Marin’s overall public school enrollment grew from 35,902 last year to 37,965 this year, an increase of 5.43 percent – the county’s fifth straight year of growth. Educators say a combination of new families, children moving into the county and students leaving private schools has created an enrollment tsunami. That wave has engulfed the College of Marin, too, where enrollment is up by more than 1,400 students. Too read the full story from the Marin IJ CLICK HERE

It’s nice to have some positive news come out of the Sausalito school district. For generations a “low performer”, the last few years has seen performance scores creeping up and the Willow Creek Charter School gets better every year with strong parent participation. And now this article on the alternative school;

While children at other elementary schools are lining up for math class or saying the pledge of allegiance, the 26 students at Sausalito’s New Village School are leap-frogging over their instructors, playing Japanese drums and learning songs in Latin, English, Spanish and Welsh.
“Every day starts with movement and singing,” said Alexis Cohen, a spokeswoman for the private school that opened in the former Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School on Ebbtide Road six months ago. “All of the energy helps them to wake up for the day.”

Like several other schools throughout Marin, the New Village School’s curriculum is based on the educational theories of German philosopher Rudolf Steiner.

But what sets the New Village School apart, said Meinir Davies, leader of the school’s teaching team, is its emphasis on movement.

Students follow their instructors outside, learning science by observing the world around them – on campus as well as while kayaking in the bay or hiking on Mount Tamalpais – and asking questions of everything they see.

Too read the full article from the Marin IJ CLICK HERE

I’m sorry to have heard this sad news and thought trice about posting it but if your thinking about moving or already live in Marin County it’s part of my job to keep you informed about the crime that occurs as well. You would want to know everything about a neighbourhood before moving into it right? I would like to stress that as the headline says it’s the fourth homicide to have taken place in this town in 40 years.

TIBURON — A 79-year-old Tiburon woman was found shot dead near the front yard of her Del Mar neighborhood home this morning, police said.

The woman, whose name was not immediately released because relatives had not been notified, was found with a bullet wound to the head, Tiburon Police Chief Mike Cronin said at an afternoon news conference. No suspects or motives have been identified in the homicide, just Tiburon’s fourth in the past 40 years.

“This is traumatic,” Cronin said. “This is something that happens here once in a decade.”

The woman’s body was discovered at about 9:30 a.m. by a family friend who regularly checks in on her, Cronin said. The body was in a pool of blood near a patio that was outside the Hilary Drive home but inside a gate at the end of a driveway. The woman was fully clothed, “dressed the way a lot of us look when we first get up in the morning,” Cronin said.

Cronin said the woman’s home had not been ransacked, and the incident was not believed to be connected with a burglary. The woman lived alone.

Tiburon police had been to the home in the past for an alarm-related visit but reported no previous disturbances or criminal activity at the home.

“If anybody in this neighborhood heard anything last night, even if they think that it was something minor, please let us know,” Cronin said.

Source: Marin Independent Journal

A fundraiser for San Rafael Public Schools!

Saturday, September 26th at Andy’s Market – 888 Point San Pedro Rd, San Rafael

Carnival – 11am – 4pm. Free admission – rides, games, food

Concert – 7pm – 11pm featuring Tommy Castro & Friends!!
Tickets are $50 (or $200 for V.I.P. tables) and available at 1-800838-3006 or brownpapertickets.com

After an absence of a couple of years the famous floating home community of Sausalito is once again having the annual open house tour. Having lived on a houseboat as well as selling them. I can tell you what a unique community it is. Being on the water speaks to the soul and puts you closer in touch with nature.

The tour takes place on September 26th and homes are open at 11 am and close at 4 pm. Open docks and open homes are indicated with colorful balloons. Advance tickets are $35 or $40 at the door.

There is no smoking allowed on any of the docks.

Please do not bring food or drinks into houseboats.

Dogs are not allowed on the tour.

Use caution when walking along the docks and especially when moving on and off each home.

A few homeowners ask tourists to put on shoe coverings or to remove their shoes before entering their floating home. You’ll have to walk the docks so wear comfortable, slip-on shoes.

Port-A-Potties are provided for your convenience. Please don’t ask docents or homeowners to use their facilities.

For more information go to the Floating Homes Association website

Here’s how the most common foreclosure-prevention scams work:

The desperate home owner gets a letter that says something like, “We know you’re having a hard time. We have a pipeline to your lender and can help you save your home. Call this toll-free number now.”

Home owners call the number and agree to pay $1,200 to $1,500 upfront for help with their mortgage. Nothing happens. Their home still goes into foreclosure.

Harold Kirtz, a lawyer for the Federal Trade Commission who is prosecuting these scammers, says victims are often well educated and financially savvy, but they also are “in a very vulnerable state.”

Here are some red flags that should make a home owner run in the opposite direction:
If the company guarantees success. Nobody can guarantee a lender won’t foreclose or will modify a loan.
If the company wants money upfront. “We can’t say all advance fees are illegal,” Kirtz says, “But in most cases they’re probably bogus.”
If the company wants the home owner to send mortgage checks directly to the modification firm. The only certainty there is that the company will cash the checks.

Source: Washington Post Writers Group, Kenneth R. Harney (09/13/2009)

Good News for the Communities of Sausalito, San Rafael and Novato. The Marin Community Foundation has announced it will sponsor a five-year, $35 million initiative to help low-income and minority students in Marin County succeed in school and the workplace, foundation officials said. To read the story from ABC 7 News
CLICK HERE

A year after the financial collapse of 2008, the housing market is very different than it was before the foreclosure crisis.

Here are seven bits of wisdom from economists and financial planners for anyone contemplating a home purchase today:

Old-fashioned basics are more important than ever. The safest way to purchase a home is to put down 20 percent on a fixed-rate, 30-year (or less) mortgage.
Don’t become overconfident about income growth. Even though buyers in their 20s and 30s will likely see their incomes grow more quickly than previous generations, it is important to act sensibly when borrowing.
Anyone contemplating adding children to the family should calculate whether they could live on one income because having both halves of a couple work may turn out to be impractical.
Include a maintenance budget. Even new homes need upkeep and repairs.
Buyers who can’t afford their dream home now should opt for a starter home where they can save money each month for what they really want.
Consider a property that can be expanded and improved down the road when money is available.
No two buyers are the same, but they should all feel confident with the loan they enter into, no matter the size of the mortgage.

Source: The New York Times, Ron Lieber (09/12/2009)

Outraged neighbors ratted on a Wells Fargo & Co. employee who threw lavish parties at a foreclosed home in pricey Malibu, Calif. The bank said Monday that the employee had been fired.

Wells Fargo took possession last May of a beachfront mansion valued between $12 million and $25 million. The previous owner was reportedly wiped out by the Ponzi scheme run by Bernard Madoff.

Instead of putting the property up for sale or letting it stand empty while the foreclosure was completed, Cheronda Guyton, senior vice president in charge of commercial foreclosed properties for the bank, apparently used the place to entertain friends, including transporting guests from a yacht moored offshore.

After neighbors cried foul, Wells Fargo investigated and identified Guyton as the culprit. Monday, the company said in a statement, “We deeply regret the activities that have taken place as they do not reflect the conduct we expect of our team members.”

Source: CNNMoney.com, Ben Rooney (09/14/2009)

Interest in U.S. real estate by international buyers declined due to the worldwide recession and severe credit crunch, according to the 2009 National Association of Realtors Profile of International Home Buying Activity.

The share of REALTOR® clientele who are foreign buyers is smaller than in previous years, but among those purchasing nearly half paid all cash – bypassing the mortgage process. Twenty-three percent of survey respondents served at least one international client in the 12-month period between the end of May 2008 and the end of May 2009, down from 26 percent in the 2008 study. During this period an estimated 154,000 homes were sold to foreign nationals, which is down from approximately 170,000 international transactions during the previous 12 months.

Pricing

The median price for a home paid by foreign buyers for the year ending in May 2009 was $247,100, higher than the overall national price of $198,100 in 2008. A significant number, 45.8 percent of foreign buyers, paid cash for their property, in part because obtaining a mortgage was more difficult than in prior years. The total dollar volume was $38.7 billion.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said recent improvements in the credit market will help reverse the slide in foreign buyers. “Stock market gains and improving bank balance sheets will permit a greater amount of lending for second-home purchases,” he said. “In addition, expanding foreign economies for international buyers and favorable exchange rates give them more purchasing power, particularly in a period of record high affordability conditions in the United States. Property investment here generally builds wealth over the long term.”

Origin of Buyers

U.S. laws do not restrict or scrutinize most property purchases by foreign nationals. There are few barriers to owning property here, unlike transactions in many other countries, although immigration laws prohibit foreigners from remaining in the U.S. continuously for more than six months without a special visa. In addition, international investors are afforded the same property rights as those enjoyed by U.S. citizens.

The top five countries of origin for foreign buyers were:

Canada, 17.6 percent of buyers
United Kingdom, 10.5 percent
Mexico, 9.8 percent
India, 8.5 percent
China, 5.4 percent

The percentage of buyers from Canada, the U.K., and China declined from the previous study, while purchasers from Mexico and India increased. Although most buyers were from North America, Europe and Asia, buyers from Latin America, Africa, and Oceania also purchased U.S. real estate.
Most Popular States

Foreign buyers were active in every state and the District of Columbia, with the most popular states being Florida, which accounted for 23.0 percent of all foreign purchases; California, 13.0 percent; Texas, 10.7 percent; and Arizona, 7.1 percent. These states are major gateways into the U.S. from other countries and also offer relatively mild climates.

California saw a notable rise in foreign interest as affordability conditions improved markedly in the state last year. “Florida is the most popular state for European and Latin American buyers, while Asian buyers are drawn to California,” Yun said.

Property Types

The study shows 69 percent of international purchases were single-family homes, while condos accounted for 18 percent. Townhomes made up 8 percent of transactions, with commercial property at 4 percent. Nearly 46 percent of properties were in suburban areas and 25 percent in urban environments. The rest were evenly split between resorts and small towns or rural areas.

The prime purpose for purchasing a property in the U.S. is to use it for a vacation home, cited by 33.9 percent of respondents; for both investment and vacations, 23.5 percent; as a residential rental property for investment, 18.3 percent; and commercial property for investment, 3.5 percent. The 2009 NAR Profile of International Home Buying Activityis based on responses from 3,785 REALTORS® and describes international home buying activity in the U.S. over the 12-month period from the end of May 2008 to May 2009. The full report is available at www.realtor.org/research/research/reportsintl.

Source: NAR