My friend, Eric Jansen, owner of the Amber Bistro is participating in this year's Dining Out for Life

Stop by the Amber Bistro for a good cause, good food and wine, and to make your reservations for Mother's Day. 

Daniel Duran, a sexual predator and convicted rapist, who was arrested on April 4th for parole violation has made bail and is back on the street. Duran violated his parole by being on the grounds of a local elementary school and was reportedly walking some neighborhoods in the East Bay area representing himself as a local preacher looking for a playmate for his (non-existent) fourteen year old daughter.

Duran was also walking into real estate offices throughout the Bay Area representing himself as an interested buyer. Duran was also reported to have attended many open-houses. Real estate agents, parents and the public at large are advised to be alert. 

Pamela Ellis from Diversivied Capital is a local self-defense expert who is activily involved in training women in the arts of self-defense. She teaches a six week course to help women dedfend themselves against bigger and stronger opponents known as W.I.S.E. - Women Intiating Safe Environments.

Since 1980, over 3,550 women have successfully graduated from the W.I.S.E. program; 19 of them have used these skills to save their lives in a life-threatening assault.

TOPICS COVERED:

• Assault Prevention & Mind-set
• Anxiety Management: Staying calm during an attack
• Escapes from: holds, pins, and chokes
• Domestic Violence Awareness
• Home & Family Security
• Counter measures

Pam's background includes: 2nd degree Black Belt - Tae Kwon Do Brown Belt - Judo Close Quarters Combat Training, US ARMY– Assistant Instructor. You can email Pam for information on upcoming classes.

Additonal Info:

WISE - Women Intiating Safe Environments

Article on Pamela Ellis

This weeks meetings of the Valley Marketing Association in Pleasanton and the Realtors Marketing Association in San Ramon saw many new listing presentations. New listings included:

• 1585 Denkinger Road, Dublin
• 6799 Paseo San Leon, Pleasanton
• 4025 Rennellwood Way, Pleasanton
• 6903 Corte Barcelona, Pleasanton
• 767 Pradera Way, San Ramon
• 11994 West Vomac Road, Dublin
• 2473 Kilkare Road, Sunol
• 6982 Darian Court, Dublin
• 3231 Vineyard Avenue #6, Pleasanton
• 3139 Weymuth Court, Pleasanton
• 5640 Belleza Drive, Pleasanton
• 3472 Gutherie Street, Pleasanton
• 2653 Corte Vida, Pleasanton
• 9544 Tesla Road, Pleasanton
• 10 Stratford Court, Danville
• 3349 Deer Hollow Drive, Blackhawk
• 4133 Quail Run Drive, Blackhawk
• 216 Scotts Mill Court, Danville
• 2954 Ascot Drive, San Ramon
• 2009 Watermill Road, San Ramon
• 1633 North Clear Creek, Danville
• 32 Terraced Hills Way, San Ramon
• 1465 Cortez Court, Walnut Creek
• 1886 Hollyview Drive, San Ramon
• 9848 Broadmoor Drive, San Ramon
• 1363 Canyon Side Avenue, San Ramon
• 9501 Velvetleaf Circle, San Ramon
• 4071 Lilac Ridge Road, San Ramon
• 299 Las Quebradas Lane, Alamo

The Harper Team can assist you with the purchase of these or any other properties in the East Bay area. We offer a Buyer's Guarantee and a Client Satisfaction Guarantee. We keep our clients informed as we work to move transactions forward while reducing the hassle-factor and stress for our clients.

Several times a week we add fresh content to our Real Estate Industry News section. We follow over 70 blogs and news sources so we can sort through and post relevant content of interest to those thinking of buying or selling real estate in the communities of Danville, San Ramon, Dublin and Pleasanton, CA. 

Here is a sample of what we would have posted there today. It only took an hour and a half to go through all the sources to choose these three. Our time or your time - you decide.

Sub Prime Meltdown and Foreclosures: How do they effect home values? - In a report from the Fannie Mae Foundation they estimate that “each conventional loan foreclosure within a 1/8 of a mile of a single family home results in a 0.9% decline in the value of that home. Certainly, there is a correlation between home values and foreclosure rates.There is a factor here that no one is really talking about though. It’s the idea that what could really impact home values is a significant reduction in available credit via a tightening of credit standards. A reduction of loans being made is also a reduction in buyers to make purchases and this results in lower sales prices because there are fewer buyers in the market.

I believe that the current run of foreclosures and credit tightening is going to be contained and normalize over the remainder of 2007 and that home values are stabilizing. There is reason for optimism and I suggest everybody stop listening to all the negative talk they see on the news, hear on the radio and see on the web! Keep in mind – your ownKen Mascia positive thinking impacts the world you operate in so be a positive influence on it!

Arizona bars online home price estimator - Arizona regulators have ordered a Seattle-based online home price estimator to stop doing business in the state.The Arizona Board of Appraisal issued two cease-and-desist letters to the company that operates the popular real estate Web site Zillow, saying it needs an appraiser license to offer its "zestimates" in Arizona.

Mortgage defaults in California near decade high - According to DataQuick, mortgages were least likely to go into default in Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo counties, three affluent coastal markets with a tight supply of housing that has helped prevent home prices from slipping.The likelihood of default was highest in inland Sacramento, Riverside and San Joaquin counties, where prospective first-time home buyers rushed in during the housing boom in search of relatively affordable housing.

Looking to buy a home or condo? Want to make it as easy and hassle free as possible? Want to help position yourself to be in a stronger position than other buyers?

There are two simple things people in the market to buy real estate can do to help make the whole process easier. The first is to get pre-qualified with a lender. Don't delay on this one! The lending market is undergoing dramatic changes, procrastinating can cost you the home of your dreams.

Many buyers start thinking, start looking, and when they feel that they're near to making a decision to purchase their home, then they contact a lender. This is ass-backwards - especially for first-time  buyers. Get pre-qualified first.

Pre-qualification gives the buyer the information they need about what they can afford. It takes the guess work and wishing out of the equation. In other words, it brings the whole process of purchasing a home into CPR - concrete physical reality - where it needs to be.

Getting pre-qualified, means having the ability to make a firm offer when finding the right home.

The other thing buyers can do to make finding a home a smoother ride is highlighted in this post from Elizabeth Weintraub:

How MLS Works - My neighbor, across the street, told me I did not need to send her MLS listings because she could access them online. For a moment, I wondered if maybe she was a licensed as a real estate agent or maybe as an appraiser. But no, turns out she thought she could find online listings through the Sacramento Bee.

Getting on an MLS Listing Alert service will save a buyer many hours of time, lots of confusion, and will help provide the opportunity to get there first with their offer. Listing Alerts are individual emails directly from the MLS datbase that are sent when new listings come on the market matching a buyer's criteria. Why spend hours searching through Craigslist or other sites. Each Listing Alert email has a link allowing the buyer to halt the process with a single click.

These are the two pieces of advice we constantly stress to buyers.