Emerging Real Estate Markets
Happy Fourth of July, 2012. We live the American Dream of real estate here in Texas more than anywhere. Maybe it’s because we learned our lesson back in the 1980’s — R.I.P. Danny Faulkner. Not only did we learn, we RETAINED. When I was in Denver at the National Association of Real Estate Editors Conference last month, Mark Fleming, the dashing economist for CoreLogic, told me over drinks that what saved our butts this time around was our state set limits on HELOCs, or home improvement loans. In Texas, we are limited on what we can borrow against our homesteads. That is what kept many of us from over-borrowing, so when the market fell we were not left with underwater loans*. I walked into our bank yesterday, Comerica, which I LOVE — who else sends you a thank-you note when you pay off a loan? But more than three people asked if they could offer me a home-improvement loan in the course of one hour. You know me, I’d buy a second home in a heartbeat! Our laws in Texas saved us, said Mark, in spite of ourselves.
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Ryan Jones over at the Times-Picayune reports that New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton has apparently, cryptically filed for divorce from his wife, Beth. Tricky, but smart move here: a Tarrant County divorce petition was filed on June 14, the filings using initials so as to avoid making the Paytons’ identities public. Ryan says: They…
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You are looking at the beautiful vacation homes of Ross Perot, Jr. And Sr., right next to each other! (Ross Jr.’s is to the right of this picture, Ross Perot Sr. to the left.) They are nested right next to the famous ski area, located across from The Four Seasons Residence Club in beautiful Vail, Colorado.
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I’m off to NAREE, where for three and a half days all we do is talk about real estate. I’m moderating the panel on vacation homes featuring four of the nation’s top experts: Peter Kempf, president and CEO of Kempf International and an expert on the fractional market; Alex Iskenderian, Senior VP/COO Vail Resorts Development…
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Perhaps you have procrastinated, like I have a tendency to do. Maybe you haven’t decided where to take the family for a fun-filled vacation, and it’s mid June. May I suggest Cinnamon Shore, Mustang Island’s seaside village, located in Port Aransas on Texas’s Coastal Bend? It’s not that far from Big D and offers a whole schedule of summer events planned to make vacationing in paradise even sweeter. Plus who knows: you might like it so much you decide to buy a second home there.
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Those of us in real estate know that when the housing market plummets, vacation places plummet the most. Second homes are most often discretionary purchases you wait on until you feel flush with cash. Well, get ready. Realtors say second-home buyers are returning to the store, shopping from Cape Cod to Lake Tahoe. As I…
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