Condotels make great second or vacation homes while giving you the benefit of someone helping you make the payment.  They are not sold as a primary residence due to the fact that the owner’s usage is normally limited because each unit is expected to be included in the hotel’s inventory of rentable units.  But one of the great benefits of this type of unit is that it is maintained and rented out for you, just like any other room in a hotel.  You don’t have to worry about advertising, collecting rent, cleaning or any of the stress that normally goes with having a vacation rental.  As owner, you’ll receive a percentage of the revenue that is generated, so you’ll want to do your research to determine what amount of income you can realistically expect.

Some of the advantages of this type of ownership:

a) Rental revenue to offset some of your ownership expenses (in some cases maybe all your expenses.)
b) A worry-free vacation home in a great location.
c) Hassle free ownership; no landlord issues.
d) Own instead of rent.

Some disadvantages:
a) Pets may not be allowed.
b) Your unit is subject to the same trends in the real estate market that affect hotels.
c) Your unit may not always be available on short notice (but most manager’s will try to work with you).

We are fortunate to have two hotel/condotels on the Central Coast.  And remember location, location, and location when purchasing this kind of unit.  We have one condotel that sits right on the sand in Pismo Beach and one that is only one block from the water in Oceano.

If you are interested in finding out more about condo hotels on the Central Coast, well be glad to answer your questions and help you explore your options.

Nancy Tucker, Realtor Associate
HomesCentralCoast.com Team
   

The city of Santa Maria prior to 1967 was subject to flooding on an almost bi-annual basis.  This is because the Santa Maria River, which is fed by the foothills and mountains to our east, channels a tremendous amount of water over a short distance on its way to the Pacific Ocean during our rainy season.  Without a way to channel the water away from the city, it was not unusual to see water flood into the city center, usually as far south as Stowell Road on a regular basis.  The flooding, although chronic, was not catastrophic, usually flooding about a foot or so of water on average.

In the 1960’s as both a flood control and water reclamation project, the Santa Maria River Levee and Twitchell Resevoir were constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers.  Upon the completion of the levee,  the area south of the river was categorized in the Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM) as an area that is deemed to have a 1% or less chance of major flooding in any given year.  As a result of this categorization, property owners have been generally exempt from a requirement to purchase flood insurance.  (Federally backed mortgages require flood insurance when there is a greater than 1% chance of flooding, and most private mortgages are starting to adopt the same requirement).

The failure of the levee system in New Orleans, along with the large numbers of uninsured losses in traditionally flood prone areas has prompted the review of all levees across the United States.  Every levee will need to be ‘re-certified’ to determine that their protection is still adequate. 

Santa Maria’s levee, upon review, was deemed to be inadequate and in need of renovation.  This causes our area to lose it’s category of 1% or less chance of flooding, and requires FEMA to re-draw the flood maps that determine the amount of risk, and therefore the pricing mechanism for flood insurance.   The maps create ‘zones’ which distinguish a particular area’s risk versus another.  Basically, the higher the risk, the higher the pricing for flood insurance.

Unfortunately, this area’s designation will change from a FIRM zone that allows for relative inexpensive pricing (currently $348 for a preferred policy that contains $250,000 of building coverage and $100,000 of contents coverage) to a pricing model that can make the same preferred policy on the same property cost $1385.00.  If the home you live in or are purchasing was built before 1974 and is in the changed zones, your same policy can cost as much as $5481.00.  So, where you live, and when your house was constructed will play a big part as to how these changes will effect you and your family.

City, County and Federal officials are working on a plan to bring the levee up to certification standards.  At the last estimate, the cost is approximately $48 million.  Upon completion of the work and re-certification of the levee, the requirement for purchasing flood insurance should be lifted, but consumers are urged to consider maintaining this valuable coverage.  Of course, the pricing at that time should be substantially reduced.

Our office will be glad to discuss your particular situation and help you with your insurance needs.  Feel free to contact us to help you determine if the home you own or are considering buying may be affected.

Marty Mariscal  CLU, CHFC
Mariscal-Rumbaugh Insurance

The record-breaking heat added another element to the event.  I thoroughly enjoyed the warm evening weather as we watched the cars cruise the streets, although some of the vendors complained that the crowds were thinner than they expected.  If that was the case, it’s hard to tell whether it was the heat or gas prices (or both) that affected their business.

In most cases buyer representation is free of charge. It is traditional that the seller pays for the costs of all commissions of the listing agent and selling agent (buyers’ agent).  This comes from the proceeds of the sale. Sellers are fully prepared to pay the cost of hiring a real estate professional to sell their home.  The agent’s commission is negotiated and noted in a written contract between the sellers and the agent they select to market their home and represent them throughout the process.  Most of time, the commission is an agreed upon percentage of the selling price of the home.  That commission is shared or split with the agent who represents the buyers of the home. 

So there is no commission cost to the buyers for agent representation.  Obviously,  there will be other costs involved with the home buying process such as obtaining a mortgage loan and buyer inspections ect. A knowledgeable real estate agent will be able to explain the whole process to you in detail when you are ready to make your home purchase.

You can find more information for first-time home buyers in our article, Can I Afford to Buy a Home?

~Shea Hutchinson, Realtor Associate, HomesCentralCoast.com Team

If you’d like to read it, here’s the link:
Santa Maria house bought with no money down goes into foreclosure

The Wall Street Journal printed an article today that backs our May 1st blog.  James R. Hagarty writes in “Home Sales Rise in Hard-Hit Areas
In it, he mentions, as we did, that lenders are pricing foreclosed homes more aggressively and that sales are up in those areas that are hardest hit.  This is the situation for Santa Maria and Orcutt real estate.

Total Sales in the Santa Maria Area for:
April 2008 - 117
April 2007 - 73
April 2006 - 97
April 2005 - 130
April 2004 - 112