Grand Rapids Michigan Ottawa Hills Open House Sunday 11-22-09 3-5pm

This charming Tudor Style home will be open for the first time on Sunday

22, 209  3-5 pm. Ottawa Hills, in Grand Rapids has been a wonderful

neighborhood to live in Grand Rapids since the 1930's. 

This quality built home has refinished hardwood floors on the main floor,

 and  a fireplace in the living room for warm, crackling fires for the holidays

and into winter's cold, snowy evenings.  It alos has a sunroom, a large kitchen,

half bath off the back entry.  A two stall garage, a backyard deck, and an attic

for storage or future expansion. and

 

1407 Alexander SE                                                     Listed at $129,900

                VIDEO LINK

 

There is a new neighbor coming in the fall of 2010: a new Christian Elementary School.

If you lived in this home, your children could walk to school,it is less than a block away.

Grand Rapids Christian School Under Construction in Ottawa Hills 

 

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            Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

                          Contact Terry   616-292-7263

Mandarin Chinese Spoken Here in Forest Hills Schools, Grand Rapids MI

Would your kindergartener come home and ask for a bowl of cereal

in Mandarin Chinese?  If you live in the Forest Hills School System

in Grand Rapids Michigan, this isn't as far fetched as it sounds.

The Meadowbrook Elementary School is home to the Forest Hills

Chinese Immersion Program.  This program is the first of its kind in

West Michigan.  The program just received a Federal Grant of $238,000

for the first year.  If all program objectives are met, it will receive

additional funds for the next 2 years. 

 

Leaders in Forest Hills educational community decided to add Mandarin

Chinese Immersion to their bilingual offerings with the assistance

of Michigan State University's Confucius Institute.  Currently 2

Chinese teachers are  on the school faculty to give students in

the program an early start in bilingual education.

 

The Forest Hills District is continuing to expand Mandarin language

courses at middle and high school levels.  With 55 percent of the

world's population speculated to be from Asia in the year 2025 and

5 percent from North America, being fluent in Chinese will be a real

asset in the future business world.

 

Forest Hills also has a Spanish Immersion Program running at the

Ada Vista Elementary School.

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            Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

                          Contact Terry   616-292-7263

Front Doors Say Hello When You Aren't Home

Front doors are the first impression that visitors and passersby get of your home. 

 We all make instant judgments about a home's interior when we see the front door,

just like we do about a person we first meet.  If you want to make a good first

impression, you should make sure your front door is attractive and welcoming.

 

 

I have a fascination with front doors.  I  drive by homes and look at the front door

or front entry.  I love to see a home with a touch of personality or a piece of artwork

displayed by the front  door that lets me know a little bit more about them.  

 

 

Do they like animals?  Are they proud of their home? Does everything appear to be

in good repair?

 

This front door reminds me of castle. I saw several doorways similar to

this in England inside castle walls.

 

 

 

Holidays and seasonal decorating are especially fruitful for my voyeuristic entertainment. 

 I especially like the his and hers well-dressed scarecrows guarding this front door.

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            Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

                          Contact Terry   616-292-7263

New NAR Consumer Site ~ HOUSELOGIC.com announced at NAR Convention

For all of you that are not attending the NAR Convention in San Diego a little

peak at one of the Hot Topics. NAR has announced a new web site to

assist home Owners. It is still in Beta but you might like to check it out:

    

You care about your home. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® cares

about home ownership. To help you become the best, most responsible homeowner

 you aspire to be, we want to provide you with free information and tools you can

use to make smart and timely decisions about your home. 

 

Have fun and give me some feedback.   I'll pass your comments on to the group

that developed it.      

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Terry Westbrook is the broker-owner of Westbrook Realty in Grand Rapids Michigan. We offer time tested benefits and marketing results for buyers and sellers. Call 1-616-292-7263 to talk with Terry or email him at: terry@terrywestbrook.com.

 For MLS access to the homes for sale in the West Michigan Area,visit: Westbrook Realty ~ Grand Rapids Real Estate for a free search.  Your search can be saved and modified as you view homes, with no obligation. 

Subscribe to our Grand Rapids Michigan Real Estate Blog       

                                          

Climbing the Learning Curve of Social Media for Real Estate ~ Rebar Camp Indianapolis Indiana

We attended Rebar Camp in Indianapolis on November 2nd. We had a wonderful

time, met some great people, and got all juiced up on Social Media. Seriously,

if you have the opportunity to attend one of these free seminars, you really should

take advantage of it.  Some of the best and brightest talents on the web were

presenters.  Plus you get the input of everyone attending, so it is a very intelligent,

knowledgeable crowd with expertise in many areas. 

Here are few photos of our groups soaking up the information:

 

 We want to thank the Indianapolis hosts and planners for being so welcoming and

sharing their Rebar Camp experience with us.

Thank you - Lola MacIntyre, Dave Woodson, & Harrison Painter

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Terry Westbrook is the broker-owner of Westbrook Realty in Grand Rapids Michigan. We offer time tested benefits and marketing results for buyers and sellers. Call 1-616-292-7263 to talk with Terry or email him at: terry@terrywestbrook.com.

 For MLS access to the homes for sale in the West Michigan Area,visit: Westbrook Realty ~ Grand Rapids Real Estate for a free search.  Your search can be saved and modified as you view homes, with no obligation. 

Subscribe to our Grand Rapids Michigan Real Estate Blog       

                                          

Autumn in East Grand Rapids Michigan

We enjoy autumn in Michigan, it is one of our favorite seasons. The fall colors, the

 crisp fall air, football games, crisp crunchy apples are just a few of the wonderful

things about fall in Michigan.

 

 While the autumn colors on the trees are a thing of beauty, they quickly become

a much detested chore to clean up.  Raking leaves on a beautiful fall day

 is fun for about 30 minutes. On a blustery cold, rainy day, it is a miserable

chore, a never ending job to complete.  The leaves fall like rain, and will

take a few days to 2 weeks to completely leave the trees.

 

 

If you live in the city of East Grand Rapids, Michigan, this isn't such a chore because the

 city takes away your leaves for you.  All you have to do is get them to the curb. 

 

As you can see in these photos of a few streets in East Grand Rapids, many

 leaves are at the curb, ready to be picked up and composted.

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Terry Westbrook is the broker-owner of Westbrook Realty in Grand Rapids Michigan. We offer time tested benefits and marketing results for buyers and sellers. Call 1-616-292-7263 to talk with Terry or email him at: terry@terrywestbrook.com.

 For MLS access to the homes for sale in the West Michigan Area,visit: Westbrook Realty ~ Grand Rapids Real Estate for a free search.  Your search can be saved and modified as you view homes, with no obligation. 

Subscribe to our Grand Rapids Michigan Real Estate Blog       

                                          

Dog Blood Drive ~ Cascade Michigan ~ Nov 14th 2009

Cascade Hospital for Animals is holding a canine blood drive on Saturday,

November 14th, 2009 from 10am to 5 pm at their facility, 6730 Cascade

Road SE, Grand Rapids Michigan.

Blood donation is a simple procedure, taking less than 30 minutes, and does

 not require anesthesia or sedation. Dogs must be healthy, friendly,

50 pounds or over, between one and six years old. parasite free, current

 on vaccinations, have no heart murmur, and not taking the following

medications: thyroid, Phenobarbital, NSAIDS, steroid therapy, or allergy

 injections.

 

 

 

If accepted for the donation drive, the pet will receive approximately

$235 worth of blood work performed free.

 If interested, call 949-0960 or mail chfa@chfa.net.

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Terry Westbrook is the broker-owner of Westbrook Realty in Grand Rapids Michigan. We offer time tested benefits and marketing results for buyers and sellers. Call 1-616-292-7263 to talk with Terry or email him at: terry@terrywestbrook.com.

 For MLS access to the homes for sale in the West Michigan Area,visit: Westbrook Realty ~ Grand Rapids Real Estate for a free search.  Your search can be saved and modified as you view homes, with no obligation. 

Subscribe to our Grand Rapids Michigan Real Estate Blog       

                                          

Living Alone and Liking It

According to NAR's [National Association of Realtors] latest figures,

 Did You Know: November 6, 2009, the increase in single owner households is

on the rise.  They attribute it to baby-boomers that are widowed but staying

in their home.  There has been an increase in single women purchasing homes,

 per NAR's stats, almost one-quarter of first time home buyers were single

females who purchased their first home on a median income of $47,400.

                      Click on photo to see flyer

 

The national average for single occupant households is 28%.  This figure

is likely to rise after the results of the 2010 census is revealed in January.

This trend is good news for the small bungalows and ranch homes built

after World War II that are on the market today.  We have found that

condos and townhouses have great appeal to the single buyer, too.

It used to be unusual for people to live alone but is much more

accepted as the norm today.

 

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If you are looking for a home in the Grand Rapids Area, we service the following areas: Metro Grand Rapids, Ada-Cascade, East Grand Rapids, Caledonia, Kentwood, Lowell, and Rockford.  We have assisted Grand Rapids buy & sell homes for the last 35+ years. Call 1-616-292-7263 to talk with Terry or email him at: terry@terrywestbrook.com.

 For MLS access to the homes for sale in the West Michigan Area,visit: Westbrook Realty ~ Grand Rapids Real Estate for a free search.  Your search can be saved and modified as you view homes, with no obligation.

Thinking of selling your home?  We offer one of the most extensive marketing campaigns in Grand Rapids with a major online presence for your home.  With over 85% of buyers looking for homes online, this is where we concentrate our efforts.  Click here to view Terry's Realtor profile.      

Subscribe to our Grand Rapids Michigan Real Estate Blog

 

            Westbrook Realty - Giving You Our Personal Best        

                                                                           

                                                  

Forest Hills Public Schools Get A Face Lift This Summer

Six different schools in the Forest Hills Public School District are under

some kind of construction this summer. 

• Central High School
• Ada Elementary School
• Central Middle School
• Ada Vista School
• Collins Elementary School
• Community & Aquatic Center
• Central Woodlands 5/6
• Northern Trails 5/6

Every school site will receive different combinations of security cameras,

roof repair/ replacement, parking lot resurfacing, and energy

conservation/sustainability improvements (window replacement,

lighting and mechanical system upgrades).

See details at Forest Hills District News Site

 

Some photos of the Construction Sites:

 

 Warning -  if you like hard hats, you will be in 7th heaven!

Ada Elementary School

Ada Elementary School

Central Middle School

 

Central Middle School

 

Forest Hills Central High School

Forest Hills Central High School

 

School districts reflect the interest people have in their

community public education systems. Forest Hills Schools are

 one of the best in our state in almost every category.  New

school updates are one of the ways we try to keep you informed

on what is happening in the Forest Hills District.

 

Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids Real Estate

Copyright 2009 All rights reserved

Photos by Bonnie Westbrook

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If you are looking for a home in the Grand Rapids Area, we service the following areas: Metro Grand Rapids, Ada-Cascade, East Grand Rapids, Caledonia, Kentwood, Lowell, and Rockford.  We have assisted Grand Rapids buy & sell homes for the last 35+ years. Call 1-616-292-7263 to talk with Terry or email him at: terry@terrywestbrook.com.

 For MLS access to the homes for sale in the West Michigan Area,visit: Westbrook Realty ~ Grand Rapids Real Estate for a free search.  Your search can be saved and modified as you view homes, with no obligation.

Thinking of selling your home?  We offer one of the most extensive marketing campaigns in Grand Rapids with a major online presence for your home.  With over 85% of buyers looking for homes online, this is where we concentrate our efforts.  Click here to view Terry's Realtor profile.      

Subscribe to our Grand Rapids Michigan Real Estate Blog

 

            Westbrook Realty - Giving You Our Personal Best        

                                                                           

                                                  

Look Mom!! We are in the Movies!

Movie-making has been going strong in Grand Rapids,

Michigan this summer.  We have been on a movie set

as extras in a major motion picture filming here in

Grand Rapids and Lowell.

The generous tax incentives that Michigan has offered the

film industry to make their films here is starting to pay off.

Local caterers, local actors, and local crew are being hired

for the filming of The Genesis Code, a hockey themed

movie starring Academy Award winners, Ernest Borgnine

& Louise Fletcher ( Nurse Ratched fame), and former

 Presidential candidate, Fred Thompson.

 

 

The production company needed a hundred + extras for

a scene in a church.  We are in the pews, singing (actually

 miming the words only) and listening to the sermon. 

Not tough work, for sure, although it was a warm summer

 day, no air-conditioning, a church full of people & lights,

and we  were dressed in winter clothes for a Christmas scene.

The magic of movies.  We noted fake snow around the

small pond, too, when we walked out for lunch.

 

The whole production was fascinating to observe.  We were

made comfortable in a nearby lounge at Calvin College,

until we were lined up and put in the chapel pews.  The art

of film was evident at close inspection.  Stained glass windows

were in the front to the chapel.  The art dept had made paper

 to fit the side windows that matched the stained glass up front,

mainly to control the amount of light coming in.

 

The crew and production staff were always busy and

bustling around.  Everyone seemed to have a walkie-talkie

and an ear-bud to keep connected and keep the production

flowing smoothly.  They all seemed to possess the talent of

listening and talking to more than 1 person at a time.

 

About an hour of filming the same scene each time, from

different angles, and 10 hours later, we were done!  Our

scene will probably be about 3-4 minutes in length.  I have

 a whole new appreciation for a film crew and what it takes

to make a full length feature.

We were given a box lunch and treats in between.  No pay

but we might just make it through editing and be in a major

 motion picture.

Here are a few pictures from our seat in the "extra" spot. 

I don't imagine the film crew gets their picture taken very often.

 

 

  

 

We might be going to one of the hockey arena shoots this

weekend.  It is nearby but they are filming from 5pm to 5am.

Not sure we can make it through that time frame - even if

we sleep in our seats!!

 

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If you are looking for a home in the Grand Rapids Area, we service the following areas: Metro Grand Rapids, Ada-Cascade, East Grand Rapids, Caledonia, Kentwood, Lowell, and Rockford.  We have assisted Grand Rapids buy & sell homes for the last 35+ years. Call 1-616-292-7263 to talk with Terry or email him at: terry@terrywestbrook.com.

 For MLS access to the homes for sale in the West Michigan Area,visit: Westbrook Realty ~ Grand Rapids Real Estate for a free search.  Your search can be saved and modified as you view homes, with no obligation.

Thinking of selling your home?  We offer one of the most extensive marketing campaigns in Grand Rapids with a major online presence for your home.  With over 85% of buyers looking for homes online, this is where we concentrate our efforts.  Click here to view Terry's Realtor profile.      

Subscribe to our Grand Rapids Michigan Real Estate Blog

 

            Westbrook Realty - Giving You Our Personal Best