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        <title>Real Estate Blog</title>
        <link>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/santa-cruz-county-days-of-inventory/</link>
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            <guid>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/is-it-time-to-put-the-vegetable-garden-at-your-santa-cruz-home-to-bed-for-the-winter.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/is-it-time-to-put-the-vegetable-garden-at-your-santa-cruz-home-to-bed-for-the-winter.html</link>
            <author>lauren@laurenspencer.com (Lauren Spencer)</author>
            <title>Is it Time to Put the Vegetable Garden at Your Santa Cruz Home to Bed for the Winter?</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
All things must pass. No matter how the gardening at your Santa Cruz home went this year, its getting time to move on and change with the seasons. Here are some tips to help you:

&bull;&nbsp;Dig those sweet potatoes. Harvest sweet potatoes before the first frost, or they will be ruined. If you wake up and find the frost has hit before you had the chance, run out there immediately and at least cut the vines off at the base of the plants. This may stop damage to the roots, but you still need to dig your sweets before the next frost. After digging, cure them by keeping them in a warm, dark place like the attic of your Santa Cruz home. This sweetens them up and gets them ready for storage. After curing, store them somewhere that never goes below 40 degrees; they can still be damaged by low temperatures.

&bull;&nbsp;Harvest winter squash. Unlike sweet potatoes, winter squash can survive a frost. In fact, some say they benefit from a light frost, but dont leave them out during a hard freeze. Winter squash should be very hard; you should not be able to puncture the skin with your fingernail. Truly ripe winter squash should keep in storage for several months.

&bull;&nbsp;Take down garden structures such as trellises and stakes. 

&bull;&nbsp;Get rid of weed seeds. If you find any old weeds that somehow went to seed, get them out of there now, or youll regret it next year.

&bull;&nbsp;Save vegetable and herb seeds. If anything you grew went to seed, and its not a hybrid, collect the seeds and put them in small glass jars or envelopes. Make sure theyre dry first, and label with variety name and year. 

&bull;&nbsp;Try some last minute sowings. Some greens, especially spinach, can withstand surprisingly cold weather. What have you got to lose? Just throw down some seeds, water them in, and see if they make a stand. If they do, you may want to cover them with plastic in a month or two.

&bull;&nbsp;Mulch. This is especially important if your garden is not on flat ground. Bare soil is prone to erosion. Leaves, grass clippings or straw will protect your beds and slowly add organic matter, even over the winter months. 

If youre looking for a Santa Cruz home where you can grow a garden next year, I can help! Contact me at Lauren@LaurenSpencer.com or 831.662.6522.

For additional information, please visit my website at www.MySantaCruzRealEstate.com.

Links

Sweet potatoes

Winter squash

&nbsp;Hybrid
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 20 Oct 2011 23:01:00 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/days-of-inventory.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/days-of-inventory.html</link>
            <author>lauren@laurenspencer.com (Lauren Spencer)</author>
            <title>Days of Inventory</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[  ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 04 Feb 2010 14:38:46 -0800</pubDate>
                    </item>
        <item>
            <guid>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/pending-home-sales-on-a-record-roll.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/pending-home-sales-on-a-record-roll.html</link>
            <author>lauren@laurenspencer.com (Lauren Spencer)</author>
            <title>Pending Home Sales on a Record Roll</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Contract activity for pending home sales has risen for six straight months, a pattern not seen in the history of the index since it began in 2001, according to the National Association of Realtors.

The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in July, increased 3.2 percent to 97.6 from a reading of 94.6 in June, and is 12.0 percent higher than July 2008 when it was 87.1. &nbsp;The index is at the highest level since June 2007 when it was 100.7.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the housing market momentum has clearly turned for the better. &nbsp;&ldquo;The recovery is broad-based across many parts of the country. &nbsp;Housing affordability has been at record highs this year with the added stimulus of a first-time buyer tax credit,&rdquo; he said.

&ldquo;Other buyers are taking advantage of low home values before prices turn higher. &nbsp;Nationally, the typical mortgage payment now takes less than 25 percent of a middle-income familys monthly income to buy a median priced home, with payment percentages so far in 2009 being the lowest on record dating back to 1970. &nbsp;As long as home buyers stay within their budget, mortgage payments will be very manageable,&rdquo; Yun said.

NAR estimates that about 1.8 to 2.0 million first-time buyers will take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit this year, with approximately 350,000 additional sales that would not have taken place without the credit. &nbsp;Buyers have little time to act because they must complete the transaction by November 30 to qualify for the credit. &nbsp;Unless extended, contracts signed but not completed by that date will not be eligible  it is taking approximately two months to complete home sales in the current market.

The Pending Home Sales Index in the Northeast declined 3.0 percent to 78.8 in July but is 4.7 percent higher than July 2008. &nbsp;In the Midwest the index slipped 2.0 percent to 88.1 but is 8.1 percent above a year ago. &nbsp;In the South, pending home sales activity rose 3.1 percent to an index of 103.8 in July and is 12.0 percent above July 2008. &nbsp;In the West the index jumped 12.1 percent to 112.5 and is 20.0 percent above a year ago.

NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said Congress needs to keep the momentum going. &nbsp;&ldquo;Even with a good recovery taking place, the market is not yet back to normal. &nbsp;With a gradual absorption of inventory, we are on the cusp of a general stabilization in home prices,&rdquo; he said.

&ldquo;To ensure that housing has a broad stimulus to the overall economy and stays on sound footing, were encouraging Congress to extend the tax credit into 2010, and to expand it to all buyers of primary residences. &nbsp;The faster we stabilize home prices, the fewer families will face foreclosure and the quicker credit can be extended to other sectors of the economy,&rdquo; McMillan said.

NARs Housing Affordability Index stood at 158.5 in July, below the peak set in April but is still 36.0 percentage points higher than a year ago. &nbsp;The HAI is a broad measure of housing affordability using consistent values and assumptions over time, which examines the relationship between home prices, mortgage interest rates and family income.









Yun expects existing-home sales to rise through the fourth quarter. &nbsp;&ldquo;Unless the tax credit is extended, no one should be surprised to see home sales drop in the first quarter of next year,&rdquo; he said. &nbsp;&ldquo;However, the fundamentals of the housing market and the economy are trending up, and we expect home sales to generally pick up in the second quarter of 2010. &nbsp;The buyer psychology may be shifting from, &lsquo;Why buy now when I can purchase later, to &lsquo;I dont want to miss out on a recovery.&rdquo;



Contract activity for pending home sales has risen for six straight months, a pattern not seen in the history of the index since it began in 2001, according to the National Association of Realtors.

The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in July, increased 3.2 percent to 97.6 from a reading of 94.6 in June, and is 12.0 percent higher than July 2008 when it was 87.1. &nbsp;The index is at the highest level since June 2007 when it was 100.7.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the housing market momentum has clearly turned for the better. &nbsp;&ldquo;The recovery is broad-based across many parts of the country. &nbsp;Housing affordability has been at record highs this year with the added stimulus of a first-time buyer tax credit,&rdquo; he said.

&ldquo;Other buyers are taking advantage of low home values before prices turn higher. &nbsp;Nationally, the typical mortgage payment now takes less than 25 percent of a middle-income familys monthly income to buy a median priced home, with payment percentages so far in 2009 being the lowest on record dating back to 1970. &nbsp;As long as home buyers stay within their budget, mortgage payments will be very manageable,&rdquo; Yun said.

NAR estimates that about 1.8 to 2.0 million first-time buyers will take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit this year, with approximately 350,000 additional sales that would not have taken place without the credit. &nbsp;Buyers have little time to act because they must complete the transaction by November 30 to qualify for the credit. &nbsp;Unless extended, contracts signed but not completed by that date will not be eligible  it is taking approximately two months to complete home sales in the current market.

The Pending Home Sales Index in the Northeast declined 3.0 percent to 78.8 in July but is 4.7 percent higher than July 2008. &nbsp;In the Midwest the index slipped 2.0 percent to 88.1 but is 8.1 percent above a year ago. &nbsp;In the South, pending home sales activity rose 3.1 percent to an index of 103.8 in July and is 12.0 percent above July 2008. &nbsp;In the West the index jumped 12.1 percent to 112.5 and is 20.0 percent above a year ago.

NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said Congress needs to keep the momentum going. &nbsp;&ldquo;Even with a good recovery taking place, the market is not yet back to normal. &nbsp;With a gradual absorption of inventory, we are on the cusp of a general stabilization in home prices,&rdquo; he said.

&ldquo;To ensure that housing has a broad stimulus to the overall economy and stays on sound footing, were encouraging Congress to extend the tax credit into 2010, and to expand it to all buyers of primary residences. &nbsp;The faster we stabilize home prices, the fewer families will face foreclosure and the quicker credit can be extended to other sectors of the economy,&rdquo; McMillan said.

NARs Housing Affordability Index stood at 158.5 in July, below the peak set in April but is still 36.0 percentage points higher than a year ago. &nbsp;The HAI is a broad measure of housing affordability using consistent values and assumptions over time, which examines the relationship between home prices, mortgage interest rates and family income.

Yun expects existing-home sales to rise through the fourth quarter. &nbsp;&ldquo;Unless the tax credit is extended, no one should be surprised to see home sales drop in the first quarter of next year,&rdquo; he said. &nbsp;&ldquo;However, the fundamentals of the housing market and the economy are trending up, and we expect home sales to generally pick up in the second quarter of 2010. &nbsp;The buyer psychology may be shifting from, &lsquo;Why buy now when I can purchase later, to &lsquo;I dont want to miss out on a recovery.&rdquo;
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:34:10 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/santa-cruz-county-days-of-inventory-for-june-2009.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/santa-cruz-county-days-of-inventory-for-june-2009.html</link>
            <author>lauren@laurenspencer.com (Lauren Spencer)</author>
            <title>Santa Cruz County - Days of Inventory for June 2009</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 


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 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:43:26 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/santa-cruz-county-days-of-inventory.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.mysantacruzrealestate.com/blog/santa-cruz-county-days-of-inventory.html</link>
            <author>lauren@laurenspencer.com (Lauren Spencer)</author>
            <title>Santa Cruz County Days of Inventory</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[  ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Tue, 23 Jun 2009 14:13:00 -0700</pubDate>
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