Bernard’s Danville Real Estate Blog

Blackhawk Plaza has no shortage of restaurants and Laurus is the latest addition to the Blackhawk dining scene. The competition includes the excellent Blackhawk Grille. It will have to offer a pretty good dining experience if it is to be successful. Will it survive? Read on to get my take on it.
 Laurus is the brain-child of restaurateurs Matthew Silverman and Thomas Bensel and is their third venture in Blackhawk, joining their wine bar, Stomp, and their Mexican restaurant, Coa, all recently opened.
 All three locations are in keeping with Blackhawk Plaza but Laurus is undoubtedly the flag-ship. It opened for business in early December and Sylvia and I dined there for the first time with Michelle (her birthday dinner) for the first time shortly afterwards.
 This is a very stylish restaurant with somewhat minimalist décor and designer colors on the walls. The floor is polished concrete. There is an open display kitchen, an elegant, curved bar with plenty of seating and also an outdoor terrace seating surrounded by the Blackhawk water features with Koi carp and ducks etc.
 The service is impeccable and the food here is excellent. The three of us shared a generous portion of fried Calamari as an appetizer and none of us could fault it. This was  lightly breaded, served with haricots verts and accompanied by a light curry mayonnaise.
 For an entree, I had sea scallops that were served (very artistically I should add) on a bed of butternut squash risotto. The scallops were succulent and the risotto cooked to perfection, although the portion size (just three scallops) seemed a little on the meager side. Even so, I do appreciate the concept of quality rather than quantity and given the choice, quality wins every time.
 Sylvia had the Bistro Steak (a flat-iron steak served with sweet potato fries, an interesting twist on the usual steak frites) and pronounced it to be excellent, with a really good flavor and tender to the bite. Michelle’s choice was the Seafood Bouillabaise and it looked to be crammed full of quite a variety of fish and shellfish. She said it was yummy!
 Neither Sylvia nor Michelle appeared to appreciate my suggestions with regard to a pudding so we settled for finishing off our second bottle of Frogs Leap chardonnay by way of a final course. The wine list is quite extensive incidentally, and the wine was served at perfect temperature, but it would be nice to see some lower-priced wines on offer.
 Overall, we came away with a high opinion of Laurus. I won’t say we will be frequent visitors as it is a little above our normal dining budget but it would be great for a special occasion and should certainly be popular with many affluent locals. 

What a year! Maybe not quite so bad as 2008 for some, but many home owners will remember 2009 as the worst year of the decade.
 I think relatively few people will look back on 2009 with a good feeling. The recession continued to bite and the repercussions of the  “creative” home financing products that came about because of a lack of banking industry regulation forced many people out of their homes as a result of foreclosure or bankruptcy. Some home owners avoided this by selling as a “Short Sale” but they still lost their homes. Hopefully the worst is now over. This therefore looks like an appropriate time to take a look at what has happened to home values over the past couple of years in our area.
Analyzing The Value Of The “Typical” Home
 I am very wary of just looking at average or median sales prices of homes unless it is obvious that the comparison is of like with like. It always makes more sense to take a specific type of home and see what has happened to it’s value over a period of time.
 So let’s consider a 4 bedroom detached single family  home with between 1800 and 2500 square feet of living space (as depicted in the chart below).

Surprising Results
 The figures are interesting to say the least. Although prices continued to fall into the second quarter of the year, the third and fourth quarters increased in this popular segment of the market.
 These price increases are most likely due to a combination of factors. Interest rates fell to the point where homes became more affordable, the government incentive plans began to have an effect and buyers gained confidence that prices had bottomed out. And then inventory levels started to fall. Supply and demand kicked in. Note that as interest rates increase, home prices will probably settle down though.
 Now look at the second chart, this time for 3 bedroom homes, and we can see exactly the same pattern. Many of the buyers in this segment are first time buyers and there are still a lot of these about. Expect to see this trend continue until interest rates increase also.

 Finally, let’s take a look at the higher end - the luxury home market. Even here, as can be seen in the bottom chart, prices seemed to enter a recovery period in the third quarter, yet now it looks like this may not be quite so sustainable as in the other market segments. Prices here are certainly lower than at the start of last year.

Not Such A Bad Year
 There seems little doubt that most home owners in our area will have seen a small increase in value through 2009. This is not what you will read in the newspapers but you can’t argue with the facts. This data is actual sales figures from the Multiple Listing Service. So at least some of us may be on the track to real estate recovery. Only time will tell for sure.

Regular readers will know that this is not the first time I have reviewed Faz but times change and my policy is to occasionally revisit restaurants I have previously reviewed, hopefully to confirm that they are maintaining their standards.

Quite apart from all this, I freely admit that Faz has always been one of my favorite restaurants. From my first visit, back in the 1980s when I was here on vacation, I was completely hooked. It wasn’t so much the food that impressed me then, although it was good, but the unique ambience of the place. And amazingly, it is not the tree growing up through the roof of the restaurant that is the most striking feature, but the dining patio - a large, sheltered wood deck at the rear of the restaurant with tall redwood trees growing through it and reaching towards the sky. As owner Faz Poursohi has been quoted as saying, “Anybody who fails to make a success of a restaurant with such surroundings does not deserve to be in the restaurant business”.And so it was that Sylvia and I found ourselves once more, seated outside on the deck on a warm Friday evening towards the end of March.Diners at Faz are presented with a basket of home-made foccacia bread and a middle eastern flat bread together with a small plate of olive oil with parmesan cheese and herbs mixed in. This tastes so good that appetizers seem quite unnecessary, so instead, we ordered a bottle of Frei Brothers Chardonnay to enjoy while we snacked on the breads and waited for our entrees. Frei Brothers really do produce a good Chardonnay.One thing that is perhaps worth mentioning here (and a point that while being a big plus to us, may be frustrating to some) is that service is relaxed at Faz. We like to take our time over a meal and the wait-staff are certainly pleasant and attentive, but don’t come here if you want to be out in an hour. It just isn’t that kind of a restaurant.The menu at Faz is another secret to it’s success. You can dine here very reasonably, on a simple and tasty pizza or pasta, and yet they also offer a good selection of more expensive dishes and there are always daily specials.On this occasion, Sylvia dined from the specials menu, while I ordered from the regular menu, although we both had lamb.Sylvia chose the lamb sirloin (having first ascertained from our waiter that it was a New Zealand Lamb - Sylvia finds American lamb is a little too “gamey” for her taste). This was a generous sized sirloin served with roasted potatoes and a selection of fresh vegetables and the taste and texture was excellent.For my entrée, I had rack of lamb with mint sauce on the side, a dish that has featured on their menu as long as I can remember. This is a dish that I generally avoid in restaurants as although it is generally tasty enough, and the presentation is frequently quite impressive, so often, there is little actual meat there. I do feel somewhat cheated if most of my main course turns out to be a few bones.Not so at Faz. This was not only one of the most generous portions of rack of lamb I have ever been served (really large enough to share), but the flavor was outstanding. This was served with similar accompaniments to Sylvia’s dish.Neither of us were inclined to have a dessert but we were completely satisfied by our meal and happy to know that Faz is maintaining its reputation for good food and good service at reasonable prices. You can find there menus and more on their web site at www.fazrestaurants.com.  

Latest Full Months Statistics for Danville Homes
(including Blackhawk and Diablo)

Previous months figures shown in parentheses	Detached Single Family Homes	Condomiums, Townhomes, others
New Listings	80(92)	22(19)
New Sales Agreed	38(32)	9(10)
Closed Sales	30(14)	8(7)
Median Price - Closed Sales	$791,250 ($961,250)	$504,337 ($515,000)
Average Days on Market - Closed Sales	117(90)	91(54)

At the beginning of April, 2009, there were 286 detached single family homes for sale in Danville (up from 271 in March, 2009) and 64 condos and townhomes etc. against 65 a month ago. So there is around 9 months supply of single family homes in Danville and 6 months supply of condos etc. The supply of condos is still being taken up faster than single family homes, but still, 9 months supply is a lot less than in many parts of Contra Costa County.
     What is of particular note is that the median price of closed sales has fallen significantly for the third straight month. Danville home prices are not as resilient as many thought. The increasing time on the market suggests that sellers may have been trying to sell their homes for unrealistic prices but they eventually given up waiting for higher offers and accepted the reality of the situation.
     So what happens now in Danville? Certainly there are plenty of buyers about but they will still be cautious when they see these figures. Home sellers will need to price their properties very aggressively if they really want to achieve a sale.
     I still think it is a good time to buy in Danville. Interest rates are low and there is a lot of choice. If I was thinking about buying here now, I would make a very careful assessment of real value and base any offers on that, rather than just on the asking price. And there are still bank owned foreclosures that offer particularly good opportunities in many cases.

The California Association of Realtors has launched the C.A.R. Housing Affordability Fund Mortgage Protection Program, for first-time home buyers in California.

Through this Program, first-time home buyers who lose their jobs due to lay-offs could to receive $1,500 per month, for six months, to help make their mortgage payments. A qualified co-buyer can also participate in the program, and receive $750 per month for up to six months.  Program benefits also include coverage for accidental disability and a $10,000 death benefit. 

C.A.R.’s Housing Affordability Fund is dedicating $1 million toward its Mortgage Protection Program, and estimates that as many as 3,000 families will benefit from the program this year. To qualify for the Mortgage Protection Program, applicants must: ·          Be a first-time home buyer – someone who has not owned a home in three          or more years·          Open escrow April 2, 2009, or later, and close on or before Dec. 31, 2009·          Use a California REALTOR® in the transaction·          Purchase the property in California·          Be a W-2 employee (cannot be self-employed) To apply for the program, home buyers must request an application for the H.A.F. Mortgage Protection Program from their REALTOR®.

This is a short video I have just produced to show off some of the sights and homes of Danville, California, the nicest town in the San Francisco East Bay.

More details available at ZIPVO.com.

As of November 1st, 2008, there were 281 detached single family homes for sale (just a few more than 1 month ago) and 59 condos and townhomes etc. (again, little change). This is becoming an established pattern now. Prices in Danville also appear to have stabilized and although the average time on market is higher than we have become accustomed to in recent years, it is really just a little higher than in a true “normal” market. Homes that are priced correctly should sell within four or five weeks. The indications are that we have now passed the bottom of the market in Danville although this is certainly not the case in all parts of the East Bay.

Can Danville support yet another new restaurant? Chow owner Tony Gulisano thinks so and to back up his confidence he has invested a ton of money in converting the old Blockbuster premises on Railroad Avenue into an extremely individual space.

This is the fourth restaurant in the Chow empire, two being located in San Francisco and the third in Lafayette. I know the Lafayette restaurant well and although there is a similarity in menus, the ambience seems very different.For a start, there is much more outside seating in Danville, with lots of outside gas heaters and some firepits. Inside, too there are many differences. Both have fireplaces but Chow Danville seems much bigger and lighter with a rather quirky style of décor. Tony Gulisano says it is in the style of an Amish barn. I think that is a bit of a stretch but it is certainly very appealing.Chow Danville opened a few weeks ago and it seems to have been pretty full from the get-go. Danvillians have embraced this style of smart-casual dining and Chow delivers in spades, being open from breakfast through dinner. There is also a full bar which seems to be just as popular as the rest of the restaurant.Sylvia and I visited on a Thursday evening around 6.30 for an early dinner and the restaurant was almost full both inside and out. We opted to eat inside with a table in the center of the dining area and we immediately noticed what a “buzz” there was. Like many people these days, we much prefer a lively atmosphere to a staid one and that is what you get at Chow. This is probably not the ideal place for a romantic dinner for two.Chow’s philosophy is based on the concept of providing good wholesome food at reasonable prices. They use organic produce and local suppliers where they can.Neither of us wanted an appetizer and the menu has a surprisingly good (and perhaps a little eclectic) selection of fish, pasta, meat and game for main courses. Sylvia chose the steak frites, one of her favorites, and as I am a game enthusiast I went for the squab, not a dish commonly seen on menus in these parts.The steak with the frites was hanger steak and having tasted it, I agreed with Sylvia’s comment that it was full of flavor and cooked to perfection. My squab was equally delicious - pan-roasted to a dark pink color and served with an imaginative selection of sides - braised cabbage, a mélange of diced vegetables, a slice of sweet potato and bruschetta. This was one of the best meals I have had in ages.Having declined an appetizer, we felt justified in sharing a dessert, and although the selection was fairly small it was definitely tantalizing. We decided on a chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream and a bitter chocolate sauce. Although neither of us are great desert eaters, we had to agree that this, again, was superb. The chocolate cake was like a very light chocolate brownie and the chocolate sauce was phenomenal.I predict that Chow will soon become the most popular restaurant in Danville. The service, overseen by manager Tonino Drovandi (who, despite the name, is Scottish, believe it or not) was impeccable - attentive and unobtrusive, and it is really difficult to find anything to fault. We will be back. You can see more about Chow on their web site at www.chowfoodbar.com. 

Picture yourself living in this cozy 1960s character home in a quiet secluded location just above downtown Lafayette. Enjoy the charming ambience created by the well-proportioned rooms with beamed ceilings and gleaming hardwood floors.

This exceptionally well-maintained home has been tastefully updated and remodeled to a high standard and significant improvements include the installation of high quality dual-pane windows, a composition shake roof and a particularly attractive remodeled master bathroom. Outside, there is a large wooden deck at the front of the home, ideal for catching the last rays of the setting sun, and an attractive well-stocked garden at the rear filled with a wide variety of trees and shrubs including oranges, figs, olives and pomegranates. All this together with a completely private seating area and also a sheltered side garden with raised vegetable beds.

Sierra Vista Way is a quiet lane in a country setting, within walking distance of downtown Lafayette with its wide range of restaurants and shopping facilities to meet your everyday needs.

Freeway access is only minutes away and it is generally accepted that Lafayette schools are among the best in Contra Costa County.

1149 Sierra Vista Way, Lafayette, California

Offered For Sale at $817,500

2444 Camino De Jugar, San Ramon

The Very Best of Twin Creeks View

Twin Creeks is one of San Ramon’s most popular neighborhoods and Twin Creeks View is the “Jewel In The Crown” of Twin Creeks. Homes here have significantly more appeal than those in the rest of Twin Creeks, most of them being situated on much larger lots, with 3-car garages and with secluded yards offering a high level of privacy.

This single storey floor plan is one of the most popular in the area, and this particular home has had countless improvements made in recent years including a comprehensive kitchen remodel, which now features granite countertops over maple shaker-style cabinetry, inset lighting and high quality stainless steel appliances. The bathrooms have all been remodeled to a high standard, and the master bath has a large frameless walk-in shower with designer ceramic tile. The windows have been replaced with high efficiency dual-pane units and paneled doors have replaced the original ones.

Outside, the home is set in an elevated position behind a beautifully landscaped front garden with a lawn and a variety of well-established plants and shrubs. A wide driveway leading to a 3-car garage and there is also additional parking to the left hand side. At the rear is an expansive, completely private yard with large concrete patio and a lawn that is bordered by a wide variety of plants, shrubs and trees.

Homes of this quality are rarely offered for sale in Twin Creeks View and this is an outstanding opportunity for a discerning buyer to acquire a home that is absolutely move-in ready in one of San Ramon’s most desirable neighborhoods.

Twin Creeks is one of San Ramon’s most popular neighborhoods and benefits from excellent schools and easy access to shopping, restaurants, local parks, the freeway network and Bishop Ranch office park.

Offered For Sale at $920,000

Call Bernard Gibbons on (925) 997-1585 for more details or to arrrange a private showing