#8 The Ranch

This past summer my girlfriend’s family bought a piece of property in Fayetteville county, TX. Her parent’s dream has been to own and develop a ranch house out in the country. After 6 months of scouting out properties, attaining soil samples and learning how to develop land they purchased a 26 acre ranch on Ellinger Rd outside of La Grange about 5 minutes from the Texas-famous Hruskas convenience store.

            Ted, her dad, is a man’s man who knows everything there is to know about guns, fishing, hunting, and tools. Every week he buys a new tool or tractor part to help him further develop the land. Over the past 2 months he has dug trenches for an irrigation system, consistently mowed the acreage, dug two ponds, refurbished an old well and put up fencing to keep the dogs and grandkids away from the future cattle.

            My favorite story is from this past summer. There was a massive dead tree near the old barn that needed to be cut down. After the tree was fallen my girlfriend’s family became the targets of an angry beehive in one of the dead branches. Within seconds, hundreds of bees swarmed the area as the family hunkered down in the truck. Later that week, they harvested all of the honey from the hive and we have gotten to enjoy it! The tree was over 700 years old.

            Nestled in the hill country between Houston and Austin the property is absolutely beautiful and will be a source of many sunsets, early morning fishing and 4^th of July’s. I am lucky to have the chance to work on and watch the progress of this amazing piece of property.

Blog #7 Normandy Beach

June 6^th, 2004 marked one of the most memorable experiences of my youth. My dad’s sister and her family lived in Brussels, Belgium so we had a great excuse to take a family vacation to Europe. We boarded a plane to Paris where we visited many historical sites, enjoyed the great food and toured the museums and famous churches in the city. After the time we spent in Paris we ventured north to Normandy, France to visit the historical battle of D-Day. Without planning it, we happened to show up on the 60^th anniversary of the American soldiers’ landing in France.

As a middle school student with a few years of history I understood the importance that day held in world history. I was struck by the sacrifice made by the thousands of Americans who died that day to preserve the freedom of a country not their own. Walking the cemetery was one of the most emotional experiences in my life. As we walked along the wall, I was imagining how the scene would have played out as our soldiers stormed the beachfront, not only dodging German fire but also battling the high ground and harsh incline of the beach. That day spent in Normandy, France will forever be part of me as a student of history and as a patriotic American.

Blog #6 Generation Y

Millenial Generation: Millenials are the demographic cohort following Generation X. There are no precise dates when the generation starts and ends. Researchers and commentators use birth years ranging from the early 1980s to the early 2000s.

 The Generation Y or Millenial generation is one of the largest consumers of a modern real estate market. The millenials are “moving the market, but not as homeowners” according to CBSNews. Sellers and marketers of real estate are increasingly aware and focused on appealing to this generation. Cities all over the country are growing, expanding and becoming new centers of innovation, youth and a sense of free spiritedness. Cities like Austin, Seattle, Cleveland, and Portland are the new hot spots. The millennial generation is paving the way for businesses and growth.  

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/top-10-real-estate-trends-for-2014/

Blog #5 Jerusalem

Growing up, my spiritual journey has always been a huge part of my life. My freshmen year of college I had a professor for a History or New Testament class, his name was Dr. Paul Shockley. The purpose of the class was to learn the historical account of early biblical times, with a  focus on Jesus’ ministry. Every summer the professor takes a group of 10 students from various seminaries to travel to Jerusalem and the greater area where Christianity began. After hearing his stories, visiting such a historical and spiritual area of the world has remained on my bucket list. It would be truly remarkable to visit areas throughout Israel and Egypt. To see the Sea of Galilee, Mt Sinai, the wailing wall, and to walk around where Jesus sat at the Garden of Gethsemane.

               Many religions and faiths have a sort of pilgrimage or Hajj. I would love to embark on a similar spiritually enriching journey through an area of the world that lead to Christianity. 

Blog #4 College Station Student Housing

The following blog is a summary and analysis of this article by the Houston Chronicle:

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/real-estate/article/College-Station-follows-trend-with-growth-in-4651514.php#/0

Texas A&M is one of the largest universities in the United States, with over 50,000 students attending the College Station campus. One of the largest and consistently growing businesses in the area is student housing. Developers, realtors and apartment complexes battle for market share over students. Some student housing providers target niche markets of the student body. Callaway house tends to dominate the freshmen Greek students. Traditions, The Rise, and the Stack appeal to students who want to live closer to Northgate. Many students choose apartments based on price or convenience to campus. Others choose their place of living on criteria such as the best pool, amenities or reputation with little regard for price. With over 50,000 students and a growing student body the student housing market is ripe for growth but also rich with competition.

              "Texas A&M has been growing and is going to continue to grow. Land that has come available in close proximity to campus is desirable. There is a lot of competition with student housing, and to be competitive, everyone has to step up their game. Part of the allure of student housing is that it has rigidity to it," he said, referring to the reliable flow of students entering the market each year. Any major university is a perfect place for that type of development.” –Oldham Goodwin

            Oldham is referring to the transition from antiquated, cheap and outdated apartments of the past to the new, hotel style, amenity filled apartments being developed such as the Rise, and Northpoint Crossing. Places such as these come featuring workout facilities, pools, spas,  and even in-house movie theatres. Rents for these apartment complexes can range from $700 to over $1000 a month.

Blog #2/3 Rights, Public and Private issues

            Real estate is the physical land and appurtenances (buildings or improvements) that are affixed to the land. Real estate is immobile and tangible and includes attachments above and below the ground. Real property includes all interests, benefits and rights inherent in the ownership of physical real estate such as rights to use, sell lease, give away, and rights to gas or minerals, ect.

           

http://mattbruenig.com/2014/10/11/wonderful-property-rights-dispute-in-san-francisco/

Private restrictions on real estate are limitations on the fee simple ownership rights that generally run with the land. Private restrictions could be covenenats, liens, easements, profit a prendre, adverse possession or encroachments. Covenants limit the way a property owner can use the property. A lien is a claim on a property as either security for a debt or fulfillment of some monetary charge or obligation, can be categorized as voluntary or involuntary. An easement is a right given to one party by a landowner to use the land in a specified manner, could be appurtenant or in gross. An encroachment is an unauthorized invasion or intrusion of a fixture, building or other improvement onto another person’s property.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/336281/dsi-says-14-resorts-encroaching

Public restrictions are limitations on the property and rights that go with the land but are placed on by the government. The four main types are taxation, eminent domain, police power and escheat. Through taxation, the government taxes the land owned through an ad valorem tax which is levied as a % of value of the property, not on the income earned from property. Eminent Domain is the government’s way of acquiring property for public use. Compensaton for ED comes in the form of just compensation, condemnation proceeding and inverse condemnation. Police poers is the government’s right to have the power of regulation and to protect the public health, safety, morals and general welfare.

An unfortunate example of eminent domain in which the acquired site was vacant for 9 years after siezure:

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/03/20/seized-property-sits-vacant-nine-years-after-landmark-eminent-domain-case/

Blog #2/3 Corner of Austin

Austin, Texas is one of the nation’s fastest growing cities with areas around Austin such as Cedar Park, San Marcos and Georgetown all ranking in the top 10 of the most rapidly growing cities with populations over 50,000. Austin has many attractions that draw people to move: University of Texas, state government, music, culture, festivals and the growing technology industry. Austin is also ranked the #1 city of millennials in terms of concentration.

Austin is experiencing important trends as its growth reaches new highs. Austin currently has no majority demographic and has become a majority-minority city with no demographic representing over 50% of the population. A trend that has many people concerned is the share of households within the city’s core made up of families with children is decreasing. This poses a major issue with many of the Austin schools in the core-zone closing down as families move into suburban areas of the city.

Austin has 13 commercial zoning districts, 4 industrial and 5 special purpose base districts as well as 13 combined districts that relate to particular zoning cases, often used to preserve historical areas of the city.

I believe that Austin could have multiple 100% intersections depending on what the intersection is based on; economic, commercial, or city-wide. If forced to pick one, I would pick W. 12^th street and Congress avenue. This is the intersection that leads to our state’s Capitol building. Austin is known for many things but the main attraction that makes Austin special is the capitol.