February 2, 2011

More affordable to Buy vs Rent in Houston

Trulia recently released their latest Rent vs. Buy Index for the 50 largest cities. The Rent vs. Buy Index calculates a price-to-rent ratio. The lower the ratio the more affordable it is to buy a home vs renting a home. Price-to-Rent Ratios of: 1-15: It’s better to own a home in this city as it […]

January 31, 2011

Most missed restaurants

Restaurants, we all have our favorites. What makes a restaurant our favorite may be a combination of its food, service, and prices or it may simply be because the food is just darn good. Whenever I have an opportunity to catch up with clients who moved away from Sring Texas, I like to ask them “What restaurants in Spring Texas do you miss […]

January 28, 2011

Spring Texas Real Estate Taxes – Top 3 things you need to know

Top 3 things you need to know about Spring Texas real estate taxes: 1. You did NOT file for your homestead exemption at closing. Although you signed a pile of documents when you closed on your Spring Texas house, the homestead exemption form was not one of them. You can only file for the homestead exemption between January 1st […]

January 26, 2011

Relocating to Spring Texas? iPhone APPs

Are you relocating to Spring Texas? If the answer is yes, then here’s a list of our favorite iPhone APPs that will help you during your transition. I just wish they would have been available when we relocated to Spring Texas 10 years ago. Maps– Spring Texas is pretty easy to navigate around especially once you […]

January 24, 2011

There’s more to consider than just your commute to work

Would your annual transportation costs be less if you lived in a home in Magnolia or in Spring Texas? A tool named Abogo can help you answer the question. I used Abogo to calculate the monthly transportation costs based upon the address of our Better Homes and Gardens Gary Greene offices at 8817 Louetta Spring Texas. According to Abogo, the monthly […]

January 21, 2011

Life’s good until …. Shortage in the escrow account

18 months ago you bought a new construction home in Spring Texas. You moved in, bought new furniture, painted a few rooms, and made it your home. Life was GOOD! Until the day you received a notice from your lender, demanding $9,000 due to a shortage in your escrow account. Your first reaction is what the heck?!? This has to be […]

January 19, 2011

What the heck is a QR code?

Have you heard about QR codes? If you haven’t, you will soon. Ralph Lauren, Pepsi, Coke, and McDonalds have been using QR codes in their advertisements in Japan for years. But 2011 will be the year QR codes finally invade the U.S. A QR (Quick Response) code is a 2 dimensional code that is readable by smart phones. You simply download […]

January 17, 2011

Spring Texas Real Estate Market 2010

With the year 2010 squarely in the rear view mirror, it’s time to recap the Spring Texas real estate market for 2010 and make some predictions for 2011. Highlights of the Spring Texas real estate market for 2010: Demand pushed forward – The $8,000 first time homebuyers tax credit pushed demand forward into the first half of 2010. […]

January 15, 2011

Texas #1, again!

Allied Van Lines released their 43rd annual Magnet States Report and at the number 1 spot for the sixth year in a row is our very own state of Texas. Texas achieved the highest net relocation gain (inbound moves minus outbound moves) performed by Allied Van Lines. The net relocation gain for 2010 was 1,640 […]

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