Blog Archives - ROWLETT RAMBLINGS

A different kind of meeting

10/31/2016

A few days ago, I attended a meeting that had among its participants three City Councilpersons. It was only three, therefore an illegal quorum was not present. There were some other things that were not present. Intimidation of standing up before a microphone, glares of Council members that do not speak back, cameras at the back of your head, and encased within formal chambers of "officialdom" were not there. Animosity was totally absent.

I attended the meeting. Let me tell you what was there.

Informality was there. Respect for one another was there. Good humor with barbs and re-barbs were there. Honest observations and honest replies were there. Comfort was not just a word. There was genuine appreciation of other's thoughts.

I wasn't there during the whole meeting, but I would guess that maybe 10-12 citizens showed up along with the three Councilpersons. My observation was that everyone enjoyed the conversation and there was some solid "brainstorming" going on. One of my continuing criticisms of "official" and formal citizen input is that there is never any "brainstorming." All conversation was simply one way.......no Council feedback. They say the rules prevent that. I think some type of the subject meeting could provide an alternative.

I enjoyed the meeting. I think there should be more. If I was City Council, I would split into three "teams" and hold the same type of meeting each month. That would mean that each team would meet once a quarter. I believe the citizens of Rowlett would learn to love and anticipate all meetings of this nature.

That comes from "brainstorming." How many good ideas have come from Citizen Input? The fingers on one hand should suffice.

See what happens when I get mad?

10/26/2016

Please check Jennifer Wilson's comments below that were made this afternoon. Thanks for the update, Jennifer. If the service personnel do not get all their money back, we should still lock up all responsible; including the ding-a-lings that broke no laws but made celestial moronic decisions. There ought to be a law against parents that produce such imbeciles. Can't we lock them up, too........to keep them away from each other? I want ALL money returned to the veterans, including costs incurred trying to pay back the government.

I have heard at least one talking head say that they would still try to "protect the taxpayer." Let me tell ya folks. We taxpayers are responsible for putting this idiotic leadership in place. We taxpayers are paying for our sins.
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Hi Ron,

Jennifer Wilson has just posted a comment on your blog post, Governments' broken promises, and you need to approve it:
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It is slowly getting worked through, and today Ash Carter, our Secretary of Defense has directed the National Guard to stop trying to recoup the $$$.

I just read this update as well: "Director of the Army Lt. Gen. William Grisoli, told Stars & Stripes newspaper that investigators believe that 104 criminal cases of recruiter incentive fraud have been adjudicated, and 16 people have been imprisoned, including five National Guard recruiter assistants who each collected over $1 million in fraudulent bonuses.

The worst offender appears to be California National Guard’s incentives manager Army Master Sgt. Toni Jaffe. After admitting that, from the fall of 2007 through October 2009, she “routinely submitted false and fictitious claims on behalf of her fellow California National Guard members,” amounting to $15.2, she pled guilty to making “false claims against the United States.” Jaffe served to 30 months in a federal prison. Three California Guard officers also have pleaded guilty to criminal fraud and agreed to pay restitution."

I hope this sickening situation will be corrected TODAY. And what happens to all the soldiers who have already repaid the bonuses? Will they get their money back?

Go to weebly.co

Governments' broken promises

10/25/2016

I could say in a nice way that I'm outraged. But, I'm not outraged. I am plain old fashioned highly pissed off!!

If you have been watching the news, you undoubtedly have learned of the California National Guard recalling sign up bonuses previously paid to service personnel for reenlistment 10 years ago.

I have achieved a fairly advanced age in my life. I now believe I have seen the dumbest, most stupid, most inexcusable behavior of leadership I have ever witnessed. How in the world did someone achieve a position in life whereby they are in position to make such incredibly stupid decisions?

We are getting used to our congress making some really dumb decisions. I now believe the California National Guard have "one-upped" them. They took the the dumb ass trophy away from Congress.
It is my opinion that the one(s) making the decision to file a tax lien on the service personnel's homes to recover reenlistment bonuses, should be tracked down like criminals. I want a name!! I want to send them to jail for 10 years!!

However, I really want the one(s) who signed the employee review that enabled the aforementioned dumb ass to ascend to a position of making dumb decisions. They are the real criminals in this fiasco. They deserve 20 years in prison.

What really blows me away is that President Obama could solve the problem of the service personnel bonus with a simple Executive Order, a method of operation he dearly loves.

It is incumbent upon me and everyone you know to contact their elected representatives and tell them to fix this issue and return the money to the veterans, or they will be removed from office........and they don't get the retirement benefits they were promised.

In the interest of full disclosure, I am a veteran.

Tornado damage recovery

10/19/2016

I was doing some research for the implementation of a Housing Financing Corporation. I visited many websites. One I discovered might be of interest to victims of the tornado.

Below is a link to The Texas General Land Office. Under "Recovery," the webpage takes the reader to an application for help in damage recovery from disasters.

I can't tell you how it works, but it should get you started in the right direction to research any available help for your needs. Driving thru Rowlett suggests that some help is still needed. Good luck.

Click below.

http://www.glo.texas.gov/recovery/index.html

Time delayed

10/19/2016

Well.....the best laid plans.

Take a little time off, spend a little time on a working vacation, return home refreshed and invigorated, and ready to take on the world.

Oops.......not so fast, Murphy. You haven't taken time yet to have pneumonia. Therefore, I have spent the past few days in the hospital with pneumonia. Now, I'm really behind.

I'll catch up when I get caught up.

Pros of Housing Financing Corporations

10/10/2016

I'm beginning to amass a lot of information on HFC's   I'm really getting into the weeds. Not much fun. It occurred to me that you would not be interested in such detail.   I wouldn't either, if I didn't have to.

So, I thought I would write about some high points, sufficient to acquaint you with the "tax credit" financing vehicle. You should know this to opine about Rowlett's entry into the business.

Let's start with why we should even be involved with HFC's.   Rowlett, as well as most other smaller towns, do not have HFC's. However, some forward thinking communities have. Since it's inception in the early 80's, 70 towns and counties have created an HFC. HFC's are tax exempt and can issue bonds. These bonds go a long way toward financing certain types of housing. Once the HFC is set up by the municipality, and the board of directors are appointed, any risk is absorbed by the HFC.   The city is then risk free. The taxpayers are off the hook. I would recommend that the City Council select members to the HFC other than themselves.

The HFC is primarily charged with the responsibility of financing residential development. This would come in the form of apartments and single family homes. There are two general groups that are served by the financing package. One is Senior housing and the other is workforce housing. Both can be further subdivided into apartments and single family homes.

Now, why HFC's?   Because of a number of positive and good economic reasons, the cost of housing is escalating much faster than some of our citizens can adjust. Some incomes are not keeping pace. Someone on Social Security can not rent new market rate apartments. A retired couple, making $2,000 a month each, would have to pay approximately $1400 a month for a market rate 2 br, 2 bath apartment. After withholding for Medicare, gap insurance, utilities, auto maintenance, and food, there is little remaining to live.

Another example: The Median family income in Rowlett is $83,200. Folks, that's pretty high. The people in Rowlett are doing good. I have read recently that the average home in Rowlett costs $160,000. I don't believe that number. All the recent sales comps I know are well north of $200,000..... most probably in the $225K-$250K range, and many more much higher. In order to pull the average down to $160,000, there has to be a whole bunch of $100,000 houses out there. I haven't seen any in 20 years.

For purposes of discussion, let's say our average income family wants to buy our average priced $200K home. Under a conventional loan, they would need 20% down, and say $2,000 in closing costs. That's $42K. Let's say our young couple consists of a Rowlett policeman or fireman, and a wife that works for the City of Rowlett. He makes $50K and she makes $33.2K. Together they make the Median Income of Rowlett. They are Rowlett's future. They are good citizens. We need them here. They have been renting a small house for $1400/month, making a car payment, paying off a student loan, child care, and the usual food, utilities, insurance, etc. What do you think their chances are of saving $42K? So, they would have to go FHA or VA, if one is a veteran. That would cut their cash needs down to about $8,000. That's still a lot of money to a young couple with two small children.

Now, introduce HFC to the town.

You must understand that HFC "tax credit" deals are not a subsidy, as you usually understand it. An HFC "tax credit" project has nothing to do with the tenant. It is a financing vehicle for real estate development. Apartments and houses each have their own rules, however they both kinda work like this:

I'll use apartments as an example.   Lets say a 200 unit apartment project costs $20 million. Normally, a lender lends the the money to build the project and the developer spends the next 20 years making payments........just like you do on your house. However, under a "tax credit" format, the Federal Government and the Texas government enters the equation to aid senior citizens and workforce employees and provide good housing at a cost they can afford. Remember the numbers above? These two groups are SOL in Rowlett right now. To shorten a story and cut out a lot of detail, the Feds and the State arrange for the lender on the project to receive tax credits. Depending on the deal, these tax credits can be anywhere from $800K to $1.5 million a year for 10 years. The lender gets the tax credits to protect income and they earn CRA credits. (Community Reinvestment Act Credits). These two benefits entice the lender to make the loan, if the project is otherwise a well conceived real estate deal. No money is paid to anyone, including the tenants.    These tax credits simply reduce the amount remaining on the debt structure, therefore the monthly payments are substantially reduced. Also therefore, the rents are substantially reduced. How much are the rents reduced? Well, it's enough to make a big difference. It all depends on the average incomes of the citizens. To qualify to get into the project, you must make at least so much money, but not too much. There is a strata that you must fit into. Remember, this program was created to aid senior citizens and workforce employees.......not the guy that makes $120K a year.

Let's look at the seniors group again. The average senior citizen couple aren't as "well off" as you might think. Some have done quite well and this program isn't for them. However, if they have done reasonably well, they have a house paid for and maybe $30K-$50K in the bank. They have been taught to get their house paid for and all will be well. The problem is that they can become a "captive" of their house. Remember our math on senior citizens above? Taxes, utilities, insurance, maintenance, and food makes a big bite out of their Social Security income. Of course, they're trying to preserve their "nest egg." Now, they're trapped. The dreamed for travel, nights out, and gifts for the grandkids are beginning to dim.    Then, along comes HFC. They can sell their $200K house, put the money in the bank with their $40K, move into the new apartments paying $750 a month. They can have a social life with the other tenants in the community rooms. They can live comfortably on Social Security income and have $240K in the bank. The grankids get a horse.   A similar story can be crafted for the young couple interested in apartments or a house.

Now, I want to take a little time to write about apartments. I realize I'm swimming upstream in a swift current, but you need to know the truth, not the unfounded myths and "piling on" stories.

I have been in the real estate development business for 50 years. Most of that time I was in the financing part of the business. Are there bad apartment projects? Absolutely. Are all apartments bad neighbors and "slums in the making?" Absolutely not.

I have been on apartment sites that my only recommendation was to get a D-8 dozer and take it down. I have also been in apartments that I still would not be able to afford. I probably don't need the "man's man" greeting me at the door and brushing down my jacket before I left for the day.

Apartments are a physical thing. They don't think, or walk, or talk. In fact, they don't do anything except wait for human beings to do things to them.   Bad apartments are a result of bad management. Nothing else. It has nothing to do with the people who might live there. It has to do with the people who are allowed to live there.   This is the world of apartment management. A good apartment management company will have a good apartment complex. They will be good neighbors.

I don't want to seem to be telling our excellent Police Chief how to run his store. He's quite capable without me. However, I would like to tell you what I would do if I was police chief. I would wait until the complex was built and they were in the process of moving in their first tenants.   I would then show up with a pleasant smile and ask to see the manager. When the manager comes forward, I would say that, "I will give you three police calls a month. If you ever have four, you are really not going to like me, anymore. If you ever have four, I will have code inspectors crawling all over your place. I will have enough violations to take your entire monthly rental income for the next month." Then, I would smile and say, "Have a good day." as I was leaving. I betcha from that day forward, there will be a good apartment project in Rowlett.

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Well, I'm back.....

10/8/2016

I had a great time on the coast. You ought to go if you can.

It was a business trip, too. I wanted to see what some of the smaller towns were doing for senior citizen and workforce housing. I was not terribly surprised to learn "not much."

I talked with the City Manager of Port Aransas. They are thinking about an HFC to use as a financing vehicle, but they haven't done much. In fact, I know more than the Port Aransas City Council knows.    I didn't get a chance to talk to anyone in Corpus Christi, but they're building the heck out of apartments......out on Padre Island.

I got to see all the smaller towns on the north side of San Antonio. They are building workforce housing now. I walked into one project that looked interesting. The project was finished in April. It is now 100% occupied, and they are no longer taking names on the waiting list.    It is a tax credit project, just like I am proposing for Rowlett. The San Antonio area seems to be a lot more aggressive, but they are a high retirement area. I think Rowlett could be a high retirement area, also.

I really miss you

10/5/2016

As I look around at the scenery, there is just nothing but water. And.......the noise it makes........all night long. There are big fish with noses that look like bottles. All the restaurants around here just serve mahi-mahi, Gulf shrimp, and crab legs. Occasionally, we find some stuffed flounder. We also see a lot of stuffed crab.

We're learning to "make do" with the limited selections. A little wine makes it palatable.

Well....back to all the water:

Whew...a couple of days off

10/2/2016

Well, I hope you all had fun at the Regatta. If you didn't go, you missed a jolly good time. The weather was beautiful for the landlubbers, but too tame for the sailors. We needed about 10 knots more wind. Anyhow, it was history being made. Wait until next year!!

I'm going to take a few days off to embrace a little Texas coast. I think Port Aransas sounds nice. I'm also going to do a little business down there. I will come back thru San Antonio and visit some old friends in the real estate business and do a little more business. It's kinda a bus man's holiday. In any event, it gets me away for a while and still keeps me involved in things I like to do. I have a good gig.

You guys have to take care of our town while I'm gone. I don't want to come back to a mess. I'll be back Friday.

Also, take care of yourself. Readers are hard to come by. Stay out of trouble, and if you can't, keep bond money handy. Godspeed. See ya on the flip flop.