10 Fire Safety Tips for the Holidays

 

Avoid accidents and keep your family safe during the holidays by reviewing these 10 Fire Safety tips for the Holidays.

1. Install smoke detectors; change the batteries every year. Install carbon monoxide detectors and make sure those batteries are fresh too.

2. If you use your fireplace, make sure to use a fireplace screen.

3. Never burn wrapping paper, boxes or other trash in your fireplace.

4. Don't leave a fire unattended; put the fire out before you go to bed.

5. Make sure candles are in stable and secure holders and keep them away from combustible materials and small children. Never leave candles unattended.

6. If you have a real Christmas tree, put it in a stable stand, and keep it fresh by checking the water level daily. A dried tree is more susceptible to fire. Keep the tree away from heat sources that could dry it out. Most tress dry out in two weeks, so don't leave your tree up long past the holidays.

7. Check holiday lights for cracked or broken bulbs, frayed wires and loose plugs. Don't use lights that aren't safe.

8. Use lights that have been approved by testing labs like Underwriters Laboratory (UL) or Factory Mutual (FM).

9. Use lights only in their designated areas; never use "indoor only" lights outdoors.

10. If your smoke, fire, or carbon monoxide detectors go off, get everyone outside and call 911. Don't try to solve the problem yourself.

 

Technorati Tags: home saftey,fire saftey tips,holidays,seniors

Record home sales in the Dallas/Fort Worth area for 2013

According to the latest report from Texas A&M University’s Real Estate Center, North Texas existing home sales rose 4 percent in November.  Year to date 2013 home sale numbers for the Dallas Fort Worth-North Texas area are up significantly with single family home sales of 82,234 an 18% increase over the same 11 month period in 2012. The average price for the area was $226,005 up 10% over 2012.

In November, 5,960 homes were sold in the 29-county North Texas region with a median price of $170,000, 10 percent higher than last year, according to the report.

On average, homes sold in November were on the market for 59 days, which is a 20 percent drop from November of 2012.

The strongest home sales in Tarrant County last month were in central west Arlington, where the median price also rose 74 percent from a year ago. The housing inventory (number tells you how many months it would take for all the current homes for sale to be sold) is still extremely low in area. In the Arlington Mansfield area inventory levels average 2.4 months which is down about 35% from 2012. A normal real estate market is considered to be between 5 and 7 months inventory. The Arlington Mansfield area average home price is $155,075 up 9% and the average Days on Market are 50, down 27% from the same 11 month period of 2012.

For more information on the real estate market in your area contact the Sullivan and Sullivan real estate team.

 

Technorati Tags: home sales,Dallas/Fort Worth,Arlington,Mansfield TX,Days on Market,Average home price

Reverse Mortgages to Purchase a Home in Texas

In November’s general election, Texas citizens decided to change the state constitution to allow for all Federal Housing Administration reverse mortgage products under state rule in Proposition 5.

This legislation will allow the state constitution to be amended to allow for qualified applicants to use a reverse mortgage to purchase a home. Previously, homestead laws within Texas have prevented the loan until now. The Texas constitution has been amended several times since 1999 to allow other reverse mortgage products.

The amendment will also include reverse mortgage safeguards, including a requirement that detailed disclosures be made at least 12 days before the closing of a new reverse mortgage loan, which provides prospective borrowers with the information and time necessary to make the loan decision.

Texas was the second largest market in the country for reverse mortgages. However, prior to the passage of Prop 5, it was the only state that didn't offer the "reverse mortgage for a home purchase." This form of reverse mortgage allows a person to purchase a new primary residence and obtain a reverse mortgage in a single transaction. Prop 5 included the terms of a "reverse mortgage for purchase" in the constitution, so seniors could use this method to obtain a new home. It also required lenders of reverse mortgages to expand the required counseling to borrowers, ensuring that seniors know what specific actions can lead to foreclosure.

Because of homestead laws, a reverse mortgage for purchase in Texas, has as many or more consumer protections that any other state. It is the most regulated mortgage loan in Texas. Some people have expressed concerns about reverse mortgages, however a check with the Texas Department of Savings and Mortgage revealed there have been no enforcement actions from lending involving reverse mortgages in the last 6 years.

A reverse mortgage is a credit agreement under which a creditor provides money to a borrower in exchange for a lien on the borrower's home. A reverse mortgage for purchase of a residence is called a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM). A HECM is a FHA insured, non-recourse loan. There are no mortgage payments. The borrower is not required to repay the money or interest on the money until the borrower dies, sells the home or permanently moves out of the home. Reverse mortgages are available to people ages 62 and up. Qualifying may be easier than a traditional mortgage, generally there are no credit score requirements. Typically the down payment for a reverse mortgage to purchase a home runs between 40% to 60%.

If you have question about a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (Reverse Mortgage) please contact the Sullivan & Sullivan team by clicking here.

For answers to frequently asked questions on Reverse Mortgages go to the HUD website here.  

Technorati Tags: Reverse Mortgage,Seniors,Texas,Proposition 5,HECM,Home Equity Conversion Mortgage

10 Tips to Light Up Your Christmas Lights Safely and Economically

1. Safety first. Emergency rooms are filled with home owners who lose fights with their holiday lights and fall off ladders or suffer electric shocks. To avoid the holiday black and blues, never hang lights solo; instead, work with a partner who holds the ladder. Also, avoid climbing on roofs after rain or snow.
2. Unpack carefully. Lights break and glass cuts. So unpack your lights gingerly, looking for and replacing broken bulbs along the way.
3. Extension cords are your friends. Splurge on heavy-duty extension cords that are UL-listed for outdoor use. To avoid overloading, only link five strings of lights together before plugging into an extension cord.
4. LEDs cost less to light. LED Christmas lights use roughly 70% to 90% less energy and last up to 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs. You can safely connect many more LED light strings than incandescents. Downside: Some think they don’t burn as brightly as incandescent bulbs.
5. Solar lights cost nothing to run. Solar Christmas lights are roughly four times more expensive to buy than LEDs, but they cost zero to run. They’re a bright-burning, green alternative. Downside: If there’s no sun during the day, there’s no light at night. The jury’s also still out on how long they last; they’re too new on the market for results.
6. Dismantle lights sooner than later. Sun, wind, rain, and snow all take their toll on Christmas lights. To extend the life of lights, take them down immediately after the holidays. The longer you leave the up, the sooner you’ll have to replace them.
7. Plan next year’s display on Dec. 26. Shop the after-Christmas sales to get the best prices on lights and blowups that you can proudly display next year. Stock up on your favorite lights so you’ll have spares when you need them (and after they’re discontinued).
8. Permanent attachments save time. If you know you’ll always hang lights from eaves, install permanent light clips ($13 for 75 clips) that will save you hanging time each year. You’ll get a couple/three years out of the clips before sun eats the plastic.
9. Find those blueprints. Instead of guessing how many light strings you’ll need, or measuring with a tape, dig up your house blueprints or house location drawings (probably with your closing papers) and use those measurements as a guide.
10. Store them in a ball. It sounds counterintuitive, but the best way to store lights is to ball them up. Wrap five times in one direction, then turn the ball 90 degrees and repeat. Store your light balls in cardboard boxes, rather than in plastic bags: Cardboard absorbs residual moisture and extends the life of your lights.

Information on Neighborhood Christmas Light Displays In Arlington, TX

Technorati Tags: Christmas lights,Interlochen,Neighborhood Christmas light displays,Arlington TX

Home prices in Texas are up 7.13% Over Last Year

The Federal Housing Finance Agency's latest Home Price Index (HPI) showed Texas prices are up 7.3% when compared to the same period last year.  However Texas is lagging behind the U.S. in price appreciation.

Nationally, prices increased 8.4 percent during the same period while Texas home prices increased 7.13 percent during the year ending in September according to the third quarter 2013 HPI, which was released late last week,.

The price appreciation in Texas being below the national average doesn’t tell the whole story.  Texas didn’t have the severe crash in home prices that other states had during the recent recession.

Here are how home price increases look for the major metro areas of Texas. Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land had the largest one-year price increase of the state's major metros at 10.31 percent.  Next Texas metro area was Austin-Round Rock at 10.08 percent followed by Dallas-Plano-Irving at 9.73 percent, San Antonio-New Braunfels at 7.67 percent, and Fort Worth-Arlington at 5.88 percent.

Are you curious about home prices in your neighborhood?  Go to our Market Insider webpage and enter your zip code to get an overview of the real estate market in your area. Feel free to contact us on our website here or you can call/text us at 817-330-9235.

 

Technorati Tags: Home price index,Fort Worth,Arlington,Dallas,Home prices