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Julie Moore
CSR Real Estate Services
5330 Camden Avenue
San Jose CA 95124
408-529-1440 Cell
408-558-5000 Office
408-559-5505 Fax
jmoore@CSRteam.com
www.MooreRealEstate4u.com
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Recipe: Quick Broiled Flank Steak
Serves 6
- 2 pound flank steak
- 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt
- Freshly ground pepper
Directions
Score the surface of the flank steak with a sharp knife, then place in a freezer bag with the Worcestershire sauce, garlic, and olive oil.
Marinate for at least 30 minutes or up to 8 hours.
Preheat the broiler for 5 minutes. Lightly grease the broiler pan. Remove steak from marinade and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Place on pan and broil 4 to 5 minutes on each side.
Remove from pan and allow steak to rest on a cutting board for at least 10 minutes before slicing. Cut into strips, ensuring you’re slicing against the grain.
Ask the Agent: This Month's Question
What are some curb appeal mistakes to avoid?
When it comes to your home, curb appeal can make or break buyers' interest in your property. Scan the list below to see if you're guilty of these four curb appeal mistakes:
Clutter mania - a cluttered driveway may mean there's not enough room to store everything in the garage. Tidy up. The less a buyer can see, the better.
Painter's plight - you may love the new shade of Bahama Mama for the garage doors, but not everyone is as bold as you are. When you're selling your home, think tame.
Personal possessions - potential buyers will want to see themselves on your porch or in your garden. They don't want to see your garden art; personal statements say this is your home, not their home-to-be.
Upkeep nightmare - those prize-winning rose bushes may be your pride and joy, but a potential buyer might see hours of upkeep. Aim for low-maintenance landscaping.
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Inside Your Newsletter this Month...
First-Time Home Buyers Get a Boost From HAWK
First-time home buyers may benefit from a new program from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In order to make its loans more accessible to U.S. home buyers, HUD has introduced a new FHA program: Homeowners Armed with Knowledge (HAWK).
The HAWK program, which is slated to start October, 2014, will offer incentives to first-time buyers who participate in home counseling and financial education classes. Counseling classes will be taught by agencies approved by HUD. The formal classroom sessions will focus on helping participants overcome obstacles to buying their first home.
There will be fees for the counseling, which could be paid by the counseling clients themselves, as well as by FHA approved lenders and governmental sources. The National Association of Realtors has expressed concern that the fees might be too high for some clients.
According to the FHA, first-time home buyers who participate in counseling are 30 percent less likely to default or have delinquencies than those who do not undergo counseling. By reducing delinquency numbers, the FHA hopes to rebuild its reserves and potentially lower mortgage insurance premiums (MIPs) for all FHA borrowers.
Under the program, borrowers who take six-hour counseling classes before contracting to buy, and complete one additional hour of counseling before finalizing their purchase, can earn a 50 basis-point reduction in upfront MIPs when obtaining FHA mortgages, plus a 10 basis-point reduction in their annual premiums. Upfront MIP is 1.75 percent of the total loan amount, while annual monthly premium costs are 1.35 percent.
Homeowners, who complete both counseling sessions, as well as an individual post-purchase session, and who, within the first 18 months of their loan, avoid a 90-day delinquency, will earn an extra 15 basis-point reduction in their FHA insurance premiums. Borrowers who participate in the HAWK program can save an average of $325 per year or nearly $10,000 over the duration of the loan.
Eat and Enjoy: The Five-Second Rule Rules
 You're at the cafeteria about to take the last bite of your homemade chocolate chip muffin, but you drop it on the floor. Relax and enjoy: research out of UK-based Aston University supports the five-second rule, suggesting it may be okay for us to consume food that's been dropped on the floor, providing it goes from floor to mouth in five seconds or less.
Researchers tested a variety of foods and investigated the levels of bacteria contracted after 3 to 30 seconds on different types of flooring. The findings? Certain floors and certain types of food transfer bacteria more readily: Carpeting is least likely to pass on bacteria, and tiled surfaces, most likely. Not surprisingly, moist foods picked up more bacteria when they came in contact with the floor than their dry counterparts.
If you picked up and ate that last piece of muffin, you're not alone. The study found that 87 percent of people polled happily ate food they'd dropped on the floor.
So, while science hasn't necessarily proven the five-second rule is totally safe (the study still has to be peer-reviewed), it's sounding good. But there is one exception: if your piece of muffin is covered in grime, skip that last mouthful and bake another batch.
This Month's Smile: Signs
 Signs can be a great source of humor, intended or unintended. Take these real signs posted by food-related businesses:
One grocery store's frozen food section is marked by this unusual sign: A hand-drawn picture of a grumpy cat and written underneath are the words: FROZEN...like my heart.
You have to feel for the Japanese restaurant with violent customers. Their sign warns: No matter how angry you are, no flicking (sic) over tables.
One Italian restaurant sold out to an esthetics clinic, which didn't bother with a new sign. The clinic just added to the restaurant's sign its own specialty, Laser Fat Removal. Too bad they didn't partner up.
Another had a sign outside with a mention of the day's special: Soup of the Day: The Tears of Our Enemies. Yum!
Wondering How Much Your Home Is Worth?
How has the price of your home changed in today's market? How much are other homes in your neighborhood selling for?
If you're wondering what's happening to prices in your area, or you're thinking about selling your house, I'll be able to help.
Just give my office a call for a no-fuss, professional evaluation.
I won't try to push you into listing with me or waste your time.
I'll just give you the honest facts about your home and its value.
And maybe I'll also give you the "inside scoop" on what's happening in the housing market near where you live!
Just give my office a call or reply to this email to arrange an appointment. Alternatively, stop by at the office.
Property Investing Requires a Cool Head, Cash and Help
While TV shows on buying investment properties make it look easy, becoming a real estate investor can be a trap for the unwary. Here are several things novice investors should be aware of.
Pick a Niche: When you're new to real estate investing, you'd be wise to start small and pick a niche where you can develop your investment property owner skills. Get your feet wet on one or more smaller properties before tackling a bigger and more complicated investment. Consider everything from a single family home to building a rental apartment in the basement of your own house.
If you're in a position to acquire a two-family unit or mixed-use property (with a business on the ground floor and living quarters above), you can live in one unit and rent the other. The tenant may pay a portion or all of your mortgage and maintenance costs.
Do Your Homework: Once you've decided on your niche and found just the right property in the right location, conduct due diligence before buying, to ensure your investment is sound. Most importantly, work with a good real estate agent who has experience in investment properties, knows the neighborhoods you're considering, and is familiar with applicable bylaws.
Do the math: Before you buy, crunch the numbers to be sure you can afford it. Factor in the cost of repairs, overestimate the total cost, and underestimate the payback. Remember, your rental could be vacant for some time between tenants, so plan ahead for the reduced income.
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