Redwood Citizens, don’t forget to vote today, November 3rd! The following info on today’s election also be found on theCounty of San Mateo’s web site:

The Consolidated Municipal, School and Special District Election will be held on Tues., Nov. 3. The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

According to Chief Elections Officer Warren Slocum,”All voters should double-check the location of their polling place before they head out to vote in these important local elections,” All jurisdictions in the county are participating except Daly City and Pacifica as they do not have candidates or measures on the ballot.

Voters can lookup the location of their polling place online at www.shapethefuture.org or by calling the Elections Office at (650) 312-5222. Voters can also view (or print) their Sample Ballot. And for those that vote by mail, the website provides peace of mind through the Track & Confirm feature that gives the voter confirmation that his/her voted mail ballot was received by the Elections Office.

On Election night, Chief Election Officer Warren Slocum will host a celebration for anyone interested in gathering to watch the election night returns as they are reported. Join community leaders, citizens and elected officials and share in an old-fashioned evening of election returns. All are welcome.

The Election Night gathering will be held at the Rotunda at 555 County Center in Redwood City starting at 7:30 p.m.

Election night returns will be issued at 8:05 p.m. and on the half-hour for the rest of the evening until the count is completed. The results will be issued in person and on the Elections website according to the following schedule:
Vote by Mail Ballot Results         8:05 p.m.
All-Mail Ballot Precinct Results    8:30 p.m.
Early Voting Center Results        9:00 p.m.
Live Precinct Results                  9:30 p.m.
Live Precinct Results                10:00 p.m.
Live Precinct Results                10:30 p.m.
Live Precinct Results                11:00 p.m.
Live Precinct Results                11:30 p.m.

Interim reports will be issued until all the precinct votes have been counted.

Courtesy of the Emerald Hills Railway:

Halloween Night Train Rides!
Saturday, Oct. 31st, 5-8:30 pm
FREE
Invite the young and the old, the dead or alive and climb aboard our locomotive to encircle an atmosphere of colorful lights, a black light loading zone, and festive scenes.

Friends, family and neighbors welcome!  All ages can ride!

This event is weather permitting and operates at the discretion of the engineer.

NOTE: On Halloween night, our street will be barricaded at both ends of the block, including Colton Court, to allow foot traffic and strollers only.  Please park legally in the neighborhood.

NEED VOLUNTEERS for set up and running the event:
*We need 4-5 volunteers for set up beginning at 12 noon Saturday.  Set up includes displaying props/décor, arranging the VIP section and setting up the driveway.
*In addition we need 4-5 more volunteers to assist running the event, in 2 shifts: 5-7pm and 6:30-8:30pm (2-3 people per shift).  Duties include chaperoning passengers and assisting/lifting children on and off the train.  Suggest event volunteers to dress festive but not scary.
*Community service certificates available-ask Jay in advance.
All volunteers need to speak english (sorry I’m not bi-lingual) and have a big heart.

Your Hosts and Location:
Jay & George Whitehill
426 Hillcrest Way
Emerald Hills, Ca 94062
jay@amsxs.com
650-369-0733
Directions from Jefferson Ave X California Way
Head north on California Way, RT @ 2nd STOP sign: Sunset Way
First LT@ Eastview Way
First RT @ Hillcrest Way
1/2 block on RT side -you won’t miss the house!

With the first significant storm coming in on Tuesday, I have heard that sandbags are available for pickup for Redwood City residents starting at this past weekend. If you are in a flood-prone area of Redwood City, you can get sandbags in the parking lot of Redwood City’s Public Works Services building, 1400 Broadway (between Chestnut and Woodside). These are for Redwood City residents only, and there is a limit of 24 bags per household.

For residents of unincorporated areas of San Mateo County, the County provides other sandbag pickup locations:

Grant Corporation Yard, 752 Chestnut, Redwood City – (650) 363-4103

Princeton Corporation Yard, 203 Cornell Avenue – (650) 728-7993

Pescadero Corporation Yard, 1000 Pescadero Road – (650) 879-0202

Pescadero High School, 350 Butano Cutoff Road

La Honda Corporation Yard, 59 Entrada Way – (650) 747-0341

Good article in the WSJ about how lenders might actually be checking your credit on closing day, hence advising would-be benefactors of the $8000 first time homebuyer tax credit to NOT buy stuff until after you close.

Here’s some more of the good snippets from the article:

With the deadline on the first-time home buyer tax credit looming, plenty of buyers are under contract and looking to close before Nov. 30.  Excited to move into a new home, some of these first-timers start hitting the stores shopping for new furniture, appliances or curtains.

Big mistake.

Real estate agents are reminding buyers to wait until the close to start buying stuff.  The reason: Lenders are occasionally running credit reports on closing day, and they might not like to see an increase in credit card debt or indications that debt could soon increase.

While such measures have been used over the years, lenders, still dealing with the fallout from the boom’s lax lending standards, are being especially particular these days. Even buyers with great credit scores face scrutiny.

Agents also advise not moving money between accounts, so don’t join two savings accounts, transfer large sums out of savings or add more funding to checking. Emptying out an account could look like money’s being spent, and lenders might request a paper trail for the money flow.  That could delay the closing or, in rare cases, terminate the loan. That wouldn’t necessarily free the buyer from the obligation to buy the home.

Dan Rider, a broker with Dickson Realty in Reno, Nev., says one of his recent closings was delayed by five days when lenders spotted a $500 deposit in a buyer’s checking account. It wasn’t a gift – it was a repaid loan from her mother – but it sparked concerns that the buyer needed help to close the deal. Though the buyer had a healthy checking balance, the lender wanted canceled checks and bank statements and both parties had to write an explanatory letter.

BOTTOM LINE: Stay out of the stores. Don’t move money around more than necessary.

Ok, I only republish these three stories below because the last two transactions I’ve had where B of A was the buyer’s lender have me totally convinced that BofA’s left hand does not even KNOW there is a right hand. Ok, ok, I know that mortgage regulations did need to be more restrictive compared to the free-wheeling days of 2003-2006 — but boy, the pendulum has just swung so far to the other end of the spectrum, it can just make a buyer pull their hair out while continually uttering “WTF?”

Read on:

BofA requires armless man to provide fingerprints to access his cash:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/02/bank-of-america-asks-arml_n_275882.html

BofA forces homeowner to buy flood insurance (when she lives on the crest of a big hill)

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/7_on_your_side&id=6996278

Tales of Short Sale insanity in dealing with BofA

http://agentgenius.com/g-rants-insanity-more/realtors/bank-of-america-retard-division-for-short-sales/

(quick note: I’m just republishing this one, I’m not condoning his metaphor….but do note this, the thesaurus usage of “retard”:  “the process is retarded by bureaucratic red tape delay, slow down, slow up, hold back, hold up, set back, postpone, put back, detain, decelerate; hinder, hamper, obstruct, inhibit, impede, check, restrain, restrict, trammel.”)

In an effort to promote the great local businesses of Redwood City, I have this, courtesy of a handful of friends:

I wanted to recommend a great local business here in RWC that is having a hard time financially and we would hate to see them go out of business.

“The Movie Groove and Grind” DVD/video rental and adjacent cafe is a fun and slightly eccentric location where you can rent great movies and get what I consider the best coffee in town. The business is located on the corner of Jefferson and El Camino Real (across Jefferson from Whole Foods). If you haven’t ever been there, please stop in and check them out – if you have been there, please visit again soon!

Here are a few reasons why:

• they offer personable and very knowledgeable service and can make great movie recommendations when you need one
• Scott, Stephanie, and the staff are great in helping direct your kids to worthwhile movies that are age-suitable
• you can get every movie there, new or old
• their custom, made to order gourmet drip coffees are unique and delicious (my favorite is called “The Mexican”, it’s like a dessert)
• they make the best latte in town
• for the kids, they make organic hot or cold chocolate milk

We would be so sad to see this business close. Please pass this on to others you know in our area. Thanks for your support!

Just got this in, from Malcolm Smith, the Public Communications Manager for Redwood City.

Every day, news headlines confirm what we all know ~ housing matters!  In fact, the quality of life in our community is directly linked to how we address the challenge of providing homes to people who work and grow up here. If you live or work in Redwood City, Threshold 2009 and the City of Redwood City invite you to join a Community Conversation on long-term housing solutions in San Mateo County. This is part of an ongoing campaign to welcome all perspectives to the table and build a public voice for housing solutions. This is an opportunity to increase understanding, exchange perspectives, and express your views on county-wide housing choices.

Registration is open to join one of these free Community Conversations in Redwood City:

• Wednesday, August 5, 9 am – noon
  Veterans Memorial Senior Center, 1455 Madison Avenue.

Register by August 3 at www.conversation5.eventbrite.com

• Tuesday, August 25, 6 – 9 pm
  Fair Oaks Community Center, 2600 Middlefield Road
  Register by August 18 at www.conversation25.eventbrite.com

This is a bilingual session for English and Spanish-speaking participants

• Saturday, August 29, 10 am – 1 pm
  Downtown Redwood City Library, 1044 Middlefield Road
  Register by August 22 at www.conversation29.eventbrite.com

Refreshments will be provided. Seating is limited. To register by phone, call (650) 655-5851. For more information, visitwww.threshold2009.org or email info@threshold2008.org.

Threshold 2009 is a nonprofit, citizen-driven effort to engage the people of San Mateo County in decision making about housing issues. We provide an inclusive forum to build the public voice on housing choices. Learn the results of our 2008 Countywide Assembly and more on our initiative at www.threshold2009.org.

In the last 90 days, a little less than a dozen homes in Mt. Carmel have closed escrow. Looking at how the sale prices compared to original price, the average is that homes are getting 95% of their original asking price.  Of course, remember, this is an average.  The “range” of all those homes is between 83% and 101% of asking price.   Here they are, in no particular order:

• 475 Sapphire: original list: $599K, sold for $605K, 10 days on market
• 566 Avenue del Ora: original list: $599K, sold for $590K, 8 days on market.
• 250 Myrtle St.: original list: $924,900, sold for $882K, 37 days on market
• 277 Topaz: original list: $650K, sold for $610K, 7 days on market
• 37 Fulton: original list: $975K, sold for $950K, 18 days on market
• 587 Ruby: original list: $749,950, sold for $730K, 32 days on market
• 338 Lowell: original list: $850K, sold for $830K, 188 days on market
• 15 Eagle Hill Terrace: original list: $949K, sold for $890K, 70 days on market
• 181 Myrtle St: original list $869K, sold for $835K, 57 days on market
• 366 Iris St: original list: $1,110,000, sold for $975K, 99 days on market
• 40 Inner Circle: original list: $1,199,000, sold for $995K, 189 days on market

So there’s this new law affecting the real estate and mortgage industry, called the HVCC – short for “Home Valuation Code of Conduct”, which went into effect last month, and is the byproduct of a legal settlement between NY attorney general Andrew Cuomo and Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac.

Here’s how it was “supposed” to help: to assure appraisers that they would not be unduly influenced by lenders in the appraisal process.

Here’s where it proverbially, “sucks”: costs rose, and accuracy in appraisals took a nosedive. Moreover, appraisers that are unfamiliar with local markets, inexperienced or both, are using distressed sales – foreclosures and short sales of existing houses – as their comparables

Kenneth Harney from the Washington Post (in my opinion, probably the best columnist covering real estate issues, bar none), wrote a great article recently(full contents here, but I’ll quote some of the highlights below).

How it can affect everyone:

It could directly affect the value of your house – probably negatively – by tens of thousands of dollars

The issue concerns low valuations and the new rules guiding appraisers in both price-depressed and rebounding markets. Consider these snapshots of what’s going on:

• In San Diego, Steve Doyle, division president for Brookfield Homes, is trying to close out the final 20 houses of a 120-unit single-family subdivision. Prices range from $340,000 to $350,000. But recently there’s been a major hitch: Appraisers assigned by banks are coming in with valuations $60,000 or more below Doyle’s selling prices. The appraisers, who Doyle says are unfamiliar with local markets, inexperienced or both, are using distressed sales – foreclosures and short sales of existing houses – as their comparables. Some of the distressed properties are in poor condition, and all of them offer fewer amenities, according to Doyle.
• In Wilmington, N.C., a loan applicant with a house in excellent condition, and an unblemished payment record, sought to refinance into a 4 3/4 percent mortgage. She had purchased the property four years ago for $160,000 and made about $20,000 worth of improvements in the interim. Her loan application, according to Paul Skeens, president of Colonial Mortgage Group of Waldorf, Md., was “a slam dunk. Nothing to it.” The house was worth $180,000 to $200,000, according to one estimate.

But when an appraiser with little local knowledge was sent in by a bank to value the house, he chose two short-sale properties that had both closed in the mid-$140,000 range, and one inheritance sale around $155,000. The last property was “in horrible condition,” said Skeens. “I’d call it dog meat.” The deal-paralyzing appraised value that came in for the cream-puff refi: $149,000.

Complaints about lowballed appraisals – from builders, realty agents, consumers and mortgage companies – have erupted since May 1, when government-sponsored Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac put their new appraisal rules into effect nationwide. Critics charge that the new system is fostering the use of appraisers willing to work for low fees – sometimes 50 percent below previous standards – and who are willing to conduct home appraisals far outside their typical areas of activity.

Under the HVCC, appraisers are now routinely assigned by appraisal management companies rather than being selected by mortgage companies or loan officers. The management companies pocket as much as 40 to 50 percent of the appraisal fee.

Frustration with the new system boiled over and made its way to Capitol Hill late last month. The National Association of Home Builders called for an immediate change in the rules governing the use of foreclosures, short sales and other distress transactions as comparables for appraisals on non-distressed, typical homes, whether new or resale.

Two congressmen – Travis Childers, D-Miss., and Gary Miller, R-Diamond Bar (Los Angeles County) – have introduced legislation calling for an 18-month moratorium on the appraisal code. In identical letters to James Lockhart, the top regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and Cuomo, the National Association of Realtors also requested a moratorium and complained that the code is raising costs to borrowers, distorting property values and killing sales.

Asked for comment, Lockhart said through a spokesperson that his agency is monitoring the situation, and considers “the views of market participants important.”

Bottom line: Be aware of the issue. It affects your equity, even if you’re not buying or selling. And watch to see whether Congress fixes the problem.

(straight from the city’s Public Communications Manager Malcolm Smith)

This year’s 4th of July spectacular, brought to you by the Peninsula Celebration Association, will be another in the long tradition of offering the very best 4th of July event on the peninsula. All the details are at www.parade.org, the home page of the non-profit Peninsula Celebration Association. The Peninsula Celebration Association has been in place for nearly 70 years with a goal of helping to make our city not just a great place to live, but also a real community of people who care.

Visit www.parade.org for the entire schedule of family fun on the 4^th of July in Redwood City.