Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate

Kent Cummins Magic School - Hill Country Galleria Barnes & Noble - Free Shows All Week

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:07:08 -0600

The Kent Cummins Magic Camp at the Hill Country Galleria Barnes & Noble is fun for everyone! Yesterday, I took Alyssa to Barnes & Noble for their Magic Camp Circus.

It was supposed to be from 2-4pm, but someone got their information wrong, and when we got there at almost 3pm, it was already over... Kent Cummins, the owner of Magic Camp, was right there and I asked him if he was planning another act. He was a little confused until his helpers did confirm that the flier I saw did say 2-4pm. Alyssa was taking her nap, which is why we didn't make it at 2pm.

Kent was very accommodating. He let us play with the puppets, but Alyssa only liked the blue one for some reason. We tried to get her to put the big clown shoes on, but she would only stand by them. Those things are huge!

I mentioned that she gets mesmerized by juggling, so he entertained her with some juggling. He even allowed her to come up on stage and play with the Circus tent.

With all this, kids and their parents started making their way over to "Alyssa's show". Kent Cummins noticed this too, so he decided to do part of his earlier act for everyone as who doesn't like an audience.

Magic Camp is headquartered in Austin TX with an additional location in Georgetown TX. The Kent Cummins Magic Camp is a day camp run for kids ages 6-12 and it runs for six weeks. In January, they are adding a junior group for kids ages 3-5. Alyssa is still too young for that group, but maybe January of 2011.

There are scholorships available for those who cannot afford Magic Camp, and for this week only, November 6 -November 13, 2009, a portion of all your purchases will go to help fund the scholarship fund. Please use promo code 10048270 when you check out.

By the way, Kent Cummins Magic School is also available for birthday parties! There are more activities going on at The Hill Country Galleria Barnes & Noble throughout the week, so head on over there and have some fun!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way.

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Kent Cummins Magic School - Hill Country Galleria Barnes & Noble - Free Shows All Week * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Speechless Sunday - What are you lookin' at?

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 16:43:58 -0600

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Speechless Sunday - What are you lookin' at? * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

The $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit - Extended, Expanded, and Modified - Part 2

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 19:53:46 -0600

More information for the $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit that has been extended, expanded, and modified. I wrote about most of the changes on my previous post about the Tax Credit, so read that for a description of the most common circumstances.

Within the new law, there are some other changes that some people might want to be aware of in case it effects you.

All active members of the military have a different deadline to follow. If you were/are active military overseas for more than 90 days in either 2008 or 2009, your extension goes through April 30, 2011 instead of 2010. You get one extra year to buy a house!

You can now claim the credit if you are obtaining Seller Financing even if the Seller retains title to the property. This would include a land contract or a contract for deed. In order for this to work, the IRS would want proof of several things including the ability to show possession, proof of paying property taxes, holding insurance on the property, and a few other things.

With the new $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit law, you must actually show proof that you purchased a home, fancy that! It's hard to believe, but the United States Government was issuing tax credits to people solely on their word that they bought a house. No proof was required, just the word of honest Americans... and there's a reason this was modified as even a four year old tried to file claim to the tax credit!

It was rumored with the previous law that you could claim the tax credit prior to closing, but you absolutely CANNOT do this! The IRS has begun prosecuting people who claimed the credit prior to closing or without actually buying a property.

As mentioned, the above are special circumstances and will not effect the majority of people, but it's always good to know for the just in case.

Email or call me with further questions and don't let this last chance at a tax credit slip past you. I highly doubt it will be extended again as the government just doesn't have anymore funds to be giving out.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* The $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit - Extended, Expanded, and Modified - Part 2 * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

$8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit - Extended, Expanded, and Modified

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 18:26:05 -0600

The $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit has been extended, expanded, and modified. It is no longer just for First Time Home Buyers, but it's also for Move-up Home Buyers.

There are many rules you need to know in order to comply with this credit, and yes, it truly is a credit as long as you're in the house for a minimum of three years. If you sell prior to three years, you will have to pay it back.

First Time Home Buyer means someone who has not owned a primary residence in the last three years. This means you could own an investment property and still qualify, but not a homesteaded property. If you are married and your spouse has owned a primary residence, but you have not owned one, you do not qualify for the tax credit. However, something new is that if you have a parent who has owned property and they co-sign for you, you could still qualify.

This tax credit is mostly referred to as the $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit, however, not everyone gets $8000. The number is the maximum number you are allotted for the tax credit and it's based on 10% of the purchase price, not to exceed $8000. In plain English, that means if the house you purchase is $80,000 or more, you will get the $8000. If you buy a $73,000 property, you would only qualify for $7300. Make sense?

Move-Up Home Buyers are a new category for this tax credit, and there are more rules. You must have owned a primary residence for five consecutive years out of the last eight years. That means, if you have owned a property that is currently being used as a rental, but you lived in it for five consecutive years prior to renting it within the last eight, you qualify. If you bought an investment property that you rented out a few years ago, but now currently have lived in it for five years, you qualify. Simple enough...

The Tax Credit for the Move-Up Home Buyer is limited to $6500 and not $8000. Same rules apply where it's 10% of the sales price, not to exceed $6500.

The income requirements have changed as well, and the limits are the same whether a First Time Home Buyer or a Move-Up Home Buyer. Single tax filers can receive the entire tax credit up to $125,000 whereas they can receive a partial credit from $125,001 to $145,000. Joint tax filers can receive the entire tax credit up to $225,000 whereas they can receive a partial credit from $225,001 to $245,000. Above these income limits, home buyers are not eligible for anything.

There has also been a purchase price cap added to this new law which was not part of the previous one. The cap is $800,000. That's a lot of house, but if you can afford that much house, you probably have bigger things to worry about than this small tax credit.

Of course there is a deadline for everything, and this new law actually has two deadlines you need to pay attention to. The first one is that you must be under contract with a property by April 30, 2010. The second deadline is that the property must close and fund prior to June 30, 2010. That way, no one can wait until the last minute to purchase homes and then hope they close on time. There is a two month buffer, but that actually means you only have less than six months to find a property and get an executed contract!!

The above does not cover every single rule in this new law, but the above takes care of 99% of the cases. There is a rule that you cannot buy a house from a blood relative and receive the tax credit, but you can buy a house from a step-relative and still receive the credit... and others that are very rare circumstances.

Email or call me today for further questions, and let's get you into a new house before six months come and go! The time will move faster than you think! And if you have a house to sell to be one of the Move-Up Home Buyers, we need to get that house on the market ASAP!

Here is the link for The $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit- Extended, Expanded, and Modified- Part 2.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit - Extended, Expanded, and Modified * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Senna Hills - Austin TX - Homes for Sale

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:59:11 -0600

Senna Hills - Austin TX - Homes for Sale are going strong. There are usually a very wide variety of homes for sale within the community, but there are currently only eight houses for sale.

How do those eight houses compare? You could get an older home that is already about fifteen years old for $455,000 or you could get a brand new home built in 2009 for a mere $739,900.

Why do people like Senna Hills Austin TX? The community offers a lot. There are views from many properties. There is a community park, pool, tennis and basketball court. They even have community happy hours during the summer so neighbors can get out and get to know each other.

Another huge benefit?? It's outside the city limits. Some people refer to Senna Hills as being in Austin while others refer to it being in Bee Cave or West Lake Hills. But, it's actually not within the city so there are no City of Austin, City of Bee Cave, nor City of West Lake Hills property taxes. BONUS! Most residents do use Austin TX as the postal address for mail.

Email or call me today for further information about Senna Hills and making Senna Hills Austin TX your home.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Senna Hills Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Senna Hills - Austin TX - Homes for Sale * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Falconhead Bee Cave - Austin TX - Homes for Sale

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:34:25 -0600

Falconhead Bee Cave - Austin TX - has a large variety of homes for sale. The houses that are currently on the market range in age from 2003 up to brand new built in 2009. Sizes range from 2967 sqft up to 6204 sqft. Prices range from $379,900 up to $1,250,000.

Why is there such a large difference in homes available in Falconhead Bee Cave Austin TX? Because we have a wide variety of people moving to the area, and they're all looking for something a bit different.

Many people are drawn to the community because of the Falconhead PGA Golf Course. You do not have to be a member to live in the community, and you can be a member without living in the community. It's a public course.

The prices will dictate whether or not the house backs up to the course, at either a fairway, tee, or green. But price is also dictated by whether or not the house backs to the course at all. Even if it doesn't back to the course, there are cul-de-sac properties that are highly desirable as the yards are larger. I don't think there are any "bad" lot locations in Falconhead.

Overall, the lots are about eighty feet, whereas most of the Suburban areas around Austin TX have sixty foot lots. For many people from other parts of the country, this is not that much land, but who wants to spend their free time mowing that much grass?

Call or email me today for further information about Falconhead or Falconhead West in Bee Cave Austin TX.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Falconhead Bee Cave Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Falconhead Bee Cave - Austin TX - Homes for Sale * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Martha Stewart - Goodie Package of Crafts

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:50:32 -0600

Martha Stewart sent a goodie package to one of my neighbors so she threw crafting party last night. We had a blast trying to figure out how to use some of the tools. To an extent, we felt like fools reading the instructions for a paper cutter that cut the design into the sides, a glue stick, and other things that weren't completely obvious to use.

Martha Stewart sent three different kits. One was a card making kit, one was an ornament kit, and one was a box kit.

My Card was the guinea pig card as I was the first to try to figure out how to use the paper edging, through trial and error as you can see... definitely not "perfect" by any means. But it was still fun. The foil embossing for the "Happy Birthday" was tricky, but turned out cool.

My ornament also didn't turn out the greatest. Note to self, decide what you want on it before you start! Also, it probably would have made more sense to start with the background, and then written "Alyssa" on top of that... I tried it the other way around...

Some of the other ornaments that others made turned out good...

I think I made the best box! Again, I used the paper edger, but this time, I had figured it out and it came out perfect on both sides. I even stuck two cupcake stickers on it instead of just one. It's called a "Cupcake Box", but it's currently holding my glitter ornament.

As I mentioned, these came as kits, so you don't have to go to the store and try to coordinate anything. The kit comes with matching colors and accessories, like the zinnia flower on the card and the cupcake for the box. I'm not sure if they're exclusive, but they were pushing Michaels Arts and Crafts pretty heavily, and also gave 50% off coupons to buy anything from Martha Stewart's collection.

Not really sure crafting like this is something I could do all the time, mainly because I don't have the patience for it, but thanks to Martha Stewart, we had a great Mom's Night In last night and it was a lot of fun!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Martha Stewart - Goodie Package of Crafts * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

The Brazilian Hair Straightening System - I love my straight hair!!

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:26:32 -0600

I had the Brazilian Hair Straightening system put in my hair on Monday, and thus far, WOW! I couldn't wash my hair for four days, until today. All week, people were saying how great my hair looked. Well, it looks the exact same way as when I would use the Chi flat iron, so that wasn't the test.

The test was whether or not it would be straight after I washed it and while it was wet... and it was straight! There was a tiny wave at the front around my ears, but that's always a hard place to straighten, but when I dried it, it was straight!! And it's incredibly soft and I can run my fingers through it with no knots. It's awesome!

And there is even some body to it so it doesn't look plain and dead.

Here are a couple of pictures from the front and the back. My hair has absolutely nothing in it. No gel, no mouse, no hairspray, no nothing...

What is the Brazilian Hair Straightening System? It's a Keratin treatment. Keratin is a protein found in the skin, nails, and hair. The treatment reconditions the hair preventing frizz, YEAH!!! Even though it's been "straightened" it can still be curled or done in many hairstyles. It doesn't have to be straight.

What was the process like? Painless and easy. My hair was washed with a salt-free clarifying shampoo, twice. Some people need to have it washed three times depending on how dry, porous, and damaged it is, but a minimum of two times. It was then completely dried with a hair dryer. Then the keratin was applied to small sections of hair at a time, always combining that section to the sections already done to ensure an even coating. Then, my hair was dried again.

Once completely dried, a flat iron was taken to tiny sections at a time until my entire head was done. The iron needs to be somewhere between 350-450 degrees. Mine was done at 400 degrees.

I was told to not wash my hair for four days. It was completed at 12:30pm on Monday afternoon and I washed it this morning, Friday, at 7am. Close enough to four days...

The Brazilian Hair Straightening System will last anywhere from 3-6 months. I was the hair model for my mom's hair stylist for a certification class he teaches, so I didn't have to pay for it, but we'll see if it's worth the $250-300 to have it done again. I love straight hair!!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* The Brazilian Hair Straightening System - I love my straight hair!! * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Make the Move - How to Move your Real Estate Business Online by Claudia Wicks

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:02:53 -0600

I'm so excited!! The book I interviewed for last year, Make the Move - How to Move Your Real Estate Business Online by Claudia Wicks, is finally going to come out!! Check out Claudia's blog for updates, but below is a small snippet about what I had to say...

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Via Claudia Wicks (Real Estate Base Camp):

In my last blog, I mentioned that I would share some excerpts from my new book, “Make the Move.” Here is a preview of the cover- what do you think?

The premise of “Make the Move” is to help agents who have not mastered online marketing and systematized their business using Internet tools. The goal is to help them migrate their business online. My goal is to provide you with the information I have learned over the past 7 years teaching Internet marketing and technology training to agents and brokers. I will also share with you the best and brightest ideas of the top agents across North America. They have generously shared their ideas. We have all learned from one another.

So today, let’s start with one of the Top Agents featured in the book- someone many of you already know, Donna Harris, as an Active Rain Rainmaker. Donna generously shared how she started an online business and how she now generates nearly 100% of her business online.

Donna’s consistent blogging and the online presence that she has developed has generated high search engine ranking, Internet leads, provided a real service to her customers and allowed her to prospect painlessly.

Here’s how to work with Internet consumers in Donna’s own words:

“Working with Internet leads is different from working with the traditional consumers. You have to understand how to work with Internet consumers versus traditional consumers. The typical open house buyer, you get to meet. There is no anonymity. You know they are real, same with a sign call. You have the opportunity to talk with them. The Internet buyer, however, is just searching online. They may click on a pop-up without thinking about it. They insert their criteria; they are casually looking. You never know their actual price range. They still have anonymity; you need to follow-up differently. You can’t push. You don’t know their motivation. You need to stay in touch in a less invasive manner. Targeted drip e-mail campaigns work well for this. This just provides a way to stay in touch without constantly bugging them for an appointment.”

NEXT BLOG- I’ll share how Donna grew her database to over 3,500 prospects. Now that the book is almost ready- you’ll be able to find it on my website in about 1 month- my future blogs will contain smart tips from the book garnered over the past 7 years as an Internet marketing innovator and some of the very best ideas from the Top Agents featured in the book, who so generously share their expertise.

Amy's Ice Cream - Hill Country Galleria - Bee Cave Austin TX - FREE ICE CREAM

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:21:37 -0600

Amy's Ice Cream - Hill Country Galleria - Bee Cave Austin TX- FREE ICE CREAM give away!!

Today, November 4, 2009, between the hours of 2-6pm, Amy's Ice Cream will be giving away FREE Ice Cream to celebrate their 25th anniversary. This is good at all locations except the Airport. This does include the brand new store at the Hill Country Galleria Bee Cave Austin TX.

If you have time today, stop by and show your support for one of Austin's locally started businesses.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Bee Cave TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Amy's Ice Cream - Hill Country Galleria - Bee Cave Austin TX - FREE ICE CREAM * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Foto Friday - Trick or Treating at the Hill Country Galleria - Bee Cave Austin TX

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:38:07 -0500

The Hill Country Galleria - Bee Cave Austin TX - had their trick or treating event last night. This was Alyssa's first time to trick or treat as last year, she wasn't even one yet, and she didn't like her ladybug costume.

We had visited the Austin Zoo and Animal Sanctuary a couple of times, and she became obsessed with the Tigers and "big cats" so I bought her a Leopard costume. "I don't like that, Mommy!" I heard that for two weeks. Yesterday afternoon, she decided she liked it when I put the head band on her head and took her to the big, three-way mirror. After that, I didn't have a problem putting the costume on her!

We even saw a big Elmo. She smiled, but wouldn't go up to him. I picked her up for a picture, and a lady walked right in front, so I had to crop it down, but it's still cute.

We'll be sure to stop by the Hill Country Galleria next year too! They were great hosts!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Bee Cave Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Real Estate - Austin TX Homes for Sale are Selling Strong * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

How I Use My ActiveRain Blog to Enhance Relationships

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:03:31 -0500

I use my blog in many ways to enhance relationships with friends, family, clients, and others across the world wide web, which includes ActiveRain.

I've been here at ActiveRain since the beginning, back in the Summer of 2006. I didn't completely understand the concept of blogging, but gave it a shot. Weeks and months went on, and I feel I figured it out. A blog is just a "Web Log" which is like a diary. I started making my blog more personal, about me and my experiences, instead of just plain real estate information, and the followers came.

I'm definitely not afraid to talk about my opinion when I'm analyzing statistics and market activity. I think my neighbors and clients like the bluntness and the no sugar-coating as they know they're going to get a good deal when negotiating with me.

I recently did a series that explained The Simple Steps to Follow when buying a house in Austin TX. These steps are almost universal across the country, with a few differences per area customs. I've emailed these steps out to many buyers I'm working with.

I also get my message out with Twitter and Facebook. Whatever I post publicly on ActiveRain, Twitter auto-posts. Then, Twitter has an auto-post to Facebook. My posts are out there so no matter what platform you're on, you can see my latest information.

Whenever people bug me about pictures of my daughter, I always say, "You haven't read my blog lately, have you?" I've never had anyone ask twice for an update as they know where to go!

I had a closing a couple of weeks ago with a Relocation buyer. After several weeks of email communication, and only one phone conversation, they drove into town. Her first question to me was, "How's that Topsy Turvey working for you?" She read on my blog about the Topsy Turvey and was interested in using it herself next year.

Many people use their blogs to have one-sided conversations with themselves. With my blog, I feel I'm having several conversations at once with different people about different topics, and it's a great thing! No longer can someone hide behind a phone and still obtain new business in today's market. You have to put yourself out there for all the world to see, and you can't be shy about it!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* How I Use My ActiveRain Blog to Enhance Relationships * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Hyper-Local Blogging is Loved by Google Juice

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:17:42 -0500

For the past few weeks, I've been learning a lot about SEO and how to get my blogs and websites ranked higher up in the search engines, without paying ungodly amounts of money to all those spamming companies. I've spoken to a few of my regular blog visitors and they've all noticed a change in the formats and how the blog posts are written.

Is that good or bad? It's good on my part, but I can see how it's a little more robotic on their part. However, I'm not blogging just for conversation with other members of ActiveRain. I'm blogging in order to help capture more of my audience and dig deeper into how they are searching different words.

Below are a few examples of how I went from being ranked almost no where for main words, to being consistently ranked on page one. Granted, I'm not in the first position on all terms, but I've made it to the first page, and for only working on this for a few weeks, that's a huge leap in this competitive Austin market.

With "Lake Pointe Bee Cave TX Homes for Sale" I'm ranked #1 and #2!! I'm ranked higher than their main HOA page!!

I was very surprised, but as I would receive leads through my PPC accounts, I found many people searched the term "Hill Country Austin TX" so I incorporated that into my blogs and appear many times on page one.

Falconhead West is the community I live in and there are a couple of other Realtors that live here too, so I'm making sure I'm found being ranked high and often for future business as I meet and get to know my new neighbors.

Lakeway TX is a very popular city in the area, and I have family that live there, so I'm also trying to make sure I capture the eyes of their neighbors.

What you'll notice is that Google isn't finding just my ActiveRain site, but it's also finding my outside blog along with the localism links as well. When you blog about hyper-local content, Google loves you! I'm appearing multiple times for each blog, but on different platforms, and you never know which platform the consumer will like. Even my blogs for the different restaurants and shops in the area are highly ranked on page one.

I am a TREC (Texas Real Estate Commission) approved instructor, and I teach MCE classes about creating an internet presence, and I've definitely learned some new things the past few weeks. Thank you to Katerina Gasset for your help and advice with some of the information beyond just the basics. I had never thought about how important long tail keywords were. I always concentrated on the short tail keywords as I felt that was more and most important... but it's not!

Some of the blogs I wrote for the above results are:

Geronimo Park - Apache Shores - Lakeway TX - Quaint Little Park

City of Lakeway TX - Lakeway City Park - Halloween Goblin Glow

Falconhead PGA Golf Course - Bee Cave TX

Real Estate - Lakeway TX Homes for Sale - Austin Texas - Market Activity

Falconhead - Bee Cave TX - Golf Course Community Great Place to Call Home!

Lake Pointe Austin - Bee Cave TX - Market Activity

Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate - Sales Have Increased

Hill Country Galleria Bee Cave Austin TX - Concert Series

Falconhead West Bee Cave TX - TailGate Party was a Success

Falconhead West Bee Cave Austin TX - Tour and Tailgate Party

Real Estate Hill Country Austin TX Homes Are Selling!

Lake Pointe, Austin TX Market Activity

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Hyper-Local Blogging is Loved by Google Juice * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

New Construction Homes - Austin TX - Choosing a Brick Color

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:46:22 -0500

New Construction Homes - Austin TX - The color brick you choose for your new home says a lot about your personality. When our brick started crumbling and falling apart around us, and we were forced to choose a new brick, it was very hard.

The brick we originally chose has a lot of depth to it with reds, oranges, blues, browns, greens, and greys. It was called Western Sunset, and had many colors you would see in the sky during an actual sunset. In a nutshell, it had personality, and we liked that a lot! It's the brick on the right.

We also liked that it was not "brown" like all our other neighbors chose; be it light brown or dark brown or medium shade brown, they are all chosing to use brown. I didn't want to be just like everyone else, so we eliminated brown from our choices. Because of that, there were only a couple of options of brick to choose from.

As you can see from the picture on the left, we chose a darker red. It has red and black, with a little orange and brown to give it further depth. That was something we really looked for, a brick with multiple colors. Something about it we don't really care for is that the bricks aren't actually rectangular. Each brick has a notch out of it on one corner, so it looks like the brick is installed in uneven lines, but the mortar is just going around the beveled joint.

Before deciding on a brick color, drive by several homes with that color as it'll appear differently on different styles and sizes of homes. Also, it'll look very different if your samples are using a different color mortar than you will be using.

Right now, about 1/3 of the house is the new red and the rest is the old. They're slowly making their way around, but the rain hasn't helped. I thought it was cool that the two bricks meshed up at a window like this so you could see the difference without showing two different pictures with different lighting.

More rain tonight and tomorrow, so hopefully they'll finish the front today and start to work on the next side on Friday. And just a reminder, we are living in this brand new construction home as they're doing all this work. I can't get out my front door or the garage doors. It's currently a safety and fire hazard, but we're managing.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time New Construction Homes Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* New Construction Homes - Austin TX - Choosing a Brick Color * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Geronimo Park - Apache Shores - Lakeway TX - Quaint Little Park

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:20:22 -0500

Geronimo Park - Apache Shores - Lakeway TX is a quaint little park that has a lot to do. We didn't even know this park was back here. We were just driving around looking for more boat ramp options to launch our boat on Lake Austin or Lake Travis.

This cute bridge goes over a stream to get to Geronimo Park. It must have been built by some short people because my husband had to duck under the signs on either end, and he's barely six feet tall.

You can sit by the stream that runs through it and just watch all the water bugs scurry around. The water was completely clear, which is unusual, so we could see to the bottom. Also, because of the rain we've had the last couple of weeks, the water is moving pretty fast, and the little water falls within the stream are flowing nicely.

There is a typical playscape at the park, but they have two things that most parks don't have. Remember back in the day when you would get on a car or animal or whatever shape, and there was a huge spring at the bottom and you would go back and forth, front to back? They had a modern-day version of one of those!

They also had this little thing that simulated a dump truck. There were two handles, and one operated the scoop back and forth and the other moved the scoop up and down, and then the entire thing swiveled so you could dump the gravel wherever. My engineer husband loved this!! Toys for the adults at a park is always a plus!!

We'll definitely keep Geronimo Park - Apache Shores in Lakeway TX in mind on hot days next summer as it has a cover over the playscape which you don't find very often.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Apache Shores Lakeway TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Geronimo Park - Apache Shores - Lakeway TX - Quaint Little Park * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Speechless Sunday- Fall Harvest of Pumpkins

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:45:14 -0500

The parking lot of the Lakeway Commons has a place set up for pictures. You can come and go at your leisure.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Speechless Sunday - Fall Harvest of Pumpkins * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Real Estate - Homes for Sale - Austin TX - Sales Increase 6.4%

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:42:35 -0500

Real Estate - Homes for Sale in Austin TX and Central Texas rose 6.4% in September!! That's huge!! That's the first substantial increase, year-over-year, in more than two years!!

What else did the Austin Board of REALTORS® report?? The median sales price in the area was also up, by 2% to $185,250.

In August, homes for sale were strong with 1748 closed transactions. However, in September, which is traditionally a slower month since school just started back in session, closed transactions were at 1780 strong. To compare, there were only 1673 sales in September 2008.

There are many reasons why we're having an increase in sales, and it's not just the $8000 tax credit for first time home buyers. Have you looked at rates lately? They're well below 5% still. I'm not a big fan of the tax credit because, as a country, we're already broke and shouldn't be handing out money like that. However, I'm a huge fan of the low interest rates!

Because of the rates, people are still able to sell their starter homes and move up to larger homes, and potentially keep their same mortgage payments. How great is that! They could have an 1800 sqft home with an interest rate of 5.75% and turn around to buy a 2500 sqft home with an interest rate of 4.875% and equal out the price to payments.

Even if your family isn't getting larger, your kids are getting bigger and need more room. This is the perfect time to make that change!

If you have any questions or concerns about homes for sale in Austin TX, whether you're a buyer or a seller, please call or email me today!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate
and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar
Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in
between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way.

For real time Homes for Sale in Austin TX, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Real Estate - Homes for Sale - Austin TX - Sales Increase 6.4% * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Real Estate - Buying a House - Austin TX- The Simple Steps to Follow

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:19:48 -0500

Buying a House in Austin TX can be simple, if you break down the process. There are several steps, but knowing what those steps are, and in what order to do the steps, can make buying a house less intimidating.

A couple of months ago, I wrote a seven part series on the main steps of buying a house, but I wanted to put those steps all in one place for easy reference for anyone buying a house in Austin TX to find and follow. Below are the links to those steps with a brief description of each.

Getting pre-APPROVED verse getting pre-qualified for a home. Ask for a Good Faith Estimate and compare apples to apples between lenders.

Looking for houses. Drive the different neighborhoods multiple times for narrowing down where you want to concentrate your search. Make the drive to and from your office in rush hour traffic as well.

Looking at houses. Know upfront how much you're willing to spend to make a house your home, so you can look past cosmetic issues while you concentrate on structural and functional issues.

Writing an Offer. Make sure your REALTOR® pulls up as much history about the property and the comparables in the neighborhood to give you enough information for an educated and well thought out offer to the sellers.

Inspections are important, but you're buying a house "as is". Inspections are for the buyers' knowledge of the house; they are not so the buyer can give a laundry list to the seller for items to fix.

The Waiting Game is hard. At this point, you've turned in all your paperwork to the lender and you're just waiting for the closing date to arrive... do NOT make any changes to your work history or to your credit!!

Practice writing out your name. It sounds silly, but if you have an illegible signature, you need to learn to write your full name out, probably including your middle initial if the lender used it.

By following the steps above, buying a house in Austin TX should be a breeze for you... though I'm not guaranteeing that it'll be stress-free. There are lots of emotions throughout each step above, and as long as you're prepared with what comes next, the emotions won't get the better of you.

If you have any questions or concerns about Austin TX Real Estate, please call or email me today!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate
and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar
Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in
between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way.

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Real Estate - Buying a House - Austin TX - The Simple Steps to Follow * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

What Makes You Laugh??

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 17:13:12 -0500

I've been told be someone, who will remain nameless, that I'm not "funny" when it comes to ActiveRain and my blog posts and that I don't laugh enough, at myself or at others.

For you, Mr. Funnyman, here are some things that crack me up...

I laughed all the way to the bank when my first buyer here in Austin allotted my largest commission check ever because another agent didn't return his emails.
I laughed when I received a referral from an agent who contacted three Austin Realtors, and I was the only one who responded back.
I laughed pretty hard when I received a referral a few weeks ago from an agent that told me, "Honestly, you weren't the first call, but the "other person" never returned my calls or emails."
I laughed a little harder when I responded to an email that was meant to go to another agent, but the buyer liked that I responded back promptly letting them know I wasn't the "other person" and they're working with me now.
I laughed hysterically when I received a voicemail last month from someone that said, "Jason, I've called a couple of times and also emailed you, and you have yet to return my messages. I just want to sell my house, so please call me!!" I'll be listing that house after the Holidays.

See, I'm a funny funny person and I see humor in lots of things.

What makes you laugh??

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Bee Cave TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Happy Anniversary, Mike! We met on a blind date...

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:53:07 -0500

Happy Anniversary, Mike! Today marks 4 years since the day that mightly large Justice of the Peace came over to marry us.

We didn't have an actual "wedding" as we had other plans for that money. We wanted to add a covered patio, gas stove instead of the electric, new dishwasher, and updated light fixtures and fans. We then sold that house earlier this year for less than what we paid for it after putting in $20,000!!

So, we spent $150 for the JP to come to the house and our families insisted on coming over. We had only been in the house for five weeks, so I had to quickly unpack everything and make the house look presentable.

After the JP pronounced us, the UT game was put on... how romantic...

Then, we had some friends trickle in for a big party. We had about 80 people at the house. I catered in On the Border and the evening was topped off with some Red Velvet cake, that was wrong, and the cake lady made me a new cake on Monday, but that's another story.

December will mark 7 years together, as we met being set up on a blind date that he was 25 minutes late picking me up for. He told me a couple of years later that he wasn't planning on showing up. Sometimes I wonder...

And then I ran away...

but he caught me....... just kidding, we ran upstairs to get ready for walking down the stairs.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Bee Cave TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Happy Anniversary, Mke! We met on a blind date... * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Real Estate Opinions - Is it the Pricing or the Marketing?

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:21:49 -0500

Real Estate Opinions - What's more important, Pricing the home properly or the marketing? Yes, I understand the majority of people will say it's a combination of both, but that's not my question.

If you could only do one thing for a listing, would you price it properly and aggressively from day one or would you market the heck out of it and hope for the best?

I've recently run into two different situations with sellers who have their homes on the market. They're both using two different strategies, or at least their agents are.

The first one has had the house on the market for 11 months. He is using an agent who works exclusively in his gated community. He says they have had 67 showings on the house and never hear anything about feedback. He says the agent doesn't think it's a good idea to reduce the price because they're not getting feedback that it's overpriced, and he just wants an offer, any offer, so he can have a starting place with negotiations.

Since the agent is exclusive to this community and is a member of the country club there, he's assuming she has a lot of marketing in place that is supposed to just make people write an offer... but 67 showings and 11 months later, nothing, nada, zilch.

The second one has had the house on the market just over 2 months. How many price adjustments has she had?? FOUR!

The first thing I saw is that the original asking price was $4. This is so when a consumer is looking at properties, they can't tell what the true original asking price is or was so when the agent makes adjustments, the consumer doesn't know where the number actually started... until their buyer's agent looks at the history.

This house was listed for $475,000 on 8/12. Reduced substantially to $430,000 on 8/22. A buyer should think, "WOW! This seller is serious, I wanna buy it!" However, further history shows the seller bought it less than a year ago for only $410k.

On 9/4, the price was reduced to $420k, and further reduced to $415k on 10/7 and then $400,000 on 10/16.

As far as I can see, I can't see any marketing on this house. It seems the agent is feeding off the builders' traffic as she has done a couple of open houses and put a balloon on her sign that blows in the wind. The house is now priced lower than what the seller bought it for, but still no nibbles...

So, is it the marketing that gets people to write offers or is it the pricing strategy of lowering the price aggressively every few days that will make people write the offer? If seller number two had an agent that aggressively marketed the house as "barely lived in and better than new" and did some target marketing, would they have more bites? If she started out with the $430k price instead of the pie in the sky at $475k, would they have more bites?

If seller number one priced the home better to show buyers he was a serious seller, instead of letting it sit on the market for 11 months waiting, would he have already received the offer he was looking for in the price range he's willing to accept?

Two very different ideas of selling a house, yet both houses are yielding the same results, no offers!!

I'll ask again... if you were only allowed to use one strategy to sell a house, which would you choose, pricing or marketing?

It's a hard decision, I know. But think back to one of your hardest listings to sell and if you had to do it all over again on that particular house, which would you choose?

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Real Estate Opinions - Is it the Pricing or the Marketing? * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

City of Bee Cave TX - Bee Cave Central Park - Finally Opened!

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:09:22 -0500

The City of Bee Cave TX finally opened their long-awaited Bee Cave Central Park. Bee Cave's park was actually completed several months ago, but because of the drought in the area, the City of Bee Cave decided to postpone the opening. They wanted to allot enough time for the grass to grow in and the trees to take root so it wasn't very muddy.

Just in time for this past weekend, the City of Bee Cave made it happen!! For the occasion, my mom's group of friends decided to have a playdate at the Bee Cave Central Park. Over 50 people showed up! And even with so many kids running around and climbing on the equipment, there was still plenty of room for more kids.

The space is quite large and it's anchored by a covered Pavilion with water fountains and restrooms.

There is even a Basketball Court with about 6 different nets with room for several games to play at once.

At the other end of the parking lot is another, smaller Pavilion along with more play equipment, geared for the smaller kids who don't want to play with the bigger kids.

The hours for the Bee Cave Park are a little ambiguous as the sign says from "Sunrise to Sunset" and those times differ throughout the year. However, the sign below is a little more specific when it says from 8am to 30 minutes before Sunset.

I imagine my daughter and I will be spending a lot of time here...

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Bee Cave TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* City of Bee Cave TX - Bee Cave Central Park - Finally Opened! * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

City of Lakeway TX - Lakeway City Park - Halloween Goblin Glow

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 10:41:11 -0500

The City of Lakeway TX had their annual Halloween Goblin Glow last night at the Lakeway City Park on Hurst Creek.

This was our first time to go, so I didn't know what to expect. There were five hot air balloons and every so often, they would light their fire and make the balloons glow. You could go right up to the baskets of the balloons and trick-or-treat. They gave out lots of candy.

There was also face painting, hair spraying with colors, people on stilts, and a balloon artist. Alyssa got her hair sprayed Orange to go with her LongHorn Cheerleader outfit.

And, of course, you can't forget the Live Music. There was a great band, whose name has slipped my mind, but there was lots of dancing from the little ones.

Here are some pictures I took of the Goblin Glow balloons lighting up.

There are always Austin TX Activities with some Austin TX Entertainment for all ages and areas in and surrounding Austin.

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin MLS listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
*City of Lakeway TX - Lakeway City Park - Halloween Goblin Glow* was first published on donnahomesblog.com

I Can See the Progress...

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 15:31:59 -0500

FINALLY!! I can see some progress being made on my house! The brick was supposed to be replaced last week, but they got scared of rain, yet it didn't rain until Friday. They finally showed up on Wednesday this week, one guy. On Thursday, late afternoon, one guy.

I felt they were humoring me by sending just one guy over, so I sent a nasty-gram to the Regional Manager person... however, I have yet to receive a response...

After much damage to the house yesterday, that's all been repaired, and the brick is going up...

They still say it's going to be two weeks, and let's hope that the rain stays away!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin MLS listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Silly Saturday- My Very Own UT Longhorn Cheerleader

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 09:24:01 -0500

Here is my very own University of Texas Longhorn Cheerleader! She is dressed and ready for today's game against that Okie team, the Red River Rivalry.

UT has won 3 out of the last 4 games, and OU is coming off of some injuries, so if I were to bet on the game, I would put all my money on UT!

Hook 'em!!

**Are You Packed Yet?**

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

For real time Austin MLS listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2009 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Silly Saturday - My Very Own UT Longhorn Cheerleader * was first published on donnahomesblog.com