Sonoma Travel Forum

Just wondering if there is a local who lives near the Dream Home just
unveiled by HGTV? Saw the tour on TV but was wondering how the
natives of Sonoma feel about all the attention? What is the Subdivision like?
How's the Real Estate mkt. in Sonoma? Improving?
Favorite Restaurants? Things to do?

Thanks in advance.

I haven't taken the time to drive by, the winery's are a much more desired destination. The real estate market in CA is similar to most places.. not that good, but sill million dollar homes continue to be built and sell. Wine country continues to be a more desired area as "flat land" should have grapes on it, not houses in many people's opinion. Thus there is a premium. I'll check with some colleagues that live there to see what the local feeling is.

Hey, Linda Sue. There really hasn't been much hype about this locally. I'm not even sure where it is. The photo looks like Armstrong Estates on the east side of town, but none of the articles I've pulled up say where it is.

The real estate market in Sonoma is currently a buyer's market; prices have fallen drastically in the last six months. I saw a two-bedroom condo last week that was listed at under $160,000. A couple of years ago it would have been listed at twice that.

You might be interested in this article about past winners and the whopping taxes they've been responsible for: http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080830/LIFESTYLE/808290245

For restaurants, etc., feel free to take a look at my Sonoma page.

Thanks and it is Armstrong Estates. I think Ledson is the builder?

LOVE IT! Taxes may present a problem...

Off to look at your homepage.

Here's a blog entry about the site...

http://www.starksilvercreek.com/2009/01/hgtvs-2009-dream-home-californias-wine.html/co

I'm not that excited about the floor plan or the layout, but my "dream home" would be one floor, hacienda type encircling a pool.

I saw a video tour of the house and thought that for such a huge building, the rooms are kind of narrow.

I enter sweepstakes just for fun, but I don't know that I'd want to win this one. The real estate market is depressed, and the house might not sell. In the meantime, you'd have to pay astronomical taxes and fees.

CA is better off with taxes than most of the New England states last time I looked. It's not our base tax that gets you, its all the local and county add ons that we tend to vote in for "1 year only" and they never go away.

Just the thought of property taxes on a 2 million dollar house makes me pale.

I think last years winner ( Islamorada FL) is having a hard time
selling with a big tax bill due April '09. This home seems much
more livable, saleable? And I just love N. CA.

Thanks for your replies!

LOL, I know. My daughter continually asks why her taxes are more than our house which is probably twice the size of her condo. Prop 13 only worked for some and only in the first couple years of it's existence.

I see it says 'Armstrong Estates' but does anyone have an address or a neighborhood? I live in Napa and would love to drive by and check it out..
Thanks..

Armstrong Estates is on East Napa Street between 5th Street E and 7th Street E. (Do a search on Mapquest for Charles van Damme Way).

If you head towards Sonoma from Napa, it will be on your left. You can't miss it -- it's a collection of mansions.

I believe the home is on 5th street.

They've had to hire security guards to keep nosy dreamers from ruining the landscaping... typical!!

If you do a birds eye view through "Maps by Microsoft Virtual Earth" the house is located on the corner of Patten & 5th St. East. The house is not shown but you can identify the surroundings with the front view of the house on the Dream Home 2009 site.
I hope this helps.