MORE MONTGOMERY COUNTY, TEXAS WATER WOES ~ BE CAREFUL ON LAKE CONROE Due to the extreme drought in our area and most of our state, today Lake Conroe will be opening the dam to allow water to flow to Lake Houston to alleviate the shortages in Houston.  For those of us around Lake Conroe, this is not good news.  The already low lake levels will now drop even more creating some potentially dangerous situations. Boaters and water skies should be very careful to watch for stumps or sand bars.  These once hidden hazards could potentially cause a very serious accident.  It would be very wise to really take a ride around the lake as the levels continue to drop and make note of the hazards that are now present. Another concern are the low-lying stagnant areas of the lake.  These are excellent br... 08/16/2011

Last night my girls and I painted with a Twist at Painting With a Twist and it was a whooping, marvelous, fantastic and unbelievable time and experience. We had a ball. It's inexpensive and special classes are offered for you and the kids! How many of you have at some time wanted to dabble in painting? I knew from the time of my finger painting there was something to love about smearing wet paint on a canvass and turning it into a picture. Although, through the years when I thought of purchasing paint, brushes, canvass, lessons and the time involved I just never did it.  Are you there with me? So, here's the answer!  Painting With a Twist! This wonderful  Franchise is now found in 14 states and is a true Twist of Fate for all of us Wannabe Painters! Last night our instructor was a Local... 08/13/2011

It's time for work. Anything in this life worth having is worth working for. At times the Client relationship is much like our own relationships in life. Relationships are work and I mean hard work. It's a matter of give and take and requires attention each and every day. Have you just executed a contract on a home and you feel your job is well done? Maybe it is but you are not done yet. If you quit too soon you can lose the deal. Why?  Well, remember the old saying, "Cold Feet?" It is not recommended to sign the documents and then set your ride on cruise control...you might have a wreck. Each and every day for a new Buyer is a roller coaster. Emotionally, financially, and physically. Put yourself in their position. Sit and look at yourself in a mirror and ask yourself these questions: ... 08/07/2011

    Overall Interest Rates drop in Montgomery County, TX however Down Payment Assistance for Bond 77 Rate little changed As market rates fall  TDHCA Bond 77 Down Payment Assistance Rates are little changed in Texas. Although  Washington is dealing with budget issues things look good for Texans purchasing their first home with down payment assistance still available. Bond 77 allotment 12 funds are now exhausted.  As noted in my previous post in an effort to lengthen the amount of time that Bond 77 Down Payment assistance is available TDHCA has slashed the amount of down payment assistance available to each buyer by 20%. The rate for the new allotment #13 is now slightly lower at and to take advantage of this program before further cuts in the program you need to fill out our online appl... 08/06/2011

Due to the lag in Lending and now the Guise of Qualification of Clients, Contingencies are more and more difficult to close. Not long ago when a client received an Approval Letter we all felt comfortable that they were going to be able to purchase the home. Not anymore! At this point an Approval Letter is no more than a promise to try! We just lost yet another sale to a failed loan from an Approved Buyer from New Mexico. From what I understand New Mexico's purchase protocols are quite a bit different than ours. It seems the Seller must supply an Inspection on his home to the tune of nearly $5,000.00 and the Appraisal! We had a couple needing desperately to get close to Houston's Medical Centers to handle an illness. They were so excited to be able to take the money from their Buyer and ... 08/06/2011

And a digital camera that I've dropped, taken hundreds of house and property photos, Christmas', birthday parties and everything else worked yet again. The moon was so far away but hubby called me outside to enjoy this lazy summer night moon with him. Sweet huh? It was just so beautiful looming over the trees and just looked surreal. I am thinking about a telescope purchase after looking at this photo. Oh, I'm not a photographer at all. I took exactly 35 photos with my camera to get this 1 shot. I don't know much about the settings so I got some shots that looked like flying fish all blurry and strange. This one took though. I wanted to share our hot night and lazy moon. 08/03/2011

Many of my friends from the past have used the name Snow White for my AKA, Deb Brooks. I seem to truly communicate with animals and at times it becomes a bit eerie. I have a love of wildlife and most likely they sense it. Baby Deer approach me, squirrels eat out of my hand and of course, frogs like me. I like them too and that's what is so cool about it all. Weird story here. I walked out onto my porch to sit at the table and gaze into the stars one night. I got up and walked the porch, kicked a little dust, breathed deep and was enjoying the peace of it all. I sat back down at the table. Low and Behold,  on the chair next to me sat this Opposum. He looked at me as if I were no threat and I was welcome to join him. I immediately ran into the house to grab my camera. I had to get a pictu... 08/03/2011

The Real Estate Recovery Contest is one of the most innovative and succinct contests I have seen on Active Rain to date. We are all seeking recovery as the negative results of our economy  is on our heels. I couldn't figure out what to write till I was treated to lunch today by my dearest friend, Sylvia. The incident at lunch gave me the reason to enter the recovery contest and the idea was personal and real. Not only did the restaurant feed my hunger but the visit fed my soul, hope and trust in the human race and not to forget "Mothers". Many of us are lucky to have become mothers and even if we didn't we did have a mother so we can relate to the love and devotion and pure "belief" of our relationships. This post is mostly about Loreena, a mother and a little about Cracker Barrel, a re... 08/01/2011

Our Real Estate business takes on many twists and turns throughout our Professional Lifetime. As the economy tightens we may all be looking for new ways to do business. Referrals have been a strong source for our business for many years and for that we are grateful. Referrals from previous clients have a tendency to take us all over the place as far as going out of our Localized Area. This has always been wonderful for us although so much is changing! The price of gas alone is a reason to stay closer to home! Are you marketing to your own neighborhoods? My husband and I spend much of our time working from home. When we show properties our drive can easily consume a half a tank of gas in his truck and almost as much in my car. We work Lake Conroe and Lake Livingston and our normal showin... 07/28/2011

The Marion Franke Team would like to introduce our recently improved Lake Conroe Subdivision Map!  We have added feature-specific placemarks that differentiate between Waterfront Subdivisions, Golf Course Subdivisions, or both.  We are always adding new Montgomery County Texas Subdivisions so please feel free to request or suggest a new community!  Soon we will introduce a similiar tool for Subdivions in The Woodlands, in addition to our existing Lake Conroe Golf Course Map! We are going to be adding more subdivision-specific information all the time, but for now you can click on any subdivision placemark and you will be given the option to view all Active Listings in that Community! If you have any questions or concerns, please visit our website at http://www.franketeam.com or call us... 07/28/2011

  As I prepared to feed the cats, clean the bowls and go through my evening routine last evening we had an unusual visitor. I called my husband outside to point this out and his exclamation was, "Is that frog eating the cat food again!?!" at which point I realized I had been away from home a long time! This guy was a big surprise to me. As it seems, he has become a part of our family because even the cats like him! He has such an attitude of "out of my way" you can't help but respect him. I was shocked when I first laid eyes on him but he didn't budge. He was on his evening quest too! He was helping himself with a smile on his face! A man frog must do what a man frog must do to feed his family! Doesn't he look proud?   07/26/2011

This Post goes out to my family and friends and clients in the hope that you will get to know me better. The "Diary of a Realtor®, Why I Chose Real Estate" Contest was conceived just for this reason. To allow each of you to be able to share what compelled you to choose to join this business. I am thrilled to receive such heartfelt posts and am proud to call you all friends! Here's my go at it!There's no place like home. As a young child I was lucky to have found myself in what I still to this day consider the ideal family. In hindsight I was missing having siblings to share with, argue with and to love. My world was all I knew. Mom, Dad, my home and the warmth of a loving family kept me warm. At that time I was considered an exceptional child. I grew, matured and became wise beyond my y... 07/25/2011

Is time digressing? Or, would that be regressing? Adverse Possession was originally set up in Texas and other states to help establish the boundaries of Farm and Ranch land. This is one of our old laws established in the 1880's that has yet to be ammended. I became highly fascinated with this in Real Estate School.  After questioning the class Teacher she explained it like this: If a farmer had 300 acres and was only farming one hundred, it is likely that a SQUATTER could or would settle upon his land in an obscure area that may go unnoticed for many years. Say the SQUATTER had worked the land for years and was using about 20 acres of that land. The SQUATTER could prove this after showing sales to local stores in the past. Mr. Landowner discovers this and says, "GET THE &^&^^ OFF MY LAN... 07/24/2011

Do you move your clients along in a hurried fashion?Are you SHOWING THE HOME instead of letting them discover it themselves? Have you ever heard the song by Simon and Garfunkle with the words, "Slow down, you're moving too fast, You've got to make the moment last?"  These very words can describe a showing. Or maybe we should call it a VIEWING? Give your Clients a bit of space to enjoy their visit within a home. Just my humble opinion. After witnessing a few expedient showings of other Realtors I could pick out many "TURN OFF MISTAKES!"THE YES'SYes, knock on the door, ring the doorbell, make sure it is safe and unoccupied. Yes, agree with your Client when they oooh and awww. Yes, keep an eye on children if they are with their parents or ask the parents to do so. Yes, be available to answ... 07/22/2011

Yes, many of us place a chunk of our eggs in the big Internet Basket. Not necessarily all of them but certainly the bulk of them. When you receive a request to see a listing what do you do and how do you respond? Can you tell the difference between a "looker" and a "viable prospect?" I wouldn't place a bet against a good prospect simply because they were sparse with their request but... I would place a bet on the prospect that leaves most ALL the information! Naturally, all the potential leads need "follow-up".   The simple fact is that you cannot judge a book by its cover! If a person takes the time to place a request, whatever it is, then they are entitled to a speedy and thorough response!   The statistic reads that if you respond to the request within 15 minutes, your retention of c... 07/19/2011

Today is the first day of the rest of our careers! Never would we have guessed that our business was going this direction five years ago! Maybe some of you had the feeling but I sure didn't. Most of us were basking in the glory of selling, selling and selling some more! Listings were coming in like a line at a fast food place. Then do you remember what would happen almost immediately? The property would sell. Just like that.Occasionally we would even get a listing and have it "Pending" before we got it on the Multiple Listing Service! Oh, the good old days. Today, we must look for different ways and different results. Obviously we must price the property at the lowest feasible price.  Listings are notorious for remaining on the Market for so long that all interest moves elsewhere. So, ... 07/19/2011

Several Boat Dealers around Lake Conroe are hosting the In Water Boat Show July 23, 2011 - July 24, 2011 from the banks of the lake! Local Boat Dealers will be offering "Special Prices" and test drives on all types of Boats including New and Used. Don't miss this wonderful event as the prices are to be better than ever! You can Test Drive your Dream Boat! Several Marina's have joined in the fun by allowing the Dealer's Boats the necessary boat docks and boat slips for the show. The Locations are:  - April Plaza Marina, 17742 Texas 105 - Lakeview Marina, 880 Beach Walk Blvd. - Waterpoint Marina, 15264 Texas 105 - Inland Marina, 15525 Marina Drive in Montgomery - The Palms Marina, 11880 Palms Marina Road in Willis Pack up the kids, bring your hats and sailing shoes! Enjoy Lake Conroe as i... 07/19/2011

CONROE, Texas, Montgomery County – The 4th of July holiday proved to be detrimental to our population of pets. The Montgomery County Animal Shelter is having an adoption party this weekend. Bring the children and a very small pocketbook. Over the holiday the shelter filled to the max with lost pets and abandoned ones too. Without your kind adoption the animals will have to be destroyed so please help. The second-annual Hot Dawgs and Cool Cats event will be held on July 9th and 10th of July, (this weekend)  from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the shelter, located at 8535 State Highway 242 in Conroe. During the event, you can name your price on adoption fees on long-term dogs and cats. The party includes James Coney Island hot dogs for all, face painting for the children and a moonwalk to help spen... 07/08/2011

The Federal Housing Administration submitted allowed Forbearance Bill and has just been signed by President Obama.  As of August 1, 2011 the new regulations allow unemployed homeowners to remain in their homes without fear of foreclosure for up to one year. Now, is there any question that our economy is in big trouble? Of course with the glut of homes being dumped into our banking systems something has to give! This is good to hear for many homeowners although there are strict regulations on this new development. All loans must be FHA backed. I guess that's the good news. But, the bad news takes precedence. The bad news is that this bill is going to help fewer people than we realize. Many of the FHA loans handled by Wells Fargo & Co., Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase & Co are being de... 07/08/2011

Banks say Thanks? Like Hitting the Jackpot! Recently I took on a very difficult Foreclosure Listing for a Bank out of California. They needed to sell and interviewed 3 agents in my area on Lake Conroe. The home sat there since 2007 unfinished, 63% complete and was languashing by the water. Sitting on a canal leading to the Big Water, the entire dream of a subdivision had fallen by the wayside. Only two homes stand next to each other and the gate remains inoperable with no electric, no water and the lingering sadness of Foreclosure is evident. Angry contractors had entered and cut the wiring within the 4500 square foot building causing the new owner to start again. After 4 months of showings, attempted negotiations on 3 offers that didn't stick and Disclosure, Disclosure and more Disclos... 07/07/2011