There's a feeding frenzy out there!
Summer is just around the corner! That means that it is a great time to get out and enjoy the weather. While you‘re out soaking up the sun, many others will be out house hunting. The local market seems to be slowly stabilizing and there are some great deals out there. Here is your chance to take advantage of the frenzy. You can have a great buying experience if you keep a few points in mind.

1. Seek a reputable real estate & mortgage professional. It’s usually a good thing to ask around about various Realtors and mortgage professionals before just walking into their place of business. Referrals usually will keep you on the right track. Make sure you are dealing with licensed professionals. Part of the reason that we’re in this mortgage meltdown is because everyone was in the mortgage business and everyone who passed their real estate exam was a Realtor. Where are all of those people now? Stick with the professionals. Like any business, there are a variety of people that can assist you, but doing your homework, will save you from blindly getting into something you weren’t expecting.

2. Get pre-approved. In the past everyone would get pre-qualified. That was good at the time, but today you will have to become pre-approved which will give you a firmer commitment from the mortgage banks. This will enable you to make an offer on a property that has some credibility. Those types of offers are taken more serious by sellers and their listing real estate agents.

3. Understand the real estate and mortgage loan process. Make sure that your Realtor and mortgage professional explain both the real estate process and mortgage loan process, so that you understand that things are very different from how they used to be and with the change comes some uncertainty. Nothing is guaranteed until your transaction is closed and banks can change their terms/conditions as they please.

4. Communication is vital. Ensure that you’re communicating with your Realtor and mortgage professional at least twice a week to keep up to date on any change that might occur while you’re in escrow. 5. Market changes to note: There are no 100% financing options available presently. Most clients will have to come up with at least 10% as a down payment and others may qualify for several government programs out there where the down payment may be less. Come into the game knowing that what your neighbor told you is probably old news and you will be better equipped to make a decision by asking your Realtor and mortgage professional about what it will take to get you into a new home or refinanced today.

Selwyn Jamurath is Branch President with GC Financial Services, 200 Broadway Suite 84 King City, CA 93930, (831) 385-7848 x119, www.selwynassociates.com or sjamurath@sbcglobal.net.

The perpetual growth-or-no-growth question
If you were to survey most South County families about their shopping habits, and they were honest with you, they would say that they stack up their lists of essential needs for those trips to Salinas where they will visit Costco, Target, Walmart – a whole plethora of large and convenient shopping destinations where price and selection can be found under one humongous roof. For regular, every day needs they shop local and deal with the choices or lack thereof, because that comes with living in a smaller country community. Shopping local is a more pleasant experience, honestly speaking. You see people you know, you don’t have to fight for parking, you can relax in the knowledge you know the inventory and where to find it on the shelves. But people like choice and in modern day America we demand it.

Heading out of town
If you drive our local highways on any given weekend or holiday, you will see trains of cars, literally, headed towards the shopping areas of Salinas and Sand City, where the masses will be spending their hard-earned dollars in St. Elsewhere, not to mention donating sales tax for the benefit of those other areas. Most of us in these rural areas have become in the habit of going elsewhere for these larger shopping expeditions or trips to the movie theaters.

Need a pair of shoes? Get in the car. Want to buy a book and the library doesn’t have a book sale going? Buckle up. How about your dry cleaning? What do you do about that? It’s not considered a crime to go to Costco in Salinas or Sand City and spend a few hundred, or even visit the malls, the outlets – all of those places are palatable in most people’s book for the purposes of polite conversation. But, lo and behold, bring the topic of a box store and new shopping center with additional choices for all into your own local community and you will see a lot of people getting very excited.

Growth is inevitable
Competition makes us better at what we do – some people forget that. Years ago when we were in the midst of a housing boom and they were throwing up houses as if there no tomorrow and definitely no lack of people to fill these houses, I recall a comment, that it was all very well to build all the houses, but what about all the stuff you need to go around the houses – the businesses, the shops, the jobs and so on. Those needed to come too, but those things take time and a lot of planning. In the midst of the housing boom, I recall trying to add up all the new real estate related businesses which had opened up almost over night and wondering how the heck our small community would handle all that competition. Selfishly speaking I wasn’t wild about it, but it made me sit up and sharpen my tools. Though many of these shops have now left us, I think I am probably better at what I do today because of it.

Looking back
When I first moved to Soledad nearly seven years ago, we had no shopping center. We had no large grocery or drug store. We certainly had no world renowned coffee shop or video store. Soledad was just a small community of small businesses back then. A lot of the old-timers liked it that way and worked hard to preserve it. People still went to Salinas where they had a choice, sometimes, or just for the heck of it. They would go there to do a big clothing shop, buy a pair of shoes, take their dry cleaning, go out to eat, visit the movies – or very often – combine that trip with a visit to a big box store where everything would be in one place.

People have always done that, and small business continues to survive – they may have to alter the way they do some things or provide an alternate service or two, but they can survive and they can absolutely thrive. With the cost of gas these days and people examining more carefully their shopping and spending habits, staying close to home and spending most of your money at home has to be an important consideration.

More personal
Small business will always provide something just that bit special and different. You will never walk into Superstore America in a large town and have some one say to you, “How are you today, Lucy?” Anything I can help you with? How about real estate? Is the market picking up?” Oh no. In Superstore America, it’s a very impersonal in-and-out experience where no one knows your name, nor cares to. Those experiences are all right once in a while, but not for your everyday. South County is like a “Cheers” experience, where everyone does know your name. The clerk on the photo counter asks about your dad and when is he coming back to visit. The guy in the auto parts store not only knows your name but wants to actually install the window wipers you just bought because he knows you can’t. The guy in the tire shop knows you’re pathetic and can’t check your own tire pressure. He’s happy to do it for you. A big box is not going to go there and we wouldn’t want them to.

Responsible growth
We should not be afraid of responsible growth – it is inevitable. Most fear is bought out of what we don’t know. When you face your fears, simply stated, they no longer exist. Growth brings diversity, challenge and interest to our community. It makes us better at what we do. It will bring new visitors and tourists, even. Look at all the homes we have built over the past few years! Were we afraid of that? No. Did we comment when people said Soledad was a bedroom community for people who could afford to buy here, but still had to go and work and shop elsewhere? No, that didn’t bother us a bit. So why would we be afraid of a little competition? Anyone who shops in our larger grocery store knows what I’m saying! Some days, you can quite easily stand in line with the masses for 45 minutes before you can pay for your goods and get out of there.

We have quite a community of shoppers, trust me. And we can accommodate more. If we have extra shopping, the neighboring communities will come here to shop too – and they won’t just stay in one corner of town, they’ll be all over the place. Look at the downtown in Paso Robles! Paso has some pretty extensive shopping, but it also has an interesting downtown with wine tasting, restaurants, antiques. They recognize in Paso, that their downtown is still their heart of town and they work hard to keep it that way. Their downtown is a destination quite apart from any other place. I encourage people to go there and check it out.

Room for more
There’s always a lot of rumor and innuendo going on anytime things look set to change. I clearly recall the fear I felt when yet another real estate shop opened up on the corner way back when. But I honestly feel that there is room for more people and more business in our local area. With more business comes more jobs and that has to be a good thing. With more business comes more money, more tourists, more residents and that is how the world goes round – the hand that feeds the hand. There’s plenty for all, I truly believe that. Yet again, the sign is not lying – it really is happening in Soledad and we are all witnesses to her interesting evolution. Even with a little development, Soledad will still be the country queen of South County, the jewel in the crown, in my estimation. She’ll also be better situated to accommodate the many residents who’d love to keep more of their tax dollars here locally, plus a retail and entertainment destination for all the small towns around her.

If you have any questions about this, please feel free to contact me anytime at (831) 229-0663. I am a full-time local Realtor and I’d be happy to chat with you. Lumajen1@aol.com.