Real Estate Information Archive

This year, we celebrated Nancy Jenkins Team Movie Day on March 24 with over 270 clients, customers, and friends, at Essex Cinemas! We combined four hit movies, dozens of 3-D glasses, over one hundred free bags of popcorn, and a food drive to make it one memorable, fun-filled event!

It's always great to catch up with folks each year and see the kids grow up, and reconnect.

Movie-goers picked from four new Hollywood releases: The Lorax (3-D), John Carter (3-D), 21 Jump Street, and The Hunger Games. The Lorax was so popular we filled up one theater and opened up a second! It was a fun seeing these action-adventure films with so many friends on the big screen, especially in 3-D!

Making the day extra special was our annual Movie Day food drive for the Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf. Clients brought dozens of bags of high-quality food items, like rice pilaf, soups, and canned veggies, to share with local families. Altogether, we collected 371 pounds of food, which will feed 6-7 families for one month. The Food Shelf is the largest direct service emergency food provider in Vermont.

Nancy Jenkins Team Movie Day was sponsored in part by Regency Mortgage Corp, Wick & Maddocks, and Morways Moving and Storage.

Thank you to all who came and made this Nancy Jenkins Team Movie Day so wonderful!

Last Saturday, the Boys & Girls Club of Burlington hosted its annual ONE Fashion Event, which pairs fundraising and fashion  to create one magical night.

Dozens of local clothing shops like Monelle and Yogarama participate each year, but the real highlight of the show is the fashion parade created by the kids of the club, who sport their own custom-designed outfits.

This year, my daughter Meredith Barges joined the event at Higher Ground as a runway model for Marilyn's and Von Bargen's. She wore interesting geometrical jewelry, with raw diamonds, designed by Todd Reed.

She told me it was unbelievable to see the support and enthusiasm Burlington has for the club and the kids. The packed house went wild every time a model went down the runway.

Fans also showed their support for the club in others ways, like by making matching gifts and purchasing beautiful sterling silver pendants designed by Krissee of the Boys and Girls and crafted by Perrywinkle's Fine Jewelry.

All told, the event helped to raise over $40,000 for the club! That means the Boys & Girls Club's innovative and broad-reaching programs and activities will continue for local kids. That's a great thing!

See more pictures by event photographer Karen Pike here: ONE Fashion Event web page.

Please contact us if you would like to purchase a sterling silver pendant or make a donation to the Boys & Girls Club of Burlington!

 Last year brought Vermont the worst flooding since 1927, turning communities across Vermont into islands. Remember all the rain? The wet basements? The water damage?

This year, before "April showers bring May flowers," use the cold, wet weather of winter to find places where your home may be leaking water and heat. This is your chance to seal up tight in advance of light or heavy seasonal flooding -- and develop a wish list for energy-saving improvements.

Your first order of business should be to make sure no water is getting in.

Carefully check every spot where condensation or water could enter your living areas and storage spaces. Scrutinize ceilings, under the roof, under the eaves, and along window and door frames and ventilation seals. Make a list of trouble areas that need repair, and decide in each case whether you can fix it or it's time to call in a professional.

Don't forget about potential water damage near toilets, sinks, tubs, and showers. Use a flashlight to check the crawl space or basement walls and floors and the underside of the first-story floor. Look for visible moisture and stains caused by moisture. When you find something, the remedy will depend on the source of the leak. You may just need to re-caulk around a tub or window, or you may need to call a plumber to replace a leaking fixture.

Put securing your home for a wet spring on your Honey, Do List!

These days you have many options for mortgage financing. Many web-savvy folks will apply right online or call an 800 number to apply. Many people check on financing while surfing the web for properties. 

My advice…Buyer beware! Do you really know who’s on the other end of the line? Is it someone in Kansas who’s not even licensed in Vermont? Do they know about Vermont-specific closing costs, like the Vermont Property Transfer Tax and what percent the buyer pays? Are they using local appraisers who are familiar with the specific market in which you’re buying?

If you ask your local realtor or attorney who to choose for your mortgage financing, they will strongly suggest working with a lender who lives and works in your area. They all have horror stories about the long-distance lender who made the process difficult for their buyer(s) and, consequently, the seller(s).

You may think, “Well, it’s more convenient for me to call after work and get pre-qualified. I can’t call my local lender at 8:30 at night.” But you would be surprised at how flexible your local lender can be. As a local mortgage lender, I realize that it is often difficult to meet during the work day and you need to meet after office hours. I’m always willing to meet on evenings or over the weekend. Often I will gather a lot of your information over the phone before we even meet in person.

I will work closely with your realtor and closing attorney to make the process go as smoothly as possible, minimizing any chance for a last-minute surprise! I live and work in the community. My rates and closing costs are among some of the best and most competitive in the market. I’m easy to reach and you can contact me anytime during the process with questions and I will call you back! I’m here to make your home-buying process an enjoyable one. My number is (802) 863-0403 x 223

Mark Benton is a Mortgage Planner with Regency Mortgage Corporation in South Burlington, Vermont (NMLS 94675). He, his wife, and two children live in Essex Junction.

Did you know that we Vermont realtors take a pledge every year to uphold strong values and good business practice in all of our real estate dealings? It's an affirmation of the high level of business ethics that we share here in Vermont. 

The pledge emphasizes honesty, knowledge, fairness, and good conduct, among other ideals.

As proud Vermont realtors, we make this pledge to you:
 

* * * I Pledge Myself * * *

To protect the individual right of real estate ownership

and to widen the opportunity to enjoy it;

To be honorable and honest in all dealings;

To seek better to represent my clients

by building my knowledge and competence;

To act fairly towards all in the spirit of the Golden Rule;

To serve well my community, and through it my country;

To observe the REALTORS (c) Code of Ethics

and conform my conduct to its lofty ideals.

Make this a Valentine's Day to remember 
by finding a new home that really sets your heart on fire: 
www.nancyjenkins.com/Properties

Together, we can put a red bow around the front door of a house,
"On the Street Where You Live." 

We're passionate about these two homes that "Move Us":

Underhill - $265,000                                           Burlington - $280,000 

And we love referrals! Send us your friends & loved ones for a match made in heaven.

We're yours. Be ours?

-The Nancy Jenkins Team

Did you see Nancy Jenkins in the Burlington Free Press last Saturday, Jan. 21? 

She appeared in a block quote, next to an AP article titled, "Homes sales up, offering hope for housing recovery," by Derek Kravitz. 

She shared local analysis on why the housing market in Chittenden County has not yet reflected the jump in sales that was seen nationally in December. Here's what she had to say:

"We follow the major markets; we always have. We're two to three years behind Boston and New York; that is what I've seen happening all the time. So that's a good sign if they're moving more houses, we'll be following in their trail."

Click here to read the AP article that appeared in BFP's Saturday print edition.

It's always wonderful helping people find their dream home. It's even better when we find out our clients enjoyed working with us as much as we enjoyed working with them.

This month, we received two notes from past clients who said the nicest things about the Nancy Jenkins Team:
 

This is the second time I've used the Nancy Jenkins Team for the sale of my home. The real estate market was COMPLETELY the opposite during this past sale. The Nancy Jenkins Team never gave up and the house sold. If you have a home that you think will never sell - call the Nancy Jenkins Team, you won't regret it!"

- Michael E. Gates
January 11, 2012

Nancy Jenkins and her associates are a highly professional team. We live out-of-state and had to arrange all aspects of the listing and sale over the phone. They did everything that needed to be done promptly and with efficiency. All phone calls were returned and concerns alleviated. We highly recommend Nancy and her team.

- Rosemary & David Bitzer
  January 18, 2012
 

Let the award-winning Nancy Jenkins Team help you write your real estate success story! We'd love to work with you. Call us today at 802-846-4888!

In her latest article Cynthia Anderson, of the Herald Tribune, explains why pricing is still the key to successful real estate transactions.

She writes, "Never simple, the philosophy — and the psychology — of home pricing has grown ever more nuanced as markets drop and edge back up, then stabilize, only to dip again."

While most Realtors agree that price trumps other salability factors, such as condition and marketing, setting the true value of a house can prove challenging, especially in this market. This is why it is critical that homeowners committed to selling their property set a realistic price from the beginning.

Those of you who have sold your home with me and my team will recognize my "Is Your Price ON TARGET?" bulls-eye, which helps sellers use real-life data like their number of showings to date and number of offers to set and adjust their home price.

Click here to read Anderson's full article, "Setting a Listing Amount Is the Key to the Deal."

We are very proud to announce that the Boys & Girls Club of Burlington is the recipient of a 2011 Prudential Global Volunteer Day Challenge Grant.

The club will receive a $1,000 grant from The Prudential Foundation, in recognition of its committement to improving the lives of children and families in Burlington. Congratulations to all of the wonderful kids and staff at the club who contribute so much to our community.

The grant comes as the result of a special Dinner & Internet Essentials Night held at the Club, on September 29, 2011, that was organized and led by the Nancy Jenkins Team. Our team had help from an enthusiastic group of volunteers, made up of clients, customers, and vendors.

The Boys & Girls Club of Burlington has served area youth since 1942. Their mission is to inspire and enable community youth to realize their full potential as productive, healthy, responsible and caring citizens. They offer programs for children and teens in grades K-12.

"Entrenched poverty has escalated," says the club, "and we have expanded our services that focus on the basic needs of the children we serve--food, clothing, and adult guidance."

The Nancy Jenkins Team has been a long-standing supporter of the Boys & Girls Club, organizing regular dinners at the club's Kids Cafe and assisting with promoting other club events. Nancy Jenkins serves on its Board of Directors.

Says Nancy, "We really enjoy meeting the kids and working with clients and cusomters during the meals we organize for them a few times each year. Every child is a gift and every child has unique strengths that contribute to our community."

Prudential's Global Volunteer Day is celebrated annually on October 1. It brings together over 30,000 volunteers worldwide participating in more than 800 projects in 11 countries. It is an initiative of The Prudential Foundation, which invests over $25 million annually in grants that support the revitalization of communities and support Prudential employees' community engagement efforts.

Our sincere thanks goes to The Prudential Foundation--and the many people who participated in our Global Volunteer Day event--for their generosity.