Old Wine

Old Wine sounds harsh and un-appetizing,  but nothing could be further from the truth.  Most wine is consumed within a year of it's bottling.  The French have focused on this phenomenon with a special wine known as Nouveau Beaujolais.  But for those who love wine, a good wine that has been allowed to carefully mature develops such intense and complex flavors.    Most people will only age red wines and say white wine should be drank young.  FORGET IT.  I found a 1998 bottle of Adelaida Chardonnay in my cellar recently and thought I was in heaven.  This wine was wonderful.  It wasn't oxidized,  the flavors were reminiscent of dried apricot.  The citrus was mellow and soft to the palate.   As I write this I'm realizing John Munch must have still been at Adelaida when this was produced.  The wine had John's style for sure. 

A little Real Estate Trivia which could be encountered locally.  Assume you were purchasing a winery and vineyard and the statement was made that "emblements" were not included in the sale.  What would this mean?

	a)	Winery Inventory not Included
	b)	TTB Bond not included
	c)	Grape Harvest not included
	d)	None of the Above

(Please visit http://www.pasostyleliving.com for the answer)

A Buyer's market is characterized by more homes being available then Buyers.  The precise definition is normally regarded as 6 months of active inventory.  By that definition we have been in a Buyer's Market at least 2 years or more, but It's clear that Buyers are not in control. So what's happening?

There are some great deals, but the expectation of making a "low ball" offer just isn't reality.  The market is dominated by REOs and Short Sales.  In both these situations Banks are calling the shots and they are slow and almost impossible to negotiate with.  They will almost never take a low ball offer.  I call it the "Cover your Assets" mentality.  The banks (in most cases, Bank Asset Management Companies) have a fiduciary responsibility to sell the property at market value.  To avoid any risk of being accused of selling below market most will not accept an offer that's more than a percent or so below asking.  So to purchase a Bank Owner property, be prepared to offering list price or above.

The other phenomena happening with Short Sales and REOs and is the "Silent Auction".  List Prices are being established artificially low to generate interest.  Buyers are "bidding" prices up significantly from these artificially low asking prices.  I've seen homes sell for $50,000 over List which was also significantly higher than the property was listed for previously.  Currently, if the price looks too good to be true,  expect to pay more.  These situations demand an experienced agent to represent you. 

These situations just prove an old saying in Real Estate,  "You can price a home too high,  but you can never price it too low".  If it is priced too high, it will be ignored by Buyers.  If it's priced too Low it will be bid up.  Everyone should always keep in mind that there is no legal obligation to sell a home at the listed price.  A listing price is merely an invitation to accept offers.   
 

● Most Expensive Single Family Residential Property

The above properties are listed in the Central Coast MLS and may or may not be listed by  Home and Vineyard Real Estate Brokerage.  The presentation of this information is not meant to imply any advertisement of these properties. 

The following recipe is compliments of Giada De Laurentis and the Food Network.     
 

$299,000