Nice small home in Talent that has had mechanical upgrades. In the middle 1990’s: double pane windows, roof, new siding, kitchen cabinets. 2008 new HVAC system and gutters.

Single car garage but could park two normal sized cars end-to-end. RV dump and hookups on the west driveway area. Great back yard. Very private with an enormous beautiful old tree for shade.

First time on the market since the 1970’s. Lots of character, French doors in living room, wood floors. There is a second toilet and shower but the sink has not been hooked up so it is being called a one bathroom at this time.

Gorgeous views of the entire southwest valley from this knoll top location. 7.88 acres of gently sloping pasture, 2040 sq ft home built in 1993 make this a very special property. The entire south facing portion of home has decking to enjoy the wonderful views and cool afternoon breezes. Water features with Koi to relax you. Great room w/vaulted ceiling and views of the Table Rocks. Nice large kitchen with hardwoods;informal and formal dining areas. Master has hot tub on the deck overlooking the valley lights.

You look out over the south valley all the way to Pilot Rock and Mt Ashland. Your immediate view is of the Table Rocks. Off to the west there is the pastoral view towards Grants Pass. The large country kitchen has hardwoods, tons of storage and a pantry. There is a breakfast nook just off the kitchen with a slider to the deck. The living room windows look to the south and take in the great views. The ceiling is vaulted and there are sliders out to the deck here. The wood stove is certified and the sellers say it is very efficient to use. The master bedroom is large with a large bathroom with a Roman shower.

There is a series of three small ponds that are all tied together and are located just past the deck. The sound of the water rushing between the ponds is soothing and relaxing. The ponds support a thriving Koi population. The seller has planted extensive gardens and has all the plants on drip systems. The area around the house is fully fenced with deer fencing. The property used to have a medical hardship approval which can be reused in the right situation. A buyer could build a shop where the medical hardship used to be as there is a septic and water storage there to service it already. The well is strong and also has a holding tank as the seller loves to garden!

The past two years have shown weak growth in the economy. Although there has been population growth there has been no housing demand growth. Builders incomes have dropped 70-90% and have been constrained by the lack of construction loans. Yun stated that is possible that in 2-3 years there will be a housing shortage due to the lack of new construction. He did state that housing starts are stable; but at a very low level.

According to Yun economists think that the recession ended last summer as we as a nation are beginning to produce more goods. The first signs of new jobs being created are out there. It will likely take more than 4 years to regain the 8 million jobs lost and from 6-8 years for us to recover from this recession. With the over-correction that took place on housing prices it has created a negative psychology among the people. He stated that this over-correction needs to be halted so the collateral damage of negative emotions is stopped. Only then will people begin to jump back into the market. As a rule, people don’t buy homes with cash. Rock bottom interest rates along with rock bottom pricing indicates an over-correction. The economic trenders, Case-Shiller data shows that we are currently at the zero line having returned to ‘normal circumstances’ regarding home
prices and the ability to buy homes by those that live in the area.

Medford has had 10 straight years of job losses while Washington DC has had the same number of years of job growth….likely driven by government jobs he said. He stated that to keep foreign investors confident in our growth we need to have a credible plan to reduce the debt. If they lose their belief in us, rates will likely rise to between 7-9%. The government is trying to chip away at some of our tax deductions for home ownership such as mortgage interest and property tax deductions and having a capital gains tax for all sales. The National Association of Realtors are fighting these on your behalf. It is a proven fact that homeowners perform better in social
standards such as test scores,, juvenile delinquency and other standards. Artificially boosting the ability to be a homeowner is what created the housing bubble that eventually sunk the economy. Yun predicts that the mortgage rates will rise to approximately 6% at about this time next year.

The commercial real estate market follows the housing market by 12-18 months. This market is following the same bubble even though the bubble was not driven by  sub-prime loans. At this time since the loans are not government backed the now-profitable banks don’t want to let go of the money for commercial loans. Look for foreclosures and great prices on commercial sales and leases in the next few years. Fannie Mae has played a huge roll in keeping the interest rate low on home loans. They created a hedge fund that bet on the rise of the housing market which increased their profits. When the housing market crashed, the public took the hit.
NAR is advocating in Washington DC that Fannie Mae would never be allowed to do this again. Take the profits and ask the public to pay for them.

To sum it up Yun said that the increase in stock market activity was indicative of economic action by the wealthy where economists watching the housing market to take the pulse of the middle class. He was cautiously hopeful although the going is much slower than normal in a recovery. Be on the watch for political moves that take away the tax credits for homeowners.

Let me know if I can help you buy or sell your home….I am in it for the long haul!

Well, the numbers are out again for the sales in the area. I have downloaded the whole file so that you can see them all. It appears that some things look promising…the number of ‘normal’ sales which are
the ones that are not bank owned or soon to be bank owned such as a short sale. These seem to be a large number of the sales at first glance. For existing homes they add up to 51% of the sales where REO’s or properties commonly called foreclosures are only 38.8% of the sales.  Click on this link to see the stats in detail. stats may 2010

The most telling number…the short sales. These constitute 10.2% of the sales. When you add up the short sales and the REO’s which are basically transactions controlled by banks, it is approximately 50% of the market. Of properties on the market foreclosures are only 6.6% of the total. That tells me the banks are doing a good job of unloading their properties. In order to unload them they have to price them ‘to move’. What this means is that all other properties are in need of the same kind of pricing. If you want your home to sell or get looked at, the market demands you are at the same price as a foreclosure.

Consumers tend to believe that a foreclosure is a ‘great house at a great deal’. In some cases this is true. Generally a foreclosure is a home in which the seller lost all hope and let it go in more ways that one. They let the yard go, general maintenance on the home, sometimes the home has been stripped of appliances and even fixtures such as cabinets, lights and other removable items. When you purchase a foreclosure, you get what you get.

In a deal I recently closed my buyers got a great price on a house in East Medford. It was a foreclosure and it needed work. After the whole house inspection there were FIFTY items that FHA required to be repaired before the transaction could close. These weren’t minor items either. The buyer ended up having to raise the price of the property to cover the repairs. The repairs ranged from a HVAC system that actually worked, to ducts that weren’t full of water and mold, to a range/oven that turned on, and then a whole host of other repairs including a new shower that wasn’t covered in mold and held together at the drain by duct tape. Fortunately for us the buyers were well connected with contractors and got the whole thing done for an amazingly low price.

As you look at foreclosures, just remember, when the bank says ‘as-is’ that is generally exactly what that means! It appears that the banks are holding a bunch of properties off the market in order to not flood it with foreclosures and thereby driving up home prices a bit as people are competing over the available properties. That does not change the fact that there are whole flood of foreclosures yet to come!

On a final note, the stats show that home prices in our valley have dropped as a whole by 30.2% over the past five years. Talent and West Medford have lost over 40% of their value. It appears the pricing is stabilizing and with the lenders expecting a 1% increase in rates over the next year it might be somewhere close to the bottom in pricing. But then, my crystal ball could be a bit cloudy…..

These are the stats for the year-end of 2009. If you would like me to email me a copy just drop me a line at jan@valleysavvy.com or call me at 541.944.6040 and tell me your mailing address. Here’s to an even better 2010! Just click on the link above to see the stats as provided by the Southern Oregon MLS.

It is 6 am on Saturday morning, my husband and the two grandbabies are still sleeping after the night of fun last night. The sun isn’t up yet, but these days it often doesn’t come up for days on end! I find myself longing for a good book and the parking lot at Callahan’s Restaurant where I can sit and bask in the sun if it is foggy here. I might need to make a trip up there this week and work on my Vitamin D deficiency!!! Looking forward to spring!

I am often asked the question as to how a small independent real estate company such as mine can compete with the ‘big boys’ in town. Lucky for me, there is the internet. With the advent of on-line listings the playing field was leveled. I can provide exactly the same sort of exposure as the ‘big guys’ without all of the overhead!

In the past few months I have really seen a move of brokers out of big offices and into smaller ones or even as sole practitioners. They have the same mindset I do. I can do business my way, on my terms, while I determine the cost and fees to do so. It allows me to help more people long term also. I give back 10% of my income from every commission to the community. Because I no longer have to pay 30% of each commission to a franchise it allows me to return more money to the community!

I have been working on putting together a new broker meeting for the ‘little guys’ in which we can spend some very specialized time on our listings with a group of like-minded brokers. Currently we are planning our first meeting for February and we are looking forward to targeting one of my listings. I am bringing in other brokers to take a hard look at this particular listing to help me problem solve what might help it to sell. It is a great listing and priced well enough to sell so I think we just need a fresh approach. I can’t wait to have some new ideas!

As a small brokerage I am more limited in how much business I can take in and still service. The advantage of that is that It allows me to know all my listings personally and service them personally. When someone calls in on a listing the person answering the phone is me. I can give the caller detailed, accurate information regarding the listing and really tell them the high points of the property. I believe that it helps increase the ability to get a showing on the property from the call.

With over 80% of people searching for property on the web it is necessary to have an IDX feed on my website. Under my ‘Search Listings’ tab on my website a prospective buyer or seller can search all the listings that are currently active on the MLS. What you see on the IDX search is what I see (with less detail) when I am searching. Some major franchises feature only their listings on their websites. That exposes your home to fewer lookers if they have to access a particular website.

I recently re-designed my signs and will be changing them out on listings here in the near future. My new signs have a white background with lots of white space on the sign. I realized that the ability to see the sign while you are driving is greatly increased with the white sign. It is amazing at night how the white sign stands out in headlights! So, as the year progresses I will continue to do my best to increase my ability to get your property to stand out in a crowd so that it can get sold!

If anyone has any ideas or thoughts regarding making real estate stand out; what might work, something you have seen in the past, or have wondered about, just drop me an email at jan@valleysavvy.com or give me a call at 541.944.6040. I am totally open to new ideas and suggestions!

Honestly, 15 photos don’t even begin to show this home off! Check out the virtual tour for more details! This home is one of the last homes built in this subdivision. It is on almost 1/2 acre with so much RV parking that you can have any toy you want! The three-car garage has two double bays making it a 5 car garage! There is a work bench in garage also.

The floor plan is big and open and spacious and light and bright! The great room opens off the kitchen and informal dining area. You can enter the guest quarters from the great room area also.

The kitchen has tons of cabinet space and an island stove. The sun room area off the informal dining area and family room overlooks the in-ground pool and back yard.

Southern Oregon is an amazing place to live and this home is in one of the nicest neighborhoods in the Rogue Valley. Don’t miss it!

The side yard has a huge area for RV parking and on the other side there is a driveway to the back of the property where you could build a huge shop. The 5-car garage has a shop area in it also.

Located just a few minutes from Rogue Valley Memorial Hospital, Rogue Valley Country Club, RoxyAnn Winery and downtown Medford you can really settle into this home!

(pop. 2,750)

An article written for Yahoo travel claims that Jacksonville is “a refuge from the tourist whirl of Napa”

Just over the border from California in the sunny Southern portion of Oregon sits the small town of Jacksonville.  In the early 1960’s it was just considered a ‘poor rundown town’ in the Rogue Valley before locals realized that it had a rich heritage that they could preserve and would draw tourists from far away to visit.

In the old days there was a mock up of an old fort and there were stage coach rides available. I don’t remember how old I was when that all disappeared.  In the early 1970’s the movie “The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid” was filmed there. Lots ots of people being really excited about all the big name stars going to be in the Rogue Valley for the filming. 

Over the years the area has grown into a major player for growing grapes for wine.  The climate here along with the hillside locations allow many different types of grapes to be grown here. A working vineyard I sold several years ago had Chardonay, Cabernet and Syrah grapes as their main crops.  The landscape is quickly changing from what I remember as a child.  The valley was covered in orchards…pears, apples, peaches….the smudge pots that kept the fruit from being destroyed by spring frost has turned to cleaner methods such as windmills and overhead sprinklers. 

The city of Jacksonville is the gateway to the Applegate Valley that is quickly becoming a must-see area for those who love wine and the ambiance of the tasting rooms that go with them.  The pace is slower, the wines are amazing and the views are spectacular.  There are several tasting rooms right in Jacksonville if you prefer to enjoy the old town ‘flavor’of the the “1800’s” while sipping your wine on a sunny day. 

There are great restaurants that showcase local growers, bed and breakfast inss, and music under the stars in the summer. There are no fast food restaurants and the only drive through in town beside one bank is at the local coffee shop that was ‘grandfathered’ in.  Many of the streets have no sidewalks or ones made out historically accurate materials.    

Jacksonville is on the National Historic Registry for towns and the citizens are committed to keeping the town small. It will be interesting to watch over the coming years to see how the town balances growth and business with the small time charm that it has now. If you love love history and charm, come and visit us. You will be glad you did.

Well, you can tell that summer is here in the Rogue Valley! The temperatures are in the triple digits and it is just plain hot! Since I have lived here since I was two years old I am used to the weather. I know that when the time for the Jackson County Fair rolls around in July there will be one of two weather patterns. It will either be abnormally rainy and cold or it will be scorching hot! There never seems to be a happy medium…no high 80’s or low 90’s.

If you aren’t from around heat the heat can catch you by surprise. It is important to remember a few things during these hot days to help you stay cool.  Here are a few tips for you to help you during this time:

1   WATER! You need to drink lots of water. Remember to keep hydrated even if you are inside all day. This kind of weather can cause major health issues for folks even if you are in good health. Soda and iced tea do not count as something to keep you hydrated. Caffeine and carbonation both work to dehydrate you.

2    Keeping your house cool. This will obviously be a bit more difficult in this weather.  Close all the windows early in the morning (before 8 am) if you open them during the night.  Once the sun is up and starts heating the air temperatures again you will have a harder time bringing down the temperature in  your home than maintaining it.

3    Close your blinds or drapes. It is helpful to close them especially on the side of the home that has direct sunlight. The hottest time of the day is 4 pm so make it a priority to close up the rooms that get direct sunlight at that time.

4    Shade cloth. This product can be a tremendous help to drop the temperature down a few degrees by diffusing the direct sunlight.  If you have a patio cover or an arbor you can hang shade cloth from the edge of it so that it creates a shady space the buffers the hot sunlight from coming directly into your home. If you have an arbor you can stretch the shade cloth across the top of it adding an even deeper shady area. Shade cloth comes in different density so don’t be afraid to double up on the cloth if you have one that doesn’t give you enough shade. You can install it by using a wooden slat along a board of the arbor to hold the cloth in place. It makes it very easy to remove if you want to take it down during the winter months.

5    Fans can really help.  In many newer homes the vents for heating and cooling are in the ceiling. It is much harder to find a vent to sit near and get the benefits of your air conditioning if they are in ceiling.  For pennies a day you can plug in a fan that helps circulate the air. Getting a better mix of the hot air stale air and the air conditioned air can make it feel much cooler.  It seems that 75 degrees of stagnant air feels heavy where 75 degrees of moving air feels refreshing.  The fans keep you from going to the thermostat to try to lower the temperature to find some relief.

6    Be aware of what is around you. I spend quite a bit of time in my office.  It has three computers and a large copier in it. These machines are going all day long.  Although no one machine puts out lots of heat there is definitely a difference in temperature because of these machines. I definitely use fans in this room to keep the air moving.  If you have your electronics or TV near a thermostat this can also cause the thermostat to be confused.  Be careful to position them away from it.

7    Skylights are great for light and hard on temperature control.  If you are considering putting in skylights you might want to look at the roof pitch to determine if the skylight will be bring in lots of heat along with the light.  A skylight with the afternoon sun will definitely cause the temperature to rise compared to a north facing skylight. There are ways to mitigate the light/heat issue with blinds or smoke colored glass in the skylight.

8    Ceiling fans can be a life-saver.  Along with the other fans, ceilings fans can be used to keep air moving.  They can double as a light fixture along with the fan and thereby serve a dual purpose.  Many ceiling fans will have a switch on the motor casing that determines the direction the fan blades spin.  According to Wikopedia the fan blades should run counter clockwise when you are are looking up at it during the summer for the best air movement.

9    Programmable thermostats.  Many people think that they will just not run the air conditioner during the day since they aren’t home. But according to industry experts that is much less efficient than running it all day long while you are gone but at a higher temperature.  The efficiency is about the recovery time that it takes the air conditioner to get the house back to the desired temperatuer.  Programmable thermostats are available, installed, for a couple hundred dollars. They make great sense.

I hope these tips help you ‘weather’ the weather. FYI, there is usually another hot spell like this in late August. It is a good time to practice these tips now!