Sherry's Austin TX Real Estate Blog

I have made a decision that I think I can live with. I am not renewing any of my magazine subscriptions. I currently take about 12 woman's type magazines. Better Homes and Gardens, Woman's Day, Country Living, and the like.  It is like trying to watch an hour of TV, but there are so many commercials, I get about 15 minutes of the actual show.  These magazines are so full of advertising; I have to search for actual content. I counted pages of one a while back.  There were about 12 pages of ads for every one page of content.  I am not enjoying them anymore! 

I pride myself in being a good cook. I can usually look at a recipe and tell you if it will be good or not. I haven't seen any good ones yet!  I know some things are regional, and often I am thankful I don't live in that region. And if I can't recognize most of the ingredients...I am not spending the bucks or the time to figure it out.  We are not picky eaters. Usually if it is dead and cooked, we are going to dig in. But there are some things that just don't go together, and there are other things that need a little more help that salt and pepper to taste better. But... I am not putting cocoa on my fish!

I am also tired of every magazine telling me the new weight loss trick month after month. There is no new trick! Eat less and get off your butt...that's it!  No new tricks, no new foods.  I am just sick of it being on the cover of every magazine on the rack.

I have given up on fashion!  No, we don't like the witches toed shoes that make our feet look 3 inches longer.  Just like we don't wear pants that make our butts look 30 pounds heavier. Foot doctors have been telling women to quit wearing the high-high heeled shoes. But the shoe designers just keep making them and women just keep buying them. But women would love to buy something with a lower heel, but we can't find it. Yes, they look good, but they are making dollars at the expense of our health!  Have you seen some of these new designers? That right there would be your first clue.  I wouldn't let these fashion idiots dress my dog!  The last couple years the maternity look has been in style.  Most women have been there, and we don't want to go there again! But I didn't recently hear a dad say, he would rather see his daughter wearing that than what was in style before.  Low cut jeans, with the thong showing, and the 2 times too small shirt with the tummy hanging out.  But I am not a teenager, nor am I pregnant!  I want a different choice! 

Decorating..If you go back and look at a really old magazine... it is just like looking at one now.  What was in style back then, went out for a reason, but it is new again! Wall colors and prints used in the 50's came back, and appear to be headed out. Guess we are headed for the 60's now?  I heard they are bringing back the green appliances we all went out and replaced with the almond, then black, now stainless.  Bronze will be the next best thing I guess.  Got to keep the appliance companies in business!

Child rearing....nothing has changed except we aren't supposed to spank anymore. Wonder if that is one of the reason's our youth has gone a little wild. No consequences anymore for bad behavior.  The questions never change...all about potty training, or taking the bottle or pacifier away...

Just nothing new anymore! I have canceled them all!  I must be harder to entertain these days...I have seen it all I guess...and it appears I have seen it twice!

Can you imagine the police showing up at your home or office and arresting you for a serious crime like rape or a murder? You know you didn't do it!  Your family and friends know you didn't.  Suppose you went to a movie by yourself, threw away the ticket stub that you had paid cash for. No way to prove your whereabouts, and no one there knew you or would remember you. Perhaps someone picked you out of a lineup. You might look like the person they remembered. Well, this happens more than we would like to think. People are spending years and years in prison for crimes they did not commit. Even worse, people are being executed for crimes they did not commit. DNA has not been around that long, and unless you have the money for testing and legal fees....you are going to jail. Some DNA tests can run over $13,000.

Their Mission Statement: The Innocence Project was founded in 1992 by Barry Scheck and Peter J. Neufeld at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University to assist prisoners who could be proven innocent through DNA testing. To date, over 220 people in the United States have been exonerated by DNA testing including 14 who served time on death row. These people served an average of 12 years in prison before exoneration and release.  The Innocence Project's full time staff attorneys and Cardozo clinic students provided direct representation or critical assistance in most cases.  The Innocence Project's groundbreaking use of DNA technology to free innocent people has provided irrefutable proof that wrongful convictions are not isolated or rare events but instead arise from systemic defects. Now an independent nonprofit organization closely affiliated with Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University, the Innocence Project's mission is nothing less than to free the staggering numbers of innocent people who remain incarcerated and to bring substantive reform to the system responsible for their unjust imprisonment.

Please visit their website at:  http://www.innocenceproject.org/

Please donate to the cause, as they are asking for help this month.  They do not take a case unless they are sure they can prove someone's innocence by DNA testing.  Sign up for the monthly newsletter if nothing else.  The thought of someone spending up to 20 years or more in prison-wrongly convicted, missing the opportunity to see their children grow up, shouldn't happen to anyone.  Prison is a hard life for an innocent victim.  They are currently working on over 200 more cases across the country that they need funds to pay for the DNA medical testing.  To date, over 40% of the DNA testing that has freed someone, has convicted the person actually guilty of the crime.

 This is a great resource for families and especially mom's relocating to your area.

Mother's don't always know how to find the best pediatrician in the area, or just general questions like how to get crayon off a painted wall or how to throw a baby shower for adoptive parents.  Two of today's questions in my area were: Where can I find piano lessons for my 6 year old and how can I get my 3 year old to stop whining!

MamaSource is the answer. It is totally free! You just sign up and are sent update's daily with new questions from other mom's who need advice, or you submit your question.  Since it is area specific, it can be a great new way to meet friends with kids the same age, or with specific needs. This would be great for the new mom's-to-be to ask questions also.  Dads can ask questions too of course!    

www.mamasource.com   

Forget about the best swimming spot in Austin.

Barton Springs may be the best swimming spot on Earth.

Clear and icy and teeming with life, this 1,100 ft long spring-fed pool is one of the largest non-chlorinated swimming pools in the country. Average flow is 27,000,000 per day.  These springs over the years have drawn Indians, pioneers, and tourists to this beautiful spot. The waters are brought from limestone strata to the surface by the Balcones Fault, which bisects central Texas.

Ducks, bass, and crawfish splash alongside lap swimmers and UT students desperately working on their tans. Open year round. (Subject to closure during times of heavy rainfall.) From 5am to 9am and 9pm to 10pm, you can swim, but there are no lifeguards on duty. From 9am to 9pm, the red suited lifeguards will watch your every move. Closed 9 am to 7pm on Thursdays for cleaning.

Admission: Adults, $2.50 weekdays, $2.75 weekends, 75 cents for ages 12 to 17 and 50 cents for 11 and under.

I recently showed a 1 bed/1 bath/500K condo downtown. The client says "what do you think of it?"   

Well....do I say "Concrete walls, concrete floors, concrete ceiling, a window...Last I knew...That was a jail cell!"   But of course it does have a door on the bathroom, granite countertops and cherry cabinets and stainless appliances.  You have an awesome view of the interstate and all those dirty roof tops, and you have a balcony, but it's not quite big enough for a chair. Forget trying to put a grill out there either.   Do you really want everyone walking into your bedroom when they come in the front door?  But, hey! Short walk to the frig!  No accommodations for pesky best friends or relatives.

Did I mention that parking is only two blocks away? There is only a 15 yr agreement on that, so in 16 years...you may have NO where to park.  Limit one car. But for additional $$$ we can get 2 parking spots. But not together.  Don't get too many groceries or you'll have to make more than one trip on that 2 block walk...and plan on going only when it's not raining.   

And all this can be yours for a mere $680 per month HOA on top of your already enormous payment for this luxury little gem.   Quick, hurry, sign the dotted line, and don't let this cell get away! People are standing in line to buy them.  Do you look good in strips?

Well.........I resisted the temptation! Bit my tongue (nearly in half).  Let's face it...it is MY opinion. Other people could be thrilled as punch to find his little gem.  This could be one of those people.

So, I ask "Are you familiar with condo life?"  I know there are areas of the country that condo's are the norm, and you don't have much other choice.  They are fairly new to our area.  Let's face it...They are glorified apartment bldg's most of the time, and you're just buying your own apartment and agreeing to share the expense of the rest of the bldg.    So, the client replies..."Well I have lived in a few in my life, and can't say I have loved all my neighbors. But I like that when I travel with my job...I don't have a yard to mow and that kind of stuff."   Well, there was my opening.  "Well let's look at all your options before you decide."  You work from home and travel, so you don't have to be located close to work.  I can get you a 3000 sq ft/3 bed/2 bath home with an office, on an oversized lot, with a nice BBQ patio set up, with an inground pool, and an attached 3 car garage.  You can get a lawn service to take care of the yard for around $150.00 per month year round. A security service to monitor the property for under $35.00 per month. The HOA's in most area's average $30 a month.  You could even have a pool service for around $250.00 a month, plus supplies.  That would save you around $200 a month, give you a place to entertain, a place to park your car, and plenty of storage. You will have room for guests, and company watching over the safety of your home, no yard work worries, and the pool with a much better view would be like a vacation spot.  You would be anywhere from 30-45 minutes away from the airport if you have to fly.  And you won't have to hear the elevator or the neighbors teenagers tromp up and down a staircase with what sounds like size 18 shoes. You are only responsible for YOUR upkeep and maintenance and insurance.  Does that sound appealing?  

Well.... I peeled him up off the floor.  He said he thought stuff like that would be in the multi-million dollar price range.  Well, we have some of those too...but I can get you all  that in your price range.  He had no idea!  He had only been looking at condo's.  Had no idea what else he could get, or any other areas of town. 

Now...I might have shot myself in the foot. He may not want a pool, and only a 2 car garage, and I could find him a very nice home like that for half the price of the condo.  But, I have done my job.... I have given him his choices.  It is up to him to decide how he wants to live.  Not everyone is up to condo life, but then again, not everyone is up to residential life. They like the downtown hustle and bustle. A little noise makes up for being close to all the night life that the city has to offer.  He knows I am not out to get him to spend every dime he either has or doesn't have.  I am not out just for a bigger commission.  My job is to find my clients a home that they are "thrilled" with.  When I do that...the referrals they bring me make up for any amount of money I "might have" missed out on by not trying to sell them the most expensive listing.  They love me, I sleep better at night, my referrals are up...... but my last Broker thought I was nuts for not making that bigger sale...  But...that's his opinion!    

I was recently surprised at how many agents were not familiar with a product called Tech Shield. It is a radiant barrier best installed when a home is being built. The cost for an average home is around $300-$500 dollars. It blocks 97% of the heat coming into a home. Savings are usually 17-20% per month on heating and cooling bills.  Not only are we doing a great service to our clients, we are saving resources.  I personally feel that every home built today should automatically have it.  I am surprised at how many "green builders" don't use it.  It pays for itself within months, and will save thousands of dollars in the long run.  I have found only about one out of 50 clients have ever even heard of it!  I have yet to meet a builder (who doesn't automatically have it any home they build), even mention it while doing other upgrades in a home. Guess because it is not the big dollar upgrade they are wanting.  But it is the one upgrade my clients are thanking me for as we leave the builders office.  They are just thinking about the money saved every month by the one tip their agent gave them, and are so happy they decided to use me instead of just walking into the new home center by themselves.