Sam White's College Station Real Estate Blog

Dear readers,

It quiet here in College Station, Texas as the last of our Texas A&M University students have left town for homes around the world. Truly, the peace is nice....no more waiting for our favorite restaurants. But with the kids, go the money.

I was in the McDonald's on University Drive yesterday and it was like a foreign students convention. It made me thankful that I have a home for Christmas.

To our student friends, drive carefully, have fun and we'll see you in January!

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Yahoo! The new Keller Williams Market Center we opened in August turned a profit in November! And with Keller Williams, profit means profit sharing.

It was a rocky summer. No one plans to open a new office at the END of the selling season...and that hadn't been our plan either. What went wrong? Well, we discovered that there is a lot more to getting the blessings of Keller Williams International than just writing a check.

We began recruiting agents in February for a May opening with 40 agents. But, when May grew to June, and then July, we started losing people. Truthfully, we almost lost me, but several of us hung in there and we were happy to hang a sign on the building in early August...but the 40 agents had dwindled almost in half.

Nevertheless, we hit the ground running. Our core group took KW's training to heart. We worked hard to get our four listings and four sales in three months - KW's famous 4-4-3 class, and it worked.

Now the numbers aren't huge, but they are BLACK instead of red...and that's a big deal in today's market. I'm not expecting a huge profit sharing check, but there WILL be one...the first of many. December is looking good!

We couldn't have done it without the patience and support of our investors, excellent leadership and training from our management, and lots of dedication from our agents...new and experienced.

Thanks to Keller Williams International, our investors and everyone who believes in us. Keller Williams Brazos Valley was KW's 764th market center, and we look forward to welcoming many more to the fold.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

Just a quick reminder that the Brazos Animal Shelter in Bryan & College Station, Texas begins their 12 days of Christmas campaign tomorrow (Dec 10) through December 22. During the 12 days of Christmas, pet adoptions are 1/2 price.

Check out this Blue Heeler - http://www.brazosanimalshelter.org/petsoweek.html

The shelter is located at 2207 Finfeather Road, about 1 mile North of the Villa Maria & Finfeather intersection in Bryan. Hours are 10am-6pm Monday - Friday and 10am-2pm Saturday. Call them at 979.775.5755.

Adopt a pet. Save a life. Woof!

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

OK. I admit it. The real estate market in Bryan and College Station, Texas is still good. The numbers are in through November, and although there was a slight dip in October, our MLS averages are still ahead of 2006.

Why? One reason is Texas A&M University. We are a university town. Bless the kids and the parents who send them, and their money, to our fair valley. There is a reason College Station keeps ending up on national lists of best places to live.

How do we keep our market good? First, I'm making sure that everyone in my SOI knows the market is still good. Face it, everyone listens to the national media, and can't help but think the Sky is falling. I'm making sure my clients know it isn't.

Every piece of mail I've sent this month, and every piece of mail I'm sending in the new year, has a market report included. I've spelled our market out with graphs and text, as clearly as possible. I'm making sure that the local story supersedes the national media.

I know how bad it is in some parts of the country. I met yesterday with Mo Anderson, grand matriarch of Keller Williams, and about 180 KW agents that comprise the leadership councils for our region. She brought tales of woe from Florida, California and Las Vegas. But with every tale of woe, there was a plan...and hope for light at the end of the tunnel.

Here's hoping that your market is OK, or at least ready to improve. Stick with it.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

Many in the Brazos Valley enjoy our area because of the mild winter weather. Hard freezes have become rare, and it's not unusual to see college kids at Texas A&M University in shorts and flip-flops in November and even December.

This year I think we've hit an extreme (or I hope so).

Our family headed out today to get our Christmas tree. Now, we are traditionalists. No fake trees. No fake fireplaces. The strange thing about today was that I was wearing shorts and flip-flops, and we drove to the tree farm with the air conditioning on. I remember doing this when we lived in Guam and Hawaii, but I didn't really expect it here in College Station. It was 84 degrees.

So here I sit in the family room, admiring our fine tree, with every window in the house open and seriously considering activating the air conditioner. I can even see the cord of wood which I carefully stacked for the winter.

OK. I'll stop whining. I know I have friends up north that would give their ___________ to be able to whine that it is too hot for December, and by writing about this I'll probably cause the first serious ice storm in a decade. If so, at least I have enough wood.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

 Just a quick thanks to all of those who attended the 81st Annual Bryan - College Station Christmas Parade.

The weather was great, the floats were fun, and a good time was had by all. Thanks to our wonderful community for their support.

We enjoyed see many of our friends and real estate colleagues on the floats. Great job!

See you next year! We'll hope for great weather again.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

I can't tell you how proud I am of the agents in our new Keller Williams office here in College Station, Texas. We  have gained momentum. We opened Keller Williams Realty Brazos Valley in August and now have 40 agents. But they aren't just agents...they are producing agents.

We were a rag-tag mix when we came together from several different brokerages. We had been waiting for several months for the office to open (we committed to KW in late February), so when we opened the doors inn August, we were ready to rock and roll.

Our new team leader immediately began KW's famous Camp 4-4-3 class (four listings and four sales in three months) which gave our agents the groundwork to begin building THEIR business. In addition to Camp 4-4-3, our market center offers weekly classes on technology, contracts and superior customer service.

Over the last few months I've watched our agents move out of their comfort zone and go after the business. They took their training to heart, and their business is really coming along. In fact, even with the start-up costs of opening a large office, we will be profitable in February. WOW! Here comes the profit sharing.

The best part of our success is seeing the joy in our agents faces as they realize they can be successful AND have fun. They took the building blocks we gave them through education, and they made success.

Now we are working on coaching through the peaks and valleys that many agents experience, trying to achieve the balance of working in your business and working on your business, so sales and income are consistent.

I can't wait to see what we can do when the season begins. Boy, I'm proud of these folks.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Blue skies.

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

With Christmas rapidly approaching, many folks are looking for appropriate gifts. Many families consider Christmas tree pets this time of year. There is nothing cuter than a puppy playing in the wrapping paper.

When considering a pet, please think of the Brazos Animal Shelter first. As the holidays approach, the shelter fills to capacity with lost and unwanted pets looking for a new home. If these animals are not adopted, many will be put to sleep.

Adopting through the shelter not only saves an animal from death, but also supports the facility that houses and adopts stray pets here in the Brazos Valley, keeping loose animals from roaming our neighborhoods.

The Brazos Animal Shelter, on Finfeather Rd north of Villla Maria, can be reached at 979.775.5755 or at www.BrazosAnimalShelter.org.

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

Last call for he 81st Annual Bryan-College Station Christmas Parade, tomorrow (Sunday December 2). With over 108 entries, this year promises to be one of the biggest thus far.

The parade will begin near Polo Rd off of University Avenue, will enter Texas Ave at University, proceeding north until dispersal near Sulphur Springs Road.

With good weather, more than 10,000 local residents are expected for the event.

See you there!

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com

Dear readers,

Soccer fans should mark their calendars for December 7th & 9th for the NCAA 2007 Women's College Cup of Soccer. The 2007 NCAA champion will be crowned here at the Texas A&M Soccer Stadium in College Station, Texas.

Tickets are available at 979.845.2311 or at www.aggieathletics.com. Let's all support Women's soccer here at Texas A&M. Go Aggies!

Blue skies,

Sam White
www.SamWhiteRealty.com