As you may or may not know we have voted and we are giving the Canyons School District a $250 Million Dollar Bond for much need building and renovation of the east side schools. One of the projects is right here in Cottonwood Heights.

The Board of Education this month hired VCBO Architects for the Butler Elementary project, but no further action has been taken. However, public meetings on the future of Butler Elementary School will be held in the months to come, and we look forward to your participation at that time.

We have set a community meeting for the Butler Middle School project on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011, at 6 p.m. in the Butler Middle School Auditorium. Input will be taken on the following:

·         Butler Middle School facility concepts by VCBO Architects

·         Costs and construction timeline

·         Services for Butler Middle School students during the period of construction

Thank you again for your input. If you have further questions, please feel free to continue to keep in contact with our office.

So I encourage you all to attend and know what is going on. Remember, if you are not involved you shouldn’t complain about those that are.

If you would like to be on the Butler Elementary PTA’s mailing list please send an email to  butlerelempta@gmail.com

I attended WordCamp 2010 Utah Saturday and Tom Dickson from BlendTec came to blend WordPress. In case you are wondering what WordPress is. It is a the software that this site and many others are built on. When the new 3.0 version was released, there 11 million downloads in 42 days.

I won’t bore you with all the geek stuff from the camp. BUT I will share this video of “Will It Blend WordPress”

Enjoy

Carolyn Stewart of an agent for a Cottonwood Heights Real Estate Firm had an idea of raising 800 pounds of peanut butter for the Utah Food Bank. With the help of her associates and affiliates we raised over a ton. What an awesome thing!

Why Are Interest Rates Going Down?

For months, the alleged experts, and myself, adopted the theory that after the Feds  stopped buying Mortgage Backed Securities Purchase Program on March 31, interest rates would move up.  But here we are, more than 60 days later, and rates are at their lowest point of the year.

What the heck??

Let’s start with some general economic realities.  First, there is a fixed amount of cash in the world.  Second, there are only four basic places to put that cash:

1.    In the stock market.

2.    In the real estate market, which includes the financing of real estate (Mortgage Backed Securities).

3.    In the Commodities Market (gold, silver, orange juice, pork bellies, etc).

4.    Or leave it in cash (CDs, money markets, etc).

Cash itself has a near zero rate of return.  Rates on CDs barely outpace inflation.  Commodities are mostly an unknown for the average investor.  So, for the most part, we look at cash moving back and forth from Stocks to Bonds (MBSs) and vice versa.

When the stock market is moving up, investors buy stocks with their cash, which means the cash leaves the bond market.  To attract buyers back to bonds, the bond traders have to offer bonds with higher yields (that is loans with higher interest rates).

When the stock market is trending lower, you hear the expression “flight to quality” towards the safety and stability of bonds.  When more people look to buy bonds, bond traders lower the yields (hence lower rates).

How does this relate today?  Look at the failing economies in Europe and Greece.  Investors are nervous about the impact on our stock market as international partners struggle.  The Dow has dropped nearly 2000 points!  So people are pulling their cash out and buying MBSs at a feverish rate… therefore, lower rates.

Will it last?

Many stock analysts are predicting a rebound beginning in July.  That seems to make sense for me and that is great news for all those Salt Lake home buyers who closed for their Tax Credit (the close date may extend).  It also is helping all those sellers who went to Contract in April and are house hunting in May! In the meantime, buyers and homeowners can enjoy the low rates and take advantage!

We are back into a more traditional interest rate forecasting model.  Watch stocks, watch inflation, and watch jobs numbers, and you will make wiser decisions.

Happy Birthday Cottonwood Heights Utah

Cottonwood Heights Birthday Celebration

Come and join the celebration Friday January 15th, 2010

The party will kick off at Butler Middle School where children’s artwork will be on display from 7 p.m. until 8:30 p.m.

Saturday, the free skating or swimming will last from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Cottonwood Heights Recreation Center. The birthday cake will be cut, and the show will begin thereafter.

Wow it’s hard to believe it has been five years already.  Cottonwood Heights has accomplished a lot in that time. We have been named the the top 100 in the US by Money Magazine, we have formed our own Police Force, we were very instrumental in creating the Canyons School District.

I came across this article by a part time real estate agent on why you should hire her.  I found it interesting to say the least.

I am pasting the article verbatim, my not so humble opinions are below each point and italicized.

Here is the article

Although almost every article and blog on how to find a realtor suggest that buyers/sellers should not work with part-time Realtors, remember that the service you provide is just as valuable. This position may be controversial, but there are many reasons why they should choose you.

1) You have gone through the same licensing requirement that full-time realtors have . Many part-timers continue to take more classes than what is minimally required earning designations and continuously expanding their knowledge in order to be competitive.

First I want to say a license does not equate to market competence. It means you are now legally allowed to work for a broker and learn the business. In order to be competitive you need to be immersed in the industry.

2) You are able to provide the same service whether it is at 4:00p.m., or at 10:00a.m. The majority of your clients work also and many have the same schedule and aren’t available until after 4:00p.m. anyway. If you are able to manage your time effectively when you take lunch and breaks on your day job you are able to make the necessary calls to the loan officers, attorneys and appraisers, etc.

There is nothing more frustrating than trying to show a property and you cannot get a hold of the agent.

3) I’m sure you’ve heard many full-time realtors say that this is their bread and butter. This may not be your bread and butter, but that may be a benefit to your clients. This not your sole income, you are less likely to influence your clients decisions in the purchase or sell of a property. The sell is always nice, but if it doesn’t happen it’s not going to make or break you.

OK, who do you want handling real estate, someone that doesn’t care if it closes? If a transaction is going to make or break an agent then they are not a full time seasoned agent.

4) You are just as motivated to provide a service of excellence so that you can get repeat business and have a referral base.   Let’s face it many of you aren’t in the business to continue to have to work two jobs. The goal is to give up the 9 to 5. Many full-time realtors started where you are today.

Kind of contradicts the point above

5) Finally, you have paid your dues. If this Business is a hobby for you then it’s an expensive hobby. Not only are you paying the same monetary dues and fees as full-time agents, but many of you are working 12-14 hour days and weekends.

So tell them why they should choose you?

Similar to my first response, the dues and fees allow you to have an active license not to be confused with a person running a business.

I just completed an eleven tab spread sheet for my business plan next year. It has a marketing budget that will be more than the total revenue generated by a part time agent.

You decide

City News

Eco-Friendly Kitchen Design

A really cool video on an Eco-Friendly Kitchen describing materials that are Eco-Friendly