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Due to inclement weather, the The 2nd Annual Prosper Arts & Music Festival will be postponed until September. 27, 2008 in Prosper, Texas.
The Festival will be nestled among the shops of the Prosper Town Center at the corner of SH 289/Preston Road and Broadway.
The Prosper Arts & Music Festival is sponsored by the Prosper Texas Chamber of Commerce, the Prosper Town Center, Whitley Place and local businesses and builders. This one day event is free and open to the public.
The Prosper Town Center will be transformed that day to a gallery of regional artists and crafters. Handcrafted or painted, one of a kind art and crafts will be available for festival attendees to purchase that day. The artists and crafters will be in their booths for festival go-ers to meet and discuss their work. Many artists will be seen painting on their current projects during the show. Much of the artwork displayed will be high caliber, investment quality art by professional artists.
The main stage of the festival will feature the live music of local bands, solo artists and more. From jazz to contemporary music to gospel music to old fashion rock & roll and country, there will be live music to appeal to folks of any generation.
A special Kids Corner featuring pony rides, a barrel train and unique interactive crafts will be a highlight of the Festival for families and “kids of all ages”. A food court will be available for all to sample and enjoy near the main stage tent.
For a fun filled day with your family and friends, please visit the Prosper Arts and Music Festival in Texas – you will have the opportunity to purchase some very unique artwork and crafts.
Date: Sept. 27, 2008
Time: 10:00 am – 7:00 pm
Location: Prosper, Texas at the Prosper Town Center (corner of SH 289/Preston Rd. & Broadway)
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First prices are now available for homes constructed by Darling Homes, Flagstone Custom Homes and Southern Land Company Homebuilding. At this time, there are a limited number of homes available. So if you are interested in becoming a founding resident of Tucker Hill, you need to come to the Discovery Center – ASAP. If that sounds good, click here to send me an email and schedule an appointment. There will be more pricing and homes to unveil in late February. But right now is the first chance to get into the community before the general public is aware. Call me. Be the first to take advantaged of this pricing event! Ted Blanchard Ted Blanchard
Realty Executives 214-224-0907 |
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The House is Always Greener –– MHI to Build Over 800 Eco Smart Homes in the DFW Metroplex Having the greenest lawn on the block is not the only option for the DFW Metroplex homeowners today - thanks to McGuyer Homebuilders, Inc. (MHI) they can have the greenest home as well.
McGuyer Homebuilders, Inc. (MHI), a Builder Member of the Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas (HBA) will begin constructing over 800 “Eco Smart” homes for its three brands Pioneer, Plantation, and Coventry Homes in the DFW Region that will fit the HBA’s Green Built North Texas program’s construction guidelines.
MHI is the first and only volume builder in the Green Built North Texas Program and has named its green building program “Eco Smart”. MHI homes built to “Eco Smart” standards fit a broad spectrum of aesthetic tastes and retain their curb appeal while being more energy efficient, healthier and environmentally responsible. By adhering to the “Eco Smart” standards, MHI Homeowners benefit from long-term savings, protection from rising energy costs, increased resale value and improved home comfort.
By offering “Eco Smart” homes in all three lines, MHI offers buyers in all price ranges the opportunity to own an ecologically friendly home. From the efficient, well built designs of Pioneer Homes, starting in the $110’s to the award-winning designs of Plantation Homes, beginning at the $150’s to the luxurious, customized Coventry Homes from the $280’s, buyers don’t have to sacrifice choice to own a green home.![]()
The HBA’s Green Built North Texas program is a partnership of North Texas homebuilders, industry supporters, and sponsors committed to resource-efficient home construction. The program consists of 38 construction guidelines that address strategies for six categories of construction including jobsite management, water efficiency, indoor air quality, material usage, and homeowner education. For a full list of all components featured in an Eco Smart Home, visit Pioneer Homes, Plantation Homes, Coventry Homes
“MHI has always designed our homes around the families that live in them and this is why we are responding to the growing demand for resource-efficient homes in our region.” said MHI Division President Steve Hayes. “MHI’s dedication to quality homebuilding is showcased by our commitment to build to the Green Built North Texas Program Standards. The benefits to the MHI homeowner can be measured not just in a technical sense, for example having a home designed specifically for our Mixed-Humid climate but also in knowing that they are living in a home that is the state of the industry in energy efficiency.”
“The efforts taken by MHI to ensure that Green Built North Texas’s construction guidelines will be met has helped the entire program mature to the point that we can now consider a performance path to compliance,” said Green Built North Texas Chairman Dan Fette, CGB. “For example, the water savings gained in a MHI home by the installation of a flexible pipe water distribution system is equivalent to the guidelines originally introduced by the program. By using new home technology and other practices such as third-party inspectors that will check over fifty green building related items beyond those required by ENERGY STAR, MHI has set the bar for compliance with our program and for buyers seeking a high performance home.” MHI is ranked among the top 30 homebuilders in the nation, according to Builder Magazine and since 1988 has helped more than 35,000 families realize their dream of owning a new home. Building in the five largest markets in Texas, Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio, MHI offers added flexibility for homebuyers and developers alike with distinct brands, including Coventry Homes, Plantation Homes, Pioneer Homes and Carmel Builders. About Ted Blanchard Ted Blanchard, Certified EcoBroker®, is a top Real Estate and Mortgage professional in North Texas. His company, http://www.tream.us specializes not only in representing buyers and sellers in real estate transactions, but offers mortgage services as well. TREAM, Inc. is truly a one stop shop for real estate and mortgage services. Ted can be reached at 214-224-0907 or by email at ted@tream.us 
Forest City Enterprises said Friday that it's moving ahead with plans to develop a 2,100-acre master-planned community in the Town of Prosper. As part of the deal, Forest City and the Mahard family - which owns the land - say they have reached an agreement with Prosper to annex the property at U.S. Highway 380 and FM 423. The Denton County land is the longtime site of the Mahard Egg Farm. Cleveland-based Forest City plans to build on the land in a partnership. "This project is not about building a legacy for ourselves, rather creating the greatest community possible for the place I've called home for the past 75 years," Ernest A. Mahard Jr. said in a statement. Plans for the project include neighborhoods of single-family homes, shopping centers, office space, parks and recreational facilities. The Mahard family has used the land as part of its egg farm operations and for other agricultural uses. Mahard Egg Farm is one of the country's largest egg producers. About a year ago, Forest City and the Mahards announced their partnership to develop the property. The deal is one of two Forest City is working on in the U.S. 380 corridor. In August, the firm said it was teaming up with shopping center developer General Growth Properties to build a 400-acre mixed-use project near the southwest corner of the Dallas North Tollway. That development will include 1.5 million square feet of shopping, a hotel, office space and housing. Forest City also has large community developments in Colorado and New Mexico. Forest City is best known in the Dallas area for its redevelopment of downtown's historic Mercantile National Bank tower. By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
stevebrown@dallasnews.com
 A good quarterback knows how to head fake the opposing team. He looks in one direction to make the defense think he’s going to throw that way, then runs or throws the ball the other way. The financial markets and the Fed learned this past week that they had been taken in by this old trick. Early last month, when the August employment data were released, they showed a decline of 4,000 jobs nationally. An outright decline was a bit of a surprise, but people didn’t question the number. Hey, the subprime market had just imploded, the money markets were struggling to prevent a total melt-down, and mortgage companies were dropping like flies. It was reasonable to believe that the overall economy and employment picture might be taking a downward turn, too. But last week, we learned that it was all a head fake. The September employment numbers came in line with expectations, showing job growth of 110,000 vs. an expectation of 100,000. But the August numbers were completely revised, with the 4,000 job loss being restated to a healthy gain of 89,000. Apparently the August jobs market wasn’t really following the subprime market off the edge of the cliff. The financial markets responded with a fairly predictable knee-jerk reaction given the revision. Stock prices were up, with the S&P 500 hitting a new all-time high. The S&P was up 2.1%, with the NASDAQ up 2.9% and international stocks up 1.6%. Real estate investment trusts showed a beefy gain of 6.5% for the week, but they still have a way to go to recoup their losses from over the summer (no surprise there, given what’s going on in the real estate market). Bonds did what bonds do in response to unexpectedly strong employment data: they fell. Ten-year Treasury prices were down by nearly half a point for the week, and MBS prices were down fractionally. About Ted Blanchard Ted Blanchard, Certified EcoBroker®, is a top Real Estate and Mortgage professional in North Texas. His company, http://www.tream.us specializes not only in representing buyers and sellers in real estate transactions, but offers mortgage services as well. TREAM, Inc. is truly a one stop shop for real estate and mortgage services. Ted can be reached at 214-224-0907 or by email at ted@tream.us 
I am sure by now everyone knows the Federal Reserve on Tuesday sliced one-half a percentage point off the federal funds rate, cutting it to 4.75 percent from 5.25 percent. It also cut its discount rate by the same amount, also bringing it to 5.25 percent. I think the big question on home buyer's mind right now is will we see lower interest rates in the near term? So far this week the mortgage rates have actually crept up. According to many enconmists, the rate cuts could be a mixed blessing for home buyers because of fear of inflation worries seen by many investors on Wall Street. I think in the near term we are unlikey to see any big movements downward in the mortgage rates unless we keep seeing more weakness in the national economy. Jobs and consumer spending numbers in the coming weeks will give us more of an indication on whether we might see lower mortgage rates in the near future. Without sounding like the glass is half empty, relief from the rate cuts did come in other ways. Consumers should start feeling the impact quickly in the form of reduced payments on home-equity lines of credit, credit cards, and some car loans.
About Ted Blanchard Ted Blanchard is a top agent and multi-million dollar producer in North Texas. His Company, Texas Real Estate and Mortgage (TREAM) specializes not only in representing buyers and sellers in real estate transactions, but offers mortgage services as well. TREAM, Inc. is truly a one stop shop for real estate and mortgage services. Ted can be reached at 214-224-0907 or by email at ted@tream.us
With home prices where they are these days the 2-1 buydown in loan programs are becoming increasingly popular. In a buyers market, such as the one we're in at the moment, you can even structure a buydown so that the seller pays for the buydown and closing costs. This means as a buyer you can expect a lower monthly payment with no out of pocket expense to close on the house. What a steal! The 3-2-1 program works the same way except it's over three years. I'll focus on the 2-1 program here for simplicity (you'll see why in the example I use). The basic idea behind a buydown is to lower the monthly payment during the first few years of the mortgage. It is not to be confused with a discount point where you buy down the rate. Discount points are usually expensive, especially if you consider the break even point! I rarely advise borrowers to pay discount points, however, a buydown is a radically different concept and I would suggest you take advantage of it, if you qualify. How does a buydown work?
Let's say you want to do a 2-1 buydown on a mortgage at 6.5% interest rate. In the first year your payment is calculated at 4.5%, 2 points below the 6.5% note rate. In the second year it is at 5.5%. Only at the beginning of the third year do you make payments based on the 6.5% note rate.
The payment difference is deposited in an escrow account at the time of close and is drawn from on a monthly basis by the lender. Here is an example of how this works: Loan size: $200,000
Monthly payment at 6.5% (interest only) = $1083
First Year: Monthly payment at 4.5% (interest only) = $ 750
Payment shortage = $333 (this amount is forwarded to the lender from the escrow account)
Annual shortage = $3,996 Second Year: Monthly payment at 5.5% (interest only) = $ 916
Payment shortage = $167 (this amount is forwarded to the lender from the escrow account)
Annual shortage = $2,004 Total shortage over two years = $6,000 (this is the amount deposited in the escrow account) 6% seller contribution on a $200,000 purchase = $12,000 So if you can negotiate a 6% seller contribution you then allocate $6,000 to go towards the buydown and the remainder towards closing costs. Depending on your loan to value (LTV) and credit score you could even qualify for the loan at the lower rate! One caveat is that the loan program needs to allow 6% seller contribution, as not all programs allow such a high level. Buydowns are great for first time homebuyers expecting increased income down the road or those in jobs with income variability. Make sure you're working with a qualified mortgage professional like www.tream.us, as you can see, it can get costly if you don't! |
About Ted Blanchard
Ted Blanchard, Certified EcoBroker®, is a top Real Estate and Mortgage professional in North Texas. His company, http://www.tream.us specializes not only in representing buyers and sellers in real estate transactions, but offers mortgage services as well. TREAM, Inc. is truly a one stop shop for real estate and mortgage services. Ted can be reached at 214-224-0907 or by email at ted@tream.us
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Home Builders Association Brings First Green Built Parade of Homes™ to North Texas
‘Green’ Event Runs September 22 – October 7
DALLAS – August 7, 2007-- The Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas (HBA Dallas), one of the largest local home builders association in Texas, today announced that it will be hosting a Green Built Parade of Homes event – the first of its kind in North Texas. The Green Built Parade of Homes will consist of resource-efficient, ‘green’ homes, showcasing the construction guidelines set forth by the HBA's Green Built North Texas program. These guidelines address strategies for improving energy efficiency, water efficiency, indoor air quality, material usage, site management, waste recycling and homeowner education.
The Green Built Parade will be an open house event, where area builders present the very latest ‘green’ innovations and building technologies directly to the public. Additionally, each home will feature state-of-the-art amenities and luxurious decor. The Parade will be held at the Forest Hills subdivision in the town of Crossroads, Texas. Opening Saturday, Sept. 22 and continuing through Sunday, Oct. 7, the Green Built Parade will be open Tuesday through Sunday. Event hours are 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. The Green Built Parade of Homes benefits the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of North Texas and HomeAid/Home Builders Care. Discount tickets will be available at Tom Thumb stores throughout the metroplex.
"The Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas is very proud and excited to bring this first of its kind event to North Texas," said Bob Morris (CAPS), executive vice president of HBA Dallas. "Since there is an ever-growing interest and demand from homebuyers for environmentally-preferable products and services, our Green Built Parade will give visitors a first-hand look of what can be done in residential homes to ‘green’ them up."
Although homes built today are 100 percent more energy-efficient than those built during the 1970s, green building historically has been the province niche builders who cater to a limited clientele. Now all homebuyers are able to purchase a resource efficient, high-performance home tailored specifically for the area’s climate, humidity and other factors since the HBA established the Green Built North Texas program.
“We’re bringing green building into mainstream home construction,” added Mike Land (CGA, CGB, CAPS), Green Built Parade Committee Chairman. “Builders can do a tremendous amount to make homes more environmentally friendly, without pricing them out of the reach of the average homebuyer. This Green Built Parade aims to educate builders and consumers about building green – be it with new homes or homes already built.”
The Green Built Parade will bring to focus various practices in the home building process that lead to designing and building a ‘green’ home, including:
| Energy Efficiency |
Water Efficiency |
| Indoor Air Quality |
Site Management and Waste Recycling |
The Green Built Parade of Homes will feature homes from Beaver Builders; Cashion Custom Homes; Derecor Homes; Flagstone Custom Homes; Scarlett Custom Homes, Inc.; Silver Oak Custom Homes; and John Spencer Custom Homes.
For more information about the Green Built Parade of Homes or the Green Built North Texas Council, visit
www.dallasbuilders.com
.
About the Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas
The Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas (
www.dallasbuilders.com
) is a professional organization dedicated to promoting new home ownership, industry advancements and community good works. The HBA is one of the largest local home builders association in Texas, covering a seven-county area of some 5,500 square miles with a population of more than 3 million. Its membership includes more than 850 builders, developers and remodelers and approximately 1,250 associates – suppliers, vendors and associated businesses and services.
About the Green Built North Texas Council
Green Built North Texas is a voluntary partnership of local home builders, industry supporters, and sponsors committed to creating awareness and interest in the construction of higher-performance, lower-impact residential homes in North Central Texas. The program establishes elements of housing construction that HBA members have deemed essential in order to carry a “green built” label. Homes certified into the program conform to high standards of site management and waste recycling, water efficiency, indoor air quality, energy efficiency, materials, and homeowner education.
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![]() Friday's jobs report puts Texas mortgage rates in free-fall Not since the first quarter of this year have we seen rates dip below 6%. Well, it happen on Friday and continues today. Mortgage rates were in a free-fall on Friday after news of an outright decline in August payrolls and downward revisions of the June and July employment reports. This was the first reduction since August 2003 and put a further fear of economic recession into Wall Street.
How much will the Federal Reserve cut interest rates? This news drove the Dow Jones industrial average down 250 points (or 1.9%), while the NASDAQ followed suit with a similar decline. The combination of this negative economic news, declining consumer confidence, a weak housing market and a painful credit crunch (rising mortgage defaults) will put pressure on the Federal Reserve to lower rates on September 18 in an attempt to stimulate the economy. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted recently of an interest rate reduction by saying that the Federal Reserve is "ready to do all that is needed" to continue the current 6-year-old economic expansion. The question now on everyone’s lips is no longer whether, but when and by how much, the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates. The bright spot from all of this is that the consumers will take out new residential mortgage loans Borrowers who need to purchase a home or refinance an existing mortgage will reap the benefits of the already lower mortgage interest rates. The problem is that qualifying standards have tightened for mortgages and other forms of credit, and those borrowers that will really feel the effects of the "squeeze" will be all of those who otherwise would find it difficult to re-qualify for loans and whose adjustable-rate mortgages have recently reset or will reset in the near future-- at higher interest rates. Many borrowers who cannot take advantage of refinancing into a mortgage loan with a lower-than-reset rate because of the more restrictive qualifying standards are likely to suffer "payment shock" and could eventually add to the already dire recent home foreclosure statistics besetting both them and their lender institutions. About Ted Blanchard
Ted Blanchard, a Certified EcoBroker®, is a top Real Estate and Mortgage professional in North Texas. His Company, www.tream.us specializes not only in representing buyers and sellers in real estate transactions, but offers mortgage services as well. TREAM, Inc. is truly a one stop shop for real estate and mortgage services. Ted can be reached at 214-224-0907 or by email at ted@tream.us 
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