House & Home: December 31, 2022

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Start the new year off right with this home checklist

By Cathy Hobbs

It’s time to cover outdoor furniture, or bring it indoors.

Photo courtesy Handout/TNSPhoto courtesy Maya Kruchankova/Dreamstime/TNS

1. Winterize

Ready for that feeling of “out with the old, in with the new”? We’ve all heard of New Year’s resolutions. But what about fixes for your home? The back-burner items that you have been putting off for months can now become front-burner fixes in the new year. Not sure where to begin? Here are 10 items you can put on your to-do list to get your new year off to a good start.

From making sure seals around windows are tight to winterizing outdoor faucets, protecting your home from the elements can prevent potential issues.

2. Refresh and swap

Now is a good time to refresh and swap out old or worn items and replace with new and fresh ones.

3.

Check the filters in your HVAC unit

So often, these filters get clogged simply because they are not checked and changed on a regular basis.

4. Prune and mulch

This time of year, it is best to cut back some of your landscape and mulch to help protect plantings for the warmer months.

5. Donate

Those extra items around the home causing clutter can easily be put to better use by donating them to your favorite charity.

6. Do an energy assessment

One of the most costly aspects of home ownership is heating and cooling. An energy assessment can help you discover potential deficiencies.

7. Check for leaks

Undetected, water leaks can cause severe damage. This time of year is a perfect one to make sure your home is properly sealed.

8.

Change batteries

From the smoke detector to the carbon monoxide detector and flashlights, now is an ideal time to make sure everything is in working order.

9.

Plan for spring

Now is a good time to plan those spring outdoor projects so that as soon as the weather warms up, you are ready to go.

10.

Bring the outdoors in

Many of your treasured outdoor items, from furniture to outdoor equipment, may not be able to brave the elements, so it may be best to bring them indoors.

©2022 Tribune Content Agency,

Cathy Hobbs, based in New York City, is an Emmy Award-winning television host and a nationally known interior design and home staging expert with offices in New York City, Boston and Washington, D.C. Visit her website at cathyhobbs.com.

LLC.

By Bob Walsmith, Jr. President of the Santa Barbara Association of REALTORS®

My Final SBAOR President’s ArticleThank You!

It is hard to believe that this is my final article as President of the Santa Barbara Association of Realtors (SBAOR) for 2022. The year has seemed to fly by.

I have enjoyed every minute of leading this wonderful organization. It has truly been my honor and privilege to be the spokesperson for over 1,200 dedicated men and women whose goal is not only to help people realize the American Dream of homeownership, but to give back to our community in so many philanthropic and selfless ways.

I have been fortunate to have traveled a number of times this year, both within California and beyond on behalf of our organization and profession, and colleagues are are always impressed when I tell them that I live and work in Santa Barbara. Not only because we live in one of the most beautiful places on the planet, but also because of the people, both within our profession and the wonderful people that we represent. We are so lucky to live and work in Paradise!

There are so many people that I wish to thank for their support and guidance this year. I would like to start with the three local publications that have printed my articles this year; Noozhawk, The Santa Barbara Independent, and the Santa Barbara News-Press. Thank you for allowing me the platform to share my thoughts and views on so many topics. It was my desire to educate people about what we do as Realtors on a daily basis, help them navigate the sometimes difficult process of buying and selling a home, and give interesting ideas about how to better take care of their home. I am pleased that I have heard from so many people; Realtors, locals, and from people all over the state that they enjoyed reading my stories.

Thank you to the amazing staff at the SBAOR. This team of dedicated professionals that run our association on a daily basis are tireless in their efforts to better serve our members, which translates into our REALTOR® members being able to better serve our clients.

Thank you to the Board of Directors and all of the various committees of our association. You have all worked so hard to make sure that our members have the tools, resources and financial stability to do their jobs and help our clients.

Thank you to my business partners, first Amanda Barba, and now the amazing Cheylin MacKahan, for working extra hard with our clients, while I was tending to my role as president.

And finally, I would like to thank my beautiful wife Julie for her love and support, not just during this sometimes difficult year, but for always being the strong woman behind me. I could not have done this job without her.

Each year at our annual installation and awards luncheon (see my previous article about this wonderful day), the outgoing president gives out the President’s Award. This award goes to the non-SBAOR staff member that has helped and supported the president the most during their term. Each and every year it has been awarded to someone within our profession. That was until this year. I was honored to give the 2022 Presidents Award to Julie Walsmith for everything that I mentioned above and much, much more.

In closing, I want to hand off these weekly articles to the new 2023 SBAOR President, Todd Shea. I am confident that Todd will share some amazing stories with everyone and be a wonderful president for our association and the Santa Barbara community.

Bob Walsmith, Jr. can be reached at 805-720-5362 or emailed at Bob@BobWalsmithJr.com

Wishing you a happy, healthy, and safe holiday season and New Year! We are very thankful for another great year in Santa Barbara. My daughter , Katie Spieler joined our team this year. Katie brings entrepreneurial skills, accounting insights (passed her CPA exam), marketing techniques, and youthful energy!

805-895-6326 KathySpieler@gmail.com www.KathySpieler.com

Thank you for being the best part of my job - it’s a joy to work with amazing people.

Real Estate Q&A

How can I stay in my unit and pay same rent when the lease is up?

By Gary M. Singer

Question:

I have been living in the same large rental community for the last decade. The complex was sold to a new company that is renovating units as the current renters move out and then reletting them at a much higher price. I recently learned they are not renewing people’s leases. Instead, they are offering tenants to move into one of the renovated units at a higher rent. Is there anything I can do to stay in my unit at the current price when I come up for renewal?

Answer:

– Neil

When figuring out your rights as a tenant, the first step is to review your lease agreement carefully.

A lease binds the landlord and tenant to what was agreed upon and cannot be changed unilaterally. If a landlord sells the rented property, the new landlord is bound to the same terms as before.

If your lease allows you to renew, the already agreed on renewal terms will apply.

However, most residential leases are not actually renewable. Instead, they expire after a year, and the landlord and tenant enter a new, similar lease. It sounds like this is your situation.

When your current lease expires, you must negotiate a new one.

Even under normal circumstances, starting this process a few months in advance is best so that you can make alternate living arrangements if necessary.

In many places, a landlord must give advance notice, usually two or three months, if the rent is going to be raised by more than a small amount or if the landlord does not intend to offer their tenant another lease.

Because this varies from county to county and sometimes by city, you will need to check to see what applies where you live. You should be able to find this information by calling your city and county or searching the internet.

Since you know this may be a problem, reach out to your landlord to discuss your options.

Given your long tenure, your new landlord may be willing to work with you to come up with a solution you can both accept.

If not, you will have the maximum time to find a new place to live.

Gary M. Singer is a Florida attorney and board-certified as an expert in real estate law by the Florida Bar. He practices real estate, business litigation and contract law from his office in Sunrise, Fla. He is the chairman of the Real Estate Section of the Broward County Bar Association and is a co-host of the weekly radio show Legal News and Review. He frequently consults on general real estate matters and trends in Florida with various companies across the nation.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Santa BarB ara County SaleS

This is a partial list of all recorded residential sales in Santa Barbara County from December 19 thru December 23, 2022. While these recordings are public record, the News-Press receives this information from an outside source. This list does not represent all sales that occurred over this time period. Consult your REALTOR® for further information regarding home sales in your area of interest.

AREA ADDRESS SELLER

BUYER PRICE DATE

BUELLTON / SOLVANG 1875 AUGUSTENBORG PL ZELEZNY JOHN EA WELCH STEVEN EU $1,250,000 12/23/2022 2275 ALAMO PINTADO RD DITTMAR KAREN EA SMITH MICHAEL EU $1,700,000 12/19/2022

GOLETA 676 SAN RAMON DR HOWELL TERRY EA GUERRERO HILDEGARDA EU $1,185,000 12/20/2022

LOMPOC 1004 E WALNUT AVE THOMPSON NAOMI EA

THOMPSON CHRISTOPHER $360,000 12/23/2022 104 HUNTINGTON PL NORTHSTAR ACQUISITIONS INC LANE DAVID EU $500,000 12/23/2022 516 N U ST CULBERSON BARBARA PATEL DAKSA EU $625,000 12/21/2022 520 N U ST PHEBUS KIMBERLY EA PATEL PANKAJ EU $625,000 12/21/2022

MONTECITO 500 MEADOW WOOD LN SINGER MARK

NASSERI PARDIS EA $5,545,000 12/21/2022

SANTA BARBARA 129 E MICHELTORENA ST 7 STEEN MOLLY EA LUNDQVIST KARL $644,000 12/20/2022 23 W MICHELTORENA ST WALSETH GEORGE EA GALAXY PROPERTY HOLDINGS $1,200,000 12/20/2022 506 BRINKERHOFF AVE BRINKERHOFF PARTNERS STERLING KENNETH EU $1,286,000 12/21/2022 1502 DE LA VINA ST BAER ARTHUR EU REILLY KRISTEN EU $1,603,000 12/23/2022 204 ADAIR DR SCHNEIDER NICHOLAS EA HANDTMANN JANET EA $1,920,000 12/21/2022 3502 LA ENTRADA RD PARKS DONNA EA VISTA MONTE LLC $1,980,000 12/20/2022 24 W GUTIERREZ ST JEFFREY GUTIERREZ LLC JEFFREY RYAN EU $2,000,000 12/23/2022 2690 GIBRALTAR RD FAITH JEREMY EA L’HOMMEDIEU GARY EA $2,395,000 12/23/2022 315 STANLEY DR EATON DARRLY EU KELLY-BURKETT ERIN $2,475,000 12/22/2022 518 E PEDREGOSA ST SROKA JUSTIN EA ESTES RONALD EA $2,900,000 12/23/2022 24 W GUTIERREZ ST JEFFREY GUTIERREZ LLC GOODENOUGH DAVID EA $3,450,000 12/20/2022 4200 MARINA DR MONCADA EDWARD EU HOFFNER ERIC EU $4,950,000 12/22/2022 16 W MISSION ST 16 W MISSION LLC PETER F HILF COMPANY LLC $11,825,000 12/19/2022

SANTA MARIA 301 E COOK ST G STRASSBURG ELISA EA ENRIQUEZ EMILIANO EU $200,000 12/20/2022 610 SUNRISE DR UNIT 5-J DEGREGORIO MICHAEL EVANS ROBERT EU $395,000 12/23/2022 4628 QUARTER HORSE TRAI REED KEVIN EU ACQUISTAPACE RYAN EA $450,000 12/23/2022 2341 S EASTBURY WY OKERBLOM EILENE EU YEH DAVID $550,000 12/20/2022

SUMMERLAND

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Yard Sale Tips

Before Your Sale

• Prepare to start early. Collectors and antique dealers like to show up early in the morning.

• obtain a permit if required

• Clean up your space. People like clean and neat places.

• Gather lots of shopping bags. Gathering Items

• Test any electrical items to make sure they work.

• Collect your items and sort it by type. (clothing, toys, tools, etc.)

• Take time to clean or repair your items.

• Wash all the clothes so they smell fresh.

WhaT SellS BeST?

• Tools: Guys love it all, any kind.

• Baby items of all kinds, especially clothing.

• Kitchen appliances.

• Clothing: Kids and adult.

What Should You Not Sell?

• Items missing safety parts.

• unused prescription drugs or medications.

• Personal hygiene items.

• halogen floor lamps.

• old baby cribs or playpens, incomplete child safety seats.

adverTISING

• Tell your friends, family or coworkers about your sale. Word travels.

• Place a classified ad in the Santa Barbara NeWS-PreSS!! remember to check the publication’s deadline.

• In your ad, give lots of details. Include the address, day(s), time of your sale. list major items such as “lots of kids clothes.”

SIGNS

• Check your local ordinances.

• list your address and sale date on all signs.

• Post your signs at main intersections, street corners and at the end of your driveway.

• use same colors and writing on your signs as people recognize them at a glance.

• Keep a list of where you posted your signs. It will be helpful when it’s time to take them down.