March Steve & Jack's Home News

The signs of spring approaching are all around. Unused flex days for school mean 3-day weekends, Peyton Manning won the Super Bowl and we wait for another 6-months for football to return, Valentine's Day has come and gone, we are in the middle of Lent and St. Patrick's Day is the next holiday. This also means...the spring real estate selling season is upon us! More on that in a bit.

We hope you had a great Valentine's Day and are enjoying the fantastic and unseasonably warm weather this weekend. The big news is that Mary Anne (Steve's mom), had her gall bladder removed successfully and without incident a few weeks ago. It is amazing at how minimally invasive so many surgeries are nowadays. Mary Anne is recovering very well and we hope she is more comfortable as a result. Jack & Mary Anne look forward to traveling to Florida for a vacation in the coming weeks and will enjoy some much-needed warmth & sunshine. Steve, Brigid, Ana, & Tali are staying home until spring break at which time they will drive to Florida to visit Brigid's parents again.

The spring selling season is here in force! The biggest challenge is lack of inventory. MIBOR has reported that the 3.9 months of inventory in the 9-county area it tracks is the lowest on record. In fact, in some areas, such as Carmel, they are down to 1.3 months of inventory! This is causing a downward spiral with sellers not putting their houses on the market due to lack of inventory exciting them to want to move. Builders are filling this void as much as possible, but they, quite frankly just don't have the capacity to meet demand. What does this all mean? Simply put, houses are appreciating faster than any time in recent memory at 6.1% for the MIBOR area. Great news for sellers! However, this also means houses are getting more expensive to buy pricing some buyers out of the market or not letting them purchase the house they would like. Builders are also not having to give 'deals' like they used to and they are taking price increases monthly in many developments.

Look for a postcard in the mail from us in the next couple of weeks talking about the Top Ten Tips You Need to Know BEFORE You Build A New Home. We also have it posted to our blog (see link below). Building is becoming more complicated with so many more options available and new builders coming to our market in brand new neighborhoods. If you or someone you care about is thinking about building, read our Top Ten Builder Tips and then give us a call. We have helped almost 100 clients successfully build their new home-both production and custom-have built several of our own homes, and are one of only a select few agents in the city who have earned the Certified New Home Specialist (CNHS) designation, which provides us with unique expertise on navigating our clients who are building a new home through the lengthy process. Best of all-all of this expertise and experience costs you absolutely NOTHING! The builders pay our fee. Contrary to popular belief, you will not get a better deal by not having an agent represent you when building. In fact, we usually end up SAVING our clients money! Our fee comes out of the marketing budget of the builders. Depending on the builder, 75-92% of their buyers have an agent representing them. Shouldn't you?

Thank you to the great crowd we had at our Happy Hour last week! We had a GREAT time! Enjoy the warmer weather and come visit us at our next Happy Hour which is on Wednesday, March 16th from 5-6:30PM. In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day we are going to be next door to our usual Matt The Miller's and check out Langton's Irish Pub, which is immediately south and adjacent to Matt The Miller's located at 710 S. Rangeline Road in Carmel. They have set us up upstairs in our own area with our own bar! Come join us and be sure and RSVP to the Evite invitation when you receive it so we know how many people for whom to plan.

Click here to read our March newsletter

Click here to access our exclusive coupons & discounts at places you shop every day

Click here to download the most powerful real estate app available

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!

Steve & Jack

Top Ten Things to Know BEFORE You Build

There has been a lot of press lately about the extremely low inventory of housing across the country, but especially in & around Indy. We are at an all-time low of 3.9 months of inventory and, in some markets are as low as 1.3 months! 6-months is deemed to be a balanced market. As a result, many people are seriously considering building a new home. If you or someone you care about is considering building, here are some things to keep in mind before you first step into a model.

1. Have a clear understanding of how long the builder will take to complete the neighborhood…and then add 1-2 years to be safe. New neighborhoods are nice, but do have lots of construction equipment, noise, & traffic as a result. There will be very few, if any mature trees unless they were saved during initial development & vegetation will take time to mature.

2. Take time to research available lots & choose the best one available. Many people will try and save money on the lot premium, but spend it on upgraded spindles, trim, deck, appliances, etc. Your lot is the one thing you cannot ever change. Pay the premium for the best lot (cul-de-sac, lake, tree-line, nature persevere, etc.) and upgrade other features later, if you need to.

3. Be willing to take time to choose your structural & design center options carefully & stay involved in the building process. Building a new home takes much more time than existing, however you can get exactly what you want. From contract signing to final home delivery, it can take 6-12 months, depending on whether you are building production or custom. Be patient. Be willing to stick with the builder and visit your house during construction at least once/week. Visit the design center several times before making a final decision to ensure you are happy with your choices. Maintain an open communication channel with your builder and ensure you are receiving updates at least 1x/week.

4. New homes are closer to ‘perfect’ than existing, but there is no such thing as a ‘perfect home’. Most likely, your budget will not allow you to get everything you want. Know that is okay and very common. Choose wisely on your options. Know that your builder wants to exceed your expectations, but they are human and mistakes will occur. Good communication will go a long way-so will the occasional snacks & drinks brought to the job site! :-)

5. Pay for a 3-phase new construction independent inspection. Many people make the mistake of not hiring their own inspector who is familiar with the building process to ensure high quality. Builders have a quality control process & the municipalities have mandatory code inspections, but neither are a replacement for having your own independent inspection. Budget $800-$1,000 & make sure your builder knows of your intention to have one so he/she can make accommodations for your inspector.

6. Understand the structural & home warranties. Most builders purchase a 3rd party, 10-year structural home warranty for their clients. This is for structural issues only & the deductible can be $500 or more depending on the type of claim. Builders are required by law to provide a 1-year ‘bumper to bumper’ warranty on their homes, but some provide 2-year warranties. This includes anything mechanical as well as drywall cracks & nail pops. Ensure you schedule a 1-year walk-thru prior to expiration of your warranty to have your builder address any concerns & keep a list of those as they occur throughout the year so you don’t forget any. Many components of your house have their own warranties that last longer, such as furnace, roof, windows, water heater, appliances, etc.

7. Know the HERS (Home Energy Rating System) score. Every year, new technology & building practices improve & homes are more & more energy efficient. You can literally save hundreds of dollars each month in energy costs with a new home versus an older one. When deciding on new or existing, factor this into your budget as it can have a significant impact on your monthly expenses.

8. Take time to research floor plans you like & don’t like & visit builder models. Builder models are a treasure-trove of information. Take time to walk through several and note what you like and don’t like. New homes are designed & built to the needs of today’s consumer (think open floor plans, hearth rooms, outdoor living, etc.) and flow much better than many older homes. If you buy an older home, will you have to make any significant improvements out-of-pocket that you could get included by building new?

9. HGTV is not real! HGTV is great to watch and you can get a lot of good ideas, but it is sensationalized and fictionalized. You only see what the producer wants you to see. There is far more to the story that what you see. Please don’t set your expectations according to what you see on TV.

10. Professional representation does not cost you more. Having an experienced agent who is well-versed in building is a huge asset. They can help guide you through all of the above & assist in making wise decisions as well as take a lot of pressure & stress off your shoulders. Contrary to popular belief, builders do NOT charge less if a real estate agent is not involved. In fact, in many cases, agents can help you get a better deal than not having one involved. Real estate agents are involved in new home builds between 75-92% of the time, depending on the builder. Our fees come out of their marketing budget & have nothing to do with the price you pay for your new home. The best time to involve a real estate agent is at the very beginning of the process before you set foot in your first model home. Builders are very happy to work with experienced agents, but they need to know you are working with an agent at the very beginning of the process & it is best if they accompany you to the model for the first time. All builders have registration forms they will ask you to complete. Make sure you write the name of your agent on this form and your relationship with your agent will be protected. We have built our own homes as well as almost 100 production & custom homes for our clients over the years and have earned the Certified New Home Specialist designation (along with 10 other certifications & designations) held by the top 3% of agents specializing in new construction. We have saved our clients tens of thousands of dollars & countless headaches.

If you or someone you care about are even considering building, give us a call today so we can sit down and consult with you about your options and help you make a truly informed decision, including which area/neighborhood is best for you, which builder is the best fit, lot choices, upgrades/options, & an overview of the entire building process from beginning to end. We specialize in selling homes that are contingent on selling before your new home is built. This is one of the biggest concerns people have when deciding to build. Let us walk you through some solutions and see which one best fits your needs.

We are honored to have earned the Angie’s List Super Service Award for 2015 & are a 5-time recipient of the 5-Star Real Estate Agent award, both recognizing exceptional commitment to client service. Finally, come join us at an upcoming Happy Hour! They take place the 3rd Wednesday of each month from 5-6:30PM at Matt The Miller’s in Carmel. Food & drinks are on us!!

Call us today to schedule your private, no-obligation new construction consultation!

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants…for Life!
Steve & Jack Rupp
Keller Williams Realty
www.Welcome2Indy.com
317-573-1880
Steve@Welcome2Indy.com

February 2016 Steve & Jack's Home News

Happy New Year!!!

We hope the holidays treated you well and you are back into a routine again, with the exception of maybe some positive resolution changes. Having clear goals, someone to hold you accountable to those goals and enforceable consequences for not meeting those goals are critical to achieving them. We are curious, what resolutions or goals do you have for 2016? We would love to hear from you and help hold you accountable!

Steve & Brigid stayed in Indy for this Christmas holiday instead of traveling to Tampa, FL to see Brigid's parents. They came to us this year and we were able to celebrate with the entire family, including Brigid's brother Jim who lives in Boston. It was a very nice time to enjoy time together-something we don't get to do often.

Natalia turns 6 on Tuesday and will be having a birthday party at InterActive Academy. We love this as they take care of everything, including entertaining the kids and they love it! Tali is still very active in gymnastics and is getting quite good, so we are excited to see where this leads.

Ana continues to do well in school and sings in the choir and just got a lead part in her first musical-Cinderella! She is super-excited and so are we...until we remembered practices are at 7AM 2x/week for the rest of the school year. Ugh!! She also sings in Indianapolis Childrens' Choir (ICC) and really enjoyed being on TV for the Angels Sing concert broadcast on Channel 13 around Christmas. If you haven't heard ICC before, we encourage you to attend an upcoming concert. They are truly outstanding and are recognized as one of the best youth choirs in the US.

Jack & Mary Anne continue to do well and are looking forward to a European trip this summer. They are so excited and can't wait to go. We will be sure and share some highlights upon their return. Mary Anne had her gall bladder removed last week and is recovering well. It is amazing they can perform this surgery laparoscopically. We hope she is able to feel much better after she heals.

As for the market, we are woefully short of inventory still. The spring market has already started heating up. There are a LOT of builders trying to satisfy demand, but they can't keep up. Multiple real estate experts including Lawrence Yun with NAR and Gary Keller with Keller Williams are predicting a real estate market contraction beginning the end of this year or beginning of next. We are NOT expecting to see anything as severe as 6-years ago, but we are expecting to see one. The stock market and oil are tanking and there is concern over the health of the global economy with China stealing the spotlight at present. What does this mean to you and those you care about? If you are planning to sell your house this year, we recommend you do it NOW. You are going to see a downward shift in the market, most likely in the next 12-months, which WILL affect house prices and values. Interest rates are still very low. If you or someone you care about are thinking about selling this year or next, take out your phone and give us a call so we can consult with you/them about your/their options. As always, it is no-obligation, no-pressure and full of information you can use to make an informed decision.

If you are thinking about building, call us. We have worked with just about every major builder in the city and have established relationships and detailed information to help you BEFORE you set foot in a model. We get asked a lot about whether you will pay more when you invite us to represent you. The answer is a resounding NO. Builders pay our fee out of their marketing budget. It has nothing to do with your sales price and you will NOT get a better price if you don't have professional representation. In fact, in many cases, we were able to SAVE our clients money by zealously representing them and negotiating a better deal with the builder than they would have been able to do themselves. We certainly helped make the process much smoother and easier. Builders in the Indy area work with buyers who have a real estate agent representing them anywhere from 78-97% of the time, according to estimates from most area production builders. They welcome working with real estate agents as we help make the process go smoother. Steve has built 2 of his own homes and also holds a Certified New Home Specialist designation held by less than 1/2% of 1% of agents nationwide. We have helped over 100 clients build their own homes as well-both production and custom.

If you are curious or just want some more information, take out your phone and give us a call. We would love to talk further and see how we can help. Remember, if you are out and about and drop into a model spur-of-the-moment, the sales rep will ask you to complete a registration form. Feel free to fill that out and make sure you put us down as your agents as that will protect our relationship and allow us to professionally represent you and negotiate like a pit bull for your best interest. We absolutely LOVE helping clients build their dream home and would love to help you or someone you care about as well. So, give us a call if you are thinking about building in the near future.

Finally, THANK YOU once again for nominating us as a 5-Star Real Estate Agent and also a Super Service Award winner on Angie's List! We are super-excited and grateful for all of our clients who were surveyed and gave us high marks. These two recognitions put us in the Top 5% in our industry and we couldn't have done it without you. You can feel comfortable introducing us to people you care about since you will know they are getting the absolute BEST experience and service possible and we will keep you in the loop along the way so you know what is going on. We are so fortunate to have so many outstanding clients!!

Enjoy the rest of your January!!

Steve & Jack

Click here to read our February newsletter

Click here to access our exclusive coupons & discounts

Click here to download the most powerful real estate app available

Angie's List 2015 Super Service Award Winner

The Zulu Group, P.C. Earns Esteemed 2015 Angie’s List Super Service Award
Award reflects company’s consistently high level of customer service

The Zulu Group, P.C has earned the service industry’s coveted Angie’s List Super Service Award, reflecting an exemplary year of service provided to members of the local services marketplace and consumer review site in 2015.

“We are honored to accept Angie’s List 2015 Super Service Award. We would like to thank all of our clients for nominating us for such a prestigious award.”

“Only about 5 percent of the Real Estate companies in Central Indiana have performed so consistently well enough to earn our Super Service Award,” said Angie’s List Founder Angie Hicks. “It’s a really high standard.”

Angie’s List Super Service Award 2015 winners have met strict eligibility requirements, which include an “A” rating in overall grade, recent grade, and review period grade; the company must be in good standing with Angie’s List, pass a background check and abide by Angie’s List operational guidelines.

Service company ratings are updated daily on Angie’s List. Companies are graded on an A through F scale in areas ranging from price to professionalism to punctuality.

###

Angie's List helps facilitate happy transactions between more than three million consumers nationwide and its collection of highly rated service providers in more than 720 categories of service, ranging from home improvement to health care. Built on a foundation of more than 10 million verified reviews of local service, Angie's List connects consumers directly to its online marketplace of services from member-reviewed providers, and offers unique tools and support designed to improve the local service experience for both consumers and service professionals.

January 2016 Steve & Jack's Home News Newsletter

Merry Christmas & Happy 2016!!!

We hope you are ready for Christmas (if you celebrate it) and are planning to celebrate with family and friends. We are hosting Brigid's parents and brother and his family at our house for about one week, so we will have a full house! Christmas Eve we spend with Jack & Mary Anne with a nice dinner, Christmas Eve services, and opening presents with my sister Michelle and her family. Christmas Day is spent at home with our family and then Christmas afternoon we go to Brigid's Aunt & Uncle's for a huge dinner with her family. Fortunately, everyone is local so that makes traveling much easier. We hope you enjoy your celebrations wherever they take you.

We have a LOT of THANK YOUs, so please read on...

THANK YOU to all of our clients for attending our 3rd Annual VIP Client Appreciation Event at the movies a couple of weeks ago!! We had a huge turnout and loved seeing everyone. The movie was fantastic and we highly recommend The Good Dinosaur if you haven't seen it already. If you weren't able to make it this year, please know we missed you and hope you will plan to join us next year for our 4th Annual event!

THANK YOU also to all of our clients who have attended a Happy Hour in 2015. This as something new we decided to do this year and boy, has it been a big hit. We love seeing you in a relaxed and fun environment and catching up on what has been going on in your lives. We even provide FREE food and drinks! These are held the 3rd Wednesday of every month from 5-6:30PM and have been at Matt The Miller's in Carmel. **Please note a change in location for January. We will be meeting at The Stacked Pickle located at the NE corner of 116th & Allisonville Road in Fishers. This is a family-friendly restaurant, so feel free to bring your kids. Since we usually host our monthly Happy Hours in the bar area of Matt The Miller's, we thought we would try a family-friendly location and see how you like it. Your comments and opinions are welcome and encouraged and will determine our February location.

THANK YOU to everyone who has played our FunDay Monday contests!!! This is also something new for 2015 and it has been a BIG hit. It is always fun to see answers and the occasional comment to the monthly quizzes. If you have played, thank you and we hope you will continue to do so. If you haven't, please consider playing with us in 2016. The winner receives a FREE Amazon gift card each month.

THANK YOU to our amazing clients, especially those of you who have submitted a great review of us! Because of your efforts and stellar grades, you have earned us our first-ever Angie's List Super Service Award for 2015!!! We are SO excited about this honor. Only 5% of agents on Angie's List earn this award. We just found out yesterday and couldn't be happier. Thank you so much!! We have a lot of new plans in place for an even higher level of service to our clients next year as we strive to repeat this honor. Please do keep us in mind for the next person you know who is thinking about buying, selling, or building a new home and needs our help. We promise to deliver 'raving fan' service and show them why we earned the Super Service award. Your referrals are what keep us in business!

THANK YOU to all of our clients for 2015!! Because of you, we were able to help more clients than ever before. We continue to be amazed at how loyal our clients are and we are grateful to you for inviting us to help you and those you care about. We would love to help even more clients in 2016 and with your help, we will!

Steve, Brigid, Ana, & Tali returned from a dream vacation to Germany & Austria a couple weeks ago. It was simply amazing and we loved spending time in Bavaria. We saw lots of castles including Neuschwanstein, and Linderhof, stood at the top of the highest point in all of Germany in the Alps-the Zugspitze, visited over one dozen Christmas markets, and safely navigated the twisting countryside roads with the 'crazy' German drivers. They drive FAST!! The beer is cheap and very good and so is the food! We have attached a few photos, if you would like to see some of the sights.

Due to the unseasonably warm winter as well as dangerously low inventory and rising interest rates, we are seeing unusually active real estate right now. Don't get me wrong, there aren't a TON of buyers in the market around the holidays, but the ones that ARE, are very serious and houses are selling. If you or someone you care about is thinking of moving, please give us a call today so we can share specifics with you so you can make an informed decision about your options. Home prices are going up, inventory is going down and the list price-to-sale price ratio continues to increase. Distressed sales now are lower than 2006 levels! This is all good news for homeowners.

From our family to yours, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a very prosperous 2016!

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!
Steve & Jack Rupp

Click here to read our January newsletter

Click here to access our VIP coupon and discount site

Click here to download our powerful mobile real estate app

December 2015 Steve & Jack's Home News

Happy Thanksgiving & Merry Christmas!!

We hope you are preparing to enjoy some time away from work and the hustle and bustle of life to spend with family and friends and truly be thankful for what we have. After some horrifying events around the world, it can become difficult to be grateful and thankful for what you have. Here are a few things for which we are thankful and will not take for granted:

Our health
Our family
Our faith
Our friends
Our country
Our clients
We are curious, for what are you most thankful?

Thank you to all of our clients for attending our final Happy Hour of 2015 last Wednesday at Matt The Miller's!! We had another great turnout and it was so nice to see so many clients & referral partners. We are grateful for the trust you have placed in us and for our friendship. See you in January!!

Thank you to so many of our clients for attending our Pictures with Santa on Saturday!! Santa was so happy to see so many smiles and hear all of the presents the kids asked him to bring. We will be sending you the photos from that afternoon in the next couple of days as we know many of you are waiting on them for Christmas cards. If you didn't get a chance to join us this year, please plan to attend next year. It is always a great time!

You should have received an invitation to our annual VIP Client Appreciation Event on December 12th from 8:30-11AM at Hamilton Towne Center movie theater. We already have a big group attending and look forward to seeing you there. We will have food and drinks and then show the soon-to-be-released movie The Good Dinosaur. It has received excellent reviews and know kids and adults alike will enjoy it. Please come and join us as we say Thank You for everything you have done for us. Parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren are all welcome. Please RSVP by December 1st to Kylie Zajac @ Kylie@Welcome2Indy.com with the number of adults & children in your party. Thank you for letting us 'love' on you!!

Our family had our Thanksgiving a little early this year and celebrated it yesterday with Brigid's parents who were up from Florida. Brigid did another amazing job cooking and Mary Anne and Michelle helped with bringing delicious desserts. No one walked away hungry!!

The reason we celebrated Thanksgiving a little early was Steve & Brigid are crossing off a 'bucket list' item and are flying to Germany & Austria on Wednesday for 12-days. Ana & Tali are coming along and are very excited about being out of the country for the first time aside from some cruises. We fly from Chicago to Berlin and then on to Salzburg. We plan to stay in Bavaria the entire time and enjoy the Christmas Markets, sled down the Alps, play in a thermal spring-fed water park, see Neuschwanstein castle, and much more!! This will be Steve's 3rd trip to the area and Brigid's 2nd, but our first trip to Europe since Brigid was 7-months' pregnant with Ana 10-years' ago!! Although recent events are in the back of our minds, we refuse to cancel our dream vacation. We are looking forward to getting away and showing our girls other cultures so they have more of an appreciation of how people can be different from us, but that doesn't make their way of life wrong or ours better. This is going to be a trip experiencing other cultures and traditions and one of tolerance and understanding. We can only hope that people in other countries and throughout the US adopt that same mentality as our world would be a much better and peaceful place for us our and children to live. Please say a prayer for our safe travels as we confront some obvious fears.

Finally, the housing market continues to be good. We are getting asked this question quite a bit. Inventory is extremely low and in some areas near 1-month-very unhealthy. First-time buyers only make up approximately 30% of the overall buyers and normally, they comprise 40%. We need first-time buyers to start the domino chain and we need people to put their houses on the market. Prices continue to rise and so will interest rates, so now is the time to sell, even though the holidays traditionally see lower traffic. With so few houses with which to compete, your chances are pretty good with each showing you get. Call us today if you or someone you care about is thinking about selling in the next 6-months. We would love to consult with you about your options and share facts and data so you can make an informed decision.

Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas to you and your family!!! We hope to see you at the movie on December 12th!!

Click here to read our holiday edition of our newsletter.

Click here to access coupons & discounts at stores you will be shopping this holiday season.

Click here to download the most powerful real estate app in Indy.

Steve & Jack Rupp

November Steve & Jack's Home News

Happy November! We hope that you had an enjoyable Halloween whether you handed out treats, accompanied your little one(s) Trick-or-Treating (as we did) or went downtown to see the Pacers' game. The weather couldn't have been better and certainly beat last year!

Steve & his family joined Jack & Mary Anne on their annual family vacation and this year we drove to Stowe, VT and stayed at Smuggler's Notch Resort. Being there at the end of October, the colors were absolutely beautiful and so was the terrain. We visited a Sugar House and saw how they made maple syrup, Lake Champlain Chocolates to see how they make their yummy goodies, Cabot Creamery to see how they make their world-renown cheese, & Ben & Jerry's to see how they make their sinfully good ice cream. We also walked around the Von Trapp Lodge where they lived and still own. Very neat! Ana took one of her soccer teammates for the week, so that was fun as well (we attached a photo of the girls at the Von Trapp Lodge).

Bucket list item-Steve & Brigid are taking our girls to Germany & Austria over Thanksgiving this year! Brigid and Steve have been to Germany before, but this will be the girls' first experience overseas. We are so excited and plan to Skype with Ana's entire 5th grade class and interview an Austrian family in the bed & breakfast where we are staying. We plan to visit Salzburg, Vienna, Munich, Berlin, and some small mountain towns, see some of the famous Christmas Marts, sled down the Alps, and stay at a thermal spring-fed water park! We can't wait and will share our experience next month upon our return.

This is always a great month focused on giving and being thankful. Although it is always good to give and be thankful throughout the year, this month is a nice time to laser-focus on that. For what are you thankful? What do you do to give back? Something we have learned is that you get back what you give. Coming from a spirit of gratitude is so important and so is not judging your insides by other peoples' outsides, yet it is so easy to do, isn't it?

We want take this opportunity to model this behavior and publicly thank a few people for helping us and always being there. First and foremost, our families-Mary Anne, Michelle, Steve, Caleb, Abbey, Claire & Brigid, Ana, & Tali. Although we try as much as possible to keep 'regular' work hours, that isn't always possible and our business takes time away from you. Thank you for understanding and 'sharing' us with our amazing clients we so love to help. Also, thank you to our unbelievably talented Director of Marketing & Client Services Kylie Zajac. Without you, we wouldn't be able to deliver the high level of service we promise to our clients. You always make us look good and constantly take fantastic care of our clients.

Finally, thank you to YOU! There are too many clients and referral partners to list, but you know who you are. Thank you for entrusting us with one of the most important times in your life and one of the largest financial transactions of your life. We know how important it is to you and your family and are grateful you continually invite us to help you as we know you want and deserve the absolute BEST experience and service possible for you and those about whom you care. Thank you for continuing to introduce us to your friends, family, & co-workers as we promise to always take excellent care of them and provide them a 'magical' level of service. Kylie starts real estate classes on Monday for the next month so she can become licensed and help us even more. Way to go, Kylie!!

Now, onto the giving part...As you know, we try and do many extra things for our clients, including Santa Night, our Happy Hours, VIP Client Appreciation Event, Fun Day Monday contests, gifts, movie tickets and celebrating happy occasions and milestones with you and your loved ones. Thank you for allowing us to 'love' on you. We enjoy doing it and giving back to you for your generosity to us and those about whom you care.

Speaking of these events, we have some reminders to share. You should have received an Evite for all of these events as well as paper invites for the VIP Client Appreciation event. We hope you will consider joining us at one or more of these events so we can show you our appreciation in person.

1) Special Client Appreciation Event-This was held this PAST Wednesday, November 4th at Stone Creek Dining in Zionsville. This was a one-time event as an additional thank you to our clients and co-hosted by a couple of friends of Steve's. Thank you to those of you who attended!! We had a great time. We will let you know if another one is planned in the future.

2) November Happy Hour-This is our monthly Happy Hour at Matt The Miller's the third Wednesday of every month from 5-7PM. This month, it will be held on November 18th. We hope you will attend & enjoy a drink or two along with some yummy appetizers as we say thank you for your support. Please RSVP through Evite, but know you are always welcome to drop in even if you didn't RSVP. We would just love to see you!! **Please note that there will be no Happy Hour in December due to the holidays. We will start back up again in January.

3) Pictures with Santa-We have been hosting this for over 10 years now and it has become a family tradition for many of our clients. If you attended last year, you know that Santa and Mrs. Claus look EXACTLY like Santa & Mrs. Claus. Don't miss out and join us. Please RSVP through Evite or Kylie@Welcome2Indy.com. This year, we are hosting this event a little early due to the holidays on Saturday, November 21st from 12PM-2PM at our office. Santa is looking forward to seeing you there!

4) VIP Client Appreciation Event-Saturday, December 12th from 8:30AM-11AM at Hamilton Towne Center. Another family favorite and annual tradition, we invite you to enjoy a donut, fruit, juice, & coffee bar, photo shoot, and then the soon-to-be-released Pixar movie The Good Dinosaur. It has received excellent reviews and is perfect for the entire family. Friends and family are both invited. Bring grandparents, grandkids and enjoy fun, family entertainment. Please RSVP to Kylie@Welcome2Indy.com with the number of adults & children so we can let the theater properly prepare for our arrival.

We hope your Thanksgiving holiday is a fun one spent with friends and family and reflecting on things for which you are thankful. Thank YOU, again for being such a big part of our real estate family! Enjoy this month's special November edition of our newsletter and please let us know what you think of it.

Click here to read our very special November newsletter

Click here to access our PinPoint Perks savings site

Click here to download our POWERFUL real estate app

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!

Steve & Jack

October Steve & Jack's Home News

Welcome Fall!! We hope you have enjoyed your summer and are ready for some cooler Fall temperatures, which also brings with it football season! After last night's Colts' performance, we could be in for a very long season.

Our family is looking forward to a very short trip to North Carolina to see our youngest cousin finally get married. He has been living in Japan for several years, so we haven't even met his fiancee, so we are excited to see him again and have the entire family together for the first time in about 20-years!

Since Fall Break is an entire week for the first time for us this year, we are heading to Vermont with Jack & Mary Anne for our annual family trip together. Should be the perfect time to see the leaves changing and just relax for several days with no real plans.

Soccer, gymnastics, & Indianapolis Children's Choir are back in full swing again and the kids are keeping us extremely busy, but they love it! Tali's kindergarten experience has been terrific and we couldn't be happier with her teacher who is also a neighbor of ours. Ana has had a great experience in Intermediate School. It is so much bigger than Elementary School, but her teachers are unbelievable and she looks forward to going to school each day. Very thankful we are!

Thank you to everyone who attended the September Happy Hour at Matt The Miller's last week! Please note that due to Fall Break, we will be hosting October's Happy Hour on the second Wednesday of the month-October 14th from 5-6:30PM. Please join us if you can make it, even if only for a few minutes.

We hope you are saving the date for our VIP Client Appreciation Event again this year. Due to scheduling conflicts it is being moved back a week to Saturday, December 12th. You will be receiving Save The Date cards and invitations soon. Please do RSVP, so we have an accurate headcount for food, drinks and to ensure there are enough seats for everyone. As always, the entire family is welcome!!! We are waiting on a final confirmation from the theater to announce the movie, but it will be a good one!

The market has been good overall, but showing activity has been sluggish with the end of summer and back-to-school. Here are the latest statistics:

New Listings-UP 4.7%
Pending Sales-UP 4.7%
Closed Sales-UP 3.9%
Median Sales Price-UP 2.7% to $150,000
Average Sales Price-UP 2.8% to $188,604
Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale-UP 0.8% to 94.5%
Total Active Listings Available at Month End-DOWN 6.1% to 13,074
Months Supply of Inventory-DOWN 15.1% to 4.9 months

Click here to read our October Newsletter

Click here to get the most powerful real estate app available

Click here to access coupons & discounts at places you shop every day. Why pay full price?

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!
Steve & Jack Rupp

September Steve & Jack's Home News

Welcome to the beginning of the 2015-16 school year! If you are like us, your Facebook feed has been blowing up with back-to-school photos for all of your friends' children and grandchildren. This is always a hectic and anxiety-ridden time for many families as they adjust to new schedules, schools, teachers, and friends. We hope your loved ones have survived the start of school whether it was at the end of July (boy, that sure seems early) or was today. Whatever happened to starting school after Labor Day?

Steve & Brigid have been adjusting to another school year with Ana attending 5th grade and a new school in Westfield Intermediate (5th & 6th grades) and Tali attending Kindergarten-still at Maple Glen Elementary in Westfield. Both have had oustanding experiences so far and absolutely LOVE their teachers. We hope this continues throughout the year. Ana's bus arrives at 7:15AM (ugh!), but Tali's school doesn't start until 9:10AM, so we get quite a bit done in between the two starts, but drop off Tali early to BAC (before & after school care). Tali is now doing gymnastics twice/week and Ana is still playing soccer and practices 3x/week at Grand Park with at least 1 game on the weekend. She is also doing Indianapolis Children's Choir this year, which is another practice during the week and her school choir, so things are very busy.

Last month, we took our summer family vacation to Bar Harbour, Maine (or as the locals say, Bah Habah). It was a fantastic experience and absolutely gorgeous views. We spent time in Acadia National Park and took a few boat tours seeing lighthouses and the sea life. Brigid booked cabins for us (we went with her brother and his family), and although they had hot water, showers, toilets, and beds all in the cabins, she felt it was roughing it too much for her and prefers her Hiltons. Being an Eagle Scout, I had a good laugh as I thought it was pretty posh! We look forward to spending a week in Vermont with Jack & Mary Anne over Fall Break in October for our annual grandparent vacation.

The market has been pretty hot, but has been spotty at times, especially with the varied start times of school this year. Any way you slice it, generally this has been an exceptionally good year for real estate. See the below stats from MIBOR's latest report (comparing June 2015 to June 2014):

*New listings-UP 3.7%
*Pending sales-UP 8.1%
*Closed sales-UP 17.6%
*Median sales price-UP 5.3% to $158,000
*Average sales price-UP 3.1% to $194,259
*Percent of original list price received at sale-UP 0.6% to 94.9%
*Total active listings available at month end-DOWN 5.9% to 12,857
*Months supply of inventory-DOWN 12.3% to 4.9 months (strong sellers' market)

As you can see, every single metric tracked is a good sign for homeowners. All houses are different, however and just because the market is hot doesn't necessarily mean all segments and areas are. If you find yourself contemplating a move, do yourself a favor and give us a call-317-339-7698 so that we can provide data specifically tailored to YOUR house and how it impacts YOUR bottom line.

Finally, a few fun and FREE things. Thank you to everyone who has played our Fun Day Monday contests!! We get more and more entries every month and love giving the winner a $25 Amazon gift card. If you haven't played yet, why are you waiting? Join in on the fun and maybe you will be our next winner!

Have you sent Kylie-Kylie@Welcome2Indy.com your entry for two absolutely FREE tickets to the Colts vs. Bengals game on September 3rd? They are really good seats and are absolutely FREE. If you haven't sent Kylie your e-mail entry, do it NOW. You only have until 4PM on August 19th, which is THIS Wednesday to get your entry in. We would love to draw your name and send you to the game.

Next, have you sent Steve your picture of your football schedule calendar magnet hanging up at home or work? If not, do it NOW-Steve@Welcome2Indy.com or 317-339-7698. E-mail or text. We would love to enter you into a drawing for a $50 gift card to BW-3s to watch your favorite team. You have until midnight on August 23rd, which is this coming Sunday night to enter. The drawing will take place on Monday, August 24th.

And, for our final FREE opportunity, come join us at our next Happy Hour this Wednesday, August 19th from 5-6:30PM at Matt The Miller's in Carmel. We would love to see you and your first two drinks and appetizers are on US. We have a nice group and have a lot of fun. Hope to see you there!!

Steve & Jack Rupp

Click here to read our September newsletter

Click here to access our exclusive coupons & discounts at stores you shop every day

Click here to download our powerful real estate app

August 2015 Newsletter

Happy August and the impending end of summer. We hope you have enjoyed some time away and maybe were able to take a vacation or two.

Thank you to everyone who attended our Happy Hour last week at Matt The Miller's!! We had a great turnout and everyone had a good time-free drinks and food certainly didn't hurt! If you haven't been able to attend, please make plans now as we would love to see you. The next Happy Hour is Wednesday, August 19th from 5-6:30PM at Matt The Miller's in Carmel. Look for your Evite soon!

We have had a fantastic registration for the Colts' tickets! As many of you noticed, there was a typo on the postcard in the e-mail address to register. The correct e-mail is Kylie@Welcome2Indy.com. If you haven't registered yet, you still have time, so don't delay and do it today! The tickets are fantastic seats, so be sure and register for your chance to win!

Steve, Brigid, Ana, & Tali took their summer trip to Acadia National Park in July along with Brigid's brother Jim and his wife and daugher. We had an amazing time! Acadia National Park is located on Desert Island in Bar Harbour, Maine. We stayed in cabins that were only 1-year old with a toilet, sink, and shower with hot water. For this Eagle Scout, that is not really camping, but 'glamping', as I call it. For Brigid, it was seriously roughing it! She did great and cooked her first meal over a fire. We enjoyed riding our bikes and hiking in the park, walking around downtown Bar Harbour, going on a lobster/seal cruise, sea life cruise, and whale watching cruise. The water was a cool 55-degrees, so we didn't swim, but it was worth it.

We stopped by Penn State where Ana wants to go to school as they have the best broadcast meteorology program in the nation; the flagship LL Bean store, which was massive and most impressive; and then also Kennebunk, Maine for a couple of days, which is adjacent to Kennebunkport, where the Bushes live. We rode by their impressive compound and saw Bush senior was there and watched the fireworks on the beach. While not a warm, beach vacation, we would highly recommend going as we saw some amazing vistas and wildlife.

The real estate market has been hot in some areas and slow in others. It just depends on area and price range. Here are some stats:

New listings-UP 3.7%
Pending sales-UP 8.1%
Closed sales-UP 17.6%
Median sales price-UP 5.3% to $158,000
Average sales price-UP 3.1% to $194,259
% of original list price received at sale-UP 0.6% to 94.9%
Total active listing available at month-end-DOWN 5.9%
Months' supply of inventor-DOWN 12.3% to 4.9 months

As you can see, our market, as a whole is very strong and in a sellers' market. If you know of anyone thinking about selling their house, please give us a call with their contact info, so we can consult with them about their options.

Have a great rest of the summer and good luck in the Colts' ticket drawing!

Click here for the newsletter.

Click here to download our real estate app.

Click here to access exclusive coupons & discounts at places you shop every day.

Steve & Jack Rupp

July Steve & Jack's Home News

Welcome to summer and the end of another school year! We hope you have some fun summer vacation plans as well as spending time with family. While there are a lot of varied opinions over Daylight Saving Time and I could argue for either side, personally I love still having daylight at 9:30 at night. We work in the yard quite a bit or one of us will take the dog for a walk after the kids go to bed and have light in which to do those activities is so nice.

We have been missing Ana the last week as she has been enjoying an amazing trip with her grandparents on an Alaskan cruise. Tali has been especially sad to see her sister's room empty and our dog Duke even takes a winter glove of Ana's out of the basket and sleeps next to it. They both miss their big sis. Fortunately, she has been able to call us a few times and says she is having a blast! We would love to go as a family sometime and have it on our bucket list. Have you ever been to Alaska? What was your experience like?

Jack and Mary Anne are in Branson this week enjoying the scenery and taking in several shows. They have a time-share there and love going back each year.

The market has continued to be really strong in most areas and price points. Here are some recent figures (MIBOR monthly data report comparing April 2015 to April 2014):
*New listings are UP 6.3%
*Pending sales are UP 13.5%
*Closed sales are UP 12.8%
* Median sales price is UP 8.8% to $148,000
*Average sales price is UP 6.2% to $ 182,931
*% of Original List Price Received at Sale is UP 0.3% to 94%
*Total Active Listings Available at Month's End is DOWN 2.6%
*Months Supply of Inventory is DOWN 6.1% to 4.7 months (a balanced market is ~6 months, so we are in a seller's market)

If you or someone you care about are thinking of moving, please give us a call so we can consult with you about your options and maximize your house's value while reducing many of the hassles of buying and selling.

**Have you RSVP'd yet for our Happy Hour THIS Wednesday, June 17th from 5-6:30PM at Matt The Miller's in Carmel? If not, please do so. We have a big crowd coming and we would love to see you there as well. Drinks and appetizers are on us!! Whether you can only stay for a few minutes or the entire time, we would love to see you. Don't forget to pick up your poker chips at the hostess stand. Those are your drink tickets for the evening. See you there!!!

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!
Steve & Jack Rupp

Click here for the newsletter

Click here for coupons & discounts at places you shop every day

Click here for the most powerful mobile real estate app available

June Steve & Jack's Home News

Welcome summer!!! As I write this, today is the last day for Westfield-Washington schools and most schools around our area are finishing this week for summer. Are you ready? If you are a parent, it brings mixed emotions. On the one hand, you are happy another year is over along with many things that go along with school, namely homework, school activities, early bedtimes, your kids are excited, etc. On the other hand, you know your kids are one year closer to fleeing the nest (which could be a happy thing as well), and you have to find something for them to do-camps, nanny, relative, stay home, etc., which causes a whole new set of planning issues.

I am looking forward to attending the 4th grade graduation and cookout later today followed by a parent-teacher kickball game. I haven't played that since grade school, but what fun!!!

We hope you enjoyed the 99th running of the Indy 500. More importantly, we hope you took some time to reflect on the reason we had a 3-day weekend. The sacrifices that have been made for us so that we can enjoy our freedom is unfathomable for most of us. Hopefully, you were able to take the time to say thank you to a veteran. If you are a veteran, THANK YOU! Here is a challenge for you, the next time you see a veteran, do something nice for them that they aren't expecting and don't look to take any credit for the kind gesture. Pay for their meal, drink, ticket to a game, tank of gas, whatever. Leave a note or a message with a server/attendant to tell them this was a small thank you from a grateful American. You will not only make their day, but yours as well. Please let us know what you did and how it made you and/or the deserving veteran feel. We absolutely LOVE hearing these stories. Thank you, in advance for sharing and for 'paying it forward'.

Jack and Mary Anne just got back from a trip to Mexico and loved it! No one got Montezuma's revenge and they loved the resort where they stayed. They would go back again in a second. They are looking froward to going to Vermont with us later this summer for our annual family vacation together.

The market has been absolutely NUTS lately. This is the busiest I have ever seen it. Closings are being delayed due to such heavy volume that lenders and underwriters can't keep up, even working 18-hours days!!! Houses are still selling in hours, sometimes. August 1st brings new closing requirements that will bring delays, frustrations, and headaches. We are recommending anything with a closing date on or after August 1st to plan on at least 45-days from contract to close. This is 50% longer than the typical 30-days to which we have grown accustomed. Lenders are scrambling to understand the new rules and implement them, so if you or someone you know is looking to buy or sell on or after August1st, be prepared and forewarned. You WILL have issues and will need to be flexible. These are federal government-mandated changes, the likes of which we haven't seen in our lifetime. There will be problems, but we will work through them. Just know you will not be able to close in 2-weeks anymore, unless you are paying cash. If you have any questions, please feel comfortable calling us. We are happy to answer any questions you have.

Please plan to join us for our next Happy Hour at Matt The Miller's in Carmel from 5-6:30PM on Wednesday, June 15th. Food and drinks are on me!!! This is just a fun and relaxing way to re-connect with our wonderful clients and referral partners, so please plan to join us. We will always be there the 3rd Wednesday of each month. Same time and place, so if you can't join us in June, please stop by in upcoming months. We would love to see you!!!

Enjoy the summer and please let us know if there is anything extra we can do for you or someone you care about. We love to help!!

Click here to read the June newsletter.

Click here to get our powerful real estate app.

Click here for exclusive coupons and discounts at places you shop every day.


Steve & Jack Rupp

May Steve & Jack's Home News

Happy Mother's Day to all moms!!!! Thank you for everything you do for us!! We hope that you are able to do something special for the moms in your life and give them some extra and much-deserved pampering. We are planning on having a family brunch on Sunday at a local restaurant and then off to the soccer fields for Ana's game.

Speaking of soccer, the season is in full swing! We have been having up to 4 games each weekend lately with tournaments!! This is all on top of 3 practices/week, making up to 7 times/week we are playing soccer. Ugh! Ana's team has really improved and came in 2nd last weekend with Ana scoring several goals. We are so proud of them! Ana heads to Corydon, IN for her 4th grade overnight field trip to our original Indiana State Capitol. School is out on May 29th, after which time, Brigid's parents are taking her on a trip of a lifetime-a 10-day cruise to Alaska!!! How exciting!

Tali is still swimming and doing gymnastics and loves both!

Brigid loves her new position at Merck. It is much more challenging, but extremely rewarding for her.

Jack & Mary Anne are looking forward to heading out to New England with with this summer for our family vacation. They are doing well and enjoying lots of volunteering along with vacations.

The most exciting news is that we have a new team member!!! Kylie Zajac is taking over Bob's position and started last Thursday. Bob accepted a pharmaceutical sales position and has been helping to train Kylie. She is picking things up so fast and will be a great addition to our team!!! Please introduce yourself if your paths cross. She would love to meet you!!!

The spring market is HOT!! Many houses are selling in hours with multiple offers. If you or someone you care about are thinking about selling, give us a call as we would love to consult with you about your options.

Enjoy this month's newsletter!

Click here to read the May newsletter

Click here to access our exclusive coupons & discounts

Click here for the most powerful real estate app available

Steve & Jack Rupp

April 2015 Steve & Jack's Home News

Happy Spring!!! Isn't it typical Indiana weather that we get snow during the first week of spring? For those of you reading this on spring break, enjoy your time off. We hope you are somewhere warm getting a head start on the warmer weather, which will eventually head our way.

Brigid and Steve are heading to Tampa the first week of April to see her parents. A day at Disney, a few at the beach and the pool will do us some good. Ana & Tali can't wait to see their grandparents again! Brigid started a new position at Merck and absolutely loves it!! It brings a new challenge to her and she is excited for the opportunities it will bring. Ana is getting back in the full-swing of spring soccer season with the Indiana Fire Juniors. Practicing 3 days/week and at least one or two games every weekend is in our foreseeable future, but Ana loves it. Tali is still our little swimmer and gymnast.

Jack & Mary Anne thoroughly enjoyed their trip to Costa Rica. They brought back amazing photos of the rainforest and animals we have never seen before. It looks gorgeous!!! Going with friends was a lot of fun and an incredible learning experience. They highly recommend it!

Check out some of the housing stats from the MIBOR February Monthly Housing Report:
New Listings-2,846-UP 13.4% from February 2014
Closed Sales-1,810-UP 12.6% from February 2014
Average Days on Market-66 Days
Average Sales Price-$166,384-UP 8.4%
Average 30-year fixed mortgage-3.97%
Number of Active Listings in BLC-12,018
FYI-Mortgage interest rates are expected to start increasing in June of this year. If you know of someone on the fence about making a housing change, now is the time to do it and potentially save tens of thousands of dollars. Please have them call us so we can consult with them about their options.

On a final note, we are hiring! If you know of someone who is looking for an Executive Administrative Assistant position, we would love to review their resume. The ideal candidate will be exceptionally strong with administrative tasks and is very detail-oriented. The position is full-time in our office in Carmel. We are looking to hire immediately. We have found that the best candidates come from people who know us. Who is the first person who came to mind just now? We would love to talk with them!

Enjoy this month's edition of the newsletter and please let us know when we can help you or someone you care about with real estate needs. Thank you for all of your past and future support! We are truly grateful!

Click here for the April Newsletter

Click here for access to our exclusive coupons & discounts

Click here to download the most powerful mobile real estate app

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!

Steve & Jack Rupp

March 2015 Newsletter

We hope you had a great Valentine's Day with your loved ones last week. Although one could easily argue its origins as being purely commercial in nature, which may very well be true, it is still a nice opportunity to show those about whom you care a little extra tangible 'something', the most important of which is your time and 'being present'.

With technology as prolific as it is today, the gift of our time and presence is appreciated now more than ever when freely given to those we love most. I think back to dinners with Ana & Tali and how Brigid and I have to intentionally put down our phones and interact with them. It truly is sad, but in a world with constant distractions and smart phones increasingly more powerful and small, always clamoring for our immediate attention with their seemingly incessant ringing and dinging it is no wonder we live in an attention-deficit world. However, I would submit that those closest to us deserve our uninterrupted attention much more so than the unknown caller on the other side of that ringing and dinging phone-now more than ever. What would your life be like if you put your phone on Do Not Disturb when your family could predictably count on you to do so and you were just present with them sharing nothing more than your presence and undivided attention? Would that have a positive impact on you and your most precious relationships? I challenge you to give it a shot and commit to doing it for a week and see what happens. You just may be amazed at what happens next...

Jack & Mary Anne just returned from a 2-week trip to Costa Rica last weekend. They went with another couple and had an amazing time!! It was an organized tour through the Rhodes Scholar program (formerly called Elder Hostel). They spent time in the extremely humid rain forest and saw the most beautiful animals, including Macaws, sloths, tree frogs, and myriad other creatures we don't have here in Indiana. The poverty they encountered was moving and humbling. They really enjoyed their trip and are glad they went. Have you traveled to Costa Rica? If so, what was your favorite memory?

As for our real estate market, it is quickly heating up. We are officially in the 'spring market', believe it or not. Many houses are selling very quickly (clearly not all of them!). If you are thinking of entering the market, NOW is the time to get moving. Here is a recap of December 2014 courtesy of MIBOR Monthly Indicators Report (compares December 2013 to December 2014):

*New Listings-UP 13.1%
*Pending Sales-UP 16.6%
*Closed Sales-UP 13.0%
*Median Sales Price-UP 0.1% to $135,000
*Average Sales Price-DOWN 0.6% to $175,522
*Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale-UP 1.2% to 92.4%
*Total Active Listings Available at Month End-DOWN 3.1%
*Months Supply of Inventory-DOWN 0.7% to 4.5 months

Bottom line, 2014 was another year of recovery, albeit not as dramatic as 2013. Our market is approaching equilibrium after being drastically undersupplied. We are being told that this summer, we will see interest rates rise, although we have already seen them increase 0.25% over the past 2-weeks. Student loan debt, sluggish wage growth, and a lack of sufficient mortgage liquidity remain hurdles to a greater recovery.

We hope you enjoyed your Valentine's Day. After a quiet dinner out, Brigid and I saw the new movie Kingsman. If you like James Bond, The Matrix, & X-Men, you will absolutely LOVE Kingsman. It is highly rated in reviews and I would echo those. Very enjoyable movie!!!

Click here to read our March 2015 newsletter.

Click here to access our exclusive coupons & discounts.

Click here to download our powerful new mobile app.

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!

Steve & Jack Rupp

February 2015 Steve & Jack's Home News

Happy Valentine's Day!

We hope you are enjoying a much milder winter than this time last year! We also hope you were able to enjoy some downtime with friends and family during the holidays. Although they can be hectic, it is nice to be able to see and talk to people close to us and catch up on each other's lives.

If you are a regular reader, you will remember that Brigid & I along with our girls usually go to Tampa, FL between Christmas & New Year's to see her parents who live down there. It is a nice respite from the cold winters up here (especially last year!), but the 16.5-hour drive is just grueling. It was nice to have them come to us, for a change and not have to travel so far. We were able to see most of our families and spend some quality time with them all.

On a sad note, Brigid's uncle passed away suddenly on December 26th. We just saw him the day before and he was acting just fine. He is the youngest of 7 kids on her dad's side and was only 57. He didn't drink or smoke and appeared to be in great health and was fit. He died of a massive heart attack the very next day. Needless to say, Brigid's family was devastated and everyone met in Chicago for the funeral. He leaves behind a wife and daughter. The take-away? Please get health check-ups, especially blood work and heart scans. It is simple, easy, and inexpensive, and MAY just save your life or that of someone you love. We guys are notorious for not seeing the doctor. This isn't an ego thing. It is a living thing, guys! Do yourselves and your family a favor and get checked out.

Here are some numbers from MIBOR for December. Overall, very good:

*New Listings +13.1%
*Pending Sales +16.6%
*Closed Sales +13.0%
*Median Sales Price +0.1% to $135,000
*Average Sales Price -0.6% to $175,522
*Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale +1.2% to 92.4%
*Total Active Listings Available at Month End -3.1%
*Months Supply of Inventory -0.7% to 4.5 months

Thank you for making last year one of our best ever! This year is off to an amazing start, but we need your help. Who do you know who is looking to buy, sell, or build a home this year? Please give us their name and contact info and we will follow up and consult with them about their options while keeping you in the loop. Thank you for your continued trust and confidence!

Next month, we will tell you all about Jack & Mary Anne's amazing trip for which they leave on Sunday. Exciting!!!!

Click here to read our Valentine's edition of our Steve & Jack's Home News. We guarantee you there is some interesting info you have never seen before. Check it out!

Click here to access our exclusive coupons and discounts.

Click here to download our powerful new mobile app to get information on any home anywhere!

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!

Steve & Jack Rupp

Westfield Name One of The Best Cities in Indiana to Raise A Family

Westfield Named One of the Best Cities in Indiana to Raise a Family

Westfield, IN- The Consumer Advocacy site, NerdWallet, released their annual study, “Best Cities for Young Families in Indiana”. NerdWallet ranked Westfield number 2 out of the 109 cities in Indiana that the company researched.

“Building a community and connecting families is my goal for Westfield,” explains Mayor Andy Cook. “Being recognized for something city employees and community members work so hard to achieve is rewarding on so many levels. Westfield’s trail system, school district and our sense of community is why families are locating to Westfield.”

The study revealed Westfield has the highest percentage of families with children in the state. It also pointed out the city’s close proximity to Indianapolis.

NerdWallet analyzes cities with more than 5,000 residents in Indiana. The advocacy site takes into account U.S. Census data and considers four key factors before making a decision. NerdWallet considers home affordability, prosperity and growth, quality of education and family friendliness.

###

January Steve & Jack's Home News

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We hope, as we are nearing the final stretch before Christmas, that you have your shopping finished (or almost finished) and are about ready for the big day. Whether you are spending the holidays at home or away, or even if you don't celebrate Christmas, we hope this time of year is filled with joy, laughter, love, and some time off to spend with family and friends.

THANK YOU to everyone who packed the house a couple of Saturdays' ago to watch The Penguins of Madagascar! We had a fantastic time seeing everyone and hope you enjoyed the movie. We look forward to seeing everyone next year, so save the date-the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

We also had a great time seeing everyone for Cookies with Santa a couple of weeks ago. There were some fantastic pictures and the kids loved the treats and art projects. We hope you will join us again next year.

This year, we are looking forward to everyone staying home and have family come visit us for a change. It will be nice attending our own church and continuing our family holiday traditions. Some of our traditions are visiting Reynold's Farm Equipment and seeing their impressive lights display. If you haven't seen it, it is a must. We also get chocolate advent calendars for the kids each year. It is a nice treat for 24-days to which they look forward each year. We usually celebrate Christmas Eve at Mary Anne and Jack's house and then Christmas afternoon at Brigid's aunt & uncle's. What are some of your family traditions and customs?

The market continues to improve each month and we are seeing an unusually busy December. If you are thinking of selling your house soon, give us a call so we can consult with you and give you specific ideas on how to get the most money out of your house.

Thank you for your continued loyalty and support! We are extremely grateful for you and your trust in us and look forward to helping you and those you care about in 2015.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!

Click here to read our January newsletter

Click here for our exclusive discounts.

Click here for our powerful real estate app to search for any home!

Take a spin on our website: www.Welcome2Indy.com

December Steve & Jack's Home News

We hope you enjoyed a relaxing and fun Thanksgiving holiday with friends and family. We hosted this year and enjoyed seeing family and watching football amongst some amazing food!

We have had an overwhelming response to our VIP Client Appreciation Event THIS Saturday. If you have RSVP'd already-thank you!! We are saving a seat for you. If you have not RSVP'd yet, we only have a few more seats left. Due to the response, we upgraded to the largest theater and have a few seats remaining. So, if you have been meaning to RSVP, but haven't done so yet, please e-mail Bob Clidinst at Bob@Welcome2Indy.com with the number of adult and child tickets you would like. Our hard cut-off is tomorrow at noon. We would love to see you and provide a light breakfast as well as the movie, The Penguins of Madagascar. It just came out last weekend and I have heard is really funny.

Thank you for all of the entries for the Colts tickets!! Our winner has already been contacted and is excited to attend. We hope you enjoy the game and bring back a Colts' win!! If you didn't win this year, don't worry, we plan to have another drawing next year!

Thank you, also to everyone who attended our Photos with Santa on November 23rd. We had a fantastic turnout! If you had the professional photographer take some photos, they just came in and we will be sending those to you in the next day or so.

Merry Christmas to you and your family. We are so grateful to each of you for your business and friendship. We are truly blessed to do something we love and with people with whom we love to spend time. Thank you for another fantastic year and we look forward to helping more of you and those you care about in 2015!

Click here to read our December newsletter

Click here to visit our website

Click here to access our exclusive discount & coupon savings site

Click here to download our mobile real estate app to search for any home anywhere!

Steve & Jack Rupp

November Steve & Jack's Home News

Happy November and a not-so-welcome polar vortex showing us signs of an early winter. As I write this, I am sitting in a hotel room in sunny San Diego for a real estate conference learning how to better run our business and provide an even higher level of service to our clients. Of course, I had to send the obligatory video of me at the ocean today to Brigid to rub it in a little before our conference starts this evening. We are big believers in continual education that never ends. We are excited about what we will learn over the next 3 days and bring back to implement into our business.

Last month for Fall Break, we went to visit Brigid's parents in Tampa and see Steve's good friend from college. While there, we attended Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween-a first for us. It was so much fun and the girls absolutely loved it. The best part is that a limited number of guests are allowed in and lines for rides are much shorter. If you have never been to Disney during the Fall, I highly recommend going to this special event. It is worth the time and money...and the parade is the best of any all year!

Here are some housing stats for September as reported by MIBOR. These compare September 2014 to September 2013.
• New listings-UP 8.4%
• Pending sales-UP 13.6%
• Closed sales-UP 13.1%
• Median Sales Price-UP 5.1% to $141,900
• Average Sales Price-UP 2.9% to $172,319
• % of Original List Price Received at Sale-UP 1% to 93.2%
• Total Active Listings Available at Month End-DOWN 0.1% to 13,882
• Months Supply of Inventory-UP 3.3% to 5.7%
Basically, house prices are going up, interest rates are staying low, but are predicted to be at 5% by this time next year, and inventory is going up and is nearing a balanced market shifting from a sellers' market. If you are thinking of selling or buying your window is closing to take advantage of our very favorable market. Please contact us if you would like specific numbers on your house so you can make an informed decision.
Veteran's Day was yesterday. A huge THANK YOU, especially to all of our clients who have served our country. Jack is a Navy Veteran and served aboard the USS Essex. We honor and give thanks to each of you for the sacrifices you have made for us and our families.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. We certainly hope you have plans to spend it with friends/family and to truly be thankful and grateful for how fortunate we all are. We are extremely grateful and thankful for our wonderful family and friends, but also for our amazing clients...like you! Thank you for your continued trust and confidence. Without you & your continued referrals, we wouldn't be in business. We are honored & privileged to be a part of such an important time in your lives.

A few reminders and fun things coming up for you to put on your calendar.

1) Pictures with Santa is coming back!! They will be at our office at Keller Williams at 11550 N. Meridian Street, Suite 450 in Carmel. The time is 12-2PM on Sunday, November 23rd and we will have punch & cookies. Please RSVP to Bob@Welcome2Indy.com by Friday, November 21st at 5PM if you plan to attend so we can have an accurate head count for refreshments.

2) You should be receiving your formal invitation any day now, if you haven't already for our 2nd annual VIP Client Appreciation Movie Day. It is on Saturday, December 6th at the Hamilton Town Center Movie Theater. We rented out the entire theater for you and your family to watch the new Disney movie, The Penguins of Madagascar. For those of you who attended last year for the blockbuster movie, Frozen, you know how much fun it was. We will begin with a coffee, juice, & donut bar at 9AM and the movie will start promptly at 10AM. Reservations are required by 5PM, Wednesday, December 3rd with the number of adult & child tickets requested to Bob@Welcome2Indy.com. We hope you can join us for both of these fun events!

Enjoy the newsletter and Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Click here to read our November newsletter.

Click here for access to our discount and coupon savings site.

Click here to download our real estate app to search any home anywhere!

Steve & Jack Rupp

October Steve & Jack's Home News

Welcome to Fall!! We love this time of year with cooler temperatures and the beautiful colors (although our summer has been very mild)! We can't forget about football!! Our Irish and Colts are faring quite well so far. We hope you are having fun at some festivals and enjoying nature's pallet changing as well. We have some family traditions during this time of year we would love to share with you. What are your Fall traditions? Here are some of ours:

Headless Horseman at Conner Prairie-Adults are $10-$14 depending on the day, except if you are a member and then admission is FREE! In addition to the feature attraction of the haunted hayride with the headless horseman (non-scary version from 6:30-7:30PM and scary from 7:30-11PM) 10/16-10/19 and 10/23-10/26. There are lots of food tents as well as the Apple Store (our favorite) full of delicious apples and the amazing gourmet apple! There is a catapult launching various things, costume contest, karaoke, mad scientist tent, scary movies being played, play ground is open, slide, instrument play along, and the famous Steven's Puppets Legend of Sleepy Hollow (a must-see, trust me). Hayride time slots usually sell out by 7PM, so get there by 5:30PM at the latest and stand in line until the gates open at 6PM.

Pumpkinfest in Zionsville on 421-open every weekend in October. Tickets are $10/adults and $9/kids. We have gone every year for the past 10 years. The great thing is that almost everything is included in your ticket price, except for food, of course and the pony rides, which are only $5. There is live bluegrass music, a huge slide, milking & lassoing areas, face painting, corn kernel box, petting zoo, hay rides, pumpkin patch, corn maze, a craft and farmer's market, blacksmith & wood carver, trikes, train, and a free pie pumpkin you can take and decorate in the tent. Of course, the absolute BEST thing to get is the famous apple cinnamon donuts! Yum!

Oktoberfest at Traders' Point Creamery-only open one day (last Saturday). Tickets are $8/adults in advance and kids 10 & under are FREE. They have live bands (Polkaboy is outstanding!!), games and crafts, a Biergarten, Sun King truck, Artisan market, hog roast, hayrides, pony rides (extra $), and live milking demonstrations. Very fun!

Renaissance Faire-This is held one weekend in October (the 4th & 5th this year) in Saxony in Fishers and is the largest single weekend event of its kind in the nation! Tickets are $10/adults & $4/kids in advance. There are costumed denizens wandering about, tons of tents with all kinds of period wares to sell, puppet shows, acrobat acts, live music, jousting, sword play, lots of food booths and lots more.

The real estate market continues to change with strong movement in sales price and trailing closed sales. New listings have declined along with pending sales. Sustained job growth, lower mortgage interest rates and slow rise in homes for sale appear to have unleashed some pent-up demand. It is encouraging to see second quarter GDP growth revised upwards to a 4.2 percent annualized rate and stronger-than-expected job growth. Improvements are still needed in wage growth and consumer confidence, but recovery continues. Figures below are taken from MIBOR's August 2014 Market Overview Report:

• New listings DOWN 5.8%
• Pending sales DOWN 0.8%
• Closed sales DOWN 2.9%
• Median sales price UP 5.8% to $146,000
• Average sales price UP 6.7% to $183,433
• Percent of original list price received at sale UP 1.1% to 93.8%
• Total active listing available at month end UP 0.8% to 13,921
• Months supply of inventory UP 4.4% to 5.8 months

Finally, we are so excited to bring back two of our favorite events from last year. You should have already received a postcard in the mail regarding our extremely popular Colts' Ticket Giveaway. We are drawing one lucky winner for 2 Colts tickets 4 rows from the field!! The tickets are for the final home game of the season with division rivals the Houston Texans on December 14th at 1PM. The drawing will take place on December 1st. If you are interested in being entered, please e-mail or call us at Steve@Welcome2Indy.com or 317-573-1880. It should be a great game and fantastic seats!! Good luck!!

Our second event is our annual VIP Client Appreciation Event. Last year was a HUGE success and we are doing it again. You will be receiving a Save The Date card in the next few days and an invitation next month. We are renting out Hamilton Town Center movie theater again on Saturday, December 6th where we will be showing the newly released The Penguins of Madagascar. Our donut & juice bar will open at 9AM followed by the movie screening at 10AM. This is a fun, family-friendly event, so bring the entire family and enjoy a hilarious movie on us. Please RSVP to Steve by December 1st with the number of adult and child tickets requested.

Both of these events are our way of saying THANK YOU for being such fantastic clients, business partners, and referral sources over the years. We are extremely grateful for you and know we wouldn't be where we are without your continued support.

Enjoy the rest of October and we hope to see you at the movies on December 6th and wish you the best of luck in the Colts' tickets drawing.

Click here to read our October newsletter.

Click here to access our exclusive coupons & discount savings site.

Click here to download our POWERFUL real estate app to search for ANY home!

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!

September Steve & Jack's Home News

Welcome to Fall (unofficially) and back to school! Ana is now in 4th grade and Tali is in Pre-K, both of whom are at Maple Glen Elementary in Westfield, which we absolutely love!! With the cooler temperatures we have experienced this summer, it hasn't felt like a hot, humid and oppressive Indiana summer. We hope you have been able to take some time off to wind down and enjoy a vacation or two, or maybe even a 'staycation'. For our family vacation this summer we traveled to Boston to see Brigid's brother, wife and daughter whom we haven't seen in a while. We traveled by way of the Canadian side of Niagra Falls, which I haven't seen since I was a kid. What an awesome sight! I wouldn't recommend going to the Canada side, however-far too much traffic and hassle with Immigration.

Boston was a LOT of fun and so full of history. We had both been there previously, but it was great going with the kids and following Freedom Trail, celebrating our niece's birthday, seeing where Uncle Jimmy & Aunt Steph work, and enjoying walking around Harvard and other parts of Boston. On the way back, we stopped at Hershey, PA and took tours of the Chocolate Factory, which the girls absolutely loved! Highly recommend, if you are there.

The real estate market has been rather unpredictable lately. Normally, June & July are rather robust, but this year, they have been lackluster, to say the least. Fast-forward to today and it has picked up, but is still gaining steam. Here are some stats courtesy of the July MIBOR Monthly Indicators Report:
• New Listings-UP 2.2%
• Pending Sales-DOWN 3.6%
• Closed Sales-DOWN 8.5%
• Median Sales Price-UP 0.1% to $145,000
• Average Sales Price-Up 2.2% to $183,449
• Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale-UP 0.7% to 94.2%
• Total Active Listings Available at Month End-UP 2.7% to 14,165
• Months Supply of Inventory-UP 4.8% to 5.9 months
As you can see, real estate values are going up, but so in inventory and at the same time closings are down. We expect to see a more robust Fall and have already seen an uptick in activity.

If you or anyone you care about has any questions at all about where our market is or where we predict it is going, feel comfortable giving us a call. We are always happy to share information so you can make informed decisions. Enjoy the start of the football season, and if you are in the Indy-area, we hope you are enjoying the calendar magnets so you don't miss any Colts, ND, IU, or PU football games. Go, Colts!!

Thank you for all of your trust and support over the years! We are extremely grateful for our amazing clients! Enjoy this month's newsletter!!

Click here to read the September Newsletter

Click here for exclusive access to our coupon and discount savings site at companies you frequent every day.

Your Personal Real Estate Consultants...for Life!
Steve & Jack Rupp

August 2014 Steve & Jack's Home News

Can you believe summer is almost over? Some schools have already started and the rest are starting in about 2-weeks. Where has the time gone? We hope you have enjoyed some family time and some time away in a vacation or even staycation and just take a break from the hectic lives we all lead.

At the end of June, we took a family vacation to Colonial Williamsburg and a short two-day stop in DC. We saw many of the monuments there as well as the original Constitution, Bill of Rights, & Declaration of Independence. Our highlight was getting a tour of the White House. We all really enjoyed touring it room by room and seeing where so many of our Presidents live and work. Secret Service agents are in each room to answer questions and make sure all visitor 'behave'. Apparently, the rooms are used 2-3x/week by the President and First Lady, which made seeing them even more meaningful.

Colonial Williamsburg was very hot, but the kids really loved seeing all of the buildings and talking with the actors. A really neat game they encourage kids to play is called RevQuest where you are shown a movie and given a booklet and sent on a quest to decipher codes and solve clues. I think the adults had as much fun as the kids had playing it! What a fantastic resource we have available to us only a few hours away...and for an even closer destination, Conner Prairie, while much smaller is such a great asset to our very own community. If you haven't been to Williamsburg, we can't recommend it highly enough!

Here are some notable numbers collected by MIBOR for its June Monthly Indicators Report. As stated by MIBOR, “Central Indiana has all of the right ingredients including a diversity of housing stock and prices. Builders are active again for the first time in a few years and that adds new product to our market every month.
“Housing experts say sales are inching up, price growth is becoming more sustainable and housing inventory is increasing slowly. The market continues to stabilize overall, but a need for more people participating on both the buyer and seller side is evident.”
•New Listings-UP 6.5%
•Pending Sales-DOWN 2.5%
•Closed Sales-DOWN 1.4%
•Median Sales Price-UP 3.5%
•Average Sales Price-UP 6.9%
•% of Original List Price Received at Sale-UP 1.4% to 94.3%
•Total Active Listings Available at Month End-UP 1.9%
•Months’ Supply of Inventory-5.6 months-no change

Thank you, again for your continued support and introductions of new clients! Referrals and repeat clients are how we stay in business! Enjoy the rest of your summer, which always concludes for us with a visit to the State Fair!

Click here to read our August newsletter.

Click here for coupons and discounts at places you shop every day.

Steve & Jack

Steve & Jack's July 2014 Newsletter

Welcome 'officially' to summer! We hope you survived the storm last night unscathed. That was pretty scary! I happened to be checking up on a vacant listing right in the path of the storm and took shelter in their basement. Scary! We hope that the start of summer has been a good one. Changing routines is always difficult, especially when children are involved. Our bedtime has continually become later as we all take advantage of the great weather and sunlight.

We are excited to take our summer vacation this year to Washington, DC and Colonial Williamsburg. We even scored tickets for a White House tour! We will be joining Jack & Mary Anne and spending the week in Williamsburg with them and celebrating Independence Day there as well. Ana has been studying Colonial America this summer so she appreciates what she is seeing. It should be a very fun trip and a very educational one as well. We will let you know how it went in next month's newsletter.

The real estate market has been a little nutty lately. After a slow start due to the severe winter, it took off with impressive numbers, until the end of May when it took a breather. Showings and closings are both down right now leaving sellers to question the market at a time, which is usually quite robust. Please know that this slow down is city-wide and is not expected to last. Activity is already slowly picking back up, but summer always brings vacations, so many buyers take a break, especially in June.

Here are some quick housing numbers you will find interesting:
These numbers are comparing May 2013 to May 2014 according to MIBOR's Monthly Indicators Report:
• New listings are down 1.0%
• Pending sales are down 6.8%
• Closed sales are down 9.0%
• Median sales price is UP 1.4% to $140,000
• Average sales price is UP 2.1% to $175,903
• Percent of original list price received at sale is UP 2.1% to 94.4%
• Total active listings available at month end is down 1.7%
• Months supply of inventory is down 5.4% to 5.3 months
We hope you enjoy your summer and are able to take a vacation or two and enjoy some fun time! As always, thank you for being such great clients!! We truly are blessed and continue to be grateful for your on-going trust and support. We would love to help someone you care about with their real estate needs, so please give us a call when the next person you know is talking about buying, selling, or building a new home. We would love to learn about their specific situation and consult with them about their options.

Enjoy the July newsletter!!

Click here to read the July newsletter.

Click here for exclusive access to coupons and discounts.

Steve & Jack Rupp