Closet door, about 5′ high, found during Broker’s Tour in Rockridge.  Great style!

I went to register my daughter for kindergarten and while looking through the AUSD website I saw that the Albany Swim Center is finished, staffed, and ready for happy swimmers!  February 15th will be the swim center’s grand opening, with the Albany High Swim Team and Aquatic Center staff geared up for the first dip.  After that it will be open for the general public.

The new swim center includes an indoor and outdoor pool and will offer group and private swim lessons, open swim, lap swim, exercise classes.

Click here to scroll through the photo gallery from the Albany Patch: http://albany.patch.com/articles/photo-gallery-albany-pool-construction-updates#photo-8979463

Regardless of who was at fault, this intersection is a dangerous one.  I should know, it is in my neighborhood and I cross at this crosswalk almost daily.  In the past six months I alone have caused 2 minor fender benders, all because someone stopped, but the car behind them did not stop in time.  This intersection is located on two blind curves, and at night it is nearly impossible to see who is crossing the street.

Tonight a vigil was held.  For a few hours, the southeast corner of this intersection was lit with candles, flashlights, and tears.  There had to be close to 75 people there by 8:30, most of them friends.  Despite the lights and the large number of people, many cars did not slow down or stop for pedestrians crossing the street.  I don’t think this was intentional, I just don’t think they were visible to the drivers.

Some have mentioned the need for more police handing out traffic tickets.  Others have mentioned it is a non-issue since it is not listed as one of Berkeley’s dangerous intersection and there are others that are worse.  Are you kidding?  A kid was killed and something needs to happen!  More lighting, flashing pedestrian lights…something!  My husband and I spoke to the Berkeley Police about this intersection last September and they said “Bring it up with the City Council.”  Seriously?

Do you know the dark spots in your neighborhood?  Do you know alternate routes to use when driving?  When crossing the street?  Do you use a flashlight or clothing with reflectors at night?  A life was taken much to early this week and I can guarantee that in my family, helmets will always be worn and flashlights will be used at night.  Life is much to precious not to.

Gong Hay Fat Choy!  The Fourth Street shopping district will be having a Chinese New Year celebration this Saturday, February 4th, from 12-4.  Participating merchants will be handing out candy for the kids, and there will be martial arts demonstrations and dances throughout the afternoon.  For a schedule of events click here: http://www.fourthstreet.com/loft26.html

Data released this morning by Standard & Poor’s showed an annual decline of 3.7 percent in November for the 20-city composite reading of its S&P/Case-Shiller home price index. Analysts were expecting a year-over-year drop in the range of 3.2 to 3.4 percent. Eighteen cities were in negative territory. Detroit and Washington, D.C. were the only exceptions. At -11.8 percent, Atlanta continued to post the lowest annual return.

DQ News just released their December sales and they are also showing an overall drop in prices for the Bay Area.

What we need to remember is that this is a generalized report, and goes county-by-county.  In Alameda County and Contra Costa County there are micro-neighborhoods where sales are very skewed (such as Oakland in Alameda County and Richmond in Contra Costa County) and these figures throw these reports off.  This is why it is SO IMPORTANT to look at the zip codes, and some of those zips should even be dissected further.

Take a look at Berkeley zip code 94708, which has seen a 7.1% increase from this same time last year. One house, located in this zip code, is on the market and had over 50 requests for disclosure packets.  Albany, as a whole, has seen prices drop.  But if the house is centrally located and in good condition, multiple offers are happening left and right…one house I know currently has over 30 disclosure packets out.  Now this doesn’t necessarily mean that it will have that many offers, and these examples are not typical of all houses.  What it does say is that there are a lot of buyers out there, and with such low inventory, these buyers will end up driving up the prices in some of the communities.

Please take the headlines with a grain of salt and understand that 1) they are designed to draw readers and 2) that they usually report information on a national or regional level.  Prices in our area are expected to stabilize over the course of the year so if you really want to know what is happening in a particular city, zip code, or neighborhood, talk to a Realtor so that you can get the facts straight.  Chances are you will be talking house-to-house, not even neighborhood to neighborhood.

The American Planning Association’s “Great Places In America” has voted our own Northbrae neighborhood in their top 10 places in 2011.

Most people associate Northbrae with Monterey Market, Berkeley Horticultural Nursery, and Marin Circle Fountain.  Me being me must associate it with food and coffee, so after I grab a latte from Espresso Roma Cafe and a slice of pizza from Gioia, I head with the kids to King Park and take in the amazing scenery.

http://www.planning.org/greatplaces/neighborhoods/2011/

Mahmood Mokhtari has a fantastic lot for sale in Berkeley.  He describes it as “A very rare find in a fabulously diverse & bustling business district of Berkeley. Zoned R3 high density multi-family. Preliminary approval for 8 condos was obtained approximately in 07 for 4 2bd/2ba, 2 1bd/1.5ba & 2 3bd/2.5ba on 3 levels. Close to public transp., freeway, UC and fantastic nightlife.”

2010 9th St, Berkeley @ University
$355,000

Give our office a call!  510-524-9888

1) Zoom in, you will see the wooden dinosaur sticking his head out of the window (spotted in North Oakland)

2) Mobile Offices at their best! (spotted outside of Whole Foods in Berkeley)

3) Talk about vintage! (spotted on Euclid in Berkeley)