<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Family Pair Real Estate Blog</title><link>/website/blog/</link><description>Current real estate trends and news from an experienced Austin Realtor &amp; Mom who lives in Wells Branch</description><copyright>Powered by: LinkUBlog</copyright><item><title>Top 10 Tips for Protesting Your Central Texas Property Taxes</title><description><![CDATA[<p>&amp;nbsp; </p>
<p style="text-align: center" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 14pt">Top 10 Tips For Protesting Your Central Texas Property Taxes</span></strong></p>
<p style="background: white" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 9pt">Unfortunately it's that time of year again when we start receiving our property tax notices. &amp;nbsp;If your home's appraised value has increased, you will pay more in property taxes. &amp;nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 9pt">The appraised value set each year determines the amount of annual property tax owed (<em>the appraised value for a homestead property cannot increase more than 10% per year)</em></span><em>.</em> <span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 9pt">The property tax is the largest source of funding for local services in Texas; property taxes pay for public schools, city streets, police, fire protection and many other services.&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p style="background: white" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 9pt">
<div align="center"><img border="0" alt="" src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/Paytaxes.jpg" width="194" height="260" /></div></span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 9pt">One of your most important rights as a Texas taxpayer is your right to protest to the appraisal review board (ARB).&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; The ARB is a group of citizens authorized to resolve disputes between taxpayers and the appraisal district.&amp;nbsp;The ARB</span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt"> must base its decisions on evidence. It hears evidence from both the taxpayer and the chief appraiser. </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt">ARB hearings begin around May 1 and should complete most hearings by July 20. In the largest counties, this deadline may be later. </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt">ARB meetings are open to the public.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">Here are some tips for a successful tax protest:</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">1. Mail your protest form as late as possible but still by the deadline.</span></em></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">&amp;nbsp;Why?&amp;nbsp;You can do research on any similar properties on your street and nearby streets to see their appraised values. If any of them have had successful tax protests, their appraised values will be lowered. You can bring this data in as evidence.&amp;nbsp;If you have a very early hearing date you won&amp;#8217;t be able to gather this important evidence since few hearings will have occurred. Below are additional tips in filling out your form:</span></p>
<ul><li>
<div style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">On your protest form under step 3, check boxes for "property is over value" and "property value is unequal compared to other properties.&amp;nbsp; </span></div></li><li>
<div style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">Do not fill in anything under step 4. Leave it completely blank and for sure do not fill in anything for question "what do you think your property value is?"</span></div></li><li>
<div style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">On step 5, check "yes" for you want ARB to send in copy of its hearing procedures &amp; write in "request evidence packet&amp;nbsp;&amp; sales comp grid"&amp;nbsp;(see #4 below).</span></div>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p></li></ul>
<p style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal"></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 13px; background-color: white; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 9pt; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial"><em style="font-weight: bold">2. Search your street to see how much similar homes are appraised for.</em>&amp;nbsp;It can be pretty enlightening to just enter your street name under the address search on your property tax appraisal site. &amp;nbsp;Use this list as evidence if you find similar homes appraised lower than yours.&amp;nbsp;To do research on properties, simply plug in addresses to your county:&amp;nbsp;<a title="Travis County" href="http://www.traviscad.org/tcad_search.php?mode=situs&amp;kind=real">Travis County</a>,&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;<a title="Hays County" href="http://www.hayscad.com/Appraisal/PublicAccess/PropertySearch.aspx?PropertySearchType=3&amp;SelectedItem=9&amp;PropertyID=&amp;PropertyOwnerID=&amp;NodeID=11">Hays County</a>, or&amp;nbsp;<a title="Williamson County" href="http://search.wcad.org/appraisal/publicaccess/PropertySearch.aspx?PropertySearchType=3&amp;SelectedItem=9&amp;PropertyID=&amp;PropertyOwnerID=&amp;NodeID=11">Williamson County</a>.&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial"><strong style="text-align: justify"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; background-color: white; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 9pt; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial">3. Recognize that January 1<sup>st</sup> is the official property valuation date.</span></em></strong><span style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 9pt"> &amp;nbsp;</span><span style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 9pt">Homes that sold closest to this date are most significant to the appraisal district; the further you go from this date, the less valid.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; background-color: white; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; color: black; font-size: 9pt; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial"><strong style="font-style: italic">4. Request and review the &amp;#8220;sales comp grid&amp;#8221; the appraisal district used to determine your home&amp;#8217;s value. </strong>It is very important to get the data the appraisal district used to determine your home's value known as the sales comp grid. &amp;nbsp;At</span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">&amp;nbsp;least 14 days before your hearing, you should receive any information the chief appraiser plans to introduce at the hearing. When you mail in your protest form, write &amp;#8220;mail me my sales comp grid&amp;#8221; prominently on the form. In addition, you should receive a copy of Taxpayers Rights, Remedies &amp; Responsibilites (read it, as it contains a lot of helpful info!).<strong><em> &amp;nbsp;</em></strong></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">5. Ask your Realtor to poke holes in the &amp;#8220;sales comp grid&amp;#8221; data &amp; provide lower-priced sold homes.</span></em></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt"> &amp;nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt">Once you receive your sales comp grid, we can help review it to find any reasons why the sold homes used might have higher value than your home.&amp;nbsp;For example, there could be a home with a pool or major kitchen remodel that your home does not have. &amp;nbsp;And most likely we can find homes that sold for less than the ones the appraisal district uses.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; line-height: normal" class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">6. Use pictures as evidence.</span></em></strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 9pt">&amp;nbsp;Help the person who helps you by providing evidence showing the condition of your property. If you are trying to prove your home is in worse condition than the other sold homes and value should be lowered, it will really help to have photos to back up your claims.&amp;nbsp;Remember the condition of your home on Jan 1<sup>st</sup> is most important.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify" class="MsoNormal"><font face="Tahoma, sans-serif"><span style="line-height: 13px; font-size: 12px"><em style="font-weight: bold">7. &amp;nbsp;Remain calm and friendly at your hearing.</em>&amp;nbsp;You will get much further by being polite and pleasant vs. taking our your frustration on the tax employee. I have successfully protested for the last 4 years and most people working there are very helpful.</span></font>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">8. Purchased a home last year? Use your HUD settlement statement as evidence to lower your appraised value if the&amp;nbsp;purchase price was lower than the current&amp;nbsp;year's appraised value.</span></em></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt"> You have a very easy protest if your sold price from last year is lower than the current tax year's appraised value. All you need to do is mail a copy of the HUD statement and it is generally lowered to that amount without any hearing (ask your Realtor for a copy if you can&amp;#8217;t find it).</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">9. Hire a professional. </span></em></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">Too busy or just don&amp;#8217;t feel like you have the skills to be successful? You can hire an expert to handle your protest. They will charge a fee, but Tax Tiger only charges you if they get your value lowered. Visit <a href="http://www.taxtiger.com/"></a><a href="http://www.tax-tiger.com/">http://www.tax-tiger.com/</a> for more information.&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;background: white" class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">10. Don&amp;#8217;t give up and continue to protest every year. </span></em></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">Every time you protest, you have a chance to get your value lowered and pay less taxes.&amp;nbsp;Even if you are not successful, don&amp;#8217;t give up and give it a try next year.&amp;nbsp;Ask a lot of questions at your hearing and try to learn as much as possible about how to succeed at the process.&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p style="background: white" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">Property Tax Resources:&amp;nbsp;<a href="http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/index.html">http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/index.html</a></span></p>
<p style="background: white" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 9pt">Property Taxpayers Bill of Rights: <a title="Property Taxpayers Bill of Rights" href="http://window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/bill_of_rights.html">http://window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/bill_of_rights.html</a></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white" class="MsoNormal">&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p style="background: white" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Sources: </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt"><a href="http://www.traviscad.org/">http://www.traviscad.org/</a> (Travis Central Appraisal District) *&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">&amp;nbsp;<a href="http://www.taxtiger.com/">http://www.taxtiger.com/</a>&amp;nbsp;* Texas Property Tax Code * Susan Combs, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts: <a href="http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/index.html">http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/index.html</a></span></p>
<p style="background: white" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 33 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;">tammy@familypair.com</a> <span style="color: black">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/">http://www.familypair.com/</a>.&amp;nbsp;</span>&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=1716</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=1716</link><pubDate>Wed, 2 May 2012 23:35:22 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>Austin home sales up 15% in March 2012</title><description><![CDATA[<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0.5em; padding-left: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left; ">The Austin housing market rebounds strongly in the first quarter of 2012 with home sales up 15% in March 2012 compared to March 2011. &amp;nbsp;Median March sales prices are also up 8% vs. March 2011. Surging first quarter sales in 2012 showed higher total single family homes sold compared to the same months in 2009, 2010, and 2011.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;</p><p><img src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/chart.gif" border="0" alt="" />&amp;nbsp;</p><p style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left; ">Many other signs of an improving housing market include:</span></p><ul><li><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left; ">1,852 single-family homes sold in March marked the 10th straight month of year-over-year increases in sales volume. Last March there were 1,604 sales.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left; ">8% increase in median price: March 2012&amp;#8217;s median price jumped significantly to $200,000 from $185,000 in March 2011.&amp;nbsp;</span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left; ">&amp;nbsp;The 7,274 homes on the market was about a 21% decline from March 2011, when 9,156 houses were listed for sale.</span><span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: arial, helvetica, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left; ">&amp;nbsp; Lower amounts of available inventory leads to increased demand.</span></li></ul><p><span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: arial, helvetica, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; ">After a prolonged Buyer's market and sluggish appreciation, the Austin housing market is poised to favor Sellers. &amp;nbsp;Job growth news has also been positive with the recent announcement that Apple will expand its operations in Austin with a $304 million investment in a new campus that will create 3,600 new jobs. &amp;nbsp;</span></p><p>&amp;nbsp;</p><p><em><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: Arial; ">Sources: Austin Board of Realtors,&amp;nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.statesman.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: Arial; ">http://www.</span><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: Arial; ">statesman.com/</span></a><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: Arial; ">, Austin Title</span></em></p><p><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; "><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt; "><em></em></span></span>&amp;nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; "><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt; "><em><span style="line-height: 12px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; font-size: 8pt; ">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 33 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 12px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; font-size: 8pt; "><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;"><span style="font-size: 8pt; ">tammy@familypair.com</span></a>&amp;nbsp;<span style="font-size: 8pt; ">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at</span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt; ">http://www.familypair.com/</span></a></span><span style="line-height: 12px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; font-size: 8pt; ">.&amp;nbsp;</span>&amp;nbsp;</em></span></span></p>&amp;nbsp;<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3600</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3600</link><pubDate>Thu, 19 Apr 2012 19:04:39 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>Is the 2012 Austin housing market picking up?</title><description><![CDATA[<p><span style="font-size: 10pt">It certainly looks that way as 10% more homes were sold in January 2012 vs. January 2011.&amp;nbsp; According to a report by the Austin Board of REALTORS&amp;#174;, 1,051 single-family homes were sold in the Austin area in January 2012, which is 10% more than January 2011. During the same time period, the median price for Austin-area homes was $176,550, 7% less than the same month of the prior year.&amp;nbsp; Despite a decline in median price, the Austin market remains relatively stable unlike many declining markets across the country &amp;#8212;such as in Florida, Arizona, and California &amp;#8212; facing very high foreclosure rates and plummeting values.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span><span style="font-size: 10pt">The Austin market had 4.1 months of inventory in January 2012&amp;nbsp;&amp;#8212; about 1.4 months less than January 2011 and the lowest inventory level since the board began tracking the statistic in January 2009 .&amp;nbsp; Buyers are indeed buying with p</span><span style="font-size: 10pt">ending sales up 16%.&amp;nbsp; With such low inventory levels and high pending sales, we may be heading into a market more attractive to Sellers.&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt">And Buyers continue to benefit from extremely low interest rates.&amp;nbsp; In February 2012 interest rates continued to set records with rates averaging an unbelievable 3.875%. Buyers now have&amp;nbsp;increased buying power to purchase more house than they could a few years ago, since these historic low&amp;nbsp;rates can add up to hundreds less in their monthly&amp;nbsp;payment.&amp;nbsp; </span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span></span><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span></span><span style="font-size: 10pt">Personally, I have been getting more calls from clients in the past few months than I was at this time last year.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; We already have&amp;nbsp;5 new listings coming on the market&amp;nbsp;in the first quarter of 2012.&amp;nbsp; And </span><span style="font-size: 10pt">January marks the eighth straight month when home sales in Austin have surpassed the previous year.&amp;nbsp; </span><span style="font-size: 10pt">While some predict consumer confidence may not fully pick up until after the November 2012 election, many indicators of the Austin housing market are positive.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 8pt">Sources: Austin Board of Realtors, </span><a href="http://www.statesman.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt">http://www.</span><span style="font-size: 8pt"><em>statesman.com/</em></span></a><span style="font-size: 8pt"><em>, </em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt"></span></em></span></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 31 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;"><span style="font-size: 8pt">tammy@familypair.com</span></a> <span style="color: black; font-size: 8pt">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt">http://www.familypair.com/</span></a></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt">.&amp;nbsp;</span>&amp;nbsp;</em></span></span></p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3486</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3486</link><pubDate>Sun, 26 Feb 2012 23:36:56 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>Wells Branch donates 105 pairs of shoes during Horizon Realty Soles 4 Souls shoe drive</title><description><![CDATA[<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">The generosity of the residents of Wells Branch shone bright when Tammy received over 105 pairs of donated shoes.&amp;nbsp; Our community was responsible for donating almost 30% of the total number of shoes collected for needy people around the world.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt"><img style="width: 422px; height: 254px" border="0" alt="" src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/rsz_1dylanmeshoepic.jpg" width="422" height="254" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">In November and December, </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">Horizon Realty sponsored a shoe drive to benefit </span><a title="Soles 4 Souls" href="http://www.soles4souls.org/"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">Soles 4 Souls</span></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt">, &amp;nbsp;a charity that collects gently used and new shoes and distributes these shoes to people in need, regardless of race, religion, class, or any other criteria. <span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt">For some children and adults, this is the first pair of shoes they have ever owned.&amp;nbsp;<img style="width: 226px; height: 136px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/rsz_shoe_prepare_pic.jpg" width="226" height="136" /></span></span></p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt">During the 2011 Horizon Realty shoe drive, over 354 pairs of shoes were donated.&amp;nbsp; With 105 of those 354 pairs, Wells Branch residents were responsible for donating almost 30% of the total number of shoes collected.</p>
<div align="center"><img style="width: 185px; height: 112px" border="0" alt="" align="left" src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/rsz_shoes_only_pic.jpg" width="185" height="112" /></div>
<p align="left"></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt">Since 2005, <a href="http://www.soles4souls.org/about/history.html"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">Soles4Souls</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt"> has delivered over 16 million pairs of new and gently worn shoes. The shoes have been distributed to people in over 127 countries, including Kenya, Thailand, Nepal, Peru, Iraq and many more.&amp;nbsp;</span></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt"><a href="http://www.soles4souls.org/about/annual_report.html"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">Soles4Souls</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt"> is a 501(c)(3) recognized by the IRS and donating parties are eligible for tax advantages.&amp;nbsp;</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt">Thank you so much Wells Branch!&amp;nbsp; We really appreciate you helping Horizon Realty and Soles 4 Souls "Changing the World, One Pair at a Time."&amp;nbsp; Many&amp;nbsp;in need around the world will benefit from your generosity during this shoe drive.&amp;nbsp;</span></span>&amp;nbsp;<span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt"><img style="width: 265px; height: 159px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/rsz_lexie_shoe_pic.jpg" width="265" height="159" /></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">Special thanks to Matt at the Wells Branch Recreation Center, Laurie DeLeon from Horizon Realty,&amp;nbsp;and Debby Thompson for helping to make this happen. </span></p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt"></span></em></span></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 31 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;"><span style="font-size: 8pt">tammy@familypair.com</span></a> <span style="color: black; font-size: 8pt">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt">http://www.familypair.com/</span></a></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt">.&amp;nbsp;</span>&amp;nbsp;</em></span></span></p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3322</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3322</link><pubDate>Wed, 7 Dec 2011 12:20:41 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>Horizon Realty Souls 4  Souls Shoe Collection Drive at Wells Branch Recreation Center</title><description><![CDATA[<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">Horizon Realty is sponsoring a shoe drive to benefit </span><a title="Soles 4 Souls" href="http://www.soles4souls.org/"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">Soles 4 Souls</span></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt">, &amp;nbsp;a charity that collects gently used and new shoes and distributes these shoes to people in need, regardless of race, religion, class, or any other criteria. <span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt">For some children and adults, this is the first pair of shoes they have ever owned.&amp;nbsp;</span></span>&amp;nbsp; </p>
<div align="center"><img style="width: 234px; height: 234px" border="0" alt="" src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/feet.jpg" width="234" height="234" /></div>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p style="line-height: 20.4pt; margin-bottom: 0.25in"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">Last year residents of my neighborhood, Wells Branch, donated almost 1/3 of the total shoes Horizon Realty collected during this drive. So this year I am&amp;nbsp;helping with the&amp;nbsp;shoe drive by placing a collection box at the Wells Branch Recreation Center, located at 3000 Shoreline Dr.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt"><img style="width: 333px; height: 225px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/feet2.jpg" width="333" height="225" /></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt">Since 2005, <a href="http://www.soles4souls.org/about/history.html"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">Soles4Souls</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt"> has delivered over 16 million pairs of new and gently worn shoes. The shoes have been distributed to people in over 127 countries, including Kenya, Thailand, Nepal, Peru, Iraq and many more. <a href="http://www.soles4souls.org/about/annual_report.html"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 10pt">Soles4Souls</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt"> is a 501(c)(3) recognized by the IRS and donating parties are eligible for tax advantages. </span></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 20.4pt; margin-bottom: 0.25in"><strong><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">What types of shoes are accepted?</p>
<div align="center"><img style="width: 127px; height: 127px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://admin.linkurealty.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/feet3.jpg" width="127" height="127" /></div>
<p style="line-height: 20.4pt; margin-bottom: 0.25in"></span></strong><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">They accept all types of shoes including athletic, sandals, heels, boots, flip flops, dance and more (as long as they are gently worn or new)<span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"></p></span></span>
<p><strong><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">Where do I drop off the shoes?</span></strong></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">Just take them to the Wells Branch Recreation Center located at 3000 Shoreline Drive. There is a box in the front office on the left. </p>
<p><strong>Wells Branch Recreation Center Hours:</strong></p>
<p>
<table style="width: 291px; height: 64px" width="291">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="150"><span style="font-size: 8pt">Monday &amp;#8211; Friday</span></td>
<td style="text-align: right"><span style="font-size: 8pt">6 am &amp;#8211; 10 pm</span></td></tr>
<tr>
<td><span style="font-size: 8pt">Saturday</span></td>
<td style="text-align: right"><span style="font-size: 8pt">1 pm &amp;#8211; 8 pm</span></td></tr>
<tr>
<td><span style="font-size: 8pt">Sunday</span></td>
<td style="text-align: right"><span style="font-size: 8pt">1 pm &amp;#8211; 8 pm</span></td></tr></tbody></table></p>
<p>Shoes may also be donated at Horizon Realty's office during business hours, located at 9606 Mopac Suite#150.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt"></span><strong><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">How long will the shoe drive run?</span></strong></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">The Wells Branch Recreation Center will accept shoes through Sun, Nov. 27</span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><sup>th</sup>.&amp;nbsp;The Horizon Realty office will accept through Dec 1st. Please donate as many pairs as you can!</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; color: black; font-size: 10pt">Special thanks to Matt at the Wells Branch Recreation Center, Laurie DeLeon from Horizon Realty,&amp;nbsp;and Debby Thompson for helping to make this happen. </span></p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 31 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;"><span style="font-size: 8pt">tammy@familypair.com</span></a> <span style="color: black; font-size: 8pt">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt">http://www.familypair.com/</span></a></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt">.&amp;nbsp;</span>&amp;nbsp;</em></span></span></p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3281</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3281</link><pubDate>Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:31:20 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>Does For Sale By Owner work?</title><description><![CDATA[<p><span style="font-size: 10pt">Apparently not. The founder of a popular For Sale By Owner (FSBO) site tried unsuccessfully for 6 months to sell his home For Sale By Owner. He then&amp;nbsp;</span><a title="listed his home" href="http://realtormag.realtor.org/daily-news/2011/08/09/forsalebyownercom-founder-uses-agent-sell-home#.TmPVplz5wOY.twitter"><span style="font-size: 10pt">listed his home</span></a><span style="font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;with a real estate broker at a higher asking price.&amp;nbsp; The property was successfully sold with multiple offers.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span><a title="recent statistics" href="http://speakingofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2011/01/06/the-vanishing-fsbo/"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><img style="width: 208px; height: 149px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/FSBO.jpg" width="208" height="149" />Recent statistics</span></a><span style="font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;show less than 10%&amp;nbsp;of 2010 home sales were For Sale By Owner.&amp;nbsp; And t</span><span style="font-size: 10pt">he&amp;nbsp;number of annual FSBO home sales has been steadily decreasing. An analysis of buyer and seller data collected annually shows a fairly dramatic drop in for-sale-by-owner transactions over the last two decades. In 1991, 19% of sellers, or almost one in five, sold their home as a FSBO, and 77% retained&amp;nbsp;the help of an agent. In 2010, fewer than 10% sold as a FSBO and 88%, or almost&amp;nbsp;9 in 10 sellers, worked with an agent. That&amp;#8217;s a 14% increase in favor of real estate agents over that 19-year period. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt">On prices, the data suggests deals involving agents fetch quite a bit more: $199,300 typically versus $140,000.&amp;nbsp;While FSBO Sellers think they are saving money on commission, they actually end up netting a lower sales price and ultimately losing money.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;The FSBO site founder's property was not priced accurately.&amp;nbsp; After listing with an Agent, his home's list price increased and successfully sold at a higher asking price. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt">An incredible amount of time, marketing, and real estate expertise goes into selling a home.&amp;nbsp; If&amp;nbsp;even a&amp;nbsp;For Sale By Owner expert fails at selling his home FSBO</span><span style="font-size: 10pt">, it&amp;nbsp;is a clear example for the rest of us of how rarely For Sale By Owner&amp;nbsp;works.&amp;nbsp;</span></p><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span>
<p><br /><span style="font-size: 8pt"><em>Sources: Wall Street Journal, National Association of Realtors (NAR)</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 8pt"><em></em></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 31 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;"><span style="font-size: 8pt">tammy@familypair.com</span></a> <span style="color: black; font-size: 8pt">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt">http://www.familypair.com/</span></a></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt">.&amp;nbsp;</span>&amp;nbsp;</em></span></span></p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3167</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3167</link><pubDate>Mon, 3 Oct 2011 17:00:04 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>How to keep your home's foundation safe during the Austin drought</title><description><![CDATA[<p><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Lack of a foundation watering maintenance program is one of the most common causes of foundation problems.&amp;nbsp;Repairs to your home&amp;#8217;s foundation can be very expensive and cost thousands of dollars. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">This region of Texas has clay soils which are very expansive.&amp;nbsp;These soils have the ability to shrink to a low volume when very dry and swell to a large volume when wet. During exceptionally dry periods &amp;#8211; such as the drought conditions Austin is experiencing &amp;#8211; the soil shrinks and the ground surface recedes and pulls away from the foundation walls.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"><img style="width: 430px; height: 245px" border="0" alt="" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/DROUGHT_MAP.jpg" width="430" height="245" /></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Many homeowners are cutting back or eliminating their yard-watering water usage. Saving water is a good thing that we fully recommend.&amp;nbsp;But if you own or rent a home with a slab foundation, a </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"><strong>foundation watering maintenance program</strong> is essential.&amp;nbsp;Stay aware of the mandatory water restrictions which will go into effect on Sept. 6<sup>th</sup> for Austin water customers.</span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Calibri', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><a href="http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/conservation/stage2restrictions.htm"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none"><v:shapetype id="_x0000_t75" stroked="f" filled="f" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" coordsize="21600,21600">&amp;nbsp;<v:stroke joinstyle="miter"></v:stroke><v:formulas><v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0"></v:f></v:formulas><v:path o:connecttype="rect" gradientshapeok="t" o:extrusionok="f"></v:path><o:lock aspectratio="t" v:ext="edit"></o:lock></v:shapetype></span></a></span></span></p>
<p><img style="width: 377px; height: 139px" border="0" alt="" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/stage2restrictionsgraphic2.gif" width="377" height="139" /></p>&amp;nbsp; 
<p><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">HOW TO EFFECTIVELY WATER YOUR SLAB FOUNDATION</span></strong></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">The best way to water the soil around the structure is with a flat green watering hose that emits a fine spray.&amp;nbsp;The spray should be turned to a height of about 6 to 8 inches. Place the hose 18 to 24 inches from the structure but always outbound of a shrub. Watering between a shrub and a structure will encourage root growth toward the structure. Never water next to the structure, because it can cause serious damage if the soil is pulled away due to lack of moisture. The hose should be left on for a period of 4 to 5 hours. Clay can only accept about 1/16 inch of water an hour. &amp;nbsp;A quick watering session is not effective and the watering must be on low for a long period.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">It is not necessary to water the entire perimeter the same day, however you should water every day until the process is complete. If the soil has pulled away from the slab and the house has seen neglect, you may wish to do this every week for a few weeks. Then, according to the weather, you can adjust the frequency to meet the needs, possibly once or twice a month. It is just as important to be sure that </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">the soil has no low spots that allow water to pond next to the structure, that the lot has adequate drainage and that you have no plumbing leaks. Too much moisture in one area will cause undesirable swelling of the soil.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Don't forget the sides of the house. Most homeowners water the front and back more often than the sides. That soil must have the same attention as the other areas. In addition, large trees &amp; shrubs in close proximity to the structure may make it difficult to maintain even moisture, since they absorb large amounts of water, or may artificially support structure during periods of normal movement. &amp;nbsp;They might cause some differential movement that will show up in the structure, though this is rare. The goal is uniform expansion of the soil around and under the structure. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Things to watch for that may indicate foundation movement include: </span></p>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in" type="disc"><li style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Diagonal cracks above or below windows and door openings; cracks of uniform width are commonly shrinkage cracks and don't indicate expansive soil activity</span></li><li style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Inability to open or close doors or doors out of alignment</span></li><li style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Obvious floor slopes: feeling of walking up or downhill as you walk across a room</span></li><li style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Cracking exterior brick </span></li><li style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Separation of expansion joints</span></li><li style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Cracking or waving of floor finishes, most often visible in linoleum or ceramic tiles </span></li><li style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Separation of walls from ceilings or floors</span></li></ul>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"></span></strong>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Do I need to water a pier &amp; beam foundation?</span></strong></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">A pier &amp; beam structure should not undergo a regular concentrated watering program such </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">as those used with slab homes. Under normal conditions the center of the house is as dry as the perimeter.&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Austin desperately needs rain and we do not want to break any more major records during this drought:</span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in" type="disc"><li><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">August 2011 was the hottest August ever recorded in Austin </span></li><li><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">The average daily high temperature in August 2011 was an astounding 104.8&amp;#176; and it was the hottest month in Austin&amp;#8217;s history with an average temperature of 91.6&amp;#176;</span></li><li><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">The summer of 2011 is the hottest summer ever recorded in Austin. From June 1 &amp;#8211; August 31, the average temperature was 89.5&amp;#176;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;</span></li><li><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">78 days of 100&amp;#176;+ temperatures&amp;nbsp; (all-time Austin record)</span></li></ul>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 8pt"><em>Sources: Bob Peterson, Texas Licensed Home Inspector </em><a href="http://www.precisioninspection.net/"><em>http://www.precisioninspection.net/</em></a><em>, </em><a href="http://www.foundationwatering.com/"><em>http://www.foundationwatering.com/</em></a><em>, KVUE </em><a href="http://www.kvue.com/"><em>http://www.kvue.com/</em></a><em>, City of Austin </em><a href="http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/"><em>http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/</em></a></span> </p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt"></span></em></span></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt"><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 31 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;"><span style="font-size: 8pt">tammy@familypair.com</span></a> <span style="color: black; font-size: 8pt">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt">http://www.familypair.com/</span></a></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt">.&amp;nbsp;</span>&amp;nbsp;</em></span></span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt">&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3084</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3084</link><pubDate>Fri, 2 Sep 2011 17:44:33 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>Mortgage interest rates fall to lowest in 50 years</title><description><![CDATA[<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt">U.S. mortgage rates have fallen to their lowest in more than 50 years</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;Many sources keeping track of mortgage rates don't even go that far back, but&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt">Freddie Mac records dating back to 1971 show the previous low for a 30-year fixed mortgage was 4.17%.&amp;nbsp; And analysts are predicting rates will go even lower:</span></span></p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt">
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">30-yr Fixed &amp;#8211;&amp;nbsp;</span></strong><em><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: mediumblue; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">Expected to Go Much Lower</span></strong></em><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: #888888; font-size: 6.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><br /></span><span class="apple-style-span"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: gray; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">Last Week: 4.15%</span></strong></span><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: gray; font-size: 6.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><br /><span style="font-size: 10pt" class="apple-style-span">Previous Week: 4.32%</span><br /><span style="font-size: 10pt" class="apple-style-span">1yr Ago: 4.42%</span></span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: #888888; font-size: 6.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><br /><br /></span><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">15-yr Fixed &amp;#8211;&amp;nbsp;</span></strong><em><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: mediumblue; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><em><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: mediumblue; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">Expected to Go Much Lower</span></strong></em><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: #888888; font-size: 6.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><br /></span></span></strong></em><span class="apple-style-span"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: gray; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">Last Week: 3.36%</span></strong></span><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: gray; font-size: 6.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><br /><span style="font-size: 10pt" class="apple-style-span">Previous Week: 3.50%</span><br /><span style="font-size: 10pt" class="apple-style-span">1yr Ago: 3.90%</span></span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: #888888; font-size: 6.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><br /><br /></span><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">5-yr Adjustable &amp;#8211;&amp;nbsp;</span></strong><em><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: mediumblue; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><em><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: mediumblue; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">Expected to Go Lower</span></strong></em><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: #888888; font-size: 6.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><br /></span></span></strong></em><span class="apple-style-span"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: gray; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">Last Week: 3.08%</span></strong></span><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: gray; font-size: 6.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><br /><span style="font-size: 10pt" class="apple-style-span">Previous Week: 3.13%</span><br /><span style="font-size: 10pt" class="apple-style-span">1yr Ago: 3.63%</span></span></strong></span></p>
<p></span></p>
<p></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt"><strong><em>Why are the rates so low?&amp;nbsp; </em></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt">Distress about the economic recovery as well as unrest about the stock market are decreasing demand for bonds which guide home loans.&amp;nbsp; The U.S. unemployment rate currently hovers around 9% and lenders continue to&amp;nbsp;be more stringent in their qualification standards.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt"><strong><em>How can these low rates help if&amp;nbsp;I plan to buy a home or investment property?&amp;nbsp; </em></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt" mce_style="font-family: arial, verdana, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 12px;" mce_="">You can save hundreds of dollars each month in interest payments and afford more house vs. higher rates of 5.5% seen just a few years ago.&amp;nbsp; Y<span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt" mce_style="font-family: arial, verdana, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 12px;" mce_="">ou have increased buying power and can buy more house than you could at higher interest rates. </span></span>The&amp;nbsp;examples shown below include interest and mortgage only (property taxes and home insurance will also be required): </p></span><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span mce_style="font-family: arial, verdana, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 12px;" mce_="">
<p></span><span mce_style="font-family: arial, verdana, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 12px;" mce_="">
<ul><li>
<div style="font-size: 10pt"><em>$160,000 mortgage&amp;nbsp;at 5.5% = $908.46</em></div></li><li><em>$160,000 mortgage&amp;nbsp;at 4.1% = $773.12</em></li><li><em><strong>Total savings = $135.34 per month</strong>&amp;nbsp;</em></li></ul>
<p><em>&amp;nbsp;</em></p>
<ul><li>
<div style="font-size: 10pt"><em>$225,000 mortgage at 5.5% = $1277.53</em></div></li><li><em>$225,000 mortgage&amp;nbsp;at 4.1% = $1087.20</em></li><li><strong><em>Total savings = $190.33 per month </em></strong></li></ul>
<p><em>&amp;nbsp;</em></p>
<ul><li>
<div style="font-size: 10pt"><em>$350,000 mortgage at 5.5% = $1987.26</em></div></li><li><em>$350,000 mortgage&amp;nbsp;at 4.1% = $1691.19</em></li><li><strong><em>Total savings = $296.07 per month </em></strong></li></ul>
<p><em style="font-size: 8pt">*Note: 4.1% rate based on average 30-year fixed rate as of August 23, 2011</em></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial"><strong><em></em></strong></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial"><strong><em>Should I consider re-financing my current mortgage?</em></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial">Yes, it is an extremely good time to refinance which will save you thousands of dollars over the life of your loan. You can get out of debt much faster.&amp;nbsp;I can refer you to local, responsive, and reputable lenders.&amp;nbsp; </span></p></span></span>
<p></span><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 31 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;"><span style="font-size: 8pt">tammy@familypair.com</span></a> <span style="color: black; font-size: 8pt">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt">http://www.familypair.com/</span></a></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt">.&amp;nbsp;</span>&amp;nbsp;</em></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Verdana', 'sans-serif'; color: black; font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p></span></p>
<p></span><em style="font-size: 8pt">Sources: Bloomberg, Marie Funston -Austin Mortgage Advisor, Freddie Mac, </em><a style="font-size: 8pt" href="http://www.bankrate.com/"><em>http://www.bankrate.com/</em></a><span style="font-size: 8pt"> </span></p>
<p>&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3057</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=3057</link><pubDate>Thu, 25 Aug 2011 14:14:05 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>12 Fun Things for Kids to do in Austin in the Summer</title><description><![CDATA[<p><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 14pt">12&amp;nbsp;FUN THINGS FOR&amp;nbsp;KIDS TO DO IN AUSTIN IN THE SUMMER</span></strong></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">As the mother of a 7 and 10 year old, I am always looking for ways to avoid &amp;#8220;Mom, I&amp;#8217;m bored!&amp;#8221; over the summer. The following list highlights some of our favorite boredom-busters as well as places I have always wanted to visit. I live in Wells Branch in North Austin, so you&amp;#8217;ll notice some of my places will be closer to those who live North. &amp;nbsp;Look for the <strong><em>FREE!</em></strong>&amp;nbsp;to find all fun events that don&amp;#8217;t cost anything. If you have a great event to add, please leave a comment on this blog.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"></p>
<ol><li>
<div style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><em><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext">FREE!</span></em></strong><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext"> &amp;nbsp;</span></strong><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">See the Austin bats emerge from under Congress Ave. bridge</span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">. <img style="width: 282px; height: 181px" border="0" alt="" align="left" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/austinbats.jpg" width="282" height="181" />One of the coolest sights to see is the 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats emerging from their roosts under the Congress Avenue Bridge. I&amp;#8217;m embarrassed to admit I have lived here since 1978 and never seen this.&amp;nbsp;Late July through mid-August is the best time to see impressive flights, as new born pups first begin to forage with their mothers. The bats generally emerge before dark, but may fly late if conditions are not favorable, </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><a href="http://www.batcon.org/">http://www.batcon.org/</a>.</span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Watch a movie at the IMAX theater at Bob Bullock museum</span></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">, featuring Austin's only IMAX Theatre. This 400-seat, state-of-the-art theatre makes your ticket really worth the price and 3D movies really do jump out at you. They play both special documentaries and feature films playing in the regular theater, </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><a href="http://www.thestoryoftexas.com/">http://www.thestoryoftexas.com/</a>. </span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'">FREE!</span></em></strong><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'">&amp;nbsp;</span></strong><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Make reading more fun for your kids</span></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">. My son&amp;#8217;s 2<sup>nd</sup> grade teacher warned all kids on the last day of school that if they didn&amp;#8217;t read over the summer, they would lose up to &amp;#189; grade&amp;#8217;s worth of reading comprehension.&amp;nbsp;As parents we know it&amp;#8217;s important to read but sometimes finding the right book or subject to interest your child is a challenge.&amp;nbsp;Wells Branch has an excellent <a title="community library" href="http://www.wblibrary.org/">community library</a>&amp;nbsp;which hosts a children&amp;#8217;s summer reading program with prizes.&amp;nbsp;Half Price Books awards gift cards to kids for summer reading and Barnes &amp; Noble rewards them with free books (just visit to pick up a log).&amp;nbsp;The following sites (recommended by the Wells Branch Children&amp;#8217;s Librarian) help you find the best page-turners and award winners for your child:&amp;nbsp;</span></div>
<ul><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"></span><a href="http://www.readkiddoread.com/"><span style="line-height: 115%">http://www.readkiddoread.com/</span></a></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><a href="http://www.kidsreads.com/"><span style="line-height: 115%">http://www.kidsreads.com/</span></a>&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;</div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><a href="http://www.guysread.com/"><span style="line-height: 115%">http://www.guysread.com/</span></a> </div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><a href="http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/notalists/ncb/index.cfm">http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/<br />awardsgrants/notalists/ncb/index.cfm</a></div></li></ul></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">Take a day trip to visit Enchanted Rock in Fredericksburg.</span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"> I have a vivid memory of climbing this rock with my husband when we stayed there (before kids) at a bed and breakfast. It was really fun and even kids can do it.&amp;nbsp;<img style="width: 308px; height: 205px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/EnchantedRock.jpg" width="308" height="205" /></span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">Enchanted Rock was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1970 and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. The Rock is a huge, pink granite exfoliation dome that rises 425 feet above ground, 1825 feet above sea level, and covers 640 acres. It is one of the largest batholiths (underground rock formation uncovered by erosion) in the United States. The park reaches capacity (in terms of parking) and frequently closes on weekends (sometimes as early as 11 a.m.) </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><a href="http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/findadest/parks/enchanted_rock">http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/findadest/parks/enchanted_rock</a>. </span></div></li><li>
<div style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><em><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext">FREE!</span></em></strong><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext">&amp;nbsp;</span></strong><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">Watch a free movie.</span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;You don&amp;#8217;t have to pay to see a movie this summer! Take advantage of all the free showings including the new &amp;#8220;Movies in the Park&amp;#8221; at Katherine Fleischer Park. &amp;nbsp;July 9<sup>th</sup> is &amp;#8220;Shrek Ever After&amp;#8221; &amp; August 13<sup>th</sup> is &amp;#8220;Tangled&amp;#8221; (that is an excellent movie so would not miss it!). Pre-movie activities start at 8pm with the movies starting at twilight. Concessions will be available. Other places that hold free movies include: Alamo Drafthouse (daily at 11:00am) </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><a href="http://drafthouse.com/series/summer_kids_camp/austin">http://drafthouse.com/series/summer_kids_camp/austin</a> </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">or Republic Square Movies in the Park, 422 Guadalupe, Free movies start at dusk. </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><a href="http://www.austinparks.org/moviesinthepark.html">http://www.austinparks.org/moviesinthepark.html</a> </span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Take a day trip to the Mayborn Planetarium &amp; Space Center in Killeen.&amp;nbsp;</span></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">With a full-dome planetarium and laser light and star shows, this trip is a must for any child interested in space (and even those who aren&amp;#8217;t). It has a full 60-foot dome. Experience a unique and artistic mix of light, color and sound with 3D laser light shows set to music. Affordable ticket prices. <a href="http://www.starsatnight.org/">http://www.starsatnight.org/</a>. </span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in" align="left"><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Cool off at the Rock &amp;#8216;N River Round Rock water park.&amp;nbsp;<img style="width: 304px; height: 228px" border="0" alt="" align="left" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/rockin-1.jpg" width="304" height="228" /> </span></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">My family discovered this gem a few years ago which is a great alternative to the pricey and crowded Schlitterbahn. It is located just by the Dell Diamond on Highway 79 (turn left there &amp; follow the road).&amp;nbsp;With 2 slides, a lazy river, and multiple pools for young children, it&amp;#8217;s a good deal at under $5 per ticket. You can also bring in your own cooler and snacks.&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><a href="http://www.roundrocktexas.gov/pools">http://www.roundrocktexas.gov/pools</a>. </span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Zip along the zip line at Cypress Valley Canopy Tours</span></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">. You will fly through the canopy of old cypress trees sometimes as high as 100 feet up.&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">One child flies for free</span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">, ages 10 to 17, accompanied by one parent Tuesday and Thursday during the summer. This is definitely a splurge at $75 per ticket and only ages 10 &amp;#8211; 17 are allowed.&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">It is located in Spicewood, Texas, just 30 miles west of downtown Austin. <a href="http://cypressvalleycanopytours.com/">http://cypressvalleycanopytours.com/</a>. </span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'">FREE!</span></em></strong><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'">&amp;nbsp;</span></strong><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Relax at a natural outdoor amphitheater while you enjoy a music or dance show at Zilker Hillside Theater.</span></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;The theater is located in Zilker Park across the parking lot from Barton Springs swimming pool. The stage is located in a natural amphitheater under a stand of 100 year old pecan trees. "Footloose, the Musical" is playing free from July 8th - August 13th. Shows may include music or dance, with the kids free to roam around or dance to the tunes. You can bring a cooler &amp; </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">snacks. <font color="#000000" size="3" face="Arial"><a href="http://www.zilker.org/"><span style="font-size: 10pt">http://www.zilker.org/</span></a><span style="font-size: 10pt">. </span></font></span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt">Relish 70 degree temperatures at Natural Bridge Caverns<img style="width: 230px; height: 252px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/anaturalbridge.jpg" width="230" height="252" /> in New Braunfels.</span></strong><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"> Only about a 45 minute drive from Austin (70 miles), this cavern is one of the largest in the state of Texas, making it a top attraction. They also have an outdoor climbing tower and zip lines to give your kids some extra fun &amp; exercise. Plus the extra bonus is that you will stay cool at an average temperature of only 70 degrees, a welcome respite during Austin's 90 -100 degree summer temperatures. <a href="http://www.naturalbridgecaverns.com/">http://www.naturalbridgecaverns.com/</a>. </span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><em><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 11pt">FREE!</span></em></strong><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 11pt">&amp;nbsp;</span></strong><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">Splash around at the Brushy Creek Lake park</span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">. This park was named "Best Place to Play in a Fountain" by the Austin Chronicle. Let your kids run around the splash pad while water shoots up at them.&amp;nbsp;They also have a playground, picnic tables, lake, and hike/bike trails.&amp;nbsp; Located at 3300 Brushy Creek Road near the intersection of Parmer &amp; Brushy Creek Rd. </span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><a href="http://www.ci.cedar-park.tx.us/cp/pr_bclp.aspx">http://www.ci.cedar-park.tx.us/cp/pr_bclp.aspx</a>. </span></div></li><li>
<div style="margin-left: 0.25in"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">Play some games and indulge in the buffet at Gatti-Land in Round Rock.</span></strong><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; My kids also really like Main Event, but I enjoy the tasty all-you-can-eat pizza and pasta buffet.&amp;nbsp;Kids can play arcade games to win prizes. &amp;nbsp;Don&amp;#8217;t miss the bumper cars. On Mondays Moms eat free and Wednesdays kids eat free. <a href="http://www.gattiland-rr.com/">http://www.gattiland-rr.com/</a>.</span></div></li></ol>
<p></span><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt">IMPORTANT NOTE: Please verify information before heading out.&amp;nbsp;All information listed here is subject to change.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"><em><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas. An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 31 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;"><span style="font-size: 8pt">tammy@familypair.com</span></a> <span style="color: black; font-size: 8pt">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/"><span style="font-size: 8pt">http://www.familypair.com/</span></a></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt">.&amp;nbsp;</span></em>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt"></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=2869</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=2869</link><pubDate>Thu, 9 Jun 2011 12:47:34 0200</pubDate></item><item><title>Just Listed in Pioneer Crossing</title><description><![CDATA[<p align="left"><strong style="font-size: 14pt">JUST LISTED IN PIONEER CROSSING:&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; </strong></p>
<p align="left"><strong style="font-size: 14pt">1916 SHAKER TRAIL </strong></p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt">Modern and move-in ready corner lot gem that feels like new construction, this home has over $11K in upgrades!&amp;nbsp; Centrally located in the popular Pioneer Crossing subdivision in North Austin at&amp;nbsp;<strong>1916 Shaker Trail</strong>, Austin, TX, 78754 for <strong>$159,900</strong>.&amp;nbsp; It has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1 living,&amp;nbsp;1 dining, and 1617 square feet per TCAD.</span></p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt">
<div align="center"><img style="width: 350px; height: 264px" border="0" alt="" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/ShakerFront.JPG" width="350" height="264" /></div></span>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt">With sleek crown molding and designer paint colors, this home has been stylishly decorated for a modern feel.&amp;nbsp; It has hard tile in the living, dining, kitchen, and both bathrooms.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;Enjoy the large open kitchen with tile backsplash and flooring, and built-in microwave.&amp;nbsp;</span></p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><img style="width: 228px; height: 171px" border="0" alt="" align="left" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/SHakerKitchen.JPG" width="228" height="171" /></span></span></p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt">The spacious living room features a stunning tiled fireplace, ceiling fan&amp;nbsp;and&amp;nbsp;architechtural details showcasing the quality Morrison construction.</span>&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span><img style="width: 270px; height: 204px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/shakerliving2.JPG" width="270" height="204" />&amp;nbsp;</p>
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<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt">Pride of ownership shines throughout this home with updated light fixtures and faucets, energy-efficient ceiling fans and programmable thermostat, and&amp;nbsp;blooming front yard&amp;nbsp;landscaping. </span></p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt">The large master bedroom has soaring ceilings with a huge walk-in closet. The sunny master bathroom painted in a soothing color boasts&amp;nbsp;a window, separate shower, and updated light fixture and faucet.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt">
<div align="center"><img style="width: 262px; height: 199px" border="0" alt="" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/shakermaster.JPG" width="262" height="199" /></div>
<p></span><span style="font-size: 10pt">The desirable corner lot location boasts a full (front and backyard) sprinkler system. Unwind on&amp;nbsp;your oversize back patio, which was built facing East to take advantage of afternoon and evening shade.&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: 10pt">&amp;nbsp; </span></p>
<p><img style="width: 212px; height: 163px" border="0" alt="" align="right" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/ShakerCorner.JPG" width="212" height="163" /></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt"><img style="width: 216px; height: 166px" border="0" alt="" align="left" src="http://familypair.com/website/agent_pictures/4228/shakeryard.JPG" width="216" height="166" /></p>
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<p align="left">The easy exterior maintenance continues with 3-sides brick.&amp;nbsp; Plus&amp;nbsp;the attractive privacy fence was recently stained.&amp;nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt">Another bonus of this location is that you're walking distance to the neighborhood pool, playground and hike/bike trails.&amp;nbsp; And with&amp;nbsp;quick and convenient access to major roads, you're near major employers Dell, Samsung, Applied Materials, National Instruments, IBM &amp; more!</span></span></p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt">To view the complete virtual tour of this property and get additional&amp;nbsp;pictures and property info, please click the link below:</span></p>
<p><font color="#000000" size="3" face="Arial"><a href="http://www.familypair.com/default.asp?f=listing_details&amp;listingid=246644&amp;listingtype=1"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><font color="#000000" size="2" face="Arial">http://www.familypair.com/default.asp?f=listing_details&amp;listingid=246644&amp;listingtype=1</font></span></a></font></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt">We would be happy to set up a personalized showing for you at your convenience. So please contact us&amp;nbsp;at <a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;">tammy@familypair.com</a> or <a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#106;&amp;#117;&amp;#100;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;">judy@familypair.com</a> today!</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt"></span>&amp;nbsp;</p>
<p align="left"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 10pt"><span style="font-size: 8pt"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; color: black; font-size: 8pt">Tammy is a licensed Realtor with Horizon Realty in Austin, Texas.&amp;nbsp;An Austin resident since 1978, she's part of a Mother/Daughter Realtor team with over 31 years of combined experience. Tammy &amp; Judy are experts at marketing and staging homes for top dollar. They&amp;nbsp;specialize in the Wells Branch subdivision in North Austin and&amp;nbsp;have helped&amp;nbsp;Buyers, Sellers, and Investors in all parts of the city and surrounding areas.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;You can reach Tammy at </span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Tahoma', 'sans-serif';background: white; font-size: 8pt"><a href="&amp;#109;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#116;&amp;#111;&amp;#58;&amp;#116;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#109;&amp;#121;&amp;#64;&amp;#102;&amp;#97;&amp;#109;&amp;#105;&amp;#108;&amp;#121;&amp;#112;&amp;#97;&amp;#105;&amp;#114;&amp;#46;&amp;#99;&amp;#111;&amp;#109;">tammy@familypair.com</a> <span style="color: black">or (512) 773-3214 or visit her site at </span><a href="http://www.familypair.com/">http://www.familypair.com/</a>.&amp;nbsp;</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>]]></description><guid>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=2727</guid><link>/website/blog/default.asp?Display=2727</link><pubDate>Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:07:28 0200</pubDate></item></channel></rss>
