There are only about 1000 or so houses spread all over the location east of San Ramon. Most of the land being discussed is still privately owned. One particular group, FTL and LLC, owns 770 of the total 4900 acres of land and plans to build 194 homes there. 169 of them will be single-family houses and other 24 are planned as multi-family units reserved as affordable housing. The project has been dubbed "New Farm," designed to take up 5% of the total 770 acres they have control of. A quarter of it is sought to be developed for agricultural uses and the rest will remain as open space.

Another issue lies on whether it crosses the county's urban line.  If San Ramon's petition to the Local Agency Formation Commission goes through, this will turn into a major step for the city into further developing the land for residential and commercial uses. According to a staff report that was part of the city's general plan in 2002, they wished to use Tassajara Valley to "improve the city's jobs/housing balance."

This is a controversial issue that has been bugging Danville leaders and local environmentalists for well over a year now. From a moral and ecological standpoint, how much more development in the Tri-Valley necessarily a good thing for the total well-being of its citizens?

- Joseph Natividad

Stability Returning to East Bay Housing Market

We’re approaching the Spring selling season in the East Bay – it’s time to tackle the question of where we think the local housing markets are heading.

The downward pressures on the housing and lending markets have taken their toll on the resilient East Bay housing market. The I-680 corridor remains one of the healthiest housing markets in the country, but that doesn’t mean we escaped the impact.

Will recent actions taken by the Federal Reserve, the Federal Government, and the major lending institutions have any real effect on housing? Most pundits agree that these programs will only benefit a very small percentage of home owners in trouble.

The most significant factor in the mix for East Bay homeowners is the change in the conforming loan rates. This change is something that has been long sought by the real estate industry in California.

But don’t expect this change to send the housing market skyrocketing back to new heights. The market is still in transition. The long-term effect of bad financing, foreclosures, tighter lending standards will (hopefully) be a more solid and sane foundation of lending standards to promote and support long-term home ownership.

Housing affordability is the big issue that needs to be addressed. Even with the downturn in housing prices, the cost of home ownership is out pacing income growth for most Americans.

The number one factor that will influence home prices this spring will not be foreclosures or financing availability – it will be seller motivation. Sellers that need to sell to get on with their lives will be influenced by market forces and they will price their houses accordingly. It is the sales of these houses that will set the new comps for your neighborhood.

We can expect to see more price reduction throughout this year which should flatten in the second half. I would expect this to be in the 2% to 5% range. Which means that buyers hoping for another significant drop in prices will probably miss out on the better deal because increased interest rates will negate any price reduction.

Housing prices are going to flatten for the most part. The bottom half of the market has seen about all of the reduction it can take. The upper half has done its job of stabilizing the median home price, but here is where we will see some significant impact because price reductions in the upper end will result in the median home price dropping – and this will give the media more cannon fodder to bombard us with – The Sky is Falling, The Sky is Falling!

All of the mess we read about in the papers or hear on TV, in general, relates to less than 10% of the housing market. You’ve heard of the 80/20 rule? Well, in journalism, it seems to be the 10/90 rule – take 10% of something and turn it into a major catastrophe.

The psychology of the market is returning to the pragmatic – gone is the hyper-drive of easy money and doom & gloom will also pass. Practical people that need to buy or sell real estate, will be the force that returns the market to sanity and stabiity.

I'm addicted to the Roadhouse Salad at the Buckhorn Grill in Walnut Creek. For about $10 you can get a big salad with greens, green beans, tomatoes, walnuts, blue cheese crumbles, onion rings and chicken along with a drink.

If you're more of a red meat eater, try the tri-tip.

Here's a link to a review. 

After you finish your meal wander across the street and check out Palomas. Great furniture and artistic accessories.

Both establishments are on Locust near the fountain. 

The February 25, 2008 issue of Time Magazine has this article - Ignore the Headlines! by Dan Kadlec

Except this one. Sure housing is in a hole. But, there's a potent case for buying now, whether it's real estate or stock.

It's time to get serious before an inevitable rise in interest rates wipes out your savings.

Risks always seem more acute when the headlines are giving you ulcers. But, that's exactly when you should think long-term and get off your thumbs.

Dan shows how a 10% drop in the price of a home will be negated by a .5% rise in interest rates.

Go buy TIME and read the complete article. It's only one page, but if you're a buyer still on the fence hoping to hit the very bottom, maybe the article will convince you that rock-bottom price does not always save you the most in the long run.

It's a buyer's market in Concord, California these days, but that doesn't mean the buyers are rushing out to buy.

If you're a home seller in Concord, CA., you may want to get out the PeptoBismol before reading this - it isn't the sort of news that sellers welcome, but home buyers have just the opposite taste.

It's no surprise that the Concord real estate market has been hit pretty hard with the recent challenges in the housing industry. The forces at work have help to create an extremely favorable buyer's market in Concord.

Yahoo Real Estate shows 929 properties in some stage of foreclosure.

RealtyTrac shows:

• Pre-Foreclosure Properties = 678
• Auction Properties = 197
• Bank Owned Properties = 523 

The image to the right is from RealtyTrac showing the amount of foreclosure activity in the area between Clayton Road and Concord Blvd. - not a pretty picture.

An independent study by a non-profit organization our of Chicago reported that each foreclosure with 1/8 mile of your property will lower property values by .8% to 1.2%. The pipeline is being overloaded with properties entering foreclosure which is slowing down the process. Good news for homeowners in trouble, bad news for those watching their property value drop.

The major headaches in the Concord real estate market are at the lower price points. Sales of higher priced homes are helping to keep the median home price in Concord from dropping like a rock, but don't let this confuse you - the lower half of the market in Concord is getting hammered.

This week's Market Detais Report for Concord, CA shows how the upper end of the market has been resisting the downward pressure until recently. The bottom half of the market is still falling while the middle is leveling off a bit.

Buyers should consider getting off the fence and getting their ducks in a row. Interest rates are very good, there are many properties to choose from and if you play your cards right (get a good negotiator), you may land the deal of a lifetime.

It's a slow market. We don't expect it to heat much either. Those that need to sell - need to sell. Those that want to sell, but don't need to - should consider pulling their house off the market for maybe 8 to 12 months. High inventory will only serve to support the anemic market conditions in Concord.