A Great Realtor and New Price!

We got another response with feedback from a Realtor who came by with an interested buyer.

Hi Jean, My client did like your property alot.  They are
shopping though and I don't expect them to make up their
mind before Christmas.  Thank you for making it available!  

We love our Realtor! We are really thankful that we have Jean representing our house! She is doing a great job advertising our house! The house will be listed in the January issue of Homes and Land Magazine. She understands the strength of the internet and has our house listed on quite a few websites.
www.zillow.com, www.jeanponek.com, www.livedeal.com, zzstar.com and craigslist!

We decided to wait until after Christmas to have an Open House. We have heard from a couple of Realtors that Open Houses aren't very effective. We really don't want to waste anyone's time on something that doesn't really work!

We lowered the price of the house this week to $409,000 which may seem insignificant but according to Jean: "We may consider dropping the price to $399,999 - $409,000, to get it below the $410,000. This will bring it to peoples attention again in the MLS and with the interest rates dropping might stimulate a bit more activity"

Looking up!

The housing market seems to be looking up! Jean (our Realtor) says that she has gotten quite a few calls this week from buyers who are looking for houses in the area. She also said that she has spoken with other Realtors in the area whose phones are "ringing off the hook" from buyers. That is some good news! This time of year is notoriously bad for selling a house but according to Jean buyers who are looking now are usually more serious...not your average "lookie-loos".
Apparently the lowered interest rates have made it more enticing for buyers.
This is an article on the web from yesteray:
"The decline in mortgage rates and the slowing in home price appreciation, along with the buildup in inventories, has led to a much better situation for home buyers through increased affordability as well as more inventory to choose from," he said. "Households are saying on surveys that home buying conditions have improved notably, and that has coincided with the stabilization in home sales." (USA TODAY DEC 6, 2006)

Feedback

We have had 3 interested buyers come by our house for a visit since we first listed the house on November 6th. We just got some feedback from one...

Hi Jean,

Sorry it took so long for me to get back to you. My clients were concerned about the steepness of the driveway. They did like the condition of the house and the work being done in the backyard. I don’t think they’ll be making an offer on this house. I’ll keep it in mind if another client wants to look in that price range in Atascadero . Take care, Frank

I don't get it....

The Dreamer....

It's been a while since I felt a good tremor...but not more than 10 minutes ago, we got a 4.1 Richter Scale jolt.

This post doesn't relate to the quake report...then again, it might.

One of my favorite characters in the Bible is Joseph...lately, I've been thinking on the fact that he was the Dreamer. Not only did God give him the dreams, but He also made them come true. The significance of his dreams went beyond his personal sphere - a universal plan that has consequences to this day.

I wonder what he thought about his dreams when he was in the dungeon? One day he was a dungeon slave, the next day, he was the second most powerful man in the world. I believe God would have made him the most powerful man, except Joseph's kingdom like Christ's kingdom was not of this world.

It is a comfort to know that the One who puts the aspiration in our hearts will be the One to fulfill them.

More Transformations!

Finally finished the pond in the backyard....complete with a spitting frog, a little stream and of course goldfish!!
After the Dienzo family left on Friday morning we got the house ready for a Realtor and an interested buyer. Ray and I drove down to the Wenzels' house to sit in their driveway and spy on the house. The buyer spent about 30 minutes looking at the house but so far no offer.

Where the Rainbow Ends.

In case you were wondering where the Rainbow ends...it's on Seperado Avenue in Atascadero......and why are we leaving??

Dienzo Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with the Dienzo family! It was short but sweet! We took a walk in beautiful downtown Atascadero before our turkey dinner. Noah brought his XBox which provided hours of excitement! Eileen, Michelle and I joined the crowds on Black Friday at Kohl's at 5:00am for some early shopping deals.

Realtor's Caravan

On Wednesday there was a Realtor's Caravan at our house. It's basically an Open House for Realtors. Jean Ponek (our Realtor) brought some yummy treats and I needed to leave the house. When I got back there wasn't even a hint that anyone had been in the house. I got a little nervous thinking that nobody came but this is the email that I got from Jean today:
the caravan went well.All of the responses were good, they thought it was priced well, they thought it was cute and decorated really nice. The stairs and decking were also praised. They like what you have done in the backyard. Over all it was all good. The two main concerns were the driveway and if a family wanted a yard in the back to play in, it would be hard to do. I explained that it had a large front yard that can maintain the toys for young children. Other then those two remarks all was positive. Now we wait for them to bring any buyers! I will call you if anything else comes up. I am going to try and get it in Homes and Land Magazine this month.

I got a great shot of a red-tailed hawk sititng on the power line looking for lunch.

HOUSE FOR SALE!!

For the past couple of months we have been saying "we should have our house up on the market in the next couple of weeks". Due to a number of huge projects and a couple of delays, a couple of weeks turned into a couple of months.
As of November 6, 2006 our house is officially on the market!
We aren't sure if we should laugh or cry! We have poured a lot of sweat into getting the house to where it is right now and we really love it! We would like to be able to enjoy it for a little while! At the same time we are happy to have the projects done so that we can begin the next big chapter in our lives.