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Viroqua, WI

No Horse Manure Allowed

Mary Strang ~ Viroqua, WI Real Estate: Real Estate Agent in Viroqua, WI

Around Vernon County and Viroqua Wisconsin there are several Amish Communities. Of which, many of the families have been living here for decades. Many have moved in from Ohio, Indiana and other states, they come here because it is rural and unregulated.

Lately the main topic in the local news is all about Horse Manure. It seems it must be piling up around town. This is somewhat funny because last year the big gripe in town was front yard gardens. Then it was about some of our younger and newer residents deciding to raise corn fields in the front yard. It is common to have a backyard garden, but instead of grass in the front yard, vegetable gardens including corn was planted by a few. A vocal group of unhappy locals, started to complain and it became a hotly debated topic. Well, not much word on that issue this year and actually I have to say, I have not seen any corn around town this year at all. Nope, none in any one of the front yards of any houses that I have passed by.

However, the manure complaints are now getting even more vocal. We have a farmers market each Saturday morning. So, maybe it is in the WCCU parking lot that the horse manure is piling up? Many Amish come daily into town, of course they usually come in their horse drawn buggies. So is it piling up along the highways and in the WalMart parking lot? Hey, if a horse has to go, well it does. I must say I personally have not seen any manure piles around town so is this an over reaction or where exactly is the worse of the problem at?

Are you searching for homes to buy in Viroqua or Vernon County Wisconsin

call Mary Strang therteam.com RE/MAX Hill Country Realty 608-606-2999

About the author:

Mary Strang is the Broker-owner of RE/MAX Hill Country Realty located in Viroqua, WI. Home to Organic farming, a small rural city population of about 4000 and a great place to live! Copyright © 2009 by Mary Strang. All rights reserved... " No Horse Manure Allowed." the blog post was written by Mary Strang is believed accurate but may not be guaranteed.

Market Watch July '09

Mary Strang ~ Viroqua, WI Real Estate: Real Estate Agent in Viroqua, WI

New Listings for the Month of June in Vernon County, Wisconsin totaled 34 listings.

The price range went from a low of $47,500 to a high of $795,500. What do you get for the money? At the low end of the price range is a 3-bedroom 1-bath country home that looks like a fixer upper and comes with 1.95 acre. The listing remarks say: BEGIN WITH THIS. WHY RENT? WOOD STOVE IN KITCHEN FOR FALL AND WINTER DAYS HARDWOOD FLOOR EXPOSED IN LIVING ROOM, NEW 300' WELL IN 2003. WITH SOME TLC YOU COULD MAKE THIS HOUSE YOUR OWN. PLENTY OF GARDEN SPACE. POLE SHED/GARAGE, GARDEN SHEDS CONVENIENT ROAD ACCESS.

Over on the higher end of Vernon County property for sale, is a fabulous custom home. Agent's remarks are: 4 BDRM RENOVATED FARMHOUSE. HARDWOOD FLOORS, SUNROOM POSTS AND BEAMS. 1 BDRM COTTAGE JACUZZI TUB AND HARDWOOD FLOORS ONLY 8 YEARS OLD WITH FULL BASEMENT. 212 ACRES RIDGE TOP AND VALLEY. HALL CREEK RUNS THROUGH PROPERTY. OUTBUILDINGS IN VERY GOOD CONDITION. ABOVE GROUND POOL AND CABANA WITH CHARMING ROOM. VERY CHARMING PROPERTY. SPRING WATER FLOWING.

Sold MLS Listing for the Month of June totaled 11 the price range was from a $60,000 for a 3 bedroom, 2 Bath REO sale in Coon Valley, which sold in 77 days. The high sale for June was a Mississippi River front weekend home. It came with 400 feet of frontage, a 3 season screened in porch and a pier. Sold in only 4 days for $195,000 located in Black Hawk Park.

There are currently 152 active MLS Single Family listing available all across Vernon County. If you looking for a home in Viroqua or in Vernon County take look and Give Mary a Call.

Are you searching for homes to buy in Viroqua or Vernon County Wisconsin

call Mary Strang therteam.com RE/MAX Hill Country Realty 608-606-2999

About the author:

Mary Strang is the Broker-owner of RE/MAX Hill Country Realty located in Viroqua, WI. Home to Organic farming, a small rural city population of about 4000 and a great place to live! Copyright © 2009 by Mary Strang. All rights reserved... " Market Watch July "09" the blog post was written by Mary Strang is believed accurate but may not be guaranteed.

Amish Tea

Mary Strang ~ Viroqua, WI Real Estate: Real Estate Agent in Viroqua, WI

For all you city brokers and buyers out there you might be shocked to learn that when showing some properties in the country you just show up for an appointment. No need to call first. Why, because they don't use phones. If there is several days notice, I would then usually send a courtesy post card. What kind of sellers would agrees to this? Well these owners are Amish.

Presently I have 2 Amish Farms for sale. Yesterday when I went out to show both of them and one was vacant while I knew the other had a family still living there. When we opened the front house door, it was a total surprise to see a sea of plants evenly spread out across all the floors. It was easy to understand that they were being dried in the heat of the closed up house. Every room was filled with them. The buyers and I both joked, but could tell it wasn't Marijuana grass. However we really were not sure what it was. After looking over the outside of the house and all the outbuildings, we headed over to the other farm. The owner there was in and had no problem with our impromptu showing and agreed to lead us around his home. Again, we found in the second floor the same plants spread out to dry. We learned they were stinging nettles and many Amish families harvest nettles for medicine and tea. I learned from him that the season is short, you have to gather them up before they flower out. He continued to tell us, he sold most of his to a herb buyer.

If you have never gotten into a field of stinging nettles then lucky you. I have, and they do really sting. You would have to dress up for this harvest with work gloves and long sleeves and pants making sure to cover all exposed skin, or else! Apparently this noxious weed is also known among herbalist to be a plant that will heal all that ails you. I personally have never tried Stinging Nettle Tea but since learning about it, I think I just might have to give it a try.

The photo on top is a picture of the nettles spread out on the living room floor, the other one is of the buyers and the Amish fellow heading up to take a look at the cistern well powered by wind.

Are you searching for homes to buy in Viroqua or Vernon County Wisconsin

call Mary Strang therteam.com RE/MAX Hill Country Realty 608-606-2999

About the author:

Mary Strang is the Broker-owner of RE/MAX Hill Country Realty located in Viroqua, WI. Home to Organic farming, a small rural city population of about 4000 and a great place to live! Copyright © 2009 by Mary Strang. All rights reserved... " Amish Tea" the blog post was written by Mary Strang is believed accurate but may not be guaranteed.

Realtors, pay attention while taking a photo

Mary Strang ~ Viroqua, WI Real Estate: Real Estate Agent in Viroqua, WI

Please Vote: How does a Realtor take a photo exactly like this?

1. You know the guy in the red cap and accidentally push the shutter button.

2. You normally are not aware of your surrounding and life just happens while doing real estate.

3. You felt the bright color of the red cap would add drama to the drab room and is your idea of staging a room.

4. You really don't care how the picture turned out and the MLS requires a photo within 48 hours.

Photo courtesy of an agent friend of mine who is now trying to pay more attention to what's going on around them in the room while taking their listing photos.

Are you searching for homes to buy in Viroqua or Vernon County Wisconsin

call Mary Strang therteam.com RE/MAX Hill Country Realty 608-606-2999

About the author:

Mary Strang is the Broker-owner of RE/MAX Hill Country Realty located in Viroqua, WI. Home to Organic farming, a small rural city population of about 4000 and a great place to live! Copyright © 2009 by Mary Strang. All rights reserved... " Realtors, pay attention while taking a photo" the blog post was written by Mary Strang is believed accurate but may not be guaranteed.

Up Stairs Down Stairs

Mary Strang ~ Viroqua, WI Real Estate: Real Estate Agent in Viroqua, WI

Many a builder has told me, that one of the most common construction blunders made by DIY'ers are the step's measurement on staircases. I'd bet most Realtors have been out to list or view a home and while either going up or down the staircase, the last step was off a bit. It is just automatic and without any thought that ones foot just steps down at a uniformed rate... until oops that last step was deeper or shorter than the rest. It's an opportunity for a twisted ankle of worse maybe a fall. This structural defect can be a really expensive slip-up to repair. In most cases this mistake usually doesn't get fixed ever. Often it will cause the home to last much longer on the market than it normally would if the steps were right.

Some of the older rural homes I list on a regular basis have what might be called "farm-steps". Those are very steps from 100+ years ago. They are very vertical, extremely narrow and often have worn-in depressions from trudging for eons up and down those steps by the former occupants of those upper rooms. They too, are always found hidden behind a closed doorway, so the second floor can be unheated if wanted. Unless the staircase is completely relocated there is likely to be no extra room to fix it. As it would consume too much space or the headroom is just not there at either end of the staircase to bring this type of stairway into modern day building code.

One other difficult to sell stairway, is the Spiral Staircases. These stairway relics of the 70's, often conjurer up visual images of a hip and swank bachelor pad. I can just imagine Dean Martin crooning "Everybody Loves Somebody" on his way down those circular steps with a martini in hand.

Are you searching for homes to buy in Viroqua or Vernon County Wisconsin

call Mary Strang therteam.com RE/MAX Hill Country Realty 608-606-2999

About the author:

Mary Strang is the Broker-owner of RE/MAX Hill Country Realty located in Viroqua, WI. Home to Organic farming, a small rural city population of about 4000 and a great place to live! Copyright © 2009 by Mary Strang. All rights reserved... " Up Stairs Downs Stairs" the blog post was written by Mary Strang is believed accurate but may not be guaranteed.