Stop in Saturday March 28th from 1-3 and tour

LaGrange County's First

5 Star Energy Rated Home

• New Construction

• 3 Bedrooms

• 2 Baths

• Appliances Included

• Walkout Basement

This home was custom built for value minded environmentally friendly buyers!

Conserve Energy-Protect Resources-Save Money

Priced to Sell: $125,000

Click here for more details and the virtual tour.

0195 W 060 S (off of Townline Road in LaGrange)

What Does it Mean to "Be Green"?

It's in the news, in the magazines, and on HGTV- green building or being more green in a remodel. I understand the concept in general, but when our office listed the first new home in our county with a 5+ Energy Star rating, I wanted to better understand the significance. I was familiar with the Energy Star rating I had seen on appliances. But, I didn't know Energy Star is a joint program through the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy to help save money and protect the environment. A 5+ rating is the highest a home can receive and the grade is based on items such as: insulation, windows, tightly sealed construction, efficient heating and cooling, appliances, lighting, and water heaters. This house offers great savings on utility bills and less impact on our environment.

The National Association of Home Builders recently adopted the National Green Building Standard.

How Green Are You?

My search led me to several online tools that you can use to test how green you and your household are. They also offer tips that can save you money and reduce the impact on our environment.

Energy Star's Home Energy Yardstick See how your usage compares to other U.S. households and how you can improve your efficiency and save money.

EPA Personal Emissions Calculator Estimate your greenhouse gas emissions and find out how you can reduce your energy and waste disposal costs.

American Public Radio's Consumer Consequences Shows you what the world would look like if everyone lived like you, your ecological footprint based on the global acres your lifestyle consumes.

Low Impact Living Calculator shows you way to reduce global warming and offers green project ideas for around your home.

Get With Green.com offers a widget that gives homeowners eco friendly news and information on new products and ideas- you can easily add it to your blog, myspace, facebook, etc.

As the parent of a child with Down Syndrome, this is dear to my heart. Others can be cruel to those with differences. And the key to changing this is helping others understand that the differences aren't what is important. Our local schools are doing a great job of teaching the "typical" kids the challenges faced by others. My daughter visits other classrooms and she has 4th grade "book buddies" who come in and read to the class. It is a learning experience for everyone as they meet new people and develop friendships.

My daughter's class was invited to attend a very special event today and she is really excited about it. When I was at the high school last week for the musical, they had posters up promoting the day. The schools have also held disability awareness days where students learn how it fees to be blind, deaf, or disabled in other ways while trying to perform simple everyday tasks.

This was taken from the Lakeland High School Calendar's description of today's event:

Mark your calendars for March 20th, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., for the 2009 Disabilities Awareness Walk to be held at Lakeland. To our knowledge, this event is the only walk of its kind in the nation. Approximately 200 Functional Skills students from nine schools will team with Relay For Life and The American Cancer Society to have fun, play games, dance, walk, eat lunch, and find 3,000 Easter eggs for prizes. Local police and fire departments will also take part in this special event which is funded through a grant from The LaGrange Community Foundation. Our thanks go out to them, as well as all the people who work very hard to make this happen.

With so much being said about what is wrong with our schools, it is important to recognize what is right!

Sure Signs of Spring in Wolcottville:

As I headed in to the office Friday morning on a bright sunny day I saw these cranes in a "flood puddle" in a local farm field. I wish I had a camera with a longer range.

Many of our local birds are returning. In the early morning when I'm out with the puppy, the sounds of the birds are constant and varied. I'm spotting more species each morning.

And on the real estate front, after a few slow months, there's been a significant increase in buyers looking for lake homes. In the past week I've had 12 showings on lake homes. My web activity has picked up and the phone calls and emails are rolling in. It's a great time to take advantage of the large inventory of lake houses in our area: prices are competitive and interest rates are still low.

With over 70 lakes in our county, the lakes council has taken on an ambitious task when it comes to fulfilling its promise to "Promote, Protect, and Preserve the quality of the lakes and watersheds of LaGrange County". And since 2002, they made great strides in accomplishing their goals.

Our monthly meeting, on Thursday the 26th, will focus on our next educational seminar. Here is an outline of the preliminary plans:

Saturday, May 16 will be the day for our annual spring seminar. We will again meet at Pine Knob park and the program will begin at 10:00 a.m.

Earlier this year, we surveyed our members and friends and determined the following topics were most desired:

• Weed control and safe removal of aquatic vegetation
• Canada geese control methods
• Communicating with your lake residents
• Fundraising ideas for lake projects
• Qualifying for LARE grants
• Pier rules and regulations

Further details will be made available as speakers are confirmed.

These are topics that are useful for all lake residents. If you have a topic that you think should be included in the seminar, please let me know.

Our meetings are open to the public and we are always looking to add new members to our group. If you want to learn more about our organization visit the LaGrange County Lakes Council website.

Interest Rates are Low

Inventory is High

and Prices are Competitive!

There are some unbelievable deals currently available in LaGrange County on our lakes. As of this morning, there were 86 waterfront homes listed for sale. Here is a breakdown of availability in several price ranges.

• 6 Homes for $100,000 or less
• 12 Homes from $101,000 to $150,000
• 19 Homes from $151,000 to $200,000
• 13 Homes from $201,000 to $250,000
• 13 Homes from $251,000 to $300,000

All sports lakes or lakes where speedboating and skiing are permitted in our county include: Adams Lake, Dallas Lake, Big Long Lake, Big Turkey Lake, Oliver Lake, and Witmer Lake. There are 29 homes lakefront on ski lakes listed for sale and prices start under $200,000! If you prefer to live channelfront on a ski lake, there are 19 homes for sale with prices starting under $100,000.

Some lakes have speed restrictions and don't permit skiing and speedboating, but connect to lakes that do via navigable channels. These lakes in LaGrange County include: Hackenberg Lake, Martin Lake, Messick Lake, Olin Lake, and Westler Lake. There are currently 11 homes listed for sale on lakes that have access to ski lakes with prices starting under $100,000.

We also have many lakes that have restricted speeds for those who enjoy fishing, swimming, and other watersports that are slow paced and quiet. There are too many of these lakes in LaGrange county to name them all, but some of the more popular include: Atwood Lake, Fish Lake, Pretty Lake, Little Turkey Lake, Royer Lake, North Twin Lake, South Twin Lake, and Wall Lake. There are 27 homes for sale with prices starting under $100,000 and 21 are under $200,000.

If these homes don't fit your budget, and you would like to get started on the lake, another option is a home or cottage with deeded or association access to a lake. There 23 homes listed for sale in this category and 15 are under $100,000! Many people start here and eventually move up to their dream home on the lake.

You can find additional information about our lakes on my LaGrange County lakes page. You can search all the lake homes listed for sale by lake type and location. If you're considering the purchase of a lake home, I can set up a search that will email you listings of lake homes as soon as they come on the market. Spring will bring many more listings and you won't miss a single one! If you see a home you would like more information about, just let me know. I will be happy to answer your questions and I can show you any of the homes in our area that are listed for sale (even those listed by other agents or firms).