b'Local real estate still desirable despite challengesHomeowners can take steps to improve sales potentialBy Heather Macdonald HOME SALE TIP:FIRE RESISTANCE CERTIFICATION ADDS APPEALThe Gold Rush returned to Nevada County in 2020. Real estatePeople can improve their propertys sales appeal by taking was hot. Buyers were desperate. Sellers were riding high on thesteps to make it fire-resistant, Helms suggests.money wave. Then, in the summer of 2022, the wave froze. Two local entities can inspect your property and make WILL IT MELT IN 2023? recommendations for fire hardening:The market is not dead! exclaims realtor Diane Helms.Ready Nevada County, through Nevada County:A Nevada City realtor with more than 40 years of experience,www.readynevadacounty.orgHelms says the crazy real estate market of 2020-21 was not Fire Safe Council of Nevada County, a nonprofit. sustainable. www.areyoufiresafe.com/Interest rates were down to 2 percent, COVID-19 fearsThe Fire Safe Council can issue a Wildfire Prepared Home sent buyers from the city to the countryside, and companiesCertification after working with a property owner. allowed employees to work remotely. This all made NevadaThis certificate can help sell a home in Nevada Countys Gold Country extremely desirable. ResidentsCounty in the current market, Helms says. couldnt believe what buyers from areas such as San FranciscoHaving firewise landscaping also improves a and Los Angeles were willing to pay. propertys curb appeal.It was totally crazy, Helms recalls. Out of whack. InThe Fire Safe Council 2022, inflation rose and so did mortgage interest rates.makes it easier for While no one can predict the future, Helms says thehomeowners to get slowdown had to happen. recommendation to It is not the bubble of the last recession, just adjustmentsmake their properties that needed to happen, she adds. fire resistant, without Grass ValleyNevada CityPenn ValleyLake WildwoodLake of the PinesDiane Di HelmsRealtor/Mediator530.913.8598dianehelms.comdi4land@sierragoldre.comCALBRE #00713462101 Boulder StreetNevada City 530.271.1669OFFICE24 Nevada County Business Focus'