Killeen, TX

While I was at my daughters soccer game this morning at the Lions Club Park in Killeen, I was thinking to myself that this town has really changed in the 9 years that we have been here. The City of Killeen has improved their parks and recreation department tremendously within that time and I have seen them offer more activities for families.

There is always something to do whether it be enroll your child in sports or visit the new Tommie Harris (Chicago Bears player that graduated from Ellison High School) fitness center at Lions Club Park. The fitness center offers plenty of classes for its members to include aerobics, "boot camp," stationary bike class, and "light weight" classes. The City of Killeen also has completely maintained baseball & softball fields where kids & adults can improve their skills. They also have a skate park & ice skating rink for the kids!

There are seasonal festivities that include Easter egg hunts, movies & concerts in the park during the summer, halloween festivals, carnivals, art shows, livestock shows, dance competitions, rodeos, special events at the Civic and Conference Center etc... You will never run out of things to do with all the activities the City of Killeen has to offer.

The City of Killeen is located right next to the largest Army base in the world, Fort Hood ,so there are plenty of people they need to keep entertained and they do a very good job of it. Soldiers come here and call Killeen home for a few years at a time and the City of Killeen has to make sure they feel at home and they do a wonderful job.

You can even follow the City of Killeen on Twitter at http://twitter.com/KilleenWeb and it will notify you of all the things the city has going on!

I was not raised here but am thankful the Army has been good to us and allowed us to stay in a town I love for the past 9 years! My children can call the City of Killeen home and be proud of it! It is definatley the place "where freedom grows!"

While we were at the convention, our friends Kristin Moran & Sheila Moran mentioned Build A Sign, a company they blogged about previously & had a wonderful experience with. We made our way to the booth they had and took one of their cards so we could go to their website when we got home. While we were there Paula had a conversation with the representatives and found out they are giving away 20,000.00 banners & jumbo cards to support the troops. This is a wonderful gesture that means so much to us at Fort Hood. Our streets and neighborhoods are currently lined with banners like these welcoming loved ones home from Iraq. This sort of gesture is the reason I am so proud of our Country we live in and wanted to say thank you to Build A Sign for what they are doing. You can go to their website at http://www.buildasign.com/Troops to see these banners they are giving away. We ordered one and two other different banners for our building at a cheaper rate than our local companies! We are also very impressed with Build A Sign!

Another wonderful gesture is from a gas station my husband told me about. He told me last night that he never pays for his sodas when he goes to a certain gas station when he is in uniform and the worker thanks him every time for his service! This is where my husband chooses to buy his gas because of their appreciation for all that he does! My husband has served for 14 years and been to Iraq twice so I definately feel he deserves this and thank God every day for this great nation we live in that these small gestures are still taking place!

Are you thinking about selling your home or are you selling your home by owner? Buyers are here and I need inventory.

My name is Richard W. Overall, Jr and I am a Realtor at Casa Realty in Killeen. Some might argue that the market is soft and there are no buyers out there, but the fact is that there are buyers. In the last 30 days, 221 houses have gone under contract in our market and 171 houses have sold. The fact that more houses have gone under contract than have sold indicates that the market is picking up, at least in the last 30 days. Of course we have had 4th ID coming back in the last couple weeks so that always helps.

I would like to talk to you about how I can help you sell your home. I use many marketing tools including my personal and company websites, an individual website for the property (for example: http://708stewartstreet.bestpricedhouse.com/), For Sale, For Rent magazine and website, Craigslist, and of course the Fort Hood area Association of Realtors multiple listing service.

I would not be writing this if I did not believe I could sell your home. If you would just like to discuss the market conditions, I would be happy to talk to you about that without any obligation. I believe that once we have a chance to talk, you will know that I am the person who will sell your home. If you have any questions or if there is anything I can do to help, please feel free to call me.

Richard W. Overall, Jr
254-394-6637

Casa Realty
254-526-5000

If you really want to know if you can buy a house in the Killeen/Ft. Hood, TX area, give me a call. I am a local REALTOR with over 8 years experience serving the needs of first time military home buyers. I help them reach their goal of home ownership. With BAH levels starting at $950 per month and going up to $1744 per month (with dependents), why wouldn't you buy a home and let Uncle Sam pay for it? You have to live somewhere so either you're paying someone else's mortgage or you can pay your own. Additionally, when purchased correctly, you can pay no down payment, get all your closing costs covered by the seller and pay less per month to own a home than you would to rent.

Consider this 3 bedroom, 2 bath home at 2103 Carousel in Killeen. At the asking price of $69,900 the payment to purchase this home would be under $620 per month (including principal, interest, taxes and insurance) at 5.75% fixed for 30 years. This is on a new VA loan with ZERO DOWN and we could probably get most, if not all, of the closing costs paid for you by the seller.

Now to rent a similar home in the same area is currently $775 to $795. So there's the answer to the first question we always get asked, "What will I do with the home when I leave the area?" This is a no brainer. Keep the house long-term as an investment and again, let Uncle Sam buy your house for you. Even with management fees, this is a positive cash flow situation, allowing the extra for any needed repairs, vacancies, etc.

The Fort Hood area is a great market for rentals. We always have families moving into the area. Nice, clean, well-kept homes like this are always in demand, and this particular house is literally minutes from the Fort Hood airfield gate.

Call or email me today and I will be happy to get you any information you would like on buying a home like the one shown. The deals are out there to be had, you just need to know where to find them, and that's where I come in. I know where to find them.

Richard W. Overall, Jr, REALTOR 254-394-6637 www.OverallRealtor.com Richard-Overall@hot.rr.com

Sales in the Greater Fort Hood area went up over 30% in December from the previous month. Overall though sales where still down over -10% when comparing 2008 to 2007. Home values still increase about 3% though from the previous year.