Home sales are up again. Hooo-rah! More than 6.1% sales jump for May 2009. April and March were strong months too. It's time to warm up your websites, sharpen your lead generating tools and get ready to start enjoying some sales commissions. A few of my recent blog posts have been on effective real estate marketing and the dark side of not using technology correctly. I blame a lot of brokers for being cheapskates and morons when it comes to NOT using real estate marketing tools correctly. For brokerages that have sales of several hundred homes and making sales of $10 million, $20 million and more - I am just shocked and outraged when I see huge numbers of broker websites that all look like they got banged out on the same word processor -- today I am going to tell rank and file agents ... 06/03/2009

I want to scream. Remember the movie, Network? "I'm mad as HELL and I'm NOT going to take it ANYMORE!"   I'm almost wishing I could go back to real estate sales. At least then, dumb questions and self defeating situations only came from next time home buyers when they asked WHY they couldn't put in for a new car before we closed on their new home. A lot of REALTORS are needing a similar wake up call, because if 90% of you don't wake up soon, the top ten percent and top 1 percent of the top producers are just going to keep on laughing all the way to the bank. Because 90% of all real estate agent websites: SUCK.  Okay, maybe that's an exaggeration. Actually more like 94% of them suck. I've been in real estate marketing for ten years so I think I have a bit of expertise in this area. So wh... 05/31/2009

                       The Mirai Bowl is located at 1765 N Lee Trevino in El Paso, Texas, this is a great place to grab a quick and good lunch if you are in a hurry. Everything that I have eaten here has not been a disappointment at all. The other day Julio ( my compadre) and I stopped by the Lucero's place (Mirai Bowl) to have lunch. Every time we come here we will try a new dish, so this day we decided to try the Spicy Seafood Udon and the Salmon Teriyaki.   This is the spicy seafood udon, Julio order this for lunch, he said it was very good and spicy. This is the plate I order for lunch, the salmon teriyaki, and was very good with a mellow taste of sweetness. The place is always very clean every time we have visited and the Lucero's and their help very attentive. They also have fresh... 05/21/2009

~ Life is Good 05/03/2009

I just got our market report for March 09 for our Multiple Listing Service for homes in El Paso, TX and we were up over Feb 09. In Feb 332 homes were sold and in March 435! And that is for a down economy. The average sales price for March of 08 was $154,446 and March of 09 was $153,181. Not bad for a tough real estate year. Average days on market is about 114 days and homes are selling at about 96% of list price. Seller are making more concessions for sure but we are not seeing drastic reductions in price. Now is the time to buy real estate in El Paso, TX so now is also the time to call a Realtor in El Paso, TX. 04/16/2009

I attended the Fort Bliss Housing Seminar last week and boy was it informative. Our  Congressman Sylvestre Reyes was there as well as people from Freddie Mac and Fannie May and numerous Generals from Ft Bliss and people from the housing office. We know that we will be short in the number of units that will be available for soldiers to live in once they all arrive unless something can be done and be done very soon. The city of El Paso is offering incentives to builders and developers by reducing the permits prices required to build and the bigger the complex you build or the number of homes, then the bigger the incentive. The Army is even looking into renting homes themselves for the going rate and then renting them back to the soldiers. The housing office told us how to put our rentals ... 04/13/2009

You know with all the negative news we all hear about the real estate market, I have some positive news about the El Paso, TX real estate market. Ft Bliss Military Base will be adding about 90,000 more soldiers and their family members by 2103. We already know that we are going to be way short on homes for the soldiers to rent or to buy. The city of El Paso is offering incentives to apartment developers in order for them to start building right away. It is almost certain that the apartments will rent out very quickly and where can you get incentives to build right now?  Investors are needed to start buying rental homes as not all soldiers will live in apartments. Home buyers are making some great purchases right now and they are getting help from the sellers to buy the homes too and tha... 04/02/2009

State of the Economy in El Paso   The El Paso Chamber of Commerce hosted an event this morning at the Univ of Texas at El Paso called State of the El Paso Economy.It was a two hour session and a question and answer period followed. The speakers were from the local sector and spoke on everything from working in Juarez to the local real estate news.The speakers were: Allan Russel with the Maquila Industry in Juarez and he spoke about how important it is to keep that industry strong and he also spoke about the violence in Juarez, Mexico.Dana Vogelmeier-with State Farm and how call centers worked and how they were hiring ( showing that jobs are still available in El Paso).Dan Olivas(my husband) spoke about the local real estate market and why it is the best time to buy in El Paso and why o... 03/10/2009

We have been working with potential doctors that are being recruited to the brand new  4 year medical school and research center that is due to open in August of this year. Touring the city has been a great experience for the potential doctors and for me personally too. I think when you live in a city you seem to take it for granted and when you are tyring to show it off to new people it really opens your eyes to the what made you fall in love with El Paso in the first place. Most of these doctors are coming from humid climates and El Paso has very low humidity levels 99% of the time and that is one of the best things about El Paso.  If you like outdoor activities you can do them almost 365 days out of the year. Today is Feb 16, 2009 and it is about 65 and sunny and I am walking around ... 02/16/2009

I know in some markets that sounds pretty unbelievable but the  El Paso, TX real estate  market is starting to improve. We have not been on the roller coaster ride that many markets have(thank goodness!) but we have had our slow times and ever since the first part of December we have seen a definite increase in sales and in buyers wanting to buy. I relate our market to a rocket ship (in 2006 we were taking off) and right now we are back on the launch pad getting ready to take off again. There are so many factors that make El Paso a great place to buy. By 2012 we will have approx. 90,000 new soldiers and their families living in El Paso and we know that there are not enough rentals and homes for these soldiers to live in. Guess what, that will bring in investors again. Hopefully by then ... 02/12/2009

Brad Judy | HDR Real Estate | (915)240-1713 4000 Roadside, El Paso, TX Gated community Horses Allowed Custom home, with all the upgrades 4BR/2.5BA Single Family House offered at $827,000 Year Built 2005 Sq Footage 4,711 Bedrooms 4 Bathrooms 2 full, 2 partial Floors 1 Parking 3 Car garage Lot Size 65,483 sqft HOA/Maint $0 per month DESCRIPTION This cstm blt, 1 owner, graceful hacienda tucked away at the end of a CulDeSac will relax you the minute you pass through its private gated entry.A double door entry welcomes you to gracious living where you`ll find too many aminities to mention here.On 1.5 acres, this is the perfect property for the family who wants 2 experience ALL the Upper Valley has 2 offer incl.a Det, air cond 3 TRUCK gar, arena, hay barn & tack rm for quads, bicycles etc. P... 02/06/2009

Brad Judy | HDR Real Estate | (915)240-1713 9036 Parkland, El Paso, TX Cielo Vista Gem 4bed + office, Parklike backyard New on Market 4BR/2.5BA Single Family House offered at $260,000 Year Built 1969 Sq Footage 2,547 Bedrooms 4 Bathrooms 2 full, 1 partial Floors 1 Parking 2 Car garage Lot Size 10,354 sqft HOA/Maint $0 per month DESCRIPTION Home sweet home. Come see this Cielo Park beauty. It`s the perfect home for a growing family. It has oversized living areas, and a kitchen with a breakfast area in a bay window. The large backyard is like a park and well cared for. There are 4 bedrooms and a maid`s room. All this in light colors make this home a winner! Property Courtesy of: Dependable Real Estate Group These homes may be listed with various brokerages. This listing is submitted subj... 02/06/2009

Brad Judy | HDR Real Estate | (915)240-1713 5129 Hondo Pass, El Paso, TX Large corner lot w/updated inside, Hot tub in back , Bank foreclosure 3BR/1.5BA Single Family House offered at $59,900 Year Built 1957 Sq Footage 1,317 Bedrooms 3 Bathrooms 1 full, 1 partial Floors 1 Parking 2 Uncovered spaces Lot Size 7,148 sqft HOA/Maint $0 per month DESCRIPTION Large corner lot, converted garage, some interior updates in kitchen and baths, hot tub in back (no warranty) landscaped and ready for immediate occupancy Property Courtesy of: Prudential BKB These homes may be listed with various brokerages. This listing is submitted subject to errors, omissions or changes without notice. Please verify this information independently prior to taking any actions. DON’T MISS YOUR CHANCE!!!!! **************... 02/06/2009

                    This weekend we were invited to one of my son's friend birthday party at Bob-O's. There is a place, that even as a grown up can act like a kid and get away with it. They have attractions for just about any age there. There is Laser Odyssey, batting cages, 18 Hole miniature golf course, Bumper boat, miniature go-karts, Go-karts, and of course a full array of arcades. Bob-O's  is located on 3851 Constitution off Sunland Park Dr, which is the west side of El Paso. This a cool place to get away with the kids and do something different. Here are some photos.                         This the arcade area, many popular games as some of the all time favorites.             Here are the bumper boats and the go-karts ready to take off.             Some areas of the miniature gol... 02/05/2009

The second positive one year change occurred in December 2008 for El Paso. There was a .28 percent increase in sales over December 2007. There was a 20.78 percent average monthly drop in 2008. The two-year drop was even worse with an average drop of 31.73 percent from 2006. El Paso experienced over 19 percent drops in comparative two year sales every month in 2008. There was a 34.59 percent decrease in December 2008 from homesales in December 2006. To read more stats go to our El Paso Real Estate Blog stats provided by El Paso Real Estate Quest 01/28/2009

A big El Paso thanks to everyone that actually reads all the blogs and about staying positive in our strange market. I think if we all post positive remarks maybe the national news will eventually catch up and stop reporting all negative. Each area is regional just like the weather. I had a client the other day that made a really low offer on a home because he said that his area was really a bargain basement and so should ours. When I asked him what the temperature was where he was he said minus 17 and our temps were about 70. I asked him if he could now understand and it made alot more since to him.   So lets stat POSITIVE.   Patti in El Paso 01/26/2009

Hi to everyone who reads this and my goal this year is to stay positive and not let the media get me down. El Paso, TX real estate is in a good place and I know that 2009 will be a great year. It already has started very well and we have many people under contract. While there are still alot of homes on the market, there are less homes now than there were a few months ago and we are not hit with lots of foreclosures.  The new medical school is going to open in August 09 and doctors, researchers, etc are already coming in to town to see if El Paso is a fit for them. I have been working with many military soldiers(God bless them all for serving our great country) and it is wonderful to see them so excited about buying their first home and knowing that they were able to get into a home wit... 01/25/2009

One of my favorite TV shows on HGTV is "My House is Worth What?".  In this show there are three separate homeowners all over the country.  Many of these families have done some major renovating and remodeling and want to know if their time and efforts were worth the money.  As I was watching this show I started thinking...many homeowners put TONS of money into their home thinking that they'll be able to recapture all of it once they decide to sell.   As I go to several listing appointments I need to remind these homeowners that the value of their home IS NOT: •·         How much money they have put into the house; •·         How much the neighbor down the street sold his/her house for; •·         What some website said your house is worth (my favorite J ); •·         What you need to ne... 01/11/2009

El Paso home sales dropped from 2007 for every month but September. The city experienced huge drops in the first half of 2008. The two year numbers are just as bad. There is a double digit drop off for each month. The largest occurred between April 2006 and April 2008, with a 43.6 percent decrease in sales. In fact, July had the smallest decline, and it was still 19 percent under where it was in 2007.  (To read more ... El Paso Real Estate Blog) Jill works for El Paso Real Estate Quest 01/06/2009

I was awarded Realtor of the Year by the Greater El Paso Association of Realtors at their annual Installation Banquet on Dec. 21, 2008. What a surprise and what an honor to be awarded this by your fellow Realtors. Now is the time to buy, with interest rates that keep on going lower and home prices(while staying steady-sellers are helping with lots of costs)hanging in there-Now is the time to buy in El Paso, TX 11/26/2008