Recent Comments:
House of the Day: Museum-Quality Mansion {AOL Real Estate}
Sep 22nd 2011 1:06PM Great for the family who lived there or the one who buys it. Seriously, if you can afford to build the home of your dreams, why wouldn't you? And if you entertain large numbers, have a big family in for holidays or host fundraisers, the ballroom and dining hall will pay for themselves with what you save renting large spaces every time you need the space. Being able to close off the family quarters still allows the family to have intimacy when they aren't using them. I don't particularly care for the exterior architecture, and naturally, I would have to pick it up and move it south of the Mason-Dixon line, but that's always an issue for me. Location, location, location... in the South
House of the Day: Brooke Astor's 65-Acre Westchester Estate {AOL Real Estate}
Sep 21st 2011 5:53PM I love that her estate had some acreage and was private. Add a couple of hundred acres to it and I could live happily ever after in a place like that... in the South, anyway.
Soldier Buys Back Parents' Foreclosed Home (Video) {AOL Real Estate}
Sep 20th 2011 6:35PM Jose Cordova Jr. is a real man, and the Cordovas are a real family. I'm so pleased for them all.
Foreclosure Victims Plan Protests Across U.S. {AOL Real Estate}
Sep 19th 2011 6:32PM Did the bank take advantage of her when she went to them, took out a loan on her house which they told her would change in 2 years, and that then she could refinance for a THIRTY YEAR LOAN, and she signed the papers. I'm sorry for the foster care situation, but she couldn't afford the legal battle. It's nice that she fostered 50 kids, but we taxpayers gave her a check for each and every one of them, every month. I'm empty. I have no sympathy left for anybody. The world is filled with baby killers and pedophiles and cheats and liars and people who borrow money they can't afford to pay back and then blame somebody else, and they want free medical care and free legal counsel and they want no responsibility and they don't raise their kids and it's all... just... not... worth... it. I swear, if I never had to see another human being again or listen to whining like this article, I would die perfectly happy.
Woman Faces Foreclosure on House She Bought for $1 {AOL Real Estate}
Sep 9th 2011 2:33PM Linda Hatchell bought a rundown, demolition-ready house for $1, paid $50k to have it moved, and paid around another $50k for the lot to move it to. She was $100k in debt before she ever stepped foot into the house. She then used the house as a cash cow, milking out a second mortgage, eventually refinancing her loan and also maxing out all of her credit resources to get the several-hundred-thousand-dollars she needed to restore the house. This is extremely poor financial management, and when her life changed, the walls came tumbling down. I'm really sorry for her plight, but when you go into debt without any effort to save for a rainy day or pay down your debt ASAP, this is what happens. Remember in the old days, when people used to save money? Did you ever hear anybody say, and always with pride, "I've saved enough to pay all my bills for 6 months if I break a leg and can't work"? Those are the people who are getting caught in this economic crunch but aren't losing their houses. I'm hoping one thing that comes back in our debt-driven society is that people start planning for the long term again, and maybe by some miracle, start taking care of themselves again.
House of the Day: Getaway in the Horse and Buggy Era {AOL Real Estate}
Aug 29th 2011 7:15PM I could stand a nice home on an island. And the fewer the motorized vehicles, the better. But if I want to go into town to buy a few groceries, I'm not fixing to tote 'em all the way back to the house. Since I don't have any kids to send to the store, I'd just hop in my dune buggy and zip down the beach, or strike up my scooter and to the store. Oh, but wait! I'm that's not allowed! A poor 'ol fat, middle-aged woman just can't catch a break.
House Of The Day: 'Understated' But For The $40 Million Pricetag {AOL Real Estate}
Aug 17th 2011 5:24PM Is "understated" real estate speak for "prison grade exterior"?
Wishlist | DKNY's $1 Million Fragrance {Stylelist (Main)}
Aug 11th 2011 12:43PM I love it! If you are going to give $1 million to the charity, why not get this bejeweled bottle? Personally, I would like the empty bottle/jar so maybe I could keep a special something inside. Not that it matters. The closest I could ever get to this million dollar fragrance is to go to the perfume counter and let them spray me for free.
Thirty abandoned churches from around the world {Gadling}
Aug 8th 2011 3:08PM I've gone to recyclable materials Heaven. The church bells, towers, bricks, wood, light fixtures, steeples, ceiling tiles, the shutters from Nicaragua, stained glass windows, arched window casings, iron work (prominent on many windows!), marble, steps, sconces, architectural pieces, both large and small. The one in Scotland I'd like to just pick up and move
Bizarre baby names: banned in New Zealand {Gadling}
Jul 21st 2011 6:44PM Now, let me see if I've got this straight: In New Zealand, you can't name your child Bishop, Baron or Duke, but you CAN name your child Number 16 Bus Shelter? From the perspective that a person's name sets the pace and tone for the rest of their life, you'd think they would approve of Duke or Bishop any day over Bus Stop.