A new study indicating who is likely to steal your identity shifts the blame from people you know to those who are more likely to be strangers. In its “Identity Fraud Trends and Patterns“, Utica College’s Center For Identity Management & Information Protection (CIMIP) tracked Secret Service arrests and convictions of offenders and found that identity thieves used these methods of operation. ID thieves used the Internet or some other technological device in the commission of the crime approximately 50 percent of the time. Among those who did not use technology, tactics like dumpster diving and change of address forms were used 20 percent of the time. Learn about ID theft prevention strategies outlined on the Federal Trade Commission’s Identity Theft Site.

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Vacation-home sales went up 4.7% to a record 1.07 million homes in 2006 from 1.02 million in 2005, driven largely by demographic trends. Meanwhile, investment-home sales dropped 28.9%, falling to 1.65 million homes in 2006 from 2.32 million in 2005, according to the group’s annual survey of investment- and vacation-home buyers. Vacation-home sales went up 4.7% to a record 1.07 million homes in 2006 from 1.02 million in 2005, driven largely by demographic trends. Meanwhile, investment-home sales dropped 28.9%, falling to 1.65 million homes in 2006 from 2.32 million in 2005, according to the group’s annual survey of investment and vacation home buyers. Part of the drop in the median investment price results from investors shifting away from pricier markets like Florida, Nevada and Arizona, and into affordable locations in New Mexico, Idaho, Utah, Georgia, Tennessee and the Carolinas.

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Consumers tend not to research loan products before sitting down with their mortgage professional. While help is on the Web, consumers need to know where to look. Simply doing a search engine query for many of the popular mortgage terms will result in thousands of links — most with little or no applicability. Borrowers could do much worse than visiting the Freddie Mac “What is a Mortgage” page. This site helps consumers understand some basic mortgage concepts. Links on this page explain the pros and cons of a fixed-rate mortgage, the elements of an adjustable-rate mortgage and define balloon and reset features. Also a visit to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s site takes visitors through the home buying process step-by-step.

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Only 10% of the power used by today’s incandescent bulbs is emitted as light, while the other 90% is released as heat,” Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., said when she introduced her legislation to ban standard light bulbs. To eliminate this waste, Harman has proposed legislation that would effectively eliminate incandescent light bulbs from store shelves nationwide as early by 2012. Her proposal was incorporated as part of an energy bill passed by the House of Representatives earlier this month. Though the incandescent light bulb has logged more than 125 years as the reigning light technology with little competition, lawmakers supporting the legislation see the 4 billion light-bulb sockets in American homes as an obvious way to curtail energy consumption and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases.

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Frequently, homeowners do not know the exact location of their lot lines. Other times, contractors doing work for the homeowners fail to follow the property lines when making improvements to homes. The most common problem between neighbors has to do with the installation of fences. Depending on the configuration of the lots, bushes, trees, other obstacles and the location of the home on each lot, neighbors frequently pick a line that usually ends up on one neighbor’s side of the property by a couple of inches to a couple of feet.

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As housing markets deteriorate and a liquidity squeeze buffets the credit markets, mortgage delinquencies and home loan defaults have increased substantially. One forecast now predicts that these numbers will climb even higher over the next six months. The Core Mortgage Risk Monitor (CMRM), an index of foreclosure risk compiled by First American CoreLogic, increased by 1.6 percent compared with the three months ended June 30. High risk markets have foreclosure rates and fraud and collateral risk indices three times the national averages. High risk markets also have job issues such as high unemployment of low wages and wage growth, all indications of economic stress.

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$5,850,000

MLS Number: 50913

City: Valle Crucis, NC
Stories: 2
Bedrooms: 4 Baths: 4.5
Area: Boone-Blowing Rock, NC
Year Built: 1990
Plus Five fully furnished 1,400 sq. ft. Rental Cottages. Each built in 1996 on approx. 1/2 acre sites. Current cottage average annual rental income $150,000.

39.4 acres with 360 degree view of Blue Ridge Mountains.

5,200 sq. ft. main house built in 1990 on 1.24 acres.

No restrictions and no zoning offer many other options:

* Family compound
* Corporate retreat
* Religous retreat
* Horse farm / Dude ranch
* Recording studio
* Cottages can be sold separately
* Land can be further subdivided if desired

Contact Elizabeth Carter, 336.973.5594 or Greg Stikeleather, Broker, 704.880.5247 or email eacarter@charter.net

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