The condemned house of Solon Ohio

39 pets euthanized in Carriage Park Subdivision, Solon, Ohio

39 pets euthanized

Financial difficulties lead to uninhabitable conditions

Financial difficulties lead to uninhabitable conditions

The condemned house in Carriage Park Subdivision, Solon, Ohio

The condemned house in Carriage Park subdivision, Solon, Ohio

McMansions, Starter Castles, Garage Mahals are dead

McMansions

We do not inherit the land from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children-Native American proverb

Kermit Baker, Chief Economist of The American Institute of Architecture confirms that the fat McMansion lady has indeed started singing. → continue reading McMansions, Starter Castles, Garage Mahals are dead

Unstable slopes of Chagrin Highlands Estates of Solon Ohio

Chagrin Highlands Estates is a subdivision located north of Route 422 in northeast Solon.  It is near the picturesque Chagrin River.  During a visit to Chagrin Highlands, I saw this colonial home that was located almost entirely below the street level.  A sloping driveway lead to the home on a quiet, private and treed sloping lot.

Mat Foundation Credit: Pacific Housing Systems

Mat Foundation Credit: Pacific Housing Systems-Click to enlarge

Potential issues at Chagrin Highlands

Potential issues at Chagrin Highlands-Click to enlarge

→ continue reading Unstable slopes of Chagrin Highlands Estates of Solon Ohio

Real estate industry is a closed information loop

Ilyce Glink

The closed loop

“For decades, the real estate industry has operated under the principle that the less information buyers and sellers have, the better it is for agents, lenders, title companies, and all the other folks who eat from the trough.  But the real estate tide seems to be turning, as the housing and credit crises of 2008 have heightened awareness in Washington, D.C., and on Wall Street about the catastrophic consequences of a closed information loop – Michelle Singletary of  Washington Post quotes Ilyce Glink in “Buy, Close, Move In.”

The double dip recession is certainly here

A few weeks back, United States Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke stated that the economy is “unusually uncertain”.  This unusually explicit statement from the Chairman is alarming.  And reminiscent of the fascinating Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s statement:

There are known knowns. These are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things that we now know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns. These are things we do not know we don’t know.

A few days ago, John Chambers, CEO of Cisco Systems, a bellwether for technology companies, echoed Bernanke and stated → continue reading The double dip recession is certainly here

Reduced Mortgage Interest Deduction (MID) coming?

Urban Institute’s publication titled, Reforming the Mortgage Interest Deduction by Eric Toder, Margery Austin Turner, Katherine Lim, Liza Getsinger suggests that

Only individuals who itemize deductions can benefit from the Mortgage Interest Deduction (MID), and the value of the deduction increases with the marginal tax rate. If the government wishes to promote home ownership, a refundable tax credit available to all taxpayers would be more effective.

Henry Paulson, former US Treasury Secretary, recommends that → continue reading Reduced Mortgage Interest Deduction (MID) coming?

Atahualpa Theme Option-Line Spacing using CSS

Atahualpa WordPress Theme Options

Click to enlarge-Atahualpa WordPress Theme Options

How to change line spacing in Atahualpa WordPress Theme Options

  • Click on Appearance and open up the sub menu.
  • Click on Atahualpa Theme Options
  • From the list of various options, click on Body, Text & Links in Overall Style & Config.
  • In Body Style, insert, line-height: 20px; Click to see the image above in larger size.
  • Click on Save Changes

→ continue reading Atahualpa Theme Option-Line Spacing using CSS