There are a lot of “short-sales” on residential properties taking place; buyers are generally getting good deals but the former borrowers/owners need to relocate. Good news for these borrowers wanting to purchase in the future—new guidelines from residential lenders will allow, after two years, a 25% down payment loan; after 4 years, they will consider a 10% down payment. In Santa Rosa, there is currently a 1 to 2 month supply of homes for sale; a 4 to 6 month supply is considered a “balanced market”. This is a very good time for potential investors/current investors to look at purchasing rental property. So, look for home prices to start rising.

Wish for clear weather this Sunday night, to be able to view the Annular Solar Eclipse. It is the 1st of its type in 18 years and is estimated to blot out 94% of the moon.

Also, don’t forget the Rose Parade this Saturday in Santa Rosa at 10 am.

In most businesses, including Private Money Lending, honesty and integrity are very important, especially in ownership and management. You set an example of how you expect your employees to act and present themselves. Your clients rely on your experience, honesty and integrity, especially if they are investing money with you or purchasing stock in your company. So, when you read that Yahoo’s CEO is under fire for padding his resume with an embellished college degree, it begs the question – why did he do that? In this climate of social media and the Internet, it was a foolish thing for him to do. Does this affect his ability to run Yahoo? Perhaps it does, to the extent he has potentially lost some credibility and integrity.

Then we turn to the most powerful CEO’s in America, the youngest being Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) at age 27 and Larry Page (Google), age 39. They may not have gray hair but they do have creative vision and a lot of energy. It will be interesting to watch the initial public offering of Facebook in the next few weeks, estimated to reach trading at $100 Billion. Keep in mind that Zuckerberg owns enough voting shares in the company that his decisions cannot be overruled by outside shareholders.

Several Mother’s Day events this weekend, if you don’t have plans: Open Garden in Healdsburg, call 707-433-7455 or Plant Sale at Luther Burbank Home/Gardens in Santa Rosa, call 707-524-5445.

Don’t forget the Rose Parade, Santa Rosa, next Saturday, May 19th, call 707-523-3728.

In the Private Money Lending business, we experience ups and downs and it is a challenge to maintain a positive attitude.  However, we are receiving offers and are even selling some of our REO properties.  Some properties are being sold for cash and some are seller-carry for two or three years.  So, this is great news, especially for us and our lenders.

So, speaking of great news – The SF Giants come through once again!  They invited a 9 year old and his family to attend a Friday night game and meet his favorite pitcher, Tim Lincecum.  The young man came to the aid of a choking classmate, slapping him on the back several times to dislodge the food stuck in his throat.  Go Giants!

I am also pleased to see the AMGEN Bike Race is back once again in Santa Rosa.  The race starts downtown on Sunday, May 13^th; however, several participants are coming early to take advantage of all the great places to see in Sonoma County.

Fees, income, and expenses, are continuing topics for running Counties, Cities or your own business.  Increases are proposed for day-use at regional parks, bus fares, airport parking and building permits.  In our Private Money Lending business, we are continually looking at ways to increase loan volume so we are adjusting our fee structure (downward), just as I am sure a lot of businesses are doing right now.

We are also pleased to report that we recently sold one of our REO properties.  Yes, it was with seller-carry financing, but it is sold and the borrower is making payments.

The various political campaigns for 2012 are heating up the race for cash.  Each election seems to raise an incredible amount of money; this year is expected to be in the Billions of dollars.  I am sure that various advertising venues and the postal service will see an increase in revenues.  However, it is nice to see that gas prices are a little lower, at least this week.

A FREE event in Petaluma on Saturday, April 28th is the Butter & Egg Days Parade, call 707-762-93489; or pay $10/adult and take in the Bodega Bay Fisherman’s Festival on either Saturday or Sunday, call 707-875-3866

I always thought that a Million dollars was a lot of money; I still think it is.  Then, came a Billion dollars—which is being paid by Facebook for a less-than-2 year old San Francisco company.  So, with our National Debt being over a Trillion dollars, is a Trillion the new Million?  The next value is “quadrillion”; I wonder how long it will take to hear that word.  It appears common to read that professional athletes are signing 3 to 5 year contracts for over $100 Million dollars.  Reality is that only a handful of players earn over $100 Million—the “WOW” Factor gets us when we read it.  Are we becoming blase in saying “a million”?  A recent article states Microsoft trades at a valuation of around $260 Billion; Apple’s value briefly crossed the $600 Billion mark.  Having a company be valued at a Trillion Dollars is not far behind.

Speaking of dollars, don’t forget to file your tax return by April 16th. 

Two FREE events this weekend: Tomatomania at Cornerstone, Sonoma takes place April 14th & 15th, where there will be over 200 varieties of classic & unique tomato seedlings; call 707-933-3010.  Day on the Green at the Village, Montgomery Village, Santa Rosa, is happening April 14th, call 707-328-8094.

There is light at the end of the tunnel! At least for home sales in California. In the month of February, home sales were up 9% from a year ago and up 5% from January 2012. The uptick in sales can be traced back to cash buyers and investors, not owner-occupants. REO (Real Estate Owned) re-sales made up an estimated 34% of all the 4th Quarter 2011 sales, this is down from 38% a year ago. So folks, we are making progress, even if it is slow.

However, notable was the drop in home-ownership among those ages 35 and under. The younger generation is more cautious; they are waiting until their 30’s or later to get married and have kids.  They do not see owning a home as a symbol of the American Dream. Many will delay (or avoid) the large debt required to make a home purchase.

Beware of Pranksters on Sunday, April 1st.

Schools & education have been front-center in the news lately, particularly the issue of kids not attending their neighborhood schools but transferring to schools outside their districts. This is primarily done in the K through 6th Grades. Some school districts are starting to take a hard-line approach, denying the transfer.  The state pays $5-6,000 per year per student to the school the student is attending. You can quickly see the economic effect of transferring students. Perhaps “the elephant in the room”, a big issue in some schools, is English-language learners. The education system needs to find a solution on this issue in order to mitigate the cuts in funding to the school districts. I am glad my kids are grown and I am not faced with these decisions.

Then, there is College education, at Sonoma State and the rest of the Calif. State University system. Five years to obtain a degree has now become the new four-year degree. In upcoming ballot measures, take care in what you are voting for; remember, knowledge is power—make your vote count.

If you get a chance on Sunday, 3/25, take in the Symphony of Food, Wine & Art at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, call 707-546-8742; this is a benefit for music programs for Sonoma County kids.

I am back from vacation and ready to work!  We are looking for borrowers who need financing on real estate (commercial, investment property, mixed-use, special purpose, agricultural land), loans that your bank won’t do.  Give us a call; we are ready to deal.  As private money lenders, we will analyze your “total” loan request, not just rely on cash-flow.    

Political discussions can be interesting, as I am interested in what other people think and their reasons why they think a certain way.  Differing opinions are good as it encourages people to be clear on their thoughts.  Compromise is essential, in business and politics, for a healthy economy.  If there is no compromise, how can we expect to resolve any issues or get any work, even private money loans, done?  Give us a call!   

The Spring Home & Garden Show/Boat, RV & Sport Show is this weekend at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, call 800-655-0655.

This is my last day of skiing (on actual snow) before returning to reality. It is unfortunate that even the weather has an impact on our economy; the resorts have less folks coming to stay, restaurants & shops have less customers. Weather also impacts our economy by affecting our crops, etc. Speaking of crops, let’s hope the grape crop is a good one this year.

On April 1st, the Sales Tax & Use Tax increases (no joke); Sonoma Co. will be 8.0%, Santa Rosa 8.50%. So, if you are anticipating purchasing a high-ticket item, you might want to consider when and where to purchase.

Check out the Sonoma County Bluegrass/Folk Festival, Sebastopol, on March 10th, call 707-829-8012; and, of course, the Wine Road Barrel Tasting, from Mar. 9th thru Mar. 11th, call 800-723-6336.

Don’t forget daylight savings time this Saturday—Move your clocks FORWARD.

Did you know that leap years are needed to keep our calendar in alignment with the Earth’s revolutions around the sun? If we did not add a day every 4 years, we would lose almost six hours off our calendar each year. Your chances of being born on Leap Day are 1 in 1,461.

I was thinking about “loyalty” the other day—customer loyalty. In the private money lending business, you would think that there is not much loyalty with borrowers wanting the “best deal” and lenders wanting an above-average rate of return. However, our company is fortunate, as we pride ourselves on our customer/client loyalty. They trust us to do our job and communicate clearly with them. This type of relationship allows me to occasionally take a break from work, as I have a great, well-trained office staff to handle business in my absence. So, speaking of being absent . . .

I’m getting ready to head off to the ski slopes of Lake Tahoe this weekend, for an annual ski week, guys only. It is great to see some “winter-like” weather and some good snow fall in the mountains, as we really need it.