Summer's here, and energy costs are rising! Here is some timely information to help you keep your cool and save money on your energy bills this summer. Cooling Tips  Whole-house fans help cool your home by pulling cool air through the house and exhausting warm air through the attic. They are effective when operated at night and when the outside air is cooler than the inside. Set your thermostat as high as comfortably possible in the summer. The less difference between the indoor and outdoor temperatures, the lower your overall cooling bill will be.  Don't set your thermostat at a colder setting than normal when you turn on your air conditioner. It will not cool your home any faster and could result in excessive cooling and, therefore, unnecessary expense.  Consider using an interior fan... 06/27/2008

Did you know that the City of Round Rock has opened a Dog Park?  It is a wonderful facility located directly behind Lake Creek Pool (the city's original city pool).  It is located at 800 Deerfoot Drive - which is kind of deceiving because it is where Park Lane and Deerfoot meet and you're not exactly sure where it is. http://maps.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTExNmIycG51BF9TAzI3MTYxNDkEc2VjA2ZwLWJ1dHRvbgRzbGsDbGluaw--#mvt=m&lat=30.50802&lon=-97.670069&zoom=17&q1 While still in its first phases and construction around it is still going on, it is worth a trip to check it out.  The park consists of 1.85 ac and 3 fenced in areas.  One area for large dogs, 1 area of dogs under 40 lbs. and the third will be used as what the city calls a rotation area (to allow for grass regrowth, etc).  There is an ar... 06/22/2008

Were you aware that every time you make a homeowner's claim on your insurance, that inquiry is logged into a national database called the Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) database?  This database is shared by all insurance companies that deal in auto and property insurance and is used as an estimation base for the quote process.  When claims on a home are made, certain events are closely watched for:  particularly if water damage is involved in a claim.  These sorts of entries in the database may flag a specific property for higher rates in the future due to potential mold and related water damage issues. You should always have your insurance person run a CLUE report for you when you are in the purchase process on a new piece of property.  If you do this before you make a... 06/20/2008

Oakcreek Subdivision: 9 Active listings, 3 Contracts Pending, 21 homes sold since Jan 1, average days on market for solds 46 days, $206,220 average sales price, 2429 average square footage, $86/Sq Ft sales price.  We will sell your home in 60 days or less or give you 1% at closing (some restrictions apply) To find the value of your home with a free home evaluation, please visit www.dancampbellcompany.com If you would like a free list of homes for sale anywhere in Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Georgetown, North Austin, please call me at 512-699-7082 or email me at dan@dancampbellcompany.com                                                                                06/19/2008

Austin has made another top places list - the top one hundred places to raise a family, and we came in at number fourteen!  BestLife magazine published these findings recently.  There were a total of nine Texas cities that made the grade in the top one hundred, based on the following criteria: Overall safety for children. Good schools with favorable teacher to student ratios, above average standarized test scores and respectable operating budgets. Good museums, parks and pediatricians. Commutes that are reasonable and don't eat up most of your day. Affordable housing. Lowest divorce rates. Statistics were compiled by BestLife researchers from  the U.S. Census Bureau, National Center for Education Statistics, FBI, American Association of Museums, National Center for Health Statistics, an... 06/19/2008

 There are some really great bargains in Round Rocks spectacular master planned community Teravista.                           Here is a word snapshot of two such bargains: 1. The above pictured 3128sq ft.  4/3 listed at just 254,000 2. A 3600sq. ft 5/3 and 1/2 listed (build by Highland homes) 3 car garage listed at 272,900. Want to know more about Teravista: email me at roundrockhomes@gmail.com             -18 hole golf course -Community pools -Clubhouse -Community public Elementary School opens this fall -8 of the finest national home builders -next door to the Round Rock Premium Outlets (Nike, Kenneth Cole, Bose, Nautica, Banana Republic, American Eagle and many more)   06/18/2008

James M. Weichert is President and founder of Weichert REALTORS(R), one of the nations largest privately held real estate firms.  He is a conservative voice in the industry and has never come out and made market predictions for a recovery, until recently.  In a communique to his 18,000 sales associates and 2,000 company employees, Weichert has declared that he sees signs of a market shift on the horizon.  Weichert sites pent up buyer demand as the driving force behind the shift.  CLICK HERE to read the full article posted on RISMedia.com. This information is brought to you as a public service of the The HBH Group Realty Team with Keller Williams Realty. You may learn more about us at our websites located at: http://www.TheHBHGroup.com/ and http://www.TheHBHGroup.biz/ or contact our offi... 06/18/2008

Homeowners, Sears Commercial Appliance Select Plus Program makes it very easy and satisfying to upgrade to the latest appliances for your kitchen and laundry room.  In addition, you can choose other great products for your home such as: Water Treatment Systems Craftsman® Garage Storage Sealy® and Sears-O-Pedic® Mattresses NordicTrack® Exercise Equipment Craftsman® Lawn Tractors Kenmore® Outdoor Grills and more According to Sears, this unique program features: A private selection consultation with a professionally trained specialist. Peace-of-mind protection agreements to extend the manufacturer's warranty. Delivery available in most markets. We know customer satisfaction is the key to success. That's why we provide outstanding service from the initial consultation all the way through de... 06/17/2008

We here at Coldwell Banker United's Dan Campbell Company continuously monitor local real estate statistics to keep our clients informed and ahead of the real estate trends. Below you will find Round Rock subdivision of Cat Hollow real estate statistics for Jan/08 thru June 17,2008. Cat Hollow Subdivision: 18 Active listings, 10 Contracts Pending; 34 homes sold since Jan 1; average days on market for solds 56 days; $211,141 average sales price, 2461 average square footage, $87/Sq Ft sales price. We will sell your home in 60 days or less or give you 1% at closing (some restrictions apply) To find the value of your home with a free home evaluation, please visit www.dancampbellcompany.com If you would like a free list of homes for sale anywhere in Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Georg... 06/17/2008

Programs such as Nehemiah and Ameridream have been instrumental in helping many first time buyers get an FHA loan with no money down for many years.  Last year HUD moved to discontinue such programs by adopting a rule that prohibits the down payment money from coming, directly or indirectly, from the seller or "any other person or entity that financially benefits from the transaction." HUD administers the FHA. The rule took effect Oct. 31.  Nehemiah and Ameridream moved quickly to block this ruling by court action and initially won their class action suit against the HUD rule, but yesterday a new development come about.  HUD has released another ruling to eliminate down payment assistance by sellers. Both Nehemiah and Amerdream officials have responded with news posts on the topic. but ... 06/17/2008

When the concept of a Home Owner's Association was conceived, it was generally seen as a good thing having homeowner's in a subdivision police themselves and band together to care for the common areas of their area.  And generally speaking, this has been the case in the past, but now HOA's are starting to flex their muscles in many areas.  They have given themselves expanded power in areas not granted by the original covenants and by-laws and are starting to collect all sorts of additional fees that are a bad thing for owners, buyers and sellers of property. As a result the Texas Legislature has been working on some limiting legislation.  HB222 was file in 2006 by repesentative Burt Solomons and offers the following rules: require HOA management officials to register and submit to state... 06/15/2008

With the volume of credit challenges that we encounter in our business every day, we have been forced to send many of our prospective client to credit counselors to assist them in preparing for a home purchase.  Over the years, we have developed a "system" of sorts to help these sorts of clients and we thought that sharing this might be beneficial for the pubic and for other agents as well. The first place to start is try and work with with the creditor themselves. They may be willing to work directly with you or your client to resolve credit problems.  But if you decide that you need additional credit advice and assistance, or if you are considering working with a credit counselor for the first time, asking questions like these can help you find the best counselor for you or your clien... 06/10/2008

  My wife and I have been blessed lately to have a built-in babysitter of sorts.  My mother-in-law lives with us and she has a helper who comes for about 30 hours per week.  The kids love her, so she often stays late, enabling us to have a "date night".  Wednesday night, we made our first outing to the Round Rock location of Tokyo Steak House & Sushi Bar.  We usually have the kids with us when we go out to eat, and the thought of having teppanyaki cuisine (grilled in front of you) and an active two-year old girl just don't mix well in my mind.  I have always been a fan of Japanese food, ever since our honeymoon, which I think was my first experience with teppanyaki.  Somehow, the food seems to taste better and it seems more fresh when you watch it being prepared. We were seated by ours... 06/07/2008

Planning to do some remodeling soon? Time to replace old appliances? Consider these energy efficiency suggestions when you make purchases. Install a whole house fan A whole house fan is permanently installed in your attic and draws cool air into your home through the windows while forcing hot air out through your attic vents. Use after sundown when the outside temperature drops below 80 degrees, and in the early morning to cool your house and help reduce your air conditioning use. (Save: up to 5 percent) Install window shading Install patio covers, awnings, and solar window screens to shade your home from the sun. For additional future savings, use strategically planted trees, shrubs and vines to shade your home. (Save: 5 percent) Solar control window films applied to existing glass in ... 06/06/2008

Six Round Rock, Texas, schools have been named to the Texas Business and Education Coalition (TBEC) 2007 honor roll. Selected for their sustained academic excellence are: Canyon Creek, Fern Bluff, Laurel Mountain and Pond Springs Elementary Schools, Canyon Vista Middle School, and Westwood High School. The honor goes to schools where students achieve three years of consistent high performance in all subjects compared to other schools serving similar student populations. Of the more than 8,000 Texas public schools, less than 5% will be honored by TBEC. TBEC Honor Roll schools have the highest percentage of students performing at the state's most prestigious standard - commended - in every subject. The Austin-Round Rock metro area is ranked No. 5 in the United States among the Best Cities... 06/03/2008

From the Round Rock Leader newspaper: Round Rock ISD continues to lead the state and nation in college entrance exam scores for 2007, and follows the state and national trend with an increase in test takers. RRISD students have an average SAT score of 1588, higher than the state average of 1481, and the national average of 1511. The same students have an average ACT score of 23.4, 2.9 points higher than the state average of 20.5 and 2.2 points higher than the national average of 21.2. Round Rock is a suburb just north of Austin, with a population of a little over 90,000. Home of Dell Computers and recently named the "sports capital of Texas", the Austin-Round Rock metro area is ranked No. 5 in the United States among the Best Cities for Relocating Families according to a national study,... 06/03/2008

Here are a few tips to reduce your use of water and electricity around the home and help the earth be GREEN! Kitchen Install aerators - free to Austin and San Marcos residents - on faucets (also in baths). Keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator rather than waiting for cool water from the tap. Wash vegetables in a bowl of water rather than in running water. Bathroom Capture warm-up shower water in a bucket for plants. Do not use the toilet as a trash can. Replace older toilets with low-flow models. Install water-saving shower heads which are free to Austin and San Marcos residents. Put food coloring in the toilet tank to check for slow leaks. Repair if necessary. Turn off the water while you brush your teeth, lather your hands, shampoo or shave. In the laundry Install a tankless wa... 06/02/2008

If you have ever thought about starting to invest in real estate, now is a great time to get started.  One of the greatest investment moguls of all time, Warren Buffet, has been quoted as saying, "We simply attempt to be fearful when others are greedy and to be greedy only when others are fearful."  There is great wisdom in this statement and it holds true of the real estate investing business as well.  And at the moment, Texas is ripe for additional investment. A couple of years ago, most REALTORS(R) in my area that dealt with investors were covered up in business from California investors that were bringing money into our area very rapidly.  Now that the markets in California are in a severe cool-down, this has slowed the investment in Texas that was so hot back then.  This has motiva... 06/02/2008

JUNE 2008 01 KERRVILLE Art Club Annual Juried Show, (830) 895-2911, www.kacckerrville.com 01 LAKEHILLS St. Victor Parish Festival, (210) 317-3948 01 KERRVILLE [1-8] Folk Festival, (830) 257-3600, www.kerrvillefolkfestival.com 01 SAN SABA San Saba County EMS Fish Fry, (325) 372-8291 05 SHERMAN [5-7] Bluegrass Festival, (903) 546-6893, www.chrystalopryhouse.com 05 SAN ANGELO [5-8] USTRC Team Roping, (325) 653-7785 06 AMARILLO Art Walk, (806) 352-7262 06 BUCKHOLTS [6-7] Cotton Festival, (281) 732-1614 06 ABILENE [6-8] Regional Quilt Show, (325) 695-5585, www.abilenequiltguild.org 06 AMARILLO [6-8] Cowboy Roundup USA, (806) 372-4777, www.cowboyroundupusa.org 06 ARANSAS PASS [6-8] Shrimporee, 1-800-633-3028, www.aransaspass.org 06 LONGVIEW [6-8] AlleyFest, (903) 237-4000, www.alleyfest.org 0... 06/01/2008

Austin Preschools: Butterfly Christian Preschool www.butterflypreschool.org(512) 327-60353525 Bee Cave RdWest Lake Hills, TX 78746 Cedars Montessori School of Oak Hill www.cedarsmontessori.com(512) 288-12459704 Circle DrAustin, TX 78736 Child's Day www.childsday.com(512) 327-32742525 Wallingwood Drive # 100Austin, TX 78746 The Children's Center of Austin (512) 795-83006507 Jester Blvd.Austin, TX 78750 Elsass Academy Preschools www.crenshaws.com(512) 327-08884015 Bee Cave RdWest Lake Hills, TX 78746 The Rise School of Austin www.riseschool.org/austin/school.html(512) 891-16804220 Monterey Oaks BlvdAustin, TX 78749 Little Dudes Learning Center www.littledudes.com(512) 442-0405205 Sandra StAustin, TX 78745 Greenwood School www.greenwoodschool.net(512) 394-91718319 Haskel DrAustin, TX 78736... 06/01/2008