•Use energy saver or compact fluorescent bulbs instead of regular light bulbs. These use a fraction of the energy of regular bulbs, and last around ten times longer!

•Make sure your water heater is set to around one hundred and ten degrees. That’s hot enough for most things, and you’ll save a bundle.

•Consider insulating your water heater. These units have thermostats, so when the temperature drops, they automatically begin heating again, using power. Insulating it will keep it hotter for longer, saving you money.

•You could also have a timer fitted, to switch your water heater off automatically, when you’re not home, and back on before you return from work.

•Buy an old fashioned clothes drying rack, and use that instead of the dryer. Dryer’s use enormous amounts of power, and you’ll be amazed how much you save. Only use the dryer for emergencies.

•Use the microwave where possible, which uses far less power than the stove. Boil vegetables, or par cook foods in the microwave before continuing with conventional methods. You could also cook rice, pasta or potatoes in the microwave.

•When it comes to water, and power, only doing full loads of laundry, or dishes, in the washer or dishwasher, will save you a bundle in both.

•Check your plumbing regularly. A leaky faucet or pipe will cost you a fortune over time, so get yours checked, and fix any leaks.

•This may sound odd, but placing a brick in your toilet cistern will actually save you money. The brick displaces water, meaning each flush will use less. If you have recently bought or sold your property in Scotts Valley or Santa Cruz County, you would already have a low flow toilet, if you don’t and have an old toilet, then the result could save you money.

•Don’t use hot water to wash clothes. Rather opt for warm or cold water, and you’ll save on electricity.

•Choose to shower over bathing, and install a flow restricting shower head. This is something that almost all of today’s codes require at the time of sale. That way, you should save a whole lot of money on water, and the power required to heat it.

So, there you have it. Easy ways to save money on your utility bills for your property in Scotts Valley, without even feeling it.

Despite the economic downturn, using these, and other simple money saving tips will help you save more money, and give you more money for the important things in life. Or spend a little time and money on figuring out how you can save, and using those ideas on your property in Scotts Valley, then put the money you save aside, and use it for something you really want. Maybe a new item of furniture? Or a short weekend getaway?

Whatever you use it for, saving money on your property in Scotts Valley’s utility bills will give you more to spend on what you really want to spend money on.

About the Author: Gregg Camp is a Santa Cruz Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES) who specializes in Scotts Valley homes. He has been active in Santa Cruz real estate and seniors issues for 20 years.

Source: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=1649184

“Locally the median price has dropped about $100,000 in 2007 and is expected to drop another $100,000 in 2008,” said the central coast California realtor, “but we are in better shape than many areas.”

Not too many years back realtors were knocking on doors trying to find listings because property values were shooting up. It was reminiscent of Tokyo real estate in the 1990’s, a time when any fool could make money in real estate.

In January California home foreclosures equaled the number of sales, a daunting figure if there ever was one.

For a while the getting was good and any investment today would be worth more tomorrow. In that kind of environment sub prime lending — lending to the marginally credit worthy — began to flourish. Even the lower paid and unskilled could jump on the real estate boom and improve their net worth and equity by signing on the sub prime dotted line.

Call it greed, flipping, speculation, gambling or just bad business; call it any of those things but it has led to the worst housing crisis California has faced. The crisis is particularly bad in California’s interior. Upscale coastal areas such as Santa Cruz, Carmel, and Monterey have had a steep decline in housing values but because of the demographics and desirability, the decline has not been as severe and is not expected to last as long.

“We only have about a nine month inventory which is not bad,” said one Scotts Valley realtor, “some places like Miami have over a three year inventory which means that it will take years for that market to recover. Part of that is we are in a ‘no growth’ area so there isn’t a great influx of new homes on the market. We’re lucky.”

That is because the most desirable areas have very few first time home buyers. The upwardly mobile real estate treadmill is particularly hard when the median home price exceeds $700,000. Many of these “outside” buyers do not need financing.

Upwardly mobile locals are not buying up homes in Pacific Grove and Capitola. Non-locals from other parts of the United States and foreigners make up the bulk of home buyers. And as such, the demographics and “look and feel” have changed. No longer is Santa Cruz the hippie haven for artists; all the starving artists couldn’t afford to starve anymore and have moved out. What was once the bastion of far left liberal thinking is now slowly turning into a techie “Arnold Republican” free zone.

In towns like Watsonville and Stockton banks and construction companies are bringing in buses for foreclosed housing auctions. Rumors are rampant about cheap homes and rumors fuel speculation; what home buyer wouldn’t like a 50% discount?

“But buyer beware” said one realtor, “the truth is both the banks and construction companies are sending in their own ‘dummy bidders’ to drive up the auction price.”

“They know what they want to get for the house and they drive up the bidding to get to that price. The banks and construction companies can’t lose: they either get their price or don’t. They are not going to take it on the chin…at least just yet.”

Part of the boom in the interior was caused by Bay Area commuters looking for more affordable housing that they could pay for with high paying Bay Area jobs. But as gas approaches $4 a gallon commute costs have skyrocketed. So the poor commuter is not only seeing their home equity plummet but their commuting costs are constantly going up. For many Bay Area commuters, buying in Tracy or Merced was a big mistake.

Even many of the Latino immigrants have decided the American Dream is no longer for them. Most can tell of a cousin or brother that signed on the subprime dotted line and then walked away when they could not afford a $3800 a month mortgage.

Many of these immigrants are now saving up and planning to return and buy property in Mexico, which in many areas of Mexico is affordable if one earns U.S. dollars. Mexico is the next real estate boom. The California real estate industry itself is in a transition as it is going through a decline, consolidation and subsequent “shake out.”

“The hobby and part time realtors have closed up shop and gone back to what they were doing before the boom,” said one Aptos realtor, “some are getting bought up by the bigger players who are better positioned to weather this storm.”

We’ll see how this plays out. Just remember it has taken Tokyo a good decade for the real estate market to correct itself. It’s just not clear if California actually has a decade to make that correction.

Jack Deal is the owner of JD Deal Business Consulting, Salinas and Santa Cruz, CA. Related articles may be found at http://www.jddeal.com/blog/real_estate and http://www.freeandinquiringmind.typepad.com