Its Heating Up in OKC!

For awhile there I thought I had brought Wisconsin with me to stay in our beautiful state. Watching the news this morning I was relieved to see temps reaching 50 for next week. The wonderful thing about making one's home in OKC is that true "winter" is only a few weeks long but we actually get a real winter with snow and cold temperatures. The four seasons is a wonderful offering for those looking to relocate to Oklahoma or Oklahoma City. Add in the lowest unemployment rate in the USA, home values that are low and stable, in the top 5 best places to start or relocate a business, and a city initiative that will make Oklahoma City the "place to be" for those looking for a vibrant urban life and frankly there is just no better place to buy a home and raise a family than Oklahoma City! Check out all the homes available in OKC on our public sided MLS search site.

It isn't just the weather that is heating up; so is the buzz for our spring technology conference. I have more of the skinny from the OKCMAR marketing department:

Key note speakers have been secured: Doug Devitre, Brian Boero & Gee Dunsten! In addition we will have presentations from HOMESOK.com regarding behavorial psychographics and how they are used to target internet advertising and from DomusU where members can learn how to hands on build various social media sites.

The conference will also feature panels and several CE courses and has 5 distinct tracks: Broker, Commercial, New REALTOR, Technologies and Social Media. Pick a track or mix them up it is all up to the attendee. The conference will also be available to any REALTOR in the state of Oklahoma and we are currently working with sister associations to get the word out.

The conference will feature a bloggers lounge sponsored by the GENnext task force as well as special recognition of the top 10 GENnexters. All participants will be entered into a drawing for a top of the line touch IPOD and GENnexters will also be eligible to win an IPOD Nano. Exhibition booths (which feature technology only) are filling up fast along with sponsorships. Interested in sponsoring this event? Contact Kelli McNeal - due to the scale of this event sponsorships start at $1000.

We are hoping to bring a "second life" conference experience to our GENnexters but are still in discussions regarding this. The conference costs vary dependent upon what the member wants.
One day registration $75 which includes all CE and the membership luncheon
Two day full conference registration $100 (Save $50!) which includes all CE and the membership luncheon
Luncheon only $20
CE package only $25
Registration will open this week

Bacon Frying in a Black Cast Iron Skillet

We had another successful sleepover with the two year old grandchild. The reason we are doing this is to prepare for grandson #2 in March (Yes we know it is another little boy). This morning went much better than the first. It made me think of how much I loved staying overnight at my grandma's. As the oldest of 5 it was wonderful to be the only child in the house and to have so much attention focused on me. Perhaps that is why to this day I love a stage.

Staying at Grandma's was an adventure! My grandparents owned a large dairy farm (From Wisconsin, remember? LOL) although it was pretty much just for them by the time I came around. My grandpa worked as a construction engineer for Boldt and my grandma was the dietician for a nursing home. The farm was mostly empty save for a few cows and pigs and several gardens. The old farmhouse was full of secret hiding places and tunnels and grandma boasted that John Dillinger hid out in the tunnels for several weeks. I think he was considered more of a celebrity up north rather than a fugitive from the law.

But the mornings were the best. Grandma and Grandpa never got out of the habit of rising at 4am to start their day. By 5am I was awakened to the wonderful smell of coffee perking on the stove and bacon frying in a black cast iron skillet. Grandma always made me pancakes with real maple syrup they had tapped and ice cold milk from the cows with the cream rising to the top. I still love the smell of coffee!

I guess that is really what owning a piece of ground and a home is all about, whether you live in Oklahoma City or Sugar Camp, Wisconsin. It is about a sense of belonging. A place to build memories for your children and grandchildren. It is about community. The best place in the world to start that journey is Oklahoma City. The REALTOR public sided site, www.centraloklahomaproperties.com , is a great place to start looking for that home. It is updated every 20 minutes with all the available real estate in the central Oklahoma area.

Home truly is where the heart is and thank you dear readers for allowing me the indulgence of a trip down memory lane.

Oklahoma City Metro Home Searching Made Simple

OKCMAR & MLSOK have launched their billboard campaign promoting the new public-sided website: http://www.centraloklahomaproperties.com/ This new site is rich with information the consumer may use when looking for a home in the Oklahoma City Metro area. OKCMAR is very proud to offer this exceptional tool for people looking to buy a home in the Oklahoma City area.

There is something in it for the agents too! On the home page, at the very bottom is a members only link. Clicking on that link will give the agent and the broker in depth reporting on the number of hits a particular property (which they have listed) has received. This ia a great method to keep in contact with your sellers! Send them the report every week via email.

Brokers, while your at it, take advantage of MLSOK's free website syndication to the major search engines by registering with ListHub. Go to wwww.listhub.com and click create account. Fill out the fields- make sure you choose Oklahoma City as the MLS/Association you are affiliated with and then choose all or pick and choose the search engines you want utilized.

MLS is on your side- working for you!