I want one of these NOW!!!

I want one of these! !!!

I saw one of these in person this morning and I want one. I have never had this kind of feeling about a car before. It is really strange to be feeling this way at my age, I don't know why I love it so much.

I first saw one of these in the movie "A Good Year" ( a very good movie by way) when Russell Crowe is driving one and I thought it was kind of fun looking. Now that I've seen one up close and personal as it were. I want one really bad.

I don't understand why. I'm far from being a small or tiny person but to me this car has such a high cool factor that I am lusting after it.

It is not at all practical given what we do for a living or that we frequently are driving our grandchildren to/from somewhere. We would not be able to drive our clients around to see houses. For sure would not be able to pull the boat with it (the boat is actually bigger), probably can't get open house signs in it very well. But I don't care, I want one now!

This must be what someone feels like when they are addicted to something. I could rationalize away all of the objections in the blink of an eye. Who cares if this thing is only 1 1/2 feet longer than a golf cart, or is totally impractical for our lives & our lifestyle or has a motor that is the size of my briefcase. That is not really suited for highway driving (if I lived in a big city, this baby would already be mine) has no room to take anything or anyone with you or that the last thing I need to do right now is go car shopping.

None of that stuff matters, it looks like a Hot Wheels car for adults and I WANT ONE NOW!!!

Brian Bartley

It snowed last night!!!!

It SNOWED here last night!!!!!!! Can you believe it? It is the 26th of April and we actually have snow on the ground. AAAHHHHHHHHH!

Our dock and boatlift were put back into the water last weekend by the local ski club and were thinking about getting the boat out of storage on Sunday and putting it into the water and crusing the lake for fun. Our granddaughter (she is 4) is ready to go tubing and boating. Well maybe her life jacket will fit over her snowsuit.

Susan & I were looking at all of the perrinnials coming up in the flower gardens at home on Wednesday night and she remarked on how we had lost some to a late frost last spring. I looked at her and said " but honey it wasn't 70 degrees last spring like it is now, we'll be fine this year". Well now I have to try to get my size 11 shoe out of my mouth after those comments.

We have already hung the winter clothes away in the basement closet, packed away the hats, gloves & boots. Darn, it was really cold out this morning.

Well the nice thing about Minnesota is that the weather here will change by tomorrow. Who knows, maybe I will need the sunscreen & speedo (just kidding) by tomorrow.

Brian Bartley

Owatonna, MN Real Estate Market Conditions, April 25, 2008

Interest Rates have bounced up and down this week but finished right where they started at 5.875% for a 30 year fixed on Friday April 25th, 2008.

Current real estate listing inventory - 213 active listings in Owatonna as of today. The active listing count has dropped this week. There have been a few properties expire but mainly the number dropped because there were homes selling quickly this past week.

The number of pending listings popped up to 43 homes.

There have been 73 properties Closed so far in 2008. Awesome closing activity this week,

the count jumped up 11 for the closed and the pendings climber up 6. Best activity we have seen in months.

There are still a significant number of homes on the market that are priced way too high for the current real estate market here in Owatonna. The comparison charts point out what is selling and what has had price changes. Active Comparison Chart - Pending Comparison Chart - Closed Comparison Chart .

We have all of our listings available via Virtual Tour in English, Spanish and also in French

Owatonna, MN Real Estate Market Conditions, April 20, 2008

Interest Rates have climbed a bit this week and are at 5.875% for a 30 year fixed on Sunday April 20th, 2008. The rates climbed in the latter 1/2 of the week. We will have to watch and see what is going to happen next, predictions were for rates to drop last week and they rose instead.

Current real estate listing inventory - 220 active listings in Owatonna as of today. The active listing count has grown again since last week. This has been the biggest one week jump we have seen so far this year.

The number of pending listings slid up to 37 homes.

There have been 62 properties Closed so far in 2008. Some nice closing activity this week, look for the numbers to climb as we approach the end of the month.

It is interesting that we have seen the number of active listings climb as much as they have this week because there has also been nice activity in the closed category and the pending count has climbed a bit, which means homes are still getting sold.

The comparison charts are telling us that 44.5% of our active listings have had price changes averaging $14,360, while the closed listings have seen 55% with price changes totaling $16,845. There are still a significant number of homes on the market that are priced way too high for the current real estate market here in Owatonna. Active Comparison Chart - Pending Comparison Chart - Closed Comparison Chart .

We have all of our listings available via Virtual Tour in English, Spanish and also in French

Owatonna, MN Real Estate Market Conditions, April 12, 2008

Interest Rates have remained stable and are at 5.625% for a 30 year fixed on Saturday April 12th, 2008. Actually rates bounced up and down this week but finished at the same placed they ended last week.

Current real estate listing inventory - 212 active listings in Owatonna as of today. The active listing count has climbed again since last week. This has been the biggest one week jump we have seen so far this year.The number of pending listings crept up one to 35 homes.

There have been 57 properties Closed so far in 2008. Not a lot of closed activity this week, but anything is better than nothing.

The comparison charts continue to provide an insight into what is happening in the real estate market here in Owatonna. Active Comparison Chart - Pending Comparison Chart - Closed Comparison Chart .

Showings have slowed a little this week and the early report on todays open houses show a bit of a slowdown. We do need to keep in mind however that it has been raining or snowing every day this week and that will always slow traffic down. It is supposed to be 70 by Monday though.

We have all of our listings available via Virtual Tour in English, Spanish and also in French

Wonderfully Updated Lake Front Home - 1018 Abbott, Albert Lea , MN

The Bartley Group Coldwell Banker Home Connection info@bartleygroup.com 507-390-2121 1018 Abbott, Albert Lea, MN Direct Lake Frontage - Completely Updated 3 Bdrm Single Family House offered at $204,900 Year Built 1888 Sq Footage 2,326 Bedrooms 3 Bathrooms 1 full, 1 partial Floors 2 Parking 2 Car garage Lot Size .25 acres HOA/Maint $0 per month DESCRIPTION The updates on this wonderful home include the following: Main Level Sheetrock, texture & paint, trim, light fixtures, 6 panel oak swing doors, patio door, underlayment, laminate flooring Kitchen Cabinet doors, countertops, sink, faucet, vinyl flooring, dishwasher, refrigerator & stove Upper Level Sheetrock, texture & paint, oak trim, light fixtures, 6 panel oak swing doors, oak flush closet doors,underlayment, carpeting & pad Main Bath Bathtub & faucet, oak vanity & top, sink & faucet, toilet, underlayment & vinyl flooring Mechanicals High efficiency boiler & hot water system, hydronic heat covers, all cable runs Exterior added topsoil & graded back yard, reseeded lawn, fieldstone planting & decorative borders, cleaned & stained front & rear decks, wood lattice fence on east side of back yard Boat House & Lake Front Built boardwalk & dock, replaced shingles & roof sheathing, replaced service door, replaced siding, replaced overhead door, replaced concrete floor & ramp, track system & electric boat winch, replaced dusk to dawn light see additional photos below PROPERTY FEATURES Central heat Living room Office/Den Dining room Dishwasher Refrigerator Stove/Oven Basement Washer Dryer Laundry area - inside Balcony, Deck, or Patio Yard COMMUNITY FEATURES Garage parking Lake OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES Kitchen Main 16 x 10 New appliances,sink, countertop, vinyl Living Room Main 19 x 12 Laminate Floor/Ceiling Fan Dining Room Main 19 x 9 Laminate floor/2Ceiling Fans Bedroom 1 2nd Level 15 x 12 Carpet/6 Panel Door Bedroom 2 2nd Level 12 x 9 Carpet/6 Panel Door Bedroom 3 2nd Level 14 x 9 Carpet/6 Panel Door Full Bath 2nd Level 8 x 7 Vinyl Floor/Custom Oak Vanity ADDITIONAL PHOTOS Seller contact info: The Bartley Group Coldwell Banker Home Connection info@bartleygroup.com 507-390-2121 For sale by agent/broker Equal Opportunity Housing Posted: Apr 12, 2008, 8:24am PDT

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Owatonna, MN Real Estate Market Conditions, April 4, 2008

Interest Rates have remained stable and are at 5.625% for a 30 year fixed on Friday April 4th, 2008. Rates were fairly stable last week.

Current real estate listing inventory - 202 active listings in Owatonna as of today. The active listing count has dropped again since last week. This is the lowest we have seen since January of 2007, we are hoping to continue to see this count countinue to drop. 175-180 listings would be ideal.

The number of pending listings is steady at 35 homes.

There have been 54 properties Closed so far in 2008. Nice little rise since last week. We wern't expecting to see the closed count climb at all because it is the beginning of the month.

Have you take a look at the comparison charts? Active Comparison Chart - Pending Comparison Chart - Closed Comparison Chart .

Our main web site continues to show record numbers of visitors. March has simply blown away the record setting month we had in February. Thank you to all of you who continue to visit our sites.

Showings are still up and the phone call volume has remained high.

We now have all of our listings available via Virtual Tour in English and Spanish and now also in French