Something happened yesterday that pulled at my heart. I drove to one of my lisitings after the tenants had moved out the day before. The house is in escrow and set to close this coming week.

When I pulled the car into the driveway, I saw the tenant’s cat curled up against the garage door. No water or food in sight. I immediately called the former tenant.

“Did you forget your cat?” I asked. She laughed and said: “Oh, I guess we need to go back for him. Wasn’t he in the garage?”

No. He wasn’t in the garage (not that a cat should be shut in a dark garage.) His food and water bowls and unchanged litter box were all in the garage. He was outside and too old and slow to catch his own food if his life depended on it.

As an animal lover, I started thinking about the foreclosed homeowners who are leaving their pets behind in parks, locked houses and backyards to fend for themselves.

I donate a percentage of my income to worthwhile causes. Best Friends Animal Society is top of my list. For more than two decades, Best Friends Animal Society has been dedicated to the simple philosophy that kindness to animals builds a better world for all of us. On any given day, there are about 2,000 dogs, cats and other animals who have come to their Utah sanctuary for special care from shelters and rescue groups all across the country. The Best Friends Network is about “connecting people through kindness to animals” throughout the world. It connects people from rescue groups, shelters, sanctuaries, community programs and caring individuals who are committed to building a better, more compassionate world for all.

Some really good resources are posted on their site: Resources

Real estate is about more than bricks and mortar, lumbar and granite. It’s about the people and pets who make a house a home. I’ll be checking on the “Driveway Cat” tomorrow to be certain that he isn’t left to fend for himself. His welfare isn’t part of my realtor duties, yet it is a part of my obligation to help build a world I’m proud to live in.

with blessings,
Claudia

Neighborhoods may actually help prevent childhood obesity. Isn’t that amazing? Every realtor knows the importance of location and how the quality of a neighborhood relates to property values. Now scientists are finding that “the neighborhood environment is potentially very important in controlling the obesity epidemic”.

I recently read a fascinating article on Yahoo! News, which was written by Charnicia Huggins of Reuters Health.

The article reports findings of a survey of 684 households in Los Angeles County neighborhoods that included 807 teens and 3,000 adults. The study was discussed in the journal of Social Science & Medicine. 

Here’s the essence of the news story–close-knit neighborhoods, in which neighbors get along, work well together and provide adult role models to teens help kids lower their risk of obesity by 50% or more.

So when you go house hunting, don’t just check out the granite countertops and tile flooring. Look closely at the entire neighborhood. Are there parks and ball fields nearby? Is there a community swimming pool or tennis court? Do you see children at play? If possible, talk to potential neighbors. How well do the neighbors get along? Do they organize activities together?

Neighborhoods count and can make all the difference in the health and well-being of you and your family.