As the sun sets on 2009, and we usher in 2010, now seems to be an appropriate time to reflect and project.

One of the comments I often hear from folks who move to Oklahoma from other parts of the country is how amazing the sunrises and sunsets are here. With that in mind, I thought I’d share a great video that a friend of mine, Brad Stone, created, which shows off those amazing sunsets that we Okies often take for granted.

2009 brought great growth for the Hukill Group, even in this (reported) “down market.” We experienced an increase in overall volume of more than 50% and brought on 3 amazing, cream-of-the-crop new partners during the year.

Looking ahead to 2010, we’ve set ourselves a pretty lofty goal of twice the volume we closed in 2009. Yep, that’s right, I said double. That should tell you something about our confidence level in the Oklahoma City real estate market and in the level of service we provide our clients. You’ll also notice a BIG change in our branding for 2010, as we’re changing the name of the Hukill Group and launching a more memorable branding presence (watch for the unveiling during the first quarter).

So, get ready Oklahoma City. 2010 is going to be a big year and we’re ready to take it on, and serve you, as our City continues to grow and outpace most other metro areas, in more ways than one!

So, it’s not just us local yokels singing the praises of the Oklahoma City metro real estate market. Even the Federal Housing Finance Agency has joined in on the party.

With both Tulsa and Oklahoma city ranked highly, I’ll continue to say there’s plenty to be confident about here, in Oklahoma.

In yesterday’s video blog from the Earlywine Estates addition in Southwest Oklahoma City, I touched on the question “Should I wait until Spring to put my house on the market?” Feel free to agree or disagree in the comments below, and you can find out more about this and other beautiful homes for sale at our website.

In case you missed it last month, Forbes ranked Oklahoma City as one of the top cities for quick economic recovery, citing diversified industry and relatively stable housing fundamentals as the main factors.

In yesterday’s video blog from the Ravine at Hidden Creek in Oklahoma City, I hit on the importance of curb appeal when selling your home. Feel free to agree or disagree in the comments below, and you’ll find more home-selling tips right here on our blog.

So as a first time homeowner, I have been learning how much things really cost. When I bought my home just a couple of months ago, I had this grandiose plan to gut the kitchen and put in granite countertops and all new appliances. I also planned to eventually put in new windows throughout the house. I had a lot of great plans, until I started to really put pen to paper and realize the real cost of my plans. When buying your first home it’s important to understand what the real, long term cost of your project is. For me, living in the house for a period of time, I’ve really begun to understand the nature of my neighborhood. Most of the homes in my neighborhood are not owner occupied, so to sink thousands into my kitchen would be a moot point. It’s always possible to overdo it with the renovations. Realistically, I should stick to mostly minor cosmetic changes in order to make the maximum profit when I sell later on.

So now my plans have changed to simply refacing the kitchen cabinets and installing new countertops and tile. It’s about 25% of the price of installing completely new cabinets: a price that’s appropriate for my neighborhood, and my house. So, in keeping with my newly laid out plan I’ve stuck to minor changes. For example,

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In my latest video blog from the Fenwick addition park in Edmond, OK, I hit on the truth of what’s going on on the Central Oklahoma and national real estate scenes. You can see the actual statistics that I reference in the video and leave a comment here to voice your opinion on this topic.

In yesterday’s video blog from Bricktown, I discussed a Business Week article I read about the timing of buying a home in this market, and the old mantra of ‘Now’s a great time to buy or sell a home.’ To voice your opinion on this topic, leave us a comment below.

With networks such as TLC  and HGTV shoving DIY projects down our throats every hour of every day, one may easily be swept into the apparent charm of it all: “We made this tiny bathroom a master suite in 2 days with $500!” Every time I hear such claims on TV I want to yell into the unresponsive appliance, “Deceit! Deceit!”

Here’s the thing. As a professional interior decorator, my calendar stays full because people do not want to do it themselves, so I can’t speak against the movement entirely. What I can say is that more often than not my new clients come to be because they tried to do it themselves and they weren’t armed before jumping in with both feet. What the cameras don’t show is the number of behind-the-scenes craftsmen working on the project long after the TV personalities have gone home. They don’t tell you that many of the products purchased were done so at a large dicount or even donated by sponsors. They often won’t tell viewers if any money and time was required at any point to fix a mistake (as often happens during any given project).

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Ryan video blogs from Edmond, OK about the effectiveness of Open Houses in the new world of Real Estate. To voice your opinion on this topic, leave us a comment below.