South of Sunnyside

As an update to my earlier post, I have confirmed that the house next door has been purchased, and I’ve met the new owner. Rick and his wife have three kids and two dogs, and they’re making a few modifications before moving in; namely, they are closing in the office and building a closet to create a fourth bedroom.

This morning Rick gave me a quick tour of the home, which I haven’t been inside since it was built. The original owners had no pets or kids, and added many upgrades. Unfortunately, they also took things with them—ceiling fans and odd things like light switches and parts of the closet door. (Who does that?)

We casually discussed prices over the fence; he paid $111,000 less than we did three years ago, for quite a bit more square footage. In this economy, I’m not sure that those numbers mean much anymore—we’re just happy to have new neighbors.

NBC Bay Area has outlined the 10 worst real estate markets, as projected for 2009. From the article:

The housing market hasn’t bottomed out yet. For the third quarter, the closely-watched S&P Case-Shiller national home-price index fell 16.6%, and experts are predicting further declines…

Fresno is listed in seventh position, citing the following facts and figures:

• 2008 median house price: $257,170
• 2009 projected change: -21.6%
• 2010 projected change: -3.3%

I’ll refrain from anything other than implied personal comment—the news speaks for itself.

Two nights ago, we noticed a car in the driveway next door, but we didn’t think much of it, as the street was full with visitors for the holiday.

Then, yesterday…the "for sale" sign was up-rooted and placed behind the side gate. Could it be?

In related news, the boarded house around the corner is now occupied, so Kim and I will be welcoming our new neighbors with baked goods.

Today I learned two interesting lessons:

1. The missing sock isn’t always lost in the dryer.
2. A persistent puppy will consume anything…even if her stomach has already refused to process it.

I’ll let you connect the dots.