Did someone say camping?

El Dorado County's back yard is the ElDorado National Forest. Established 1910, El Dorado sees more than 2.1 Million visitors each year. The forest offers a wide variety of recreational opportunities to the forest visitor looking to explore, seek out new adventures or revisit old memories. We have over 80 developed camp grounds and picnc areas, hundreds of miles of roads and trails, multiple large lakes and resevoirs, what seems like endless miles of rivers and streams-absolutely breath-taking scenery-and an abundance of plant and wildlife-worthy of a photo.For more information check out the ElDorado National Forest's website
at: fs.fed.us/r5/eldorado
Anything else you want to know about El Dorado County CA-I will be your resource! Wendi-Mae Davis CRS, GRI
Broker Associate for Connect Realty.com, Inc. Toll Free 866-333-6333 Office 530-676-4447 or Direct 916-616-0874 Personal Website: www.wendimae.com

There is soon to be a new Sheriff in Town!

There is soon to be a new Sheriff in El Dorado County-Know the Candidates

Last Tuesday the El Dorado Hills Communty Center was the meeting place for all those interested, to come and meet the Candidates for County Sheriff. Also to hear what they had to say-about why they are running for County Sheriff-and what they will do while they hold the position.

There will be 3 to 4 more Town Hall meetings between now and the June 5th election Day. Be sure to check out your Candidates personal website or the Mountain Democrat (and Life papers) for the next scheduled event-near you. Here is a photo taken during the interviews at El Dorado Hills Community Center- The Candidates are:

Craig Therkildsen http://craig4sheriff.com/
"Protecting your safety" "You, Your family, Your property. In these difficult economic times, my experience will help make this happen."

George Nielsen http://www.georgenielsen4sheriff.com/
"Community Leadership for the Future"

John D'Agostini http://www.johndagostini.com/
"Leadership that Listens"

Bob Luca http://www.luca4sheriff.com/
"Proven Leadership for tough times"

Ernie Hillman http://www.erniehillman.com/
"Proven Leadeship We can trust"

Larry Hennick No website address given "Larry has the knowledge, training, experience and leadership to be our next leader of the Sheriff's department"

Check them out-You need to be involved with who will lead your Police Department. It is an important decision-and an important Vote. If you need a voter registration card-or any information on El Dorado County-and cities within, call me anytime:

Wendi-Mae Davis, CRS, GRI,
Broker Associate, Real Estate Counselor.
23 Year Veteran in the field!
Toll Free 866-333-6333 or
wendimae@wendimae.com
Resume' and references and many other resources and facts can be found at: http://www.wendimae.com/

The Whistle Stops in El Dorado!

Well, it just might!

A proposed Railroad Park is on Track. Can you imagine sitting on a bench at the El Dorado Depot? THen hearing the whistle blow and the clinking sound of the rails as the locomotive makes its way up the grade from the "Y"...THere are bound to be many eager passengers! For some residents here, this is an all too distant memory; for others it only exists in the mind's eye, but for Everyone, it will one day be a realistic re-creation of the days when steam and iron colored the landscape. Recently the County Board of Sup.'s approved preliminary plans for the developement of a railroad musem in the town of El Dorado. The proposed El Dorado County Historical Railroad Park, located on the old Southern Pacific right of way, will display and operate railroading artifacts currently housed at the El Dorado County Historical Museum. Artifacts have been collected and preserved-many restored-from the county's rich railroading past for many.

Years.Survivors of a time when logging companies harvested "green gold" from makeshift camps like Caldor and Pino Grande, include the 102-year-old Shay Number 4 Locomotive, a tally-ho Rail Bus, an 1892 Porter Number 6 Switch Engine, a skidshed, sidings, and a bobby car, just to name a few-which was used to haul lumber via the 1200-foot-high cableway over the American River. The Railroad will operate between El Dorado Road and Blanchard Road. They also plan to recreat the original depot. Cool 'eh?

For more information on the railroad, or any place/anywhere in El Dorado County-

call your resident Realtor-Wendi-Mae Davis, CRS, GRI,

Broker Associate,

Connect Realty.con

http://www.wendimae.com/
Toll Free 866-333-6333

wendimae@wendimae.com

Giving Sellers the Green light

Wendi-Mae is keeping it real, and keeping it Green...Now it is your turn! How do you start protecting your environment, without spending money-rather by saving it? Glad you asked-here's how:
An inexpensive way to start helping to save your environment, locally- buy CFL's "Compact Flourescent Light" Bulbs. They use 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs, and last 6-10 times longer. You'll save energy and mney and contribute to global climate change. Prtoect the environment of today, and tomorrow-by changing a light! For any and all Real Estate information you may need for all of Santa Clara County, El Dorado, Placer, and Sacramanto Counties-call your neighborhood specialist/Team-

Wendi-Mae Davis, CRS, GRI,
Broker Associate Connect Realty,
Director of the California Association of Realtors
Real Estate counselor.
22 years of full time service to the Community
Toll Free 866-333-6333
Personal website
http://www.blogger.com/www.wendimae.com or email her
at wendimae@wendimae.com
She looks forward to the opportunity of assisting you in your quest!

Preventive Health Screening in El Dorado County

The Cameron Park Community Center may not be the location that you typically think of for administering lifesaving screenings. However, on Tuesday December 15th, 2009, the nation's leader in Community-based preventive health screenings will be coming to your neighborhood Over 5 Million people have participated in Life Line Screening's Ultrasound screenings that can determine your risk for stroke caused by carotid artery disease, abdominal aortic aneurysms and other vascular diseases. Cardiovascular disease in the #1 killer in the US of both men and woman-and a leading cause of permanent disability.
A package of four painless Stroke, Vascular Disease and Heart rhythm screenings cost only $139. Your physicians likely haven't ordered these tests for you-because Insurance doesn't allow for it. Unless you have the symptoms. You don't want to find out, that once you have the symptoms-that it is already be too late-CATCH IT FIRST!!!.

"Ultrasound screenings have proven to be accurate in detecting vascular didease prior to active warning signs and before a major medical incident such as stroke or sudden death from aneurysm rupture." Society for Vascular Surgery

You must register prior to the event. http://www.lifelinescreening.com/

The Power of Prevention-

They have preventive screenings available coast to coast. Tell your friends, family, neighbors...You just may save a life. 1-800-395-1801 They are only here for one day-so don't miss the excellent opportunity to be proactive with your own life and Health, and promote a healthy way of life by telling those close to you...you will be glad you did it!

For any information you might want or need on a Particular neighborhood near you-Wendi-Mae is your neighborhood /Resident specialist. Check out Your Community website, brought to you by Wendi-Mae and her team-at: http://www.mycameronpark.com/ and be sure to check out her resume' and other important information at http://www.wendimae.com/ you can also reach her Toll Free 866-333-6333 or by email wendimae@wendimae.com 22 years of full time Real Estate experience. Director of the California Association of Realtors, Graduate of the Realtor Institute of California, Broker Associate Connect Realty, Real Estate COunselor, Certified Residential Specialist. Exceeding Expectations-that is what she does.

Changing the outlook of El Dorado Counties near future

OVER 55? CALIFORNIA PROPERTY TAX RELIEF Since its passage, Proposition 13 prohibits property tax increases until property ownership is changed. If either spouse is over age 55 (when the old home is sold), PROP 60 allows replacement of a primary residence with a new home of equal or lesser value (but see below) within the same county and transfer of the Prop 13 assessed valuation from the old home to the new property. This is allowed once in your lifetime, and a spouse who has done it before 'taints' both spouses. PROP 90 allows counties to elect to accept transfers of Prop 13 values for moves from other counties when a primary residence is replaced with a less expensive (but see below) home. If you are over 55 and move into a county which accepts Prop 90, you may take your old, lower Prop 13 value, regardless of from which county you move. Using Prop 90, you can sell your $400,000 San Francisco home [assessed value $80,000] and move to a new $300,000 home in San Mateo; the new San Mateo assessed value will be $80,000!

7 COUNTIES WHICH ACCEPT PROP 90 (Current as of 6/1/2008) Alameda, Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Ventura. [Contra Costa, Inyo, Kern, Riverside, Modoc, Monterey, and Marin have dropped out of the Prop 90 program.] Props 60 and 90 apply if you "trade down" (i.e. the new home costs less than the sales price of the old home). > If you buy New Home 1st; then sell the Old Home, you must go down in price. > If you sell the Old Home1st; then buy the New Home: In 1st 365 days after the sale of Old Home, you may go up 5% in the purchase price of New Home. If you buy New Home more than 1 year from the sale of Old Home, but less than 2 years, you may go up 10%. Some buyers can pay the commission outside of escrow to lower to sales price. Example: I sold for $100,000 and then want to buy next week for $120,000. The seller will owe a commission of $7,200. The seller will owe $2,800 of other expenses I sold 1st so I must buy for no more than $105,000. If I pay the seller's expenses of $10,000, the price is down to $110,000. Hmm. If I buy the stove, refrigerator, and lawn furniture for $6,000, it looks like I qualify. WARNING: I do not suggest this is a valid idea. Our Board of Supervisors will take this to vote in January of 2010-likely to be in affect immediately thereafter, or by February, as our sources have been told. This will change the outlook in our County in a very positive way.When real estate prices began to fall and property owners began their requests for reassessments-of course to lower values-this of course resulted in lower tax revenues to the County. How does EDC put a stop to the continued reduction of RE values/revenue? Prop 90 is just the answer.

For any and all information on Real Estate in El Dorado Hills, and in El Dorado County proper-contact your resident Realtor and real estate Counselor, Wendi-Mae Davis
Toll free 866-333-6333 or
wendimae@wendimae.com and you may want to check out her personal website at http://www.wendimae.com/ Let's talk!

Be Firewise...Wildfire preparedness for your home and Pets

Hope it never happens to you...For an information intense Packet on Fire Preparedness-The National Firewise Communities Program provides wildland/Urban interface resources for Firefighter safety, Community Planning, Landscaping, Construction, and maintenance to protect people, their pets, their property-and natural resources from Wildfire. More information is available from the firewise website at: http://www.firewise.org A helpful checklist, and good place to start:1) Home ignition Zone-Begin with at least 30 ft of space immediately around the home and extending out as far as 100-200 feet.2) Lean, Clean, and Green landscaping-With firewise landscaping, you can create a survivable space around your home that reduces the threat significantly.3) Fire-resistant roof construction-self explantory.4) Fire resistant attachments-include any structure connected to your home, suck as decks, porches, or fences. If they are attached and are not fire resistant, then the home as a whole is vulnerable to ignition.ood w/legible & clearly marked5) Fire-resistant construction-Wall materials that resist heat and flames include brick, cement, plaster, stucco, and concrete masonry. Tempered and double-pane glass windows can make a home more resistant to wildfire and flames. Why? Firebrands (embers) collect in small nooks and crannies and ignite combustible materials...6) A disaster Plan-The time to plan for any emergency is prior to the event. Discuss this with your family, and have emergency numbers close by-and in a visible place. Leave before it is too late. Decide where you will go, and how you will get there. Have tools available, such as a shovel, rake, axe, handsaw, or a chainsaw. Maintain an emergency water source too. Have plans for your pets, practice family fire drills.7) Emergency Access-Identify your home and N'hood w/clearly marked streets and names and numbers. Your driveway should be at least 13 feet wide, with a verticle clearance of 15 feet and a slope no more than 5 percent for emergency vehicles...Provided to you by:
Wendi-Mae Davis, ABR, CRS, GRI.
Broker Associate/Real Estate Counselor
Connect Realty.com, INC.
Toll Free 866-333-6333
http://www.wendimae.com
wendimae@wendimae.comI look forward to the possibility od assisting you in your quest!

Green Building photos and websites

As with every other topic one might wish to explore on the web...where do you start? When it comes to "Green" building, and/or what to furnish your home with, to be most "green" and environmentally concious...here are two sites that I have found to be most helpful on the subject.
http://www.earth911.org/ and http://www.energystar.gov/ What a great way to both save money, and save our environment for our children...

Should you like any further direction on the subject, please feel free to contact me:
Wendi-Mae Davis, ABR, CRS, GRI
Broker Associate/Real Estate Counselor
Director of the California Association of Realtors
wendimae@wendimae.com
http://www.wendimae.com/
Toll Free 866-333-6333

Spare the Air!!

Make a difference in your home-To keep te air quality as healthy as possible, please consider implementing some of these simple tips around your house to help reduce air pollution. It will help the environment and your over all health.

-Use water-based paints, coatings and adhesives instead of oil-based formulas
-Switch from gas-powered yard tools o electric powered tools
-Use Propane gas BBQ's instead of a chracoal grill
-Avoid using pesticides or use organic ones
-avoid consumer spray products when possible (inc. hairspray, furniture polish, cooking sprays, bathroom cleaners, air freshners, deodorants, insecticides, and hobby craft sprays).

When the air quality is bad, even healthy people ca have respiratory irritation or difficulties breathing while outdoors. High air pollution levels can have short term and long term effects...

visit: http://www.sparetheair.com

Wendi-Mae Davis, CRS, GRI
Broker
Connect Realty
Toll Free 866-333-6333
wendimae@wendimae.com
http://www.wendimae.com

How to buy a "Green" home

So...you have decided to join the fast-growing trend of eco-friendly living and want to purchase a green home. As with so many "Green" products currently available, from organic milk to hybrid cars, it's tough to know if the house you'dl ike to buy is good for the environment. So how do you determine what makes a house green? Going Green-Where to start: The first step is ensuring that the house is built to standard. Find out if the builder is a member of his or her local home-building association's green building program.

A good resource for this information is the National Association of Home Builders website http://www.nahb.org the site also features an outline of new home building green standards, which include: energy, water, and resource efficiency; lot and site developement; indoor air quality; global impact; and homeowner education.

Another source of good information is Home Depot's eco-friendly product guide http://www.homedepot.com/ecooptions Buying eco-friendly products is a growing trend with no end in site.

For more information on this, and any other Home buying or selling topic, contact:
Wendi-Mae Davis, CRS, GRI
Broker Associate/Connect Realty
Director of the California Association of Realtors
Toll Free 866-333-6333
wendmae@wendimae.com
http://www.wendimae.com

Buying a home in El Dorado County

Hello there,

I am a Realtor, Broker and Real Estate Counselor-selling homes in El Dorado County. If you are thinking about selling a home, or buying one...allow me to put my 20+ years experience to work for you. I have helped more than a thousand satisfied clients over the years. Experience counts. Your successful move is what matters.

Feel free to contact me:

Wendi-Mae Davis, CRS, GRI

Director of the California Association of Realtors

Toll Free 866-333-6333

Visit me on the web:

Homes for Sale in El Dorado County