Just a quick Blog to let you know I'm taking a class regarding Blogging! I'm a real estate agent with a "techie" background so anything I can do to reach more out-of-town buyers via the internet the more I'm interested in learning about it.

I've done simple web site development for a number of years and try to use all the (free) tricks available to make sure my web site gets decent placement in the search engines and adding a blog is one way to do that. I started this blog last winter, mostly writing about infrastructure improvements in Ironwood and about Snow Country Real Estate and the "state of real estate" right now in the Upper Peninsula. I've kept it pretty impersonal, only did one personal blog about my frozen pipes in January.

The class I'm taking (4 weeks down and 4 to go) offers a lot of helpful hints on creating a blog, making it interesting, finding your "writing voice" and gearing it towards your readers. Hopefully, by the time the course is done, I'll be starting to write more entertaining information about Ironwood, Hurley and the surrounding area. My goal is to provide as much info as possible to people looking to retire here, relocate, or buy a vacation place, but I also want my blog to be a quick resource for local people to use to get info about area activities or web links and most certainly, for real estate needs!

Half of 2008 is gone already - - - Snow Country Real Estate is #2 in sales out of the 8 agencies in our area! Total sales are just under $18 million, well above the $14 million mark of 2007.

Most out of town buyers I receive calls from mention how bad the real estate market is whereever they live and assume the same up in this area. I always have to tell them that we never experienced the "big bubble" like so much of the country and so we never got hit with the "bubble burst" either. The sales numbers do support my comments.

2008 has been a good year for not only the company, but individual agents. We have 5 agents in the top 20 producers (3 in the top 10), a definite improvement over last year. I have a closing scheduled for later in July and another couple of buyers who are close to making decisions, plus a few others who are just starting to look, so I hope to improve my own standing dramatically by the end of the year!

A recent survey of Ironwood citizens found that more walking trails were a top recreational concern. The City of Ironwood Recreation Committee has presented a proposal for a walking trail system to the City Planning Commission which will hopefully be approved as soon as possible.

The trail will run from Riverside Cemetery, hugging the Montreal River as much as possible, out to Norrie Park on the south end of town. Deer trails can be followed in some areas, just brushed and expanded to about 30". The trail won't be blacktopped and motor vehicles will not be allowed to use the trail.

The plan is to start the project in the cemetery which will contain a loop that is 1.5 miles long. The second phase would extend the trail from the cemetery to Norrie Park and be 4.5 miles long. Much of that trail will follow along the old railroad beds with a short stretch of sidewalk along Hemlock St. It will go through the Scott St. neighborhood and the Caves area.

Expenses borne by the city will only be liability insurance, as signs have been donated and manpower to clear and brush trails will be on a volunteer basis. The visitors center on U.S. 2 will provide parking for people using the trail.

Snow Country Real Estate still ahead of 2007 sales!

Reports from the Western Upper Peninsula MLS Board show total sales dollars for this year in our region is over $10.6 million with SCRE 3rd in sales volume. The region, as a whole, is ahead of 2007 by $3.1 million!

We have 3 agents in the firm in the TOP 10....and the file cabinet in the office which contains "to be closed" transactions is still looking very full.  

Spring is generally the season when people get serious about selling or buying, so I've talked to quite a number of people in the past month. The comment I hear most often is "the real estate market is really down" and fortunately, I've been able to honestly answer that our local market is stable and rising. I always give specific examples of what I'm working on or have just closed and also mention what's going on with the other agents in my office. Everyone reacts with surprise to that info, but are usually pleased. Real estate may be bad news in the national media, but "real estate is local" and the Ironwood, MI and Hurley, WI area is definitely holding its own!

According to the local newspaper, residents along Alfred Wright Blvd in Ironwood, MI can expect torn up streets during the summer of 2008….and given that residents selected the stretch of Al Wright from McLeod Ave to Norrie School as being one of the worst in the city during town hall meetings, I would expect most of them will be relatively happy to deal with detours and the inconvenience for a few months.

City manager, Scott Erickson said the project will include sidewalk replacement and water main and sewer rehabilitation work. It was planned for 2009, but the street is falling apart so quickly that it was decided that it needed to be taken care of a year early. Local company, Coleman Engineering got the engineering bid on "an hourly, not to exceed" basis. The project will be funded through Michigan's Department of Transportation with the state being responsible for obtaining construction bids.

Ironwood has suffered through its fair share of bad roads, but a number of them have been repaired in the past couple years and it's good to see plans for future rehab. With new people moving into our area for new jobs at the Grandview Hospital, Walmart and Walgreens, it's great to be able to tell them our community does take pride in its appearance and accessibility; that we are a progressive town worth moving into. From a personal perspective, I appreciate that any improvements in Ironwood's infrastructure make my job as a real estate agent a little easier. My sellers want to sell their home at the best possible price and living on or close to a stretch of road that's been recently upgraded helps them and my buyers (particularly the out-of-town buyers) expect to move into neighborhoods that look well maintained. I believe a disintegrating street can pull down the value of an entire neighborhood and as well, I firmly believe that a well maintained street should motivate home owners to keep their homes and yards looking nicely kept.