Mr. Black He’s gone now… it happened several weeks ago… I haven’t wanted to talk about it until now.   He came to the door of the ranch house several years ago, skinny and scruffy and VERY vocal.  I had seen him in the fields out from the porch that fall.  I watched him from the porch with great interest as he stalked mice in the field and snakes and frogs down near the pond.  He was obviously on his own and foraging for food.  Why he came to the ranch I don’t know, your guess is as good a... Read Full Story

One of the best definitions I’ve heard for escrow is: “A procedure in which a third party acts as a stakeholder for both the buyer and seller, carrying out both parties’ instructions, and assumes responsibility for handling all of the paperwork and distribution of funds.”  In a real estate transaction or home purchase, the title company becomes the “third party.”  If you purchase a home through a real estate agent or broker, he/she will prepare the purchase contract or agreement.  Within th... Read Full Story

When I built the ranch some years back, I built a full length, deep, covered porch on the front of the house.   It provides wonderful shade and protection from the rain and hot sun, and the house is situated so that if there’s any wind at all, it blows the full length of the porch.  In the summer in Texas, wind is a good thing. Now the whole point of having this wonderful porch is to take advantage of the outdoors and nature — so over the years I’ve added bird feeders and ... Read Full Story

Owner financing is often attractive because it doesn’t appear to have the hassle involved with endless credit checks and personal employment and resource verifications.  It’s difficult to qualify for a home or commercial property loan if you are self employed or if you don’t have a verifiable employment history of at least 24 months.  If your credit score (FICO) is below 620 and you have a few glitches on your credit history it will be difficult to qualify for a property loan these days wit... Read Full Story

July 4th Fireworks Summer is here with a vengeance, it’s been over 100 degrees almost every day for the last several weeks, and there’s no end in sight.  Mowing the ranch yard has gone from a pleasure to a chore because of the heat — early mornings the grass is covered with heavy dew, and by the time it evaporates, the heat has begun.  And dry, it’s so dry in Texas in the summer, especially in July and August.  It’s against the law in most cities to set off fir... Read Full Story

My first old car was a 1941 Willis Jeep, Army version.  We owned several hundred acres in East Texas, about an hour’s drive from Dallas, and Leo, my Pop, owned a plumbing business in town at the time.  He worked hard at his business and then loved to play cowboy at our country place on weekends, it was his way to get away from the stresses of a business in the city.  I was 12 or 13 then and learned to love our weekends and summers there.  I first learned to drive on old cattle tracks and di... Read Full Story

Recently my friends at Liberty Mortgage Company sent me an email alert regarding the latest scams in the credit repair market.  The mortgage company receives applications every day that have some credit issues that could block the path to home ownership.  Many of the people they talk with are under the impression that their credit issues are being repaired.  Unfortunately, the applicants often have fallen for one of the many credit repair scams that set their traps for well meaning home buy... Read Full Story

A bird dog is a hunter’s best friend.  I had a friend in my youth, Jerry Don, whose daddy owned a squirrel dog, Boots.  Jerry Don with his .22 and I with an old .410 would often visit the woods across the road from our family’s weekend farm house to hunt.  One day the preacher’s wife from the local church offered to make squirrel gumbo the next weekend if we two boys would provide the squirrels.  We were both concerned about being good enough hunters to provide squirrels f... Read Full Story

If you are considering selling your own property without the help of a realtor, there are some important things to remember, and I’ll try to cover most of them here.     First, there are many real estate forms you will need, and you can find most of them here.  Second, it is extremely important that you set the right price before you put up a sign or advertise your property.  In a previous article “Real Estate Is Always Local Part Two” I explained how you can appraise your own property and ... Read Full Story

It can be difficult to find legitimate help for foreclosure issues because of the many scams that abound these days.  It’s shameful that there are still people who try to take advantage of those who find themselves in this situation.   Here is a list of programs that are either operated by the U.S. government or have the U.S. government’s seal of approval: To find a counselor, contact the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) at (800) 569-4287 or (877) 483-1515... Read Full Story