Sam White's College Station Real Estate Blog

Dear readers,

There are two more upcoming holiday events worthy of note:

2007 Bryan College Station Christmas Parade - December 2, 2pm, beginning on University Drive East, then north on Texas Avenue.

Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra presents Handel's Messiah, December 9th at 6pm at Christ United Methodist Church in College Station. For more information, contact the Texas A&M University MSC Box Office at 979.845.1234.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

College Station and Bryan will offer outdoor Christmas events this year.

College Station's Christmas in the Park is scheduled to begin the evening of Friday, November 30th. The park will be illuminated from 6pm-11pm daily. Special events in the park will begin this Friday, and take place from 6pm-9pm on Friday and Saturday nights through December 15th.

The City of Bryan will have a one-night party this Thursday from 5:30pm-8:30pm. Bryan's event features cookies, games and activities for children, as well as photos with Santa.

Watch for more information on Christmas festivities in the Brazos Valley in the coming weeks.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

I would like to introduce you to our new listing on Jenna Ct in Bryan.

This 2003 Stylecraft Builders home features 1,184 sqare feet, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths on a corner lot. The bedrooms are spacious. The home features many custom features including raised ceilings, custom cabinets and plantation blinds.

Priced at $103,900, this home is looking for a small family, individual or student/investor. For more information visit www.SamWhiteRealty.com or call 800-833-4891, extension #301 for more information.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

I was just reading a national story in our local paper about housing and mortgage gloom and doom. Now, I know the College Station paper uses a lot of national stories for filler, and folks in the Brazos Valley should have an idea what's going on in some markets, but as usual the filler they used gives the impression that all is bad everywhere. Not so.

So, take a reporter to lunch. Educate them on the positive aspects of our current market. Help them accentuate the positive by giving them something positive to write about. They can either get their filler from the negative national media, or from you, the area expert.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Hello Seattle,

Texas here. I just heard a story on National Public Radio you may want to catch as it comes to your time zone this evening.

Its about marijuana grow houses in the Seattle area, and how poor mortgage lending practices contributed to their proliferation.

The story ran during our 5:15 to 5:30 pm segment, here in College Station, Texas. I'm sure it will also be available on-line.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

Texas A&M has a new football coach, less than three days after Coach Dennis Franchione resigned.

Houston Texans' offensive coordinator Mike Sherman has been named head coach of the Texas A&M football team.

Sherman will receive a seven-year contract paying $1.8 million annually. The contract must be approved by the A&M System Board of Regents, scheduled to next meet December 6th and 7th.

Blue Skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

Brrrrrrrr. We finally have our first little taste of winter. Its been in the 40's all day with light to heavy rain. The same is expected tomorrow.

One of the things I enjoy about winter the most is a fire in the fireplace. You don't get to do that a lot here in Bryan and College Station. I'm working my way through my cord of wood. There is something satisfying about sitting with my back to a warm fire, and I'm appreciating it more and more as I age.

It'll probably be back in the 80s next week.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

I was speaking with a friend who had just driven in from the Houston airport. He was talking about the drive, the shuttle buses from the parking facility to the terminals, and how much it all cost. I asked him if he enjoyed driving to Houston. He didn't think it was funny.

So I asked why he didn't fly out of Easterwood and connect in Houston instead. We have several flights a day that make most connections work. He said he "heard" it was a lot more expensive and there weren't good connections.

Yes, ticket prices are sometimes higher than if you drove to Houston, but when you factor the cost of the car, gas, parking and...oh ya, your time.

All I'm saying is consider it, and if the numbers work out, give it a try. We have a great little airport with good air service into Bryan and College Station. I'd sure hate to lose it.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

I'm reminded about a nasty little ice storm we had here in College Station, Texas in the late 80s. I remember leaving my job at the airport and thinking that I should have done so about an hour earlier, because it was beginning to freeze. I wrecked my best friends Jimmy on the way home that day.

We are going to have another ice storm here someday, and I just want to remind everyone that the best thing to do in an ice storm is hide in your house. Get home before it starts and enjoy a day or two with the family. Oh, and say a little prayer the electricity stays on.

On that happy note...

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

I was at a listing appointment today, and heard something I hadn't really thought about, yet.

I was visiting with an older couple, who were selling their next to the, next to the last home they plan to ever own. Anyway, there planned to never live on the west side of College Station again. The reason they cited was;

If you live on the east side, you are driving west on the way to work in the morning (sun at your back), and east on the way home again in the evening (again, sun at your back). They apparently did not like looking into the sun.

Of course, the worst commute in our fain community is no more than 10-15 minutes anyway.

Just something else to think (and blog) about.

Blue skies,

Sam White
http://www.samwhiterealty.com/

Dear readers,

The City of College Station is reminding citizens to recycle this season. Landfill waste increases drastically during the holidays. Much of that waste can be recycled.

For more information on College Station's curbside recycling program, click http://www.cstx.gov/home/index.asp?page=2030.

Unfortunately, Bryan does not enjoy curbside recycling, but residents can take their recyclables to the community drop off at the Bryan Wal-Mart. 

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

Today, I simply want to say from my family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving! Please drive carefully, eat moderately, love a lot and get back home safely.

Good luck at the game on Friday!

Here's a nice poem for the day:

Thanksgiving is a time for giving thanks;
However, the reception's not so clear.
As we pass the drumsticks or the shanks,
No Maker holds such severed flesh less dear.
Kindness is a requisite for grace;
So must we be to all that suffer pain.
Gratitude seems slightly out of place
In places where compassion is less plain.
Very few this day will give much thought
In passing to the creatures that they eat.
Nor will we feel the empathy we ought,
Given that we are ourselves but meat.

Blue skies,

Sam White
http://www.samwhiteproperties.com/

Dear readers,

This is a quick post to let you know that the Texas Aggie Bonfire burned bright last night. The stack was ignited at 8:30 last night, with a crowd of 3,000 attending.

Igniting the five-tiered stack was banned over the weekend due to a burn ban in Robertson County. The ban was lifted after three inches of rain fell over the weekend.

So far, there are no reports of accidents or incidents. A great photo can be found at www.TheEagle.com.

Happy Thanksgiving to all Aggies. Be careful on the roads!

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

WHOOP!

After receiving over three inches of rain over the weekend, Robertson County commissioners lifted the burn ban and cleared the way to ignite the five-tiered bonfire tonight just north of Hearne.

• The burn is scheduled to take place between 7 and 8 pm.
• Admission is $5 per car.
• Shuttle-buses will run from Post Oak Mall until midnight.

Further information can be found at www.studentbonfire.com.

Please! Be EXTRA careful. Use you HEAD on Highway 6. Watch out for other Aggies as you want them to watch out for you...and...HAVE FUN!

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear rancher friends,

December 1st is the 10th Annual Fall Stocker Cow Sale at the Bryan Livestock Auction on Hwy 21 in Bryan, Texas. Sale begins at 11 am.

All cattle are young and screened for quality. Call today to consign quality young females.

Also featured:

• Double Creek Angus Bulls
• Pat Griswold Charolais Bulls
• Pat Griswold Hereford Bulls
• Deshazer Polled Hereford Bulls

To consign or for further information, call 979-778-0904.

See you there!

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

The Eagle, Bryan & College Station's hometown newspaper reported that growth in the Brazos Valley is "slowing," but not experiencing an economic decline.

The Eagleemploys economist Karr Ingham to compile a monthly index of the Brazos Valley's economy. The index remained stable, gaining only .1 points from August 2007 to September 2007. The index rose 2.4 points between September 2006 to September 2007.

Quoting Ingham from The Eagle, "Its still growing, just at a slower rate. It's impossible to sustain growth year over year. These things just ebb and flow."

For the full article and numbers, please visit The Eagle.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com 

Dear readers,

It's time for College Station's Christmas in the Park. The annual affair will be held at College Station's Central Park beginning on November 21 and ending on January 2. The hours are 6 - 11 pm.

The event features:

• Free Hay rides
• Free Hot Chocolate and Cookies
• Entertainment
• Visit with Santa

For more information, please call 979.764.3486 or visit www.cstx.gov.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

This is just a quick post to say, "Watch your speed in the local school zones." Someone near and dear to me received a citation from College Station's finest last week for speeding in a school zone.

It just goes to remind me how important it is to keep our speed down. We aren't 10 minutes from anything in the Brazos Valley, so there's no real reason to be in a hurry.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

But for graduation, this is probably the busiest week in Aggieland.

First, this Friday is the annual match-up between the Aggies and the little school down the road. The Aggies aren't having the best football season, but that doesn't take away enthusiasm for this game. You never know when good ole' Aggie luck will prevail.

On a sadder note, it was at 0242 on November 18th 1999 (early tomorrow morning) that the bonfire stack under construction on the Texas A&M campus collapsed and killed 11 students and 1 graduate. Since that time, Texas A&M University has not sanctioned a student bonfire.

Several off-campus bonfires have burned in recent years. Usually constructed on private property, these stacks don't quite measure up to the 75 foot plus bonfires of old, but they serve the same purpose of bringing the student body together.

Unfortunately, in recent years the dry weather has prevented several of these bonfires from legally burning. True, a couple have illegally burned, something that this year's bonfire committee says will not happen this year. It is hot and dry and windy here.

I hope everyone has a safe and great weekend and Thanksgiving.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

This is the weekend of the third annual Maroon and White Ball (www.maroonandwhiteball.com).

This year the ball is being held at the new Brazos County Expo Center, which is a great new facility. Gates open at 4 p.m. on Saturday and the cook-off lasts until 7 pm.

What cook off? The calf fry cook off of course. Featured music includes Pat Green, Cory Morrow and Billie Joe Shaver.

Tickets are $20 and available at the MSC Box Office, Traditions Bookstores and Cavender's.

Have a safe time!

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com