The next Amber Alert  in your city can be text messaged to your cell phone in minutes.  From Bonita Springs to Boise, any city can send notifications.Thanks to a new system, anyone can register their cell phone at http://www.wirelessamberalert.org/ and receive instant notifications if there is an actual emergency involving a child that is missing or abducted.  Simply visit the website, register your phone number and choose the city or zip code of the area in which you are interested in receiving notifications.  A text message will be sent to your phone if there is an actual emergency.  The text will describe the child, suspect, vehicle and other important clues.  Should you see the child, perpetrator or vehicle involved, dial 911 to report it to the police.  There is no charge for the t... 11/19/2006

How Badly Does Your Buyer Want It?Your Buyer Might Have To Ante Up To Win The HomeBuyers in the fast paced markets sometimes need to get serious to win the bidding wars. An escalation clause is a tool buyers can use to make sure another buyer won't out-bid them. Use caution , however, if you're considering this strategy. Win The Bidding WarIn a nut shell, an escalation clause says you will increase any other offer by a certain amount, for example, $500 or $5,000, up to a set ceiling, such as $25,000 over the asking price. The clause should also include a termination date. Of course, if your first offer is accepted by the seller, then the escalation clause is doesn't come into play. If your buyer simply must have the house in their sights, and they can afford to pay that extra $25,000 if... 11/17/2006

  RENOVATIONS THAT BOOST APPEAL TO BROAD AUDIENCE Smart kitchen and bath renovations might boost a home's appeal to Boomers and Seniors. If you're recommending renovations to homeowners or scouting out homes for Boomer and Senior clients, consider the findings of a study Home Depot. It gathered data from more than 30,000 consumers from the baby boom generation and older to uncover housing preferences and their home improvement needs. The majority of respondents, 73%, said the kitchen is the most important room for them. Some design tweaks that benefit Seniors are unobtrusive and likely to appeal to a broad audience. In the kitchen, they include: - Under-cabinet task lighting that brightens countertops, lessening eyestrain.- Pull-down shelving removes effort from pantry access.- Slide-o... 11/16/2006

Clean Up Your Online ReputationHow interesting is it that almost 10% of employers actually search the internet, Blogs, MySpace, FaceBook and other social sites prior to hiring a potential candidate or a position?  I had heard about it before and was reminded again yesterday as a segment mentioned on NPR how start-up companies help clean up online reputations.   NPR is National Public Radio for those of you who do not know.We always knew that buyers and sellers of real estate searched for real estate on the internet.  Maybe we just never knew what would happen if they found information about "Us" that was less than flattering.  There are now services that can be hired for nominal fees to have images, articles and web pages removed from the internet.  It is sort of like a PR firm for the ... 11/15/2006

In the era of the MTV generation, P. Diddy wore a shirt that ready "Vote or Die".  It inspired many young people to vote, or at least register.I have taken my kids to vote every chance I got.  They started out on my hip and now they're teenagers filling out the sample ballot and debating and researching the issues.  Like many other people, my kids didn't think their vote made a difference.  That was until the "hanging chad" issue in Florida.  (We are in Bonita Springs, Florida ) It was one of the best examples anyone could have used to prove how every voted counts....and gets counted again, and counted again.  We had a similar issue/vote in our city a few years ago which was also only decided by a couple of dozen votes.  My plea to parents is to take your children to the poles and let t... 11/07/2006

Quality build, Divosta Homes in Bonita Springs, Florida.  Just minutes to the gulf beaches of Bonita Springs, Village Walk offers the best of carefree, highly amenitized living.  VillageWalk of Bonita Springs has an attractive 24-hour guardhouse entry and lakefront Town Center. The community offers resort style living with no additional membership fees. The Town Center has many convenient amenities. Each home’s lawn maintenance and irrigation are provided by the Homeowner’s Association.  Home prices start at approximately $300,000 and are available in both resale and new product sales.  Bonita Springs offers restaurants, shopping, and parks that are first rate.  As a Certified New Home Specialist it would be my please to accompany you to the sales center and guide you through the proces... 11/05/2006

Just minutes to gulf beaches, SW Florida Regional airport, Florida Gulfcoast State University, the finest dining and world class shopping, The Brooks in Bonita Springs has something for everyone.One of four burroughs in The Brooks, Spring Run offers 18 holes of Bundled Golf, tennis, swimming and optional private beach club membership at the Commons Club.   Resale properties are priced from the $300,000 price point for a condominium to the $600,000's for a single family villa home.  Golf membership is transferrable to tenants so a home in Spring Run may be the rental investment you are looking for.  Call today for the latest availablity.  Current listings may be found at:  Bonita Springs CondominiumsAll homes and condos can be leased up to twelve times per year, with a 30 day minimum occ... 11/04/2006

PRESS RELEASE For Immediate Release  Chris Elizabeth GriffithKeller Williams Elite Realty239-273-7430www.BonitaSpringsAgent.com         Nov 3, 2006 – Seniors who need advice about their homes and rental properties can turn to Chris Griffith, a Realtor with Keller Williams Elite Realty in Bonita Springs, who has been in the SW Florida real estate business since 1999, recently was awarded the Seniors Real Estate Specialist® (SRES®) professional designation by the Senior Advantage Real Estate Council® in Phoenix, AZ.              Seniors Real Estate Specialists help seniors make wise decisions about selling the family home, buying rental property, managing the capital gains and estate tax implications of owning real estate, obtaining a reverse mortgage, moving to a senior community, and ot... 11/03/2006