Register Real Estate Advisors

Recently I have begun the adventure of trying new or unusual activities that are happening right here in my own community. Getting outside of the repeated hum drum let’s do the same thing as last week attitude I found a somewhat new event happening at the Woodlands Mall every Wednesday from 3 – 7pm. The Feast of the Artisans is a Farmers Market combined with an Artisan Market, thus the name Feast of Artisans.

Starting with a late lunch at Café Express my guests and I then caught The Woodlands Trolley at Market Street – Central Park. The air-conditioned Trolley dropped us off right where we needed to shop without having to move and then park our automobiles.

The Trolley stop above The Waterway located close to The Cheesecake Factory and Barnes & Noble is where you want to deboard. Then make your way to the tents of local vendors selling seasonal local fruits and vegetables, local honey, free-range chicken eggs, meats, olive oil, tie-dyed products, Indian food, bath sundries, ceramics and more. I personally found: squash, peaches, tomatoes, organic green beans, Luxurious Face & Body Cream, and wine.

We had a wonderfully relaxed time shopping, made our way back to the car via The Trolley and left our bags. Then we headed back into Market Square to finish the evening with Yogurt. Does this sound like an out of the ordinary evening to you? Try it!

What: Feast of Artisans Farmers Market
Where: The Woodlands Mall, I-45 north at Lake Woodlands Drive, south side of the shopping center.
When: Every Wednesday 3 – 7pm
Why: Support local farmers and Artisans making unique items conveniently available to area families.
Interested in Participating? feastofartisans.com

As a Realtor, I cannot talk anyone into selling their home.  People only put their houses up for sale when they are ready or when they have to due to circumstances.  I will be there whenever you decide it’s time to buy or sale real estate.

When you are ready, I highly recommend using a Realtor.  There is no better way to get the job done when trying to maximize the value of your property and get the experience and knowledge of a reliable source and negotiator.  If you are in the Houston area, I recommend one of Register Real Estate Advisors experienced and trained Realtors.  Below are a few things to get you started in the right direction before contacting your agent.  Remember, your Realtor only gets paid when the deal closes, so they are doing everything they can to get you to the closing table as soon as possible.  They have a lot of people to work with to facilitate the transaction – the other Realtor in the deal, the title company, the lender, the appraiser, the surveyor, the inspector, and more.  They get paid on a percentage of the sales price.  So it’s a good incentive for Realtors to get the maximum amount of money for your home.

1. PREPARE YOUR HOME FOR SALE

If you don’t correct the minor things around the home like blown light bulbs and dirty air filters, potential buyers will wonder about the things that they cannot see.  In contrast, when all the little cosmetic things are taken care of, the buyers overall perception of your property is positive.

2.  STAGE YOUR HOME TO MAKE IT APPEALING TO BUYERS

In many cases, sellers continue to live in the home while it is for sale.  If you are going to do that, understand that you can’t live like you normally do.  You will need to keep your home ready to show.  Keep it clean, organized, smelling nice, and at a good temperature.  You will need to keep the blinds open even when you are at work.  You may need to leave lights on in certain areas of the house so that if it shows while you are out, it will appear bright and welcoming.  You need to store all personal items around the sink, all the mail, the food and small appliances you like to keep handy on the counter, and your wall photos.  Family photos are wonderful, but if the buyer walks into your bedroom and there is a huge framed photo of you on your wedding day, they are going to talk about how pretty you are and what a great photo it is, instead of looking at the bedroom!  Here are a few reminders…

• Clean the blinds and dust the fans
• Paint
• Steam clean the carpets and stretch where needed
• Fix any leaky faucets
• Replace the cauking around the tub and sinks
• Pack up clothes you don’t wear to make the closet look bigger or donate those clothes to a good cause
• Pack up everything you don’t need (you’re moving anyway!) and stack the boxes along the wall of the garage or in a rented storage unit
• Wash the Windows

3.  CURB APPEAL

Seems like everyone should know about curb appeal since there have been so many HGTV shows about it.  And yet, we get so comfortable with our own homes that we don’t notice things that buyers see.  Make sure you are not just cutting the lawn and planting flowers.  Go ahead and blow off the patio, power wash it, edge the lawn, trim the shrubs, fertalize, restaing the front door, and paint where necessary.

4.  EMOTIONAL APPEAL

When you are selling a home, remember that the buyers are making an emotional decision that will affect their family.  Make sure your home gives buyers a good feeling.  They have to picture, in their mind, their family living happily in that home.  The house has to leave them feeling like this is the place they want to live.  So open the drapes, turn on the lights, and keep the house at a refreshing temperature.  Make sure it smells nice.

Using this list and the help of your experienced real estate agent, you will help your home to sell quickly at the maximum value.  Buyers aren’t looking for a handout – they want the house perfect for move in.  So if you know it needs repairs, do them.  Don’t offer them money at closing or come down on the price.  Get your home ready and you will get it sold!  Call RREA today for more information 281.288.3500.

This week’s White Board Monday is on the Short Sale Relocation Assistance Program. This is an amazing deal for sellers with a short sale.

Here are links to some of the topics covered on today’s show.

• Mike Blalock joins us via phone to talk about relocating to Houston. He is the publisher of Houston Newcomer Guides. He has guides for areas all over Houston. You can order a free guide at his website.
• Kacey Procheska calls in from Auburn Lakes. Auburn Lakes is a master-planned community just south of the Woodlands. See a map of where auburn lakes is HERE. They have some great promotions next week on Memorial Day Weekend. Swing by and check them out if you are in the market for a home.

We have an amazing show planned for next week. It’s Memorial Day Weekend and we have some real estate topics for veterans. One of our call-in questions next week will win a beautiful coffee table book called “Warriors Remembered.” This book is written by a West Point graduate and combat veteran, Al Nahas, and covers Vietnam Veteran Memorials around the country.

Here is the video of the segment with Mike Blalock, publisher of Houston Newcomer Guides:

Here is the video of the segment with Kacey Procheska, new home consultant with Lennar Homes at Auburn Lakes:

1. Social Security Numbers
2. Driver’s License
3. Employment Info for the past two years, Current Pay Stubs
4. 2 Years Tax Returns
5. If renting, landlord info
6. Addresses for past two years
7. 2 Months Bank Statements
8. Current Loan Information
9. Homeowners Insurance Info
10. Purchase Contract for the Property if it has been chosen
11. Bankruptcy Documentation if applicable
12. Divorce Decree if applicable

For more information, contact your RREA lending professional at 281.288.3500.  We want to help you purchase your next property!

I was shopping in Kroger and picked up one of their pamphlets off the meat market counter and thought you might like to have this info, too.  Now that summer is fast approaching, it’s a great time to start grilling!  I love Kroger’s meat market!

1.  REFRIGERATE fresh meat promptly.

- USE a cooler or chill bag to keep meat cold on the way home from the store or outside by the grill, especially on warm
days.

- SET your refrigerator at home to 40° F.

- THAW or marinate beef, pork and poultry in the refrigerator, not on the kitchen
counter.

- KEEP cold food and perishables on ice at picnics and cookouts.

- PLACE leftover cooked foods in a refrigerator or cooler with ice within two hours.

2. CLEAN hands & surfaces often.

- WASH hands with warm water and soap for 20 seconds before and after handling food.

- WASH cutting boards, dishes and utensils with hot soapy water after preparing each food item.

- USE paper towels and soap to clean kitchen surfaces often.  Or clean cloth towels frequently in your washing machine’s hot
cycle to kill bacteria.

3. DON’T cross contaminate.

- SEPARATE fresh meat from other food in your grocery cart, shopping bags, in the refrigerator and by the grill.

- KEEP cutting boards and utensils separate to prevent spreading germs.

- PLACE cooked food on a clean plate – never on a plate that held raw meat.

4.  COOK to a safe temperature.

- USE a food thermometer every time you cook fresh beef, pork and poultry to reach its
proper internal temperature and kill harmful bacteria.

- COOK ground beef and pork to 160° F, and cook ground turkey and chicken to 165°
F.

- CHECK this cooking temperature guide to safely grill other cuts of fresh beef, pork and poultry.

- REMEMBER:  You can never tell if meat is cooked properly by looking at it.

Safe Cooking Temperatures

Internal temperature as measured with a food thermometer.

Ground Meat

Beef, Pork, Veal, Lamb                       160° F

Turkey, Chicken                                  165° F

Fresh Beef, Veal,
Lamb

Medium Rare                                      145° F

Medium                                              160° F

Well Done                                           170° F

Poultry

Chicken, Turkey, whole                       165° F

Poultry parts                                       165° F

Duck & Goose                                     165° F

Stuffing (cooked alone or in bird)       165° F

Fresh Pork

All Pork                                                160° F

Ham

Fresh (raw)                                          160° F

Pre-cooked (to reheat)                       140° F

It’s White Board Monday. This is the 61st edition and it is on what happens if you list your home at too high of a price. Enjoy!

The Woodlands, Texas is a lovely place to live just north of Houston.  This master planned community offers a lifestyle with art, entertainment, and healthy living.  Here you will find wine bars, restaurants, entertainment, and art scattered among the landscape.  It began in the 1970′s and has grown significantly in recent years.  Currently, there is very little commercial property left for businesses to move to The Woodlands.  There are both resale homes and new construction to choose from if you are relocating.  With a variety of home builders to choose from the prices range from $100 Thousand to $2 Million.  Hiking and bike trails run through all the villages and there are many parks.  It is a nature preserve full of greenbelts and wooded forest.  If you like to golf, you will have three courses to choose from.

When visiting The Woodlands make sure you take both a trolly ride and a water taxi.  These tours offer newcomers a great perspective of the area.  The Woodlands Mall and Market Street offer lots of shopping, dining choices, and entertainment.  The Woodlands houses the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion is one of the most popular outdoor amphitheaters in the world.  At night, Waterway Square is a great tourest attraction.  The large water wall with dancing columns of water and fountains are choreographed to music with colored lights.

The Woodlands has so much to offer.  If you work downtown, you can get to Houston by taking I-45 South or the Hardy Toll Road.  However, there are many employment opportunites in The Woodlands.

Below is a video of The Woodllands.  If you need a Realtor to help guide you through the forest, give us a call at RREA 281.288.3500.  You will be glad you did!

**This week’s show will air at 1:30. Next week we will be back in our regular 1PM time slot.**

Here are links to some of the topics covered on today’s show.

• LaVonda Fletcher is the owner of LaVonda Fletcher Insurance Agency. She was in the studio to talk about mortgage insurance.
• Our in-house lender, Jeff Wagner, with OnQ Financial, called in to talk about the lending environment and the state of the mortgage market.
• Home Path Program – No mortgage insurance, no appraisals for purchasing foreclosures. Find foreclosure listings at http://homepath.com (Fannie Mae homes) or http://homesteps.com (Freddie Mac homes.)

We have an amazing show planned for next week. It’s Memorial Day Weekend and we have some real estate topics for veterans. One of our call-in questions next week will win a beautiful coffee table book called “Warriors Remembered.” This book is written by a West Point graduate and combat veteran, Al Nahas, and covers Vietnam Veteran Memorials around the country.

Here is the video for the segment with LaVonda Fletcher on insurance.

Here is the first segment with Jeff Wagner on mortgages.

Here is the second Jeff Wagner segment.

Whether you are relocating to Conroe, The Woodlands, or Spring area; Do you need local information? Do you already live here, are stuck in a rut of doing the same thing over and over? Would you like to branch out with new ideas of where to play, shop, or dine? Do you need ideas of where to travel right here within our Lone Star State of Texas? Keep reading! I have just the spot for you to check out that will give you all kinds of ideas.

I confess, I was stuck in one of those do the same ‘ole thing over and over ruts myself. I started my day off with the idea – let’s see what is right here in my area of Montgomery County. I wanted to know what I can do new and then share my learned information. First stop was at the Shenandoah Visitors Center which, by the way, is open 7 days a week 8am-5pm.

Traveling on Interstate 45, Shenandoah is just 35 miles north of Houston and only 20 minutes north from Bush Intercontinental Airport. Shenandoah may be small in population but it makes a Big Impact on the Commercial Development for our entire community in Montgomery County. Just click on the home website for the Shenandoah Visitors Center and you will find tabs of :

• “Where to Shop” – Ideas both locally in Shenandoah such as The Portofino Shopping Center, it also includes “Area Shopping” – The Woodlands Mall, and Old Town Spring. New information to me was The Swim Shop of the Southwest, located inside the CISD Natatorium.
• “Where to Stay” – Shenandoah offers seven hotels.
• “What to Do” – choose from a drop down list of Recreation, Cultural, Entertainment and Sports Facilities.
• “Where to Dine” – some of my favorite Restaurants are on this list, now to try something new …

While inside the Visitors Center located at 19265 David Memorial Drive, Shenandoah, TX 77385 be sure to ask the attendant for local coupons. I am thrilled to have received the coupon book full of dollar savings $ specials to use right here within the home territory! I also picked up pamphlets that give local information:

• Dine – Fine Dining, Fast Food, or something in between in Shenandoah.
• Main Event Entertainment Shenandoah
• Conroe Texas Visitors Guide
• Lake Conroe Event Center
• Market Street The Woodlands
• Current – What’s New and Happening For Visitors in The Woodlands

Those were just some of the local ideas. In addition the Visitors Center is recognized by the State of Texas as a Texas Tourism Information Center because it is stocked with information from across the Lone Star State. This is a good starting point to plan your next road trip!

Now … think about it … it’s time to move and where are you going to live? That’s information I can help you with!