Archive for September, 2008
When Finishing 5th Isn’t So Bad
September 6th, 2008 categories: Market Trends, Military Installations, Relocating
Today’s headlines were filled with good news. We’ve got Hannah & Ike coming to visit, and Freddie and Fannie are being marched off to their rooms for a bit of “quiet time.”
Actually, Hurrican Hannah came ashore yesterday off the coast of North Carolina. Today, in the heart of Virginia, we’re feeling her rath. Fortunately, according to the Weather Channel, it looks like her stepbrother Ike, who is in trail, will miss us. It appears he’ll be visting the Bahamas before heading off into the Gulf of Mexico. But, with the arrival of the storms clouds also came news that the nation’s two largest mortgage giants are the most recent victims of the mortgage crisis that’s devasted our real estate landscape for the past three years.
On Friday, the Federal Reserve made a call on the red phone (you do remember that 3 A.M. call, don’t you?) to inform Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae of its intention to place them under federal control. They’ll be placed into “conservatorship“. Into what, you say? According to the Fed, the good news is, the companies will continue to operate with the government backing their debt. The bad news is that their boards will be replaced, and their shareholders will be left holding the bag. Well, at least, that’s what they’re saying. But, let’s hope it isn’t the shareholders that are the only ones who’ll have to pay the price for gross mismanagement. But, enough of the bad news.
For anyone that’s travelled up and down I95 in Northern Virginia, rush hour traffic is not a pretty sight. The good news is, according to the recent Urban Mobility Study, the commute to Washngton D.C. ranked as the 5th worst commute in the nation. To be honest, I guess it’s kind of human to feel a bit better, knowing you don’t have it as bad as other folks. Besides, the actual study examinedf the 10 most wasteful cities in the country for commuters, based on fuel usage. What were the top four?
- Los Angeles
- San Francisco
- Atlanta
- San Diego
Gridlock on our nations highways is never enjoyable. With today’s onboard GPS systems, traffic backups can, at times, be avoided. For those of us that live here, we can always find a way around I95. The “reroute” may take us a bit out of the way, but the added time may more than make up for the aggravation avoided. Besides, when the traffic gets bad, just remember, it could be worse.
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There’s Gold In Them There Hills!
September 4th, 2008 categories: Military Installations, Relocating
“The strong take from the weak, but the smart take from the strong.”
from Coach Pete Carril’s book, “The Smart Take From the Strong”
In today’s digital world, these words have taken on special meaning. Those of us that have been involved in any type of physical competition can attest to the strong taking from the weak, the big beating up on the small. While bigger may not necessarily mean better, when to comes to physical prowess, it goes a long way. Who didn’t grow up with a neighborhood bully?
But, with today’s technology, what kind of online assistance exists for an effective and successful home search when shopping for your next home? Clearly, there are a number of very good online sources. Some of today’s most popular web sites with national coverage include:
These “home” sites not only provide the consumer with home listings but also are meant to be a one-stop shopping location for home buyers by providing links to lenders, insurance providers, maps, agents, and other helpful resources.
Once you’ve done a “macro” look at what’s out there, perhaps now it’s time to turn to the area expert, or local real estate agent to help narrow your search and actually do that “boots on the ground” looking. Nothing takes the place of a local real estate agent’s expertise. But, please remember, like any other profession, not all practitioners are the same. Some agents are better than others. So, please do your homework before enlisting the aid of an agent. For many of us, a referral from a trusted source is always a good place to start.
Many of our clients are inbound from overseas or deployed locations. Sometimes, the closest they’ve been to their next duty station or job is an ocean away, or, in some cases, they may be PCSing from the furthest reaches of the globe. So, reaching out to online sources may be their most effective and practical approach to home shopping before they actually move. The good thing is, much of the upfront work is best done via computer and phone, or e-mail.
While the web provides a wealth of real estate information for the purchaser, local expertise can answer questions for you that you probably won’t find anywhere online. And, if the agent doesn’t know the answer, they can certainly point you in the right direction. Remember, their duty is to you! But, more importantly, make sure your Realtor knows what you want. That may sound like the proverbial “no-brainer“, but believe it or not, sometimes that simple fact is overlooked, or more often, minimized instead of emphasized.
The bottom line is: The resources to optimize your home search are at your finger tips. Use them to educate yourself on neighborhoods, schools, cultural and recreational activites, churches, traffic patterns, and anything else that might impact your choice of a home and/or location. Equipped with those resources in hand, and a professional agent to assist you, you’ll have all the smarts necessary to find the home of your dreams.
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The Big Yellow Bus
September 2nd, 2008 categories: Real Estate News, Spouse Stuff
Well, our holiday is over, and it’s time to get back to work. Ignore the fact that most us are employed 12 months out of the year. But, Labor Day’s goodbye isn’t the only indication that the school year’s about to begin. In case you’ve forgotten, we’ll be seeing those large yellow buses competing for road space as well!
Seems that as long as I can remember, the yellow school bus has been the primary means for most students to get to and from school each day. But, do you ever wonder where the yellow came from?
While the challenge of transporting students to school has been around as long as schools have, bus transport became popular in the early 1900s. Most of the early transport was required in order to pick up students who lived in rural areas where walking to school, due to the distance to school, was simply impractical. Development of the modern school bus took off in the 1930s and led to the design of those used today. National school bus construction standards were established at a 1939 conference led by Dr. Frank W. Cyr, of the Teachers College at Columbia University. Originally labeled as National School Bus Chrome, the color chosen for school buses later became known as National School Bus Glossy Yellow. Yellow was the chosen color because black lettering on the color was easiest to see in the early morning hours when buses where on the road.
The sight of the yellow school bus reminds us that its time to get back to work, specifically for students and those that teach them. It also reminds me how important it is to get and on the road a bit earlier in the morning. While I may appreciate the purpose of the yellow school bus, I’ll avoid them if at all possible. Fortunately, Stafford County publishes its bus routes. In Northern Virginia, traffic congestion is a challenge in and of itself, when school isn’t in session. Can you imagine what it is like when the buses are rolling?
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