Never before...and not likely again...will you get such a tremendous value for your housing dollar...this condo is bigger than lots of houses...over 1200 square feet....3 bedrooms...kitchen and dinette with all the appliances..gas fireplace...in unit laundry...Outdoor Pool...and Community Room....recreation inside and out....all yours to enjoy in Woodland Trails Condominiums ....a few steps from the Sports Complex..on Cobblestone turn north on Ryan Road.

A little patience with this short sale will result in tremendous value for the new onwer !

           9363 S Cobblestone Way, Unit H , Franklin, WI

                    JUST  $125,555

  14010 West Meadowshire Drive, New Berlin, WI

                       Noon to 1:30 pm

  I could lie and say “I like football as much as the next Packer Backer”…but I would not be telling the truth….and I think there is a special place in Blogging Hades for Bloggers who lie…I do have to say that the Packer schedule does play havoc  for our sellers and the people who are devoted fans….so in honor of Packer Fans…we invite you    to our open House on Saturday, November  21st noon to 1:30 p.m.

    You are going to LOVE this house….there is nothing  not to love….from the 3 car garage and finished lower level to the granite countered kitchen, updated baths….the ambience of the gas fireplace…the patio with with privacy fence and waterfall…..new carpeted….newer mechanicals…outstanding location…inside and out…from the in ground sprinkler system and newer driveway to the master suite and walk in closet…4 bedrooms…2.5 baths…your family will want to call it home….and at $369,215…you will too !  If you need a private tour/showing, just call the Hansons- 7 days a week: 414-525-0563 and we are happy to set up a convenient showing time for you.

    Yesterday while I was enjoying my usual morning routine…AR and coffee…I came across a blog by Sharlene Hensrud   of St. Louis Park , Minnesota.  She had given a recipe for Panera’s baked potato soup…..creamy cheddar cheese, bacon bits…the imagined aroma wafted thru my mind all day.  Work…soup…..appointment…still not able to erase the taste from my brain….so on the way home from our listing appointment, we  stopped at Aldis….which has become an addiction that a Doctor client of ours had introduced my husband to a couple years ago. It has become an obsession of how many bags he can fill for $X.  Baking potatoes, sour cream, cheese, bacon…..and on to the fresh vegetable aisle to grab the bunch of onions for the garnish….and piled high were bags of burger and hot dog buns for next to nothing…we had just been to the Waukesha  Womens’  Center the day before and knew that the shelter was experiencing shortages in every area.  We ran to the checkout and asked if there was a limit as to how many bags of buns you could buy….We explained we were going to take them to the shelter….”Take them all !” the manager said.  We filled an entire shopping cart….and then some with 72 bags of buns and then some sloppy joe fixings and hot dogs to fill them.  We were thrilled at our good fortune…and the fortune that the women and children at the shelter would experience with our Bun-nanza  of Value !

    It all started with Active Rain…..a blog from Minnesota that ended up feeding hundreds in Wisconsin…..Thank you Sharlene….it was a great recipe….we did make it tonite and enjoyed it a great deal….but the really great deal was being in the right place as the right time…and being able to give back.  You can do this too…we left our business card at the store and the next time they have large quantities of food that they are going to sell quickly…they are going to call us first.

       Do you have a store near your home or office where you could help the local shelter or food pantry by taking a few minutes to give back ?  It’s a souper feeling that warms you all over.

    Active Rain isn't just food for thought...it fed a whole shelter of women and children !

               Active Rain is Just Souper !  

  I am not one to pass along e-mails...in 5 minutes to 12 people so my wishes come true.....I received this e-mail this morning from a good friend....who was widowed before 50 due to her husband's cancer...she has recently lost a niece in her 20's...we all know someone...a friend, a relative, a neighbor....who has been taken by this disease...what an incredibly powerful thing if everyone in AR would take 1 minute every day to think positive thoughts...pray as your faith dictates...do as your conscience suggests....to rid the world of this horrible devastating disease...Amen.

  This is the time of year when we count our blessings....know are very fortunate we are to have a warm bed, roof over our heads a choice of food, entertainment...and thoughts turn to people who at not as fortunate at this moment.  The Waukesha Womens Center is a place of refuge for women throughout Waukesha County who have escaped an abusive relationship...often with children in tow and very little more than the clothes on their backs. A few times a year....we do what we can and encourage others to go to their website and review their immediate needs and see what each of you can do to help make the holidays a little brighter for people who may have reached the bottom of where they felt they would ever be....

   The lists you will find at their site,  Sure there are the basic needed things...food...serving utencils..and the bus fare tickets.  They always need to "outfit" single beds...we choose to do a number of beds each year from the mattress pad and pillow to the sheets and blankets. Stuffed animals to cuddle, games to play...nail polish and makeup to brighten what has to be a very depressing time of life.  We choose this as "our charity"....we choose it because it's not that baby, that child, that teenager OR that woman's fault....it's a little hand up...at a time when putting a head up...a chin up ...may be the most difficult thing to do...a hand is what we can all do at this time when so many need the touch of someone who can in some way help them through the hard times and let them know that someday things will be better....and their days brighter once again.

   We spoke with a seller who is very upside down with their mortgage and has already had some reduction in income with a pending divorce which is only going to become more drastic when the divorce is final.  "It goes against my moral fiber..." he sobbed.   He has sold everything he owns, borrowed money from family members (almost ironically that was going to be used for the down payment on a house.) and done all he can do to try and remain in the house and not "short the bank."

     Many people were raised all wrong to be irreponsible and the thought of not paying a bill on time...or at all..of getting any consideration for a short sale is more than they can bear.  They have worked hard, made timely payments, made home improvements....put sweat equity....a piece of their heart...a part of their soul in what is often, their largest asset. He wants to try a loan modification....he just "can't do that to the bank who lent me money and expected payment in return....they trusted me."  Yes...and you trusted them not to lend you more than the house was worth....more than you could pay when the rate adjusted....and they have no conscience about that. But then "they" are corporate America....not the man who worked hard all his life, paid his bills, was and still is a credit to society....and now his choices are limited.

   We will try and help him with a loan modification if it's possible...for whatever reason...when a realtor talks to a lender...the answers are faster...the terms more easily undertstood.  We will do all we can to help him maintain his dignity during a difficult period in his life....it's what realtors do...it's not always about the money or the listing...it is a people business...and we can be the people who help people and are paid in the gratitude we get, the way we feel when the job is done and the burden lifted from the seller...it's what we do, it's what we should all do, whenever it can be done.

  The City of New Berlin will be celebrating its Christmas Tree Lighting on Saturday, December 5^th 2009 at the New Berlin Veterans Memorial site located on the corner of Casper Dr. and National Ave.  The event is sponsored by the New Berlin Lions Club and begins at 4:30 pm. 

There will be a presentation of Christmas Carols by the New Berlin Eisenhower Choir and brief remarks by our City’s dignitaries.  The New Berlin Lions will distribute free stockings filled with candy. New Berlin Boy’s and Girl’s Scouts will provide food and hot chocolate. 

    Bring your camera because Santa and Mrs. Claus will be there to visit with the kids at the New Berlin Fire Station across the street. Santa’s Elves will be accepting letters to Santa. The Mail Carriers at the New Berlin Post Office will have a special mailbox for Santa at their Post Office for kids who can’t make it on December 5^th or they can simply put them in your home Mail Box and Mail Carriers will make sure Santa receives them. It’s important that the address is legibly written so that Santa is able to write back to the kids. Snow or shine the event will mark the beginning of this special season of the year.

  Divorce can be one of the reasons that people sell a home...and can also be the reason for a short sale.  The house that was larger when more children lived at home...the dream house that could only be supported by two incomes...the rate that adjusted....a combination of circumstances not only leads to the end of a relationship with husband and wife...it is the end of either member of the couple being able to stay in what had been their primary homestead.

   The decline in values in the housing market can sometimes mean the dream house, larger house is no longer worth the amount of the mortgage balance.  This is not a part of the plan that either the husband or the wife had envisioned. They imagined...they would pay off the mortgage and each have some "start over money" for the purchase of a condo or smaller home...that was going to be the next "happily ever after."

    At some point reality enters the picture. often one or more realtors who have listed the home...and priced it with the mortgage payoff, home equity pay off, commission, taxes and start over money combined...have not been able to sell the house for the over market price.  The couple wants to blame the realtor...that has a face and the market does not.  They may have tired initially or eventually to "save the commission" by trying to sell the home on their own...as a first step...or a last step.

    Agreeing to do a short sale is sometimes difficult...when there are few things in the fray of emotions that a couple can agree on...the disposition of one of their largest assets can heart wrenching and economically devastating. An experienced realtor can be one of the professionals consulted to help the couple know their viable options. Experienced and successful...perhaps there are refinancing or other options available....each situation is unique. 

    If you are divorcing, divorced...know someone who is and the sale of the house is an obstacle to starting over, call a realtor with short sale experience...and tell them you want to know all the options available so that each member of the couple can begin their "happily ever after."

  Ahhh...we just sent these same words of wisdom to our sphere...fewer homes on the market...all decorated and ready to sell....wait till spring..oh not ....celebrate the season with listings...agents....sellers....and oh yes...Buyers...they are gorgeous !