Laws | Love's Real Stories

May 21, 2020

The Force

There is a new phrase in our Real Estate contracts, “Force Majeure,” meaning an Irresistible Force or Act of God or Uncontrollable Event. “Force Majeure” was added to our contracts to specifically address the Coronavirus Pandemic. A Buyer or Seller may now cancel a contract, if they are negatively impacted by the Coronavirus, such as losing a job, or the inability to move, or they become ill.

We must travel cautiously through this Coronavirus-stricken world.

My wife and I certainly did, as we ventured out to look at a piece of Real Estate. We packed our face masks and rubber gloves, the newly required gear for touring homes. Our mission was to preview a certain property on behalf our friends, Tom and Gahlia, who live in Sonoma County wine country.

Tom and Gahlia, for years now, have been talking about retiring and moving onto country property up here in the Northstate foothills, hence the reason for our preview. The property in question is off Highway 70 past Concow, about a 45-minute drive out of the Valley from Chico. You hang a right onto Big Bend Road and wind out into the hills, catching glimpses now and then of the North Fork of the Feather River a thousand feet below. Somewhere down there is Pulga, the origin of the Camp Fire, 20 miles or more from the town of Paradise, which burned down in the Camp Fire.

We were excited to take a drive, an adventure it seemed, our first of any distance other than to the grocery store since the beginning of the Pandemic. The dogs were excited, too, wagging their tails and smiling in the back of the truck. We pulled into a fast food joint and treated ourselves and the dogs to a meal on the road.

We took the long way and climbed up the Skyway through Paradise to get a look at the progress of the rebuild of that beautiful foothill town. It’s coming along. Houses are going up. But it was Sunday during a Pandemic, so the place was quiet. We talked about the Camp Fire, the lost homes, the destruction of Paradise.

The Camp Fire, like the Coronavirus, is an example of “Force Majeure.” An Irresistible Force. An Uncontrollable Event.

I could see that our twisting and winding drive, uphill, downhill, swerving through the foothills was not agreeing with my wife. She was smiling no more. By the time we pulled off Highway 70 onto Big Bend Road she was writhing and groaning. The fast-food was the culprit. It hit her hard. In the gut.

We pulled off onto a side road marked with a “Road Closed” sign. I’m sorry to say I left my wife at the truck to deal with her sickness, and I took the dogs for a walk along this empty country road. Hey, it was at her request, okay?

The dogs—Dodge, Bear, and Mesa—were in heaven. A clear, gurgling stream ran down below the roadside. Mesa, the floppy young Pyrenees/Lab, slid and rolled down the steep embankment into the water. Dodge, the Pointer, and Bear, the Lab/Pitt, watched skeptically from the road.

We came to a curve in the road where the stream was more easily accessible. The dogs splashed in the water. My wife arrived, feeling better, and we sat beside the stream, surrounded by lush, leafy, fresh growth. Ferns and berries and stands of young trees covered the landscape like a thick blanket, all green and new. Flowers of blue, yellow, orange, and white shone through the underbrush and covered the hillsides. Looming above this lushness were huge, scorched, dead skeletons of trees, the remnants of a destroyed mature forest, recent victims of the Camp Fire. The scorch marks, reaching twenty to thirty feet up the trunks of these lifeless poles, were clear evidence that we now sat in a former inferno of raging, boiling flames of the Camp Fire that had destroyed this entire ravine.

My wife and I and our three dogs rest quietly here beside this stream as our world is struggling with the “Force Majeure” of the Coronavirus pandemic. At the same time, we are observing the signs of another example of “Force Majeure,” the Camp Fire.

As we observe the growth of the fresh new trees, flowers, ferns, and grasses bursting forth on this former burn scar, we realize we are witnessing a rebirth, new life, another example of an Irresistible Force, an Uncontrollable Event, an Act of God. It is the “Force Majeure” of Mother Nature.

By the way, the preview of the property was great. A well-built log home on beautiful acreage, beside another gurgling stream. I hope our dear friends Tom and Gahlia get here in time to buy it. But like I say, they’ve been talking about moving for years.

It may take another example of “Force Majeure.”

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March 26, 2015

Detector Time

Are you one of the many among us breaking the law by leaving houses and the people who live in them defenseless to the silent killer, carbon monoxide? In the Real Estate field, we come across too many houses without carbon monoxide detectors, despite the fact that the laws requiring them are several years old. Granted, notification about the laws has been pathetic and confusing at best.

Anyone with common sense had more questions than answers after reading the technical mumbo-jumbo contained in the publications regarding the laws.

For instance: “Each carbon monoxide molecule is composed of a single carbon atom bonded to a single oxygen atom……” Let the snoring begin.

Here’s the truth: The carbon monoxide detector law is in two parts. One part is for homeowners and the other part is for rental property owners.

Homeowners were required to have installed carbon monoxide detectors in their homes by July 1, 2011.

Rental property owners were required to have installed Carbon Monoxide Detectors in their rental properties by January 1, 2013.

Any property with an appliance or heater that burns fuel of any kind (wood, gas, oil, charcoal, coal; anything that burns) must comply. Think heaters, water heaters, dryers, fireplaces, and the like.

To the lingering questions:

Where exactly in each home or rental unit should the carbon monoxide detectors be installed?
The technical wording of the law goes like this: “Install the devices in a manner consistent with building standards applicable for the relevant type of occupancy or with the manufacturer’s instructions, if it is technically feasible to do so.”

For interpretation we went to the Chico Fire Department:

“Unfortunately the law doesn’t speak to exact placement of the Detectors,” said the Information Officer, “but we recommend installing Detectors centrally located outside of all bedroom areas in the house, and on all floors of multi-story homes, including basements.”

The officer offered more: “We recommend buying detectors that have battery back-up, because many Carbon Monoxide poisonings happen when the power goes out. People try to heat their homes with unvented heaters like barbecues and space heaters. The exhaust is deadly from those types of heaters.” She was also adamant about checking the batteries in detectors regularly. “Most importantly,” she added, “follow the installation and maintenance recommendations included in the packaging with the detector you’ve bought, and call the 800 number provided, with any questions.”

Both plug-in and ceiling-mounted models of detectors are on the market. Is it okay to plug the detectors in at floor level?
Carbon Monoxide is “neutrally buoyant” in air, slightly lighter than air, so it builds slowly, according to the Fire Department. Therefore, a floor-level detector will work theoretically, but might not be advisable because it could be dislodged or tampered with more easily. Kids or dogs or stumbling people are likely culprits. There are many varieties of ceiling-mounted models available, including combination smoke detector and carbon monoxide detectors.
What’s the big deal with Carbon Monoxide?
Unfortunately, there are far too many cases of Carbon Monoxide poisonings and deaths. The gas is odorless, colorless and tasteless. It disorients its victims, puts them to sleep, and eventually kills them, when all they need is some fresh air.

By the way, the Chico Fire Department makes themselves available to speak to groups about all subjects of fire safety. They know their stuff, and don’t speak in terms of technical mumbo-jumbo.

January 29, 2015

Rule of Cool

If your heat and air unit starts to cough and sputter, you need to know about a new law that went into effect on January 1, 2015, which will require you to buy an upgraded unit at more expense than you might have thought.

But, according to the Department of Energy, who made the law, you will save money in the long run. The overall intent is to save the environment. The Department of Energy sets energy-efficiency standards for air-conditioning and heating equipment, measured as the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER), a number prominently displayed on the bright yellow Energy Guide sticker on the side of air conditioners, heat pumps and other equipment.

The higher the SEER rating, the more energy efficient the unit is, and the more money you are supposed to save by operating it. If you have an older air conditioning unit, you might see that it has a rating of 8 or 10 SEER. In 2006 the requirement was stepped up to 13 SEER, and now the Department of Energy has raised the bar higher, depending on the region of the United States you live in.

California is in the “Southwest Region” and we are held to the toughest standards because we are considered a “hot-dry” region. Air conditioners installed in homes in California must have at least a 14 SEER rating. The same goes for heat pumps and gas package units.

Opponents of the Department of Energy’s rules say the cost of replacement requirements is unfair and hidden.

A contractor I spoke with said, “These new AC units are bigger than the existing ones, and a lot of remodeling will be required to fit the systems that are enclosed. There are going to be a lot of angry people. First, they’ll find out that the unit itself costs a lot more than they expected. Second, they’ll find out they have to remodel their house to just to fit the thing in.”

The contractor said changing the SEER number from 13 to 14 isn’t worth it. “We just went through a big change a few years ago,” he said. “This is a tiny change in efficiency, but it’s a huge cost to the public.”

The Department of Energy has a different view. They say the AC and heat pump standards will save about 156 billion kilowatt hours of electricity over 30 years or roughly enough to run 8.7 million typical U.S. homes for one year. The furnace standards will save about 31 billion therms of natural gas over 30 years, or roughly enough to heat 62 million typical U.S. homes for one year. Carbon dioxide emissions, attributed to global warming, will be cut by up to 143 million metric tons over 30 years, an amount equal to the emissions of 25 million cars over one year. Emissions of bad stuff like smog-forming nitrogen oxides will be reduced by 124 thousand tons, and mercury emissions cut by 338 pounds. They say the dollar savings for consumers will reach about $18.7 billion.

The Department of Energy says that although a new AC, furnace or heat pump will cost more as a result of the new requirements, this cost is more than outweighed by energy bill savings over the life of the product. They say a typical buyer will net about $150 in savings over the life of a new air conditioner meeting the standard, a heat pump buyer will net about $146 and a furnace buyer will net $571 compared to a unit just meeting the current standard.

However it shakes out, it’s probably time to eyeball that yellow sticker on the heat and air unit, and get an idea of the fun to come when it starts to wheeze.

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November 19, 2014

Bad Forestry

“Hey Doc, I was up on Wildcat Hill this mornin’ and seen some real bad forestry!” I held the phone receiver at arm’s length. Mr. Davis shouted as if the phone was useless covering the 15 miles between us. Mr. Davis is a logger and too many chainsaws got the best of his hearing.

“Forestry?” I yelled back. Shouting over the phone is contagious.

An hour later I stood with Mr. Davis on his land. “Thanks for comin’ up here, Doc,” he said. “I owe ya.”

“No you don’t,” I said.

A swath of destroyed timberland lay before and below us. A stripe ran straight across the forest as if a giant lawn mower with a hundred-foot blade had gone through it like tall grass. Within the stripe lay mangled trunks and branches of pine, oak, sycamore, and dogwood trees.

“Dang Power Company done it, for sure,” said Mr. Davis. “Look at my crick. They clogged it with slash and done kilt the water flow. Kilt some big timber, too. Small-time logger like me gets hurt bad.”

Mr. Davis turned to me. “Reckon they devalued my land, Doc?”

“It sure looks like it,” I said.

About a month later I got a letter from an attorney.

“Dear Mr. Love,” it read, “I am lead legal counsel for the Power Company. We received a demand from a Reginald Davis for a monetary claim related to so-called destruction of property associated with clearing of over-growth within the boundaries of my client’s power-line easement appurtenant and dominant to Mr. Davis’ land. You are quoted as stating the Power Company has devalued Mr. Davis’ land. If you would like to make a statement in that regard please complete and send the enclosed form. I should inform you that in so doing you will be subject to subpoena, deposition, cross-examination, and possible prosecution.”

I slid the letter in my desk drawer. I looked from side to side and maybe clucked like a chicken. A couple months later, I got a call from Mr. Davis. “Hey Doc,” he shouted, “did you hear from that Power Company attorney?”

“Yeah, I’m sorry, I….”

“I knew it!” he bellowed. “I just got a letter from the court. Listen here: ‘The court finds in favor of the complainant, Mr. Davis, for loss of timber and land value. The court rules against the Power Company for bad forestry practices.’ What’d I tell ya! Bad forestry!”

He told me he was awarded a nice amount of money.

“Thanks for your help, Doc,” said Mr. Davis. “I owe ya!”

“No you don’t,” I said.

August 8, 2014

Tell All

“Buyer Beware” is now “Seller Declare” in the world of Real Estate disclosure. The legal duty for disclosure by sellers has evolved to a point just short of a requirement for taking a lie detector test. Sellers now must provide buyers with a completed stack of disclosure forms that rivals the size of a telephone book.

In the old days, sellers could sit back while their buyers crawled over, under, around, and through a property searching for defects. Sellers had no obligation to offer information about the condition of their property, and they usually didn’t. It wasn’t a matter of dishonesty by sellers; it was simply the rules of the road. For buyers there was no map.

Of course, most people are honest, and many sellers did volunteer well-meaning clues such as, “My wife’s uncle built the family room addition. He knows all the codes and the like”; or “That crack in the foundation hasn’t given us any problems since we shored it up with bricks.”

Unfortunately, there were the more devious sellers. Buried tanks, looney neighbors, property line encroachments, and you-name-it, litter the landscape of the old world of non-disclosure.

The landmark case that opened up the new territory of disclosure was in 1984:

The Eastons sued the Strassburgers after the home they bought in Diablo, Ca. sank into the landfill portion of their property which they were not told about. It turns out the Strassburgers had twice filled a 10 foot deep sinkhole on the property.

The Eastons won, and legislators started drafting up new rules of the road. In 1987, it became California Law for sellers to fill out the Real Estate Transfer Disclosure Statement, answering specific questions about the condition of their properties.

We’ve come a long way since then. Sellers are now on the hot seat for an immense array of disclosure requirements. And it’s not always clear what should or shouldn’t be disclosed. (Just how much of a pain in the neck is that neighbor? Is the water at the side of the house during the rainy season a big deal? )

The usual advice is for sellers to err on the side of over-disclosing. It can be a memory-test, but so far, there is no requirement for a lie detector test.

Category: Laws