I have a question for the almost 56,000 real estate agents, the almost 9,000 loan officers on Active Rain and all of the consumers who read it. I will tell you in advance that I do have my own self-interest in mind when asking this question. Honesty is the best policy. My question is: “Why are not more real estate agents and loan officers embracing legitimate credit repair and recommending it to their credit challenged customers? Pure and simple that is the question. In today's mortgage with the requirement for higher credit scores is this not a viable option? I would appreciate your forthright answers. There will be two other parts to this blog series. Part 2 will be a summary of your answers. Part 3 will be some facts and figures as to why you should embrace it and how you can embra... 08/20/2008

  It is Texas tax free weekend and all of the families are out shopping. I was talking with another agent in the office today and she had stopped by one of our area malls to browse before coming into the office. She said it was packed. (She then started talking about shoes and I left the conversation at that point.) That answered the question as to why the phones weren’t ringing in the office. Tax free weekend equates to low home sales weekend. But anyway that reminded me that school would be starting pretty soon. I know I use the a school district websites fairly often. I look at the calendars and of course the school menu is the most important webpage on the school district websites. When my grandson spends the night with me once a week we ritually check the school menu to see what is... 08/16/2008

It is that time of the year again. School starts in twelve days and that also means it is time to sign-up for fall sports. I highly recommend the Conroe Family YMCA Fall Youth Sprots Program for all kids ages 3 - 15. This fall the Y is offering tackle football, soccer and volleyball. Almost all of the games are played at the Conroe Family YMCA. You will find information on each of the sports below. Soccer: Ages 3 - 15 boys and girls. Registration is going on now and ends Sept. 13th. Practice starts the week of Sept. 22nd and the first game will probably be played on October 4th. Most games are played on Saturday. Players must have shinpads and cleats are recommended. The season is eight games. Football: Ages 6 - 12 boys and girls. Registration is going on now and ends on Aug. 30th. Prac... 08/15/2008

I have been asked by several people who have read some of my credit restoration blogs to provide some additional resources. This particular blog will take care of those requests. Below you will find three links. The first link is to our short seven minute video on credit repair. The second link connects to our full thirty-three minute association benefits video. We offer over 20 benefits. The final link is to our association's website. Please take some time to review these links. I know you will find them of interest to you and your many credit challenged customers. I can help you the realtor sell more homes by assisting your clients in improving their credit. I have also permenantly placed the links mentioned above on my blogpage. Please take a few minutes to review the information. I ... 08/15/2008

Beat the summer heat in the water!  The Beautiful 22,000 acre Lake Conroe is a perfect place for water sports and fishing.  Conroe is located 40 miles north of Houston, Texas and only 13 miles north of The Woodlands.  Enjoy a day at the lake or you can have a waterfront property with your boat right at your back door!  Click HERE to see homes in Lake Conroe.     The Party Barge's always look like alot of fun!  They even have a slide off the back!  (rent at http://www.justforfun.net/)   Lake Conroe is on the west fork of the San Jacinto River. It was built as a joint project of the City of Houston, the Texas Water Development Board and the San Jacinto River Authority in 1973 as an alternate water source for the City of Houston. MARINA'S: Anchorage Marina11880 Anchorage Marina Road936-856... 08/10/2008

SOLD homes MARKET Report WALDEN at Lake Conroe, July 2008 The Lake WALDEN, SOLD in Conroe, TX,  Luxury Home Market (Houston Suburb) in the month of July, 2008.  These numbers are according to the Houston Association of Realtors, MLS in Lake Walden, Conroe, Texas.  Look here for lake front, waterfront properties.  This is an amazing place to live and CLOSE to the Woodlands and Houston, Texas. Enjoy the Lake!   Property Type:   SingleFamily       Status:   Sold SubjectProperty                                 MLS# Closed Date Address Subdiv. BR Bths # Gar Pool Lot SqFt Bldg SqFt Yr List Price Sold Price SP/ SF Adjusted SP Adj. SP/SF DOM LP/SP % 5239530  7/17/2008  1225 CARBY RD  WALDEN PLACE EXT  2  2/0  0  N  17,400  896  1948  $27,500  $36,000  $40.18  $36,000  $40.18  6*  1.31  4627249 ... 08/09/2008

In 1881, Isaac Conroe was a lumberman from Houston and he established a sawmill near the railroad tracks. Soon a post office was established in his mill commissary. By the mid nineteenth century, a lumber boom had attracted settlers and the population climbed to 300 by 1889. They became a shipping center for lumber, cotton, livestock and bricks. The Conroe Independent School District was established in 1892, combining twelve nearby school districts. In 1896, the Courier was founded. It remains one of the few daily newspapers still in operation. Although the city survived a devastating fire in 1901, Conroe became incorporated in 1904 with a population of 1,009. Then the Great Depression almost devastated this small town. The lumber supply had been mismanaged. In November 1930, the only b... 07/29/2008

Conroe, Texas is one of the most actively-growing communities in the NNE Houston Area, and for good reason. Conroe is a true city, with all the mosaic of a city both good and bad. It is the county seat for Montgomery County and has been a sleepy little town that was not all that interested in growing until the last decade. People laugh and call the community "Corn-row" because of the large population of rural people who call this town home. But yet, I find this city to be more like the inner-city of a larger metropolis than like the "bedroom communities" to the south. It has a daily newspaper, active city government, county offices, ample employment choices and a vibrant economy. If you have a preference for older homes, you won't find many north of Houston except in the city of Conroe.... 07/26/2008

SOLD home in WALDEN, Conroe, TX June 2008 Market Report (edit/delete) Lake Walden Walden, Texas, SOLD Real Estate Market Report June 2008 (edit/delete) The Lake WALDEN, SOLD in Conroe, TX,  Luxury Home Market (Houston Suburb) in the month of June, 2008.  These numbers are according to the Houston Association of Realtors, MLS in Lake Walden, Conroe, Texas.  Look here for lake front, waterfront properties.  This is an amazing place to live and CLOSE to the Woodlands and Houston, Texas. Property Type:   SingleFamily       Status:   Sold SubjectProperty                                 MLS# Closed Date Address Subdiv. BR Bths # Gar Pool Lot SqFt Bldg SqFt Yr List Price Sold Price SP/ SF Adjusted SP/SF DOM CCDOM LP/SP % 6335461  6/27/2008  1215 CARBY RD  WALDEN PLACE EXT  3  1/0  0  N  17,400... 07/10/2008

This is not a new program, but if you are in the market to purchase a foreclosure, you can do it with only $100 down. If you qualify for FHA financing and if you purchase a HUD home, you can put down $100 rather than the 3% that FHA normally requires. This goes for regular FHA financing and even rehab FHA financing. Remember, you must purchase a HUD home through a HUD registered broker, so call me if you are interested in viewing or getting more information on purchasing HUD homes or any foreclosures for that matter in Conroe, Montgomery, The Woodlands or Magnolia TX.  This is one of my specialties. Happy house hunting!! 07/09/2008

The Walden Property Owners Association sponsored a parade on the 4th of July that started at the Racquet Club parking lot on Walden Road and ended at the Walden Yacht Club. There were all types of vehicles in the parade, from vintage cars, golf carts, bikers and everything in between! The Boy Scouts were at the front of the parade.   There were people outside their homes celebrating America's Birthday and waiting to catch candy!         At the end of the parade there were cookies, punch, Bloody Mary's and There was an award ceremony and also honor was given to those who have served our country! The self-proclaimed QUEEN of the parade! Walden is located on Lake Conroe, a 21,000-acre lake.  Five thousand acres of the lake are located within the Sam Houston National Forest. In addition to ... 07/09/2008

Conroe's First Thur Concert In on July 3rd was a great evening to jump start the long weekend! I had clients all day so we missed the first band, but arrived during set up of Joe Ely. We moseyed down and spread out blanket about 15 feet from the stage, The park was packed but not crowded and the evening breeze kicked in to cool to concert goers down, The biggest surprise was the accordion player, WOW!! He sounded fantastic, never knew the accordion was such a versatile sounding instrument. Michael and I had a great time and the best part was the total price for the evening (beside gas) was a whopping $2.50 cents for the popcorn and snow-cone.             Then to top the evening off we stopped a one of Conroe's fairly new restaurants for Chinese take out 07/05/2008

Come and join the fun at Conroe's first thursday free concert series! Heritage Place - 500 Collins - Downtown Conroe Opening Act  Sideshow Tramps Main Act  Joe Ely           6pm to 9pm  Bring your blankets and lawn chairs, Food and beverages will be sold since no coolers are allowed in the park. Family fun for all ages!   06/28/2008

I spoke to a gentlemen yesterday from one of our local neighborhoods, Bentwater here in the Lake Conroe area. He and his wife are looking to move into a larger home. They are retirees and "downsized" a year ago, but realized that they went to small. They are now looking to move to a little larger home either in the same area or possibly The Woodlands. Their home is paid for and they would also consider trading their home but don't know how to go about it. I explained that it is possible to trade his home for another home. Not to confuse this with a "1031 exchange", which is only eligible for investors and not a primary residence.  You can trade or exchange a home simply by finding another interested seller in the location you want to be that is considering a move to your location. This ... 06/15/2008

I learned my first lesson on blogging. Never promise to do a blog three times a week and then get sick. Sorry but I was down and out with a cold/flu. A real bummer with this great spring weather.We were going to talk about the price volatility index and the price appreciation index. I could give you the long technical explanation but I really do not want to put you to sleep. Believe me it would. If you want the technical explanation drop me an email and I will send it to you. Suffice to say that they are indexes calculated from recent data (from two previous quarters to five years) to predict how prices will react in the near term future (two years out). The predictions for the Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown MSA are good. They show no disasters on the horizon. Price acceleration shows some ... 04/28/2008

HOUSTON - (February 19, 2008) - Consumer worries about the nation's real estate crunch and the traditionally sluggish Christmas-New Year holiday period combined to slow property sales across greater Houston during the first month of 2008. On the heels of one of the best years on record, January sales of single-family homes dipped to the lowest level since January 2005, according to statistics released by the Houston Association of REALTORS? (HAR). Total property sales for January 2008 registered 4,353, which represents a 17.2 percent drop compared to January 2007 and marks the fifth consecutive monthly decline; it's an improvement over last month's 23.5 percent fall. Properties sold during the month totaled more than $811 million compared to nearly $890 million in sales one year earlier... 02/22/2008

Texas' future prosperity will derive from more people, more jobs and expanded personal income. Increases in employment will result in growth in personal, per capita, household and family incomes. Between 1980 and 2005, Texas' total personal income grew by 422.8 percent, from $142 billion to $741 billion. By first quarter 2007, total personal income was up to $841 billion. Extending the long-term trend in personal income since 1969 suggests that the state's total personal income could increase by $1 trillion by 2030. Household income would be expected to increase similarly. The 2005 Texas median household income of $42,139 could reach nearly $68,000 by 2030. House Prices and Housing Affordability Housing affordability may be one of the most significant growth stimulants for Texas during ... 02/07/2008

For a calendar of events and local news in and around the Conroe, Texas area check out the following website:http://www.lakeconroe.com/calendar  10/08/2007

 Conroe Cajun Catfish Festival- For information go to http://conroecajuncatfishfestival.comEvent InformationTitle:Conroe Cajun Catfish FestivalSponsor:Friends of ConroeDate:10/12/2007 - 10/14/2007 (every day)Location:Downtown ConroeContact:Dana RichardsonDetails:     FEATURING 3 DAYS OF MUSIC, FOOD & FUN!Check our Entertainment Page for a Complete Listing!!!The Conroe Cajun Catfish Festival benefits the non-profit Friends of Conroe, Inc., who are working to enhance the quality of life in Conroe and Montgomery County through civic and cultural improvements.  The Friends contribute funds to other established nonprofit organizations, promote community projects and support the renovation of the downtown Conroe area. Activities include Arts and crafts exhibitors from all overTexas and from o... 10/08/2007

Lake ConroeQuick Links: Fishing Regulations | Angling Opportunities | Cover & Structure | Tips & TacticsPublic Access Facilities Lake CharacteristicsLocation: West Fork of San Jacinto River in Montgomery and Walker CountiesSurface area: 20,118 acresImpounded: 1973Water ConditionsCurrent Lake LevelConservation Pool Elevation: 201 ft. mslFluctuation: 1-3 feetNormal Clarity: Slight to moderate algal stainingReservoir Controlling AuthoritySan Jacinto River AuthorityConroe Project OfficePO Box 329Conroe, Texas 77305(936) 588-1111Aquatic VegetationLow densityPredominant Fish SpeciesLargemouth bass Bluegill Channel catfish White & hybrid striped bass Lake RecordsCurrent Fishing Report Stocking HistoryLake MapsNational forest maps are available for a fee from the US ... 10/08/2007