Conroe, TX

Harry S Truman - The Buck Stops Here

'It doesn't matter how big a ranch ya' own, or how many cows ya' brand, the size of your funeral is still gonna depend on the weather.' Harry Truman

If you are new to Conroe/Montgomery County or from another part of the country, here are some pertinent facts about our beautiful community:

• Lake Conroe Area: Includes the cities of Conroe, Montgomery and Willis
• Location: Conroe is located 40 miles north of Houston, Texas
• County Seat of: Montgomery County
• City of Conroe Population: 43,993
• City of Montgomery Population: 498
• City of Willis Population: 6,322
• Montgomery County Population: 374,517
• Climate: The average high temperature is 78 degrees and the average low temperature is 57 degrees. The annual rainfall is 50.64 inches.
• Altitude: 245 feet above sea level
• Taxes: Hotel Tax 13%, Sales Tax 8.25%, No state income tax
• Transportation: I-45 & SH 105 are the major arteries. Taxi, limo and car rentals are available (see Transportation Information link)
• Newspapers: The Courier (daily), Montgomery County News (weekly), Houston Chronicle (daily)
• Radio Stations: KUST/KSTAR 99.7 FM, KAXF 88.3 FM
• Lake Conroe: Lake Conroe is on the west fork of the San Jacinto River. It was built as a joint project of the City of Houston, the Texas Water Development Board and the San Jacinto River Authority in 1973 as an alternate water source for the City of Houston.
• Forests: Sam Houston National Forest and W. Goodrich Jones State Forest
• Shopping: 1 Outlet Center, 50+ antiques, boutiques and gift stores, major department stores
• Restaurants: 150+ dinning choices from American to Oriental to Seafood to Tex-Mex
• Parks: 21 city parks throughout Conroe
• Hotel Accommodations: 13 hotels, 2 bed and breakfast and 11 RV Parks and Campgrounds. Total hotel rooms 1,015.
• Meeting Space: Lone Star Convention & Expo Center has a 56,000 square foot convention center and 111,000 square foot expo center.
• Government: Home Rule Charter, Mayor and five council members
• Schools: Elementary and Secondary: Conroe ISD (Conroe / The Woodlands) Montgomery ISD (Montgomery / Lake Conroe) Willis ISD (Willis) Multiple private and parochial schools
• Higher Education: Montgomery College
• Hospital: Conroe Regional Medical Center: 936-539-1111, St. Luke's Community Hospital: 936-266-2000
• Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital: 281-364-2300

Article by: Carol Hawkins

On August 26, 2008, Keller Williams unveiled its newest division - KW Commercial! Gary Keller has the incredible vision to always be looking toward the future and making sure that Keller Williams remains on the cutting edge! What makes this even better is the fact that in order for an agent to be involved in the commercial division, very stringent guidelines must be met.

First of all, the agent must be already a broker or in the process of becoming a broker. Subsequently the agent must be in the process of acquiring the much coveted CCIM designation. (Certified Commercial Investment Member) These requirements will already set KW Commercial agents apart from many others. Gary Keller believes in doing things the right way from the start.

I am thrilled to be in the process of the above two disciplines. I attended my first CCIM Intro Course and passed! Very intense and challenging but well worth it. I am learning a lot and look forward to completing my CCIM by the end of 2009.

The Franke Team is participating at the Director level for KW Commercial. We have a team of commercial agents working on many different levels in commercial real estate. From investments, multi-family, land acquisition, leasing, commercial buildings and much more, we can serve all of your real estate needs. We welcome you to visit the KW Commercial site at www.kwcommercial.com

We are excited to be participating in yet another first class program with Keller Williams!

Article By: Paula Hamilton

Last Saturday, October 4th, over 30,000+ people showed up in downtown Houston at 7 a.m. to participate in the Susan Komen Race for the Cure. The weather was perfect and it was great seeing the number of participants for this wonderful cause for breast cancer support.

I ran with a group of friends down Allen Parkway 3.1 miles to be exact. It was a great race as there were thousands of supporters lining the streets cheering us on. What is so special about this race are the number of survivors who are out participating. You can recognize them by their pink survivor shirts. Also, there are pink forms that you can write a person you are running for in memory of that person or in celebration of a survivor. Most everyone had a pink form pinned to their back with names on them. I ran in celebration of my co-worker Dixie Estep who is a breast cancer survivor.

Of course I am feeling the lactic acid build up still today in my legs but it was worth it. So many of us have been touched by a friend, co-worker or family member affected by the ravages of breast cancer. How great it was seeing so many thousands of people out doing something healthy and positive. I am sure that I will be out there again next year too!

Article by: Paula Hamilton

It is also the first day of the newly formed Franke Team Diet Club! I'm not sure who the genius was that came up with this idea, but we are all (those of us calorically challenged) putting $50 in the pot, and at some undetermined date the winner will be presented with the $$. Now, we are starting today but have no guidelines, no rules, no end date. This should really be fun. Add that to the fact that I DO NOT want my weight posted on a board for the whole world to see, so this should go great. Wish us luck!

Article by: Carol Hawkins

Today is a day for firsts at the Franke Team. This is our first official blog, as well as my first time to blog, so I will try to keep it upbeat, informative and entertaining. All you experienced bloggers feel free to give me some feedback so that I know how I am doing!

The Second First is starting our blog. When asked to do it, of course I said yes, that will be fun, and I immediately started thinking about the subject matter. Of course, being in the Houston area the first thing you think of is Hurricane Ike. Not a day goes by that we don't all think of that hurricane and the damage caused. I don't think there is one person in our office that didn't receive some damage. Most of it minor, with the exception of one of our agents, who had a beach house and lost everything in the storm. She went back for the first time last week and said she definitely was not prepared for what she saw. All that was left of her prized beach home was debris. This is what makes us all stop and take stock; she lost everything and what meant the most to her were the items she could not replace. She lost furniture, no big deal; clothing, no big deal; household items, no big deal; her great grandfather's civil war canteen, big deal (can't be replaced); everything her children had ever made for her (their school papers, ornaments, baby pictures, etc.) Very Big Deal. However, although she lost all her possessions, she and her family were safe. I don't mean to philosophize, but if we have our loved ones we are all going to be fine. Houston is a great city/area and is recovering very quickly. We will be back to our normal crazy selves in no time. I am adding a link to some photos from the hurricane that you may not have seen. They can take your breath away:

Click Here for Hurricane Pictures

As far as the real estate market in the Lake Conroe area; it is holding steady, which says a lot since most areas are really down. I was talking to some visitors from San Diego last week, and they were telling me that while their housing market is really down it is still much higher than our market here. They could not get over the values in our properties here. This is a very good thing in this volatile time.

Now that I have gotten started on this I could go on all day, but I have talked (blogged) enough for my first time. Please check back, as I plan to to update on a daily basis! Thanks for reading.

Article By: Carol Hawkins