The housing recovery has sparked a construction revival that, with tight inventory, could boost the economy for years to come, NPR reports.
Construction has been “one of the most important things that’s been missing from this recovery,” and the rebound could contribute a full percentage point of growth to gross domestic product (GDP) over the next three to four years, an economist told NPR.
– See more at: http://www.inman.com/wire/construction-revival-set-to-boost-growth/#sthash.8d2fX1D0.dpuf
In many ways, deciding to move forward with your kitchen remodel is the toughest decision you have to make during the project. It’s the decision to proceed that commits you to such a significant project. And while setting your budget, figuring out the materials you want to use and the contractor you want to hire can be challenging, they don’t have to turn your big project into a big headache. Here’s what you can do to ensure your kitchen remodel goes as smooth as possible.
What don’t you like about your kitchen? Odds are there are quite a few things. Maybe it’s as simple as replacing your appliances, cabinets, and counters. Or maybe it means gutting the room and changing the layout. Your goal here is to figure out exactly what would make the space work best for your home and lifestyle, which, if you’re like 49 percent of homeowners, is to make your home more comfortable and livable. Going Here for more information about kitchen remodeling.
While the planning phase can be the longest phase (don’t be surprised if you spend months planning your kitchen) it’s also one of the most enjoyable. This is the time when you can let your imagination run wild as you try to define the design direction you want to go. And while it can be hard to nail down the exact style you want, it’s easy to find inspiration, especially with all of the online resources that are now available. One design tool that we happen to really like is our very own DesignMine. Whether you use DesignMine to find and save photos that inspire you, or prefer to clip images from magazines or other online resources, saving the images and showing them to your contractor is the best way to articulate your vision.
Defining your budget is important enough to warrant its own step, but there’s a good chance that you’ll start hammering out your budget during the planning phase. In fact, some folks prefer setting their budget before they get too deep into the planning, since knowing how much they have to spend affects the scope of their remodel and the materials they choose. However you choose to go about budgeting, we recommend checking out our Cost Guide to get a better idea of how much others in your area are paying for their kitchen remodels. When budgeting, it’s important to remember that you’ll have to factor in the cost of obtaining permits. Each municipality handles the permitting process differently so be sure to do your research.
The Bedford Central School Board and the Bedford Teachers’ Association have reached a tentative agreement on a new three-year deal.
The deal will be retroactive to July 1 and continue through June 30, 2016, according to patch.com
Based on the new collective bargaining agreement, current teachers will receive “modified compensation,” though exact numbers were not announced. New teachers, however will be subject to a new compensation framework.
Current teachers on “step increases” will receive partial increases for the 2013-2014 and 2014-15 school years. A full step increase won’t take place until the 2015-2016 school year and will involve an off-schedule payment.
The new compensation structure is designed to comply with the state-mandated tax levy cap. The tax levy cap limits tax revenue increases to the lesser of 2 percent or inflation.
The previous four-year contract expired June 30.
Though the tentative agreement has been reached, it still requires formal approval. The union will vote on the deal in September; the school board will vote after the union.
read more…
http://bedford.dailyvoice.com/schools/bedford-central-schools-teachers-union-reach-deal
Are you wondering if Tumblr could help your business?
Are you unfamiliar with Tumblr and wondering how to get started?
Do you want to let a new set of customers share your brand or product on this social platform?
If so, keep reading as I reveal how to use Tumblr for your business.
Tumblr is a blogging and social platform that houses more than 132 million blogs and is among the top 15 websites in the United States.
It’s website explains, “Tumblr lets you effortlessly share anything. Post text, photos, quotes, links, music, and videos from your browser, phone, desktop, email or wherever you happen to be. You can customize everything, from colors to your theme’s HTML.”
According to Quantcast, Tumblr received over 5.5 billion page views in May 2013 alone. With user numbers and popularity on the rise, it’s a perfect marketing tool for businesses that are trying to extend their reach and raise brand awareness.
Tumblr is quickly growing in popularity.
In this article I’ll show you how to get started using Tumblr in your online marketing strategy.
Signing up is easy and can be done in minutes. Enter your email, choose a password and select a username. Try to get an exact match for your brand name or primary website URL. Alternatively, if you’re already established on Twitter, see if your Twitter username is available.
Provide Tumblr with accurate, complete and updated registration information.
Consider using the same avatar image on your Tumblr page that you use on your Facebook Page, Twitter account and other social media channels.
First impressions matter. To build a solid brand presence on Tumblr, ensure you make a good impression and select a catchy design for your page.
There’s an abundance of free and paid themes on Tumblr. Choose from one-, two- and three-column or grid-style layouts and find a design that matches your image. Browse the available themes, select one that fits your business and install it in seconds.
Tumblr has a large library of free and premium themes to choose from.
Many themes allow for a considerable amount of customization to give you a unique look that’s perfect for punctuating your brand image. Compared to Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest, Tumblr is much more customizable and doesn’t require any serious programming abilities.
read more…
More than two years after a foreclosure notice was filed against the home of notorious former footballer O.J. Simpson, a Miami-Dade judge has ordered the Kendall, Fla., property seized by the bank.
Simpson bought the home in 2000 for $575,000, and was imprisoned for kidnapping and robbery in 2008. He stopped paying the mortgage in 2010 and now owes the bank nearly $900,000. The bank plans to sell the home at auction on Oct. 29.
Source: The Real Deal via Gossip Extra
read more…
http://www.inman.com/wire/bank-to-sell-o-j-simpson-home-in-foreclosure-auction/#sthash.F78K3LmA.dpuf
| Chappaqua NY Weekly Real Estate Report | 8/26/2013 | |
| Homes for sale | 108 | |
| Median Ask Price | $1,182,000.00 | |
| Low Price | $380,000.00 | |
| High Price | $24,750,000.00 | |
| Average Size | 3981 | |
| Average Price/foot | $363.00 | |
| Average DOM | 133 | |
| Average Ask Price | $1,567,844.00 | |
About 1 in 5 mortgage loan applications received by Quicken Loans are from borrowers seeking adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) loans, Crain’s Detroit Business reports.
Rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.4 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending Aug. 8, according to Freddie Mac’s latest rate survey.
Rates on five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid ARM loans averaged 3.19 percent with an average 0.5 point, and one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 2.62 percent with an average 0.3 point.
Quicken Chief Economist Bob Walters points out that homeowners move every seven to 10 years on average, and “all that security they’re paying for with a higher rate generally isn’t used.”
Source: crainsdetroit.com.
read more…
http://www.inman.com/wire/arm-loans-back-in-fashion-as-mortgage-rates-rise/#sthash.Nhbn6E8b.dpuf
It’s a terrifying thought: falling into a sinkhole while sleeping in the comfort of your own bed. But sinkholes, according to CNBC, are more common than most homebuyers realize. CNBC has more on how this growing realization could impact home construction.
The news agency outlines the potential impact:
As builders are forced to go farther and farther out of cities in search of developable land, compromises such as building on less than ideal sites have to be made to deliver competitively priced properties,” said Peter Zalewski, an expert in Florida real estate development. “We think this factor is only going to contribute to the sinkhole problem in the future on the Florida peninsula. At the end of the day, technology can only serve as a stopgap against Mother Nature.
Wells Fargo and Chase traded positions as the industry leader in originations as new purchase mortgage originations edged up in the second quarter.
Wells Fargo maintained its standing as the biggest residential lender in the country. A distant second was JPMorgan Chase, while Bank of America regained its No. 3 ranking after falling behind Quicken Loans in the first quarter.
However, initial indications are that the current quarter’s production is on track for a decline according to Mortgage Daily.
Home loans funded by U.S. lenders totaled an estimated $502billion during the second quarter, according to Mortgage Daily’s Mortgage Lender Ranking. The estimate was based on earnings data, publicly disclosed statistics and a quarterly survey conducted by the trade publication.
Overall activity increased around 2% from the first quarter. Compared to the second-quarter 2012, production has risen more than 8%.
| Q2 2013 Originations | ||
Rank | Lender | Volume ($ billions) |
| Total. | U.S. (est.) | $502.0 |
| 1. | Wells Fargo | $112.0 |
| 2. | Chase | $49.5 |
| 3. | BofA | $26.8 |
| 4. | Quicken | $23.8 |
| 5. | U.S. Bank | $19.1 |
Walter Mortgage soared to $4.7 billion from the first quarter’s $0.4 billion – the biggest percentage gain of all lenders tracked.
Production at Nationstar Mortgage more than doubled from the first quarter — the second-best quarter-over-quarter performance of any top lender.
The biggest quarter-over-quarter loss was suffered by Ocwen Financial.
Nationstar’s business nearly quadrupled from the second-quarter 2012, the best year-over-year improvement.
With a 250% increase, Stonegate Mortgage delivered the second-largest increase from the year-earlier period.
United Shore followed with a 156% ascension, then 154% at PennyMac.
Based on the Mortgage Market Index from LoanSifter and Mortgage Daily, third-quarter originations from all lenders are likely to decline by around 22%.
Wells Fargo held on to its top-servicer standing, and BofA relinquished its No. 2 rank to Chase.
| Biggest Servicers as of June 30 | ||
Rank | Servicer | Portfolio Size ($ trillions) |
| 1. | Wells Fargo | $1.9 |
| 2. | Chase | $1.0 |
| 3. | BofA | $1.0 |
| 4. | Ocwen | $0.4 |
| 5. | Citigroup | $0.4 |
read more…..
http://www.realestateeconomywatch.com/2013/08/wells-and-chase-duke-it-out/
Outdoor lighting isn’t just about safety and security. There’s no reason the curb appeal of your home should be limited to the daytime. The tree you’ve also loved, the garden you’ve worked hard to cultivate, the pond you bought with your hard-earned money, and all the other landscape features you’ve painstakingly chosen for your home can achieve some of their best effects at night with good outdoor landscape lighting.
Low Voltage Outdoor Lighting The electricity running into your home holds a potentially dangerous 120 volts. To create low voltage outdoor lighting you’ll need to install one or more transformers. This will reduce the voltage of your outdoor landscape lighting to a tame 12 volts. If your wiring gets exposed by inclement weather and the abuse of the elements, this voltage poses no danger to you, your family members, or your pets.
The downside to the low voltage outdoor lighting is that light fixtures become dimmer the further away they are from the transformer. If this becomes a problem, there are a number of easy solutions. You can upgrade to a higher-rated transformer or a heavier-gauge cable. You can use multiple transformers. You can also simply reduce the number or the wattage of your light fixtures. Moving the transformer and/or rearranging the layout of the lighting system can reduce the cable length to each fixture, minimizing the dimming path. You might also consider using the dimming as an intentional effect. This is popular in path lighting, where each light fixture gets stronger as you move closer to your home.
Outdoor Landscape Lighting: Design and Installation Deciding what you want your lighting to do is the first step when choosing and designing your lighting system, for this can important that you check the advises of the professionals from Dig This Design, Website. Additional convenience and safety entering your home at night, adding nighttime curb appeal to your home, and simply creating a romantic mood are all common goals for outdoor landscape lighting. There are three main categories of lighting but many outdoor lighting designs use some combination of the three.
Path Lighting—Uses fixtures that focus light onto your paths and walkways. Primarily for safety, this lighting still creates aesthetically pleasing lighting effects for your outdoor landscape.
Accent Lighting—Still focuses light onto a specific object or landscape feature, but allows for more peripheral lighting and dim illumination of surrounding areas. Creates curb appeal but emphasizes individual areas like a tree or a garden.
Spread Lighting—Just as the name suggests, spreads light amongst your outdoor landscape and
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