Real Estate Quarterly - July 2013

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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.


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


This house is on the corner of Shenandoah Street and DouglasAvenue, where all four houses were designed by Charles Dilbeck.

Documents

Real Estate Quarterly - July 2013