We all have one of these in our area, Will I see you there? Tomorrow is Memorial Day, a day that we honor those that have served in the US Military and have died protecting our nation and its freedoms.  We in St Charles County Missouri have several Veteran Memorials: St. Peters, Missouri Veterans Memorial   O Fallon, Missouri Veterans Memorial   Lake St. Louis, Missouri Veterans Memorial   Then there is the most familiar of all of our nation's memorials Arlington National Cemetery   Carved out of 1,100 acres this 624 acre site is the most widely know of the 120 national cemeteries. Memorial Day is a day to remember those that have died protecting our freedoms.  And in that reference I would encourage you to take a few minutes to reflect on what the brave service men and women have done.... 05/24/2009

Things are happening in O Fallon MO and St Charles County MO Here are just a few things that will be going on in both O Fallon MO and around St Charles County MO over the next week or so.  Fast Lane Classic Cars Annual Car Show Fast Lane Classic Cars will hold its 21st annual Cobblestone Car Show Monday, May 25th from 9am to 5pm. The event will be held at Fast Lane Classic Cars Located at: 427 Little Hills Blvd. in St. Charles This is one of the area's largest classic car shows with more than 500 entries Not to mention the thousands of people attending. Every Friday 4:30pm to 7pm Vintners Cellar invites you to just unWINE'd Located at 973 Waterbury Falls Dr. in O Fallon. They will be serving their own wines along with tapas & appetizers    For the Kids Monday - Friday  9:45am     Kids F... 05/21/2009

  Market statistics for the city of OFallon MO during the week of 05/10/09 – 05/16/09 The city of O’Fallon MO has a great selection of homes at really good prices and interest rates are at a great level too.  There are currently 508 homes on the market of various sizes and prices.  The number of active listings is DOWN from last week.  Check out O Fallon MO when looking for a new home for selection, style and price.  If you have been waiting for the right time now is the right time for real estate in OFallon MO.  With interest rates being at an all time low and the $8,000 tax incentive available now is a good time to buy a new home. Residential:           2 Bedrooms 3 Bedrooms 4 Bedrooms 5+ Bedrooms Active # Homes 33 240 221 14 Avg. List Price $153,045 $211,500 $311,047 $475,943 Avg. Da... 05/21/2009

  Market statistics for the city of OFallon MO during the week of 05/03/09 – 05/09/09 The city of O’Fallon MO has a great selection of homes at really good prices and interest rates are at a great level too.  There are currently 518 homes on the market of various sizes and prices.  The number of active listings is DOWN from last week.  Check out O Fallon MO when looking for a new home for selection, style and price.  If you have been waiting for the right time now is the right time for real estate in OFallon MO.  With interest rates being at an all time low and the $8,000 tax incentive available now is a good time to buy a new home. Residential:           2 Bedrooms 3 Bedrooms 4 Bedrooms 5+ Bedrooms Active # Homes 33 247 223 15 Avg. List Price $152,273 $209,981 $311,563 $466,147 Avg. Da... 05/11/2009

                                   Market statistics for the city of OFallon MO during the week of 04/26/09 – 05/02/09 The city of O’Fallon MO has a great selection of homes at really good prices and interest rates are at a great level too.  There are currently 524 homes on the market of various sizes and prices.  The number of active listings is UP from last week.  Check out O Fallon MO when looking for a new home for selection, style and price.  If you have been waiting for the right time now is the right time for real estate in OFallon MO.  With interest rates being at an all time low and the $8,000 tax incentive available now is a good time to buy a new home. Residential:           2 Bedrooms 3 Bedrooms 4 Bedrooms 5+ Bedrooms Active # Homes 32 254 223 15 Avg. List Price $150,972 $20... 05/04/2009

...on making the list of "America's Top 100 Places to Live" in 2009! For the third year in a row, O Fallon Mo, has been ranked as one of Relocate-America'sTM "Top 100 Places to Live."  OFallon is once again the only Missouri city on this list.  "What a high note for our great City," said O'Fallon's Mayor, Donna Morrow.  This year Relocate-AmericaTM used different criteria than in previous years, which confirms that we are providing the very best in municipal services and programs for our residents. Relocate-AmericaTM concentrated on the outlook for future growth and the ability to rebound despite the nation's economic downturn. They looked at local government and the business leadership in the communities they considered. O'Fallon's Mayor-elect, Bill Hennessy was quoted saying "In the t... 05/01/2009

  Market statistics for the city of OFallon MO during the week of 04/19/09 – 04/25/09 The city of O’Fallon MO has a great selection of homes at really good prices and interest rates are at a great level too.  There are currently 520 homes on the market of various sizes and prices.  The number of active listings is DOWN from last week.  Check out O Fallon MO when looking for a new home for selection, style and price.  If you have been waiting for the right time now is the right time for real estate in OFallon MO.  With interest rates being at an all time low and the $8,000 tax incentive available now is a good time to buy a new home. Residential:           2 Bedrooms 3 Bedrooms 4 Bedrooms 5+ Bedrooms Active # Homes 31 255 218 16 Avg. List Price $150,845 $210,841 $317,190 $493,453 Avg. Da... 04/28/2009

Thinking About Doing A Little Fixing-Up Before Listing Your Home? Just about all sellers before listing their O Fallon MO home think about doing some fixing up.  They think about doing everything from doing some painting to finishing the lower level to installing vinyl siding.  But is it always necessary to do a lot of fixin' up before listing your home for sale?  So whether you are a For Sale By Owner or you are listing your home with REALTOR® here are some simple guidelines to follow if you are thinking about doing some home improvements: Cost doesn't equal value.  If you finished off your basement six months ago for twelve thousand dollars, said improvement doesn't necessarily add twelve thousand dollars of value in the eyes of the buyer. Put your money where buyers will see it.  Exa... 04/25/2009

Are You In Shape To Purchase Your Next Home? You have lived in your O Fallon MO home now for awhile and are ready to go to your "next" level in a home.  This could be a larger home because your family is growing and your home is not, or your family has grown up and move away and now you need something smaller.  I call both of these scenarios "Right Sizing".  Either way you have a home to sell before you are able to buy your next home and you are wondering just how to handle this situation that you are finding yourself in.  Getting yourself prepared to purchase a new home takes planning.  When you currently own a home and need to sell the current home as well as purchase, the planning of the sale and purchase can be best managed with diligent consideration of the following items: Realist... 04/23/2009

  Market statistics for the city of OFallon MO during the week of 04/12/09 – 04/18/09 The city of O’Fallon MO has a great selection of homes at really good prices and interest rates are at a great level too.  There are currently 537 homes on the market of various sizes and prices.  The number of active listings is Up from last week.  Check out O Fallon MO when looking for a new home for selection, style and price.  If you have been waiting for the right time now is the right time for real estate in OFallon MO.  With interest rates being at an all time low and the $8,000 tax incentive available now is a good time to buy a new home. Residential:           2 Bedrooms 3 Bedrooms 4 Bedrooms 5+ Bedrooms Active # Homes 31 262 227 17 Avg. List Price $152,781 $211,523 $314,327 $485,879 Avg. Days... 04/22/2009

Residential homes (including condos/villas) sold in O'Fallon, MO 3/1/08 - 3/31/08:  Minimum, Average, Maximum    Days On Market Analysis    Listing Price\Selling Price Residential homes (including condos/villas) sold in O'Fallon, MO 3/1/09 - 3/31/09: Minimum, Average, Maximum    Days On Market Analysis    Listing Price\Selling Price Information courtesy of the MLS.  It is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Service you Expect from a Realtor you can Trust! GRI, e-PRO  www.SelectMyHome.net   314-640-7061 (cell)   Prudential  Alliance, REALTORS   636-887-3554  (office) Debi.Ernst@PrudentialAlliance.com 04/19/2009

Why Is It Important To Price My Home Right From The Start? If you have been following my posts you will know that I feel that it is important to properly price you home from the beginning of the listing.  To wait and adjust the price after 15 or 30 days you have lost valuable time and possible buyers. That being said here are 5 good reasons to price your home correctly in the beginning: Your home is most likely to sell for top dollar when it is fresh to the market. Buyers buy after the shop around.  Buyers are in search of the best buy.  If your home is priced too high, it will make the other homes look more attractive. Your property will need to be appraised.  If it appraises below the contract price you may have a problem. Other than possible location, price is the most critical item ... 04/18/2009

Things Every Consumer Needs To Know About Real Estate Appraisals... So, what's the big secret(s) about the real estate appraisal?  For the longest time it seems as though the Why, How and What of the appraisal process has been kept behind locked doors or placed in a hermetically sealed mayonnaise jar and placed on Funk & Wagnall's front porch.  To be honest with you, I did too! As a seller it is important to remember once you accept a contract on your home the buyers' lender will require an appraisal on the property before they will close the deal.  The reason for the appraisal is to assure the home is worth what the bank is going to finance and make sure the buyer isn't overpaying for the property. Here are a few things that you need to know about appraisals: It is an objective opinion... 04/18/2009

Value and What Every Seller Should Remember... As a home seller you want to place your home on the market and have it sold as quickly as possible.  We as your REALTOR® want the same thing but, there are just a couple of things about value that you may want to know as you begin the selling process.  So, here are a few ideas to help you in the home selling process. DEMAND - Just like beauty, demand is in the eye of the beholder.  It varies from person to person.  The demand for a particular piece of real estate changes as the wants of each individual changes.  So you as the seller need to have your home stand head and shoulders above the competition so the DEMAND is greater for your home and not the one down the street. UTILITY - In order for real estate to have value it must have USEFULN... 04/18/2009

  Market statistics for the city of OFallon MO during the week of 04/05/09 – 04/11/09 The city of O’Fallon MO has a great selection of homes at really good prices and interest rates are at a great level too.  There are currently 520 homes on the market of various sizes and prices.  The number of active listings is Up from last week.  Check out O Fallon MO when looking for a new home for selection, style and price.  If you have been waiting for the right time now is the right time for real estate in OFallon MO.  With interest rates being at an all time low and the $8,000 tax incentive available now is a good time to buy a new home. Residential:           2 Bedrooms 3 Bedrooms 4 Bedrooms 5+ Bedrooms Active # Homes 30 249 224 17 Avg. List Price $154,733 $210,825 $308,894 $485,879 Avg. Days... 04/16/2009

O Fallon MO Home Buyers Do You Want To Know How To Select The RIGHT HOME!! That's right, whether you are in O Fallon, Missouri or Kalamazoo MI, Dade County FL or somewhere really cold in the winter I have a plan to assist you in selecting the "RIGHT HOME".  There are several assumptions that are in play though before we get started.  I am assuming that you have done a self-evaluation and you have found yourself not to be out of shape as a home buyer.  This moves me to my next assumptions, that you are a smart and realistic home buyer.    This is a 3 step approach and at the end of it you will end the search with your new home. Step 1.       Approach the home buying process objectively...                 There is no "PERFECT HOME"                 The "GOOD ONES" go quickly               ... 04/13/2009

I just wanted to take a moment to wish everyone a wonderful day!  I'm sure everyone has special plans for today... Our church choir (of which I am a member) at Hope Bible Church in O'Fallon, MO, sang a wonderful group of songs about our Savior Jesus Christ raising from the dead!  I hope nobody noticed a few mistakes...  :) Later on, our family will be having a family get-together at my twin sister's home...! Have a Great Day!   :) Service you Expect from a Realtor you can Trust! GRI, e-PRO  www.SelectMyHome.net   314-640-7061 (cell)   Prudential  Alliance, REALTORS   636-887-3554  (office) Debi.Ernst@PrudentialAlliance.com 04/12/2009

Buyers Are You Hearing Voices? Guess what you might even be a home seller hearing voices, too.  These voices start about the time you begin to talk about buying or selling a home.  So, where are these voices coming from and, what are are they saying? Mom & Dad Siblings Friends (BFF's) Grandparents Distant Relatives Peers Neighbors One of the biggest things that these voices are saying is something on the line of, Boy oh Boy I remember the first house that I ever bought what an ordeal that was.  Or they could be saying, I wouldn't pay that much for that house.  Make sure that you don't overpay for any house, if I was you I would offer 30% less than list price.  Now for the seller you will be hearing things like, "You're going to list your home for how much"?  Or you may be well liked, wh... 04/11/2009

Steps Most Buyers Will Take To Buy Their Home....... Buying a home can be made less stressful if we follow a few simple steps.  It is a little like baking a cake, if you don't follow the recipe or steps the cake will not be a tasty treat.  While I am thinking about it, remember what they say about too many cooks in the kitchen!!   So to keep you on track in the home buying process here are some helpful steps for you. Look for an agent to help you through the home buying maze.  Remember you are about to spend a whole lot of money so find a REALTOR® to help you.  Get to know the agent first; don't get in a rush.... Interview the REALTOR®....set an appointment with an agent to find out if they have the skills, services and professional attitude you're looking for.  Meet the REALTOR® at the... 04/11/2009

Don'ts Every Home Buyer Should Know...... When we were growing up our parents used to tell us DON'T do this and DON'T do that.  Pretty soon we knew what the don'ts were and so, if we were smart, we wouldn't do the don'ts.  You know things like don't talk to strangers or don't run with a sharp object in your hand or don't touch that it's hot.  Then as we grew older we would do some of the don'ts because we thought we could.  Then we found out why we should not do the don'ts. So now you are looking to buy a home and are not to sure of what to expect or to do.  I'm thinking that it would be good to go back to a term our parents used to use.  Don't, and I have come up with a list of 12 don'ts that every home buyer should know.  Are you ready?     Don't wait for the perfect house...there isn... 04/08/2009