Fence Designs Reveal Your Personality

• By: John Riha
• Good fences make good neighbors. They also make beautiful garden backdrops, welcoming entryways, excellent privacy screens, and distinct boundaries. Fences contribute to curb appeal and help preserve the value of your property. Each fence, however, can be as unique as its owner. Which fence style are you?

Read more: http://www.houselogic.com/photos/fences/pictures-fence-designs/#ixzz27nfPL185

Aging Realtors and FHA Flop

There are several concerns in real estate today, none to do with the fantastic availability of money for loans at ridiculously low rates:  3.375% for 30 years and 2.75 for 15 years.  This makes buying a house so much cheaper than buying a car or using your credit cards.

But one of the concerns in real estate is that the average realtor is 56 years old, where the average in other industries is 42.  Why is that a concern?  As older realtors retire, the brain drain is critical.  The experienced older realtor knows so much about what to expect in a real estate deal, how to put it together, where to get the $$$, and so many things that help the consumer.  Getting younger realtors trained in time to replace all these experienced realtors could be hard.  On HGTV you see realtor shows with the younger ones, and I think from my opinion you see greed, underhanded dealing, lack of morals, and not the professionalism I see daily among the older realtors. 

We need to train realtors to put the customer first, not their pocketbook or their career.  Reputation, integrity, knowledge, and honesty need to be at the forefront of a career in real estate.

Another problem in real estate right now from the broker's opinion survey was that they can't recruit enough realtors, or get good ones.  Again, they mention the younger generation having a problem with training and going where the $$ is. 

FHA loans are a slight problem, due to the increase in the mortgage insurance costs back in April, more and more people are choosing to go conventional.  That's not a real problem, now that you can get 5% down money with conventional loans, but it is a change from earlier in the year when most everyone was using FHA (at least here locally).  It's just as cheap to go conventional now once you add in the upfront money insurance costs, and it's easier with less restrictions. 

Now is the time to purchase a home since the rates are so low, money is available, and there's no shortage of homes on the market.  It's the time to sell also if you plan to in the near future, as a shadow of repossessed homes will soon be on the market, lowering the value of your home, so now is the perfect time to buy or sell.  We don't know what we'll see once this election is over, so don't waste the next two months on the sidelines.  Now is the time to make your real estate transactions while all the ducks are in a good row, easy for shooting.

10 TAX TIPS for HOME SELLERS

10 tax tips for home sellers Real Estate Tax Talk By Stephen Fishman Inman News® Share This The IRS has recently issued a helpful list of 10 tax tips all homeowners should keep in mind when selling a home: 1. You are usually eligible to exclude the gain from income if you have owned and used your home as your main home for two years out of the five years prior to the date of its sale. 2. If you have a gain from the sale of your main home, you may be able to exclude up to $250,000 of the gain from your income ($500,000 on a joint return in most cases). 3. You are not eligible for the exclusion if you excluded the gain from the sale of another home during the two-year period prior to the sale of your home. 4. If you can exclude all of the gain, you do not need to report the sale on your tax return. 5. If you have a gain that cannot be excluded, it is taxable. You must report it on Form 1040, Schedule D, Capital Gains and Losses. 6. You cannot deduct a loss from the sale of your main home. 7. Worksheets are included in Publication 523, Selling Your Home, to help you figure the adjusted basis of the home you sold, the gain (or loss) on the sale, and the gain that you can exclude. 8. If you have more than one home, you can exclude a gain only from the sale of your main home. You must pay tax on the gain from selling any other home. If you have two homes and live in both of them, your main home is ordinarily the one you live in most of the time. 9. If you received the first-time homebuyer credit and within 36 months of the date of purchase the property is no longer used as your principal residence, you are required to repay the credit. Repayment of the full credit is due with the income tax return for the year the home ceased to be your principal residence, using Form 5405, First-Time Homebuyer Credit and Repayment of the Credit. The full amount of the credit is reflected as additional tax on that year's tax return. 10. When you move, be sure to update your address with the IRS and the U.S. Postal Service to ensure you receive refunds or correspondence from the IRS. Use Form 8822, Change of Address, to notify the IRS of your address change. For more information about selling your home, see IRS Publication 523, Selling Your Home. Stephen Fishman is a tax expert, attorney and author who has published 18 books, including "Working for Yourself: Law & Taxes for Contractors, Freelancers and Consultants," "Deduct It," "Working as an Independent Contractor," and "Working with Independent Contractors." He welcomes your questions for this weekly column

Home Safety & Security Tips

Home Safety & Security Tips

A quick once-over of the items on this list may improve the safety and security of your home and could protect your family and friends. It is important to periodically pay attention to these things because things change over time.

Security

• Does each exterior door have a deadbolt?
• Does the lock on each window work?
• Have you added pins or clips to your windows for additional security?
• Do you have dowels or broom sticks in the track of windows and sliding glass doors?
• Do you have security company labels or signs displayed prominently?
• Do you have an alarm system? Is the system monitored?
• Do you have a dog that barks when strangers approach the home?
• Are emergency numbers posted near the telephones?

Fire

• Do you have smoke detectors near all sleeping areas?
• Do you check the batteries monthly and change them annually?
• Do you have two carbon monoxide detectors?
• Do you have an escape ladder for upper floors?
• Do you have fire extinguishers near exits and in the kitchen?
• Do you have an emergency escape plan and is the family familiar with it?
• Are any outlets or switches warm to the touch?
• Are kitchen ventilation systems working properly?
• Is the dryer ventilated to the outside and is the exhaust free of lint?
• Is the furnace cleaned and serviced yearly?
• Is the space around the hot water heater clear of combustible materials?

Falls

• Are all electrical and phone cords out of the flow of traffic?
• Are rugs and runners slip resistant?
• Is your step-stool sturdy and in good condition?
• Are stairs clear of objects that could cause a fall?
• Are all entrance ways, exits, halls and walks well lighted?
• Do bath tubs and showers have non-skid strips or suction mats in them?

Other

• Do you keep drugs and medicines out of reach and sight of small children?
• Are interior doors designed so small children cannot lock themselves in rooms?
• Are pool and play areas fenced to keep small children in and uninvited guests out?
• Are firearms kept out of reach and sight of children?
• Is a well-stocked first aid kit available for emergencies?
• Is there one member of your family trained in first aid, CPR and the Heimlich maneuver?

Home Buying Strategy: Get a Binder!!

Here is a great article about how to get started buying a home.  I tell people alot of this, especially about getting pre-qualified before going hunting, so you don't see things that you love that you absolutely won't ever be able to afford.  It also cuts down on wasted time looking at things you can't afford.  But there are alot of other great things in this article, like keeping a binder, with tabs.  It's worth the read.

Your Home-buying Strategy

August 31, 2012 -- Realty Times Feature Article by Phoebe Chongchua Buying a home is both exciting and sometimes stressful...whether you're a first-time homebuyer or an expert at it. The key to reducing the stress and successfully finding the home that matches your wants, needs, and budget is to have a home-buying strategy. A home-buying strategy serves to keep you focused, in line with your goals, and on financial track. It can function much like a marketing strategy does for a company. It contains the important tasks, outlines your objectives in buying a home, your must-haves in a home, your financial budget, your move-in timeframe, location, desires, and more. It may sound like a lot of work but if you take the time to put together a home-buying strategy and then share it with your real estate agent, you'll find that the clear goals you have will bring you closer to finding exactly what you're looking for and, likely, in a shorter period of time. Putting together your home-buying strategy: In previous columns, I've written about getting organized for your move by organizing a binder that holds your vital paperwork and any materials that you'll immediately need during the moving process. Organizing your home-buying strategy works in a similar way. You'll start by taking inventory of the home you currently live in. This gives you the opportunity to note both the pros and cons. Write it all down. Then write down your must-haves, would-love-to-haves, and absolutely-nots. You can write a list on notebook paper and place it in a three-ring binder and share it with your agent. In today's digital era there are many highly useful tools and apps to help you with house hunting. The creative and social website, pinterest.com is wonderful for saving website links and photos to various boards that you organize in categories. Even if you keep digital files, also keep the binder handy as your agent will give you lots of paperwork and having it all in one place will be a big relief when it comes time to find a particular document. Seek out financing. Do this before you start to physically go out and look for homes. Sure, seeing lots of different homes can be fun (for some people) but seeing homes that you don't qualify for is a lesson in frustration for all. Be realistic and be informed by getting the information you need from a mortgage broker who can get you pre-qualified. Create categories in your binder. Separate sections with tabs and label them things like: budget, favorites, neighborhood, comps. This is where you will place the notes you take during your house hunting. The "budget" section clearly has the defined price point that you are comfortable with. Surprisingly, some buyers start their shopping without giving careful consideration to this and they wind up frustrated because they're not certain how much home they can afford. The "budget" section also includes other expenses that go along with owning a home such as amount of savings for household repairs and, perhaps, new home furnishings. Bring along a small camera, video recorder or your smartphone to capture your own quick snapshots that you can print out and put in the "favorites" section of your binder. For the "neighborhood" section, be sure to take a few photos of parks or other areas in the community that make this neighborhood and location a good potential match. Again, there are apps that can also do this on your computer but I find both the use of a physical binder and digital tools to be the most effective. Sometimes you just need to see and hold the photo or papers in your hand. In the "comps" section, you'll place the comps that you receive from your agent. Sometimes buyers will toss this information away thinking they'll remember the details. However, it's best to keep any comps you receive to review it again later when you're making your ultimate choice. Yes, there is lots of paperwork but it serves a good purpose. Having all that paperwork and your digital apps at your finger tips will provide you with a solid and effective home-buying strategy that allows you to focus on finding the home you're looking for rather than searching for papers and photos you've misplaced. Also, later when you're contemplating, referencing the photos and notes that you've taken will help tip the scale and help you choose the home that's right for you

Minding Your e-Manners Online

Minding Your e-Manners Online:  GREAT ARTICLE>  I needed to hear this!!

Posted By susanne On September 11, 2012 @ 3:38 pm In Today's Home Spun Wisdom | Comments Disabled

^[1](MCT)—Managing your email extends beyond cleaning out your inbox.
Peter Post, a director of The Emily Post Institute in Burlington, Vt., offers these pointers for safer, smarter emailing.

Mortgages Rates are Down, but IT COSTS MORE.

Rates Are Down But It Costs More?

The latest Housing Affordability Index from the National Association of REALTORS® shows an interesting trend taking place this year that needs buyers' attention. Most people know that the mortgage rates are still at incredibly low rates but don't feel there is much sense of urgency.
This report shows that mortgage rates have fallen from 4.37% in January to 3.81% for June. However, the report shows that the payment as a percentage of income has gone from 12.1% to 13.9% which simply means that buyers have to spend more of their income on a home.
The reason is that the median price of homes nationally has gone from $154,600 in January to $190,100 in June which is a 23% increase. The two major components of housing affordability are the price of the homes and the mortgage rates a buyer must pay.

Even if one of those components is going down, the other could have a significant affect as is shown in this year's trend in housing affordability. In the past few weeks, the effects of which are not show in this report, mortgage rates have been moving up.
Home buyers and investors who have been taking a wait and see approach need to make a decision if now is the time to act.

4 Mistakes Home owners Often Make With Their House

4 Mistakes Home Owners Often Make With Their House

 

By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine
When it comes to taking care of a home or remodeling, home owners can make some unwise decisions. ServiceMagic, a Web site that features a network of nationwide service professionals–including in home improvement–has an article “8 Things You Should Never Do to Your Home.” Here are a few common home owner mistakes that made its list:
1. Going overboard with remodeling. It’s easy to quickly let a budget go out the window when remodeling. For example, the ServiceMagic article calls “bump-outs” a waste of money; these are when you extend a wall by a few feet, such as to accommodate a bay window. However, the cost per square foot is so high that you might as well opt for a more sizable addition that can be done at a lower cost per square foot. Bottom-line: If you want to make a return on your investment, you want to keep your remodeling updates within the costs of your neighborhood and compared to similarly sized homes. (Also, see Cost vs. Value report to gauge average returns on investment on remodeling projects.)
2. Being in denial about your pet’s odor. Big or small, your pets smell and they probably shed too. Pets attach their smell to everything and guests who enter your home will immediately pick up on it. Experts recommend to have your carpets and furniture professionally cleaned every six months, and open the windows and vacuum frequently to help rid your home of any lingering pet odors.

3. Removing walls between rooms. Removing walls quickly can become disastrous if you don’t know if it’s a load-bearing wall. A qualified contractor should know which walls can be removed and which can’t.
4. Becoming the messy neighbor. Curb appeal goes a long way in separating the nice neighborhoods from the bad. After all, bad yards can even bring property values down in an entire neighborhood. Don’t be “that” person with the weeds and uncared for lawn, or that person who parks their car in the yard, the article notes.

Neighbor's Property Hurting Your Values?

It can be unsightly and upsetting when a home in a neighborhood isn't being maintained like the others. It might be an overgrown yard, a fence in need of repair, paint peeling on the home or even a car parked in front of the home that hasn't moved in weeks.

I believe most people want to be good neighbors and may be willing to correct the issue once it is brought to their attention. In some cases, they may not agree with the same urgency and it might be necessary to seek other remedies.

The most expedient solution may be to contact the responsible person and describe your perception of the problem. An owner-occupant may be sympathetic to the neighbors and more than willing to correct the issue.

However, if you suspect that it is a rental property, check with the county tax records to identify the owner. They may be unaware of the situation and would actually welcome the "heads-up" to protect their investment.

The next step might be to notify the homeowner's association if there is one. The covenants or bylaws will specify how properties must be maintained and the association can enforce them.

The final step would be to notify the city for a possible code violation. Most cities have a separate code and neighborhood services division and some cities have 311 for non-emergency assistance.

Garage Door Styles Website

http://www.bobvila.com/articles/2449-garage-doors-101/pages/1

This is a great article about garage doors.  I learned alot and think you will too.  I guess I'd never given much thought to how much better a house can look with great doors.  I know I notice a houe looking bad if the doors are in disrepair, but never knew changing the style could make so much difference.

Here in Amarillo we pretty much all have the same type doors, not much difference in style, but maybe we should look into making the style of the door match the design of the house.