Archive for the 'Garden Valley Real Estate' Category
Garden Valley Leads Economic Recovery
January 27th, 2009 Categories: Garden Valley Business Scene, Garden Valley Buyers, Garden Valley Living, Garden Valley Real Estate
Sound Ridiculous? Maybe Not!
As if Rip Van Winkle were in charge of the Garden Valley real estate market, prospective buyers have been out cold since September.
That’s all changed in the last month. Agents are busy showing properties, scheduling upcoming visitors and BELIEVE IT OR NOT, writing offers.
It’s true that some shoppers are looking at only distressed properties. That is not the case across the board. Fortunately, Garden Valley has relatively few homes headed for the auction block.
What’s waking everyone up?
- Maybe folks are just tired of having their lives on hold waiting for the national news to change.
- Maybe it’s fallen interest rates that seem to be back on the rise.
- Maybe it’s the fact that buyers have rarely had so much buying power, options and selection.
Or, could it be
- The near completion of the new Garden Valley school.
- The passage of the new Library bond.
- The completion of the bike path from the school to the community park.
- The expansion of a community church.
- The upcoming new facility for the Family Medical Practice.
Garden Valley residents are awake to the idea that the future is bright in our community. Maybe buyers are starting to see it, too!
Rise and Shine! There’s no inversion here! Garden Valley’s future is as bright as a sunny afternoon.
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Holiday Bazaar In Garden Valley
November 18th, 2008 Categories: City of Crouch, Garden Valley Business Scene, Garden Valley Events, Garden Valley Living, Garden Valley Real Estate
Garden Valley Annual Holiday Bazaar
The Garden Valley Chamber of Commerce Presents the Annual Holiday Bazaar. Held at the Crouch Community Hall, the Holiday Bazaar is not only a great opportunity to start on your Christmas shopping, but a time to kick in the Christmas spirit with friends and neighbors.
Local artisans will be offering their many talented products including, hand knitted items, carvings, quilts, jewelry, paintings, photographs and yummy baked goods, jams, jellys and cakes.
Don’t miss the good cheer, fun and shopping opportunities.
See you Saturday November 29th from 10:00 - 4:00
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Don’t Delay. 12 Easy Winterizing Tips!
October 23rd, 2008 Categories: Garden Valley Living, Garden Valley Real Estate
The temperatures are definitely dropping and the snow is not far behind ( I hope).
Follow these Home Winterizing Tips.
- Everything and anything that is sitting outside must be stored away. Otherwise, make a map of it’s location in case you need to dig it out from under the snow.
- Disconnect hoses from all hose bibs and bury hydrants.
- Blow out sprinklers
- Stack a weeks worth of firewood in close proximity to the house. Keep the bulk of your firewood away from the siding and out from under overhangs of your home. Stacked wood can attract insects and rodents.
- Clean your chimney
- Ask Marsha, at the Trading Post, when she expects her next order of grain scoops.
They are the best shovels for our snow type. Buy one now before the rush. - Mount snow removal attachments on trucks and tractors or contract with a local snow removal service.
- Reverse ceiling fans. They should rotate clockwise for winter.
- Close foundation vents
- Insulate any pipes that may be exposed or that are running through unheated spaces in the house.
- Check batteries in smoke detectors.
- Prune away any tree branches or shrubs that will get in the way of shoveling.
Bonus Tip!
Get out the snow shoes and the sunscreen!
Enjoy the beautiful garden valley winter.
See more on Winter Survival at the University of Idaho Extension Service
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Stimulus Package Summary
October 4th, 2008 Categories: Garden Valley Real Estate
This Summary is a reprinted message from the National Association of Realtors
The Bill Will Help Homeowners and Borrowers
The Senate legislation responded to the criticisms that lenders have been slow and/or unwilling to work with homeowners and borrowers. It encouraged negotiation in short sales and consumer efforts to refinance or reconfigure existing mortgages:
- When the Treasury (or other federal agency that holds mortgages) acquires troubled existing mortgages from financial institutions, agencies are required to work with lenders and mortgage servicers to find ways to avoid foreclosures.
- All federal agencies are required to work with servicers to facilitate loan modifications that will consider the net present value of the mortgage.
- Similar refinancing and foreclosure prevention requirements apply to mortgages involving owners of multi-family properties and owners of commercial properties. Policy goal is to assure that tenants don’t lose their residence or their place of business when an owner has problems with the mortgage.
- Changes to existing mortgages can include (but are not limited to) revisions in principal, interest rate and period for repayment.
The Senate added an extensive package of extensions of expired and expiring provisions that had passed previously on a vote of 93 - 2. Extended provisions include the 15-year life on leasehold improvements, brownfields clean-up deductions, deductions for mortgage insurance premiums and relief from the Alternative Minimum Tax.
The Bill Will Get Money into the Financial System Quickly
The credit markets are nearly frozen. Lenders can’t lend because they are receiving no payments on existing loans. The legislation allowed the government to buy troubled loans and mortgage securities. The funds that the institutions received when the government purchased the existing portfolios were to be available to issue new mortgages with more carefully specified and monitored lending standards. Provisions include:
- Create a Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to purchase and guarantee the troubled assets from the financial institutions that hold mortgages and/or mortgage-backed securities.
- A new Office of Financial Stability within the Treasury to operate TARP, with input from the Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC - the agency that works with failed and failing financial institutions to insure and protect consumers), the Comptroller of the Currency (bank regulator), Office of Thrift Supervision (regulator of former savings and loan companies) and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
- Don’t give out all the money at one time. First release of funds to purchase troubled assets will be $250 Billion. Second release of up to $100 Billion must be authorized by the President. Final $350 Billion can be issued only on Congressional approval. Congress given 15 days to act.
Follow, Protect and Watch Over the Money
Congress will keep a tight rein on TARP. Congress will have the assistance of numerous agencies charged with specific tasks and reporting responsibilities:
- TARP Oversight Board at Treasury — monthly activity reports to Congress.
- Secretary of Treasury — detailed reports to Congress for each $50 Billion in transactions.
- Government Accountability Office (Congress’s auditor) — financial reports about TARP activities every 60 days.
- Judicial Review — Federal courts may issue injunctions when there is a finding that the Secretary of the Treasury has acted in a manner that is arbitrary, capricious or outside the law.
- Create a new Inspector General (IG) for TARP. An IG might be viewed as the “cop on duty” who has authority to investigate TARP’s activities. IG will make quarterly reports to Congress.
- Appoint a Congressional Oversight Panel - receive and process all these reports to keep Congress apprised of the state of financial markets, activities of the regulatory system and the use of TARP’s asset acquisition and disposition authority.
- Federal Reserve — provide reports to Congress on utilization of the lending authority created earlier this year. That authority was intended to assist ailing financial institutions.
Congress wanted to curtail “bad acts” of executives who gambled and lost.
- Assure that skilled asset managers who buy and sell TARP assets have no conflicts of interest with prior employers or firms.
- No golden parachute or severance payments to executives of companies that sell assets to TARP. An executive who receives a parachute payment will be required to pay a 20% excise tax on it.
- No tax deductions allowed for any executive’s compensation of more than $500,000.
- All financial regulatory agencies are required to cooperate with the FBI in its investigations of fraud, misrepresentation or malfeasance in the selling or advertising of financial products.
Give the Taxpayers a Stake in the Profits
Historically, when the government has intervened to shore up a company’s or government’s financial dealings (such as the loan guarantees made to Chrysler and the aid given to New York City during a fiscal crisis), the long-term effect has been that the government has made money back on the deal. The legislation provided an “upside” benefit for taxpayers:
- Any profits generated when the government subsequently sells TARP assets would be used to pay down the national debt.
- The government will receive warrants in the companies that participate in TARP. The warrants are similar to stock, but do not grant any voting authority to the government. If the participating company pays dividends at some future time, the warrants would allow the government to receive the dividend. Similarly, if the government sells its stake in the company, the warrants would entitle the government to any appreciation.
Increase the amount of federal insurance on bank accounts from $100,000 to $250,000. This will be particularly helpful to smaller and local banks and small businesses.
If, after five years from the date of enactment (the date the President signs a bill), the program has lost money, the sitting President will be required to present a plan to Congress for ways to recover the funds from the financial institutions that benefited from the TARP relief.
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The Softer Side of Garden Valley
October 1st, 2008 Categories: City of Crouch, Garden Valley Business Scene, Garden Valley Events, Garden Valley Living, Garden Valley Real Estate
5th Annual Fiber Fabric Faire
Come to the Community Hall, in Crouch, on Saturday October 4th from 10:00 - 4:00. It’s the annual Fiber and Fabric Faire. Each year the Garden Valley Quilters sponsor this fun event. Here you’ll find, not only some great quilters, but knitters, weavers, spinners and fiber artists of all kinds.
Whether you want to learn about a fiber art, find a warm and fuzzy gift for someone special, watch a craft demonstration, or take a chance to win a hand made quilt, this is an event for you.
I look forward to the Fiber and Fabric Faire each year. The handmade items are truly works of art. The textures, colors and patterns are beautiful and unique. Last year I met several women who raise alpaca, spin the wool and knit the garments. It was great to learn about this homespun, traditional craft.
Aside from treating myself, visiting with neighbors and friends and finding some great gifts, I had a wonderful time.
Don’t forget that, by attending the Faire, you are also contributing to the community. Part of the raffle proceeds go the the Crouch Ambulance fund.
Hope to see you there.
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“Build A Lot” in Garden Valley
September 27th, 2008 Categories: "Build A Lot", Garden Valley Buyers, Garden Valley Real Estate
A House Is Not A Home…..
Until the front door is painted. Welcome to”Build A Lot” Home Sweet Home.
The siding is now on and painted. The front door looks fun and inviting. The walls are textured and painted. Shelving is starting to go up in the closets and the trim work is taking shape.
Although the daytime weather is warm and sunny, there is a nip in the evening air. Winter will surely be here before we know it. But these “Build A Lot” folks aren’t worried. They will be moving into their brand new, cozy, beautiful home, enjoying their 360 degree view, well before the first snow shovel is sold at Marsha’s Trading Post.
Visit me next week as “Build A Lot” follows the construction of a home in Garden Valley, a new way of life for one happy family.
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Oktoberfest in Garden Valley
September 25th, 2008 Categories: Garden Valley Events, Garden Valley Living, Garden Valley Real Estate, Southfork Landing
Saturday, September 27
Visit Garden Valley Idaho
What better time to visit Garden Valley, Idaho than winter, spring, summer and especially fall. The air is cool and crisp, the leaves are turning and their is lots of fun planned for this weekend.
The Garden Valley Parade of Homes will feature open houses on over 20 homes, available for sale in the area. Just stop by the Garden Valley Properties office to pick up a parade route map. There is no charge for the parade. You can visit area homes at your leisure from 10:00 - 4:00.
Southfork Landing plans a fun day with an Oktoberfest. There will be live music, a kids carnival, beer keg races, beer sampling and a dutch oven cooking competition. Visit the Southfork Landing web site for more details.
While in town, take notice that the new K - 12 School is well under way. The ground breaking for the new grocery store was two weeks ago and the dirt is moving. Notice the new businesses and new homes under construction.
It’s true! I’m biased. I don’t think there could be a better place to call home. See you Saturday.
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“Build A Lot” Taking Shape
September 13th, 2008 Categories: "Build A Lot", Garden Valley Buyers, Garden Valley Real Estate
Rooms Come Together as Sheet Rock Goes Up
Garden Valley “Build A Lot” home is really taking shape. The insulation is in and the sheet rock is installed. I stopped by to watch the sheetrockers at work. These guys were really moving. I don’t know how long it took them to do the job. I’ll bet it was less than two days.
It’s so much fun to see the rooms start to take shape. The floor plan is very charming and inviting, while still offering great functionality.
The siding is on site and has started going up.
WOW! I’m impressed.
The foundation for the second “Build A Lot” home is completed. This one took a little
longer to get started due to the slope of the lot. This is going to be a wonderful location. Check out the pictures from this site. Truly, you do not have to pay a million dollars to get a million dollar view in Garden Valley.
Expect the lumber to show up, and framing to get started, on this one next week.
Get your “Build A Lot” site now. Remember, “He who hesitates is lost”. Interest rates are down to their lowest rates in months. Land sellers are motivated. The media, rather than being all gloom and doom, is now adding a mix of good news to their reporting. Does this mean we are at the bottom? I think we’ll start to see things pick up soon, especially in Garden Valley. The weather is cooling. The leaves are turning. It’s a beautiful time to visit Garden Valley.
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Central District Health Rate Hike for Garden Valley
September 6th, 2008 Categories: Garden Valley Buyers, Garden Valley Real Estate, Garden Valley Sellers
Septic System Applications Get More Precious
On Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008, the Central District Health Department raised septic permit application fees to $582.00. Fees to renew existing permits or transfer existing permits to another name are now $95.00
According to Tyler Fortunati, fees in our area are still well below those charged for the same services in other parts of the state. He predicts that fees will continue to rise annually.
Tyler also predicts that future renewal policies may change. The current policy allows septic permit holders to renew their permits, annually, until the septic system is installed and final inspection is completed. There is no limit to the number of times a permit holder can renew. The Department is considering limiting the number of allowed renewals. Tyler says the policy change is under discussion, at the Department. He could not say when a policy change might take place.
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“Built A Lot” In Garden Valley
September 6th, 2008 Categories: "Build A Lot", Garden Valley Buyers, Garden Valley Real Estate
“Build A Lot” Passes the Test
Progress continues at a steady clip on the “Build A Lot” home in Garden Valley. Rough-in inspection have all been completed and passed, including electrical, plumbing, HVAC and framing.
The builder, CW Construction, says the plan for the coming week is to complete the insulation. Watch for sheet rock to go up either the end of next week or the first of the following week.
Want to build your home in the mountains? We have a variety of lot and house plan combinations that can be completed for $200,000. Some packages include half acre plus lots with 3 bedroom, 2 bath homes, including garage.
Click her to contact me for more 
information.
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