There are some things I can embrace easily….blogging for example.  There are other things where I need a nudge or a significant push.  Thank you Bob Stewart for the push to pursue putting a video online; it is something I have often thought about but was sure I couldn’t do it. Figuring out the idea was the first sign of trouble…I like to be original.  Figuring out if I could even record on my little Olympus camera was the next challenge.  Then learning the Windows Live Movie Maker was laborious…I’m just not as quick as I used to be at this techy stuff.  But…in the end I have a submission. I stage every house I list because I’m a believer.  It says this in the video…but studies have shown that 95% of homes that were staged sold in 35 days or less.  So, that’s my topic. Recording on my li... 01/26/2011

The Taste of the Chamber is January 20th from 4:30 to 7:00 at the Ritz Charles off of Meridian at 12156 N Meridian Street.  The phone number for the Ritz is 317-846-9158.  This is the 10th annual for this event, so very successful! There are going to be some great restaurants participating including A2Z Cafe, Carrabba's Italian Grill, Chef Suzanne Catering, the Glass Chimney, Ruth's Chris Steak House and Vine and Table (yes, there will be wine and beer!). Pricing is $5.00 for Chamber members and $10.00 if not.  It will be a fabulous evening for tasting a sampling of the fine foods and wines, socializing and networking. Another great event will be a the Carmel Palladium!  Did you know they added another show for Vince Gill?  His second performance will be on March 22 (the 23rd is already... 01/20/2011

The year end report for 2010 homes sold in Carmel Indiana numbers are in and they are pretty good, all things considered!  With 1,224 homes sold in Carmel in 2010, that is only a 3% decline from the 2009 levels where 1,264 homes were sold.  Some of the other statistics include the days on market where 2010 showed improvement at 80 compared with 85 DOM a year ago.  Also the price per sq ft increased to $113/sq ft in 2010 compared with $111 in 2009. The luxury market of homes sold in Carmel also showed improved with 188 homes over $500,000 selling in 2010 compared with only 163 in 2009.  The most expensive home selling in 2010 was of course the Hilbert Mansion.  It sold for $3,000,000 and started at a price of $20,000,000.  The number of homes over $1,000,000 selling was fairly consistent... 01/12/2011

  The Palladium, Carmel Indiana’s acoustically perfect and spectacularly beautiful new concert hall set to open later this month, is designed as a venue worthy of  internationally-known muscial celebrities. But it’s local talent who will take center stage at The Palladium on Community Day, Jan. 22, 2011. Amateur and professional musicians from Carmel and surrounding areas auditioned for the opportunity to be among the first to perform in the state-of-the-art concert hall. If you want a preview of what promises to be a fun and talent-filled evening, you can see most of the finalists’ auditions at http://atcarmel.com/tv/. Grand opening week for The Palladium runs Jan. 22-30, 2011. The Opening Night Gala, Jan. 29, features performances by Michael Feinstein, Neil Sedaka, Dionne Warrick, and... 01/11/2011

There are many ways to search for homes for sale in Carmel Indiana to find the perfect one for you.  We have several options on our website alone; you can search by map, by price point, by neighborhoods in Carmel or by sending me a quick synopsis of what you are looking for in your next home.  Realtors have lots of features to make the home selection process easier. Today there are 715 homes on the market; the graph shows the number of homes for sale in Carmel by various price points.  But let's talk about what you want in your next home. For example, maybe a master on the main level is important to you.  Most Realtors will pull ranch style homes for you, but as your Carmel Real Estate agent I would use the criteria "master on main" to get all homes with that criteria. Searching this wa... 01/07/2011

So now hudhomestore.com has been with us for a few months and it looks like some of the bugs are starting to get worked out.  When HMBI had the M&M responsibilities for HUD Homes in Indiana, there were at most about 700 HUD Homes available at any one time in the state.  Now there are about twice that number with over 1300 Indiana HUD Homes currently available. There was a glitch early on about bidding deadlines.  But they appear to have that worked out. Here are a few cautions to remember when using this site to locate a HUD Home in Indiana.  You enter your search criteria.  And then it gives you results - ten at a time.  So right now if you were to search on the entire state, you would get 10 results by default, page 1 of 133.  But you can have it display 20 results at a time. So the l... 01/06/2011

  A true neighborhood feel for a reasonable price sets the Carmel Indiana subdivision of Village of Mount Carmel apart, even earning it recognition as one of 12 Great Neighborhoods on the Rise by Indianapolis Monthly magazine.   This Carmel neighborhood comprises 485 homes ranging from modest ranch homes built in the 1950s to much larger 2-story homes constructed in the 1990s. Village of Mount Carmel homes sold in the past 12 months have included a 1761-square foot ranch home built in 1976 and sold for $119,000 to a 3941-square foot 2-story home with a basement built in 1995 and sold for $445,000.   Plenty of space between neighbors (most homes sit on lots that are nearly half an acre or more) and some great community activities add to the appeal of the Village of Mount Carmel. The Vill... 12/30/2010

From our Indianapolis real estate guide: If you are considering a house for sale in Carmel Indiana and want to get an idea of how it compares to the Carmel real estate market overall, you may want to check out our statistics page.  The stats page gives detailed information about all active homes in the Carmel market. Our stats pages can be found in the left column of links on our home page and just about any other page on the site under the button "Market Statistics". After clicking on the Carmel Statistics button, you will see updated information about the active listings and information about how many homes were listed in the last 24 hours.  The stats are  updated daily and include the number of active listings, days on the market, highest and lowest price, highest and lowest square ... 12/23/2010

  Need a reason to consider relocating to Carmel Indiana? That's easy, since there are PLENTY! For one thing, Carmel was just named one of the Best Cities to Relocate To by Sperling's BestPlaces.net. The list factors in everything from cost of living to housing prices, crime rates, quality of education, and access to cultural events. But those are just generals. Let's get specific. What, exactly, is it that makes Carmel a fantastic place to live, work and play? Here's my list of (just a few) of the Best Reasons to Move to Carmel Indiana. The Real Estate - Carmel real estate includes some of the most spectacular and priciest homes in Indiana. But in general, Carmel homes are very affordable. The average price of Carmel homes is well below the national median of $171,700, and the cost of ... 12/21/2010

It's important to us at IndyHomeSpecialist.com  to try and come up with helpful and original ways to search for a home.  One of our features allows you to search by the metro Indianapolis school district of your choice.   If you are searching for a home in metro Indianapolis and want to stay in a particular school district, such as the Carmel Clay school district, you can easily utilize our dropdown functionality at the top of our home page labelled schools. Click here to learn more about homes in the Carmel Clay school district. 12/20/2010

Carmel Indiana has plenty of new homes available.  According to my most recent survey there are about 120 new construction homes listed for sale.  This is the traditional slow time of year for real estate.  But the expenses of the builders continue - with taxes, insurance, interest and utilities.  These expenses go on whether or not the homes are sold. Builders don't really have the luxury of just taking the home off the market until March like the typical seller might be tempted to do.  They have to keep plugging away.  They know that one way to attract those buyers who are still looking during the holiday season and winter months is that great motivator: price reductions. We compile a list of new homes in Carmel Indiana with a price reduction of $20,000 or greater.  Right now there ar... 12/11/2010

This is certainly a frustrating time for sellers anywhere in the U.S.  And it is in the Carmel Indiana Real Estate market too; it is taking longer to sell homes and they are selling for less.  If you are a buyer, you can certainly be reaping the benefits. Here are the results for my local area, Carmel Indiana.  There were 67 homes closed in November 2010 compared with 120 in November 2009.  There were 10 distressed homes in both years for November; but the %age is higher in 2010 since there were fewer total homes sold. The days on the market were 107 compared with 89 a year ago. The price per sq ft was $105 compared with $112 a year ago. The average price of the homes sold in Carmel were $292,788 compared with $306,712 a year ago; a 5% drop. Is there any good news in this?  I can tell y... 12/09/2010

    Carmel Indiana is chock full of gorgeous neighborhoods with fabulous amenities! The Carmel Indiana subdivision of Moffitt Farm at Prairie View comprises 26 custom homes built between 1997 and 2004. These beautiful Carmel homes feature eye-catching architecture and water views of the neighborhood lake. All of the homes have lower levels, most of them walk-out, with an average of 4104 finished square feet. Three Moffitt Farm homes have sold in the past six months, with the quickest sale made in just 41 days. Moffitt Farm's many attractions include its convenient location near the Prairie View Golf Course and Country Club as well as the the Noble West Shoppes at 146th and Hazel Dell Parkway. Location: River Road north of 131st Street Average sales price (past 6 months): $650,633 Averag... 12/07/2010

Have you heard? Fine tuning is nearly complete on the Carmel Palladium, the city’s breathtaking new state-of-the-art concert hall located within the Carmel Center for the Performing Arts!  The first notes of the Carmel Palladium’s inaugural season will ring out January 30, 2011 with a performance by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Also on the calendar for the season are performances by the Vienna Boys Choir and country music legend Glen Campbell. Other venues within the Carmel Center for the Performing Arts, when complete, will include a 500-seat proscenium theater, a 200-seat studio theater and an outdoor amphitheater. Carmel Palladium Facts: -The architectural design for the 1600-seat Palladium was inspired by a 1500s villa near Vicenza, Italy. -Many of the building mater... 12/06/2010

Water is certainly a premium in the Indianapolis area...but image looking out your wall of windows over this body of water each morning!  It is Bayhill in Carmel, located on 126th in between Hazeldell and Gray Roads.  It is very convenient to shopping, schools and restaurants. Bayhill in Carmel is a community of approximately 250 homes; many with water or wooded views. They were built in the mid 1990s and most have basements and three car garages. There is not a great deal of turnover in the neighborhood with only 7 selling in calendar 2010. There are currently 4 active homes; giving this an absorption rate of 8 months. The four currently active have five bedrooms and one with five full baths, the others with four full baths. Typically they have at least 3,000 sq ft (main/upper) and an ... 12/03/2010

    Currently there are 19 homes for sale in Saddle Creek, ranging from $249,800 to $344,900. All of these homes have basements and the average square footage is over 2,600.  With the winter months quickly approaching, the average days on the market are still holding steady at 84 days.  Thirty homes have sold since the beginning of the year and 2 homes are under contract with an average sales price of $246,700.  Of the five homes that have sold within the last six months, the lowest sale price was $189,500. This home’s square footage was slightly over 2,300 without a basement. The highest sales price was $337,000.                                                            This community, of approximately 466 residents, has an HOA, (homeowner’s association), which is currently managed by... 11/16/2010

Ouch, not a good month for Carmel homes selling this month!  This month is the largest decline in comparison to 2009 at a 53% decline.  I am, however, hopeful November will be the turning point with the election behind us.  Consumer confidence was on the way up with the news of the U.S. employment jumping by more than anyone expected in October. Homes that sold in Carmel in October were 63 this month compared with 139 in October of 2009.  The days on market are also higher at 116 compared with only 82 days on the market last October. However, here is a bit of good news, the price per square foot is up to $115 from $111 a year ago.  The big news in October was of course the Hilbert Mansion selling for $3MM cash! The rest of this article can be read at the Carmel Real Estate site. As your... 11/11/2010

Claybourne Estates is a west Carmel Indiana subdivision of 216 homes built between 2002-2008. Most homes are two-story brick with a basement, and average a very spacious 3,000 square feet. Claybourne has had an impressive selling record over the past six months, with homes spending an average of just 44 days on the market. The quickest sale was in made in 10 days! Claybourne's success over the past few months could be due partly to its recent address change from Westfield to Carmel. Claybourne has an active homeowners' association and frequent community activities including ice cream socials, pool parties, and a neighborhood watch program. Location: Shelbourne Road north of Main Street Schools: West Clay Elementary, Creekside Middle School, Carmel High School Average sales price (past 6... 11/10/2010

Living in Carmel Indiana has many benefits. I have written about the Monon Center as one, and want to highlight the actual Monon Trail today.  The Trail begins at 10th street in Indianapolis and travels all the way to 161st street in Westfield (the end point used to be 146th but this was recently expanded).  The Monon in Carmel is 5.2 miles; but all total, it is 16 miles of pavement used for biking, walking, running and rollerblading. There is restrooms and parking at 96th street and at Rohrer Road just south of 146th in Carmel. It is very easy to reach other venues.  Downtown, for example, to reach Mass Ave shopping, take the south end of trail and turn west on 10th street and then south on Bellefontaine.  If you want to go to the Zoo or White River State Park use St. Clair Street.  It... 11/07/2010

Buying foreclosures has gotten a bad rap over the last several weeks. The news has alarmed some who have recently purchased a bank-owned foreclosure.  And it has some hesitating to consider purchasing a bank-owned home.  Certainly anybody who has a concern about the title or any other issues related to a foreclosure purchase should seek advice from their attorney. But there are bank-owned foreclosures in Carmel Indiana listed for sale.  And title insurance companies are insuring titles.  If you want to look at foreclosures, this might be a good time - while others are hesitating to make offers.  We will be happy to show foreclosures and short sales in Carmel, Zionsville, Westfield or other nearby areas. As a general rule foreclosures are a much smaller percentage of the overall market i... 11/06/2010