppose California Property Owners and Farmland Protection Act.

The Santa Clarita City Council is set to take action on its official opposition to Proposition 98, the California Property Owners and Farmland Protection Act, at tonight’s City Council Meeting.

One of the issues that the Santa Clarita City Council uses as an excuse for opposing Proposition 98 is the fact that it phases out local rent-control ordinances. Why should the local City Council be concerned about this, since we don’t have rent control in the Santa Clarita area?

The City also takes the position that the Proposition 98 provisions may prohibit the government "from constructing public water projects, enacting land use regulations to protect the environment, and invalidate regulations intended to protect the public’s  health,safety and welfare." Say, what? This is certainly a unique twist to the wording of Proposition 98.

So what provisions does Proposition 98 include? The main opposition to this proposition are in regards to limiting a government entity’s ability to seize private property via the eminent domain process. More specifically, it states that "Property may not be taken by government and then used for the same purpose that it was used for prior to seizure. For example, if residential housing is taken, the government cannot then use it for residential housing" according to Ballotpedia’s summary of the propostion. And that, in a nutshell, is why the City of Santa Clarita opposes it.

Let’s look at Downtown (Old Town) Newhall and the current eminent domain proceedings there. We have retail buildings along Spruce Street that are being "bought" by the City under threat of eminent domain (or pending ghost town, depending on your point of view), in order to build a proposed library there. There is no guarantee of a library, so in all likelihood the City will be building new retail and office space in the area once the current occupants are removed. In this case, the Proposition 98 provisions would come into play, since they would be taking retail properties and converting them to "new" retail properties instead of to another use.

Clearly the City of Santa Clarita wants to be able to exercise as much authority as possible when invoking eminent domain provisions, but is this what the taxpayers really want? Do we want to give our City Council carte blanche authority to take privately-owned properties at will, just to hand them off to some as-yet-unknown developer?

Given the recent FormsGate scandal and the many accusations flying about various City Council members (and hopefuls) about how much they seem to be in developer’s pockets, I would think that the residents of the City of Santa Clarita would want to limit this "taking" of property to a more reasonable level.

If you don’t want to give the Santa Clarita City Council carte blanche authority to seize property, attend tonight’s City Council meeting and let your voice be heard!

Economic stimulus package only adjusts FHA limits through the end of 2008.

TIme to write your legislators again, folks! Those new FHA loan limits are scheduled to EXPIRE by the end of 2008 unless new legislation is passed to extend this deadline. As usual with this type of legislation, it’s stalled in conference, and it seems that the voters need to make some noise to get our legislators to take action here.

What’s at risk? According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), "Increased FHA loan limits will provide a much needed infusion of stability, liquidity and security into the market. If Congress lets the new limits expire, the fragile housing market will once again be thrust into a period of turmoil."

If you’ll recall, the FHA loan limits for the Los Angeles County area, including Santa Clarita, were increased to $729,750 recently, up from the prior limit of $362,790. If this increase is allowed to expire, we’ll be right back where we started from, with FHA loans barely covering the purchase of a townhome. This also has a potential impact on jumbo and conventional loans as well, since industry experts expect the conventional loan limits to be increased to the new FHA limit, thus making those horrible jumbo loan rates a thing of the past for most home buyers.

Here’s a point and click way of sending a message out to our local representatives:

1. CLICK HERE to go to a one-step automated letter writing system called CongressLink, where you can write all of your representatives with one quick form. You can select email and/or snail mail delivery for your letter - they will send the letter for you automatically, based on the delivery method that you requested.

2. Paste this letter into the box:

SUBJECT:

Permanent Loan Limit Increase Key to FHA Reform Bill 

BODY OF THE LETTER:

As a constituent, I want to stress how important it is for FHA reform legislation to be quickly enacted. These bills, passed the House and Senate in 2007, are now stalled in conference. Permanent increases in the FHA loan limits, lowered FHA downpayment requirements, and new opportunities for condominium purchases are needed to create safe and affordable mortgage options for our state’s homebuyers and those wishing to refinance. These changes will also provide much needed stability to our local housing markets and economies.

The new loan limits passed in the recently enacted Economic Stimulus bill will expire in less than 10 months. Dramatically reducing these limits at year’s end will push our nation’s fragile housing markets into turmoil once again. Realistic loan limits that permanently help ALL areas of the country are needed to bring stability to the marketplace.

FHA’s downpayment levels led many borrowers to opt for the exotic, risky mortgages that have been the hallmark of the foreclosure crisis. The FHA reform bills will allow FHA to modify downpayment requirements and offer flexible financing to eligible borrowers.

In many areas of the country, condominiums remain the most affordable option for homeownership, but FHA owner/occupancy and documentation requirements, make it very difficult to purchase a condominium using FHA mortgage insurance. The FHA reform bills will move condominium financing programs into FHA’s single-family program where they belong and ease the way for condominium purchases.

We cannot wait any further for FHA reform. Pass a permanent FHA reform bill NOW to give American homebuyers and homeowners the peace of mind they so desperately need.

3. Enter your name and contact information in the boxes provided.

4. Click "Send Message", and you’re done!

Proposed Burrtec MRF facility on hold for now.

After much public outcry from residents near the proposed MRF (Materials Recovery Facility) along Sierra Highway between Placerita Canyon Road and Golden Valley Road, Burrtec Waste Industries has decided to put the plan on hold, at least for now.

The proposed 170,000 square foot facility would have processed about 3,000 tons of waste per day, including the contents of recycle bins as well as the regular trash bins. Burrtec will be required by the City of Santa Clarita to build a recycling facility at some point, with a minimum of 1,000 tons of waste to be processed per day to start.

Santa Clarita does need to significantly reduce its waste in order to comply with the state mandate that cities recycle 50 percent of their waste. However, this doesn’t have to be done by digging through all of the residential and commercial trash, as stated in the current MRF plans.

Voluntary recycling can greatly reduce the amount of trash that would need to be processed through a so-called "dirty" MRF, where 100% of trash is dug through and sorted by people in a facility such as the one that has just been sidelined. If consumers would use their recycling bins properly, then the amount of recyclables that reach the regular trash bins would be greatly reduced.

If you’re unsure of what is recyclable, visit Blue Barrel’s website for a detailed list.

Selling your home in a buyer's market can be challenging, but not impossible.

With the buyer’s market still prevailing in the Santa Clarita area, sellers are looking for ways to get their homes sold in a reasonable timeframe.

In order to get a home sold, sellers need to be aware of what a buyer is looking for these days, and they need to fulfill that need as much as possible. Simply stated, a typical buyer is looking for a well-priced home (a "deal" of sorts), in a nice area, that shows some pride of ownership.

If your home is marketed with photos showing dirty dishes, plastic bags hanging from the backs of the dining room chairs, an abundance of clutter, or anything that clearly needs repair, you’re putting yourself at a disadvantage. "Staging" is the big buzz-word these days, but quite honestly most homes just need a good cleaning and clutter-clearing to get them looking light years better.

Honestly, folks, if your home is cluttered when the photographer arrives, MOVE THE JUNK before he takes the photo. You can move it back to where it was once the photo is taken, but showing your dirty dishes and unmentionables to the world is not a good way to market your home! Truthfully, the junk should stay moved so people visiting your home can see it at its finest as well, but life goes on, and sometimes a spotless home can be nearly impossible to maintain for any length of time.

It’s amazing what people are allowing the world to see these days, as all of these clutter-filled photos get blasted all over the internet. It doesn’t matter if you’re an empty-nester or a couple with brand-new triplets… you can still move the clutter as the photographer works his way through your home.

Marketing a home for sale in a buyer’s market is part art, and part science. The "art" part comes into play when preparing a home for sale, and you definitely want to have your home looking its best.

Think about it… If you were getting ready to put your Vintage Hot Rod up for sale, wouldn’t you give it a thorough wash and a new coat of wax, vacuum the carpets and upholstery, and Armor All the dashboard and tires to make them shine like new? Why wouldn’t you do that for your house as well?

Here are a few simple tricks of the trade to get your home looking spiffy in a jiffy, and at little or no cost:

• Box It! If you’re not using items currently, like seasonal clothes or Xmas decorations, box them up and either put them in the garage or in storage. This includes your favorite collection of Kewpie dolls.
• Organize It! For items that you need on hand, find a way to keep them available without having them hanging all over the place. Using stackable plastic containers or baskets to store small items can be a real lifesaver.
• Donate It! For items that have overstayed their welcome, it’s probably time to let them go. This goes for old clothes and toys as well as items that need repair. If you haven’t repaired it by now, you probably won’t get to it any time soon. Donate old items to your favorite local charity, or visit FreeCycle.com to list items for people to pick up.
• Dump It! Old newspapers and magazines, trash, old moldy shampoo bottles, and items well beyond repair should hit either the trash bin or the recycle bin. Limit the amount of bottles of "stuff" in your bathroom to the items you actually use, and eliminate the stuff that’s been rotting under your sink for the last 12 years. If you need an extra recycle bin, just ask for it… most Santa Clarita trash haulers will provide an extra recycle bin for free.
• Fix It! If you’ve got a loose kitchen or bathroom tile, or missing grout, get a little goop and premixed grout from Home Depot and get these minor repairs taken care of.
• Scrub It! A little cleanliness goes a long ways. Clean walls, baseboards, furniture, blinds, floors, countertops, windows and your front door until they sparkle. And don’t waste a ton of paper towels and toxic cleaning stuff to do it - get yourself a Microfiber Cloth, and use it with a little water for most minor messes and wall marks. While you’re at it, scrub the bathroom and kitchen grout to remove all those years of ground-in junk. Steam cleaners and bleach pens can be a real help with messy grout.

Need help selling your home? Call me! You can reach me at 661.670.0349.