Friday, June 3, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
Pasdena Short Sale: Has Real Estate Turned the Corner? | Pasadena Area Short Sale Blog
Pasdena Short Sale: Has Real Estate Turned the Corner? | Pasadena Area Short Sale Blog
Real estate news these days is nothing short of confusing. Prices are going up. Prices are going down. The market has stabilized. The market will be bad for 5 years. Everybody seems to have an opinion, and nobody agrees. What is really going on? Is it good or bad?
Homes Sales Are Sinking
According to the latest data, the real estate market in Southern California is quite volatile. A major piece of data tells us, for instance that the number of home sales has dropped and by quite a lot. L.A. County, for instance, showed an almost 10% drop in the sale of homes since April of 2010. In fact, we are now at the lowest level of home sales in the last three years, the worst in recent memory. Even in Orange County, usually almost immune to the volatility experienced by the rest of SoCal, homes sale dropped nearly 7%. As usual, both Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, the hardest hit during the recession and which had seemed to be rebounding as investors flocked to bargain properties, took the brunt, showing drops in home sales of almost 14% and 12% respectively. Only San Diego managed to maintain itself almost at the same level of home sales as last year.
Why Do Home Sales Matter?
But, really, so what? Sure, it’s bad for real estate agent and lenders, but who really cares if homes are not selling? Here’s the connection to the wider economy. If homes are not selling, then those who want to sell will drop their prices to attract whatever buyers there are. If, or, rather when, that happens, prices will fall more than they already have. Once the prices fall, more Pasadena and SoCal homeowners will find they have little or no equity in their homes which will drive them to abandon their payments. Then, of course, the banks will foreclose or, to avoid that, the homeowners will do a Pasadena short sale to avoid that stigma. All this activity will drive prices down more and the cycle will continue ad infinitum.
In fact, prices, which had been modestly rebounding, are now either stagnant or sinking again. In the entire SoCal region, encompassing six counties, median homes prices are now almost flat at $280,000. This is slightly above the April 2009 median of $247,000, but well below the July 2007 high of $505,000. Those halcyon days for homeowners appear to be gone for good or at least for a good long time into the future. So, with prices so low why are buyers not rushing to buy?
Where Are the Buyers?
That’s the big question: where are the buyers? Homes aren’t selling because buyers aren’t buying? Why not? As with everything else, many factors are at play here. First and foremost is the recession and the jobless rate. The recession does seem to be slowly abating and the unemployment rate has dropped a tad, but still 12% of Californians are out of a job. Not too many of them are going to be looking to buy a home.
Another, major factor is the shakeup in the mortgage market.Responding to their past irresponsibility, banks and other mortgage sources are tightening lending criteria substantially. Too, it looks as though in the light of substantial government obligation under Fannie, Freddie and FHA, even the 3.5%-down-payment FHA loan, now responsible for about 50% of this year’s loans, will have to add more stringent qualifications and raise the down payment ceiling. The government is just too exposed. So, tougher loans mean few buyers can qualify.
Then, there’s the psychological element. Despite a 50% drop in prices from 2007 and mortgage rates at historic lows, many buyers are still hoping for even better deals if they wait. Timing the market is an old Wall Street pursuit and it seems to have hit the housing industry as well. Everyone, investors, first-time and move-up buyers, all seem to be waiting to see the market tumble even further before they take the plunge.
Monday, May 9, 2011
Corporate Stupidity Contest: Plenty of Winners!! « Diane’s Blog
Corporate Stupidity Contest: Plenty of Winners!! « Diane’s Blog
I thought real estate had the world's quotient of dumb bunnies, but I guess I was wrong!!
'As of tomorrow, employees will only be able to access the building using individual security cards. Pictures will be taken next Wednesday, and employees will receive their cards in two weeks.'
(This was the winning quote from Fred Dales, Microsoft Corp in Redmond WA)'What I need is an exact list of specific unknown problems we might encounter.' (Lykes Lines Shipping)
'E-mail is not to be used to pass on information or data. It should be used only for company business.'(Accounting manager, Electric Boat Company)
'This project is so important we can't let things that are more important interfere with it.' (Advertising/ Marketing manager, United Parcel Service)
'Doing it right is no excuse for not meeting the schedule.'
(Plant Manager, Delco Corporation) (WRPS uses this philosophy also)Greg, 'No one will believe you solved this problem in one day! We've been working on it for months. Now go act busy for a few weeks and I'll let you know when it's time to tell them.' (R&D supervisor, Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing/ 3M Corp)Quote from the Boss: 'Teamwork is a lot of people doing what I say.' (Marketing executive, Citrix Corporation)
My sister passed away and her funeral was scheduled for Monday. When I told my boss, he said she died on purpose so that I would have to miss work on the busiest day of the year. He then asked if we could change her burial to Friday. He said,'That would be better for me.'
(Shipping executive, FTD Florists)'We know that communication is a problem, but the company is not going to discuss it with the employees.' (Switching supervisor, AT&T Long Lines Division)
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Custom Guitar: Flamenco | Custom Guitars
Custom Guitar: Flamenco | Custom Guitars
Performers of flamenco music quite naturally want a custom guitar, one which matches their particular touch and which sounds best to their ear. Selecting the various elements of the custom flamenco guitar or the classical guitar is no simple task.
The flamenco Gypsy guitar is similar to the classical guitar, but also differs in several ways. The Gypsy guitar is more lightly constructed, weighing almost nothing. The top on the flamenco guitar is generally thinner, and there may be differences in the bracing patterns used. The thin top gives the flamenco guitar its characteristic snare drum like rasp when strummed. As well, because the top is thinner, flamenco guitars have less sustain than their classical counterparts.
The strings of a flamenco guitar are also set much lower than on a classical instrument. This makes for a much faster action. Usually flamenco guitars come with tap plates to protect the top. As well, traditionally (although seldom today) they used tuning pegs rather than machines.
For a luthier or custom guitar maker, the main difference is in the wood used to create the characteristic sounds of each. Thus, a classical guitar is usually made with rosewood back and sides, spruce or cedar tops. A flamenco guitar, on the other hand uses cypress for back and sides and spruce for the top.
Recently, the two have been joined in the “flamenca negra,” a guitar which has its back and sides made of rosewood, but is otherwise built like a flamenco guitar.
The choice of wood type, though,is merely the start of the choices as each type of rosewood, spruce, cypress and cedar has its pros and cons. For instance, German spruce (Picea abies) has a very rich, bright, and clear tone. Its noble, focused voice and rich overtones offers a wide range of color. It has a woody sound that ages into a very powerful tone. Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) has a bright, neutral tonal quality. Because of its strong fundamental, it has less tonal complexity and a narrower range of color than either German or Englemann spruce. Consulting with the luthier, the purchaser must make his choice for his custom guitar.
Besides the wood of the custom guitar, the most important component, other elements are also important to the performer. The finish, for instance, is it to be French polish or lacquer?
Traditionally, French polish was thought to be superior as more conducive to sound,but that is debatable. More important, how hard and thick is the finish, especially on the top. Although thick, hard finishes will dampen sound, lacquer may be applied just as thinly as French polish, and if properly applied seems to work just as well. French polish is notoriously delicate-- scratches easily, and does not tolerate heat well. This is an issue for the purchaser to decide.
Another issue for the purchaser concerns the strings. Strings of a classical or flamenco guitar are always trebles of clear nylon and basses of nylon thread with metal wrap. But, the performer will most likely have string preferences and must clarify with the luthier exactly which type of string to be placed on the custom guitar.
The flamenco Gypsy guitar is similar to the classical guitar, but also differs in several ways. The Gypsy guitar is more lightly constructed, weighing almost nothing. The top on the flamenco guitar is generally thinner, and there may be differences in the bracing patterns used. The thin top gives the flamenco guitar its characteristic snare drum like rasp when strummed. As well, because the top is thinner, flamenco guitars have less sustain than their classical counterparts.
The strings of a flamenco guitar are also set much lower than on a classical instrument. This makes for a much faster action. Usually flamenco guitars come with tap plates to protect the top. As well, traditionally (although seldom today) they used tuning pegs rather than machines.
For a luthier or custom guitar maker, the main difference is in the wood used to create the characteristic sounds of each. Thus, a classical guitar is usually made with rosewood back and sides, spruce or cedar tops. A flamenco guitar, on the other hand uses cypress for back and sides and spruce for the top.
Recently, the two have been joined in the “flamenca negra,” a guitar which has its back and sides made of rosewood, but is otherwise built like a flamenco guitar.
The choice of wood type, though,is merely the start of the choices as each type of rosewood, spruce, cypress and cedar has its pros and cons. For instance, German spruce (Picea abies) has a very rich, bright, and clear tone. Its noble, focused voice and rich overtones offers a wide range of color. It has a woody sound that ages into a very powerful tone. Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) has a bright, neutral tonal quality. Because of its strong fundamental, it has less tonal complexity and a narrower range of color than either German or Englemann spruce. Consulting with the luthier, the purchaser must make his choice for his custom guitar.
Besides the wood of the custom guitar, the most important component, other elements are also important to the performer. The finish, for instance, is it to be French polish or lacquer?
Traditionally, French polish was thought to be superior as more conducive to sound,but that is debatable. More important, how hard and thick is the finish, especially on the top. Although thick, hard finishes will dampen sound, lacquer may be applied just as thinly as French polish, and if properly applied seems to work just as well. French polish is notoriously delicate-- scratches easily, and does not tolerate heat well. This is an issue for the purchaser to decide.
Another issue for the purchaser concerns the strings. Strings of a classical or flamenco guitar are always trebles of clear nylon and basses of nylon thread with metal wrap. But, the performer will most likely have string preferences and must clarify with the luthier exactly which type of string to be placed on the custom guitar.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Grass-Fed Organic Beef: Solution to Drug-Resistant Bacteria
Grass-Fed Organic Beef: Solution to Drug-Resistant Bacteria
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6205480
According to latest news reports, American beef may be widely contaminated with drug-resistant bacteria. Recent scientific research has pointed to evidence that almost half the meat samples tested, 47%, showed evidence of staph-infection-causing Staphylococcus aureus, and more than half were resistant to common antibiotics. Besides beef, the researchers tested chicken, pork and turkey, all purchased from grocery stores. Does this mean that grass-fed organic beef, along with other organic meat, which are not fed antibiotics, is safer?
Scientist responsible for the study hypothesized that this widespread contamination is most likely due to how the animals are raised. Healthy meat animals in the U.S. and Canada are most commonly fed antibiotics throughout their lives to prevent disease and promote growth. But, such practices have contributed to the rise of drug-resistant pathogens. Last year, the FDA urged the meat industry to cut back on the use of antibiotics in feed lots and stockyards where animals are held in huge numbers, sometimes for several months, to fatten them for market. Routinely using massive doses of antibiotics on meat animals makes the drugs less effective on the humans who consume the antibiotic-laced meat.
Since the meat industry does not appear ready to change anytime soon, the solution appears to be grass-fed, organic beef along with organic chicken, pork and turkey. These animals are never fed antibiotics. Studies in Denmark and Canada have shown that taking antibiotics out of animal feed vastly reduces the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria with no ill effects for either the animals or the ranchers. Organically is the safest and the healthiest way to raise meat.
About 11,000 people a year die from S. aureus according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC]. More than half those deaths come from the hospital "super-bug", methicillin-resistant S. aureus, the dreaded MRSA. MRSA has no known cure. It could well be that this pathogen comes from the meat supply. Eating only grass-fed, organic beef and other organic meats would solve this problem.
Public safety spokespeople are suggesting that consumers be extremely careful in the preparation of supermarket meat. Consumers who want to avoid staph infections must cook the meat thoroughly and wash off all other foods and surfaces with which it comes in contact. Using bleach or hydrogen peroxide on these surfaces is another good idea. Consumers might also wear gloves when handling raw meat. All these precautions are not necessary when preparing grass-fed organic beef which also tastes much better.
So far, the meat industry has responded by simply declaring that the meat supply is safe, but indications do point otherwise. The so-called cost-efficient practices of lacing animal feed with antibiotics in the absence of disease as well as herding vast numbers of animals from different ranches together on feedlots is actually very expensive. The cost in lives, hospital stays and the degenerating healthy of consumers seems too high a price to pay. Far better for consumers to purchase grass-fed organic beef at a slightly higher price. Not only does grass-fed organic beef taste much better, but it contains the same amounts of GLA found in wild salmon.
Diane Butler, a writer living in Southern California, is very concerned about the food supply, especially our contaminated meat supply which can so easily be corrected by changing how we raise our animals. Grass-fed is certainly the way to go. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Diane_Butler |
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6205480
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Grown-Ups Love Trikkes
Grown-Ups Love Trikkes
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6180617
The new kid on the block, the trikke [pronounced trike] is a three-wheeled vehicle with foot platforms and upright handlebars propelled from a standing position by shifting body weight from side to side as if carving "S" turns while skiing. A new hybrid vehicle, not entirely well-known as yet, the trikke's origins seem to be an amalgam of skateboard, scooter, skis, snowboard, and bicycle. Designed for teenagers when it first appeared in 2004, the trikke initially seemed perfect for aerial acrobatics and extreme downhills. But, then, something entirely unexpected once it hit the market.
Who Are the Buyers?
Far from the envisaged teenagers, most buyers turned out to be middle-aged and often overweight. Who would have thought? Perhaps bored with tennis and biking or now just too heavy to enjoy these sports of their youth, middle-aged adults love the flowing, non-impact, all-body movement of the trikke. The attraction is in the possibility of getting a full-body workout while whizzing around town or along the beach. Dieting is no fun, but trikking is a blast!
The workout is tremendous and exhilarating. The trikke, unlike a bicycle, requires no bending over the handlebars; in fact, it requires no bending at all. This is a distinct advantage for some older folks who are having trouble with their joints or for the overweight who can't bend without immediately cramping up. The trikke solves the exercise issue for the older, out-of-shape would-be athlete. Practitioners claim that it is a mighty workout. Push it, pull it, lift it, lean it, spring it forward, all at once. This requires great effort, but it's so much fun that trikkers barely notice. Many users have lost mighty amounts of weight as even one-hour-a-day workout daily spins by at warp speed.
Trikkes are also very easy to maintain. Unlike bicycles which seem to have require far more upkeep--oiling the gears, re-filling the tires, repairing the tires-and which are often difficult to transport, trikkes solve all these issues. It has smaller, harder wheels than a bicycle which rarely go flat. The brake system is a simple affair which takes little care. And, its size and flexibility makes it easy to transport in even a compact car trunk. That way, if the trikke owner wants to skim along a friendly bike path a short ride by car from home, it's no problem. And,users have no worries about potentially breaking down in the middle of the workout. Break-downs are rare, indeed.
In some areas, trikkers have formed groups and buddies can go on long excursions together. The South Bay Trikkers, for instance, in southwest Los Angeles County takes advantage of the mild weather Southern California weather to make regular rides along beachfront bike paths. Along the Pacific Ocean, trikkers can ride a well-lit, well-maintained bike from Pacific Palisades to San Diego, a distance of over one hundred miles. Additionally, trikkers can head to the mountains and trikke the 38 miles to the beginning of the bike path in San Gabriel Canyon.
High gas prices may deter drivers, but trikkers know exactly how to maximize their driving fun.
Diane Butler, Ph.D. is a writer living in Southern California where trikkers are just gathering their power. Visit her website at www.trikkescity.com to see more trikkes. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Diane_Butler |
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6180617
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