<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
  <channel>
    <title>Davis CA Real Estate Blog</title>
    <link>http://davishomesblog.com/</link>
    <description>Providing insights into the current activity in the Davis Real Estate market as well as local information about Davis home sales and the Davis community. Your Blog host is Vicki Walker a top producing real estate agent in Davis.


	</description>
    <language>en-us</language>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1504994/as-2010-starts-davis-home-prices-hold-firm</guid>
      <title>As 2010 Starts, Davis Home Prices Hold Firm</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;I'm providing this latest update to show that home prices, as measured by price per square foot, have held firm in Davis over the last three years. The graph below shows the price per square foot of homes sold from January 2007 to January 2010. Notice the prices started 2007 at about $300 per square foot and have remained fairly steady.  Smaller homes will sell for more than this average and larger homes usually sell for less than this price per square foot. If you are wondering what your home might be worth, the $300 per square foot is a general rule of thumb as a starting point.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;Davis Home Prices per Square Ft.&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/7/4/6/2/9/ar126671139292647.JPG&quot; height=&quot;393&quot; alt=&quot;davis home price trend to 2010&quot; width=&quot;729&quot; style=&quot;float: left;&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This next graph show the inventory for sale vs. the number of homes sold over the same three year period. Notice the cyclical nature of the Davis real estate market. Every July the number of homes sold peaks as the school year ends, rental homes become empty, and landlords put them up for sale. Also, in a University town like Davis, students and  employees are moving in and out of town to other colleges and buying or selling their homeas the case may be.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;Sales Trends for Davis 2007 to 2010&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/3/2/9/1/0/ar12667115601923.JPG&quot; height=&quot;402&quot; alt=&quot;Sales Trends Davis&quot; width=&quot;741&quot; style=&quot;float: left;&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt; If you are thinking about selling your home in Davis this year, get ahead of the curve. You can see that homes will be coming on the market in higher numbers by April, so call me today for a free market analysis of your home. I'll review with you my&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/market-home.php&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt; marketing plan for your home&lt;/a&gt;, have you meet with my expert on &quot;staging&quot; your home so it shows well, and give you an accurate assesment of what your home will sell for in todays market.   I hope you are encouraged by the numbers above. Call me today at 530-219-SOLD and let's get started.  - Vicki&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:57:13 -0600</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1504994/as-2010-starts-davis-home-prices-hold-firm</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1488684/davis-home-buyers-are-out-in-force-</guid>
      <title>Davis Home Buyers are out in Force.....</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Saturdays&amp;rsquo; Incredible Open House &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Just as I was setting up my signs for the open house in West Davis last Saturday another strong shower passed right over head.&amp;nbsp; Setting up the signs is by far the least favorite part of any Open House and setting up the signs in wet weather just makes the whole experience that much more fun&amp;hellip; not!&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;Open house in Davis&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/6/7/9/5/3/ar126594678835976.jpg&quot; height=&quot;215&quot; alt=&quot;open house inn Davis&quot; width=&quot;323&quot; style=&quot;float: right;&quot; /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Open Houses can be and are usually a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon.&amp;nbsp; What Realtor doesn&amp;rsquo;t love talking real estate to a new audience.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There are however those Opens that drag on with little or heaven forbid, no visitors.&amp;nbsp; Those Opens when your hoping you&amp;rsquo;ve brought a long a good book to read&amp;nbsp; or spend a few hours scanning your Blackberry for new messages.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If last Saturday&amp;rsquo;s Open House activity was any indication of the Davis market this spring, it should be a great year.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;My Open was absolutely packed; with visitors lined up at the front door waiting a turn to go in.&amp;nbsp; I assumed my traffic cop role, moving potential buyer&amp;rsquo;s up the stairs with one group and into the kitchen with the second to avoid a buyer&amp;rsquo;s jam.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; Almost everyone seemed enthusiastic about the possibility of purchasing.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I think the fact that the tax credit for new and/or move-up buyers is ending soon, combined with very low interest rates and a low inventory of homes for sale in Davis, had everything to do with this incredible turnout&amp;hellip; over twenty five groups of people!&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you are thinking about selling your house this year, don't wait until spring. The buyers are out there now and want to close on a home before the $8,000 tax credit goes away.&amp;nbsp; Call me today!&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:56:24 -0600</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1488684/davis-home-buyers-are-out-in-force-</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1335019/davis-real-estate-market-report-for-q3-2009</guid>
      <title>Davis Real Estate market report for Q3 2009</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The summer real estate season is over in Davis and the students have come back to town to fill up the rental homes and apartments. The number of homes sold in Davis was down in the summer quarter compared to the same period in 2008. &lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt; Why are sales down? One reason might be the change in lending standards that have occurred since the financial &amp;ldquo;meltdown&amp;rdquo; that took place last fall. With tighter credit standards, it&amp;rsquo;s harder to get home loans, so less people are qualifying as prospective buyers. Fewer buyers can mean fewer sales, and usually lower prices. The median price is also affected by the simple fact that entry level homes and first time buyers are moving faster than the rest of the market due to the $8,000 first time buyer tax credit currently in place. So more low end and entry level homes are selling.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt; The numbers below provide the details:&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt; &lt;img class=&quot;floated&quot; src=&quot;http://www.realestatewebmasters.com/blogs/uploads/davis%20q3%281%29.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; style=&quot;width: 396px; height: 257px;&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There is one silver lining. Homes are taking less time to sell. Last year the average days on the market for a listing was 59 days, in 2009 it took 51 days, on average to sell a home.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;If you are interested in selling a home in the Davis area, contact me for a free home value estimate and check out my &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/Tips-for-Home-Sellers.php&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;tips for Davis Home Sellers&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; for some great tips on how to sell your home in a tough real estate market.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;source:&amp;nbsp; Metrolist MLS&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:53:20 -0600</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1335019/davis-real-estate-market-report-for-q3-2009</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1301959/woodland-ca-real-estate-prices-are-a-bargain-in-q3</guid>
      <title>Woodland Ca Real Estate Prices are a Bargain in Q3</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Woodland, California real estate market continues to see the effects of a slow economy and the tight credit markets. Sales of homes in Woodland slowed to just 147 in the 3rd quarter of 2009, while the median price fell to just $215,000.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Here is a snapshot of Q3 for Woodland:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;img title=&quot;woodland home sales q32009&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/6/7/1/1/4/ar12564496841176.jpg&quot; height=&quot;281&quot; alt=&quot;woodland homes sales q3&quot; width=&quot;433&quot; style=&quot;vertical-align: middle;&quot; /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There are buyers out there, but the market seems to be dominated by first time home buyers and investors looking for homes below $200,000 that may cash-flow. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The first time home buyer is being spurred by the $8,000 federal tax credit. Many have expressed an interest of closing quickly in order to take advantage of this offer by the November 30th deadline.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bargain hunters and investors are looking at homes in the $130,000 to $180,000 range and fixer-uppers.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is also taking a little longer to sell a house in 2009 than it did in 2008. But a well priced home can still attract buyers and sell quickly. A friend of mine just put his 3 bedroom north side home, built in the 1950&amp;rsquo;s, on the market for $220,000. It was sold in just 8 days and received multiple offers.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you are a seller in Woodland, get a realistic estimate of your homes worth. Don&amp;rsquo;t try to over price you home in hopes of finding a na&amp;iuml;ve buyer that will pay more than it&amp;rsquo;s worth. They don&amp;rsquo;t exist anymore. It&amp;rsquo;s not 2004, it&amp;rsquo;s 2009 and it&amp;rsquo;s a buyers market. Savvy buyers know a good priced when they see it. They also can spot a home that is overpriced and they stay clear of it. Why should they bother dealing with a seller of an overpriced home in today&amp;rsquo;s market, when there are so many motivated sellers, short sales and bank owned properties to choose from? &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The answer is&amp;hellip;&amp;hellip;. they don&amp;rsquo;t.&amp;nbsp; If your home has been on the market for seven days and it has not been shown to a prospective buyer, it is overpriced. The buyers are out there, but they are focusing on well-priced homes.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you are ready to sell, give me a call. 80% of buyers are using the internet to find their next home. I have the internet presence to bring buyers to you through my websites &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.woodlandhomes2sell.com&quot; title=&quot;woodland ca real estate&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;www.WoodlandHomes2sell.com&lt;/a&gt; and &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com&quot; title=&quot;Davis ca real estate&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;www.DavisHomes2sell.com&lt;/a&gt; . They are top ranked by Google and get thousands of visits each month from buyers all over the world.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:52:19 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1301959/woodland-ca-real-estate-prices-are-a-bargain-in-q3</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1070780/davis-home-prices-hold-up-relatively-well-from-2005-to-2009</guid>
      <title>Davis Home Prices Hold Up Relatively Well  From 2005 to 2009</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The first question local friends and neighbors ask when the subject of real estate comes up is &quot;how much are prices down&quot;?, which is a simple question that can lead to complicated answers.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The answer could be different depending on the type of home you are talking about.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Conventional wisdom says that the high end homes have taken a bigger hit because the volume of buyers at that level has fallen off.&amp;nbsp; Conventional wisdom also says that lower priced homes have held up better because there is still demand at the low end (more so now with first time buyer tax incentives).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There was a headline in the New York Times recently saying that Phoenix is the first major real estate market to make a 50% drop from the market high prices of 2005 to current market values.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;With that in mind, I thought I would review how prices have behaved in the Davis, California real estate market over a similar period to see how we compare.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I took the average sale price per square foot for home in the third quarter of 2005, which seems to be about the top of the market here.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The figures then are broken out according to the size of the home, from small 950 square feet up to home in the 3,000 square feet and above category. The data includes only single family homes, no condos.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;davis home prices 2005 to 2009&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/6/2/9/7/5/ar124201072157926.JPG&quot; height=&quot;399&quot; alt=&quot;davis home prices 2009&quot; width=&quot;469&quot; style=&quot;float: right;&quot; /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Then we look at the same information for homes sold Year to Date through April 20th, 2009, to see how far home prices have fallen, when expressed in price per square foot.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The results show two interesting facts;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;1) Davis has been spared the steep price declines that other markets have suffered. The biggest drop in home prices from 2005 to 2009 is just 21% for the smallest homes, while homes of most other sizes dropped in price in the 14% to 19% range.&amp;nbsp; This is not bad for a a 3 1/2 year price change.&amp;nbsp; There are many factors that contribute to the resilience of real estate prices in Davis, the lack of new home inventory being one of them, as Davis is a &quot;slow growth&quot; town without the sprawl development of other areas (... like Phoenix). I have written previous blog posts about the factors that make Davis a unique real estate market.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;2) There is not a huge disparity between the price drop of large homes vs. the price drop of smaller homes. The common wisdom that higher end home prices were suffering more are not born out by these numbers.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There is one anomaly in the numbers. At the 2,200 to 2,500 square foot range the data shows that prices have dropped just 6%. But only one home&amp;nbsp; showed up in the 2009 data, so that price per square foot number is not necessarily an accurate representation.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Having seen this information, I feel relieved, as I am a Davis homeowner. It also makes me feel for those folks in Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Florida whose markets have not held up as well.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Davis is a vibrant community and a great place to live. As proof, I offer my previous blog about Davis being one of the Five Friendliest Cities in the US and also my &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/Davis-top-ten.php&quot; title=&quot;ten reasons to live in Davis california&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Top Ten Reasons to Live in Davis&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; And now we have reason #11...Davis has a relatively strong real estate market, when compared to other California cities and many markets nationwide.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 10 May 2009 22:00:46 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/1070780/davis-home-prices-hold-up-relatively-well-from-2005-to-2009</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/790896/october-home-sales-for-davis-and-woodland</guid>
      <title>October Home Sales for Davis and Woodland</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The peak selling season has come to an end in Davis. Spring and Summer are the most active months for home sales in Davis for two primary reasons:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;As a University town, most things in Davis tend to revolve around the school year calendar.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;Many times new Professors, employees and staff relocate to town over the Summer. This brings an influx of buyers in the Spring looking to buy homes and close the sale over the Summer so they can move in and get settled before the school year starts.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;As Students vacate rental housing in June, landlords find it a good time to sell rental homes over the summer while they are empty.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p&gt;So sales of homes in October hit the lowest point since February, in regards to the number of units sold. Surely the recent problems with the financial &quot;meltdown&quot; also contributed to the slowdown in sales.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Here's the details on October home sales in Davis vs. the same month in 2007:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;davis homes sales october 2008&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/5/7/2/0/3/ar122671788230275.JPG&quot; height=&quot;369&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; width=&quot;594&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;Sales were flat in October vs. a year ago, but the rest of the figures a not so good.&amp;nbsp; The median price dropped 8% from a year ago. The price per square foot is down from $323 a year ago to just $304 today. The lowering of prices is the only reason the units sold were the same as a year ago. And sellers are getting 96% of their asking price vs. 97.5% of asking price last year.&amp;nbsp; Sellers have had to be more flexible in negotiating, ask lower prices, and still it is taking longer to sell a house now than a year ago.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This is the classic buyers market. One caveat though, with just 19 homes sold, the median price number may be skewed with such a small sampling.&amp;nbsp;It could be that a few more low end homes were sold in October&amp;nbsp;than normal, thus bringing down the median price. Look for more data over time that includes a higher sample to get a&amp;nbsp;more accurate feel for the market.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In Woodland, on the other hand, you see a much more dynamic market. Prices have fallen much more than in Davis, and Woodland has a large number of Bank-Owned and pre-foreclosure homes. Take a look at the data for Woodland in October:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/3/9/8/6/6/ar122671831466893.JPG&quot; height=&quot;369&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; width=&quot;594&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The number of homes sold in Woodland is up 138% from a year ago. While this may look good on the surface, the rest of the numbers tell the whole story.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The median home price has fallen from $355,000 to just $205,000, a whopping 42% in one year. As the number of homes on the market ballooned earlier in the year&amp;nbsp;due to mortgage issues, sellers were cutting prices to get the home sold.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;While it took nearly 6 months to sell a home a year ago, the time has been cut to just over 2 months. With prices falling, some sellers wanted to get their homes sold before the market slid any more and were more aggressive with&amp;nbsp;their asking price. The good news is that aggressive pricing has brought in the buyers and they are paying 98% of the asking price vs. 94% a year ago.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The dynamics of the real estate markets in Davis and Woodland have many more reasons for their fluctuations than I have listed here. I'm just&amp;nbsp;providing some basic highlights for those of you that follow the real estate trends in the area.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;If you have any thoughts about other information you would like to see on a regular basis, just let me know and I will include it in my next post.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Let's see what November brings........&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Fri, 14 Nov 2008 21:21:16 -0600</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/790896/october-home-sales-for-davis-and-woodland</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/771085/davis-ranked-1-for-california-college-towns</guid>
      <title>Davis Ranked #1 for California College Towns</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;A recent blog post by Paul Shigley of the &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.cp-dr.com/node/2158&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;California Planning &amp;amp; Development Report&lt;/a&gt; lists Davis as #1 among true college towns in California. &quot;Davis is the prototypical college town. Downtown Davis, located an easy bike ride from campus, is a lively place...&quot; says the report.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;text-decoration: underline;&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;DOWNTOWN DAVIS&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;downtown Davis, california&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/4/6/7/9/6/ar122568218669764.jpg&quot; height=&quot;292&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; width=&quot;505&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&quot;The open and inviting campus offers plenty for non-students, including recreation, and cultural and sporting events. Plus, practically everyone gets around via bicycle or foot.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Other towns mentioned in the report include Chico, San Luis Obispo, and Berkeley.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I have to agree with Mr. Shigley that Davis is a special place to live, a small town feel with many big city amenities.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;For more details on what makes Davis unique, check out &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/Davis-top-ten.php&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;The Top 10 Reasons to Live in Davis&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;People that buy homes in Davis, do so for a variety of reasons. The most frequent buyers include:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;People relocating to Davis to work at the University or in area Bio, Ag, or Hi Tech businesses.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Parents of students buying homes/condos as housing for their child and/or investment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Investors buying rental homes for students, grad students, or University staff.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;People from throughout the region that are attracted to Davis for it's small town feel, environmental awareness, and exciting opportunites for culture and education.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p&gt;For more details on the housing market, you'll find &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Davis Real Estate&lt;/a&gt; to be a great information source.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 02 Nov 2008 21:42:35 -0600</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/771085/davis-ranked-1-for-california-college-towns</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/735379/davis-a-bicycle-paradise</guid>
      <title>Davis, a Bicycle Paradise</title>
      <description>&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;It's Fall now. The leaves are turning colors and the students have returned to the University of California, Davis. The streets are now full of bikes after the usual summer lull.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;Davis's love of bicycles goes back to the early days of the town, and the City of Davis logo includes a prominent, old fashioned &quot;high-wheeler&quot; bicycle.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;davis city logo&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/2/6/7/3/0/ar122376090103762.GIF&quot; height=&quot;79&quot; alt=&quot;davis city logo&quot; width=&quot;191&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;A large high-wheeler bike sculpture sits prominently in front of Davis City Hall.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;bike davis city hall&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/3/6/2/5/3/ar122376096435263.jpg&quot; height=&quot;261&quot; alt=&quot;davis city hall&quot; width=&quot;196&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;Davis has always been a town with more bikes than cars. With over 100 miles of bike lanes and bike paths integrated into the towns transportation infrastructure, automobile drivers have to remain on the lookout for new students trying to negotiate the bike-ways as they learn their way around town.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;What's the difference between a &quot;bike path&quot; and a &quot;bike lane&quot;?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;You can find the answer on the &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/bicycles.php&quot; title=&quot;davis bike paths&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Bicycle Friendly Davis&lt;/a&gt; page of my main website. You'll also find pictures of bike paths and lanes around town, and a map of the Davis Bike Loop, a popular 12 mile loop that connects many of the neighborhoods in town. The Bike Loop also allows you to see many of the points of interest and access shopping, libraries, and parks without riding on city street or sharing the road with cars.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;With the price of gas at all time highs this year, more and more people are commuting to work on bikes also.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;If you like to ride your bike, for pleasure, exercise, or to school or work, Davis is the place for you.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;Bicycle Riders of the World Unite!!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;...and move to Davis.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:39:37 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/735379/davis-a-bicycle-paradise</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/706191/backing-up-my-claim-that-davis-is-a-unique-market</guid>
      <title>Backing Up My Claim That Davis is a Unique Market</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;In many of my past blog posts, I have mentioned that the Davis market is unique and not always subject to the same market forces as other towns in Yolo County or the greater Sacramento region.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Below are some statistics that prove my point. Below is a study of Average Sale Prices. Two snapshots were taken and compared.&amp;nbsp; Figures were pulled from the Summer of 2005 (almost the top of the market?) and the Summer of 2008 (June, July, and August in both years).&amp;nbsp; The average home sales price for these periods was broken out by Zip Code to see how the decline is home prices effected different areas.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You will notice that Davis fared better than any other area of Yolo County and any other area of the Sacramento Region. If you look back through my previouos posts you will find detailed information about this market that explainis why Davis is not subject to the same downward pressures of other local real estate markets.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This is one of the reasons that Davis, is one the best places to invest your real estate dollar in Northern California.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;Davis home sales stats 2005-2008&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/2/0/6/7/5/ar122222672457602.JPG&quot; height=&quot;516&quot; alt=&quot;davis summer stats 2005-2008&quot; width=&quot;606&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 23 Sep 2008 22:15:43 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/706191/backing-up-my-claim-that-davis-is-a-unique-market</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/688458/davis-home-sales-rebound-in-august-price-per-sq-ft-holding-firm</guid>
      <title>Davis Home Sales Rebound In August, Price Per Sq. Ft Holding Firm</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;2008 has been a year where each month more homes were sold in Davis than the previous month. Then we seemed to top-out in June with 65 single family home sales.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;After dropping to just 36 homes sold in July, with the Average price per square foot falling below $300, sales of single family homes in Davis, California rebounded slightly in August.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The accompanying chart tells the story:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;2008 YTD Davis Home Sales&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/1/2/0/5/4/ar12212628945021.jpg&quot; height=&quot;294&quot; alt=&quot;davis home sales chart&quot; width=&quot;620&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;As you can see, the number of homes sold steadily increased each month to a peak of 65 in June, then fell off to 36 in July. It has now rebounded to 46 in August.&amp;nbsp; Meanwhile, the average price per square foot has remained in the $300 to $335 range all year.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;Compared to other markets around the country, Davis has not seen the drastic decline in home values as other markets (see my previous post below). There is a certain seasonal nature to home sales in the Davis market, due to the University summer break. It presents a natural time for owners of homes used as student rentals to sell while the home is not occupied.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There are currently 112 single family homes and 20 condos listed in the MLS for Davis. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Average days on the market remains at 57, just about where it was a year ago&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;- Vicki Walker&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Fri, 12 Sep 2008 18:25:13 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/688458/davis-home-sales-rebound-in-august-price-per-sq-ft-holding-firm</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/683185/market-risk-index-shows-cities-most-least-likely-to-continue-housing-decline</guid>
      <title>Market Risk Index Shows Cities Most/Least Likely to Continue Housing Decline</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The PMI Mortgage Insurance Co. recently released its &lt;a href=&quot;http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=63356&amp;amp;p=irol-newsArticle&amp;amp;ID=1171100&amp;amp;highlight&quot; title=&quot;PMI risk index article&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Summer 2008 U.S. Market Risk Index&lt;/a&gt;. It ranks 50 cities around the country according to how likely they are to continue to see a decline in the price of housing over the next two years. You can read a summary of the report and the complete list by clicking above.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Real estate investors may find the list helpful by avoiding the markets with the highest risk of price declines and focusing on the bottom of the list, which shows the cities &lt;span style=&quot;text-decoration: underline;&quot;&gt;least likely&lt;/span&gt; to see home prices fall further.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;As you might expect, the areas at the top of the list, with the highest risk, are all in California, Florida, Arizona, and Nevada. These are markets which experienced explosive growth during the last 10 years, with home prices showing huge appreciation, and thus have the farthest to fall.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Here are the top 12 markets and their corresponding risk percentage. NOTE - the percentage number indicates the likelihood of price declines, it has nothing to do with the amount of the decline.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; width=&quot;338&quot; style=&quot;border-collapse: collapse; width: 253pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;col width=&quot;251&quot; style=&quot;width: 188pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;/col&gt; &lt;col width=&quot;23&quot; style=&quot;width: 17pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;/col&gt; &lt;col width=&quot;64&quot; style=&quot;width: 48pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;/col&gt; 
&lt;tbody&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; width=&quot;251&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt; width: 188pt;&quot;&gt;1.   Riverside - San Bernardino, CA&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td width=&quot;23&quot; style=&quot;width: 17pt;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl23&quot; align=&quot;right&quot; width=&quot;64&quot; style=&quot;width: 48pt;&quot;&gt;95.5%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;2.   Fort Lauderdale, FL&amp;nbsp;&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;   &amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;92.2%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;3. West Palm Beach - Boca   Raton, FL&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;91.9%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;4. Orlando - Kissimee,   FL&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;91.1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;5. Las Vegas,   NV&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;91.1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;6. Tampa - St. Petersburg,   FL&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;86.6%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;7. Santa   Ana - Anaheim - Irvine, CA&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;85.8%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;8. Los Angeles - Long Beach,   CA&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;85.7%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;9.   Miami,   FL&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;84.8%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;10.   Sacramento - Roseville,   CA&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;82.2%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;11. Phoenix - Scottsdale,   AZ&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;79.6%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl22&quot; height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;12.   San Diego,   CA&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td class=&quot;xl24&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;78.0%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/tbody&gt;
&lt;/table&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Notice that our very own Sacramento ranks as #10 most risky markets. In regards to the Davis real estate market, as I have talked about in many previous posts, Davis may be just 10 miles from Sacramento but as a real estate market it is worlds away. The dynamics of the Davis real estate market are unique and largely unaffected by Sacramento home prices.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Looking at the other side of the coin, the &quot;safest&quot; markets, with the least likelihood of price declines over the next two years, would be those at the bottom of the list. If you are an investor interested in getting a good rental home with little chance it will go down in value, you might find it among these cities. As you might expect, most of these cities are in the Midwest and Texas.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; width=&quot;338&quot; style=&quot;border-collapse: collapse; width: 253pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;col width=&quot;251&quot; style=&quot;width: 188pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;/col&gt; &lt;col width=&quot;23&quot; style=&quot;width: 17pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;/col&gt; &lt;col width=&quot;64&quot; style=&quot;width: 48pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;/col&gt; 
&lt;tbody&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; width=&quot;251&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt; width: 188pt;&quot;&gt;39. Austin,   TX&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td width=&quot;23&quot; style=&quot;width: 17pt;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td width=&quot;64&quot; style=&quot;width: 48pt;&quot;&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;40. Denver - Aurora,   CO&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;41. Charlotte,   NC&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;42. Kansas City,   MO-KS&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;43. Columbus,   OH&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;44. Cincinnati,   OH&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;45. Indianapolis,   IN&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; colspan=&quot;2&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;46.   San Antonio,   TX&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;47. Houston,   TX&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;48. Pittsburg,   PA&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;49. Dallas,   TX&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;tr height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;
&lt;td height=&quot;17&quot; style=&quot;height: 12.75pt;&quot;&gt;50. Fort Worth,   TX&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;td&gt;&amp;lt;1%&lt;/td&gt;
&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/tbody&gt;
&lt;/table&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Everyone is trying to do the impossible, that is, &quot;time&quot; the weakness in home prices so as to buy at the exact bottom of the market. It's a difficult if not impossible task. Perhaps the real estate investor should focus on opportunities in the less risky markets until things become more steady.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Are you a real estate investor? What markets are looking like good buys to you right now?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;padding-left: 30px;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;padding-left: 90px;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 09 Sep 2008 18:20:39 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/683185/market-risk-index-shows-cities-most-least-likely-to-continue-housing-decline</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/623693/which-realtor-is-best-for-me-</guid>
      <title>Which Realtor is Best for Me?</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Last week there was a good article posted at TheStreet.com entitlted &quot;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thestreet.com/story/10430938/1/how-to-pick-the-best-real-estate-agent-for-you.html&quot; title=&quot;The Street.com Article&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;How To Pick the Best Real Estate Agent for You&lt;/a&gt;&quot;.&amp;nbsp; This article brings&amp;nbsp; up some good points and is well worth the read, so I wanted to share it with my readers.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;In addition to the main points of the article, most of which I agree with, I would like to add a few more things to look for when picking a Davis real estate agent.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt; First, you want a Realtor that is successful, and has enough experience to know what they are doing, but not so successful that you become just another one of dozens of clients they are working with. You want your home to be the Realtors top priority, after all this is your home you are buying (or selling). This is a big deal, maybe the biggest. &quot;Top Producer&quot; should not mean &quot;Too Busy To Give You My Full Attention&quot;.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Make sure the Realtor you choose has an internet presence; 80% of home buyers use the internet as part of the home search. So, if you are a buyer, a web savvy agent will be able to use all the latest technologies to help you find the right house for you. They will also have a website that includes an easy to use home search function that lets you and the Realtor keep up to date with new home listings.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;padding-left: 270px;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;  &lt;img title=&quot;davis home search button&quot; src=&quot;http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/3/8/4/1/1/ar121782195911483.jpg&quot; height=&quot;91&quot; alt=&quot;davis home search button&quot; width=&quot;377&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;padding-left: 60px;&quot;&gt;If you are selling your home, a Realtor with an internet presence is even more important. A Realtors job is to expose your home to as many potential buyers as possible. They should&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/listings.php&quot; title=&quot;featured homes in Davis&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt; feature your home&lt;/a&gt; on their website so that visitors can quicly get the details and find pictures of your home.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;padding-left: 60px;&quot;&gt;In the 21st Century, a Realtor without a web presence just can't do that job. So before deciding on a Realtor to list your house, check out their website. Can you find it on Google and Yahoo easily? If you can't, how is a buyer going to?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Ask Realtors you interview how their site ranks in the search engines and how many visitors their site gets each month. If they don't know the answers to these questions, how effective will they be marketing your home to people using the internet in their home searc&lt;span&gt;h? &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Check with the Realtor, or their Broker, to get references from past clients. My Broker has customers fill out a &quot;Satisfaction Survey&quot; when each home is sold. Ask to see these.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Communication between the Realtor and the client is the key to a smooth transaction. Ask your prospective Realtor how they would normally communicate with a client. How often? In what way? The answers you get will tell you if you and the Realtor have the same expectation.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;Choosing a Realtor can be a challenge. But don't leave the purchase or sale of your home in the hands of someone you recently met at a cocktail party. Take the time to talk to, and find, the right Agent for you.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;Do you have anything to add to the article linked to above? Any thoughts on what makes a good Realtor?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;I'd love to hear your thoughts, just click on the comments section below and add your own.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;-Vicki&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 03 Aug 2008 23:10:09 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/623693/which-realtor-is-best-for-me-</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/615614/davis-june-home-sales-contradict-area-trends</guid>
      <title>Davis June Home Sales Contradict Area Trends</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;According to the June real estate reports from the &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.sacbee.com/142/story/1091499.html&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Sacramento Bee&lt;/a&gt; , Home prices in Sacramento and Yolo County have dropped by 27% to 30% from a year ago, and this price drop has spurred a buying frenzy which has shot homes sales volume up 30% to 60% over the June 2007 activity.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;But the little town of Davis, just 12 miles west of Sacramento and sitting in the heart of Yolo County, is bucking this trend. For Davis, the median price has dropped just 6% from a year ago, and maybe because of that, the volume increase seen in other areas has not hit Davis, with sales for 2008 YTD actually down 33% from the same period in 2007.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There are some circumstances that might contribute to this anomaly, so let's take a moment to talk about them;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The rest of Yolo County (Woodland and West Sacramento) and Sacramento County have been hit harder by the foreclosure mess, while Davis has not had the volume of REO's as a percentage of total home sales.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;West Sacramento and Sacramento County were prime areas for real estate speculation in the earlier part of this decade. Davis escaped much of this, largely due to the fact that the Davis real estate market has always had higher prices than surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp; The majority of the &quot;Flippers&quot;, and &quot;no-money-down&quot; crowd concentrated their efforts in the less expensive suburbs and high growth areas.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Now, those markets are experiencing a higher volume of home sales because many of the sales are forced sales by people caught in the mortgage mess.&amp;nbsp; The need to sell now fuels the drop in prices these markets are seeing.&amp;nbsp; With less speculation in Davis, it resulted in less REO's and so Davis does not have the added volume of homes being sold people that have to &quot;dump this house now&quot;. There is also a lower amount of REO homes in Davis compared to surrounding communities.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;That is not to say that there was not any speculation in Davis real estate or questionable loans made. There were. It was just a much smaller percentage of the overall market.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;So the volume of sales for the first half of 2008 has dropped by a third in Davis, while the rest of the area has had a burst of activity. The other areas have seen the bottom drop out of the home prices (Sacramento County median home price is at a 5 year low) while Davis home prices have held up better.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There seems to be a correlation, if you drop prices by 30%, it results in an increase in sales volume. Sounds like Econ 101, eh?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Check with me next month for more insights into the unique nature of the &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/local-info.php&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Davis real estate&lt;/a&gt; market.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Davis Real Estate market. Feel free to add your comment below.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;- Vicki&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 29 Jul 2008 21:35:18 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/615614/davis-june-home-sales-contradict-area-trends</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/526211/davis-named-one-of-the-top-5-friendliest-cities-in-the-us-on-nbc-s-today-show</guid>
      <title>Davis named one of the &quot;Top 5 Friendliest Cities in the US&quot; on NBC's &quot;Today&quot; show</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;On Tomorrows &quot;Today&quot; show on NBC (Wednesday, May 28th), Davis, California will be featured as one of the five friendliest cities in the United Sates.&amp;nbsp; It was so named in a recent book by NBC contributor Barbara Cook entitled &quot;Nextville: Amazing Places to Live the Rest of Your Life&quot;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Davis has been known as a bicycle friendly town and has received national, and international attention for it's progressive housing developments. In the late 1970's and early 80's, First Lady Rosalynn Carter, Prince Charles and French President Fran&amp;ccedil;ois Mitterrand visited the Village Homes development in west Davis. President Carter later mentioned&amp;nbsp;the environmental strides of Davis in an Oval Office speech.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I review the other unique qualities about Davis in my list &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/Davis-top-ten.php&quot;&gt;The Top Ten Reasons to Live in Davis&lt;/a&gt;. It looks like I might have to add #11 to my list....... &quot;One of the Friendliest Cities in the US&quot;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 27 May 2008 18:42:22 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/526211/davis-named-one-of-the-top-5-friendliest-cities-in-the-us-on-nbc-s-today-show</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://davishomesblog.com/post/513951/market-activity-increases-in-davis</guid>
      <title>Market Activity Increases in Davis</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Real Estate market activity has increaeed in Davis in the past 60 days. My buyer business has exploded and other agents I speak with say that their business is up also.&amp;nbsp; Even the Home Inspection team I usually use tells me his company is fully booked and has been for a few weeks.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The biggest increase in business seems to come from out of town buyers, specifically the parents of students attending the University of California at Davis. Many more parents these days are savvy about the financial advantages of&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/buying.php&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;buying a home in Davis&lt;/a&gt; for their son or daughter to live in while attending college.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Each spring the University has it's annual Picnic Day (one of the &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.davishomes2sell.com/Davis-top-ten.php&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Top Ten Reasons to Live in Davis&lt;/a&gt;). It is a giant open house at the University with festivities and a parade. Students typically invite their parents to town to join them and tour the school. This is often the point at which out of town parents get interested in Davis real estate and a potential investment. One such buyer was a family that had just learned that their son had been accepted to Medical school here, so they know that the home would be owned for at least five more years.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;Many of these parents are from California. In the last couple of weeks I have shown homes to, and sold homes to, parents from San Jose, Mill Valley, and El Monte. They typically want a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home. The plan is to put their son or daughter in the master bedroom and then rent out the other two bedrooms to the students friends.&amp;nbsp; Their child acts as the property manager, and the parents can relax knowing that their rental home investment is being cared for and the tenants are well known.&amp;nbsp; These parents are usually buying in the $350,000 to $425,00 range. Most are looking for a move-in ready home, but there have been a few that are willing to do some fix-up over the summer before the students return in the fall.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;floated alt&quot; src=&quot;http://www.realestatewebmasters.com/blogs/uploads/Image/Vicki%20Pics/loyola%20small%20pic.jpg&quot; height=&quot;134&quot; align=&quot;right&quot; alt=&quot;davis student rental home&quot; width=&quot;220&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;span style=&quot;color: #0000ff;&quot;&gt;A Typical Davis Student Rental Home&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The biggest up tick in business in March and April has been in the $500,000 and under range. We have even seen multiple offers on some homes. If priced aggressively, homes have been getting multiple offers and selling above asking price. The sales increase in March and April will be reflected in the closings done in May.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I am just giving you my anecdotal thoughts on the Davis market. In my next post, I will provide the statistics for sales in April and May, which I'm sure will show that my own experiences are true for the whole market.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Vicki Walker (Coldwell Banker)</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sat, 17 May 2008 13:47:01 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://davishomesblog.com/post/513951/market-activity-increases-in-davis</link>
    </item>
  </channel>
</rss>
