DFW Foreclosures Ranked 11th

The latest report is out and it shows DFW has a surge of 27% in foreclosures going up for auction in March. However, the number 27 doesn't mean too much in an average. I say that because it takes into consideration Denton County that had a 42% increase. But, at 42%, there were "only" 464 foreclosures for the entire county. When you look at the number 464, you think, that's a lot of homes. It's not really that many homes when you look at the population (2006 estimated population of 584,238) and how 464 is a very small percentage of properties in the area.

Then, you have a 20% increase in Collin County (2006 estimated population 698,851). To get to that 20% increase, it's "only" 495 foreclosures.

The Dallas Fort Worth area had over 43,000 foreclosure for 2007. DFW is ranked 11th across the country. We were in the top 10 for so long, so it's good to see we're out of that grouping.

D-FW AREA FORECLOSURE POSTINGS Residential properties scheduled for foreclosure auction in March for each of the counties.
Dallas County 1,884 25%
TarrantCounty 1,318 28%
Collin County 495 20%
Denton County 464 42%
D-FW area 4,161 27%
SOURCE: Foreclosure Listing Service Inc.


Remember, I work all of North Dallas County and Collin County including Richardson, Plano, Allen, Frisco, Carrollton, Garland, Rowlett, McKinney, etc... my car will take us anywhere you need to go!!

ARE YOU PACKED YET?!

Jason Kidd becomes a Dallas Maverick again

Jason Kidd was previously with the Dallas Mavericks in 1994 where he played a couple of years before being traded to Phoenix. It seems like we trade everyone to Phoenix as that's also where Nash went.

There are many things involved with this trade, and I could possibly explain it all, but the main thing is that we get Kidd, Malik Allen, and Antoine Wright. We also gave up a couple of first round draft picks for next year.

Jason will be ready for today's 3pm practice and ready to start.

Read more details of this trade on Dallasnews.com.

Richardson TX's JJ Pearce on TV Land's High School Reunion

This is so crazy!! Nothing ever really happens around here! I went to JJ Pearce High School in Richardson, TX. I was part of the graduating class of... hmmm, I know you guys think I'm young, but do you know how young? Age doesn't really matter when you've been in this industry for 8 years, so I can proudly say, I was part of the class of 1994- graduated with Advanced Honors which isn't too shabby if I do say so myself....

Anyway, premiering on March 5, 2008, they are putting a lot of alumni from JJ Pearce on a "sun- drenched multi-million dollar Hawaiian estate" to see how they have changed, or not changed over a 20 year period. By saying 20 years, I assume it's the alum from 1988. But they could be leaving it broad like being around 20 years.

The site lists the cast of 14 people, but no last names. It's hard to tell if I know any of them. My year books only go back to 1991, and my brother's only go one year further into 1990. I have emailed the information to my high school friends as some of them have older siblings and they might be able to figure out who everyone is.

This is just so exciting. I'm surprised I haven't seen it on the local news... maybe the cast behaves immaturely and Richardson doesn't want to lay claim to them... who knows. Either way, I'm going to try to watch or Tivo it. Sounds like it could be interesting!

HERE is the link for further information.

It's funny how I found this. Tom Burris wrote a blog yesterday about Google Alerts, so I set one up for Richardson TX and perfect timing for today's announcement of the show. Thanks, Tom!

Texas Homestead Exemptions- First Reminder to File

Here is your first reminder to file your Texas Homestead Exemption form if you closed on your home by December 31, 2007. I like to remind people towards the end of February because hopefully you're done with your Holiday bills, and worrying about your W2s (1099's) from your employer, and you're starting to get your tax information ready.

You have until the end of April to actually file, but why wait until the last minute. Also, if you closed in 2008, you CANNOT file for this year. You must wait until next year before the end of April to file your exemptions.

It's good to do it as soon as possible so when you get your new Tax Assessment that first week of May, all your information will be correct. There are many companies that will charge you a pretty penny to file the exemption for you. DO NOT PAY ANYONE TO FILE ANYTHING!! IT'S FREE!!

All you need to do is go to your county appraisal's website and print off the form there. Some counties require a notary, while others do not. It takes less than 2 minutes to fill it out, so there is no excuse about not having time.

Here are some of the county links in my immediate area:

Dallas- www.dcad.org
Tarrant- www.tad.org
Collin- www.collincad.org
Denton- www.dentoncad.com

Jason Garrett stays with the Cowboys

Jason Garrett helped the Cowboys break several records and after interviewing and being offered Head Coaching job elsewhere, decided to remain with the Cowboys as the Assistant Head Coach.

This position comes at a price of about $3.5 million! Almost as much as the Head Coach.

Personally, I really like Jason Garrett. I loved him when he played for the Cowboys. I hated it when Jason got the Cowboys through the Playoffs and then they allowed Aikman to play the final game. Yes, Aikman was the starter and he was coming back from an injury, but he was out for a lot of games, and Jason deserved to play. I was very disappointed when he left the Cowboys.

I was very excited when he returned. However, to go after a Head Coaching job after just 3 years in a coaching position is a little premature. I think he needs a little more experience before taking on that job.

He did say that he definitely wants to be a Head Coach at some time, but that his home is in Dallas for now. Good choice, Jason!

Here's more on the story.

NAR's Changes to Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice

I am on the Texas (TAR) Professional Standards Committee and I was just emailed the changes that were adopted for 2008 from NAR, and I kinda chuckled. I'm not sure if others have read the changes, but this really caught my eye.

Article 12 used to say, "REALTORS® shall be careful at all times to present a true picture in their advertising and representations to the public..."

The revised Article says, "REALTORS® shall be honest and truthful in their real estate communications and shall present a true picture in their advetising, marketing, and other representations..."

What caught your eye? What caught my eye is what should have caught your eye too since I bolded the words, that we went from having to be "careful" to having to be "honest and truthful". When I see that, it shows that there were so many REALTORS® not being "careful" and they had to actually be told to be "honest and truthful." How sad is that.

I would think the two went hand in hand. If you're not being honest and truthful, you're definitely not being careful. And if you're being careful about not being caught being honest and truthful, then you're not very ethical which blows the entire Code of Ethics out of the water.

What do others think about this change, and have you witnessed reasons for this change? I would love to hear about your experiences with other agents who violated the original article making a need to change the verbiage (no names are needed in case they are members of this forum).

North Texas HOV Lanes- How Do I Get On?

Did you read my previous blog about how unhappy I was about the new HOV lanes that have opened on 75 Central Expressway through Richardson TX?

Even though I'm very unhappy with the way they did the lanes, others will need to know how to access the lanes. You would think that you could just drive and be in the left lane and wait for the openings, as this is how it is on all of our other highways and freeways. However, you would be wrong!!

For the main entrances into the HOV lane, you must actually exit off 75 Central Expressway and follow the signs. Huh? Does this even make sense? Sounds silly to me. Oh, and don't forget that there's even a different route during rush hour traffic in the mornings and evenings. RIDICULOUS!!

Anyway, here's a link to the graphics that will better explain what I'm talking about. Anyone from the area think these HOV lanes make sense?