BILL CHERRY'S GREATEST DALLAS PARK CITIES REAL ESTATE BLOG: January 2010

For at least fifty years, I have studied and sometimes marveled at the way different businesses approach and attempt to solve similar problems.

And one of the oldest kinds of businesses is churches and synagogues.  The fundamental business plan for all of them is this:  We will give you a place and a staff where you will find and get spiritual guidance among others who seeking that as well.

But contrary to most businesses, churches and synagogues don't require a fee for a person to participate in their services.  All are expected to make appropriate contributions, however, contributions that are conscious driven.

Some denominations like Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist, Lutheran, Episcopal, and Church of the Latter Day Saints are themselves affiliated with a ministerial hierarchy. For an example, the Roman Catholic churches are known as parishes.  They are branches of a nearby diocese, and ultimately overseen by the Mother Church at the Vatican.

Churches like these seem to work under the business plan that they will have many branches of the whole, so that no one seeking their ministry will have to go far to find one of their churches.

And then there are what I'll call stand-alone denominations.  They may be members of a general alliance of churches who, in general, follow the same dogma, but each church basically stands alone.  Baptist churches are like that as are the non-denominational churches and synagogues.

Those churches and synagogues usually have one campus, and they must convince most of their members and participants to commute away from their neighborhoods to the church or synagogue.

My denomination, the Episcopal Church, has about twenty-four parishes in Dallas.  Each is charged by the bishop of the Diocese of Dallas with serving those nearby and thus, building membership and contemporaneously building revenue to support its work.

Downtown Dallas' First Baptist Church $130 Million Expansion

Dallas' First Baptist Church is an old congregation.  It's among the office buildings and busy streets of downtown.  It takes a while for most of its members to get there for services and activities because most have to drive some distance..  And as they do they pass many churches -- some are also Baptist churches.

Dallas' First Baptist Church has a membership in excess of 10,000, and it is currently beginning a renewal and expansion of its campus that will cost $130,000,000. 

They already have a major portion of that in cash and in the bank.

What does First Baptist know about the church business that others don't? 

Whatever it is, it's based in this principle:  "Whatever we accomplish for the glory of God, we must do it without the help of satellite churches and universal church hierarchies.  We determine our fate."

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Our 45th Year

214 503-8563

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TRAVIS VIDAURRI & SCOTT FORREST

TIP TOP ROOFING

Dallas - Fort Worth

817 829-1992

It was the last week or so of August.  The skies in Ft. Worth were clear, it wasn't overly hot or humid, and I was enjoying sitting in the porch swing on the big front gallery. 

My clients, the Metroplex's iconic W. Neil "Doc" Gallagher and his wife, Gail, were strolling through the home they had under contract, looking one more time at this and that.  I was their Buyer's Broker.

In a few minutes the couple who owned and were selling the home joined me.  He was a law enforcement officer with bunches of degrees; she was a State Farm Insurance executive who had just been promoted.  They were relocating to The Woodlands, a great planned community on Houston's northern edge.

Within what seemed like seconds, Scott Forrest joined us.  His firm, Tip Top Roofing, had just completed replacing the house's roof because it had been damaged by a hail storm. 

I figured if the State Farm executive had picked Tip Top to do her work, and since Patty and I are 30-year clients of State Farm, the handwriting was on the wall.  We needed to have Tip Top come check our Dallas home's to see if our roof had incurred any serious damage from a recent hail storm.

Within a couple of weeks, Scott Forrest, who owns Tip Top, sent his right-hand man, Travis Vidaurri, by to meet with the State Farm adjuster, Shelly Punke.  Together they climbed up on, and walked every inch of our roof.  The agreement was that we needed the roof and deck replaced, and State Farm would pay the claim.

Within three days, Shelly had sent the full description of the work that State Farm would require Tip Top to do, and with it was a check for about one-half of the claim.  State Farm, she said, would send the balance when we notified them that the work had been completed satisfactorily.

A week or so later, Jose Menjivar and his crew arrived and began tearing off the old and putting on the new.  Two days after beginning, they were finished.

Because I've been in the real estate industry for so long -- 45 years -- I know more than a casual amount about roof construction.  Jose and his crew did a great job.

If you're looking for a home roofer in the Metroplex, I suggest that you visit with Scott and Travis. 

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Our 45th Year

214 503-8563

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The Game of Life:  Beginner's Handbook.  It's a pocket size book that's about forty pages long, and it was written by my friend of more than half-century, Jerry L. Vaughn, Sr.

<<<====JERRY L. VAUGHN, SR.

In the Preface, Jerry makes a profound petition:

"It is my fondest desire that this book will become required reading and discussion for all high school and college students.

"As a book focused upon relationships, particularly those relationships that have been so divisive in the world of education, the roles and ethical relationships, described should qualify this as a primer for any student or person.  Yes, anyone with a basic interest in how "things work"...in a non-judgmental and ethical way...will be enriched by what they read."

When Jerry was younger, he worked as a lifeguard in the summers.  And now at about seventy years old or so, Jerry's taken on saving lives again, this time with his Game of Life: Beginner's Handbook.

In recent years, Jerry has been a financial planner for a great number of his lifelong friends and, before them, their parents.  With his worldly counseling has always come spiritual counseling, and it's that combination that has made his life's involvement the benchmark for many of his peers.

Archbishop Daniel Cardinal DiNardo wrote to Jerry after reading the first copy of The Game of Life:  Beginner's Handbook, ‘I think it's a great idea to offer your wisdom to others."

Here's one of Jerry's profound statements explaining Faith and Truth:

            Faith is not Truth in Itself

            Faith is simply faith that a stated belief is truth.

            Truth, wrapped in faith, acquires validity when scrutinized under the

            Microscope of scientific methods that include:           

            1.  Historical documentation

            2.  Survival of Tradition

            3.  Applicable scientific evaluation methods

            4.  Utilization of technology for accuracy 

You can order copies of The Game of Life: Beginner's Handbook from Jerry at the Lifestyle Development center:

Minimum Order - 5 copies             $50.00

Sales Tax                                             4.13

Shipping                                            _ 7.00

                                                         $61.13

Jerry L. Vaughn, Sr.

The Lifestyle Development Center

7104 Spanish Grant

Galveston, Texas 77554

********************************

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - HIGHLAND PARK

Since 1964

214 503-8563

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The Dallas Morning News has researched and reported that new home sales ended the last quarter of 2009 at a 10% rise.  There is a nonsense statement, though:  "...the first increase in annual start rate since second quarter 2006...." Here they are comparing apples and oranges.

Nevertheless, the report is interesting.

DALLAS (Dallas Morning News) - Home starts in Dallas-Fort Worth jumped almost 10 percent in fourth quarter 2009, the first increase in the annual start rate since second quarter 2006, according to Residential Strategies.

Builders started 3,615 homes in the last three months of 2009, compared with 3,200 starts in the same period in 2008. Homes priced between $150,000 and $200,000 saw the biggest increase.

However, DFW new home starts during 2009 fell to their lowest point since 1991 - 13,499 units.

Fourth-quarter new home sales were the strongest in 2009, but they fell 15 percent from fourth quarter 2008 to 4,710.

"Home starts were generally up fourth quarter nationally, but that level is still way below where it was several years ago," said Dr. James Gaines, research economist with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.

While there is almost an eight-month supply of new homes nationally, DFW has a 6.5-month supply. A six to 6.5-month supply is considered market equilibrium.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - HIGHLAND PARK

Since 1964

214 503-8563

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Cynthia Mitchell passed away just after Christmas at her home at The Woodlands.  She was 87 and had suffered from the ravages of Alzheimer's disease for about ten years.

Her funeral was held at Trinity Episcopal Church in Galveston, the church she and her family had attended fifty years earlier when they lived on the Island.  Her ten children were there to celebrate her life as was her husband, George Mitchell, 90.  And the church was packed with friends. 

Another lifelong friend, Trish Clason, sent me one of the printed programs and told me about the service.

The program shows that five people, four of them family members, eulogized her.  And I know they did a great job, doing their best to remind all present of how remarkable Mrs. Mitchell was.

But the one who captured and told it all was the person who thought printing this picture of Mrs. Mitchell on the program would be a worthy contribution to her last rite.  For me, this is what said it all.  It left me to ponder with a smile our many year friendship.

Cynthia Woods Mitchell

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - HIGHLAND PARK

Since 1964

214 503-8563

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My friend, Ruthie Evans Lacquement sent me these.  Not only are they true, but they are original.

<<---- Robert and Ruthie Lacquement

Random Thoughts for the Day:

1. I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

2. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

3. I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

4. There is great need for a sarcasm font.

5. How the heck are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

6. Was learning cursive really necessary?

7. Map Quest really needs to start their directions on #5. I'm pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

8. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

9. I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

10. Bad decisions make good stories.

11. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren't going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.

12. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blue Ray? I don't want to have to restart my collection...again.

13. I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes - to my ten-page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

14. "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this thing I have-- ever.

15. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Dang it!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?

16. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

17. I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

18. My 4-year old grandson asked me in the car the other day "What would happen if you ran over a ninja?" How the hell do I respond to that?

19. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

20. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet, on any given Friday or Saturday night, more kisses begin with Bud Light than with a Kay jewelry product.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - HIGHLAND PARK

Since 1964

214 503-8563

WEB

It seems to me that it was last year, maybe the year before, that a well-respected Dallas magazine with a big circulation wrote a story about a Dallas well-known husband-wife real estate team.

The couple was famous for marketing the multi-million dollar homes, and had been for a number of years, so the editors opined this story should be on the cover and would bring lots of interest.

It seems that in addition to listing and selling big homes, the husband also had allegedly been marketing investment partnerships. 

The article said that things had gone bad for his investors, people claimed they had lost money, lawsuits were filed, the IRS had filed a huge tax lien against the couple, and the wife had told friends that they were having trouble keeping the utilities on and food on the table.  The IRS had garnisheed all of their assets.

It looked like that for them the big home and the fancy cars, designer clothes and the sterling reputation were going to be a thing of the past.

I wrote a piece that I posted on Active Rain, taking the magazine to task for chiming in because I thought the magazine was unnecessarily adding to the couple's woes, albeit, attempting to build magazine sales at the expense of the couple's misfortune.

But what really had me foaming was that the couple had been big advertisers in that magazine for years.  My thought was it was an example of "biting the hand that feeds you." 

On top of that, I despise disloyalty.  I thought that was, perhaps, what the magazine was guilty of.

Although I had never met or done business with either member of the couple, I also wrote them a letter expressing my displeasure with the magazine article, and offering to help the couple, if I could, by joining their legal defense team as a strategizer and an expert witness.  (A major portion of my practice for twenty years was doing just that, and for some of Texas' most famous trial lawyers.)

I never heard from either of them; in fact, they ignored me altogether.  After awhile, I didn't think about it further.  And at this moment, I don't know how things turned out for them, and I'm fairly sure that I don't have an interest in knowing.

Recently, I was called to list a nice Highland Park home, one that had been listed by another Realtor about two years ago.  After a full twelve months, according to MLS, it had brought no acceptable offers, so it was leased for a year.

My client told me yesterday that the prior agent had called him to express offense that my client had given the new listing to me rather than to him.  Unless things have changed without someone telling me, that call was a serious ethical violation.

I told my client that I didn't know who the agent was, but that if he/she had worked for me and I heard about such behavior, it would have been his/her last day.

After I hung up, I looked for the first time to see who the former listing agent had been.  You guessed it.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - HIGHLAND PARK

214 503-8563

Since 1964

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While I'm not particularly fond of the reputation, nevertheless, I have to admit that it's deserved.  You see, I'm one of the legends of Realtors among title companies. 

When I first began as a real estate broker in 1964, Henry Clark ran the mother ship of Stewart Title Co., the office in Galveston, Texas.  He and his wife were friends of my mom and dad, and I grew up and went to school with their daughter, Barbara Jean.

<<---Tracie Beeson, Stewart Title VP

So he took it as his duty to insist that I come spend time at his office learning the ropes of abstracting, reviewing the legal papers, and preparing closing documents (which we did with a ten-key adding machine and a table of factors,  and a pencil).  He said it would be of great help to me as a Realtor.

And he was right.

Many title people don't like it, but I check and double check their work for my clients.  And I scream and holler when their chains have misses in them, or their math is wrong, or they try to sneak charges on my clients' side of the HUD-1 which they shouldn't have to pay.

More than once I've yanked a file from one title company and moved it to another when I thought they were misbehaving and not properly serving my client.

So with that background, you can imagine how apprehensive I made Stewart Title Company's vice president at their Colleyville office, Tracie Beeson, this past couple of weeks as she prepared a rather complex closing for my clients, the W. Neil Gallaghers.  After all, it was the first time she had ever had to deal with me.  What must she have thought?

Nevertheless, she and her assistant, Tennille Gomez, hung in there, and it is with great pleasure that I tell you that these ladies passed muster.  They did an outstanding job for all of us.

So with that in mind, they deserve the full recommendation of the Old Dude. I suggest you use them.

Tracie L. Beeson

Vice President

Stewart Title Company

6225 Colleyville Boulevard, Suite 150

Colleyville 76034

817 416-6565

************

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - HIGHLAND PARK

Since 1964

214 503-8563

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Mark Stevens is an attorney who lives and practices in Galveston, Texas.  We've been friends for a long time.  This Guest Op-Ed was in today's issue of the Galveston County Daily News.  He's responding to a column that was written by one of the paper's reporters, Cathy Gillentine.

It's one of the most learned pieces on what the Constitution says about religious freedom and what the Koran says about Jesus.

In the Preface of this 7-part series of blogs, I explained that my daddy was always a salaried employee, yet by following seven rules he went from being recently out of college to a millionaire-plus twenty-five years later. My mom never worked, and they fully-funded the education of their two sons. He passed away in 1980.

I suggested that with the 2010 New Year ready to begin, this would be the perfect time for each of us to initiate Daddy's 7 Rules for Securing Your Financial Future.

Here, stated again, are the rules:

• Save at least 10% of your gross income
• Know about, understand, and use the principal of Dollar Cost Averaging
• Intellectually know that you don't have a profit or a loss in an investment until you sell it.
• Secure your family's well-being and your retirement income stream with life insurance annuities
• Pay off the mortgage on your home as quickly as you can
• Accumulate a portfolio of income producing real estate
• Diversify

HERE IS NO. 7, THE FINAL INSTALLMENT:

DIVERSIFY 

Of course to diversify means to not put all of your eggs in one basket.  In financial planning, it means to spread your savings among several categories - CDs, listed stocks, mutual funds, real estate, and the like.  

In fact, it even implies to take that diversification one step further.  If you're buying rent houses, for an example, don't buy all of the property in the same neighborhood. 

But to diversify has one other meaning, perhaps the most important one, one that is frequently overlooked or not given its proper weight in the equation.  It means to make every effort to place your investments so that if you need to dip into your savings, you'll have a choice of where to get it. 

When I was traveling as a solo pianist playing in hotels a long time ago, I was able to save a substantial part of my income.  My family's longtime stock broker, Don Frye, suggested that I buy shares of El Paso Natural Gas with it, so I did.  What I began to notice was that the stock sold in the $20 or so range in the summer and in the $30 or so range in the winter.  Obviously that had to do with their sale of gas.

So I made the future investments in the summers.

A few years later I went back to graduate school, and I paid my way by divesting shares of the El Paso Natural Gas stock.  The good news was that when I needed money, it was when the shares would be historically up. 

But what if it had been the other way around?  What if I had had to sell in the summer months when the stock would be historically down?

You get the point.  Do your best to make certain that you won't be trapped into having to liquidate all or part of an investment when it is not to your financial advantage to do so.

And that's why it's important to have your income-base in investments that are secure, that are dependable and that are not cyclical.  That's the reason for annuities, coupon bonds, your retirement account, and the like. 

The funds that are to provide the extras and be there for unexpected expenses need to be diversified.  They're the ones that also are for the purpose of hedging inflation, the ones you can tap if the buying power of your income-base investments start to diminish.

To read all prior installments

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - HIGHLAND PARK

Our 45th Year

214 503-8563

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