Raining Cats and Dogs

Where in the world does the saying "It's raining cats and dogs" come from? I had this discussion with my 7 year old son this morning. Before you google it, where do you think it came from? .........

Irvington High School Community Service Hours

To graduate from Irvington High School, Fremont, CA you need to have 40 hours of community service in addition to the three R's. Something that my son chose to do, that counted toward the hours, was to grow his hair out and then donate it for wigs for victims of cancer and other diseases.. He did this through a program called Locks of Love. If you are interested in locks of love, here is the link: http://www.locksoflove.org/

He also earned some hours through the 9th grade "change project" which aims to get students to do something to change the environment for the better. My sons groups project was on getting people to change to CFL bulbs. When I went to Irvington High School...and I'm not gonna say how long ago THAT was... they didn't have this. Maybe if they had, our environment might be on better track than it is now. But you know what they say... "hindsight is 20/20".

I wonder if other states than California have this requirement... do you? Let me know.

Madonna at Oracle Arena, Oakland, Bay Area

So.... I am one of the many who helped support Madonna so she can pay for her divorce! I went to her show last night. And I say 'show' instead of 'concert' because she actually puts on a good show....with dancers, lights, video, costume changes....she has it all. She sang mostly new songs. She did sing some oldies but goodies, with a new twist on them... a little bit "rock star" with her guitar. I have been a fan since the beginning and have watched her go through many personas. She is still going strong for a 50 year old. The energy that she has is boundless, and it shows in her very lean, muscular body [too lean - she needs some fat - where's Jack Sprat's wife?!]

Happy Halloween from Irvington District

Our family loves Halloween. We love to decorate and dress up and just plain have fun with it. This is the "little" spider decoration that my 6 year old wanted in his room. Heh.
Houses with halloween decorations are getting few and far between these days and my kids notice itl
My 13 year old and his friend were talking about going trick or treating in the Weibel area of Fremont, because "they heard" that's where the best candy will be. But they weren't sure if they were going to dress up or not. I told them they had better dress up and make an effort if they were planning on getting some good candy. And to think he was just complaining about lack of Halloween decorations........
Maybe if Christmas decorations weren't out in the stores by October 20th, more people would decorate for Halloween. What do you think?

View from a 13 year old skateboarder in Fremont, CA

Have you ever wondered what goes on in a "skateboarders head"? Well, I happen to have one at home and asked his opinion about the new water park they are building in Fremont, CA at Lake Elizabeth. There will be 40 water slides and a lazy river and kids pool, etc. Next to that there will be a brand new concrete skate park. There has been a makeshift skate park at Lake Elizabeth for a number of years now, that has a littler supervision by the Park Rangers. I thought my son would be excited about the skatepark, but he's just luke warm about it. Same with the water park. He would much rather "street skate". He has a couple of schools he likes to skate at and a couple of parking lots. He said there is more freedom that way. He said the skate parks are crowded, you have to wait to skate. They make you wear helmets and knee pads and elbow pads. [I did, at this point, emphasize the need to wear a helmet!] Maybe they should have just left the makeshift skatepark? And the water park... maybe he will go ... when it's not crowded....... Next I will ask him what he thinks about the Real Estate market in Fremont, CA and the financial market in general..... stay tuned for the next "View from a 13 year old"

Bargain Hunters

I had a garage sale in the lovely City of Fremont yesterday. The garage salers were out in droves... well not really droves.... more like dribbles. Somehow the idea appeals to me, of people paying ME to take away items I was going to get rid of anyway. The consensus from the garage salers was "Everyone is looking for a bargain these days....with economy the way it is".

Well, if there are so many 'bargain hunters' out there, why isn't real estate moving faster? I mean, there are some super bargains to be had.....

Only 28 days left to get $729,950 !!!!

Friday, October 03, 2008

Conforming Jumbo to CHANGE 12/1/08

We knew the conforming jumbo limit was going to change on 1/1/09 to $625,500, however just recently I've learned from some banks that the last day to close a loan for $729,750 is on 12/1/08. What this means is that if your loan is greater than $625,500 and you can't reduce it to this amount, you have to act fast to refinance that loan into a 30 year fixed. Loans are taking about 30 days to close right now, so I have to submit your complete loan package to a lender by October 31, 2008 at the latest.
Here some pricing scenarios:
Scenario 1: $729,750 loan amount, Loan to Value 80%, FICO 700,
on a no-closing cost 30 yr fixed:Rate 7.250% APR 7.250%
Scenario 2: $729,750 loan amount, Loan to Value 75%, FICO 720,
on a no-closing cost 30 yr fixed:Rate 6.500% APR 6.500%
Scenario 3: $729,750 loan amount, Loan to Value 60%, FICO 700,
on a no-closing cost 30 yr fixed:Rate 6.375% APR 6.375%

If you're loan is less than $625,500 you don't have to do anything right now, but for those with higher amounts you should consider acting now.

Call today.
Rhonda Morris
Show and Sell Realty
510-793-8600