Are you an investor or home owner who bought foreclosed properties and working on re-innovating them?
Here is some financial help for you from Lowes. If you are my client, I might have already sent you a 10% off coupon from Lowes coupon but this coupon comes directly from Lowes for anyone working on their foreclosed properties. This is a printable 10% off coupon, just type your name and address and it works to popup with a coupon immediately.
As usual this Coupon is also only good for a single receipt purchase of any in-stock or Special Order merchandise only up to $10,000 (Maximum discount $1,000). One coupon per household. Don’t try to use this coupon in Home Depot, they no longer accept Lowes internet coupons. It has to be printed coupon.
If you have time to wait, you can also try this another link which take same information and send coupon out to your email. Thanks to mymoneyblog.com for heads up.
Riverstone
A Fort Bend area master-planned community where luxurious homes, water features and resort-style amenities define the landscape, Riverstone is one of Fort Bend County’s most desirable addresses. Riverstone residents enjoy an enviable lifestyle with a superb selection of new homes with Sugar Land and Missouri City addresses. Plus, with varied highway access and an array […]
Sienna
Sienna is a comprehensive 7,000-acre master-planned community. Sienna is more than houses inside one of the top Fort Bend County subdivisions. Neatly tucked between the acclaimed cities of Missouri City and the City of Sugar Land, it is a community in the truest sense of the word. Every effort is made to maintain a sense […]
Bridgeland
Imagine a place with vast open spaces and spectacular sunsets. An 11,400 acre master-planned community in northwest Houston where flocks of waterfowl glide across natural lakes. A refuge from the chaos of your workday. A place where you can find true balance. The new home community of Bridgeland is such a place. Bridgeland attracts and […]
Towne Lake – Master Planned Community, Cypress
Towne Lake reflects its Texas-sized appeal in a 300-acre lake, with beautiful views. Lake coves allow neighbors easy access to the water and to the many amenities and destinations throughout, bonding the community together. Towne Lake Charm is all these things and more, reflected in a community steeped in Texas pride. Caldwell Companies has perfected […]
Cypress Creek Lakes
Cypress Creek Lakes is a beautiful master-planned new home community nestled in the charming Northwest Houston suburb of Cypress, Texas. Mischer Development has carefully designed the 1,600-acre community to respect the natural beauty of the land while developing approximately 2,000 new home sites. Its convenient location on Fry Rd. just off of Highway 290 also […]
Sticky: Lowes 10% Off coupon for foreclosed properties
Simple Energy Savings Tips – Infographics
I found this nice infographics on the web from a blog but the source is from UK home improvement website called wickes.co.uk. Most of the energy saving tips offered in this infographics still pertains to every home owners around the globe. Click on the image to see the enlarged version. May be you can print it out and put on your Refrigerator to remind you every time.
Some highlights on the tips which I follow and even educate my kids are,
- Turn off the water while brushing
- Turn off the lights if not using the room
- Turn down the thermostat to comfortable temperature
These 3 simple basic practice or habit helps you save few bucks every month and also kids will get use it so they can save money and energy when they grow up.
Houston – No.1 America’s Coolest City to Live
No, don’t take the literal meaning of cool. Cool has taken different dimension in the Internet era. Houston is ranked Top among America’s coolest cities by Forbes considering factors like job growth, young professional, housing development combined with a strong theater scene, world-class museums and a multicultural, zoning-free mashup of a streetscape.
As per their report, they sought to quantify it in terms of cities, ranking the 65 largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas and Metropolitan Divisions(M.S.A)(areas that include cities and their surrounding suburbs that are defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget) based on seven data points weighted evenly.
Here are the numbers against seven data points to make Houston and around (Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown), No.1 coolest city:
- Arts & Culture Index: 91
- Recreation Index: 94
- Diversity Index: 77.1
- Number of Local Eats: 11,196
- Median Age: 33
- Unemployment: 6.9%
- 2011 Net Migration: 49,820 people
Houston is joined with four other Lone Star metro areas: Dallas ranked fourth; San Antonio, 11th; Fort Worth, 13th; and Austin, 19th. They all boast strong economies, large young adult populations and relatively high levels of cultural diversity. Below full list of Top 20 cities with Texas cities bolded.
1. Houston
2. Washington DC
3. Los Angeles, CA
4. Dallas, TX
5. Seattle, WA
6. San Diego, CA
7. Boston, MA
8. Orange County, CA
9. San Francisco, CA
10. New York, NY
11. San Antonio, TX
12. Chicago, IL
13. Fort Worth, TX
14. Baltimore, MD
15. Philadelphia, PA
16. Oakland, CA
17. Bethesda, MD
18. Minneapolis, MN
19. Austin, TX
20. Denver, CO
Like me, you might be wondering how come Houston became the cool city beating out New york, San Francisco, DC and others?
Forbes is well know for releasing favorite lists and they don’t just do them without crunching the numbers. They have put in lot of work bringing numbers against seven data points using various data elements.
Forbes used Sperling’s Best Places to calculate the number of entertainment options per capita in each metro area. They also ranked the cities based on other recreational opportunities, including the amount of green space, the cost and number of outdoor activities like golfing and skiing available, and the number of pro and college sports teams.
With the help of Sperling’s, they tallied restaurants and bars per capita, weeding out chain establishments – Applebee’s has less sizzle than a local chef’s bistro. They also looked at each city’s cultural composition using Sperling’s Diversity Index. It measures the likelihood of meeting another person of a different race or ethnicity. Increased diversity tends to lead to a larger assortment of interesting shops, restaurants and events. Using the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau, they factored in median age, favoring places with a large young adult population.
They ranked the cities based on net migration (the number of people who relocated there in 2011) and also on unemployment rates, since a city’s offerings are only as good as the amount of people who want and can to afford to enjoy them. They culled this data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Moody’s Analytics.
I am totally blown away to hear this news and happy to live in the coolest city. Houston has added another feather to its crown by becoming the No.1 coolest city in America. Go to Forbess.com to see the list with details.
Must Know: Home Buyers & Investors – Home/Hazard Insurance Policy – How much should I get?
Home Insurance is an important item in a home purchasing process but only given less important compared to others. If you are financing your home using a lender, lender needs a home insurance rider with replacement coverage as part of the closing document. Otherwise lender won’t allow you close on your home. That’s standard requirement in many states. But if you are buying on cash, it’s up to you whether to have an insurance policy to insure your home for unforeseen natural disasters and accidents like hurricane, fire or theft. But I strongly recommend to have an insurance coverage to secure your well earned asset otherwise it would be too late to worry after it happens.
Many of clients either call for reference to an agent or questions about types of coverage and how much should the coverage should be and so forth. I am hoping to cover most of their questions in this blogs post so it can help as future reference.
If you recently brought a home and happen to shop a insurance, you might have shocked to hear the premium was too high and coverage amount for your property/Dwelling (as insurers call) is quoted for far greater than the amount that you paid for the house. You might think, why should I take more coverage if I only paid less than the coverage amount. You also might wonder about the reason why someone should want more coverage amount? Reason, the agent or insurer is recommending you to take replacement cost coverage rather than its actual cash value. That’s a good thing whereas others will sell a cheap insurance to cover only cash value. Be careful! Let me shed some basics for you to understand better so you can appreciate the benefit.
What is Replacement Cost coverage?
It is the amount of money it would take to repair, replace or rebuild your home with materials similar to the kind and quality used in constructing your home. If replacement cost is used to determine claims on your home, there is no deduction for depreciation, a decrease in value over time due to age or wear and tear. It should be the recommended coverage for any new or older homes if you really want to get back everything you lost. Insurance companies will pay 100% of the cost needed to replace your current home taking into consideration current market conditions.
On other hand, the actual cash value method for settling loss claims is the amount of money needed to repair or replace your home based on its depreciated value. It means you’ll only receive final amount after subtracting the depreciation value of home for those many years which is less money to rebuild or replace your home.
For example, if your replacement coverage for dwelling is $125,000 and unfortunately your house burns down after 5 years, they will pay 100% cost to replace your home. On actual cash value, they will take the replacement cost minus depreciation for 5 years and pay the rest of the money which might not help you to rebuild the house. You might saved few hundred dollars for 5 years but ended up losing thousands when something really happens.
Replacement Coverage – Advantages
It might cost more than double or triple premium to get replacement cost but it’s worth it when something happens. Construction costs increase over time, and the cost to rebuild your home with similar materials and workmanship could be higher than the amount that you could currently sell your home for. While the market price of a new home includes the cost of construction, the market price of a used home might go down because of age and deterioration. Replacement coverage takes every aspect into account to build/replace your home to the current environmental needs and that’s why it costs more. Don’t go cheap on insurances.
How much Insurance should I get?
Where replacement cost is used in determining coverage, the policy limit is usually set for at least 80% of your home’s replacement cost. If you fail to insure your home for at least 80% of the replacement cost, your insurer will assess a penalty on partial loss claims. If the agent says the dwelling should be covered to a certain amount which is usually 100%, you can ask him to do 80% of that amount which should still cover you on claims 100% and save you money on premium as well.
Let see an example: Replacement cost of your home is $125,000, 80% of that is $100,000 in coverage. If you insured your home for $100,000 and suffer fire damage of $20,000, your insurer will pay the full $20,000 loss claim. However, if you only insure your home for $80,000 to cover the mortgage and then suffer fire damage of $20,000, your insurer will pay only a part of the $20,000 fire loss taking into consideration the percentage of coverage taken compared to the recommended replacement cost. So always take coverage atleast 80% of the recommended coverage replacement cost amount.
You can also take additional optional coverages like personal property endorsement which provides more coverage and protection for such personal property as jewelry, furs, stamps, coins and fine art. Normally, these items are covered on an actual cash value basis with sub-limits that limit the items’ replacement cost.
As they say, Insurances are must to have’s and always pray we don’t get to use them. Don’t forget to check out the Texas state insurance department website and compare the rates and provider ratings before you purchase an insurance.
What is the Real Value of a Home?
I love infographics because they educate or teach us more than words, quickly and easily.
This infographics I just found when I was looking for something else and it stopped me to think about real value of a home. When we look for homes, we only think about how many bedrooms we want, how many bathrooms we might use, how big of media room should be, kitchen and closet space. Then we start thinking about how much its worth it by comparing the sales comps and sqft value. It is all materialistic requirement but this infographics reminds us the real & true value of a home. It makes us to think more towards your internal happiness or family happiness by pointing how we spend time together as family in that home instead of just money and space requirement. Take a look.
So next time you are up looking for your future home, don’t just think about number, think also how about whether the home is suitable for your family to grow and make lifetime of memories in it. It will surely make a difference in your finding process.
