My first Miracle Home - 111 Circle Drive

Imagine yourself relaxing on a bench with your eyes closed listening to rippling water and the song of birds and wind playing with the trees, breathing in crisp fresh air filled with aromas of Japanese Jasmine and an assortment of soft floral smells. 

Now imagine opening your eyes to find yourself in your own backyard haven.  An array of vivid colors serve as a backdrop to the beautiful scenery.  You see white, orange, pink, purple and green, scattered about the expanse of land while Squirrels and Birds feed only feet away from you.  You see a small wooden bridge leading across the rippling stream, lined with moss rock, filled with river rocks, a fountain on one end and a waterfall at the other.  A red bird flies over for a quick bath as a cool breeze tickles your nose and sunlight dances through the shadows of towering longleaf pines warming your face.
Nestled in the heart of beautiful Uptown Cleveland, in Highland Park, rests a beautiful 3,000 square foot home on three lots of nature filled land where your story begins. 

With each Miracle Home sold, a donation is made to the Children't Miracle Network by the RE/MAX agent on behalf of the client.  75% of the funds raised go directly to our local hospitals like Texas Children's Hospital.  RE/MAX and their 'Miracle' Programs with Children's Miracle Network has raised over $100 Million dollars to help our sick children in need.  Texas Children's Hospital saved my child's life several times and is a big part of my life.  This is my way of giving back.  A special Thank you from me to all of the RE/MAX agents who participate in this wonderful program and the buyers and sellers who allow us the opportunity.

Who will have to wait to file their tax returrns This Year?! Me...

Anybody else out there filing an itemized deduction?  If you are, you are in the same boat I am.  The waiting boat.  As are educators and those claiming higher education tuition and fees deductions.

If you are using a standard deduction and using the Lifetime Learning Credit or other educational credits aside from the higher education, the IRS website states there will be no delays for those people.

The start of the 2011 filing season will begin in January for the majority of taxpayers. However, last week’s changes in the law mean that the IRS will need to reprogram its processing systems for three provisions that were extended in the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 that became law on Dec. 17.

People claiming any of these three items — involving the state and local sales tax deduction, higher education tuition and fees deduction and educator expenses deduction as well as those taxpayers who itemize deductions on Form 1040 Schedule A — will need to wait to file their tax returns until tax processing systems are ready, which the IRS estimates will be in mid- to late February.

And we wait..

In the mean time, REALTORS and soon to be REALTORS - don't forget All accredited colleges and universities are eligible educational institutions. Additionally, vocational schools and other postsecondary institutions are also eligible.  Champions School of Real Estate IS Accredited. 

For Income Limitations on Education Tax Benefits see full article.

Are you qualified for The Residential Energy Efficiency Program (REEP)?

The Residential Energy Efficiency Program (REEP) provides income-qualified Houstonians the opportunity to receive weatherization measures in their homes at no charge.

The City of Houston has the ability to offer REEP through a $23 million grant from the Department of Energy. We are currently taking applications from Houstonians who meet the income guidelines listed in the table below. REEP is designed to reduce energy consumption for Houstonians by installing energy efficiency upgrades; such as, weather-stripping, caulking, wall and attic insulation, air conditioners, refrigerators, solar screens and more. The efficiency upgrades are based on an assessment of what your home needs to make it more energy efficient.  All of this is done at no cost to homeowners. If you rent your home, you may also apply with the consent of your landlord. We expect to weatherize approximately 10,000 homes by the end of 2011.

What We Provide
After we do an initial assessment of your home and specific needs we can provide, your home may qualify for the following measures: 

• Weather-stripping
• Window caulking
• Attic insulation
• Energy efficient light bulbs
• Solar Screens
• Room Air Conditioners
• Refrigerators
• Duct Sealing

This is an income-based qualification, if your income falls within the parameters and you are interested in making your home energy efficient, please apply for the program.

For income qualifications and an application, view the source and read the full story on the houstontx.gov website.

Not qualified, maybe you know someone who is who could use the upgrades.

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Happy New Years

Who is making a resolution?

A New Year resolution is a commitment that an individual makes to a personal goal, project, or the reforming of a habit. This lifestyle change is generally interpreted as advantageous. A New Years Resolution is generally a goal someone sets out to accomplish in the coming year. Some examples include resolutions to donate to the poor more often, to become more assertive, or to become more environmentally responsible.
source

40 to 45% of American adult make one or more resolutions each year.
Among the top new years resolutions are resolutions about weight loss, exercise, and stopping to smoke. Also popular are resolutions dealing with better money management / debt reduction.
The following shows how many of these resolutions are maintained as time goes on:
- past the first week: 75%
- past 2 weeks: 71%
- after one month: 64%
- after 6 months: 46%
While a lot of people who make new years resolutions do break them, research shows that making resolutions is useful. People who explicitly make resolutions are 10 times more likely to attain their goals than people who don't explicitly make resolutions:

New Year's resolvers (sample = 159) and comparable nonresolvers interested in changing a problem later (sample = 123) were followed for six months via telephone interviews. Resolvers reported higher rates of success than nonresolvers; at six months, 46% of the resolvers were continuously successful compared to 4% of the nonresolvers.

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TOP 10 New Years Resolutions

New Year's Eve has always been a time for looking back to the past, and more importantly, forward to the coming year. It's a time to reflect on the changes we want (or need) to make and resolve to follow through on those changes. Did your New Year resolutions make the top ten list.?

1. Spend for time with Family & Friends

2. Fitness & Excercise

3. Diet and Weight Loss

4. Quit Smoking

5. Enjoy Life More

6. Quit Drinking

7. Get out of Debt

8. Learn Something New

9. Help Others

10. Get Organized

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The History of the New Year's Resolution

The tradition of the New Year's Resolutions goes all the way back to 153 B.C. Janus, a mythical king of early Rome was placed at the head of the calendar.
With two faces, Janus could look back on past events and forward to the future. Janus became the ancient symbol for resolutions and many Romans looked for forgiveness from their enemies and also exchanged gifts before the beginning of each year.
The New Year has not always begun on January 1, and it doesn't begin on that date everywhere today. It begins on that date only for cultures that use a 365-day solar calendar. January 1 became the beginning of the New Year in 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar developed a calendar that would more accurately reflect the seasons than previous calendars had.
The Romans named the first month of the year after Janus, the god of beginnings and the guardian of doors and entrances. He was always depicted with two faces, one on the front of his head and one on the back. Thus he could look backward and forward at the same time. At midnight on December 31, the Romans imagined Janus looking back at the old year and forward to the new.

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So, Happy New Year and may you achieve new things through discipline and action!