A Warning from WU Elementary Principal

Posted on February 18, 2012 by admin

On February 14, 2012, West U Elementary School Principal John Threet  posted this warning on the school’s website:

“Dear Parents:

This morning a car belonging to one of the Beehive parents was broken into while the parent took her child to class. The vehicle window was broken and a purse was stolen.  The car was parked on Goode Street right in front of Beehive.  Beehive personnel contacted the City of West University Place Police Department who are investigating this incident.

Just before the Winter Holidays, we reported an increase in these type of crimes in our area.  One of our teachers experienced the same thing when her vehicle window was smashed and her purse stolen at a nearby shopping center.

Please do not leave any valuables, especially your purse, in plain sight when you come into the school or to a store. Take your purse with you.  I was told by a police officer that crooks will watch for women entering schools or shops to see if they are carrying their purse.  If not, the criminal will look to see if it is in the vehicle where it can easily be stolen.

Please also keep a watch out for suspicious vehicles or people during morning drop-off and afternoon dismissal.  Please report any suspicious activity immediately to the West University Police Department or the school office.  As I always tell teachers, if it doesn’t like right, it probably isn’t.

If all of us are more alert, we can hopefully serve as a deterrent for anyone attempting any other crime in our community.

Sincerely,

John Threet, Principal”

Here is the full link to the article on the West U Elementary School website:  http://westupto.org/2012/02/14/urgent-message-from-wues/

FYI, we business owners along Edloe have also seen the same problem.  In fact, a woman’s purse was stolen from our parking lot on Saturday, February 4, 2012.  West U is a wonderful, safe community — but we musn’t let ourselves become complacent.  Be sure to take purses, laptops and cell phones with you when you leave your vehicles.  And thank you, Principal Threet, for your timely warning.

Roger Martin

www.rogermartin.com

 

 

Posted in In the NEWS, Life in West U, Neighborhood Safety and Home Security, Our Schools | Leave a comment

Agriculture in the Inner City

Posted on February 16, 2012 by admin

Since the City of Houston is so urban, you might think that we don’t have a strong Agricultural Science program in our local schools.  Not at all!

Agriculture is Big Business in Texas.  According to the Texas Farm Bureau, 77% of the total land area of Texas is still involved in ag production.  In fact, Texas leads the nation in the number of farms, amount of land in farms, and the production of sheep and lambs, cattle and calves, goats, wool, mohair cotton and hay.  As a whole, an increasingly high-tech agriculture industry generates $81 billion a year for the State of Texas.

So despite our urban environment, our schools have very strong FFA (Future Farmers of America) programs.  Our two nearest high schools, Bellaire and Lamar, are a case in point.  Ag classes are available to all the students as electives.  The kids can raise smaller animals (such as the bunnies above) in their homes.  But they are prohibited by ordinance from keeping larger livestock within the city limits.  HISD therefore maintains a special Ag-Science Barn at Beltway 8 and W. Airport.  Larger animals such as steers, hogs, sheep and goats live at this barn.  Kids exhibit their animals around the state, including the San Antonio, Fort Worth, Houston, and Harris County Livestock Shows.  At these shows, the horticulture students also do a variety of presentations, including herb gardens, bonsai and floral arrangements.

But the kids are not just learning about “sows, plows, and cows”.  Every student is essentially an independent businessperson.  As such, they learn to budget, prioritize, and set goals. They develop leadership skills, while managing both time and money.   The most successful FFA kids earn college money by selling their livestock at local auctions.

So check out our student Live Stock shows – admission is free to the public, and the very active FFA Booster clubs will be selling delicious BBQ.  And you don’t have to buy an entire animal to contribute – you can always just “add on” to another bid.  And all of it helps the kids.

Roger Martin

www.rogermartin.com

Posted in Gardening in West U, Life in West U, Our Schools | Leave a comment

Avoiding Converging Verticals in Real Estate Photos

Posted on February 15, 2012 by admin

Many thanks to our Guest Blogger, Pei Zuan Tam, who has contributed the following article on real estate photography…

Exactly what are “Converging Verticals”?  When a photo is taken with the camera tilted upwards or downwards (in other words, not perfectly level), the vertical lines of the walls tend to converge at a vanishing point.  This effect is called Converging Verticals. Converging verticals can induce a feeling of vertigo in the observer, as shown in this photo of a front hall.

Converging verticals can also give the illusion of unscalable heights, making viewers feel they are not welcomed.  In this example, the photographer deliberately shot the building from a lower position on a super wide angle to give it a highly dramatic and looming impact – an atmosphere perfect for Gotham City but not for a home you want to buy.

When we photograph your home, we deliberately avoid converging verticals to project a feeling of stability, serenity, and rest. Getting perfectly vertical lines is the most basic principle by which a real estate photograph is judged, because this type of shot creates the best response in potential buyers.  This is a challenging process, because the constraints of space in many houses often require the photographer to shoot from a lower or elevated position – a perfect condition to produce accidental converging verticals.

True professional photographers are aware of the emotional impact of converging vertical lines.  They will always use a tripod to place the camera at a perfectly level position. They also use advanced tools such as tilt-shift lenses or post-processing computer programs to counter the effect of converging verticals when a challenging angle is unavoidable.  The goal is always to photograph your home to its best advantage.

Pei Zuan Tam

For more information, contact PZTphotography@gmail.com
(860) 329-1689 or see my work at www.PZTphotography.com/property

Posted in A Career in Real Estate, Art in West U, Decorating and Staging, Home Buyers, Home Sellers | Leave a comment

When Do I Reduce the Price of my Listing?

Posted on February 15, 2012 by admin

Your marketing campaign goes into effect the moment your listing goes “live”.  A good marketing campaign is broad-based and targets two groups of people – the agent community and the public at large.  Both are sources of potential buyers for your home.  It takes a couple of months and a variety of tools for the news of your listing to circulate throughout these targeted communities.

Let’s imagine that you are going fishing.  A marketing campaign is like chumming.  In essence, you throw yummy bait into the water which, in turn, attracts fish to your area.  However, all the chumming in the world does not actually get the fish into your boat.  To capture the fish, you need a different tool – perhaps a net or a hook and line.

In the same way, a marketing campaign attracts potential buyers to your home.  But you must get people inside the house to convert them from “lookers” to buyers.  Think of it this way – would you yourself buy a home based only on the gorgeous photos in a glossy brochure?  No way!

Showing your home – getting actual real people to walk through the house – is the tool needed to hook your buyer.  Usually these people come from two sources:  public open houses and agent showings.  If your marketing campaign is fully implemented and you are NOT seeing showings, it is time to consider a price reduction.

A strategic price reduction is like casting a fishnet into the water – it is a powerful move designed to capture the ideal buyer.  You broadcast a clear and timely message translated roughly as “I’m really serious here, folks!”  Following a price reduction, real estate cyberspace lights up with tweets, emails, posts and custom Hot Sheet Reports – all of which work for you.

So be brave!  It seems counter-intuitive to many sellers, but a strategic price reduction can actually help sell your home faster and for a better price.  Use it as the tool it really is!

Roger Martin

www.rogermartin.com

Posted in A Career in Real Estate, Home Sellers, Money Matters | Leave a comment

How Do I Set My Asking Price?

Posted on February 13, 2012 by admin

To sell in today’s real estate market your listing price MUST be compelling.  But how do we arrive at that magic number?

Your real estate agent will research the local market, and show you comparable properties (or “comps” for short).  A good comparable is located close to your home, ideally within the same subdivision.  The size of the house, the size of the lot, and the type and age of the construction should all be similar to your home.  To reflect current market conditions, a “comp” should be recent, preferably no more than six months old.  Your agent will show you two types of “comps” – Active Listings and Sold Listings.

David S. Knox, a real estate guru, says, “Active properties – the ones for sale – represent the upper end of the price range. You wouldn’t expect to sell your home for more than what others are selling for today, assuming, of course, that these are similar to yours.

“The Solds represent the reality of the market. These are the most important numbers to use in determining market value.  In a normal market, your asking price should be at the top of the Solds and at the bottom of those For Sale.

“There is a third category that your agent might research, depending upon the market. Those are the homes that did not sell [during] the listing term. These are called “Expired Listings” and represent the out-of-range price. If you price where the other homes expire, your home will remain unsold as well.

“So – to receive the most money in the shortest time, you MUST price at market value.1”

Like this expert, I recommend that you price your home in the strategic ”sweet spot” between the Actives and the Solds.  Check out the diagram above.

Roger Martin

www.rogermartin.com

1 Excerpted from Pricing Your Home to Sell by David S. Knox, ©2002 David Knox Productions, Inc.

Posted in A Career in Real Estate, Home Sellers, Money Matters | Leave a comment

Open House Jewelry Thief Caught

Posted on February 9, 2012 by admin

WE GOT HIM!

This update just in from the Houston Assocition of Realtors.

“Don’t Mess with HAR REALTORS!

We have just received official confirmation that the open house jewelry thief has been arrested in Dallas. He reportedly had four outstanding warrants, including two in Dallas, one in Garland and one in West University Place. It was only with the combined effort and involvement of our members and law enforcement that we were able to identify him, which ultimately contributed to his arrest. This just goes to show you the strength of the REALTOR® community”

Posted in A Career in Real Estate, About Roger Martin Properties, Home Sellers, Neighborhood Safety and Home Security | Leave a comment

Jewelry Thief in West U

Posted on February 8, 2012 by admin

As you may or may not have read, we had an incident about two weeks ago that brings up a very important aspect of selling your home — namely Open House safety. While holding a Sunday, public open house, I encountered a thief helping himself to jewelry. The thief ran off and luckily no one was hurt. The thief has been identified and the police are searching for him.

An open house is really a good marketing tool. It allows Realtors and the public to actually get a first-hand look at your home. The open house gives Realtors the chance to determine if your home matches the needs of their clients while a potential buyer can have the luxury of looking around the home and yard to see if it meets their family’s needs and lifestyle.

Still, there are steps you can take to prepare your home for an open house. You will want to make sure that all your valuables, such as jewelry, medicine, laptops, fancy electronics, or the like are safely stored; preferably not in the house itself, or, if they are, securely locked up and out of sight.

Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of all the people walking through an opoen house are going to be only interested in the home itself.  They are perfectly fine folks, but it only takes that one bad apple to mess things up for everyone.  This sort of thiing is something we have to think about, and we’re quite happy to help you find ways to minimized the risks.  Consult with your Realtor about any safetly concern!

Posted in A Career in Real Estate, About Roger Martin Properties, Home Sellers, Neighborhood Safety and Home Security | Leave a comment

The Drought vs. Your Trees

Posted on October 31, 2011 by admin

Recently, my homeowners are seeing a new problem – we are loosing a lot of trees. 

This is something of a cycle.  Here in Texas, the extended drought has drastically weakened the root systems of our shade trees. Then the big autumn storms finally blow through, bringing us much-needed rain. However, the storm winds can bring down these drought-weakened trees.  At times, we can be talking about a lot-line to lot-line root ball, which packs a lot of damage. 

So check any trees on your lot carefully.  Oaks, in particular, have shallow roots and may be more at risk.  Pine trees, with their deeper tap roots, may be less affected.  Take note of any shade trees that appear stressed, dead, or are leaning suspiciously.  Watch for trees whose root systems extend under your structures.  If you see warning signs, it is a good idea to have your trees evaluated by a professional – before a really big problem occurs!

For help in the City of West University Place, Craig Koehl, West U’s Urban Forester can be a valuable resource. 

Roger Martin

www.rogermartin.com

Posted in Gardening in West U, Neighborhood Safety and Home Security, The Face of West U Governnment, Weather in West U | Leave a comment

Young Scientists at Johnston Middle School

Posted on October 29, 2011 by admin

What do you get when you mix three things – some bright young minds, several NASA space professionals, and a bunch of real-life scientists?

What you get is an explosion of ideas!

Last year, Johnston Middle School hosted a live discussion with two astronauts in the international Space Station.  This year, the students (and their sibs from Parker Elementary) have the opportunity to design real-life experiments which astronauts will perform in the microgravity of space.  Student experiments can range the gamut from crystals and bacteria, to aquatic life, DNA, tissue samples and plant growth.

Each student is given an opaque container, about the size of a cigar or a test tube.  Three tiny ampoules are sealed inside the container.  At specified times, the astronauts will break open the ampoules and shake up the contents.  The same experiment will be performed here in our normal earth gravity, and the results will be compared and analyzed once the space flight is over.

So what do you get when the astronauts mix three things in space for our student experiments?

We are not at all sure yet… but stay tuned for Johnston’s Mission One to the International Space Station!

For additional information, please contact the SSEP Coordinators Lanena Berry (lberry1@houstonisd.org) or Amber Pinchback (apinchba@houstonisd.org).

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High Water

Posted on September 10, 2011 by admin

Here in Houston, we know all about natural disasters.  We know how to clean up after them.  We know how to feed people who have lost everything.  We know how to take care of people while they get back on their feet. 

It hasn’t always been like that.  

In the teeth of the Mississippi Flood of 2011, we visited some friends in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana.  At the time, everyone was anxiously watching the news to see if the great spillways would be opened, diverting flood waters from the Mississippi to the Atchafalaya.  They were.  One of our friends gave me a book titled Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America by John M. Barry, 1997.  It made fascinating reading – especially against the backdrop of the 2011 flood.

John M. Barry is an absolutely gifted writer – able to make dense, complicated issues as gripping as a detective novel.  His vivid descriptions of the people, places and events of this enormous natural disaster rival only the stories about the 1900 hurricane that hit Galveston.

The Mississippi River drains 31 of the 48 contiguous states, so a system-wide flood has national impact. At one point during the disaster, the river was one hundred miles wide and over thirty feet deep.  There were 40,000 refugees from one county alone, lined up on an eight-foot wide strip of levee.

Scientific in-fighting, political back-room deals, and social engineering - this book has it all.  This is not an “easy read”, but it is an excellent one.

Recommended by Ann M.

Posted in What West U Reads | Leave a comment