Russ is here to check in with our community! Keep reading to get his rundown on the Silicon Valley Bank Failure, Interest Rates, and more:
I bought a horse last weekend. Even though I have 4 other ones already. More on that and how it relates to today's topics later.
So, I have begun to REALLY LIMIT my "news intake." Not because I want to be out of touch....but because I want to be out of touch with "agenda driven news." In fact, so much of it is not really news, it's op-ed, crafted to look like broadcast news. People in suits, behind desks, with endless talking points about how "that other side" is out to ruin the country. I think politics ruins EVERYTHING it touches.
That said, there are some news items that ARE important to watch and so I have limited myself to reading the WALL STREET JOURNAL and to a podcast I enjoy called "The World and Everything In it." I recommend both.
I also listen to people smarter than me in their fields of expertise. This blog is about some of what ...

Our very own President, Russ Phillips teamed up with Legacy Mutual Mortgage's Nick Pronsky again to talk what to do when there's multiple offers on the table. Nick has an extensive knowledge and understanding of the industry after spending time in underwriting, processing, and origination, both in wholesale and in retail. Nick really found his calling when he moved to Austin and became a full-time loan originator, where his knowledge of mortgage underwriting guidelines and his commitment to providing excellent customer service helped him grow his business through a trusted network of referral sources. He is very accessible and straightforward with all of his clients, he always works diligently to make sure clients are comfortable throughout the process of obtaining a home loan, and his goal is to provide each homebuyer with the best possible loan program and terms to fit his/her individual financial goals.Nick has been voted by industry peers as a Top 10 Mortgage Profession ...

Opening your annual property tax bill is typically frustrating. It always seems too high, and most homeowners just pay it without realizing they can lower it. You pay enough in government taxes. Don't give up more than you have to.
Sometimes homeowners don't protest because they don't know they can or don't know how. And then there are those who don't think a small reduction is worth their efforts.
Using a tool like Home Tax Shield helps you easily decipher what you actually owe in property taxes, putting money back in your pocket. Home Tax Shield works on your behalf to save you as much as possible on your property tax bill. All you have to do is give them a little information upfront, then they take care of the rest. It’s also guaranteed every year.
Don’t leave money on the table! Check out Home Tax Shield and let The Russ Phillips Team know if you have any questions or need more assistance.
PS: I sourced this extremely informative video below that discusses a mor ...

We have many Russ Phillips Team clients looking for properties, both homes and land, in Travis County. According to The Austin Board of Realtors, at the county level, home sales have decreased 12.3% to 1,102 sales as of last month. The median price in Travis County rose 23.8% year over year to $530,000. During the same period, new listings decreased 14.7% to 1,206 listings, while active listings also dropped 25.7% to 603 listings. Pending sales declined 0.7% to 1,511 pending sales as monthly housing inventory decreased 0.1 months year over year to 0.4 months of inventory.
To go one step further, our President, Russ Phillips’ most recent blog post, “A Note From Russ On His 20th Real Estate Anniversary: Inflation, Supply vs. Demand, Beating of War Drums & More,” discusses the overall state of Central-Texas real estate inventory. It's really low across the board, not just Travis County. Check out this snippet from Russ’ realty wisdom to get a better viewp ...

As many of you know from reading our President, Russ Phillips’ most recent blog post, “A Note From Russ On His 20th Real Estate Anniversary: Inflation, Supply vs. Demand, Beating of War Drums & More,” real estate inventory is low right now. Really low. Check out this snippet from Russ’ realty wisdom to get a better viewpoint on the current marketing inventory:

“A neutral/balanced market between buyers and sellers is thought to be enough homes on the market that it would take SIX months to sell all available inventory (if the pace of sales remained constant and no new listings were added).   

But we don't have 6 months' worth of homes to buy. The current supply across many price points and regions is below 1/2 a month. There are niches (like 1-3 acre lots with custom homes in West Georgetown for example) where literally the cheapest available home fitting this criteria is $1.1 million, and the SECOND CHEAPEST is $3.3 million. Everythin; ...