Construction Update - US 281 Loop 1604 Interchange

The US 281/Loop 1604 interchange construction project is well into its eight month. Long awaited and sorely needed, the completed interchange is projected to relieve the chronically congested traffic conditions on one of the area's most heavily travelled highways.

The project is truly a "pardon our improvements" situation. Motorists have cause to be aggrevated by the rerouting of construction area access roads, periodic traffic stoppages, delays caused by heavy equipment moving materials and reconfiguring the right-of-way, and the much lower and slower construction zone speed limit. Everyone wants to know what's happening now, what's next, and when will it all end.

The Alamo Regional Mobility Authority has developed a number of ways to keep citizens up-to-date and in tune with road project developments. According to Leroy D. Alloway, the Authority's Director of Community Development, you can visit these sites for the US 281/Loop 1604 interchange construction news:

Visit http://www.alamorma.org/ for daily closure announcements.

Go to http://www.facebook.com/AlamoRMA.

Go to http://www.twitter.com/AlamoRMA .

Get instant telephonic text messages by texting "follow AlamoRMA" to 40404 .

This blog is brought to you by the http://sanantoniohomequest.com/ Realty Solutions Team. If your're looking for San Antonio homes for sale, visit our world class search engine at:

http://www.sanantoniohomequest.com/ext-search-listings.asp

If you have questions about San Antonio living, real estate, mortgage loans, or anything realty, call Randy Kelley at (210) 863-2661 or Stephanie Kelley at (210) 867-8743 or enter your question at sanantoniohomequest.com/resources-ask-anything.asp . We'll answer as soon as possible.

How To Get The Cleanest Windows In San Antonio

The SanAntonioHomeQuest.com team provides realty solutions, and they're not limited to buying or selling your San Antonio home. Sometimes we see a home maintenance need that needs addressing - like how to get the cleanest windows in San Antonio.

Believe me, having lived in San Antonio so many years, I'm confounded by the gunk clouding my home's windows. I'm certain I've tried every window cleaning product, including some "as seen on TV." You know, the one not found in stores, but already on the "As Seen On TV" shelf up the street at Walgreens. I guess Walgreens isn't a store - huh?

I digress -- back to my point. It is truly hard to keep your San Antonio home's eyes bright and shiny.

But, there's a homemade formula that works better than anything we've found in the stores and we are sharing it with you at our Texas Home Girl sister site. Give her a click and learn the right formula to combine hot water, ammonia, vinegar, and alcohol (no -- not in yer mouth -- in yer wash pail), to whisk away San Antonio window crud.

This helpful hint blog is brought to you by the SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team. We're the best - leave the rest.

If you're looking to buy a San Antonio, Bulverde, or military base area home, go here for our world class listings search engine.

Loan Prequalification And Down Payment For San Antonio Homes For Sale

The SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team loves to answer questions about buying and selling homes. Here's the latest one.

Question: How do I get pre-qualified and what is a good down-payment for a home?

Our Answer: If you are just wanting to get an idea, you could use the link below for some general information:

http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/houseafford/houseafford.html

If you are seriously considering purchasing, you will want to visit with a loan officer that you feel you can trust. Your agent might recommend one or you could ask friends to suggest someone with whom they have had a good experience. You could also visit your personal bank or credit union.

A pre-qualification should not cost you anything. A pre-approval is often required when you are ready to make an offer and that will usually have the cost of a loan application and credit check. The pre-qual is enough to get started in most areas, but there will be a point where you need approval.

The down payment is variable and is different from your earnest money. How much you choose to put down (along with other things) can affect the interest rate. If you are VA eligible, or qualify for a USDA financing, you may get by with 00 down payment. FHA will require 3.5 percent down. A conventional loan will vary and can run anywhere from 5% to as much as you want to put down. Many people choose 20% down on a conventional loan to avoid private mortgage insurance (PMI).

A good agent and/or a good loan officer will guide you through this maze? Good luck!

If you're looking for San Antonio homes for sale, visit our world class search engine at

http://www.sanantoniohomequest.com/ext-search-listings.asp.

Brought to you by the SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions team. If you have a question about San Antonio, real estate, mortgage loans, anything realty -- go here -- and we'll get back to you with our answer as soon as possible.

November 2011 San Antonio Homes For Sale Report

If you're visiting to find homes for sales in San Antonio, visit our world class realty search engine at SanAntonioHomeQuest.com. If you want to know what's happening in the residential realty market, read on:

It's autumn in South Texas. Bright beautiful days, balmy afternoons, and cooler nights herald the approaching holiday season. Residents and tourists are out and about, delighting in San Antonio's most pleasant season.

Typically, San Antonio's residential realty market cools down with the season. It's to be expected because San Antonio's realty market runs in a predictable seasonal cycle. The lowest sales month is January, the higher sales season kicks off in March and usually peaks in June, and, after school starts in August, the market draws down in a leisurely fashion through the fall and early winter.

So far, this year's cycle has been typical, with one exception. The area has experienced a significant reduction the homes-for-sale inventory.

Currently there's approximately a 7 months supply of homes on the market - signifying a weak buyer's market. If the supply drops much lower, the market will experience a balanced market neither favoring buyers or sellers and likely causing a gradual rise in home prices.

Balancing the market is a healthy trend indicative of improving economic conditions. That's unquestionably the case in San Antonio this year.

Here's why.

Job growth is excellent and the unemployment rate is relatively low. Just south of the city, the developing Eagle Ford shale oil field is attracting new businesses and generating thousands of new job opportunities throughout South Texas. Also, the Alamo City's traditional economic generators remain strong with financial, service sector, military, bioscience, and medical establishments leading the way and showing no signs of weakening.

Barring unforeseen factors, San Antonio's realty market will likely mirror San Antonio's vibrant economic conditions - strong, resilient, & growing.

Here are the relevant market stats for San Antonio area single-family detached homes as of 5 November 2011.

There are 10771 active listings, compared to 12072 one year ago. The inventory is decreasing very rapidly. That's a good sign for home sellers.

The average sales price for the most recent closings is $181,243, compared to last year's $183,131. Because the decrease is likely seasonal and not indicative of a long term trend, it's neither a good nor bad sign for buyers or sellers.

Average cumulate-days-on-the-market (CDOM) for the most recent sales is 146 compared to 126 last year. For the time being, CDOM data remains positive for San Antonio home buyers.

Industry analysts see these data as reflecting a housing market moving toward balanced conditions. That means the market might soon favor neither buyers nor sellers.

That's our November 2011 San Antonio realty market report. We encourage reader questions, comments, and suggestions for making this monthly report more relevant and informative.

Wishing you an wonderful November and a blessed Thanksgiving, we are Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors ® at Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio. If you have questions, need San Antonio area realty or mortgage advice or assistance, or just want to chat, please call (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743 or send an email to swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our http://sanantonohomequest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.