This week I'll be holding a social media training event for the Water Wonderland Board of REALTORS.  In preparation for my trip to Gaylord on Thursday, I asked some questions of the board AE Jeannie Rizzardi regarding what was going on in their market.  I did this in part so I had a feel for the outlook and mindset of the members, and in part so that I could have some material for examples. One of the items that came back in a response from Board President Cheryl Schlehuber was regarding the new Mackinac Straits Hospital and Health Care system in St. Ignace.  Cheryl said: "We have a brand new Hospital and Health Care system with is the first of its kind in the nation, combining the previous county hospital with the Tribal health care.  Opened on the north side of the city in May of this... 05/19/2010

The common misconception about Buyers Agents is that we take people out to look at a few homes, write the offers, then sit back and collect a paycheck.Misconception?   What an understatement!Take for example what goes on behind the scenes before we ever step foot in a home with our buyer clients: Talk with the buyers about their wish list / want list / must have list in a home. Sort through all of the thousands of listings in the various MLS databases, narrowingdown only those that fit the buyers criteria. Research the property taxes on the properties.  (I'll let you know about the importanceof this in a separate post.) Check the ownership of the home (looking for conflicting information in public records) Sifting through the comments and photos to ascertain whether a home meets your fi... 09/21/2009

Greetings from Michigan's Upper Peninsula, yes, where "Yoopers" live, work and play.  If you're from Michigan or the surrounding Great Lakes States, you probably know right where we're at.  If you're from anywhere else, you may have never heard of us or you actually found us and traveled here on vacation. We're 50 mi. south of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Canada, 300 miles due north of Detroit, smack in the middle of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron and connected by the famous Mackinac Bridge.  The city of St. Ignace was founded in 1676 so we've been around a while. I love to travel and am always interested in stories of how people end up where they do, whether it's was on vacation, job transfer or have roots there. how they found it and so on.  I volunteer in the tourism business so I'm reall... 04/12/2008

Before foreclosure homes became an everyday occurrence in our real estate market we used to conduct business in ways that I really miss.Parts of my job that I wish would make a comeback are (in no specific order):    Presenting an offer to purchase face to     face with the sellers and their agent.    Receiving a response to an offer to purchase    before the next full moon.    Homes that didn't have to be de-winterized    prior to inspecting.    Homes with the lights on.  (Especially the    porch lights!)    Lockboxes that actually had keys inside of     them.    Closing celebrations that involved all parties    to the transaction.  I'm selfish.  I'm anxious for the turn around in our real estate market for more than the sheer benefit it would bring to our state and economy.  I want th... 03/26/2008

So many people seem to be curious about the people and lifestyle of Northern Michigan and more specific, the Eastern Upper Peninsula and Great Lakes region.  Yes, they call us "Yoopers".  Once a Detroit girl, I got transplanted to the U.P. as a teenager. If anyone knows Michigan, that's 300 miles straight north and at the time, quite the culture shock.  Now I LOVE this small waterfront community and because in my travels, many people don't know where we're located, I thought I'd just jump in to this Active Rain Community and share information about our area, market and in general and see what unfolds.I have had many careers in my life but feel most fortunate to have discovered the real estate industry (OK, most days). Living and working in a small community like St. Ignace is challengin... 08/13/2007

Ihave a question I would like to ask and hope to get some insight from rainers.  As most know Michigan is in a tough spot right now and lower MI has been hard hit from the troubles with the auto makers.  I was talking with another business owner today about the state of the UP and the effects the troubles of lower MI have had on us.  For those of you in the lower part of the state and surrounding states, what was/is the biggest draw for you to the UP and why, if it applies, do you not come north as often as you would like, or why have you stopped coming north.  Please feel free to give your worst and best stories of the UP and please tell me what you think the UP could do to make it more attractive to people.  There are those of us up here that are trying to revive our area, we don't wa... 05/10/2007

Hi everyone!  It's Spring, the Black Flies are biting!  I am excited about what is going on in our community and I wanted to share it with everyone.  I live in Moran in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and I bet there is a surprising amount of you that know where that is.  Moran is located in Brevort Township of Mackinac County and we are a 4 seasons paradise.  Our community has been run down and very much a diamond in the rough but we are starting to shine!  If you have traveled to or through our area you may remember how bad Moran looked and had nothing to offer but things have changed.  Through hard work and cooperation the old fallen in buildings have been torn down and new business are moving in.  We now have a True Value Hardware(my store), The Rock Bottom-restaurant/bar, King's Fish Ma... 05/09/2007

    I just joined Active Rain it is truly a great place to share knowledge about Real Estate. I would just like to mention that I am a Realtor in Northern Michigan. I service the Northern Tip of the Lower Peninsula and Eastern side of the Upper Peninsula. My office is located at the south end of the Mackinac Bridge in Mackinaw City. I live in the Upper Peninsula in the town of ST. Ignace just over the bridge. Northern Michigan is truly a wonderful place to live. It is surrounded by the Great Lakes and full of woods. It is a place you could live year round or to have a second home or vaction property or weekend Cabin or hunting cabin ther is plenty to do arround here Hunting, Fishing, Golfing some great tourist attractions including Mackinac Island, if you or anyone you know need any Rea... 03/28/2007