A new report from Evansville-based Atlas Van Lines shows the number of household moves across state lines continues to rise in Indiana and around the country. The 2011 Atlas Van Lines Migration Patterns study shows for the first time in six years, Michigan is no longer considered an outbound state. Washington D.C. continues to see the highest percentage of inbound moves, while Ohio has the highest percentage of outbound moves.

EVANSVILLE, Ind.--According to one of North America’s leading moving companies, Atlas Van Lines, the number of household moves across state lines continues to rise. The 2011 Atlas Van Lines Migration Patterns study found Southwestern and Mid-Atlantic coastal states to be popular destinations. Atlas first conducted the study in 1993 to track the nation's interstate moving patterns.

“Our annual migration patterns study is an interesting gauge of the economy, where economic development is taking place and trends to follow throughout the upcoming year”

For the first time in six years, Michigan went from a perennially outbound state to a balanced state. Michigan now joins South Dakota and Iowa as the only Midwest states to remain balanced in 2011, as the rest of the Midwest continued to lose residents.

Five states that were balanced in 2010 are now outbound states, including Massachusetts, Connecticut, West Virginia, Louisiana and Utah. Wyoming and Mississippi, which were outbound in 2010, are now balanced. Previously inbound states Kentucky and New Hampshire became balanced in 2011.

The highest number of interstate, or between states, moves occurred in states with larger cities, including, California, Texas, New York, Florida, Georgia and Illinois. California comes in at the top with nearly 15,000 moves in 2011. For the sixth consecutive year, Washington D.C. had the highest percentage of inbound moves. Once again, Ohio saw the highest percentage of outbound moves.

"Our annual migration patterns study is an interesting gauge of the economy, where economic development is taking place and trends to follow throughout the upcoming year,” said Jack Griffin, president and COO of Atlas World Group. "These new findings are especially promising, as we saw the number of moves increase yet again.”

Visit http://www.atlasvanlines.com/migration-patterns/ for a full report, detailed map and state-by-state statistics.

About Atlas Van Lines

Atlas Van Lines, a national moving company, is the largest subsidiary of Atlas World Group, an Evansville, Ind.-based company. Atlas World Group companies employ nearly 700 people throughout North America. Nearly 500 Atlas interstate moving agents in the United States and Canada specialize in corporate relocation, household moving services and in the specialized transportation of high-value items such as electronics, fine art, store fixtures and furniture. For more information, visit http://www.atlasvanlines.com.

Source: Atlas Van Lines

Washing clothes by hand and hanging them to dry is the most energy-saving approach to laundry in terms of electricity. But let’s get real. Most of us don’t have the personal energy to hand-wash and air-dry all of our clothes!

You most likely spend hundreds of dollars per year on electricity to wash and dry your clothes, but it’s easy to save electricity in your laundry room with some simple tricks. In addition, you’ll also make your clothes last longer.

Wash Right

Pending home sales rose 7.3 percent in November to the highest level since April 2010, according to the National Association of Realtors. That is some good news for the local and national housing markets.

The Realtors also revised higher its pending home sales data for October, showing a gain of 10.4 percent the previous month.

“Housing affordability conditions are at a record high and there is pent-up demand from buyers who’ve been on the sidelines, but contract failures have been running unusually high," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. “Some of the increase in pending home sales appears to be from buyers recommitting after an initial contract ran into problems, often with the mortgage.”

Pending home sales in the south, which includes the Washington area, rose 4.3 percent last month, and were up 8.7 percent from year-ago levels.

Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year fixed-rate mortgages remained below 4 percent for the ninth consecutive week this week, contributing to an increase in buyer activity

Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/morning_call/2011/12/pending-home-sales-reach-19-month-high.html

"Rates on 30-year fixed mortgages have been at or below 4 percent for the last eight weeks and now are almost 0.9 percentage points below where they were at the beginning of the year, which means that today's home buyers are paying over $1,200 less per year on a $200,000 loan,” Frank Nothaft, chief economist at Freddie Mac, said in a statement. “This greater affordability helped push existing home sales higher for the second consecutive month in November to an annualized pace of 4.42 million, the most since January.”

Here’s a closer look at mortgage rates for the week ending Dec. 22:

• 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.91 percent this week, with an average 0.7 point, beating last week’s 3.94 percent record. A year ago at this time, 30-year rates averaged 4.81 percent.
• 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.21 percent, with an average 0.8 point, matching last week’s all-time low. Last year at this time, the 15-year mortgage averaged 4.15 percent.
• 5-year adjustable-rate mortgages: averaged 2.85 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, a new record after dropping from last week’s 2.86 percent average. Last year at this time, 5-year ARMs averaged 3.75 percent.
• 1-year ARMs: averaged 2.77 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, also a new record after falling from last week’s 2.81 percent average. A year ago at this time, the 1-year ARMs averaged 3.40 percent.

Source: Freddie Mac

Source: http://realtormag.realtor.org/daily-news/2011/12/23/mortgage-rates-reach-new-record-lows

A tourism attraction in Santa Claus, Indiana has earned yet another title.

Lake Rudolph Campground and RV Resort, has been voted one of the top ten campgrounds in North America.

It may be best associated, though, for it's annual "Lands of Lights" Christmas display.

Campers and RV enthusiasts voted via website and text message. In celebration of its 75th anniversary, Woodall's Publications wanted to discover the best places to camp across North American, and launched the ten month long sweepstakes.

Lake Rudolph beat out more than 7-thousand other RV parks.

Source: http://tristatehomepage.com/fulltext?nxd_id=477867

The Indiana Association of Realtors is reporting a 14 percent jump in closed homes sales for November, compared to the same month a year earlier. IAR also says prices did not follow the trend. The statewide median and average price of homes sold in November were slightly less than the same period in 2010.

According to the monthly “Indiana Real Estate Markets Report” today released by the Indiana Association of REALTORS®, activity was high in November with both the number of closed and pending home sales up by double digits year-over-year.

Statewide, when comparing November 2011 to November 2010:

The number of closed home sales increased 14.2% to 4,411; and
The number of pending home sales increased 10.4% to 3,959.
Prices did not follow that trend. Both the statewide median and average price of homes sold in November 2011 was less than in November 2010, but just slightly:

The median sale price of homes decreased 1.8% to $110,000; and
The average sale price of homes decreased 0.2% to $132,949.
“We’re close to being able to say that 2011 was better than the last two years,” said Karl Berron, Chief Executive Officer. “Local housing markets may not be making progress as quickly as we’d like, but they’re making progress and that’s good news for everyone.”

With regard to the slight dip in prices, Berron said REALTORS® were not concerned because year-to-date, the median sale price of homes in Indiana is actually up when compared to 2010 and 2009, and so is the average sale price.

“Home prices here in Indiana have historically held their ground,” said Berron. “It’s one of the reasons we enjoy a homeownership rate of more than seventy percent, and is certainly a positive for would-be home owners who are now shopping with some of the lowest mortgage interest rates in current memory.”

Whether market activity and value continue to grow depends upon a number of factors outside of the real estate industry’s control say REALTORS® across the state. The number one item on their list is more jobs, which drives number two and three on the group’s list – available financing for qualified buyers and less foreclosure inventory.

“Folks looking to invest should start with the sortable county tables of this report and then talk to a local REALTOR® who can give the most insight into what’s happening in a neighborhood, city or school district,” concluded Berron.

More about the “Indiana Real Estate Markets Report”

Established in May 2009 and found online under the Reports tab of www.IndianaIsHome.com, the “Indiana Real Estate Markets Report” was the first-ever county-by-county comparison of existing single-family home sales in Indiana. In March 2010, IAR added statistics on other types of existing detached single-family (DSF) home sales – condominiums, duplexes, townhomes, mobile homes, etc. – to the report.

The report became even more robust in August 2010. It now tells how the statewide housing market is performing according to eight different indicators, each with one-month and year-to-date comparisons, as well as a historical look. It also provides specific county information for 91 of Indiana’s 92 counties in a sortable table format, allowing for consistent comparison between local markets. IAR obtains the data directly from and releases this report in partnership with 26 of the state’s 27 Multiple Listing Services (MLSs), including the Broker Listing Cooperative® (BLC®) in both central and southwestern Indiana.

IAR represents approximately 15,000 REALTORS® who are involved in virtually all aspects related to the sale, purchase, exchange or lease of real property in Indiana. The term REALTOR® is a registered mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of America’s largest trade association, the National Association of REALTORS®, and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.

Source: Indiana Association of Realtors

Source: http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/newsitem.asp?ID=51432

Builders broke ground on more homes in November, a 9.3 percent increase over October, reaching the highest level since April 2010, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. Year-over-year, new-home starts were up 24.3 percent in November.

Home construction increased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 685,000 homes in November. However, while it’s an improvement, the rate is still below the 1.2 million home pace that economists consider healthy for the new-home sector.

November’s increase was mostly driven by construction of multi-family homes with at least two units, which soared 25.3 percent in November. Construction of single-family homes increased 2.3 percent for the month.

Building permits jumped 5.7 percent in November, the highest increase since March 2010, with the increase mostly driven by apartment construction permits.

Builders Feeling More Confident

Meanwhile, for the third consecutive month, builder confidence in the new-home market continued to edge up, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index for December. The index is at its highest point since May 2010.

While the index reached 21 in December, it is still far below 50, a reading which indicates more builders view conditions as good rather than poor. The index hasn’t reached that point since the housing boom in April 2006.

“While builder confidence remains low, the consistent gains registered over the past several months are an indication that pockets of recovery are slowly starting to emerge in scattered housing markets," Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, said in a statement. "However, the difficulties that both builders and buyers continue to experience in accessing credit for new homes are holding back potential sales even in areas where economic conditions are improving."

Source: “Apartment Construction Spurs 9.3% Jump in Housing Starts, But Level Remains Low,” Associated Press (Dec. 20, 2011); “U.S. Nov. Housing Starts +9.3% to 685K; Consensus +0.3%,” Dow Jones International News (Dec. 20, 2011); and National Association of Home Builders

While gift-giving a down payment has increased, those who receive such gifts need to make sure they follow IRS and banks’ gift-giving rules.

1. Home owners still need to come up with at least some of the down payment on their own. A spokesperson with Freddie Mac told Newsday that loans backed by Freddie Mac require that when the loan-to-value is greater than 80 percent, the buyer will need to come up with at least 5 percent of the purchase price from his or her own funds. For Fannie Mae loans, Fannie allows all down payment funds to come as a gift on one-unit principal residences. “The thing that is tricky about this is that few people know whether the loan will get sold to Fannie or Freddie,” the Newsday article notes.

2. You may need to document where the down payment money came from. “A gift letter should be signed and dated and include the giver’s name, address, and telephone number, along with his or her relationship to the borrower,” according to Total Mortgage Services in the Newsday article.

3. If you’ve had the gift for a long time, you likely won’t need to document it. If the gift has been in your bank account for three months or longer, it’s considered “seasoned” and doesn’t require a gift letter, lenders say.

Source: “Rules for ‘Gifts’ to Home Buyers,” Newsday (December 2011)

Inman News recently highlighted a few cities with holiday-themed names.

North Pole, Alaska: The northern Alaska town was renamed North Pole in 1952 “hoping that toy manufacturers would come for the ‘Made in North Pole’ bragging rights despite its inconvenience ... as a manufacturing site,” according to a National Geographic profile about the town. But the city’s plan never worked and the manufacturers never came.

Santa Claus, Ind.: You’ll find plenty of Santa Claus’ around town here. The town was renamed from “Santa Fe” to “Santa Claus” in 1865, and each year receives thousands of letters from across the country of letters addressed to St. Nick.

Snowflake, Ariz.: The Arizona town, located north of the White Mountains, can get occasional snow, but despite its name, it actually was named not for the weather but because of its two founders Erastus Snow and William Jordan Flake, according to Inman News.

Bethlehem, Pa.: You’ll find other Bethlehem’s in the country named after the Middle Eastern ancient city. In Bethlehem, Pa., the city decks its downtown with 5,500 strands of lights ever year, stretching two miles in the city.

Christmas, Fla.: During the Second Seminole Indian War, American troops built a fort several miles outside of Orlando in 1837 called Fort Christmas, which was later used as inspiration for the city’s name. According to Inman News, the city gets in the holiday-spirit year-around with lighted and decorated tree displays.

Read more about holiday-inspired towns at Inman News.

Source: “7 Towns with Holiday-Themed Names: Santa Claus, Ind., Is on the List,” Inman News

Christmas is just around the corner and for many of us that means houseguests, and houseguests mean putting the guest room to its intended use. For many of you, your guest room has become an attached storage unit full of boxes, bags and bundles of stuff.

Over time, those dinner parties, shopping sprees and the spousal complaint about the clutter on the dining room table have created one too many junk piles shoved into your guest room. Now it’s December, and ready or not, company is coming.

Begin by sorting like items into boxes. Then organize the contents of each box in the room where they belong, purging any items that you no longer need or want. Now it is time to spice up the guest room making sure it is clutter free, organized and ready for company.

If you do not already have one, consider putting a mirror in your guest room. This is especially helpful when there is not a connected bathroom, if someone is taking a shower or the bathroom mirror is already occupied. The guest room mirror allows a second person to get ready for the day. If space is limited, purchase an over-the-door mirror or hang one on the wall. Add a shelf or surface area underneath or close by so guests have a place to put makeup, a hair dryer or other accessories.

Just because it is a guest room, it does not mean you cannot use the closet space for family storage. There are options for visiting guests to hang clothes such as garment bars that mount to a wall or over a door. These pull out for temporary hanging space and when not in use push back flush against the wall.

An organized room is a comfortable and a well thought out room. If you can, spend a night in the room and think about what your guests might need during their stay. Small gestures by you can make the stay more special for them and less stressful for you. Some guests feel comfortable getting snacks from your pantry and drinks from your fridge, while others do not. Leave a tray of snacks, fresh fruit and bottled water in the guest room. Even if your guests do not eat them during their stay, encourage them to take them for the trip home.

Your guests will be impressed by how organized the space was and also by your thoughtfulness, and you will know exactly what is in your guest room. The next time the phone rings or you receive an email from a friend or relative asking to visit, your guest room will be ready.

Lorraine Brock is a professional organizer and owner of Get Organized!. Get Organized! is a professional organizing service in the Dallas, Texas area. As of Dec. 9, 2011, this service provider was highly rated on Angie’s List. Ratings are subject to change based on consumer feedback, so check AngiesList.com for the most up-to-date reviews. The views expressed by this author do not necessarily reflect those of Angie’s List.

Source: http://magazine.angieslist.com/home-organization/articles/get-your-guest-room-ready-for-holiday-guests.aspx