For the next year, 13 images created by Felix Gonzalez-Torres will be displayed on billboards in San Antonio, El Paso, Dallas, and Houston. The display is being presented by Artspace, a San Antonio arts organization, to celebrate its 15th anniversary. 

In Houston, the 13 images will be rotated on six billboard locations and we are lucky enough to have one of those locations in Spring.  The Felix Gonzalez-Torres art can be found on the Clear Channel billboard located on the south side of Louetta between Theiss Mail Rt and Champion Forest.

The first and current billboard in the series is of a solitary bird flying though a gray sky.

Its no secret that Spring Texas Realtors love BTSAs.  After all can you really blame us?  We all love more money.  Right?

But the real question is not whether realtors love more money because we already know the answer to that question.  The question for Spring Texas home sellers needs to be ”Is money spent on a BTSA, money spent wisely or foolishly?”  

BTSAs …… money spent wisely:

If you can’t remember when the last time your home was shown consider offering a BTSA.  Even though your home may not be an exact match for an agent’s buyers, the extra incentive may get the agent to show your home. 

But before you spend the money on the BTSA do a thorough review of your home’s listing. Is your home in top condition?  Are the photographs of your home of a professional quality? Is your home priced below or at least comparable to the competition?  Is your home extensively marketed on the Internet?  The answer to any of these questions may be the reason you are not receiving any showings and your money would be spent more wisely on fixing these problems instead of paying more money to the buyer’s agent.

BTSAS …… money spent foolishly:

In every other possible scenario the money you spend as a Spring Texas home seller on a BTSA is money spent foolishly.  I hope not all home sellers are reading this because I do love it when you pay me extra money.  But the point is you don’t have to. If your house meets my clients needs I am going to show it to them irregardless of whether you offer a BTSA. 

If your house is over-priced, in bad condition, has an undesirable floor plan, or is in a bad location, and the reason you are offering a BTSA is to entice agents to ignore the bad and only point out the good about your house, it won’t happen.  A buyer’s agent is required to hold her clients interest above her own and pointing out only the good and ignoring the bad is not watching for her clients best interests.

Bottom line … you can get more bang for your buck by fixing the reason your house is not selling instead of trying to bribe the buyer’s agent with a BTSA.

Read also:

• Where are all the buyers?
• How to increase your list price and attract more buyers

Open floor plan,  with numerous architectural details including art niche, crown mouldings, archways, high ceilings, and bay window.

Large,secluded study w/ French doors and recessed lighting. Great kitchen with island, 42” oak cabinets, luxurious and easy to care for Corian counter tops ,gas range for controllable temperature cooking,breakfast bar, and open to the den. Breakfast area is flooded with natural light from the bay windows. Den w/ numerous windows – loads of natural light,gas fireplace,surround sound, and built-in entertainment center.

Enormous Master suite w/ sitting room, separate shower, jacuzzi tub with frosted glass window for privacy, his and her walk-in closets, and double sinks. Radiant barrier tech shield for low utility bills.   

Located in the award winning Klein School District. Exemplary rated Elementary (located inside the WindRose subdivision) and Recognized rated Intermediate and High School.

The WindRose subdivision has numerous amenities including a public 18 hole golf course, several playgrounds, two swimming pools with a Splash Pad and water slides, trails, tennis courts, basketball court, soccer field, 20 acre lake with fountains, catch and release fishing, fishing pier, and a clubhouse.

20918 Clovermeadow Spring TX 77379 – Offered at $177,000  MLS: 40862324

2,216 sqft, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 2 car garage, study, formal dining room, and master with sitting room

View photos, room sizes, and additional information

 For a private viewing of this home or other homes for sale in Spring Texas,

contact

 Jill Wente, Realtor®

Prudential Gary Greene Realtors at 281.804.8626

To have a Winter Olympics medal winner from Spring Texas is just a tad bit unusual because if you haven’t noticed we don’t get a lot of snow.  A lot of heat, yes.  But a lot of snow, no.  

Chad Hedrick grew up in Spring Texas on roller skates. By the age of two, Chad was skating at Champions Roller World.  The skating rink that was and still is owned by his parents.

Chad revolutionized inline speed skating with his technique known as the double push.  In 2002, Chad switched to the ice. In 2006, he competed in his first Winter Olympics in Turin. He won a medal of every color.  Chad won a gold medal in the 5,000 m, a silver medal in the 10,000 m, and a bronze medal in the 1,500 m speed skating events.

Come out and congratulate Chad and wish him well in his future endeavours off the ice.  Strack’s restaurant is located at 5707 Louetta Spring TX 77379. 

 Congratulations, Chad!  You have done us proud!

Read also:

• Celebrities from Spring Texas

I know not everyone is fond of deed restricitons but since there are no zoning laws in Spring Texas, deed restrictions are about the only way to protect your home’s value from your neighbors bad tastes.

Since you can’t get rid of deed restrictions, you might as well learn how to live with them.

Deed Restrictions Dos:

• Do read the subdivision’s deed restrictions before you purchase a Spring Texas home.  If you don’t like the subdivision’s deed restrictions, you can terminate your real estate contract. Although, you must terminate the contract during the option period to avoid a penalty.
• Do respond promptly to deed restriction violation notices. Ignoring the violation will not make it go away. It will only proceed to the next step which will be to turn the matter over to the lawyers. Once the lawyers are involved fees start racking up and your HOA is not going to kindly waive the fees for you.  

 Deed Restrictions Don’ts:

• Don’t paint your fence to match your house.  Deed restrictions prohibit the painting of fences. Only a clear coat of varnish is allowed. 
• Don’t run a pet rescue home. Deed restrictions place a limit on the total number of pets and species you can have residing at your home.
• Don’t turn your front yard into a tropical oasis. I know it may look great but check the deed restrictions first because they may specirfy only pines and oak trees in the front yard.
• Don’t run an auto shop in your driveway.  Cars on blocks and in non-working condition is an eye sore in addition to being a deed restriction violation.

The thing is real estate is local. What buyers want in a home in Miami Beach Florida is not what buyers want in a home in Spring Texas.  The best way to find out what Spring Texas home buyers want is to ask a Spring Texas Realtor. 

What are Spring Texas home buyers telling me they want in a home?

Granite kitchen counter tops- Granite has become so popular and ubiquitous that home buyers expect it.  Buyers will do a give on the square footage of a home just to get their granite.  What about solid surface counter tops?  They may be easier to care for and some may even look like granite but buyers still want granite.

Wood and / or tile flooring - Buyers prefer the look of wood and tile flooring. This coupled with a larger percentage of buyers being pet owners (dog, cat, or both), they want a flooring that is durable and easy to keep clean.  

Stainless Steel appliances - It is still buyers preferred type of appliances.  What about black and white appliances?  Spring Texas home buyers will consider black appliances but they would prefer NOT to have white appliances.

Brushed nickle fixtures – They have been the favorite for at least the last six years with oil rubbed bronze beginning to grow in popularity. 

Dark cabinets - Buyers don’t have a strong preference on the type of wood be it maple, cherry, or oak the cabinets are made from but they do prefer a dark stain. 

Designer paint colors- Buyers love the light tans, beiges, greens, browns, and blues.

Large closets and lots of storage - Buyers have stuff and they want places to store their stuff. 

Spacious master bathroom with a “spa” feeling – A master bathroom spacious enough for two people to get ready in the morning without having to dancing around each other.  Long counter tops with separate vanities or two bowls. A garden or jacuzzi bath tub and a separate shower with nice tile work.

Home office / Study – Even with all the wireless applications available to buyers, they still prefer to have a dedicated place to work.  A place for a desk, printer, and filing cabinet to organize paperwork.

Read also:

• Does your house have curb appeal?

The project also included the addition of a must needed traffic light at the intersection of T.C. Jester and Spring Cypress.  Previously attempting a left hand turn during peak drive times into the WindRose subdivision required a lesson in patience.

The T.C. Jester connection from Louetta to Spring Cypress coupled with last year’s extension of  T.C. Jester over Cypress Creek has created another major North –  South route in the area.  As T.C. Jester now connects F.M. 2920 to F.M. 1960.

Click on the map for a closer look at the Spring Creek Oaks subdivision and the surrounding area.

Read also:

• Tips on navigating the roads of Spring Texas
• Smile, you’re on red light camera

Unlike the homestead exemption that comes with restrictions on when you can apply for and receive it, the over 65 exemption has only one restriction and that is you have to wait until you reach the age of 65.  

What you really want to know is what’s the value of the over 65 exemption?  How much will your Spring Texas real estate taxes reduce? I dig numbers and I don’t know any better way to show you the money than through the use of a spreadsheet / chart.  Click on the chart to get a larger image and a better view. 

Since the over 65 exemption varies based upon county (Harris County is $160,000 and Montgomery County is $35,000), school district (Klein School District is $23,330 and Spring School District is $30,000), and MUD, I had to use some assumptions to calculate the savings in real estate taxes. 

The assumptions used were:

• House is located in Harris County, Klein School District, and MUD 104
• Tax assessed value of property is $165,000

Based upon these assumptions, your annual real estate taxes for your Spring Texas home with no exemptions is $4,532. 

Qualifying and receiving the homestead exemption, will reduce your taxes to $4,114.  A savings of $418.

Qualifying and receiving the homestead exemption and the over 65 exemption, will reduce your taxes to $2,712.  A combined savings of $1,820 or a 40% reduction in your real estate taxes.  Dependent upon the county you reside in, you will either need to fill out and the over 65 exemption form for Harris County or the over 65 exemption form for Montgomery County.

Plus the over 65 exemption, freezes the school tax portion of your real estate taxes. The school tax portion will not increase with rate increases in the school tax nor with increases in the value of your Spring Texas home.  But it will increase if you make substantial improvements to your home through the addition of a pool or another room.

But if you want to buy a house in Spring Texas or any other place for that matter you are going to have to maintain a good credit score.  As a good credit score will get you a home loan and a great credit score will get you a lower interest rate saving you thousands upon thousands of dollars. 

So how do you maintain a good credit score?  Probably the easiest way is to know what not to do.  Spendonlife.com created this great chart (click on the chart to enlarge) that depicts how paying your bills late damages your credit scores.  The later the payment the further down the drain your credit score goes. 

Read also:

• How do damage points affect your FICO credit score

The noticeable difference between January 2009 and 2010 is in the average sales price.  For January 2010 the average sales price was $160,096 versus $138,464 from the previous year.  The January 2010 median sales price experienced a slight increase of 3.4% to $135,000. 

Thus the jump in the average sales price was not attributable to price appreciation but instead due to a larger percentage of higher priced homes being sold.  Buyers at the $400,000 and above sales price are still in hibernation with 72% of total home sales occurring at prices of $169,999 or less.

Over the last couple of months, first time home buyers have been doing a lot of searching but not a lot of buying. That is all about to change.  With the April 30th tax credit expiration date only 74 days away, homes for sale in Spring Texas in the $200,000 or less price range will be receiving a significant increase in showing activity.  Sellers get ready.  A first time home buyer will soon be sending you an offer.

The data represented is from the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University and the Houston Association of Realtors MLS for single family existing homes in Area 13. Area 13 covers the geographic boundaries of East – I45 to West – Hwy 249 to South – Beltway 8 to North – Spring Cypress. A good portion of the houses in MLS area 13 have a Spring TX mailing address