The summer can be the most challenging season for cooling systems. With Houston’s high temperatures, combined with our humidity, it is vital that we take the necessary precautions to make sure our A/C units are running well and efficiently!

Summer has just begun and yet many of our air conditioners are already working overtime to keep our homes cool. That extra work can wreak havoc on the many moving parts inside your air conditioning system – especially if they aren’t running at peak efficiency. So take the time to do some preventive maintenance. This can be the difference between enjoying cool comfort and sweating a costly service call.

Keep Outdoor Unit(s) Clean and Clear – Remove any plant growth, grass clippings, or debris caught in the coil walls. The coil can be cleaned using a soft-bristle brush to gently sweep the fins. Always brush in line with the fins, and be gentle because the fins can bend easily.

If you’re facing foreclosure, your foreclosure counselor will be a key part of your foreclosure team. As you start looking for one, however, you need to know what exactly they do, what they don’t do, and how to choose one who’s legitimate and qualified.

What a foreclosure counselor does for you...

• Reviews your finances

• Helps you establish a budget

• Explains your non-foreclosure options, such as loan modification, short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure; helps you navigate the process with any chosen option

• Advocates on your behalf with lenders and loan servicers

Counselors should also be upfront about discussing their own track records as well as the track records of the agency they work for.

Expect to spend two to 24 hours with a counselor, depending on the complexity of your foreclosure situation, including how many lenders you have to provide documentation to and negotiate with.

“Be sure the counselor is looking at your entire situation,” and not just your foreclosure, adds Martha Viramontes, director of housing at ClearPoint Credit Counseling Solutions in Los Angeles. “When counselors focus only on your mortgage, they’re fixing only one aspect of your financial situation.” They should give you an action plan containing the tasks you are going to perform to change your financial situation.

What a foreclosure counselor doesn’t do

• Give tax advice

• Give legal advice

• Give guarantees regarding a particular outcome

• Create miracles

For additional advice, add a tax adviser and attorney to your team.

Finally, “don’t expect a counselor to be a genie,” says Douglas Robinson, a spokesperson for NeighborWorks America, a nonprofit community development corporation in Washington, D.C., that provides foreclosure counseling. “If you’re in a home that under the most aggressive scenario you can’t afford, but maybe you got into it because of some toxic loan that should never have been available in the first place, you’re probably going to have to move. It’s best you get out smoothly.”

How to choose an agency

Seek only HUD-approved agencies. HUD makes it easy:

Type in your state or ZIP code at www.findaforeclosurecounselor.org or call HUD’s foreclosure counseling hotline at 800-569-4287 or its foreclosure prevention hotline at 888-995-HOPE (4673). HUD-approved agencies are all nonprofit, community-based organizations that have administered a housing counseling program for at least a year.

HUD-approved agencies also are required to:

• Employ counselors who are knowledgeable about federal housing programs

• Have a staff of counselors of which at least half must have two or more years of counseling experience. At least half must also have received housing counseling training in the past two years

• Provide you with certain documents, such as a privacy agreement explaining how your personal information will be handled

In addition, at the agency you work with, see if you can find a foreclosure counselor who has certification through the NeighborWorks Center for Homeownership Education and Counseling Look (NCHEC), which has a Foreclosure Intervention and Default Certification Program. Certified counselors must follow NeighborWorks counseling standards and code of ethics and conduct. They also are required to:

• Have at least one year of experience in foreclosure counseling

• Attend three foreclosure prevention courses

G.M. Filisko is an attorney and award-winning writer who has seen the sad effects of foreclosure on friends and neighbors. A frequent contributor to many national publications including Bankrate.com, REALTOR® Magazine, and the American Bar Association Journal, she specializes in real estate, business, personal finance, and legal topics.

By Jean Patteson, The Orlando Sentinel, Fla.

Jun. 15—Now is the time to make sure your home is as hurricane-proof as possible. Once the weather reporters don their yellow slickers, it’s usually too late to effectively protect against hurricane-force winds and deluging rains, said Scott McCurdy of Coastal Reconstruction, a general contractor who specializes in restoration from natural disasters.

“Be prepared. It won’t prevent all storm damage, but it will offer some protection and help you deal with the aftermath,” said McCurdy, who has cleaned up after “about 12 hurricanes and countless tropical storms, tornadoes, and lightning strikes.”

Here are storm-proofing guidelines from McCurdy and Joseph Schlenk of Deltec Homes, a builder of prefabricated homes.

Trees. Trim out dead wood and limbs that could scrape or fall on the house. 

Roof. Install additional braces in the trusses. A qualified builder can install galvanized metal hurricane straps to secure the roof to the walls. Wait until after hurricane season to replace old roofs.

Gutters. Make sure gutters are clean and functioning properly, and water from downspouts does not pool near the house.

Pool. Lower the water level by a foot or two. Stock up on chemicals to shock the pool after the storm.

Screens. Secure or remove screen doors. Remove items that could be blown through screens.

Patio. Remove furniture, flower pots, grills, firewood, etc. to a secure place. Patio furniture can be stored in the pool.

Doors. Install beefier hinges to make outside doors stronger. Reinforce garage doors by bracing each panel, adding stronger supports and heavier hinges.

Windows. Options include hurricane shutters, plywood covers, or clear plastic window film. Shutters are effective but relatively expensive. Plywood covers are a good DIY option. Purchase, cut and label plywood covers ahead of time, and install before the wind strengthens. Adhesive window film helps prevent glass from shattering only if anchored in the window frame.

Valuables. Move valuable rugs, furniture, pictures, books, etc. away from windows. Store where they are least likely to suffer water damage. Lock important papers and jewelry in the dishwasher.

Supplies. Stock up on gas or charcoal for the grill, lights that are gas- or battery-powered and extra ice chests. If you plan on purchasing a generator, do so before the last-minute rush.

Insurance. Go over your insurance coverage, including flood insurance, with your agent. Get recommendations from your agent or check online for disaster-relief contractors and have the names and contact numbers of a couple handy—just in case.

Houston places near top in city income growth ranking

by G. Scott Thomas and Christine Hall
Houston Business Journal

Houston’s success with job growth over the past 25 years has placed the city among the top markets in the country for elevated income levels, according to a new research study.

Bizjournals, an affiliate of the Houston Business Journal, combed through 25 years of federal income data to find the nation’s 100 biggest metropolitan areas, covering the span from 1983 through 2008. The study focused on per capita income, a key indicator of earning power and economic vitality, based on figures compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

PCI is defined as the average amount of money received by each resident of a given area in a given year. It encompasses such diverse sources of income as salaries, interest payments, dividends, rental income and government checks.

A growth score of 44.2 points puts Houston at No. 5 in the nation in the study. Annual personal income averaged $48,259 in 2008, up 37.3 percent from $35,140 in 2003, according to the study.

Bizjournals attributes Houston’s standings to the fact that the city added 224,000 jobs since 2004, a pattern that makes Houston one of only five markets with a five-year income growth rate above 35 percent.

“This report confirms what so many corporations have known about our region for decades: Houston is an incredible magnet for businesses and individuals,” says Jeff Moseley, president and CEO of the Greater Houston Partnership. “Our per capita income has long been well above the national figure. Affordability is a quality of place, and the Houston region leads the nation in that area, hands down. Combining per capita income growth with affordability is like putting nitro with glycerin.”

While Houston sits among the top five, geographic neighbor New Orleans enjoys the nation’s best record of long-term income growth with a rate of 50.9 percent. New Orleans is followed by Tulsa, Okla. (42.1 percent); Oklahoma City (41.6 percent); and Bridgeport-Stamford, Conn. (37.8 percent), with Houston rounding out the top five.

Having reached a high point in June 2005, a bizjournals study released that month indicated that per capita income was growing at a faster pace in New Orleans than in any other U.S. metropolitan area. But then Hurricanes Katrina and Rita slammed into the city in August and September 2005, devastating the local economy. A subsequent bizjournals report in June 2007 found a total reversal. Per capita income was shrinking more rapidly in New Orleans than anywhere else.

However, another two years have passed — and New Orleans is again on top. Personal income averaged $12,404 in New Orleans in 1983, falling 2 percent below the U.S. norm for that year. But the local figure soared to $44,136 by 2008, putting it 11.5 percent above the national per capita income of $39,582.

At the opposite end of the standings is Provo, Utah, the U.S. market with the worst record of long-term income growth.

Provo’s PCI has increased just 57.6 percent during the past 15 years, the slowest rate for any of the 100 markets in the study. The comparable growth rate in New Orleans has been more than twice as fast: 123.3 percent.

The sharp upswing in New Orleans is partly attributable to the return of its economic momentum — the same momentum responsible for its No. 1 ranking in income growth prior to the monster storms of 2005.

But Katrina and Rita have also played a statistical role, albeit unexpectedly. A disproportionate number of people displaced by the two hurricanes were poor. Their departure from New Orleans — whether permanent or temporary — has helped to boost the area’s average income.

The bottom of the income rankings is dominated by Western markets, including four from California, as well as Provo and Phoenix. All have been hurt by declines in real estate prices the past couple of years.

California’s laggards — Riverside-San Bernardino, Stockton, Bakersfield and Fresno — are all located in the state’s interior, which historically has grown more slowly than the metros along the Pacific coast.

Two other members of the bottom 10 — Toledo and Dayton — are located in Ohio, which continues to be plagued by slumps in its automaking and heavy-manufacturing sectors.