Meet Ann!	Fairy Tales
2007 Year In Review	Fairy Funny Ads

Dear Friends, Clients and Prospects:

2006 BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS:

Bottom-line: The 2006 housing market was crappy! The housing bubble did burst and the market was flooded with inventory (previously owned & new construction). Realtors, including me, could be heard singing “Where Have All the Buyers Gone” from the rooftops of listed homes and in karaoke bars across town. Personally, I’d rank 2006 as my worse year ever, considering I’m a seasoned professional not a rookie. I did the least amount of business (only 13 closed transactions) since my first full year in real estate in 1995. I’m bummed out for myself and the sellers whose listings expired without selling. I feel like I let them down. Even though I spent tons on marketing, I just wasn’t able to pull a buyer out of a hat for them. We are all praying for a vibrant housing market in 2007.

Here are a few of the positive highlights of 2006:

• I served on the Minnesota Association of Realtors Professional Standards Committee for the 2nd year in a row.
• Adrian David Alcantara (who prefers to go by David) joined Mavrik Realty in August after working for Edina Realty for two years in their Farmington Office. David is also a past client. The Mavrik Realty Posse now includes me, David and Mark Norris (who came onboard in 2005).
• I held my annual BBQ/Open House on Oct 29th with my mother as the guest of honor. It gave me an opportunity to show off my home improvements (still in process at party time) and reconnect with many of you. In all, 53 adults and 12 kids, ranging in age from 4 months to 8 years old, attended this year’s gathering. Every kid dressed in a Halloween outfit won a prize and there were lots of fabulous door prizes for the adults.  

2006 PERSONAL HIGHLIGHTS

• My home improvement projects finally took flight in 2006 and are nearing completion. I have a new retaining wall; a new asphalt driveway pad; a 2nd attached garage stall (16 x 24); a beautiful cedar deck off the kitchen and great room (33 x 12) with a retractable awning; a wonderful new great room with vaulted ceiling, gas fireplace and tile floor giving me an additional 390 FSF on the main floor; and a totally remodeled kitchen with maple floor, maple cabinets, Silestone countertops, and stainless steel appliances. I acted as the general contractor and hired specialists to complete various components of the work. Here’s the list of contributors: A Shade Above; Asphalt Driveway Co; Block Brothers; Braun Intertec Corp; Brent Bosaaen, brick & stone mason; Carlsen & Frank Architects; Chris Hagan Residential Improvement Services Inc; Citywide Home Improvements; Creative Lighting; Dave’s Floor Sanding; F.G. Wagner Plg. & Htg. Inc; Fireside Hearth & Home; Pella Windows & Doors; Performance Foam Insulation; R.E. Palmen Inc; RBC Tile & Stone; South Side Electric; St Martin Landscaping; The Deck & Door Company; The Home Depot; Ulteig Engineers; Wagner Sod Company; Warners’ Stellian; Wayne Concrete; Western Construction Inc; Winco Landscape and Design; and Xceptional Heating & Cooling.
On Nov 6th, I had much needed total knee replacement surgery on my right knee and have been recovering ever since. Physical therapy has been my primary work endeavor since returning home on Nov 18th. “No pain, no gain” has proven to be a truism. I hope to be able to resume my real estate sales activities with a vengeance by mid-January after returning from the Sunshine State (Florida). I’ll be getting some R&R and physical therapy in FL from Dec 29th to Jan 11th while letting my mother dote over me.

SALES PERFORMANCE RESULTS:

NO ANNUAL CALENDAR THIS YEAR

I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I was not able to produce my original annual calendar (for 2007) due to my surgery and recovery in addition to having a bad year financially (with expenses exceeding revenues). It’s hard to let go of this tradition since I always have fun putting it together.

I’m sending this out by e-mail to those of you for whom I have an email address. The rest of you will receive this by snail mail. Please send me your current e-mail address, if you have one! Electronic mail is much cheaper and faster. It makes staying in contact with you much easier too