Saugatuck Real Estate | Pat and Pam Murphy, Realtors

Find pen & write down five (5) things that you're grateful for.  Tack the list to your bulletin Board, or tape it to your bathroom mirror, or wear it around your neck if you have to.  Because this year you could probably use the reminders.

"These are the times that try women's souls."  to Paraphrase Thomas Paine.  Who cares that he was talking about the American Revolution?  We've had revolutionary drama of our own in 2008.  Wall Street is-well, What is Wall Street now, exactly??-and we're barreling toward an election that, no matter how it turns out, will leave a good many of the people in this country bitter and disappointed.

In anticipation of Thanksgiving this year, it is the mundane things that quickly come to my mind to be grateful for.  And this year that feels just right when Mother Nature, the economy, and our whole political landscape seem to be in course correction mode, it's time for us all to think small.

Remembering to be thankful for the roof over your head or your children's health or your enduring relationship with your partner-those are biggies, for sure.

On the day the stock market dropped 777 points, gave me a slight case of heartburn!!!  I remember that real estate speculators & borrowers who were overleveraged risked getting burned but that the rest of us would be just fine.

That was before I understood the extent of the subprime market and the credit debt swaps and how they would affect those of us on Main Street.

I think we all are responsbile in some way for the current credit crunch.  We didn't package risky securities for big commissions as they did on Wall Street, but many of us benefited from the easy money that was available to refinance our homes or buy second ones.

THE FOLLOWING LINK  through the Saugatuck Area Business Association, SABA, will list all area Businesses Fall hours for the coming months.

This will help you plan your activites while you are visiting our beautiful Fall Season, here, in Saugatuck/Douglas.

 And don't forget to contact me for a tour of any homes you might be interested in viewing for purchase during your stay in Saugatuck/Douglas.

 The Michigan Association of Builders just emailed Pat & I, stating, their are many Banks, here, in West Michigan with money to loan. 

Contact me today to chat about all your future Real Estate needs in Saugatuck/Douglas, Michigan.

The City of Saugatuck is featured in the September/October 2008 issue of Michigan History magazine.

The article, written by our own Saugatuck Center for the Arts executive director Kristin Armstrong, highlights the city from its beginnings as a lumber town to the artistic community it is known for today.  Accompanying the article are photographs of instiutions associated with the city including the Ox-Box School of Art, The Saugatuck Ferry and City Hall.

In an outside interview, Armstrong said Saugatuck had a layered history that has woven together its waters.  "It' a central piece of who we are and how we serve our community," she said, "It makes Saugatuck special."

Michigan History is published by the Michigan Historical Center, part of the Department of History, Arts & Libraries. 

So get your copy while they last at Barnes and Noble, B. Dalton & Borders bookstores.

THE MIDWEST SHINES IN AUTUMN.    There are back roads to be driven, leaves to eye and small-town festivals to be discovered.  Best of all, crowds are at a minimum.  Saugatuck/Douglas, Michigan is a favorite midwestern destination from art meccas to woodsy retreats.  Grab the atlas, pack the car and hit the road this fall & come visit.  I can show you around & I guarantee you will fall in love with the area, as Pat & I pretty much did 3 yrs ago when we made the move from Naperville, Illinois. 

Saugatuck/Douglas has lots to "BEACH" about!  That's the conclusion of yet another mass-media outlet, travel web site Concierge.com which rates us one of 11 Great American Beach Towns. 

Concierge.com, part of the Conde' Nast Publications empire, "dug up" 11 "sea de escapes" that, given gas prices and the economy, make for happy, affordable vacations.