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Elizabeth Weintraub
Some 2005 Sacramento Home Buyers Are Still Underwater
Do you believe some 2005 Sacramento home buyers are still underwater? By that I mean they cannot sell the home for the amount they paid in 2005. Not that they need to do a short sale. Although in some instances, it can be pretty close to not being able to pay all the closing costs and mortgage, most of these sellers can squeak by. They just don’t make any money on their investment.
You might wonder how does this happen? How is it possible that 2005 Sacramento home buyers are still underwater when we’ve had such great appreciation? One of the ways this can happen is to pay too much at the time of sale. Another way this can happen is the sales price at the time of sale did not reflect the way buyers look at homes today.
Many 2005 sales were sold strictly AS IS and home buyers, in the heat of the market frenzy, bought homes without inspections, waived appraisals and overlooked remedying expensive pest reports. Which, of course, is not happening today. In today’s market, not only will buyers refuse to waive or ignore these reports, but they will hit the sales price too. On top of refusing to buy a home without updates.
Welcome to 2019 Sacramento real estate.
One of my former sellers bought a home at the height of the market. Suspecting they paid too much at inception, I pulled the comps within 3 months of his closing and presented the findings. The findings suggested he paid $50K too much, based on the comparable sales. But they also lost about $100K due to the condition the home, by which today’s buyers judge and reject.
Another potential seller is very tight on her equity in Natomas. She cannot sell for the amount she paid, but at least she won’t have to pitch in any money to close escrow. Just when we think that 14 years ago should have been enough time to recoup our investments, it’s important to note that notion does not hold true for everybody.
Because some 2005 home buyers are still underwater today. In case you think appraisals will save some of these situations, it most likely will not. Not every neighborhood features cookie cutter homes. Those with unique homes are generally hurt the most because it’s easy to pay too much in these areas. Which is why you need a specialist.
Yoga for Old People in Sacramento
Working out with younger people is not enough of a reason to want to find yoga for old people in Sacramento. Because I honestly do not mind pierced navels, flat stomachs and bright happy faces, all smug and innocent; no, no, no, all of that is perfectly OK with me. What I do mind is exhaustion and my inability to strike certain poses.
My quest since returning from my winter vacation in Hawaii is to find comparable classes of yoga for old people in Sacramento. The place I’ve been going to in Holualoa has created a class that is absolutely perfect for me. Just completely lucked out with this class. At the end, I feel the burn and stretch, and I’m generally panting. Even though it is not exactly a fast-paced class. And the instructor doesn’t just call out the names of poses, he explains precisely how to get oneself into those poses.
Without naming the yoga studio, let’s just say I selected a place not too far from my home in Land Park that offered a variety of classes. Little did I realize they were not really geared for seniors. When I showed up for a yin yoga class, the instructor suggested I pick up a bolster and blocks, and I stared blankly at her. Never heard of those things. We did 4 or 6 poses, with all sorts of weird music playing, and held the poses for a long time.
In the middle of all of this, the instructor stealthily tiptoes over to people and begins to pet them. My husband called it molesting, but it was actually very enjoyable to have my feet stroked, my head rubbed, and my arms petted while in the midst of a pose. However, I did not feel the burn and stretch and I was not panting.
Next up, I tried the vinyasa class. Turned to the guy helping everybody with blocks and bolsters and asked if he realized how hot it was in the room. Yes, he smiled, it’s 98 degrees. Holy crap! It’s bad enough they were demanding we do flying fluid movements, down to the ground, head up, feet back, spring back to your feet. Oh my lord. After 30 minutes I was ready to die. Just close my eyes and never wake up again except it was so friggin’ HOT in that room.
Perhaps it was the pose where you stand on one foot, reach around behind yourself and grab your raised foot, pulling it up over your head that about did me in. Here, I was so proud of myself for learning how to balance on one foot, and they threw this move at me. No way, Jose.
I was a mess. Hair plastered to my head. Dripping wet. Hamstrings aching. This was a bit more of a burn and stretch than I wanted to feel, and I wasn’t merely panting; I looked like a golden retriever, tongue hanging out and sad hang-dog eyes. It was as though somebody had tied me to the back of a pickup truck and dragged me naked for 50 yards. Instead, I grabbed my water bottle and headed for the front desk.
Please, isn’t there someplace I can go to find yoga for old people in Sacramento? They gave me the name of Yoga Seed. At that website, the first thing I noticed was they have special classes for developmentally disabled children on the autism spectrum!
Well, I don’t care what that suggests.
I showed up for my first yoga class there yesterday morning, and it went rather well. Again, they featured not only bolsters and blocks but also belts, yet I made it through the class. It was slightly too slow placed and not entirely challenging for me, but I will return and keep at it. Gentle yoga is better than no yoga at all.
Photos of Visit to Borrego Springs, California
Here I am, sitting outside at The Mall on Palm Canyon Drive in Borrego Springs. You will note the plant behind my head that looks a bit like Medusa. Well, it is my new favorite desert plant called an ocotillo. In the spring, it features bright red flowers on its tips.
One of the art stores at The Mall just got ocotillo sculptures. They seem to be made from rebar and painted green with red glossy floral tips. Very pretty. But I desire the real thing, an original living plant.
I do not know how many tourists descend upon Borrego Springs in the spring but the official population of the town from July of 2018 is 3,676 residents. And according to one website, 1 million tourists annually visit Anza Borrego Desert State Park. The name of the park is in honor of Spanish explorer Juan Bautista de Anza, who studied the desert in 1774 and, of course, Borrego is the Spanish word for sheep.
This scene is visible from a long ways while driving up Tilting T. Everywhere you look, evening primrose and other wildflowers in bloom, and this is somebody’s house and yard. Although the entire town of Borrego Springs is surrounded by California’s largest state park, Anza Borrego.
Every day we drove toward Palm Canyon Drive from Tilting T, I wondered about this field. Sometimes things are not as close as they appear. But then on Tuesday, we finally decided to navigate to the property to take a look. It wasn’t that far away at all.
Who can resist desert sunflowers? They bloom everywhere as well. In town, out on the deserted roads, washes, anywhere a seed can take root. Not to be confused with brittlebrush, which is also a yellow flower but without the orange centers. During our Palm Canyon Hike, we spotted many desert sunflowers.
While we drove the canyon coming into Borrego Springs, I shot this photo through the front window of our vehicle. In the bottom left is an ocotillo. But if you look closely at the pale green of this mountain, you can see swathes of yellow wildflowers. Completely different scenery than, say, Fonts Point.
Much of this particular desert is shaped by water. The carved rock you see in this photo is similar to roadside attractions you can find in Death Valley. To me, they resemble giant’s toes.
One of the things you might not know about Borrego Springs is its reputation as the first International Dark Sky Community in America. There are no street lights in Borrego Springs, to protect the night sky from pollution. It is a perfect place to study constellations. My husband shared his Sky Guide app with me that outlines constellations and recognizes them. You can get it at the App Store.
Many artists live in Borrego Springs. The dinosaurs my husband Adam is getting chewed by were created by Richard Breceda. On the road to the Anza Country Club, you can visit Galetta Meadows, where many of Breceda’s sculptures are located. However, you can also see them in town at The Mall.
Out on Henderson Canyon Road we found plenty of Arizona Lupine in bloom. I tried to shoot the Sand Verbena but no matter which way I aimed my camera, it came out a blurry pink plastic looking mess. But the Arizona Lupine is beautiful. Never seen a field of lupine up close like this. But viewing wild lupine like this is a good reason to visit Borrego Springs.
Photos of Clark Dry Lake at Anza Borrego Desert
After this blog about photos of Clark Dry Lake at Anza Borrego Desert, I believe I have one more blog to do to be finished with our trip. Normally I would not post so many photos and a bunch of blogs about one place, namely Anza Borrego Desert State Park, but I can’t help myself.
It’s such a fascinating place, so much to see and do and most people in California have no idea where it is even located. Although it is the largest state park in California. How about those apples? It is located about 2 hours Northeast of San Diego.
Now, I know what you’re gonna say. You think this is very similar to a far away place I visited several years ago, right? The Racetrack, which is near Death Valley. There are similarities but no rocks mysteriously move across the bed of this lake. A few years back, they figured out what moves the rocks at The Racetrack. It’s a thin layer of ice that forms at night and then melts in morning that moves the rocks.
Clark Dry Lake sits low in the valley at 560 feet elevation. Which means much of the moisture and rainfall flows into this lake bed but it never really fills up to be a lake. There are a few areas where it was moist. You can tell that some spots recently had water by the evaporated salt and the fact your feet make an impression by sinking ever so slightly into the terrain.
We had a bit of trouble finding how to get to Clark Dry Lake. Because we could see it from where we were photographing Desert Lupines. We sort of zigzagged through the washes, careful not to drive where vehicles were prohibited, until we finally found the road leading to the lake bed.
Flash floods are common in certain areas of Anza Borrego State Park, which is why some of the washes were closed. Also, we noted a few RVs parked further away but not as many as one would expect.
Photos of Wildflowers from Anza Borrego State Park
This is the entrance to the wildflowers from Anza Borrego State Park in Borrego Springs, California. Unassuming. You might think oh, just another state park, not THE largest state park in California with vegetation, succulents, cacti, and wildflowers exploding everywhere you look, nestled under Coyote Mountain and the Santa Ynez Mountains.
You’re just not prepared for the spectacular Super Bloom of the wildflowers from Anza Borrego State Park. A Super Bloom can occur after several years of hard rain to wake dormant seeds, and it usually happens once every decade or two.
No matter what you see in other photos or read about, this is a place that you absolutely must experience in person. Stop texting people, stop reading emails and pay attention to the glorious colorful display right under your very nose. Too much energy? Why not go on a hike at Palm Canyon?
It is a life altering experience, to truly feel connected to nature. The desert is full of life. Just slow down and enjoy the wildflowers from Anza Borrego State Park. You will see the sphinx moth caterpillars. Or, the golden crown on the barrel cactus below. Evening primrose, red ocotillo blooms, purple heliotrope, white desert chicory, monkey-flowers, white dune primrose, budding paddle cacti, mohave yucca, cholla cactus, madagascar palms, desert sunflowers and more.
If you go to view the wildflowers from Anza Borrego State Park, it is better to do it on a weekday because weekends are very crowded. My other suggestion is do not try to get lunch in the town of Borrego Springs. Either pack a lunch and take it with you or drive to the Anza Borrego Country Club. On Monday and Tuesdays, there is a food truck parked there, and Wednesday through Sunday offers a fabulous lunch without the crowds.
To get there from Sacramento, fly into San Diego on Alaska Airlines. The flight is a little over an hour. Rent an SUV at the airport and drive the two hours to Borrego Springs. Stay at the Borrego Springs Resort and Spa, which is very close to the Anza Borrego State Park. Airfare and accommodations, which include a king bed suite for two, is a total of $1,100.
