Alamo_Today_January_2016

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Page 32 - January 2016 ~ Alamo Today

The Combs Team

www.yourmonthlypaper.com

Professionals You Can Count On

Nancy

Joe

Call the Combs Team

®

9 2 5 -9 8 9 -6 0 86 www.TheCombsTeam.com

$3,800

Average Sales Price

Each year about this time I try to update the market on what’s happening in the rental market place in Alamo. This analysis looks at rental homes with at least four bedrooms and 2-3 baths. The data runs from January 1- December 27. The data presented here is published on MLS and does not include every property rented during the time periods. A fair number of rentals are handled directly by the homeowner off MLS. Unfortunately, when we look at off MLS rentals we can only see the advertised price, not the rent actually paid, so current rents as advertised off MLS, while they may appear to be higher than reported here, most likely overstate the actual rent collected by the landlord. On a dollar per square foot basis, rents have risen 39% since 2010 or about 6.5% per year on average. Average rents have been up almost in a straight line during that time period with small fluctuations in price paid per square foot. Looking specifically at the dollars collected in monthly rent, the rise is only 38% during the same time period. However, when we review the size of the homes rented we see a significant difference in size year to year. Interesting is thatAlamo theFamily sizeHome of aRental home rented in 2010 and 2015 are nearly identical as are the number of units rented. $5,800 $5,600 During 2010 rentalsFamily peakedHome at 11Rental units and have since fallen to eight or less $5,400 AlamoAlamo $5,200 units. Given that 2011 repre$5,000 $4,800 Alamo Family Home Rental Avg. Rent sented the market turnaround $5,800 $4,600 $4,400 for home prices in Alamo, we $5,600 $4,200 $5,800$5,400 $4,000 should not be overly surprised $3,800 $5,600$5,200 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 that the number of rentals ap$5,400$5,000 pearing on MLS has decreased $5,200$4,800 Avg. Rent since peaking in 2010. It’s $5,000$4,600 $4,800$4,400 Avg. Rent more than likely that the down$4,600$4,200 turn from 2008-2011 created a $4,400$4,000 large number of unintentional $4,200$3,800 $4,000 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 landlords who would have Average Sales Price

Average Sales Price

Alamo Real Estate: 2015 Rents Increase By 4%

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

been hap- 4 bed 2-3 bath rental homes sales Alamo Jan.1- Dec. 27 pier to sell Year Units $ Sq. Foot Avg. Rent Size Sq. Ft. their homes 2010 11 $ 1.28 $ 4,099 3202 as opposed 2011 6 $ 1.39 $ 3,924 2823 to renting 2012 7 $ 1.78 $ 4,783 2687 them, if 2013 3 $ 1.62 $ 5,132 3175 only they 2014 8 $ 1.93 $ 5,475 2846 could have 2015 12 $ 1.78 $ 5,679 3235 obtained a good price. Since the market continues to be strong for Alamo home sales, why do we see the spike in rentals in 2015? Could it be that corporate transfers are picking up with the improvement in the national economy? Between 2014 and 2015 average rents increased only 4% moving from $5,475 to $5,679 per month. This would be considered a normal increase in rents collected. During the same time dollars paid per square foot declined by 9%. The cause of the decline is not clear. A number of possible explanations come to mind: 1) The number of rentals have increased by 50% over the previous year. 2) Rising interest rates are driving people to buy rather than rent. 3) Short sale and foreclosure victims have repaired their credit to the point that they are leaving the rental market and becoming homeowners again. Whatever the causes the numbers speak for themselves. For the moment, we continue to experience a strong rental market and Alamo home values are increasing simultaneously. If you own a home in Alamo, you will likely think this is good news. Happy New Year! Trying to figure out your next move? Need numbers and answers to your fix up questions to make your decision? Nancy and I will be happy to provide you with a personal consultation, including a multi-dimensional analysis of your home’s current value, to help you figure it out. No charge and no pressure, just our honest opinions. Please call 925-989-6086 or send me an email joecombs@thecombsteam.com.

Orinda Single Story

D

Danville 4 Bedroom

D SOL Nicely updated 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath in lovely Danville neighborhood. Community pool and tennis courts. Priced to sell $899,000.

Executive Luxury Home

D

SOL

SOL

Nicely updated 3 bedroom Single Story, Views and Amazing Schools. Priced To Sell $799,000!

Mt. Diablo views from this casually elegant & completely luxurious Braddock Logan model home. 5 bedroom, 4.5 bath. Priced to sell $1,899,000.

Danville Single Story, Great Location

Alamo Single Story Ranch

NG

DI N E P

Three bedroom single story with a creek view. Priced to sell $699,000

Data presented in this column is based in whole or in part on data supplied by the Contra Costa and Alameda MLS service and other quoted sources. Joe Combs, Nancy Combs, The Combs Team, J. Rockcliff and the MLS service do not guarantee the accuracy of this information. DRE #0144125.

D

SOL

4 bedroom, 2.5 bath home on flat half acre. Updated and ready to go. Priced to sell $1,275,000. J. Rockcliff Realtors 15 Railroad Ave., Danville CA. 94526

editor@yourmonthlypaper.com

January 2016 Serving Alamo and Diablo Teen Esteem: Engaging the Empowering Effects Historic Icons of the San Ramon Valley By Beverly Lane of Self-Respect By Jody Morgan Teen Esteem was established in 1994 to equip adolescents and their parents with tools essential to making intelligent, well-informed, and often courageous choices when confronted with the plethora of pressures that can make being or raising a teenager intensely stressful. By encouraging each student to recognize his or her unique qualities as admirable attributes, Teen Esteem effectively builds a platform of self-respect and respect for others from which young adults, pre-teens, and even elementary school students can evaluate enticements to engage in harmful behaviors. Committed to addressing the lures proffered and the distress potentially produced by each emerging trend, the non-profit is able to provide accurate and timely information to give every individual with

Calling buildings “icons” may be a stretch, but in the case of five buildings in the Museum’s new Historic Icons of the Valley exhibit, the word fits. Featured are the Danville Hotel, San Ramon Store, Tassajara Grammar School, Southern Pacific Depot, and Diablo Country Club’s Red Horse Tavern.

Danville Hotel

A Danville Hotel has been significant from the beginnings of American settlement. When Henry Harris opened the boarding house in 1858, other stores were established to serve the rural population. Harris became postmaster of the first Danville post office in his hotel in 1860. The building became Danville Hotel what all these early post offices were: the center of town, a place where people gathered ostensibly to get their mail and actually to catch up on their world. When this first hotel burned down in 1873, it was quite a loss. The post office shifted to one or another of the general stores along Front Street for the next decades.

See Icons continued on page 12

Dedicated Teen Esteem Volunteers like Adam, Tim, and Jill have presented tools for making informed and beneficial choices to over 150,000 local students.

whom they connect a better chance to maximize personal potential and avoid making damaging decisions. Emphasis on academic achievement and success in competitive sports begins taking its toll on children as early as pre-school. Lacking belief in their own talents or feeling excluded by their peers causes youngsters to give up on life. Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death for children aged 10-14. Depression is diagnosed in 1 in 20 children aged 9-17. Prescription drug abuse (with 47% of teens reporting their knowledge of ease of access to these substances) is an escalating problem. But simple recitation of horrifying statistics is not the approach that has won Teen Esteem the praise of students, parents, teachers, and administrators. One education professional writes: “The presentation was exactly what I hoped for: honest and realistic, but with hope and practical help for parents. I liked that it wasn’t just a ‘shock’ value presentation, but gave parents tools of how to talk to their students, and things they could actually do.” Students find Teen Esteem’s message reassuring. Here are a few of their comments. “You guys inspired me to respect myself.” “I know I am not permanently damaged by my past.” “I really got the chance to hear that I deserved a fresh start, and that I had better chances.” “It was a moment when I considered myself for once to be happy with myself.” How does Teen Esteem translate the discouraging message inherent in delivering a discourse dependent on unadulterated facts into an insightful and

Local Postal Customer

Diablo View Rotary - A Club for a New Generation By Fran Miller

Pass by Walnut Creek’s Buon Vino on Locust St. on a Tuesday night, and you will likely see a happy group enjoying the tasting room’s varied products. But this isn’t just a random group, and this isn’t just a wine tasting event.

From 5:30 to 6:30pm each Tuesday, the Diablo View Rotary Club of Walnut Creek meets at this location to socialize, plan their volunteer projects, and yes, to enjoy a little wine. Self-dubbed as the ‘Happy Hour Club,’ Diablo View Rotary, established Volume XVI - Number 1 in 2008, is the newest of the area’s 3000F Danville Blvd. #117, Alamo, CA 94507 See Teen continued on page 15 many Rotary Clubs. Their leadership strives to move beyond the traditional Telephone (925) 405-NEWS, 405-6397 Fax (925) 406-0547 old-school perception of Rotary as PRSRT STD U.S. Postage Alisa Corstorphine ~ Publisher a male-dominated organization and PAID Editor@yourmonthlypaper.com caters to a diverse younger crowd, Permit 263 Sharon Burke ~ Writer mostly those in their mid 20’s to late The opinions expressed herein belong to the writers, and do Alamo CA 40’s. “But we welcome anyone young not necessarily reflect that of Alamo Today. Alamo Today is not responsible for the content of any of the advertising ECRWSS

See Club continued on page 20

herein, nor does publication imply endorsement.


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