Neighborhood Report: Lakefield in First Colony Sugar Land Texas - 07/31/08 11:33 PM
August 1, 2008
Monday May 12, 2008
Mike's Neighorhood Report for Lakefield (August 2008)
Currently there are 13 homes on the market for August.    3 available   3 option pending   1 pending sales   7 rentals available
7 homes in the neighborhood are available for rent. Average monthly rate is $1,400 for the neighborhood.
Listed price ranges from $126,699 up to $229,000 for current homes on the market.
Since Jan 1, 2008: There have been 3 homes sold in Lakefield. Average square footage of sold properties is about 1400 sf.  Actual sold price ranges were from $109,000 up to $145,000Average home sales price was $137,000
Of course if you have any question or would like a … (0 comments)

5343 Richmond #26 Remodeled Condo For Sale or Lease - 07/31/08 11:11 PM
 
5343 Richmond completely remodeled condo unit for sale or lease, unit #26 Featuring 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a cozy study area, open living room, and rennovated kitchen. The kitchen upgrades feature granite countertops, stainless appliances, upgraded fixtures and lighting. Both of the bathrooms feature luxurious Italian tiles, new cabinets and fixtures, with lighting upgrades. Bedrooms are treated with plush Berber carpeting, and the living areas with dark rich laminate floors.
Call Mike for an appointment, or for more information.  
 
 
 
… (2 comments)

Forbes: Houston commute ranks us 8th costliest city in the US - 07/30/08 06:51 PM
According to a new article from Forbes Magazine, Houston now ranks 8th as one of the costliests cities to live in the US. Commuting costs literrally drove Houston in the top 10 nationally. This is just after an article by Forbes earlier this month that ranks Houston as the best place to buy a home given its relatively affordable housing and booming energy economy right now.
Forbes concluded "the city lacks a useful, extensive or reliable mass-transit system," and on average, 20.9 percent of Houstonians' expenses go toward transportation.
To come up with the rankings, human resources consultants Mercer measured the prices of the … (4 comments)

Farewell to United Title of Texas... another one bites the dust - 07/30/08 06:41 PM
As I was sitting in a morning meeting a fellow agent came into the room and announced United Title of Texas closed down immediately today. Actually United Title of Texas has closed all its offices around the state, including six in the Houston area.
United Title is a subsidiary of Mercury Cos., which owns title agencies in California, Colorado, Texas, Oregon, Nevada and Arizona. Mercury stopped funding operations in Arizona and California, as well. The company operates a network of more than 500 branches and has some 6,000 employees, according to its web site.
About 60 employees in the Houston area and … (2 comments)

River Star Capital of Houston to spend $150 million in local residential real estate - 07/30/08 12:00 AM
A new Houston alliance River Star Capital a joint venture between Riverway Properties and Starwood Land Ventures plans to invest more than $150 million in local residential land acquisitions over the next 2 years. There are also plans to buy and hold finished homesites, provide equity and loans to other developers and purchase debt from lenders.
Starwood's parent company has set up a $1.5 billion fund that will be used to invest in real estate projects across the country. RiverStar will have access to $150 million of that to concentrate on Houston. During the past 16 years, Starwood Capital Group and … (0 comments)

Sugar Land city council fighting mandatory flood insurance requirments - 07/29/08 11:48 PM
Sugar Land City Council has approved a resolution that encourages members of Congress to change their flood insurance mandate. Ths is an effort to keep higher insurance costs off of Sugar Land home and business owners.
The $45 million the county and levee districts have invested in improvements were designed to exceed FEMA guidelines. When the requirement for all FEMA guidelines came out, all levee districts in Fort Bend County got together and raised their levees to the standard and one foot above. Now they come back and say the insurance is mandatory. It could impact some neighborhoods up to $2,500 per household.
Currently there … (0 comments)

Ft Bend gets FEMA time extension on flood data remapping - 07/29/08 11:37 PM
Fort Bend County reps lobbied the Federal Emergency Management Administration for a deadline extension on data that may reduce the need for flood insurance to thousands of Fort Bend County residents.
A meeting in Washington D.C, allowed an agreement to extend a September deadline on the revised mapping that could ensure that Fort Bend residents living behind levees won't have to secure expensive flood insurance. Local representatives believe the new and existing levees can be fully certified to 100 year flood elevation protection by FEMA once the preliminary revised maps are published. Local residents will have to wait until the publication of the new maps … (2 comments)

Texas Ranks #1 for Business Climate - 07/29/08 12:00 AM
Dont mind the scorching hot temperatures in Texas. Maybe that is contributing to our latest scorching climate for business which ranks #1 in the nation according to Development Counsellors International.

In a survey of nearly 300 corporate executives across the country, 41 percent declared that Texas has the most favorable business climate. This is a designation the Lone Star State has held since 1999. Executives credited a strong labor market, low operating costs and a pro-business climate as factors in their decision.
North Carolina ranked second, while Georgia was third, followed by Tennessee and Florida, which tied for fourth place. For the third consecutive year, California was viewed … (4 comments)

A Cool Image Resizing Tool from HAR makes my life easier - 07/27/08 02:59 AM
If you are anything like me, you left your digital camera settings on the default. So you are taking large format image sizes in high resolution. Then when you transfer or upload the large image files onto websites such as the local MLS, forums, or blogs you may get the infamous "little red x" where the picture should be because the file was too large.  
If you are anything like me you overdo things and use Adobe Photoshop to open each of the images to resize them and adjust resolutions to condense the file size so they are more internet friendly. Then resaving … (4 comments)

CaringRealtors.org needs to especially thank... - 07/25/08 03:48 PM
I just wanted to take a moment to not only thank our sponsors and donors mentioned before for making The Morris Mingle such a great and successful event, but the many others who need to be recognized who worked behind the scenes to make this such a great event.  
I want to thank Kelly, Mark, and the staff at The Vineyard in Sugar Land Town Center for allowing us to host the event at thier place and for graciously providing great service to the many guests and friends who arrived.
I want to thank Aimee Montgomery of Land America Title for … (0 comments)

Caring Realtors Thanks Our Sponsors for The Morris Mingle - 07/24/08 07:22 PM
The Morris Mingle was a successful event with a great turnout this week. First I would really like to thank The Vineyards at Sugar Land Town Center for graciously hosting our event and their wonderful staff for taking care of our guests. Kelly and Mark provided an elegant venue and the perfect environment, and donated to the John Morris fund.
Here is a list of donors and sponsors who provided prizes at our event:
Pearl Elegance donated two custom designed fashion necklaces by Nikki Ann Ramsey also a Keller Williams Realtor.
Laura Miller of Keller Williams donated an autographed Joseph Addai Indianapolis … (2 comments)

The Vineyards at Sugar Land Town Center hosts The Morris Mingle caringrealtors.org - 07/23/08 11:50 PM
Here are more photos of the successful event we celebrated at The Vineyard in Sugar Land Town Center. Thanks to them CaringRealtors.org had a beautiful space to host the benefit event. The staff at The Vineyards did an excellent job serving the crowd of hundreds that showed up to support John Morris.
Just some of the many great items donated by our vendors for the raffle drawings every 15 minutes!
H&H Music donated thier time to provided live entertainment and great songs all night to our guests!
The crowd and guests enjoyed the live music and dancing in the beautiful lounge area!
… (0 comments)

Did you make it to the Morris Mingle? - 07/23/08 11:31 PM
So did you get to join us for The Morris Mingle at The Vineyard in Sugar Land Town Center? It was a spectacular event, with hundreds showing up to support and rally for John Morris a dear friend, inspiration, and mentor to me.
The crowd packed The Vineyard to full capacity within an hour, then overflowed into the courtyard. Many of our vendors and sponsors came with even more donations and items, and graciously helped us with the frenzy of raffle ticket buyers.
Here are some photos of the event. I'll be following up with a list to thank our donors.
… (0 comments)

Please join us at Sugar Land Town Center for The Morris Mingle at The Vineyard - 07/21/08 10:51 PM
The event is finally here! Please come out and join us for The Morris Mingle at Sugar Land Town Center July 22, 2008 from 5:30 to 8pm. The Vineyard is graciously hosting our event to support a Realtor in need. We hope you can come out to enjoy the live band, wine, raffle, and the social event.
Everyone is invited, our entire family of Realtors in the community. Our title companies that have generously supported this cause, mortgage lenders, home warranty companies, home builders, inspectors, local news media, clients, the public, everyone please join us to show our support and raise funds … (1 comments)

You're Invited: Join us for "The Morris Mingle" with live music, raffle, and wine - 07/20/08 11:28 AM
This is the last week of promotion hoping for a great turn out to support a dear friend and mentor to me: Mr John Morris. John was diagnosed with cancer this year and is courageously fighting it. He has incurred overwhelming hospital and medical expenses, and we are raising funds and support for John to focus on continued treatments to get better.
Please join us this Tuesday July 22 at The Vineyard in Sugar Land Town Center from 5:30 - 8pm for a great event and cause. Everyone is invited from our Realtor community and family as well as the public. Please … (2 comments)

Are you nervously watching the Gulf of Mexico again? Hurricane Season is here! - 07/20/08 11:07 AM
Do you remember where you were last season? Were you READY?

I posted a series of blogs back in may in anticipation of the hurricane season which is now upon us. So far we have watched a couple of tropical storms and disturbances develop, and thankfully not come our way. Here is a chance to revisit them and remind everyeone to prepare early and avoid the additional stress
Are You Prepared for the 2008 Hurricane Season? Part 1
Are You Prepared for the 2008 Hurricane Season? TIPS Part 2
2008 Hurricane Season Checklist
Please bookmark them. Print them out. Email … (5 comments)

What's in the air in Fort Bend? - 07/20/08 10:43 AM

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has spread out monitoring deveices all over Houston, Galveston, Kingwood and Tomball to track ozone levels in the area. This is how they can issue accurate alerts and forecast when the air becomes a danger.  
However there are no such monitoring devices in our Fort Bend County. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said they have monitors surrounding Fort Bend County, and they say that's close enough. TCEQ reports data from 8 monitors within 10 miles of Fort Bend County and believe that gives them a fairly accurate representation of what's happening there.
But not everyone is convinced. "It does no … (2 comments)

Texas Real Estate Market Still Outpacing US Trend - 07/18/08 08:44 PM
Texas property markets continue to outpace the nation, but things are likely to cool a bit through next year according to a research economist with Texas A&M University's Real Estate Center: Dr. James Gaines.
Home sales statewide still declined more than 14 percent through May compared with the same period of 2007. With the tougher lending standards and a pullout by home investors, the drop-off in sales in Texas could have been much steeper.
"Sales volumes should have fallen somewhere around 40 percent, but they haven't fallen that far," Dr. Gaines said. "It's a testament to the strength of our economy and the … (4 comments)

Starbucks closing 11 stores in Houston - 07/18/08 08:27 PM
Starbucks Corp. has announed it will close 11 stores in the Houston area as part of a plan to close 600 underperforming outlets around the country. Most of the stores are scheduled to close during the remainder of fiscal year 2008, which ends Sept. 30, and in the first half of fiscal 2009. Did you location make the cut?
The local stores closing include:
• 3821 Shepherd at Farnham
• 6001 North Freeway at Red Ripple
• 12503 Tomball Parkway at Antoine
• 914 Dallas at Main
• 1018 Preston at Fannin
• 6400 Fannin at MacGregor
• 14333 Westheimer at Briargreen
• 10611 Bellaire … (0 comments)

Houston Job Growth 54,100 - 07/18/08 08:20 PM
According to a recent report: Houston employers added 54,100 jobs in the 12 months leading up to June, a 2.1 percent increase hiring over the prior year. While the rest of the country as a whole lost 167,000 jobs, and 15 states saw job declines in May, according to the most recent data available. 
The educational and health services and professional and business services categories added the most positions, up 10,100 and 8,500 jobs respectively from June 2007. Construction added 3,400 jobs from June 2007. There is no mention of energy related job growth which is driving the local economy and should … (0 comments)

CNBC Ranks Texas #1 for business - 07/16/08 10:14 PM

Everything is bigger in Texas...
According to CNBC's ranking of America's Top States for Doing Business 2008: www.cnbc.com/id/25447829
Dont mess with Texas. The Lone Star State topped last year's leading state Virginia which fell this year to No. 2. Rounding out the top five are Utah, Idaho and Colorado, in that order. Texas ranked 2nd on last year's list. The financial and business news channel says Texas' booming energy industry in these times of record oil prices is the main reason the state rose to the top this year.
CNBC scored all 50 states in an number of categories, from education to … (3 comments)

Houston: $29.9 Billion in exports - 07/16/08 10:03 PM
 

Houston: $29.9 BILLION in exports for first half of 2007
The Houston, Baytown, Sugar Land area is the nation's second-largest exporting market in the first half of 2007. Exports totaled $29.9 billion worth of goods, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Commerce. Other Texas cities featured on the list were Dallas-Fort Worth at No. 10; El Paso at No. 23, Austin at No. 30 and San Antonio at No. 61.
Only the New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island area recorded a higher value of exports at nearly $40 billion. Los Angeles, Seattle and Detroit rounded out the top five.
… (2 comments)

The State of Fannie May and Freddie Mac - 07/13/08 05:39 PM
With all the recent headlines about the problems of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and their role in the mortgage market, its time to take a look at what it all means for the public.
Fannie Mae was created in 1938 by the government as the Federal National Mortgage Association , while Freddie Mac was established in 1970 as the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are the largest purchasers and insurers of mortgages in the country. They are publicly traded companies on the stock market and are not owned by the government.
They purchase and guarantee mortgages from banks. Some … (5 comments)

Feds plan to overhaul and reign in lending practices - 07/13/08 05:21 PM
The Federal Reserve is working over the weekend to give home buyers more protection from the types of shady lending practices that have contributed to the housing crisis that created the foreclosure mess.
The Federal Reserve is expected to approve a plan Monday that would crack down on dubious lending practices that have hurt many of the riskiest "sub-prime" borrowers - people with tarnished credit histories or low incomes.
The plan would apply to new loans made by thousands of lenders, including banks and brokers. It would not cover current loans.
Proposed rules made public in December would:
- restrict lenders from penalizing risky borrowers who … (0 comments)

Houston population growth is the highest in the nation - 07/13/08 05:07 PM
According to a new report by the U.S. Census Bureau: More people moved to Houston than to any other large city in the United States in the 12 months up to July last year.
The Bayou City added 38,932 new residents between July 1, 2006, and July 1, 2007, leading the nation in population increases among cities with more than 100,000 residents. Other Texas cities featuring among the Top 10 for numerical population growth included San Antonio at No. 3, Fort Worth at No. 4 and Austin at No. 8.
New Orleans, which had the fifth-largest numerical population growth, was the fastest-growing … (1 comments)

Texas Students Want the Right to Bear Arms at School - 07/13/08 10:47 AM
 College students are part of a record wave of Texans applying for concealed gun licenses this year. Applications for first-time licenses and renewals were up 24 percent during the first five months of 2008 compared with the same period in 2007. Texans won the right to obtain licenses to carry concealed weapons in 1995.
To obtain a concealed handgun license applicants must complete a shooting proficiency and eight-hour classroom course. Applicants will also submit fingerprints for a local and federal background check, notarized forms and $140 checks for Texas Department of Public Safety processing, however they still will not be able to bring their weapons to campus … (18 comments)

M.D. Anderson ranks #1 among cancer hospitals, other Houston hospitals ranked also - 07/12/08 11:49 AM
U.S. News & World Report for the second year in a row has ranked The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center is the nation's top cancer treatment hospital.
The magazine's "America's Best Hospitals" issue hits newsstands this weekend. Several Houston medical facilities were ranked, including The Methodist Hospital, which placed in 12 medical specialties, and St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, which placed in eight.
Last year Texas Medical Center institutions: Methodist placed in 14 of 16 specialties and St. Luke's placed in nine. Methodist still has more spots on the list than any other hospital in Texas. Its highest rankings were for … (2 comments)

Increase in Mortgage Applications since June - 07/09/08 10:03 PM
Applications for U.S. home mortgages rose to their highest level since early June as reported by an industry group. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity increased 7.5 percent to 513.4 in the week ended July 4.
The seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications climbed 8.7 percent to 1,379.3 last week, while the gauge of loan requests for home purchases rose 6.7 percent to 365.8 according to The Mortgage Bankers Association.
Both indexes are also at their highest since the week ending June 6. Reflecting the flood of applicants to programs sponsored by the Federal … (2 comments)

Sugar Land looking to add entertainment venue - 07/08/08 11:35 PM

As discussed by council member Daniel Wong a few months ago Sugar Land is exploring the possibility of an indoor entertainment venue to help it develop as a regional entertainment destination.
The venue would be built in an entertainment district planned for about 1,000 undeveloped acres next to the University of Houston System at Sugar Land and the Telfair development.
An indoor concert venue in Sugar Land would hold an estimated 65 events its first year, with an attendance of 192,000. Within five years, the venue could hold 150 events drawing about 500,000.
Sugar Land could expect to collect about $200,000 in tax revenue as … (0 comments)

Travelers Insurance increasing rates for costal homeowners - 07/08/08 11:18 PM
Coastal homeowners insured by Travelers Lloyds of Texas will see a 15 percent rate increase in the fall. Travelers is increasing rates for counties along the coast, such as Galveston County, as well as those once-removed from the coast, such as Harris County. Counties farther inland will not be affected.
The increase will apply to new policies made starting Aug. 29 and renewals starting Oct. 18.
The insurer last raised rates in January 2007, when it increased rates 1.4 percent statewide. Of its 225,000 policyholders statewide, approximately 55,000 are coastal policyholders, according to the Insurance Department.
Travelers is just one of many insurers that have … (0 comments)

Caring Realtors Event: To Benefit the John Morris Fund - 07/08/08 08:57 PM
As many know I have been involved in this cause to help a fellow Realtor who is fighting cancer. John is a great friend and mentor to me. One of the reasons why I joined Keller Williams was because of the impression John Morris made on me.
Please join us for a night at Sugar Land Town Center at The Vineyard for "The Morris Mingle". Everyone is invited to this event including all agents, consumers, vendors, and the general public. This is a great opportunity and cause. The proceeds will benefit the John Morris Fund so that John can continue to … (3 comments)

23% increase in $1 Million luxury home buyers in Houston - 07/07/08 08:39 PM
A  growing number of buyers are spending $1 million or far more for a house in the Houston area last year. There were almost 800 buyers who paid at least $1 million for houses in 2007 through transactions handled by agents in places like Stablewood, Memorial and River Oaks. That was up 23 percent from the year before and 64 percent over the sales for 2005, according to the Houston Association of Realtors.
High-priced sales have given a boost to the overall market, though million-dollar sales only represented about 1 percent of the homes sold through the Multiple Listing Service last year. 
… (1 comments)

Oak Bend Hospital Expansion - 07/07/08 08:25 PM
OakBend Medical Center is developing two new medical office buildings, one on its new hospital campus is under construction in Richmond. Both buildings and the new hospital are scheduled to come online at the end of 2009. OakBend operates a 184-bed facility in Richmond. Oak Bend broke ground this spring on a 17-acre acute care hospital at Highway 59 and Williams Way, also in Richmond.
Part of the expansion by McShane Corp. will develop a 65,000-square-foot medical office building adjacent to the new hospital. McShane will also develop OakBend's three-story, 60,000-square-foot Grand Parkway Medical Office Center, which will be the first of the two … (0 comments)

Shell Oil to offer 5.5 acres of premium land for sale - 07/07/08 08:13 PM
Shell Oil Company plans to close its 70-year-old Bellaire Technology Center on Bellaire Blvd in the inner-loop which will open up a prime piece of real estate.
The Bellaire Technology Center land is made up of three different parcels located on Bellaire between Stella Link and Buffalo Speedway. They plan to be marketed for redevelopment once Shell demolishes the structures on the site and prepares it for sale, which could be as late as 2012.
Shell owns 5.5 acres of the 9.7-acre Bellaire site, and leases the rest from the Perrin White family a Houston real estate investor. Even with two separate owners, the … (0 comments)

Emergency! St Joseph HPA Hospital for sale! - 07/07/08 07:54 PM

The fate of St. Joseph was questioned in June when HPA closed its River Oaks Hospital, which had two campuses in southwest Houston. This closure left pratitioners and employees shocked and scrambling for new facilties to continue serving the public. See my previous blog entry for that story.
HPA who operated the two campuses, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a Delaware court Wednesday. HPA purchased the hospitals from Tenet Healthcare and rebranded them under the River Oaks name. They are the former Twelve Oaks and Sharpstown General hospitals. HPA bought the River Oaks hospitals four years ago in conjunction with a … (1 comments)

Houston: Target of UBS Wealth Management real estate acquisitions - 07/07/08 07:33 PM
UBS Wealth Management and Thomas Properties Group Inc. have created a joint venture to acquire a new office building in Houston, considered to be a strategic markets for more acquisitions. The partnership will allow the two firms to jointly purchase Class A office properties.
UBS Wealth Management is contributing $250 million to the venture. Thomas Properties will contribute 15 percent of the equity needed for each acquisition.
"We expect the current investment and credit markets environment to produce opportunities to acquire high-quality assets in strategic target markets at attractive risk-adjusted returns," said John Sischo, executive vice president of Los Angeles-based Thomas Properties, … (0 comments)

Hines Real Estate Investment Trust Public Stock Offering for $3 billion - 07/04/08 12:05 AM
During my time in architecture college, at one point I wanted to be a commercial land developer more than an architectural designer. When asked my ambitions by one of my professors, I explained I wanted to be the next Gerald Hines. He directed me to the Bauer College of Business at UH after I made that comment. Coincidentally the last year of my education at the architeture college at UH the building was renamed the Gerald D Hines College of Architecture. Go figure.
Reported this week: Hines Real Estate Investment Trust Inc. has received regulatory approval for a $3 billion stock offering.
The offering prices … (2 comments)

Reverse Mortgages - 07/03/08 11:55 PM
I was recently in a certification course to earn a Realtor designation and another student kept bringing up reverse mortgages for her elderly clients. So I decided to research the topic and share what I learned. The experts reccomend that you ask questions, do the proper homework, and don't get swayed by sales people.
For those considering a reverse mortgage, the message is straightforward: Consider all options, look at consequences of the decision beyond the next few years and ask enough questions to satisfy concerns.
The basic reverse mortgage allows an eligible homeowner to borrow from the home's equity in a lump … (2 comments)