# Home Buying in California > Two years of buying and settling into a condo in a small Northern California city — escrow and title, the failed sewer lateral, closing, the association, the monthly value reports, and the housing-policy fight that took over the town. - Source: https://www.linecept.com/p/home-buying-in-california-sirdi3 - Published: Aug 17, 2026 - Time span: Aug 1, 2024 – Jul 21, 2026 - Timezone: UTC - Timelines: 10 - Events: 37 - Contributors: Escrow Officer, Local Real Estate Broker, David Kutas, Buyer's Agent, HOA Community Manager, City Communications, Neighbourhood Housing Group, City Parking Authority, Park Advocacy Group, HOA Board President, Pro-Housing Coalition, Residents Coalition ## Timelines - The Front Door (Sep 10, 2024 – Dec 4, 2025): Two attempts, fifteen months apart, to get one door painted — the smallest job on the list and the only one still open. - Escrow & Title (Aug 1, 2024 – Aug 9, 2024): Opening escrow, the title search, the decision to waive the owner's policy, and funding the purchase of 412 Sycamore Court. - Inspections & Due Diligence (Aug 26, 2024 – Aug 27, 2024): The inspection, the failed sewer lateral report, and getting the $5,000 holdback released once the association put the liability question in writing. - Closing & Title Transfer (Aug 9, 2024): The signing appointment and recording — the morning ownership of 412 Sycamore Court actually changed hands. - Move-In & Early Ownership (Sep 5, 2024 – Oct 7, 2025): Taking possession, getting the resident parking tags before the local pickup window closed, and putting the new address on record. - Home Improvements & Upgrades (Sep 10, 2024 – Dec 4, 2025): Post-close projects at 412 Sycamore Court — window treatments, a closet design consultation, a skylight quote that went nowhere, and a front door that stayed… - Home Value Tracking (Nov 11, 2024 – May 12, 2026): A year and a half of monthly home-value reports on 412 Sycamore Court — estimate swings, new listings in town, and the comparable sales that moved the number. - Alder Ridge Condominiums Association (Jul 9, 2025 – Jul 20, 2026): Life inside the association — board meetings, resident parking, deferred maintenance, and the wildland-interface fire work that is about to reset the monthly… - Brookvale Civic Context (Aug 3, 2024 – Jul 20, 2026): The city around the purchase — the rule change that reset how buyers work with agents, the budget cycles, a structure fire two streets over, and a year of… - Housing Policy & Ballot Measures (Aug 5, 2025 – Jul 21, 2026): The fight over where Brookvale puts its state-assigned housing — from the Miller Park proposal through two ballot measures, the RFP, and the Infill First… ## Events (chronological) - Aug 1, 2024: Title Insurance Waiver — I've attached the waiver of owner's title insurance to sign with the rest of the closing package. Please read it rather than skim it — waiving the owner's policy is a real… - Aug 3, 2024: Buyer Agreements Become Mandatory — A briefing on what changes on 17 August. From that date I can't work with a buyer without a written agreement in place first, and listing agents can no longer advertise buyer's… - Aug 9, 2024: Funds Received, Deed Recorded — Good to meet you in person this morning. We've received your funds to close and I'll send a digital copy of everything you signed this afternoon by secure email. Your agent… - Aug 9, 2024: Closing Documents Signed — I sat down at the title company's office this morning and signed the package — the deed of trust, the title insurance waiver, the change-of-ownership report. The escrow officer… - Aug 26, 2024: Sewer Lateral Fails — The sewer lateral inspection report came back with a fail notation, so I'm working out next steps with the seller's side before we touch the holdback. Separately, the listing… - Aug 27, 2024: Sewer Holdback Released — Confirmed — release it. I'm comfortable letting the $5,000 go to the seller now that the management company has put it in writing that neither side carries responsibility for the… - Sep 5, 2024: Parking Tags — Last Pickup — Notice to all owners: the final local opportunity to collect your resident parking tags is Thursday 12 September, 5–6 pm, at Brookvale City Hall in the community room. After that… - Sep 10, 2024: First Painter Contacted — Reached out to a local painting company about the front door. I can be home for three hours on Thursday the 12th or Friday the 13th and asked whether either works for them. It's… - Nov 11, 2024: November 2024 — $975K — First monthly report since closing puts the estimate at $975,000, up $80K on what I paid in August. Seven new listings in town this month at a median of $1,000 a square foot and… - Nov 24, 2024: Window Treatments Installed — The retailer's installation contractor confirmed 25 November, arrival window 10 am to 2 pm. Every window in the main room faces east, which is pleasant in the evening and… - Feb 21, 2025: Housing Element Adopted — We're holding a special Council meeting on 25 February to adopt amendments to the 2023–31 Housing Element. The Planning Commission has recommended reducing the Miller Park campus… - May 5, 2025: Closet Design Consultation — A closet design company confirmed an in-home design consultation for 8 May at 12:30. I'll be with their designer — about two hours, covering measurements, what's currently… - May 12, 2025: May 2025 — $933K — Estimate down to $933,000, up $38K since sold, with a range of $890K to $1.05M. Twenty-two new listings this month at a median of $915 a square foot — nearly triple November's… - Jun 11, 2025: June 2025 — $948K — Back up to $948,000, up $53K since sold, range $900K to $1.06M. Sixteen new listings at a median of $1,050 a square foot and about 28,600 listing views — the highest interest… - Jun 20, 2025: 2025–2026 Budget Adopted — At the 17 June meeting the Council approved a balanced budget for 2025–2026: $32,150,000 for operations and $17,400,000 for capital improvements. The emergency reserve strategy is… - Jul 9, 2025: July Board Meeting Notice — Notice of the Board of Directors meeting on 16 July at 6:00 pm, in person at Brookvale City Hall in the community room and by video link for owners who can't attend. The agenda is… - Jul 25, 2025: A Comp Sale Moves It — Flagged as a comparable sale affecting my value: 240 Chestnut Street sold at $1,120,000 — two bed, one and a half bath, 1,112 square feet, at list price. My estimate moved to… - Aug 5, 2025: Neighbours Warn on Miller Park — Writing to neighbours before Wednesday's Council meeting. The developer behind the Miller Park proposal obtained approval for a 70-foot building in a 30-foot zone at 300 Foothill… - Aug 5, 2025: Skylight Quote — Wrong Inbox — I sent a skylight installation quote request for the unit and it landed at a flood insurance brokerage instead of a contractor. Two similar names, one wrong address book entry. I… - Oct 7, 2025: Address on Record — I'm using 412 Sycamore Court, Brookvale as my address for professional correspondence now rather than the old one. Small administrative thing, but it's the point at which the… - Nov 7, 2025: Measures A and B Pass — Updated results from the County Elections Department show both measures on track to pass. Measure A — adjusting zoning in commercial and mixed-use districts to allow limited… - Dec 4, 2025: Second Painter Contacted — Fifteen months later, trying again — this time a different painting company. Sent photos of the door and the frame and asked them to call me back. Nothing came of the first… - Dec 12, 2025: December 2025 — $911K — Estimate at $911,000, up $16K since sold, range $868K to $1.02M. Only two new listings in town this month at a median of $650 a square foot, and 2,100 listing views — the market… - Jan 3, 2026: Public Comment on the RFP — Now that Measure B has passed I wrote to the Council asking for a transparent, staff-led RFP process for the Miller Park and Corporation Yard sites. Specifically: publish draft… - Jan 9, 2026: Fire on Juniper Street — Our crews responded to a two-alarm structure fire at 28 Juniper Street on 5 January with mutual aid from neighbouring agencies. Firefighters worked down steep terrain to reach a… - Feb 11, 2026: February 2026 — Below Purchase — $878,000 — the lowest reading since I bought, and $17K below what I paid. Range $835K to $980K. Fifteen new listings at a median of $1,000 a square foot and 30,200 listing views,… - Mar 12, 2026: March 2026 — $914K — Rebound to $914,000, up $19K since sold, range $870K to $1.03M. Twelve new listings at a median of $880 a square foot. Comps: 80 Orchard Drive at $1,950,000 and 205 Alder Court at… - Mar 17, 2026: Draft RFP Allows Three Storeys — The draft RFP for the Miller Park site leaves the door open to three-storey development despite the city's campaign promise of small-town scale two-storey housing modelled on… - Mar 18, 2026: Parking Moves to an App — The Resident Parking Benefit Program is now available through the city parking app. Current passcard holders keep up to three hours of free daily parking in Downtown Municipal… - Mar 27, 2026: City Manager Honoured — Our city manager has been recognised among 250 local-government leaders nationally by a public-administration academy — one of only two serving California city managers on the… - Apr 7, 2026: A Social, Alongside the Agenda — April's board meeting is set for the 15th, same room, same video link. What caught my attention is that the association sent a flyer for a social gathering alongside the agenda —… - May 12, 2026: May 2026 — $945K — $945,000, up $50K since sold, range $898K to $1.06M. Eleven new listings at a median of $1,175 a square foot, the highest median in the run. The report also started suggesting a… - May 20, 2026: Infill First Petition Drive — We'll be at Miller Park by the pickleball courts on Saturday 23 May, 10 am to 1 pm, collecting signatures for the Infill First Initiative. Infill First restores local zoning… - Jul 20, 2026: Leadership in Turmoil — Local press reported that the city's newly hired city manager was arrested over the weekend on a felony allegation. It landed on top of an already packed council agenda — the… - Jul 20, 2026: Siding, Courts & Fire Code — Summer update from the board. Final siding repairs should wrap in August 2026. The tennis net has been replaced and court resurfacing is deferred another year. The plastic pool… - Jul 21, 2026: Both Studies Back Infill First — The City commissioned two independent studies of the Infill First Initiative — one by City staff, one by an outside firm — and both came back positive. Staff found Infill First… - Jul 21, 2026: 500 Signatures Against 1 Mill Road — Our petition has passed 500 signers calling for a full CEQA review of 1 Mill Road — an 80-foot, 477,000-square-foot development seeking waivers of very nearly every existing… --- This is an interactive timeline published on Linecept. View it at https://www.linecept.com/p/home-buying-in-california-sirdi3. Create your own at https://www.linecept.com/.