About Guadalupe County, TX

I rushed out and took this photo from my deck a couple of weeks ago. I can't remember whether it was a sunrise or a sunset. I just recall that the light was incredible: a pink glow that suffused the sky for only a minute before the light changed. What do you think? Was it a sunrise or a sunset? How can you tell?

It's kinda cute!

At least, it looks like a fuzzy mosquito to me. It hopped up and down in the air like a flea several times before zeroing in on a different aster flower. It hunched over the flowers just like mosquitos on my arms/legs/neck/ankles always do.

Doesn't it look like a mosquito to you? But it sips like a bee, hops like a flea, I'm sounding like Ali....

If you know what it is, I'd like to find out. Also, check out the mysterious Gray Spotted Bee. I haven't gotten a positive ID on it yet.

With the state of affairs and the markets, Topsy turvey attitude, now's a troubling but thought provoking time. You have to make the decision.....are my financing and state of affairs in place? Have I been "floating along" making minimum payments and just going with the flow? And now you find it's the time to buy, and sell actually!!

The stock market has made a many people realize that the "get rich" scheme can come to a halt too fast for anyone's liking. And now, your home's lost this "ghost" equity!!! What is going on?? (if you bought the home 2 years ago....)

The great thing about the housing market is, it always stabilizes after an exaggerated bubble. What's an exaggerated bubble? Well when the market climbs all things climb with it. Because, and thank God, the housing industry is not regulated by the stock market, when good times go with stocks, the housing market reciprocates from it. When the market takes a plunge....housing drops, but it doesn't die.

Interest rates drop, inventory grows and all that couldn't buy in the past can....... That's the way it works. You have to survive the downs, in order to benefit from the ups. If you listen to the news, no one has equity in their homes and can never sale! I beg to differ. www.fabailey.comfind out what your market is doing, here in Bexar and Guadalupe county, I bet you will be shocked, that we are bucking the news trend.

You ActiveRainers must have been doing your best rain dance. Finally, after two spectacular thunderstorms in the last few days that were entertaining, but disappointingly did not bring any rain, the one last night did. It was wonderful.

We still need lots of rain, though. The drought affecting San Antonio and South Texas for almost two years is either the second-worst or the worst in recorded weather history. Here is the scary map from the US Drought Monitor website:

It doesn't help that there have been two solid months of 100-plus-degree days, and it seems to have been unusually windy this year. All the farmers and ranchers in South Texas have it really bad.

I made a list of all the plants we're going to have to let go, along with our grass, and those we'll continue to water by hand. These include a lot of shrubs and small trees we planted in the spring. We've already lost one mature redbud tree, as well as a fig and a pear as well as a lot of beautiful gingers and other flowering perennials. I don't want any more of our trees to die!

La Nina is the weather cycle to blame. I am praying for the return of Greg Nino's cousin, El, to bring the rain back to South Texas.

Hello future home buyer, it's been a while since I've been on Activerain. I've been making future home buyers of your peers. Here's something I give to them during our initial meeting and thought I would share it.

Things you should do and be aware of when you're buying a home:

•- Your agent! nothing is more valuable when your shopping for your home than a great agent who is working on YOUR behalf

•- A Notebook! You should really jot down key detailed notes of each property you visit. This is crucial, if you visit more than 4 properties in one day they will all blend together

•- Mental measurements! When viewing a potential home, you should visualize how your furniture, or that cute little table you seen at Ashley furniture you've been wanting to buy is going to fit in your new home. TV's pool tables, jukebox etc....

•- An open mind! You never want to rule out a potential gem home for the sake of something that you feel is not really a deal breaker, (use your best judgment)

•- Pre-Approval! This is your best approach for your homebuying needs. Why get disappointed looking at the 300k home when you know you only want to spend 200k (be fair to yourself)

•- A list/criteria. Sort of blends into the open mind above; San Antonio has a vast and great opportunity for great purchase now homes. Your choices WILL be overwhelming; why not create a must have list and a I want list to give you a focused goal. Your want list can be something we'll find for you when you're ready for your move up home, in a few years.

•- Your best Texas hold'em face! If the buyer's are present, they don't need to know you FELL HEAD OVER HEALS for their homes, it'll make them feel you do anything to get the house, and kill any bargaining tools we may want to present.

These are things that I feel will aid us in finding you the dream home you want. As your buyers agent I owe you the duty to take care of you, and nothing is greater than handing you the keys to your new home!

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