Christmas in Columbia MO

Need some ideas to get yourself in the holiday spirit?  Here are some great (& some free) ways to do that!

• First, get your own Christmas tree at the Downtown Optimist tree lot! Their two lots are on Grand Ave (behind Burger King on Business Loop) and on Stadium next to Macaroni Grill. Trees range from $21-$110 depending on type and size.  Profits go to the Optimists which fund kids' organizations throughout our community (click here for details).  Open from 1-8 weekdays, 10-8 on weekends!
• Visit the Magic Tree--two different locations, one in Cherry Hill and one at Shakespeare's Pizza downtown.  These are beautiful and make for great photos...the kids will love it!
• Take the Holiday Home Tour...tickets are $15 and 4 homes are open to view on December 3rd & 4th.  Benefits the Women's Symphony League.
• Stroll thru downtown on December 2nd as Living Windows takes place. Each store takes out window displays and stages with live holiday performances.  Free!
• Shelter Insurance will hold their annual Christmas lighting ceremony at 6 pm on December 2nd.  Holiday music from West Junior High and a visit from Santa with gifts makes this a memorable experience for all!
• Take a ride on the Children's Christmas Express.  A train ride with Santa and goodies! Go to www.dinnertrain.com for tickets & times.
• December 9-11 the TRYPS kids theater performs It's A Wonderful Life. Tickets are $10 for adults. Go to www.kidsintheact.org for tickets.
• Visit Santa at Bass Pro Shops from now until Christmas Eve--get your picture taken for free.  Each day they have free arts & crafts for the kids to create as well! Click here for the schedule of events.

Have a very Merry Christmas!

JK

Crime Reports in Columbia MO

A frequent question Realtors are asked when a buyer is looking for property is, "What's the crime like in this neighborhood?"  Especially if you are new to town, or new to the subdivision, you might not have an exact idea on what the crime is like in the area.  Thanks to technology, there are two sources of information in Boone County that prove to be quite useful when trying to find this information. 

crimereports.com in Columbia, MO

The City of Columbia Police Department reports their data to www.crimereports.com.  This website is very user-friendly.  You can search by location (specific address), type in a date range, and it shows a map of the different types of crimes in the area.  You can also select to receive alerts in your area; fees apply to this service, though. This website also maps the sex offender list and provides photos of the registered sex offender. 

The Boone County Sheriff's Department has their own website mapping system. By going to BCSD's website and clicking on "Incident Mapping" it will take you to a screen where you can narrow down by date, and search by address, neighborhood & area. You can zoom in on specific areas and it will map out the different crimes. It does not show the sex offenders on this map, but by clicking on "Registered Offenders" from the BCSD main website, you can search by address or see the full map of Boone County. 

Sex Offender Map from BCSD

Some crime statistics for you to digest (according to Missouri State Highway Patrol) for 2011:

• Boone County accounts for 2.72% of the population in Missouri, but total crimes in Boone County are about 2.66% of the total crimes in the state.
• Violent crimes are at 538 in Boone County, while just under 21,000 in the state, about 2.57%. 
• Homicides in Boone County are at 2 for the year, compared to 288 state-wide which is less than 1% of the total. 

I hope this information allows you to get an accurate picture of what crime is and where it's occuring in Boone County, and helps you make a more informed decision when purchasing your next home!

JK

Is selling your home in the winter a good idea?

For several reasons, some home owners decide to take their home off the market if it hasn't sold by November.  Not only is it cold and buyers seem to be far & few between, but the holidays are around the corner and sellers aren't as willing to keep their homes ready to go during the season.  But, is it really a good idea to take it off the market during the winter?  While some sellers may not have a choice, because of relocation or financial reasons, here are a few things to consider if you do have the option. 

1. There ARE still buyers looking for homes in the winter! Believe it or not, there are buyers always looking for homes, whether it is July or December, so you may miss out on those buyers if you take it off the market.

2. There is less inventory in the winter, which means less competition.  At the peak of the market, there were over 1,300 homes available in Boone County.  At the lowest point of inventory in January, there were only 980 homes on the market.  This is almost a 25% decrease in inventory!

3. Although the number of sales from November - February is about half of that from April - July, statistics show for the homes that do sell, Sellers aren't giving them away.  The average price for winter months is actually about $4,000 higher than in the summer months, at $179,500 vs. $175,600.  The price per square foot is actually identical in both the Winter & Summer at $84/sq ft. 

So, just because Old Man Winter is lurking around the corner, don't jump off the market...it just may be your lucky season!

JK

Foreclosures Up Nationwide, but not in Boone County

A report released today indicates an up-turn in foreclosures nationwide from September to October.  Although the Boone County Recorder's office reported a slight increase between the months, there is nothing out of the ordinary for the year, and Boone County is still fairing very well when it comes to the number of foreclosures available. 

Currently in Missouri about 1 in every 1100 homes is a foreclosure, and in Boone County only 1 in every 2900 homes is a foreclosure.  Compare that to the national average of 1 in every 563 homes being a foreclosure and Boone County and Missouri are both doing very well. 

In the last year, foreclosures represented about 8% of the sales in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).  The good thing about foreclosures is the rate at which they sell, with an average of 40 days on the market, compared to 85 days on the market for a "normal" listing.  This is explained by the bank's need to sell the property quickly, and in turn, they price it usually lower than market value.  The average price for a foreclosure is $107,000 and the average price for a "normal" listing is $170,000, a significant difference. 

To sum up, while the rest of the nation is still struggling with foreclosure rates, we in central Missouri seem to be recovering quicker and looking toward an up-swing in real estate in 2012. 

JK

Using Facebook for Business? Read this!

If you are a real estate agent, photographer, restaurant manager, business owner, etc., you may market your goods or services on your personal Facebook page.  To my great surprise, I found out this actually violates the Terms of Service on Facebook and you could lose everything because of it. 

Being a Realtor, our personal lives and professional careers often intermingle with each other.  We post our new listings, open houses, new sales, congratulations to new homeowners, etc.  In reality, this is illegal according to Facebook regulations. Specifically, Section 4-4 says you cannot use your personal profile for your own commercial gain.  This can be interpreted many ways, but there are cases where profiles have been completely deleted without notification because violations of these terms (and they couldn't get any of it back).  So, I'd rather be safe than sorry.  Here is Facebook's FAQ answer to the direct question of why someone's account was deleted:

Per our Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, Facebook profiles must represent an individual. Users aren’t permitted to maintain an account under the name of their organization, or use personal accounts to advertise or promote themselves professionally. If your profile was listed under a non-individual name, or was used primarily for professional promotion, this is probably why it was removed.”

To avoid your profile being deleted, I would advise starting a business or fan page to disseminate information about your business or to promote yourself. This would avoid the issue.  You can also keep your personal and professional "profiles" separate, which could be a bonus.  Post about your child's piano recital on your personal page to share with your close friends; then post your open house on Sunday to your business/fan page. 

JK

P.S. I'm not an attorney, so this is not legal advice...just trying to save some of you some heartache.  If you have questions, please contact your attorney.

The Career Center Offers High Schoolers Opportunities

I visited the Columbia Area Career Center (CACC) last week to discuss opportunities of having real estate courses available. While I was there, I got to tour the building and see all the different things going on there.  This is not your normal run-of-the-mill school! There are so many different hands-on learning experiences going on in this school.  It was so amazing to see all the students learning real world technologies & skills to improve their chances in the future. 

Our first stop was the kitchen where they teach all sorts of classes. We heard a story of one of the students who got to travel to London for the world competition in Culinary Arts. She placed 18th out of 40th participants in creating a 5 course meal. 

We viewed the health sciences area, where they have Surgical Technician Certifications, EMT courses, and CNA classes. So many options and the ability to have usable skills in the workplace directly out of high school. 

We also got to see the auto shop and welding center, which had all the tools that you see in a shop down the street.  They have cars that have real problems which are their project for the semester.  The welders create actual items, like firepits, and sell them. 

And, to think, this is all available to our high school students at any Columbia Public School, and Hallsville & Ashland are included as well. They are currently working with Tolton Catholic to come on board in the future. 

JK