The Greater Kalamazoo Association of REALTORS® (GKAR) and the Home Builders Association of Greater Kalamazoo (HBAGK) will be jointly hosting a Property Tax Symposium on Thursday, February 10th from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm in the Raymond C. Becker Auditorium at the GKAR facility located at 5830 Venture Park Drive, Kalamazoo, Michigan, 49009.
The Symposium is titled “Questions You Were Afraid To Ask About Your Property
Taxes” and will include a moderator and a panel made up of local assessors, members
of local boards of appeals, appraisers, legal counsel and industry representatives.
Members of GKAR and HBAGK have been invited and the general public is
encouraged to attend as well. There will be no cost for this event as the goal is to
provide education regarding the State Equalized Value (SEV) and Taxable Value (TV)
of homes, as well as to answer questions relative to the assessment appeal process.
Showing posts with label Kalamazoo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kalamazoo. Show all posts
Monday, January 31, 2011
If you are considering any home repair projects or would like to see what is on the horizon when it comes to home improvement products...then the Greater Kalamazoo Home Builders Association Home Expo is for you!
The Home Expo, a Southwest Michigan premier home and garden event, is put on annually by the Home Builders Association of Greater Kalamazoo in March. Each year the Home Expo showcases new building trends, products, ideas, and inspiration! Whether you are a homeowner, looking to buy, or plan to own your home in the future, this is a great family-friendly event. Home Expo also features lots of educational sessions, special show discounts, and activities for the kids. Save time! Come visit our exhibitors all under one roof - everything you could need for your home, don’t miss the next Home Expo!
Home Expo 2011:
March 9-12 at the Former Sam's Club Building in Portage
Wednesday- 5-9pm
Thursday and Friday- 12-9pm
Saturday- 10am to 7pm
The Home Expo, a Southwest Michigan premier home and garden event, is put on annually by the Home Builders Association of Greater Kalamazoo in March. Each year the Home Expo showcases new building trends, products, ideas, and inspiration! Whether you are a homeowner, looking to buy, or plan to own your home in the future, this is a great family-friendly event. Home Expo also features lots of educational sessions, special show discounts, and activities for the kids. Save time! Come visit our exhibitors all under one roof - everything you could need for your home, don’t miss the next Home Expo!
Home Expo 2011:
March 9-12 at the Former Sam's Club Building in Portage
Wednesday- 5-9pm
Thursday and Friday- 12-9pm
Saturday- 10am to 7pm
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
8 Quick Fixes to Increase Value
To attract buyers, sellers must up the ante to convince them that their property offers what many want most — top value for dollar expended. Here are eight fast fixes:
1. Buff up curb appeal. You’ve heard it before, but it’s critical to get buyers to want to look on the inside. Be objective. View listings from the street. Check the condition of the landscaping, paint, roof, shutters, front door, knocker, windows, house number, and even how window treatments look from the outside. Add something special — such as big flower pots or an antique bench — to help viewers remember house A from B.
2. Enrich with color. Paint’s cheap, but forget the adage that it must be white or neutral. Just don’t get too avant-garde with jarring pinks, oranges, and purples. Use soft colors that say “welcome,” lead the eye from room to room, and flatter skin tones. Think soft yellows and pale greens. Tint ceilings a lighter shade.
3. Upgrade the kitchen and bathroom. These make-or-break rooms can spur a sale. But besides making each squeaky clean and clutter-free, update the pulls, sinks, and faucets. In a kitchen, add one cool appliance, such as an espresso maker. In the bathroom, hang a flat-screen TV to mimic a hotel.
4. Add old-world charm. Install crown molding at least six to nine inches in depth, proportional to the room’s size, and architecturally compatible. For ceilings nine feet high or higher, add dentil detailing, small tooth-shaped blocks used as a repeating ornament. It’s all in the details, after all.
5. Screen hardwood floors. Buyers favor wood over carpet, but refinishing is costly and time-consuming. Screening cuts dust, time, and expense. What it entails: a light sanding, not a full stripping of color or polyurethane, then a coat of finish.
6. Clean out, organize closets. Get sorting — organize your piles into “don’t need,” “haven’t worn,” and “keep.” Closets must be only half-full so buyers can visualize fitting their stuff in.
7. Update window treatments. Buyers want light and views, not dated, fancy-schmancy drapes that darken. To diffuse light and add privacy, consider energy-efficient shades and blinds.
8. Hire a home inspector. Do a preemptive strike, since busy home owners seek maintenance-free living. Fix problems before you list the home and then display receipts and wait for buyers to offer kudos to you for being so responsible.
Sources: Ernie Roth, Roth Interiors, Los Angeles; Angel Petragallo, ABR, Group One, Boise, Idaho; Melissa Galt, Galt Interiors, Atlanta; Steve Kleiman, CEO, Oakington Realty, Houston; Sid Davis, Sid Davis & Associates, Farmington, Utah, and author of First-Time Homeowners’ Survival Guide (Amacom, 2007); Steve Hochman, Friendly Note Buyers, Roxbury, N.Y.; Margi Kyle, designer and spokesperson for Hunter Douglas.
To attract buyers, sellers must up the ante to convince them that their property offers what many want most — top value for dollar expended. Here are eight fast fixes:
1. Buff up curb appeal. You’ve heard it before, but it’s critical to get buyers to want to look on the inside. Be objective. View listings from the street. Check the condition of the landscaping, paint, roof, shutters, front door, knocker, windows, house number, and even how window treatments look from the outside. Add something special — such as big flower pots or an antique bench — to help viewers remember house A from B.
2. Enrich with color. Paint’s cheap, but forget the adage that it must be white or neutral. Just don’t get too avant-garde with jarring pinks, oranges, and purples. Use soft colors that say “welcome,” lead the eye from room to room, and flatter skin tones. Think soft yellows and pale greens. Tint ceilings a lighter shade.
3. Upgrade the kitchen and bathroom. These make-or-break rooms can spur a sale. But besides making each squeaky clean and clutter-free, update the pulls, sinks, and faucets. In a kitchen, add one cool appliance, such as an espresso maker. In the bathroom, hang a flat-screen TV to mimic a hotel.
4. Add old-world charm. Install crown molding at least six to nine inches in depth, proportional to the room’s size, and architecturally compatible. For ceilings nine feet high or higher, add dentil detailing, small tooth-shaped blocks used as a repeating ornament. It’s all in the details, after all.
5. Screen hardwood floors. Buyers favor wood over carpet, but refinishing is costly and time-consuming. Screening cuts dust, time, and expense. What it entails: a light sanding, not a full stripping of color or polyurethane, then a coat of finish.
6. Clean out, organize closets. Get sorting — organize your piles into “don’t need,” “haven’t worn,” and “keep.” Closets must be only half-full so buyers can visualize fitting their stuff in.
7. Update window treatments. Buyers want light and views, not dated, fancy-schmancy drapes that darken. To diffuse light and add privacy, consider energy-efficient shades and blinds.
8. Hire a home inspector. Do a preemptive strike, since busy home owners seek maintenance-free living. Fix problems before you list the home and then display receipts and wait for buyers to offer kudos to you for being so responsible.
Sources: Ernie Roth, Roth Interiors, Los Angeles; Angel Petragallo, ABR, Group One, Boise, Idaho; Melissa Galt, Galt Interiors, Atlanta; Steve Kleiman, CEO, Oakington Realty, Houston; Sid Davis, Sid Davis & Associates, Farmington, Utah, and author of First-Time Homeowners’ Survival Guide (Amacom, 2007); Steve Hochman, Friendly Note Buyers, Roxbury, N.Y.; Margi Kyle, designer and spokesperson for Hunter Douglas.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Kalamazoo Housing Market Mixed
Published: Thursday, December 16, 2010, 1:40 PM
Updated: Thursday, December 16, 2010, 1:48 PM
By Olivia Pulsinelli | Business Review West Michigan
Although the housing market is not recovering as quickly as anyone would have hoped, Kalamazoo area brokers and builders have an optimistic outlook for 2011.
The Greater Kalamazoo Association of Realtors today released its monthly report for November, which included "somewhat encouraging housing news." With 260 units sold, November was up slightly from October's 252, but the association reported 184 fewer units sold year-to-date compared to the same time last year. And last month had 20 percent fewer units sold compared to November 2009.
The average selling price — $132,957 — was up slightly from October, and the total dollar volume was up 3.5 percent from November 2009.
“It is a welcome sight to see housing gains in units sold, average selling price, and total dollar volume in the greater Kalamazoo real estate market,” GKAR CEO Frank Mortl said in the report. “However, activity needs to improve further to reach healthy, sustainable levels.
"The local housing market is clearly in a recovery phase and will be uneven at times, but improving job conditions and the consequential boost to household formation will help the recovery process going into 2011.”
The past year was better than 2009 in many respects, though the market experienced a number of ups and downs throughout 2010.
“If there was ever a classic definition of ‘mixed-bag,’ it was 2010 housing in Kalamazoo,” Mortl said last week.
The year started solidly and improved in major metrics — homes sold, price and overall averages — then “the numbers fell off a cliff” once the first-time homebuyer tax credits expired June 30, Mortl said. Prices, however, have managed to stabilize in the second half of the year.
The average selling price in October 2010 was $132,502 — 13 percent higher than in October 2009. The relatively quick stabilization of prices was a pleasant surprise for Mortl and his association.
“As you look back historically, a lot of the indicators early on for a healthier housing market begin with price,” he said. “Once you’re able to stabilize the price numbers, that then triggers many other positive effects within the housing community. We’ve seen that. We’re just waiting now for that next progression.”
The year also was mixed for the Home Builders Association of Kalamazoo, Executive Vice President Dale Shugars said. Through the first three quarters of 2010, Kalamazoo County had 195 single-family home starts, compared to 247 for the same period in 2009.
“It’s a little bit better than that once you go out to some of the other communities,” Shugars said. “So it’s about the same as last year when you look at apartments and condominium starts and duplexes with it.”
The housing market still is facing many challenges, including strict lending regulations and continued high unemployment.
Another factor is uncertainty in Washington, which is creating uncertainty at the business level, Shugars said. But he’s hopeful that consumer confidence might be picking up a little.
“Apparently the retail sector is doing very well this Christmas season” early reports indicate, Shugars said. “If some of the things get straightened out in Washington, it could jumpstart a little bit of a recovery.”
Shugars and Mortl are seeing positive indicators locally, as well.
Interest rates are still at record lows, and materials prices are extremely low, as well, making it a good time to buy or build a home for those who can get a loan.
“Housing affordability is 60 percent higher than it was during the housing boom,” Mortl said.
Shugars saw increased entries and attendance at the parades of homes in Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo this year. He is getting a great response for exhibitors for the Home Expo 2011, which is in March in Portage.
“There’s no trends yet, but there’s a little bit of optimism because phone calls are starting to come to the builders asking for some quotes and estimates and that type of thing for new construction,” Shugars said. “So that’s something that’s probably better this year than it was last year.”
Updated: Thursday, December 16, 2010, 1:48 PM
By Olivia Pulsinelli | Business Review West Michigan
Although the housing market is not recovering as quickly as anyone would have hoped, Kalamazoo area brokers and builders have an optimistic outlook for 2011.
The Greater Kalamazoo Association of Realtors today released its monthly report for November, which included "somewhat encouraging housing news." With 260 units sold, November was up slightly from October's 252, but the association reported 184 fewer units sold year-to-date compared to the same time last year. And last month had 20 percent fewer units sold compared to November 2009.
The average selling price — $132,957 — was up slightly from October, and the total dollar volume was up 3.5 percent from November 2009.
“It is a welcome sight to see housing gains in units sold, average selling price, and total dollar volume in the greater Kalamazoo real estate market,” GKAR CEO Frank Mortl said in the report. “However, activity needs to improve further to reach healthy, sustainable levels.
"The local housing market is clearly in a recovery phase and will be uneven at times, but improving job conditions and the consequential boost to household formation will help the recovery process going into 2011.”
The past year was better than 2009 in many respects, though the market experienced a number of ups and downs throughout 2010.
“If there was ever a classic definition of ‘mixed-bag,’ it was 2010 housing in Kalamazoo,” Mortl said last week.
The year started solidly and improved in major metrics — homes sold, price and overall averages — then “the numbers fell off a cliff” once the first-time homebuyer tax credits expired June 30, Mortl said. Prices, however, have managed to stabilize in the second half of the year.
The average selling price in October 2010 was $132,502 — 13 percent higher than in October 2009. The relatively quick stabilization of prices was a pleasant surprise for Mortl and his association.
“As you look back historically, a lot of the indicators early on for a healthier housing market begin with price,” he said. “Once you’re able to stabilize the price numbers, that then triggers many other positive effects within the housing community. We’ve seen that. We’re just waiting now for that next progression.”
The year also was mixed for the Home Builders Association of Kalamazoo, Executive Vice President Dale Shugars said. Through the first three quarters of 2010, Kalamazoo County had 195 single-family home starts, compared to 247 for the same period in 2009.
“It’s a little bit better than that once you go out to some of the other communities,” Shugars said. “So it’s about the same as last year when you look at apartments and condominium starts and duplexes with it.”
The housing market still is facing many challenges, including strict lending regulations and continued high unemployment.
Another factor is uncertainty in Washington, which is creating uncertainty at the business level, Shugars said. But he’s hopeful that consumer confidence might be picking up a little.
“Apparently the retail sector is doing very well this Christmas season” early reports indicate, Shugars said. “If some of the things get straightened out in Washington, it could jumpstart a little bit of a recovery.”
Shugars and Mortl are seeing positive indicators locally, as well.
Interest rates are still at record lows, and materials prices are extremely low, as well, making it a good time to buy or build a home for those who can get a loan.
“Housing affordability is 60 percent higher than it was during the housing boom,” Mortl said.
Shugars saw increased entries and attendance at the parades of homes in Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo this year. He is getting a great response for exhibitors for the Home Expo 2011, which is in March in Portage.
“There’s no trends yet, but there’s a little bit of optimism because phone calls are starting to come to the builders asking for some quotes and estimates and that type of thing for new construction,” Shugars said. “So that’s something that’s probably better this year than it was last year.”
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Kalamazoo/Portage Real Estate is on the Rise!
Interest rates are at an ALL TIME LOW and Buyers are taking notice!
If you have been thinking about selling your home, now is the time.
There is no such thing as a seasonal trend in real estate...do not hesitate to put your home on the market before the holidays, the Buyers are out there now!
Contact us today for market details for your area, or to schedule a pricing consultation. We can help you get your house sold for the best price and in the least amount of time!
If you have been thinking about selling your home, now is the time.
There is no such thing as a seasonal trend in real estate...do not hesitate to put your home on the market before the holidays, the Buyers are out there now!
Contact us today for market details for your area, or to schedule a pricing consultation. We can help you get your house sold for the best price and in the least amount of time!
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Catching Up With: Dan Jaqua, President and Owner of Jaqua Realtors
Alex Nixon, Kalamazoo Gazette
October, 24, 2010
Dan Jaqua has spent his entire career in real estate and has no interest in doing anything else.
“You’re constantly with people and constantly challenged,” said Jaqua, president and owner of Jaqua Realtors.
“And that’s what will keep me in the business for the next 30 years.”
Fresh out of the University of Michigan in 1991, Jaqua started in the agency his father had opened in 1975.
In 1998, the company began a multi-year transition that ended with Jaqua as full owner in 2000.
“It was a two- to three-year rolling transition,” he said.
Ten years later, Jaqua Realtors is the largest independent real estate brokerage in the region, with 150 agents and five offices.
And, Jaqua says, it’s more than a traditional real estate agency. The company offers what Jaqua calls a “Family of Services,” which “allows us to fully address the needs of our clients including mortgage, title, insurance, property management, and home services.”
Jaqua is an owner or partner is several related businesses, including Summit National Mortgage, Arcadia Insurance Services, Southwest Michigan Title, Vacation Places and Rentals, Jaqua Property Management, and Southwest Michigan Resources Concierge Service.
“It’s really a national trend where people are utilizing a concept of creating a more consistent and controlled experience in homebuying,” Jaqua said.
Jaqua, who was born in Kalamazoo in 1968, is married and has three daughters.
A book on his nightstand?
“Good to Great” by Jim Collins.
Who gave you the best piece of life advice and what was it?
“My dad gave me the best piece of advice: ‘Surround yourself with the best people.’ I have grown and learned so much from others.”
What’s been your biggest professional success?
“In a family owned business, transition from one generation to another can be difficult. Not with ours. I take great pride in the fact that I have been able to maintain the guiding principles my father implemented at inception, but have also continued to advance the company through innovation and forward thinking.”
Tell us something about your company that would surprise people?
“We are highly active in continuing our success and growth even during the current housing market. People are buying and selling and we are there to guide them through the process. We recently added a new home services concept to our line of services, offering clients options for movers, painters, electricians, and other home professionals. This is an outstanding addition to our ‘Family of Services,’ which also includes mortgage, title, insurance, and property management.”
What’s the biggest challenge your company faces?
“Very simple — letting people know the depth of our services. I no longer see Jaqua agents as only Realtors. We are home service providers. We serve as a trusted advisor in every aspect of housing transition. We are truly focusing on elevating the customer experience.”
If you could have lunch with any famous person, who would it be and why?
“Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski. He has such an extraordinary way in which he rallies his team together. His dynamic coaching abilities seem to reach beyond the basketball court, creating a culture of excellence and passion for success. I foster that business environment everyday so others realize success and want to be a part of our company, a member of our team. Coach K’s insight would be extraordinary.”
__________________________________
Meghan and I have been proud members of the Jaqua Realtor family since 1996. If you would like more information on the services that Jaqua provides, please contact us. We will be happy to assist you!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
5 Reasons You Should Sell Your House TODAY!
From : The KCM Group, October 19, 2010If you are looking to sell your home in the next 90 days here are some compelling reasons as to why now is the time to SELL!
1. At this time of year, the buyers are more serious. The buyers that are out there right now are serious and ready to buy.
2. If you are moving up, you can save thousands. Home prices have fallen significantly in recent years. This could translate into a bigger house, a different neighborhood or a better school district.
3. Interest rates are at an all-time low. The experts are pointing to the interest rates beginning to rise in 2011, now is the time to take advantage of these historic rates.
4. You will beat the rush of inventory that is coming next year. Every year there is an increase of inventory which comes to the market from January through April, the Spring market. You won't have to worry about this increase in competition if you sell now.
5. You have less "discounted" inventory with which to compete. While moratorium of forecloses lasts, every homeowner will have a better chance of selling their property.
If you are looking to sell in the near future, there may not be a more opportune time than this Fall. Serious buyers, great move-up deals and less competition from foreclosures creates the perfect selling situation. Don't miss it!!
Friday, October 1, 2010
A Roundabout for Texas Township?
October 01, 2010
Jinny M. Ahrens, Realtor
That's right! Due to heavy traffic and the concern for the angle of which Texas Drive intersects Milham Road, the township is considering redesigning the busy intersection into a roundabout! The plans can be viewed on the Kalamazoo County Road Commission web site at http://www.kcrc-roads.com/.
The funding for the project will come from a federal grant and if that grant comes through the project could begin as early as June 2011. Stay tuned to this Blog for updates!
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