MARIN COUNTY
Marin County is composed of eleven Cities and many unincorporated areas. The Cities are: Belvedere, Corte Madera, Fairfax, Larkspur, Mill Valley, Novato, Ross, San Anselmo, San Rafael, Sausalito and Tiburon. For purposes of the multiple listing [MLS] system both Greenbrae and Kentfield homes and real estate are treated as if they were located in incorporated areas. The unincorporated coastal communities of West Marin include: Bolinas, Dillon Beach, Fallon, Inverness, Marshall, Muir Beach, Olema, Point Reyes, Stinson Beach and Tomales.
With only 523 square miles it is the third smallest county in the State, dominated by Mt. Tamalpais, elevation 2,571 feet.
Marin County is currently one of the slowest growing urban counties. In 1950 its population was 85,610; in 1960 it's population was 146,820; in 1970 its population was 208,250. That was the end of any significant growth. It's 1997 population was estimated at only 245,929.
Unfortunately the 1950-1970 growth spurt corresponds to that period in American Architecture when all residential practitioners were engaged in commercial projects. Luckily a draftsman in the Midwest by the name of Joe Ranch entered a contest to design a home with the least amount of lines. He won - hands down. He later came up with the idea of putting tar and gravel on the flat roof. To this day, nestled among the beautiful hills and valleys of Marin, one can still find many examples of the classic linear style bearing his surname.
The Southern Marin communities on which we concentrate are Mill Valley, Tiburon, Sausalito and Belvedere. Links to our website for each City are at the navigation bar across the top of this page.
Year 2000 demographics for Marin County, from the ABAG site: population, race, sex, age, housing.
MARIN.ORG is an excellent Marin County community resources site.
MARIN COUNTY AGENCIES AND MUNICIPAL CODE
The Marin County Home Page
includes links to the governmental departments. Three which impact residential real estate are:
* Public Works
* Community Development
* Assessor
With parcel number in hand one can locate parcel maps on the Assessor's site.
The Marin County Code is online, but may not be current. Zoning is covered at Title 22. One-family Districts are covered at Chapter 22 of Title 22, including zoning and floor area ratio (which is defined at Section 22.02.285 and applied at Section 22.22.080).
RENTING
While looking for a home in Marin, short term, fully furnished condominiums and town homes are available in Sausalito, Mill Valley and Tiburon: contact David Klein at Marin
Executive Suites in Sausalito [415 331-5534].
If you are interested in long term rentals, or in comparing market rental rates to monthly mortgages, the most efficient single source is the apartments-for-rent classified section of the Marin Independent Journal. Follow the "classifieds" link on the left side of the home page.
Also recommended is the North Bay section of Craig's List, which covers Marin and Sonoma Counties.
SCHOOLS
The Marin County Office of Education website includes all of the County Schools.
The California Standardized Testing and Reporting [STAR] test results for schools, counties, districts and the state are available online. Test results are reported for components of the STAR Program, including:
* California Standards Tests (CSTs)
* California Alternate Performance Assessment (CAPA)
* California Achievement Tests, Sixth Edition Survey (CAT/6 Survey)—grades 3 and 7 only
To find CST, CAPA, and CAT/6 Survey test results for a given year,
* first, select the year
* click “Test Results” on the upper left navigation bar
* ten select the test component (eg CST)
* select district (eg, Tamalpais Union High for Southern Marin high schools)
* click "View Report"
There is an online Guide To Private Schools with links to most of the private elementary and high schools in Marin.
MARIN - MASS TRANSIT
The Golden Gate Transit bus system and
ferry system, from Sausalito, Tiburon and Larkspur.
Marin Airporter provides direct transit to SFO, from Larkspur, every half hour. There are stops along 101 at Mill Valley and at Sausalito.
CRIME DATA
The Marin County Sheriff: The Department is charged with law enforcement outside of incorporated areas, which are divided into four areas. The unincorporated neighborhoods of Southern Marin are in Area 1.
The Attorney General: This Office logs crime statistics for every city and county in California. The
County of Marin crime statistics are found on its site.
Megan's Law: since 1999, every lease or rental agreement for real property, or real property sales contracts for residential real property, must contain written notice that a prospective purchaser can access the data base containing information about registered sex offenders.
Not a pleasant topic, but it is important to understand how to access the online sex offender database called
Megan's Law, and what it contains. It is maintained by the California Attorney General. On entering the site one must first read and consent to a general Disclaimer.
There are seven search modes: by name, city, ZIP Code, or county; or within a predetermined radius of a selected address, park, or school.
There are pictures of every registrant, and most include addresses. The 'more info' link provides tabs for descriptions, offenses, scars/marks, and aliases.
All information on this site is deemed accurate but should be independently verified. In addition, some information is date/time sensitive. And some of the ordinances and customs are exclusive to the City & County of San Francisco.
Although I am a broker-attorney I am not YOUR broker-attorney - YET. For specific questions and inquiries I recommend that you contact the Marin County Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service. For a nominal Referral Service fee you can have an otherwise free consultation with an attorney specializing in real estate, taxation ......
400 Montgomery 505 San Francisco 94104 ~ 415.781.3000
3030 Bridgeway 112 Sausalito 94965 ~ 415.381.1000
Facsimile 415.381.1449
Info@BlackStone-Marin.com
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