Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello all!

First off I wanted to take a moment to wish you all a very happy and healthy Thanksgiving holiday. I hope all of you and your families were able to share the joy and meaning of this truly great American Holiday together.

Secondly, I'd like to proudly announce that me and a nice young couple who I've been working with have been approved by HGTV and Pie Town Productions for our very own episode of House Hunters. We're very excited to have House Hunters coming out to film our search, next weekend actually, as we look for the perfect home in the Chicago area for this wonderful young couple. If all goes to plan, the show will be edited and schedule for air on HGTV later in the Spring or in the early Summer months. I want to, from the bottom of my heart, thank my clients and the producers at HGTV for being so helpful and supportive. I'd also like to thank my colleagues and friends at Saffron Realty Group for all of their help and support.

I'm not going to give anything away here, (it's all going to be a big surprise for all of us actually, including myself and my clients), but I will say that these folks are perfect buyers for an urban suburbanite Realtor like myself. They're new in town, work in the suburbs, but have been living in and really enjoying the city. So their dilemma has been, do they stay in the city and take advantage of all that life can offer a young couple there? Or do they position themselves closer to work and live in the suburbs where their money might go a little further and their respective commutes would be far less? Great questions and a great scenario! I don't even know what they will ultimately choose.

It's one of the truly fun things about being the urban/suburban Realtor. The fact that I know the suburbs and the city, in most cases, equally well, I've really been able to help them hone in on the areas of the city, as well as the areas of the suburbs, that could be good choices for them no matter which way their decision goes.

It's all very exciting!

I also wanted to point out that, at least in some areas I've seen recently, it appears that my hunch about people being out there and buying in these last months of 2007 is proving to be true. I'm actually seeing places that I've been showing reluctant buyers, going under contract and closing quickly. Here in the town where I live, Brookfield Illinois, things are showing signs of a stealth-like recovery. This community has a lot to offer though. Brookfield has culture and science, with one of the largest private zoological parks in the country right here. We also have excellent schools, (in fact Riverside Brookfield High School was recognized in Newsweek magazine two years in a row for academic acheimvent and excellence), reasonable taxes and affordable housing. All of this within 13 miles of Chicago and right on a light rail, (Metra), stop. We actually have 2 stops: One that services the area directly around the zoo, (and allows people from all over to visit the park without driving there), and one right in the downtown area. Brookfield Illinois is really becoming an area to watch. It's truly an urban/suburban community:Big city feel, close to Chicago, but still in the more placid suburban surroundings.

There are a lot of communites, concentrically around the edges of the city of Chicago. If you ever have any questions let me know!

And keep your eyes peeled for our House Hunters episode airing in the Spring or Summer of 2008.

I'll keep you posted on how things go with the show and all other developments in the market here at www.urbansuburbanite.com .

Cheers!

Rick Doty