Candy Evans

How To Finance a Second Home: Tricky, Little Complicated, But Not Imposible

By Candy Evans | October 3, 2011 |

Cinnamon Shore This may be a great time to BUY a second home, but are banks, who make it hard enough to finance your primary residence, cooperating? The answer is yes, if you have good credit and a hefty down payment. But I have heard so many conflicting stories on the nuances of getting a second home…

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Guest Post: Austin Real Estate Is Kicking Major Butt: What Are They Doing Right? THEY’VE GOT JOBS!

By Candy Evans | October 3, 2011 |

Get this: Austin has an unemployment rate of only 6.7%. That could be why, except for South Padre Island, Austin now has the highest priced median homes in Texas: $194,600, according to the Real Estate center at Texas A&M University. Sales of existing single-family Texas homes in August were up 24 percent from a year ago, according to the…

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Designer Denise McGaha: Monogrammed Towels, Linens & More — How To Make Your Second Home the Most Relaxing Design Haven Ever

By Candy Evans | October 2, 2011 |

When it comes to decking out a second home, interior designer Denise McGaha has seen it all. Denise is the Owner and Principal of Denise McGaha Interiors , an interior design firm in Dallas, Texas.  After 7 years with luxury retailer Neiman Marcus, Denise opened her design firm and set out to design luxury homes for her…

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Al Hill III Buys a $9 Million Dollar Home in Atlanta

By Candy Evans | September 30, 2011 |

On CandysDirt,  I told you about Al and Erin Hill, that’s Al Three, who recently moved their family to Atlanta. They bought a $9 million dollar estate in swanky Buckhead (think Highland Park on Strait Lane in Dallas), closed on it in July. Last spring, the couple had some legal problems involving a $200,000 HELOC —…

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Second Home Shocker: Fabulous Phoenix Paradise Valley REO With D Box Movie Chairs, 21-Car Garage, and Owner Went to West Point

By Candy Evans | September 21, 2011 |

Paradise Valley is like the Highland Park — no wait, make that Vaquero — of Phoenix.  Paradise Valley is in Maricopa County, home to twelve resorts, and one of Arizona’s top tourist destinations. Very pricey dirt: the median home price is about $2.74,  many homes exceeding $10 million, some over $40 million. So when there is a foreclosure, people drop…

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Carole King’s Second Home Ranch in Idaho Reduced, Reduced, On PR Blitz

By Candy Evans | September 21, 2011 | Comments Off on Carole King’s Second Home Ranch in Idaho Reduced, Reduced, On PR Blitz

Just so you know you heard it hear, first: in the next couple of weeks you will see Carole King’s 128 acre private Idaho paradise known as Robinson Bar Ranch everywhere — USA Today, etc. as the PR blitz gets hot. The prize property near Ketchum, Idaho has been reduced to $11.9 million (it was originally…

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