Laura's Blog

As you all know, hurricane Ike came through the St. Louis area on Sunday morning and caused some major damage.  I watched the news and saw how many places were flooded and damaged in the aftermath.  My home suffered some water damage from the wind blowing up some roofing and water leaked in.  Two...

Come and check out the 2008 Italian Fest being held Friday and Saturday, September 19th & 20th from 11 AM - 10 PM!  There will food and entertainment as well as whellbarrow races, cooking contests, kiddie parade and more! Don't forget to stop by the beer garden Saturday evening at 5:00 PM where y...

Laura Kombrink of Kombrink Real Estate Group is happy to announce the move to RE/MAX Preferred out of Collinsville.  As of Monday September 15th Kombrink Real Estate Group is operating out of the RE/MAX Preferred office located at 201-A Main Street in Collinsville, Illinois. "I will still have th...

In the recent weeks, Madison County has seen a rise in vandalism and copper theft in vacant homes.  Although police have made some arrests, the vandalism has continued.  What can you do to protect your property? I recommend talking with your insurance agent.  If your property is vacant make sure ...

I am a frugal shopper...ok...ok...I'm cheap.  I hate paying full price for anything.  Don't get me wrong.  I love nice things...I just hate paying full price.  I have spent much time looking for ways to cut my costs on the things that I have to buy.  In the recent economy where gas and food price...

I'm not usually one to talk about politics.  (I did get caught up in one heated political discussion last week)  I was always taught that one should avoid discussions about politics, religion, and salaries in a public forum.  These subjects tend to generate a great deal of passion from people as ...

I am announcing that a link has been added to the home page of my website that allows users to do a search in their immediate areas for sex offenders.  You can find this link at www.kombrinkmetroeast.comon the right hand side.  It is a simple tool for the public to use to help protect their famil...

Friday, I attended a closing with a client for her new home.  Only 1 month ago, this same client did not believe she could own a home in this market.  She is single, with very little money saved and just did not believe home ownership was possible for her at this time. She spoke with Tammy Rister...

I have heard that the general public doesn't appreciate what Real Estate Agents do for them in general.  I think the same thing is probably true for lenders as well.  I have a closing tomorrow and everything was going beautifully...beautifully that is until 2 days ago.  At the last minute the und...

Most of us are aware of the value of setting goals.  We've been taught this throughout our lives, so I won't go too in depth into goal setting.  However, how many of us have a vision?  What is a vision?  How does it differ from a goal. I will define it this way...a goal is what we do to ensure th...