September 2026 - Newsletter
I smell pumpkin spice on the nice fall breeze blowing through!!!
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šø Lincoln NE Area Market Snapshot
Lincolnās market is continuing to shift toward balance. Buyers have more homes to choose from and a little more breathing room, while homes are taking slightly longer to sell. That said, 8 median days on market is still pretty quickāso this isnāt a slow market, just one where buyers can afford to be a little more selective and sellers need to be more intentional.
š” Buyers
More homes to choose from
A little more time to make decisions
More room to be selective
The best homes can still move quickly
š Sellers
Buyers are still active
Pricing correctly matters more than ever
Expect buyers to compare their options
Condition and presentation can make a big difference
Bottom line:Ā Weāre seeing one of the more balanced Lincoln markets weāve had in years. Buyers have choices, sellers still have demand, and realistic expectations matter on both sides.
š« Realtor Matchmaking
Click to be Matched or Refer Someone Else!
š A Note from Your Favorite Realtor
It is bitter sweet that September is ending! My house feels a little bit cleaner (not as much as i'd like but we will keep working on that). It was our last month before we gear up for wedding season and ultimately holiday season so I'm sure the rest of the year is going to fly by!!!
This month we got to celebrate our little man's 3rd birthday with a nice party at the lake with family, friends, a few of his schoolmates! It was a Cars, Planes and Trains themed birthday and we got super lucky as the National Guard was doing some Apache Helicopter training during the party! They would fly in drop some guys in the water and then go land. They did this a bunch of times and Ezrael was super pumped and even the adults had a blast with it! Only thing that could have gone a little better was the wind - it was quite a force in the morning (of course it slowed down in the afternoon which made for good Husker Football viewing).
š·Photo Credits to my Brother-in-law Osmany Fernandez
Once the party was over I felt my house become my own a little bit because I was not longer stocking all of the party supplies. Honestly though I still have a few things lingering that need put away so just need to pull up my bootstraps and get that done. It was a little difficult because the week after the party myself, Evany & Ezrael all came down with a nasty cold, and pink eye went around the house. Eliezer luckily left for a work trip so he didn't catch anything too serious. My mom came down and stayed with us which helped me immensely because I was pretty out for the count. Sadly she took home the sickness with her and is now nursing herself back to health.
Other fun things going on are Evany is trying to walk already, she also stared swim lessons, cut Ezrael's hair ourselves for the first time, dance our little hearts out at our first Vietnamese wedding & reception (if you get a chance go - coolest mash up of dj and stellar karaoke performances but bring ear plugs or headphones for kiddos and even yourself, it gets loud!).
This is the season of Football & Volleyball in our house. We took the weekend to clean out the garage, donate a bunch of stuff we didn't need, and we broke out the projector in the garage and had a picnic in the garage watching Football! That means if you are ever bored on a Sunday we will will probably be grilling, chilling and watching Football so if you need something to do just reach out!!!
October is gearing up to be quite busy as we have Halloween camping, two weddings (one out of state) and then actual Halloween! Once Halloween hits it is a mad dash to the Holidays so it is going to zoom!!!
Wishing you all the best in the beautiful fall weather and hope you are ready for the
holidays gearing up too!
š» Radio Show
Listen for a chance to win a $50 Giftcard to The Oven!!!
Check out this episode featuring Eric Horn from Luxury Comfort Solutions!
You can hear the recording right here!
*Text "LUXURY" to 402-413-7924 to get entered in to win a $50 Giftcard to The Oven!!!*
All shows will be on KFOR 101.5 FM or 1240 AM at 9:30am on Saturdays
Next show airs this coming Saturday - We have another local favorite to giveaway that if my two CENTs matter, I think you will HONESTLY love!!! (Did you catch the hint - what restaurant is it?!)
šļø House Tip - Flood Insurance
If you are from the Lincoln area and many other areas throughout the USA you have probably come across Flood Zones! Well don't let those two words scare you, just let them be the trigger that you need to do a little extra research.
I was recently approached by a company that can help with just that, and more specifically helping get you a personalized quote for flood insurance. This can be beneficial when buying or shopping your current flood insurance!
Robert Murphy from Flood Nerd shared this with me regarding buying and I thought it would be helpful to share with you:
Spend a Little Time With the Basement and Yard
Basements are common in Lincoln, and they can be a huge bonus.
A finished basement might become the family room, playroom, guest space, home gym, or extra office you were hoping for.
While you are down there, you also want to understand how the space has been maintained.
The seller disclosure may tell us about previous water issues, foundation work, drainage improvements, or a sump pump. During the inspection, we can also pay attention to gutters, downspouts, window wells, grading, and how water moves away from the house.
These are simply part of getting to know the property.
Look at the Flood Information for the Home
Depending on where a home is located in Lincoln, there may also be floodplain information worth reviewing.
Some properties near Salt Creek, Antelope Creek, Stevens Creek, or other drainage areas can have different considerations from one address to the next.
FEMA flood maps are a helpful place to start, but I would never look at one map and let that tell the whole story of a home.
If a lender requires flood insurance for a particular property, we want to know that while we are reviewing the overall cost of the home. That gives you time to get an address-specific quote and factor it into your decision.
Match the Insurance to the Property
This is another area where it helps to ask a few specific questions.
Flooding from outside the home is not necessarily covered the same way as sewer backup, sump-pump failure, plumbing leaks, or basement seepage.
Your insurance agent can walk you through how those coverages apply to the home you are buying.
If separate flood insurance is needed, or if you want to compare NFIP and private flood insurance for a Lincoln property,Ā this Nebraska flood insurance resourceĀ can help with that property-specific piece.
If you have flood insurance i'd love to know what you are paying and if this resource helped you save a few bucks!!!
šŖ Recipe
Okay can't gatekeep this delicious and healthy alternative! You all know we are about sourdough in our house. Well the only problem is that it takes a bit of upkeep and well I'm the only Mother I've been able to take care of lately.
The problem is we love a good burger and the store bought buns don't really live up to our strict food standards. Eliezer luckily came across this delicious idea so I thought I'd share because it seriously hit the spot the other night!
š„š„š„Drum Roll Pleaseš„š„š„
Sweet Potatoe Buns!!!!
We are going to call this recipe:
š š No Bun Intended
Smoky Sweet Potato Burgers with Manchego & Savory Mushrooms
Who needs a bun when you have grilled sweet potatoes? Smoky burgers, melty Manchego, buttery mushrooms, spiced kraut and cinnamon-kissed sweet potato rounds come together in one gloriously messy burger.
What You Need
For the burgers
Burger patties
Manchego cheese
Sweet potatoes ā look for nice, fat ones!
Olive oil
Salt
Cinnamon
Mayo
Sliced onions, optional
For the mushrooms
Baby bella mushrooms, sliced
Butter
Splash of soy sauce
Splash of Worcestershire sauce
Sprig of fresh oregano
For the kraut
Sauerkraut
Cayenne
Turmeric
Dill
Whatever other spices sound good ā we're not measuring this stuff
Make It
1. Get those sweet potatoes going.
Fire up the smoker/grill and start bringing it to 375Ā°F.
Slice the sweet potatoes into roughly Ā½āĀ¾-inch rounds. Toss them lightly with olive oil and salt, then add the secret ingredient: a little dash of cinnamon.Ā Don't make them taste like pie. You just want enough to bring out that sweet, smoky goodness.
Throw them on the grill while it's heating up.
2. Add the burgers.
Once the grill hits 375Ā°F, add your burger patties. Flip the sweet potatoes while you're at it. If you're doing grilled onions, get those cooking too.
Toward the end, top each burger with Manchego and let it get nice and melty.
3. Make the mushrooms.
While everything grills, sautƩ the baby bellas in butter with a splash each of soy sauce and Worcestershire. Toss in a sprig of oregano and cook until the mushrooms are browned, buttery and delicious.
4. Doctor up the kraut.
Take some sauerkraut and season it however you're feeling. We like cayenne, turmeric and dill. There's no science here. Taste it and keep going until it's good.
5. Build that beauty
Sweet potato round ā mayo ā Manchego cheeseburger ā mushrooms ā spiced sauerkraut ā grilled onions if you're feeling it ā another sweet potato round.
Squish it together and attempt to eat it like a normal burger.
Why the Sweet Potato?
Besides tasting freaking delicious, the grilled sweet potato replaces the traditional bun while adding fiber, vitamin A and naturally sweet flavor that plays ridiculously well with the smoky burger, salty Manchego and savory toppings.
No sad bunless burger here. You won't miss the bread.
What are your secret but delicious but healthy swaps?
š° Money Tip
Oh man did I didn't know I needed to start a whole other series just on fighting medical bills but the saga continues!!!
I randomly got the urge to check my Mychart account and see my $0 balance only to find yet another bill!!!
Talk about seeing RED! I was a little tied up at the time of seeing it so it got added to my list of to do's. When I called a couple of days later I waited for a representative and they never came so it forced me to ask for a call back the next day.
I waited for that call, never to receive it. So for fun I called into the automated line to see if maybe it was just an online mistake saying I still owed $1,700. Well the automated line was really REALLY wrong and said my balance was over $10,000...
Obviously this was just a messed up system and they just need a friendly reminder to remove my bill. Well a few days later I actually got on the phone with someone and that is when my quick fix turned into another tedious process.
If you haven't figured out I do not give up easily so I stayed on the phone asking why it wasn't removed to be told that they did not have record that they called me (twice) to tell me my balances were $0. Sadly when I got both of the calls I did not record them - won't make that mistake again - because I thought it was done! Boy was I wrong... After speaking with a supervisor I was told they needed to go through the review process. To which I told her we have already done that and that is when they called me to tell me my balance was $0. Essentially that was my only option through the billing route, I asked them to put a hold on my account (which during this conversation I was told was a level 3 almost a level 4 which means it gets sent to collections). If my account gets sent to collections there will be hell to pay - you don't get to mess with my credit on money I DO NOT owe!!! There was a lot more to this hour and half conversation but I won't bore you - I do find it funny detail that the original agent I talked to I offered to buy her a drink because I felt like I beat her down (nothing personal to her which she fully understood).
Well I wasn't satisfied with that conversation so I went to my friendly AI to help me come up with a plan of action on how to sue. It did give me a recommendation to call into the corporate office to report illegal billing practices. So my call the next day was reporting them for illegal billing practices! I am waiting to hear back but fully prepared to sue them for the amount they are saying I owe, and if it affects my credit in anyway for libel as well.
At this point it is not about the money, it is about the principal. It disgusts me that this system is so fraudulent and no wonder people don't fight it. At this point I hope I have caused some issues, I hope it is issues enough to change some of their deceptive practices. Really though I doubt it, i'm sure they do this everyday and try screwing over the singular people that this affects most.
Well I will keep fighting the good fight and if you need help let me know! If you are fighting medical bills record everything - and don't let them bully you into submission - FIGHT IT!
Also stay tuned I recently heard a podcast about how a guy made extra money sueing telemarketers. Not sure if I bought the same exact book as he did but I ordered a book and when I have a chance to read it that is next on my list of taking down the man!
Do you have any words of encouragement, stories of wins you have had?!
šø Free Resources
All of these Free Resources can also be found on our Realtor Matchmaking Site:
You can also find Lincoln Nebraska Local Resources here:
Wanting something else specific? Let me know, i'd love to offer more value!
šÆ Goal Tracking
Accountability 101 - Goal tracking update.
We held steady this month. No closings. Excited for my least lucrative closing I will have ever had (hopefully ever will) to close this coming month!!! I'm not going to give anything away, it may not pay much but it will be entertaining.
Thank you to everyone that is in process with me and I look forward to marking off a few more goal boxes in the next coming months and year! As always I'd love to add you on my success list so please reach out if you have any real estate needs.
š„ Cheers
Wishing you all the best!
-Stacy & Eliezer Fernandez
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