Featured Article - August 2010: How Wall Street Reform Benefits Foreclosure Buyers

By Peter G. Miller

With the passage of Wall Street reform now a done deal in Washington there are probably few people who did better than real estate investors. Stricter mortgage standards plus less federal emphasis on homeownership means there will be a new and growing demand for rental housing.

'In previous eras, we haven't seen people question whether homeownership was the right decision. It was just assumed that's where you want to go,' Raphael Bostic, a senior official with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, told the Washington Post. 'You're not going to hear us say that. What we've seen in the last four years, is that there really is an underside to homeownership.'

The change in government policies impacts the demand for investment real estate because a growing population combined with a smaller percentage of owner-occupants means more demand for rental property.

Mortgages:

The Wall Street reform legislation homogenizes the mortgage marketplace and assures that there will be no shortage of conventional, VA and FHA loans. Lenders are entirely free to offer more exotic financial products, but only if they're willing to set aside reserves, eliminate prepayment penalties and face potent lawsuits from borrowers and mortgage investors enabled by the new standards.

For buyers and investors with proper paperwork and visible finances the new loan requirements will be a low hurdle, however, for many borrowers mortgage applications will suddenly become more difficult. Application reviews will stiffen and lender standards will rise, meaning that many loan applications will be declined. We're already seeing this with the new devotion to higher credit scores.

The tougher financing standards will create two results. First, there will simply be fewer buyers than might otherwise be the case. Second, there will be fewer buyers who can 'stretch' and afford a bigger mortgage for a given income. In the end these two factors will create less pressure to push up home prices.

Rentals & Foreclosures:

Since the end of World War II, we have had a steady need for additional rental units to accommodate a growing population. In 1950 we had a population of 153 million, a figure that will soon top 310 million. Now we have massive numbers of foreclosures adding to demand.

'For 2010, the midyear numbers put us on pace to exceed three million properties with foreclosure filings by the end of the year, and more than one million bank repossessions,' said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. 'The roller coaster pattern of foreclosure activity over the past 12 months demonstrates that while the foreclosure problem is being managed on the surface, a massive number of distressed properties and underwater loans continue to sit just below the surface, threatening the fragile stability of the housing market.'

Marketplace Changes:

Although there's plenty of property demand, that demand is not actionable. Individuals who might once have bought are effectively being shut out of the marketplace by such issues as tougher loan standards, unemployment, reduced wages, credit reports with major black marks and changing federal policies. And while such individuals may not have the financial muscle to buy a home, they often have sufficient income to afford a good rental.

Time & Place:

So is this the time to buy investment real estate, especially short sales and foreclosures? In many markets there's a fusion of discounted acquisition costs, historically-low interest levels, falling vacancy rates and rising rental rates. This doesn't mean specific real estate investments are attractive everywhere or for all buyers, but in areas where such trends exist and seem likely to continue this may well be an unusually good time to consider short sales and foreclosures, two ways to acquire discounted real estate.

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Banks Delay Foreclosures and Pray Property Values Increase

Banks Delay Foreclosures and Pray Property Values Increase

How Does Satellite Radio Work?

Satellite radio is one of the largest innovations in broadcasting since the introduction of FM. A satellite radio signal can be broadcast for more than 35,000 kilometers or 22,000 miles with a clear and high quality sound.

The idea behind satellite radio first appeared in 1992 when the Federal Communications Commission granted a spectrum of the S band (the 2.3 GHz frequency) for Digital Audio Radio Service. This license to broadcast in that band was allocated to Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio in 1997. Today there are three companies that provide satellite radio in the world: Sirius and XM in Northern America and WorldSpace in Asia, Europe and Africa.

Each of these companies offers a different broadcasting system since the radio signal of each is proprietary. This means you will need to purchase different hardware depending on your subscription to one of these companies. However, there are three components common to all satellite radio services: the satellites, the ground repeaters, and the radio receivers. Different satellite radio companies broadcast the radio signal in different ways. For instance, XM satellite radio uses geostationary satellites which have orbits synchronized with the movement of Earth. These satellites are located above the equator.

In order to allow subscribers to receive crystal-clear signal despite obstacles such as buildings, hills or bridges, XM satellite radio service has installed a network of repeater antennas that receive the radio signal from the satellites and retransmit the signal to the subscriber’s receiver. Sirius, on the other hand, uses satellites that have unique elliptical orbits around Earth. These orbits allow satellites to get higher in the sky than geostationary satellites and this prevents loss of signal. This is why Sirius has fewer terrestrial repeaters than XM.

Satellite radio services have digital broadcast centers where a huge amount of music in digital format as well as CD format is stored. Radio programmers have the task of selecting which song has to be played at which time. There are also a lot of studios managed by digital radio companies where artists perform live. All songs and material are transmitted to the satellites in digital format so that the signal contains very high quality sound. The signal is encoded by the satellite and then retransmitted to the repeaters antennas which then transmit the signal to the radio receiver which in turn decodes it and plays the sound. The entire process is very quick and reliable.

In addition, satellite radio would not be possible without digital compression. Digital compression is a technique that uses sophisticated algorithms to compress as much material as possible on the available bandwidth. Once you subscribe to a satellite radio provider you will need the appropriate radio equipment. Traditional radios cannot decode the signal received from satellites so you will need the special equipment.

The popularity of satellite radio has exploded due to much technological advancement that enabled manufacturers to offer the receivers at very attractive prices. The fact that satellite radio is commercial free for many of its channels is also a major selling point.

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How Vanessa Hudgens Started Her Acting Career

How did Vanessa Hudgens get started in her acting career? Born Vanessa Anne Hudgens on December 14, 1988 in Salinas, California, her looks can be attributed to her parents’ backgrounds. Her dad, Greg Hudgens, is an American with a Native American and Irish background while her mother, Gina, a Filipino, grew up in Manila with traces of Filipino, Chinese and Spanish blood.

Career Path

Vanessa was prone to the performing arts since she was a child. At eight years old, she got involved in musical plays. She was in the lead and supporting casts of plays such as "The Wizard of Oz”, "The Music Man”, "Damn Yankees", "Evita", "Carousel", The King and I", and "The Music Man”. Everything happened by chance for little Vanessa. Her first gig was a commercial, but she landed the part purely by accident. She went on the audition because her friend, who was supposed to audition, got sick and asked her to go in her place.

After completing seventh-grade at the Orange County High School of the Arts, Vanessa opted for a home school setup.

In 2003, her film debut was in the feature film "Thirteen", starring Evan Rachel Wood and Holly Hunter. Vanessa also starred in "Thunderbirds", an action-adventure film, but Hudgens hit it big after playing the part of Gabriella in “High School Musical”, a Disney Channel original movie that was first released in 2006. That same year, she released her debut album “V”. In July of 2008, her second album “Identified” was released.

In addition to movies, she also had bit parts in television, including guest spots on TV shows such as “The Brothers Garcia”, “Still Standing”, “Quintuplets”, “Drake and Josh”, and “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody”.

Hudgens continued to play the role of Gabriella Montez in the two equally successful “High School Musical” TV movies, when she played the love interest of real-life boyfriend, Zac Efron. Their roles had given them the “Best Chemistry” award given by the Teen Choice Awards. The first movie also had a hit soundtrack, and it brought the group on a worldwide concert tour. A book series was also made out of it.

With all the success she has garnered, Hudgens became number seven on Forbes magazine’s top earning list of stars under 21. She was 18 years old at the time with an estimated $2 million of earnings. “High School Musical 3: Senior Year” was released on October 24, 2008.

She was also ranked 62nd of the Most Sexiest Woman on FHM, and she was also number 12 on Maxim’s 100 Hot List. She was also part of People magazine’s 100 Most Beautiful People.

Life in the Spotlight

Her career was marked with controversy when provocative pictures of Hudgens proliferated on the Internet on September 6, 2007. The photos were passed through emails, mobile phones, and other devices. There were also rumors then that she would be pulled out from the High School Musical franchise because she was no longer fit to be called a model for the youth.

Above all that, however, everything was settled with Hudgens apologizing to fans and her family. After that, all is well again for this young superstar. Just looking back on how Vanessa Hudgens got started in her acting career will inspire young minds about this craft if they are planning on joining the bandwagon.

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Tips on How to Help Your Children Finish Their Homework

Homework is always the point of contention between parents and their children after school. One side just wants to rest after a whole day of schoolwork while the other side wants their children to learn the value of hard work; therefore, that side wants them to complete the work assigned by their teachers when they get home. Homework is a necessary part of the school life and does not need to be something that parents and children will fight about. In fact, parents can even help their children with their homework without really providing the answers to it.

Here are some of the ways that you can do this. They are so obvious that you may already even be doing them with your children.

1. Put Value Into It

Children are logical beings. When you explain how important it is to do their homework, they will learn to place value into it. You can do this by rewarding your children for a job well done. Award them with toys that they like when they get into the Top Ten of their class or give them certain privileges when they make good grades.

Rewards do not need to be something material. They can be in the form of praises and words of encouragement. This is especially true for children who are sensitive or those who get frustrated easily.

You should be careful in giving too much reward because too much tends to make children focus more on the rewards than on the deed itself. That can be a problem because their motivation and their efforts to do things will depend on the reward. If they do not want the reward, they will not do anything, or worse, when there is no reward, children will feel it is not worth the effort. So keep it balanced, and then you can teach your child values in the process.

2. Make It Fun

Studying and doing homework may be serious, but you can make it fun too. You can do this by giving your children a special corner for themselves. Having a spot where they can work will emphasize the importance of studying and doing their homework. It also gives them something to look forward to so that they will be motivated to study.

Another way to make it fun is to inject games into the learning process. Create tests that they can answer as a review for their lessons. Also, create some guessing games or word games for their English and history lessons. You can also perk up the learning process by giving your children colorful and child-friendly reference materials. For instance, if you plan on buying an encyclopedia, don’t buy the heavy ones. Rather, purchase those that are age-appropriate with accompanying pictures.

You can also give your children access to the internet. Here, your children can find virtually anything that can help them with their homework. Of course, when doing this you have to make sure that there is an adult that will guide them.

This will help your children learn the importance of hard work, not only in school but also in their adult lives. Remember, skills begin to develop at an early age.

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Safety Tips For Outdoor Grilling

Grilling Outdoors

When grilling, there is no better place to do it than outdoors. Food produced by grilling is complimented by the ambiance of simply being outdoors. However, grilling outdoors is not completely safe as it could pose some hazards to safety. In fact, there have already been serious cases attributed to outdoor grilling. Structure and outdoor fires are also some serious cases, and that is why with grilling, safety is an important issue.

So to make your grilling experiences safe, here are some important tips you should consider the next time you decide to grill.

Check Your Grill

If using a gas grill, always check for leaks each time you start grilling. Leaks can catch fire from the grill top and could cause very serious cases, so make sure there are no leaks. When doing this, make sure you don’t use a lighter to find where the leaks are. Take note that lighters are only to be used to start charcoal-type grills and never on gas grills, especially when testing for leaks. This would save you from a lot of danger.

Also, make sure your grill is stable and not shaking with the possibility of toppling over. The fire on the grill top can cause a lot of hazards if the grill topples over. In addition, make sure fire extinguishers and first aid kits are readily available. You never know what could happen while barbecuing, so it’s best to be safe and ready.

Check The Area

Make sure your outdoor grilling area is safe, and by safe, take a few measures. Mark the grilling area as a “no play zone” for your kids, and only allow them to get near if the grill has completely cooled down. Also, make sure pets are away from the grill at all times. Since it is an outdoor grill, the name itself already explains where it should only be used. It should only be outdoors at all times and never indoors.

The grilling area should also be away from objects that could catch fire and could easily spread it to the house itself, or even the bushes, trees and shrubs. Make sure the grill is at least 10 feet away from any of those places. The grill should be isolated and ideally should stand alone away from everything else in the backyard. The grill should also be kept away from electric cords and outlets because having the latter two exposed to heat can have them explode and catch fire.

Other Guidelines

When grilling, never leave the grill alone while the fire is still burning. Even if a long process would not have you on the food, you should still make sure you are carefully watching the grill at all times. Also, make sure you use long utensils while grilling because not only are you more versatile while on the grill with them, but you are also safer from burns you can get from the grill. Make sure you also watch what you wear.

Shirts or aprons with tails or frills that are hanging can catch fire. As much as you want to enjoy grilling, you also want to be safe. The guidelines provided to you here should be of great assistance.

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Prepare for the worst hurricane in the best way possible

Believe it or not, the Gulf and Atlantic coastlines of the United States are regularly battered by hurricanes – about five on average – about every 3 years.

It is a fact that hurricanes bring about a lot of windy conditions, some of which are as strong as a hundred miles an hour. Hurricanes also come with water surges that reach as high as twenty feet.

Such cyclones are extremely dangerous; therefore preparing for their onslaught, especially during the months of June up until November, is a smart and practical thing to do.

The following are tips and advice you could do to best prepare for the worst situation that could happen when hurricanes come.

Be aware and beware

Understand and know that every hurricane is different. Preparing for possibly the worst is usually the best option as it makes one prepare and become pro active.

Make a list and check it twice

Make a list of all the items found in your backyard or front yard that you think you need to bring inside a hurricane hits. Items you could include in your list are yard tools or lawn furniture.

Trim it

As much as possible, keep shrubbery and trees trimmed. Doing so prevents any unnecessary entanglements brought about by tree branches or the like. Remember what happened during Gustav?

Drain it

As much as possible, ensure that all gutters as well as drains area are appropriately cleared. This is to prevent further flooding, especially during bouts of long and heavy rainfall that usually accompany strong hurricanes.

Use shutters specifically designed for hurricanes

Using permanent shutters for doors and windows is much safer and a better alternative that simply taping all the glass as doing the latter does not in any way prevent the glass’ breakage. You could also protect the window from the outside by using plywood or the shutters.

Plan for an evacuation

As much as possible, develop an evacuation plan. Try to communicate with your local emergency management chapter or Red Cross office.

They may be able to provide you with an evacuation route as well as nearby shelters.

Prepare blankets

Have sleeping bags and blankets ready just in case there is a need to rush to a shelter.

Think about your pets too

Know in advance what you to do to take care of your pets. A lot of animals were abandoned during the onslaught of Hurricane Katrina.

Gather necessary emergency supplies

As much as possible, prepare supplies beforehand. This list of supplies should include flashlights, batteries, a radio, water and food, first aid kits, and a can opener.

Also, turn the temperature on your fridge to the highest setting. The reason for this is when the power goes off, the cool air of your fridge will get to stay a lot longer, thereby preserving your food a lot longer.

Elevate your home and furniture

It is also a good idea to elevate your house especially if hurricanes and flooding are common in your area.

All in all, preparing for the worst is always the best course available. It could save you precious time and energy as well as possibly save your life as well as that of your loved ones.

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