The Chattanooga Market had a first last Sunday with its Beast Feast BBQ Cookoff. Some of the best BBQ chefs in the area set up shop. Despite the weather, the crowds came and stood in line to taste the best. We could buy a plate or a ticket to sample all.
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The crowd gathers to taste the best of the best BBQ in Chattanooga. |
The categories and results were:
People’s Choice
v Southern Smokehouse
v Hillbilly Willy’s BBQ & Catering
v Big Ben’s BBQ
Best Chicken
v Hillbilly Willy’s BBQ & Catering
v Moss Place BBQ &Catering
v Lockhart’s Fire & Smoke BBQ
Best Beef
v Hillbilly Willy’s BBQ & Catering
v Southern Smokehouse
v Kenny’s smokehouse BBQ
Cooking at the Beast Feast
Best Pork
v Kenny’s Smokehouse BBQ
v Hillybilly Willy’s BBQ & Catering
v Dixie BBQ
Best Beast
v Hoss’s (Almost Famous) BBQ by Terry
v Kenny’s Smokehouse BBQ
v Southern Smokehouse
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And strawberries are in season at the Market |
Always great music |
This Sunday is Big Band Day. As part of the EPB CFL Day Electric Power Board (EPB) will give away 3,000 free CFL (compact fluorescent light bulbs) bulbs. You can also return used CFL bulbs. Also come and learn from the Master Gardeners of Hamilton County "to give you the "dirt" on gardening and answer any questions you may have about your plants and gardens at home."
It is great to live in Chattanooga.
The tax credit down payment is back. Well maybe not so much.
HUD announced today the details of the "new" program that have been much anticipated and in the news recently with a lot of false information. I expect that today's announcement will add to the dissemination of false information.
The policy allows certain entities to offer tax credit advances with second liens. This is the approach already taken by THDA for Tennessee purchases. Other states have similar programs.
The purchaser may not receive cash back as a result of the tax credit advance.
The second lien may not exceed the total amount needed by the borrower for down payment, closing costs, or prepaid escrows.
As an alternative to a tax credit second mortgage, approved entities may PURCHASE the anticipated tax credit refund.
More information is available in the reissued Mortgagee Letter 09-15.
News articles are already out on this HUD announcement, but in actuality I cannot find very much in the mortgagee letter that is new. There seems to be more in the headlines than in the details.
Maybe someone else can find more. It looks to me like the last paragraph in the announcement is almost a threat. "FHA will monitor the purchase of tax credit transactions closely." The primary concerns are overcharges for the tax credit advances and use of this program by entities involved in the transaction. This last is a nod to the former seller funded down payment programs that were discontinued this past fall.
Over the Memorial Day weekend Chattanooga was treated to a folk art festival. The third annual Who-Fest was held in Chattanooga. Despite some weather, dozens of folk artists set up shop and a good crowd came out to see their work.
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Crowds along one of the walks of artists tents |
The festival brought talented artists from all over. There was a great variety of art forms, from painting and sculpture to hand crafts and glass blowing. All amazing.
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Kimberly Dawn was one of the many fabulous artists who displayed their work. Kimberly is also an established illustrator of children's books. Percy Porcupine and No More Handprints are two of her books. |
Music variety was also provided for the crowd who wanted to set on the open grassy Hill Overlook at Renaissance Park.
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Crowd sitting on hill overlook, listening to live music |
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Art appreciation includes free bongo lessons |
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Wildflowers along walk to the art festival |
An added feature was the location. Renaissance Park is an example of Chattanooga's commitment to renewal and a tribute to its past. The park is open and grassy. The site of Who-Fest very appropriately overlooks the Renaissance Wetland, a 1.5 acre man-made, natural water filtration site.
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Renaissance Wetlands |
Nightfall is one the treats of living in Chattanooga.
It is a free, summer, outdoor concert series
The opening night performance this year was last Friday. There was a large crowd, and everyone had fun.
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Dexter Thomas Band at Nightfall 09 |
The lead off band was Dexter Thomas Band. They played some rock and roll standards. The singers were outstanding. Kept waiting for India Galyean, the female vocalist, to break out something from Janis Joplin. She has that kind of voice. They did not, but maybe they will read this and next time....
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Lil' Malcolm & The House Rockers at Nightfall 09 |
Friday's headliner was Lil' Malcolm & The House Rockers. They brought a zydeco funk rock sound all the way from St Charles, LA. They really played to the crowd and had the whole place dancing real quick.
The Chattanooga Downtown Partnership sponsors the series. The Downtown Partnership was formed to develop and encourage programs that make the Chattanooga down town area attractive and fun for business and for the public.
This Friday Nightfall brings the NimNims and the headliner band, Nation Beat.
Recent reports are being viewed as pointing to a general housing recovery, or at least to reaching the bottom. The most recent is the RPX monthly survey.
This seems to be some economic spin, most recently reflected in this morning's JUMP in Consumer Confidence. Last month we had a surprising increase. This morning we had a shocking increase.
This rise in Consumer Confidence must be balanced with the home price decline, increasing unemployment, and the growing list of bank closures.
From last week's RPX report, several news accounts reported that the housing market is showing signs of stabilizing from its freefall in 2008. The report gives a composite index of home prices from 25 larger MSA's. The report gave this summary, "The Composite declined only 0.3 percent on a month-over-month basis in both February and March 2009, which compares favorably to the 1.2 percent and 0.9 percent declines in February and March 2008."
(RPX stands for Radar Logic monthly report the Residential Property IndexTM (RPXTM).)
(MSA stands for Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is based on census data and is used, among other purposes, as the basis for establishing lending parameters such as maximum loan amounts and median income for some mortgage programs.)
This report shows that 13 of the 25 larger MSA's all had price increases from February to March 2009. Most looked at this as partially a result of seasonal changes, but it was considered to be a positive sign.
The report data though still shows consistent declines in Year over Year results. Each of the 25 MSA's showed price declines from March 2008 to March 2009. Additional concerns seem real that the growing unemployment figures will point to even more foreclosures causing increased inventories and price pressure.
Today additional information came out from the Case Schiller index. The index reports a "staggering 32.2%" decline since the housing market began its fall. The most recent quarter showed "a 19.1% decline compared to the first quarter of 2008, marking the steepest fall ever in the 21-year history of the index."
This chart is from the Case-Shiller HPI showing percentage declines. Projections seem to indicate continued national declines with pressures from foreclosures and continuing loss of qualified buyers from unemployment and tightened requirements for all lending programs.
Chattanooga has not been immune to price declines. With the median price dropping over 8%.
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The right Home Loan for you. American Acceptance Mortgage. Chattanooga, TN. Conventional and government home loans and mortgages in Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama. Purchase, refinance, renovation.
Home purchases and home refinances for Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama. The right real estate loan for you. That is 
what American Acceptance Mortgage is all about. Each mortgage loan officer at American Acceptance is focused on providing the service you need. I have over 20 years experience as a mortgage loan officer. We have been making mortgage loans in Chattanooga, TN since 1994.
We know real estate finance. And we provide top service to each locality in our 3 state service area of Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama.
Purchase Loans - We offer loans designed to keep your down payment low. These include conventional, FHA, VA, and Rural Development loans. We participate in the FHA approved down payment assistance programs and other nonprofit grant programs. By offering loan programs from several top national lenders, you can be sure that you can get the best approval terms around. Our promise is to get you to the closing table on time and with no surprises. We have real estate agent contacts in every area and can recommend agents that provide you with excellent service.
Refinance Loans - Understanding your refinance objectives is critical to obtaining just the right loan terms. Making certain that your goals are achievable before we even begin the process saves time and money. Working with me means that you will be fully informed at each step of the process.
Construction Permanent - With builders finding construction lines getting tight, experienced construction permanent lending is needed to get you your new custom home. We offer construction permanent loans through 5 different national lenders. This means that you get to choose the best options for you - fees, draws, construction interest, permanent lock in terms.
FHA Renovation - In today's market, you may find that a renovating your home is a good option. With an FHA renovation loan you get excellent terms. Also the FHA loan amount calculations typically allow you to receive more money for your renovations, meaning that you may very well get all the work you want.
If you are interested in a government loan, FHA, VA, or Rural Development, go to an experience lender. We have offered government loans since 1994. Our lender relationships and experience will make a difference for you. We close many loans that others cannot.
We are experienced with HUD foreclosures, and working with other foreclosure companies.
Relocation is made smooth with our local contacts and use of internet technology - secure online applications, toll free fax number, secure website user accounts, daily status reports, and the informative lock recommendation. Your move will be the happy experience it should be, because you will not be worrying over the financing of your new home.
Local focus - you can find ready resources to learn about the local communities in our service area.
Credit repair - You will not find better credit consultation anywhere. If you need professional assistance to repair your credit, you will know exactly what they need to do for you. For the most part you and I can work through credit issues. We even offer a service to help you build a credit file from scratch.
American Acceptance Mortgage, Inc
Home Office
I am active with the Red Bank Lions club and have served serveral terms on the board of my church, the Chattanooga Community Kitchen, and the Episcopal Commission of South East Tennessee. I am active with the Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce, and serve proudly as one of their ambassadors.
Currently, I am a committee chair with the Women's Council of Realtors, a member of the Chattanooga Association of Realtors, the Home Builders Association of Southern Tennessee, the mortgage brokers association,and the mortgage bankers association.
My goal is to WOW you.
We specialize in FHA, VA, and Rural Development mortgage loan programs. We offer these programs along with the traditional conventional mortgage programs. We are experienced FHA lenders, with proven results in credit repair and credit building. We take pride in serving our customers and have developed excellent reputations and relationships with our lender partners.
My real estate agents know they receive my full commitment and the commitment of my staff. I stay fully accessible. I return phone calls. I tell the truth. My clients and partners are kept fully informed of the status. My experience both as a mortgage loan officer and as a mortgage lender helps me to identify potential loan approval issues early in the process. This allows my clients to have right expectations about their home financing transaction. I know the financial goals of my clients and work hard to develop a lasting relationship with them.
Recently I have become involved with the Chattanooga Office of Multi Cultural Affairs. This is a group of local 
professionals from government, private, and industry entities who are working to educate consumers and businesses about discrimination and minority opportunity. I am very excited about this effort as a way to increase home ownership potential in Chattanooga.
Credit repair and credit building have become increasingly important in today's market. We have demonstrated results for many of our clients in helping them improve their credit histories without using for fee credit repair companies. In fact, we have been helping our customers with their credit for several years. In today's market, good credit management can have a significant impact on loan approval and loan terms. We are credit management experts, and we take the time to review, explain, evaluate, and advise.
FHA home loans have always been a specialty of our company. Even when FHA was losing market share to subprime and Alt A mortgages, we were closing FHA mortgage loans. Other brokers steered borrowers into subprime loans. We worked with borrowers to get an FHA home loan approved. We gained considerable processing experience with the art of manual underwriting and full documentation. Processing can make all the difference in getting a loan approved.
We are closing FHA loans that other lenders cannot. We prove that every day.
We put technology to work for you. This makes your loan process smooth. You know the status. You have the information. You can make the informed decision. Lending is local. We use technology to give you local service - right where you are.
"Richard is a professional and I would recommend him to anyone needing sound advice about their mortgage." BH Chattanooga, TN
"This is my first purchase. We just had a baby last year. And we are so excited. Richard has keep us informed of the status with daily emails. He always makes sure that we know what to expect next. On top of that, during the loan, my wallet was stolen. Richard came in over the weekend to help with all things I needed to do about indentity theft and to notify the charge card companies and the credit bureaus. He really helped." CK East Ridge, TN.
"My loan went well, really quickly. But there was a problem with the lender taking the appraisal. Richard stayed in touch continuously. I always new what was next. He worked with the realtor and with the appraiser and got the loan done. Even going to another lender, he kept my rate and still closed quickly. " RH Chattanooga, TN
"Richard is one of the most professional and knowledgeable broker/bankers I have had the pleasure of working with, it is refreshing to see his commitment and dedication to our industry." ST Nashville, TN
"I needed to purchase the salon where I worked. It was a great opportunity. Richard told me what needed to be done, but another lender kept making promises. Those promises were never kept. Richard was patient. He told me to keep working with the other company as long as I thought things were going to go through. He would keep my loan ready if I needed it. Well, I needed it. Now I have my salon and it is going well. Richard knew how to get it through." Cleveland
"Richard has been great to work with. I love it when my clients take charge of their advertising campaigns and want to be personally involved to really make it their own. He worked hard to personalize his commercial and has worked to keep his website up-to-date. Thanks Richard for making it easy to work with you and being a man of integrity. If you're interested in making your dreams come true and having financial freedom, Richard is the man to talk to to!" GH Chattanooga, TN
"Richard works hard for my buyers. I know that. He calls me before I call him most of the time. I love the daily updates. He sends weekly articles about changes and other news. I really feel like I know the status. And when something comes up, I know he is giving me the right information. That really is important to me." LP, Chattanooga
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