Dent is an experienced Realtor who brings prior management and sales experience to Ruhl&Ruhl.

“I am excited for this new opportunity to grow with Ruhl&Ruhl,” said Dent, who is a member of the National Association of Realtors. “I came to this company because of its focus on customer care and agent development. I am thrilled to be able to share those values with more individuals as a manager.”

Dent has proven himself as a top producing agent after earning top listing and selling agent status as well as being honored as a multi-million dollar producer for several years running.

“Ollie will be a great leader for our Cedar Rapids office,” said Caroline Ruhl, President of Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS. “I am confident he will continue our history of commitment to our clients and the communities we serve. In addition, his experience, outstanding customer service and professionalism will enhance the growing team we have in Cedar Rapids.”

Ollie, an Iowa native grew up in Colorado, before earning a degree from Coe College in 1994.  He then moved back to Colorado to begin a career in banking.  After getting married and having his second child, his family decided to relocate to Cedar Rapids to enjoy the community and raise their children.  He has been living in Cedar Rapids for 10 years.  In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Marcy and 2 children, Lucy and Ben. 

Dent invites you to call him for all of your real estate needs or to explore a career in real estate at Ruhl&Ruhl. He can be reached at 319.329.4050 or OllieDent@RuhlHomes.com.

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS is the largest privately owned real estate company in Iowa.   Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS has grown to 279 sales associates, 58 employees and eleven offices, selling more than 4,100 homes in eastern Iowa, northwestern Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. The company has residential sales offices in Bettendorf, Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Iowa City, Maquoketa and Muscatine, Iowa; and in Moline, Illinois. In addition to residential sales, the company offers services in relocation, property management, real estate investments, new home sales, land development, farm sales, senior services, home vendor services, insurance services through the Nelson Brothers Agency and mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage. For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS, visit their website at

www.RuhlHomes.com.

Many of the top builders in the Quad Cities participate in this event as it showcases new building trends in new construction homes. There are twenty three homes to tour with nearly half of them being held open by Ruhl&Ruhl agents.  Please see the homes Ruhl&Ruhl agents are showing below:

• 1600 Fox Ridge Road, Eldridge, built by Meadow Builders and being held open by Regen Johnson.
• 3564 Black Lion Circle, Bettendorf, built by Dan Dolan Homes and being held open by Jane Bauman, Rick Weipert and Dan Dolan.
• 1731 Stone Gate Circe, Davenport, built by Dan Dolan Homes and being held open by Don Gibeault and Dan Dolan.
• 3390 Crow Lake Drive, Bettendorf, built by Kerkhoff Homes and being held open by Stephanie Graham, Nancy McElhiney, Kurt Johnson and Alicia Lillyblade.
• 6533 Blackberry Lane, Bettendorf, built by Windmiller Design and Development and being held open by Melissa Wegener and Pete Stopulos.
• 6556 Friendship Path, Bettendorf, built by Beaver Builders and being held open by Connie Coster and Peg Hopkins.
• 21 Country Club Court, LeClaire, built by Tim Dolan Development and being held open by Kim Solveson.
• 6214 Cardinal Road, Bettendorf, built by Bob Walter Homes and being held open by Stephanie Graham, Nancy McElhiney, Kurt Johnson and Alicia Lillyblade.
• 6493 Fairhaven, Davenport, built by Applestone Homes and being held open by JJ Condon.
• 6664 Eagle Ridge Road, Bettendorf, built by Terry Knutsen Builders, and being held open by Marna Nowack, Matt Schwind, Kim Solveson and Sharon Tahere.
• 1112 Wild West Drive, LeClaire, built by RMV LLC, and being held open by Rod Varilek and Bill Robertson.

This is a great event and Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS looks forward to participating it in every year.  This year there is over $1,000 in prizes that the public is able to enter to win at each home on the tour.  For a full list and map of the homes being held open please check out www.qchba.com.

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS has grown to 279 sales associates, 58 employees and eleven offices, selling more than 4,100 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. The company has residential sales offices in Bettendorf, Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Iowa City, Maquoketa and Muscatine, Iowa; and in Moline, Illinois. In addition to residential sales, the company offers services in relocation, property management, real estate investments, new home sales, land development, farm sales, senior services, home vendor services, insurance services through the Nelson Brothers Agency and mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage. For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS, visit their website at www.RuhlHomes.com.

The report ranks the top 300 real estate companies in the country according to the number of transactions and sales volume.  Ruhl&Ruhl ranked 93^rd in the country for the number of transactions closed, which was 4,152 in 2011.

Other Iowa Companies Ranked as follows.

“2011 was a wonderful year for Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS – our sales volume grew by 7.3% and we had 6.8% more transactions than the prior year,” said Caroline Ruhl, President of Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS. “And it looks like 2012 will be even better! For the first quarter sales volume closed was up 50.5% over the first quarter of 2011 and 39.9% more transactions were closed.”

On average, Ruhl&Ruhl agents sold 15.1 properties per agent, as either listing or selling agents, which places Ruhl&Ruhl agents among the most productive in the country. The National Association of Realtors reports an average of 7 sales per agent nationally.

“We are excited and proud to earn this ranking,” Ruhl said. “I have been blessed to be surrounded by the best people in our business. At the end of the day, it always comes down to having the right people.”

To view the 2012 Power Broker Report visit this link, http://remag.rismedia.com/t/14873.

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS has grown to 279 sales associates, 58 employees and eleven offices, selling more than 4,100 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. The company has residential sales offices in Bettendorf, Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Iowa City, Maquoketa and Muscatine, Iowa; and in Moline, Illinois. In addition to residential sales, the company offers services in relocation, property management, real estate investments, new home sales, land development, farm sales, senior services, home vendor services, insurance services through the Nelson Brothers Agency and mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage. For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS, visit their website at www.RuhlHomes.com.

HSH.com studies trends in mortgage rates. They explain:

“A better economic climate almost always brings higher rates, and a lessening of the troubles in Europe from massive central bank assistance adds to the movement of money from safe havens to more risky assets, driving rates upward.”

Dan Green of The Daily Market Reports recently stated:

“The Fed sees growth coming faster than originally expected. There’s suddenly less chance that the Federal Reserve will intervene to help keep mortgage rates low. Absent Fed intervention, mortgage rates are apt to rise and Wall Street is now betting that the Fed has bowed out. With no stimulus, mortgage rates rise.”

Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Assoc of Realtors, recently wrote:

“Mortgage rates will be starting to rise. From the 3.9 to 4.0 percent average rate in the past five months on a 30-year fixed mortgage, the new rates will soon be in the range of 4.3 to 4.6 percent.”

Yun explains his logic here.

We do not attempt to predict future interest rates. We leave that up to the experts in the field. However, we want our readers to understand the potential impact on the cost of purchasing a home if they do rise. Here is a simple table that shows, even if the PRICE of a home softens, the COST of a home could increase.

Bottom Line

Many purchasers think they should wait until they are sure that prices have hit bottom. Deciding whether or not to wait should be determined by where the COST of a home is headed.

For the most up to date information on the housing market keep checking RuhlHomes.com.

Blog and information provided by: KCM Blog

Nationally home prices have fallen 19.16% in the last five years, but all of our markets’ home prices are up: 7.84% in Dubuque; 3.25% in the Quad Cities; 3.04% in Iowa City; and 1.72% in Cedar Rapids. This compares to other cities: Des Moines, IA down 2.34%; Chicago, IL down 22.86%; and the Daytona Beach, FL area down 46.24%.

According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency, of the 306 MSA’s (Metropolitan Statistical Areas) ranked by home price appreciation, all of our markets in eastern Iowa ranked in the top 15% in the nation – Dubuque at 4th, Iowa City at 16th; the Quad Cities at 45th; and Cedar Rapids at 47th.

Analysts report that although there was an overall decline, 12 states showed price increases this quarter, which shows that real estate markets are seeing some signs of life. Our local markets continue to provide a much more stable environment for purchasing homes and investing in real estate. In fact, our current listing inventory is declining and multiple offers are being seen on existing properties for sale. Now is the time to start your home search and get your property listed in our markets, noted Caroline Ruhl, President of Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS.    

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS has grown to more than 275 sales associates, 58 employees and eleven offices, selling more than 4,300 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. The company has residential sales offices in Bettendorf, Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Iowa City, Maquoketa and Muscatine, Iowa; and in Moline, Illinois. In addition to residential sales, the company offers services in relocation, property management, real estate investments, new home sales, land development, farm sales, senior services, home vendor services, insurance services through the Nelson Brothers Agency and mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage. For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS, visit their website at www.RuhlHomes.com.

The new Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) assists homeowners who have a higher loan balance than the current value of their home, yet allows refinancing into lower mortgage interest rates.

“This is a great opportunity for homeowners who have not been able to refinance and take advantage of current low rates,” said Jane Schneider, President of 1862 Mortgage, a participating lender. “I encourage those individuals to see if they qualify for this great new product.”

The loan must be owned or guaranteed by FreddieMac or FannieMae and the homeowner must have a good credit history. At this time, the new mortgage balance may not exceed 125% of the home’s current value.

To see if you qualify, contact Jane Schneider at 1862 Mortgage or any 1862 Mortgage Loan Officer for more information at 866.441.1862 or Info@1862Mortgage.com.

1862 Mortgage has partnered with Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS to offer a convenient one-stop experience for both home buying and home financing needs nationwide. 1862 Mortgage is a DBA (Doing Business As) of Shelter Mortgage, an operating subsidiary of Guaranty Bank. As part of a strong and stable bank, 1862 Mortgage offers the promise of longevity and security along with a commitment to service excellence.

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS annually sells nearly 3,800 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin and is the largest privately-owned real estate company in Iowa. Headquartered in Davenport, Iowa, the company has 280 sales associates and 50 employees based in 11 sales. In addition to residential sales, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS offers services in relocation, new home sales, farm and land sales, senior services, real estate investment, mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage and insurance services through the Nelson Brothers Agency.  For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS, visit their website at www.RuhlHomes.com.

The Quad Cities Area Realtor Association’s Multiple Listing Service sales and inventory figures for new homes in the Quad Cities have been compiled and the overall results for 2011 reflect a decrease in both sales and year-end inventory levels. 

Inventory of New Construction at the end of 2011 dropped 16% from a year ago, with available new houses down 29%.  Inventory of available condos is at the same level as this time last year.  Scott County is home to 79% of the 114 new homes listed on the MLS.  Overall unit sales in the market dropped by 20% when compared with 2010, with new house sales down 28% and new condo sales down 1%.  Scott County experienced a 29% decrease in houses and a 3% decrease in condos for a combined drop of 22%.  Rock Island County saw an 18% drop in houses and a 9% increase in condos for a net decrease of 4%. 

Ranch style houses represented 48% of sales.  Of the combined total of 217 new construction home sales reported by the MLS; 136 (63%) were houses and 81 (37%) were condos.  Scott County reported 196 (90%) of the total sales for both counties.  The most active price range for new houses remained from $200,000 to $300,000, followed by $300,000 to $400,000.  These two ranges together represented nearly 57% of new house sales in 2011, but when compared with 2010 results, they also combined for 75% of the total sales decline in 2011.  In 2010, they represented 62% of house sales.  Condo sales were dominated by sales below the $175,000 level with 65% of sales falling under that point.

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS has grown to more than 275 sales associates, 58 employees and eleven offices, selling more than 4,300 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. The company has residential sales offices in Bettendorf, Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Iowa City, Maquoketa and Muscatine, Iowa; and in Moline, Illinois. In addition to residential sales, the company offers services in relocation, property management, real estate investments, new home sales, land development, farm sales, senior services, home vendor services, insurance services through the Nelson Brothers Agency and mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage.

For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl, visit their website at www.RuhlHomes.com.

Ruhl credited her company’s success to her extraordinary people:  “The Ruhl&Ruhl difference is truly found in the compassion, expertise and commitment of our people, from agents to staff to management to loan officers.  You out-worked and out-smarted and out-serviced the competition.  At the end of the day, it always comes down to having the best people.  Thank you for your wonderful service, your hard work and your loyalty.”

The company also celebrated their 150^th birthday.  The Ruhl family has been helping other families in the region since 1862.  “With our 4^th and 5^th generations of family ownership and leadership, we look forward to serving the people and communities we love for many generations to come,” commented Caroline Ruhl.

The company celebrated at an awards brunch at the Waterfront Convention Center in Bettendorf. They honored and recognized 173 award winners for their 2011 achievements.

 1.            Growth in Number of Properties Sold

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS sold 4,360 properties in 2011, as either listing agent or selling agent. 

This was 6.8% more transactions than in 2010. 

 In the Quad Cities MLS (Multiple Listing Service), 2% fewer properties were sold in 2011 than in 2010.

2.            Sales Volume Up 7.3%

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS’ sales volume in 2011 was $593,082,327, 7.3% higher than sales volume in 2010.

Residential sales volume was down 4% in the Quad Cities MLS.

 3.            Properties Listed Up 4.3%

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS sales associates listed 3,317 properties for sale in 2011, 4.3% more than they listed in 2010.

4.            More Great Sales Associates and Staff

While the number of agents went down in the 12 Boards of Realtors/MLS’s that the company belongs to, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS added a net of 24 sales associates, growing our agent base from 251 as of December 31, 2010 to 275 agents as of December 31, 2011.  In addition, 58 dedicated employees work for the company.

5.            Revenue Up 9.5%

 Revenue in a real estate company is primarily gross commission income, or GCI. Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS’ 2011 GCI was up 9.5% over 2010.

 6.            29.4% of Ruhl Buyers Used 1862 Mortgage

 1862 Mortgage is Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS’ in-house mortgage company. 29.4% of Ruhl’s buyers with financing used 1862 Mortgage during 2011.

 7.            Gains in Market Share

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS had 36.74% of the Quad Cities residential market in 2011, up from 33.85% in 2010. Their largest competitor, Mel Foster Co., saw market share fall from 37.44% to 34.46%, making Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS the largest residential broker in the Quad Cities.  Market share in the Iowa Quad Cities grew from 37.5% to 41.05% for Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS.  In the Illinois Quad Cities, market share grew from 26.4% to 27.6%.

In the Muscatine MLS, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS’ market share grew from 36% in 2010 to 39% in 2011. 

8.            Per Agent Productivity Among Best in the Nation

On average, Ruhl agents sold 15.1 properties per agent, as either listing or selling agents. This places Ruhl agents among the most productive in the country. The National Association of Realtors reports an average of 7 sales per agent nationally.

 9.            New Construction Sales Up 6.1%

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS sold 243 new construction homes or condos in 2011, up from 229 in 2010. New construction sales volume was $71,271,090 with an average price of $293,297.  New construction sales were down 20% in the Quad Cities.

 10.          Outlook for 2012

Caroline Ruhl expects 2012 to be an even better year, both for the regional real estate market, and for Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS.

“If January, 2012 is any indication, it’s going to be a great year!  New business pended in January was up 47% in sales volume and 34% in number of properties sold at Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS.  And revenue (closed gross commission income) was up 81% based on 69% more properties sold,” said Ruhl.

“Why is this the busiest winter market in years?  For starters, spring like weather in January works wonders for people’s attitudes and interest in looking at real estate.  Then factor in the lowest interest rates in history – 3.875% for 30 years, no points and 3.375% for 15 years, no points.  And finally some good news on the unemployment front, so buyer confidence is improving.  We’re actually seeing multiple offers again and a shortage of listings in some price ranges and locations.  My advice is refinance if you haven’t already done so and invest in residential real estate.  We see strong growth potential in our property values and tremendous demand for rentals.”

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS Congratulates 2011 Award Winners

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS honored and recognized 173 award winners for their 2011 achievements at the Waterfront Convention Center on Friday morning, February 3, 2012.  The top honors were awarded to:

Top Residential Associate of the Year: Quadruple Diamond Club – Jon Loquist, Moline Office

Top Excellence in Service Award: Melissa Wegener, Davenport Office

Extraordinary Production Award: Janet Munck, Clinton Office

New Associate of the Year: Craig Newcomb, Bettendorf Office

Top Associate of the Year – Farm Division: Ken Paper, Davenport Office

Employee of the Year: Sally Atwell, Executive Assistant, Corporate Office

Top 1862 Mortgage Associate of the Year: Ray McDevitt, Bettendorf Office

Top Insurance Referral Agent: Rick Weipert, Bettendorf Office

There is a complete list of all award winners on Ruhl&Ruhl’s website at
www.RuhlHomes.com/Agent-Achievements.

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS has grown to more than 275 sales associates, 58 employees and eleven offices, selling more than 4,300 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. The company has residential sales offices in  Bettendorf, Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Iowa City, Maquoketa and Muscatine, Iowa; and in Moline, Illinois. In addition to residential sales, the company offers services in relocation, property management, real estate investments, new home sales, land development, farm sales, senior services, home vendor services, insurance services through the Nelson Brothers Agency and mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage.

For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl, visit their website at www.RuhlHomes.com.

It says home sales were up statewide in December, for the fifth consecutive month, and steady throughout 2011.

Rob Cook is a realtor for Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS in Dubuque, a real estate blogger and self-proclaimed “numbers guy.”

He pulled statistics from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), showing Dubuque is number two in the nation when it comes to high rates of house appreciation.

Those numbers show the average home in Dubuque appreciated 2.46 percent in one year, through Sept. 2011, and 8.06 percent over the course of five years. Bismark, N.D., by the way, took top marks, with a 15.99 percent five-year average appreciation.

In Dubuque, Cook said, “our average sale price right now is about $155,000, give or take, and we’ve sold just shy of 800 homes in each of the last three years in the Dubuque city: zip codes 52001, 52002, 52003.”

A map of the US from the FHFA shows each state’s average home value appreciation over the course of 12 months, from the third quarter of 2010 to the third quarter of 2011.

“The whole state’s doing relatively well compared to the rest of the country,” Cook said.

Iowa is only one of four states that didn’t experience depreciating home values. The average Iowa home over the course of that period went up 1.3 percent in value, according to the FHFA. The average Nebraska house appreciated 0.5 percent, Wyoming saw a 2.9 percent increase and North Dakota came in first place, with a 5.4 percent increase.

“When you buy a house, buy a car, buy a boat, there’s always a risk that it’s going to depreciate or not appreciate like you had planned,” Cook said.

Iowa, he said, on average, has a stable housing market.

Mel Graves is a realtor with Brissey in Dubuque and secretary and treasurer of the Dubuque Board of Realtors.

He pointed out 2011 was the first year without any tax credit incentives for home buyers, “so this is a pure year, this is just market-driven,” he said.

Graves said he has noticed a slight increase in consumer confidence.

“It seems to me that people are now beginning to say, ‘I need to make that decision I’ve been holding off on, I am comfortable that my job’s going to be there, and I’m going to go ahead,’” Graves said. “That’s significant. When they can do that, then they can go ahead and make some plans.”

He said insurance rates continue to be low, which is encouraging for buyers.

The total number of home sales in Iowa for 2011 increased 0.4 percent from 2010.

Regardless of state or national housing market numbers, however, Cook suggests buyers and sellers look at their own particular market.

“They need to be fully aware of what’s going on in their market and not pay attention so much to the national news, you know, as far as, you know, both real estate thing and the economy overall,” Cook said. “It’s a factor, but, you know, it’s kind of like what they say with the realtor ads, you know, ‘All real estate is local.’”

The Iowa Association of Realtors said, as of December, the average days on the market for a house in Iowa was 112. That’s the same as it was in 2010, according to the association.

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS completely supports Rob’s statement and so do the numbers! Check out our latest Facts&Trends edition coming out the first week of February.  If you would like to recieve Facts&Trends please visit RuhlHomes.com.

Article provided by: KWWL.com

Likewise, buying a house in a good business environment makes a lot more sense than doing so where businesses will be struggling. So if you are thinking of moving to a state that is favorable for business this list by CNBC is a very smart tool to use.

Virginia came in as the top state. With it’s pro-business state house and proximity to Washington DC, where growth in government spending has created it’s own jobs engine, Virginia is for business lovers. Texas is in second place, with southern states Georgia, North Carolina, and Colorado rounding out the top 5. The only northeast member of the list Massachusetts comes in 6^th owing mainly to it’s educated workforce.

The remaining states on our top 10 list are heartland states; Minnesota, Utah, Iowa, and Nebraska. The worst state in the country is Rhode Island with Alaska not far behind.

So if you are starting a business, looking for a job, or interested in investing in real estate, check out this list of the …

Top 10 States for Business in America for 2011

1. Virginia
2. Texas
3. North Carolina
4. Georgia
5. Colorado
6. Massachusetts 
7. Minnesota
8. Utah
9. Iowa
10. Nebraska

Keep checking RuhlHomes.com for the most up to date information on the housing market.

Originally Published by: RealEstateBloggers.com