San Francisco's East Bay is made up of more than 30 towns and cities, including Berkeley, Alameda, and Oakland. Transportation to and from the entire Bay Area is easy, with access to two major airports, sea ports, railways, and three major bridge connections.
Thanks to the major industries located here (government, Chevron, Safeway, Kaiser, and more), many East Bayer's both live and work on this side of the water. The various East Bay Chambers of Commerce are diligent about wooing even more business into the area, to stimulate economic growth and improve the quality of life for everyone in the region.
Education is key in the East Bay, from Waldorf Schools, right up to U.C. Berkeley, Cal State, community colleges, and theological seminaries. And of course, sports play a major role in the lives of East Bayer's, with the Oakland A's, the Golden State Warriors, and the Raiders all playing home games at the Coliseum.
There is an abundance of things to do and see in the East Bay, from hiking Mt. Diablo or Tilden Park, to fine food at almost 100 Zagat-rated restaurants, to live concerts and theaters, click here for listings. And if you're a dog lover, the East Bay is animal-friendly, offering many outdoor cafes and off-leash parks where Fido is welcome.
Every property has some kind of easement--utility, water and sewer or driveway easements which give access to landlocked parcels. As a property owner, you may be affected by easements at some point.
The easement in gross is the most common type of easement used by public utilities. These easements are often under or above the ground, so they do not consist of actual land. If a utility gains the right to an easement in gross over your land, it must pay you for the diminishment in value of your property.
Easements by prescription become easements simply through unchallenged use by the landowner for a specified number of years (usually 10-20). To avoid such an occurrence, the landowner must periodically make a formal objection to "start the clock over".
The most familiar type of easement is easement appurtment that allows access to public roads and is used to create driveways and walkways for subdivided parcels. This type of easement should be treated by both landowners (and beneficiaries) as actual land parcels to be described and recorded meticulously.
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| Q |
What kind of home construction is considered to be the safest in seismic areas?
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| A |
Straw-bale homes in seismic zones have proven resilient enough to withstand the shock of earthquakes. |
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- NUMBER1EXPERT™ 
