Judith Abbott's (judithabbott) Blog

Going in and out of houses all the time, I frequently see situations where owners and rehabers have ignored the basic infrastructure of the house in favor of glitzy finish-out.  I see old, multi-layer roofs on houses with recent granite counters and new wood-veneer floors.  It makes me nutz.  Do ...

I don't know if there was ever a point when I wasn't in real estate.  I grew up in a Real Estate Family.  I can remember my mother studying to take her license exam in 1962.  In my mind's eye, I can see her sitting in the shade of a peach tree out in the back yard, reading the book that the State...

Getting Replacement Windows for your home is a huge decision.  They are expensive.  There isn't a financial return on that investment.  In spite of what the window sales people tell you, it is NOT going to truly add value onto the sales price for your home.  And the reduction in your utility bill...

If we are talking about replacing windows, there is a high probability that your home was built before 1980.  If we are talking about homes that are more than 50 years old, you may be dealing with a historic or conservation district.  If you want to watch a Preservationist go Nutzoid, talk to th...

There is a variation on Murphy's Law when it comes to buying Furniture for a new house before closing.  It is like some kind of strange curse.  Furniture bought before closing the purchase of a new house almost never works out to be right.  Don't ask me why that it, it just is.  Buy the furniture...

A number of years ago, a client told me that he was planning to buy some investment properties with the profits from an investment he had just made in petroleum production in Nigeria.  It took a few minutes talking with him before all the red flags began to fly around in my head, the ones that sa...

I wrote offers on two properties yesterday.  The first is a townhouse in Richardson.  I have been talking with the listing agent for the last several weeks on the property because I knew that it was pretty much the most ideal match for my buyer client.  It took him several more weeks of looking b...

Williamsburg II Condos are located on the north side of E University Blvd at Matilda Street, in east Dallas Texas.  The complex has nice landscaping and is pretty. The complex is built with a brick that tends to appeal to a large number of people, a red brick that gives the buildings a warm and i...

It isn't easy to detect an electrical fire in your home.  Ask my daughter.  She got home from an event several nights ago, walked into the house and smelled something burning.  They walked through the house looking for the source of the smell.  They didn't find anything obvious.  While her spouse...

Like many other people, I am experiencing the shock wave created by the shootings in Aurora Colorado.  I can't possibly think about what it had to have been like for the people in that darkened theater.  The best I can do is just sit down and begin a list of people who need to be lifted up in my ...