Renaissance at Stonetree Bay Club,  Not listed on MLS please call for private showing48 Stonetree Lane, Novato, CA, 94945 Gorgeous, Gated Golf Course Home Offered at $1,888,888 4 Bedrooms / 3.5 Bathrooms 4,773 square feet (per public record- not verified) Neighborhood dues of $185 monthly include the use of the hilltop pool Find peace of mind in the exclusive gated community of Renaissance at Stonetree Bay Club. Gracious rooms showcase views, high ceilings, French doors, fans, fireplaces and natural light.  The heart of the home welcomes with a breakfast nook, two islands, and miles of granite. Formal dining room, living room, family room and half bath finish the main level.  Premium features include mahogany floors, maple master closet built-ins, AC, water filtration, three fireplaces,... 01/28/2016

How Long Is My Pre-Approval Good For?  If you're like me, you probably find that there are some recurring instances in your day-to-day interactions that make you realize what is obvious to you may not be so obvious to those you serve.  A question I get frequently from those shopping for a home and going through the process of mortgage pre-approval is, "How long is my pre-approval good for?"   And yes, even in 2015, where the CFPB has held our industry's feet to the fire in an attempt to shoehorn inherently complex transactions into consumer experiences that are simple, black and white and devoid of any twists and turns (and thus completely the material of fantasy), I must submit that the answer to the question still is, "It depends."  But even if there are going to be different answers ... 11/07/2015

As we get closer to the end of the year I'm beginning....  to see what an exciting yet challenging year this has been. In January 2016 I will have been in the Home Staging business for 10 YEARS!   On this 9th year I have had so many FIRSTS happen to me.  Prior to this year everything in my business had run so smooth....  I just thought being in business for myself was a piece of cake.  Everything just came my way and I rarely had to face any challenges...  at least not difficult ones.   Well this year 2015...  changed all that.  This year I've been climbing a mountain that just seems to get higher and steeper as this year is passing by.   Some of the challenges have turned out to be quite exciting and have certainly taught me a lesson or two which has resulted in many changes to my "Let... 10/10/2015

The North Marin Water Distrcit sent out a notice today that they are offering a cash incentive (up to $400 per single family dwelling) to removed regularly maintained and automatically irrigated lawn areas to then replace with low water use plantings on drip irrigation or with synthetic turf.Also offered for "Do It Yourselfers" is a "sheet mulching" program.  They deliver free compost, cardboard and mulch for eligible projects.Go to www.nmwd.com for rules and application.  Call 415-761-8944 to schedule an appointment.  This is a sign of the times.  If you are thinking of selling your house, curb appeal will speak volumes to buyers.  A thirsty or dying lawn may not be as attractive as one of the options offered here. 04/13/2015

58 Arnold Drive,  Novato                   Fresh off the pages of Architectural Digest! Very chic townhome in the heart of Hamilton offers all the wish list amenities. This stylish end unit is flooded with light and its corner lot is one of the largest. Anchored by a stately palm the patio and lawn provide rare privacy. The first impressions are of the high ceilings, gleaming hardwood floors and open floorplan. The remodeled kitchen is artfully designed and accented with custom glass tiles and granite counter tops.  The magnificent master offers French doors to a balcony and the walk in is so large you could tuck in a nursery or office.  2 bedrooms both ensuite, 2.5 baths, 1428 living area, built in 1998 per public records.   Offered at $599,900.                                        ... 11/03/2014

I love ActiveRain referrals... #2 con't This is my second referral with Realtor Sylvia Barry from ActiveRain.  It's very exciting to work with her... she's very nice and does a wonderful job marketing her listings.  She gets dynamic results... which works great for the Homeowner and is awesome for my statistics too. This vacant house I staged is a gorgeous home in Novato, CA located in Marin County, CA and went into contract the first week on the market.  Here are some photos of this beautiful home as staged by With Divine Style.  Thank you Sylvia Barry and thanks ActiveRain!                                     Can Potential Buyers See Themselves Living In Your Home? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "You never get a second chance...  to make a Great First Impression!" Linda D... 07/01/2014

I love ActiveRain referrals... #2! This is my second referral with Realtor Sylvia Barry from ActiveRain.  It's very exciting to work with her... she's very nice and does a wonderful job marketing her listings.  She gets dynamic results... which works great for the Homeowner and is awesome for my statistics too. The house I staged was a gorgeous home in Marin County, CA and went into contract the first week.  Here is a photo of the front of the house... I'll have more photos to follow.  Thank you Sylvia Barry and thanks ActiveRain!   Can Potential Buyers See Themselves Living In Your Home? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "You never get a second chance...  to make a Great First Impression!"   Linda D. Pufford, ASPM With Divine Style Real Estate/Home Staging ~ I... 07/01/2014

RENTED during first day of showings! Large 5bd/4.5ba view home in East Novato. $4500/month for 1 year. 05/18/2014

Rented @$1525 for 1 year. Great 1bd/1ba Condo in Captains Landing complex Novato. 05/18/2014

The buzz on the local market since the end of last year, although gingerly made, has been that we might have hit the bottom of the market, and are on our way to crawl out of that black hole. As we held our breath while watching the market during the past five months, we became cautiously optimistic about the market – the Feds declared they plan to hold the interest rate down, the Congress is finding ways to encourage/enable underwater homeowners to stay in their homes, the banks are learning from their mistakes, streamlining short sale processes as well as not flooding the market with bank owned homes, inventory is also low due to homeowners being more careful and are staying put instead of trading up or down without any fear as it was during the boom time. .   Being in the Bay Area, w... 05/09/2014

Mortgages for Canyon Green, Novato, CA   You don't see it too often in Marin County, CA --- new construction, that is.  So the other day while I was driving in Novato, I allowed myself the innocent distraction of following the signs to the new development of Canyon Green, located roughly off of the DeLong/Diablo exit and close to the Grant St. downtown area.     There are 6 floor plans available and prices will start from mid-$700's.  This means that RPM can finance many of these properties with as little as 10% down (80/10/10 financing).     For months both real estate agents and buyers alike have been lamenting about the lack of inventory, and especially stock of desirable homes.  And here we'll have 25 new units to add to a vibrant community, close to open space and all that is great... 02/18/2014

Halloween is less than a week away, and it's fun to see so many Novato homes decked out for the holiday. My kids love to be on the lookout for creepy displays. It all adds to a nice feeling of community here. We've seen lots of pumpkins, spooky spiders, clever headstones and bright inflatables. There are a handful of Novato houses that you might consider "destination" Halloween houses. Meaning, if you and your kids are in town, it may be worth a drive this week to check them out. I'm highlighting a few houses that I've seen - I'm sure there are more! Novato is a very spread-out place. Know of another? Add it to the comments below.   Eerie Cemetery This house at the corner of Cambridge Street and Sunset Parkway (94947) goes all-out. Below the cobwebs and flying ghosts is a graveyard with... 10/25/2013

Novato real estate update on the brand new homes at Canyon Green, October 25, 2013: There is significant construction progess every day at Canyon Green, the new home development in central Novato. Yesterday I saw the windows being installed on several of the homes, and more are rising from their foundations and taking shape. Already, 4 Canyon Green homes and homesites have been reserved by buyers in the development's first release, which started a couple of weeks ago. In all, Canyon Green will have 25 well-appointed homes that surround The Green -- a large centerpiece community park with lawn areas for play and walking paths. I talked all about the Canyon Green home models and floor plans in another post. But to recap, these are 3 to 5 bedroom homes, ranging in size from approximately 1... 10/25/2013

It's relatively rare to find new home construction here in Marin because of the county's strict anti-growth policy (no Bay Area county has more protected open space). So, when pockets of newly built homes come onto the market, they tend to get a lot of interest from prospective buyers.  The latest infill subdivision with brand new homes is in Novato, just 25 minutes north of San Francisco, and the first batch of homes just came on the market! It's a 25-home development called Canyon Green. It's all single-family, detached homes with both one- and two-story models available. There are 3-, 4- and 5-bedroom models. Canyon Green is located in central Novato, just 4 blocks from Old Town Novato, the city's historic downtown. It's an easy commute location -- Highway 101 is just 1.1 miles away!... 10/23/2013

Novato homes continue to sell at a relatively fast pace. There is only 2 months of housing inventory, which means demand far exceeds supply (6 months of inventory is considered a neutral or balanced market). During the government shutdown, we noticed a dip in buyer activity. This could be coincidental, or it could be that  uncertainty spooked buyers a bit.   In the chart below, you can see how each price range is faring right now in Novato. Most are seeing between 2 and 4 months of inventory.       Who's in charge of the Novato real estate market: buyers or sellers? As of October 15, 47% of all Novato single-family homes were in escrow. That indicates a market favoring sellers. But if you look at the data by price point, there are somevariations. For example, there was less buyer activi... 10/21/2013

RENTED! Huge 5bd/4.5ba view home in East Novato. $7000/month 10/09/2013

Advice for Sellers ~ Before and After Photos of a Staged Dining Room The Dining Room is an important room in any house.  It's a place where families will have meals together, hold birthday parties and Holiday dinners.  Potential buyers will be looking for that space or room when they walk into a home to place their table and chairs.  If a house is vacant many times a buyers will question what a rooms purpose is.  Why not make it easy for buyers to location that room...  by staging it. We recently staged a vacant house and below are the before and after photos of the Dining Room.  This house was on the market (vacant) for a little over three months before we where called in to stage it...  soon after we were notified that it went into contract.  Staging your home gives it buyer appeal...... 09/16/2013

Can Professional Home Staging make a diference to the sale of a Home? I believe it can...  "With Divine Style" was called in to stage a home that had been on the market for a little over three months.  Always curious why a house lingers on the market I decided to look at the online photos on the MLS.  The house was furnished when I looked online but when I arrived to preview the home much of the furnishing were gone.  Below are the photos from online, vacant and the after home staging final results.  You be the judge...  does Home Staging make a difference to the presentation of a home? Online Photo ~ Bedroom Before Home Staging Vacant Photo ~ Bedroom Before Home Staging   Staged Photo ~ Bedroom After Home Staging   Vacant Photo ~ Bedroom Before Home Staging   Staged Photo ~ Bedroom Aft... 09/14/2013

Just how much can professional Home Staging make to online photos? One of the homes that we staged was on the market a little over three months before "With Divine Style" was called in.  I made an appointment to preview the home and then went online to check out the presentation of the home and how it was presented to potential buyers.  Below were the two online photos of this bedroom. Online Photos ~ Before "With Divine Style" Home Staging                                                                                    Online Photos ~ Before "With Divine Style" Home Staging     When I arrived at the house I was told that the owner had moved and taken almost all of the furniture that I saw on the online photos.  Here is the the same bedroom the day I previewed the home. Before "With D... 09/13/2013

Pleasant Spanish style 4bd home in Pleasant Valley School district, Novato just leased @$2950. 06/21/2013