Clay Lee
Broker/Realtor®
Read my blog below
Buying Real Estate Category
Obama/Biden’s Dream for the Economy is a Nightmare for Mortgage Companies
September 16th, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Foreclosures, Politics
This morning, September 16, 2008, Senator Joe Biden was responding to the questions about what his and Barrack Obama’s campaign would do if elected to help restart and recover the economy. His answers scared me and strongly concerned me.
1. He wants to take away all the tax cuts for big earners and give tax cuts to the middle class. My concern with this is the money available to hire those middle class earners. Am I crazy to think that if a company has to pay higher taxes that they won’t have to reduce their payroll? Would this not mean lower salaries and fewer jobs for the middle class?
2. He claimed to want to pump $70 billion dollars into the countries infrastructure to help upgrade roads and bridges immediately. While this sounds like a lot of money, when you divide that by 50 states, that is only $1.4 billion per state. Now it probably would not be split fairly among states, but for the most part, it would give states less than $2 billion each. A road widening or replace for roughly 5 miles can cost anywhere from $10 to $20 million. When you add on Major Bridges, those can reach $100 to $150 million very quickly. At $15 million per 5 mile stretch, that would only fix 500 miles per state with $500 million in bridge repairs. The number that will be reduced even more by costs for analyst, management, and other costs associated with distributing government funds. It really is a joke.
3. He stated that he wanted to give bankruptcy courts the ability to reduce mortgage balances and reset rates to keep people in their homes! I value home ownership as much as any other American; however, if he thinks this will increase home ownership and stabilize the housing economy, he is strongly mistaken. If bankruptcy courts have the ability to reset balances and interest rates on home loans, banks will react in their lending practices. It will cost more money to get a loan, and it will be harder for borrower’s with questionable credit to get a loan. Those borrowers with less than AAA perfect credit may not even be able to get a loan or will have to pay interest rates that will be the highest we have ever seen. It would essentially remove a lenders ability to foreclose on properties and protect their assets. If we think Fannie and Freddie are in a bad place now, imagine that all people have to do to save money on their mortgage is to file bankruptcy, have their loan balance and interest rate reduced and watch the mortgage company sit back and drown to the bottom of the lake with their hands tied behind their backs.
While disagree with the Republican Campaign’s stance on many things, I have to look past those personal preferences to the issues that will affect me for the next 20-30 year as I work and save for retirement over the next 4-8 years under a new regime. If the economy is made even worse, my ability to save for my retirement and the future is diminished which means I would not have enough money for a wedding anyhow!
If you have any question, feel free to contact me anytime at rclaylee@yahoo.com or 979-255-1839
College Station’s #1 Luxury Lifestyle & Real Estate Expert for over a Decade!
| Discussion: Comments Off
Benjamin Knox Designed Pebble Creek Show House Update!
July 21st, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Home Improvement & Design, Pebble Creek
5203 Whistling Straits is being built by Crowley Construction and in a matter of a couple of months will be totally complete. Designed as a luxury show case home, this home will be open for two weeks upon completion as a charity event with all proceeds benefitting the Brazos Valley Rehab Center.
This week the flooring is starting to be 
installed. The guest quaters are almost complete with the gorgeous slate flooring, soaring beamed ceiling, and custom French doors to the back yard. All of the Walker-Zanger tile should arrive this week as well. This includes the unique stone floor that will flow from the entry hall to the family room, breakfast area, and into 
the the amazing kitchen.
Last week all of the custom granite and marble counter tops were installed. The kitchen’s three-inch thick counters really provide a glimpse of just how exacting the details are in this house. You have to see the powder bath with its unique solid granite sink and custom vanity! Most of the final flatwork around the pool was also completed last week and the pool should be up and running within the next two weeks.
It won’t be long before this place is finished, and with the number of buyers walking through it every day, I’ll be suprised if it doesn’t sell quickly as well.
If you have any question, feel free to contact me anytime at rclaylee@yahoo.com or 979-255-1839
College Station’s #1 Luxury Lifestyle & Real Estate Exper for over a Decade!
| Discussion: Comments Off
How Much Driveway Can You Have in College Station?
July 15th, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Home Improvement & Design, Market Trends
Maybe I’m the last one to know, but the City of College Station is pretty strict now on where one can have a driveway, how wide it can be, and how many openings one can have out of it’s property.
I recently sold a property that has no street parking in front of it or on the side of it. The only parking you have is for two cars in the driveway and for two cars in the garage. My client asked me to check in to getting him a permit to pave a wider opening so that he could have driveway parking for at lest 6 cars. This would have been considered “head in” parking which basically means that a drivr would have to back out onto the street instead of entering it in a forward direction.
After approaching the city, I have found that they city code does not allow for more then 25 feet of curb cut from ones property onto the street! The normal 2 car garage is 22 feet wide so this doesn’t leave much space for more parking. To get exceptions to this, you have to file for a variance with the city in order to get more curb cuts. The problem is, they don’t like to give the variance in the first place, and secondly they don’t want to give it to addition “head in” style parking. They usually like to give it to circular type driveways that have an opening for entering and leaving.
If you want something different, it’s best to schedule a meeting with Carol Cotter at the City of College Station’s planning and development department. Turn in a plat of what you have and what you are doing along with an application. She will then review it in person and with city staff. In a couple of days they will get back to you with an answer. Unfortunately there isn’t a “set in stone” set of principles they follow. It’s all pretty much up to their discretion and view of how the design will affect saftey and traffic concerns. I’d recomend having a pretty good case in place if you are looking for something that may be questionable.
The best advice I can give is design your home with lots of extra driveway space and room to turn around on the property and get the plan approved before constructing your new home. This work up front will ensure that your property and home design work for your lifestyle.
If you need any help or suggestions or have questions, please feel free to contact me anytime at rclaylee@yahoo.com.
College Stations #1 Luxury Lifestyle and Real Estate Expert for over a Decade!
| Discussion: Comments Off
Pebble Creek: Buy A Lot While You Can!
July 14th, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Market Trends, Pebble Creek
If you have been or are thinking of buying a lot in Pebble Creek Country Club in College Station, TX, you might want to get on the list very soon! For the past decade, we have seen this amazing neighborhood increase in size constantly with virtually no end in sight. The end of this time is coming and soon!
The most recent cul-de-sacs opening of Riviera, Quaker Ridge, and more are the last ones platted on the west side of Pebble Creek Parkway that are not slated for patio homes! On the other side of the PC Parkway extension is the next section to be developed which has historically been a more expensive area of Pebble Creek. Many of those lots will back up directly to Lick Creek Park which will only increase their value and cost. Once that section is gone, the next platted area is only acced off of William D. Fitch Parkway. It is uncertain if and when that area will be developed; however, that area will not have direct access to Pebble Creek Elementary and the club house. Many people think that the land Read the rest of this entry »
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
Pebble Creek & Indian Lakes: The Best Luxury Markets in College Station, TX
July 2nd, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Market Trends, Pebble Creek, Selling Real Estate
College Station has luxury homes located in many different areas, but for the past few years and seemingly for many more to come, the best areas to buy or build in are Pebble Creek and Indian Lakes. These are two very different communities from each other; however, they have the smallest number of days on the market and the best appreciation in town. Why is this?
Pebble Creek is the only golf course and country club community located in the confines of the College Station Independent School District. While Bryan has 4 of these communities, College Station only has one. With the current atmosphere of development in the city of College Station and the lack of readily available land to develop, this community is set to be a safe bet for many years to come. Clients love that it has its very own Elementary School, extensive walking trails, lots of quiet cul-de-sacs, and a state of the art club house with a large pool, tennis courts, a bar, banquet and meeting facilities, and a couple of great restaurants. Houses in Pebble Creek range in price from $170,000 to home in excess of $1 million. They have everything from patio homes to large golf-course front estates. There truly is something for everyone. The developer has done a great job over the years of releasing just a few lots at any one time as to not flood the market with new homes. This has kept prices up and made the market extremely stable. The best deals are the homes that are at least 10 years old as they are aging and need to be updated. However, there are amazing new homes like my listing at 5203 Whistling Read the rest of this entry »
| Discussion: Comments Off
Century 21 Beal Clients Earn Softball Coaching Staff of The Year Honors!
July 1st, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Community Events, Schools, Texas A&M University
It’s rare that we get to brag on our clients, but I had to brag on mine today. All three of these ladies have purchased multiple properties from our office and have even let me refer them to agents in other locations to help them buy properties there.
They all three coach the girls softball team at Texas A&M and this year, they played in the final game of the World Series and just barely lost wining it all. They added to their list of honors yesterday. Texas A&M Head Softball Coach Jo Evans and Associate Head Coaches Joy Jackson and Mary Jo Firnbach were voted the 2008 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Midwest Region Coaching Staff of the Year! Head Coach Jo Evans even picked up her third Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year after leading the aggies to a 17-1 season!
I’m really proud to call these fine ladies friends and clients.
To read the full story about their success, click here!
For more information on living the luxury lifestyle or about luxury real estate, always feel free to email me at RClayLee@Yahoo.com
College Station’s #1 Luxury Lifestyle and Real Estate expert for over a decade!
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
The Mistakes that Luxury Home Builders and Owners Make
June 27th, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Home Improvement & Design, Market Trends, Miramont, Pebble Creek, Selling Real Estate
I see it every day, and it’s really sad. A home builder or even a buyer will construct a high priced “luxury” property and try to sell it immediately or within a couple of years of its completion. I use the term “luxury” in quotes because in this case I’m calling it an interpretation of what a luxury property really is.
A lot of people make the mistake of thinking that a luxury home qualifies as a luxury home merely based on the properties square footage or land size. However, a luxury home can be a 1500 square foot town-home or a 20,000 square foot ocean front compound. It’s the features of a property that make a luxury home a luxury home, especially in College Station, TX.
The following are the biggest places that mistakes are made.
Master Suites
A Big Shower and Walk-in Closets are just not enough. Buyers expect a Spa in their own home today. You have to have multiple shower heads, rain showers, body sprays and if possible a steam shower. Closets have to be totally custom with built-in packing centers, extensive shoe storage, tons of drawers, adjustable hanging space, full-length mirrors, and good lighting. The sleeping area has to be well designed with plenty of room for a bed and a nice sitting area. High end quality flooring of wool, stone, or wood is expected in this space as well. Buyers also want separate closets if the home is larger and even more popular are separate master bathrooms. Read the rest of this entry »
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
Real Estate That Changes and Moves as You Wish: Coming Soon to Dubai, Moscow, and New York City!
June 26th, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Home Improvement & Design, Market Trends, Real Estate News, Real Estate True Tales
When you were a child, you probably had or played with a slinky. You probably remember how you could twist and spin a slinky in a million different ways to create some crazy looking tubular shapes. Well now you may be able to do the same thing with your home! Today in Dubai, a new building was unveiled called the Dynamic Tower which will be 80 stories tall and be able to adjust its shape at any given moment. Each floor will be able to spin independently to change that floors view or to change the shape of the entire building! The picture to the left shows different configurations that the tower might have. I guess that if you wake up and decide you don’t like the ocean view of your bedroom that you can twist it around for a desert or city view! A part of me wonders what it will sound like when the entire building is rotating. Will clients feel it rotate?
The building is truly a new study in the way that high Read the rest of this entry »
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
5 Star Hotel Bedrooms – In Your Own Home!
June 25th, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Home Improvement & Design, Kids, Family & Personal Stuff, Market Trends, Real Estate News
If you’ve ever stayed in a great hotel and when it came time to check out you didn’t want to leave, you are not alone. Today’s 5 star hotels and many 4 star hotels are making their beds and bathrooms more luxurious all the time. It’s almost as if it’s a competition between them to see who can top the other. The bathrooms keep getting larger and the beds keep getting fluffier with even higher and higher thread count sheets.
But going home doesn’t have to be the end of your stay at your favorite hotel! Due to an enormous amount of client demand, many of the 5 and 4 star hotels are now selling almost everything you need to recreate your hotel experience at home. If you had to pull all the materials together yourself, it would take extensive travel and weeks of internet searching to find all the bedding, accessories, towels, and plumbing products. Now with just a simple phone call you can have almost everything you see!
For example, W Hotels has a retail store in Read the rest of this entry »
| Discussion: 3 Comments »
What is Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI)? Not Everyone Can Get It!
June 23rd, 2008 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Foreclosures, Market Trends, Mortgage Help
PMI has been a mystery to home buyers for as long as it has been in existence. It’s that insurance that almost every home buyer has to get in order to buy a home with less than a twenty percent down payment. It is essentially insurance for the lender that covers the amount between what you put down and eighty percent of the value of your home. The larger your down payment, the less PMI you need. As your home increases in value or you pay down your mortgage, it’s important to keep an eye on how much you owe on your home compared to what it is worth. Once your owe eighty percent or less of your homes value, you need to contact your mortgage company about having the PMI coverage removed from your payment. This could save you a significant amount every month. The bank will require an appraisal and the process may take a month or so, but it’s well worth it.
In the past PMI seemed to be available to Read the rest of this entry »
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
