Monday, November 28, 2011

Support The Troops - Rush Time!

Hey, Livingston County! One of the Brighton Optimists, Donna Campbell, is helping a friend collect items to send over to the troops in Afghanistan.  She'll be collecting items Thursday morning at the Bauery Restaurant at Mt. Brighton, during the weekly Brighton Optimist Club Meeting.  An excerpted list of items that are wanted are:

lotion, sunscreen, deodorant - all travel size; chap stick, soap, eye drops, disposable razors; individual packets of trail mix, beef jerky, and general munchies; disposable cameras, small toys like beanie babies that the troops can hand out to the kids over there; zip lock bags and holiday decorations, duct tape, writing paper. Optimists, let's fill her vehicle up THIS THURSDAY - then go ring bells for the Salvation Army. Bring your stuff to Mt. Brighton at 7:30 am Thursday, December 1st.

All Livingston County residents - if you can stop by with some of these items, please do so.  Stick around for breakfast on the Brighton Optimist Club if you wish.  If you can't make the early hour, drop your items off at Campbell's Collision on Grand River just east of Whitmore Lake Rd.   Let's help make the Holidays a little nicer for our troops!


Ypsilanti One Of Least Expensive College Towns for Home Buying

An Inman News article released today listed the top 10 cheapest and top 10 most expensive college towns in the USA. Michigan had two entries in the least expensive category - Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti at number 3 with an average list price of $107,458, and Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo at number 5 with an average market list price of $116,455.


The least expensive college town listed was the University of Memphis, in Tennessee, at $89,244. They were also the only town where the average listing price was below $100,000.

Eight of the ten most expensive towns were in the western part of the country, with UCLA (Westwood CA) being tops. The average listing price in that market is $1,271,428. The bottom of the list for most expensive college towns was Annapolis Maryland, home of the US Naval Academy. Their average list price is $522,420.

I guess that means that East Lansing and Ann Arbor fell somewhere in the middle. Inman News is a Real Estate industry news service.

Holiday Fundraiser Gives Both Ways


courtesy Dutchman Tree Farms
 I’ve been an active member of the Brighton Optimist Club for many years. They are a community service group under the Optimist International umbrella and their motto is, “Bringing Out The Best In Kids.” Over their 35 years of existence, they’ve done a lot of great things for the community and its youth.


But these projects take money, so fundraising is needed. Their annual Holiday fundraiser is called Green2Green, in partnership with Dutchman Tree Farms in Michigan. Dutchman sells container grown evergreens, balled and burlap trees, holiday wreaths, and both 7’ cut and 3’ tabletop Christmas trees.

We’ve been getting their wreaths and they are outstanding – pleasing to the eye, fresh, and lasting well past the holiday season. Friends and family that have purchased trees have been very happy with them, too. For every purchase made with the Brighton Optimist Club’s promo code, a donation is made by Dutchman Tree Farms to that organization. Dutchman ships across the USA and they guarantee that if you are not happy with the product upon delivery, they will get you a replacement within a business day. No hidden fees and prices include delivery.

Please consider supporting a Michigan business and this local community service organization by making a purchase this Holiday season. In return you’ll be getting a great product AND you’ll help a community group to continue their work. To order, just click this link - http://www.dutchmantreefarms.com/organization/OCBRMI

Friday, November 25, 2011

New Listing - 7061 Braun, 48843

This great newer 3100 sq ft home sits on 10 acres. The 4 car attached garage features individual doors, each with opener (no remotes included). Patio from walkout basement sits adjacent to a small landscaping type pond.  There is a creek that runs through the acreage and ends up in a natural pond near the front of the property.  A fenced dog run is also present.

The master suite has a two-sided fireplace shared by the bedroom and master bath, which has a jetted tub, a bidet and a multi-head shower that includes an instant steam feature.  There is a motor-operated chandelier that will make it easy to dust and change bulbs.

The great room also has a motor-operated chandelier and antoehr fireplace and looks to the acreage in back.  Kitchen has high end stainless Thermador (TM) appliances, a butler pantry and another gas fireplace in the breakfast room portion of the kitchen.

The mud room features a floor sink with a hose sprayer for your pet, and an egress door that leads directly to the fenced dog run area.

The upper floor has three more bedrooms, each with their own bath, and one bath has a bidet.

The 2000 sq ft finished basement is very spacious, has a half bath, a double walkout and game room lighting installed.

The interior has just been repainted and recarpeted and is in move-in condition.  Hartland Schools. Offered at $340,000.

http://www.realestatemich.com/10/listing/21547 for the complete listing.  Some seller concessions may be possible. A Wells Fargo Home Mortgage pre-approval is necessary to submit an offer, although you can use any lender.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Shop Local Video - Brighton Michigan

A group of business owners got together to write, rehearse, and shoot a little video on patronizing businesses in their town - Brighton Michigan.  The narrator is George Moses of George Moses Company, publisher of the Marketeer.  Many other business are featured.  What a great idea!  My wife and I do almost all of our Holiday gift shopping in either downtown Brighton or downtown Howell. We do a lot of other shopping in the downtowns, too.  We like to keep our dollars local as much as possible.  Oh, and if you want to buy a Brighton home for sale, or a house for sale in Howell - give me a call!

Here's the video link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJdzXWjBmY4


Sunday, November 20, 2011

12 Days of Gleaners

Last year, local radio station WHMI (93.5 FM) in Howell, Michigan, began a program to raise money for Gleaners Food Bank of SE Michigan. WHMI partners with the Howell Soft Cloth Car Wash for the 12 days prior to Thanksgiving to raise funds. With Gleaners’ buying power, $1 will feed 1 person for 1 day.


Volunteer organizations each take a day and solicit change from the customers at the carwash. Today is the day that I help out with the rest of the Brighton Optimist Club. We’ll be on site from 10am to 6pm. My shift is from noon to 1pm.

WHMI was pleased with the contribution level in 2010, their first year, but hope to do even better this year. Gleaners of Livingston County cannot meet the needs of the county on their own, and regularly food from other Gleaners locations have to be brought in. If you live in Livingston County, consider stopping by today between 10am and 6pm to make a small monetary donation. No family should have to go hungry and the needs are more acute during the holiday season.

Kudos to WHMI and the Howell Soft Cloth Car Wash for their efforts, as well as to the Brighton Optimist Club and other community groups that each take a day for service to those in need.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

To Hell and Back

Yup, and it only took a little over an hour.

I had to preview a bank owned property today. It was what I euphemistically call ‘a Purell ®‡ house’. You know, the kind that you can’t wait to get back to your car to wash your hands with Purell®? This kind of property has made me an expert and turning lights on and off with my elbows, by the way, so my wife will be pleased to learn that you can teach an old dog new tricks. The house was in the Pinckney zip code, but really it was just a bit west of the lovely hamlet of Hell, Michigan. Yes, there really is a Hell, Michigan.

 H E Double Hockey SticksAnd jokes abound, of course. In summer, if your city is warmer than it is there, you can honestly say it’s “hotter than Hell.” In winter, if you record a lower temperature, it’ll be “colder than Hell.” Meteorologists’ from around the world actually call the general store to find out the temperature so they can work one of those little gems into their weather broadcast. If you feel the need to check the weather in Hell, this link will do it for you. You can then amaze your family, friends and acquaintances with little known weather knowledge. You may even win a free drink at your favorite tavern with a properly phrased wager.

But it goes on. Some taxpayers take their returns to the general store in Hell to have a hand cancellation that reads, “Hell, Michigan” before mailing to the IRS! No lie. Rumor has it that ‘Dear John’ and ‘Dear Jill’ letters also get the hand cancellation treatment, but I’m betting that texting and emailing are cutting into that market.

Now, Hell is no novelty to me since I live fairly nearby and have visited it on many occasions. Hell is not a novelty to me for other reasons, but I won’t digress. The Dam Site in has dam good burgers and pizza, Screams Ice Cream Parlor serves great goodies and you can buy all sorts of Hell emblazoned merchandise at the store (with the Post Office inside. There are only three buildings in Hell and if it’s too hot for you, you can walk down to the creek and dip your feet to cool off a bit).

There’s a fairly new miniature golf course, and frequent events that can draw an amazing number of people. In September of this year, a new Guinness Book of World Records milestone was met when Hell hosted the longest ever parade of hearses, with 51 vehicles officially participating.

Pure Hell
It has been a while since I’ve been to Hell and I was both pleased and surprised to see a new sign! Yes, a piggy back on the Pure Michigan (Michigan’s Official Travel and Tourism site) campaign, with the sign at the right. Also, I’m not sure when Hell starting billing itself as ‘The Hysterical Town’, but today there were no signs of hysteria, mass or otherwise. If I had been a little later I would have stopped for a Smitty’s Burger at the Dam Site Inn, but alas, this was an earlier in the morning expedition.

People get married in Hell (guess they want to get the worst part out of the way early), and you can actually be the Mayor of Hell for a Day! If you’re planning a visit, the official road to Hell is Livingston County Road D 32, otherwise known as Patterson Lake Rd (at least east of Hell). Drive to Pinckney, turn left at the park in the center of the Village (Howell Street), then go down to the first stop sign and make a right. It’s just a short jaunt to Hell from there.

And if you want to find a house in Hell, call me. According to some, I've been an expert for years.


‡=Purell is a Registered trade mark of Johnson & Johnson.

Monday, November 14, 2011

Brighton Michigan Housing Market Snapshot-Nov 2011

Brighton, Michigan is located in Livingston County, roughly at the crossroads of US-23 and I-96. It is between Flint and Ann Arbor on a north-south line, and between Lansing and Detroit on an east-west line. The Brighton area consists of the City of Brighton as well as parts of the surrounding Townships of Green Oak, Hamburg, Genoa, Hartland and Brighton Township. Homes in Brighton Michigan seem to consistently be more desirable than many other homes in Livingston County.


Brighton has a vibrant downtown area with a number of restaurants serving a variety of cuisines, small specialty shops, a large children’s play area - the Imagination Station - and is centered by the Mill Pond. There is a gazebo at the Mill Pond, as well as a renovated Village Cemetery, and if you feel like walking you can stroll on the boardwalk and ‘tridge’ to get around the downtown area. There are many civic events in the downtown area all year round, and commercial interest remains very high for restaurateurs, office space and retailers.

This snapshot will be for homes in the City of Brighton. Right now, there are 132 active residential properties. They have been on the market for an average of 123 days and range in price from $24,000 at the low end, to $364,900 at the high end. The average list price is $149,482 and the median list price is $146,250.

In the last 12 months, 72 homes have sold ranging from $25,100 to $390,000. The sold properties were on the market for an average of 117 days and the average sales price was $144,348 and the median sales price was $143,500.

Brighton has a variety of home style and ages. Established neighborhoods have homes going back 100 years right up to newer subdivisions built within the last 10-15 years. All homes in the city limits have municipal water and sanitary sewer, and all are on paved roads.

Monday, November 07, 2011

Housing Market News

I receive bulletins from the Chief Economist at Comerica Bank, Robert Dye. A couple of the recent emails that pertain to the housing market indicate that home sales dipped 0.3 percent in September, while prices are down 3.5 percent from a year ago. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) gained 0.3 percent in September and is up 3.9 percent for the year. September 2011 housing starts were up a hearty 15 percent to a 658,000 unit pace, but this is judged as ‘not sustainable’. This data is a compilation for the nation and the report was subtitled, “More of the same, No Breakout, No Backslide.”


If you’d like to subscribe to these periodic emails, visit the page at http://www.comerica.com/economics, then follow the link titled, “Subscribe to Newsletter.”