Team DiMuria Katy Texas Blog: August 2009

Why not take a blanket, a picnic basket, and bring the whole family to the Summer Concert at Cinco on Sunday , August 31st, from 6:30-7:30. The featured group will be " Drywater". What a great way to say goodbye to summer before the Labor Day weekend hits!

The concert is on the corner of Cinco Ranch Blvd and Rivergreen Park Lane.

This will conclude the Summer Concert Series this year in Cinco! Hope to see you all there.

Team DiMuria

www.katyhomefinder.com

281-492-5961

Areas that have the name Katy Texas...or fall within the Katy ISD school district stretch from the Westpark Tollway or FM 1093 to the south...to past Clay Rd to the North. From Barker Cypress to FM 1464 and beyond the "Katy Area" is very large...and as a buyer you need to know which area is right for you.

At Team DiMuria we strongly recommend you do an area tour of Katy. It will take hours of your time but will also allow you to eliminate those areas that do not fit your needs. Katy north of I-10, Katy south of I-10, the City of Katy (which straddles I-10 to the west) and even country properties in Waller County will all be available to you in the Katy area! Some of these areas may work for you, others may not fit your needs.

We can break our tour down based on style, price range, specific schools, proximity to work, required amenities, etc...

We personalize each tour to the specific requests and needs of our clients (to shorten the process as much as we can). Once you choose a general area we can focus on homes and find you your perfect slice of Katy!

Don't be short changed....make sure you get an "Area Tour"

Here is yet another reason to consider buying a home in Cinco Ranch, Katy Texas-SCHOOLS!

When buying a home, buyers normally factor in the schools, and how highly they are rated, as a major point in making a decision on where to buy. Highly rated schools help with overall property values as well.

The results of the 2009 Accountability Ratings for the Katy schools serving Cinco Ranch were just released by the Texas Education Agency, and they are stellar! The highest rating a school can hope to achieve is the "exemplary" rating-only 25.8% of all Texas public schools earned this rating in 2009-and 12 of the 13 Katy ISD schools serving Cinco Ranch earned this rating!  An Exemplary rating means that a campus must have at least 90% of it's students meet or EXCEED the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills(TAKS) standard on EACH subject. Subjects included are Reading, Math, English/Language Arts, Social Studies, Science, and Writing.  In addition, the campus must also have a dropout rate of 2% or less.

In 2009, there were 5 schools that increased their rating from Recognized(the next highest) to Exemplary. These schools were Cinco Ranch HS, Seven Lakes HS, Beck Jr High, Beckendorf Jr High, and Woodcreek Jr High.

There are currently 7 Elementary schools that serve Cicno Ranch, and ALL 7 kept their Exemplary rating for 2009! Theses schools are: Creech, Exley, Fielder, Griffin, Kilpatrick, Rylander, and Williams.

Some additional good news on Cinco Ranch High School and Seven Lakes High School as well-a recent study by Newsweek ranked these schools within the TOP 2% of the nation's high schools!

If you are looking to relocate, and you have kids-then you should strongly consider buying a home in Cinco Ranch-Cinco Ranch has been ranked in the top ten for Master Planned Communites, and the schools are top notch-look no further!

Team DiMuria

www.katyhomefinder.com

281-492-5961 Mona DiMuria

281-492-5916 Jeffrey DiMuria

Fort Bend County Texas which fill about half the Katy area south of I-10 posted the third biggest jump in U.S. job creation from 2000 to 2008. The massive 61.3% job growth rate has shown little sign of decreasing with the growth in medical, school, and service jobs leading the way.

The housing market has boomed along with the job growth market (obviously people who work need a place to live) so many new Master Planned Communities and subdivisions, especially those that are in close proximity to The Grand Parkway have blossomed.

The short commute times, great shopping options, and award winning schools have all added up to a place that residents want to live, work, and play in!

If you have any questions about Fort Bend County, Katy, or any of our fine subdivisions and Master Planned Communities contact Team DiMuria at 281-492-5916, jeffreydimuria@garygreene.com or find us on the web at www.KatyHomeFinder.com

Seven Meadows is a beautiful Master Planned Community in South Katy so it is no surprise that it is bucking National trends and showing a strong value increase year over year from July 2008 to July 2009.

The stats for Seven Meadows for the month of July 2008 vs 2009 are:

Avg sales price   July 2008 (as per HAR MLS) $324,258    July 2009    $362,146

Price per sqft      July 2008    $102.51         July 2009   $109.55

avg size home sqft   July 2008      3154 sqfft   July 2009    3277 sqft

increase in total sales  July 2008 vs July 2009     8%

Increase in Price of avg home sold in July 2008 vs July 2009    11%

As national trends go it is does not get much stronger then Seven Meadows in July!

If you have any questions about Seven Meadows or any of our other fine Katy subdivisions or Master Planned Communities please contact Team DiMuria at 281-492-5916 or jeffreydimuria@garygreene.com

we can also be reached on the web at www.KatyHomeFinder.com

The Master Planned Community of Cinco Ranch had strong July numbers for home sales of both re-sale homes and new construction.

For the month of July the numbers broke down as follows:

Total home sales in Cinco Ranch as reported in HAR MLS- July '09 107, July '08 100 (7% increase)

Average price of homes sold in Cinco Ranch July '09   $306672,   July '08  $299440 (2.42% increase)

Dollars per sqft of homes sold in Cinco Ranch  July '09  $96.26,  July '08  94.34

Average sized home sold in Cinco Ranch  July '09 3186 sqft, July '08 3174 sqft

In July 2009 the numbers show strong growth (7%) in the number of home sales while also showing an increase in both average sales price and dollars per square foot. This is a strong indication that the Katy area south of I-10 is bucking the National trend of lower prices, smaller homes, and fewer sales.

We feel strongly that the huge increase in medical jobs, schools, and energy corridor strength has led to the growth.

If you have any questions about Cinco Ranch or Katy Real Estate please call or e-mail Team DiMuria at 281-492-5916 or jeffreydimuria@garygreene.com

Team DiMuria can be found on the web at www.KatyHomeFinder.com 

If you have school aged children you have probably been looking forward to Tax free weekend...so you can get your school clothing without paying Uncle Sam! That time has come in Katy so we wanted to put out this reminder.

Stores in LaCenterra, The Katy Mills Mall, Villagio Retail Center, J.C. Penny at The Grand, and our other fine retail shops are all offering great deals and NO TAX!!! Mona was out today buying Anthony his school clothes.

Happy Shopping!

Cinco Ranch is having its annual Back To School Bash Friday August 21st from 5-9pm. The back to school bash will be held at the Cinco Ranch Water Park just west of Westheimer off Cinco Ranch Blvd. The kids can enjoy games and fun before heading back to school on Monday! All residents of Cinco I and Cinco II are invited to come out.

Texas shoppers will get a break from state and local sales tax on August 21,22,and 23rd-this is the state's annual tax holiday.

The Law exempts clothing and footwear priced under $100 fro sales and use taxes, which translates into about $8 for every $100 spent. Also exempt are elementary and secondary school backpacks.

In addition, new legislature was recently passed(HB 1801) which EXPANDS on what items qualify for the tax exemption. Texas families also get a break on most school supplies at less than $100 that are for use by a student in elementary or secondary school. Some of the items included are binders, book bags, crayons, erasers, highlighters, legal pads, lunch boxes, markers, rulers, scissors, just to name a few!

There is no exemption certificate required UNLESS the purchaser is buying the supplies under a business account.

Some examples of items that WILL BE taxed are: baseball cleats/pants, belt buckles, boots, accessories like barrettes, ponytail holders, watches, safety gear, glasses.

So nake sure to mark your calendars so you can save some money while getting the kids ready for the new school year!

For further information you may contact us at

Team DiMuria

281-492-5961

www.katyhomefinder.com

Katy Texas is an area that caters to family...especially those with children who will be attending our award winning KatyISD School District. Many of the potential clients we speak to are relocating because of job moves or quality of life issues. During our many conversations with these potential clients the topic often turns to their children as well as schools, and extra cirricular options like sports.

Rest assured...your children will have every sports option you can imagine! Katy is known for football...in fact the Katy High School football team is always competing for the Texas State Championship. Baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis, gymnastics, lacrosse, horseback riding, even Hockey are well represented here. You will have options for all ages, abilities levels, and advanced placement.

If you have children who love sports and you are wondering what will best fit them e-mailTeam DiMuria at jeffreydimuria@garygreene.com or call us at 281-492-5916. You can also contact us at www.KatyHomeFinder.com with questions about Katy or Katy Real Estate!

Katy Christian Ministries is opening a new larger re-sale shop in the old K-Mart location Mason Rd. It is on the opposite side of Mason from the present location. The store will more than double in size from it's present 19,000 sqft to around 39,000sqft.

Mona loves shopping at KCM...she not only finds a few nuggets from the enormous selection of products they carry, she, as many Katy residents feel, is donating to a great cause. Every year we evaluate all we have and make a donation to KCM....this is an organization that does a lot of good in the Katy area! KCM carries items like clothing, toys, furniture, office furniture, kitchen supplies, pictures, and much more.

The new location at 333 S. Mason Road (about 1/2 mile south of I-10 on the east side of Mason Rd) is set to open later in August. Stop by, check it out, drop off (make a donation) some things you no longer need...and find something you always wanted...it will be fun and you will be helping a great organization!

Visit Katy Christian Ministries on the web at: http://www.ktcm.org/

For info about Katy or Katy real estate contact Team DiMuria at: www.KatyHomeFinder.com or call 281-492-5916. e-mail us at jeffreydimuria@garygreene.com