HometownGeorgetown.com

We knew we had a good thing! According to the most recent edition of Retirement Places Rated, Georgetown Texas is the BEST place to retire in America. Yay for us! Honestly, I must say that I’m proud but not at all surprised. Our town is truly charming. I love that we as a community place great value on our quality of life. We support the performing arts, we strive to keep our parks and public areas attractive. You can read more about this great honor at the website of the Dallas Morning News.

Mark your calendars for October 26! The Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter is hosting their first annual Howl-o-ween Pet Festival. Lots of area businesses have donated great prizes such as a week of boarding for your pet, 50% off pet grooming, and more. In addition to door prizes for just showing up, there will be prizes for the best dog costume, the best dog-and-owner lookalike or theme costume, and the best tricks. The shelter staff (and their pets) will be there in costume. This should be a great time!

The Taste of Georgetown was so much fun yesterday! I arrived at about one to set up, and the organizing crew from First Texas Bank was already there setting up. They were all very friendly and helpful and great company. Lots of fun. One poor woman lost her cell phone for about half an hour, and when it turned up, it had been run over. The glass on the display was cracked into a million little pieces, but she kept right on smiling. She said it worked well enough to turn on, so she would be able to save her photos and phone numbers and transfer them over to her new phone. Love that positive attitude!

The actual event kicked off at 5:30. Timed perfectly, because just then, the sun dipped down behind Vino 100 and the evening was cool and breezy. We couldn’t have asked for better weather. Purple Possum Winery, my boothmates, got lots of traffic. In particular, people seemed to love their cranberry mead. They said they don’t have a local store selling their product yet, so if you were at the Taste and loved the mead, please be sure to tell your local wine merchant.

I had a great time meeting people. I didn’t have any liquor to give away at my table, so I knew I needed something to draw people to visit me (besides a big smile, that is). I put together a gourmet gift basket, and I wasn’t lonely all night. I asked Ruben (forgot his last name), from the Texas Agriculture Department, to draw a name. We have a winner - Paula Schoolings from Georgetown! She doesn’t know yet, but I will keep calling her until we connect.

If you get the chance in years to come, consider attending the Taste of Georgetown. It really was a wonderful event.

As I write, it’s about 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 10, and I am taking a break from my preparations for tomorrow’s big event, the Taste of Georgetown. The Taste of Georgetown is put on by the Downtown Georgetown Association,of which I am very proud to be a member. Tomorrow, I will be sponsoring the Purple Possum Winery out of Navasota. My booth will be right next door to theirs, out at Wolf Ranch Town Center. We’ll be back by the water tower, near Petland and Vino 100. I hope you’ll stop by and say hi. You can enter a drawing for a gift basket I’ve put together. See you there!

Ah, Sunday! Yesterday was a lovely day, and Larry and I decided to spend it in the yard. A few weeks ago, we received some roses we had ordered from the Antique Rose Emporium, but we wanted to prepare the soil before we planted them. We gave the mulch three weeks to break down. Yesterday, we finally put them in the ground. It’s amazing how tiny plants look when you take them out of the pot. This morning, we’re getting a nice rain, which I hope the roses will love.

We also had to spread about three cubic yards of top soil in our back yard, in preparation for the sod that will go in soon. As we carted wheelbarrowful after wheelbarrowful of soil through the wood gate of our privacy fence, I decided that I really needed to write a post about the good folks at Dave’s Fence. The fence they built for us is absolutely beautiful. It’s stained cedar, and six feet with a cap along the length of it. All the rain this spring delayed the staining, so I was worried that the end result wouldn’t have the look I wanted, but Dave assured me that I would be pleased. He was right. I couldn’t be happier. We did have a minor issue with one of our gates, which was slightly off-kilter. Dave’s Fence stood behind their work. They came out to the house and replaced the hinges with some heavy-duty monster hinges, and we haven’t had a problem since. If you’re looking for a good fence, I highly recommend Dave’s Fence.

In the latest e-newsletter from Williamson County, County Clerk Nancy Rister warns residents not to fall for scams that try to get people to pay services to help them file for their homestead exemption. Read her warning in its entirety. You can can file for the homestead exemption if you have owned and occupied a property as your personal residence on January 1. To get the form, go to the Williamson County Appraisal District website, click on “Forms” in the left menu, and then click on the Homestead Exemption Application. If you can’t get to it for some reason, send me an e-mail at jenel@moreland.com with your name and mailing address, and I’ll pop one in the mail to you.

Every morning, while I drink two cups of coffee with lots of cream and Splenda, I look at the MLS Hotsheet to keep up with what’s happening in Georgetown Texas real estate. It’s really interesting to see what comes on the market each day, what has sold, and which prices have changed. Here’s the scoop for the time period from 12:01 a.m. on October 4 through right now (8:28 a.m. on October 5):

New listings: 14
Price changes: 30
Back on Market: 2
Active Contingent: 0
Pending: 8
Sold: 2
Withdrawn: 5
Expired: 2
Temporarily Off Market: 1

The most striking number is that big ol’ THIRTY. Thirty price changes in one day? Wow. But take a closer look, and you find that 15 of those were for lots - many in one subdivision - and one was for a commercial site. That still leaves us with 14 homes whose prices changed since yesterday. The homes have been on the market anywhere from 13 days all the way up to 193 days. (I have a listing that’s included in those whose prices have come down. It’s a gorgeous house with guest apartment in Old Town. It’s the featured property at my MLS website. Take a look, and give me a call at 512-876-6544 if you want more information or to schedule a tour. This home was extensively remodeled in 2006 to a very high quality.)

Eight properties went into Pending status since yesterday. That means that offers were made and accepted on these properties. Most of these will continue to accept backup offers in case the first deal doesn’t come through, for whatever reason. Two properties went from Pending to Sold, which means the buyers and sellers signed all the paperwork at the title company, and the deal is done. Yay for them!

The real estate business is very exciting because the only constant is its fluidity. Every day, I see something new, learn something new. And now I’d better sign off because I’m going to go personally take a look at some of those new listings. Time to start the day.

After reading an article on the city website a few days ago, I drove past the dog park that is scheduled for completion sometime later this month. I think this is a wonderful idea, to create a fenced-in area where dogs can bring their people to play. You’ll find a little bit more information here — all the rain this summer kept the work from being completed by July as originally planned, but we’re getting close now. It looks like a fantastic area for a park. Dogs will have a great time running around together, and their human companions can breathe easy knowing the area is fenced. The pecan trees will keep our four-legged friends from becoming overheated, and fountains will be available to keep them from becoming dehydrated. Hope to see you there!