Dominic Tartaglia first-time homebuyer specialist

Recovery is here

dom4slohomes — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:35:42 +0000

This morning I woke up to the sound of birds making a ruckus and chattering in the trees and went out to watch the sun rise and listen to the birds. While I was out there I thought about what is going on in my life, there’s a lot more than I care to write about, but the thing that struck me was that as the sun rose and the fog cleared I was thinking about how in tune we, as people, are with nature. I thought long and hard about work and the fact that while the sun was coming up today I was looking at a new day much like I have been looking at things with the San Luis Obispo County real estate market.

This video talks a bit more in-depth about what is going on but the long and the short of it is inventory is decreasing while pending and sold homes are on the rise. Following a simple supply and demand curve on the 15 month graph you can clearly see an equalizing market.

It is my opinion that we are moving into a strong real estate market recovery.

Enjoy!

Home Buying Cycle on the Central Coast is promising

dom4slohomes — Mon, 07 May 2012 19:39:27 +0000

In San Luis Obispo 3 bedroom 2 bath homes are moving on and off the market pretty quickly. This video has a few examples of proof of why I say that now is as good of a time to buy as any. Living here on the Central Coast is great privilege that we all share and for some of us, the dream of owning a home here is soon to become a reality.

Tartaglia Realty hosts another Art After Dark

dom4slohomes — Fri, 04 May 2012 19:28:47 +0000

Hey guys and gals! Tonight, I am excited to host our third Art After Dark of the year at our office. 968 Monterey Street in SLO for any of you folks that might get lost; you know, right across the street from Giuseppi’s in SLO. So come down tonight to see the Essential Element exhibit and experience Earth, Wind (air), Fire and Water as seen by 4 local artists and when you’re done you can walk across the street for dinner and a cocktail.

Links in this message:

Palazzo Giuseppi https://www.facebook.com/palazzo.giuseppes

ArtsObispo Art After Dark http://artsobispo.org/artafterdark.php

Art After Dark on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Art-After-Dark-SLO/158678617521974

Tartaglia Realty googlemap with bike routes in green

DomBlog says don’t buy into media pressure to buy homes

dom4slohomes — Fri, 04 May 2012 04:49:10 +0000

I read an article that made me think about how the media encourages people to buy homes with irrational prompts like fierce competition and rising loan fees. This is my response. Get back to me if you take issue with what I say or if you have questions.
Basically, don’t buy into the hype just because it’s in print or on the TV trust your gut and talk to a professional.

April showers bring more than May flowers

dom4slohomes — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:06:53 +0000

They say, ‘April showers bring May flowers.’

While this is true and I love that sentiment, those showers do more than bring photographers from all over the country to San Luis Obispo County for our immense wildflower population. The showers like the ones we are having today bring trouble for home owners if they don’t stay on top of these three things.

1. Keep your gutters a storm drains clean

They are there to take water away from your home and into the storm water infrastructure that has been designed to properly relocate the water. Have you ever wondered why? Water causes a lot of damage to homes such as mold, dry rot, rust, mud and erosion so making sure the water doesn’t ‘stand’ around your home is important. Keeping that water moving is pretty simple. Homeowners should do regular inspections of their roof gutters to make sure that they are clear of leaves and debris. Often times, the leaves will build up in the gutter and downspouts and when compounded by dirt and the small pieces of aggregate from composition shingle roofs can completely clog the water ways. The same thing goes for storm drains where leaves, debris, garbage, animal waste etc. can build up and cause flooding. Simply sweep or rake out gutters and drains and place the removed matter in an appropriate waste wheeler and you are ready to rock.

2. Clear the debris from around your house

This is pretty much along the lines of cleaning your gutters and drains out but has two purposes. The first purpose is to keep that debris, plant matter etc from ending up in the storm drains that feed into our local watershed of creeks, lakes and oceans and can harm wildlife and ecosystems in addition to looking like crud. The second reason is that the debris can retain moisture and lead to moisture damage even after the rain is over. Mold and fungus thrive in moist environments and a pile of wet leaves is a perfect host for those fun guys… (pun) In all seriousness though the debris can harbor damaging organisms to the wood structures of your home. Also, think about what kind of critters might like to hide out in there like my arch nemesis, spiders.

3. Expect to mow weeds and vegetation

The City Fire Department refers to weeds and unruly vegetation as “noxious” and they are quite vigilant about clearing lots and properties of vegetation that is higher than the cuff of your boots. The reasons are plentiful but lets look at just two. The first one being that a clean and maintained yard looks nice and adds perceived value to your home. The curb appeal that attracts us to buying a home is not a one time deal, we have to maintain that look through keeping up on our landscaping and eliminating the ‘volunteer’ plants and vegetation. The biggest and second reason is that overgrown vegetation is an extremely flammable fuel for fires. Even in residential communities this is a concern, not just for vacant land and ranch/wildland areas. All of this rain is going to be bringing on a spurt of growth that will increase the density and amount of vegetation so sharpen your tools and fuel up the mower to keep your house looking good and safe.

That’s all I’ve got for you today gang. Have a great day!

A drizzly day on West Cuesta Grade afforded me the chance to shoot these wildflowers

My life as a Realtor®

dom4slohomes — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 23:05:16 +0000

What is a day in the life of Dom Tartaglia the Realtor like?

Well it goes a little something like this. Wake up, check e-mails, get distracted by a client that needs an immediate response, shower, caffeine, go to meeting for various non-profit, follow-up with another meeting and more email, then chase that with phone calls and checking market happenings on the Central Coast (what properties are selling, sold or new to the market for sale), day-dream about backpacking, lunch and more caffeine, schedule more of the same for future days, plan for fundraising event or Rotaract etc., edit pictures, video or website, blog, email, dinner and wrap it up with dinner, a meeting, softball, outdoor adventure or any combination of the above. It’s also not too uncommon for me to be out in the field snapping pictures of a new listing or video of listings or whatever compels me to shoot it.

This day has been no exception and here is how my desk looks as a result! Keep in mind there is one important thing missing from this pic, my iPhone which I used to take it. This is the life that I love and my desk is a direct result, at the end of the day, of what is going on at any moment in my life. Some folks might think it’s crazy while others think it’s minor league but to me it’s comfortable. For any of you out there doubting my organization I can tell you that I know exactly what I’m doing at any point in time and exactly where anything I need is right up until the point somebody moves it, that’s the point when my life gets turned upside down and things start falling apart haha.

My life as a Realtor® is special and it is something that has highs and lows, some days the desk is empty and other days it’s stacked to the ceiling but it’s always ready for a new task, client, organization, project or idea. That’s my life.

This is a large segment of my life on any given day, true story.

A part of a bigger company

dom4slohomes — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 21:40:08 +0000

I've been rocking this sign for nearly 26 years

How many of you look at this blog and think that all I ever do is talk about my community and helping first-time homebuyers and enjoy the outdoors? Come on gang you can be honest with me. It’s true that is a lot of what I do but what some of you may not know is that I also represent sellers. That’s right! In real estate there is no dark side or right side, especially when you have your name stuck on the front window of the office you work for. DominicTartaglia.com is my outlet for useful information and this information is my personal opinion but in reality I work for Tartaglia Realty. Most of you already knew that I’m sure. So what does that mean to you?

Well lets take a look.

If you are a buyer

If you are a home buyer, first-time or not, you get the benefit of working with a buyer agent that knows and understands how homes are priced, what goes into the psychology of listing homes, contracts, construction and even what inventory may be coming to the market in the near future but is still ‘off market’. I have to know all of those things so that when I get a new listing I am prepared to serve my client in selling their home as quickly, efficiently and profitably as possible. When clients call me to work for them I take it very seriously to do it in a manner that suits their needs and makes them happy, sometimes even at my expense. The same holds true for you. I will stop at nothing to get my Central Coast home buyers the best deal possible that fits THEIR needs. Often times that means I get asked questions about pricing, contracts, construction and the different inventory on the market. Luckily, I do a lot of homework (yes that was pun) and have a pretty solid grasp on the best answers.

So why don’t I talk more about listing information on this site? Well, that’s a good question. When I first built this site my intention was solely to build a resource that was specifically for buyers, a site where a person could go to gather information without being hounded down by a REALTOR® trying to force them to buy and sending them ridiculous amounts of information. A safe haven for the average home buyer that could be accessed in your jammies on Sunday morning from the couch with a cup of coffee or your PDA/smart phone on the morning commute. That is exactly how this site is going to stay. This site needs to exist to protect you, the buyer, and to make sure that you are as educated as possible about the home buying process and the wonderful Central Coast. So rest assured there will continue to be great content for you here.

If you are a seller
Don’t be discouraged that this site is only for buyers. I still care about you too! In fact, I am working on a site dedicated just to sellers. Tartaglia Realty is my listing side of the business and our website has worked for us for a few years now but it’s time for changes. We want to make sure we give you some tips on fixing your house up for top dollar, market conditions, popular trends, tips and tricks and general discussion about the whole selling process. That being said, building a second site is like teaching a child to walk and it happens one step at a time. Currently, I am looking for the perfect platform to publish the information on and generating content that will hopefully knock your socks off, give you some insight and keep you informed. Remember I CARE ABOUT YOU TOO! I want to get it right for you just like I have for buyers.
On the new site you can expect a media rich and interactive layout for you to play with and learn in. I am going to provide you all with some of my examples of what I can do to sell you home. I have a unique marketing technique that is ahead of the industry and will surely create some energy to get your house, commercial building or ranch sold here in San Luis Obispo County. If you want an example of what I’m talking about click on over to www.194seacliffdr.com and I think you’ll start to see the picture.

Alright Gang, Have a great Tuesday!

Spring in San Luis Obispo

dom4slohomes — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 17:24:38 +0000

San Luis Obispo, California doesn’t typically have a harsh winter filled with snow flurries, downpours and freezing temperatures but we do often times at least experience some colder temperatures, rainfall and a couple of days of discomfort. This year, we saw a few cold days and some big surf but that was about it, not a whole lot of rain and to be honest; I never felt any discomfort. San Luis Obispo is known across the globe for its temperate weather, friendly citizens and as of late, its beauty. For your information, last year SLO was named as the Happiest Place in America by Dan Buettner the author of Thrive, a book about finding happiness and this year Forbes has named it the PRETTIEST town in America.
Needless to say, yesterday it was no surprise to me when I woke up and walked to Easter service and couldn’t help but thinking, “Dang, shorts would have been a nice choice today.” and, “It’s too hot to go mountain biking today but I bet the beach should be perfect.” Living here in SLO we get those days quite a bit, the days where the biggest dilemma about the weather is whether the swell is up and the surf is going off but we wanted to go see a concert, rock-climb, hike or go wine tasting. When a SLOcal is faced with that dilemma there are only two solutions. The first solution is to curl up into the fetal position and stay in bed because the excitement of all of those wonderfull things is simply too overwhelming or take the second option and put together a list of all of the things and try to get them all done in one day. Also known as an “epic SLO day”. I prefer the second option.
Epic SLO day is a term coined by my good friend Tom Reeves and originated in conjunction with his first year anniversary in SLO. From then on, every time I have a day that starts with making a checklist of things to do in town I subconsciously refer to it as an Epic SLO day. Why does that name automatically populate itself in the back of my mind? The answer is simple. San Luis Obispo IS epic. This is a town that is not only happy and pretty but it’s filled with a plethora of stuff to do. Many people tell me that they get bored with SLO and that there isn’t anything to do and it blows me away. Over the years I’ve noticed the people who say that are either not adventurous enough to try something new or they simply run with a crowd that doesn’t know of all of the different things that are going on. If a person spends enough time and applies their self to seeking out some adventure they will find that there is no greater time in SLO to find stuff to do here. If you are looking to move to SLO or are currently living here and need some ideas of what to do, I will be glad to give you a list of great things to do here in town. Just drop me a line and I will, gladly, get you all lined out on your very own Epic SLO day!

Alright Gang, have a great week

Surfing with my room mate and a couple of girlfriends on Easter Sunday '12

Update for Downtown San Luis Obispo

dom4slohomes — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 19:05:29 +0000

I have a nice little video blog update for you guys here on what is going on downtown in SLO. We have everything from the SLO Marathon, credit card parking meters, the Bunny Trail, Chorro Street construction the Downtown Beautification and Lighting Project and MY new role as the President of the Board of Directors at the SLO Downtown Association, YAY!!! So watch on my friends

leaked video

dom4slohomes — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 19:18:27 +0000

So I have been busy (continue to be busy really) and this is what I have been up to. Scurrying around shooting videos for homes that are for sale around town and producing websites for them with a partner of mine. This is just a blip of what we have going on behind the curtain at DominicTartaglia.com so I’m letting you take a little peak at the madness. Shooting and designing all of this has been a blast and proves to be a solid start to some new beginnings for the site and content therein. Guys, I know I say it often but big stuff is coming to the website! Stay tuned and as always, CHEERS!