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EPA

What websites help you know a community?

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It’s important to do your homework when you purchase a property or move into a different community, right? After all, when escrow closes or the rental contract is signed, you’re stuck to a certain degree (obviously more stuck when you buy). Here is a list of websites I recommend checking out to help better understand a particular neighborhood or community – not just during the home-buying process either. It constantly amazes me just how much information we can find online.

What other websites would you suggest for getting to know a community? What websites do you recommend for buyers on the hunt for real estate?

  1. Local School District Website: You can check out the neighborhood’s school district website and also websites like www.greatschools.org or even the CA Dept of Education website to review test scores.
  2. Crime Statistics: Does your community or city have data for crime statistics? Sacramento County has a great crime-mapping tool so you can see what types of crimes have been reported recently in the immediate neighborhood. It may be worth googling your street name, the tract name, and city name too to see what has been reported. Keep in mind the local newspaper often reports crime data too.
  3. Superfund Website: Are there any reported environmental issues in the neighborhood or city? Check out the EPA’s Superfund website (This isn’t about “super fun”).
  4. Neighborhood Website: Is there a formal neighborhood association or volunteer association in the neighborhood? What type of information is found on their website? If there is a public online forum, see if you can find out what people are praising and also complaining about.  
  5. Megan’s Law: This website in California keeps a list of designated registered sex offenders. A website like this might be of some use or interest to certain buyers or home owners.
  6. City website: If the property you are purchasing is located in city, peruse the city website to see if there is any relevant information. You can discover quite a bit about future plans for particular sections of town or current issues facing the community.
  7. Local news website: Check out the local news paper for the city or community. You may also consider doing a blog search to see what locals are saying about the neighborhood.
  8. General Data Sites: You may wish to find out particular statistics for you area such as owner-occupancy rates or a breakdown of the population. Look into websites like the United States Census Bureau, Motovo “neighborhood” search, Brainy Zip (www.brainyzip.com), Neighborhood Scout or City Data (www.city-data.com).

If you have any real estate appraisal, consulting, or property tax appeal needs in the Greater Sacramento Region, contact me at 916.595.3735, by email, on our company website or via Facebook.

Excuse me, but what’s in those containers?

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If you saw containers like this at a residential property, what questions would you ask? Two immediate questions that come to mind are: What is in the containers? Has anything in the containers been leaking into the soil? 

I snapped the image below while inspecting a property for an estate settlement appraisal in the Arden-Arcade area of Sacramento. No lender is actually involved in this valuation, but when appraisers see things as such, it’s important to disclose it in the report because of the unanswered questions and potential for unseen environmental issues. There might be nothing wrong whatsoever, but storing chemicals and barrels at your house is going to raise red flags in the eyes of appraisers, real estate agents, lenders and attorneys. By the way, if you are concerned about contamination in your area, the EPA’s Superfund site may be a good resource for you.

What do you think is in the containers? (points for creativity)

If you have any real estate appraisal, valuation consulting, or property tax appeal needs in Greater Sacramento, contact me at 916.595.3735 or www.LundquistCompany.com.

Superfun vs. Superfund

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There is a big difference between “Superfun” and “Superfund”. One is all about having a great time and the other deals with hazardous waste sites in the United States. I know which one I’d rather have. 

If you are not familiar with the Superfund website, it’s worth checking out. Their website states:  

imagesSuperfund is the name given to the environmental program established to address abandoned hazardous waste sites. It is also the name of the fund established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, as amended (CERCLA statute, CERCLA overview). This law was enacted in the wake of the discovery of toxic waste dumps such as Love Canal and Times Beach in the 1970s. It allows the EPA to clean up such sites and to compel responsible parties to perform cleanups or reimburse the government for EPA-lead cleanups.

Our territory in California is located in Region 9 and at www.epa.gov/superfund you can see all Superfund Sites in Region 9 as well as Cleanup Sites in California. For locals, you might recognize names like Mather Air Force Base, Sacramento Army Depot, Jibboom Junkyard, Travis Air Force Base, Riverbank Army Ammunition Plant, or AeroJet.

www.SacramentoAppraisalBlog.com Superfun vs. Superfund