Yes, there is a 25 Foot Blue Ferret named Frankie!

It's so funny how people just don't believe you. I met up with college buddies and told them I had a 35 foot blue ferret at my house. Of course, they didn't believe me, so they came over and these are some pics of the day. it's amazing how much fun you can have blowing up a ferret and throwing a football!

People Magazine

"Two bare feet on the dashboard . . . " Me and Missy went to see Kenny Chesney and met John and Amber there. We ended up on the 4th row somehow and about a week later, this pic was in people magazine. And yes, he is asking, "Who's shirt is this?" And yes, I threw it at him for Missy. How sweet huh?

Lakeside town homes on tap for Lewisville

Dallas-based Ganter Development is planning to build 60 town homes on Lewisville Lake, with construction scheduled to start in December.

The town homes will be built on five acres Ganter Development has under contract for $1.5 million northeast of Interstate 35E and F.M. 407/Justin Road in Lewisville, said Chris Ganter, who owns the company with his twin brother, Ben Ganter.

The units will range in size from 1,300 to 3,200 square feet and sell for $208,000 to $405,000. All 60 are scheduled for completion by June.

The two- and three-story town homes in the not-yet named development will have Austin-stone exteriors, two-car garages and a French-country feel, Chris Ganter said. Homeowner association fees will run about $100 a month and include exterior landscaping and maintenance, he said.

"In today's marketplace, especially in Dallas-Fort Worth, people don't want to maintain anything," Chris Ganter said. "They don't want to mow their grass or waste time on maintenance when they could be enjoying the lake."

Twenty-two of the town homes are presold, Ganter said. Ganter Development has built about 200 town homes in Allen, Grand Prairie and Cedar Creek since the development company launched two years ago. The company's strategy is to develop town homes on smaller tracts in the Metroplex that other developers have passed over, Ganter said. The company especially looks for waterfront property that's easily accessible by major roads, he said.
In the 12 months ending March 31, builders started work on 190 town homes in Lewisville, including 59 starts since Jan. 1, said Cassie Gibson, vice president of research for homebuilder consultant Residential Strategies Inc. Citywide, , 88 town homes are under construction now, and 54 town homes are finished but vacant, Dallas-based RSI's statistics showed.

Higher price point
Much of the town home construction in Lewisville lies along State Highway 121 and almost all is priced between $110,000 and $250,000, skewing lower than the Ganter town homes, Gibson said.

"With lake frontage, you're looking at a different pool of buyers," she said. "They're going to be more geographically widespread. They're probably looking at this purchase as either a weekend recreational home, or they're empty nesters interested in a low-maintenance lifestyle."
Despite slumping new home sales, Ganter seems to have found a niche, said Mitchell Vexler, president of Lewisville-based Mockingbird Properties, which is developing town homes priced at $185,000 to $280,000 at Chase Oaks Village in Plano.

"They're (Ganter's development) next to the lake, and they're honing in on a specific demographic," he said. "It sounds like they've got a winner on their hands."

Interesting that they could make a profit on townhomes with views of the lake. Will probably be a hit at those prices.

The BOOGIE WOOGIE Piano Lady

Tonight I attended this program and suddenly out of nowhere I saw this crazy girl run onto the stage and did the soldier boy dance. If anyone knows who this is please contact me immediately. She really interupted the jazz ensemble, but it was very funny. She is around 4 Foot 2 rainbow hair, and pretty funny. I was told by a lady by the name of Bettis that she goes by Maddie.



Below is a possible picture of what she may look like.



But she sure was funny! Hooray for Madison!!!!!!!!!!

Report: Dallas-Fort Worth is a good place to build home equity

09:24 AM CDT on Friday, May 9, 2008

By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News stevebrown@dallasnews.com

Potential Dallas-Fort Worth homebuyers who are nervous about whether it's a good time to purchase a house might find some comfort in a new report.

But analysts caution not to get carried away with the data.

Steve Brown: Housing values in North Texas are slow to rise, slow to fall
Leslie Berkman: Surviving the bubble's burst in Riverside, California
The study by the Center for Economic and Policy Research and National Low Income Housing Coalition projects that D-FW homebuyers could see one of the best increases in equity in the country during the next few years.

The comprehensive report looked at home ownership and rental costs and the prospects for building home equity in 100 metropolitan areas.

In terms of building equity, the D-FW area is among the top five markets expected to do well between now and 2012. A homeowner who buys a house priced at 75 percent of the median for the area could gain more than $80,000 in equity four years from now, the study finds.
"I wouldn't want people to run out and make investment decisions based on this," Dean Baker, one of the authors of the report, said Thursday.

But he said the Texas market is probably in the best shape in the country.
"The fact that Texas didn't take part in the housing bubble is good news," he said. "You are not going to feel the pain other cities are."

Indeed, while home equity is likely to grow during the next few years in Texas cities, homeowners could lose equity in their houses in about a third of the cities in the report.
The biggest declines are forecast in markets that have seen big price increases in recent years, including many California cities.

"People in Texas have benefited from not having that temporary run-up in prices," Mr. Baker said. "That wasn't healthy, and now people are really getting hurt [there]."
Median home sales prices in North Texas have dropped only slightly during recent months, while residential values in many coastal cities have decreased dramatically and are still falling.
Mark Dotzour, chief economist with Texas A&M University's Real Estate Center, said the study's findings confirm the relative strength of the state's housing market.

"There is a lot less downside risk to buying a home in any of these Texas cities and a lot more upside potential," he said. "There has never been a price bubble in Texas."

But he also cautioned against using the projections of any study as the basis for homebuying.
"I hope they are right, but my guess is they might be overstating it a little bit," Dr. Dotzour said.
The new study also found that the D-FW area continues to have some of the lowest average apartment rents for a big-city market. And the monthly cost of homeownership here can still be lower than what's charged for some apartments.

HOME EQUITY FORECAST

Anticipated equity in a home after four years, based on buying a home at 75 percent of area median price and financing at 6 percent with a long-term, fixed-rate mortgage.

BIGGEST EXPECTED GAINS
McAllen, Texas
$90,437
San Antonio
$90,017
New Orleans
$88,898
Houston
$87,837
Dallas-Fort Worth
$83,880

BIGGEST EXPECTED LOSSES
San Jose, Calif.
-$355,346
San Francisco
-$253,875
Los Angeles
$222,719
Oxnard, Calif.
$203,481
Bridgeport, Conn.
$183,685

SOURCE: Center for Economic and Policy Research and National Low Income Housing Coalition

Finally, a positive outlook on real estate here in DFW. Hooray for Steve Brown!

2008 Presidential Race

Oh my gosh! These people are crazy! Republican canidate McCain, no chance. He doesn't have the look or personality of a president. Democrats Clinton and Obama. I can go on forever, but I will keep it short. Hillary . . . no chance also. Eventhough Barack Obama has everything against him, he will win.

Bottom line is that it will be scary whoever wins.

I sent a text out and told my friends to reply one word that describes the race right now, and this is what came back.

1. Two words: Who cares!


2. Implode


3. P.O.W.


4. Apocalypse

So there you have it, only four replys and there is the proof.

HMMMMMMMM???????????????????

Kenny Chesney Comes to Frisco

He came, We saw, and he didn't let us down. The 5 foot 3 king of Country-Pop stole the show as usual with his hits. Of course he sang the all-time favorite, "Summertime!"

Above, Kenny says, "Hello to Brad, while singing!"

Brooks and Dunn were okay, and LeAnne Rhymes is sweet. She can really sing and perform.

Above to the right, Kenny reads Missy's shirt before signing and throwing it back to her.

Below, Missy Morgan and I on the front row.