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Archive for April, 2010
Benicia Open Studios This Weekend
April 30th, 2010 categories: Benicia, Fun Stuff, Market Update
A big part of Benicia’s charm has always been its thriving art community. And once a year, on the first weekend in May, many of these local artists open their studios to the general public.
Open Studios takes place this Saturday and Sunday, May 1 & 2 throughout Benicia. The event is sponsored by Arts Benicia, a non-profit organization that helps promote and further the arts in town.
This year, over 60 Benicia artists plan to participate and open their studios to the public. Read the rest of this entry »
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Spring FINALLY Arrived In Benicia Today
April 29th, 2010 categories: Benicia, Fun Stuff, Local Stuff
In my book, Spring doesn’t really officially begin in Benicia until the Farmer’s Market opens. So that means today was the first day of Spring, at least here in Benicia that is.
And it wouldn’t be opening day of the Benicia’s Farmer’s Market without a few April showers.
So right on cue, about 10 minutes before the market was scheduled to open for the season, the skies suddenly darkened and rain started to fall.
Fortunately, though, it was just a brief shower and by the time I got down there around 4:30, there were just scattered clouds.
For me, opening day at the Farmer’s Market is always a special day. Read the rest of this entry »
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Solano Home Buyers Get 2-Month Extension On 3.5% Fannie Mae Closing Cost Credit
April 28th, 2010 categories: Benicia, Buying, Fairfield-Gr Valley, Foreclosures / Short Sales, Solano, Suisun City, Vacaville
Non-Investors Who Buy A Fannie Mae Repo Can Still Get The Credit If They Close By June 30
In what amounts to an unexpected gift to buyers of Fannie Mae bank-owned homes in Solano County, the secondary mortgage market giant just announced that its 3.5% closing cost credit incentive program, which was scheduled to end Apr. 30, has been extended to June 30.
So if you buy one of the 96 Fannie Mae-owned homes in Solano County that are either presently for sale or about to come on the market and can close escrow in the next two months, you could be eligible for up to 3.5% in credits at close of escrow.
Of the 96 homes for sale in Solano, 89 are Read the rest of this entry »
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Solano Pending Home Sales Up, Inventory Down As Tax Credit Draws To A Close
April 28th, 2010 categories: Benicia, Buying, Fairfield-Gr Valley, Market Update, Solano, Suisun City, Vacaville
Whether it’s due to the impending federal tax credit deadline or just the normal spring real estate market surge, home sale activity has definitely picked up in recent weeks in Solano County, which in turn 
has caused the supply of homes for sale to drop.
This past week marks the first time all year that all five cities in our Solano County market area have seen their inventory of homes decline in the same week.
Vallejo (-20) and Fairfield (-24) both experienced double-digit drops in their housing supply, while the other three cities saw a nominal decrease (Benicia & Fairfield -4 and Suisun -2).
Yet, even that is a significant change from Read the rest of this entry »
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Watch My Benicia Vegetable Garden Grow: Week 1 Update
April 25th, 2010 categories: Benicia, Fun Stuff
Last week I wrote a post about my newly planted home garden here in Benicia. I’ll be posting weekly updates for those who like to live vicariously and want to watch my garden grow.
For the record, I’ve planted 10 varieties of tomatoes, three kind of bell peppers (2 plants each), green onions, pickling cucumbers, green beans, chioggia beets, and strawberries. And the following herbs: tarragon, sage, oregano, thyme, cilantro, dill, mint, basil and Italian parsley.
Some of the tomato plants have already grown about 4-6 inches, so I figured I’d better get the tomato cages in place before they get too big. All the plants seem to have made it through transplanting — no casualties so far!
Here are some more photos at the end of Week One. Read the rest of this entry »
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Beautiful Day, Beautiful Cars In Benicia
April 25th, 2010 categories: Benicia, Fun Stuff, Local Stuff
Benicia’s annual Classic Car Show was held today on the First Street Green and at the foot of First St. It was a picture-perfect spring day.
The sunny skies, 70 degree weather and scenic Carquinez strait provided the perfect backdrop for the hundreds of classic automobiles that descended on our town today.
There were plenty of classic Fords, Chevys, Pontiacs, and even a few Studebakers. Roadsters, muscle cars and old jalopies — they were all there, glistening in bright Benicia sunshine.
If you missed today’s show, which benefited the Benicia High Band, enjoy the photos below.
Read the rest of this entry »
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Get Your Bags Ready — Benicia Farmer’s Market Season Opener This Thursday!
April 25th, 2010 categories: Benicia, Local Stuff
One of the true rites of spring in Benicia is opening day of the Farmer’s Market. It’s a vivid reminder that summer is just around the corner.
And opening day is just a few days away. The season begins this Thursday (Apr. 29).
Over the years, the Benicia Farmer’s Market has become a wonderfully popular Thursday night gathering place.
It wasn’t too many years ago, that you could usually find a parking place within a block of the market.
In recent years, however, that’s all changed. Now you have to get there early or be prepared to walk a few extra blocks. But nobody’s complaining! Read the rest of this entry »
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Even Without Uncle Sam’s Help, Mortgage Rates Still Holding Steady
April 23rd, 2010 categories: Loans / Financing
If you checked out the Freddie Mac Weekly Mortgage Survey box on the left sidebar of our web site late yesterday, you’ll see that interest rates remain virtually unchanged from last week’s survey — which is a very good sign.
It’s now been three weeks since the federal government stopped buying mortgage-backed securities. And despite a prevailing consensus that rates would go up perhaps a half-percentage point shortly after Uncle Sam stopped propping up the mortgage market, so far so good.
As you’ll recall, the first week after the government got out of the mortgage-buying business was a little iffy, as rates immediately jumped 1/8%. But then last week, they dropped back down by almost that same amount to an average nationally of 5.07% with 0.6 points.
And, as you can see in the box on the left side of our website, this week’s rate is essentially a carbon copy of last week: 5.07% with a 0.7 point for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage. Read the rest of this entry »
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Just 8 More Days Before The Federal Tax Credit Clock Strikes Midnight
April 23rd, 2010 categories: Buying
The federal tax credit program has been around so long that it’s almost hard to remember when first-time buyers didn’t have Uncle Sam’s handout waiting for them the moment escrow closed.
Yet, in just 8 days, the first-time and move-up buyer federal tax credits will fade into the sunset.
If you’re a prospective buyer who’s eligible for the credit, keep in mind that you don’t have to close escrow by next Friday in order to be eligible for the $8,000 or $6,500 credit.
You only have to be in contract by April 30. As long as you have a binding contract by 11:59 pm on the 30th, you can close escrow all the way up until the end of June and still claim your share. Read the rest of this entry »
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How Long Before You Can Buy Again After A Short Sale? Fannie Changes Its Policy
April 21st, 2010 categories: Foreclosures / Short Sales
Several years ago, just as the economic meltdown was gaining momentum, Fannie Mae announced that it would look much more kindly on underwater homeowners who took steps to avoid foreclosure when it came time to buy again.
At the time, it proclaimed that those who sold their homes in preforeclosure sales would be eligible to obtain a new loan from Fannie in just two years, which was a far cry from the 7 year wait if they just walked away and let it go to foreclosure.
One thing that policy didn’t do, however, was specifically mention short sales. It simply said “preforeclosure sales.”
Most industry folks assumed that short sales (where the lender agrees to a reduced loan payoff so you can sell your home for its present value) fell under the “preforeclosure sale” umbrella.
However, Fannie never really clarified that. Until now. Read the rest of this entry »
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