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AUGUST - REAL ESTATE NEWS: More Homes, Better Prices: A Buyer’s Summer

If you’ve thought about buying a home in the past few years, you may have run into two frustrations: asking prices that kept climbing and too few homes to choose from. In many places, both sticking points are letting up this summer, with lower asking prices and more homes for sale. Let’s look at the trends, and what they mean for your search. Sellers Are Pricing To Attract Buyers According to Realtor.com , the national median asking price was $430,000 in June, nearly $11,000 under what it was the year before (see graph below) : That’s the eighth month in a row that the typical asking price has dipped below where they were the previous year, according to the same Realtor.com report. And while falling prices can sound worrying, this isn’t a sign of an impending crash. We’re talking about asking prices, not sold prices. This is a sign that today’s sellers are meeting the market where it is and pricing to draw buyers. And that’s actually something normal we’d expect from the market. As...

Halloween Safety Tips

Halloween Safety Tips

Halloween is an exciting time of year for kids, and to help ensure they have a safe holiday, here are some tips from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). 

Walk Safely

1. Cross the street at corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks.
2.Look left, right, and left again when crossing and keep looking as you cross. 
3. Put electronic devices down and keep heads up and walk, don’t run, across the street.
4. Teach children to make eye contact with drivers before crossing in front of them.
5. Always walk on sidewalks or paths. If there are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far left as possible.  Children should walk on direct routes with the fewest street crossings.
6. Watch for cars that are turning or backing up. Teach children to never dart out into the street or cross between parked cars.

Trick or Treat With an Adult

7. Children under the age of 12 should not be alone at night without adult supervision. If kids are mature enough to be out without supervision, they should stick to familiar areas that are well lit and trick-or-treat in groups.

Keep Costumes Both Creative and Safe

8. Decorate costumes and bags with reflective tape or stickers and, if possible, choose light colors.
9. Choose face paint and makeup whenever possible instead of masks, which can obstruct a child’s vision.
10. Have kids carry glow sticks or flashlights to help them see and be seen by drivers. 
11. When selecting a costume, make sure it is the right size to prevent trips and falls. 

Drive Extra Safely on Halloween

12. Slow down and be especially alert in residential neighborhoods. Children are excited on Halloween and may move in unpredictable ways.
13. Take extra time to look for kids at intersections, on medians and on curbs.
14. Enter and exit driveways and alleys slowly and carefully.
15. Eliminate any distractions inside your car so you can concentrate on the road and your surroundings.
16. Drive slowly, anticipate heavy pedestrian traffic and turn your headlights on earlier in the day to spot children from greater distances.
17. Popular trick-or-treating hours are 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. so be especially alert for kids during those hours.

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