Cowles Mountain Hiking Trails
Cowles Mountain San Diego
Cowles Mountain is the highest point in the City of San Diego and one of the most popular hiking trails.
San Diego Aerial Photography – Cowles Mountain hiking trails
Phantom 2 Vision Plus is used to produce this aerial video.
This mountain is named after George A. Cowles, an early ranching pioneer in San Diego County. Its 1,593-foot summit is the highest point in the city of San Diego. The main trail to the summit is a popular hiking destination taking hundreds of people per day to a 360-degree panorama of San Diego County. The hike to the top is 1.5 miles long and an elevation change of about 950 feet .
This quadcopter helicopter uses GPS to make operating it very easy. They call this “Your flying Camera”. It takes great HD video as well as still photos. Plus, you can change the angle of the camera in flight, as well as go from video to stills, also while in flight. Read more 
The Wedge Newport Beach California
The Wedge August 27, 2014
Thousands of spectators lined the beach as surfers and bodyboarders attempted to ride the 15 to 20-foot waves at California’s “The Wedge”. Some say there were occasional waves near 30 feet!
Surfline.com said the waves were “Good to Epic” in size, and generated by Hurricane Marie, off the coast of California.
A spokeswoman for the city of Newport Beach California, said the waves had attracted about 3,000 to 4,000 spectators at The Wedge.
The Wedge is one of the more difficult breaks on the West Coast, known its power and shape. Read more
Hopeful Signs in the Housing Market
Housing Market Improvement
The National Association of Realtors released a report today on adjusted pending home sales. Pending home sales are when people enter into contracts to purchase homes. The good news is that this figure increased 3.3% from the prior month, unfortunately, the index itself was down 2.1% from the same period a year ago.
On a regional basis, the pending home sales increased in the South and in the West, though the index for both regions remains below its levels seen in July 2013. Read more
San Diego Real Estate Market 2014
San Diego real estate market 2014
Yesterday, the San Diego Association of realtors reported that although the median San Diego home sales price has stabilized above $500,000, single-family home resales for July decrease by 13% compared to sales in June. During the same period, sales of previously owned condominiums and townhomes fell about 2%.
New California Gas Tax
New California Gas Tax
California Assembly Bill 32
It has been brought to my attention that a new tax in California will be going into effect, Assembly Bill 32. (1)(2)
Starting January 1, 2015, Californians will pay 16 to 76 cents more per gallon of gas as a result of a gas tax that was created by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the Brown Administration without public knowledge or legislative approval. (3) Read more
San Diego Real Estate Market Analysis – 2nd Quarter 2014
San Diego County Residential Real Estate Market Analysis
©2014 By Mark A. Melikian California Certified Residential Appraiser appraisals@san.rr.com P.O. Box 3051 Del Mar, California 92014 858-793-9339
The following is a market data summary of detached and attached properties as reported by the San Diego County MLS system. The data includes all zip codes in San Diego County. * All 2014 data in figures 1 through 4 will be projected based on market data taken from January through June as reported by the San Diego County MLS system. All projections discussed in this analysis will be updated throughout the year in subsequent quarterly reports.
Market Overview: The data provided analyzes residential real estate sales beginning in the year 2000, which is used as the base year. The number of sold listings in San Diego County peaked in 2003 at 42,746 units and decreased through 2008 to 23,972 units. *The 2014 projection shows the total number of units sold for the year will be 32,248 (see figure 1).
Aerial Drones used in real estate sales
Real estate drones
*** Until the FAA issues final regulations on drone usage, the commercial use of them is in question.
So, it’s best to just use them just for your personal hobby interests. We are NOT offering any aerial photography services at this time.
. A major real estate brokerage firm just came out with an opinion that real estate agent should hold off using aerial drone footage in marketing their properties until the FAA issues final regulations on drone usage. These new regulations are supposed to be out in about a year. Meanwhile, aerial drone photography for personal or hobby use is okay. Supposedly the FAA issuing these rules to promote safety. But, why is there no regulation for personal use? Is personal use of aerial drones somehow safer than commercial use? Read more
San Diego Aerial Photography – Spring Valley swap meet
San Diego Aerial Photography
DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus is used to produce this aerial video.
The Spring Valley swap meet is one of the largest in San Diego California. This is the swap meet occurs every Saturday and Sunday. It attracts a huge amount of people and offers many new and used items for sale, including produce and fresh flowers.
This quadcopter helicopter uses GPS to make operating it very easy. Read more
San Diego Real Estate Aerial Photography
San Diego real estate aerial photography
The video below shows actual aerial video taken around San Diego California using the DJI Phantom two Vision+ quadcopter.
Aerial photography is a great way to show a home’s exterior from an aerial viewpoint but it’s surroundings on the property and within the neighborhood.
In addition, aerial photography when combined with and interior video tour is in many ways the best way to to convey to prospective buyers the total features and benefits of owning the property. Read more
San Diego State University Aerial Photography
SDSU Aerial Photography
Using a DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus on the campus of San Diego State University. This quadcopter helicopter uses GPS to make operating it very easy. They call this “Your flying Camera”.
It takes great HD video as well as still photos. Plus, you can change the angle of the camera in flight, as well as go from video to stills.
You can use an I-phone or I-pod to see what the camera is filming and to set up the perfect shot. Read more