The Voice of East Bay Living

This week's restaurant pick is Homestead located at 4029 Piedmont Ave. in Oakland. Its main chefs are a husband and wife team, Elizabeth and Fred Sassen  who drew their inspiration from Elizabeth's grandparents,who were original homestead pioneers.  You will sample house churned butter, homemade cheeses  and a variety of charcutierie.  The centerpiece of the restaurant is a custom designed wood-burning hearth, where seasonal vegetables and large hunks of meat are roasted to create a most appetizing meal. I have gone back to this great place four times. My  new home away from home.  Visit  GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at  ssabine @grubbco.com 

Close up of the Drone Drone Explanation This week's excitement is drone photography. It is the latest and the greatest in marketing homes. It is done with a small aerial camera that looks like a toy airplane and is controlled by a remote device with a small screen. It is a fantastic tool to show off a home and grounds as well as the surrounding neighborhood. Privacy issues may soon surface but for now it is freedom in the sky. Visit  GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at  ssabine @grubbco.com 

This is my pick of  the week-- a sneak preview of our new Rockridge listing - a classic craftsman nestled in the urban bustle of the wildly popular Rockridge neighborhood. Visit  GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at  ssabine @grubbco.com 

"I decided that if I could paint that flower in a huge scale, then you could not ignore its beauty." -Georgia O'Keefe One of the many Treasures in the Bay Area is the DeYoung Museum, nestled in Golden Gate Park and  home of many famous exhibitions.  Recently, I squeezed in a visit in the middle of my work day so I could spend time with Georgia O'Keefe, one of America's most famous artists.  She was talented, brave,and inspired many artists to create something truly fresh and original.  Visit  GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at  ssabine @grubbco.com 

Check out our great listing in the Bellevue Staten which sold in 5 days! Visit  GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at  ssabine @grubbco.com 

Steamy hot weather... steamy hot real estate market. So why are buyers paying top dollar beyond anyone's wildest dreams? Here are some reasons: views, schools, walk score, yards, home amenities, fixer potential, close to friends and relatives, 1301 exchange. All buyers want to be winners... now matter what, these buyers are living out their dreams. Visit  GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at  ssabine @grubbco.com 

  Decorating an empty space makes such a difference. This is our new listing in Bellevue Staten.   Visit GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at ssabine @grubbco.com 

A few months ago in my blog I talked about a wonderful tucked away spot called Temescal Alley, off of Telegraph near 51st. St.  Temescal is one of the many new exciting Oakland neighborhoods. Follow this link to see why the New York Times is calling Oakland the new Brooklyn.

My interior design challenge this week was transforming a large warehouse space into a comfortable and elegant gathering room.   Visit GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at ssabine @grubbco.com 

2844 Forest, Berkeley-The Charles Axel Smith Garage- over 6,800 sq. ft. combining residential wings as well as huge art studios-classic old style architecture and prime Elmwood location-a delightful surprise. Visit GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at ssabine @grubbco.com 

The market continues to sizzle with the new mantra being "WOW: -Rockridge  home listed for $699  is pending for over $930 -East Bay off market home listed for 3 million went pending in one week at over the asking price -Claremont home listed at 1,695,000 is pending for over $2,400,000 -San Francisco gets the prize... a 2 bedroom, 2.5 bath just sold for 1,405,000 over the asking price. -Jaw Dropping yes.. Will  it continue?-- Where is the crystal ball?   Visit GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at ssabine @grubbco.com 

This is a national youth development non-profit for low income high school students to transform what they beleive is possible for themselves. Students learn to develop character traits they need to become college educated leaders.  At Lake Merritt everyone was required to run a 5 K race before going on a summer wildeness trip.   Visit GlassSabine.com Contact Team Glass Sabine at ssabine @grubbco.com 

Featured at lightingboltphoto.com

Limo ride to business conference on Friday.. Earth Day Clean-up on Saturday  at Lake Merritt... Life in the Bay Area

C'est le Buzz... After attending a regional real estate conference, here are some highlights: One agent described the San Francisco market as kind of heart-breaking with the median price at $990,000  and buyers chasing after one house and then another. There are a lot of young buyers who want to be in sunny neighborhoods and walk everywhere.  In the East Bay, we are finding an overflow market  with buyers coming from all directions to buy a house. In Piedmont homes are selling for over $1,000/sqft with sometimes 23 offers. 35% are all cash offers....Where did all this cash come from? I wish someone would adopt me. Leslie Appleton Young, chief economist for CAR was the guest speaker. She said that our economy is no longer in Recovery but in Expansion. A lot of people have no cash restraints-they just want to move their money out of their country into our country. Short sales and REO's have declined significantly-now under 2% nationwide. Everyone is l...