By Michael Delaware, REALTOR®
Marshall, Michigan is a great community in Calhoun County.
Buying a home in Marshall, Michigan is to become part of a wonderful community that has a strong pride of ownership throughout. Marshall, Michigan is the County seat for Calhoun County, and according to the 2000 U.S. Census has a population of 7459 people.
The homes in Marshall, Michigan are a mix of many eras of history, and a great many of them are well preserved. My impression of this community is that they tend to take very good care of their homes. So buying a home in Marshall, Michigan is a good move for long term property values.
One of the exciting features about buying a home in Marshall, Michigan is that the entire community qualifies for the USDA Rural Development single family loan program as a rural community. So you can buy a home right near downtown if you wish, and still be able to use the Rural Development loan program which allows a buyer to obtain 100% financing on their loan.
Few loan programs today offer this, and this one also carries with it a competitive low interest rate as well. The Marshall
Marshall Michigan offers carriage rides in the downtown area.
community has many other qualities that make buying a home there a desirable goal. There is a nice walking path along the river, well maintained city parks, a historic downtown full of great shops, the County fairgrounds, and the high school football team won the Michigan State Championship in 2009.
The downtown area also holds festivals and parades throughout the year, which offer a lot of interesting things for the family, which is another great aspect of buying a home in Marshall, Michigan. There are even some new construction homes in Marshall.
For more information on buying a home in Marshall, Michigan, visit my website at: www.michaeldelaware.com or call me directly at: 269-441-8182. I can send you listings of available properties in Marshall through your email. I look forward to working with you on finding your home.
Marshall, Michigan has a unique downtown with a lot of speciality shops.
Taking time to walk around with my camera this time of year is one of my favorite things to do. Occasionally I capture a photo or two of the season that just says ‘Autumn in Battle Creek, Michigan’ to me best. This time of year offers so much spectacular color to enjoy, it is wonderful for photography.
Autumn in Battle Creek, Michigan is a wonderful time.
This past summer in Battle Creek, Michigan I attended the annual Cereal Festival held downtown in June. It was a packed event with great weather, and people came downtown all morning to enjoy free cereal and be entertained. One of the featured acts on the stage were some dancers that I thought were quite amazing, so I created a video and am featuring it here. I hope you enjoy it:
The Linear Park in Battle Creek, Michigan is a great feature of the community. Providing over 15 miles of walking, running and bicycling trails through both the urban and suburban areas around Battle Creek, this is a great place to go exercise.
Linear Park is a great place to go for some exercise.
Despite running through various neighbohoods, and behind commercial buildings as it winds through the area, it also offers many shaded and natural sections along its length. One can follow the Kalamazoo and Battle Creek rivers at various points along the trail, and even enjoy the built in scenic overlooks, walkways and bridges as it crosses near and over these waterways.
The Linear Park crosses over railroad tracks, nearby scenic points of interest and even through downtown, where you can enjoy some lunch as a stop on your journey. The Linear Park is an important feature in Battle Creek, and many times the value of this to the community is overlooked.
Bicyclers from all over the area come to ride these trails, as the character is largely different from other trails across Michigan which are more rural. There is even a bicycle shop in downtown Battle Creek, Michigan which is right along the Linear Park trail.
So if you are new to the area, you might want to visit the Battle Creek Parks and Recreation website for more information
The Linear Park offers great scenic overlooks along the riverfronts.
on the Linear Park, as well as events concerning the trail throughout the year. At various times of the year, running groups feature 5K and 10K races that take part on sections of the trail, making it of interest to runners.
However, if you are just looking for a place to go walking with your dog, or taking an afternoon hike, the Linear Park is right here in town and is there for your use. During the spring, summer and fall the Linear Park is a great local destination to explore.
Winterization of homes in Battle Creek, Michigan is something one needs to factor in when buying a foreclosure.
A vacant home properly prepared for winter will not experience damage.
It would be the same for anywhere in Michigan. If it is vacant, you need to find out if the house was winterized? The banks usually hire asset companies to do the winterization on homes, but it happens often during the winter that the bank reacquiring a home in the foreclosure process does not obtain possession until mid-winter.
With this occurring, there is a risk of the home not having been winterized before some of the plumbing was damaged by freezing conditions. When you are shopping for a foreclosure, either as a personal residence or an investment property, you need to factor in winterization of homes in Battle Creek, Michigan.
When a house is winterized by a service company, they place stickers on the sinks, water heater and commodes that indicate the date it was done. A usual rule of thumb is if the home was winterized in mid-October, it is a good bet that it was done before any heavy freeze. However, if you are not from the area, it is always a good idea to work with a local Realtor that is active in the market, as they will know usually when the first hard freeze hit that season in the area. Last year we did not get any hard freeze until late November, so a sticker dated November 15th was not a concern.
It is important to note that a winterization sticker on a home with a date does not mean that it is accurate, or that the home was properly winterized. Proper winterization of a home includes running water out of the lines, disconnecting the water meter, draining the water heater, pouring anti-freeze in the toilets, sink drains and traps, and many other points on a checklist.
Preparing a home for winter can require some advanced preparation work...
That is why it is always advisable to hire a home inspector, or acquire a home warranty if there is any uncertainty. Even in homes properly winterized, you can still have a plumbing leak in unexpected areas. I have been through many a home inspection to find pin-hole leaks shooting out when the water is turned on. I have also walked through homes that had exploded toilets, and ballooned and split pipes where a winterization crew came in after the plumbing froze up and winterized everything else, leaving the repairs for the new buyer.
So winterization of homes in Battle Creek Michigan is something to keep in mind as the weather gets colder, especially if you are looking at vacant property. For information about real estate in the Battle Creek area, visit my website at: http://www.michaeldelaware.comor give me a call at: 269-441-8182.
Local football is a large part of life in the Battle Creek area. High schools have junior high football programs, middle school programs and even elementary school programs. Kids at a young age who enjoy the sport will have a lot of opportunities in youth football in the Battle Creek area. Here is a video I created from one game I filmed recently between Lakeview and Battle Creek schools.
Just taking some time during this time of year to enjoy the woderful autumn colors one last time before they all turn into the slumber of winter and snow. I enjoy taking photographs this time of year, and as this is Halloween when I write this, I am reminded about the crunch of leaves as little tricker treaters wander from house to house through the night looking for candy at every turn. I am hopeful they will stay warm and have a dry evening as they take on their adventures.
Autumn in Battle Creek, Michigan
Knowing some basics about credit repair can be essential in this market climate, especially when you want to buy a home home. So where do you get good credit repair informationthat is useful? Usually I recommend to avoid anyone that is trying to sell you something before you can learn about it.
Reading books on credit repair can be an inexpensive way to learn how to do it yourself.
Books are readily available on the subject that are inexpensive and offer an outline of doing it yourself. Today with the accessiblity of the internet, one can often repair a lot on their credit reports online. It is helpful to know a little bit about the subject, so I often recommend buying a book that outlines some techniques on how to go about this. One book I show here in this article, others can be found on my website at: www.justcallmichael.com.
If you want to simply want to hire someone to do it for you, then there is a company called ‘Credit Unlimited’ that I have found to be effective and affordable. There is a link on the right hand side on the first page of my website here.
I usually recommend people try to fix as much as they can themselves, before hiring someone else to do it for them. However, sometimes peoples situations improve and they get busy with a new job, or career, and simply want to hire someone to fix their past mistakes. This company does a good job and they work steadily at it.
Most of the time they can improve your credit scores in the short term of three to six months. However, often 12 months more more is needed if there is a lot to address. The important thing to remember is that credit repair can occur, and with a little help, it can occur faster.
Fixing your credit first is sometimes a necessary action to be able to become qualified for a loan program to purchase a home. This does not have to be a daunting task, but it does require sometimes a little industry to resolve the damage from a bad credit history.
Southwest Michigan Realtor Blog
Michael Delaware