With Google Stories there is no room for humility

Have you made your Google Story yet?  I confess, up until today I totally did not even have a clue how to do this! Of course it didn't take much searching to figure out how to make one (Here's a hint: Type "Google stories make your own" in the Google box).

With a Google Story you have 7 frames to put together a beginning, a middle, and an end.  There's no room for fluffery or beating around the bush, that's for darn sure!

For my Google Story, I did one on how medical professionals moving to Gainesville FL can find the best REALTOR(R) to help them with their home search.

Why would I do my Google Story on this?

1. Because I am a real estate agent in Gainesville FL,
2. Who is the wife of a physician,
3. Who has lived in 6 states and has moved 11 times and understands the urgency and time constraints often facing medical professionals moving in to a new city,
4. Who once had to find a city area, school district, neighborhood, and house to live in.... all within 48 hours,
   
5. Who gets that with these kinds of time constraints and these kinds of stress levels there is no room left over for melodrama or fuss.

The thing I liked best about putting together my own Google Story, besides the fact that it's all about ME, and about how I help medical professionals moving to Gainesville FL find their perfect home, is the fact that it was so EASY to put together.

What do you want your story to be about?

You need to have a clear idea of where you want to begin, and where you want to end, and what you want to happen in between.  With such strict time and space limitations, there is no room left over for an "Aww shucks" storyline.

Once you have a clear idea in your head re what you want your story to be about and where you want it to go, get started!

Basically what you do is you type a term into a search box to begin your Google Story....I suppose you could call this first Google Search frame setting the scene.

After you type in what you want your search term to be (whether it's your first search term for your story, or your seventh -- the maximum), you click on the drop-down box and pick whether you want this search to be a web search, a blog search, an image search, a product search, a news search, or a book search.

After you pick which type of search, Google Stories shows you a short preview of that selection.  If you want to see what another selection looks like, just make another selection from the drop-down menu and preview it.

After you've finished your project, you get to pick the music you'd like to accompany your Google Story.  Again, Google Story rocks because you get to listen to short bits of different musical pieces before selecting one that you think would be most appropriate for your video.

All done?  Then hit DONE!  Then Google Stories will generate the video (which takes all of a minute or two) and you get to preview it.  If you are happy with it, you can select to publish it to YouTube and Google does the rest.  After it uploads onto YouTube you can share it with all types of social networks like FaceBook and Twitter, and you can even grab the embed code and use it to do something like THIS cool post.  :)

Now, if after watching your Google Story preview you are not completely happy with it, just press the edit button. Google Stories will take you back to the canvas where you can dink around by inserting new search terms and seeing what they will do to further tighten up your story and tell it more convincingly to your audience.  WAY fun tool! 

Would love some feedback from you all re what you think of mine....effusive praise is welcomed and encouraged! :)

3 Reasons Gainesville Florida rocks!

Ever since we moved to Gainesville Florida two years ago, I began my quest to become its Number 1 fan!  There is SO MUCH to love about living in Gainesville! Here are the top 3 reasons Gainesville is a GREAT place to live!

1) The WEATHER ... well, except for the summer, which is akin to leaving your oven door open and parking yourself in front of it for the day. But if the worst thing Gainesville weather has to offer is summer heat paired with wilting humidity, no problem! I'd much rather deal with that than with snow, and ice, and slush, and scraping windshields, and shoveling, and snow. Did I mention snow? We don't get that stuff around here. 

What about hurricanes, you say? Well, for the most part, Gainesville doesn't catch the brunt of them (or so I hear). We're far enough inland that you don't have to worry about emergency trips to Home Depot for wood to nail over your windows and all that sort of stuff.  High winds and lashing rain, yes....definitely.  And Gainesville is certainly not immune to falling tree limbs, which is why it is important that you get your trees trimmed regularly so that you don't have an up close and personal encounter with tree limbs in your living room.  Sure that possibility is no fun at all....but did I mention it doesn't snow here?

2) The WILDLIFE!  I LOVE critters! Frogs, toads, anole lizards, snakes of all stripes and sizes, armadillos, gopher tortoises, owls....all have been regular visitors to our backyard....and in one house we lived in, we had tree frogs (the cute little ones with the tiny circle nubbin toes) living in our mailbox! How COOL is that?!  And that's not even counting the gators and leatherback tortoises and sandhill cranes and bison and wild boar and all other types of various and sundry creatures that we get to see just driving 15 minutes over to Paynes Prairie in Gainesville!  I tell you, it's like living a Wild Kingdom episode every day.  Way cool.

3) The WATER!  North Central Florida is blessed with numerous cold water springs which feed our rivers and streams. These cool, clear, see-your-feet-in-the-bottom aquamarine waters look like something right out of a movie. Kayaking and tubing adventures in these crystalline waters are available less than an hour from Gainesville. Manatees make many of these springs their home in winter months. MORE wildlife plus CRYSTAL BLUE waters plus a KAYAK make for one lovely adventure! Again...how cool is that??

And you know what's best of all?  If you can't find what you're looking for in Gainesville, you can most likely still get there from here! 

Gainesville is:

• 45 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico (Cedar Key);
• 90 minutes from America's oldest city (St. Augustine); and

• 2 hours from Universal Studios and Walt Disney World and Epcot.

I'm not going to do a mileage map for you re distance of every city and attraction relative to Gainesville FL but you get the idea. Living in Gainesville FL puts SO much to do right in your own backyard, and I am so HAPPY that we live here!

Here is a short movie I put together about Gainesville.  Enjoy! :)

Gopher tortoises in Gainesville FL - What to do if you find one?

I have always wanted to use the phrase "Do not try this at home" but never really had a chance to. Until now.

Let me explain.

One of the things that I love the MOST about living in Gainesville FL is all of the wildlife!  Frogs, toads, anole lizards, and snakes abound. Every night I hear an owl hooting in our backyard.  Gainesville FL is a GREAT place to live especially if you love the outdoors.

So imagine my unbounded joy when I discovered this cute little gopher tortoise on a walk around our Haile Plantation neighborhood.

Now, I had seen one of his relatives crushed to bits in the road just a week before...and when I saw this dude munching on grass close to the same spot where his cousin had been obliterated, I just had to act.

I picked him up and brought him back to our neighborhood a couple of blocks away, thrilled that I'd saved his life and excited to get a few up close and personal moments on FlipVideo with him.

Seems like a pretty innocent video, no? Well, apparently, not so much. After I posted it to YouTube I got a couple of commenters who said that gopher tortoises are a threatened species and by moving him like this I was breaking the law.

So, to keep you from making the same mistake I thought I should post some info here about what you should do if you find a gopher tortoise flirting with disaster on the side of the road in Gainesville FL.

Here's what the Florida Wildlife Commission says to do if you find a gopher tortoise in the road:

"It is illegal to posses or relocate a tortoise without a permit from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Although a wildlife officer would not write you a citation for helping a tortoise across a busy road, picking up a tortoise and taking it to a new location is a violation law. If you do see a tortoise in the road and help it across, be sure to move it across the road in the direction it was heading as the tortoise has a burrow (home) nearby and needs that home to survive. Also remember, moving it (especially during cold weather) could stress or even kill it. Moving tortoises can also spread disease to other tortoise populations. These animals have a strong instinct to return to their original burrow and, if relocated down the road, will likely return to where you first found them."

I felt so bad when I realized that by "rescuing" this gopher tortoise I may have put his life in danger anyway.

Which was not my plan at all.

Hope this info comes in handy for gopher tortoise rescuers in Gainesville.  I know I'll keep it in mind if I ever find another gopher tortoise flirting with disaster!

How are Haile Plantation home sales in Gainesville FL?

Check out this chart and you tell me:

See that ginormous gap between the amount of Haile Plantation homes sold in the second quarter  (2Q10 - the blue line) and the amount of Haile Plantation homes sold in the first quarter (1Q10 - the green line)?  Hmmmm....What could have happened to explain the jump in the amount of homes sold in Haile Plantation during the second quarter?  Could it be.....the homebuyer tax credit, which expired at the end of June (which coincidentally marked the end of the second quarter)?  Why yes, yes it could!  As you can see, the first time homebuyer tax credit definitely had a positive impact on the amount of homes sold in Haile Plantation during April through June of this year.

Forty-nine homes sold in Haile Plantation during the second quarter of 2010, as compared to 18 homes sold during the first quarter of 2010. Here is a breakdown of where these sales occurred in 2Q10: Eloise Gardens - 3; Garison Way - 2; Haile - Amelia Gardens - 2; Haile - Bedford Square - 1; Haile - Camden Court - 1; Haile - Carlton Court - 1; Haile - Chestnut Hill - 1; Haile - Chickasaw Way - 1; Haile - Founders Hill - 3; Haile - Grahams Mill - 1; Haile - Lexington Farms - 1; Haile - Haile Market Square - 1; Haile - Hampstead Park - 1; Haile - Katelyn Lane - 2; Haile - Laurel Park - 1; Haile - Madison Square - 1; Haile - The Preserve - 4; Haile - Prestonwood - 2; Haile - Rosemond Way - 1; Haile - Sable Pointe - 2; Haile - Stratford Ridge - 2; Haile - Victoria Circle - 1; Haile - Village Center - 2; Haile - William Kent Court - 1; Kenwood - 4; Stillwind - 3; Tower 24 - 2; Valwood - 2

What about Haile Plantation home prices? 

For the most part, median sales prices on Haile Plantation homes sold were lower in the second quarter than they were in the first quarter....with the exception of 3 bedroom homes sold, which had a slightly higher median sales price than they did in the first quarter of the year.

Average days on market

During the 1st quarter of this year, the homes which sold in Haile Plantation  took an average of 221 days to sell. 

In the second quarter (April through June), homes selling in Haile Plantation took an average of 215 days to sell.

How is the third quarter of the year shaping up in terms of Haile Plantation home sales?

With one month to go until the end of the third quarter, here's a look at where we stand:

During the months of July and August, 27 homes sold in the Haile Plantation market area, so unless we scare up 22 home sales or more in Haile Plantation during September, we are going to be lagging behind the  49 homes sold during the second quarter, which isn't surprising given the expiration of the homebuyer tax credit. The median sales price of homes sold in Haile Plantation for the months of July and August, broken down by number of bedrooms, is as follows: 2 bedrooms or less - $163,000; 3 bedrooms - $189,000; 4 bedrooms or more - $412,828. So far this quarter, average days on market is 193.

So you've bought a new home.....no need for a home inspection, right? WRONG!

In this post "I Don't Need a Home Inspection....I'm Buying a New Home From the Builder" my Active Rain colleague Carla Muss-Jacobs from Beaverton Oregon gives some prime real-life examples of how getting a home inspection even on a new home can end up saving you a LOT of money in the long run.

Thanks, Carla!!  :)

If you needed any more proof that NOW is a great time to BUY, this compelling post by my Active Rain colleague Leslie Ebersole out of Chicago IL should put any last doubts you have to rest.

And SELLERS, PLEASE take note of what Leslie has to say.....I couldn't say it any better myself!

Leslie, THANK YOU so much for this awesome post!

I was just reading thru the comments on Rebecca Diamond's post about Open Houses (which I agreed with wholeheartedly by the way) and somebody here made a great point....it's not whether open houses work or not.....it's whether they work for US.

And as long as it IS disclosed to a seller that the chances of a buyer coming in to buy their home at one of these things is slim to none, and they still want to do one....well....all righty then.

But I do not like doing them, and here are just a few reasons why:

1) Security - I feel like rape bait.

2) Security - See #1. Also, is person looking at home to buy it? Or are they going through casing the house to break in at some other time? Or what if the moaning I hear coming from the bedroom isn't because the visitors are admiring the crown molding? What if they're....well....you know. I've heard that happens.

3) They're not effective in selling the home that's open. Plus, you might have to change the sheets.

4) I freak out about bathroom stuff...what if I'm in the bathroom when someone comes in? Should I go at all? What if I use the last of the toilet paper? Or what if there's hardly any left? Would it be rude if I looked for more?

5) I get sleepy at open houses....most especially when they are empty.  I bring my computer. I bring my books. But still, the sleepies set in. What if somebody shows up and I'm snoring? Or drooling? Or just in that fuzzy headed state where my tongue is half paralyzed and I have trouble putting together thoughts? How is that going to look? What about the TV? Totally off limits? Or would HGTV or CNN or the Gator game be okay?

6) What if I get hungry? Can I eat? What if I'm eating when someone comes in? Isn't that bad form? And what to do with the cheeseburger wrapper? Damn! I forgot a trash bag! Can I put the wrapper in their trash bag?

7) That Big Gulp is kicking in and I need to use the bathroom. Ahh geez.

8) Should I sit outside on the porch? It's a beautiful day. Or will that look like I'm stalking?

9) But if I sit inside what if nobody thinks I'm there? Will they still knock? Should I leave the front door wide open? A little open? A sign on the door that says Please Come In? What if I put up a sign like that? Isn't that just inviting #1?

And what about balloons? How many to put on the sign? And what if one of the balloons on the sign out front pops and the strings from the other balloons are all jacked up? Should I just leave the whole mess alone? Or should I try to remove the balloon corpse so it doesn't send a bad message about the housing market? And what if I DO try to remove the balloon corpse, and a buyer is thinking of stopping, but then sees me outside messing with the balloons? Will that scare them off? Maybe they won't want to come in. And if I'm outside messing with the jacked up balloons and someone pulls up and I left my phone inside because I needed the use of both hands to fix the balloon situation so I can't call 911 if the buyer pulling up is a psychopath? What then?

And what do I do with the balloons after the open house is over? Pop them all mercilessly? Track down a neighbor kid and hope I don't get reported for stalking? Let them deflate in my garage until they're latex prunes?

And what if any balloons get loose? How do I live with the guilt of knowing I've choked a bird or a dolphin or something?

Geez.

I'm sorry, but no good can come out of these things.

Southwest Gainesville Neighborhoods: Wilds Plantation, Cambridge Forest, and Hayes Glen

The neighborhoods of southwest Gainesville are many and varied, including pool neighborhoods and horse-friendly neighborhoods. You can find homes in a variety of styles and a variety of price points in southwest Gainesville.

Following are profiles of three southwest Gainesville neighborhoods: Wilds Plantation, Cambridge Forest, and Hayes Glen

Wilds Plantation features homes built by noted builders such as Tommy Waters, Barry Bullard, Barry Rutenberg, and Warring Homes. Begun in 2003, Wilds Plantation is still actively being built, so if you are looking to build your own home, Wilds Plantation just may be the ticket.

Just 8 miles from Shands and the University of Florida, the southwest Gainesville neighborhood of Wilds Plantation is zoned for Chiles Elementary School, Kanapaha Middle School, and Buchholz High School.

Cambridge Forest is a G. W. Robinson built community which features energy efficient homes. This southwest Gainesville neighborhood stresses environmental awareness, which is evident in the native plantings used throughout the landscaping, as well as the fact that the community has its very own gopher tortoise management plan.

Just 20 minutes to Shands and the University of Florida, Cambridge Forest is zoned for Chiles Elementary School, Kanapaha Middle School, and Buchholz High School.

Hayes Glen is a horse-friendly neighborhood in southwest Gainesville less than 30 minutes from Shands and the University of Florida. It is located adjacent to Cheney Walk Farm, a private hunter jumper barn which sometimes has horses for sale. Built between 1986 and 2001, this southwest Gainesville neighborhood features large homes on lots of 2 acres or more. Zoned for Chiles Elementary School, Kanapaha Middle School, and Buchholz High School, the pastoral southwest Gainesville neighborhood of Hayes Glen is close to all that Gainesville has to offer but feels like a world away.

My Active Rain colleague Tessa Skeens is a home stager out of Texas. She wrote this GREAT post about how best to stage your home to sell.

Great tips, Tessa! Thanks! :)

Because You Can't Draw From a Dry Well....

I took the summer off from Active Rain.  My Google Juice took a hit, but guess what?

Taking the summer off to spend time with my family meant....

A trip along the Pacific coast....

A chance to see the redwoods....

Time to go crabbing for Dungeness crabs in Oregon's Netarts Bay:

A chance to catch up with family....And with dear friends who are like family...

In other words....I may have dropped of the face of the Active Rain planet for a while....and my Google juice may have taken a hit....

But what I lost in Google juice was well worth the cost.

Because I filled my well back up!

I am SO blessed!!