Bob Gilbert Katy and Richmond, Texas Real Estate

Katy4u - Reach Out and Touch Someone by Doing Something Novel These Days

Bob Gilbert — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 02:21:00 GMT

Does anyone else remember an advertising campaign several years ago conducted by the phone company telling everyone to call someone special during the holidays? Well I remember this commercial very well and I want to recommend to all folks lets try it again. I am not talking about writing on someones Facebook wall or sending someone a tweet but just grab your phone and call someone special to you or an old friend or a relative who you haven't spoken to for sometime. I know that this a very novel concept these days but I think its worth the effort. You will make the person you call very happy I will speculate and you will feel good down inside.

Yesterday as I started driving to my full time job's office I got a unexpected call from a guy who was probably my best friend in elementary school, Jr. High School and Freshmen year in High School. After our first year in High school we for an unknown reason lost contact with each other. Almost 6-7 years ago we reconnected based on finding a common friend on the www.classmates.com web site. We meet at the common friend home in Nashville one weekend with our wives and had a great time. Unfortunately, once again we lost contact and we had not spoken for several years but only communicated via E-mail until yesterday when he called me. I really enjoyed speaking to my old friend and vowed to call him back after I call our in common friend. I believe my friend also enjoyed speaking to me.

Last week I posted on my www.facebook.com wall that I was at the Cardiologist office for a stress test. I received several inquiries from folks who saw my post and I want to thank all of those who were concerned about my well being. The heart exam came out great. I also got Facebook messages from another old friend who had moved back to the Midwest from the West Coast a few years ago. He was probably my best friend From Sophomore year in High School all the way through college years. we lost contact due to marriage and moving to different cities. I would call him but I do not have his cell number. It was really nice hearing from him.

If you have any questions about homes for sale in the Katy or surrounding areas or other questions contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katyhomefinder.com TEAM DEVER...

Bob

Katy 4 U - Katy Texas Wine Drinkers Another Opportunity to Drink Wine for Charity

Bob Gilbert — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 21:06:00 GMT

The Rotary Club of Katy Sunrise will hold their 5 th annual charity wine tasting on October 28, 2010 from 6:00 PM until 10:00 PM. The event will take place at Agave Road in Katy which is just west of 1463. This year the event will mainly assist Christ's Clinic who serves the medically uninsured and those without government medical assistance who live in the Katy, Texas area. In addition several other local and international charitable projects will receive some of the proceeds from this event.

There will be live entertainment provided by Katy's own Kevin Black. My wife and I had the opportunity a few years ago to hear Kevin one evening when he sang some songs at a local dinner party we attended and he was great. The wines that will be served include a wide selection from Texas along with several wines from Australia. The evening will also include a silent auction , a live auction and good food provided by Antonia's Italian Restaurant, Fish City Grill, Messina Olive Tree, Ooh La La Dessert Boutique and Las Alamedas.

Tickets are $50 per person paid in advance and will increase to $60.00 per person at the door. Admission includes all wine tastings, food prepared by the restaurants already mentioned and a souvenir wine glass. Additional event information can be found at www.localwineevents.com.

Here is another good reason to drink wine in Katy and at the same time help a good cause...

If you have any questions about homes for sale in the Katy or surrounding areas or other questions contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com ...

Bob

Katy 4 U - Home Buyers Interview Real Estate Agents Before Selecting One

Bob Gilbert — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 21:02:00 GMT

One of the most important decisions any person will make during their life time is the decision to buy a home and along with that decision is another almost as important decision as which Real Estate Agent to use. My advise is simple interview several potential candidates. Don't make the mistake of relying on what drinking buddies suggested as to an agent or what your sorority sisters said was a really good looking agent so you should him.. use your own good brain for this important decision and find the best agent in the area(s) you want to live who meets your needs and requirements of a good agent for you and your family. Meet the agent at his/her office or at a neutral site or at least conduct a phone interview and ask questions. Here are some questions that you might want to ask or at least consider asking:

* Are you an Accredited Buyers Representative? How long have you been an agent? What Real Estate Designations or Credentials do you hold? Before you were an agent what did you do and how does help you to be a better agent? Do you hold any other professional licenses, degrees or successful professional experience that makes you a better agent than other agents?

* Can you give me 3 or more references from past buyers and the ability for me to contact them?

* Do you have specialized real estate knowledge/experience? What areas or neighborhoods do you know best?

* Are you a full service agent? What services will you provide me as we go through the entire home buying process?

* Who will pay for the Brokers/Agent services? Will I have to pay any additional costs if I select you as my agent?

* Do you personally do the work all along the transaction trail or do you use assistants? If you use assistants what aspects do the assistants work on and how much contact do I have with you? ( Watch out for the supposed "SUPER AGENTS" with huge teams... I personally love it when one of my buyer clients picks a home which is listed by one of these groups as they have too many people trying to handle one deal and their internal communication is poor at best).

*Will you help me with negotiating the deal and make suggestions to me as we put together offers and or counteroffers?

* Will you provide guidance as to financing options, mortgage choices and budgeting? Do you understand the different financing vehicles that are available? ( Don't assume that even experienced agents really understand as many times they do not and they sometimes give their clients terrible advice)

* Can you introduce me to other service providers such as home inspectors, mortgage professionals, insurance agents, movers, etc.?

* Do you review the HUD 1 and attend the actual closing to help me with any issues that might come up?

* What else to you bring to table that will help me find a really good home an a reasonable price?

I personally love to be interviewed and frankly speaking expect to get selected as their agent a very high percentage of the time by potential clients who do take the time to interview me in person or over the phone.

If you have any questions about homes for sale in the Katy or surrounding areas or other questions contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com

Bob

KATY 4 U - Katy Rice Harvest Festival being Held Oct. 9-10 2010 in Katy, Texas

Bob Gilbert — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 19:01:00 GMT

If you and your family are looking for something to do for family fun or individually you should consider the Katy Rice Harvest Festival. The Festival will be held on Friday October 9, 2010 from 10:00 AM until 11:30 PM and on Saturday October 10 from 12:00 PM until 6:00 PM. This is the 30 annual festival and it has been named for several years as one of the top 10 festivals in the whole Houston area. The festival originally was named a "Sellabration" and was intended to bring the community together to educate folks about rice and let the area farmers show what they could do to the public living in the Katy area. Today it is expected that the Festival will draw 45-50 thousand folks to the downtown Katy area over the course of the weekend. This a huge weekend event for the entire Katy Texas area.

The Festival is held in Historic downtown Katy which is aproximately 28 miles west of downtown Houston. The actual Festival will cover Avenues B and C , 2nd street and 3 rd street which is about 1 mile north of I-10. Ticket prices for admission ( excluding the Cranival) are $7.00 per person per day. Children that 12 and under are admitted free of charge. This is really a cheap price for a great function and that is loaded with fun. Events include all day entertainment on two stages, arts and crafts with over 300 booths, numerous food booths, rice cooking contest, and a carnival. The carnival requires the purchase of a armband for $20/day/person. There is a special Friday night armband that is being sold for $15.

Parking is free of charge at the Outdoor Learning Center behind the Merrell Center. This is located north of I-10 on FM 1463. Click here for a Google map.. ----- A free shuttle service will be provided to and from the parking area.

The Rice Festival is definitely a family oriented event. More than 60 non - profit organizations will benefit directly from the Festival.

Make your plans now to attend. If you want more information go to their web site at http://www.riceharvestfestival.org/Home.aspx.

Bob

Katy 4 U - Voter Registration Ended Monday Oct 4, 2010

Bob Gilbert — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 18:57:00 GMT

The first Tuesday in November is both a general national and state election day. If you have not registered to vote you have until Monday October 4, 2010 to complete the registration application so that you can vote in the November 2, 2010 election. It is important for citizens to exercises their right to vote. To register to vote in Texas you have to:

1) Be a US Citizen;

2) You are legally registered to vote in Texas;

3) You are at least 18 years old on Election Day November 2, 2010;

4) Not a convicted felon (you may be eligible to vote if you have completed your sentence, probation and parole)

5) You have not been declared by a court to be either totally mentally incapacitated or partial mentally incapacitated without the right to vote being declared by the court.

If you are unsure if you are registered or want to register to vote go to www.votexas.org to find all the data you will need. The registration form has to be received at the applicable county office or postmarked no later than tomorrow October 4, 2010.

This will be an important election year both on a local as well as national level. If you live in the Katy ISD jurisdiction it will be very important to vote on the KISD Trustees $459.7 million bond package. We are blessed with excellent schools in the Katy area and to maintain excellence it is necessary for all of us to vote and vote for this important bond issuance.

Bob

Katy 4U - Katy ISD Marching Band Festival

Bob Gilbert — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 18:55:00 GMT

Saturday October 9, 2010 will mark the 25 th anniversary of the annual Katy ISD Marching Band Festival. There will be at least 28 different bands competing and ranging from 2A to 5A size schools ( small to very large based on student population). The festival will be held at Rhodes Stadium which is located at 1733 Katyland Dr. in Katy, Texas and will begin at 8:45 AM. It is estimated that over 8,000 spectators and band members are expected to attend. Admission is $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for children while children ages 12 and younger are free. The bands compete for various awards and the judges will provide band members and Directors with useful information for improvements and marching strategies. All bands except for Katy ISD will be eligible to win the various awards. If you have ever been to a Katy ISD varsity high school football game then you already know that these bands play excellent music and amaze you with their marching ability while playing their instruments. The students musicians are excellent. If you like music and/or marching bands this is the place to be this coming Saturday.. Have fun at the festival..

If you have any questions about homes for sale in the Katy or surrounding areas or other questions contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com

... Bob

Katy4 U : Wall Street Journal Survey of Top Schools per Recruiters - Two from Texas on are the List

Bob Gilbert — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 22:37:00 GMT

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) released the results of a survey this past week of Corporate Recruiters indicating the top schools in the US. US Companies in general tend to favor graduates from large state universities over big name Ivy League schools and other top rated programs. The recruiters are trying to fill entry level positions within their organizations. The study surveyed 479 of the largest public and private companies, non-profit and government agencies. The recruiters conclusions are that graduates from the schools who are on the list are best prepared and most able to succeed. In other words, grads from state schools are willing to work and accept jobs at entry levels and don't expect to be a Vice President on day one. With the national economy having a large unemployment rate the schools recruiters favor becomes even more important. Employers are visiting fewer schools these days and campanies are reducing their recruiting budgets.

The top three picks of recruiters were Pennsylvania State University, Texas A & M and the University of Illinois at Champaign Urbana. Penn State being number 1 had recruiters saying " Bright, well-rounded.. with core competencies we desire". Texas A & M ranked number 2 found recruiters comments of "proximity to key operations, quality candidates and breath of programs which match our recruiting needs". University of Illinois had recruiters saying " Graduates .. performed well and tend to stay with the company".

Overall the State of Texas had two schools in the top 25 being Texas A & M as mentioned previously at number 2 and surprisingly Texas Tech University at number 18. Sorry but no University of Texas in Austin or Rice or anyone else.

The majors being mentioned for Texas A & M were Finance, Business, and Engineering. While the top majors for Texas Tech were Engineering.

The top ten schools on the WSJ list are:

1) Penn State 2) Texas A & M 3) University Illinois 4) Purdue University 5) Arizona State 6) University of Michigan 7) Georgia Institute of Technology 8) University of Maryland 9) University of Florida 10) Carnegie Mellon University. If you are interested in seeing the try this link

As I have reported on numerous occasions, Katy Texas has an excellent school system and Katy ISD places numerous graduates in both of the two schools in Texas which made the recuiters top school list.

Katy 4 U - Health Fair in Katy Texas on 9/22/2010

Bob Gilbert — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 20:27:00 GMT

On Wednesday September 22, 2010 Epiphany of the Lord Catholic Community will hosta health fair. The fair will be in the Epiphany family center. If you are unsure where to go don't hesitate to ask as the people there are all friendly and helpful. The fair will start at 9:30 AM and run until 1:30 PM. There will be over 35 different health care groups with booths providing valuable health information. Flu shots are available for $20/each and the shots are free for medicare individuals but you will need your card. In addition blood pressure screening and glucose testing is available and free samples will be given out.

Epiphany of the Lord is located at 1530 Norwalk Dr. Katy, Texas 77450 and the phone number is 281-578-0707. Epiphany is one of several local area Church's that provide valuable community services to the whole area. If you have health issues or are unsure and a health check might be a good idea then don't miss this opportunity. The most valuable asset we all have is out health...

Bob

KATY 4 U: REAL ESTATE AGENTS AND PROFESSIONALS IN THE REAL ESTATE BUSINES ARE WE ALL MISSING THE BOAT AS FAR CLIENT SERVICE IS CONCERNED?

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:47:00 GMT

On Saturday August 28, 2010 I was very fortunate to attend a Home Show put on by David Weekley Homes in Houston. I treated this day like I was attending a seminar as I wanted to learn as much as I can about home building, top notch contruction quality. and state of the art energy efficiency. The simple reason why is that the more I learn the better the agent I will be when I represent a home buyer when finding them a home in the Katy or surrounding areas as their agent and the greater the value I will add to my client's overall home buying experience. I also was very fortunate to hear David Weekley himself speak at this home show. His presentation was excellent and I listen intently and learned a lot from his talk. David Weekley homes has set a high bar for the rest of industry to try to reach when it comes to quality, innovations and energy efficiency. I took 8 pages of notes during the home show and I plan to write these notes up in my notebook so I will always have them to refer to in the future. There is a lot really good information stored in my notes.

When I got home I felt really good that I had done something positive to improve myself as an agent by going to this home show. I pulled out my ongoing to do list to add the rewriting of my notes when it struck me when I saw my endless to do list with mainly items involving Social Media shown... As agents and industry professionals are we currently concentrating on the correct areas to help our clients now and in the future? Do we all ( I am guilty also) spend way too much time on social media, writing blogs( like this one), working on our web sites, trying to figure SEO and how to improve our web sites standing, trying to keep up with Facebook, Twitter, Zillow, etc. as opposed to improving our skills which give value back to our clients? The items we all tend to spend many hours on these days in my opinion adds no value at all to our clients. Where is the line in the sand that we all need to draw when it comes to allocating our time... I believe our clients are not benefiting from all of this Social media, stuff. Can someone out there help me out with this issue as I really am unsure what to do as we all know we have to be part of this social media frontier but how much is enough????

If you have any questions about real estate in the Katy or surrounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com ..

Bob

KATY 4 U : TEXAS HOME AND GARDEN MARKET SHOW

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:43:00 GMT

The 15TH annual Texas Home and Garden Market Show comes to Houston on Saturday September 18 and Sunday September 19, 2010 at the Reliant Center. Show hours are Saturday 10:00 AM- 8:00 PM and Sunday 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Ticket prices are General Admission is $9.00; Seniors are $7.00; and children 14 and under are free. If you go to their web site being www.thehomeandgardenmarket.com and search through the tabs you should be able to find a $1.00 discount admission coupon. There are plenty of football games on all day Saturday and Sunday so there is more than enough time to sneak out to this show.

Show attractions include Garden and Landscaping; Home Decor; Storm Preparedness; Kitchen and Bath; Home Remodeling; Outdoor Living; Pools and Spas; Green Living; and various seminars.

On the Home and Garden Market theater Joey Green will present Wacky Uses for Brand Name Products; Byron Parffrey from the Builders Academy will discuss Build and Remodel an Energy FFFree Healthy Home; Micheal Graves Faux Finishing will be presented by Laurie Lopez; and Dany Millikin and Scott Srodgrass will teach Edible Gardens - So many Reasons to Produce.

Parking is available at the Reliant Center at their normal prices for an event.

This is another home show where existing or new homeowners can obtain ideas and learn new things about numerous topics. Katy Texas is a fairly short drive away from the Reliant Center and the Texans play in Washington on Sunday so that will not become a traffic issue.

If you have any questions about homes for sale in Katy Texas or the surrounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katyhomefinder.com .. TEAM DEVER...

I hope everyone who goes will enjoy this show...

Bob

KATY 4 U - KATY SEVEN LAKES JV A FOOTBALL TEAM LOSES ITS FIRST GAME

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:33:00 GMT

This is the second blog in my series of covering Katy Seven Lakes JV A Football Team. As I said in my first article. JV Football Teams get no publicity, coverage and as you will see later it seems no one really cares other than the players and parents. My goal is to try to write a blog if possible for each game I attend and I hope to go to all of the games but one.

Unfortunately, the Seven Lakes JV A Team lost last Thursday evening September 9, 2010 to Foster which is a close by Lamar Consolidated school. The score was 12-7 and it was a hard fought battle. The Seven Lakes defense played a really good game in spite of the fact as a group these guys were on the field way too long. Foster scored one of their touchdowns on a special teams play ( kickoff return) and their return man showed both excellent speed and the ability to follow his blocks. The winning touchdown came in the 4 TH quarter after the offense turned the ball over fairly deep in the Seven Lakes side of the field. We had one last attempt to score as the defense held Foster on a fourth down play near mid field. The offense came up short even though Seven Lakes did complete one mid range pass to that put them into potential scoring area.

The offense looked very sharp early in the game as it scored after a fairly long sustained drive. A new quarterback I had not seen before was running the team and doing an excellent job. After that the Seven Lakes offense seemed like it got bogged down until almost the end of the game. I said to my wife while we are running the new no huddle offense and trying to throw the West Coast style short passes something is not right. The plays we were calling were to me being repeated in a set pattern. Seven Lakes hired a new offensive Coordinator this year and he brought with him the no huddle spread offense which I think is a great idea. But why were the play calls being repeated over and over again? During the past several years Seven Lakes, based on my experience, has had a very predictable pattern of calling plays from the Varsity on down and in fact sometimes it has been so bad that several of the Mom's in the stands were correctly announcing a play before it ever happened. Can you image what a decent defensive coordinatorcan do to shut down the other teams offense if he looks at game films and writes down the play selection and situations when there is this predictable pattern to the play calling??? I though this new coordinator would cure this horrible pattern of play calling.

As I said above the Seven Lakes defense flat out spent way too much time on the field and offense spent way too little as there were way too many 3 and out sequences. The defense just ran out of gas and that is not a criticism of this group. After the game I made some inquiries and it turned out the prior Offensive Coordinator was calling the plays and not the new Coordinator. My wife and I totally independent of one another said " That explains it". We were also told that no really cares about whether the JV wins or not and that is why the old coordinator was back at it again???

This week all the Seven Lakes Football teams have a bye week. Next week we have Katy on the schedule and Katy once again is one of the bset teams in the whole state... We wish all of our Teams good luck against Katy as we will need it plus a lot more...

Seven Lakes is one of the high schools in the KISD group and is an excellent school by any measure. If you have any questions about Seven Lakes High School, KISD or buying homes in the Katy or surrounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com

Bob

Katy 4 U : CUBAN FOOD AT RINCON CRIOLLO NEAR KATY TEXAS

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:31:00 GMT

My wife and I do not have the ability to eat lunch together very often so we like to go some place different when we do have one of our few opportunities to dine together at lunch. On Labor Day we had such an opportunity and we discovered a new Cuban Restaurant near Katy, Texas named Rincon Criollo. The restaurant is located at 2150 South Highway 6 suite 150 Houston, TX 77077 and phone is 281-679-7148. This place is just north of Westheimer in a strip district before you get to Best Buy. It is on the west side of the street. My wife had called her Cuban friend who recommended the restaurant assuming that we like Cuban food. We love Cuban food and really like this place.

They are opened Monday- Friday 9:00 AM until 9:00 PM, Saturday from 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM and Sunday 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM. The good news is that they serve breakfast. For example, one breakfast item is 2 eggs, fried ripe plantain, green fried plantain, fries, sirloin steak or breaded steak, bacon, sausage, biscuits & country gravy, butter or blueberry pancake for $7.95. I can't wait to go back just to try the breakfast.

My wife had the daily pork special and it was delicious. I had Picadillo a La Criolla or ground beef with Spanish herbs and spices. Mine came with rice, black beans, and plantains and not only did taste great I had food left over. We had alot of food left between the two of us and I eat these left overs for lunch about 3 days later and it was still excellent.

Rincon Criollo has a fairly large menu to choose from and I believe the prices are very reasonable compared to the volume and quality of the food you receive. You can also call them for take out orders. Their E-mail address is rinconcriollo@att.net if you have any food questions. It appears that this a family owned business and that they take great pride in their work. The restaurant is not fancy but clean and just plain old good food can be found there.

Katy has many things to offer to all and good places to eat is just one of those items. Rincon is very close to Katy and easy to get to. Call me at 281-904-6772 if you need directions.

If you have any questions about the wonderful homes that are for sale in Katy or surrounding area contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katyhomefinder.com.. TEAM DEVER...

Bob

KATY 4 U - KATY SEVEN LAKES JV A FOOTBALL TEAM WINS ITS SECOND GAME

Bob Gilbert — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 20:19:00 GMT

During this football season I am going write a few blogs about the JV A Football Team at Katy Seven Lakes High School ( Spartans), who are part of the Katy ISD, as my step son plays for this team and JV teams usually get no recognition. Katy Seven Lakes beat Dulles this past Wednesday night 14-0 at Dulles High School. This was their second win of the season and this group is undefeated at this point. Seven Lakes and Dulles were tied 0-0 at half time but I believe Seven Lakes excellent defense and team depth wore Dulles out as the game went on. Dulles also has an excellent defensive unit but I noticed several of their linemen played both ways and never came off the field. I also saw a few of these guys asking to be taken out as the 4 TH quarter dragged on for them. These guys were all good players but fatigue I think set in and the Spartan's don't have to play guys both ways as this group is good on both sides of the ball.

One aspect that showed significant amount of improvement for the Spartans was their kicking game. I have watched the Spartans play since the school opened and I painfully remember all too well punts of 20 yards or so and the defense having its back to the wall once again. In fact I can not remember the Spartan's ever having a really good overall kicking game but the JV A team certainly does right now. The punter had one punt that must have gone 60 yard plus net. In addition, historically place kicking has also been a weakness but not now as the current place kicker nailed two extra points during this game and he has excellent technique.

The JV A team plays Foster this coming week on Thursday September 9, 2010 starting at 6:30 PM with the being played at Seven Lakes High School. The JV B Team plays at 4:30 PM on the same day at SLHS. These are really good games and I invite folks out to watch these kids play.

If you have any questions about the Katy ISD or Sevene Lkaes High School or real estate in the Katy or surrounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or find us on the web at www.katy4u.com.. .

KATY 4 U: KATY HOME DECOR AND REMODELING SHOW AUGUST 28- AUGUST 29, 2010

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 22:05:00 GMT

The Katy Home Decor and Remodeling Show will be held this weekend at the Merrel Center 6301 South Stadium Lane Katy,TX 77494. Show times are Saturday August 28 10:00 AM- 6:00 PM and Sunday August 29 11:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Admission is $8.00 for all adults; $6.00 for Seniors; $4.00 for all military ( with ID) and kids 12 and under are free. All scouts will be admitted to the show free and a portion of all ticket sales will be donated to the Boy Scouts.

A map to the Merrel Center is available by clicking here _____

This show will have many venues for visitors to look at , seminars to attend and home suppliers/vendors to meet with and discuss your ideas. The main features include home builders, home decor and interior design, home accessories, home remodeling, kitchens and baths, pools and spas, landscaping, appliances and home improvements. Promoters claim this is the show of it kind in the Katy/West Houston market.

The show sponsors include Vance Installations, Remedy Roofing, Scene One Interiors and Home Makeover Expo which partnered with Home Decor and Remodeling Show along with the Boy Scouts.

This sounds like a really interesting show to attend if you are a home owner or want to build a new home.

If you have any questions about homes for sale in Katy, Texas or other questions about Katy contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com ...

KATY 4U: DRIVERS IN KATY/CYPRESS GUESS WHAT? SCHOOL HAS STARTED

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 22:00:00 GMT

Drivers in Katy and Cypress Texas please remember school has started and all the school speed zones are in effect once again. It is also a fine of up $200 if you using your cell phone in a school zone. Yes I know most folks in Texas believe it is their God given right to speed. School zones are there for a purpose and not for you folks out there to speed through while talking or sending a text message on your cell phone!!!!

I have wanted to write a short blog about this problem for sometime and this morning, when this lady driving an luxury SUV, was speeding through a school zone at a Cypress Junior High School while talking on her cell phone and almost rear ended me, I said it was time to write about this issue. By the way this person had two kids in the back seat of her SUV!!! Where is your mind???

Speeding in neighborhoods where children are present and school zones is a serious issue and a growing problem. I see numerous violations almost every day when school is in session. Please remember to slow done and watch for the children. Think how you would feel if a child was yours or you are the grand parents of or you are the aunt or uncle of or your are the older sibling of a child who got hurt by an out of control driver speeding through the school zone and talking away on their cell phone. USE YOUR GOD GIVEN COMMON SENSE.. PLEASE!!!

Cypress and Katy have many beautiful neighborhoods and homes and we all contribute to their deterioration by acting in irresponsible fashions.

If you have any questions about homes in the Cypress and/ or Katy Texas areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit on the web at www.katy4u.com..

2010 DISTRICT 19-5A FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 19:03:00 GMT

BELOW IS THE 2010 DISTRICT 19-5A FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

KATY I.S.D. VARSITY FOOTBALL SCHEDULE 2010

Cinco Ranch

Katy

Mayde Creek

Morton Ranch

Seven Lakes

James E. Taylor

Memorial

Strake Jesuit

Week o
Aug.

26 - 28

Klein Forest

North Shore

Cy Springs

Tomball

Kempner

Cy Fair

Stratford

St. Thomas

Rhodes Stadium

HOME

Galena Park Stadium

Away

Berry

Away

Rhodes Stadium

HOME

Rhodes Stadium

HOME

Berry Center

Away

Tully Stadium

HOME

Crusader Stadium

HOME

Thursday I Aug. 26th

7:00 pm

Friday I Aug. 27th

700 pm

Friday I Aug. 27th

7:o0pm

Saturday I Aug. 28th

6.roo pm

Friday I Aug. 27

7:00 pm

Saturday I Aug. 213

6:oo pm

Friday I Aug. 27th

6:00 pm

Friday I Aug 27th

7:o0prn

Week i
Sept.

2 - 4

Cy Ridge

Alief Taylor

Vin110Wrid e

Cy Falls

Dulles

Klein

Westfield

Dallas Jesuit

Pridgeon Stadium

Away

Rhodes Stadium

HOME

Hall Stadium Away

Berry Center

Away

Rhodes Stadium

HOME

Rhodes Stadium

HOME

Away

Crusader Stadium

HOME

Friday ISept. 3rd

7:00 pm

Saturday I Sept. 4th

6:00pm

Friday I Sept. 3rd 7:00pm

Friday I Sept. 3rd

7:oopm

Thursday I Sept. 2nd

7:o0pm

Friday (Sept. 3rd

7:oopm

Friday I

Friday ISept. 3rd

7:oopm

Week 2
Sept.

9.11

Clear Sprin s

OPEN

Tomball

Spring HS

Foster

Westside

Pearland

The Woodlands

Rhodes Stadium HOME

Rhodes Stadium

HOME

George Stadium

Away

Traylor Stadium

Away

Rhodes Stadium

HOME

The Rig

Away

Crusader Stadium

HOME

Saturday ISeptinth 6:o0pm

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roopm

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Thursday 'Sept. 9th

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Week 3
Sept.
16 -18

OPEN

Westbrook

OPEN

Open

OPEN

Alex Dinky Stadium

Away

Saturday ISept 18th

6:00pm

Week 4
Sept.

23 - 29

Mayde Creek

Seven Lakes

Chico Ranch

Memorial

Katy

Strake Jesuit

Morton Ranch

James L Ta

for

Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Tully Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Tully Stadium

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Thursday 'Sept. 23rd

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Friday ISept. 24th

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7:00pm

Saturday kept. 25th

6:00pm

Homecoming

Weeks

Sept - Oct
30 - 2

Seven Lakes

Strake Jesuit

Memorial

James E. Taylor

Cinco Ranch

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rice Stadium HOME

Thursday (Sept 30th

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Homecoming

Week 6
Oct.

7 - 9

Memorial

Morton Ranch

James E. Taylor

Katy

Strake Jesuit

Mayde Creek

Cinco Ranch

Seven Lakes

Tully Stadium

Away

Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes StadiumAway

Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Tully Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Saturday I Oct. 9th

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Homecoming

Week 7
Oct.

14 - 16

Strake Jesuit

Mayde Creek

Katy

Seven Lakes

Morton Ranch

Memorial

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Cinco Ranch

Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Tully Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Friday I Oct. 15th

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Homecoming

Week 8
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21 - 23

James E. Taylor

Memorial

Seven Lakes

Strake Jesuit

Mayde Creek

Cinco Ranch

Katy

Morton Ranch

Rhodes Stadium I Away

Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Crusader Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Homecoming

Week 9
Oct.

28 - 30

Morton Ranch

James E. Taylor

Strake Jesuit

Cinco Ranch

Memorial

Katy

Seven Lakes

Mayde Creek

Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

Away

Tully Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Tully Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

Away

Saturday [Oct. 30th

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uxioarn

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itooam

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Homecoming

Homecoming

Week to
Nov.

4 - 6

Katy

Chico Ranch

Morton Ranch

Mayde Creek

Seven Lakes

Strake Jesuit

Memorial

Rhodes Stadium

Away

Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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Rhodes Stadium

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James E. Taylor

Rhodes Stadium HOME

Rhodes Stadium

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Crusader Stadium

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Crusader Stadium

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I copied the new district football schedule above. Print the schedule and put on your refrigerator or book mark my blog and check it each week. This district includes all of the KISD schools plus Memorial and Strake Jesuit. It should be a very competitive football season in this District as adding two excellent sports schools ( Strake and Memorial) will only make the district that much harder.

My personal picks for the playoff's are : Katy, Cinco Ranch, Memorial with Taylor being the wild card.

I am going to reprint the ticket prices from a previous blog I wrote.

Tickets are sold each week at each specific high school campus. Reserved seats are $10.00; Adult General Admission is $6.00 and Student General admission is $4.00.

Tickets sold at a specific game are $10.00 for an Adult and $5.00 for a Student. All sub-varsity games are priced Adults $5.00 and Students $2.00; All junior high schoold games are priced Adults $5.00 and Students $2.00.

If you have any questions about Katy ISD or homes in the Katy or suroounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katyhomefinder.com TEAM DEVER

KATY4U - SEVEN LAKES HIGH SCHOOL IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR NEW SCHOOL YEAR

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 18:23:00 GMT

All students that go to or will go to Seven Lakes High School in Katy, Texas should have received a letter from Principal Christie Whitbeck which showed important dates for the first 6 weeks of school. If you are like my home and receive tons of junk mail with 90% or more of the mail getting thrown directly into the trash then you need to read this blog. For this reason I am going extract parts of Christie's letter to Spartan Students so in case your student's letter was thrown away you can see the data here on my blog.

1) Senior Parking may be purchased beginnning August 12 from 8-11:30 AM and 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM. Parking cost si $35 for general and $85 for reserved with $50 of the reserved fee going to the Senior class fund.

2) Juniors and Seniors ONLY may purchase aprking permits beginning August 13 8:00 AM -11:30 AM and 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. All students HAVE to have a permit to park on campus.

3) FISH camp ( Freshmen Orietation) is on August 11 9:00 AM - 12 :00 PM in the performing Arts Center at Seven lakes while Parents FISH camp is at 7:00 Pm on the same day. If you missed FISH camp call the school.

4) Spartan Spectacular is a Spartan Tradition. It is a one stop shop, pick up schedules, meet teachers , buy schoold supplies and spirit wear and is fun for the whole family. The Spectacular is on Sunday August 15 from 2:00 PM- 5:00 PM. A back to school pep rally for all fall sports teams will be held immediately after the Spectacular on the Seven Lakes football field. Anyone who can not attend can pick up schedules on your designated textbook day or get your schedule on the first day of school in your home room.

5) Textbook Pickup -

9TH Grade - August 16, 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM and 12:30 PM - 3:30 PM

10 TH Grade - August 17, 12:30- 3:30 PM

All Grades August 17 6:00 PM - 9;00 PM

11 TH Grade - August 18, 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM and 12:30 AM to 3:30 PM

All Grades - August 19, 6:00 Pm - 9:00 PM

12 TH Grade- August 20, 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM and 12:30 PM tp 3:30 PM

All Grades - August 23-24 7:00 - 7:25 AM , Lunch Hours and 2:00 - 2:45 PM

6) The first day of school in Monday August 23, 2010. All students will go to a temporary homeroom on the first day and your homeroom assigment will be posted in the rotunda and Freshman 9TH Grade commons. The firts day homeroom will last about 20 minutes and you will get official schedule and 1 st day packet.

7) A back to school dance will be held on Friday September 3 from 7:00 Pm - 10:00 PM in the Commons area and is casual dress.

8) Open house will be on Monday Septemebr 27 2010 starting at 6:00 PM and parents walk schedule schedules beginning at 6:15 PM.

These are the initial key dates and I will write an aditional blog about other matters...

Good luck Seven Lakes Spartan's and have a great school year...

Seven Lakes High School is part of the Katy ISD and is an exemplary rated High School. If you have any questions about Seven Lakes or homes in the Katy area contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit uson the web at www.katy4u.com ..

Bob

KATY 4U: BEWARE AND CAREFULLY WATCH YOUR CREDIT REPORT!

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 14:14:00 GMT

Recently my wife and I decided to follow my own advice to my clients and refinance our current home with the final objective to first buy a smaller one-story and second sell the current home after we move out. Interest rates are at very low levels and refinancing as we planned with debt consolidation objective isa total no brainer. I currently have TWO companies that I pay a subscription fee so they will monitor my credit report and credit score (FICO).

My mortgage friend Scott Pyatt at Iway Loans (scott@iwayloan.com or 713-463-6779 x 108) asked me about a dispute with a bank that was showing on my credit report and sent me a copy of my current credit report for my review. I of course had no idea that we had any disputes or any other issues other than a problem with a major cell phone company who sold me a Blackberry over 3 years ago without Internet access. The Blackberry saga will be the main point of a future blog. Low and behold my credit report showed we had a dispute with Big Bank!! We have several accounts with Big Bank and are very aware of their lack of competency. Big Bank never once attempted to contact us and they were reporting a dispute to the Credit Agencies even though contacting us would be very easy for them. Scott also told me that an individuals credit report these days for any given borrower can not show any disputes if you want the loan to ever close. This was news to me and good thing to be aware of as I had never heard of this being an issue.

We have over the years had on several occasion's attempted to escape from the clutches of Big Bank but unfortunately every time we moved all of our accounts to another financial institution Big bank showed up once again by buying out the other bank and taking over. Big Bank's personnel for the most part in their branch offices reflect Big Bank's corporate culture of being arrogant and providing absolutely lousy service whenever and wherever possible. How this group stayed in business all these years is certainly a mystery to me. Many of Big Bank's customer service phone calls are out sourced to India or where-ever with all the related issues of the folks you speak with having no idea what you are talking about.

My wife and I spoke and the best I could come up with as any dispute is that 4 or 5 years ago we went to Cabo in Mexico and someone there tried to use out credit card number to buy thousands of dollars of merchandise at a local Walmart. The solution to this problem was rather easy as the third party report company and I called Big Bank and told them there is NO dispute. Amazingly the dispute issue was resolved by one phone call. This is a first for us with our long history with Big Bank to easily resolve any issue but the bad part was that Big Bank was reporting a dispute when none existed. What impact does this have on our credit report and credit score?

Well folks there is more issues on our credit report involving Big Bank. I know what a shock!! Big Bank was also reporting on a credit card that neither my wife nor I had any knowledge that it existed. The worst part is that Big bank was showing a late payment and activity during July 2010. As we all know a late payment of any kind ends up impacting your credit score in a large negative fashion. I will cut all the boring details out and tell you the problem was that about 3-4 years ago my wife asked Big Bank to issue a credit card in her name alone. This card will accumulate airline mileage with usage. Big Bank sent the card to the wrong address as the zip code was incorrect. Remember what I said earlier, we have several accounts accounts with Big Bank and receive numerous statements, advertisements, etc. from Big Bank on almost a daily basis.. We never received the card and it was never activated. Big Bank, however, charges a fee each year for the card and then later in the year writes it off. The problem here is that Big Bank turns around and reports this card to the credit agencies along with reporting a late payment for a card fee for a card that was NEVER activated!!! To make matters worst, Big Bank tells me this is a Dispute and will be reported to the credit agencies when I called to figure out what happened. I can not have any disputes on my credit report so I begged the bank employee to let it sit for now until our refinancing is over. This is NO dispute but just another stupid error by Big Bank.

Can someone help me to understand this situation where a credit card is never received, Big Bank knows it was not received and was not activated, Big bank can easily contact us to correct the problem but choses not to, charges a yearly card fee, writes the fee off later in the year and reports late payment on our credit report. WHAT IS WRONG with this whole picture??? Our credit takes a big hit due to the normal incompetency of a Big Bank. This whole system of credit reports, credit scores and FICO scores needs immediate fixing. What a mess. My message is simple ... WATCH your credit report carefully AND FIX PROBLEMS AS FAST AS POSSIBLE!!!!

If you have any questions about your credit report, credit score or homes for sale in the katy and surrounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com...

Bob

KATY4U: KATY ISD HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL STARTS SOON - SEE PRESEASON SCHEDULE

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 19:04:00 GMT

Well football fans the long wait is starting to be over as the NFL teams are getting ready for their first preseason games and Katy ISD high school football teams start practices on Monday August 9. Katy ISD will be joing a new district this season being 19-5A as Memorial High School and Strake Jesuit will join the existing Katy schools to create this new district. Memorial and Strake always have excellent teams in all sports categories and the coming football season along with all other sports should be both entertaining and interesting. The favorites for the district football crown I think are probably Katy ( of course - I know that is a no brainer) Cinco Ranch ( I know I am really going out a limb here) and Strake.

Before the season actually begins on August 26 - 28 , there lies a very intense preseason of practices and scimmages. Listed below are the scrimmage schedule for Katy ISD:

Seven Lakes High School will play Elkins August 20 at Spartan stadium: 4:00 PM Freshmen; 5:30 PM JV; 7:00 PM Varsity.

Katy will play College Park on August 20, at Rhodes Stadium: 4 PM Freshmen at Tiger Stadium; 4:00 PM Sophomore; 5:10 PM JV and 7:00 PM Varsity.

Taylor will play Cy-Springs on August 20, at Cy-Springs: 4:00 PM Freshmen, 5:00 PM JV and 6:00 PM Varsity.

Mayde Creek will play Cy Ranch on August 20 at Ram Stadium 5:00 PM Sub Varsity and 6:30 PM Varsity

Cinco Ranch will play Stratford on August 20 at Cougar Stadium: 4:30 PM Sub Varsity and 7:00 PM Varsity

Morton Ranch will play Clear Lake on August 21 at Maverick Stadium: 9:00 AM

Tickets are sold each week at each specific high school campus. Reserved seats are $10.00; Adult General Admission is $6.00 and Student General admission is $4.00.

If you have any questions about Katy ISD or homes in the Katy or suroounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com

Bob

KATY4U: KATY ISD OPENING OF SCHOOL YEAR AND REGISTRATION

Bob Gilbert — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 21:37:00 GMT

The summer has absolutely flown by and now believe it or not it is time to think of school starting. The first day of class for all grades at Katy ISD is Monday August 23, 2010. Parents this year have the option to pre-enroll their children online. The district makes it clear that the pre-enrollment is just to speed up the paperwork and cut down on errors and is not a substitute for regular enrollment. A parent has to still enroll their child at the actual campus the child will attend during the August 2010 registration dates.

Registration dtaes for students new to the KISD start in August 2010 and are as follows:

Secondary Students: 8/10-12, from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM with last names from A-L; and 1:00PM to 3:00 PM for last names from M-Z: 8/13 from 9:00AM to 11AM only: and 8/17 from 1:00PMto 3:00 PM only.

Elementary Students: 8/10,8/12,8/13 from 9:00 AM to 11am for last names from A-l and 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM last names from M-Z; and 8/17 from 9:00AM to 11:00 AM only.

Pre-Kindergarten: 8/11 from 8:00 AM to 12:00PM.

If you have any questions call the KISD at 281-396-6000 or check their web site at www.katyisd.org .

There are specific Residenct requirements, Immunization requirements, registration forms required and information for new home buyers in Katy Texas. I will cover these items in a separate blog.

Katy ISD preseason football at least for Seven Lakes Spartans and most likely the other schools starts August 9, 2010.

The summer is almost over with and are you ready for some football??? I know I am...

If you have any questions about homes for sale in Katy Texas or the surrounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit on the web at www.katy4u.com.

Bob

KATY4U- SUMMER DOLDRUMS GOT YOU?

Bob Gilbert — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 21:57:00 GMT

Wow it is already the middle of the summer and most of you out there are bored stiff!!! Its too hot to be outside very much until it is evening; The World Cup Soccer Tournament is over (cynics out there over 22 million people in the US alone watched the final game) ; the LeBron James absolute fiasco is in our rear view mirrors ( Thank you LORD!!!); summer TV sucks; MLB games puts you to sleep by the third inning ( tip here watch ESPN Sports Center and get all the baseball highlights each day without all the baseball nonsense) What is a person to do... The future looks bright with NFL training camps starting next weekend; college and high school football teams starting practice very soon ( Seven Lakes in Katy Texas starts August 9, 2010); NBA gets going sometime at the end of September / beginning of October; and the fall TV schedule will start somewhere hopefully during September... The good news is that activities on the horizon are not that far away to save from all of this boring days.. Bad news the immediate problem of.. What to do right now???? ... I have a great no brainer idea .. BUY A HOME!!!!

Right now there is an excellent supply available homes for sale in Katy, Texas. Builders are offering numerous incentives on inventory homes and many builders have BTSA's. (If you do not know what a BTSA is ask your Realtor or call me). Interest rates are low and if you have decent credit you should be able to qualify for a loan. My family and I are in the process of refinancing our own home right now. I called a person who has been a friend of mine for 17-18 years Scott Pyatt Managing Director iwayloan LP 713-821-9708 or scott@iwayloan.comthis week to ask about starting the refinancing process. He said the rates are unbelievable... Would you believe 4.5 % for a 30 year fixed rate loan!!! Rates right now are averaging 1.5 % lower than rates did back in 1963!!! These rates will not last long folks and when they are gone they will probably be gone forever..

So what are you waiting for ???? It is doubtful that in all of our lifetimes there will ever be a better time than now to buy a home in Katy Texas or surrounding areas of Katy. You say to your self that this guy is nuts because if I wait 6 months the prices of the homes will go down. Wrongo bongo Ace.. The first 6 months of 2010 on a year to date basis shows homes in MLS 36 or South Katy have had a median price INCREASE of 4.82% or $11,000. The odds are very high that prices here in this part of Texas will not go down in the short or long run.

It is time to wake up and smell the roses. Hire a competent Realtor such as me and go find a home. If you are unfamilar with the Katy area call me and I will take you on a tour of the entire area. School will be starting soon and KISD requires a Katy address to enroll. Besides as we already discussed you are bored out of your mind...

If you have any questions about homes available for sale in Katy Texas or the surrounding areas contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com

Bob

KATY4U- Houston Single-Family Home Sales Up 9% Year-to-Date

Bob Gilbert — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 22:03:00 GMT

Houston single-family home sales in June increased by 3% with 5,584 homes sold. While that is a nice increase over June of last year, contracts written [a measure of current demand] are lagging somewhat. There were 2,686 contracts written in June, which is down 19% from last year. The 2010 Tax Credit, [eligibility required a fully executed contract in place by April 30^th] brought home buying demand forward and it is difficult to measure how much influence this will have throughout the summer. Year-to-date, the Houston real estate market is 9% ahead of last year.

Houston – Best Homebuying Opportunity is Now.

Who would have known? Immediately following the buying flurry up until the April 30^th Tax Credit deadline, interest rates dropped dramatically in May and June, giving home buyers that were too late for the tax credit thousands of saved dollars over the life of a loan. These savings dwarfed the tax credit incentive. The Houston real estate market now has the best home buying opportunity due to lower interest rates and more homes available from which to choose. The 24% higher inventory is also a motivator for sellers’ to become more competitive in their asking price.

Many economists agree that current positive economic indicators may cause the Fed to raise interest rates in the not too distant future. Clearly, there is a window of opportunity savvy home buyers will recognize before interest rates change to a lesser advantage.

Here is a table overview of the month and year-to-date:

Greater Houston MLS [HRIS] Single-Family Residential Real Estate

June 2010

June 2010 YTD

Metric

Amount

% Change

From 6/09

Amount

% Change

From

6/09

YTD

Sales

5,584

27,351

Dollar Volume Sold

$1,243,930,928

$5,695,171,720

15%

Contracts

written

2,686

-19%

17,608

-4%

# of Listings

34,625

24%

30,569

10%

Average Sales Price

$222,767

$208,225

Median Sales Price

$159,700

-3%

$152,000

What home price classes are the hottest selling in Houston through June YTD?

The following table indicates by price class the top ten hottest selling price ranges in Houston in 2010:

Ten Hottest Selling Price Classes Houston Single-Family Real Estate June YTD 2010
Price Class	Sales Year to Date	Active Listings	Months of Inventory
1. $200,000-$249,999	2,683	3,649	7.6
2 $250,000-$299,999	1,961	2,766	8.1
3. $300,000-$399,999	1,933	3,270	9.5
4. $120,000-$129,999	1,582	1,835	6.6
5. $130,000-$139,999	1,504	1,701	6.3
6. $110,000-$119,999	1,453	1,656	6.7
7. $140,000-$149,999	1,307	1,553	6.7
8. $150,000-$159,999	1,266	1,590	7.0
9. $90,000-$99,999	1,263	1,484	6.9
10$80,000-$89,999	1,233	1,115	5.6

The High-End Market is Still Hot.

The 2010 paradigm in Houston’s hottest selling home prices is the high-end market. Most, but not all, price classes $80,000 and above have experienced double-digit increases in sales over last year. Contrary to norm, the higher the price class, the higher the percentage increase in sales, in most categories. Homes priced $900,000-$999,999 are up in sales by 64% over last year, the highest increase in sales of any price class. Homes priced $1,000,000 or more are up 23% over last year. This represents an incredible comeback from a gloomy high-end market in 2009.

Highest % Increase in Sales by Price Class Year-to-Date

1. $900,000-$999,999 up 64% year-to-date

2. $600,000-$699,999 up 34% year-to-date

3. $400,000-$499,999 up 30% year-to-date

4. $500,000-$599,999 up 28% year-to-date

5. $800,000-$899,999 up 26% year-to-date

The Low-End Market is Not so Hot.

The other new 2010 paradigm in Houston’s hottest selling prices is the low-end market. The majority of price classes $70,000 and below are experiencing double-digit declines.

Keep in mind that these statistics are sweeping generalities of a large major metropolitan market. The Houston Metropolitan Statistical area covers over 10,000 square miles. Houston is so large, it is like a mosaic. Some areas are shining brightly while others are not as lustrous. For a breakdown of activity by area with a map of the area, go to http://garygreene.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=38&cat=14.

What about Houston’s future real estate prospects?

The short version is that Houston recorded 2.55 million payroll jobs in May 2009, more than the job counts of 29 U.S. states, including Arizona, Colorado and Alabama. Jobs are the biggest driver of real estate sales in any community. While there is uncertainty out there now with the future of NASA and the impact the B.P. oil spill will have on Houston, long-term future job prospects for Houston are one of the brightest in the nation. For a more detailed analysis of Houston’s future in real estate, go to www.GaryGreene.com/blog and read the April 20^th article entitled: Houston, Best Place to Buy Real Estate Right Now.

Data provided by the Houston Association of Realtors® Multiple Listing Service, and The Real Estate Center for Texas A&M and written by Toni Nelson, Director of Strategic Initiatives for Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors®

KATY4U: HEB GROCERY STORE TO OPEN IN KATY AUGUST 4 ,2010

Bob Gilbert — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 21:51:00 GMT

An HEB spokesperson was recently quoted that the new HEB in Katy will have its grand opening on Wednesday August 4, 2010. The store is located at Katy Main Street or I-10 at Pin Oak. On July 6, 2010 I wrote a blog about this store but I was not sure when it would open. On July 13, 2010 I wrote another blog about how to apply for a job at this store based on E-mail requests I received from initially one individual and eventually several inquiries. Please read my previous blogs especially if you are interested in applying for a job.

The 85,000 sq. ft. store will have many of the normal HEB amenities such as cooking connection with live cooking demonstrations and actual cooking classes. The store unfortunately will not have a cafe on the run. I personally really like the cafe on the run as it saves a lot of time and energy if you are struggling trying to figure out what to have for dinner. The store will have a large variety of products that have been specifically selected based on the Katy location.

The Katy community continues its tremendous growth and adding another HEB is evidence that things are certainly not slowing down. As we say on our web site " Katy has it all" and there are excellent new and resale homes available right now. Check out these homes now while Internet rate remain low.

If you have any questions about homes in the Katy or surrounding areas or other questions contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit our web site at www.katyhomefinder.com Team Dever...

Bob

KATY4U: EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES AT NEW HEB IN KATY TEXAS

Bob Gilbert — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 22:17:00 GMT

I received an E-mail from Terrence in Brookshire Texas this morning asking me if I knew how to apply for a job at the new HEB being opened in Katy. I wrote a blog about this the new store opening on July 6, 2010 as terrence had read my blog. I sent Terrence an E-mail to answer him by saying that I had no inside information regarding their jobs but I gave him a link to HEB 's main web site. I also sent him an E-mail with a link to my Blog I wrote on July 11, 2010 about a Job Fair to be held at Epiphany Catholic Church in Katy. Terrence Email back to me saying Thanks. Later today I stumbled into some more information about the employment process for the new HEB. That information is as follows:

Go to www.workatheb.com to apply online ( click on "Search for Jobs" on the opening page) as they are staffing for areas such as Market, Seafood, Bakery, Drug Store, Cosmetics, Pharmacy, Deli, Grocery, Produce, Floral, Self Edge, Receiver, Cooking Connection, Service, Gas Station, Day Care Floor and Bookkeepers. Full and part time positions are available. HEB states that a person has be at least 16 years old for checker and CSA positions. All other positions require a candidate to be at least 18 years old.

Along with Veterans, individuals needing a job and wanting to work have a special soft spot in my own personal heart. It is very difficult experience and time consuming effort to find a good job. Just ask me as I know all too well. There are plently of excellent homes for sale in the Katy Texas area as well as home to lease but a person can not take part in this situation if they do not have job...

If you need assistance with finding a home for sale in Katy Texas or the surrounding areas or have other questions contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene,com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com ...

Bob

KATY4U: GRAND LAKES KATY, TEXAS COMMUNITY MEETING

Bob Gilbert — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 21:31:00 GMT

I live in the Grand Lakes subdivision in Katy, Texas and on the 4 Th of July like a lot of folks I went to an excellent party in our neighborhood. Our hosts always have a great event no matter what we are gathering to celebrate. At this event a few of the husband's attending the party were complaining about various things going on in the Grand Lakes Community. They were telling me I guess since they know I am a Realtor who works the Katy area. Well guys this is your opportunity to express yourselves and be heard as the Community Association will hold a Town Hall Meeting on July 20, 2010. The meeting will run from 6:30 PM until 8:30 PM. It will be held at the Fort Bend County Library 2620 Commercial Center Blvd. ( next to La Centerra and close to Prudential Gary Greene's Katy Office). If you need directions call me at 281-904-6772 and I will happy to help you get to the meeting.

The meeting will include a special guest being Fort Bend County Commissioner Andy Meyers. All are welcome to attend. The main purpose of the meeting is to pass information with updates on Grand lakes business and will include discussing financial reports concerning the Association. Commissioner Meyers will hold a Question and Answer session. Bring as many neighbors as you can.

In addition, I also learned that the 4th friday of each month the Community Assocaition holds its normal monthly meeting. The metings begin at 9:30AM and are held at the PCMI Offices at 15995 N. Barkers Landing in Houston 77079.

If you interested in homes in Katy Texas or the surrounding area or have questions about the area contact me at robert.gilbert@garygreene.com or visit us on the web at www.katy4u.com

Bob