5755 Shelly Court, Saline

Take a look at this beautiful home for sale located at 5755 Shelly Court, Saline, priced at $439,000.

Welcome to 5755 Shelly Court in the Harvest Ridge subdivision of Saline! Imagine a peaceful ranch home in the country. You’ll find it in this well-built/maintained 3 bedroom custom-designed home. The secluded, quiet setting boasts gorgeous views. The high ceilings throughout offer a spacious feel. There are new floors in the main living area, the bedrooms, and the finished daylight walk-up basement. The natural oak kitchen & dining nook overlook a layered deck. There’s room for storage in the 2-car attached + 2-car bonus garage/workshop. A huge new Master bath is framed but incomplete. You’re minutes from everything. Don’t miss it!


View 5755 Shelly Court in a larger map

Here’s a brief walking tour of the main floor of this home:



…and a tour of the finished daylight lower level:



You can see dozens of photos of 5755 Shelly Court here.

Notables:
     * Lodi Township
     * Taxes $5385 (2009, Homestead)
     * Schools: Saline

If you’re considering luxury living in Saline, you owe it to yourself to check out this beautiful home. I’d be happy to give you a tour, so talk to someone with local knowledge! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate.com”.

3309 E. Dobson, Ann Arbor

Take a look at this beautiful home for sale located at 3309 E. Dobson, Ann Arbor, priced at $895,000.

Welcome to 3309 E. Dobson in Ann Arbor! This Woodlands home has a classic layout with designer updates. As you approach the home, a new brick covered front porch greets you. Inside, you’ll find a formal dining room, new master bath and a new guest-suite bath. The kitchen features oak floors, cherry cabinetry, and granite counters. The breakfast nook overlooks a huge deck and private wooded back yard, which is loaded with nature. The family room features a soaring stone fireplace, with other fireplaces in the living room and master bedroom. Double furnaces keep you comfortable throughout the house. You’re less than 10 minutes to the hospitals (UM, VA, SJ). Don’t miss it!



View 3309 E. Dobson in a larger map

Here’s a brief walking tour of the main floor of this home:



…and a tour of the upper level of this home:



…and a tour of the finished daylight lower level:



…and a couple of views of the back yard and deck (taken during the summer):







You can see dozens of photos of 3309 E. Dobson here.

Notables:

          * City of Ann Arbor

          * Taxes $18,667 (2009, Homestead)

          * Schools: King, Clague, Huron

If you’re considering luxury living in Ann Arbor, you owe it to yourself to check out this beautiful home. I’d be happy to give you a tour, so talk to someone with local knowledge! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate.com”.

Saline - Tree City USA

Did you know that Saline is a participant in Tree City USA? Do you know what Tree City USA is? (Original article by Vance Shutes). Let’s take a look at that today.

Tree City USA is a designation given by the national Arbor Day foundation. Saline has been a part of Tree City USA for six years (since 2004). It’s even noted on the street signs as you approach Saline!

In order to qualify for Tree City USA status, a city must meet four standards established by The Arbor Day Foundation and the National Association of State Foresters. These standards were established to ensure that every qualifying community would have a viable tree management plan and program. It is important to note that they were also designed so that no community would be excluded because of size.

1. A Tree Board or Department
2. A Tree Care Ordinance
3. A Community Forestry Program With an Annual Budget of at Least $2 Per Capita
4. An Arbor Day Observance and Proclamation

Arbor Day in Michigan is the last Friday of April.

Our state tree, the Eastern White Pine, is more prevalent in northern Michigan, but that doesn’t mean that Saline is without the State tree. I recall my daughter receiving a White Pine seedling on one Arbor Day during her elementary school days. That tree is now approaching 10’ tall in my back yard. So the Arbor Day Foundation efforts have definitely had an effect on the Saline community.

Take a look along the sides of the roads approaching Saline and see if you spot the Tree City USA signs. Saline – Tree City USA.


If you’re looking to do anything with Saline real estate and become a part of Tree City USA, you owe it to yourself to take advantage of my experience in the Saline market. I’d be happy to meet with you! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate (dot) com”.

Resolutions in 2010 for Saline real estate

I’m not one of those folks who puts much emphasis on “New Year’s Resolutions,” but I’m up for making some Resolutions in 2010 for Saline real estate. (Original article by Vance Shutes). Let’s take a look at that today.

There are now 301 days until November 5, 2010, when we VOTE THE INCUMBENTS OUT!

The first of my Resolutions in 2010 for Saline real estate is something that you’ve seen near the top of each article for the past couple of weeks. I’m tired of the “status quo” here in Michigan. I’m resolved to making a wholesale change in our elected officials. VOTE THE INCUMBENTS OUT! Is my motto for the year! Heck, newly-elected officials at every level of government for Michigan CANNOT do any worse than those who have bungled us into the mess we have today! Let’s get some fresh ideas going in Lansing and in Washington, DC.

The next of my Resolutions in 2010 for Saline real estate has to do with marketing and visibility. If you’re a regular reader of this blog, then you know that I write here daily, six days a week. Collectively, there’s a ton of information here for both buyers and seller of Saline real estate. While I’m pleased that this information has become visible, it’s my resolution to make it even more visible in 2010. My clients expect that, and I expect it of myself!

The last of my Resolutions in 2010 for Saline real estate has to do with you, my readers. While I’ve been pleased to have an occasional comment on these articles, what I’d really like is to build some conversations with you about these articles. Do you agree or disagree with the premise of each article? Have I missed something that you’d like to see covered?

So there you have my Resolutions in 2010 for Saline real estate. Thanks for reading!

If you’re looking to do anything with Saline real estate, you owe it to yourself to take advantage of my experience in the Saline market. I’d be happy to meet with you! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate (dot) com”.

Uh Oh! A sewer backup!

When you wake up in the morning, or you return home after work, you never want to hear “Uh Oh! A sewer backup!” If you do, your next thought would likely be “Will my homeowner’s insurance cover this?”

Spring and Fall tend to be our wettest seasons in Saline (this past Spring was, for sure!), making our homes most susceptible to the backup of sewer or drain lines. While these events don't occur often, when they do, the problem can be a small disaster (I know first-hand, as one of my rental properties had such a backup recently). Did you know that a standard homeowner's insurance policy excludes coverage for such an event?

It's true. The backup of sewer and drains, as well as the failure of a sump pump, is excluded from most homeowner’s policies. The damage you sustain from either of these problems will not be covered, and you'll be responsible to pay for the loss (and the clean up). If you have a finished basement, or use your basement area for storage, you shouldn't go without this coverage endorsement.

Heavy rains can trigger a backup. A storm sewer or sanitary sewer backs up into your home and usually comes in through a sump well, washtubs in the basement, or toilets in the basement. However, the damage can happen anywhere in the house. Sump pump failures normally occur from power outages or motor failures. Sump pumps run on electricity, and during a bad storm, the power can go out. That’s when you need the sump pump the most, to pump the water from the heavy rain out of the basement.

The damage can be quite costly. Normally damage occurs in the basement, which houses the mechanical systems of the house, such as the furnace, hot water tank, washer and dryer, and the numerous items we tend to store there. Water or sewage usually destroys anything it comes in contact with. For the possible thousands of dollars in damage, it would be well worth purchasing additional coverage with your homeowner's policy to cover such an event.

Be sure to ask your insurance agent about this coverage (to make sure you already have it on your policy). This coverage can often be purchased as an endorsement on its own, or with an endorsement that will expand or increase other coverages on the policy. The additional cost runs typically between $60 and $90 annually (well worth the peace of mind it brings). The key is to ask your agent or company what you best option is, and BEFORE you need. That way, you can breathe a bit easier when you hear “Uh Oh! A sewer backup!”

If you like what you’re reading here, please subscribe. Thanks!

If you have questions about your specific situation, or if you’re considering buying or selling any Saline real estate, you owe it to yourself to take advantage of my experience in the Saline market. I’d be happy to meet with you! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate (dot) com”.

You can search for homes and condos in Saline here.

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Vance's Bookshelf

If you’ve been following my bookshelf reports for any time, you know that I enjoy history and biography. But this week’s reading took a different course – Greek tragedy.

The Oresteia, by Aeschylus, was my first venture into Greek tragedy since reading Homer back in college. Here’s a quick review:

The Oresteia is a trilogy of works by Aeschylus – Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, and Euminides. Agamemnon describes his return from the Trojan War and his murder at the hands of his wife, Clytemnestra. The Libation Bearers describes Clytemnestra’s murder by her son, Orestes, in vengeance for her killing of his father (Agamemnon). Finally, in Euminides, we learn of Orestes’ acquittal at Athena’s court. Overall, the trilogy traces the evolution of justice in human society from blood vengeance (the killing of Agamemnon) to the rule of law (the acquittal of Orestes). This particular translation kept my interest fairly well, as it retains the essence of the Greek language, while it’s totally readable in present-day English. Of course, there are some unusual phrases throughout the book, but that’s to be expected.
Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book:

Your words have overcome my disbelief, and I believe them, for a willingness to learn returns youth wisely to the old. (p.64)

A life unenvied is an unenviable life. (p. 76)

Charge answers charge, and who can weigh them, sift right from wrong? The ravager is ravaged, the slayer slain. But it abides, while Zeus on his throne abides, that he who does will suffer. That is law. Who will cast out the seed of curses from the house? (p. 99)

For though men idolize success as if it were a god, no, more than a god, Justice finds a way to right the balance. And some it swoops down on suddenly in the bright day; some it waits for, tensing, in the twilit shadows, and some it grabs only after black night has wrapped them in its useless shroud. (p. 109)

Don’t wipe away the seed of Pelops. So long as we live, you yourself can’t die, though dead. For children keep a man’s fame living on after he dies; like corks that buoy a net up, saving the flaxen meshes from the deep. (p. 125)

I pray that the crazed voice of civil strife that feeds on evil and is never full may never roar through this land. And may the earth not guzzle down the black blood of its people, and then, hot for revenge, welcome the city’s ruin, murder paid back with murder. Instead let citizens give joy for joy, loving the common good, hating a common foe: they’ll cure most ills this way. (p. 185)

Having now read a Greek tragedy, my appetite is set for more – though I’ll mix them in between my usual reading in history and biography. So look for more reports from my bookshelf!

If you like what you’re reading here, please subscribe. Thanks!

If you have questions about your specific situation, or if you’re considering buying any Saline real estate, you owe it to yourself to take advantage of my experience in the Saline market. I’d be happy to meet with you! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate (dot) com”.

You can search for homes and condos in Saline here.

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Bugs

The weather has been warming up, so you’ve probably noticed that bugs are getting active again. In some of the vacant homes I’ve shown recently, there are various bugs on the inside windowsills, looking for a way to get out into the sunshine. Alas, many of them end up dead on the floor below the window.

As a kid, I was always fascinated by bugs (insects, to be more “formal”). My parents, noticing my interest in bugs, encouraged my interest, and got me involved in 4-H. If you don’t know about 4-H, ask me. If you do, then you know how much fun I had with my bug collection as a kid.

The photo above is from my kid’s bug collection. In fact, my daughter won a “best in show” award at the Washtenaw County 4-H show in 2006 and 2007 with her collection. Is it any surprise where she got her interest from?

Yes, bugs can be creepy, and even damaging to your home – that’s why we have “Pest Inspection” contingencies in our offers to purchase Saline real estate. But bugs can also be beautiful – witness the butterflies in the photo above – so be sure you’re looking above eye level at times so you can see first-hand!

If you like what you’re reading here, please subscribe. Thanks!

If you have questions about your specific situation, or if you’re considering buying any Saline real estate, you owe it to yourself to take advantage of my experience in the Saline market. I’d be happy to meet with you! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate (dot) com”.

You can search for homes and condos in Saline here.

Follow me on Twitter!