Mardi Boettcher's Blog

People have been coming to Mendocino County for years for the breathtaking views, award-winning wines, whale-watching, and wonderful food. During the holidays a kind of magical feeling descends over the County’s towns and villages. Mendocino County’s New England charm works overtime at this time of year, with Victorians twinkling with lights, a roaring fire in every fireplace, and a warm, small-town feeling of holiday cheer enveloping everyone.

Escape to Mendocino County where warm fires, friendly people and festive events await you. Plan your trip today at www.goMendo.com.

Come Celebrate!
Events this holiday season include:

A Taste of Redwood Valley – Holiday Wine Sale and Artisan Faire November 21st – 22nd A Taste of Redwood Valley invites old friends and new to join them for the 7th annual Holiday Wine Sale and Juried Artisan Faire. Live Music, one-of-a-kind art, friends, food, wine and Merriment

Festival of Trees – Gualala, CA November 27th- 28th Enjoy a Gualala Christmastime as it was in the 1850’s when it was a thriving mill town. Two “villages” will be decked out for the holidays and vendors dressed in period costume will be offering handmade crafts of the kind available during the 1850’s – quilting, weaving, knitting, felting, woodcraft, folk art, pottery, soap making, jewelry of metal and glass – accompanied with demonstrations of their skills.

Holiday Lights Parade – Fort Bragg, CA Saturday, December 5th Lighted parade with Christmas tree lighting, carolers, and Santa in downtown Fort Bragg. Free to all.

Ukiah’s Annual Small Town Christmas – Ukiah, CA Saturday, December 5th Celebrate this wonderful time of year with your family and friends at Small Town Christmas in Downtown Ukiah. Have a photo taken with Santa, enjoy local performers, and stop by our local shops. There will be live entertainment in the Alex R. Thomas Plaza followed by the Tree Lighting Ceremony.

Skunk Train Christmas Train – Willits, CA Willits Depot: Dec. 5, 6, 12- 23

Fort Bragg: Dec. 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20 A yuletide favorite of children and adults alike! Join Santa and his elves on a 90-minute magical ride through the light-strung trees of the redwood forest. Enjoy hot chocolate & homemade cookies while listening to strolling musicians and engaging storytellers. Pajamas welcome! Fares: $31 for adults and $24 for children (ages 3 to 11). For more information and reservations, call 1-866-45-SKUNK or visit www.skunktrain.com.

Annual Mendocino Coast Candlelight Inn Tour December 9th – 11th
The inns of Mendocino County’s ocean-side towns celebrate the holiday season with gorgeous and extravagant old-fashioned decorations and open-house hospitality. Benefits Mendocino Coast Children through Big Brothers/Big Sisters and Mendocino Unified School Enrichment (MUSE). One ticket includes all the days and light refreshments at the inns.

Annual Christmas Eve Celebration “The Festival of Nine Lessons” – Gualala, CA
Wednesday, December 24th Mendocino County’s version of a tradition that has been offered each year since 1919 at King’s College Chapel, Cambridge, England, will feature the Anchor Bay Children’s Choir and other musicians. At the Gualala Arts Center in Gualala.

Save the Date:

Mendocino County Crab & Wine Days January 22nd – January 31st, 2010 Every January, Mendocino County in Northern California celebrates locally harvested Dungeness crab and locally grown and produced wines with a festival that delights foodies and oenophiles alike!

From gourmet, crab-themed dinners in four-star restaurants, to family-style cioppino feeds, a countywide Passport wine tasting, to the ever popular Crab-cake Cook Off featuring local Mendocino chefs, this festival has something for everyone!

Visitors will enjoy a multitude of dinners, events and lodging specials over the course of the ten days — so head to Mendocino County come January and enjoy good food, fine wines, and family-friendly fun!
Click here for a complete listing of festival events!

Visit www.goMendo.com

I was very surprised to learn that industry estimates find that half of all homeowners who lose their homes to foreclosure have no contact with their loan servicers.  If you are at risk of default or already behind on your mortgage payments, I recommend that you  contact your servicer at the first sign of trouble.  Ask to speak with someone in the home retention department.   

You may be able to work out a loan modification, short-sale, or repayment plan.  Servicers will ask you to explain the reasons why you can no longer make the mortgage payments.  You should be honest and realistic.  The servicer also will need to verify your current income, unemployment benefits (if any), household expenses, tax returns, property taxes, hazard and flood insurance premiums, and condo or HOA dues.

 Whether the loan servicer requests it or not, you should include a letter authorizing the servicer to speak with your REALTOR®, another family member, or perhaps your attorney, as this can help speed up the process.

If you have any questions about this process, please don’t hesitate to contact me.  I’m here to help.

Fannie Mae has announced a new Deed for Lease™ program.  The new program allows borrowers to voluntarily transfer their property back to the lender and then lease back the house at market rate.  The lease period is for up to 12 months, with month-to-month contract extensions after that period.  The program is designed for borrowers who do not qualify for or have not been able to obtain other loan-workout solutions, such as loan modifications.  

To participate in the program, borrowers must live in the home as their primary residence and must be released from any subordinate liens on the property. Tenants of borrowers in this circumstance also may be eligible for leases under the program. Borrowers or tenants interested in a lease must be able to document that the new market rental rate is no more than 31 percent of their gross income.

Homeowners thinking of participating in the Deed for Lease™ program should visit Fannie Mae’s loan look-up Web site at http://loanlookup.fanniemae.com/loanlookup/ to see whether their loan is owned or guaranteed by Fannie.  Mortgages backed by the Federal Housing Administration and other government agencies are not eligible for the Deed for Lease ™ program.

 To read the full story, please click here.

In this market, where homeowners have to compete with the “fire sale” prices of bank owned homes, it more important than ever for homeowners to be realistic about their home’s values.  It often is difficult for homeowners to objectively value their homes, which often reflects their sense of personal style.  However, by consulting with a REALTOR®, using online resources, investigating neighborhood trends, and soliciting the opinion of friends, homeowners can arrive at a reasonably accurate appraisal.  If they cannot accept the reality of the situation, I recommend that they wait for a more favorable selling climate.  On the positive side, they will often more than make up the loss from the savings on their new purchase.  It is important to have their agent help them “crunch the numbers” before making the final decision.

If they are having financial difficulties, it is critically important for them to consult with their real estate consultant to get accurate information on all their options and the possible consequences.

This event is a good example of the unique character of Mendocino County and it’s residents: 

Global Day of Climate Action celebrated in Willits By JAY GORDON
Updated: 10/27/2009 02:12:10 PM PDT
Special for the Ukiah Daily Journal

The city of Willits is a walkable community. It’s easy for residents and visitors to explore the town on their own or as part of an organized group.

Painted footprints at intersections guide the curious around downtown and the nearby areas. This includes locally owned shops, charming cottages, public parks, museums, art galleries and a state of the art skatepark for kids.

Most walks begin at J D Redhouse mercantile, not simply because it is in the center of town but also because it’s a place to fortify yourself with pastries and specialty coffees before your walk — and snacks and ice cream afterward.

Head north toward Commercial Street, where painted footprints on the sidewalk will direct you to turn left and begin whatever part of the 5-mile excursion suits your interests and energy level. There are organized walks about four times a year.  This is a great way to meet local people and other visitors who share your enthusiasm for walking.

Normally, a hundred or so walkers participate. However, attendance for the Sunday, Oct. 24 event was sizable since it was in conjunction with the Global Day of Climate Action. Groups around the world planned activities for this day to focus on ways to protect the planet by reducing the amount of carbon in the atmosphere.

At the time walk organizer Jed Diamond said, “The goal is to have 350 walkers to represent the 350 parts per million that scientists, climate experts, and many national governments say is the safe upper limit for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. We are now almost at 390. Our walk will be one of thousands of events going on throughout the world (including one in Laytonville) on Oct. 24 co-sponsored by the group 350.org.”  The final tally of walkers in Willits of Oct. 24 was 377.  Impressive for a town of 5,000 people. 
There were  free cotton T-shirts for the first 350 people to sign in and take the walk. The T-shirts have a net zero carbon footprint and are made from 69 percent pre-consumer recycled cotton.

The local organization spearheading the walks is WHAT (Willits Healthy Action Team).  Cofounder Jed Diamond is a longtime resident, perhaps best known for his seminal best-selling books on men’s issues, including Male Menopause and The Irritable Male Syndrome.  Contact Jed for more information about future walks.  Phone 459-5505 or e-mail jed@MenAlive.com.

Ever wonder what Mendocino County is up to?

Discover www.gomendo.org  An Insider’s Guide to County Promotional Activities.

Check out the new and improved www.gomendo.org.  An in-county website designed to keep the community abreast of Visit Mendocino County activities and updates. 
 
Look at meeting agendas & minutes, quarterly reports on the marketing plan, communicate with staff, meet the current board of directors, check out the visitors guide and much more…
 
 goMendo.org site and learn about all that is happening to promote our county, communities and businesses.  Great things are happening and we want you to know about it!
 
Thanks to Scott Schneider
President & CEO
Visit Mendocino County, Inc.
T 707.964.9010 | F 866.836.7557 | E scott@gomendo.com

Please watch this in honor of our veterans who have given so much for us and our country.

This was sent to me by a good friend, Chris Boskin, who started this program.  Wow!  I’m humbled by this.

http://www.blip.tv/file/2827448

Senate Banking Committee chairman Chris Dodd, D-Conn., went on the record Tuesday calling for a seven-month extension of the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit, which is set to expire in five weeks.  Sen. Dodd said home prices are stabilizing but “we still need to use every tool at our disposal to try and fix this problem.” The White House has yet to reveal its position on the extension. The National Association of Realtors and other trade groups are supporting the extension.  Jay Brinkmann, the chief economist for the Mortgage Brokers Association told the committee that one great unknown facing the market is the affect on interest rates when the Federal Reserve stops purchasing mortgage-backed securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  He noted that there is growing concern over the issue saying, “While the most benign estimates are for increases in the range of 20 to 30 basis points, some estimates of the potential increase in rates are several times those amounts.”

Pay close attention to this last bit.  At our office meeting last week, Dick Selzer said that he thinks interest rates will go up rapidly.

I’ll keep you posted.

Here’s more important FHA  information:

 Although the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has confirmed that as of Sept. 30 it will fall short of its legal requirement to maintain supplementary reserves of 2 percent of the loans it insures, FHA Commissioner David Stevens says that it will not be seeking a taxpayer bailout.

Instead, to help mitigate losses, the FHA will tighten credit standards to rebuild the cushion to 2 percent or more, without raising the premiums borrowers pay or seeking an increase in its down-payment requirement of 3.5 percent.

Under the new rules, lenders making FHA-insured loans would need to show net worth of at least $1 million, an increase from $250,000.  The agency is seeking to ensure that lenders have funds available to compensate the FHA if their loans fail to meet quality standards. 

The FHA also will impose a maximum loan value of 125 percent of the current estimated home value on refinanced loans, in line with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Appraisals will be valid for no more than four months, a decrease from the previous six to 12 months validation period.  The FHA also plans to implement appraisal changes adopted earlier this year by Fannie and Freddie.  Mortgage brokers or bank employees paid on commission won’t be allowed to order appraisers.

We don’t have a Whole Foods store here and we have curbside recycling, but I thought you might find it interesting to know how the yogurt and cottage cheese containers are used.  Very interesting!  Always great information from the California Association of Realtors:

“If your city doesn’t have curbside recycling, then recycling #5 plastics (cottage cheese, prescription drug, and yogurt containers) can be cumbersome.  One option is to drop your #5 plastic containers off at designated Whole Foods locations.  These containers can be remade into items such as razors, toothbrushes, cutlery, and mixing bowls — all of which are fully recyclable.”