Lights…Camera…Action!

Be one of the first to see a 3D IMAX show on the area’s BIGGEST screen at the 3D Launch Party Thursday, September 30th, the night before the CLC IMAX 3D opens on October 1st.

Hollywood will come to Tallahassee as we roll out the red carpet and welcome the paparazzi. Before the show, mingle with IMAX movie heroes and enjoy cocktails and star menu items from downtown restaurants including Andrew’s, Jasmine’s, Harry’s and One O One.

Doors open at 7:00pm and the show begins at 8:30pm. Tickets are $30 individual or $50 a couple and include champagne, wine, beer, soft drinks, food and the show. Seats are limited, so call 645-STAR now to reserve your tickets!

The fall in Tallahassee brings out the best in people! The weather is so wonderful, everyone wants to get out and about, plan events, throw parties, eat with friends and network! It’s my favorite time of year. This month there are tons of activities happening. Let’s focus on the regular events, sure to recur for years to come.

Each year, near football season, Tallahassee closes the Adams Street Downtown area for early evening block party events prior to football games. the 2010 Downtown Get-down Schedule boasts 13 actual events beginning in March, 2010 running through November 26th.

Tonight on the eve of the FSU/BYU game, Capital City Bank and United Way sponsor another downtown get-down event. Music, food vendors, face painting, dancing and visiting with friends is always. Events run from 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm.

Schedule of Tallahassee, FL Downtown Get-Downs

Schedule of all Florida State University Sports Events

View Full Album

View Full Album

Two beautiful  new listings in northeast Tallahassee. These homes for sale in Tallahassee are each very different. One perfect for a large family and the other for the specific buyer who desires the garden home that is executive style and on a golf course in a gated community.

Each has unique features and amenities that any buyer would love.

First 984 Watersview Drive in Piney Z Plantation.

Piney Z Plantation is in a community development district, (CDD), which features special neighborhood amenities such as a Lodge, swimming, outdoor pavilion, playground, Lake Heritage Park and more. The Home-owner’s association is active and more information can be found on their website.

This home at 984 Watersview Drive is priced to sell and is perfect for those who need a mother-in-law suite and large family bedrooms and living areas. The outdoor area is tranquil and a koi-pond and waterfall feature in the back yard make for a zen-like setting backing to wooded easement area. A true retreat from work! One block from Lake Heritage Park and the community Lodge and swimming area. See more details on Debbie’s Featured Listings Page.

Second:  9019 Eagles Ridge Drive in Golden Eagle Plantation

This golf-course frontage home is situated just inside Golden Eagle Plantation, a gated Tallahassee, FL community on a world-class golf course. The community features a golf club, swimming and tennis club, and homes ranging from $250,000 – over $2 Million. There is also one section of duplex-garden homes within in Eagles Ridge.

This home underwent a complete makeover consisting of new kitchen and bath cabinetry, lighting throughout, appliances, carpet in bedrooms, tile in wet areas, and gorgeous and-scraped cherry flooring in living areas and HVAC system. The home has a family room, living room, separate dining room, eat in kitchen with bar and breakfast table area. Separate laundry with sink and cabinetry. Views of fairways and tees yet far enough off the course to provide privacy and quiet enjoyment. For more on this home see Debbie’s Featured Listings Page.

For appointments to see these or other Tallahassee, FL Homes for Sale, Contact Debbie today!

Oh the things you learn at Real Estate BarCamps or technology conferences. Being in real estate is about changing with the times. The Time for learning innovative marketing techniques and ways to give savvy buyers “Quick Responses” that can be viewed on the go has arrived. These “QR” codes can be viewed by smartphones with QR Code Reader Applications such as Google Goggles for your Android Phone, or several  iPhone QR readers and several others. The apps lead you to photograph the code, then translate that to the website where you can view more information.

So what would a Realtor want with this kind of contraption? Well, how many times do sellers ask, “How many people have you shown my home to?” or “Is anyone looking at my home?” QR Codes allow Realtors to track who is seeing their listings, and give us information on those people such as what kinds of people are interested in it so that we can adjust marketing plans and niche market.

These codes are put into websites, into marketing materials, magazines and print advertising, and even on real estate signs! (Coming this week to Debbie Kirkland’s Listings!)

There is certainly a shift in marketing. Shifts not only in marketing listings, or locating buyers, but in how Realtors market themselves. I spend a lot of time asking buyers and sellers what they want in a Realtor. I have found buyers and sellers want to work with a real estate agent utilizing the most innovative, productive marketing tools to help them reach their goals, and one that is resourceful and respectful of making the most of their customer’s time. Time management, organization, data production ~ customers want to cut to the chase and to accomplish their goals more effectively and efficiently. It’s more and more about timely communication and depth of marketing outreach.

So, forward thinking we go… watch for QR Codes on my listings soon! If you see one, send it to your friends! Get your reader and take a look at this new listing and the message above!

Want a Marketing plan for your home that reaches more buyers, want a QR Code for your home?

It’s been a whirlwind week, but on Sept. 8th, I celebrated another trip around the sun! A lot of friends made a big fuss over “the day,” and those were nice surprises. I was honored by the “touch” of social media and the dozens of well wishes on Facebook and Twitter, some from faces I’ve never seen and people I have yet to meet, others who have become best of friends although miles apart. There are certainly more added in the “Bucket List” to meet in the upcoming years. Each are growingly important to me and made me smile. The riches of all that is good in people surrounded me and caused me pause throughout the day.

This day also caused me to reflect and remember the special birthdays of years past. Growing up in Tallahassee, FL, was truly wonderful. A kid in the country, exploring, scampering through the woods, creating imaginary worlds, games, and recreating episodes of Bonanza and Gunsmoke on a bicycle, or the pony that we had were the best of times. Here are a few really special memories that deserve a mention in my mind anyway!

Early in life, birthday presents mean a lot. Toys, gifts,.. that’s what seems important. Later in life,.. it’s the little things that mean the most. Like lunch with my girls, my mom and my sister, just an hour, just a few moments to look at the faces of those who influence my life.

One of my first memories was the birthday spent at my grandparents, and sitting in my grandfather’s lap while opening some gifts, later spending the night with he and my grandmother, sleeping right between them. hearing them laugh the next morning about what it is like sleeping with a little tornado. Having children later, I understand.

For those of you that didn’t notice, I am a bit of a country girl, and it runs deeper than my accent for sure. My birthday always fell right as school began and right around Labor Day. In Tallahassee, FL years ago, one of the things we looked forward to was the rodeo! It came to town near Labor Day at the Leon County Fairgrounds, and so for several years in a row, I took a “gaggle” of girls to the rodeo and then home for a slumber party. I can’t remember really the actual rodeo, but I do remember the girls, the laughter, my dad trying to make it a “serious” event and my neighbors, Mal and Dottie, coming with us. They participated in just about every major event in my life.. and lots in between. I remember the bull that hit the edge of the fence in a puddle of mud and that sent mud spattering Dottie’s white pantsuit and laughing so hard it hurt!

I remember my “Sweet 16” celebrated at another party at my house. a day of swimming and hamburgers with a dance set up outside and half the baseball and football team turning out followed by a sleepover with my girlfriends and playing twister and listening to my parents old LP’s and learning the “Twist” while listening to Chubby Checkers. To top it off, a few weeks earlier, there was the Lemon Yellow Toyota Corolla that my dad helped me pick out. A 4-speed that I had to learn to drive, with a radio and AC.. and not much else! It cost $4,500, and my payments were $91/month.

I remember my 24th, just a few weeks after my first child was born and how good it felt to float in the pool at my parents while everyone oohed and ahhed over the baby.

For my 35th, newly divorced and going through the find myself stage, (which I think I probably still in!), I celebrated with a friend by getting the tattoo I wanted while she got her 7th.

On my 40th, I had my first true surprise birthday given by someone I was dating.. surrounded by friends who organized everything. I was in shock that he actually pulled it off. Later I found out he was a master of secrets. Err.

For my 45th, I kicked up my heels at the Bradfordville Blues Club with 45 friends and family members. We danced to the tunes of “The Sauce Boss” Bill Wharton and three generations got to stir that pot of gumbo with Bill. For me, it was pure heaven, music, friends and beer.

There have been many a birthday in between, some memorable, some quiet and reflective, but each one a trip back in time to the best gifts in my life, family, friends, good food, music and the rodeo of life. Thanks for being a part of the sights I’ve seen along the way!

The US Department of Labor tells us The history of Labor Day in the United States dates back in September 5, 1882 in New York City in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. By 1884, the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday to celebrate Labor Day, as originally proposed by the union. Since then, the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a “workingmen’s holiday” on that date.

Before I was a contributing member of the “workforce” of America, it meant another day off school and time to spend at home with my family while the TV ran all day and night as we watched the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Telethon. In 1966, the first year of the telethon, he raised a little over $1,000,000. Last year, 2009, that number was over $60 million. That, my friends, represents a lot of work. 44 years of service, 44 years of year-round work.This week I’ll be 49. I can’t remember a Labor Day that I did not catch a glimpse of Jerry Lewis or that I didn’t find at least $20, whether I had it or not.

As I sit at home, with a laptop USB cord draped around my neck, waiting to download pictures from a new listing, I remember the tape measure that draped over my mother’s shoulders as she sewed many a cheerleading outfit, a Halloween costume or a new dress. I remember also, the yarns and crochet needles that my grandmother draped across her neck and lap while creating one of many afghans that she gave to each of us grandchildren. These women were not paid for their work, but today I celebrate those hours of work and while my grandmothers have passed, I’m wishing my mom and others like her, a day off ~ but then there’s the  Mother’s Day holiday. Oh well, there are never enough days to say thank you are there?

Since I’ve been in real estate, I don’t think I’ve taken a Labor Day weekend off either, come to think of it! This is always a time that people want to see homes, have traveled to Tallahassee to spend time with family and friends or simply had a few days off in a row to see the homes they wanted to see. Being a Realtor and being available to people  many times means sacrificing holidays and weekends and evenings. This afternoon, I will be working with a lady from Queens, NY and her family that live nearby in Quincy, FL, another area I service. I’m actually looking forward to it. If you’re going to work, love what you do, or find something else to do ~ advice from a friend many years ago. Cheers to all my Realtor friends, many of whom I already checked in with on Twitter this morning as then began their Labor Days as well.

So, It’s been a few weeks since I blogged, and today, my Labor day consists of catching up with the postings here and on the 365 Things To Do in and Around Tallahassee blog subject, featured here and as a page on Facebook. Later this afternoon, I have about 4 hours of showing properties and  helping a customer from Queens find her retirement home here in Tallahassee!

How do you spend your Labor Day holiday?