Bonneville County home sales, prices rise in 2012

Click to enlarge

The latest home sales numbers for Bonneville County show improvement over last year. More homes are selling and the median price has gone up.

The number of homes sold through the end of October this year was up almost 18.3 percent from the same period in 2011. Median home prices were also up significantly, over 6.6 percent.

But it's going to be some time before the numbers climb back to where they were before the economic collapse of 2007-2008. Historic figures show that sales through the end of October this year were two-thirds of what they were in the same period of 2007. The median home price this year was nearly 10 percent lower than what it was in 2007. Likewise, homes were selling faster in 2007 by an average of 39 days.

I.F. Chamber plans open house Thursday

There wills be a ribbon cutting and open house Thursday at 5 p.m. for the new Idaho Falls Business Development Center and Visitor Information Center at 420 Memorial Drive.

This project came about after community and economic development agencies decided they would benefit from all being under the same roof. At that same time, the Moffatt Thomas law firm was moving to Snake River Landing, opening up a prime piece of real estate right on the newly remodeled Memorial Drive.

Tenants of the Visitor Information Center include the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Idaho Falls Convention & Visitor's Bureau and the Idaho Falls Auditorium District.

Tenants of the Business Development Center include the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce, the Better Business Bureau, the Partnership for Science & Technology and the Idaho Falls Downtown Development Corp.

The open house will be catered by Applebee's.

Bedtime stories for the digital interactive age

The dot patterns on Smart PJ's can be scanned for all sorts of fun when it's time to go nite-nite. (Photo by Melissa Bristol)

In the past year a lot of people have been learning about QR tags -- coded images that can be scanned with a smart phone to bring information to the phone's screen.

Juan Murdoch

But while many said, "Wow," Juan Murdoch said, "What if?"

"What if you put these on kids' pajamas so that they could bring up pictures and bedtime stories?" he wondered. Murdoch, an Idaho Falls real estate agent with Keller Williams, said he got so excited by the idea he had to leave the meeting. "I was just shaking," he said. "I had to find out whether anyone had thought of this before me."

With the due diligence done, today he has a patent and 3,000 pair of Smart PJs he's confident he can sell as soon as the word gets out.

Murdoch learned early that QR codes were difficult to scan off fabric. Luckily, he also learned that a simpler pattern would scan just as well, if not better, for his purposes.

Every pair of Smart PJs has 47 dot patterns on it. Each one brings up a picture of a different animal and information about it.

With the app working and easy enough for a 6-year-old to use (it can be loaded for free onto an iPhone, and iPad and Android apps are close), his plan is to expand the content to stories and cartoons and develop the Web page, www.smartpjs.com.

Locally, Murdoch is planning to roll his Smart PJs out Saturday at the Christmas Craft Fair at Bonneville High School. "This is our first big event," he said. "We should have our platform ready with other stories, cartoons, etc., by then."

Idaho Best Places to Work program seeks entrants

There's still time to enter the Best Places to Work in Idaho for 2013, a survey of the state's employers conducted by POPULUS, an independent marketing research company, the Idaho Business Review and PacificSource Health Plans.

Since 2009, 20 companies have been named Best Places to Work in Idaho, divided evenly into large companies (over 100 employees) and small companies (under 100).

Rankings are based on employer practices and an anonymous survey of associates, who are asked to agree or disagree with dozens of statements about the firm, their work environment and their satisfaction.

Enrollment in the program is open through the end of January. Here is a link to the program's Web site, with information about 2013: https://www.bestplacestoworkinidaho.com/howitworks.

For four straight years, Edward Jones, a financial services firm based in St. Louis, has been named the No. 1 large company. The company provides financial services for individual investors in the United States and, through an affiliate, Canada. Every aspect of the firm's business, from the types of investment options offered to the location of branch offices, is designed to cater to individual investors.

There are 13 advisers in Idaho Falls and Ammon, and with Rigby, Rexburg, Shelley and Blackfoot included the number jumps to 19. "For the most part, we each have our own office which makes it seem like there are more of us," said Kevin King, who has an office in Idaho Falls.

Here is a full list of the Best Places to Work in Idaho for 2012 (awards are given at a banquet in April):

Top 10 Small Employers
1. CBH Homes
2. Lochsa Engineering
3. Moneytree, Inc.
4. MetaGeek
5. Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce
6. TitleOne Corporation
7. D.A. Davidson & Co.
8. Fisher's Document Systems, Inc.
9. Thornton Oliver Keller
10. Grubb & Ellis Catalyst

Top 10 Large Employers
1. Edward Jones
2. Idaho Central Credit Union
3. Primary Health Medical Group
4. Bodybuilding.com
5. T-Mobile
6. Idaho Housing and Finance Association
7. West Valley Medical Center
8. D.L. Evans Bank
9. MWI Veterinary Supply, Inc.
10. Alliance Title & Escrow

Sho-Ban Hotel and Event Center names Kristi Lyn Hansen sales director

Kristi Lyn Hansen

The Shoshone-Bannock Hotel & Event Center at Fort Hall has named Kristi Lyn Hansen its director of sales. Hansen was previously employed as sales director of O’Callahan’s inside the Idaho Falls Shilo Inn. Before her 14 years of sales experience in the hospitality industry, she worked in the travel industry for six years, specializing in leisure destinations, international travel, and training. A native of Blackfoot, she attended the International Air Academy in Vancouver, Wash.  

“We are fortunate to have found the skill set that Kristi brings to the property; a genuine care and commitment to clients, the ability to serve, and the regional awareness of the market and trends in the area,” said Jim Metzger, director of hospitality for the center.  “She is a welcome addition to our management team.”