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7/27/2019 Real Estate Quarterly - July 2013
1/1
BY MICHELLE SAUNDERS
People Newspapers
Ellen Terry will never
forget the afternoon that
changed her life forever.
She was hosting a meet-
ing for the Junior League
of Dallas when her door-bell rang. But instead of a
late member, a tow-truck
driver stood on her front
stoop and informed her
that he was repossessing
her Mercedes.
I was in total shock,
Terry said. I had abso-
lutely no idea that we
couldnt afford the lifestyle
that we were living.
The family was forced
to m ove im m edia tely
into a modest cottage,
but after confronting her
former husband, she dis-covered that things were
much worse than she
had expected. So she sent
her two kids to live with
grandparents and gave up
a Highland Park home for
an efficiency.
It was a great leveler for
me, Terry said. I thought
that I was just going to raise
my children, but suddenly
I had to find a career.
The former Hockaday
teacher worked for a travel
agency for a year, but
struggled to make endsmeet before deciding to try
her hand at selling homes.
Her first commission came
from an unlikely-but-
familiar source.
I was waiting at a red
light in my 12-year-old
army green vehicle, when
a former student pulled
up next to me in a 500 SL
Mercedes, Terry said.
She pushed a button to
roll her window down, and
I had to crank mine down
by hand.
Real Estate QuarterlyPEOPLENEW SPAPERS.COM JULY 26, 2013 | 1B
BY SARAH BENNETT
People Newspapers
In the 1930s and 1940s,
the nation was facing dark
times and serious prob-
lems. But one architect
Charles Dilbeck broughta storybook quality to
Dallas that warmed home-
owners hearts then, and
still does today.
I use the world livable
because they re a house
where you can envision
curling up with a good
bo ok on a co ld , wi nt er
night by the fireplace, said
Sheila Rice, a co-founder
of Virginia Cook Realtors.
Theyre also a house where
you can envision rocking
a baby to sleep. Theyrejust so livable, but theres a
romantic edge to them.
Who wouldnt want to
live in a house like that?
Dilbeck left his signature
all over homes in Highland
Park, Bluffview, Oak Cliff,
and East Dallas.
He was an architect
who had a vision of what
homes should be, but it
wasnt a narrow vision,
Rice said.
Storybook, whim-
sical, and Europeanare words that come up
over and over when many
describe his homes, which
were built to impress with
style instead of size. Years
before Dilbeck ever trav-
eled to Europe, he blended
the continental style with
Texas modernism.
He was not an architect
snob by any sense of the
word, said Ed Murchison,
another Virginia Cook
agent. He did everything
MarketStays inSellers
Favor
Dilbeck Designs Retain Storybook AllureLate architectshouses appealto generations
Low inventoryleads to higherdemand, prices
BY DAN KOLLER
People Newspapers
Things are looking up in
the neighborhoods served
by Peo pl e News pa pe rs ,
and by things we mean
home prices.This quarter, we have
turned the corner on two
wheels at 90 miles an
hour, said Lydia Player, an
agent with Ebby Halliday
Realtors. Overnight, it has
become a sellers market.
According to MLS statis-
tics compiled by the Real
Estate Center at Texas
A&M University, the aver-
age price for single-family
houses sold last quarter
in Area 25 was $1.11 mil-
lion. That represents a13-percent increase over
the homes sold there in
the second quarter of 2012.
Area 25 includes the Park
Cities as well as Bluffview,
Devonshire, and Greenway
Parks.
Not all real estate trans-
action are reported to MLS.
But the average reported
price in Area 11 which
is bounded by Northwest
Highway, Midway Road,
LBJ Freeway, and North
Central Expressway rose by 14 percent to
$829,894. And the average
price in North Oak Cliff,
a.k.a. Area 14, jumped 60
percent to $177,019. But
Area 14 includes so many
See DILBECK, Page 7B
LEGENDS OF REAL ESTATE
erry Turned Life Around Selling Homes
PHOTO: ELLEN TERRY
Every summer, Ellen Terry gets a little rest and relaxation inCalifornia, where she rents a house and entertains old friends.
Realtor enduredhardship beforecareer took off
See TERRY, Page 6B
Chefs Kitchens Show Range
STAFF PHOTO: CHRIS MCGATHEY
Kevin Garvin and his wie, Jody, show of their col lection o vintage wa e makers, which reach high temperatures now outlawed to achieve the perect amout o crisp.
STAFF PHOTO: ANDREW BUCKLEY
Kitchen LTO chef Norm Grimm created a colorful kitchen in his tiny downtown loft.
STAFF PHOTO: CHRIS MCGATHEY
Chris Wards kitchen includes a collection of vintage cookbooks.
Where do your favorite chefs cook meals for their families? We persuaded three Dallas chefs to let us take a peek inside their home
kitchens and tell us about their favorite gadgets and cleaning tips. We learned something very important: behind all the professional
glitz and glamour, these chefs personal cooking spaces arent that much different from the rest of ours. Read more on Pages 2-3B.
D MAGAZINE RANKS DALLAS BEST RESI DENTIAL REAL ESTATE AGENTS [ 8-11B ]
See MARKET, Page 6B
STAFF PHOTO: CHRIS MCGATHEY
This house is on the corner of Shenandoah Street and DouglasAvenue, where all four houses were designed by Charles Dilbeck.
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