Ann Fitzgibbons | San Antonio Lifestyle

Featured Listings

SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER 2016

FITZ

Each office is independently owned and operated.

Lifestyle S A N

A N T O N I O

21625 Cielo Ridge | San Antonio, TX 78256 Priced at $1,200,000 | Cielo Ridge Subdivision

Highly acclaimed contemporary architectural achievement, featured in international publications, walls of glass cantilevered on the brow of the hillside capturing vistas of the hill country, masterful combination of natural and man made materials, wood, stone, steel, glass create a sleek sense of style and grace all on 3+ acres of solitude. One of a kind architectural work of art and space.

Hallowed History & FUN FALL FACTS

21625 Cielo Ridge Website: fitzandassoc.wix.com/21625cieloridge Virtual Tour: tours.craigmac.tv/public/vtour/display/42631

626 E Evergreen $499,000 | Tobin Hill

220 Belvidere $745,000 | Olmos Park

9807 La Rue

139 Knibbe

$199,000 | Under Contract

SOLD

FitzGibbonsandAssociates.com Ann FitzGibbons Broker Associate FitzGibbons and Associates Keller Williams Portfolio Ann@FitzGibbonsandAssociates.com 210.723.3093 Direct 7701 Broadway San Antonio, TX 78209

If your home is currently listed, this is not a solicitation for that listing.

With Ann’s local real estate knowledge and Keller William’s international presence, now is the time to sell your current property or find your dream home.

Produced by DLP Marketing • (877)660-0996 • DLPmarketing.com

Metro Market Housing Report

Wildfish Seafood Grille Chocolate Godiva Cake

The FitzGibbons and Associates Team®

Ann FitzGibbons | 210.723.3093 Ann@FitzGibbonsandAssociates.com

EVENTFUL

Metro Market Report

Day. The night before became known as All-hallows Eve and before long was simply called Halloween. But how did scaring the dead away and honoring the dead turn into a night focused on kids and candy? Trick or treating actually has these same ancient origins. In order to keep ghosts away from their home, the ancient Celts would place bowls of food on their doorstep hoping this would appease the spirits. Later on in England, AllSouls’ Day parades began when poor children would go door to door promising to pray for people’s deceased loved ones in return for pastries, which were known as “soul cakes.” This is the origin of the sweet treats your little ones go in search of every year on Halloween.

SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER 2016 The 1916 at Old Brack Golf Brackenridge Park Golf Course | September 16 - 18 AlamocityGolfTrail.com | (210) 212-7572 On September 16-18, golfers from around Texas and beyond will be competing in a tournament commemorating the 100th Anniversary of Brackenridge Park Golf Course—the original home of the Texas Open from 1922-1959. Join us on the course and become a part of golf history!

The Rosenberg Skyroom at Incarnate World September 23 TheDoseum.org | (210) 212-4453 Jessica Lahey will speak on her New York Times bestselling book, The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed, which outlines the importance of letting children experience disappointments and frustrations in order to learn problem solving skills and resiliency.

Telling Tales: Contemporary Narrative Photography McNay Art Museum | September 28 – January 8 McNayArt.org | (210) 824-5368 In fall 2016, the McNay presents Telling Tales: Contemporary Narrative Photography, a survey of work by artists who record stories through pictures, whether real or imagined. Organized by the McNay’s Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art, René Paul Barilleaux, the exhibition includes approximately fifty photographs from the 1970s to the present by 16 ground breaking photographers.

Sweeney Todd, The Barber of Fleet Street Woodlawn Theatre | October 7 – November 6 WoodLawnTheatre.org | (210) 267-8338 Sweeney Todd, whose real name is Benjamin Barker, uses his new alias to resume work in his barber shop above Mrs. Lovett’s struggling pie shop after being wrongfully sentenced to life imprisonment by the corrupt Judge Turpin. After swearing vengeance against the judge that tore his family apart, Todd and Lovett plot a unique plan that helps them both and leads them down a dangerous, thrilling path with deadly consequences.

San Antonio Beer Festival Maverick Park | October 15 SanAntonioBeerFestival.com | (210) 388-0606 The 11th Annual San Antonio Beer Festival is the largest Beer Festival in San Antonio, pouring 350 plus premium and craft beers from over 85 breweries. A portion of the San Antonio Beer Festival proceeds benefit the San Antonio Food Bank. This festival is jam packed with your favorite porters, stouts, pilsners, ales, wheats, ciders, and lagers to name a few.

The festival will also feature live music, interactive games, a wine garden, food trucks, food booths, local vendors and more.

T

he national real estate market is doing well. In second quarter 2016, the US housing market was a perfect real life example of the principle of supply and demand. Demand for housing exceeded the supply of resale and new construction homes on the market creating a seller’s market.

As expected, high demand with limited supply led to rapidly rising housing prices in most areas of the country.

The median price of an existing (not newly constructed) home across the nation reached $239,700 in May, according to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). That’s up 3.8% from April and 4.7% from May of 2015. The previous peak was June, 2015 at $236,300.

“The price increases are a natural result of the very strong demand for homes against very limited homes for sale,” says Realtor.com’s chief economist, Jonathan Smoke. “It is pent-up demand… coupled with the lowest mortgage rates we’ve had in three years.”

The cost of becoming a homeowner was highest in the West with the median home price reaching $346,900 in May. While the limited supply of homes is bad news for buyers, sellers are cashing in as houses continue to move quickly. This May, the number of sales nationwide hit 526,000, an 11.9% jump from April and a 6.3% increase from May of last year.

“More homeowners are realizing the equity they’ve accumulated in recent years and finally deciding to trade-up or downsize,” according to NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. “Repeat buyers are using the proceeds from the sale of their previous home as their down payment.”

With the pace of new home construction lagging well behind the surging demand for these residences, it looks like the housing shortage is only going to get worse.

Just 81,100 new homes were completed in May—down 3.3% from 83,900 in May last year, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s monthly new residential construction report.

The most new homes are continuing to go up in the South. About 43,800 new residences were completed in that region in May, followed by 19,000 new residences completed in the West.

Mirroring what is happening across the nation, housing prices in the San Antonio market continue to rise. The single-family home median price in the San Antonio area rose 6 percent year over year to $212,500 in June according to the latest monthly report prepared by the San Antonio Board of Realtors (SABOR).

F

all is in the air. Before long, pumpkins will be transformed into jack-o-lanterns and costume-clad children will be roaming the streets in search of sweets. But how did Halloween come to be and what is the root of all the spooky and fun traditions?

According to the History Channel, the holiday’s origins lie with the Celts, the ancient Irish clan who lived 2,000 years ago, who marked the day as the end of the harvest season and the start of the long, cold winter. As crops and food became scarce, this bridge between seasons became synonymous with a bridge to the world of the dead. The Celts celebrated the day with a festival known as “Samhain” (translation “summer’s end”) during which they lit bonfires and donned costumes in hopes of keeping ghosts away.

The costumes were usually made from animal heads and skins.

Although a far cry from the Minion and Spiderman costumes of today, this is the root of why we wear Halloween costumes today.

The actual word “Halloween” didn’t become associated with this time of year until about the 8th century when the Christian church declared November 1st All Soul’s Day, a time to honor not fear the dead. This was also known as “All-hallows” or “All-hallowmas,” from the Middle English Alholowmesse, which meant All Saints’

IN GOOD TASTE

Outside The Lunchbox Luncheon

Scaring Up The Past

Happy Halloween!

Chocolate Godiva Cake INGREDIENTS ½ lb 5 1 tsp 6 oz 3 oz

Dark Godiva chocolate Eggs Vanilla extract Sugar Butter

DIRECTIONS Melt chocolate and butter in a sauce pan. Whisk eggs and sugar then add vanilla extract. Then slowly add eggs to chocolate. Divide batter into 4 lightly buttered and floured 8 oz baking dishes. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 18 minutes. Turn-out into a soup bowl, serve with your favorite vanilla ice cream. Serves 4.

REAL ESTATE

corner

Halloween did not really come to America until about the 1850s when Irish and English immigrants brought with them these ancient customs. The traditions grew and evolved into our own American version of Halloween. So this year, as you hang a scary witch or silly ghost in your yard, remember that you’ll not only be spooking the neighborhood children but you may be warding off bad spirits from your home as well. And who couldn’t use a little good fortune these days?

Wildfish Seafood Grille | WildfishSeafoodGrille.com

EVENTFUL

Metro Market Report

Day. The night before became known as All-hallows Eve and before long was simply called Halloween. But how did scaring the dead away and honoring the dead turn into a night focused on kids and candy? Trick or treating actually has these same ancient origins. In order to keep ghosts away from their home, the ancient Celts would place bowls of food on their doorstep hoping this would appease the spirits. Later on in England, AllSouls’ Day parades began when poor children would go door to door promising to pray for people’s deceased loved ones in return for pastries, which were known as “soul cakes.” This is the origin of the sweet treats your little ones go in search of every year on Halloween.

SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER 2016 The 1916 at Old Brack Golf Brackenridge Park Golf Course | September 16 - 18 AlamocityGolfTrail.com | (210) 212-7572 On September 16-18, golfers from around Texas and beyond will be competing in a tournament commemorating the 100th Anniversary of Brackenridge Park Golf Course—the original home of the Texas Open from 1922-1959. Join us on the course and become a part of golf history!

The Rosenberg Skyroom at Incarnate World September 23 TheDoseum.org | (210) 212-4453 Jessica Lahey will speak on her New York Times bestselling book, The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed, which outlines the importance of letting children experience disappointments and frustrations in order to learn problem solving skills and resiliency.

Telling Tales: Contemporary Narrative Photography McNay Art Museum | September 28 – January 8 McNayArt.org | (210) 824-5368 In fall 2016, the McNay presents Telling Tales: Contemporary Narrative Photography, a survey of work by artists who record stories through pictures, whether real or imagined. Organized by the McNay’s Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art, René Paul Barilleaux, the exhibition includes approximately fifty photographs from the 1970s to the present by 16 ground breaking photographers.

Sweeney Todd, The Barber of Fleet Street Woodlawn Theatre | October 7 – November 6 WoodLawnTheatre.org | (210) 267-8338 Sweeney Todd, whose real name is Benjamin Barker, uses his new alias to resume work in his barber shop above Mrs. Lovett’s struggling pie shop after being wrongfully sentenced to life imprisonment by the corrupt Judge Turpin. After swearing vengeance against the judge that tore his family apart, Todd and Lovett plot a unique plan that helps them both and leads them down a dangerous, thrilling path with deadly consequences.

San Antonio Beer Festival Maverick Park | October 15 SanAntonioBeerFestival.com | (210) 388-0606 The 11th Annual San Antonio Beer Festival is the largest Beer Festival in San Antonio, pouring 350 plus premium and craft beers from over 85 breweries. A portion of the San Antonio Beer Festival proceeds benefit the San Antonio Food Bank. This festival is jam packed with your favorite porters, stouts, pilsners, ales, wheats, ciders, and lagers to name a few.

The festival will also feature live music, interactive games, a wine garden, food trucks, food booths, local vendors and more.

T

he national real estate market is doing well. In second quarter 2016, the US housing market was a perfect real life example of the principle of supply and demand. Demand for housing exceeded the supply of resale and new construction homes on the market creating a seller’s market.

As expected, high demand with limited supply led to rapidly rising housing prices in most areas of the country.

The median price of an existing (not newly constructed) home across the nation reached $239,700 in May, according to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). That’s up 3.8% from April and 4.7% from May of 2015. The previous peak was June, 2015 at $236,300.

“The price increases are a natural result of the very strong demand for homes against very limited homes for sale,” says Realtor.com’s chief economist, Jonathan Smoke. “It is pent-up demand… coupled with the lowest mortgage rates we’ve had in three years.”

The cost of becoming a homeowner was highest in the West with the median home price reaching $346,900 in May. While the limited supply of homes is bad news for buyers, sellers are cashing in as houses continue to move quickly. This May, the number of sales nationwide hit 526,000, an 11.9% jump from April and a 6.3% increase from May of last year.

“More homeowners are realizing the equity they’ve accumulated in recent years and finally deciding to trade-up or downsize,” according to NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. “Repeat buyers are using the proceeds from the sale of their previous home as their down payment.”

With the pace of new home construction lagging well behind the surging demand for these residences, it looks like the housing shortage is only going to get worse.

Just 81,100 new homes were completed in May—down 3.3% from 83,900 in May last year, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s monthly new residential construction report.

The most new homes are continuing to go up in the South. About 43,800 new residences were completed in that region in May, followed by 19,000 new residences completed in the West.

Mirroring what is happening across the nation, housing prices in the San Antonio market continue to rise. The single-family home median price in the San Antonio area rose 6 percent year over year to $212,500 in June according to the latest monthly report prepared by the San Antonio Board of Realtors (SABOR).

F

all is in the air. Before long, pumpkins will be transformed into jack-o-lanterns and costume-clad children will be roaming the streets in search of sweets. But how did Halloween come to be and what is the root of all the spooky and fun traditions?

According to the History Channel, the holiday’s origins lie with the Celts, the ancient Irish clan who lived 2,000 years ago, who marked the day as the end of the harvest season and the start of the long, cold winter. As crops and food became scarce, this bridge between seasons became synonymous with a bridge to the world of the dead. The Celts celebrated the day with a festival known as “Samhain” (translation “summer’s end”) during which they lit bonfires and donned costumes in hopes of keeping ghosts away.

The costumes were usually made from animal heads and skins.

Although a far cry from the Minion and Spiderman costumes of today, this is the root of why we wear Halloween costumes today.

The actual word “Halloween” didn’t become associated with this time of year until about the 8th century when the Christian church declared November 1st All Soul’s Day, a time to honor not fear the dead. This was also known as “All-hallows” or “All-hallowmas,” from the Middle English Alholowmesse, which meant All Saints’

IN GOOD TASTE

Outside The Lunchbox Luncheon

Scaring Up The Past

Happy Halloween!

Chocolate Godiva Cake INGREDIENTS ½ lb 5 1 tsp 6 oz 3 oz

Dark Godiva chocolate Eggs Vanilla extract Sugar Butter

DIRECTIONS Melt chocolate and butter in a sauce pan. Whisk eggs and sugar then add vanilla extract. Then slowly add eggs to chocolate. Divide batter into 4 lightly buttered and floured 8 oz baking dishes. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 18 minutes. Turn-out into a soup bowl, serve with your favorite vanilla ice cream. Serves 4.

REAL ESTATE

corner

Halloween did not really come to America until about the 1850s when Irish and English immigrants brought with them these ancient customs. The traditions grew and evolved into our own American version of Halloween. So this year, as you hang a scary witch or silly ghost in your yard, remember that you’ll not only be spooking the neighborhood children but you may be warding off bad spirits from your home as well. And who couldn’t use a little good fortune these days?

Wildfish Seafood Grille | WildfishSeafoodGrille.com

Featured Listings

SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER 2016

FITZ

Each office is independently owned and operated.

Lifestyle S A N

A N T O N I O

21625 Cielo Ridge | San Antonio, TX 78256 Priced at $1,200,000 | Cielo Ridge Subdivision

Highly acclaimed contemporary architectural achievement, featured in international publications, walls of glass cantilevered on the brow of the hillside capturing vistas of the hill country, masterful combination of natural and man made materials, wood, stone, steel, glass create a sleek sense of style and grace all on 3+ acres of solitude. One of a kind architectural work of art and space.

Hallowed History & FUN FALL FACTS

21625 Cielo Ridge Website: fitzandassoc.wix.com/21625cieloridge Virtual Tour: tours.craigmac.tv/public/vtour/display/42631

626 E Evergreen $499,000 | Tobin Hill

220 Belvidere $745,000 | Olmos Park

9807 La Rue

139 Knibbe

$199,000 | Under Contract

SOLD

FitzGibbonsandAssociates.com Ann FitzGibbons Broker Associate FitzGibbons and Associates Keller Williams Portfolio Ann@FitzGibbonsandAssociates.com 210.723.3093 Direct 7701 Broadway San Antonio, TX 78209

If your home is currently listed, this is not a solicitation for that listing.

With Ann’s local real estate knowledge and Keller William’s international presence, now is the time to sell your current property or find your dream home.

Produced by DLP Marketing • (877)660-0996 • DLPmarketing.com

Metro Market Housing Report

Wildfish Seafood Grille Chocolate Godiva Cake

The FitzGibbons and Associates Team®

Ann FitzGibbons | 210.723.3093 Ann@FitzGibbonsandAssociates.com