Has your property been re-assessed?

I get calls about this topic weekly from my clients. Do you know if your property has been re-assessed to reflect the decline in the real estate market? Although this may not benefit everyone in every community, here in the N. Tahoe area values have decreased significantly in a lot of cases and the assessors offices are constantly making changes to people's property tax bills.

I live in Nevada county and was looking at my tax bill recently. It seemed that the assessed value of my property was quite high compared to what I knew the neighborhood comps to be. I called the assessor and left a message, he called me back very promptly. He let me know that my neighborhood had been re-assessed but for some reason my house value had not been adjusted. This quick call knocked my assessed value down by $130K. Not great at all for my concept of real estate value in my home, but I might as well be paying the correct amount of taxes.

The point is, if you are in doubt, call the assessors office. There are few bright spots about owning a home or property that has significantly decreased in value. A simple phone call can at least save you some money on property taxes. Don't assume that the adjustments are automatically being taken care of!

Of course these adjustments aren't permanent and home values will continue to fluctuate.
Here are the phone numbers for the assessors offices in this area:
Nevada County: 530-265-1218
Placer County: 530-889-4300

Wine on the Water Event

Mark this on your calendars! This is going to be a really special and fun event. The Hyatt Regency in Incline Village has been generous enough to participate in the "Wine on the Water" event on August 29th and it will benefit the Boys and Girls Club of North Lake Tahoe.

There are going to be some really amazing wineries and restaurants there including Duckhorn, Stag's Leap, Silver Oak, Frank Family, Bennett Lane, Elyse, Schramsberg, Opolo, and more!

Go to:

http://http//tahoe.activitytickets.com/relax/food_wine/1185.

for tickets to this great event. Hope to see you there!

Hyatt Northstar Lodge Video

I think this is my 2nd appearance on You Tube. That is probably a good thing.

Click on this link to see the latest news from the Hyatt Northstar Lodge.


http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xe-N_C7d-hw

The full ownership Residences at the Hyatt Northstar Lodge are really a great deal right now. Prices were just reduced and there has been a lot of interest. Let me know if you would like more information!

Tahoe Ski Resorts Post 2nd Busiest Season '09/'10

I know, I know. I shouldn't talk about snow during the middle of this gorgeous summer. But, I saw this article and I was very interested and thought you would be as well. We get a lot of gloom and doom in the media, so I found it fascinating that many Tahoe resorts had one of their busiest seasons ever last winter.

Read on!

http://www.rgj.com/article/20100716/BIZ/100716022/1321/news

Link to Article about Truckee

My faithful blog follower and aunt, Jane, sent me this article about Truckee and Donner Lake.

Thanks Jane! Enjoy...

http://www.bing.com/travel/content/search?q=Summer+Lake+Towns%3a+Truckee%2c+Calif.%2c+on+Donner+Lake&FORM=RQTRAV

4th of July Weekend

It is almost here! Fortunately the weather looks gorgeous and there are plenty of things to do in the Tahoe basin for the 4th of July weekend. There will be parades, music, art, wine and beer events, and of course all of the outdoor activities that you could ever want. The golf, mountain biking, boating, rafting, sea kayaking and hiking are waiting for you!


I found this article that has some good links to events and also talks about the fireworks showings for different towns.


http://www.examiner.com/x-4497-SF-Lake-Tahoe-Travel-Examiner~y2009m6d16-Fourth-of-July-at-Lake-Tahoe

Also take a look at www.tahoe.com for a calendar of events.

The Donner Lake fireworks in Truckee will also be on the 4th.

Also, if you will be here on a Thursday, definitely check out the "Truckee Thursday" downtown street festival. I went last week and it was a blast. They close down the main street of Truckee and have a farmers market, arts and crafts tents, live music, a beer garden, and fun activities for kids including a bouncy house. Canine kids are welcome on leash. The local businesses are all open and some have promotions. Truckee Thursdays run every Thursday of the summer through August 19th. Hours are from 5-9 PM

Bears....

I was at the Lake Forest boat ramp the other evening and saw the largest most beautiful bear that I have ever seen in this area. He/she was truly magnificent. My husband and I watched the bear rumble across the parking lot and climb up a rock embankment to a lake front condo complex where an astute human waited with a bull horn to scare the bear away.

And I thought to myself, "we really have to be responsible with our trash and behavior to help these creatures stay out of trouble"...because as we have all heard time and time again, once the bear starts eating trash he/she will not be able to coexist with our human population.

So, I thought I would write about it prior to the big 4th of July holiday and hope that locals and visitors alike will be mindful about the impact they have on our bear friends. The more that we can do to keep them out of our trash, the more of a chance they have of surviving.

See this link below for some tips about how to "bear proof" your property:
http://www.tahoewildbears.org/bear-proof_your_propery.htm

There are also some other links on this page that are very informative. These recommendations are easy to do.

Next up....where to watch fireworks this weekend.