Task #7

A new trend in the auto industry is developing not only creating green cars, but also green auto factories. In the highlights of the article in the Dallas morning news discusses 

• The $20 million dealership has a restaurant with vegetarian items on the menu and seating for 32
• A showroom with the tony feel of an upscale mall 
• An impressive 1.5-acre dog park in back! 
• The restrooms at the dealership use running water from the faucets to recharge the electrical system that controls the automatic faucets. 

http://www.dallasnews.com/business/autos-latest-news/20101228-hondatopia-gleams-in-fort-worth.ece

Task #6

Since Argyle is such a small town and economical development data is scarce I decided to move North of Argyle to Keller, TX. Here I will invest in Retail shop more specifically a Frozen Yogurt store like Spoons or Yogurtland. 

There are currently 3 frozen yogurt shops within the Keller city limits. All of which are not name brand names therefore entering this market with a name brand such as spoons would be crucial. According to the Keller Economic Development 2012 no frozen yogurt stores were opened in the past year. (http://www.cityofkeller.com/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=8643).

This chart was pulled from http://pics4.city-data.com/zag/za76262.png. With a relatively young population made up of families frozen yogurt is an ideal investment because of its cheap start-up costs and it is easy to maintain. Also, yogurt is a healthier option and is trending amongst most young children and adults. 

Task #5

The main problem is that mortgage companies lent money to people that could not continue to make payments on their homes. Most of these loans were called “subprime” loans because the borrowers have less than perfect credit histories. A large portion of the borrowers defaulted on the loans. The defaults were partly because the interest rate on the loans increased sharply after the first year. This sharp increase was likely not disclosed to the borrower in such a way that they would easily understand the difficulty in being able to afford their home after the adjustment in rate.

The large number of foreclosures has seriously damaged the lenders and investors that fund real estate loans. Because housing is so important to our economy, one of eight jobs is related to the housing industry, the federal government has had to step in to shore up the collapsing real estate market. Termed the mortgage bailout plan, the Congress has passed a measure giving the U. S. Treasury Department the power to step in and assist Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage giants that hold over fifty percent of the nation’s home loans. Under the legislation, the Federal Housing Administration is granted the authority to insure up to $300 billion in refinanced mortgages hoping to reduce the rising number of foreclosures.  Because one in eight homes is projected to enter foreclosure in the next five years, the hopes of the bailout are to address broader economic problems by helping to reform the housing sector.

Task #4

I grew up in a small town in Argyle, TX. We have a population of about 3,500 people. Argyle is located north of Dallas off of Highway I-35. Argyle has continued to grow through the Mortgage Crisis. According to the United State Census Argyle as of 2010 Argyle has 1,083 households and 925 families residing within the city. The racial demographics are 95.9% white, 0.03% African American, 0.05% Native American, and 0.06% Asian. The median income according to the census was $91,161.

Here is a picture of Argyle High School home to the Eagles.

This is a picture of the Argyle Town Hall

Task #3

      To first understand what private restrictions on land are we first must discuss encumbrances. Encumbrances are restrictions and limitations on the free simple ownership rights that run with private and public land. Examples of private encumbrances are: covenants, conditions, restrictions, liens, easements, profit a prendre, adverse possession, and encroachments. 

An example of a private restriction can be seen in the YouTube video below. 

Task #2

The most interesting piece of architecture in my opinion is the Dallas Cowboys new stadium "Jerry World". The reason why I find this new behemoth of a building the most interesting piece of real estate is because it wasn't just built to play football in. This is a billion dollar venue can hold soccer games, concerts, basketball games etc.

Task #1

My name is Carson York I am a Senior Finance major from Argyle, Texas. My hobbies are basketball, poker, skiing, wake-boarding, and investing. There are two main goals I would like to learn from this class. First, I would like to learn enough to be able to buy a house after graduation. Second, I would like to learn more about appraising residential and commercial real estate to become more knowledgeable than my father who is a real estate broker and appraiser for residential property. My short-term goals are to be the best consultant within Accenture. My long-term goals are to accumulate wealth and start a family. A hobby that is unique about me is I have been a Men's practice player for the Texas A&M Women's Basketball team for four years. One goal on my bucket list is to visit all 50 states (28 more to go). Below are links to my favorite websites. 
http://espn.go.com/

https://twitter.com/
http://v4.texags.com/
www.wsj.com