Chico Fire June 11, 2008.
June 11th, 2008 categories: California Park Neighborhood, Chico CA Real Estate News
On a normal day, I will always choose to work at home, rather than at my office. I just get more done that way.
Serene though it may seem, I only use my office when I have to meet clients. There’s just too much going on to get anything done! In addition to my own phone ringing off the hook, there are several other lines jangling along with the fax machine. The front door is constantly beeping from people coming and going, and someone always wants to come in, sit down, and chat. (Love it… I just have work to do!) Alternatively, when no one else is in the office, I find myself gazing out at the lake instead of tackling my to-do list.
Today the distractions were so unbelievable I couldn’t wait to run home. Work was all but abandoned as I sat at my desk with my jaw dropped. My reasons for wanting to get home, however, were not for the petty reason of wanting to get more work done. Phone calls, faxes, files and foreclosures suddenly became the least important thing in the world.
I wanted to get home to hold my family close, and ensure their safety.
Fire season hit the greater Chico area hard today.
The noise from the winds, sirens, and aircraft was unreal in the California Park neighborhood. The helicopters were using the reserves from the lakes to help squelch the rapidly progressing “Humboldt Fire.” Needless to say, I was not battling the normal distractions today. Because my office sits just feet from the lake, I had a front row view of the incredible job the pilots were performing.
The following photos were taken from my desk. To give you an idea of how close the helicopter was… my zoom lens is only 105mm! (Not very good!) The pilots swooped in on the left side of the building, dunked the bucket, and turned around to leave on the right side of the building.
As of this writing, the Humboldt Fire is said to have burned about 3500 acres since 12:00 today, and forced 1000 people to evacuate their homes. The fire began somewhere between Hwy 32 and East 20th, and is now being battled near Neal Road and Skyway in lower Paradise, CA. Click for a map of the fire, burned area, and evacuated areas.
Governor Schwartzenegger has declared a state of emergency for Butte County.
View the most up-to-the-minute news on the Chico Enterprise Record site.
My prayers and thanks go out to the many men and women out fighting the fire for the sake of the Chico and Paradise communities. I have only the highest regard for the unbelievably difficult and treacherous job they face. After watching them in action today, I have a whole new appreciation for the reality of their “work day.”
Likewise, my heart goes out to the families that have been forced from their homes.
At the end of a day like this, we are reminded of the things that are really important.
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
Invest in Chico Real Estate. Buy a foreclosure property!
June 10th, 2008 categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
| Discussion: Comments Off on Invest in Chico Real Estate. Buy a foreclosure property!
Buy a foreclosure property in Chico CA!
June 9th, 2008 categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
| Discussion: Comments Off on Buy a foreclosure property in Chico CA!
Chico CA Foreclosure Properties
June 6th, 2008 categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
| Discussion: Comments Off on Chico CA Foreclosure Properties
Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
June 4th, 2008 categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
| Discussion: Comments Off on Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
Chico Homes Foreclosure Listings Coming Soon!
May 29th, 2008 categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
Foreclosure Listings in Chico CA
May 26th, 2008 categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
Chico CA Real Estate: On the Sunny Side!
May 24th, 2008 categories: Chico CA Real Estate News
by Mike Wiegert
Last week at the National Association of Realtors (NAR) Midyear Legislative Meetings and Trade Expo, chief economist Lawrence Yun stated that home sales and prices throughout most of the country are poised for improvement in the second half of 2008 and that recovery will vary by market. Yun went on to blame the softening of the housing market last year on the “subprime mess”. Unqualified borrowers with scanty credit were given access to subprime financing with little or no equities. As these adjustable rate loans are being reset, borrowers find themselves unable to make the adjusted payments on the loans and subsequent foreclosures result. “In fact, if you look at where home prices fell the most, it’s the markets where subprime loans were prevalent,” Yun said. Cities with a high percentage of subprime lending are where the markets suffered the biggest downturns, he explained.
With these foreclosure sales thrown into the mix or data used to determine comparable sales in the market, the apparent market value of homes is pushed downward. An interesting twist to that situation is we’re now starting to see Chico homebuyers and investors competing for foreclosed homes. As a result, a sharp decrease in the margin between asking price and actual sales price is becoming evident.
Mmmm… let’s do the math: increased demand for foreclosure sales + increasing sales prices on foreclosure sales + market stabilization in the non-foreclosure market = market prices beginning to rise.
Is this all poppycock? Not at all! Many areas around the country are recently posting modest increases in sales prices. These areas include many portions of New York State, North Carolina, Washington State, Oregon, Wyoming and Utah. In fact, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) from January 2008 and February 2008 (month over month reports) overall U.S. prices were up 0.6 percent and 77 percent of the Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the U.S. reported price increases. Several markets that have seen price declines of 20 percent or so are turning around, Yun said, pointing to San Diego, Detroit and Fort Myers, Fla. Yun continued by forecasting that many mid-America cities such as Cincinnati, Milwaukee and Kansas City, MO are likely to experience home price gains in the 20 to 30 percent range over the next five years. Active markets like Miami, Las Vegas and Phoenix could go up as much as 50 percent in that time period.
Although the negative news-bearers continue to report what seems to be the overdone and worn-out stories of declining prices, there definitely appears to be a new day dawning.
| Discussion: Comments Off on Chico CA Real Estate: On the Sunny Side!
Chico CA Foreclosure Listings!
May 23rd, 2008 categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
| Discussion: Comments Off on Chico CA Foreclosure Listings!
Chico Homes Foreclosure Listings
May 20th, 2008 categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings, Chico CA Real Estate News
| Discussion: Comments Off on Chico Homes Foreclosure Listings
