About Berrien County, MI

Lost momentum

It has been a little bit since I have wrote a blog, and that is unacceptable.  With the break from writing it has seemed like I have lost all my momentum and my ideas for blogging so I though I would just write about my personal life.

Finding Balance

I really enjoy philosophy, and that challenges me to continue to expand my mind, body and soul everyday.  I always try to learn new things everyday.

Mind

Some of you know I have been learning how to shoot, and produce videos for my clients to help market their home.  You can check out some of my work at Paramount Video.  We have also now added a new player for our videos.  I have embedded the video down below or you can check it out at my website JimmyGilley.com

Body

Not only have I been working hard on my videos but I have also been working hard on getting my body back into shape!  The tool I am using to make this transformation is P90X!  This is such a tough workout.  I know why so many people rave about it.

It is tough, and it also has a minimum requirement before you can even start it.  It is an extreme workout and has quite the time commitment but after almost 30 days I am starting to see results, not only in my body but in my numbers.

So people, make sure you not only work your mind, but also your body.  Aristotle, one of the greatest philosophers of all time, talks all the time about how important having a balanced life is.  

Be well!

Practical Ways to Save on Energy Consumption

Here is a little checklist that you can use to help save money on energy costs.

• In colder seasons, turn down your thermostat slightly; every degree can save up to 5% in heating costs
• During hot sunny weather, close curtains and blinds to keep the house cool and reduce the need for fans or air conditioning. The same applies during cold weather to reduce drafts and save on heating costs.
• Clean or replace furnace air filters once a month. Not only will this improve efficiency, but it will also help allergy sufferers.
• Ensure floor registers and baseboard heaters are not blocked b furniture, carpets or drapes; limiting effectiveness
• Turn off bathroom and kitchen fans when no longer required; they are pulling the heat or coolness form the house.
• Guest room not in use? Adjust thermostat until needed.
• Plug and seal the chimney flue of a fireplace that is never used; it will keep hear from going up the chimney.
• Installing tempered glass doors on a fireplace can also reduce heat loss and improve efficiency.
• Trees can help shade exterior air-conditioning units; they'll use less energy. They also provide shade cooling and protect from drafts and winds.
• Small, portable heaters are great for short-term use, but for long-term needs, consider installing a baseboard heater which draws less energy.
• An ENERGY STAR-qualified compact fluorescent light bulb (CFI) will save about $30 over its lifetime and pat for itself in about 6 months. It uses 75% less energy and lasts about 10 times longer than an incandescent bulb.
• Reduce drafts by insulating electrical outlet and switch cover plates
• To save on air conditioning, raise the setting by a couple degrees; you will not notice the change, only the energy savings.
• Older thermostats are less efficient than newer ones and you'll recover the cost quickly.
• Programmable thermostats allow you to customize temperature settings according to when you use the room.
• Portable air conditioner may be sufficient to keep the bedroom cool, saving on more expensive cooling applications
• Change your air conditioner filter as recommended; our unti will work more efficiently.
• Ceiling fans will often provide sufficient cooling, and may reduce the need for air conditioning.

Never Stop Striving For Better

2214 Janice Street Niles MI Home For Sale - Paramount Video - HD Video Tour

We submitted one of our first video tours to the Kodak Video Challenge here on Active Rain and the positive response was amazing!  People really love video home tours.  We thought we had a good chance of winning, and ended up in the group for 3rd place.

24 Washington Court was the video we submitted to the contest.  We thought we did a great job and it did turn out very nice but we didn't settle for OK.

After some more practice we feel that our skills are continueing to grow and develop.  We are producing them faster, and with better quality.  Here is one of the latest videos we have done.

** Something that is special about this video is that the home owner is a musician and donated the background music for the video!!!  How awesome is that?!? **

Hope you enjoy!

• Wonderful 3 BR, 2 BA Ranch Style home with split floor plan.
• Newer construction, conveniently located near US-31 bypass within minutes from South Bend, IN or St. Joseph, MI.
• Formal Dining Room adjoins efficient kitchen, all kitchen appliances included with listing.
• Dining area overlooks rear deck and fenced back yard.
• Vaulted ceiling in Living Room adds to the spacious feel of the home.
• Master bedroom features vaulted ceilings and large master bath with garden tub.
• Family Room located in lower level walk-out.
• Lower level also plumbed for additional bathroom, unfinished area offers additional storage.

One of the things we as Realtors have is clients calling us to have us list their homes when they are listed with another broker. 

After listing with this broker they find out that they are not a part of the MLS and therefore no other agent outside of their office can sell their home.  I get these kind of calls ALL THE TIME from clients upset that their broker isn't part of the MLS.

Please guys if you are going to list your home ASK what that agent is going to do for you to market your home.  Find out if they are a part of the national association of Realtors, and if they are part of the local MLS.

In our area we have 745 agents who are a part of our MLS, so if your agent isn't part of the MLS then you are missing out on 745 agents who might have a buyer to your home!

Ask questions, check the answers, make a smart decision when it comes to listing your home!

Hope Community Church Niles MI

I love my church! It is made up of the greatest people and great leadership. I have been going there for over 10 years now and I couldn't be happier. I started actually helping out after a year or so of being there by playing guitar for the worship team. I did that for a year or two, then took a year off. Then we finally moved out of a school and into our own building!

Then I was running the sound board, and off and on guitar as they needed it. Then I finally was able to get my schedule changed so I was free Thursday nights to help out with "Hope 4 Teens". After a while I was leading worship for the Jr. high youth group as we were growing big enough to split Sr. high and Jr. high.

Our church continues to boom and grow as the helpful nature and we are always back to the Niles community. One commitment our church has made is to tithe 10% of the budget to outside charities to continue to help other places around Niles. One special thing we often do is if there is a surplus in the budget at the end of the year we donate 10% of that.

This year there was a 5500 dollar surplus. One of the local ministries is a pregnancy care center. The center has been looking to purchase a block away from the abortion clinic where late term abortions happen. Buying this house has been a dream of theres for a long time and the center needed 31,000 for the down payment. They had already raised funds when they had come to the church to give what we call "mission moment". This is where local ministries can talk about what they do. During the service we announced that we were donating 5500 dollars from our surplus, and a unnamed person in the church matched that so we were able to give 10,500 dollars to the pregnancy care center.

This left them 200 dollars short of what they needed for the down payment. Obviously the speaker broke down in tears, as well as did most of the church. Someone stepped up and finished off the last 200 bucks so they can make the down payment on their new building! How awesome is that?!?

This story was too awesome to keep to myself so I thought I would share it with you. Another great example of giving to the community to build not just the church but Niles.