A BREATH OF FRESH AIR. Country property for sale with 3 bedroom, 2 bath cottage on 4 acres in Redwood Valley. Hardwood floors, windows perfectly placed for light, landscape, and air. A privately situated master suite opens to mountain views. Click here to see the full listing for this beautiful Mendocino County real estate.
Nestled in Northern California’s beautiful Mendocino County wine country, Tres Classique has been in business since 1985. I thank the day I discovered their balsamics at the Ukiah farmers market. I not only use them regularly now but also send them as gifts to very grateful family and friends around the country. Tres Classique sells their custom infused balsamic vinegar and oils at farmers markets, street fairs, winery events and Christmas festivals. Once you try them, you’re hooked!
Their products are made by hand. The infusion process of garlic, ginger, basil, rosemary, red apple, currant, wild blueberry, or haberrano (their custom blend of garlic, Serrano, and Habaneros in 18 year old balsamic vinegar) produces an unforgettable flavor experience. And these are just a few of the incredible infusions they create and continue to develop.
The company owner, Thomas Allen, is a champion for finding new, healthful, and fun uses for Tres Classique products. He told me you can use them on salads, of course, but don’t limit your imagination and enjoyment. You can use them on vegetables, chicken, pasta, seafood and for bread dipping. How about adding a splash to barbeque sauce or humus, and cutting your favorite salad dressing in half to reduce the calories, fat and sodium. I buy their balsamics from Ben at the Ukiah Farmers Market who uses several of them over ice cream! Customers write in with uses and recipes you can find on their website, tresclassique.com.
A year ago I began posting on the California’s Williamson Act and Ag Preserve as a guide in buying and developing land in Mendocino County. See my earlier posts for an explanation of the Act. This post reports on the impact of current (3/11) California state budget realities, the Williamson Act, the economic realities of private ranching, and preserving the beauty and health of our land.
The Williamson Act has given landowners tax breaks for keeping land in agriculture or open space use for a specified time. This has been a life support system to private ranchers for nearly 50 years. Private ranching is a low-profit industry. Many ranchers in California report making less than $10,000 a year or no profit at all. The Williamson Act has been extremely important to their operations.
According to John Stumbos in his UC Green Blog post, “California’s premier farmland protection tool – the Williamson Act – is on the state’s budget-cutting chopping block and with it critical habitat needed for conservation.”
Many ranchers would need to sell some or all of their land for nonagricultural development. Along with supporting local agriculture, John Stumbos reports that, “California’s rangelands provide clean drinking water, wildlife habitat, open space, and sequester carbon among many other critical ecosystem services.”
Local governments are also struggling and until 2008, the state reimbursed counties for reduced property tax under the Williamson Act. These subsidies were cut in 2008 and 2009. The future is uncertain.
What do you think? Where do we go from here? Among all the state services under scrutiny now, how important is local private ranching and protecting the health and beauty of our land? The Williamson Act is one of many important protections in jeopardy. How important is it to you? Post a comment and let me know what you think.
Finding the right real estate agent need not be the hardest part of looking for or selling property. But it can be as important as any other part of the process. It will make all the difference in how the rest of the process goes. Like most communities, there’s more than one agency and many agents in each agency. Finding the right real estate agent will get you through the times when things don’t go as planned at your end or at the other end, and that happens!
Here is a beginning checklist to work down as you look for the right agent.
1. Referrals are a good way to begin finding the right real estate agent. Ask your family, friends, people you work with, call a local title company or the local MLS (Multiple Listing Service) Office.
2. Real estate listings in the local newspaper and real estate magazines will tell you who the more active agents are and as important, how they present themselves and the properties they have for sale. Is that how you would like to be represented? You might start by looking for the ads of the agents referred to you. Check to see if they have their own presence on the internet, a website or a blog.
3. Interview 2 or 3 real estate agents you feel you might want to represent you. In person is always best but you can start with a phone call. This is better than email because you can hear the voice behind the words. Here are a few questions to start the conversation and build on. Remember you are not simply looking for the answers to these questions but also how they are answered, how the real estate agent engages with you. This relationship may be a short one, or it may go on for a time.
a. How long have you worked in this community?
b. What will the working relationship be like?
c. (If you are new to real estate ask) can you describe the process involved in selling/buying real
estate?
Then, how do you feel talking with them? Do they clearly explain things to you? Are they patient with your questions? Do you feel they are answering your questions or just giving you stock answers? Are they good listeners?
Again, finding the right real estate agent need not be difficult but it should never be taken for granted. Don’t just walk into the first agency and up to the first agent you see. Along with the emotions involved of finding your dream property or selling the home your family grew up in, there are legal and financial issues. None of this needs to be scary or unnecessarily complicated for anyone, and it won’t be when guided by the right real estate agent.
The Ukiah Farmers Market. What a great place to meet friends every Saturday morning! A cup of coffee and we’re walking through the tables of locally grown, fresh produce, and made goods. My husband reminded me of a scene in Argentina. Once a week a grandfather walked by with his grandson in hand to buy local fresh produce out of a neighbor’s garage. Friends stopped to talk, connect, smile, debate, laugh, pick up some fresh veggies and strengthen community ties. I thought about the gift that grandfather was giving to his grandson weekly connecting the two of them as they connected with their community. I was also impressed that the grandfather walked at the grandson’s pace discovering the world with each step.
It is a different pace of shopping. For those of you who have not been there or haven’t been there recently I invite you to check it out. According to Scott Cratty who organizes the Ukiah Farmers Market, business has slowed this winter.
Finding the right real estate agent need not be the hardest part of looking for or selling property. But it can be as important as any other part of the process. It will make all the difference in how the rest of the process goes. Like most communities, there’s more than one agency and many agents in each agency. Finding the right real estate agent will get you through the times when things don’t go as planned at your end or at the other end, and that happens!
Ukiah and Mendocino County Real Estate 