Grilled Prosciutto-Wrapped Shrimp

The Right Financing

Dinner at Rosie's in Wilton Manors, Florida

Tonight I had dinner at Rosie's Bar & Grill

2449 Wilton Dr, Wilton Manors, FL with my good friend Steven. Rosie's is one of my favorite hamburger joints in South Florida. Their Sunday brunch is a ton of fun and it is always packed. I had the plain Jane tonight and the burger is soooo tasty. Rosie's has a very campy menu, loud music and indoor/outdoor dining. Just go already!!!!!

Can you really purchase a HUD home with a $100 down payment?

HUD is offering a $100 Down Payment Initiative for owner occupants purchasing a HUD Home with FHA financing.  This incentive is also available to owner occupant purchasers who obtain a FHA Home Repair loan (203K).   This means you can purchase a home with only $100 down.

• Following are the criteria:
• Property must be a  HUD REO (foreclosure).
• Buyer must be Owner Occupant - Buyer must live in the home for at least one full year.  This program is not available to investors.
• Loan must be FHA Financing or FHA Home Repair loan (203k) -  You must be able to qualify for a FHA loan.
• Buyer must bid full asking price. 
• HUD will pay up to 3% towards your closing costs if requested in the contract
• You must have a HUD registered Broker/Agent in order to put a bid on a HUD home

Not all FHA lenders offer the $100 down payment loan so be sure to ask your lender if they participate.  Here is the link where you can search for HUD Homes.

Evaluating Schools

Schools are a contributing factor for anyone buying a home. Even if you don't have kids yourself, your next buyer might, and they might base their decision to buy on the school district which serves your home.

The question remains: How do you evaluate schools? What’s the best approach for understanding if your local schools will score your property an “A” or relegate it to the land of “D-”?

Luckily, there are some excellent resources out there for vetting schools online. Here are a few I’ve come across which provide a good place to start:

Education.com: A major portal site for education everywhere, you’ll want to pay particular attention to the schools section, found here: http://www.education.com/topic/school-and-academics/

GreatSchools.org: A good search engine for researching schools, you can do zip code based searches and learn lots about the public and private institutions in the area.

ProjectAppleseed.com: A website dedicated to improving public schools, you can learn a lot here about the crucial elements of what makes a local school and excellent local school.

Finally, here are a handful of questions to ask yourself if you’re doing research:

How comprehensive is the school’s safety policy?

What social/support services are available at the school?

How does the school handle discipline?

Are people involved in a parent/teacher organization?

How healthy is the school district’s annual report?

Finally, be sure to ask your agent!

Looking for neighborhoods with great schools? I can help!

Kevin Clark

Back to School

To all the blessed families:

It’s that time of year I think of as the “Back to School” season. It’s not really Fall and it isn’t exactly Summer, either. Maybe the weather hasn’t changed yet, but the morning commute is definitely quite a bit busier.

Each year I help families get settled before the Back to School season starts. A lot of people choose to move in the summer months. It’s often easier on the kids to break in a new school with a new school year, too.

I think a lot about kids going into a new school in a new year, and I know it can be tough for them to find new friends and get used to new routines. Just the other day, I came across this quote, and I thought it was pretty good advice for kids and adults alike:

“The way to be happy is to like yourself and the way to like yourself is to do only things that make you proud.” - Mark S. Lewis, Clinical Psychologist.

It’s a pretty good maxim to live by, especially if you find yourself in unfamiliar surroundings facing new challenges. It’s not so much what you would do to fit in, or what you think others would expect you to do... it’s doing what you know will make you proud that makes your way happier.

My best to you and yours in this transitional season. Catch me up on your life when you have the time.

Warm regards,

Kevin L Clark

Keller Who? (playlist)