Bryan and College Station Real Estate News

Why A National MLS Would be a Mistake

2008-10-23T13:22:00.002-04:00

There has been much discussion lately about eliminating the local MLS (ours is Bryan-College Station MLS) and going with a national MLS. The proponants of this claim that it will eliminate worries about finding properties online and allow agents to show properties beyond their boundries.

I for one will stick to selling Bryan and College Station homes (and the surrounding areas). I feel like the pundits have some very solid points and a lot of negative points. I believe that the people that are for this measure (most of them are fellow Realtors) have a very minimal understanding of what a real estate agent truly brings to a transaction. A move to a national MLS will make us simple door openers, nothing more and nothing less.

I don't sell in Austin or Houston or Huntsville for one very good reason...I don't know the area. I would hate to sell a property to folks and then find out that it's in an area that's known for foundation failure (Houston and other areas have actual fault lines), or that there is a sewage treatment facility nearby that we didn't happen to smell that day, but that one or two months out of the year it's quite noticable.

Real estate is local. I've blogged before about the need to realize that the news in real estate is on the national level and that it looks very different here in Bryan/College Station. The same can be said for what sells here. In Michigan, where I came from originally (but, as they say, got down here as fast as I could...), it was desirable to have the master bedrooms upstairs. Heat, after all, rises and it was a nice way to maximize that and keep your bedroom cozy. Not so here as that feature all but sometimes kills a sale. In Huntsville, just miles from College Station, it is extremely common for slab failures to occur, and it doesn't affect the price that the home sells for. Not so in Bryan or College Station, with those listings even with a corrected issue taking much longer to sell and accepting typically, a much lower price per square foot compared to homes without issues.

How would you like a real estate agent to show you a house in College Station and not mention that the upstairs master will be an issue for resale? How about one from Austin that doesn't know that south College Station has traffic issues (currently being resolved) and that it could take double the time to travel to the university from one location compared to another? What about listing a house with a Houston agent, who doesn't understand the impact that proximity to Texas A&M University plays in home pricing and fails to price the house properly costing you thousands of dollars?

Real estate is a local venture and keeping it local is the best plan. Now, that isn't to say that a property in Caldwell shouldn't have some presence on the Austin MLS, or a property in Anderson shouldn't be listed in Houston MLS. For this I think a simple plan of cooperative listings would work well.

When buying or selling ensure that your real estate dollars work to your advantage! Use a local Realtor!!!

Existing Home Sales Up

2008-10-18T10:51:00.004-04:00

Both in our Bryan and College Station market, as well as the national market existing home sales were up in September by a significant 7.5%. This was unexpected as the economists were predicting furthur slowing.

Unfortunately this news was almost lost in the landslide of almost apocoliptic news in other fronts. For those of your that are news hounds, however, remember that bad news sells good or average news seldom does.

Headlines that splash are "Economy is hitting rock bottom" not "Our economy isn't growing as much as hoped, but is on the rebound".

We get many phone calls both from potential buyers and potential sellers asking about the market. We do have many people sitting on the fence but overall its still a very strong market.

It is especially important to have an agent that is experienced in Bryan and College Station real estate right now as there are some potentially rough waters to negotiate in the loan, appraisal and closing phases. It is just as important to have an excellent local lender on your side, as they are much more aware of potential issues than your larger, out of area, lenders.

In short our market is still moving. Prices are up modestly (that's typical for our market) and loans are still available.

Call today to start your own personal search or click on our MLS search and enter your criteria, price range and whether you are looking for Bryan or College Station or one of our outlying areas and we'll keep you up to date with all the new listings. If you're ready to search call and we'll arrange a time when we can meet (yes, weekends are always a possibility with advance notice) and arrange appointments to see the homes that either best suit your needs, or you are most interested in if you would like to pick. My Buyers Agent and I will show you a variety of different homes within your criteria and aren't the type of agents that show you 3 or 4 and encourage you to pick.

If you are interested in selling your Bryan or College Station home call today for a free market analysis.

Must Read! Increase The Value Of Your Home in One Day!

2008-09-28T18:45:00.005-04:00

So, you've bought the house of your dreams and moved in. What's the next step? Remembering that one day, whether you realize it or not today, you'll be selling. Increasing the value of your home isn't just a blitz right before you list it. Protecting and increasing the value of your home starts the day that you write the offer.

So you've closed now. What is the number one thing to do as soon as you've bought the home? If I could tell you that in one day you could make a change to increase the value of your home by possibly up to 20%, decrease your utility bills, and reduce your stress while helping the entire ecology of our area would you be interested? You can! Quick, plant trees!

In any area this holds true, but in our area it's of prime importance. Bryan and College Station, actually all of Brazos Valley, has traditionally been used as farm land. Trees in fields aren't a great value, as they provide unneeded shade and reduce the area given for crops or livestock. Therefore many were eliminated. The remaining trees in many cases, are Post Oaks. Post Oak trees are beautiful trees and very hardy, when given a natural enviroment. They are, however, very resistant to change and to human intervention. Pouring a slab close to their root system, watering them with clorinated and processed water, putting a tree house in them or driving over or near their root systems are all huge problems for these gorgeous natives. In other words, as homeowners, we don't play nice with them. They tend to die within a year of a new property being built on, leaving you with a big empty space in your yard.

Here's some quick statistics on the value of a tree:

Dr. Roger S. Ulrich of Texas A&M University stated that "in laboratory research, visual exposure ot settings with trees has produced significant recovery from stress within five minutes, as indicated by changes in blood pressure and muscle tension."

The USDA Forest Service states "Trees properly placed around buildings can reduce air conditioning needs by 30 percent and can save 20-50 percent in energy used for heating"

The Management Information Services/ICMA states "Landscaping, especially with trees, can increase property values as much as 20 percent."

According to the US Department of Agriculture "The net cooling effect of a young, healty tree is equivilant to ten room-size air conditioners operating 20 hours a day."

"A mature tree can often have an appraised value of between $1,000 and $10,000," according to the Concil of Tree and Landscape Appraisers.

Dr. E. Greg McPherson, Center for Urban Forest Research states "if you plant a tree today on the west side of your home, in 5 years your energy bills should be 3% less. In 15 years the savings will be nearly 12%."

These tidbits all come from The Arbor Day Foundation. Visit them today for inexpensive trees and think about joining. Membership comes with 10 free seedlings and discounts on other trees. For those interested in saving more on their utilities short term visit one of our local tree farms and get more mature trees. Surpisingly affordable, these can provide some shade immediately and increase the value of your property much sooner. A couple of our local tree farms are Brazos Valley Tree Farms in South College Station and Bill Willamson's Tree Farm in Iola. A recent trip to Brazos Valley Tree Farms found prices as low as $95 for a 30 gallon tree and 45 gallon trees for $265. Delivery is free within the area and planting typically runs half the price of the tree if you don't want to D-I-Y it. Other lower cost options for in between sizes can be found at Lowe's or Home Depot as well.

Wow, lower your blood pressure, decrease your utility bills and increase your property value in one fell swoop! Definately a recipe for success!!!!!!!

Get Fit and Feel Great!!!

2008-09-25T14:53:00.004-04:00

My blog readers know that I typically stay close to the subject of real estate and how to maximize your profits on it. Today, however, I'm going to focus on a local business that has truly made an impact on my life. MaretHouse Fitness is housed inside Aggieland Fitness Dome right off of Highway 6 between Graham Road and Barron Road. David MaretHouse has been a client and a friend for a few years since he moved here from New Orleans where Hurricane Katrina destroyed his neighborhood and home. I always knew that David had to be a great personal trainer...he has a great sense of humor (of paramont importance...for anyone who knows me) and he is DEFINATELY fit! Did I go and see him though? Well, there was always an excuse!

Six short weeks ago I went into the Dome to get Davids signatures on his own personal home for sale (see his gorgeous home on 5 acres in featured properties). I walked out with a precious gift. The gift of fitness. I saw the sign up sheets for MaretHouse fitness camps and thought "hmm...I'll ask him about it".

My first question, since this is Aggieland, and we have a predominance of young, beautiful people is "will I be out of place?" David assured me that he has people of all ages in his fitness camps and that someone on the "wrong side" of 40 wouldn't be out of place.

My second question was "do I have to be a member of the Dome to be in your camp?" Absolutely not, was the answer. Though Dome membership may be beneficial and they have a free 14 day trial run, it isn't necessary to be a member to be part of the fitness camp. (I still am not a member of the Dome).

My third question was "what if I'm not available during the time when the fitness camp is held?" Well, with 7 different times of the day and the ability to go to different ones if your schedule gets bogged down that objection was countered.

The fourth and most important question was "OK, Sounds good....but what's the price?" I was surprised, for the six week period the price was only $180. That works out to a slim $10 per workout.

That was 6 short weeks ago and I'm so happy I signed up! I'm trimmer, more energetic and happier with the way I feel. It's time to renew, and guess what? I did!!!!!!! I can say that, by far, my experience with MaretHouse has been the best fitness experience I've ever had! I've done personal training, group classes, semi private training, circuit training...this takes the cake! It's fun and a great group and you can feel the progress week to week.

Here are the details. The 5o minute classes are Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. They begin September 29th and end November 7th. The times are 6 am, 8 am 9 am 4 pm, 5 pm 6 pm and 7 pm. They consist of circuit style training, outdoor running and plyometric drills (OK, I don't know what it is but it's fun :) The classes are geared for weight loss, toning and body sculpting.

Of course, David and group also offer excellent one on one personal training. The fitness camps get my vote though! Convenient, fun and refreshing this is the best way I've ever found to get fit and stay fit.

For more details call David at (979)574-3124 or visit http://www.Marethouse.com. You'll be glad you did. See you there!

What Does Your House And A Widget Have in Common?

2008-09-24T22:39:00.003-04:00

It's time to put your house on the market. You've cleaned, you've staged, you've contacted several agents to come out and talk with you. The agents seem to agree that, though your house is in great shape, and looks nice, your wall color is a bit unique. It's not going to suit everyone. What's your inclination? Do you paint, or let the buyer?

As real estate agents we often see people get a little emotionally involved when selling their home. It's hard not too! You've invested years of your life there. The kids may have grown up there. Johnny's height still is marked on the utility room door...I understand. I also caution you to try very hard to divorce your emotions from the process.

Imagine this...you are the head of the leading widget maker in Texas. You've done studies that show that College Station people like maroon widgets (what else would they like here in Aggieland?) Instead of going with maroon widgets though you decide that blue widgets are the way to go. They go with your office furniture better. Guess what? The widgets don't sell. You've spent alot of money on fancy boxes and marketing widgets that just sit on the shelves.

Now let's talk about your house. Yes, that purple in Suzy's room might have been her color, but for right now it's not about Suzy. For the moment it's about equity and maximizing it. Suzy's new room at the new house can be purple and pink, if she'd like. Paint the walls and you'll see green!

Your house when on the real estate market is, first and foremost, a product. You need to present it as a product. It needs to be clean and look nice. It needs to be staged properly. If at all possible it needs to be as neutral as possible. Accent with your furniture and accessories, not the wall color when preparing to sell your home.

For more advice on how to sell your home faster and for more money call today. Please let me talk with you about our professional marketing services. I would love to apply for the job of selling your home!

What Marketing Sells a Bryan or College Station Home?

2008-09-23T16:06:00.004-04:00

"Everyone has 30 seconds of fame", remember the old adage? Well, expand that to every marketed property and you'll have the fate of a property that is marketed by an agent that is, shall we say, not "net savvy"?

The old stick it on the MLS and forget it was enhanced by newspaper coverage, magazine coverage and Cable Mart coverage. In its time this was good! Newspapers used to make my phone ring reliably on Monday mornings. I remember the day when I would study all the listings in the paper, in case someone called and the property they called about was sold, I could refer them to a different property and set up a showing....That was several years ago. Enter the internet age...and a whole different way of showcasing your property.

Your property has the potential to be extremely "famous" this way! Web sites with real estate listings abound and getting your house on to these web sites is as easy as hiring a "net savvy" agent. Getting an agent that places well on the search terms typically used is one of the ways that your house will get maximum exposure. "College Station real estate", and "Bryan Texas real estate" are two of the top terms for Google in B/CS real estate. If you Google "College Station real estate" currently you'll find my listing coming up at number 4, you'll find my featured properties coming up easily and quickly when you open the page. Excellent exposure! If you Google "Bryan Texas real estate" you'll find my listing at #9 on the first page as well. This requires work to keep my web site up there at the tops of these searches, but doing it gives my marketed homes more exposure than 95% of the other homes out there. This is better than most of the more public portals because the traffic is typically the very interested home buyer for our area. The public portals many times have people just shopping different areas to find out how real estate compares.

Our marketing doesn't stop there though! There are other more public portals that won't attract such a targeted market, but still perform very well. Trulia, Craigs List, Realtor.com, Oodles, and other general portals will showcase your home well when someone searches in our area. We carefully insure coverage on the best of these with some 300 or more web sites getting the information as well.

In general print advertising whether it be newspaper, magazine, or flyers, underperforms in comparison with targeted web site marketing.

Make sure your agent has a large internet presence and can get things done with Web 2.0!!!! Call today to speak to us for our marketing package!!!

Bryan and College Station real estate Slowdown?

2008-09-18T08:17:00.003-04:00

Both Bryan and College Station posted home sales down in August from previous years and the past very strong months. Remember that July of this year was a record breaking year with sales surpassing previous years strongly. This could be an indication that the market is softening slightly here, though it could be that many people that traditionally would have bought in August instead jump started their plans and bought in July.

Overall there were 411 new listings in August. 292 sales occurred with a total number of active listings sitting at 1,139. The average sales price stayed strong at $179,870. Average days on the market stood steady at 105.

In the lower end market up to 99K there were 44 sold and 216 total listings. in the 100-180K market there were 149 sold with 446 total listed. In the 180-299K price range 57 sold with 257 total listed. Over 300K saw 30 sold with 220 total listed.

Again remember that in July we saw an almost equal number of sales and listings in the more popular price categories up to 200K. This could be the beginning of a slight softening or it could be a minor fluctuation.

Stay tuned for more details!

Is It Your Offer, Or Your Agent's Reputation?

2008-09-17T09:42:00.003-04:00

I have a beautiful, older house in one of our charming historic districts for sale currently. It is listed at $229,900, a "quick sale" price since the clients are moving out of the country. When we first put it on the market we had three offers and chose the best one. The buyers were represented by a new agent in town but had their prequalification letter and were fairly good to go. They decided since then not to use the local lender they were prequalified through, but instead an out of town lender, DiTech Funding. DiTech sent an appraiser out that isn't familiar with the neighborhood, just did a drive by and didn't use the correct square feet. It ended up appraising for around 20k less than what we had multiple offers on it for. Unfortunately, long story short, though another appraisal was done and it came out at $242K DiTech wouldn't accept that. During this fiasco, however, the new agent was never heard from. We would get the occasional phone call from her manager, or another agent that was helping, but repeatedly this agent wouldn't call back.

Fast forward and the house is back on the market. This same agent, along with two others brought us another very attractive offer. The seller, at this point, doesn't want to consider her offer because of her track record. Fair to her client? Absolutely not, but understandable to anyone.

When choosing an agent the only qualification isn't whether they can get you into the properties. Their reputation with other agents, and the general public, their experience, their knowledge are all necessary to get the job done. When choosing a buyers agent ensure that your agent is very familiar with lending practices and has been an agent for several years, or is a buyers agent for someone with an excellent reputation that will guide the buyers agent.

Don't loose out on the perfect house because of your agent!

College Station Best Buy Alert!!!

2008-09-11T18:43:00.003-04:00

Looking for a secure place for your student? Wow, I ran across this listing today and I'm very impressed with the price. I am not the listing agent on this one, and it is a corporate owned unit in a student community off Wellborn Road. This 4 bedroom/3 bath with granite countertops and 1504 square feet is selling for $124,000!

Rentals in the area have been between 1400-1600/per month. Sales show the latest two units sold fo $141K and $142,200.

Other units available are listed at $169,900 and $165K. Please note there are several floorplans and these might be quite different.

These are two story units about seven miles away from campus.

Go into search the MLS and type the reference number 51395 to see the pictures and/or call me today to see the property!

Storm Preparation for College Station and Bryan

2008-09-11T18:21:00.002-04:00

Want to know the latest about Hurricane Ike, or any major storm that might roll into town? Go for all the latest information.

Looking for information on what to stock up on for a storm? Here is the place you need to be!

Information currently coming in states that

Due to inclement weather predicted in the wake of Hurricane Ike, the following closures and cancellations have been announced from the City of Bryan:

· Bryan and College Station independent school districts will be closed Friday.

· Texas A&M University and Blinn College will be closed Friday.

· All branches of the Bryan and College Station public library system will be closed Saturday and Sunday. The due dates on library materials are extended to Monday so patrons won’t have late charges. Patrons are asked to not use book drops.

· The Bryan Aquatic Center and Neal Recreation Center will be closed Friday through Sunday.

· College Night in Downtown Bryan on Friday night is canceled. It will be up to the discretion of individual restaurants and entertainment venues whether they stay open, but city-sponsored giveaways will not be effective. The event will be postponed to a later date.

· The Patriot Day 9/11 event originally planned for Veterans Park at 6 p.m. Thursday night has been moved to Southwood Park, 1600 Rock Prairie Road.

Other pertinent information:

· Evacuees are being asked to go directly to Veterans Park on Harvey Road. They should call 211 for more information.

· The George Bush Presidential Library and Museum is extending free admission to all hurricane evacuees. Visitors simply need to identify themselves to staff as evacuees.

· 507 evacuees are currently being sheltered locally. Twenty-eight small animals and 46 large animals are being sheltered locally.

The local shelter capacity is about 2,500.

For the latest about Hurricane Ike go to the City of Bryan hurricane center website.

The weather is fine currently, with the sun up and just a few clouds in the sky. Probably will be changing rapidly tomorrow.

Keep Safe!

Bryan and College Station Schools Closed For Hurricane Ike on 9/12/08

2008-09-11T13:44:00.004-04:00

Both Bryan and College Station School Districts have called school off for 9/12/08 because of Hurricane Ike. Reports are out that the City of College Station is also offering the employees extra time off today to prepare for the storm. Here in Bryan and College Station we will be relatively immune to the devestation of the storm, expected to make landfall somewhere between Galveston and Corpus Cristi. High winds, however, will be likely if the storm moves right through, along with flash floods. The roadways will be clogged with evacuuees and gas will be difficult at best to buy. All residents should prepare by filling gas tanks, picking up debris in their yard and securing loose outdoor items. Stock up on water, non-pershible items such as canned foods (make sure you have a manual can opener!) and ready to eat items that require no refrigeration. Please make sure you prepare and BE SAFE!!!

Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac Bailouts Yield Lower Interest Rates

2008-09-09T21:40:00.002-04:00

Interest rates plunged nearly 1/2 a point on the news of the Federal bailout for the mortgage powerhouses of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Interest rates that were 6.26 have suddenly fallen to 5.88%, the best deal in the last eight months. Mortgage lenders are warning that this is temporary, and they are bound to go up soon. In the meantime take advantage! On a 200K loan for 30 years the difference would be $49 a month. Almost $600 a year. The average homeowner owns a house for seven years before moving, so that is an average savings of $4,200!

If you are looking to buy, now is the time! Both Bryan and College Station real estate have consistantly been good investments.

Call today! (979)575-7765 for Coti or (979)574-1084 for Chris

Down Payment Assistance in Bryan or College Station

2008-09-06T10:17:00.002-04:00

Many first time homebuyers ask about downpayment assistance or special lending programs. For the first time in years there are some new lending programs specifically targeted towards first time buyers and we will focus on those at a later time.

What you must know about downpayment assistance in Bryan or College Station

Both Bryan and College Station have downpayment assistance programs directly through the city. These programs apply to income qualified buyers who have good credit and can qualify for a loan. They are based on the number of people in the family and will loan up to $7,500 in downpayment assistance. The income guidelines are quite strict and are related to the poverty level.

These programs fund in October, so it is especially important that you be one of the first to apply. It's also important to use an agent, such as my team, that is fully qualified to participate in these programs, as there are special provisions to the contract that must be completed. For more information on this program contact us at (979)574-1084 or go to our website www.ChrisTesch.com (for those of you finding this blog independantly).

Federal help is available! For first time homebuyers the federal government will give you a tax refund that to help you buy your first home (you must repay it however!), or a primary residence if you haven't owned a home for 3 years or more. Later I'll do a complete article on the ins and outs of this program. In the meantime contact us for more information. ImportantYou can amend your return to get your money NOW, before the interest rates rise!!!!

What You Must Know About Lenders!

2008-09-01T19:38:00.002-04:00

Can your lender make or break your real estate transaction in Bryan or College Station? ABSOLUTELY!!!! Imagine that you have chosen a home, put down around $1000 earnest money, done inspections (cost of about $500), had an appraisal (cost of $450), and paid various application fees. You're confidentally waiting for the final approval and ready to move in. Can something go wrong? Absolutely! In the past I've had several properties where the closings didn't happen on time. Once the lender doesn't get their paperwork on time there is a chance that it will get sold out from under you and you will be left having done inspections, an appraisal and forfeiting your earnes money because the lender didn't perform.

Recently I had an in demand home listed with me. This house is in an amazing area, with over an acre, built in 1939 with beautiful wood floors. The house was on the market for four days before we got several offers. We accepted one with a preapproval letter from an in-town lender. The buyers then decided to go with an internet lender.

The transaction was going along smoothly until it was time for the appraisal. The appraiser that the lender hired didn't bother to enter the house to verify information. Our tax assessors have the house at a smaller square footage than recent appraisals have so I carefully documented this in the listing. Apparently the appraiser didn't look at the listing either. The result? An appraisal that didn't come up with a value that clearly (considering the interest) the house had. The buyers wanted a second appraisal, which ended up costing them another $350. Then the lender didn't process the paperwork fast enough ending up with the property not closing on time.

The property is back on the market currently and may, or may not, get sold to the people that are "almost there". At this point, if another offer comes in that will work, my sellers will almost certainly accept giving the buyer in this transaction a loss of around $2000. For what? If the transaction took place the buyers might have gotten a 1/8 point decrease in the interest rate. If they were financing 200K and if the interest rate was 6.5 with an in town lender and 6.375 with an internet lender the difference in the payments would be about $16 per month. If they were to live in the house the typical 7 years then the total difference in payment would have been $1344, or less than they lost in having a lender that couldn't deliver what they promised.

Many times what you see with the internet lenders is a "teaser" rate that no one qualifies for. Have you seen the internet commercials with people dancing saying that the interest rate is down to "an amazing 3% rate". That truly is amazing. I can tell you that none of my mortgage brokers has a rate that low on their own home....

Conider your lender a part of the team. Find someone that you can physically meet with if things go wrong. They are much more likely to fix the issue. We have many good local lenders! If you would like the names of some of them please give me a call!

Waterwood Townhomes College Station

2008-08-30T16:38:00.003-04:00

We've had some great questions about Waterwood Townhomes lately and I wanted to, in addition to addressing them in private emails, post about the availability currently.

Currently there are two Waterwood Townhomes available on the market. One is a three bedroom/three bath offered at $146,500. The other is a four bedroom/four bath priced at $159,900. This, of course, is subject to change, and you should always check to see current availability. Right now is a great time to buy. Most of the parent investors have, of course, already bought and the students are back to school. If you are not going to carry a mortgage on the property it can be an excellent time to buy because it's a great time to negotiate those prices down! If you were going to carry a mortgage it's probably not a good time to buy because you will have on going expenses and no rental income until someone moves in, probably either in December or next July or August.

These townhomes have shown great appreciation in the last few years and are likely to show good gains in the future as well. To view these townhomes call Chris or Coti today at (979)574-1084.

Gig 'Em Aggies!!!!

Bryan & College Station Foreclosures

2008-08-25T23:55:00.003-04:00

Many returning Ags, or even first time homebuyers believe that getting a foreclosure deal will give them instant equity in their Bryan or College Station home, condo or duplex. Unfortunately this isn't always, or even generally, the case. Unless you are buying a home that is significantly more pricey than the average home, or significantly less, then the Bryan or College Station house would have sold before foreclosure with no problem. With our average market time of less than 100 days for homes within the popular 120-180K market, only the truly stubborn homeowner, or the truly negligent, will get foreclosed on. These properties, placed on the open market and priced reasonably will likely receive multiple offers as long as they are reasonably cared for, in the metropolitan areas of Bryan or College Station (as opposed to the smaller towns of Franklin, Caldwell, Snook, Hearne, Navasota), and priced right.

The rare decent College Station real estate properties that do go to foreclosure will likely face intense scrutiny and garner multiple offers when finally put up for sale. A typical scenario is the home in Westfield Village that sold in a HUD foreclosure. A HUD foreclosure is a foreclosure for a FHA insured property and notably well priced typically. This home was priced about $10 a square foot under market (about 10% less than market) and was in a great area. The floors needed to be replaced, the house was built with substandard materials and the lot placement left something to be desired with the backyard backing up to a major road. Showing this house was an exercize in frustration with only the rare agent NOT having a client that was interested in it. Multiple offers were gained while other buyers lost out on homes much better suited to their experience waiting to hear how they had fared in the bidding process. When it was all said and done the property sold for over list price and dozens of prospective buyers were disappointed.

A better strategy for securing a great buy on a Bryan or College Station real estate purchase is to look for a property that is vacant and costing the owner each and every day that it's on the market. Other possibilities are purchasing in the off season and finding a house that needs work and has been on the market quite some time. An experienced agent can help you, either with a foreclosure or identifying excellent buys on the market. Sometimes a Bryan or College Station foreclosure is not what it's cracked up to be. However, there is almost always a great property out there at a good price for each person. Call Chris or Coti today to find the right property for you!

Picking The Perfect Bryan or College Station Home for Sale

2008-08-25T00:43:00.004-04:00

Picking the right house in Bryan or College Station is, of course, a matter of personal opinion. There are as many distincive homes as there are types of people, and the "right" home for some would be a disaster for others. However, it is important to keep a few things in mind when choosing your next Bryan, Texas or College Station, Texas home.

1. Pick your Realtor carefully. A good Realtor can make the difference between a successful search and a flop. Finding the right agent can be the first step in finding the right home, and negotiating the right price. Look for an agent with experience. Not necessarily a lifetime...sometimes too much can harm the transaction (do you really want your agent to not be in touch with todays prices?), but enough to help you in evaluating homes and negotiating the price. You also want an active agent. Last month was an extraordinarily busy month in real estate in both College Station and Bryan. Despite that only over 350 units were sold in July, 08', the busiest month in the last seven years. We have over 640 agents on the books in our BCS MLS! In July I closed 9 transactions...our srongest 25-50 agents are the ones doing most of the business and are the ones most in touch with the market. Pick your agent amongst those that are actually in the business full time with experience. It will make a better experience all around!

2. Search for your new home with resale in mind! It may seem strange you right now, but money is made on real estate when it's bought, not when it's sold! You need to negotiate the best possible price on the best possible property for it to be a successful transaction!

3. Stay within the market averages! Though it goes against many peoples grain, staying within the average purchase price of homes in the area is a smart move. You may be able to afford much more house that the 120-200K that our market pulls, but you will maximize your resale if you stay within a margin of plus or minus 50 percent when buying. Buying a home for over 300K can be a good investment if your are going to stay in place for quite some time. If, however, you are planning on moving (or would like to be able to entertain the idea) within the next 3-5 years stay at under 300K to maximize your return.

These are just a few of the tips I can give you to maximize your real estate investment. Call today to set up a complimentary meeting to find out how we can work together to maximize your real estate experience! Call Coti or Chris today at (979)575-7765 or (979)574-1084!

Bryan and College Station Real Estate Soars in July!!!

2008-08-24T14:38:00.002-04:00

Wow, big gains were had in the final analysis of July 2008 numbers! According to The Eagle July showed a hotter market for both Bryan and College Station than we have seen in the last seven years.

Sales are up and inventory is down. A very promising sign here for the Brazos Valley! Investors, buyers and sellers should look at these numbers and know that now is the time to get off the fence. If numbers stay this strong there is relatively no doubt that housing prices will appreciate better than average.

If your looking for an investment, a Bryan home or a College Station home call Coti or Chris today! (979)574-1084

Bryan and College Station Real Estate Market

2008-08-21T17:19:00.005-04:00

Many prospective buyers in our market are looking for information on the state of the Bryan and College Station real estate market. It's been a different year, there is no doubt about it! We have seen some issues pop up that haven't been at the forefront of our concerns in previous years. For the most part, however, both Bryan and College Station are having great market years!

Listings priced between 120-160K are going fast! Average days on the market are around 30 with many buyers being beaten out before we can get back to the office from viewing. Inventory is extremely low. Currently College Station has 50 single family homes between the price point of 120K and 160K on the market. Last month, at the height of the "housing crisis" we saw 47 homes like this go under contract. Bryan currently has 57 single family homes listed between the price points of 120K and 160K on the market. Last month Bryan saw 36 homes sold in this range. Still less than a two month supply!This is what constitutes a seller's market. The definition of a sellers market is one in which inventory is at a less than 5 month supply of what is selling.

Moderate price points of 170K-299K are still relatively balanced in both Bryan and College Station real estate markets. Currently indications of a three month supply is seen in both cities. This is still a seller's market but certainly a less strong one.

Higher end price points of 300K and up in both Bryan and College Station single family homes are taking longer and longer to market and move. Currently we are seeing over a six month supply in these price points with much improvement to be had. This is where the hit the seller's market!

One of the biggest real estate issues we have had this year revolves around appraisals. Now, more than ever, it is extremely important to use an in town lender as they will use appraisers who know this market. Many times the appraisal comes back too low for the scenario, even with multiple offers. Case in point is a home that I have listed currently in a Bryan non-traditional neighborhood. This is an older neighborhood with mature trees, very centrally located, and has a definate prestige factor. The appraisal from the buyer's out of town lender came back at a much lower price (24K less) than my client originally bought the house for 3 years ago, but we had 4 offers on the property, 3 at full price. Obviously, with that much interest in the home it is improbable at best that we had listed the property for a value too high. In examining the appraisal two things stuck out. The first was that the appraiser didn't bother going into the property and doing their own measurements. We have documented in two different appraisals that the square footage that BCAD (Brazos County Appraisal District) have and the actual square footage are different. The second item is that the appraiser would only take comparables within a mile of the property sold within the last year. For a property in a College Station neighborhood, or Bryan neighborhood that is large, such as Pebble Creek, Edelweiss, Copperfield, Austin's Colony...that would be an easy task. Not so easy with this beautiful Bryan home!

Negotiating the waters of a real estate transaction can be difficult! Call today for your very best representation! (979)574-1084

College Station Condos

2008-08-17T12:23:00.001-04:00

College Station Condos

Condos are one of the hottest segments of our market. Though we have some that serve small families and singles nicely, our primary condo market is student living. These can be one of the best investments a parents can make. Condos have many advantages over rentals during a students four to six years here at Texas A&M University.

Apprecation is king!

Though some of the scenarios for condos will have you paying just as much for your share as rentals you will walk away with appreciation of, typically 4-7% per year. A typical scenario (with your student paying no rent) is seen in Waterwood Condos. The first year offering for these wonderful 3 and 4 bedroom condos in a gated community was approximately $142,000 for a 4 bedroom, 4 bath condo in 2003. If you had financed this property with 20% down your payment would be $1039 plus the HOA fee of $120 per month (covers exterior maintenance, pool maintenance and lawncare) for a grand total of $1159. Divide this among the 3 other roommates and their rent payment would be under $400 per month. In this scenario if you sold this year you would sell for approximatly $160,000 or an increase of $18,000.

Avoiding the Moving Day Hassles

Students living in apartments and other rental situations often find themselves in the situation of having to move. If the owner of the condo that they are living in, in a rental scenario, has to move then they find themselves having to move as well. Moving is costly and takes time for you, and subsequently them. Buying a condo puts you in control of this potentially frustrating situation.

No Lawn Care WorriesLet's face it. When the kids were home they could do the lawn, but not without a bit of gentle reminding! Avoid this hassle by buying a condo as opposed to a single family home (though I do sell single family homes for students as well and we can go over the pros and cons). Relatively maintenance free you won't be receiving voilation notices from the city of College Station when you go with one of these beautiful properties.

Wide Variety of Options

College Station offers a wide variety of condo options ranging from one bedroom/one bath (typically older with a bit of remodeling needed) for as little as $40K up to a luxury property featuring 4 bedrooms and 4 baths for between $100K and $200K plus.

For your overview of the condo options and a free tour give me a call to set up your complimentary appointment at (979)574-1084, or my Buyers Agent, Coti at (979)575-7765.

Condos or Townhomes? What's Your Choice?

2008-04-10T22:43:00.003-04:00

Most of the time people in our area think of condos and townhomes as interchangable terms. They actually are not and can have strict implications when finding financing for your student housing needs.

Condos in Bryan or College Station have a shared association that maintains the exterior of the buildings and common areas. With ownership of a condo you own the airspace, but not the land, around your condo. You, as part of the association, do have a share of the land. With the purchase of a condo you do not need to have insurance with most finance companies. Despite their nonstringent requirements please get insurance. You still retain ownership of the sheetrock in. If a disaster occurs the association will be responsible for rebuilding the exterior of the structure. You will be responsible for the sheetrock, cabinets, fixtures and finish out of your property.

Financing a condo can have special implications, but typically only if you are using an FHA loan. FHA will want to ensure two things about the condo association. The first is that it is at least 51% owner occupied. You will not be able to get an FHA loan on a property that is primarily owned by investors. The second is that no more than 10% of the units are encumbered by FHA loans. It is an unusual case where there are more than 10% of a condo project that has FHA insured loans, but ensuring that your project isn't one of them can be difficult at best.

Townhomes are considered conjoined (typically) single family structures and have no strict guidelines. You may or may not have a home owner association that will provide common maintenance and maintenance of the exterior. You own the land under your unit and have no FHA guidelines specific to townhomes.

Why would you want to go FHA? That's for a different discussion! For more information about different aspects of the Bryan/College Station market go to my blog site at http:/www.BCSRealEstateNews.com. Please give Coti or I a call for all your buying or selling needs here in Bryan-College Station, whether it be a condo or a luxury home!

College Station Condos Going Fast!

2008-04-05T20:07:00.002-04:00

Condos in College Station have been going fast this year. Sales are brisk in both the condo market and the 150K and below housing market. Waterwood, at this time, only has one condo on the market active and it is a three bedroom, three bath. The Woodlandsrecently sold it's last four bedroom, four bath condo. Fox Run still has many three bedroom, three baths, but only one two bedroom, two bathroom unit available. Canyon Creek has only experienced modest sales this year. Deacon Condos on Fraternity Row are completely sold out currently also.

If you are looking for student housing call or email! We can set you up on a search and call you or email you when anything comes available on the market for sale. We are full service Buyer's Agents and can show you anything on the market as well as negotiate the best price for you.

If you are looking to sell student housing give us a call and find out about our progressive marketing program.

College Station Home on Acreage

2008-01-16T03:53:00.000-05:00

Bryan and College Station are filled with both city lots and wide open spaces. Moving here you will need to make a decision about how you want to live. Is a small city lot for you? Would an acre or more be right? What about a property you can have horses on? Easily found in certain price ranges here (typically 250K and up, but sometimes lower, pricing will go up to over 1 million). Things to consider are land upkeep, and costs associated as well as garbage pickup, septic system costs (a contract with a reputable maintenance company is required by Brazos County). Some of the pleasures are wide open spaces and the ability to see the stars brilliantly at night!

If you’re in the category of the acreage lover, are you looking for the perfect spot to call home? Consider this gorgeous 3 bedroom/2 bath on five rolling acres near the Brazos River! Zoned to the newest College Station elementary school, Forest Ridge, this fantastic property is sure to please! A three stall barn and tack room, fenced corral and beautiful stone firepit are all designed to make your outdoor living more enjoyable! Remodeled interior features new granite tile countertops, a more open floorplan and beautiful new tile and carpet. Call for your private showing

College Station Real Estate in 2008, Meca, or Disaster?

2007-12-30T06:25:00.000-05:00

The news has been bombarding us with information about how low new housing starts are; as well as how "prices are plummeting" on existing homes. In many cases what the reporter is doing is taking statistics from one area and applying them to the nation. No matter how you slice it, Bryan and College Station real estate is very different from San Francisco real estate, or New York real estate or, as as matter of fact, any other real estate market in the United States.

Nationally there has been a downturn in sales. Most of the areas affected by this are in places where double digit increases in value previously were the norm. Bryan College Station, in contrast, has had steady, but slow appreciation with rates ranging from 3% to 7% per year. We have actually had some of our highest appreciation while some markets have suffered.

Our market is a dynamic market. We constantly have professors, college students and administration moving in and out. Bryan-College Station also has many non-university jobs that are just moving into town. This doesn't guarantee that we will never have a slump, but plummeting prices are highly unlikely.

A couple of years ago a very nice reporter for the Wall Street Journal came to College Station to interview me and several other top agents in the area. His first question to me when we were face to face is "show me the houses that haven't been selling in the area". He truly didn't want to hear that the market was robust and that we were, overall, in very good shape. He neglected the fact that our average sales price home (at the time right around 150K) was showing days on the market of less than 90, and in certain segments hardly 30. Some of the other agents cooperated with him by showing him homes that were priced twice our market average that were suffering from market lag. College Station luxury homes do tend to sit on the market a bit longer than the average home. Sales, however, in this segment have recently been picking up. Just goes to show you, if you look hard enough you can always find the black lining in the silver cloud!

Overall we are expecting 2008 to be a great real estate year. It will be slower than the boom times that we were experiencing in the 2002-2005 time frames, but still a very healthy market.

For more information about College Station real estate or our market overall don't hesitate to email me or call me at (979)574-1084. Have a Happy New Year!

Spring Time and the College Station Condos are Flying

2007-12-28T01:03:00.000-05:00

It looks to be an early season this year with parents already calling about College Station condos that are on the market. Just today I spoke with four potential buyers and two potential sellers of College Station condos.

What makes your condo marketable? It's a combination of location, complex amenities, affordability and condition.

Your condo is only as good as the complex it's in. Most of the condominiums we have here have excellent market points, and some down sides as well. Emphasising the positive, while countering the negative is the best strategy. For the condos that aren't directly on shuttle route finding out how close the route is will typically work. Not many are built terribly far from our existing routes. Targeting ads to parents who don't necessarily feel that their student will want to ride the shuttle can work as well. In general the closer the complex is to Texas A&M University the better off you are. However we have some excellent complexes that are tucked away a bit and still sell for premium prices.

Most of our condo complexes offer a small recreation area and a pool. This seems adequate and we certainly haven't seen better statistics with condos that offer volleyball courts or on-site movie screening areas or carwashes. The one amenity that many students and their parents are looking for is the gated community. This always helps for resaleability.

Affordability is very important for students as well as their parents. In general most of our parents are looking for 3 bedrooms at $150K or less and four bedrooms at 160K or less. Homeowner Association Fees can come into play as well with lower fees and similar amenities winning out consistantly.

The condition of your condo is of prime importance. A unit that has been cared for well will sell rapidly and at the best price. Ensure that the carpet is clean and the unit is in good repair with paint touch-ups and frequent cleanings for the best price.

Call me today with any questions you have about this season's sales or listing your condo or home.

Bryan's New High School Drawing New Homes!

2007-12-11T22:03:00.000-05:00

Bryans new high school is coming along nicely! As fast as the high school is going up, the community is seeing new homes pop up in Austin's Colony. Austin's Colony is strategically placed with easy access to not only the new high school, but some fantastic shopping and the new Premier Cinema. Imperial Homes, New Vision, and several other builders are seeing the potential and responding to the demand. Blessed with Harvey Mitchell Elementary and close in to town this subdivision is poised for much more growth and it's become one of our most sought after subdivisions in Bryan.

FHA Loans Making a Comeback in College Station

2007-12-11T21:55:00.000-05:00

We've recently seen a resurgence in our first time buyers using FHA financing. FHA doesn't have as many issues as in years past when they mandated "non-allowable" expenses for the buyer. Around 1.5 years ago FHA had a wake-up call and realized that most FHA contracts were going through at higher than average sales prices, which meant, in effect that the buyers WERE paying these fees. FHA still has issues. It is tough to get an older home through the FHA inspection process and the appraiser has to be knowledgable in the rules and regulations. A good look has to be taken of the property before the inspections so that the buyer isn't wasting their money on properties that won't meet the stringent requirements of FHA. Using a real estate agent that is familiar with FHA guidelines is important!

College Station Luxury Homes Making a Comeback

2007-12-01T12:01:00.000-05:00

After months of lagging sales in College Station luxury homes we're seeing a resurgence of this market. Showing on our homes above 500K are booming and many have gone under contract after being on the market formerly for many months. The luxury market never has been tied to the school year like so many of our moderate priced listings, however many College Station real estate agents are talking about the phenominon. I've seen it personally as well with my higher priced listings. It's a great time to sell your College Station luxury home!

Three Secrets to Successfully Buying A Student Condo in College Station

2007-11-16T22:40:00.000-05:00

Buying a student condo can be a great investment in College Station. Among the benefits are the increase in equity during the time your student lives there and the learning experience for your student. Watching you complete the purchase can teach them valuable information about real estate transactions.

How do you ensure a successful purchase, one in which the student is happy, you are happy and you are enroute to a gain during the years you own the property?

The first secret is to find an agent VERY familiar with all the condo and townhome projects around town and will familiarize you. All of them have their upsides and downsides and you need an agent that will discuss the pros and cons of each complex and educate you to what is available, and what has traditionally made good equity leaps. There are many choices in our town, and it is a huge mistake to make a decision without seeing what other complexes are available. Many people go for the latest development because of a nice brochure only to find out that their resale value isn't as high as their mortgage.

The second secret is to match the condominium with your students (and their friends) personalities. A more outgoing student sometimes will not be happy in one of our more sedate complexes just like a quiet student won't be happy in party central.

The third secret is to choose roomates very carefully. Sometimes long time friends make the worst roommates. Family, at times, makes the best roommates you can get. If cousins are attending together, and get along well together it can be beneficial. Good friends have often left their college condos never talking to each other again. Family is always family!

Chosen carefully a college condo can be an excellent investment and an asset to your investment portfolio. Call me to schedule a time to look at all your options!

Four Great Ways to Check Out Your Listing Agent

2007-11-03T15:44:00.000-05:00

Looking to list your house and wondering who might do the job well? There are things that you can do to ensure that your listing agent will be doing more than playing golf and hoping that your house sells.

1). Do your homework first. 86% or more of homebuyers are starting out on the internet. Do Google searches and Yahoo searches to see who is showing up on-line. Not necessarily at the very, very top because those are sponsored searches that agents are paying up to $5.00 per click for... Agents that do well with their websites show up high in natural searches because their website content is good, drawing more buyers.

2). Interview a few agents. Don't just settle for the neighbor, or your coworkers spouse. Schedule interviews with several agents and plan on having them look at your home, give you an estimate of sales price and tell you about their marketing.

3). While the agent is out at the interview have them sit down with you on the computer and show you where they are advertising their other listings. Do they have extensive web exposure? Do they advertise on Craigs List and V-flyer? Do they have virtual tours too?

4). Have the agent pull up the MLS and show you their current listings. Do they have as many pictures as possible? Are the descriptions for the property good?

These steps can ensure that you get a great agent that will work hard for you. Don't just choose the first name you run across, choose the best!

6 Ways to Find Great Bryan College Station real estate

2007-10-11T20:39:00.000-04:00

How do you get the lowest price and the best resale on your new home in Bryan or College Station? Here is the "recipe for success" when looking for a great Bryan or College Station home for sale.

1. Don't start looking too early, or too late. Most Bryan or College Station sellers are expecting to get an offer that will close approximately 1 month from the date the offer comes through. Unless the seller has a certain time frame, like wanting to move at the end of a semester, it usually means that you will not acheive the best price if you're not ready to move. This is particularly important if the house is vacant. Give yourself, ideally, no more than two months before your move date to get serious about looking.

2. Get preapproval. Many times we find the right home on the weekend, when many mortgage professionals aren't as readily available. Before you even go out and look talk to a mortgage professional and find out how much you can afford and what factors might hinder getting the best interest rate. If you need a good lender reference don't hesitate to call me!

3. Use an in-town lender or a nationally known company for your loan. Internet lenders and out of town lenders often don't realize the importance of closing on time (to both the seller and the buyer). Our negotiations, many times, are more successful if the lender is a known lender. Many people were caught up in unsuccessful closings within the last six months as lenders went out of business or underwriting requirements changed quickly.

4. Talk to a few Bryan and College Station real estate agents. Ensure that you find a buyers agent that is ready and willing to help you. Though you don't need to look at 50 houses to make a decision, think twice if your agent pressures you to choose after only seeing a couple of homes. Make sure the agent is giving you information and pointing out the ever present negatives in homes, as well as the positives. There is no such thing as a perfect home. A good agent will educate you about resale issues that might cause problems down the line.

5. Be realist about your objectives. If you want a great house, you most likely won't find it at a bargain basement price. Even foreclosures, which I do around 6 or 7 of a year tend to go for about 90% or more of value. If the deal looks too good to be true...it is!

6. Don't look at houses more than 5% above what you can afford to pay. Ideally use the limit that you are looking for to establish the highest price. It's very easy to fall in love with a more expensive home. Going up in price by 10K will typically give you a higher quality home.

To Be Continued with more great tips!!!!

College Station First Time Homebuyers

2007-09-11T08:22:00.000-04:00

College Station offers a variety of different neighborhoods to suit your needs. Single family housing can be found in price ranges from the low 100K's up to over a million dollars. Your housing dollars stretch far here and you will enjoy a low cost of living. Condominiums and townhomes can be an excellent option for both students and older adults. We have neighborhoods that fits their varying needs.

College Station Entry Level Plus Neighborhoods

College Hills smaller homes can be had in this trendy neighborhood right off Texas Avenue and across from campus. These homes were primarily built in the 50's and 60's and are reminiscent of the "front porch neighborhoods" around the country. Clapboard homes, some of them restored beautifully, can be had, but the pickings are slim. Expect to wait a while for the right house to be available.

Southwood Valley close in to the University you will find Southwood Valley. This is a neighborhood that features mature trees and wide streets. Southwood Valley is in the area of Deacon and Texas Avenue and stretches to Wellborn. The homes range in size from around 1,200 square feet on up to over 3,000 square feet with an average size of somewhere around 1,500 square feet. These homes, for the most part, were built in the late 70's and 80's with a few areas being added in the 90's. Close to shopping, Wings N' More (and other restaurants) and shuttle route this neighborhood remains very popular with it's great housing values. Houses here tend to start at around 120K and go on up, with an average home being somewhere around 140K.

Raintree is a wonderful neighborhood located off Southwest Parkway and Highway 6. This neighborhood features it's own park and is heavily wooded. Homes can be had from the 130's and are large with generous lot sizes. This neighborhood is right off Highway 6 and is easily accessible for those with long commutes. The homes tend to have been built in the mid to later 80's.

Westfield is a newer area located off Graham Road and close to Victoria in South College Station. Close to schools and shopping this neighborhood is situated very near Rock Prairie Road, widely considered the center of College Station. Homes here range from being built in the late 90's to current and offer a wide variety of styles. Housing prices tend to be at around the 120's and up, and most of the building has been done by Stylecraft and Main Street Homes.

Shenandoah, nested deep in College Station is this subdivision off Barron Road and Highway 6. This subdivision features a pool, a park, tennis courts and a small clubhouse. Despite the amenities homeowner dues is a low $120 year. This subdivision feaures Froehling homes built anywhere from the 80's to currently. Prices start in the low 130's and this subdivision is zoned to the newest elementary school, Forest Ridge.

Alexandria, a subdivison virtually connected with Shenandoah, this newer area is right down the street off Barron Road. It doesn't have the benefit of the pool, and the homes tend to be larger, and priced accordingly. Prices here begin in the high 130's.

Springbrook-Cypress is a wonderful neighborhood off Highway 6 and Barron across from Shenandoah. This is a rental restricted neighborhood and gives you a chance to have pride of ownership show everywhere, while keeping the prices down to a minimum as well. Houses here start in the 140's with some going up to the 200's.

Camelot the area near South Knoll Elementary off Southwest Parkway features older homes with mature landscaping. Housing here starts at the 130's and is very affordable.

Westfield Village, off Barron Road and Victoria Stylecraft is building it's signature Neo-Traditional style homes. These homes feature Hardiplank siding and trim reminiscenct of the 50's and 60's in these newly built homes. Excellent floorplans meld with front porches and granite countertops in many homes. These homes start in the high 120's.

For more information, or to set up a search, call or email me today!

Chris Tesch (979)574-1084

Sonya Johnson (979)575-4565

Luxury College Station Home on One Acre

2007-09-02T01:07:00.000-04:00

Who doesn't love the new subdivision Williams Creek? What could be better but a luxurious home on one acre in William's Creek? This Rike built home is 3,440 square feet and offers four bedrooms and three baths. A commercial cooktop graces this gourmet kitchen with it's huge island and hand scraped wood floors. A nice sitting area adjoins the master bedroom. Call today for your private showing!

College Station real estate reduced!

2007-08-30T16:39:00.000-04:00

1513 Jasmine Court is reduced to $129,900 for quick sale! This beautiful three bedroom/two bath home features stained concrete floors in entry and living room and a picturesque back yard that features a storage shed and garden area. This awesome house is located in Shenanddoah subdivision with it's pool, tennis courts and green space.

Was $137,500. Foundation repair with lifetime warranty and 2005 roof.

Southwood Forest Luxury Home

2007-08-21T09:03:00.000-04:00

Aggieland Luxury Home!

Looking for a large home in a excellent area that's affordable? Here is a must see! This beautiful home was built by one of the areas best builders, Ralph Morgan. Great attention to detail was given to this home. The Southwood Forest area is within walking distance to schools, parks and the hospital making this an extreme bargain! Recently lowered to $359,900 this stately home won't last long! A true opportunity for a bargain Aggieland luxury home!

One half an acre of manicured grounds surround this beauty. The house is a four bedroom/3.5 bath built in 1987. A unique opportunity to be in this spectacular subdivision at a bargain price.

Call today for your private showing

College Station Condos

2007-08-20T00:08:00.000-04:00

College Station Condos (also known as kiddie condos)can be an affordable solution for your Texas A and M students living while in Aggieland. The purchase of one of these condos can bring you appreciation and a lower cost of living for your student.

Depending on your circumstances and the amount you can put down, you might even be able to pay for your students living expenses and a large portion of their tuition with your College Station Condo

There are several condo complexes that are excellent around town. One of my favorites is Deacon Row Condos.

These three bedroom, two bath condos are well built and right on the shuttle route. Less than three miles from Kyle Field it's a breeze to get whereever your student needs to go.

Built in 2001, these are still relatively new and the complex lacks a pool, which greatly cuts down on your HOA dues per month.

Currently running around 125K with a monthly fee of $80, these College Condos are affordable and efficient. These mean never having to tell your son or daughter to mow the lawn. This might minimize your frustration!

Call today for information about available units!

College Station Condos

2007-08-18T19:02:00.000-04:00

College Station has a wide variety of student condos as well as condos that are perfect for just spending an occasional football weekend in. Bryan is another good venue for condos, though many there are for active adults as well and tend to be more luxury listings. In this post, I will focus on the more desirable, newer condos available in our market.

The desirability of a College Station Condo can be tagged upon how close the complex is to campus, with those being further away selling for less money, even when well appointed.

Fox Run Condos are probably one of the closest condo projects to campus. These well built two and three bedroom condos are a mere bike-ride away from the action at football games and 8 am classes. Built with luxury in mind these condos provide soaring ceilings and large bedrooms. The complex offers a pool as well. With prices starting at 124K for a 2 bedroom, this complex is a must see. Three bedroom, three bath units, when available, typically run 155K and above. Availability is limited, listings don't often come up.

The Woodland Condos are a truly spectacular project with grand dreams of a perfect condo project. These 2, 3 and 4 bedroom condos offer luxury living, but are aggressively priced for our market. Located on Southwest Parkway and Wellborn Road it is probably less than two miles from campus. The wood work looks good and the list of amenities is spectacular, but the price point should include IMHO granite counter-tops and other standard items for luxury condos.

Waterwood Condos are located off Krenek Tap between Texas and Highway 6. These are, according to one inspector I trust, one of the best built condos in the College Station market. These three bedroom and four bedroom models offer as many baths and bedrooms and all the amenities you would expect. Most have granite counter-tops. These beautiful finds are again, not always available. Interestingly the four bedrooms last year sold for 149-155K while the three bedroom (which granted, has some extra style) was sold for 158K.

There are many condos available for the budget conscience and I will focus on them in a future post.

For information on availability of these, and other condos visit the my MLS search or email me for timely information.

College Station Luxury Homes

2007-08-17T19:35:00.001-04:00

College Station has tremendous luxury homes on the market. One of the wonderful factors of the Bryan and College Station areas is our affordability. Our luxury market evidences this affordability dramatically. While other areas have their median home prices at 500K and up, we redefine affordable elegance with the very creme de la creme of our market starting at 500K and over.

Whether looking at a home to winter in our moderate climate with, or a year round home to enjoy Aggieland year round, there is something guaranteed to please you!

Case in point is this gorgeous, functional home located in the Gardens at Castlegate. Castlegate is a master planned community located at Greens Prairie Road and Highway 6 in South College Station. The Gardens is an exclusive gated section within this community. The homes here are well appointed with top of the line features and breath taking architecture.

While other markets are offering starter homes for over 600K, this beautiful, one of a kind palace is $639,900. Offering 3451 square feet, this three bedroom, 3.5 bath is pure luxury. Enter into the grand entryway with soaring ceilings adorned with frescos. The tile is stunning and leads you in to the gorgeous living room.

A solid wall of windows looks out on the outdoor living area complete with a fireplace and kitchen, a designer sone lined pool and hot tub with waterfall are the stars of this backyard mecca.

The kitchen and living have barrel ceilings adorned with wood. The kitchen has a built in vegetable steamer, a six burner gas commercial cooktop with potfiller, double ovens, a built in TV, walk in pantry, cabinet style refridgerator, farm style sinks and trash compactor.

The dining area looks out into the backyard paradise and is large enough for all your entertainment needs.

The master bedroom is a true delight! A stamped and faux painted ceiling with double crown moulding is one of the highlights to this beautiful room. The bathroom features a wet bar and a his and hers seperate vanity areas. Large walk in closets to store all your clothing and a locking gun safe built in for extra storage. Walk in shower with rainfall shower head, and beautiful jacuzzi tub make for a special room.

Call today for your private tour or for more information. For more College Station or Bryan Luxury Homes go to the MLS Search on my website.

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2007-08-16T12:40:00.001-04:00

Gameday Center Plans Put on Hold

2007-08-12T23:25:00.000-04:00

Gameday Center was to be a luxury home away from home for alumni and fans battling the hotel crunch here in Bryan/College Station.

The multi-level building was to have many units, all fairly small, but within easy walking distance of football games, baseball games, soccer games and the traditions that hold us all together, such as graduation, elephant walk, First Yell and a host of other beautiful get togethers.

Early interest was high, but fell after alumni realized that lesser expensive options were available.

If you've found yourself in that Gameday crunch talk to me about alternatives for your Aggieland stays.

Recently I sold a condo to a young attorney from Houston who had initially went with Gameday. We were able to find a 2 bedroom/1 bath with over 1000 square feet and within walking distance of the University for a mere 62K, thousands less than she was looking at for Gameday. Sure the property isn't quite as luxurious, but it's cute and clean and inexpensive. The HOA fees are only $70 a month and cover lawn and exterior maintenace.

Other options that way include four plexes and apartments that could be revamped and make excellent rental properties.

Don't think that your second home in Aggieland has to break the bank...there are other solutions!

Updated FEMA Maps Affect Bryan Homeowners

2007-08-12T23:15:00.000-04:00

Bryan City Engineers recently revamped outdated floodplain maps. FEMA requires flood maps to be revised periodically. Approximately 10% of Bryan (around 2700 acres) now lies in floodplain. 180 homeowners were notified that their homes lie within the 100 year floodplain, the area that has a 1% or better chance of being flooded each year.

Help is on the way for residents newly identified as living in the floodplain as Bryan is part of a FEMA incentive program that will give 5% discounts for flood insurance.

Though I don't know of anyone happy about being identified as in the floodplain, these residents can sleep a bit better at night knowing that they are protected in case of flooding. Property values could be affected moderately, but a house that lies in the floodplain that never has flooded probably would be unaffected.

The cost of flood insurance, many times, is as little as $700 per year and can reap a huge payoff in the event of flooding.

College Station has been largely unaffected. Recent changes have even proved to be beneficial, and reduced the risk of flooding in neighborhoods at risk.

To find out if your home is in a designated floodplain visit FEMA's Website at www.msc.fema.gov. Remember that even if your home lies outside the designated floodplain it could potentially be flooded.

For Bryan and College Station real estate view the MLS Search on this site!

Tankless Water Heaters

2007-08-12T23:12:00.000-04:00

Many of the builders in College Station, Texas are including a new feature, designed to save money and benefit the enviroment, the Tankless Water Heater. The concept is simple, why heat 40 or 50 gallons of water twenty four hours a day, when you can have hot water on demand?

With Tankless Heaters, also known as Instantaneous or Demand Water Heaters, there is no storage tank. You can employ electric or gas heating with tankless systems. Hot water is dispensed at typically 2-5 gallons per minute. Gas tends to be at the top of that range, where electric doesn't perform quite as well. A whole house system is the type that you would typically want to employ, as smaller Tankless systems cannot provide for multiple uses simultaneously. Another possibility is to install seperate Tankless Heaters for appliances or connect two or more together. Seperate systems could be used with poolhouses, hot tubs, and remote bathrooms.

24%-34% more energy efficient with moderate use, and 8%-14% more efficient with high usage (over 80 gallons a day), better efficiency of 27%-50% can be achieved if Tankless Systems are installed at each hot water outlet.

Another benefit of the Tankless System is that heater life is typically extended. A standard water heater can last anywhere from 7-15 years. Most Tankless Systems have a life expectancy exceeding 20 years. This ensures less scrap metal in the landfills. Remember that periodic maintenance can extend the life and minimize efficiency loss.

When building a home, or replacing your conventional water heaters explore the option of Tankless Water Heaters. Your wallet will thank you, and so will the planet!!!

For new builder homes, as well as gently used homes, in Bryan and College Station visit the MLS search on this site.

Awesome New Bryan Listing!

2007-08-03T20:54:00.000-04:00

This great 3 bedroom/2 bath home is sure to please! Extensive updates include new paint, new tile, updated appliances, sprinkler system, refinished kitchen countertops, A/C and roof approximately 3 years old. All this and straight across from the award winning Johnson Elementary School. Welcoming backyard with deck and storage shed. Huge utility room with lots of extra storage. Formal living/study. This house is ready for your crew!!!

Traffic Conditions For First Day of School

2007-07-28T19:46:00.000-04:00

Traffic Conditions for August 27th in Brazos Valley....AWFUL!!!

After one of the longest summers in recent Brazos Valley history the new school year is only a little more than a month away. Both Bryan and College Station ISD's, as well as most of the private schools, begin their school year August 27th. In past years school typically began around mid August with more breaks during the year. Plan on the kids hitting the books hot and heavy this year, with a more intense and crammed in schedule for the school year.

To make things even more intense this year Texas A&M University as well as Blinn College open their semester on August 27th as well. This will be the first year in recent history that both the college campuses and school districts begin their school year simultaneously. A contact at College Station Independent School District that I spoke with stated that they are well aware that it will be especially intense the first week of school this year. They are taking every precaution and would like to advise parents of children in the school system to please let their children take the bus during these first few hectic days.

Please parents, realize that with approximately 50,000 Texas A&M students, 10,000 Blinn students and the normal beginning of the school year madness it will be horrible out there. You and your children will probably be much safer if you allow the bus to take the kids to school. If not that, please drive very carefully.

The Eagle's Education Reporter has been notified and hopefully will write a piece about this in the local paper.

9th Annual First Yell, August 31, 2007

2007-07-18T02:02:00.000-04:00

College Station's Texas A and M is a school rich with traditions. One of the newest, but best, in my opinion, is First Yell. First Yell is for the new students, returning students and the community to get acquainted. It's the start of football season with the promise of fall right around the corner. We lack the crisp apple weather, but not the crisp apple mentality!

Yell is by no means new. According to custom in 1907 when A and M was a military college restricted to males only, a little company from the ladies was welcome. Aggies would invite ladies from Texas Women's University to take the train ride to College Station for football games. Games are not an automatic admit! A certain amount of tickets are set aside for guest and these are doled out according to rank, with Freshman rarely getting the opportunity to bring guests. At one game, according to local lore, the Aggies were being trampled and the lady guests were none to happy. The boredom of a losing game was to much for the ladies and they threatened to leave. Upperclassmen ordered the "fish" to entertain the ladies. They stormed a janitors closet and out they trooped in white coveralls and, in grand tradition led the crowd with their cheers. This was the last time the underclassmen got to perform. After all, too much attention from the ladies isn't good for fish!

To find out more about the tradition of Yell go to http://yell.tamu.edu/.

Today's First Yell is an event! It has evolved from being an exciting prelude to the first game of the season to a stunning display of Aggie spirit and some great entertainment!

9th Annual First Yell is about to come out of the box!!!!! OK, in the past we've had some awesome headliners here; Bill Cosby, Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall and Wayne Brady have graced our city with their presence
.
This year...drum-roll please...we are graced with the likes of Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood, from the hilarious ABC show "Whose Line Is It Anyway?", these stars have began touring together in a critically acclaimed 2 man improv show "An Evening With Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood".

This College Station extravangza starts out with Aggie performers. The Singing Cadets and Aggie Wranglers perform! What a treat!!! These skilled groups are world class (and travel around the globe to show it!) then the headliner begins. Afterwards the talented performance at the Midnight Yell is enjoyed by all!

Tickets go on sale July 28th and can be picked up at Reed Arena, by calling 888-99-Aggie, or by visiting http://www.12thmanfoundation.com/.

2007-07-15T00:54:00.000-04:00

Celebrating a big event, or just want a quiet night on the town? Ready for some world class cuisine and excellent presentation? Head out to Christopher's World Grille located on the east side of Bryan off Booneville Road.

Lunch is served rom 11-2 and offers such selections as the Beef Tenderloin Enchiladas with ancho chili sauce, lime sour cream and salsa for $13.95. Whatever you do, don't forget to try some of the delicious soup!

Dinner offers fish dishes, steak and other incredible entrees and ranges from $18.95 to $29.95. Desserts are awesome and their selection of wine is incredible, so save some room!

Weekend Brunch is a nice get-away with moderate pricing!

See all their selections at http://www.christophersworldgrille.com/.

Brie with mango chutney for appetizers is ALWAYS good! Dessert anyone? The desserts here will be the highlight of your evening.

Enjoy the building while you are there! A renovated and extended 100 year old farmhouse is at the heart of it. Stop by the Casablanca Piano Bar and enjoy live jazz music, or perhaps the vocal bliss of Karan Chavis.

Bon Appetit!!!

Small Cities, Large Presence

2007-07-13T23:25:00.000-04:00

On a beautiful day last week in my bright and sunny office in my favorite area of the world a prospective client and I were talking and she mentioned that moving here from Atlanta she would be giving up cultural events and all the excitement of a large town and didn't know if she could do it.

I was immediately shocked at her suggestion and rose to the defense of my city!

To give you some background, Bryan and College Station, Texas are twin cities smack in the center of most of the larger cities in Texas. Dallas is around 3 hours away, Austin around 2, Houston about 1.5 hours and San Antonio around 4. The combined population is approximately 130,000. Small right? Yes....but for Texas A&M, one of the largest colleges in the United States, this is home. Having a large university in your backyard certainly changes things! Cultural events and drawn by the university crowd, who enthusiastically respond! Beyond that we are the home of the George Bush Museum, and this brings even more speakers and fun to the area!

This post would get way too long if I mentioned all the performances in town. We have many peformers and speakers along the way and some awesome community theatre. I'll focus on OPAS for this write up, come back often for information about other events and venues. Come back often to find more entertainment in Bryan and College Station.

Texas A&M is proud to have MSC OPAS, whose mission is "Bringing World-Class Entertainment to the Brazos Valley". This year (2007 Season) is it's 35th year in operation!
Past performances have include Yo-Yo Ma, Van Cliburn, Itzhak Perlman, Stomp, Les Miserables, Rent, Hairspray and the world premier of the Bolshoi Ballet Brigorovich Ballet. This caused extra attention from international media here for OPA, including a write up in the New York Times.

This year for the 35th Anniversary they have quite the lineup for us!
September 24, 2007 The Ten Tenors. An Australian group performing jazz, opera, modern and classical pop all in the same venue. For more information go to http://www.thetentenors.com/.

February 1-2, 2008 A Ride With Bob: The Bob Will Musical featuring Ray Benson and Ashllep at the Wheel. Bob Wills, the father of Texas Swing and renowned for such songs as "Route 66", "San Antonio Rose" and "Faded Love" is lovingly portrayed by this beautiful show. For more information go to http://www.aridewithbob.com/.

February 21, 2008, Movin' Out. (I ventured to New York to see this one, and can personally give it glowing reviews!). Billy Joel's musical tribute to two decades of Viet Nam, it is a powerful performance!

March 4-5, 2008 The Producers. What more can be said than...A Mel Brooks Comedy! Visit http://www.producersontour.com/ for more information.

March 26-27, 2008 Blast Winner of the 2001 (created specifically for it) Best Theatrical Event Tony!!! More information can be found at http://www.blasttheshow.com/.

April 1-2, 2008 Chicago. Decade old winner of 6 Tony Awards and 6 Academy Awards. Watch it right here and find more information in the meantime at http://www.chicagothemusical.com/.
What do you think? A small city with a lack of culture and fun...? Didn't think so!!!!

Villages of Indian Lakes, College Station

2007-07-02T02:17:00.000-04:00

The Villages of Indian Lakes is a great subdivision with rolling acreage lots located in the south part of College Station. The netrance to the subdivision isn't the best, going past the back part of Nantucket as well as several relatively unkept rural properties. Once you pull in the subdivision,however, you know you've made it to a very special place!

Horseback riding trails dot the subdivision along with rolling hills and rustic looking signs. Attendance in the highly desirable Forest Ridge Elementary, College Station's newest elementary campus, is a definate plus.

Ten homes are currently for sale. They range in square footage from 3,085 to 5,329 and in price from $424,900-$824,000 (per square foot from $125-$175.5). Homesites range from 1.66 acres to 4 acres in these current active listings. All are built by outstanding builders.
19 homes have sold in Indian Lakes since the early part of 2006 These homes have ranged in price from $299,900 to $975,000 (sold price per square foot from $112-$175.47) and in size from 2599-5300 square feet.

Call today for your list of current active properties in the area, or to find out what your home is worth!

4th of July Comes to Bryan and College Station With a Bang!

2007-07-02T00:47:00.000-04:00

Backyard BBQ's and family gatherings aside, there are lots of things to do in Bryan and College Station for the 4th of July. Two of the events are fairly longstanding, and either would provide enough entertainment for the family to talk about for ages!

Washington on the Brazos State Historic Site (If you don't know about this fantastic park stay tuned because I will be blogging later on it). The park is located between Brenham and Navasota off Texas State Highway 105 on FM 1155. The day starts early in Washington on the Brazos. Food vendors will be on the site 10 am to 9 pm.

The Barrington Living History Farm shows just exactly what kind of chores were in a typical late 1800's farm. The farm includes the original home of Anson Jones, the last president of Texas.

After the farm demonstrations meander over to the Star of the Republic Museum that chronicles Texas history during the period of independance. This site is administered by Blinn College and a testimant to their innovation.

Tour the site where the Texas Declaration of Independance was drafted and signed on March 2, 1836. The building is only a replica, but rests on the cornerstones of the original Independance Hall.
Activities really start cranking at 6:30 pm with FREE 1850's period children's games.

7:00 pm brings FREE Blue Bell ice cream and FREE Coca-Cola.

8:00 pm FREE "Back at the Ranch" Western Swing Concert and patriotic video.

9:00 pm H-E-B presents Firewords on the Brazos.

For more information call 936-878-2214 or visit www.birthplaceoftexas.com.

George Bush Presidential Library and Museum located off George Bush Drive in College Station will be hosting it's eighth annual 4th of July celebration. In conjuncion with Texas A&M and the Lion's Club International a great fireworks display will be enjoyed by all. Come early as the library will have FREE admission all day.

Entertainment begins at 5:30 pm with games and fun for the kids. An Elvis Impersonator will be performing (Jason Adams) and the TUB (Texas Unlimited Band) will perform as well. The fireworks will be accompanied by a concert by the Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra.
For more information call (979)691-4068.

College Station ISD Planning For New Elementary Campus

2007-07-02T00:40:00.000-04:00

College Station is now planning for it's 7th elementary campus, the new Creek View Elementary. Plans currently are to locate it on Graham Road, presumably where the newest elementary school, just opened last year was initially slated to be. Forest Ridge, the newest elemntary, is the fastest growing school in the district, but officials are taking no chances and commissioning a high priced, no doubt, study on where the growth lies.

According to current data most students live in the central part of the city. Most Realtors feel that the true growth that would support our younger citizens occurs at the southern portion of the city. With Creek Meadows in the far south side of College Station soon opening up over 1000 homesites, plus a slew of other new subdivisions breaking ground and Castlegate finishing completion, I don't believe it takes a report to figure out where the growth is.

DR Horton Headed Out of College Station?

2006-12-20T22:36:00.000-05:00

Early this year DR Horton headed into College Station with a splash. Signs went up and promotions abounded. Their first subdivision they built in was called Dove Crossing. On December 19th KBTX, one of our local TV stations ran a story about DR Horton and how they have attempted, largely unsuccessfully, to compete in the Bryan/College Station market. Out of the 78 lots they purchased in Dove Crossing, only 35 have been built on, and many of those 35 are still for sale. Currently they are offering steep cobroker fees and paying closing costs for consumers.

What went wrong? Randall Pitcock, our local Homebuilders Association President, asserted that he believes they weren't able to offer the personal service that many of the homebuilders around this area do. He went on to state that the builders here see the consumers at community functions and that builds trust. Interestingly enough the article also stated that we have more builders here, per capita, than anywhere else in Texas.

I hate to disagree with the estimed Mr. Pitcock (who by the way does offer a fine house and good follow through!), but these same builders who go to church with the consumers and see them at the grocery store, in many cases don't seem to think that follow through, or warranty issues are of great importance and cause grief to their clients in the end. I don't feel that it has anything to do with building trust, after all one of the nations largest homebuilders is likely to stand by their product.

DR Horton, in my opinion, entered the market without studying it enough first. Dove Crossing is a neighborhood with homes priced in the middle of our range, 140-155K. One problem with that is their is competition galore in that price range. The homes that they built had a minimum of amenities, lacking common features such as bull-nose corners, crown moulding and ceramic tile. The next subdivision down is obviously a low cost subdivision with only one side brick to each home and extremely small yards. To add insult to injury the subdivision is located across from a heavily student oriented neighborhood with duplexes galore. In fact, in one of the homes I showed the master bath features a large window (with no frosted glass, or glass blocks) that faces these duplexes across the street. DR Horton, apparently had another subdivision in mind when they moved here, and that one was right next to the highway. We are small town America here. In Houston, Dallas, Austin, or other extremely populated areas buyers may be accustomed to living near a freeway or duplexes, but not in our area.

I believe that DR Horton could have made it given an intense study of the area and talking to clients as well as agents to see what is needed in the area. Too bad they didn't.

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Aggieland First Time Buyers Make 2007 Your Year!

2006-12-20T16:41:00.000-05:00

Real estate for me is more like a calling rather than just a profession. The pleasure I get by handing first time buyers their keys is one of the biggest thrills of my life. I've had the pleasure this year of working with three families, who, through different circumstances never grew up in a home of their own. Either it was apartment living, mobile homes, or relatives homes that their families stayed in. There is no satisfaction greater than finding these people, and working with them to help their dreams become a reality.

First time homebuyers are often nervous or afraid of rejection when it comes to buying a home. Nervous because they might make a mistake and afraid of rejection because they are concerned no lender would want to touch them. I've had people with perfect credit walk into my office worried that they would never get approved for a loan.

The way to calm your nerves about making a mistake is simple. Choose a Realtor that you believe will work hard for you, not just the commission that the seller pays. Find one that will go out of their way to educate you about the process and negotiate hard for you. Go ahead and interview agents. Many years ago when I got into real estate a very wise person told me that you don't make money when you sell a home, but rather, when you buy it. This is how I would want your agent to negotiate for you, as if every penny counts.

The way to calm your fear of rejection on credit issues is to talk to your Realtor or financing source. I have a team of people that can help. Anything from credit cleansing to advising you how long to wait to avoid negative items on your credit and some unique programs that can lower the interest rate. Don't worry about no money down or any issues. Talk to a good financing source or a Realtor first and let them tell you what can be done. Saving for the perfect downpayment can set you back. If you save $2000 a year, but the average home price is rising 3% per year and you look at a $150K home, the next year that same house is worth $154,500 and you've saved $2000 towards the down payment. At that rate you can't afford to save.

Make 2007 the year you get into a house of your own!!!!

Join the College Station's "Citizen Congress" Monday, Dec. 4th, at 6 pm.

2006-12-03T15:00:00.000-05:00

Residents of College Station can voice their opinions about College Station growth, traffic and restrictions Monday, December 4th, 2006 at 6 pm, in the Oakwood Room of the College Station Hilton. Residents will be broken into focus groups, transportation, economic development and community character. There has been quite a bit of interest in this, as citizens want, and need, to be a part of the comprehensive plan. Sugar Land consulting firm Kendig Keast Collaborative is in charge of rewriting the city plan documents, complete with citizen feedback.

The city received over 100 applications for its earlier advisory committee. Forty people actually serve.

Earlier analysis showed some of College Station's strenghts and weaknesses. Strengths included our airport, arts, culture and university amenities, and an adequate cost of living. Weaknesses included lack of economic diversity, sprawl, failure to plan thoroughfares for growth and neighborhood degradation.

Holiday Fun in Aggieland!

2006-11-28T20:00:00.000-05:00

Well, it's time for hot chocolate and caroling in the Brazos Valley. Are you new to the area and needing to know the hot places to go?

November 28th- Christmas by Candlelight, Christ United Methodist Church. Holiday benefit with music and great food ( the desserts are supposed to be heavenly!). Call (979)690-4673 for ticket information. College Station

November 28th&30th-Holidays in the Rotunda-George Bush Library with local musicians, crafts and refreshments. Admission is free, so join them from 6-8 pm. The library is always a great place to visit and the extra lights and Christmas cheer makes it especially wonderful! College Station

November 30-MSC OPAS-The Irish Tenors 7:30 pm. Irish Tenors with full onstage orchestra for holiday music. Visit www.mscopas.org/irishtenors.htm or call (979)845-1234 for tickets. College Station

November 30-December 2, December 7-9, 14-16 7:30 pm. Inspecting Carol: A Christmas Comedy Written by Daniel Sullivan and the Seattle Repertory Theatre. http://www.stagecenter.net/ or call (979)696-2787 for more information.

Santa's Wonderland Now through December 31. Millions of lights and great shopping. Go to this website for pictures of this awesome attraction. Guaranteed to get you in the holiday spirit! http://www.santas-wonderland.com/ (979)696-7212 College Station

Christmas in the Park Dec. 1,2,8,9,15&16. Kicks off with a tree lighting ceremony December 1st in Central Park. Lots of free entertainment, past years have included Aggie Wranglers, pet contests and caroling from local groups, free hayrides, hot cocoa. (979)764-3486 College Station

Bryan's Holiday Magic December 1st at 5:30-8:30 pm. Sue Haswell Park. Free event with "snow" covered hill for sledding, light displays, snacks, live music and a clibing wall. Polar Express train rides ahte the ever-present Santa with lots of photo opportunities. Bryan

Jingle Bell Jubilee, December 2nd all day event in Bryan. Brunch With Santa December 2 9-noon at the Children's Museum. Holiday arts and crafts, playtime and photos with Santa. $20/each. http://www.mymuseum,.com/. Rudolphs 5K Fun Run and Walk 9 am. Downtown Bryan. $15 to register, $20 for 5K Run/Walk and Brunch with Santa. Live enrertainment at the Palace Theatre and car show to follow. Parade begins at 6 pm and tree lighting ceremony at 7 pm at the Carnegie Library. Evening events include carriage rides and a rock concert. http://www.mymuseum.com/ Bryan

A Victorian Christmas Stroll December 2nd. Hosted by ther Brazos Heritage Society through Heritage Park and a living history tour of the Cavitt House from 6:30-8:30 pm. Entertainment and snacks provided. Tickets $2 each, free for children 12 and under.

Breakfast with Santa December 2nd 9-noon at the Lincoln Center. http://www.cstx.gov/ (979)764-3779 College Station

25th Anuual Christmas Shoppers Arts and Craft Show December 2-3 10a.m - 5 pm at the Brazos Center 3232 Briarcrest Drive. Awesome shopping opportunitie with unique gifts, handmade jewelry and woodwork, gift baskets and more! Bryan

Bryan-College Station's Holiday Parade December 3rd at 2 pm. Sponsored by the Eagle. Starts on University Drive and ends on Villa Maria and Texas Avenue. Floats from all over Brazos Valley and free candy tossed from many floats! (979)776-4444. Bryan & College Station

Messina Hof: Big Reds for a Winter Evening December 5th. 7 pm. $25 class fee. Red wine class and tour of winery with gourmet foods. http://www.mesinahof.com/ (979)778-9463 X 34 Bryan

Food for Families Food Drive December 7th. The largest fundraiser for Brazos Valley Food Bank. Drop off non-perishable food items at The Brazos Center in Bryan, the Kimbro Center in Madisonville, or the Mid South Synergy office in Navasota.

Christmas Carnival at the Lincoln Center. December 8th 6-9 pm. (979)764-3779. College Station

Mistletoe & Merriment Concert, December 9th 7:30 Brazos Valley Chorale presents their holiday concert. Tickets $15 adult/$6 student. College Station.

2006 Christmas Favorites from Around the World Ice Show December 15-16 5:45 pm. Artic Wolf Ice Center, College Station. (979)694-3900 for tickets.

ChildreNinos Mexican-American Workshop December 18th 10 am. Bilingual stories, games, songs and activities. Children's Museum, Bryan (979)229-5625

Don't stay home this holiday season!!! Get out there and enjoy some of the fun, Brazos Valley Style!!!

Negotiating From a Strong Point, What Your Agent Needs To Know

2006-11-15T20:33:00.000-05:00

An agent called me on Saturday and said she was bringing me an offer on one of my listings, she warned me that it was low, but that she thought it was good..."considering"

Considering what? Was my comeback... This is a lovely four bedroom home in an awesome community built by one of the better builders and across from the community pool. Her response was that the fourth bedroom had been made into more of a study area (my clients were empty nesters and needed a study more, they did minor modifications to enlarge the door, but left a small closet in the room) and it wasn't a "true" fourth bedroom.

I told her that we would take a look at the offer and get back to her. The offer came in 20K lower than the asking price. I was already armed and dangerous with information. I, of course, presented the offer to my client. My client had recently received a report from me detailing sales in the neighborhood and price per square foot with a notation where her house fit into the scheme of things. We together discussed the fact that her $91/per square foot was a median for the neighborhood and that we felt it was definately worth it. I cautioned my seller not to allow emotions to get in the way.

In calling the other agent back I was able to tell her that 34 homes had sold in the neighborhood since Jan. 1, 2006 and of those only 3 had sold for the price per square foot she was offering ($82) or below. I mentioned that three bedroom homes, if that was the concern, had sold robustly in the area as well, with no resulting hit on the price per square foot. After discussing each house that had sold in the neighborhood I was able to my discussion off with the fact that, of her five current listings, none were listed at the $82 per square foot level or less and that they weren't built by as desirable a builder, or in as desirable a neighborhood.
Finally she stated that they were just looking for a deal....

Let's talk negotiating for a moment here....

All agents should know their clients strenghts and your opponents weaknesses. A far greater weakness for my client is the fact that we are at the slow time of the year, not the lack of a fourth bedroom. The agent should study each strength that you have and ensure that you are using it for all it's worth. Diminish each weakness you have as best you can. One listing I have has a small living room on the first floor. We've rearranged the furniture to maximize the look of the floorplan and really made the upstairs gameroom a showpiece because it has all the room that the living room lacks.

Agents shouldn't bluff. It would have been far better for this agent to simply have stated, "it's a slow time of year and we we know it's low, but were hoping they were agreeable". I've had much success with this in the past. Simply admitting that the buyer isn't motivated to move unless the price is right has made more than one of my buyers an excellent deal. This point of negotiation is the ultimate trump card! As many convincing arguments that you might come up with if the buyer has the upper ground and isn't in love with the house, then the buyer has the upper hand. Trying to bluff instead risks insulting the other agent and the seller.

Your agent should know the statistics for the area and how to use them to your advantage. Are sales down in the area? Are foreclosures up? Are there a glut of homes for sale in the neighborhood? Any of these statistics can make a believer out of a seller. Point them out to the sellers agent and make sure that they know their clients weaknesses.

With a listing, the agent should know how to counter each weakness. Being able to say "yes, foreclosures are up in the area, but those were in the 300-400K value homes", is much better than stumbling when someone brings it up. Know your own weaknesses and plan counter arguments before the fact.

In short, ensure that your agent does the research, and, like a good chess game, they should plan their moves accordingly. It can save clients thousands of dollars!!

Cosmo and Real Estate

2006-11-15T16:02:00.000-05:00

The media is constantly talking about real estate, sometimes doing much more harm than good. I've written about this many times. Here we are with the media again, delving into the area of real estate. Their wise editors dispensing invaluable tidbits of advice that the masses absorb like manna from the sky...
I'm in my doctors office the other day, and before she comes in I read a short blurb about real estate in Cosmo. That's right, good old Cosmopolitan magazine and their experts on real estate have truly contributed. The article was aimed, I would presume, at first time homebuyers because the title was something like "should you buy a home by yourself". We are seeing increasing numbers of singles investing in homes, so the article was certainly timely. The wisdom that they shared was along three main themes:

1. Don't get too excited in front of the agent, it would lead to a higher sales price.

Instead of dispensing the wisdom of getting a Buyers Agent, they are basically leading the potential buyer to distrust everyone in the transaction. Don't let the listing agent show you the property if you want to avoid this downfall and interview and trust the Buyers Agent that you pick. As a Buyers Agent I enjoy seeing your enthusiasm for the home. BUT it doesn't come into play when I negotiate the house price for you. As a matter of fact I feel like it's my role to take your rose colored glasses off and point out potential resale problems and maintenance issues. Typically the more excited you, the client, gets, the more I do this to ensure that you are making a wise decision.

2. Don't let an agent pressure you into making a decision on a house right away. Walk away if this happens.

In general I can see the wisdom of this advice. What they arent' taking into account, however, is that our first time homebuyers (their presumed audience) are in the lower price brackets as a whole. With my first time buyers I'm typically helping them with homes under 120K. This is the price range that we have the most buyers in and the fewest homes. Excellent homes in great condition are sold within hours sometimes. I typically tell my buyers on the good homes that they might want to make a decision, otherwise the decision will be made for them. As long as they realise that the house that this is a risk I'm OK. I just don't like those phone calls two days later that say "we've decided" and having to explain that the house is no longer available. I've also seen times when being the first to offer really pays off. Not too long ago I representated a buyer who put an offer on a house within a day of it being listed. The weather was awful during that time and I think that kept other potentials away. Our offer was negotiated and we got $2000 off list price. The listing agent later told me that she had four other agents want to bring her offers afterwards. (I knew two agents that tried to bring offers, so I don't doubt it!). If they would have waited it would have escalated into a bidding war and my client would have paid more for the house. BTW, if we're looking at 300K homes, I would have a completely different attidude!

3. If the home has been on the market 6 months or longer offer 10% less than asking at a minimum.

Again, here we have a generalization. Absolutely, if the house has been on the market for 6 months we have more negotiation room. We have to factor in several details though... Has the house had improvements in the recent month or two? If they were putting off adding new carpet, replacing old fixtures, adding ceramic tile and then they made the improvements this doesn't apply. Has the house had price reductions since it was listed, and how recent were those? If the price was originally $160K and they are down to $140K then we might find the 140K value to be good.
A far better strategy is to find out about the house first. What do the tax records say is the appraised value? Around here that tends to be running at around 90% of sales value so this might give us an indication. Pull comps and find out what other homes have been selling for in the area price per square foot. Make sure you are comparing apples to apples, look for square footage simularities, simularities in condition, finish out and age of the home as well. You might actually find that only offering them 10% less than asking could be overpaying, or that you are getting a fantastic deal in the first place because they stubbornly refused to paint that front bedroom and nobody liked the shade of purple they used.

Generalizations don't belong in real estate as a whole. My genuine belief is that Cosmo doesn't belong in it either!

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