Nancy Milton REALTOR/GRI GoshenRealtyGroup.com

Take a leisurely drive down Meridian Road in Glen Carbon and you'll pass the entrance to the lovely Somerset subdivision on the west side of the street.

(Heed my advice and be sure the drive is "leisurely," if you know what I mean, because the speed limit is just 30 mph on Meridian.)

Currently there are four homes for sale in this prestigious neighborhood. Three are one-and-a-half story models and one is a two-story. They range in square footage from a high of 3,800 square feet to a low of 2,584. The largest offers five bedrooms and the other three are four-bedroom homes.

The Somerset homes currently for sale range in price from $285,000 to $339,900.

See the homes for sale in Glen Carbon's Somerset neighborhood (current as of September 2, 2009). (Note: If you're reading this post much later, just call or text me at 618-791-8007 for a current list of Somerset homes on the market, or send an e-mail to Nancy@JustDuckyHomes.com.)

The neighborhood is near Madison County's network of bike and pedestrian trails and very close to the award-winning Glen Carbon Centennial Library. Shopping and dining are nearby along the IL-157 and IL-159 corridors.

Somerset is located in the Edwardsville School District.

The neighborhood's placement provides easy access to local interstates for a smooth commute. Just minutes from I-270, I-55/50, I-255 and I-270, whether you're working in St. Louis or St. Louis' Illinois suburbs in Madison or St. Clair counties, you'll be home from the office in no time.

If you're not familiar with the neighborhood's exact location, here's a map that will guide you to Somerset.

Find something you'd like to see? Just call or text me at 618-791-8007 or send an e-mail to Nancy@JustDuckyHomes.com. We'll make an appointment to get you in to the homes of your choice for a personal showing.

When I was a child, I remember being bundled up in the winter time and taken to a magical place where my father and the uncles built a roaring bon fire.

They would lace skates on to all of the kids and themselves and we'd glide across a sparkling frozen lake or find a place on the shore to enjoy hot chocolate and count the times various family members fell down or executed a turn or a spin. This was where I learned that my weak ankles would never support an Olympic dream.

The gorgeous place was called Horseshoe Lake. Today it is a 2,960-acre Illinois State Park and it is still beautiful.

From portions of the preserve you can see the St. Louis skyline (pictured left) with its soaring Gateway Arch as the centerpiece.

Located along IL-111 near both Granite City and Collinsville, Illinois, the lake sits just east of the Mississippi River. In fact, the oxbow-shaped lake was formed in prehistoric times when an old river channel was cut off after flooding caused a directional change in the Mississippi's flow.

Native American artifacts from as early as 8000 B.C., the Archaic Period, have been found around the lake as well as items from the Woodland Period from 1000 B. C. to 1000 A. D. when the nearby UNESCO World Heritage Site -- the ancient city of Cahokia -- was thriving. It's thought that Cahokia, also called the City of the Sun, used the lake's fish as an important food source.

Here's a map to guide you to Horseshoe Lake. If you're using a GPS, try this address: 3321 Highway 111, Granite City, IL 62040.

Because of its position near the Mississppi River flyway, Horseshoe Lake is filled with both migrating and resident birds. I've seen Snowy Egrets, Great Herons, Coots (old and young!), Ducks, Geese and many feathered friends that send me running to the nearest birding guide to see what they are.

Birdwatchers report that more than 55 species have been seen at the lake. Here's an Illinois state birding checklist so you can note the birds you see at Horseshoe Lake.

Because it is ancient, Horseshoe Lake is a shallow lake, that has filled with silt over the centuries to leave it with an average depth of approximately three feet according to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. It's also the second-largest natural lake in Illinois after its much bigger brother, Lake Michigan.

Fishing enthusiasts will find the lake stocked with crappie, carp, bluegill, channel catfish, bass and buffalo. Boats with motors of less than 50 hp are allowed except during waterfowl hunting season. A state fishing license is required. Stop in at park office for all the details.

The lake is ringed with pavillions that are used by families for birthday parties, reunions and graduation celebrations on a regular basis. If you take a large group to Horseshoe Lake, just register for a shelter as far in advance as possible by calling 618-931-0270.

There is space for nearly 50 campers or tents. The campground at Horseshoe Lake is open from May through October. Playgounds, volleyball courts and four miles of hiking paths around the lake provide plenty to do.

Thirty existing homes were sold in Edwardsville, Illinois during June 2009 at an average sale price of $178,187. Resale homes that closed during the month had been on the market an average of 119 days.

New home sales in Edwardsville continue at a low pace with just three sold in June. The average new home price for those sold during the month was $298,333 and they had been on the market an average of 322 days prior to closing.

In July 2009, no new homes were sold in Edwardsville and 33 existing homes closed. The homes that closed during the month had been on the market an average of 139 days prior to selling and sold at an average price of $176,356.

Currently, there are 214 active resale homes on the market in Edwardsville and 20 new construction homes. At July's sales pace, that means there is more than 6 months worth of existing home inventory available in Edwardsville.

What does this information tell a seller in the current market? That your home should be priced correctly and be presented in the best possible condition to rise to the top of the choices in your price category. Don't "test" the market with a price higher than recent comparable sales to "see what happens." What will happen is this: buyers will turn to properly priced properties and write offers while your home lingers on the market.

Questions about what your home could sell for today? Email, call or text me and we'll set an appointment to look at your property.

Once apon a time, Glen Carbon, Illinois was just a small coal-mining village on the east side of the Mississippi River near St. Louis.

But today the thriving town is ranked as one of Money magazine's 2009 Top 100 Places to Live. Learn more about Money's ranking here.

The village's children attend schools in the Edwardsville School District or a variety of private institutions. The award-winning Glen Carbon Centennial Library is one of the country's top small libraries and Glen Carbon's covered bridge is a well-known symbol of the village.

This is one of a series of blog posts that will take a look at the neighborhoods of Glen Carbon.

The popular Savannah Crossing neighborhood is located along Old Troy Road on the southeast side of the village. Homes in Savannah Crossing are noted for their charming Craftsman-style details, including stonework, pillars, porches and high-end features both inside and out.

A variety of new and existing homes are currently for sale in Savannah Crossing, including 3111 Alexandria, pictured to the left. It's a four-bedroom, 2,500-square-foot charmer with great features including nine-foot ceilings throughout and a family room finished on the lower level. It's the only four-bedroom home currently for sale in the neighborhood.

The neighborhood is conveniently located for commuters who need access to IL-159 and Interstates 55/70, 270 and 255. Shopping -- from Wal-Mart and Target to Best Buy and Borders -- is nearby and dining options in Glen Carbon and neighboring Edwardsville have exploded recently, much to the delight of foodies in the village.

For a complete list of current homes for sale in the Savannah Crossing neighborhood or addition information about the Village of Glen Carbon, Illinois, send me an e-mail at Nancy@JustDuckyHomes.com

Want to drive by for a look? Here's a map to the Savannah Crossing neighborhood.

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About the Author: Nancy Milton, GRI, is a Realtor with the Just Ducky Homes team at Coldwell Banker Brown Realtors in Edwardsville, Illinois. She and Kristina Pratt help their customers buy and sell homes and investment properties in St. Louis' Illinois suburbs of Madison and St. Clair counties with special emphasis on real estate in the communities of Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, Maryville, Collinsville and Troy. For more information, visit their web site at http://www.JustDuckyHomes.com or e-mail Nancy@JustDuckyHomes.com.

As regular readers of this blog know, one of my favorite things to do here in St. Louis' Illinois suburbs is to drive along the Great River Road from Alton, Illinois to the towns of Elsah and Grafton, Pere Marquette State Park and beyond. The combination of the mighty Mississippi River flowing alongside the soaring limestone bluffs is magical.

Today we'll take a closer look at Elsah, a charming enclave tucked among the limestone bluffs on the Mississippi River. The entire village was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in the 1970s.

Elsah's site along the Mississippi River north of Alton, Illinois was first settled in the mid-1840s as a riverboat landing and the village was officially founded in 1853. Many of the area's historic residences are built of limestone quarried nearby. 

Today between 600 and 700 residents live in the village's historic area, contemporary subdivisions and rural roads. Midwest Living magazine has called Elsah, "The town that time forgot." 

Active visitors can reach Elsah via the bike trail that follows the Great River Road. Bed and breakfast inns provide cozy shelter for travelers who would like to get to know the town. Advance reservations can be made online at the Maple Leaf Cottage Inn, the Green Tree Inn.

Elsah is also home to Principia College, a liberal arts college for Christian Scientists. The institution, perched on the bluffs above the town, began as a home school in St. Louis in 1897 and the higher education campus at Elsah dates to the 1930s. The beautiful site has been named a National Historic Landmark.

If you would like to live in or near the historic village of Elsah or if you would like to find a weekend getaway house along the river, get in touch with me at Just Ducky Homes. We can keep track of listings that are new to the market and make sure you are informed as soon as homes become available. 

Because Elsah is so small, there aren't always active listings available, but right now two homes are active in the village and two are pending. The active listings include a bi-level on the market for $84,900 and a raised ranch listed for $274,900.

The pending listings are for an historic stone home built in 1860 with one bedroom that had been priced at $129,900 before going under contract and a 1970s ranch foreclosure listed for $33,600.

Commercial property is also available on the village's main drive.

If you'd like to call Elsah home, send an e-mail to me at Nancy@JustDuckyHomes.com for an appointment to discuss available listings. 

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About the Author: Nancy Milton, GRI, is a Realtor with the Just Ducky Homes team at Coldwell Banker Brown Realtors in Edwardsville, Illinois. She and Kristina Pratt help their customers buy and sell homes and investment properties in St. Louis' Illinois suburbs of Madison and St. Clair counties with special emphasis on real estate in the communities of Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, Maryville, Collinsville and Troy. For more information, visit their web site at http://www.JustDuckyHomes.com or e-mail Nancy@JustDuckyHomes.com.