23 May 2023

Venetian Estates News April 2023

Real Estate and More…

Venetian Estates Market Update

Four properties, ranging in price from $925k to $1.695 million, are currently listed for sale on HAR in Venetian Estates.

This month we sold the stunning home at 715 Salerno. We have facilitated several private sales this year. The market remains very strong, yet VE is particularly low in inventory. Please call us if you are considering selling, and we would love to help you structure a sale to meet your goals and timeline.

New Neighbors

We are delighted to introduce our new neighbors at 715 Salerno, Sarah and Brian Smith. Brian is from Chattanooga, TN, and Sarah is from New Waverly, TX. They met while undergrads in San Antonio at Trinity University and have been married for almost 23 years. They are moving from Sienna, where they have lived for 18 years. They own Sienna Plantation Animal Hospital, where Brian serves as the lead veterinarian and medical director. Sarah is a play therapist and has practiced on-and-off over the years while intermittently staying home with their four children. Abigail and Juliet (7th grade), Ian (5th grade), and Violet (1st grade) have attended Fort Bend Christian Academy for the past school year, and the whole family has fallen in love with the school and the VE community! With some good friends in place in VE and many more they can’t wait to meet, the Smiths plan to complete a few projects on the house and to move in by early May. The whole family is talking about what a fun summer this will be!

Nike, Nike!

Last summer, Corey and I traveled through Greece with our boys. In Athens, we learned of the story of Pheidippides, who was employed as a day runner by the Athenian military during the Greco-Persian War in 490 B.C. The Persians far outnumbered the Greeks and were closing in on Athens when the Athenian army met them on the coast of Marathon. Pheidippides was tasked with running 240 km (~150 mi) to Sparta to request their help to defend against the Persians. Sparta said that they could not help right away because they were in the middle of a religious festival. Pheidippides began the return 240-km, two-day journey back to Marathon to relay the disappointing message. However, he returned only to discover that the Greeks had astonishingly already defeated the powerful Persians. He was promptly tasked to run another 42 km (26.2 mi) to Athens to announce the Greeks’ remarkable victory. Legend says that upon arriving in Athens, Pheidippides proclaimed, “Nike! Nike!” (Victory! Victory!) before collapsing to his death from exhaustion. (Though there are rumors that his last words were actually, “My feet are killing me!”)

Our neighbor Brooke Lubojasky can proclaim both “Victory!” and “My feet are killing me!” but with a much happier ending…on April 17th she competed in the 127th running of the Boston Marathon, finishing with a time of 3:38:40. Neighbors may know our resident dedicated-athlete Brooke, who can be seen running in the early morning, late at night, in the rain, with a child, with a dog… Brooke and her husband, Heath, live at 610 Salerno with their three children, Ellis (7), Cole (5), and Collins (3). Brooke returned to running in 2020 during the COVID lockdown and qualified for the 2023 Boston Marathon after her completion of the Chevron Houston Marathon in 2022. Boston was Brooke’s fourth marathon. Her goal is to complete all Abbott World Marathon Majors. She has completed Chicago and Boston and has Berlin, London, Tokyo and New York left. We’re all cheering for you, Brooke!

Market Update

Speaking of running, I have run out of room for a detailed market update. Mortgage rates have eased a bit from their November peak, new listings and inventory are down, sales volume is up, and pricing has increased or declined depending on property type and location. If you would like to discuss personal real estate or simply general market conditions, call me!