A few days ago, I said "Wall Street went all nutty today and flew off the deep end because of the rumor that Fannie and Freddie were in trouble and that the Feds were going to have to bail them out."  It appears the rumors were true... shoulda known, coulda figured it, woulda told you if I'd known!

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told the Senate Banking Committee today that the shaky Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are still viable,

Paulson told the committee that the two firms have adequate capital to continue operating. He said that proposals he announced on Sunday - expanding the Treasury credit line for or buying equity in Fannie and Freddie - were "backstops" to assure the markets.

"If you've got a squirt gun in your pocket, you probably will have to take it out," Paulson said. "If you have a bazooka in your pocket and people know it, you probably won't have to take it out."

Paulson conceded that even though the firms are well capitalized, they pose a risk to the broader financial system.  It is clear that the U.S. dollar is having a tough go of it.  CNN also reports that the cost of oil fell today after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testified at the same hearing,

... Bernanke warned that high energy prices have helped to limit the purchasing power of U.S. households. High energy costs will remain a drag on the U.S. economy for the rest of the year, Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday.

Seriously, I am personally pleased to see a reduction in the cost of a barrel of oil.  These are interesting times we live in.

I always feel a little bad when I don't write here until into the evening, but when you're working with buyers, sellers, inspectors, and appraisers the day sometimes gets away from you.

A home I have listed has an appraiser coming tomorrow morning and I feel very confident that we'll be in good shape.  But I saw at Mahler & Associates that there are ways sellers can ensure a better appraisal,

• First start off with a clean slate, and by that I mean give your home a good old-fashioned cleaning. Strictly speaking this doesn’t affect the value of your home, but appraisers are people to and the better you present your real estate the better frame of mind the real estate appraiser will be in.
• Repair any damage to your home.
• Visit your county clerk or county recorders website to find recent selling prices of property in your neighborhood. Have these on hand when your appraiser arrives.
• Dig out maintenance records and system analyses for things such as septic systems, wells and structural reviews. The more informed the appraiser is, the better the appraisal will be.
• Interview appraisers, seek out one with experience appraising real estate in your expected price range and area...
• Make sure all parts of the house and property are accessible.

Explore the Mahler & Associates site. It's chocked full of good information!

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are the powerhouses of the home mortgage industry.  When lenders approve loans for buyers using their limited resources, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac buy those mortgages.  In return, the banks and other cash cows are then free to RE-loan the money to new buyers.

Essentially, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac take the loan burden away from the lender, thereby giving them their resources back to loan again.

Wall Street went all nutty today and flew off the deep end because of the rumor that Fannie and Freddie were in trouble and that the Feds were going to have to bail them out.  Thankfully the Chairman of the Banking Committee, Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, spoke up and said that a bailout is not needed. From CNN.com:

[Dodd] also vowed quick passage of a long-debated housing bill to give greater oversight of the two companies, saying he expected it to passed and ready to be signed into law sometime next week.

"There is a sort of a panic going on," he said. "The facts don't warrant that reaction in my view. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were never bottom feeders in the residential mortgage markets. People ought to feel confident about them."

The reason it's so important to make sure that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are viable - that they are the TRUNK of the lending tree supporting loans thorughout the nation - is because they do free up funding for home loans:

If they were unable to do so, it would significantly raise the cost and restrict the availability of mortgage loans, causing significantly more problems for already battered housing prices and sales. That in turn would be another significant problem for the overall U.S. economy, as well as global credit markets.

Kathy Lien writes a good ABC summary of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac problems.

The Internet is rife with speculation right now about the sustainability of these two mortgage giants.  If you're thinking about buying a house, your credit is good, and your income can sustain it, now is the time.

Photo from here.

I am so allergic to something this summer. I'm conked out on Benadryl even as I type, but being blurry headed is better than constant sneezing, dripping nose, swollen eyes, and face that feels like about a dozen of Gulliver's little people are jumping on my cheekbones.

It wasn't so bad until I showed a house yesterday.  The house was amazing with original hardwood floors, gorgeous trim throughout, and a fantastic floor plan.  But when we looked up - room to room - there were little patches of black here and there.  I squinted hard, but it sure looked like mold to me.  And now my nose has confirmed it less than 24 hours later.

Is your house making you sick?

If you have a constant case of the sniffles, get sick often with a fever, and feel a general sense of malaise, then you should investigate the possibility that you might have lead-based paint, mold, mites, toxins, radon, or other potential problems.  Medicine.net has an interesting article about what can go wrong inside, over, and under your house.

Though we may be at higher risk for environmental-related conditions and illnesses than ever before, the good news, says [Robert] McLellan, is that from a preventive standpoint, much can be done. "If we build, design, and operate our homes in a healthy manner, we can keep a lot of these problems from getting out of hand."

There are cures for a sick house... one is cleaning it for problems related to stacked up dishes and not enough dusting and vacuuming.  Moms Newz outlines some spring cleaning tips, but my vote is it doesn't have to be spring to do some cleaning.  I've seen this happen, too:

As a frequent mover, and a consultant to Realtors, I have seen terrible cases of Seller’s Remorse. This occurs when homeowners put their home for sale. They go to great lengths to get it in shape to sell with thorough cleanings, needed repairs, paint touch-ups, even landscaping. Then they see how with a little polish their chunk of coal turns into a real diamond, and they begin to regret that they didn’t put more attention into it all along. Some even take their house off the market.

Come on folks.  Spend some time doing a deep clean on your home.  You'll be glad you did!

Photo from right here.

The great and mighty Ivy and I loaded up her husband, one son, and daughter today to check out what appeared to be a delapidated old Victorian home.  With well over 2000 square feet (in fact if all areas were livable it would be roughly 3200 square feet), we were excited to see what kind of fixer upper this was for $88,000.

We were apprehensive when the listing agent told me she didn't even have a lockbox anymore because the door would no longer shut.  And we were cautioned that there were floors missing in at least four rooms.  The sign on the side door also warned "Enter at Your Own Risk!"

The house was an absolute and complete mess.  But I could almost hear the history of laughter, running, crying, children, gardens, hunting, cooking.  COOKING!  It had a summer kitchen ... one that wouldn't heat the house during the terrible three-digit temperatures and would keep it safe from fires.  It also had a smokehouse that could double as a storm cellar.

If I had six months and an unlimited budget, I'd be all over this home.  Ivy had some very specific ideas about what she'd do ... I'll link to her here at the Shakadoo sites when I find where she's written her posts.

I'll leave most of the photos to her, but here are three that I love. The outside photo first.

Ivy loved the lace curtains.  I loved the porch swing.

And one to show you the complete destruction on the inside.

PS - That's Ivy there drooling over the prospect of a project this big!

The local government of Fairfax County, Virginia isn't sitting around waiting for the federal government to solve their housing problems.  Instead, the county is buying up to 200 foreclosed homes themselves and becoming the "lender" to resell.

Fairfax is plunging deeper into the issue by agreeing to spend more than $10 million in tax revenue toward the purchase of as many as 200 foreclosed houses. The county will purchase 10 houses outright; the rest will be purchased by qualifying buyers with the help of government-backed, low-interest loans. Buyers will be eligible for subsidized mortgages as well as low-interest second trusts up to $70,000. Most of the assistance will be directed to first-time buyers earning as much as $75,600, or 80 percent of the area's median income.

The article goes on to explain that most communities simply offer counseling programs for people facing foreclosure.  Critics have said the county should concentrate on helping people to not lose their homes rather than focusing on getting the foreclosures off the market and helping employees, teachers, firefighters, and police officers move in.

I say if Elvis has already left the building and the gate is open, then this is a great idea that other communities should consider.

HT to The Enclave.

Photo from here.

Some owners are definitely celebrating Independence Day with by decorating their homes!  Here's a sampling of how houses are dressed up on this important day in American history.

Maine

Sacramento, California

Frisco, Texas

Texas

Not sure where

HAPPY JULY 4TH, Shakadoo'ers!

My husband has been tracking how much money we've been spending in gasoline and his announcement last night shocked me.  In June, we spent $756.46.

In June, I drove well over 1,000 miles related to real estate.  Perhaps this weekend I'll gather my receipts, backs of envelopes, and other pieces of paper where my mileage is recorded.  I got behind penciling this info in on my schedule because I was so busy driving buyers around.

In fairness, we also drove to my parents' 50th wedding anniversary in West Kentucky (about 250 miles), my high school reunion in Southern Indiana (about 425 miles), and my daughter's pageant in Memphis (about 500 miles) so that added a lot to our gas bill.

But this kind of expense begs the question:  How will the real estate industry change when gasoline gets to the point that Realtors can't afford to drive hundreds of miles every week?  Will we start asking for a $200 deposit before we go on a house search?  Will we start charging sellers a gasoline fee for filling brochure boxes and other errands?

Ron in Katy, Texas has sticker shock when he filled up his truck for just over $83 a few weeks ago.  (The photo up there is his.)  I die a little death every time my tank tops $60.  For this to stop, we'll have to either drive less, switch to cars with better mileage, or walk.  Walking is not really an alternative when a house to show is 20 miles away.  My yard is big enough for a horse.

The sheriff came today and served the final foreclosure / eviction papers on this family.  They had to clear out immediately. There was a sign in the front yard sitting with the furniture that said, "Please help."

We've all heard by now about the LCD televisions, vacations, and other giveaways offered by sellers to entice buyers.  One seller in Florida is taking the concept a step further.  She's offering her hand in marriage for the price of the home, plus $500,000 more.

Here's a link to the video that was on Fox News.

When questioned, the woman said she's not "selling herself" but is just interested in meeting somone to eventually marry.  She's being careful about meeting would-be suitors in public places and won't marry just anyone.  She wants to find true love.

Over at Google, they're catching some heat over privacy issues for the "Street View" function offered for over 50 cities nationwide.  The Tennessean today told of people who felt their privacy was being violated from the Street View,

"Google Map Street Views has raised privacy concerns," said Hedy Weinberg, director of the ACLU of Tennessee, "but those concerns have to be balanced against the First Amendment right to take pictures from a public street."

This is one of many examples of why living in a small town can be good.  Sometimes you're too small for even Google to find you.  I EAT MY WORDS.  I JUST PUT IN MY ADDRESS AND CLICKED ON STREET VIEW.  It appears I was home that day.  Fortunately I wasn't sunbathing.  Wow.  Just wow.  I'm way impressed.

Photo from here.