This incredible sight of home backyards adjacent to high voltage . . . → Read More: High Voltage Transmission Lines in Solon Ohio]]> According to Norman Becker, author of Home Inspection Checklists, a study concluded that children exposed to an electromagnetic field were more likely to develop leukemia.   High voltage transmission lines near a house cause electromagnetic fields of concern as do local power distribution lines.

This incredible sight of home backyards adjacent to high voltage transmission lines may be observed in Preserve subdivision located in Solon Ohio.

High Voltage Transmission Lines-Click to enlarge

Preserve Subdivision of Solon Ohio-Click to enlarge

Signature of Solon Golf Community Subdivision

A Signature of Solon resident approached City of Solon Planning Commission and stated that she believes there have been builders in the Signature . . . → Read More: Signature of Solon rental properties cause concern]]> The City of Solon Planning Commission is discussing an ordinance proposal which will require that owners or agents obtain Occupancy Permit for rental units.

Signature of Solon Golf Community Subdivision

A Signature of Solon resident approached City of Solon Planning Commission and stated that she believes there have been builders in the Signature of Solon neighborhood who have built homes and rented them prior to obtaining an occupancy permit.  Additionally, many Signature of Solon model homes were built but not sold and have become rental properties.  Many of these Signature of Solon rental homes are neglected and improperly maintained which is damaging to the Signature of Solon community. This resident was concerned that the appearance of some of the homes will affect overall resale in the Signature of Solon neighborhood.

It appears that due to  the economic downturn, builders and homeowners associated with some  Signature of Solon properties are renting homes out of necessity rather than facing foreclosure.  There have been some foreclosure filings on properties located on Royal Portrush Drive, Capilano Drive, Vahalla Drive, Bellerive Drive, Merion Court, Prairie Dunes Court, Sotograde Court in Signature of Solon.

Foreclosure decreases the property value by 28% (Campbell, John Y., Stefano Giglio, and Parag Pathak. 2009. “Forced Sales and House Prices.” NBER Working Paper 14866).  Some builders are facing property foreclosures because lenders have become conservative by cutting their line of credit.  Common sense lending standards mean that lenders expect builders to have their own skin in the game.

Home-equity loans and lines of credit are second mortgages.  Second mortgages are made after a primary mortgage is in place.  If a homeowner defaults, the proceeds of the home’s sale go first to the lender that holds the primary mortgage.  The second-mortgage holder gets whatever is left after the primary mortgage is satisfied.  Lenders are rightly shying away from secondary mortgages and rental occupancy permits will not loosen the line of credit leash.

Signature of Solon does allow home rentals, however,  a deed restriction stipulates that home must be owner-occupied for the first year to ensure that landscape work and proper maintenance is completed.  However, Signature of Solon does not request the tenant’s name.  Chagrin Highlands subdivision in northeast Solon also has a deed restriction similar to Signature of Solon.

A deed is the legal document that transfers ownership of real estate.  It contains the names of the old and new owners and a legal description of the property etc.  The deed is signed by the property owner.  Deed restrictions place limitations on the use of the property by the property developer.  It is my belief that some property owners may use a bypass  to get around a deed restriction.

It dates back to September 2007, when Cuyahoga County prosecutor, Bill Mason’s office did a press release about four morgage fraud cases in Solon.   These cases involved the following Solon properties:

Located adjacent to the well known golf community of Signature of Solon is this opulent subdivision called Rollingbrook.

The subdivision has large lots located along Rollingbrook Trail which dead ends into a cul-de-sac; therefore the only traffic on Rollingbrook Trail is likely to be the Rollingbrook’s residents . . . → Read More: Rollingbrook is the crown jewel of City of Solon Real Estate]]>

Rollingbrook Subdivision, City of Solon, Ohio

Located adjacent to the well known golf community of Signature of Solon is this opulent subdivision called Rollingbrook.

The subdivision has large lots located along Rollingbrook Trail which dead ends into a cul-de-sac; therefore the only traffic on Rollingbrook Trail is likely to be the Rollingbrook’s residents and visitors.

Rollingbrook subdivision has a R-1-E zoning classification which entails 5 acre lots.  Several homes have long and curved driveways which means that the homes are not visible from Rollingbrook Trail.  Rollingbrook is a hidden and spectacular subdivision.

Click on the image to see this jaw dropping home in Rollingbrook.

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Walden of Aurora
Warren Buffett on Leverage

The April 16th, 2009 hard copy issue of The Solon Times (Volume 32, Number 32) published an article titled Finally, city sheds light on ‘funneling‘ by Sue Reid.  The article reported that City of Solon is in the . . . → Read More: Traffic signal counters funneling effect in Solon]]> Traffic Signal Warrants

Traffic Signal Warrants-Institute of Transporation Engineers

Traffic Signal in City of Solon

The April 16th, 2009 hard copy issue of The Solon Times (Volume 32, Number 32) published an article titled Finally, city sheds light on ‘funneling‘ by Sue Reid.  The article reported that City of Solon is in the process of potentially considering and approving installation of traffic signals at SOM Center Road/Lisa Lane intersection and SOM Center Road/Blue Heron Drive intersection at a cost of approximately $170,000.

SOM Center Road is a four lane arterial street through City of Solon and City of Twinsburg.  SOM Center Road narrows to two lanes in City of Twinsburg.

South bound traffic:  The decrease in the number of lanes (from 4 to 2) of  SOM Center Road  necessitates merging of traffic and this merging is referred to as the funneling effect, I think.

North bound traffic: North bound traffic on SOM Center Road, from City of Twinsburg towards City of Solon encounters the increase in lanes (from 2 to 4).  These wider and additional lanes provide an incentive to the  motorists to speed above the posted speed limit of 35 mph.

Traffic experiences delays when making turns from local side streets, Lisa Lane and Blue Heron Drive, to arterial SOM Center Road.

Proposed City of Solon Traffic Signals near Oakview Estates and Summerset Subdivisions

Click on the aerial picture to enlarge it.  Check out the proximity between Lisa Lane/SOM Center Road intersection and Blue Heron Drive/SOM Center Road intersection near the city limit.  Some City of Solon residents in Oakview Estates subdivision and Summerset subdivision on the south side of City of Solon understandably felt unsafe, at certain times, while making turns onto SOM Center Road.  A couple of important lessons for urban planners and traffic engineers here, I think.

City of Solon Traffic Signal System

Location Location Location

If you are home buyer, one additional consideration should be safe entrance into and exit through the subdivision.    A signalized exit and entrance provides for the safest traffic conditions.  I reckon Summerset subdivision and Oakview Estates subdivision residents in City of Solon should be mighty pleased with this, not sure what traffic on SOM Center Road would think about it.

Do you need a real estate agent?

Summerset subdivision in Solon has one of the best designed homes that I have ever seen.   This Solon real estate property owned by a self described fussy owner.  I was impressed with the design but what impressed me about the owners of this home was that they were not using a realtor to sell this home.

Walden includes Walden Golf and Tennis Courts, Inn Walden, Spa Walden, Club Walden

A few years back I watched an interview of Mikhail Kalashnikov on the History Channel.  Mikhail Kalashnikov is the designer of the famous (and also the infamous since it is also used by terrorists) . . . → Read More: Walden of Aurora, Ohio]]>

Manny Berholz's Walden of Aurora

Walden includes Walden Golf and Tennis Courts, Inn Walden, Spa Walden, Club Walden

A few years back I watched an interview of Mikhail Kalashnikov on the History Channel.  Mikhail Kalashnikov is the designer of the famous (and also the infamous since it is also used by terrorists) AK-47 (stands for Automatic Kalashnikov 1947) rifle also known as the Kalashnikov.  The main advantages of the Kalashnikov rifle are its simple design, compact size, ease of maintenance, reliability and ruggedness.  I recall Mikhail Kalashnikov saying in this interview “Whatever is simple, is useful“.

When I learned from Robert Rosencrans, Managing Partner of Inn Walden that the design philosophy of Manny Berholz, the maverick behind Walden is, Simplify…….Simplify……..Simplify, my thoughts connected to the interview with one of the famous Russian designer, Mikhail Kalashnikov.

Walden of Aurora, Ohio

When I drove into the Walden planned community the first time, I was immediately impressed with its beauty and uniqueness.  Walden is nothing like a typical tract developments that have become so common during the past few decades.  Walden of Aurora is magnificent.  I have not seen a better planned community than Walden of Aurora.  If you are an architect or an engineer, I highly recommend that you drive through this planned community.   Walden is the optimum blend of functionality and beauty.

Walden homes are situated in the landscape in a way that allows the best natural views and maximum privacy as well. Our homes are efficient, functional spaces that are environmentally sound as well as architecturally beautiful. Our designs are spacious and open, and we’ve included large windows that allow in lots of light as well as dramatic, scenic views of the Walden landscape. Using building materials from the region, we’ve made our communities contextually appropriate, too.  Source: Walden

Walden is modeled after the planned community of Reston, Virginia.  One of the major characteristics that makes it unique is that its housing units are expandable.  This means that there is no lot line boundary as in a fee simple lot. One draws the boundary after you build the home.  Read more about Walden philosophy here.

According to Gabe Lefebvre, President of Walden Association, Walden encompasses 525 acres and consists of 530 condominiums, 15 condiminium associations and 88 single family homes.  This development has public and private streets.  Prices for homes range from 250k to 1 million dollars.  Utilities are located underground.  Gabe Lefebvre said what he likes the most about living in Walden is the degree of control one has over one’s activities; one could do anything or nothing and be equally pleased about living in Walden.

A yellow sign in front of this house at 7381 Vahalla Drive, in Signature of Solon in Solon, Ohio had the website link to Williams and Williams, a real estate auctioneer.  The estimated value of this property according to zillow.com is $727,000.  The sale is . . . → Read More: Signature of Solon Golf Community, Solon, Ohio-A Review]]>

A mammoth in Signature of Solon, Solon Ohio

A yellow sign in front of this house at 7381 Vahalla Drive, in Signature of Solon in Solon, Ohio had the website link to Williams and Williams, a real estate auctioneer.  The estimated value of this property according to zillow.com is $727,000.  The sale is on January 22, 2009 at 3 PM according to the auctioneer website.  Nominal opening bid was $100,000.  There were several homes for sale signs in Signature of Solon at this time and this was surprising.

Signature of Solon is near the intersection of Aurora Road and Pettibone Road.  Both these roads are two lane, physically undivided roads.  Aurora Road (11, 400+ vehicles/day, year unknown) has higher traffic volume than Pettibone Road (1,900 vehicles/day, year unknown).

Some homes in the pretentious Signature of Solon subdivision (Zoned R-1-F Golf Course Community) are likely to have one or more these features:

1. Too voluminous for the family and lot size.  Have you ever seen a 500 square feet walk-in closet?
2. Somewhat similar looking exteriors despite the multiple roof lines.
3. Awful 2 story/cathedral/elevator shaft living room ceilings typically seen in McMansions.
4. Sub par single flight staircases with poor riser and tread dimensions.
5. Few trees in the front yard.
6. Large sunlight inviting windows that also degrade the appearance of  living room furniture and electronics.
7. Cul-de-sacs.
8. Good construction quality.
9. Good construction material quality.
10. Highly educated neighbors.

I saw house for sale sign on Aurora Road near Signature of Solon,  so I decided to have a look at this gated community.  A gated community refers to a fenced housing development, typically having a security guard at the gate.  I did not note a fence around . . . → Read More: Signature of Solon]]>

Signature of Solon, Solon, Ohio

I saw house for sale sign on Aurora Road near Signature of Solon,  so I decided to have a look at this gated community.  A gated community refers to a fenced housing development, typically having a security guard at the gate.  I did not note a fence around Signature of Solon.   Access to vehicular traffic is controlled through the black metal gate seen above.

Gated communities are non-existent in Wisconsin.  I am told that Texas has more than a few, so do California and Florida.