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SMUD

Thoughts on PG&E and the housing market

November 7, 2019 By Ryan Lundquist 41 Comments

I’ve been asked quite a bit to talk about what’s happening with PG&E. It’s mind-blowing to think close to one million households have had spurts without electricity lately in California. I don’t think anyone saw this curveball coming, so let’s talk about it. Please pitch in your thoughts below too.

Here are a few things on my mind.

Prolonged vs isolated incident: Whenever something changes in a market we tend to immediately ask about the impact, but the truth is we don’t always have answers – especially at first. It’s important to remember a few power outages aren’t likely to alter the perception of sellers and buyers in a market. But if we begin to see a prolonged issue, then that’s a different story.

The market will adapt: Generators haven’t been easy to find in the Sacramento area despite all the radio ads, but at some point if power outages become prolonged the market will simply adapt and generators will become commonplace. Thus properties with some sort of system to retain power are going to be more marketable. Remember though, if a generator isn’t a permanent part of the house, it’s really personal property, so it’s not going to be included in the appraised value.

Uncertainty: People like stability and so does the housing market. A friend in a rural area recently said she doesn’t know if she can take PG&E outages for the next ten years. I feel for her and I think her sentiment captures the struggle many residents have right now of living in the tension of not knowing the future.

The market hasn’t stopped: It’s important to note the housing market hasn’t stopped. There are still properties trading hands. In fact, here’s current pendings in Placer, El Dorado, and Nevada County. I realize this isn’t the perfect image because only portions of these counties are having outages. Nonetheless, this is a quick glance to highlight the market is still moving. With that said, we’re at the beginning stage of this new issue and my sense is we’re in a stand-by period where owners and buyers are watching and waiting to see what the future holds.

Migration: Unplanned power outages could drive some residents to leave rural areas (or even suburban areas having issues). I think this is especially true for anyone who has already been flirting with the idea of leaving California. This could be the final straw. But for many rural owners they’re going to stay because they love their lifestyle (of course as long as there are solutions for keeping the power on during outages).

Solar: There’s lots of buzz about solar becoming a bigger trend in outlying areas. My advice? Just be sure the solar system is actually going to work if the power is out. And don’t make a rash decision about installing an expensive solar system if there is a more cost-effective solution too.

Insurance costs: Fire insurance has skyrocketed in outlying areas in recent time and it’s been a huge struggle. Just yesterday I had a real estate agent tell me a client was paying about $800 for an annual insurance plan and now the bill is $3,000 for the year. What a burden – especially for those with a fixed or lower income. Thus throwing in a new layer of power outages really doesn’t help boost appeal for outlying areas. Insurance is certainly a hardship, but at least it is a known factor. What is especially challenging with power outages is their frequency in the future is not known. This is where an element of uncertainty can be more stressful than insurance costs for some households.

Stories vs stats: When something new happens in a market there is a season where we have stories from the trenches of escrows and eventually these stories become stats. In my opinion right now we have limited data and we need more time to understand what the market is doing. With that said, when it comes to areas with rising insurance rates I’m noticing housing supply has ticked up at a higher rate in El Dorado County compared with the rest of the region, and sales volume has seemed to slump more in El Dorado County also. This includes the entire county of course and at some point I may parse only fire insurance areas (this is not as easy to do as it sounds). Anyway, let’s keep watching.

I hope this was helpful. I’m so sorry to friends who have been struggling with power outages. By the way, if any appraiser friends need space to plug into wifi if your power goes out, please hit me up.

Million Dollar Market: On a different note, here’s a quick rundown of the million dollar market in the Sacramento region if you’re interested.

Questions: If you live in PG&E territory, what have you been experiencing? What are you hearing from residents? What did I miss?

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Filed Under: Market Trends Tagged With: Appraisal, Appraiser, generators, housing market, insurance costs in rural areas, outlying areas, PG&E, power outages, sacramento housing market, SMUD, solar, stats

Ways to “go green” for your home in Sacramento

August 5, 2011 By Ryan Lundquist 5 Comments

If you didn’t know, there are actually quite a few “green” resources available to home owners in the Sacramento area. These assets can help home owners conserve energy and water and save a few bucks too.

  1. Sacramento Tree Foundation: Get up to 10 free shade trees for your property from SMUD. Watch a video here. I actually have four trees on my property from the shade tree program.
  2. Energy Upgrade California: This website is a great resource for energy and water efficiency programs and is geared toward both consumers and trade professionals. 
  3. Realtor’s Energy Audit Program: The California REALTOR®’S Energy Audit Program provides up to a $250 rebate on a Home Energy Rating System (HERS) home energy audit conducted by a certified HERS rater (from CAR website). Watch a video on REAP here. This is good for finding out what areas of your home might need some efficiency TLC. Water Rebates for Residents: Find water rebates offered by a handful of local water suppliers in the Sacramento area. This can come in especially handy when purchasing a toilet or clothes washer.
  4. Check Before You Burn in Sacramento: As we all know, residents and businesses are prohibited from using indoor and outdoor fireplaces and such on certain days. This website lets you know which days are “burn days”.
  5. Energy Efficient Mortgage: The EEM Program was created by HUD to allow home buyers the opportunity to upgrade the energy efficiency of the home they are purchasing during the escrow period (from website).
  6. Energy Improvement Grant: The energy improvement grant is designed to promote the HUD Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) Program. The SAR program provides a grant of $2000 to buyers who take advantage of the Energy Efficient Mortgage in the purchase of their home. The grant is applied to energy upgrades and limited qualified closing costs (from website). 
  7. SMUD’s Home Performance Program: SMUD has various programs and financing options to help home owners increase energy efficiency in their homes.
  8. Turf Replacement Program: The Placer County Water Authority has a pilot program for replacing lawns. There may be some in Sacramento too. Know of any? Per the PCWA website, the program offers a $300 rebate for lawns replaced with non-water consuming material and a $150 rebate for lawns replaced with low to moderate water-use plants.
  9. Free Water Audits: California American Water provides free water audits where a conservation specialist will visit your home, identify ways to help you save water, and even provide free low flow fixtures for your kitchen and bathroom (from website).
  10. Green Marketing Tools: The Sacramento Association of Realtors has a compilation of flyers available for local consumers and Realtors to help home owners take advantage of available resources.

The bulk of resources listed above came from a recent meeting at the Sacramento Association of Realtors. What other “green” resources exist for home owners in the Sacramento area? What have you done to promote conversation in your home?

If you have any questions, or real estate appraisal or property tax appeal needs in the Greater Sacramento Region, contact Lundquist Appraisal by phone 916-595-3735, email, Facebook or subscribe to posts by email.

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Filed Under: Random Stuff, Resources Tagged With: appraisal service in Sacramento, appraisers in Sacramento, Burn days in Sacramento, Check before your burn, EEM, Energy Efficient Grant, Energy Efficient Mortgage, Energy Upgrade California website, green resources for Sacramento area, Home Performance Program by SMUD, Lundquist Appraisal Company, Real Estate Appraiser in Sacramento, Realtor's Energy Audit Program, REAP, Sacramento Association of Realtors, Sacramento Real Estate Appraiser, Sacramento Tree Foundation, SMUD, Trees from SMUD, Turf replacment by PCWA, Water audits, Water rebates in Sacramento

How to increase curb appeal for less than $100

June 17, 2011 By Ryan Lundquist 8 Comments

We’ve come to the end of “Blight Week“, so it seems fitting to finish this discussion with some very practical ideas for how to easily help a neighborhood look better. I asked seven trusted Sacramento real estate professionals for some tips on how to increase curb appeal for less than $100, and here is what they said:

Keith Klassen, Burmaster Real Estate Services: While pruning and planting is the stand-by and must do for curb appeal on the cheap, many times painting either the front door or just the trim on the home can make it stand out.  I know someone else who takes the window screens off the front of the home, which when left on gives the house “black eyes.”

Jacque McBurney, Dean Adams Residential Brokerage: Here are some suggestions for outside of the home under $100: Keep lawn mowed and trimmed. Spray down any spider webs and bird droppings. If you have spare paint – paint trim and/or entry door to make a cleaner appearance. Fix broken porch lights, address plates or mail boxes. Replace worn doormat and torn screens. Plant new flowers in front & put down new bark. Get rid of any debris or old boxes/garbage that may be in sight (less is more). If you show pride of ownership others will see it and that will make your home more desirable than any other home on the block. First impressions are the most important!

tamara-dorrisTamara Dorris, Realtor: I would say the best, cheapest way to give a house-front a facelift would be to get rid of all the garbage and debris, trim back shrubs, weeds, overgrowth, wash windows, (all pretty much free), and for your budget, paint trim and plant some bright flowers.

kellie-swayneKellie Swayne, Dunnigan Realtors: I’ve found that a LOT can be done for free by owners to increase their curb appeal.  The first and most important thing is to put a little sweat equity into the home and spend some time outside!  Mow the lawn, edge, weed the gardens, trim the trees and shrubs, clean the gutters, dust away the cobwebs, water blast any stains off of concrete, porches or siding, get the paint out of the garage and touch up any places that might need it, and CLEAN THE WINDOWS.  If trees are lacking, get in touch with SMUD and the Sacramento Tree Foundation who offer free shade trees! I’ve also noticed that sometimes homes that look a little plain in the front can be dressed up with some inexpensive shutters, if the space is right. I would also recommend putting a little bit of the $100 toward some fresh colorful flowers.  Or, if the landscaping is already colorful – think about adding some shredded bark or mulch of some kind.  You can even get free wood chips from PG&E (800-743-5000).

Dennis Lanni, Housing Group Fund: How about replacing broken & old single pane windows for free!  Sacramento is an amazing community with rich resources to spur community improvement. One of my favorite programs running right now is the Community Resource Project, which is a free program that promotes energy conservation by upgrading windows, door weather-stripping and much more.

LJ, Connect Realty: If your home is currently on the market, there are likely many competing sales nearby. This means your home has to sparkle in order to draw buyers. One great way to facilitate this is by pressure washing your driveway and the sidewalk in front of your home. This can drastically reduce unsightly oil stains and other discolorations. Fences can also be pressured washed, but beware because pressure washers release a very strong stream of water that may damage wood surfaces if you use the wrong tip or operate the spray nozzle too close to the surface. Pressure washers can often be rented for approximately $50-$60 per day at select Lowe’s and Home Depot stores.

Heather Ostrom, RosevilleandRocklin.com: I know not everyone has the budget for big fixes or upgrades, so I think just sweeping up the driveway and sidewalk as well as picking up trash does wonders. Mowed and maintained lawns and hedged bushes and shrubs are also something that really has high-impact. If a car must be kept in the driveway or on the street, keep it web-free and clean. Paint your front door or mailbox if it’s looking dingy and worn because it can be a high-profile yard item.

Can we solve blight? There are no simple answers to end blight in a community because it is a complex issue, yet at the same time a focus on getting to know neighbors and taking care of some of the small signs of neighborhood decay is a relevant place to begin. It’s these “small things” that really add up to help make or break the image of a neighborhood and impact the ethos of the community too. Thank you everyone for reading along this week.

What do you think of the tips? Anything else you’d like to add?

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Filed Under: Resources Tagged With: beautification, blight on a budget, blightweek, Community Resource Project Sacramento, curb appeal, dealing with blight, Dean Adams Residential Brokerage, Dennis Lanni, front yard landscaping, Heather Ostrom, Housing Group Fund, Jacque McBurney, Keith Klassen Burmaster Real Estate, Kellie Swayne Dunnigan Realtors, Lundquist Appraisal Company, Real Estate Appraiser in Sacramento, realtor tips, RosevilleandRocklin, Sac Tree Foundation, Sacramento real estate agents, Sacramento Real Estate Appraiser, SMUD, Tamara Dorris Carmichael Real Estate, tips from real estate agents, tips to spruce up curb appeal

An Energy Efficient House: Round 2 of Video

May 6, 2010 By Ryan Lundquist 5 Comments

I posted a video two weeks ago to give everyone a tour of a SMUD energy efficient house in Sacramento. I ended up cutting the video down from 8 minutes to about 2.5 minutes (8 was a bit long). The new video tells the story a bit better, though the full version gives a more detailed tour. What do you think?

This project at 3893 32nd Avenue in Sacramento really shines. It was rehabbed by Housing Group Fund (in partnership with SMUD) into a pristine and very energy-efficient home. It’s amazing to think this house has the potential to save 60% on its utility bills. What do you think? Have you ever heard of Quad-Lock before?

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Filed Under: Resources, Videos Tagged With: 32nd Avenue, Energy Efficient House, Housing Group Fund, Lundquist Appraisal Company, Quad-Lock, Sacramento, SMUD, Video of Energy Efficient House, What does an energy efficient house look like

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