SELLER’S ARTICLES – FOR THE SMART CONSUMER Three Tips for Increasing Your Wake County Real Estate Home’s Value The best way to increase your home’s value before you sell it is to think like a buyer!  Think back to the time when you were shopping for a new home, or analyze your current experience if you are already looking for your next home.  As a buyer, what features did you look for?  What features attracted you to your current home and helped you to decide that it was the right one for you? When you think about the features that attracted you, remember that others will most likely find them attractive as well.  However, if you have owned your home for several years or more, it might be time to update some things in order to meet the growing demands of today’s home buyers. Curb Appeal Draws Potential Buyers to Your Home Anyone who has ever purchased a home will tell you that the first thing they noticed about the home was how it looked from the outside.  And they will probably also tell you that they drove past many homes before they found a few that piqued their interest. This is a commonly known fact among real-estate agents.  Buyers appreciate homes that sparkle on the outside and, once they’re drawn inside, they will be very excited to see what else these homes have to offer. Most of today’s buyers research homes online before they ever make that first drive.  The very first thing buyers are presented with online is a photograph.  Only after the photo has their attention do they begin looking at the details of what the home has to offer. Take a photograph of your home and look at it objectively, from a buyer’s perspective.  Do the lawn and gardens that are visible from the front of the home appear to be well maintained?  Is the roof in good repair? Are there any sagging gutters?  Do you see debris in the gutters?  What about the windows and exterior paint? If any of these items look like they are in need of some TLC (tender loving care), then they probably are.  Apart from the roof, these items are generally inexpensive to address. With only a small amount of time and money, you can improve your home’s appearance significantly. Consider hiring a professional landscaper in order to get your lawn in tip-top condition.  You may decide that your home would be more welcoming if the walkway to the front door were bordered with planters full of beautiful flowers.  If you decide to paint the exterior of your home, look around the neighborhood first.  Try to select a neutral color that will blend in nicely with the other colors commonly used in the neighborhood.  White is almost always a good choice, along with beige, grey or brown. Potential buyers can view your home more easily when it is bright inside.  Often this is quite easy to achieve.  Sometimes you can make your home brighter simply by lifting the shades, opening the curtains or cleaning your windows. Buyers Love New Kitchens and Bathrooms If you purchased your home in the 1970s, you may have loved the orange Formica that covers your countertops.  Likewise, the blue ceramic tile in the bathroom was probably just the right shade to match the towels given to you as a wedding gift.  Unfortunately, a potential buyer might not get quite as excited about the matching pink toilet and sink in the powder room. If you can relate to these statements, then consider updating your kitchen and bathrooms.  Although kitchen and bathroom remodeling projects are significant home improvements, buyers will be willing to pay more for your home when you advertise that it has a brand-new kitchen. Your real-estate agent can offer some suggestions about what buyers want in a kitchen or bathroom, and you can also ask friends and family members what they think would improve your home’s attractiveness. If your kitchen is small, look for a way to enlarge the space.  Removing a wall, or even cutting a wall in half to install an island or breakfast bar, could improve the space. If you decide to replace your cabinets, select light-colored, solid-wood cabinetry with quality hardware.  Consider a hardwood floor or ceramic tiles.  Today’s buyers appreciate natural materials and neutral decors. Don’t forget about the appliances.  Even if you do not plan to sell your appliances with the home, purchase new appliances when you update your kitchen.  Brand-new appliances sparkle, demonstrating your commitment to quality to potential buyers. A quick visit to a local home-improvement store will show you the latest trends for kitchens and bathrooms.  Pursuing a modern look is alright, but you will probably attract more buyers if you maintain a classic look achieved through the use of timeless, high- quality materials. Increase the Amount of Light, or at Least Create the Illusion Real-estate agents everywhere offer one piece of advice for improving the value of a home more than any other.  That advice is, “let in the light!” Potential buyers can view your home more easily when it is bright inside.  Often this is quite easy to achieve.  Sometimes you can make your home brighter simply by lifting the shades, opening the curtains or cleaning your windows.  Consider selecting some inexpensive fabric to use as a flowing drape to replace your normal, heavy curtains.  If your home is still on the dark side, consider applying a fresh coat of paint.  Clean white ceilings alone will probably improve the appearance and value of your home. Reflection provides the illusion of light, so a simple coat of white paint can help to create that illusion. If your walls are dark or covered in wallpaper or paneling, remove the covering in favor of a neutral paint color.  Much like curb appeal, increasing the amount of light in your home is almost always a relatively inexpensive way to boost the your home’s value for potential buyers. Improving the appearance of your home will significantly increase the amount that potential buyers are willing to pay for your home.  The three tips above are the fastest ways to increase the value of your home, and two of them require only minimal investment. By spending a few weekends improving your home in these ways, you can increase the number of buyers who will want to see the inside of your home.  Obviously, you do not want a potential buyer to be excited when looking at the outside of your home, but disappointed when looking at the interior, so consider a fresh coat of paint throughout.  Once the buyer has stepped inside, he or she will be pleased to discover the updated kitchen and bathrooms. A beautiful kitchen alone can sell your home. A modern, yet classy kitchen with the latest features can raise the home’s value significantly. Your realtor is prepared to offer suggestions for improving your home’s value before it is listed for sale.  Even if your home has already been listed, your realtor can make suggestions about things you can do to get more competitive offers. Depending on where you currently live, buyers may be attracted to specific home features.  Your realtor can point you in the right direction and help you prioritize the types of repairs and upgrades that will help you sell your home for the price you want.

Courtesy Jeff Dicks Real Estate Group Keller Williams Realty Raleigh NC

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Heritage of Wake Forest NC

So How are My Neighborhood Home Prices Doing?

I’d like to take a moment to personally thank all my readers as we are well into our third year of publication. Many readers will ask “Hey Jeff” How are home prices doing in Heritage Wake Forest NC? Well… it depends.  I wanted to re-introduce our Market Snapshot located on our home page of our main website www.JeffDicks.com and after a couple of clicks and filling in some blanks. Voila !! … You’ll have up to date and local MLS information sent to your e-mail inbox. It’s a great tool and as always we’re here to help you interpret the information and answer any questions you have. Check out the Market Snapshot for Raleigh Real Estate, Wake Forest Homes For Sale or Cary NC Real Estate Community Information.

Courtesy of the Jeff Dicks Real Estate Group

Updated employment figures of hiring jobs in Raleigh NC and the Triangle area surged to 17,500 new jobs lowering the unemployment rate to single digits in the most recent economic data. Raleigh continues to show signs of an improving economy. PRA International adds to the Triangle area’s clinical research industry and has doubled it’s staff in the last six months with over 400 employees. In the past week Toyota motors also announced it’s hiring another 250 employees.

Job growth is steadily improving even though we have seen some M & A activity with businesses and some having announced layoffs. It may be somewhat early to ring the bell that were well on our way to recovery but with the recent 35% uptick in Raleigh real estate sales early in 2012 it’s hard to ignore.

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Heritage Wake Forest Homes For Sale

Briar Creek NC

Courtesy of the Jeff Dicks Real Estate Group

How to Find Your Raleigh NC Home Whether you are a first-time homebuyer or a seasoned expert, buying a home is a huge commitment in terms of time and money.  But, much more than that, the process of finding a home that perfectly fits your lifestyle should be fun.

Realtors know that buyers who get excited while looking for a home are more successful at finding the right home for their lifestyle and tend to enjoy the process almost as much as the realtors do.

Simplify the process of finding your next home in Raleigh by heeding these tips that will help you better enjoy the process of looking for a home and worry less about the nagging details that can derail the entire process.

Before You Start Looking… Sometimes potential buyers will decide that it is time to buy a new home when they drive past a for-sale sign in the lawn of a sparkling home in their neighborhood.  Perhaps this is the home of their dreams, but more likely it just makes them long for a change.

If and when this happens to you, take some time to consider what exactly you would include in your dream home if your choices and financial resources were unlimited.  Once you have put together this dream list, scratch off the items that you know are unrealistic.  Then make another list from the items that remain, grouping them into must-haves, would-likes and things it would be okay to have included.

Realtors’ experience shows that when such a list is created before beginning the actual home search, buyers do not have the opportunity to become enamored with a specific home that might not have everything that they are truly seeking.

Got Cash? Unless you can answer with a loud, confident “yes,” you need to research mortgage lenders, programs and interest rates well before beginning your home search.  Buyers who have determined ahead of time how much they are willing to spend, and how much they can borrow, are the most successful homebuyers.

Once you know how much money you can comfortably afford to put toward your mortgage payment each month, contact a lender to discuss the process of obtaining a pre-approval and loan commitment statement. 

Once you complete the application process and receive your pre-approval, ask the lender to make a loan commitment that will lock in your interest rate (usually as long as you purchase within 90 days) and provide proof of funding to a potential seller.

Realtors know that in most cases you will be unable to profit from your home significantly unless you are willing to make investments in it.  If you are purchasing a fixer-upper with the intention of making necessary repairs and upgrades and then selling the home for a much higher price, then you may indeed be able to make a profit…

Share the Wealth… …the wealth of information, that is.  By sharing your prioritized dream list with your realtor, you gain gaining access to all of his or her resources for matching you with potential homes.  Your realtor will be able to research many homes through a variety of different methods with the goal of finding one that suits your lifestyle perfectly.

Jump on the Highways… Yes, highways – and streets, roads, lanes, avenues, and boulevards, too!  You should drive through the area in which you would like to move in order to scope out potential homes for sale.  Getting a feel for the location, neighborhood, proximity to schools, and other factors will help you see first-hand what living in the area would mean to you.

And speaking of highways, now you can hop onto the information superhighway!  The internet is a fantastic tool that can help you find homes that meet your requirements from the comfort of your own home office.  You can access thousands of websites that list homes for sale, and you can also learn more about the area to which you plan to relocate.

Be Realistic… With housing costs are on the rise, some buyers choose to purchase homes in areas with appreciating property values in the hopes that within a few years they will be able to sell their home and generate a profit.

Realtors know that in most cases you will be unable to profit from your home significantly unless you are willing to make investments in it.  If you are purchasing a fixer-upper with the intention of making necessary repairs and upgrades and then selling the home for a much higher price, then you may indeed be able to make a profit.  However, if you do not intend to invest the necessary time and money in upgrading or renovating your new home, you should not expect a significant short-term increase in its value.

If you want to purchase a larger home than you might otherwise be able to afford through traditional lending, consider using a balloon or interest-only mortgage, but be aware that this is a risky proposition for buyers who are not prepared to make long-term sacrifices in order to satisfy their loan requirements.  Some buyers opt for this alternative financing in order to afford a home that is really beyond their grasp.  If this sounds like you, proceed with caution. Your realtor should provide the same advice. Even though your realtor earns income through commissions based on homes’ selling prices, it is his or her responsibility to look out for the client’s best interests.  You are no exception!

Consider the Value of Contingencies… When you are looking at homes that are attractive to you, realize that several other buyers may also be very interested in making an offer.  Therefore, you need to know ahead of time what you are willing to give up in terms of contractual agreements and obligations in order to make your offer as attractive as possible to the seller.

Your realtor can ask the listing agent whether the seller has obtained a pre-sale home inspection. If so, then you and your realtor can evaluate the legitimacy of the inspection report by researching the home inspector.  If the inspection seems accurate and the inspector is properly certified, then you might opt to waive the right to a home inspection.  You might also agree to allow the seller to remain in the home rent-free for a specific period of time after the closing. This is particularly useful when the seller is building a home or the closing is pending on his or her next home.

If you would like additional information about ways to improve your offer’s attractiveness to the seller, your realtor should be more than happy to share his or her knowledge and expertise with you.  Call to schedule a time to chat before you are ready to make an offer.

Good realtors pride themselves on being able to assist people like you in the process of buying and selling their home.  Years of experience have allowed them to understand what sells buyers on homes, and sellers on buyers.  Working together, your combined efforts should be enough to get you into the home of your dreams.

Most importantly, remember that the process of looking for your next home should be a fun and exciting time!  Being pre-approved for your mortgage and knowing exactly what you are looking for in a home make the process much smoother once you actually begin viewing homes.  Have fun and always remember that you can contact us at Jeff Dicks Real Estate with any questions or concerns that you might have related to any of the information presented in this article. Call us toll free 800-516-9507

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Rick’s Grape Skinny
March 2012
“Behold the rain which descends from heaven upon our vineyards, and which incorporates itself with the grapes, to be changed into wine; a constant proof that God loves us, and loves to see us happy.” Benjamin Franklin

American Grand Cru Society
What a Grand Idea!

Every now and again, we all stumble upon something in the wonderful world of wine that not only piques our interest…but makes us say, “Wow…what a great idea. Wish I’d thought of that!” Well, the American Grand Cru Society is just such an idea – and though it’s not my idea, I I am no less excited to have become a member during its formative stages…and I look forward to helping the AGCS achieve its noble goals.

Founded by long time wine aficionado and professional wine consultant, Greg Poirier, the not-for-profit AGCS was principally conceived from the depths of Greg’s wine-related passion and his drive to better serve all who might buy or produce wine in America. Having become a Certified Sommelier in 1995 (through the renowned Court of Master Sommeliers), Greg also owns and operates a travel and wine education business, Wine Guy Tours, that offers tailored, instructional travel and training experiences to the world’s major wine regions. http://www.wineguytours.com/ Greg also earned an MBA from the acclaimed School of Business in Bordeaux, France this past year! And oh by the way, when Greg isn’t engaged in his wine related passions, he also holds a full time job!

At the risk of putting words in Founder Greg’s mouth, it’s at least my sensing that the AGCS was born in large part from the universal knowledge that the best wines are made in the vineyards…and that through identifying America’s best vineyards…we might also derive an evolving list of America’s best wines and wine producers. To be sure, the concept of identifying and classifying the best vineyards and the best terroir for growing grapes is not new, and indeed the “Grand Cru” terminology is taken from the highly regulated French system of categorizing and classifying their wines.

There’s certainly no reason to try and replicate the complex French approach, but as US wine consumption grows and marketing techniques and approaches become more clever and aggressive, it is important, I think, to do all we can to protect consumers through achieving and ensuring common usage and understanding of key wine terms…especially those that are used to market and promote wine consumption. Among those terms are Grand Cru and American Grand Cru – especially when referring to and inferring something about American vineyards.

With that thought in mind, Greg registered the terminology American Grand Cru® with the US Patent and Trade Office. As a result, only the AGCS now has the legal basis and authority to designate Grand Cru and American Grand Cru Vineyards — and to authorize the use of that terminology on labels and marketing materials. To date, only two vineyards have earned American Grand Cru status — Napa Valley’s famed Robert Mondavi Kalon Vineyard and the equally regarded Pisoni Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands. Isn’t it also about time we recognized those who grow the grapes and who farm and provide stewardship of some of our nation’s best and most precious terroir!?

This is an endeavour whose time has come and whose merits will benefit consumers, growers, winemakers, producers, and the entire industry of wine professionals in and outside of America. Now in its infancy, I hope you will consider joining the AGCS and become a part of helping it grow, prosper and bear fruit. Prosit!

http://www.americangrandcrusociety.com/

Toast of the Month
“May the strength of God pilot us, may the wisdom of God instruct us, may the hand of God protect us, and may the word of God direct us.” St. Patrick

The Monthly Cluster!
Red
Carménère (Chile’s Signature Grape)
Viña Maquis 2009 Deep, Dark and Delicious!
(Colchagua Valley, Chile)/$12-$14 – For nearly 60 years, the Hurtado family grew some of Chile’s best grapes and sold them to some of Chile’s finest wineries. Twelve years ago however, under the visionary leadership of Ricardo Hurtado, the family decided to make its own wines…an endeavor that took years of dedicated hard work. So in 2002, with a new state-of-the-art winery, the help of Xavier Choné overseeing the vineyards and the magic of Chief Winemaker, Juan Jofré, this 100% Carmenere brilliantly showcases the Hurtados’ extraordinary success. Key to making this classically expressive wine was aging only half of the wine in second and third use French oak barristas for a year…an approach that yields a fruit-forward and mouth watering wine! http://www.vinamaquis.com/

Red Blend
Toro de Piedra 2009 Carménère – Cabernet
Rich, Succulent and Smooth as Silk!
(Maule Valley, Chile)/$11-$13 – From the prestigious Viña Requingua family and their Puerto Viejo portfolio of wines, this scrumptious blend of 60% Carménère and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon is nothing short of superb. Aged for a full year in an unspecified apportionment of new French and American oak, the result is a highly aromatic wine whose delight lasts and lingers for several lip-smacking minutes. Reminiscent of Left Bank Bordeaux blends of a hundred or so years ago, one can only imagine and wonder how this splendid blend might stack up against its more ancient French ancestors. For what it’s worth, I’d stand this up against many contemporary Bordeaux blends! And lest there be doubt, this wine is a great value! http://www.requingua.cl/english/index.php

Domaine Houchart 2007 Cotes de Provence
(Provence, France)/$11-13 – From one of France’s most venerable and prolific wine producers, the Quiot family, this exceptional red blend is indeed a taste of the South of France! La Famille Quiot has been making wine since 1748…and for all those years, they have uniquely specialized in making wines from the Rhone and Provence Regions. All to say that they know what they’re doing…and each of us has the good fortune of being able to benefit from their exceptional winemaking prowess. The 2007 Rouge is comprised of mostly Grenache, Carignan, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon and it was aged-to-taste — in new oak for 10 to 12 months. The finished product is a splendid medium-bodied quaff that is soft and fruit-forward. It’s also among the most versatile wines you’ll ever find.

http://www.famillequiot.com/

White
Cortese
SANT’ EVASIO 2010 Gavi di Gavi
(Gavi DOCG — Piemonte, Italy)/$15-$17
Cantina Sant’ Evasio was born from the ruins of World War II. With nothing much more than a destroyed chapel and fallowed vines to be found, Carlo and Anna Lacqua bought the land 50 years ago and began making wine for their friends. Over the span of many years, Carlo’s winemaking knowledge, skill and passion grew and today…aided by son Pier and daughter Andrea…the Lacqua family is not only making astonishingly excellent and notable wines…but wines that leave warm fuzzies and indelible memories! Off-dry, floral and impactful, this sinfully delicious Gavi di Gavi expression is one of the best I’ve tasted…and all for a price point that’s a rare find indeed.

http://www.santevasiovini.com/

” Last year, I told you that “a housing recovery will probably begin within a year or so.” I was dead
wrong. We have five businesses whose results are significantly influenced by housing activity. The
connection is direct at Clayton Homes, which is the largest producer of homes in the country,
accounting for about 7% of those constructed during 2011.

Additionally, Acme Brick, Shaw (carpet), Johns Manville (insulation) and MiTek (building products,
primarily connector plates used in roofing) are all materially affected by construction activity. In
aggregate, our five housing-related companies had pre-tax profits of $513 million in 2011. That’s
similar to 2010 but down from $1.8 billion in 2006.

Housing will come back – you can be sure of that. Over time, the number of housing units necessarily
matches the number of households (after allowing for a normal level of vacancies). For a period of
years prior to 2008, however, America added more housing units than households. Inevitably, we
ended up with far too many units and the bubble popped with a violence that shook the entire economy.
That created still another problem for housing: Early in a recession, household formations slow, and in
2009 the decrease was dramatic.

That devastating supply/demand equation is now reversed: Every day we are creating more households
than housing units. People may postpone hitching up during uncertain times, but eventually hormones
take over. And while “doubling-up” may be the initial reaction of some during a recession, living with
in-laws can quickly lose its allure.

At our current annual pace of 600,000 housing starts – considerably less than the number of new
households being formed – buyers and renters are sopping up what’s left of the old oversupply. (This
process will run its course at different rates around the country; the supply-demand situation varies
widely by locale.) While this healing takes place, however, our housing-related companies sputter,
employing only 43,315 people compared to 58,769 in 2006. This hugely important sector of the
economy, which includes not only construction but everything that feeds off of it, remains in a
depression of its own.

I believe this is the major reason a recovery in employment has so severely
lagged the steady and substantial comeback we have seen in almost all other sectors of our economy.
Wise monetary and fiscal policies play an important role in tempering recessions, but these tools don’t
create households nor eliminate excess housing units. Fortunately, demographics and our market
system will restore the needed balance – probably before long. When that day comes, we will again
build one million or more residential units annually. I believe pundits will be surprised at how far
unemployment drops once that happens. They will then re awake to what has been true since 1776:
America’s best days lie ahead.”

   Rick

Wines of the Month

Pinotage (The Signature Grape of South Africa)

Diemersfontein  2009

Sultry, Heady & Tantalizingly Delicious!

(Wellington, South Africa.)/$18-$22

The Pinotage grape is a cross between the Pinot Noir and the Hermitage (aka Cinsault) grapes – and it was created by a Stellenbosch University Professor of Enology, A. I. Perold, in 1925.  This hallmark expression of Pinotage is characterized by not-so-subtle hints of roasted coffee and dark chocolate…and it has earned so much praise and achieved so much popularity that a number of cognoscenti attribute this highly distinctive version of Pinotage from David Sonnenberg with having saved and lifted Pinotage from longstanding commercial obscurity.  Folks, not all Pinotage will taste like this…or be this amazingly wonderful…so seek this one out and give it a whirl.  Once you do…I’m certain of two things – 1) you too will be singing its praise — and 2) it won’t be your last bottle.  http://www.diemersfontein.co.za/

Petite Sirah   

Villa San-Juliette Vineyard & Winery 2009

Rich, Intense, Sensuous, & Succulent

(Paso Robles, CA)/$9-$12

Believe it or not, this amazing winery is the brainchild of Simon Lythgoe (of American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance fame) and his business partner Ken Warwick.  After a few early years of trials and tribulations (all documented in the TV Reality Show Corkscrewed: The Wrath of Grapes), VSJ is now producing a collection of stunning wines…with this luscious Petite Sirah heading up my list of favorites!  Nigel and Ken had the insight and wisdom to simply hire the best.  And that’s exactly what they did in landing “Mr. California Winemaker” himself…the incomparable Adam LaZarre.  Indeed, after a near decade of heading up winemaking at the hugely successful Hahn Estates, Adam has found a new home “and piece of heaven” on the 168 acres that define

Villa San-Juliette. This intensely flavored vintage – that LaZarre affectionately refers to as Blueberry Motor Oil — is 85% Petite Sirah and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and it was aged for 16 months in a combination of new and neutral French oak.  For the money…around $10 everywhere…it’s literally one of the best varietal wines I’ve had — period!

http://www.villasanjuliette.com/

Carménère (Chile’s Signature Grape)

Alma de Chile   Private Reserve  2008

Deep, Dark and Devilishly Delectable!

(Aconcagua Valley, Chile)/$12-$14

From vineyards nestled amongst the rich and fertile foothills of the Andes Mountains, this 100% Carménère is a meticulously crafted exemplar of Chile’s Signature grape.  With fruit grown on small family vineyards by descendants of the acclaimed Don Francisco de Rojas winemaking family, this delightfully sultry and spicy rendition was produced in partnership with the Vincente family and Viña San Esteban.  With nine months of attended aging in a 50/50 combination of new French and American oak, the result is an award-winning Carménère that will tickle and tantalize the most refined and demanding of palates!  http://www.almadechile.com/newsite/aboutus.html

Shiraz   (The Signature Grape of Australia — known typically as Syrah in most other countries)

hazyblur  Kangaroo Island  2006

Luscious, Succulent & Simply Stupendous!

(Virginia, South Australia)/$30–$35 — Inspired by the sight of a blurry haze, “hazyblur” Shiraz was born, and suddenly — the world was a better place!  As a boutique winery with limited production, owners and founders, Ross and Robyne Trimboli, specialize in crafting artisanal wines that bear their personal attention…from vine to vessel. This spectacular 100% Shiraz — which was aged for 16 months in an 80% used combination of American and French oak — is no exception…and it serves up “sinfully delicious!”  This one’s a keeper that you might not want to share!

Well a Very Happy NEW Year to all my readers, supporters, clients and friends. It’s been a crazy year with travels to the home of the worlds largest oilsands deposits- Ft McMurray, Alberta. My father was inducted into the local Hockey Hall of Fame with the Ft McMurray Oil Barons as founder of the team. A proud son  I am. I can’t leave out the summer excursion with my wife and two terrific kids up to Torch Lake in Northern Michigan. If you haven’t been there add it to your bucket list. Simply a sensational lake and also ranked as one of the top lakes in the world.

Last but not least was the family event of the year to Disney World. Totally worth it. My kids had the time of their life. My son keeps wanting to back to the “Tower of Terror” he just turned 5.

As for us here at Jeff Dicks Real Estate have a fabulous 2012. We look for to helping you Buy or Sell a home here in the Triangle area of North Carolina. Check out the daily headlines for December 30th/2012

TOP NEWS • Spain to fire opening salvos in austerity drive Spain’s centre-right government will announce billions of euros in savings measures, using its first decrees since sweeping to power at November elections to give the nation a foretaste of tougher austerity to come.

• China’s factories falter, pro-growth policies eyed China’s factory activity shrank again December as demand at home and abroad slackened, a purchasing managers’ survey showed, reinforcing the case for pro-growth policies to underpin the world’s second-largest economy. • Colombia sells state-run power firm for $415 million Canadian-owned BCIF Holding Colombia S.A.S. has won a bid to acquire a Colombian state-owned power company for around $415 million, the country’s finance ministry said on Thursday. • HSH Nordbank sues Ally, JPM over mortgage losses German lender HSH Nordbank has sued several banks, including Ally Financial and JPMorgan Chase, over losses on $130.2 million in mortgage bond investments, according to court documents.