The Oklahoman Real Estate

EREAL ESTATESATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 2012 THE OKLAHOMAN | NEWSOK.COM

INDEX

Permits 6EStone 7E

HOUSE PLAN

CharminghomePeople who feel drawn tosimplicity will find much toappreciate in the Kent,whether as a cabin,bungalow or vacation retreat. PAGE 8E

LISTING OF THE WEEK

Largetri-levelThe Listing of the Week is alarge, updated tri-levelbrick-and-frame home innorthwest Oklahoma City.

PAGE 3E

MANYBENEFITSOF SHADECreating shadearound your homepays big benefits.Shade keeps theinside of your housecooler, keeping youmore comfortableand your energy billslower. It also keepslandscaping cooler,helps reduce waterusage.

PAGE 3E

IN BRIEF

ARTISTICUMBRELLASTuuci is putting anartistic spin on theoutdoor umbrella.The Miami, Fla.-based companyspecializes in in-novative shadestructures. Amongits designs are theStingray, a rotatingsun parasol thatresembles its name-sake, and the Manta,an umbrella markedby graceful, upsweptlines. The umbrellasare made of marine-grade fabric and areengineered to per-form well in anyenvironment. Theycan be Design With-in Reach, www.dwr.com, or RestorationHardware, www.restorationhardware.com. Tuuci umbrel-las and sun shadesrange from $995 to$7,995 at Restora-tion Hardware andfrom $999 to $4,995at Design WithinReach. Bases areextra.

SEWING MADEFUNNicole Blum andDebra Immergutbelieve sewingshouldn’t be scary.Immergut, an artistand sewing entre-preneur, and Blum, asenior editor at Fam-ily Fun magazine,have collaborated ona book that prom-ises to make sewingfast, fun and fear-less. The book, “Im-prov Sewing,” teach-es readers justenough to set theirimaginations — andtheir sewing ma-chines — free. Thebook includes fivebasic clothing de-signs that can betweaked in count-less ways. “ImprovSewing” is publishedby Storey Publishingand sells for $19.95in softcover.MCT INFORMATION SERVICES

He’s a newly minted Ph.D. whorecently landed a solid teachingjob at a major university in a cityhe loves. He’s ready to settle downand buy a condo. But after monthsof looking at real estate, he’s stilltorn. Is now the time to buy?

On the one hand, he’s swayedby the breathtakingly low-costmortgage rates currently availableto buyers. And home prices arestill within his range of affordabil-ity. Indeed, he worries that re-cently rising prices could mean it’salready a tad late to enter the mar-ket.

On the other hand, our teacherfears that real estate markets haveyet to fully stabilize. True, homevalues in major cities have risensharply in recent months. But theother economic measures, includ-ing the unemployment rate, painta darker picture. Meanwhile, fam-ily members, including thosewho’ve lost equity in their homes,are urging him to be cautious.

This true story illustrates thestill pervasive ambivalence affect-ing would-be homebuyers in theface of mixed signals about the di-rection of the housing market,

said Michael Crowley, a veteranreal estate broker and immediatepast president of the National As-sociation of Exclusive BuyerAgents (www.naeba.org).

“Buyers still have a lot of lever-age and they’re obviously willingto use it,” Crowley said.

Eric Tyson, a personal financeexpert and co-author of “HomeBuying for Dummies,” encouragesbuyers to carefully monitor mar-ket conditions in any area wherethey’d like to live, and to avoidwaiting too long if they’re serious-ly interested in taking the plunge.

Are you considering a homepurchase in the near future? If so,these tips could prove useful:

I Confirm your reasons forplanning a purchase.

Anxiety can prevent peoplefrom moving ahead, even when

it’s against their interest to holdback. But those convinced thatnow is a good time to buyshouldn’t let unwarranted fearsconstrain them, said Sid Davis, areal estate broker and author of “ASurvival Guide to Buying a Home.”

“If your job is secure and youhave found your dream home,don’t let groundless concernsblock you,” Davis said.

Davis said one way to put yourfears about real estate in perspec-tive is to re-examine your originalreasons for buying. Have youyearned for a home of your own,but couldn’t afford to buy untilprices moderated? Or has yourfamily outgrown its small houseand you’re seeking to trade up to alarge space?

I Find a skillful mortgagelender to help guide you.

Davis said lenders now wantcertainty that any mortgage theyoriginate will be solid. This meansyou’ll need to be well prepared toanswer the lender’s request fordocuments.

As proof of income, manymortgage lenders now insist onmuch more documentation than

the customary pay stubs andW-2s. They may also require fed-eral tax returns. Also, most lend-ers now want proof that the fundsyou’ve amassed for your downpayment have been in your sav-ings or checking account for sometime and weren’t just borrowedlast week from a family member.That means you’ll need to produceaccount statements verifying this.

Those who are self-employedcan expect their lender to do a rig-orous review of documents relatedto your business.

I Know your market, andmake decisions accordingly.

If you live in an area wheremany housing options are avail-able, you can afford to take some-what more time to make a selec-tion and seal a deal. But Davis cau-tions against waiting indefinitelyto buy in any popular area.

“If this is the right time for youto buy a house, don’t be hauntedby past problems with real estate.Times are changing and you won’twant to be left out,” he said.

Top contact Ellen James Martin, email her [email protected].

UNIVERSAL UCLICK

Buying tips for a shifting marketEllenJamesMartin

SMARTMOVES

PaulBianchina

HANDY @ HOME

Gary and Janie McCurdygave serious thought to re-tiring to Santa Fe, N.M.,drawn by the memories oftheir honeymoon thereyears ago as well as othervisits since.

So in the summer of2011, they did some recon-naissance in Santa Fe.

“If we’re serious aboutthis, we need to get out inthe city,” Janie McCurdyremembers them reason-ing.

So Gary McCurdy, aspecial district judge basedin El Reno, and JanieMcCurdy, who works atAmerican Fidelity Assur-ance Company, went ex-ploring in Santa Fe. Andwhat they found lookedfamiliar: a mix of big-boxstores and retail chains, allbearing names found in alot of cities across thecountry.

“It’s very much likeOklahoma City,” JanieMcCurdy said. “And wethought, ‘You know, wemight be missing the markon this one.’ ”

But the McCurdys werestill ready to trade in theirsuburban home and its la-bor-intensive yard forsomething new, some-thing simpler. Inspired bytheir daughter Elizabeth,who lives in downtownChicago, they turned theirattention to downtownOklahoma City. They gotin touch with George Mas-sey, a real estate associatewith RE/MAX First.

Massey sold their Yukonhome in three days and ledthem to what they decidedwas the perfect new home,the last unfinished townhome in Block 42 near NE4 and Walnut Avenue.They bought it in October.

Massey also put them intouch with a decorator,Janis Bevers of Living inStyle — who is also aneighbor from two doorsdown. Bevers acquired ataste for the urban lifewhile living in Washing-

ton, D.C., and thatbrought her to Block 42about a year ago.

“I love being where it’sculturally diversified, and Ilike how social it is,” shesaid. “I just feel like I’mmissing out on everythingif I don’t live right down-town.”

In a matter of weeks,Bevers pooled her 20 yearsof talent and experienceinto transforming theMcCurdys’ unfinishedspace into a polished, ur-ban home.

The McCurdys sold al-most all of their furnitureand Bevers commissionedOklahoma craftsmen tocreate new furnishings,from the dark red arm-chairs dominating one endof the living room to the

HOUSING | COUPLE SAYS DOWNTOWN OKC’S AMENITIES ARE ATTRACTIVE, EVEN COMPARED TO SANTA FE, N.M.

George Massey of RE/MAX First says he and fellow agent Wendy Chong have been assigned to sell Block 42’slast 10 condos. They have sold four and have six under contract, he says. After a lull, the sale of condos indowntown Oklahoma City is picking up again, Realtors say. PHOTOS BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

Gary and Janie McCurdy show their kitchen at Block 42 near NE 4 and WalnutAvenue. They considered moving to Santa Fe, N.M., but opted for downtown Okla-homa City instead.

BY DYRINDA TYSONFor The [email protected]

SEE DOWNTOWN, PAGE 2E

Empty nesters turn urban

marble-topped dining ta-ble and floating buffet inthe dining room just be-yond. The buffet, craftedfrom a silvery Italian lami-nate, with a painting pro-viding a splash of contrastabove it, impressed lami-nate manufacturer AbetLaminati enough to fea-ture a picture of it on itswebsite.

“Very few things wereordered out of a catalog,”Bevers said.

The McCurdys took upresidence in their newhome in November andimmediately were caughtup in the lifestyle. Theyrarely spend their eveningsat home in front of the tel-evision, Janie McCurdysaid.

“We go out three or fournights a week,” she said.

Her husband added,“One of the nice things isyou can just walk there.”

And they’re gettingmore company. Massey,who was brought on boardwith RE/MAX associateWendy Chong to marketBlock 42’s last 10 units, hassold four and has six undercontract.

Block 42 isn’t the onlypopular spot downtown.Keller Willams Realtor Pe-

ter Levinson, who helpsmarket the Brownstones atMayfair Park on NE 3among others, said he av-erages two or three condosales a month.

“People are really excit-ed to be living down here,”he said.

He said downtownbuyers tend to fall into twogroups: empty-nesters likethe McCurdys and youngprofessionals either work-ing downtown or some-where close by like theUniversity of OklahomaHealth Sciences Center.

Matt Marcacci, a Realtorwith First Source Real Es-

tate working with the Hillat Bricktown on NE 2, saidhe deals with some clientsfrom outlying towns whoare seeking a secondhome.

“A lot of them were do-ing business here, and theywere spending a fortune onhotels,” he said. “So theydecided it was more eco-nomical and better in gen-eral to have a place to hangtheir hat.” It’s just a hand-ful of clients, he said. “Butit’s still an interesting de-mographic.”

The one piece missingdowntown, Levinson said,are smaller condos, one-

bedroom units for around$200,000.

“I probably get two orthree calls a day frombuyers calling and asking ifthere’s anything like that,and there’s just not,” hesaid.

For those making themove, though, downtownOklahoma City offersmore than hustle and bus-tle and a spot in the middleof the action. Friendshipsare formed, and residentsbecome “regulars” in theneighborhood businesses.

“It’s like back in the daywhen everyone knew theirneighbors,” Bevers said.

The living area on the second level of Gary and JanieMcCurdy’s condominium at 311 NE 4, inside Block 42in downtown Oklahoma City.

PHOTO BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

The Lofts at Maywood Park, 1 NE 2 in downtown Oklahoma City. PHOTO BY PAUL HELLSTERN, THE OKLAHOMAN

Realtor George Massey with RE/MAX First talks about Block 42 in downtownOklahoma City.

PHOTO BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

Downtown: ‘Caught up’ in lifestyleFROM PAGE 1E

Central Avenue Villas, 444 N Central Ave.PHOTO BY PAUL HELLSTERN, THE OKLAHOMAN

Entrances to condos at The Hill front 322 NE 2. PHOTO BY PAUL HELLSTERN, THE OKLAHOMAN

2E SATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 2012 NEWSOK.COMTHE OKLAHOMAN

As the summer sunbeats down, there’s noth-ing better than finding alittle refreshing shade.

Creating areas of shadearound your home pays bigbenefits in lots of ways.Shade keeps the inside ofyour house cooler, whichmakes you more comfort-able and keeps your energybills lower. It keeps land-scaping cooler, whichhelps reduce water usage.It makes outdoor areasmore comfortable and en-joyable for you, your fam-ily and even your pets.

And shade can enhancecurb appeal, which makesyour home more valuable.

If you’re seeking someways to block those hotrays this year, you’ve gotlots of options. Here are afew of them, along withsome of their advantagesand disadvantages.

Patio coversFor most yards, a patio

cover is simply a shed roofwith a moderate slope thatextends off the rear or sideof the house. The tradi-tional design was to attachone side to the house andrest the other side on abeam supported by posts,but today most codes re-quire that the structure beself-supporting, so they’resupported by a post-and-beam design on both ends.

Sloping rafters connectthe two beams, perpendic-ular to the house. The cov-er is then topped with asolid roofing material,which might be shingles tomatch the house, or corru-gated fiberglass sheets,which are lighter and ad-mit more light.

Patio covers have theadvantage of being a solidroof, so they offer a lot ofshade, as well as protec-tion from the elements allyear long. On the down-side, they can be expensiveto build, and if they’re notdesigned and built cor-rectly, they can detractfrom the house and evenbe dangerous in heavywind or snow. Patio coversrequire a building permit,and may require approvalfrom your homeownersassociation.

PergolasA pergola is somewhat

similar to a patio cover, ex-cept that it’s designed tobe partially open on top,providing broken sunlightand shade, and the roof isusually flat instead ofslanted. Pergolas are madeup of posts or columnsthat support cross raftersor even a latticework ontop, and they’re some-times used to support vineplants as well.

The advantage of a per-gola is that you have lots ofoptions for the size, designand placement. There arealso a lot of prefabricatedkits available in wood andeven low-maintenancealuminum. If desired, theroof slats can be specifical-ly angled to block the sunonly at certain times of theday or year.

On the downside, thesecan be even more costlyand complicated to buildthan a patio cover, and canalso require a building per-mit and homeowners as-sociation approval.

Equinox louvered roofThis manufactured

structure combines theadvantages of a patio coverand a pergola. It contains aseries of metal slats thatinterlock with one anoth-er, closing to form a com-pletely rainproof cover, oropening anywhere withina 160-degree range of mo-tion to allow in as much oras little sun as desired. Theslats are motorized, andoperate with a switch oreven by remote control.The basic cover is availablein different sizes and inwhite or sandstone, withseveral options for finish-ing it to create any desiredappearance.

On the downside, thelouvered roof is designedfor professional installa-tion, and is more expen-

sive than some other typesof pergolas or patio covers.For more information, youcan visit www.equinox-roof.com.

Canvas sailsA canvas sail can add

shade, color and a real fo-cal point to any yard.There are lots of designoptions here, but typicallythis is a triangular orsquare piece of canvasstretched between three orfour wood or metal polesthat are firmly cementedinto the ground. The polesare set at differing heightsso that the sail hangs at anangle relative to theground; the actual angle isdetermined by where thesail is to be placed andwhere you want the shadeto be cast. Some typeshave rigging lines that al-low the sail angle to be ad-justed, and also to easily betaken down in high winds.

A canvas sail shadestructure has a couple ofadvantages. It’s custom-made, so you select anycolor from mild to wild,and any size within reason.It casts a wide shade area,it’s unusual — althoughadmittedly it’s not going tofit with every home — andit can be adjusted to blockthe sun from certain anglesor times of the day.

On the downside, it’scostly, and has to be engi-neered and installed cor-rectly to handle the wind.

Shade treesLet’s not overlook the

value of simply addingshade trees to your yard.Trees not only provideshade, but they’re good forthe environment, andyou’ll probably have somehappy local birds as well.You can select evergreensthat hold their foliage allyear, or deciduous treesthat leaf out in the springand summer for shade butlose their leaves in the fall,so you still get winter sun-light into your house.

Planting trees offersseveral advantages. Youhave lots of different stylesto choose from, includingones that flower and onesthat come in different col-ors. Depending on yourbudget, you can get instantgratification by plantinglarge, relatively maturetrees, or smaller, less ex-pensive trees that willgrow up over time. Youhave a lot of options forplacement, depending onexactly what you want toshade.

On the downside, theydon’t offer as much shadeas a structure will, and youdo have the leaves or nee-dles to clean up.

Remodeling and repair questions?E-mail Paul [email protected]. All productreviews are based on the author’sactual testing of free review samplesprovided by the manufacturers.

INMAN NEWS

Great options forshading your yard

Patio covers offer a lot of shade and protection fromthe elements.

PaulBianchina

HANDY @ HOME

The Listing of the Weekis a large, updated tri-levelbrick-and-frame home innorthwest Oklahoma City.

The 2,616-square-foothome at 9009 LansbrookLane has four bedrooms, 2½ baths, two livingrooms, two dining roomsand an attached two-cargarage. The family roomhas a fireplace and built-inbookcase. The kitchen has

double ovens, a breakfastbar, eating space and pan-try. The master bedroomhas a full bath with walk-in closet. The home hasfresh paint new carpet andwood floors. The home hasa hot tub, open patio andunderground sprinkler.

The home, built in 1971,is listed for $179,777 withLaurie Patterson of KellerWilliams Realty. It is in the

Lansbrook neighborhoodsouth of Britton Road onthe west side of MacAr-thur Boulevard. For moreinformation, call 330-2626 or 826-2589.

Nominations for Listing of the Weekare welcome. Send a copy of the MLSinformation sheet on a single-familyhome to The Oklahoman, Richard Mize,P.O. Box 25125, Oklahoma City, OK73125. Nominations may be faxed to475-3996.

LISTING OF THE WEEK

The Listing of the Week is at 9009 Lansbrook Lane in northwest Oklahoma City. PHOTO PROVIDED

Large updated tri-levelhas 2.5 baths, 4 bedrooms

Cathy Greer has joinedChurchill-Brown & Asso-ciates’ north office, 4401W Memorial Road, Suite109, as a sales associate.

The Oklahoma City na-tive has worked in com-mercial real estate for thepast six years and also has

experience in multitenantretail property manage-ment. Previously, sheworked as an executive as-sistant in the OklahomaCounty district attorney’soffice. She holds a bache-lor’s degree in criminaljustice.

Churchill-Brown addsGreer as sales associate

Cathy Greer

3ESATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 2012THE OKLAHOMAN NEWSOK.COM

JOPLIN, Mo. — Beneath the coats of off-white paint and under the drywall insideLarry and Amy Jump’s new home in Joplinare the scrawled names of people who be-fore the storm were strangers.

Youth group members from Missouri,Texas and Washington. Mission workersfrom Indiana and Canada. Volunteersfrom a Methodist church in Lee’s Sum-mit, Mo.

They’re all a crucial part of why theJumps are where they are today, back at2424 S Joplin Ave., in a home of their own,in a town that’s still working to reclaimwhat it had before an EF5 tornado struckon May 22, 2011.

“Just being here, it feels so great,” AmyJump said of moving into their completedhome this summer. “The best thing aboutit is it’s ours.”

Her family saw how nasty nature couldbe when the tornado ripped their homeapart as she and her husband and theirthree sons huddled under a blanket in acorner. And before the volunteers andfaith-based groups chipped in, the Jumpswere among many families in Joplin whoalso saw how ugly human nature can get.

Dozens of families trying to rebuildtheir homes have encountered contrac-tors accused of doing shoddy work orworse — skipping town with their moneyand without doing the work.

In the months after the tornado, whichwiped out one-third of Joplin and killed161 people, complaints have poured into

the Missouri attorney general’s officeabout companies and individuals who re-portedly ripped off victims as they tried torebuild.

Some tornado victims had shells ofhomes constructed or part of their roofson, then the contractors were gone.

“Unfortunately, we knew to expectsome unscrupulous ‘storm chasers’ fol-lowing the tornado,” Attorney GeneralChris Koster said by email. “So we hadpeople on the ground, ready to investigatecomplaints.”

Many residents who lost their homesdidn’t have insurance, but the Jumps did.They thought they would have enough torebuild, maybe not as big a house as theirgrowing family needed, but a house.

Then a relief agency that had worked inNew Orleans after Hurricane Katrina of-fered to connect them with an architect-contractor out of California and help themget a bigger, energy-efficient home —with solar panels and heated floors — thatvolunteers would help build. The Jumpsembraced the plan. They say they weretold they would be in their house byThanksgiving 2011.

They never imagined they would be leftdry and desperate just to get their ownhome again.

“We felt really bad having to turn andask for help,” Amy Jump said.

In all, Joplin residents have filed 132home repair complaints with the Missouriattorney general’s office in the past 14months. About 100 have already been re-solved.

MCT INFORMATION SERVICES

Victimized family movesinto rebuilt Joplin homeBY LAURA BAUERThe Kansas City Star

HOUSING SCAMS | ‘STORM CHASERS’ RIP OFF TORNADO VICTIMS

The construction of Julian Sellers’ bun-galow in St. Paul, Minn., was started in1926 and finished in early 1927. The build-er was a Swedish immigrant. The familywho first lived there included a marriedcouple, their 6-year-old daughter and thewife’s mother.

Sellers learned all this by sortingthrough building permits, tax records,city directories, maps, old newspapers onmicrofilm and more. A retired softwareengineer and a member of the Twin CitiesBungalow Club, Sellers has chronicled thehistory of the house, its environs and thepeople who lived in it. He even met that6-year-old daughter when she was in herlate 80s.

“It’s fun to know that other familieshave lived here — children have grown upand been nurtured in this house,” Sellerssaid. “Each family makes it their own andhas their own life and experiences here.It’s fun to get that feeling of continuity.”

Many homeowners and apartmentdwellers across the country are doing thepainstaking work of researching the his-tory of their home and neighborhood.Some delve into the past for practical rea-sons — perhaps they want to change theexterior of an old house and need to docu-ment how it once looked, or they want tocreate (or protest) a historic designation.Others are simply fascinated by the testa-ment of time.

This research “feeds into the notion ofpride of place,” said Kingston Heath, pro-fessor and director of the graduate His-toric Preservation Program at the Univer-

sity of Oregon. The history of a house andits people can also cast light on larger his-torical changes.

“A house is like an artifact,” Heath said.“It represents these collective human val-ues, and cultural and technologicalchange.”

Expert house historians advise novicesto focus on one question at a time and tokeep notes on exactly where informationwas found. To begin, figure out what you

know from documents you already have.And talk to neighbors who have lived onyour block for a long time to collect theirstories.

Be aware, however, that communitystories and legends often aren’t accurate,cautions Ellen Baumler of the MontanaHistorical Society.

“That’s the greatest pitfall — perpetu-ating information that is not correct,”Baumler said. “Sometimes those stories

and legends are really hard to squash.”Find out whether your street name is

the original one, said Mary Louise Days, ahistorian and board member of the SantaBarbara Trust for Historic Preservation inCalifornia. In her city, for instance, OliveStreet was once Canal Street. A changelike that can throw researchers off thescent, she said.

House historians often want originalblueprints and photographs, but thosemay be lost. Be open to what is available,urged Frank Lipo, executive director of theHistorical Society of Oak Park and RiverForest, in Illinois. For instance, a home-owner may find a photo from the 1950sthat shows the house before its porch wasremoved or aluminum siding installed.

“You have to put aside the holy grail ofthe original photographs and originalblueprints,” said Lipo, whose area isknown as the home of Ernest Hemingway,Frank Lloyd Wright and beautifully pre-served old houses. “If you can find somecool, interesting, useful things about peo-ple who lived there in different eras, itflushes out the story.”

Local government offices, public li-braries and historical societies are goodplaces to find documents that detail prop-erty ownership, as well as fire insurancemaps, property tax records, Census re-cords, city directories (precursors tophone books), old newspapers and histor-ic photographs. Some of these documentsare available online or in databases.

Another way to date your home is totrack ownership of the property back towhen it was first built. This practice iscalled a “chain of title” search and oftencan be done at a county records’ office.

Who lived here? How to find house’s history

Julian Sellers and his wife, Barbara, stand in front of their bungalow in St. Paul,Minn. Sellers has chronicled the history of the house, the environment surround-ing it and the people who lived in it, since it was built in 1926-1927. AP PHOTO

BY SHIRLEY SALEMY MEYERFor The Associated Press

Two builders have come together toshowcase two new concepts in luxury liv-ing while helping families with their med-ical care.

Wayne Griffiths Homes built a 7,000-square-foot home at 11649 Mill HollowCourt in the Stonemill neighborhood de-signed to provide ideas for the growingfamily.

It has five bedrooms, two studies, aworkout room, a playroom complete witha karaoke stage, a movie room, a butler’spantry, a wrapping station, two laundryrooms, an aboveground interior saferoom, a dog shower and an outdoor livingarea with pool and kitchen.

The home in the Abbey at FairviewFarm, built by Fairview IV, a partnershipbetween Mark Dale and Mark Gautreaux,will display how upscale living meetsdownsized manageability. The 3,200-square-foot home is at 1501 NW 158.

It has 18-foot ceilings, two bedroomsuites, two living areas, a 1,000-square-foot “man-cave” basement with winecellar, card room, media center, and aconvertible third bedroom or exerciseroom. The master shower is 10 feet talland has more than 50 square feet, withdual shower heads, seats and glass tile ac-cents. The home has an expansive out-door living area.

The public is invited to tour the homesThursdays through Sundays from noon to

5 p.m. through Aug. 26. Tickets are $10 atthe door, or $8 at Bob Mills Furniture,3600 W Reno Ave., with all proceeds go-ing to Variety Care.

Variety Care clinics are family focusedcommunity health centers providing ser-vices to people of limited income. Theyprovide medical, dental, vision, pediatricand prenatal services as well as mentalhealth counseling at 13 locations in centraland western Oklahoma.

Concept homes raise fundsfor health care for needyFROM STAFF REPORTS

This view shows the sitting area andfireplace in the master bedroom of a7,000-square-foot home at 11649 MillHollow Court in the Stonemill neigh-borhood built by Wayne GriffithsHomes. PHOTO PROVIDED


WASHINGTON — Here’ssome encouraging newsfor financially stressedhomeowners across thecountry: The Senate Fi-nance Committee ap-proved a bipartisan bill be-fore heading home forsummer recess that wouldextend the Mortgage For-giveness Debt Relief Actthrough 2013.

Why is this important?Several reasons: The debtrelief law spares home-owners who receive prin-cipal reductions on theirmortgages from being hitwith hefty federal incometaxes on the amounts for-given. Without it, millionsof owners who go throughforeclosure or leave theirhomes following shortsales would experienceeven more financial stress.

The law has also provid-ed relief to thousands ofpeople who have debt bal-ances written off as part ofloan-modification agree-ments and is crucial to the$25 billion federal-staterobo-signing settlementwith large banks. It is set toexpire at the end of De-cember. Some Capitol Hillanalysts predicted that,along with a host of otherspecial-interest tax bene-fits, an extension mighthave trouble making itthrough the partisan gan-tlet in an election year.

But the Senate commit-tee managed to pull to-gether enough votes Aug. 2to pass the debt-relief ex-tension, after heavy lobby-ing by the National Asso-ciation of Realtors and theNational Association ofHome Builders. The bill,which now moves to thefull Senate for possible ac-tion next month, alsowould extend tax write-offs for mortgage insur-ance premiums for 2012and through 2013, andcontinue some energy-ef-ficiency tax credits for re-modelings and new homeconstruction.

The mortgage debt reliefextension could ultimatelyaffect millions of familieswho are underwater ontheir loans, delinquent ontheir payments and head-ing for foreclosure, shortsales or deeds-in-lieu offoreclosure settlements.Under the federal tax code,all types of forgiven debtare treated as ordinary in-come, subject to regulartax rates. When an under-water homeowner whoowes $300,000 has$100,000 of that forgivenas part of a modification orother arrangement withthe bank, the unpaid$100,000 balance wouldnormally be taxable.

But in 2007, Congresssaw the fast-mountingdistress in the housingmarket on the horizon andagreed to temporarily ex-empt certain mortgagebalances that are forgivenby lenders. The limit is $2million in debt cancella-tion for married individu-als filing jointly, $1 millionfor single filers. This spe-cial exemption, however,came with a time restric-tion. The current deadlineis Dec. 31. Without a for-mal extension by Con-gress, starting on Jan. 1 allmortgage balances writtenoff by banks would be fullytaxable — a nightmare sce-nario that has had finan-cially stressed homeown-ers worried for months.

These apprehensionswere raised even higherwhen some policy analystspredicted that a Congressas fractious and dysfunc-tional as the current onewould never get its act to-gether to pass any tax billsuntil the closing moments

of the lame-duck sessionexpected after the Novem-ber election.

A few Republican policystrategists have speculatedthat tea party freshmen inthe House might opposethe debt-relief extensionbecause they see it as an-other costly bailout fund-ed by taxpayers. The esti-mated revenue cost to theTreasury for a two-yearextension is $2.7 billion.

The mortgage insurancededuction is another keyhousing benefit that madeit into the Senate commit-tee’s 11th-hour extenderbill. Under a provision inthe tax code that expiredlast December, certainborrowers could write offtheir mortgage insurancepremiums on their federalincome taxes, just as theydo with mortgage interest.To qualify for a full deduc-tion, borrowers could nothave adjusted gross in-comes greater than$100,000 ($50,000 formarried taxpayers filingseparate returns).

The Senate’s bill wouldextend the write-off retro-actively to this past Jan. 1,and would continue itthrough December 2013.No buyer or owner whoplanned to write off pre-miums during 2012 wouldbe penalized, in otherwords, despite the expira-tion last December.

The outlook for the ex-tenders: Given the pop-ularity of the housing de-ductions and credits, lookfor supporters to press thefull Senate for early actionin September in order toget these issues settled be-fore Election Day. If thereare serious objections inthe Republican-controlledHouse, however, then allbets are off until the lame-duck session, when elec-tion losers as well as win-ners get to write tax policy.

Ken Harney’s email address [email protected].

WASHINGTON POST WRITERS GROUP

Mortgage relief maybe getting reprieve

KennethHarney

THE NATION’S HOUSING

CHICAGO — If you standin the right spot in Tomand Karen Renk’s yard, youmight notice that dozensof trees on the property arein perfect lines. That’s be-cause the area used to be ablack walnut nursery, andthe 50- and 60-foot treesdate to the early 1950s.

These trees are not gar-dener-friendly.

“We found out thatblack walnuts, from theleaves and the roots, giveoff this toxin, juglone, thatkeeps many other plantsfrom growing,” Tom Renksaid.

So began the process ofturning what had been anovergrown jungle into abeautiful yard at theirhome in Sugar Grove, Ill.When they bought the lot15 years ago, it was allscrub, he said.

Working their wayaround the property, theRenks slowly cleared theundergrowth, killed weedsand after letting an area sitfor a year or so, planted it.The soil was hostile. Manyplants would live a year ortwo at most, then die.

But hostas thrived, ju-glone or not. There arenow hundreds around theyard, all from stock hebought years ago.

“I’m constantly dividinghostas,” Renk said. “Ihaven’t bought a hosta forsix years.”

There is also a lot ofground cover and someyews, all immune to the ju-glone. Day lilies and hy-drangeas are also present,but have short life spans.Karen has several flower-ing plants in containersaround the property for alittle color. Also not both-ered by the toxins: threeartificial Christmas treesRenk placed along his backproperty line for privacy.

“I just dug holes and putthem in,” he said. “They’rein their tree stands and ev-erything.”

Soon, though, they’ll beobscured by yews that arethriving nearby. The over-all feel of the yard — with abridge, running water,pond, several paths anddappled sunlight — is ofpeace and tranquility.

“When you lookaround, you can see thechallenges that we wentthrough,” Renk said.“We’ve probably spentthousands of dollars overthe last 14 years trying tofigure out what works. Weroll with the punches. Wefigured out what we can’tdo and went from there.”

Renk is not alone in hav-ing to overcome adversityin the yard. Bad soil, badtopography and forgottenpatches of land are allproblems that can be sur-mounted.

Often neglected ashomeowners focus else-where — the front yard for

show, the back for enter-tainment — the side yardcan be an asset. After all, itis often the way peoplemove between the frontand backyards. Also, manytimes it sits outside a largewindow and can be turnedinto an extension of aroom.

“More often (side yards)are shady rather than sun-ny,” said Phil Rosborough,president of RosboroughPartners, a landscape de-sign firm and contractor inLibertyville, Ill. “That’sfine, because they becomelush green oases, in asense. … You can get this

woodland-garden feelthat’s quite endearingwhen looking out a formaldining room or familyroom.”

Rosborough says an in-viting side yard increasesthe level of interest else-where. “Sometimes (youcan use) a pergola, an ironarchway, some sort of ele-ment that draws you in,makes you want to headout that way and wanderthe property,” he said.

A gently sloping lawn isone thing, an unmowablesteep incline is somethingelse.

“You can’t use thatspace if it’s your front orbackyard,” said BrianCasey, president of Out-door Upgrades, a land-scaping firm based inClarendon Hills, Ill. “Onesolution is to make theslope go away by bringingin a retaining wall to leveloff the grade, or bring interraces to level the gradein segments.”

Instead of a lawn, youcan choose plants that aregood on slopes, includingnative grasses such asswitch grass or prairiedropseed; perennials, suchas day lilies or hostas; andshrubs, such as juniper,sumac and chokeberry.Erosion-control blanketswill help keep plants inplace until roots get estab-lished.

“Like anything, they sayform follows function,”Casey said. “In reality,form follows your financ-es. The retaining wall is themost expensive, a blanketwith seed below it is theleast expensive, and ablanket with shrubs or pe-rennials is somewhere inthe middle.”


Tom Renk built a garden made up mostly of hosta plants beneath a forest of blackwalnut trees in the backyard of his home in Sugar Grove, Ill. MCT PHOTO

BY WILLIAM HAGEMANChicago Tribune

Oftenneglected ashomeownersfocuselsewhere —the front yardfor show, theback forentertainment— the sideyard can be anasset. Afterall, it is oftenthe waypeople movebetween thefront andbackyards.Also, manytimes it sitsoutside a largewindow andcan be turnedinto anextension of aroom.

Finding solutions forlandscape problems


Oklahoma CityFlintco Inc., 15400 N

Rockwell Ave., school,erect, $10,708,250.

CSRS Inc., 14100 NPennsylvania Ave., res-taurant, erect, $900,000.

Lord of Life LutheranChurch, 15400 N WesternAve., church, add-on,$650,000.

Bockus Payne Associ-ates Architects, 2300 WMemorial Road, retailsales, remodel, $620,000.

Bockus Payne Associ-ates Architects, 2300 WMemorial Road, retailsales, remodel, $620,000.

Specialty Consulting,3315 Northwest Express-way, retail sales, remodel,$500,000.

Wieland-Davco, 7301 SPennsylvania Ave., retailsales, remodel, $500,000.

Sam Gresham, Archi-tect, 26 E Main St., office,remodel, $400,000.

Home First Inc., 15415Coral Creek Lane, resi-dence, erect, $375,000.

Quick-Mincey Proper-ties LLC, 7701 NW 135,residence, erect,$350,000.

C&C Builders Inc.,6625 Whispering GroveDrive, residence, erect,$300,000.

Wood Ridge HomesLLC, 10700 Malaga Way,residence, erect,$300,000.

Chet Walters HomesInc., 1512 NW 172, resi-dence, erect, $290,000.

Manchester EliteHomes LLC, 14501 York-shire Lane, residence,erect, $289,200.

Carol and Sam Vladov-ich, 14777 Sharon SpringsDrive, residence, erect,$280,000.

Vesta Homes Inc., 4708SW 126 Place, residence,erect, $270,000.

J.W. Mashburn Devel-opment Inc., 5616 NW 119Circle, residence, erect,$261,000.

Landmark Fine HomesLP, 18308 Orozco Circle,residence, erect,$250,000.

Shawn Forth CustomHomes, 16121 Evan ShawCourt, residence, erect,$249,000.

Ken Aduddell, 16768Little Leaf Lane, resi-dence, erect, $230,000.

Vickie James CustomBuilder Inc., 6709 Chel-sey Lane, residence, erect,$230,000.

Willis (Don) CustomHomes Inc., 3917 Ches-terfield Place, residence,erect, $225,000.

Oklahoma DiamondGroup LLC, 10016 VolareDrive, residence, erect,$225,000.

J. Hill Homes Inc.,10908 SW 21, residence,erect, $220,000.

Vesta Homes Inc., 4820SW 126, residence, erect,$205,000.

Harvest Homes Prop-erties LLC, 317 SW 174,residence, erect,$200,000.

Taber Built HomesLLC, 15300 HomecomingDrive, residence, erect,$200,000.

Denise Patterson Cus-tom Homes, 3301 NW 163,residence, erect,$199,900.

Garnet Homes LLC,3917 Wayfield Ave., resi-dence, erect, $195,000.

Ideal Homes of NormanLP, 2405 NW 180, resi-dence, erect, $195,000.

Garnet Homes LLC,4009 Wayfield Ave., resi-dence, erect, $190,000.

Vickie James CustomBuilder Inc., 7321 Stinch-comb Drive, residence,erect, $190,000.

Quality DesignedHomes LLC, 2316 WayneCutt Ave., residence,erect, $187,900.

Debbie Gregory Homes,9021 NW 84 Terrace, resi-dence, erect, $180,000.

Taber Built HomesLLC, 17216 WoodvineDrive, residence, erect,$180,000.

Taber Built HomesLLC, 15224 HomecomingDrive, residence, erect,$180,000.

D.R. Horton, 4201 NE119, residence, erect,$179,900.

Todd and Jesse Clark,19700 N Choctaw Road,manufactured home,move-on, $176,700.

Liberty Homes Inc.,5912 Holly Brooke Lane,residence, erect,$175,000.

Vesta Homes Inc., 9100Lolly Lane, residence,erect, $175,000.

Cedarland Homes LLC,4912 SW 120 Terrace, resi-dence, erect, $173,000.

4 Corners ConstructionLLC, 14700 PepperwellOaks Drive, residence,erect, $169,000.

Manchester GreenHomes LLC, 1424 NW 188,residence, erect,$160,900.

Ideal Homes of NormanLP, 18601 Mesa Road, resi-dence, erect, $157,000.

4 Corners ConstructionLLC, 15412 SE 58, resi-dence, erect, $145,000.

Oklahoma DiamondGroup LLC, 10909 NW118, residence, erect,$145,000.

Manchester EliteHomes LLC, 14916 StoneManor Drive, residence,erect, $145,000.

Jaime Hernandez,10700 Daryl Drive, resi-dence, erect, $140,000.

Snyder Homes LLC,11832 SW 17, residence,erect, $132,078.

Westpoint Homes, 6113NW 157, residence, erect,$130,000.

Studio Architects, 6701Broadway Extension, of-fice, remodel, $130,000.


Snyder Homes LLC,11924 SW 17, residence,erect, $129,707.

J&A Homes LLC, 19137Meadows Crossing Drive,residence, erect,$125,000.

Foster Signature HomesLLC, 1509 KingsridgeDrive, residence, erect,$120,000.

Foster Signature HomesLLC, 10737 SW 35, resi-dence, erect, $120,000.

Prime Development,2309 NW 159 Terrace, res-idence, erect, $120,000.

First Oklahoma Con-struction Inc., 16316 Mon-tague Drive, residence,erect, $110,000.

Rausch ColemanHomes LLC, 11441 SW 24,residence, erect,$109,000.

Ideal Homes of NormanLP, 2629 NW 183, resi-dence, erect, $107,000.

Home Creations, 18224Scarborough Drive, resi-dence, erect, $104,600.

Ideal Homes of NormanLP, 416 Parsons Drive,residence, erect,$103,000.

Home Creations, 904Aspen Creek Terrace, res-idence, erect, $101,700.

Rausch ColemanHomes LLC, 6100 CieloTerrace, residence, erect,$100,000.

Rausch ColemanHomes LLC, 9632 KylieDrive, residence, erect,$100,000.

First Oklahoma, 16308Montague Drive, resi-dence, erect, $100,000.

NAI Sullivan Group,8127 Northwest Express-way, church, remodel,$100,000.

Dees ConstructionLLC, 4334 Northwest Ex-pressway, office, remodel,$90,000.

Central OklahomaHabitat For Humanity,7608 S Miller Ave., resi-dence, erect, $85,000.

Home Creations, 12601Edison Drive, residence,erect, $84,600.

Central OklahomaHabitat For Humanity,8516 N Lindsay Ave., resi-dence, erect, $84,000.

Central OklahomaHabitat For Humanity, 516SE 26, residence, erect,$84,000.

Central OklahomaHabitat For Humanity,8509 N Phillips Ave., resi-dence, erect, $84,000.

Central OklahomaHabitat For Humanity,8525 N Lindsay Ave., resi-dence, erect, $84,000.

Ideal Homes of NormanLP, 16017 Raindust Drive,residence, erect, $83,000.

Central OklahomaHabitat For Humanity,500 SE 26, residence,erect, $80,000.

Central OklahomaHabitat For Humanity,8556 Durland Way, resi-dence, erect, $80,000.

Memorial Square 1031LLC, 13722 N PennsylvaniaAve., retail sales, remodel,$80,000.

Home Creations, 12053NW 133 Terrace, resi-dence, erect, $78,200.

Lee Asset Group, 6701Broadway Extension, of-fice, remodel, $75,000.



Samantha Hanby, 3539W Memorial Road, busi-ness, remodel, $75,000.

Cornerstone GroupLLC, 10721 SW 34 Terrace,residence, erect, $70,000.


B&J Concrete Inc.,16000 N May Ave.,church, erect, $50,000.

Cal LLC, 119 NW 132,office-warehouse, re-model, $50,000.

Urban Zip, 5220 E Wil-shire Blvd., barn, erect,$50,000.

General Lighting & SignServices Inc., 5100 S In-terstate 35 Service Road,bank, erect, $42,000.

Richard Hanks, 10108SE 51, add-on, add-on,$40,000.

William Jolly, 11001 SE80, manufactured home,move-on, $37,000.

Vallandingham Con-struction, 2404 SW 32,accessory, erect, $35,000.


Trinity Group Archi-tects, 4130 Northwest Ex-pressway, restaurant, re-model, $30,000.

Melinda Burns, 11823SW 15 Terrace, manufac-tured home, move-on-mobile home park,$28,000.


Lee Asset Group, 6701Broadway Extension, of-fice, remodel, $25,000.

4 Corners ConstructionLLC, 5700 SE 148, storage,erect, $20,000.

Greenturf Inc.., 600NW 42, canopy-carport,add-on, $20,000.

Bockus Payne Associ-ates Architects, 2300 WMemorial Road, shellbuilding, remodel,$20,000.


No name provided,11902 SW 16, manufac-tured home, move-on-mobile home park,$18,000.

Mosco Construction,801 S Mustang Road,medical clinic-office, re-model, $16,000.

Covenant RenovationsInc., 1504 SW 61, resi-dence, remodel, $15,000.

Bockus Payne Associ-ates Architects, 2300 WMemorial Road, shellbuilding, shell, $15,000.

Bockus Payne Associ-ates Architects, 2300 WMemorial Road, shellbuilding, shell, $15,000.



Pamcorp, 10135 N Rock-well Ave., tower-antenna,install, $15,000.

Pamcorp, 2012 West-wood Blvd., tower-anten-na, install, $15,000.

Pamcorp, 16820 NPennsylvania Ave., tower-antenna, install, $15,000.

Pamcorp, 1259 W Inter-state 240 Service Road,tower-antenna, install,$15,000.

Pamcorp, 5506 N SantaFe Ave., tower-antenna,install, $15,000.

Pamcorp, 6828 NW 122,tower-antenna, install,$15,000.

Pamcorp, 6828 NW 122,tower-antenna, install,$15,000.

Pamcorp, 8629 North-west Expressway, tower-antenna, install, $15,000.

Scott Davis, 13316 SWestern Ave., cleaners-laundry, remodel,$15,000.

Lee Asset ManagementGroup LLC, 6701 Broad-

way Extension, office, re-model, $14,880.

Timberlake Construc-tion, 3600 S Sara Road,temporary building,move-on, $12,000.

Lee Asset ManagementGroup LLC, 6701 Broad-way Extension, office, re-model, $11,160.

4 Corners ConstructionLLC, 14700 PepperwellOaks Drive, accessory,erect, $10,000.

Covenant RenovationsInc., 10220 SE 55, resi-dence, remodel, $10,000.

Lee Asset ManagementGroup LLC, 6701 Broad-way Extension, office, re-model, $7,650.

Maria Cabrera, 2633SW 23, residence, add-on, $7,000.

Leonard Rasenburg,2400 SW 100, canopy-carport, erect, $6,800.

William Smith, 512 NW32, storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $6,400.

Angela Ann Stover,13220 NW 1 Terrace, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $5,000.

Ralph and KathleenParker, 8309 Aspen Place,residence, add-on,$5,000.

Flat Safe, 3705 KeithCourt, storm shelter, in-stall-storm shelter,$4,150.

Flat Safe, 10421 KatyLine Drive, storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$4,100.

Jaynie Rich, 4105 Ran-kin Road, storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$4,050.

Bruce Black, 12309Shorehan Court, stormshelter, erect, $4,000.

John M. Whittenbers,5901 SW 21, move-on-mobile home park, move-on-mobile home park,$4,000.

Dewayne and ShirleySpencer, 7405 NW 118,storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $3,500.

Vortech Storm Shelters,4012 NE 138 Terrace, stormshelter, remodel, $3,375.

Ali Anvar, 15812 Clar-emont Blvd., storm shel-ter, install-storm shelter,$3,200.

No name provided,10404 NW 45, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $3,200.

No name provided,19021 Meadows CrossingDrive, storm shelter, in-stall-storm shelter,$3,200.

Stacey Rose, 3641 Quail

Creek Road, storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$3,200.

Thomas McLuckkie,5608 Lanceshire Lane,storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $3,200.

Matthew Major, 6404Connaught Court, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $3,050.

No name provided, 6112NW 152, storm shelter, in-stall-storm shelter,$3,000.

No name provided,2946 Village Circle, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $3,000.

Gary Knodel, 8216 NW6, storm shelter, remodel,$3,000.

Geoffrey Warlick andJane Lucas, 8900 PrairieRidge Road, storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$3,000.

Ground Zero, 9008Bella Vista Lane, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $3,000.

John Norman, 3337 NW170 Court, storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$3,000.

Ken Worth, 2509 NW115, storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $3,000.

Thomason, 8100 SYoungs Blvd., storm shel-ter, erect, $3,000.

Mark Heath, 3505 SW124, storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $3,000.

Merritt Daggs, 10708NW 40 Terrace, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $3,000.

Veralea Sealy, 8125 Tim-othy Lane, storm shelter,remodel, $3,000.

Flat Safe, 15704 PrairieRun Drive, storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$3,000.

Ground Zero, 1400 NW183, storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $3,000.

Benny and JoyceThome, 2216 SW 117,storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $2,995.

Bobby Yarbrough, 5104SE 88, storm shelter, in-stall-storm shelter,$2,995.

Melissa and FranciscoSilva, 3908 SE 89 Terrace,storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $2,995.

Mahawta Hargis, 8232Wilshire Ridge Drive,storm shelter, install-storm shelter, $2,970.

Gilberto Rodriguez, 1352SW 61 Terrace, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $2,910.

Reginald Harding, 4720

Royal Oak Drive, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $2,825.

Sherry Teoli, 8513 SW39, storm shelter, erect,$2,825.

Ryan Whitlow, 8713 NW157 Place, storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$2,800.

Glenn Fast, 2308 Ma-kaila Way, storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$2,750.

Terry Howard, 500Prairie Hill Lane, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $2,720.

Ideal Homes of NormanLP, 2713 NW 186, stormshelter, install-stormshelter, $2,300.

Byong C. Rhee, 4500 SSunnylane Road, restau-rant, remodel, $2,000.

Ground Zero, 3301 Ven-ice Blvd., storm shelter,install-storm shelter,$2,000.

Arthur and SusanGhere, 12721 Oakdale ViewDrive, storm shelter, in-stall-storm shelter,$1,900.

Jose E. Compean, 3216SW 72, canopy-carport,add-on, $1,500.

Charles Campbell, 1237SW 39, canopy-carport,add-on, $1,500.

Arnold Sullivan, 3005Baron, manufacturedhome, move-on-mobilehome park, $1,000.

Outland OK OfficeBuildings, 1145 W Inter-state 240 Service Road,retail sales, remodel,$1,000.

DemolitionsCrosby Construction,

2323 SW 29, warehouse.Crosby Construction,

6415 N Meridian Ave., res-taurant.

Crosby Construction,2616 W Wilshire Blvd.,residence.

Crosby Construction,200 NW 18, garage.

Total Demolition Ser-vices LLC, 7101 NW 150,residence.

Kendall Concrete, 3120NE 15, residence.

K&M Wrecking LLC,2550 SE 59, residence.

K&M Wrecking LLC,637 SW 85, demolition,residence.

Ray’s Trucking, 20821Reland Ave., accessory.

Ray’s Trucking, 20821Reland Ave., accessory.

Ray’s Trucking, 20821Reland Ave., residence.

Building permits6E SATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 2012 NEWSOK.COMTHE OKLAHOMAN

DEAR BARRY: Webought a newly construct-ed home without having ahome inspection. Nowwe’re wondering if weshould hire an inspectorbefore the one-year build-er’s warranty expires.

One problem we’ve hadinvolves the carpet. Itsheds lint fibers that get inour hair, clothes, socks,etc. Each time we use thevacuum, the hose and bagbecome filled. The buildersaid this is normal and thatnothing can be done aboutit. This has been going onfor seven months and wefear that there could beother problems we haven’tyet discovered. What doyou recommend?

MayDEAR MAY: A common

practice among somebuilders is to say that a

problem is “normal” whenit is absolutely not normal.In this way, they attemptto avoid liability. Carpetthat sheds lint to the ex-tent that you describe is soabnormal that it is almostunheard of. You shouldhave the carpet inspectedby a local flooring contrac-tor and get a written eval-uation of the problem. Aqualified professional willbe aware of product recallsor of conditions that couldproduce this type of de-fect. A written statement

from a carpet contractorwill help to overcome thebuilder’s excuses.

Buying a new homewithout a professional in-spection is a mistake. Agood inspector can identi-fy defects in a new home,and repairs can then be de-manded as a condition ofthe purchase. Rather thanwait till the end of the one-year warranty, you shouldhire a home inspector now.Try to find an inspectorwith years of experienceand a reputation for thor-oughness. Call a few realestate offices and ask whois the most thorough in-spector in the area.

If the builder continuesto be unresponsive, getsome advice from an at-torney who specializes inconstruction defect law.

DEAR BARRY: When

we purchased our home,the seller submitted awritten statement thatdisclosed a moisture prob-lem in the basement. Butthis statement was not in-

cluded in our paperworkfrom our Realtor, and wenever saw it during or afterthe transaction. Our homeinspector reported themoisture condition, but hesaid nothing about mold.Several months after mov-ing in, we discovered moldin the basement and spent$7,000 to have it removed.That was when we re-quested, and finally re-ceived, a copy of the sell-er’s disclosure statement.Who is responsible for thecost of correcting the moldproblem?

ClarenceDEAR CLARENCE: The

seller apparently acted ingood faith by submittingwritten disclosure of themoisture problem. There-fore, it is reasonable to as-sume that the seller wasnot aware of the undis-

closed mold.Environmental hazards

such as mold are outsidethe scope of a visual homeinspection. Therefore, theinspector cannot be heldliable. However, if themold was visible, thestains should have beenreported by the inspectorwith a recommendationfor further evaluation.

The liable party in thiscase is the Realtor. If theagent received the disclo-sure statement from theseller and failed to providea copy, that was a majorprofessional breach.

A real estate attorneycan advise you on the bestway to proceed with thisclaim.

To write to Barry Stone, visit him on theweb at www.housedetective.com.

ACTION COAST PUBLISHING

BarryStone

INSPECTOR’S IN THEHOUSE

Builder calls faulty carpet ‘normal’Buying a newhome withouta professionalinspection is amistake. Agood inspectorcan identifydefects in anew home,and repairscan then bedemanded asa condition ofthe purchase.


People who feel drawnto simplicity will findmuch to appreciate in theKent. Call it a cabin, abungalow or a vacation re-treat.

Whichever designationyou choose, this home ischarming. And beingsmall, it’s as economical tobuild as it is to maintain.

Slender wooden postssupport and define a longfront porch that wrapsaround to the right. Ex-posed rafter tails along theroof’s edge create visualinterest there, while cedarshake shingles give a rustictexture to the exterior,above the batt-and-boardsiding.

Entering, you stepthrough one of the twoatrium doors into a sur-prisingly large and sunnyvaulted great room. Win-dows line much of the sidewall, and a kitchen with alarge work island fills therear.

If a wood or gas flamestove is part of your dream,the front corner by thedoor is an ideal location.

Standing at the kitch-en’s four-burner stove,you can easily serve up hotsoups, cocoa, coffee andassorted culinary delightsto family and friendsperched on stools alongthe raised eating and con-versation bar.

A stacked washer-dryeris nearby, hidden behinddoors that front the hall-way leading to the backporch.

Shelves fill the otherhalf of the alcove. Its lowerhalf could be outfittedwith a folding counter atopstorage cabinets. Morestorage is available in asmaller alcove across from

the bathroom.Two rooms fill the rest

of the left side. The Kent’sfront bedroom is largerand has a wide closet.

The second room couldbe used as a study or an-other bedroom. A pull-down ladder there pro-vides handy attic access.

A review plan of the Kent, includingfloor plans, elevations, section andartist’s conception, can be purchased for$25 by phone, mail or online. Add $5 forshipping and handling. AssociatedDesigns, 1100 Jacobs Drive, Eugene, OR,97402. www.associateddesigns.com.(800) 634-0123.

HOUSE PLAN

Simple Kent plan offers charm

LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. —While Rhonda Van Sickleand her three boys were inFlorida recently, courtesyof a late-stage cancercharity, members of herchurch set in motion a se-cret plan to show themhow much they are loved.

Work crews swarmedtheir two-story contem-porary house on SW Lee-ward Street in Lee’s Sum-mit.

The crews didn’t justtackle a few tasks on herto-do list. They drove inwith several trailers of newthings and hauled off theold.

Van Sickle, 51, has stage-four bone cancer. As aphysical education teacherat Summit Pointe Elemen-tary and a single mom ofAlex, 20, Austin, 17, andBlake, 15, she has let slide alot of daily chores andlarger home projects.

The gym teacher whowas always instructingchildren to exercise morewas just too tired to domuch for herself.

When members of herchurch, Lee’s SummitUnited Methodist Church,asked what chores theycould do for her, sheshrugged and asked if theycould paint some walls tofreshen up the place.

Unknown to her, VanSickle, a member of thechurch for 27 years, movedto the top of her church’sImpact Project, a mission-based ministry making adifference beyond thechurch’s walls.

But the more the volun-teers looked at her home,the more they saw thingsthat needed fixing. Callswent out and peoplesigned on to do whateverthey could. The little pro-ject of love grew into a ma-jor gift.

Ed Lipowicz, a churchmember who owns Floorsand More, parked his trail-er at the home and broughtin crews to take care ofplumbing, flooring andcarpeting.

“When you get older,”he said, “you really startthinking hard about theimportance of giving back.It’s very important.”

Associate pastor DavidHutchison, who has beenpreaching on the topic ofservice for a few weeks,knows that his flock heardthe message. He has aname for all of this: extra-vagant generosity.

“We’ve touched everyinch of this home. It’s notabout being a light in thecommunity. It’s about giv-ing of yourself,” he said.“People’s hearts are huge.”

Weeds are gone now. Aonce-stagnant fish pond isthe clean home of sixshimmering goldfish.Thirty-year-old mattress-es were thrown out, alongwith a broken stove, tiredrefrigerator, rotten floor-boards and leaky faucets.Dozens of 1970s fixtureswere replaced and theair conditioner was over-hauled.

It’s now a peaceful placewhere Van Sickle can re-flect, pray and know thatshe is much loved.


Missouri churchrenovates homeof cancer patientBY LEE HILL KAVANAUGHThe Kansas City Star


ATLANTA — When you’repaying for the view, a va-cation home doesn’t needto have fussy decor orover-the-top interiorsthat distract from the lakesetting.

“That’s the reason whythey’re buying the house,”said Alicia Mooney-Mac-chia, owner of Alicia Moo-ney Interiors, an interiordesigner at Lake Oconee,Ga., and throughout metroAtlanta. “What you wantto do is walk in the houseand look straight back atthe view.”

Heavy fabrics and de-tails such as fringe on fur-niture are out, replacedwith clean lines, linen fab-rics and neutral colors, shesaid.

Still, vacation homesdon’t have to be shabby orsuffer from the bare-bones look of a collegeapartment. Lake homestyle can enhance the se-rene environment whilemaintaining functionalityfor friends and family.

“The layouts are moreefficient and effective,”said Dan Jones, owner ofJones and Jones PremierBuilders and president ofthe Lake Oconee BuildersAssociation. “There’s notas much wasted squarefootage. Obviously, open-ness is a continuing trend,

and less walls.”Carol Morrison, who

owns a vacation homewith husband, Ken, on the10th hole of the HarborClub golf course at LakeOconee, said they usedminimal window treat-ments to keep the houseopen and emphasize theview.

The desire for opennesseven extends to decisionsabout placing stair rails sothey don’t obstruct the

view. Dennis Chamber-lain, owner of Stair South,based in Eatonton, Ga.,said his company situatesiron rails horizontally (al-lowed by local buildingcodes), instead of vertical-ly, both inside and outsidethe home.

“If you’re sitting on yourporch and looking onto thelake, you can look hori-zontally and see more,” hesaid.

Builders, interior de-

signers and homeownersshared other ways to deco-rate vacation homes withthe scenery in mind:

Use nautical decorYou don’t want to get

seasick at your lake home.If you want to give a nod tothe water setting and par-ticipate in the nauticaltrend in homes and fash-ion, Mooney-Macchia ad-vises against creating a“lake room.” Instead, keepit simple.

She accessorizes withnautical items, such as oldoars or glass fishing floatsand buoys covered withnetting. Or a throw pillowcould have a nautical orwater motif.

Make guest spaceRequests for bunk-bed

rooms are rising, especial-ly as grandparents seek toaccommodate multiplegrandchildren duringweekends and summers.

“One of the neat thingswe’ve done is bunkrooms,” Jones said. “Youknow you’re going to beloading the house withpeople. Instead of a bed-room with a queen or kingbed, put bunks.” He addsthat the main thing to con-sider is ceiling height; atleast 9 feet is optimal.

Stair South recently wasinstalling bunk beds out ofsolid ash in Bert and TrudyHene’s home at HarborClub. The downstairsroom will have seven beds.

Go bigWhile much of the time

is spent outdoors, home-

owners are placing a grea-ter emphasis on creatinglarge spaces for themselvesand their guests to eat in-doors.

Chamberlain is seeingan increase in requests formassive tables that seat 12to 16 people. The Heneshave a custom 12-foot ta-ble at their lake home.

Work in woodIncorporating cedar

beams or placing tongue-and-groove boards on thewalls and ceilings in keep-ing rooms, living roomsand master bedrooms aretwo popular ways home-owners add natural ele-ments. In lake homes,though, the wood is paint-ed with a whitewashedlook.

“It’s not going to beoverwhelming. It’s not go-ing to feel like a rustic logcabin,” Mooney-Macchiasaid.

Match the sceneryNeutrals keep the atten-

tion on the view, and graysare the new neutral, Moo-ney-Macchia said. Shebrings in bold splashes oforange and blue throughpillows and other accesso-ries.

Homeowners find thatwater-inspired hues canadd to a home’s soothingsetting.


Vacation homes on inside should reflect outside

While much of the time is spent outdoors, homeown-ers are placing a greater emphasis on creating largespaces for themselves and their guests to eat in-doors, such as this 12-foot table in a lake home.

MCT PHOTOS

Stair South is placing stair rails in a horizontal formatto emphasize the views at a vacation home at LakeOconee, Ga.

BY LORI JOHNSTONAtlanta Journal-Constitution


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