Real Estate Financial News
We’ve reached a juncture in the credit markets where it really doesn’t matter how low interest rates go -- banks are refusing to lend and consumers either have no desire to borrow – or they are in such troubled financial straits they can’t meet the qualification criteria for a loan.
So what’s the Fed to do?
Many believe the Fed will announce in their post-meeting statement tomorrow afternoon (2:15 p.m. ET) that the answer to rekindling economy growth is actually quite simple – print money like crazy.
In a nutshell the idea here is that by flooding the economy with money – banks will ultimately find themselves bursting at the seams with capital – and they will essentially have no other option than to start lending.
As the short-term credit market swings back into action, business confidence will rise, employment will improve and the engines of commerce will roar back to life.
Silver Oak Mortgage
Lisa Warren
Branch Manager
751 E Southlake Blvd Ste 100
Southlake, TX 76092
office 817-410-2518
fax 817-410-2519
Monday, December 15, 2008
Daily Real Estate News
Keeping Costs Down in Vacant Homes
Having a getaway home can be a treat during the winter, even if the home is located in a cold climate.
However, costs can add up quickly when you leaving that second home vacant, but ready for use.
Here are some ways to lower costs:
* Weatherstrip all the doors and windows and make sure that the heating and air conditioning ductwork has no leaks. Install maximum insulation.
* Pay attention to the thermostat. Heating load is proportional to the difference between outside and inside temperature. If it is 10 degrees colder outside than the desired indoor temperature, turn the thermostat down 1 degree and save 10 percent on energy. If there is a 20-degree difference between indoor and outdoor temperatures, turning the thermostat back one degree will only save 5 percent on energy.
* Turn back the water heater. Even if someone will occasionally shower there, keeping the water heater set at 115 degrees keeps the water at a comfortable temperature and saves money compared to usual settings.
* Unplug appliances, televisions and anything else that is on standby. The standby features use lots of watts. For instance, a microwave oven uses as much energy to run the clock as it does to cook.
Source: The New York Times, Billie Cohen (12/11/2008
Having a getaway home can be a treat during the winter, even if the home is located in a cold climate.
However, costs can add up quickly when you leaving that second home vacant, but ready for use.
Here are some ways to lower costs:
* Weatherstrip all the doors and windows and make sure that the heating and air conditioning ductwork has no leaks. Install maximum insulation.
* Pay attention to the thermostat. Heating load is proportional to the difference between outside and inside temperature. If it is 10 degrees colder outside than the desired indoor temperature, turn the thermostat down 1 degree and save 10 percent on energy. If there is a 20-degree difference between indoor and outdoor temperatures, turning the thermostat back one degree will only save 5 percent on energy.
* Turn back the water heater. Even if someone will occasionally shower there, keeping the water heater set at 115 degrees keeps the water at a comfortable temperature and saves money compared to usual settings.
* Unplug appliances, televisions and anything else that is on standby. The standby features use lots of watts. For instance, a microwave oven uses as much energy to run the clock as it does to cook.
Source: The New York Times, Billie Cohen (12/11/2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
America's Most Affluent Neighborhoods
America's Most Affluent Neighborhoods
These towns have prospered in recent years--but some have tougher times ahead than others.
In an economy like this, even the richest communities across the country are feeling the pain.
Take Southlake, Texas. With an estimated median household income of $172,945, this Dallas suburb is the most affluent neighborhood in the country, mostly due to real estate growth. In 2005, the area doubled its town square shopping center, which bolstered the median household income by over $42,000 since the 2000 census. (Even accounting for inflation, that's still a big bump.)
Brian J.L. Berry, dean of the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences at the University of Texas at Dallas, says that what separates Southlake from its white-collar counterparts is undoubtedly its town square. "It is an upscale community with an expression of that status in its town square," says Berry. "If there is anything special about the suburb, it is that square."
The only problem is that there's not much room for Southlake to grow. Add to that the highest nationwide unemployment rate in 14 years and the second-lowest consumer confidence index in 34 years, and it's clear that even neighborhoods like Southlake have the potential to be affected by the recession in some way.
Behind the Numbers
To determine America's most affluent neighborhoods, we looked at average median household income estimates--in communities with populations between 20,000 and 64,999--from 2005 to 2007, provided in the U.S. Census' American Community Survey. On Dec. 9, the Census released data estimates on communities of this size for the first time. These include cities, towns, villages as well as census-designated places (CDP), a type of neighborhood that lacks a separate municipal government, but otherwise physically resembles one of these other places.
Topping the list is Southlake, followed by affluent New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., suburbs. But the list could see some shuffles in the months or year ahead.
The Tempe, Ariz.-based Institute for Supply Management's index of manufacturing activity--which the trade association releases each month--fell to 36.2 in November 2008 from 38.9 in October. (An index of 50 or lower indicates that an economy is contracting.) That's a 26-year low. To read more about this story.. visit http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/106273/America's-Most-Affluent-Neighborhoods
Forbes.com
by Lauren Sherman
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
These towns have prospered in recent years--but some have tougher times ahead than others.
In an economy like this, even the richest communities across the country are feeling the pain.
Take Southlake, Texas. With an estimated median household income of $172,945, this Dallas suburb is the most affluent neighborhood in the country, mostly due to real estate growth. In 2005, the area doubled its town square shopping center, which bolstered the median household income by over $42,000 since the 2000 census. (Even accounting for inflation, that's still a big bump.)
Brian J.L. Berry, dean of the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences at the University of Texas at Dallas, says that what separates Southlake from its white-collar counterparts is undoubtedly its town square. "It is an upscale community with an expression of that status in its town square," says Berry. "If there is anything special about the suburb, it is that square."
The only problem is that there's not much room for Southlake to grow. Add to that the highest nationwide unemployment rate in 14 years and the second-lowest consumer confidence index in 34 years, and it's clear that even neighborhoods like Southlake have the potential to be affected by the recession in some way.
Behind the Numbers
To determine America's most affluent neighborhoods, we looked at average median household income estimates--in communities with populations between 20,000 and 64,999--from 2005 to 2007, provided in the U.S. Census' American Community Survey. On Dec. 9, the Census released data estimates on communities of this size for the first time. These include cities, towns, villages as well as census-designated places (CDP), a type of neighborhood that lacks a separate municipal government, but otherwise physically resembles one of these other places.
Topping the list is Southlake, followed by affluent New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., suburbs. But the list could see some shuffles in the months or year ahead.
The Tempe, Ariz.-based Institute for Supply Management's index of manufacturing activity--which the trade association releases each month--fell to 36.2 in November 2008 from 38.9 in October. (An index of 50 or lower indicates that an economy is contracting.) That's a 26-year low. To read more about this story.. visit http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/106273/America's-Most-Affluent-Neighborhoods
Forbes.com
by Lauren Sherman
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Monday, December 8, 2008
Tips on Saving Water....
* You can use a plastic bucket in your shower to let the cold water run till the hot gets there. Then you can use that water to water plants and animals so it does not just go down the drain.
* Turn the water off while you are brushing your teeth.
* Make sure your toliets are not leaking may need a new flapper a 5-10 dollar piece and a 10 min fix.
* Extreme turn the water off while you lather up.
* Swap out your shower head for a water saver type.
* And double check for secret wasteful things like what is happening in this video.
http://www.dnaco.net/~vogelke/pictures/water-leak/water-leak.wmv
* Turn the water off while you are brushing your teeth.
* Make sure your toliets are not leaking may need a new flapper a 5-10 dollar piece and a 10 min fix.
* Extreme turn the water off while you lather up.
* Swap out your shower head for a water saver type.
* And double check for secret wasteful things like what is happening in this video.
http://www.dnaco.net/~vogelke/pictures/water-leak/water-leak.wmv
Friday, December 5, 2008
Treasury Department Considers Plan to Lower Mortgage Rates
Treasury Department Considers Plan to Lower Mortgage Rates
Financial industry lobbyists are urging the Treasury Department to take steps to lower rates on 30-year mortgages to 4.5 percent.
WASHINGTON -- Financial industry lobbyists are urging the Treasury Department to take steps to lower mortgage rates and help stabilize the battered U.S. housing market. Under one proposal, Treasury would seek to lower the rate on a 30-year mortgage to 4.5 percent by purchasing mortgage-backed securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Scott Talbott, chief lobbyist at the Financial Services Roundtable, said Wednesday.
If enacted, such a plan would be an unprecedented opportunity for anyone with good credit and a solid income who could qualify for a mortgage at the lowest rates on records dating to the early 1960s, said Keith Gumbinger, senior vice president at financial publisher HSH Associates. "You would have the mother of all re-fi booms," said mortgage industry consultant Howard Glaser. The goal of the industry's proposal would be to take advantage of the unusually large difference, or spread, between mortgage rates and yields on government debt. On Wednesday, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note yield sank as low as 2.65 percent, while the national average rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgages was 5.75 percent, according to HSH Associates. In recent years, there has been about a 1.8 percentage point difference between the yield on a 10-year Treasury note and a 30-year mortgage rate, but that spread currently hovers around 3 percentage points.
To read more on this story, click here!
Financial industry lobbyists are urging the Treasury Department to take steps to lower rates on 30-year mortgages to 4.5 percent.
WASHINGTON -- Financial industry lobbyists are urging the Treasury Department to take steps to lower mortgage rates and help stabilize the battered U.S. housing market. Under one proposal, Treasury would seek to lower the rate on a 30-year mortgage to 4.5 percent by purchasing mortgage-backed securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Scott Talbott, chief lobbyist at the Financial Services Roundtable, said Wednesday.
If enacted, such a plan would be an unprecedented opportunity for anyone with good credit and a solid income who could qualify for a mortgage at the lowest rates on records dating to the early 1960s, said Keith Gumbinger, senior vice president at financial publisher HSH Associates. "You would have the mother of all re-fi booms," said mortgage industry consultant Howard Glaser. The goal of the industry's proposal would be to take advantage of the unusually large difference, or spread, between mortgage rates and yields on government debt. On Wednesday, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note yield sank as low as 2.65 percent, while the national average rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgages was 5.75 percent, according to HSH Associates. In recent years, there has been about a 1.8 percentage point difference between the yield on a 10-year Treasury note and a 30-year mortgage rate, but that spread currently hovers around 3 percentage points.
To read more on this story, click here!
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