Protect Your Home From Freeze Damage
January 15, 2012 by Laura Duggan · Leave a Comment
Prepare your home to prevent damage to water pipes and landscaping.
Drip all indoor and outdoor faucets before the cold snap hits. Wrap exposed pipes. Open the door to utitlity rooms that have an exterior wall so that the heat of the house keeps connections from freezing. Turn thermostats to the 60’s in buildings that are vacant.
Water lawns and flower beds thoroughly before the temperatures fall. Watering will help protect the plants from freezing. Add some protective mulch around bedding plants. A protective covering that resembles cloth can be purchased from Home Depot to cover sensitive plants. Plastic will not give the protection delicate plants need. Secure the covering with rocks or stakes since most of the fronts come in with strong winds. Taking a little precautionary action can protect your home and your garden.
New Year's Day Good Luck Tradition
January 1, 2012 by Laura Duggan · Leave a Comment
Eating black eyed peas on New Year’s Day is essential for anyone in the South. No one in my family would even consider skipping this southern tradition for fear of having the promise of luck and prosperity that comes with this almost religious experience elude them. The black eyed pea, really a legume and not a pea, symbolizes good luck and prosperity for those that eat them on the first day of the new year. Dating back to Civil War days, legend has it that the fields were planted with black eyed peas to feed livestock and nourish the slaves. When Sherman’s troops marched through the South burning fields and confiscating crops, they left the fields of black eyed peas untouched giving the surviving Confederates a source of food to survive. Often eaten with turnip greens or collard greens, symbolic of green cash or dollars, the black eyed pea represents the coin. Legend also has it that eating cornbread, another tasty companion dish, fortells the the arrival of gold in the new year. Add stewed tomatoes to the black eyed peas and you get a promise of health with the impending prosperity.
Black eyed peas are also nutritious because they are low in fat (if you don’t cook them with pork, bacon or ham bone found in so many recipes). They have no cholesterol and they are low in sodium and high in potassium, iron and fiber.
I have cooked black eyed peas every way you can cook them. I have added a ham bone and cubed ham to the lot; cooked them with bacon and chicken broth; added chopped onion, garlic and tomatoes then served them over rice. But, several years ago, I figured out the perfect recipe, and it has become a family favorite both for flavor and because there is no fat added.
Laura’s New Year’s Day Black Eyed Peas
Take two packages of fresh or one package of dried black eyed peas and wash them thoroughly. Add water according to the directions on the package. Add one jar of Rose’s Just Right Red Salsa and cook until peas are soft and ready to serve.
If you don’t have access to Rose’s Just Right Red Salsa, the award winning Austin salsa that is made fresh from scratch every day and found in the cold section of the grocery usually by the milk and eggs, you can create your own. Mix two large fresh tomatoes chopped, tomato puree and salt. Add a handful of chopped fresh cilantro, chopped green onions, several cloves of minced fresh garlic, fresh Serrano pepper, fresh lime juice, extra virgin olive oil and sea salt. Mix together. The real secret ingredient to this salsa? Gobs of fresh, chopped cilantro! Eat and prosper!
Happy New Year to All!
Prosperity, Health and Peace in 2012!
As always, thanks for thinking of me when you need real estate services in the Austin area. There has never been a better time to purchase real estate. Prices are great and interest rates are at an all time low below 4%. There are some great neighborhoods to choose from. Please call me today if I can be of service. My direct line is 512-750-2425. Austin remains a great place to live and to invest!
Austin Ranks One of Best Performing Cities
December 19, 2011 by Laura Duggan · Leave a Comment
Once again, Austin is setting records. Austin ranked 4th out of 200 large cities in the Milken Institute’s annual survey of Best-Performing Cities. Austin has consistently ranked well in this prestigious survey having ranked number 2 in 2010 and number 1 in 2009. The Best Performing Cities index includes both long-term (five years) and short-term (one year) measurements of employment and salary growth. There are also four measurements of technology output growth, which are included because of technology’s crucial role in creating good jobs and driving regional economies. Leaders in this year’s index, which ranks U.S. cities based on their ability to create and sustain jobs, are cities that most benefited from renewed investment in business equipment; have diversified technology bases, which also drive growth in business and professional services; are exposed to America’s booming energy sector; and are home to a large military presence.
Texas competed well with San Antonio coming in first out of large metro areas, and Houston ranking first among the 10 biggest metros. In fact, Texas metros occupied four of the Top 5 positions (vs. three last year), and nine of the Top 25 (vs.11 in 2010).
The Milken report stated:
“For the five-year period ending in 2010, Austin had the third-fasted job growth in the nation. It is the largest metro to exceed its peak level of employment prior to the recession. Given its concentration in chips and computers, both volatile industries, the region’s economic stability is remarkable. The University of Texas, Austin, and the state capital have helped insulate Austin from the national economic contractions. Austin is a center of semiconductor production. After weathering a collapse in demand, Samsung Austin Semiconductor (SAS) is expanding its huge fabrication facility. An incremental $3.6 billion investment is under way, bringing it total investment in the Austin area to 9.2 billion. The facility is expected to create 7,600 jobs directly and indirectly, $296 million in wages annually, and 1.4 billion in total local economic activity per year. In addition, eBay is expanding its Austin office, and the city is attracting some operations from Facebook.
Based in Round Rock, Dell is the largest technology employer in the metro area with more than 14,000 employees. It is investing heavily in data centers and rapidly adding high-skilled employees. IBM, Freescale Semiconductor, AT&T Computer, National Instruments, and AMD are major employers in the region as well.
Retail and housing markets are recovering, thanks to job and wage gains at these tech employers. Due to an influx of new residents, housing prices barely slipped during the recession. Austin has one of the most educated populations in the country; over 37 percent of adults have at least a bachelor’s degree.” Inventory in the housing market in Austin is the lowest its been in 6 years
The Milken index ranks 379 metropolitan areas, grouped into large (population of more than 200,000) and small (population of less than 200,000) metros.
The 2011 top 10 performers (with 2010 rankings) of the 200 largest metros:
1. San Antonio, TX (14)
2. El Paso, TX (9)
3. Fort Collins- Loveland, CO (50)
4. Austin-Round Rock, TX (2)
5. Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood, TX (1)
6. Salt Lake City, UT (49)
7. Anchorage, AK (8)
8. Huntsville, AL (3)
9. Provo-Orem, UT (25)
10. Kennewick-Richland-Pasco Wa. (5)
It’s no wonder people continue to move to the Austin area. For a detailed look at Austin housing statistics, take a look at our monthly Advanced Real Estate Market Report.
