It's About that Rattlesnake Time Again!

Temperatures are rising and the birds and bugs are waking up. Along with those familiar critters are the species no one wants to get too up close and personal with....Rattlesnakes.

Rattlesnakes in the Tucson, AZ desert can be as close as your back yard. Did you know they can climb walls? Paints a freaky picture, doesn't it.

Here's the thing...unlike on SCI/FI cable, rattlesnakes don't stalk you. They like to be left alone. More rattlesnake bites happen because they've felt threatened than through any other way. So...if you see one, keep your distance and leave them alone!

Here in the Tucson, AZ desert areas, we can expect snakes to be around until the cold weather days appear, generally late October.

With a little more research on snake bites, I've discovered that the AVERAGE snake bite "victim" is not from Arizona, and the majority of those people have actually “stepped” on the snake. So, visitors, beware!

Here's a few preventative tips:

1. Trim the brush around your property and keep it free from debris.

2. Be aware of your surroundings. I tend to be looking up at the mountains or down at the vistas when hiking...I have to remind myself to watch where I step as well!

3. Snakes love the shade on a summer day. Keep your eyes open and stay on designated pathways.

4. Sturdy, high top boots are helpful. So is a walking stick of sorts.

diamondack closeup" width="400" style="border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; ">

5. What to do if you come across a snake? SLOWLY back away, or stay still. Most snake bites, again, are defensive.

6. Dog walkers/owners - attend Rattlesnake Classes at your local pet stores. Keep them leashed. (the dogs...., not the rattlesnake)

What to do if you’re bitten by a Tucson, AZ desert Rattlenake:

Call 911 or get urgent care within 2 hours

Remain as calm as possible to keep your pulse rate down. Keep the bite below heart level if possible

Cleanse the wound but do not flush with water. Cover lightly.

Don't use a tourniquet or ice.

Don't attempt to remove the venom.

Stay away from sodas, beer or alcohol after being bitten

Try to remember what the snake looked like so you can tell the doctor. (color, markings, etc)

I've never seen a snake in the wild, and I've done plenty of exploring. Don't let the fear of a Tucson, AZ desert Rattlesnake keep you from discovering lovely Tucson and vicinity! I am always happy to assist you in your home search or sale! Please contact me for more information on the beautiful SW Desert!

"It's Not Easy Being Green" But Here's 8 Quick Tips!!

"It's Not Easy Being Green" But Here's 8 Quick Tips!!

Last Christmas everyone on my list got cloth shopping/grocery bags. I wrote a silly little rhyming poem to go with about going green.

It was a really enjoyable project, actually. I made them out of material I’d saved since my children were small and lived endlessly in “jam pants” and lounging pajamas. It was always fun to pick out materials that matched their personalities, or events in their lives at the time, and I took the idea forward to 2010 with my GREEN bags.

My son in Alaska got Green Bay Packers Bags and Moose; My gardener friend got flowers and teacups; Another received varieties of sunflowers; Another son got …Green Bay Packers Bags and Holstein Cow Patterns (he lives in Wisconsin) …anyway, you get the idea.

The best is – the bags are eye-catching and “spread the word” about being GREEN just by being visible. I can't tell you how many conversations were started over inquiries about the bags.

It helps tie in with the latest catch phrase – Reduce, Re-use, Recycle – because we need to change, and we need to inspire others to do the same.

REALTORS and real estate agents have the opportunity for further education, and NAR has added Green Features to MLS listings. As consumers, ask your agent about GREEN features. You can search for homes that have solar panels, solar water heaters, multi- paned windows, ceiling fans, sun screens, energy star appliances, and so forth. Cari Genarelli wrote a great post on picking your green "battles" here. If we all remember, a little dab’ll do ya – for starters – we can’t help but rub off on others.

Here’s eight quick tips on how you can get started:

1. Reduce: use less (Try using both sides of your copy paper in your printer, wrap gifts in newspaper, use email instead of paper, eat your leftovers)
2. Reuse: Use your shoe boxes to organize your bathroom niceties or organize your sock drawer, use socks as dust rags, 2 lb coffee containers as sink-side compost until you empty them in your outdoor compost.
3. Recycle: Many communities have curb-side pickup now which makes it easy. Be sure you know WHAT can be recycled, and remember it has to be clean. (No pizza boxes oozing with tomato sauce and cheese) Buy a filtered water dispenser rather than plastic throwaway bottles, use your plastic shopping bags several times, or for pet litter, or vanity trash can liners. Cathy Dick has a great post on here that shares how to dispose of hazardous, or poisonous materials and where to look for recycling drop off areas to avoid contaminating the earth.
4. Use power thriftily: Un-plug chargers, light switches off, use low-power settings
5. Protect our Water resources: Repair dripping faucets, catch drips in containers to use for watering plants, water garden plants early in the morning
6. Shop Naturally: Look for labels like Energy Star or Green Seal, look for keywords such as organically grown, farmer’s markets, recycled materials, produced locally, water efficient
7. Show off: Blog about community businesses that promote sustainability and green practices, shop with your new Bags!
8. Walk: Get healthy, save gas, map what areas are “walkable” in your community. Michael Caruso has a great blog here! Support your local community!

If you'd like more information on recycling in Tucson, AZ, please check out my blog posting here on places you can take your STUFF!

Reprinted from my Active Rain Blog 6/2010

FHA 90 Day Flip Rule Is Waived for 1 Year

Good news for investors in Tucson Real Estate!

Effective February 1st 2010, FHA/ HUD will not require that a seller of a property be on title for 90 days or more in order to sell the property to a borrower acquiring FHA financing. This is an incredible opportunity for the majority of buyers & sellers in today’s market.

This news is an important decision handed down by HUD as it proposed to dramatically assist the real estate market recovery.

Prior to HUD’s decision, HUD required that a seller had to hold onto the title of the property for a period of 90 days after settlement date. This has always affected an investor’s decision in accepting an offer made on the investment property by a FHA Approved Buyer. This will all change on February 1st for a temporary period of 1 year.

Below is an excerpt from the HUD website:

“In today’s market, FHA research finds that acquiring, rehabilitating and the reselling these properties to prospective homeowners often takes less than 90 days. Prohibiting the use of FHA mortgage insurance for a subsequent resale within 90 days of acquisition adversely impacts the willingness of sellers to allow contracts from potential FHA buyers because they must consider holding costs and the risk of vandalism associated with allowing a property to sit vacant over a 90-day period of time.

The policy change will permit buyers to use FHA-insured financing to purchase HUD-owned properties, bank-owned properties, or properties resold through private sales. This will allow homes to resell as quickly as possible, helping to stabilize real estate prices and to revitalize neighborhoods and communities.”

This great news obviously comes with some restrictions. However, they are minimal but important when looking at the new rule. REMEMBER, THIS IS FOR ONE (1) YEAR ONLY!!

The New FHA 90 Day Flip Rules

The waiver will take effect on February 1, 2010 and is effective for one year, unless otherwise extended or withdrawn by the FHA Commissioner. To protect FHA borrowers against predatory practices of “flipping” where properties are quickly resold at inflated prices to unsuspecting borrowers, this waiver is limited to those sales meeting the following general conditions:

•All transactions must be arms-length, with no identity of interest between the buyer and seller or other parties participating in the sales transaction.
•In cases in which the sales price of the property is 20 percent or more above the seller’s acquisition cost, the waiver will only apply if the lender meets specific conditions.
•The waiver is limited to forward mortgages, and does not apply to the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) for purchase program.

Top Ten Place to Live!

How about this!!!

Tucson was on the list of the Top 10 cities to find the best home! Check out the link below to the video from the Today Show on NBC.

By the way, it's been in the 70's all this week! January!! What a place to live!

The Today Show

Hospital and Emergency Care in Tucson AZ

My mother recently took two unexpected trips to the emergency room at St. Joseph's hospital here in Tucson, AZ. She had never been admitted in emergency care before and was a bit scare, bewildered, and worried, not to mention - in health crises.

The local papers sometimes feature stories on the poor health care and worse customer service one receives in Tucson medical care. For those of you who read my blog, you know I'll often comment on restaurant service, so I felt "duty-bound" to share a bit of my mother's experience. For the sake of brevity, I'll leave out most details of her illness. (She is under medication and recovering nicely, thank you!)

During trip #1 - We encountered a young man who took her immediate vitals, etc. in emergency entrance lobby. Polite, funny, looked my mother in the eye. Wow. She was given a room in less than 20 minutes at a time many were suffering from swine flu. The doctor himself came and got me out of waiting after she was situated and assured me she was being taken care of. She went through a battery of tests and every clerk, assistant, technician, etc. was kind, thoughtful, and unhurried. I especially remember one wheeling her down for a CatSkan singing..."Money, money money money...Muh...neee (Pink Floyd)

Ten days later she was re-admitted again with immediate entrance and was situated in a ward room until admittance. During her initial ward visit she was seen by the general hospitalist doctor, the pulmanary specialist, an internist, a respiratory specialist, and her cardiologist from the previous visit was notified. All were polite, kind, thoughtful, unhurried, and many showed a nice sense of humor trying to help my elderly mother relax and recover. During her stay of two days the nurses were kind and quick to answer pages, cleaning staff hummed and talked to the patients politely, and medical staff explained things to my mother, complete with written instructions.

Sure, there were a few glitches and incorrectly written precriptions, etc. but for the sake of the overall experience, I choose to disregard those things right now. I am glad I was with my mother to figure out all the medications, etc. afterwards, for sure.

Bottom line?? Hats off to the staff of St. Joseph's hospital here in Tucson. Thank you for your bedside manner and humane demeanor. It's what hospital and health care SHOULD be, and for my mother's two experiences - was. May all of you experience the same care should you find yourselves in a similar situation some day. Thank you.