Thinking about Summer Construction?

Does the warm spring days make anyone else think about summer construction?  At Hogan Land Services, we can almost smell it in the air.

Summer is the perfect time to build, grade, and improve your property- and we can help ensure your property is ready for those steps!

Before starting any project, it is important to know if you need any permits for your plans.  For example, building a small tool shed, or a children's play structure? You may not need a permit!

But did you know a permit is required for an improvement such as replacing a water heater?

Whether your summer construction or improvement plans are big or small, it is important to know you plans will be executed properly, safely, and up to code standards.   If your project needs engineering, or you just don't want to handle the permitting process, give us a call!

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

Rapid Parcel Analysis

At Hogan Land Services, we get very excited about our clients that have creative ideas about maximizing their property potential.  Examples range from obtaining a use permit to farm their land, to adding secondary units for extra living space.

You may be wondering, "How do I know if I can do these improvements to my own property?"  Well the answer is easier than you think.  Its all about knowing your full property potential.... and we offer a lens to see it through.  Oh, did we mention it is FREE??

Thats right, our Rapid Parcel Analysis is a free service we offer in order for you to have a view into your property zoning, permit history, septic, record maps, utilities, and potential flood zones.

All you need to do is contact our office and provide your property address, and within 48 hours, we will send you our packet with a write up of our findings.

If this sounds too good to be true, call our office and give it a try!  Our belief is that knowledge is power, and we want our clients as educated as possible about their land.  Property is a large investment, and its important to know the ways your can improve it.

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

Wildlife Wednesdays

We have begun a fun installment on our Hogan Land Services Facebook page called "Wildlife Wednesdays".  Every other week we are posting shots from the field that we have taken of the great wildlife around us.  The pictures so far have ranged from curious cows, to tiny lizards!

Being as active in the field as our crews are, our team always takes care to watch where they are hiking and set-up their equipment.  We share this world with some amazing wildlife, and we do the best we can to leave the smallest footprint possible.

Make sure to follow us on Facebook for all of our posts and updates!

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

Staff Feature: HLS Engineering Dept. Manager

Now that Daylight Savings has officially sprung everyone into the warmer season mindset, we decided to shake up our Blog post this week!  As you know, we usually post about what we are up to and feature our work in action.  This week we are sharing a behind the scenes feature on our very own Engineering Department Manager, Daniel Byrne.

Daniel is an essential part of the HLS team, and was recently nominated as one of the North Bay Busienss Journal's 40 under 40!  We are very happy to have Daniel recognized for his accomplishments and future potential.

Given his ever-busy schedule as the Engineering Department Manager and father of two youngsters, Daniel shared with us some of his personal interests and favorite memories at HLS.


Did you always want to be an Engineer?
Daniel:  No, growing up I wanted to be a Firefighter, Pro-athele, or a mail man.


What are your hobbies and interests?
Daniel: Mountain biking, motorcycling, anything outdoors and active.


What do you consider you greatest professional accomplishment?
Daniel: In March of 2012 I received my license as a Registered Civil Engineer, and joined my mentor, Ken Carr in the club of first attempt exam passers.


What is your favorite thing about working for Hogan Land Services?
Daniel: That we have stayed true to our original purpose of helping people achieve their dreams.


What is the best advice you have ever received?
Daniel: "I have not failed.  I have just found 10,000 ways that won't work" - Thomas Edison


We hope you enjoyed our "shake-up" this week on our Engineering Department Manager, Daniel Byrne

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

Top Ways to Improve Your Property Value - Part 4

When searching for a house to purchase, many people create a "must-have" list.  These items can range from wanting a pool, to an open space floor plan, acreage, etc...  As many homeowners know, there are usually compromises that must be made for your dream home to fit with reality.  And for many, this includes the yard or property boundaries being smaller than they dreamed.

Many times those "compromises" turn into honey-do or annual projects lists.  But here's one improvement you may not have realized was possible.  With the right tools, you can adjust your property boundaries for a desired topographic configuration to your parcel.  Your neighbors property might have a perfect piece that would add value to your property without taking away from the value of his, or vice-versa!

The process begins with a conversation.  Talk to your neighbor and see if it's something they are interested in.  The next step to initiate this type of project would be to call a professional Land Surveyor, and determine what your existing, and reconfigured future boundary lines would look like. Certain requirements must be met, but the process can be inexpensive and cost effective.  

If this sounds like an item on that honey-do or annual project list, give us a call and learn how our professional Land Surveyors can help improve the value of your property.

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

HLS on the Radio

We hope everyone had a wonderful President's Day Holiday!  Our staff is all very excited about the newest Hogan Land Services campaign... have you heard it yet?

That's right, we are running a radio ad on the Sonoma County KZST and KJZY!  Over the years Hogan Land Services has helped out thousands of clients all over California, and we want to share with everyone what we can do for you!

Whether you wave next time you see the Permit Mobile, or decide to give us a call regarding that home improvement project, we thank you for tuning in!

Our dedicated staff of professionals are excited to share our knowledge and help homeowners and developers reach their land development and services needs.

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

An Update on Wet Weather Testing

The 2015 season of Wet Weather testing has been a busy one!  We have successfully completed multiple Wet Weather Percolation tests over the last month and a half.  The testing window for Wet Weather Percolation testing opened the first week of January and is projected to remain open until March.

Coincidentally, the window for Groundwater testing just opened this past Monday, February 9.  If you are in need of a Groundwater test, now is the time to call us to get on the schedule.  

Are you unsure if you property requires one of these tests? Contact our office and we will explain the process and if these Wet Weather Tests align with your project needs.

To leave you with a laugh, we never know what we are going to encounter in the field.  This horse was clever enough to drink the fruits of our labor.  At least the water wasn't going to waste!

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

Above the Flood Line

Have you ever heard of an Elevation Certificate?  Perhaps if your insurance has been asking you to get one, it is a very familiar term. If not,  FEMA, or the Federal Emergency Management Agency, has developed certain guidelines for communities located in  flood hazard areas to allow homeowners to obtain flood insurance.      

So what exactly does this mean?  Certain areas have been designated as  "SFHA's" or Special Flood Hazard Areas by FEMA.  The SFHAs indicate there is a potential for the area to be affected by rising water levels and flood zones.  An Elevation Certificate is a document prepared by a Land Surveyor to provide accurate information to insurance providers about the relationship between a homeowners house and property and the Base Flood Elevation (BFE).  The BFE is determined by FEMA and is subject to change. Therefore, specific information about a house or property may show the risk of flooding is less, and thus lowers or removes the obligation to obtain insurance that some loan providers require.

Our experienced Land Surveyors have completed many Elevation Certificates over the years.  If your insurance is asking you for one, or if you have questions about the process, the professionals at Hogan Land Services are here to help.

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

Top Ways to Improve Your Property Value - Part 3

This week's post is Part 3 of our reoccurring theme, "Top Ways to Improve Your Property Value".   Today we will be looking into projects or enhancements you can do to increase your property's value throughout the years.  Adding entitlements to your property is a great way to give your particular parcel its highest and best value.  An entitlement is a legal agreement with a governing municipality to allow a certain building type to occur on the site.

There are a few ways you can add entitlements to your property.  An example is adding a pond or a well onto your land.  With these types of entitlements, project coordination is typically required with multiple agencies.  For example, the California Regional Water Board will most likely be involved, along with the local permitting agency to ensure regulations are upheld.  Other entitlements can be in the form of special zoning or land-use improvements.

Although coordination and management of a project with multiple agencies sounds daunting, it is something the pro's at Hogan Land Services do on a daily basis.

If you have an existing feature on your property such as a pond or stream, contact us to find out if we can help you add entitlements, and increase your property value!

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

Our Favorite Field Shots of 2014

Did you catch our photo from last week's blog post?  If you missed it, you can view it here.  This week we want to share some of our favorite landscape shots from 2014 that our surveyors have snapped while they are in the field. 

“It is one of the joys of my profession, that my “office” extends to such amazing places.  I am lucky to experience so many wonderful places and witness moments as shown in photos such as these; that convey only a glimmer of the magic and joy that I get from “working” in such places.” - HLS Surveyor.

 From lush forests, to views stretching out to the San Francisco bay, our team is excited to share these photos with you!  We can't wait to see what views 2015 will bring.

                                         

See you on our next view from the field!

Hogan Land Services Team

#hoganls

Groundwater & Wet Weather Testing Window

Happy 2015!  With a new year, the window for Sonoma County's Groundwater and Wet Weather Percolation testing has opened for a limited time.  As many of you know, 2014 was a record dry year for California.  The impact of the low rainfall can be seen throughout the state.  The lack of rain these last few years caused the 2013/14 window for Wet Weather Percolation and Groundwater testing to last a mere few weeks, creating a disadvantage to many pre-construction projects.

Luckily Sonoma County has been saturated with a few storms over the last few weeks, and the window for Wet Weather Percolation and Groundwater testing looks promising for 2015. The testing window for Percolation has just opened for Petaluma, Sonoma, Santa Rosa, Sebastopol, Guerneville and Cloverdale.  If you have been needing a Wet Weather test, please call us to get on the schedule!   The window for Groundwater testing can be conducted 10 days after rainfall of .8 inches within a 48 hour window for the specific geographic location.  We monitor the rainfall daily in our office, therefore our staff will be able to respond quickly and effectively if your project opens for Groundwater Testing. We don't want anyone to miss out on this opportunity.  Once the testing window closes the next possibility will be in 2016.  So make sure you don't miss out! See you on our next view from the field! Hogan Land Services Team #hoganls