Building a home with and buying other item made with ALL AMERICAN MADE PRODUCTS. I have watched interviews, videos, and research this on my own as well. Not only are the the products better, they are also either the same cost or cheaper in some cases. If we would just buy American made and support our own country by 5% more than we do now it woul make a HUGH difference. and yes before now i never asked or even looked to see if it was made in America.

Figures i found show that if every family in the United State would reallocate 5% of their spending to a products made in America, that would translate to roughly 3 Million jobs. Do you know anyone looking for a job right now?

The United States on average builds about 1.4 million homes each year and the construction cost is around $280 Billion. Now if the builders would reallocate just 5% of their purchases to Amaerican made products that would roughly add $10 Billion to the American GDP. and we have not even looked at the Heavy constrcution industry or other major industries or even the companies we all work for.

If this interests you at all please watch the video below – i hope we can make a difference for ourslves and our children.

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OKAY – I know this article does not have any Political Substance. However maybe it will make us all think just a little more about that 2012 elections and who mwe want to lead our country back into prosperity. Have fun reading this re-post of Mr. Will’s Blog and let your mind drift a bit and think about who you will be supporting this election and why. Please don’t just vote for your you think your friends and family say they are voting for get engage in the process America and let’s all make a difference. Let’s show the politicians who really has the the power ” The American Voters – The People”

An economics professor at a local college made a statement that he had never failed a single student before, but had recently failed an entire class. That class had insisted that Obama’s socialism worked and that no one would be poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer.
The professor then said, “OK, we will have an experiment in this class on Obama’s plan”. All grades will be averaged and everyone will receive the same grade so no one will fail and no one will receive an A…. (substituting grades for dollars – something closer to home and more readily understood by all).
After the first test, the grades were averaged and everyone got a B. The students who studied hard were upset and the students who studied little were happy. As the second test rolled around, the students who studied little had studied even less and the ones who studied hard decided they wanted a free ride too so they studied little..
The second test average was a D! No one was happy. When the 3rd test rolled around, the average was an F. As the tests proceeded, the scores never increased as bickering, blame and name-calling all resulted in hard feelings and no one would study for the benefit of anyone else. To their great surprise, ALL FAILED and the professor told them that socialism would also ultimately fail because when the reward is great, the effort to succeed is great, but when government takes all the reward away, no one will try or want to succeed. It could not be any simpler than that.
Remember, there IS a test coming up. The 2012 elections.

These are possibly the 5 best sentences you’ll ever read and all applicable to this experiment:
1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity by legislating the wealthy out of prosperity.
2. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.
3. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
4. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it!
5. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that is the beginning of the end of any nation.

Ed Will

Here are some tips how organize your home office:

Find the Best location: Make sure you have suitable Place and Space  to serve solely as your home office.

Suitable Furniture. Make sure you have the proper chair, desk and writing table for your needs. A sore back, shoulders and legs will delay your work.

Remove theClutter.  Don’t allow STUFF to migrating into your home office that will distract you from your work.

Bundle your cables and wiring. Tangled Cables and wires in your office trap dust balls, they make you look disorganized and they snag your feet. They also make it very frustrating when moving or replacing equipment.

 wireless. Okay, we are organized at floor level how about the top of your desk. Wireless keyboards and mouse give you more work are and freedom..

printer table. A small table for your printer is a great idea. It keeps that desk usable and free from clutter.

Lighting. Good lighting prevents eye strain and when you are already tired this is a must and inexpensive.
Sort & Orginize. shred the files and paper you don’t need and lable the files properly for the one we do need to keep.  We all sort through stacks looking for that one piece of paper.

Stay tidy. At the end of the day / night straighten up your desk – it will only take a few minutes. What difference it will make the next time you use it.

1.  Find the right representative

Even if you’re not quite ready to buy, your buyer’s agent can be an absolute wealth of information, and can often offer ‘scoops’ on local developments you might not have know about otherwise.  Speak to your agent first and he or she can be helping to guide you right from the start.

2.  Find out what your price range is

Online mortgage calculators are a good place to start, but as you get closer to being ready to buy, there is no substitute for a written mortgage pre-approval.  Just speaking to your lender is an extremely worthwhile venture – this is the only way to really get an in-depth picture of your overall financial picture and to discover exactly what you can reasonably afford to spend on a home (and possibly on renovating).

3.  Find out what your local market looks like

The internet can be incredibly valuable in doing preparatory research.  Start with your agent – he or she can direct you to valuable resources and immediately start e-mailing you real estate listings that may interest you (or at least give you a better idea of what your needs and wants are).

4.  Find out what your true needs and wants are

Compose a needs/wants list that takes into consideration your local market conditions, your price range, and the advice of your real estate agent.

5.  Find your dream home!

Once you’re ready to act, you may be surprised by how quickly you can make a decision.  Armed with your pre-approval, a little market knowledge, and your needs/wants list, call your real estate agent, hit the pavement, and when you see ‘the house’, put in an offer.

With the right team behind you, it really can be that easy!

In the United States, a credit score is a number that is based on a statistical analysis of a person’s credit report, and is used to represent the creditworthiness of that person- the likelihood that the person will pay his or her debts. A credit score is primarily based on credit report information, typically from the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion). All credit scores are not the same because each bureau uses it’s own scoring mechanism.

Credit scores measure the risk of default by taking into account the various factors in a person’s financial history. Here is how these scores assess what is on your credit report.

1. Your payment history- about 35% of your score. Have you paid your credit accounts on time? Late payments, bankruptcies, and other negative items can hurt your credit score. But a solid record of on-time payments helps your score.

2. How much do you owe- about 30% of your score. The scores look at the amounts you owe on all your accounts, the number of accounts with balances, and how much of your available credit you are using. The more you owe compared to your credit limit, the lower your score will be.

3. Length of your credit history- about 15% of your score. A longer credit history will increase your score. However, you can get a high score with a short credit history if the rest of your credit report shows responsible credit management.

4. New credit- about 10% of your score. If you have recently applied for or opened new credit accounts, your credit score will weigh this fact against the rest of your credit history. The scores can distinguish between a search for a single loan and a search for many new credit lines, in part by the length of time over which inquiries occur. If you need a loan, do your rate shopping within a focused period of time, such as 30 days, to avoid lowering your score.

5. Other factors- about 10% of your score. Several minor factors also can influence your score. For example, having a mix of credit types on your credit report- credit cards, installment loans such as a mortgage or auto loan, personal lines of credit- is normal for people with longer credit histories and can add slightly to their scores.

Tips for building credit 1) Check your credit report. You’re entitled to a free annual look at your reports from annualcreditreport.com. 2) Establish a checking and savings account 3) Pay your bills on time. 4) Don’t max out your credit cards. Keep your balance no more than 30% of your credit limit. 5) Apply for credit when you are a college student. 6) Piggy back on someone else’s good credit. 7) Apply for a secured card. Get a store card. 9) Get an installment loan.

When using your credit cards- Keep balances low (no more than 30% of your credit limit). Don’t charge more than you can pay off in a month. You don’t have to pay interest on credit card to get good credit scores. It’s much smarter to pay off your credit cards in full each month. Use your card regularly. Make sure that you pay all your bills on time.

Patience and caution are important in this process. It takes time to establish credit . Most importantly, remember that credit actually represents real money and has to be repaid with interest.

1. On July 25, 2000, Governor Keating announced plans to construct a dome on the Oklahoma State Capitol Building. Construction is slated to begin April 2001 with an estimated completion date of November 2002.

2. The world’s first installed parking meter was in Oklahoma City, on July 16, 1935. Carl C. Magee, of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, is generally credited with originating the parking meter. He filed for a patent for a “coin controlled parking meter” on May 13, 1935.

3. Vinita is the oldest incorporated town on Oklahoma Route 66 being established in 1871. Vinita was the first town in Oklahoma to enjoy electricity. Originally named Downingville. The towns name was later changed to Vinita, in honor of Vinnie Ream, the sculptress who created the life-size statue of Lincoln at the United States Capitol.

4. During a tornado in Ponca City, a man and his wife were carried aloft in their house by a tornado. The walls and roof were blown away. But the floor remained intact and eventually glided downward, setting the couple safely back on the ground.

5. The Amateur Softball Association of America – a volunteer-driven, not-for-profit organization based in Oklahoma City, OK – was founded in 1933 and has evolved into the strongest softball organization in the country.

6. A statue entitled “Hopes and Dreams,” in downtown Perry was created by local sculptor Bill Bennett and placed there on a massive granite pedestal as a Cherokee Strip Centennial memorial. The statue portrays an early-day couple coming to the newly opened western frontier.

7. Turner Falls Park in Davis is the oldest park in Oklahoma. Many springs from the world famous Arbuckle Mountains form Honey Creek that cascades down a seventy-seven foot fall to a natural swimming pool making the majestic Turner Falls the largest waterfall in Oklahoma.

8. There is an operating oil well on state capitol grounds called Capitol Site No. 1.

9. Anadarko is home to the only authentic Indian City in the United States. It is located in the beautiful Washita river valley in southwest Oklahoma.

10. In 1998, a life size statue of a cattle drive, titled “On the Chisholm Trail,” was set in place in Duncan as a monument to the American Cowboy.

11. Phillip H. Sheridan, George A. Custer and William T. Sherman were the founders of the USA’s main artillery fort at Fort Sill.

12. Born in 1879 on a large ranch in the Cherokee Nation near what later would become Oologah, Oklahoma, Will Rogers was first an Indian, a cowboy then a national figure. Will Rogers was a star of Broadway and 71 movies of the 1920s and 1930s, a popular broadcaster and wrote more than 4,000 syndicated newspaper columns.

Easy Spring Cleaning

Behind the big stuff This is a great time to move the beds, sofas and other heavy furniture that you typically don’t bother with. Going one side at a time, pull the item away from the wall. Clean behind it and use the appropriate attachment on your vacuum to get the floor and baseboards. Push it back in, and pull out the other side to do the same.Get no-streak windows Definitely consider getting a microfiber cloth. They are relatively inexpensive and significantly cut down on elbow grease. Plus they are lint free and leave no streaks.

Tackle the bathroom Invest in a cleaning tool with a pivoting head and extendable handle. Use disposable cloths to get behind toilets, shower walls, tubs and more. Don’t forget to get rid of old cosmetics etc. from the medicine cabinet.

Get the nooks and crannies With the brush attachment on your vacuum, get the dust on window sills, door frames, heating vents and other often-forgotten-about places.

Window Exteriors Get a squeegee for windows, it’s worth the investment.

LANDSCAPING TIPS That Wow Buyers

1. Use decorative Architectural elements like a new mailbox, planted window boxes, and a low fence wrapped in vines to catch attention particularly during winter months when few plants are blooming. Colors should complement the landscape and home. Just don’t overdo it, Too much can seem like tacky lawn ornaments. 2. Add splashes of color with every changing season. A landscape should provide a new display of color, textures and fragrances. It is best to use one or two and repeat them. Example: white iceberg roses that bloom in spring, summer and fall as a backdrop, in front , a contrasting punch or purple salvia or lavender that will flower at the same time, as an accent a crape myrtle tree that provides changing leaf colors in fall and interesting branches during the winter. 3. Let them hear the water. The sound of water appeals to buyers, and you shouldn’t just reserve this for backyards. A small fountain accent with rocks provides a pleasant gurgling sound, blocks street noise and is affordable. 4. Maintain a perfect lawn. A very green lawn demonstrates tender loving care, so be sure your home doesn’t have brown spots. Some rocks, pebbles, boulders, drought tolerant plants and ornamental grasses will generate more kudos, especially in drought areas. 5. Light up the outside. Good illumination allows buyers to see the home at night and adds drama. Sellers should use low voltage lights to highlight branches of specimen trees, a front door, walk, and corners of the home. But less is better. The yard should not resemble an airport runway. 6. Size Trees and shrubs to scale. These should be planted in the right scale for the house so that they don’t block windows, doors, and other architectural features on the homes façade. A large two story home can handle a redwood, Chinese Pistache, sycamore or scarlet oak, but a single story cottage is better paired with a flowering cherry, crabapple or eastern redbud. Too many trees cast too much shadow and cause potential buyers to worry about maintenance and costs.

Understanding Capital Gains in Real Estate

When you sell a stock, you owe taxes on your gain — the difference between what you paid for the stock and what you sold it for. The same holds true when selling a home (or a second home), but there are some special considerations.

How to Calculate Gain In real estate, capital gains are based not on what you paid for the home, but on its adjusted cost basis. To calculate, follow these steps:

1. Purchase price: _______________________

The purchase price of the home is the sale price, not the amount of money you actually contributed at closing.

2. Total adjustments: _______________________

To calculate this, add the following: • Cost of the purchase — including transfer fees, attorney fees, and inspections, but not points you paid on your mortgage. • Cost of sale — including inspections, attorney fees, real estate commission, and money you spent to fix up your home just prior to sale. • Cost of improvements — including room additions, deck, etc. Note here that improvements do not include repairing or replacing something already there, such as putting on a new roof or buying a new furnace.

3. Your home’s adjusted cost basis: _______________________

The total of your purchase price and adjustments is the adjusted cost basis of your home.

4. Your capital gain: _______________________

Subtract the adjusted cost basis from the amount your home sells for to get your capital gain.

A Special Real Estate Exemption for Capital Gains Since 1997, up to $250,000 in capital gains ($500,000 for a married couple) on the sale of a home is exempt from taxation if you meet the following criteria:

• You have lived in the home as your principal residence for two out of the last five years.

• You have not sold or exchanged another home during the two years preceding the sale.

• You meet what the IRS calls “unforeseen circumstances,” such as job loss, divorce, or family medical emergency.