College Station’s water is ground water from deep wells in Simsboro Sand about 3,000 feet down.  The water is pumped from the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer.

Is the water hot or cold when it comes up? Would you believe that the temperature for the water is 118 degrees Fahrenheit? The cooling towers at the Sandy Point Pump Station help reduce the temperature down to 85 degrees.

From the Sandy Point Pump Station the water travels about 13 miles to the Dowling Road Pump Station. At this Pump Station chlorine is added to disinfect and have fluoride added. The storage tanks at Dowling Road hold about 8 million gallons of water for College Station residents!

After the chlorine is added and the water is disinfected it goes to the to one of the 2 elevated storage tanks. These tanks provide us with the water pressure we want and need and for extra water in case of a fire.

Now you know where your drinking water came from.

Inquiring Minds Want to Know…

Have you ever been driving around a Bryan or College Station neighborhood and wanted to know how much a house is selling for but you didn’t want to “bother” the agent or they weren’t there when you called?

WE HAVE THE ANSWER!!!   

Call 979-764-2121 and enter the street number and you can HEAR information about that house.  ANY PHONE - ANY TIME!

If a Bryan College Station home is available for sale in the MLS YOU CAN HEAR IT!  It doesn’t matter if Century 21 has it listed for sale or Coldwell Banker or Remax or ANYONE!

Questions? Ideas?

Call me! 

Susan Hilton

979-764-2100

In Summary the changes are as follows:

Voice Memos

Capture a memo, a meeting, or any audio recording on the go. Voice Memos works with the built-in iPhone microphone or with the mic on your headset.

Improved Calendar

Create meetings via Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync and subscribe to calendars with new CalDAV support.

Buy Movies, TV Shows, and Audiobooks

Download movies, TV shows, music videos, and audiobooks from the iTunes Store on your iPhone.³

Enhanced Stocks App

Get more at-a-glance information and view charts in landscape.

Safari Improvements

Enjoy faster performance, autofill user names and passwords, and more.

Internet Tethering

Share your Internet connection with your laptop with Internet tethering via Bluetooth or USB.⁴4. Tethering is not currently offered in the U.S. and some other countries. See your carrier for availability.

Stereo Bluetooth

Connect compatible Bluetooth stereo headphones, car kits, or other accessories.

Automatic Wi-Fi Login

Log in to a Wi-Fi hotspot and iPhone automatically logs you in when you connect again.

Sync Notes

Never leave a note behind. Now you can sync all the notes you write on your iPhone back to your Mac or PC.

Parental Controls

Decide what music, videos, and apps your kids can access.

iTunes Store Account

Create and log in to one or more iTunes Store accounts directly from your iPhone.⁵

YouTube Login

Log in to your YouTube account to save and sync bookmarks and rate favorites.

Shake to Shuffle

Give iPhone a shake and it shuffles to a different song in your music library.

New Languages

iPhone supports 30 languages and more than 40 keyboard layouts.

MobileMe Find My iPhone and Remote Wipe

Find your iPhone if you lose it and protect your privacy with Remote Wipe.

Run the Latest Apps

Run the next generation of iPhone apps, like peer-to-peer games¹ and more.

 

The iPhone is a great tool for any Real Estate Proffesional!!! 

For all of your College Station Real Estate Needs Please call Jeff Leatherwood at 979-255-2788 email Leatherwood @Century21.com or just visit www.BuyAggieland.com

Green Lawn Mower

BRYAN, TX — The Texas Municipal Power Agency encourages homeowners to use electric lawn mowers rather than gas to promote cleaner air.  They are offering vouchers worth $150 toward the purchase of an electric-powered machine, corded or cordless.

You’re thinking, I gotta push this reel mower or work my way around power cords?  That’s a big sacrifice for clean air.  Well, Black and Decker does have a handy 24V battery mower but it will only cut up to 1/3 of an acre at a time.  Then there’s a solar powered cordless from Solaris - that sounds neat.

Either way, you only have until August to pick up a voucher, or until they run out.  Sears associates will hand them out to customers with a current driver’s license or your BTU bill.  For more information on these and other rebate programs offered by the local utility company, call or email…

Happy Gardening,

Cindy Seaton, REALTOR

P.S.  Check back next week for my commentary on community chickens!

Shish Ka Bob

you can

try new restaurants around town without waiting in a line ;)  Actually, I can’t give them a hard time - the students are the reason why our local economy is so insulated from the extremes shown in the national news stories.

Back to the menu…There is one place in town that you need to visit, tucked away at 110 Dominik near Texas Avenue in College Station.

It is Shiraz Shish-ka-Bob, an Iranian restaurant with various ka-bobs with rice and vegetables, humus, and flat bread. The owners finished-out a former photo store/donut store very nicely.  It sits near Blue Baker and Gumby’s Pizza.

The restaurant is named for the city Shiraz in southwestern Iran known for poetry and arts. We’ve been several times - my favorite ka-bob is the lamb.  In the Aggieland of chicken fingers and BBQ, Shiraz is divine.  The sodas and regular beverages sit near the cash register, but I recommend asking for their hot tea.  It is dark and wonderful - don’t know the name.  But I am learning Arabic.  Oops that’s another story for another time.

And, if you are ever in need of Egyptian food,

email me and I will direct you to an enthusiastic Arab woman with amazing stories and authentic North African fare.

Happy Memorial Day,

Cindy Seaton, REALTOR

Basically now all we need is lenders to implement this into loan programs.

Basically its going to work thru short term bridge loans so that the lender gives you $8,000 to close on a house and at the first of next year they get your $8,000 tax return… 

Obviously, this is the “Condensed Version” Call or Email me for details!  www. BuyAggieland.com Leatherwood@Century21.com or call 979.255.2788 Thanks, Jeffrey Leatherwood, Broker College Station Texas Real Estate.

Moving to Bryan College Station and need HELP?  How about information about who to call for electricity, gas, phone, water and on and on and on. Bookmark this page and when you are “in need” you’ll know who to call (Not Ghostbusters!).

Electricity

Bryan Texas Utilities (BTU)

979-821-5700 or 877-363-7448

www.btutilities.com

College Station Utilities

979-764-3535 or 800-849-6623

www.cstx.gov/indexaspx?page=2004

Natural Gas

Atmos Energy

1-888-322-8667

www.atmosenergy.com

Telephone

 Verizon

Residential 979-846-1271

Business 1-800-483-5400

Embarq (Navasota)

800-788-3500

Water

College Station Utilities

979-764-3535 or 800-849-6623

www.cstx.gov/indexaspx?page=2004

Bryan Texas Utilities (BTU)

979-821-5700 or 877-363-7448

www.btutilities.com

Wellborn Special Utility District

979-690-9799

www.wellbornsud.com

Cable Service

Suddenlink

4114 East 29^th Street-Bryan

979-846-2229

www.suddenlink.com

Drivers License

Newcomers have 30 days after establishing residency to apply for a Texas driver’s license.  Applicants (18 and older) will be required to  provide proof of identity, social security number, Texas vehicle registration and proof of liability insurance on all vehicles owned.  Applicants must complete required forms and pay required fee. With a valid, out-of-state driver’s license, only an eye exam or specialist is required.

 Driver’s License Office

1003 North Earl Rudder Freeway

979-776-3100

www.texasonline.com

Tags/Registration

 Newcomers have 30 days after establishing residency to purchase Texas license tags.  To purchase license tags you will need to have your vehicle inspected.  You will need to have your car registered before applying for a Texas driver’s license.

The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles handles vehicle tags.  Offices are Open Mon-Fri from 8 am-5 pm.

 979-361-4473

300 East William J. Bryan Pkwy

www.txdps.state.tx.us

 Bryan Administrative Offices

300 South Texas Ave.

979-209-5000

www.bryantx.gov

 College Station City Hall

1101 Texas Ave.

979-764-3509

www.cstx.gov

Voter Registration

300 East William J. Bryan Pkwy

Bryan, TX 77803

979-361-4470

Taxes

Brazos County Tax Office

979-361-4470

Bryan-College Station Convention & Visitors Bureau

715 University Dr E-College Station

www.visitaggieland.com

Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce

4001 East 29^th Street, Ste. 175-Bryan

979-260-5200

www.bcschamber.org

 Real Estate - Homes for Sale in Bryan & College Station

979-764-2100

http://century21bcs.com

http://susanhilton.com

Happy kids in a happy home

BRYAN, TX — The numbers don’t look fabulous. But what we see in the Brazos Valley is the effect of the fear in the market- from the stock market decline and horrible national news.  Bryan-College Station is in an insulated community but we still see some of the affects of the national news.
By insulated, I mean that BCS has A&M University and great growth.  Add to that, the state of Texas has the number one economy in our country.  Plus, even when the rest of the nation had huge increases in their real estate markets, we prospered and remained in the middle, not seeing gigantic increases in values.  And now when the rest of the nation’s prices are adjusting and depreciating, we have remained in the middle, not seeing huge decreases in values.

In fact, prices show that they are appreciating here…

Item                                                  2009                        2008              Change

# Listings in Inventory               1, 188                        1, 351                -12.1%

# Closed Sales                                  91                               132                 -31.1%

Average Sales Price                 $172,928                    $169,261             +2.2%

# Volume                                  $15,736,430           $22,342,476         -29.6%

Days on Market                              130                             126

These numbers refer to Single Family home sales, comparing this year to last year.

So what is going on right now?  It depends!  We are seeing the higher priced homes being reduced to get them sold. We are seeing the homes in the $120 - $150K in College Station that are in good condition and good areas, selling right away.  Right now we have more buyers than we have good properties to sell.

Financing is a little more of a struggle than it was a year ago BUT THERE IS MONEY AVAILABLE! Buyers need decent credit and they need a small down payment but that can come in the form of a gift until your $8,000 tax credit is received!  Call if you need info on this gift from Barack.
What am I always saying?  Don’t listen to a reporter to obtain information on one the most important financial decisions of your life.  Get a good lender and a great realtor for the facts!

Happy May!

Cindy Seaton, REALTOR

Century 21 Beal now offers all sellers in the Bryan/College Station (and surrounding areas) their own personalized website for their property for sale.

Checkout 8428 Turtle Rock Loop and tell me what you think.  This is a SOON TO BE FOR SALE Foreclosure in Emerald Forest, College Station, Tx.