Friendswood Development News

Good news for Houston community bookworms: On September 16th, Barnes & Noble will be opening a new store in the River Oaks Shopping Center. The new location will be at 2030 West Gray Street, and will stock close to 200,000 books, DVDs, Blu-ray Discs, music, magazines, and a café serving Starbucks coffee.

Additionally, the two story store will have a BN@School department featuring educational products for teachers, parents, and librarians. The new store is set to host a number of book clubs, writing groups and book signing events as well, according to store manager Jaques Oppinger.

The new store will be open from 9 am to 10pm on Monday through Thursday, and 9 am to 11 pm on Friday and Saturday. So far the store will employ 60 people, some of which are from the South Shepherd Bookstop location. Currently there are 15 Barnes & Nobles stores open in the Greater Houston area.

Image courtesy of BarnesandNoble.com

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Highland Homes has joined the Fairfield builder line-up and their model home will be complete soon. The company is now searching for an Assistant to their on-site Fairfield sales counselor.

This immediate opening pays $10.00 per hour plus commissions. Hours will be 39 hours weekly and are flexible with weekends.

Applicants must be computer literate and friendly. Great opportunity for the right person with a great attitude, willingness to learn and work hard.

Forward  resumes to lhansberger@hhomesltd.com or call Linda Hansberger at 832-971-7711.

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Below you will find a highlight video covering the Friendswood Development Company Social Media Event for Houston Real Estate Agents held in July. This event was held as a gift to our Houston area Realtors, featuring two "classes" on using Social Media in Real Estate Business to increase sales as well as one-on-one sessions with Social Media experts, great food, entertainment, and drinks.

Friendswood Development Company enjoyed putting on the event and looks forward to a fruitful relationship with the Houston community's Real Estate agents; thank you to everyone who attended the spectacular event and made it a success!

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Texas kids are getting ready to go back to schools, and for many children, preparation includes getting a few more immunizations. This year, big changes have been made in immunization requirements which will impact incoming kindergarten and seventh grade students. 

The changes to the requirements were made to bring Texas into line more closely with what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Advisory committee on Immunization Practices recommend. These changes started on August 01 and include:

• Hepatitis A Vaccine: All students entering kindergarten will be required to have two doses of Hepatitis A vaccine.
• Measles, Mumps, Rubelle (MMR) Vaccine: All students entering kindergarten will be required to have two doses of the MMR vaccine.
• Varicella (chickenpox) Vaccine: All students entering kindergarten and 7th grade will be required to have two doses of the Varicella vaccine. However, a written statement from the parent/guardian, school nurse or physician attesting to the child already having had chickenpox  may replace the vaccine.
• Tetanus, Diptheria and acellular pertussis-containing Vaccine (Tdap): All students entering 7th grade will be required to have one dose of Tdap vaccine. Students in the 7th grade are required to have a booster shot of Tdap only if it has been five years since their last dose. Students in grades 8-12 are required to have a booster shot of Tdap if it has been ten years or more since their previous dose of a tetanus-containing vaccine.
• Meningococcal Vaccine: All students entering 7th grade will be required to have one dose of meningococcal vaccine. 

For more information on immunization requirements for Texas kids:  

http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/IMMUNIZE/

 

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While many businesses may be struggling, the Greater Houston Convention Visitors Bureau (GHCVB) is very much alive and kicking. This was the positive message and outlook shown at August 18th's gathering at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas.

At George R. Brown, they gave attention to several notable bookings in Houston, including the 2012 AAU Junior Olympics, the NCAA Final Four in 2016, and the National Rifle Association's annual meeting set for 2013. The GHCVB has already booked a whopping total of 468,000 room nights for its upcoming years, which is 72% of its goal.

With no intention of settling, the organization also noted its programs to promote the local film industry; GHCVB will also add foreign consulates. This has, in fact, already begun, as consulates from Rwanda and Estonia established themselves in Houston. In an effort to help forward local meetings, the GHCVB is also partnering with the Greater Houston Hotel and Lodging Association.

With all of the past and upcoming visitors and action, Houston appears to have taken a lead as "the place to be" for event

For more information on the GHCVB visit their website at VisitHoustonTexas.com.

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The exciting opportunity for First Time Home Buyers may soon no longer be available, but those considering buying a home for the first time should make a decision before November if they want to receive the tax credit of up to $8,000. In order to be eligible for the credit, a home must be purchased before December 1, 2009.

That being said, we recommend first-time home buyers start the purchasing process no later than early November, as there may be hiccups involving insurance, closing, loan processing, and seller expectations.

If you are still interested in taking the credit, here are a few things to consider to help your decision along the way:

• Any home purchased as the taxpayer’s principal residence and located in the United States qualifies. For a home that you construct, the purchase date is considered to be the first date you occupy the home.
• If you made an eligible purchase in 2008, you claim the first-time homebuyer credit on your 2008 tax return. For an eligible purchase in 2009, you can choose to claim the credit on either your 2008 or 2009 income tax return.

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Nolan Ryan Junior High School also in its first year and serving children in Lakes of Savannah, achieved a “Recognized” rating. And, Manvel High School, where high school-age students living in Lakes of Savannah attend, received a “Recognized” rating as well.

Alvin's "Recognized" rating is comparable to Pearland ISD and higher than Ft. Bend ISD's rating which is "Acceptable."

“This is an outstanding accomplishment for the schools and the district, and shows the commitment of teachers, students and parents,” said Misty Watkins, Marketing Director for Lakes of Savannah. “Children at all levels are receiving an outstanding education in the Alvin ISD – a district in which we are proud to be located.”

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Hundreds of Realtors from around the Houston area learned a lot more about social media networking at a recent event hosted by Friendswood Development Company in Heritage at Towne Lake on Thursday, July 30. The social media event gave Realtors in attendance the opportunity to gain more knowledge on the importance of social media and its role in marketing real estate, and the change to implement the concept into their own businesses.

Nearly 500 Realtors from Conroe to Clear Lake attended the event, which included two informative and educational sessions presented by Poetic Systems and Boe Creative Services, a session on setting up Facebook pages for business, YouTube filming and catering by Pierre and Candy Massoud, was praised among all who attended. The event also offered insight on the growing focus of social media networking in business, and was represented by agents who ranged in age from their 20s to their 60s. Twenty agents won Flip cameras at the event, in addition to a dozen other door prizes donated by the developer's builders.

An album of photos from the event is posted on the company's Facebook page.

“We received a lot of positive feedback from the Realtors who said that in addition to having the opportunity to tour our new Lodge facility in Heritage at Towne Lake, they were able to participate in an event that offered them so much value,” said Tim Fitzpatrick, Community Development Manager for Friendswood Development Company. “The presentations were excellent and offered a lot of insight on the global approach in which real estate is being marketed.”

Poetic Systems has also redesigned and launched new websites for Friendswood Development Company and each of its Houston area communities which include Fairfield in Cypress, Graystone Hills in Conroe, Lakemont in West Houston, Lakes of Savannah in the Pearland area, West Ranch in Friendswood, Oakhurst at Kingwood and active adult communities that include Heritage at Towne Lake in the master-planned Towne Lake community. Heritage at Towne Lake is designed for buyers age 55 and over.

The significant investment Friendswood Development Company has made in the new sites has also includes a very focused, intensive Search Engine Optimization program with blogs updated regularly and a presence on popular social media networks such as Facebook and Twitter. “Friendswood Development has a great story to tell – a long history of success and great master-planned communities,” said Cheryl Boe-Perry of Boe Creative Services, which hired Poetic Systems to implement the new websites. “The Houston real estate market has become a place where international buyers realize a wonderful investment and marketing must now be tailored to reach the global market.” Since the debut of the new sites, Friendswood Development Company has seen a significant increase in traffic on the sites, and interest from potential home buyers both locally and internationally.
 
“Our communities overall are performing very well,” Fitzpatrick said. “Summer has been particularly strong, with sales and traffic ahead of our projections.”

Friendswood Development Company hosted the event to show its commitment to its Realtor partners, offering them information that is timely and extremely important. “Realtors have always been a part of our success, and this event offered them information that can help them in their own businesses and help us all market and sell more new homes,” Fitzpatrick said.  “The internet has become the most powerful tool in marketing real estate. People are online networking with other consumers about homes, communities, builders, schools and amenities, and it’s more important than ever that we become a part of that conversation.”

The developer plans to post the seminars on its websites and YouTube, offering agents who could not attend the event, the opportunity to view it.

In addition to being hosted by Friendswood Development Company, the event was also sponsored by Houston Eflyer, CasaNuevaGuide.com and Houston Newcomer Guides.

 

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