Fort Worth, TX

I had a call from the realtor who sold me my house the other day. I had given her a complimentary consultation to thank her for referring me to her office.

Her clients are in the middle of remodeling a home they purchased with her. She said they needed help getting to the next step and asked if I could help. Well I've done a few renovations along with my home staging and I feel very confident about sharing ideas for design that will translate into a better investment.

So.... picture a home custom designed in the 60s whose main living space is taken right from the plaza in Santa Fe complete with corbels and artificial windows inside the 20' high room. Around the perimeter of the room the ceiling drops to 9' and is supported by spanish style beams. The piece de resistance was a fish pond smack in the middle of it all which they have concreted over. Where do I begin? It was obvious this required a little more architectural vision than I expected.

So I have been scouring the internet looking for home design software that I could use to translate the changes or suggestions I made into a 3D vision they could "see". What else can you do on a rainy Black Friday if you don't like shopping with thousands of your closest friends? ;)

Well here are my findings and I hope it helps anyone else who has ever thought about using software to plan interior space. It's one step away from virtual staging (I don't advocate that) but light years from your basic furniture planner. Although I consider myself computer literate, CAD is in a category of its own. A lot of these program reviews talked about a steep learning curve. No thanks. To add to the challenge I use a MacBook Pro and there's not a lot of options out there.

This is a nice round up of most of the options along with reviews:
Consumer Research Best Home Design Software

HGTV's propriety program - couldn't find this reviewed anywhere but is inexpensive.
HGTV Home Design & Remodeling Suite starts at $49.99 and is only for PC.

The answer to the question what does Barry use from HGTVs message board:
"Does anyone know what software program that Barry Wood uses on the show Hidden Potential? Does anyone know how much it cost to purchase?"

"Autodesk 3ds Max
It's about $2,000 for the software.
If you are looking for a less expensive alternative, consider Punch."

They are referring to Punch Home Design Studio.
Punch Software

Also the Autodesk program does NOT run on a Mac (even though Barry is shown using a MacBook Pro, the only way he could would be to run Windows on the Mac, which is possible)

Another alternative I found is a program called Live Interior 3D Standard for Mac which is available for free trial download. I've been playing around with this and its fairly easy to use but has some limitations for room designing. For example that dropped ceiling? Still waiting to hear if its possible from support.
Live Interior 3D

Another alternative is Google SketchUp which is also free and available for Windows and Mac OSX 10.4+. This looks promising although I haven't had a chance to dig around in it yet.
Google SketchUp

I'm still trying to decide if I want to spend this much time on the computer. After all one of the reasons I chose home staging was the lure of getting to design and create in real time instead of on a flat screen!

I'd love to hear from anyone who has used any of these programs. You can do everything from simply add a new paint color to the walls or create workable blueprints. There are also some web based solutions which are pretty basic but may do the trick.

It is so interesting what a difference changing the location can make in pricing. The home below is a four bedroom, two bath single story home in a brand new neighborhood that has only been open for about three weeks.

I received a call last week from a young couple who are interested in a home of this size... around 2000 sf. They told me they are open to pricing from the 140's up to around the high 150's.

There are many builders in the greater Alliance Corridor area of northern Fort Worth... and many of them have similar homes with similar square footages and in similar price ranges. One of my main efforts in concentrating in New Home Sales... is to know the New Home Market inside out, upside down, forwards and backwards. I think you get the idea !

I am meeting with a very nice young couple tomorrow... Sunday... around noon. I will do my absolute best to find the the most home for the money. Now... it is always easy to drop down in quality... and find a less expensive home. Anyone can do that.

The trick here is to find homes of comparable quality... with similar features... in neighborhoods with similar amenity packages. Different builders present there products in different ways. Some are more into selling more homes per month... and making less on each home. Other builders... sometimes called "margin" builders... are more comfortable in selling just a few homes per location per month... but want their profit margins on each of those homes to be as high as possible.

These are different builders... from different schools of thought. My job... my goal... is to find my buyers the best home for the money... with the most features... and in neighborhoods with comparable amenities.

The last thing I look for... is perhaps one of the most important. I know that in three to five years... these folks may be wanting to move again.

It is my duty... no... more of an absolute obligation... to try and put my buyers in the best resale position possible. Obviously, I cannot predict the future... but it's my obligation above all... to set my buyers... my clients... up for future success.

If you are in the market for a new home, and are ready to go from "Just Looking" to "Let's Get Serious"... call the New Home Hotline at (817) 929-3400 today !

FORT WORTH Foreclosures - City officials are addressing the housing meltdown, with a plan to use $6.2 million in federal funds to help people buy foreclosed homes in areas that have been hit the hardest.

Targeted areas are mainly outside Loop 820, which saw a lot of development in recent years.

The City Council is scheduled to vote on a spending plan during today's meeting. Several other area cities received similar funds, as did Tarrant County.

Unlike some other local governments, which want to buy foreclosed homes outright, Fort Worth plans to loan the money in $20,000 increments. Buyers will be able to use the funds for down payments, closing costs and repairs.

The city's goal is to get more property into the hands of homeowners.

If the borrowers stay in the home for five years, the city can forgive the loan.

About half the money is targeted at low-income families (less than $32,300 for four people), and the rest at people making up to 120 percent of the area median ($77,500).

The money will provide about 280 loans. Fort Worth had 3,780 foreclosures from September 2007 to October 2008.

The Housing and Community Development Department has recommended that the loans be concentrated in seven ZIP codes 76123,76133,76112,76179,76131,76137, and 76248 generally in newer areas outside Loop 820, which accounted for 49 percent of the foreclosures in the last year.

For example, ZIP code 76248, which is bounded by Interstate 35W, North Tarrant Parkway and Alliance Gateway, had 341 foreclosures.

According to the city, the homes are middle class, with an average size of 1,909 square feet and an average value of $120,000.

Fort Worth Foreclosures

This weekend... especially Friday and Saturday, Many of Our Children will be wearing all of their wonderfully decorative and imaginative Halloween Outfits. There will be parties, both at school, and at their friend's homes.

Additionally, many of our kids will be outside... walking door-to-door ringing doorbells and yelling Trick-Or-Treat. Although my own daughter is now thirty-six years old, and lives about sixty miles away, I cannot help but remember all the cute costumes and outfits that we made up for her to wear for those fun evenings.

It will be very dark outside while they are having their Halloween fun. They will also be so excited... being with all of their friends... and many of them will be wearing masks... which, of course, makes it much harder for them to see.

So Please, during this Silly Season of Fun... if you can, go out with them as they do their Trick-or-Treating. Watch over them. And, if you are out driving... they will often be careless and run into the street, not watching for oncoming cars. Be Alert ! Be On The Look-Out For Them. They are so very precious to us !

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Karen Anne Stone and her cat Mollie T. will not be out Trick-Or-Treating. But, if you wish to see some of the wonderful homes being marketed by Ms Stone, please visit her website at www.NewHomeHuntersDFW.com . Or, call the New Home Hotline at (817) 929-3400.