Sell House Doctors House

How To Sell - House Doctors Channel4.com Text Only [ News | Film | Homes | Life | Entertainment | History | Science | Community | Shop ] | Sport | Culture | Cars | Money | Broadband | Learning | Health | Dating | Games ] [ Text Only: Homepage ] [ Graphical: Channel4 Homepage ] [an error occurred while processing this directive] page1 How To Sell House Doctors House doctors (also known as property presentation consultants, home stagers, house stylists…) offer professional help to people having problems selling their property. They'll give impartial advice on why your home isn't being snapped up and help with styling, or staging, your property in order to achieve a quick sale. There is evidence that house doctors really work. Their websites are full of stories of not only having helped people to sell within a short space of time, but of actually adding thousands of pounds onto the value of their property in the process. This is achieved with advice on tidying away clutter, repairing signs of wear and tear, carrying out necessary redecorating work, 'dressing' the property and how to hold a viewing. Where can I find one? Already massive in the US, house doctors are still very much a new idea in the UK. However, there are many small, local interior design or property renovation companies that offer a house doctoring service. The best way to find these is to look out for advertisements in your local paper. Some house doctors cover the nation as a whole: Property Presentation Services, Homestagers and The Final Touch are three of the most successful. What will it cost me? Daphne Leck of Property Presentation Services offers an obligation-free discussion in the first instance. Thereafter, the minimum fee is £250 for two visits, one before any work is done and one after. This includes a written report on each room and advice up to the point of selling, including how to choose an estate agent. PPS offer a consultation service: that is, they do not do the actual work themselves, but they can recommend and source materials and services. Home Stagers, run by interior designer Tina Jesson, is a UK-wide network of experts who have been trained and awarded an Open College Network-accredited professional certificate. Consultants offer services throughout the home ownership process. A Home Consultation costs £160 & includes a written report, online marketing and a 'Viewings Into Offers' guide. The Home Stagers website is content-rich and offers tips, free online advice and photo consultations. The Final Touch, run by interior designer Suzy Maas and estate agent Lottie Sanger, is London-based but will travel depending on the size of the project. They offer a written report after their initial visit, for which they charge £50 an hour. Should you choose to follow their advice, the couple then charge £450 a day plus VAT for two people's work re-presenting the property, including sourcing of all equipment and materials.

home equity lines of

Home Equity Lending Gaps in Texas The Texas Economy March 2003 "Texans need and deserve the right to take out home equity lines of credit.This simple change will pump $741 million back to Texas homeowners." -- Carole Keeton Strayhorn, Texas Comptroller Home Equity Lending Gaps in Texas The number of Texans with home equity loans has more than doubled since 1997 when changes in the Texas constitution made it easier for Texans to borrow against the equity they have in their homes. [1] Yet, Texans are still not taking as many home equity loans as residents in other states. In the traditional home equity lending market—the segment that involves a lump-sum payout of equity to be repaid over a set term—Texans seem to have caught up with the rest of the nation. Indeed, the estimated 6.4 percent of Texas home-owners with traditional home equity loans in 2001 is not only up considerably from 2.5 in 1997 but may well be higher than the average for the other 49 states of 5.7 percent (Figure 1). [2] This most likely reflects the fact that one portion of the home equity loan market—the home equity line of credit market—remains unavailable to Texans. An estimated $12.7 billion in higher-cost, non-tax-deductible loans that currently exist could be supplanted if home equity lines of credit were available and Texans used these financial options at the same rate as other consumers in the country. By taking advantage of a substantially untapped resource, Texas consumers could save $741 million annually using home equity lines of credit instead of other loans. These savings could be pumped into the Texas economy through lower interest rates and additional federal income tax deductions. The gains would be realized in the Texas economy if existing loans were merely paid off by homeowners through home equity lines of credit. This need not expand homeowners’ overall debt burden. Home Equity Lending in Texas For more than 160 years, access to the home equity that owners had built up in their residences was largely untapped. As a direct result of the Panic of 1837, Texas prohibited the forced sale of homesteads for all but a very limited number of reasons. When Texas became a state, these protections became part of the state constitution and effectively barred foreclosing on a person’s residence for reasons other than non-payment of taxes, the original mortgage or a home improvement loan. These same provisions also effectively barred tapping into home equity for purposes other than home improvement. But on November 4, 1997, Texas voters approved a constitutional amendment allowing more leeway in home equity lending and for reverse mortgages. [3] These loans became available to Texans in 1998, but some technical issues limited the availability of home equity loans for homesteads larger than one acre and from reverse mortgages. Subsequent amendments addressed these legal concerns. [4] Changes in the Texas Constitution expanded the conditions under which homeowners could obtain a traditional home equity loan. These closed-end loans extend for a specified length of time and generally require repayment of interest and principal in equal monthly installments. Interest rates on these loans are ordinarily fixed for the life of the loan. Growth in Home Equity Lending in Texas Since changing the Texas constitution to allow wider use of home equity loans, Texans have steadily increased their reliance on these loans. According to American Housing Survey (AHS) data on nine Texas metropolitan areas that cover 68 percent of Texas’ owner-occupied homes, only 2.5 percent of Texas homeowners had any form of home equity loan in 1997, substantially less than the 14.5 percent for all U.S. homeowners outside of Texas that same year. By 1999, the proportion of Texas homeowners with a home equity loan had risen to 4.5 percent. While this represents nearly a doubling of home equity loan usage in just two years, this was still slightly less than the estimated 5 percent rate for home equity loan usage in the nation and substantially less than the 12.9 percent estimated by the AHS that year for both home equity loans and lines of credit. By 2001, the proportion of Texas households with home equity loans had reached 6.4 percent. At this level, the usage in Texas actually exceeded the usage rate of fixed-term closed-end loans in the U.S., indicating that Texans may have reached the saturation point with traditional home equity loans. These loans typically are written for a set amount to be repaid in equal installments over a specified time, just like a traditional mortgage. Based on a survey conducted for the Comptroller of Public Accounts of home equity lenders in Texas, from 1998 to 2000, the amount of the average home equity loan was about $36,750. In 2001 and 2002, the average home equity loan jumped to more than $47,000. [5] Closing the Gap Although Texans’ reliance on home equity loans has grown substantially since the passage of the constitutional amendment, further gains may be unlikely. Other states’ average usage of 14 percent in 2001 included both traditional home equity loans and home equity lines of credit, financial instruments not now available to Texas homeowners. The possibility that the usage rate of traditional home equity loans in Texas exceeded the usage rate of similar loans in the nation probably indicates that without the home equity line of credit option, more homeowners are opting for the fixed term loans—their only other choice. During much of the 1990s, about 8 percent of U.S. homeowners had a home equity line of credit whereas about 5 percent of homeowners had a traditional loan. [6] In 2001, AHS data indicated an estimated 8.4 percent of homeowners had a home equity line of credit (HELOC) and 5.7 percent had traditional home equity loans. This newer form of home equity lending has become the preferred choice by homeowners in other states. A HELOC is a revolving account that permits borrowing from time to time, at the account holder’s discretion, up to a set credit limit. HELOCs also typically have more flexible repayment schedules than traditional home equity loans and have a variable interest rate. Most consumers think home equity lines of credit are more convenient than traditional home equity loans. While about 40 percent of consumers cited the tax advantages of both types of home equity credit as an important consideration, 43 percent of HELOC users cited convenience of use as an advantage, compared with only 1 percent of those using the traditional home equity loans. [7] Many of the major lenders in Texas make HELOC loans to homeowners in other states. Their experiences underscore how attractive this option is to consumers. Figure 2 presents the percentage of the amount of home equity loans and lines of credit written in Georgia, Florida and California by three major Texas lenders. [8] About 88 percent of the consumers in these states choose HELOCs compared with about 12 percent choosing traditional home equity loans. Potential Economic Impact of HELOCs in Texas One approach to examining what expanded home equity lending might mean in Texas is to estimate what consumers would save if they had access to HELOCs. Three issues are crucial when estimating this impact: what savings could be expected from lower interest costs; how much would HELOCs lower federal income tax bills; and how large total borrowing might become. Underlying this assessment is the assumption that if Texans had access to HELOCs the total home equity usage in Texas would approach the U.S. average. This implies that consumer use of both home equity lines of credit and traditional loans would reach about 14 percent, 7.6 percentage points up from the 2001 level, which was 6.4 and consisted of only traditional home equity loans. The true economic value of HELOCs to consumers lies in low interest rates and as a deduction from federal income taxes. For example, recent data from February 2003 show that the average interest rate on credit card debt is 13.8 percent, the rate for new auto loans is 5.8 percent and on home equity lines of credit, 4.4 percent. [9] This implies that on a $1,000 loan, annual credit card interest charges would be $138 whereas these charges would amount to only $44 for the home equity line of credit. On $1,000 in outstanding credit card debt, conversion of this debt to a HELOC would save $94 in interest payments annually. But even this neglects the fact that HELOC interest costs are deductible from federal income taxes, whereas credit card interest charges are not deductible. Although each individual’s exact marginal tax rate paid depends on adjusted gross income, the National Bureau of Economic Research estimates that, on average, in 1999 interest deductions reduced income taxes 24.5 cents per dollar of interest paid. [10] This implies that, on average, the $44 in HELOC interest payments would generate an estimated $10.78 in federal income tax savings so that the total consumer savings per $1,000 in credit card debt replaced by HELOC would be $104.78 annually. Savings from other loans would be less dramatic. Based on current rates, car loans would cost $58 in interest charges per $1,000 borrowed, or only $14 more than HELOC. But tacking on the deductibility of HELOC raises this savings to $24.78 annually per $1,000 borrowed. The loans likely to be displaced by HELOC would be a mixture of credit card loans and other consumer loans such as car loans. According to Federal Reserve loan data, consumer debt nationwide at the end of 2002 was divided into $738.9 billion in revolving loans, of which credit card debt is a large part, and $1,017.9 billion in non-revolving loans. [11] Assuming Texas consumers have a similar debt profile, about 42 percent of Texas consumer debt would be in revolving credit and 58 percent in non-revolving. Based on these shares, the average consumer would save an estimated $58.38 in interest and tax payments per $1,000 owed by switching from other consumer credit sources to HELOC. [12] How much Texans could save depends on the volume of consumer loans displaced. Using 2001 commercial bank data to update national figures indicates that the traditional home equity loan market in the U.S. reached $352.7 billion, up from $267 billion in 1997. Considering Texas’ share of home equity loans and the average per loan value, Texans account for an estimated 8.4 percent of the U.S. market for traditional home equity loans. Based on this percentage and assuming that Texans would use both traditional and HELOC loans at the national rate, Texas consumers would exchange $12.7 billion in existing loans for HELOC. In doing so, Texas homeowners would save $741 million in interest charges and federal income taxes annually. This would be a modest level of savings. The Federal Reserve Board estimates that households spend about 8 percent of their disposable personal income servicing the debt on revolving loans. [13] The $741 million annual savings from increased use of HELOCs would be about 1.7 percent of the annual amount Texans spend on debt service for revolving loans. [14] Home Equity Delinquencies If Texas consumers relied more on home equity lines of credit and followed national trends, loan delinquencies would likely fall. Based on American Bankers Association data (Table 1), Texas averages fewer loan delinquencies for closed-end home equity loans than consumers at the national level. Loan delinquencies did rise in Texas from 1999 to 2001, but dropped off in 2002. Table 1: Texas Home Equity Delinquency Rates Compared to All Other States Home Equity Delinquency Rates and All States First Mortgage Delinquency Rates* Closed-End** Home Equity Loans(1) Home Equity Lines of Credit(1) All States - First Mortgages(2) Texas All States All States Conventional FHA VA 2002 0.99% 1.30% 0.59% 3.06% 11.55% 7.87% 2001 1.17 1.28 0.73 2.96 10.78 7.67 2000 0.88 1.20 0.75 2.50 9.10 6.80 1999 0.77 1.26 0.62 2.60 8.60 6.80 * Delinquency Rates are based on the number of Loans Past Due 30 Days or More as a Percentage of Loans Outstanding. ** "Closed End" includes home equity and second mortgages (but not home improvement). SOURCES (1)Home equity delinquency rates obtained from "Consumer Credit Delinquency Bulletin" published quarterly by American Bankers Association. (2)First mortgage delinquency rates obtained from "U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2001" and Mortgage Bankers Association of America "Quarterly Delinquency Surveys." But nationwide, loan delinquencies for lines of credit are slightly more than half the rates seen for closed end home equity loans. Based on this pattern, a shift towards using home equity lines of credit from traditional home equity loans should lower overall home equity delinquency rates. Compared with first mortgages, the delinquency rates for both home equity loans and lines of credit are substantially lower. Summary The use of home equity loans in Texas has risen dramatically following constitutional changes in Texas in 1997. Use of closed-end traditional home equity loans in Texas exceeds nationwide use. The fact that home equity lines of credit are not available in Texas contributes to a higher reliance on traditional home equity loans. But the strong consumer preference expressed for HELOCs in other states and consumer preference for their ease of use may indicate that continued expansion of lower interest, tax deductible home equity financing by consumers in Texas may slow without access to these loans. If Texans were to use home equity financing only up to the national average through HELOCs, lower interest payments and lower federal taxes would save Texas consumers $741 million. Making HELOCs available to Texas consumers would require passing another constitutional amendment and legislation proposing such amendments will likely be introduced during the current legislative session. If the nature of consumer safeguards and other requirements on lending institutions in Texas making HELOC loans were significantly more restrictive than national practices, interest rates on these loans in Texas could be higher than national rates, and the economic impacts less. Data Collection While banking and finance are two of the most heavily regulated industries, this level of scrutiny does not always result in the availability of detailed information. Since 1987, banks and finance companies have reported home equity lines of credit under receivables on quarterly Call Reports and since 1991 have also separately reported their holdings of traditional closed-end home equity loans. Mutual savings banks also report these data on Federal Reserve Board Call Reports. Other segments of the financial industry report this information to varying degrees. Savings and loan associations and federal saving banks report credit line receivables on Call Reports, but they do not separate home equity loans from first mortgages. Since June 1996, finance companies have reported commercial and residential mortgages separately but do not distinguish between loans under lines of credit and traditional loans. Credit union data is available on both types of home equity debt from the Credit Union National Association. At the national level, some data track the degree to which consumers utilize the various home equity loan alternatives. Every two years the Federal Reserve Board surveys consumers’ use of credit. This data, while instructive on overall trends and the use of home equity loans and lines of credit, does not contain information about practices in particular states. Moreover, much of the state-specific data collected from financial institutions is available primarily for the location of the financial institution involved, and not where the loan was made. Where this data are available, coverage by type of financing (home equity loan versus line of credit) is limited. The Texas-specific data in this analysis is derived largely from two sources. First, the U.S. Bureau of the Census surveys about 60,000 Americans every two years about housing conditions. This survey includes questions about the usage of home equity loans, but only the most recent survey, from 2001, elicits responses on traditional home equity loans separately from home equity lines of credit. Because this survey is national, there is only partial coverage of Texas. Specifically, publicly available data from the survey identifies only responses coming from nine metropolitan areas in Texas. Although the sample does contain responses from non-metropolitan areas, these are not identified by state. The Census survey covers about 68.2 percent of the Texas population. The second source of data is internal surveys of lending activity conducted by lending institutions doing business in Texas. These institutions cover more than 10 percent of the Texas market for commercial financial institutions and financial companies. These data are used to identify the potential to expand home equity lending in Texas if lines of credit became available. Endnotes [1] In 1997 and before, availability of home equity loans in Texas was limited to home improvement loans, loans to pay outstanding taxes and loans allowing one spouse to “buy out” another in the case of divorce. Such loans were typically known as a second lien against the property. Homeowners could not secure a loan backed by the equity in their home and use the proceeds of the loan for purposes other than those specified in law. Outside of Texas, using home equity loan proceeds for whatever purpose and even the more flexible home equity line of credit (a revolving line of credit secured by home equity) have been widely available for years. [2] The tentative nature of this statement stems from what seems to be respondent confusion to the American Housing Survey (AHS). In the 2001 AHS, 14 Texas households identified themselves as having a home equity line of credit in 2001. Since these lines of credit currently cannot be offered in Texas, the most likely explanation for this is that these respondents misunderstood the “line of credit” option in the survey as describing the “draw down” feature of a home improvement loan during construction when, in fact, these instances were almost certainly traditional “closed end” loans. Placing these responses in that category indicates that 6.4 percent of the homeowners in the survey in Texas had a closed-end home equity loan as compared to only 5.7 percent in states outside of Texas. [3] House Joint Resolution 31 (HJR 31) passed by the 1997 Legislature that, upon passage, became effective January 1, 1998. [4] On November 2, 1999, Texas voters approved constitutional amendments proposed by the 1999 Legislature to address these problems, Senate Joint Resolutions 12 and 22 (SJR 12 and 22). [5] Data submitted by lenders in early 2003. For number and amount of loans in Texas, the survey included five large Texas lenders. [6] Glenn B. Canner, Thomas A. Durkin and Charles A. Luckett, “Recent Developments in Home Equity Lending,” Federal Reserve Bulletin, April 1998, p. 243. [7] Canner, Durkin and Luckett, pp. 241- 251. [8] From data submitted by lenders. Together these three lenders serve more than 10 percent of the commercial banking market in Texas. [9] These rates and those of HELOCs are from http://www.bankrate.com/ on February 18, 2003. The credit card rate is for a standard card (not gold or platinum) at a fixed annual rate. The auto loan figure refers to a 48-month loan for a new car. The HELOC rate is for a $10,000 or minimum amount. [10] http://www.nber.org/~taxsim/mrates/mrates2.html , February 20, 2003. [11] Federal Reserve Board Statistical Release, G.19, Consumer Credit, February 7, 2003. http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/current/ . [12] This is a fairly conservative assessment on two points. First it assumes that consumers would replace current borrowing in proportion to the amount borrowed of each type without consideration of the interest rates charged for each type of borrowing. A more rational approach would be to replace all of the most costly borrowing first. Secondly, new car financing rates are among the lowest cost loans available and this probably underestimates the interest costs of non-revolving loans. [13] http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/housedebt/default.htm , February 19,2003. [14] Disposable personal income in Texas is estimated to be $535.2 billion in 2001. Carole Keeton Strayhorn Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts Window on State Government Contact Us Privacy and Security Policy

Real Estate

Century 21 Real Estate: home buying, home selling, financing and property listings. español Put My Century 21 to work for you, simply register your email address and create a password. Once you're registered, you'll be able to • save property descriptions • store your search criteria • file agent information • build a custom library Find out more or register now! Already registered? Sign in . -- Welcome to Century 21 Real Estate Century 21 Real Estate is your online resource for home buying, home selling, financing and property listings. Whether it's a house, condo, or any other type of property, we can assist you with your real estate needs. Search for Properties Looking to buy a new home, condo or any other property? Search thousands of properties in our real estate listings. Search Property Listings » First Time Homebuyers Guide » View Our Buyer Service Pledge » International Century 21 Real Estate LLC is part of the largest real estate referral network in the world - with over 110,000 brokers and sales associates in over 30 countries and territories. Access our world offices today» Sell a Property Let our real estate agents create a customized marketing plan to sell your property. List your Property » View Our Seller Service Pledge » View Mortgage Rates View current mortgage rates, apply for a home equity loan, crunch numbers with home mortgage calculators and more! Apply for a Mortgage Now» Use Our Mortgage Calculators » Find an Office or Agent Find and contact a CENTURY 21 Office or Agent to handle your real estate needs. Find an Office or Agent » Quick Vote! Your vote counts! Let us Know Where do you spend the most time? Bedroom Living Room Kitchen Bathroom Dining Room ©2005 Century 21 Real Estate LLC. An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Each CENTURY 21 Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. All rights reserved. Information appearing on this site has been produced by or obtained primarily from Century 21 Real Estate LLC and its representatives and from CENTURY 21 franchisees. Century 21 Real Estate LLC is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the broker information, sales associate information, listing information or other information provided by our franchisees appearing on or through this site. Such information has been provided by independent third parties who are solely responsible for such content. Certain conditions and restrictions apply to System promotions. Terms and Conditions of Use.

Home Equity Associate Members.

CBA Home Equity Lending Conference Home Equity Lending Conference September 18 - 21, 2005 NEW LOCATION: JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa Phoenix, AZ Hotel reservations already completed are being transferred from the Sheraton New Orleans to the JW Marriott. Reservations can be confirmed by calling 1-800-898-4527 . who should attend Product Managers Product Development Managers Marketing Professionals Product Delivery Specialists Retail Banking Officers Credit Risk Officers Consumer Credit Officers Compliance Officers Technology Professionals membership policy Attendance at this conference is open to CBA Corporate, Holding Company Affiliate, National Associate, or Home Equity Associate Members. Exhibiting and sponsorship opportunities are open ONLY to Corporate, National Associate, or Home Equity Associate Members. *Non-members may attend this conference, but must be federally-insured banking institutions. If you would like to become a CBA member, please click here or call the Membership Department at 703-276-3878. Conference Exhibit & Sponsorship Opportunities Conference Brochure overview Home equity loans comprise one of the core consumer loan products for most financial institutions, but competition is continually changing the landscape and profit outlook. Our conference provides home equity professionals with both strategic insight and practical solutions to such pressing issues as the integration of market segments, partnerships and alliances, value-added uses of technology, and creating customer value. financial institutions in attendance in past years 3S/RealServ ABN AMRO Accudata Search AEACU AMCO AMS AmSouth Bank APPRO Systems, Inc. ARGO Data Resource Corporation Arvest Bank Associated Bank ATM Corporation of America Bank of America Bank of Hawaii Bank of New York, Delaware Bank of Stockton Bank of The West Bank One Bankers Systems, Inc. Banknorth, N.A. Banton Technologies Basis100 BB&T BenchMark Consulting International C & S Marketing CEFCU Centex Home Equity Charles Schwab Bank Charter One Bank Chase Home Finance Chevy Chase Bank CIBC Citibank Citigroup Citizens Bank Cohane Rafferty Comerica Bank Commerce Bank, N.A." Commercial Federal Bank Community Bank of Florida Compass Bank Comptroller of the Currency Consumer Marketing Services Counselor Library.com LLC/Hudson Cook LLP Countrywide, FSC Credit Lenders Service Agency, Inc. Data Search DataQuick Decisions Strategies International Discover Financial Services, Inc. Document Assistance Company Dorado Corporation E*Trade Bank Eastern Bank Exchange Bank Exchange National Bank Express Financial Services Farmers First Bank Federal Flood Certification Corporation Fifth Third Bank Financial Marketing Systems First American Bank First American CMSI First American Equity Loan Services, Inc. First Citizens Bank First Federal Savings & Loan Association of Bucks County First Horizon Equity Lending First Interstate Bank First Niagara Bank First Tennessee Bank, N.A." FleetBoston Financial Corporation FNC, Inc. FNIS Market Intelligence Fort Knox National Bank Frost National Bank GB Home Equity, LLC General American Corporation Geotrac Goodwin Procter LLP Group9, Inc. Guaranty Bank, FSB Harris Bank Hibernia National Bank Household HSBC Mortgage Corporation USA Hudson United Bancorp Hughes, Watters & Askanase, LLP Huntington National Bank IndyMac Bank Informa Research Services, Inc. Integra Bank Integrated Loan Services JPMorganChase KeyBank National Association LandAmerica OneStop Lehman Bank LendingTree LoanPerformance LoanPro, LLC London Bridge Group M & T Bank Mortgage Information Services, Inc. Mortgage Lenders Network, USA National City Bank National Equity Services North Shore Bank Old Republic Insured Credit Services, Inc. Optima Information Solutions Outsource Financial Services, LLC PeirsonPatterson, LLP Placer Sierra Bank PNC Bank PNC Consumer Sevices Principal Bank Proctor Financial Insurance Corporation Provident Bank RBC Centura Bank realinfo.com Regions Financial Corporation Republic Bank Riggs Bank, N.A. Riverside National Bank Self Help Credit Union Sharper Lending Shaw Systems & Associates Sky Bank SouthTrust Bank Southwest Bank of Texas Southwest Financial Services, Ltd. Sovereign Bank Standard & Poors Stewart Mortgage Information Stock Yards Bank SunTrust Banks, Inc. Synergistics Research Corporation Technology Credit Union TransUnion Trustmark U.S. Bank U.S. Recordings, Inc. Union Bank of California Union Federal Bank Union Planters Bank United Bank United Guaranty UnitedTrust Bank Urban Settlement Services, LLC USAA Federal Savings Bank Venture Encoding Service, Inc. Volkswagen Bank USA Wachovia Corporation Washington Federal Savings Bank Washington Mutual Webster Bank Wells Fargo Bank Zions fees & registration deadlines CBA Member Non-Member Pre-registered $1,245 $1,545 On-site $1,345 $1,645 Spouse/Guest Fee $ 1 9 5 $ 1 9 5 *registration fee includes three continental breakfasts, two luncheons, three cocktail receptions, and refreshment breaks. hotel accommodations Hotel reservations already completed are in the process of being transferred from the Sheraton New Orleans to the JW Marriott. As soon as this is completed, an 800 number will be provided on this site to allow confirmation of reservations. Please wait until that number is available to confirm.

Las Vegas Real Estate

In Business Las Vegas December 9 - December 15 Current Issue Special Publications Search In Business In Business on TV The List Book of Lists About InBusiness Media Kit Subscribe Contact Us Real Estate and Development Centex takes over Urban Village project By Jennifer Shubinksi / Staff Writer Fresh from paying $146 million for the 15-acre Westward Ho site near the north end of the Strip, Centex Destination Properties has turned its sights to the south with the purchase of Urban Village Las Vegas. Denver-based Centex Destination Properties, a division of the Houston-based Centex Homes, bought the first phase - 13.6 acres - and the original Urban Village Las Vegas concept promoted by Diversified Real Estate Group. The purchase price was not disclosed. Clark County recorder's data does not show any recent sales between the two parties. Centex Destination Properties has the option to purchase the remainder of the 50-acre site at a later date, said C.J. Julin, Centex Destination vice president of market­ ing. The Urban Village concept will remain largely unchanged from its Diversified beginnings. (Diversified Real Estate Group is owned by Philippe Pageau-Goyette, formerly involved in the under-construction Manhattan Condominiums at Las Vegas Boulevard South and Serene Avenue and who is also involved in the development of condo tower Club Renaissance in downtown Las Vegas.) Urban Village, at the southwest corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Pyle Avenue, will include five neighborhoods with about 2,400 condominium houses in brownstones, high rises, live-work spaces, flats, lofts and condo-hotel units. Also slated for the project will be restaurants, service retailers, a pool complex and fitness center, jogging paths and parks. The first phase of the project will consist of the brownstone portion of the project, Julin said. The architecture will resemble the brownstones of the East Coast, Chicago and Boston areas with an emphasis on brick, Julin said. Reservations for the first phase will begin after the first of the year with construction tentatively scheduled for the spring, Julin said. Price ranges for units were not disclosed. John Restrepo, principal at Las Vegas-based Restrepo Consulting Group, said large companies buying out smaller companies' ideas is not uncommon, whether it's in the high-tech field or in real estate. "Maybe Philippe wants to focus on Club Renaissance and they (Centex Destination Properties) probably gave him an offer he couldn't refuse," Restrepo said. Restrepo said this type of transaction is positive for the market and means the project will probably get built more quickly than if it had stayed with a smaller developer. "It will allow Philippe to focus on his downtown property," Restrepo said. "They are a small company and they can only manage so many projects at one time." Officials with Centex Destination Properties view the Las Vegas market as the place to be right now. "There's nothing like Las Vegas in the world," Julin said. "In Las Vegas, that's the attraction - Las Vegas." Centex Destination Properties entered the Las Vegas market several years ago with its Lake Las Vegas resort communities. It was the positive feedback from that project that in part spurred the company to pursue further opportunities in the valley, Julin said. Centex Homes, a large Las Vegas home­builder, has built homes in Las Vegas since 1952. Centex Destination Properties has essentially made bookends of Las Vegas Boulevard - with its Urban Village at the south and the Westward Ho at the north. Centex Destination Properties in September, together with Gary Tharaldson, created a limited liability company to acquire the Westward Ho hotel and casino. Details on redevelopment of the site have not been released. Tharaldson was the original financier for Diversified Real Estate Group for the Urban Village Las Vegas concept. Urban Village Las Vegas is helping define Centex Destination Properties' direction, Paul Stashick, president of the West Division of Centex Destination Properties, said in a statement. "We plan to take this concept to addi­ tional markets and create similar villages that reflect the unique qualities of other cities," Stashick said in the statement. In other news: • Del American, the development company that was sued for changing its pricing structure on the under-construction Vegas Grand, has announced new plans for its previously announced condominium at Flamingo Road and Hugh Hefner Drive, near the Palms. Now called Las Vegas 888 (previously called Las Vegas One), the planned 50-story tower is now in the reservation stage. Condominiums at Las Vegas 888 are priced from $750,000 to more than $10 million. • Wright Engineers is under construction with an office building at Buffalo Drive and Peak to accommodate its expanding workforce. The 16,000-square-foot building will be located next door to its existing building, which will continue to house its structural and engineering departments. The new building will accommodate the company's expanding civil engineering department and surveying division. "The Las Vegas construction market has been unbelievable and we have been fortunate as a company to ride the wave of this phenomenal growth," said Brent Wright, president and chief executive of Wright Engineers. "This additional office will help us to better serve our clients and accommodate our continued growth." The move-in date for the new building, which Wright Engineers has purchased, is July. • Las Vegas-based Slade Development re­ cently announced its plans for Vantage Lofts, planned for the southwest corner of Gibson Road and Paseo Verde Parkway in Hender­ son. Vantage Lofts is planned for construction in three phases. Phase one will encompass 110 units and has an expected completion date in the fourth quarter of 2006. Construc­ tion of phase two is scheduled to begin the second quarter of 2006. Slade Development, which has built and sold custom homes in the past, is the developer and design builder. Metropolitan Realty is the development's broker. The development consists of one-and two-bedroom flats, town homes and two-story lofts ranging in size from 1,000 to 2,600 square feet. The project will be terraced into the hills with glass walls that will give views of the city and the mountains, the developer said. • Sunvest Communities USA LLC bought three Las Vegas apartment properties totaling 836 units for a total cost of $103 million. The company's Las Vegas portfolio already includes the Latigo and Desert Shore Villas properties, both condo conversions. Sunvest bought the 180-unit Southgate, 2615 W. Gary Ave., in Las Vegas from St. James Las Vegas LLC for $21.6 million. The lender is Key Bank National. The company also purchased Traverse Point, a 296-unit property at 45 Maleena Mesa St. in Henderson, from Traverse Point Apartments LLC for $39.96 million. The Lender is JP Morgan Chase Bank NA. It also bought Pinehurst Apartments, 6650 Warm Springs Road in Las Vegas from Pine­ hurst Apartments LLC for $42 million for 360 units. The lender is JP Morgan Chase Bank NA. Jennifer Shubinski covers real estate and development for In Business Las Vegas and its sister publication, the Las Vegas Sun. She can be reached at (702) 259-8832 or by e- mail at js@lasvegassun.com. IBLV Homepage Click here for problems or questions. Read our policy on privacy and cookies. Advertise on Vegas.com. Work for Vegas.com. All contents © 1998 - 2005 Vegas.com The Most Visited Place on Earth