Spring means Baseball in WNY! Sports fans in Western New York look forward to the changes in the seasons, it means another sport to cheer!  With Spring it means that it is time for all good Western New York Sports fans to turn their attention to Baseball! Buffalo Bisons Opening Day is April 11th!  Download the 2008 Schedule here Sports Related BLOGS in Western New York to check out: 38 Pitches BfloBlog Buffalo News Inside Pitch Buffalo Sports Stampede Die by the Blade Sports and Leisure Magazine Blog Sports Buffalo Talk Baseball If you enjoyed this post by your Buffalo & Niagara Falls Home Sales Expert, make sure you subscribe to our RSS feed! 03/17/2008

Congratulations Buffalo ReUse & Michael Gainer I just read a post over at Fix Buffalo Today about a New York Times Magazine feature about social entrepeneurship. Michael Gainer is featured along with the Buffalo ReUse.   In the post the author mentions that Buffalo ReUse and the Building Materials Reuse Association (BMRA) are sponsoring the first Great Lakes regional conference on developing and implementing building deconstruction and other creative solutions to address problems and solutions surrounding vacant and abandoned structures on November 16-18. They are looking for volunteers and for speakers for this event. Seems like a call to action! For more information, click here.   Read Also:  Buffalo Niagara’s Alternative         Colleen Kulikowski is your Western New York Real Estate... 03/11/2008

 Interesting read in today's Buffalo News Mortgage crisis guts Cleveland neighborhoods as it bypasses Buffalo10,000 Abandonded homes in Cleveland as a result of the mortgage crisisThe Real Estate Market collapsed in places like Cleveland and Detroit, while Buffalo is experiencing miniumal damage3% of Metro Cleveland's homes have fallen into foreclosure last year -- Buffalo less than 1/2 percentBuffalo's slow growth and tough attitude against speculators that don't take care of the property has protected it from the looming Mortgage crisis.Buffalo learned from the 1990's and took a tough stance on predatory lending, so history did not repeat itself here.Buffalo housing prices increased 4% last year, while most of the country saw that the market was flat or declinging.Attention Investors!... 03/07/2008

"The Natural" 25th Anniversary CelebrationPublished by your Buffalo & Niagara Falls Real Estate Expert, Colleen Kulikowski It seems like yesterday there was casting calls and the city of Buffalo and all of Western New York was excited about this movie. How could 25 years have gone by so fast?As part of the 25th anniversary of the filming of The Natural in Buffalo. The Buffalo Niagara Film Festival is looking for area folks that participated in the film's production, or might have home video, memorabilia related to the shoot.The Natural will be shown as part of the film festival's Opening Day Gala on March 24th. If you have any materials or memories from the film shoot, please contact the festival through the Buffalo Niagara Film Festival website. You can also call (716) 827-3534. If you... 03/03/2008

Western New York Blog Carnival - February 25, 2008 Western New York Blog Carnival archives | submit post Welcome to the February 25, 2008 edition of western New York. If you enjoy this and have a blog, please submit a post of yours to the next Carnival! As long as there are few entries, I am able to hightlight all of them!  Read all the featured posts at: Western New York Blog Carnival - February 25, 2008 Submit your blog article to the next edition of Western New York using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page. If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed! 02/24/2008

  Selling your Buffalo home should be treated as any other transaction. It should be made without emotional involvement.Many times Buffalo Sellers use their hearts instead of their heads when making such an important decision as listing their home for sale. By not thinking objectively, it costs Buffalo home sellers important time and money. In some instances, it can cost even more than that. To prevent this from happening to you, don't make the three biggest mistakes when listing your home for sale.Read about the three most costly mistakes Buffalo Home Sellers make at Your Buffalo Home - Selecting the Right Agent to Represent YOU!  02/21/2008

Those in Buffalo and Niagara Falls area are over joyed!   The Buffalo Niagara Regions Real Estate Market Ranked 13th Best Market in NationThe National Association of Realtors (NAR) released 2007 4th quarter home prices. It places the Buffalo Niagara region in the 13th best market in the nation out of 151 regional markets in the report. The Buffalo Niagara region saw a 9.1% increase in single-family home prices from the 4th quarter of 2006. Home sales prices increase rose from $96,000 to $105,400 in the twelve-month period. Encouraging news to the Western New York region, with the national statistics which showed a median 4th quarter price drop of -5.8%. It is no wonder that there is increased speculation and interest in Western New York Real Estate. Hopefully these statistics will conti... 02/17/2008

She is back in her hometown -- Buffalo NY! Colleen has joined Carl DeFranco in Niagara Falls to serve the Western New York region. Visit her on the web at: www.BuffaloNiagaraRealEstateHomeSales.com! She still has all her Florida connections for all those snowbirds who want a place in the sun. One of the great things being back in Western New York is all the great food! Check out the following video for a great look at a local tradition...  02/07/2008

  Buffalo Auto Show at the Buffalo Niagara Convention CenterFebruary 6-10http://www.buffalocars.com/The Buffalo Auto Show  is filled with the newest cars, trucks, and concept vehicles.  Fun for the whole family.February 9-10 2008Town of Cheektowaga Winter Recreation Celebrationhttp://www.town.cheektowaga.ny.us/Live Music, Fireworks, Public Skate, Chili Cook off and more!February 10, 2008Town of Clarence Winterfest 2008http://clarence.ny.us/#item2Fun for all!  Includes ice skating, sledding, petting zoo, bonfire, food and more.February 13, 2008Amherst Meals on Wheels Spaghetti Dinner Fundraiserhttp://www.amherst.ny.us/news/events.asp4:00 - 6:30pmTickets - $7Dinner will include spaghetti and meatballs, salad, bread and butter, dessert, and coffee, tea or soda.Take out available.370 JJ Aud... 01/26/2008

Buffalo NY Now and Then Buffalo Now & Then is a great video that we came across today and thought you might enjoy a positive look at Buffalo New York.  Western New York, Buffalo and Niagara Falls have had it tough, but things are starting to change in Western New York.  It is not all the negative that the media would like to show.  Sure there is room for improvement -- but doesn't every community?Some other posts you may have missed: Attention WNY Teachers Got Bluetooth WNY? Orchard Park NY Single Family Home Market Report for 2007 Cambria NY Single Family Home Market Report - January 2008 Fair Housing Rules Affect WNY Buyers Fair Housing Violation in Cheektowaga? Niagara Falls Home For Sale January Thaw in WNY 01/18/2008

Dirty Deeds - Buffalo NY Getting Tough on Bank Owned Foreclosures! An interesting article popped up in the Realtor Magazine Daily Update about how Buffalo NY is taking an aggressive approach to holding the lenders accountable for the condition of the homes in their control as reported by Michael Orey of BusinessWeek.Spreading the Pain Michael Orey wrote in this very telling article Dirty Deeds. Those that profited from the sale of these houses at one point are now stuck with the collateral and they don't like it. In Buffalo there is an estimated 5,000-10,000 abandoned homes. These abandoned homes are a problem, especially when they are not being taken care of. New York State amended the definition of "Owner" in its property maintenance code to include not just the title holders, but oth... 01/15/2008

Why people use Hard Money?There is a general misconception that hard money is an opportunity of last resort for people who have, or want to have, an interest in real estate. After all, the rates are higher, terms shorter. That is a truth-but not the whole truth.Savvy investors use hard money to their great advantage.Except for the people who can walk into their bank with a deed in their hand, and walk out with a check, bank financing is highly unlikely. There are, however big lenders that advertise how quick, easy and cheap it is to borrow from them. It isn't until you have answered every question (my favorite is "what was your mothers maiden name"), jumped through every hoop (they start out slow-by the time you are done you've submitted 50 pages of forms) and either paid thousands of $... 01/14/2008

239 Days and Counting until the National Chicken Wing Festival There are countless festivals during the summer here in Western New York!  A ver popular one is the National Chicken Wing Festival and the countdown has begun for the 7th Annual National Chicken Wing Festival in Buffalo NY! This two day event of filled with fun for everyone and is not to be missed! Western NY is famous for their Chicken Wings! Most notably where they were created at the Anchor Bar in Downtown Buffalo. There are so many wonderful places in Western New York to get Chicken Wings. One good thing about calling Western New York home, is you are never very far from good food!Coming from far away?  It is time to think about booking your hotel rooms for The National Chicken Wing Festival! Here are a few options for y... 01/03/2008

Pizza & Wings! The favorite food here in Western New York has to be Pizza and Wings! Having a home in Western New York you are in the center of some of the best food around. If you ask 20 people you will get 20 different suggestions as to where to get Pizza & Wings in Western New York. But where does one turn to find some of the best Pizza and Wings in WNY? Did you know that there was Gluten Free pizza? Do you know the real story behind the original Buffal Wing? Did you know there is a place that will ship a pizza out of state?Well here is a collection of a few Pizza & Wing providers in the Western New York area and some answers to those burning questions:  Anchor Bar1047 Main Street Buffalo NY 14209(716) 883-1134The Real Story behind the Buffalo WingPizza Junction1269 Erie Avenue North... 12/15/2007

  Yikes! There is a showing of my Buffalo home in 15 minutes!   I have heard the story many times. So we like to give our Buffalo Home Sellers some insight about showings. We know your number one goal is to get your Buffalo Home Sold, quickly and for the highest dollar. But we need your help in achieving that goal. One way you can assist in the process is with the Showing of your Buffalo home. Here are a few guarantees we can give the Buffalo Home Seller:Last Minute calls Showings at inconvienent times Showings to cancel when we pull up to the driveway Not able to get feedback from Showing agents Here is a scenario we can relate to here in Western New York as Sellers ...You had a long day at the office, you had a meeting that went long, you left your cell phone on your desk at noon, and... 12/14/2007

   Like it or not, daylight savings time is upon us. When adjusting your clocks it is always a good time to place fresh batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. If you don't have alarms, now is a great time to install them. Remember to read the manufacturer's instructions carefully for placement within the home and recommended number of alarms (Not all municipalities have the same regulations - in terms of code compliance.)    A good rule of thumb for smoke alarms is: One on each level of the home; One in each bedroom; One in the common hallway of sleeping areas.   I sometimes get comments similar to this when recommending fresh batteries, "But you told me my smoke alarms are hard wired." Yes, but there is a battery back-up inside the alarms in the event of a power outage.   ... 10/28/2007

   With winter and the cold weather months fast approaching (especially in the Northeast) it's a good idea to start planning and implementing your strategies for lowering your home energy consumption. Petroleum and home heating fuel costs are expected to skyrocket this coming month. With these thoughts in mind, here are a few tips for Winter energy savings:* Have your heating system inspected and checked for optimal performance. A dirty furnace filter reduces the amount of heat supplied to your home, thus increasing your heating cost. Check filters once a month and replace if dirty* Set your thermostat no higher than 68 degrees F. Each degree below 68 F can save 3% to 5% of your heating cost. Consider installing a programmable thermostat to automatically set back to a lower setting at n... 10/27/2007

What are the three biggest mistakes Real Estate Sellers make?By not thinking objectively, important time is lost, money can be lost and so much more.  To prevent this from happening to you, don't make the three biggest mistakes when listing your home for sale.When selling your home it should be treated as any other transaction.  It should be made without emotional involvement, but many times Sellers use their hearts instead of their heads when making such an important decision as listing their home for sale.  Three of biggest mistakes that Real Estate Sellers make are:Selecting an Agent because they agree with your Listing Price or willing to charge you the lowest commission in the area.Just because you think your home is worth a certain amount, does not mean you will get it.  There are... 10/26/2007

God's Wartime Army a Para-Religous Philanthropic NY State Corp Needs your help to provide West Buffalo with currently unmet needs for Small Business Incubation, Learning and Recreational Activities with Persoanal Computer Training in Assembly, Troubleshooting, Repair and Networking.  Analog, Digital, and Theoretical Music. Our privately designed Language and Leadership Course will also be provided to the general public. Partner needed who can draw down 70K equity on 95K 4 family to office conversion.  10K will pre-pay debt to soften the blow of interest.  Loan will be held 24-48 months or earlier if new financing is found.  The same 10k owed to us from the owner which will pre-pay our rent for the first year. 02/14/2007

BUFFALO, CHICKEN WINGS AND THE SUPERBOWL I went grocery shopping at Tops Supermarket yesterday and that was probably not the best thing to do. There was no place left to park in the parking lot and I had to drive around and stalk people as they were leaving the store - much like on Black Friday at the mall. I, like everyone else in America, had to pick up some stuff for our little superbowl get together. Once I managed to park, and got into the store, it didn't seem so bad. First the deli, no line there. Then to produce, not bad there either. I was wondering where everyone was, considering all the cars in the lot. I found out soon enough when I got into the "snack" aisle. Forget pushing your grocery cart down there. It was wall to wall people. It was like a sale in Filene's basement wit... 02/04/2007