Wine country properties for discriminating buyers

40 Acre Ranch Entrance

The fantastic ranch that I talked about on my previous post is now listed and available for purchase. I am happy to show it to you any time, but if you can’t reach me call Kathy Stouffer 707 280-6257, or Dave Roberts 707 869-1884.

8359 West Dry Creek Road, Healdsburg, CA 95448

• 40 acres, magnificent view site
• adjacent to Raymond Burr Winery
• located above valley floor

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Idyllic pond on Healdsburg Ranch

 This magnificent property located on West Dry Creek Road in Healdsburg is a breathtaking 40 acre view multiple building sites both on the lower portion of the property, plus additional sites up the mountain on the southern portion of the property. It is located just a short distance up a country lane from West Dry Creek Road. There is an existing home , but most buyers will probably build on one of the fantastic building sites located on the property.

The owner has advised me that she will be interested in selling her property in the late spring of 2009. Just imagine the opportunity this time frame allows you to get to know the area plus walk the property with me as many times as needed. Call me for a preview of this property
Please take a look at the pictures of this exceptional estate property with exceptional views

view from top of building site looking west

Hillside Location

View of winter creek bed

front of Healdsburg estate ranch guest house

View looking south on Healdsburg estate parcel

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Short Sale Homes  in Sonoma County

This is the time to start looking at Short  Sales in Sonoma County. Short Sale homes and investment properties are homes and condos that the owner has missed a minimum of two  bank payments.  Hopefully, once the owner has missed two payments, he or she should enlist a realtor to see about selling the home before the foreclosure is final. The owners  market the homes in hopes of selling them before the bank forecloses on the home. In addition, the homeowner’s credit  is less effected by a short sale property than a foreclosed property. Therefore, it behooves the owner to try to complete a short sale as soon as possible. 

Short sale homes run the full gammit of prices from $200,000 to the millions. Today  I ran all the Short Sales in Sonoma County for all homes that are currently in Short Sale status from $200,000 to 2 milion. There are currently 669 available homes and condos in Sonoma County.

Short Sales in Sonoma County

Once the Short Sales are listed, you have the opportunity to bargain for the homes. At this point,  the Buyer has the opportunity to look at the property. The Buyer actually ends up dealing with Bank or Savings and Loan which owns the First mortgage and perhaps the Second mortgage as well. The owners often do not realize that they are not in the driver’s seat anymore.  The Banks are the ones that decide to accept an offer or reject it. The drawback from Short Sales is that the Buyer must be prepared to wait several months to complete the deal. It is exasperating to deal with the Banks, however,it is worth the wait when the Buyer gets the house at a greatly reduced price.

Why look at  Short Sales?

The obvious reason is that the price is so much cheaper than a regular sale where there isn’t any problem with delinquent loans. The owners of regular houses do not want to address the huge depreciation in their property as reflected by the hundreds of thousands less in asking price on REO’s and Short Sales. It is very difficult to explain to current property owners that their home prices have followed the REO’s and Short Sales down in pricing. Therefore, it is much easier to look at realistic pricing of  Short Sales!

Playing the Game of Short Sales

I refer to the Short Sale Experience as much like a game. The property isn’t sold until the lenders decide to accept the offer. The property owner has no input into the agreed price between the buyers and the banks. The banks can wait and extend the period when they are accepting offers. And in addition, if your offer is accepted, the bank can accept another offer that is better than yours. The bank has the right to take a better offer even  if the property is listed as CC, Contingent-Show. Therefore, I recomment that we look at properties that are listed as CC because you too can pump the last price that was offered.

669 Short Sales Available in Sonoma County on December 21, 2008

My proposal is to list my favorite homes on my blog that I select  to entice prospective Buyers to call me and see these excellent buys in Sonoma County. You can Google me to see my background in Sonoma County and the articles that have been written about me in the Press Democrat. I also have built two custom  homes from the ground up and I am familiar with the costs to remodel homes with my list of trusted contractors. My full name is Sheila H. Giovan and I can be reached at 707 495-4356 mobile phone. I am associated with Healdsburg Sotheby’s International Realty at 409 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg.

Making your own Search for Short Sales

Also, you can run a search for yourself on my winecountryranches.com which you can name the exact areas that you are interested and the price. It is tied to the MLS(Mutliple Listing Service) and therefore is updated to that moment. It is an ideal way to search for properties that meet your criteria.

I have lived in Sonoma County for over thirty four years. I am very knowledgeable about  Sonoma County. I have a passion for the beauty and uniqueness of this area of California. I look forward to working with you if you decide to look at these great bargains! 

 One last thought, how long will these REO’s and Short Sales last? At this time the Press Democrat is still publishing daily lists of homes to be auctioned at the court house steps. Until these postings of delinquent property owners stop, we will be seeing more Short Sales and REO’s to look at and buy at greatly reduced prices.

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This is the time to start looking at high end luxury REO’s in Sonoma County. REO stands for Real Estate Owned by Banks(homes that have been through the foreclosure process).   My definition of luxury bank owned homes includes the homes from $450,000 to $1,200,000. Yesterday I ran all the REO’s in this price range. Currently over a hundred luxury bank owned homes are available in Sonoma County. I like these properties the most because you don’t have to deal with owners and you can readily look at all the properies in a very short time. In addition, you only have to deal with the bank who owns the property who is anxious to sell it.

Let me give you some examples in  the market right now. Call me to see any of these homes.

260 Clear Ridge Drive in Healdsburg is an example of a property that is vacant and is an REO currently listed for $820,999. The original list price was over $1,500,000. This home was built as an expensive spec house that missed the elevated prices of a few years ago. This home features beautiful views and is very modern in design. It would be  great for a second home in Healdsburg for entertaining.

3783 Shillingord Place in Vistara in Santa Rosa is listed for $899,000 and was priced substantially above a million. It has a spectacular view from the top of Founttaingrove. This is very well priced for a Vistara subdivision home where almost  all the homes have sensational views.

9964 Troon Court in Oak Hills Estates is another beautiful home that is listed currently at $944,000.  Oak Hills Estates is a million dollar luxury neighborhood in Windsor located on huge lots and each home is individually designed mostly by architects. It features 4281 square feet on just under a half acre.

This is just three examples out of hundreds in Sonoma County of luxury REO homes.

My plan is to list my favorite homes that I select each week to entice prospective Buyers to call me and see these excellent buys in Sonoma County. You can Google me to see my background in Sonoma County and the articles that have been written about me in the Press Democrat. I also have built two custom homes from the ground up and I am familiar with the costs to remodel homes with my list of trusted contractors. My full name is Sheila H. Giovan and I can be reached at 707 495-4356 mobile phone. I am associated with Healdsburg Sotheby’s International Realty at 409 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg.

I have lived in Sonoma County for over thirty four years. I am very knowledgeable about  Sonoma County. I have a passion for the beauty and uniqueness of this area of California. I look forward to working with you if you decide to look at these great bargains!

One last thought, how long will these REO’s last? At this time the Press Democrat is still publishing daily lists of homes to be auctioned at the court house steps. Until these postings of delinquent property owners stop, we will be seeing more REO’s to look at and buy at greatly reduced prices.

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A great way to spend a day wine tasting is to visit the beautiful Alexander Valley just north of Healdsburg in Sonoma County. You will be astonished with the gorgeous mountains and the long valley with hundreds of acres of premium wines. The best approach from Highway101 is to exit onto Dry Creek Road and turn right for about three blocks until you reach the traffic light at Healdsburg Avenue. Turn left and start your journey up  the graceful drive to Alexander Valley Road. Turn right at the intersection of Alexander Valley Road and proceed to follow  the meandering road where some of the best wines in the country are grown. You’ll cross over the historic Russian River, named for the fort that the Russians had established long ago. Luckily, we got control of the area and the Russians left.

About a mile past the bridge you will be treated to one of my favorite places to enjoy a light sandwich at the well known Jimtown Store. It is located at 6706 Highway 128. Alexander Valley Road becomes Highway 128 at the stop sign. Just continue on straight and Jimtown Store is on the left. once you have enjoyed this little bit of history, proceed on Highway 128 where you will  have several choices of very fine wineries.

My favorite is Hanna Winery which has won consistently in the Harvest Fair for its excellent wines. Hanna Winery is located on the left at 9280 Highway 128 up a spectacular driveway to its tasting room. One year Hanna Winery received the award for best of show. Besides I especially enjoy the placement of their wine tasting room which gives you a commanding view of the valley below with great service and friendly servers. The owner of the winery, Dr. Hanna truly enjoys his life in Sonoma County and his winery shows his love of the area.

Down the road a bit is Field Stone Winery that has a lot of character with the wine tasting room part of the storage and super friendly folks who are part of the winery. They have lots of picnic tables situated under large oaks.  I have enjoyed several parties at this fine establishment with local wine growers and it is always fun to be here.

At this point it is best to go back Highway 128 to where Alexander Valley Road stopped and turn right on Highway 128 toward Geyserville. Next you can stop at one of the wineries where I am a wine club member. It is called Stryker Winery and has won awards for its fantastic design. When you are in the wine tasting area, the owners designed it so you are looking directly out at the Valley. Also, the staff is super friendly and it is worth joining the wine club because you can then taste all their wines that are opened without charge.

Finally, continue on to Geyserville and turn right on Geyserville Avenue. Here you will find a marvelous restaurant named Santi Restaurant, 21047 Geyserville Avenue. It is a famous restaurant with various past owners and now is owned by great chefs. Not to be missed.

To return to Healdsburg just go south on Geyserville Avenue and proceed south on Highway 101. One last thought, you might enjoy a stop at the fantastic renovated remodeled and glamorous Rosso and Bianco Winery, formerly known as Souverain. It is a show stopper designed by the new owner Francis Ford Coppola. You can exit the freeway at Independence Lane and go west.

For any additional information and recommendations, please call me at 707 495-4356. I think that this day   trip should not be missed.

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A delightful day can be spent driving along the Dry Creek Valley road from Highway 101. Get off at the Dry Creek exit and turn left onto Dry Creek and enter into one of the most scenic areas of California. As you drive along the valley you will notice all the gorgeous vineyards and very few homes along the valley floor. The  Sonoma Dam limits the building of homes in this river bed valley. The River from the Sonoma Dam flows through the valley and joins the Russian River further down towards Forestville.

One place to stop for refreshments and a great viewing of all the people who frequent the area is the Dry Creek General Store located at 3495 Dry Creek Road. The food and sandwiches are great and you can pick up lots of different types of  drinks. The staff there is friendly and helpful. Also, don’t miss the exceptional bar to the left of the store. The walls are lined with antelope and deer heads and  olden times relics.

The next fantastic spot to visit is the Ferrari-Carano Winery(8761 Dry Creek Road) which features the best garden setting of the eniire valley. You feel as if you are entering an Italian Villa overlooking the valley. Don’t miss the fantastic private garden similar to the Japanese Garden in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. This place is heavenly and should not be missed. In addition they serve delicious wines and it the winery has many  types of wines to taste.

Continue on Dry Creek up to the Lake Sonoma where you can cross the bridge onto Rockpile Road located on the otherside of the lake. It affords a terrific view and is maybe five more miles past the Brandt Memorial Building where you can stop and learn about the history this dam.

Once you return back towards the Dry Creek Store, turn right onto Lambert Bridge Road and cross over to West Dry Creek Road which features even more lovely wineries where you can taste their wines. I am especially fond of the Bella Winery which is located to the right at the end of the road. Here you can wine taste inside their underground cave.

Once you have enjoyed the Bella Winery, return and follow the meandering West  Dry Creek Road where you will find numerous wineries. The most famous for Pinot is the small Rochiola winery located at 6192 Westside road. Dry Creek Road deadends into Westside Road and be sure and turn right onto Westside Road and drive along this scenic and delightful road lined with vineyards featuring pinot grapes. Rochiola is world famous for its Pinot Noir and has won more awards than anyone. Usually you can only buy one bottle of the Pinot Noir, however, everyone in your party can buy one. It is worth the drive.

After visiting Rochioli, return to Healdsburg to enjoy a stroll around the town square. Often times, there is music performed in the center of the square and you can enjoy a great dinner at the numerous restaurants within two blocks walking distance from the center of town.  One that I love is Ravenous which is located at 420 Center Street, just a short walk north on Center from the square. It also has a smaller location next the the big theatre in town at 117 North Street. Another one of my favorites is not to be missed is Bistro Ralph, 109 Plaza.

If you need any other recommendations, just call me on my cell phone 707 495-4356. I am happy to help you enjoy this paradise.

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Sheila enjoying a Grand Canyon ride

Welcome to my blog about country property in Sonoma County. I have been working with discriminating buyers of luxury and equestrian homes and land for many years. I look forward to working with you.

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