I had a discussion with some friends yesterday about the appeal of Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. I plan to travel more next year and perhaps live abroad. Spain is at the top of my list, but I’ve also looked at Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand since I have friends who live in those countries.

The main concern U.S. citizens have when traveling or living abroad is safety. I can’t think of many countries where I’d feel completely "safe", but political unrest and economic instability are important issues. There are several reasons why I’ve narrowed my search to Monterrey, Nuevo Leon Mexico.

• Proximity. Monterrey is a 90-minute direct flight from Houston, Texas. It’s not too far from my birth city of San Antonio, so I can visit my parents in San Antonio more often.
• Natural Beauty. Monterrey is an "advanced" city with modern amenities, but it’s not as much of a tourist town as the coastal areas. I want my wireless internet, but I also plan to enjoy the mountains, gardens, historic museums and architecture.
• Safety. No place is ever "safe", but Monterrey is often billed as one of the safest cities (#1 or #2) in Mexico. Their most disturbing issue seems to be the pollution.

As always, before deciding to live abroad, you should visit for at least 2-4 weeks. I’ve been using Expedia to price my stay. A two-week stay for a decent hotel (3.5 stars) and a round trip flight was about $1100. Of course, you can spend a much more or much less depending on your budget and what you plan to do.

Read more: Monterrey - All About Monterrey - Complete City Guide.

Learn more about relocating to Mexico.

Popularity: 5% [?]

FREE ADMISSION-Eeyore’s Birthday Party is the longest-running celebration of it’s
kind. Effectively an Austin-weird version of a country-picnic, Eeyore’s
Birthday Party is a family-oriented event of fun with games and
activities for children and adults alike as well as free music,
affordable food and drink, drum circles, and costume contests.

Eeyore’s Birthday Party is also a fund-raiser to benefit non-profit
groups in Austin. These groups will be selling hot and cold food
(including vegetarian), soft drinks, juices, spring water, and Texas
beer. Look for commemorative Eeyore cups and T-shirts.

Link: Eeyores 44th Annual Birthday Party.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Real estate investing is one of the fastest-growing fields for real estate careers.  The most common dilemma is for those of you with full-time jobs who must make the transition before quitting your day job.

If you want to be an investor, but you need to make money before you jump in, here are some job ideas from REIClub.com:

1. Property Sales, Management or Locating
2. Homebuilder Sales Rep
3. Title Searches or work for a Title Company
4. Courthouse Clerk/Appraisal District
5. Appraiser/Inspector
6. Legal Assistant
7. Construction
8. Staff at Local REI Club.

Remember that these are just some of the positions many investors held before they went into real estate full-time. You may decide to hold these jobs while continuing your investment career since they will keep you "in the game". One of your top tools as an investor is growing your network.

Read the full list at the REIClub.com site here: Good real estate day jobs for new real estate investors.

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It’s strange to not hear much about the Concordia University redevelopment. The central Austin university is moving to its new 250-acre campus in northwest
Austin. In the meantime, the dogfight for the old campus is over. East Avenue Investment Group was victorious in their bid to create a mixed-use development out of the area.

In 2008, about $2.75M of retail, office, condos and class-A living will emerge. Developers are currently working on infrastracture

Read more: Developer Readies $500M Mixed-Use Project.

Concordia buyers get financing to redevelop.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Killeen, Texas experienced a surge in interest from investors due to it’s relative stability and large military population. Once investors, agents and mortgage brokers learned the new construction developments, they rushed to buy in the area.

The new multifamily communities initially looked promising because:

• They were geared towards higher-ranking pay grades.
• They were gated and affordable at under $250k including 3% buyer closing costs.
• They were cashflow properties even with zero down.

Some of the units were supposed to be completed by April or May. Once the initial contracts expired, the builder asked for close dates of Mid-July, saying end of June would most likely be the time frame. Now, they are pushing dates out to the end of July.

The builder blames weather issues like freezing rain and flooding have affected their developments. The problem is that some buyer contracts have not been extended since they expired in March or this month.

Our team may take a trip out to Killeen at the various projects to see how far off the ground these projects are. We encourage any agent or investor who purchased there to do the same.

Did you read about the Killeen TX Real Estate Goldrush?

Best places to buy in Texas.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Texas coastal areas Galveston, South Padre Island and Corpus Christi took a small beating when Hurricanes Rita and Katrina came through a few short years ago. The damage wasn’t as severe as other states, so wasn’t broadcast as extensively on the national news stations.

The cities had to rebuild, but learned from the mistakes of the nearby coastal states, so are building highly-reinforced condo projects and homes. With the large influx of baby boomers, retirees and second home buyers, the Texas coast has been set for an economic boom. I’ve been hearing that home prices in Corpus Christi have been on a steady incline, which is in line with the rest of our state.

Small cities like Galveston (outside of Houston) are seeing more new beachfront condo developments specifically for retirees. I am planning a trip to Galveston this summer or fall to see how well the area is doing and discover possible investments. If you’re interested in the findings, keep checking back because I’ll report what I see in the TexasRealtyBlog.

Read an excerpt: Galveston Emerging As Texas Riviera | Planetizen.

Strengthening Galveston’s homes.

Did you know about the Laguna Harbor condos that were breaking ground north of Galveston Island?

Popularity: 3% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

I was just thinking this morning about the rapid and seemingly sudden changes that are happening in East and Central Austin. If I had to describe the transformation, I’d liken it to that of an awkward teenager. This is not meant to be derogatory. If you think about it, happens to teenagers?

• They experience growing pains as things change.
• They’re self-conscious and can be introspective. They may ask, "Who am I and what are my values?"
• They can be testy if you try to tell them what to do.

OUR LITTLE EAST AUSTIN IS GROWING UP

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Popularity: 3% [?]

Lastest Listings and Job Openings

Popularity: 4% [?]

I really like Clark Howard. He has my dream job of being a consumer advocate. How cool would it be to bring the hammer when exposing on scams and ripoffs?  Even further you get to talk about it on a national radio program.

The Clark Howard Show seems to have an issue with the real estate industry, but is not hearing all sides. Normally, Clark Howard fully investigates an issue to present varying points of view, but it seems as if he’s not understanding the National Association of REALTOR stance on certain topics.

‘DISCOUNT’ MODELS ARE LUCRATIVE
Price-fixing is a federal crime under antitrust laws, so we REALTORS take it seriously. I’d like Clark Howard to add me to the list of agents who welcome varying price models. I even have my own flexible commission program that works for my business.

Remember that discounted services do not mean FREE even if the ad says it.

• It’s marketing and is meant to lure sellers. If their discounted services aren’t working, the broker will upsell you to a different model.
• You may pay less, which is good if that’s your goal.The problem is when a consumer could have paid less by selling their house faster despite the upfront price seeming higher at the time.

Discount companies are not necessarily altruistic. I’m not saying they are bad. They are in the business to make money and this is a model that is catching on.

• Yard signs are free advertising. The more you have, the more sellers and buyers you get.
• Even if I place a sign in a yard and put it on MLS for "free", I’d still make money from the additional traffic. The issue is if agents do not give a solid marketing effort to get the home sold, which can be an issue in any pricing structure, but some may think it seems a little more rampant in discount companies.

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Popularity: 3% [?]

Every now and then, a developer takes a city by storm. They may announce a project so huge, so different and forward-thinking that it shakes up the status quo. Austin has had so many development announcements in the past year alone that we’ve sort of "been there, done that" when it comes to new central or downtown condos and other upcoming projects.

Villa Muse, a $1.5 Billion Dollar "creative class" neighborhood in far southeast Austin has  garnered the attention of just about every newspaper publication and blog since their announcement Tuesday. Aside from Mueller Austin, there hasn’t been as much excitement about a master-planned community. Villa Muse is even getting more attention than the Domain in Northwest Austin.

Villa Muse isn’t just cool because of the huge price tag. It’s anticipated because Austin is making a serious play for creative talent and big studios productions. Where else in Texas are you going to find a 50,000 square-foot sound stage and recording studio as well as an amphitheater in the middle of a neighborhood?

Now I see why people in the know have been warning me to keep my duplexes in Area 9, zip 78741 in Austin.

Texas House of Representatives Sponsor House Bill 1634 to give incentives to Villa Muse. Video is at News 8 Austin.

Read how the ‘Creative talent’ will anchor $1.5 billion neighborhood.

Blog: What is Villa Muse?

Popularity: 3% [?]