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Lakengren Bass Club meets the first Saturday of the month at the lodge from January thru March and is open to all property owners. From April thru November, club tournaments are held on the main lake on the first Saturday of the month. There are eight club tournaments a year. They are on a point system with an annual club champion award given. A mid-summer family picnic is held and a Christmas dinner in December. The club helps the Marine & Lake Management Committee with three open fishing tournaments, supplies prizes for the kids’ tournament sponsored by that committee, and also participates in the Preble County Adopt A Road Program. It also contributes and lends support to other community projects. The club is about bass fishing, fellowship and keeping our lakes in tip top shape. For information call Bruce at 472-2020 or Ron at 456-4128.
Lakengren Card Club is a group of five different card games all combined together with one charter and one set of officers for the whole group. It consists of Contract Bridge, which is played every Tuesday afternoon from 1 to 4 p.m. and also the fourth Thursday evening of every month. The first Friday evening is Double Deck Pinochle. The second Friday evening is Double Deck Euchre. The third Friday is Single Deck Pinochle. And the fourth Friday is Single Deck Euchre. All evening cards are played at 7:30 p.m. at the lodge. The treasury pays for all card game prizes and makes donations to the LPOA and other worthy causes. All property owners and their guests are welcome. Reservations are necessary so that there are even tables. For Bridge, call Shirley Lorenz at 456-3290. For all other evening card games (other than Bridge), call Virginia Wehrly at 456-3851 or Marge Gullion at 456-4905.
Christmas Lights Committee decorates the lodge, mall and front gate for the Christmas season. They have also installed the lampposts at the mall and lodge which have also been decorated with holiday banners. They’ve had Christmas Open Houses and Santa Parties for ten years. The next project is to install three more lampposts at the lodge. Call Paul Healy at 456-3387 for information or to help out.
A Lakengren property owner named Jack Block organized the Dragons in 1979. Their main objective is to be a helpful group of men doing what they can to preserve and improve Lakengren, so that all may be proud of this community. Some volunteer efforts include repairing docks, assembling picnic tables, lighting up the front entrance, repairing the guardhouse, building a golf driving range, and organizing/participating in semi-annual Road Clean Up Days. They also sponsor the Annual Jack Block Fun Day in July and co-sponsor the Ham & Bean Dinner in March.
Meetings are the 2nd Thursday of each month at 7:30 p.m. A social hour follows each regular meeting. For further information you may call Dan McElwee at 456-5319
Lakengren Garden Club Garden Club; meets the third Tuesday of each month (except Nov. & Dec) at 7:30 p.m. at the lodge. Some beginning times may change depending upon the program, Please check the community calendar. We also sponsor an Arbor Day Program, Annual Card Party/Luncheon/Style Show to be held this year Sept 24th,2009 from 10a.m. to 3 p.m. This club has various speakers and field trips scheduled this year. Check the community calendar for details about this month's meeting. Any property owner is welcome to join the Garden Club. Dues are only $5.00 a year.
Lakengren Women’s Club has its roots at the beginning of the early days of the Lakengren community. This group of ladies is a sisterhood that has as its purpose the support and beautification of the place we all call “home.” Through hard work, successful financial projects and steadfast diligence, this group purchased many items for the lodge and guardhouse. They have given assistance to families in need of food, clothing and other benevolent acts whenever the need arises. Join them as they extend a welcome to all new residents. Usually they meet on the first Wednesday of each month at 1 p.m. There are no meetings in January or February. They also have fun activities and field trips. For further information call Sue Pohlabel 472-0271.
Lakengren Ski Club is open to all LPOA family members, including grandchildren. It is a family activity suitable for all ages and all levels of ability. Safety, teamwork, and fun are stressed as the club prepares to put on a show each year for Jack Block Fun Day. Practices are Monday and Thursday evenings from 6 p.m. until dark from mid-May through August at the Marina. Commitment to practice times, particularly from mid-May through show date, and other assistance in support of the club is important. Adult participation is especially needed for boat drivers, safety observers, etc. as well as for show skiing with the youth.
Zillow’s site features a property value tool, known as Zestimates, for consumers to use to see the value of their homes. They claim to be able to tell you the value of more than 100 million homes in the U.S., however the information offered by Zillow and other similar home value evaluation sites is not usually as accurate as you might think, especially when it comes to evaluating property values in smaller communities such as Lakengren.
Zillow’s algorithms use public record and user-submitted data. They put out automatic updates of property values weekly, and sometimes more often; however often times the accuracy of the information that Zillow uses is faulty. If the square footage, number of bathrooms or room sizes are incorrect, the estimate that they give for home values is also incorrect.
Furthermore, while Zillow tends to be pretty accurate when it comes to major metropolitan areas, such as New York City, Chicago and San Francisco,in smaller areas such as Lakengren, Eaton, Camden and other towns in Preble County, Ohio the estimate that Zillow gives can be off by as much as 18%.
The reason for this is because the housing turn over rates in large areas are much greater than the turnover rates in smaller areas where people tend to live in their homes for decades as opposed to 3-5 years. The inaccuracy of this information can mean a difference of thousands of dollars when it comes to a real estate transaction.
The table above that shows Zillows accuracy for many counties in Ohio. Out of four stars, Preble county only receives two. The margin for error when it comes to Zestimates in our county is a whopping 18% and only in 11.6% of homes sold was Zillow’s “Zestimate” within 5% of the actual selling price.
Zillow is unable to account for many things including upgrades and individual features of each property. If you have made upgrades to your home, chances are some of those have increased the value of your property; however generalized estimates from home value sites have no way to account for these. That is why using an experienced Realtor, who has a firm understanding of your market and can provide you with a comparative market analysis of your local community is so important.
An excellent Realtor has experience in comparing homes within the neighborhoods of their community to create a detailed estimate of the listing price of a property. Price comparison is only one of the tools used by realtors when evaluating the market price of a home. This is where Zillow falls short, and it is why the estimate that is given by Zillow can be so far off, automated algorithms just do not have the ability to closely analyze the unique features of the homes and neighborhoods in Preble County, Ohio, Lakengren and other small communities.
There are many places that you can search for homes for sale in Lakengren, however using an agent who has a thorough understanding of this market is in your best interest.
Steve and Devan Hafle have the most up to date listing information and they are often the first to know when a new home will be listed for sale near Lake Lakengren .
The benefits to using a real estate agent when purchasing a home, certainly outweigh the risk of not using an agent.
A buyer’s agent’s job is to be a liaison between their clients (you) and the sellers or the seller’s agent.
Real Estate agents are licensed professionals. Their priority is to ensure that they represent and protect your best interest.
Buyer’s agents will search for the perfect home for you according to the instructions that you give them.
When representing you, as your buyer’s agents Steve and Devan Hafle will handle the task of scheduling showings for all of the lakengren properties that you are interested in.
They will also execute all negotiations, contracts and paperwork.
The best part about using Steve and Devan Hafle as your agents is, they never charge their clients when it comes to helping them buy a home. A buyer’s agent is actually paid by the sellers.
If you are interested in learning more about the services that we offer to our buyers, or if you have seen a lakengren home for sale, and you would like a private tour, please call Devan directly at, 937-533-7844.
We would love to help you and your family find your perfect home!