Austin, Texas is a forward thinking and no where is that more apparent than in its ever-growing environmentally-friendly home designs. There are many energy-efficient residential developments throughout Austin that boast recycled materials,energy efficient appliances, use of passive solar heating and advanced water conservation features.

There are also a few net-zero concept buildings that have begun to spring up in Austin a well.  The SOL Development in East Austin and the The ZeroHouse are both projects that are designed to save as much energy as it consumes.

The ZeroHouse utilizes a composting unit, solar panels, installation without excavation and energy and water-saving devices.  The concept is to focus on self-sufficiency and minimal environmental impact.

The ZeroHouse is still in the planning stage but is now “shovel-ready” but it is another example of just how forward-thinking Austin, Texas really is.

Use the Fine Austin Featured Property Search to find more environmentally homes in Austin, Texas.

Austin's robust economy great for small business

According to a new report in Portfolio.com/bizjournals, Austin ranked #1 as the place for small business vitality, based upon a complex metric of population growth, employment growth, and small business development.

See the full article here.

With population growth of 19.5 percent between 2003 and 2008, employment growth despite the economic downturn of 15.6 percent between 2004 and 2009, and the increase in the number of small businesses in Austin between 2006 and 2007 of 5.6 percent when most comparable metro areas grew at an average of 1.4 percent, Austin’s the place to be for small business creation and development!

Copperfield is an established community that has been satisfying potential home-buyers since 1982. This lovely, north Austin neighborhood is an affordable alternative to to higher price homes in downtown Austin, Texas.

More than 42,000 residents call Copperfield home and is located just minutes from downtown Georgetown and Cedar Park.  This centrally located community enjoys tons of shopping, dining and entertainment options.

The community boasts mature tree stands and lots of vegetation due to its mature age.  Homes enjoy a wonderful sense of privacy.  Typical single-family homes average around 1,300 square feet and cost about $86.per square foot. The attractive pricing of Copperfield is inviting  to young, single professionals as well as young families just starting out.

Copperfield is also blessed with a wide array of recreational opportunities including  nature trails, open space and beautiful  community parks.

Use the Fine Austin Featured Property Search to find more single family homes in Austin, Texas.

Homebuyers shift payment priorities

U.S. News & World Report recently published an article that indicated a pretty dramatic change in the way homeowners are now tackling their debt.

According to the article, a study released by Transunion showed that Americans are increasingly more likely to make payments on their credit cards before payments on their mortgages. The data shows that roughly 6.6 percent of borrowers paid credit cards first in the third quarter of 2009, up from just 4.3 percent in the first quarter of 2008.

This is a shift in the historical norm; which has long been slanted toward house payments as a priority ahead of other bills. Credit the housing bust nationwide for the change.

 As homeowners struggle with unemployment and drops in their homes’ value, they have perhaps become reluctant to commit more money into an asset that might not be worth what they owe on it. Whereas keeping up with credit card payments continues to give them access to necessities such as gas, clothing and groceries.

It also probably signifies part of the issue that caused the housing bust. Access to no-money down or low-down payment loans that proliferated the market during the housing boom allowed buyers to get into homeownership without much “skin in the game.”

In the days of 20-percent down payments, homeownership was something you worked for, saved up for and therefore something you were less likely to give up so easily. It’s a lesson that you can bet banks are heeding.

White House feeling the effects of recession

According to the folks at Zillow, not even the nation’s most recognized and iconic home can escape the deterioration that typifies today’s real estate landscape. The value of the White House fell 5.1 percent last year.  In January 2008, Zillow.com put the value of the White House at $308 million. Twelve months later, and the 132-room mansion built in 1792 is worth $292.5 million.

See the full article here

Market stabilization underway!

The National Association of Realtors has released its December 2009 data on pending homes sales, which were up 1 percent from November.

Pending home sales are an indicator of future completed sales, meaning that markets are continuing to stabilize heading into the spring buying season. The index the NAR uses to determine pending sales was at 96.6 for December compared to 95.6 for November, and up nearly 11 percent from December 2008.

 NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun in a news release said that fluctuations in the number of sales contracts have been impacted by the government’s tax credits.

 “There are easily understood swings in contract activity as buyers respond to a tax credit that was expiring and was then extended and expanded,” he said in the release. “These swings are masking the underlying trend, which is a broad improvement over year-ago levels. December activity was the fifth highest monthly tally in two years.”

Yun projects about 5.6 million existing home sales in 2010, compared to 5.16 in 2009. The rising volume, he said, should help stabilize prices further.

 “For several months now we’ve been seeing stabilization in all of the home price measures as inventory is pulled down,” Yun said. “As a result, the housing wealth for many middle class families has begun to stabilize.”

Seasonally adjusted home sales

Maybe you’ve seen by now the statistics for nationwide home sales in December, released by the National Association of Realtors. The grim-sounding data show that home sales dropped almost 17 percent in December from November. It represents the largest monthly decrease in 40 years, according to the Associated Press.

Of course, a great deal of the decrease can be attributed to the extension of the first-time home buyer tax credit. November’s sales were boosted by a number of first-time buyers scrambling to get the credit, for which they originally had to close by the end of the month. Once the credit was extended, the emergency was off. Buyers now had time, which was bound to lead to a decrease in December sales.

The situation does leave a couple of questions, however, regarding the overall housing market:

1. Are most of the first-time home buyers now out of the market, having already purchased their home?

2. What’s going to happen to the market when the government’s tax credit enticements – now pushed to “move-up” buyers, too – expire at the end of April?

These certainly are big question marks hovering over the market. However, December’s data also shows some signs of further stability: The NAR stats show that while the volume of sales dropped, the median price of single-family homes rose for the month of December, about 1.5 percent from the year before. This marked the first month since August of 2007 that saw a year-over-year increase in prices.

The other sign of stability is in the existing inventory of unsold homes, which fell about 7 percent. That, the NAR is reporting, is now at about a 7.2-month supply. A six-month supply is considered healthy, and the market is creeping toward that number. With the tax credits set to expire this spring; mortgage rates likely to rise around the same time; and a consistently shrinking inventory of homes on the market, sales could take a big jump. That leaves the possibility that home buyers will have to be ready to move fast this spring when they find a home or investment property that suits them. Keep in mind that this time of year is traditionally a good time to buy, as winter often means fewer buyers and therefore more flexible sellers.

HOW TO STAY YOUNG

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay them.

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3.Keep learning.  Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever, even ham radio. Never let the brain idle. ‘An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.’ And the devil’s family name is Alzheimer’s.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love , whether it’s family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever.  Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it.  If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don’t take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Life’s journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally used up and worn out, shouting ” ….wow….man, what a ride!”

 Hope you enjoy these…I sure do!

Wish I knew who said it first , but my memory seems to be failing me a bit!

Does this look familar? Help is on the way!

The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s efforts to help borrowers understand what costs they are getting into (see http://blog.fineaustinliving.com/shopping-for-a-mortgage-should-get-easier-in-austin), is just one example of the federal government’s primary target as the U.S. economy comes out of this recession.

Consumer Debt

It’s easy, of course, to blame the housing industry for the financial mess. And there’s no question, home buyers eager jump on the bubble bandwagon of rapidly rising home values took on loans they fundamentally could not afford, adding to the problem.

You probably have your own opinion about the government’s efforts to “modify” some of these loans, making them more affordable to those who carry them. You probably have your own feelings about the government bailing out the banks who made these loans, perhaps knowing that many wouldn’t be paid back.

But you should also be able to see that the government is trying to make sure it doesn’t happen again. The HUD Good Faith Estimate form is an example – the government is saying “protect the borrower” when it makes it harder for banks to hide real costs.

The credit card laws that go into effect in February also put consumer debt in their cross-hairs, aiming to eliminate some of the practices that keep credit card account holders in debt.

For example, card companies can no longer raise your interest rate on current balances if you are less than 60 days late on a payment. Also, after February, companies can’t charge a fee for going over a credit limit, unless the card holder has “opted in” to pay the charge for the convenience of being able to go over his or her limit.

NOTE: It will be important for you to pay attention to all your credit card mail – you might be required by your card company to opt in or opt out of various changes. Some card companies, knowing they can’t raise rates as often or for as many reasons as under the old laws, have raised rates now. You can opt in to the new rates, while you continue paying the old rate on current balances, or you can opt out, effectively canceling your card.

New regulations also call for parental permission for those under 21 to open new credit card accounts, and they also restrict the marketing credit card companies can do on college campuses. Lawmakers apparently understand that card companies want to get their claws into potential debt carriers while they are still young and impressionable.

Are these kinds of measures going to squeeze the credit of some who might not deserve to be squeezed? Perhaps. But it’s clear that the government views Americans’ willingness to go into large debt, or their irresponsibility with it – or both – as part of the financial problem.

And its solution is to take aim at that consumer debt.

Recommended Resources

Settlement Cost Booklet

HUD has published a pretty handy guide for home loan borrowers, titled “Shopping for Your Home Loan: HUD’s Settlement Cost Booklet.” This 49-page booklet explains laws, procedures, costs, etc. associated with home loans. You can download this educational booklet at

http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/HUD/documents/Settlement%20Booklet%20December%2015%20REVISED.pdf