Rex Hudler

Now back to the house hunting issues..... 1. Yes you have to record the money as a gift. Some lenders will allow only so much of that to go toward your downpayment, depending on what program you are looking into. For example, if you are getting into a program that requires 10% down, they may require you to come up with a certain amount of that 10% and not allow the whole 10% to be a gift. You'll just have to ask. 2. I am not an accountant, but depending on the size of the gift, you should not incur a tax liability if it is coming from your (or your wife's) parents. Of course, always contact a tax professional and never blindly take the advice of some schmuck (me) on a message board. 3. I suggest you look into a piggyback program like FlaSoxxJim previously mentioned. If you take out an equity line for the difference between 80% and your downpayment, you will avoid having to pay PMI which is basically like throwing away good money. I went with an 80-15-5, meaning I put 5% down, took out a first mortgage on 80% of the total and an interest only equity line on the 15%. It saved me as much as $75 a month on my townhouse. I am sure it will save you quite a bit more on your mansion you are about to buy. 4. Before you make assumptions that a fixed rate is the smart way to go because interest rates are so low, think about what you are getting yourself into. Do you realistically see yourself staying in that house 5 years? 10? 20? If the answer is 5 years or less, you can probably save yourself money by going with an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM). Your interest rate will lock in for a certain period of time (usually 3-5 years depending on what interest rate you want) and vary with current interest rates after that, still having protections against it going up too much in one year (usually 2%) or over the life of the loan (usually 6 or 8%). Do the math. If this is likely a starter home that you see yourself selling within 5 years, you can chop a good amount off of your payments and still come out smelling like a fresh rose when you sell. The risk involved is if things change and you are all of a sudden "stuck" in the house longer, then when interest rates eventually do rise, you will be paying more and not be able to get the low fixed rate you can get now. I did a 3 year ARM and figured that if interest rates went up 2% in both years 4 and 5, then it would still be about 5 1/2 years before I hit the break even point. Anything under that I was saving money, and after that I had lost money on the gamble. You just have to decide what is right for you. But do know that you have options that can save you $$. 5. Also, no matter what the Good Faith Estimates the mortgage company provides, plan on at least $500 in surprises at closing. It may not happen, but if things don't go exactly right, you will be the one that owes more money. It happened to me and from what I understand, it happens often. So put that money aside and if you don't have to use it, then you have just bought yourself a nice house warming gift. 6. Lastly, have a home inspection done. Also, if the house is even slightly old, pay (you hire and pay, not the seller) a HVAC (heating and air) company to do a thorough checkup on the system, including all the ductwork. If you are paying them, they will point out not only problems that may exist now, but things that are coming in the near future. If they pay, the company will certify that the system is working properly "today" yet not be responsible for a problem that could occur 2 weeks after you close. If the system is old, tell the seller you want it replaced and negotiate a price based on bids YOU get. If you allow them to do it, they will put in the cheapest system possible, which will just cause you problems later. Have them check for leaks in the ductwork as well as the equipment itself. Leaking ducts cost you more money in utility bills and make a system break down more quickly. Hope some of that helps........

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Mar 14, 2005 -> 06:00 PM) Nope that's my blog. There were some people (Tex included) who knew what was going on before everyone else did, because there were some nervous times before we got the ultrasound results. We didn't want to tell too many people before we knew everything was OK. Mike, the first thing we need to do is find the guy who is responsible and kick his ass!!! ;-) Sorry, that's a running joke between me and a few buddies anytime someone's wife gets pregnant. Maybe you have to be there...... Congrats and best of luck! Where is the cigar toting smiley when we need one?

QUOTE(winodj @ Mar 14, 2005 -> 08:39 PM) He's actually doing quite well for himself, I've heard. Ruben is doing quite well these days. Ruben, also from Birmingham of course, is a pretty laid back guy, but he has people that keep him very busy and handle all of his business. I had some dealings with him trying to strike a business deal. We couldn't get it done despite the desire to do so from both sides, because dates couldn't be confirmed while they were booking his tour last summer and by the time his tour was set, it was too late. I think it would be really cool if two of the first four American Idol winners were to come from Birmingham. The music scene here is pretty damned good. I don't consider myself hip and "in the know" but I venture out occasionally. There are a lot of bands that make a living here playing nothing (or almost nothing) but original material. A lot of bands also used to play here cheaply when they were first getting going. Bands such as Sister Hazel, Bare Naked Ladies, Counting Crows, John Mayer, etc. There have been tons of groups that have come through here playing in smaller venues before they hit it big. That may be true of a lot of places though. What the hell do I know. lol

QUOTE(Kid Gleason @ Mar 14, 2005 -> 07:55 PM) No it won't. I would lay money on it most people would be more than happy to sign an AI exclusive contract if it means millions of dollars and the fame that has fallen in line for the Kelly Clarkson's of the world. What will sink the show will be people getting tired of seeing the same people winning it, but so far there has been a bit of variety, and this years favorite according to Simon is this guy Bo. Bo should be singing for a Southern Rock band, and he has the voice to go REAL far, especially if the year was 1974. But as is, he is the only reason I am completely wrapped up in the show this year. I would stick this guy fronting my band in a second, as he really is a great vocalist and pure Rock. There is another guy on the show named Constatine, who is being billed as the "other Rocker", gads how I hate that word, but that guy just shows how much better Bo is. Bo is as real as you get in the RnR world. Bo lives about 10-15 minutes up the road from me and has played in two different bars that I frequent. One playing solo acoustic guitar and the other with a band. What many don't know is that he has a studio at his home and has written original music for some time. He is also very much into and performs contempory Christian music as well the standard rock genre. I think he has yet to really show his versatility. I have never met the guy, but I have friends that work at one of the bars he played at and they say he is just a simple, nice guy. Never heard anyone say anything bad about him.

I liked this area when we had one nice long thread going, kind of an onging conversation. But all these damned threads are giving me a headache!! Could there not be one main thread, and one prediction thread and leave it at that? Oh, and the NIT thread. I'm sure I am in the minority on this one, but too many threads drives me nuts. I don't have time to keep up with all of them here, in the Sox thread and the minor league thread, and still peek at the SLP. Sorry for ranting......... carry on.

QUOTE(He_Gawn @ Mar 14, 2005 -> 08:37 PM) I think next year should be pretty good for Indiana. Purdue will have a good team back and Indiana should be VERY tough. We'll have to see about ND though. I find it hard to believe that Purdue will make it all the way back to NCAA Tournament level in one year. Their cupboard seemed pretty dry to me.

QUOTE(SleepyWhiteSox @ Mar 13, 2005 -> 08:53 PM) f***, I have a HORRIBLE feeling that we're out... I think your horrible feeling is correct.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Mar 13, 2005 -> 04:57 PM) Thats what I thought. So is the question that will be asked in regards to Northern Iowa is whether there conference deserves 3 teams or not. That may be what gets them in the end. Had SIU won the conference instead of SMS, I think Northern Iowa would of probably been a lock. Now they will probably be the last team in if it happens. I hope they do get in, just not over my Hawkeyes, LOL. I'll be rooting for Dr. Tom. Jason, I really believe they don't look at it that way. When it comes down to the final 6 or 8 teams to be considered for the final few spots, I think those teams and their resumes are compared against each other. Whether it is the MVC getting a 3rd bid or the ACC getting a 6th or the Big East a 7th, I don't think comes into play. They look at whether Northern Iowa, Notre Dame or Maryland deserves it over the other. I am just using those three teams as an example, but you get the idea. I know many people and most of the talking heads think conference first, but when it gets down to those last few spots, I really don't think their conference affiliation means much. What they did over the course of the year does.

Interestingly enough, CBS Sportsline has Northern Iowa, Miami (OH), Depaul and UAB in. That was before Utah lost, so one of those teams will have to go. They have Miami (Ohio), Iowa, Northern Iowa, DePaul as their last 4 in and Wichita State, Maryland, Indiana, Notre Dame as their last 4 out.

QUOTE(WHarris1 @ Mar 13, 2005 -> 04:30 PM) I was actually thinking DePaul AND UAB are the best of that group. That may be. I elimated DePaul just by the thinking that UAB would get a bid first, yet it is possible they are the best two. I should have given that more thought.

Of those possible........ I think UAB would nose out DePaul. I'd give Northern Iowa the nod over Wichita St. So that would narrow it down to UAB, Northern Iowa, Buffalo, Notre Dame, and I'll throw Maryland and St. Joseph's in for discussion purposes. The MAC is a solid conference but I don't think it is as good as the Missouri Valley (at least this year). Buffalo had no significant out of conference wins and no "good losses". The only team worth a damn they played out of conference was UConn and they got hammered. Buffalo is out..... Northern Iowa beat Iowa State and played both Cincinnati and Iowa close in road games, so they get credit for "good losses" there. They beat Southern Illinois once which is better than any team in the MAC and beat Western Michigan on Bubble Saturday or whatever the hell they call that day. WMU isn't a powerhouse by any means, but they were 19-12 and 11-7 in the MAC so you can't write them off as a weak sister either. They were 7-3 in their Last 10 and lost to SMS (soon to be known as Missouri State) in the conference tourney who they had beaten twice earlier. SMS then beat SIU and finished 18-12 so that is not a terrible loss, just bad timing. Notre Dame is a tough call. Their out of conference schedule aside from Indiana and DePaul was horribly weak. Beating IU at that time wasn't a major accomplishment, but you have to give them some credit for winning at IU where they had not for many, many years prior. Their resume consists of beating Villanova, West Virginia, UConn and Boston College. All were home wins, which doesn't give them the boost a road win or two would have. But they finished 9-7 in the Big East which was arguably the top conference in the land this year. Their only bad losses were Michigan earlier in the year when they still had Horton, and Rutgers to end the year. They finished 4-6 in their last 10. UAB is interesting because they finished the year hot, beat DePaul twice in the last week, won on the road at Houston who at the time was a bubble contender and they competed well with Louisville twice and Cincinnati, barely losing on the road. But beyond that, there isn't much to look at. They did play Oklahoma State fairly well when OK St. was real hot at the beginning of the year. You could argue that beating Clemson has some clout because of Clemson's 3 wins over Maryland, but that might be a stretch. Their nonconference schedule wasn't horrible (202-181 overall opponents record), but there was nothing that stands out about it either. They finished 10-6 in C-USA. Maryland is a much more interesting team mainly because it plays in the ACC and has two wins over Duke. Their non-conference schedule consisted 4 games even worth looking at. They beat Memphis and Temple, and lost to Wisconsin and George Washington. Other non-conference games included Jackson St., Mercer, Liberty, Mt. St. Mary's, American U, and George Mason. They finished 3-7 and went 7-9 in the ACC, which is no shame, but a few nice non-conference wins better than Temple and Memphis would help. St. Joseph's had a very strange season. They finished 19-11. They were 14-2 in conference play but were 3-8 out of conference, losing to the likes of San Francisco and Drexel. They also got blown out by Kansas and Villanova. The A-10 had only 5 of 12 teams have overall winning records. They were 6-2 against those five teams counting their conference tournament loss. They also lost to Rhode Island which finished 6-22. While St. Joseph's had a gaudy conference mark and was 8-2 in their Last 10, I see it as deceiving. The A-10 was notably weaker than in the past and 8 of their conference wins came while bottom feeding. Their best non-conference win was Davidson, which is nothing to brag about. I just don't see them getting in. Maryland will have to live on the allure of playing in the big conference if they want in. Going 3-7 in their last 10 and losing 5 out of their last 6 doesn't give the committee reason to think they are playing their best basketball right now. I'll be surprised if they get in. That leaves us down to UAB, Notre Dame and Northern Iowa. In all honesty, I am having trouble differentiating between the three. My hunch is that UAB gets in and they flip a coin between Notre Dame and Northern Iowa. I would not be surprised if UAB doesn't get in however, that's how close I think it is. UAB does seem to be the only team in this list really coming in with a hot hand.

# Miami OH - doubtful # UAB - possible # Buffalo - possible # DePaul - possible # Northern Iowa - possible # Indiana - no chance in hell # Maryland - doubtful with Utah and Pacific losing (although NM may have gotten in anyway) # Notre Dame - possible # Saint Joseph's - doubtful # Wichita State - possible, but leaning towards doubtful # Holy Cross - not gonna happen # Davidson - no chance in hell # Vanderbilt - see above # Texas A&M - nope # Virginia Tech - see Indiana I didn't see Iowa or NC St. on this list so I am not sure where you thought these two stand, but my guess is they both get in.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Mar 12, 2005 -> 06:09 PM) Unless of course he drops some weight and gets in better health. That would be a prerequisite for him to come back. For any discussions involving him and coaching again to realistically occur, his health would have to be better off.

I think there is very little chance Alford would get the IU job. IF Davis goes, the names I am hearing are Kevin Stallings or Rick Majerus. But I still think Davis will return.

I think he will be back, but it would only surprise me mildly if he is let go. Not that I am the decision maker, but they improved in the areas I had concerns with (except for today) and played much better basketball from January on.

Won't get six bids because IU just got crossed off the list.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Mar 11, 2005 -> 05:46 PM) f***ing Bulls***. The Iowa-MSU game isn't televised, instead the UAB game is. Hores*** I tell you. I have ESPN Full Court...... it is on there..

just flipped to this game, so not sure....... too much channel surfing today to give much detail (except for when the IU games starts, of course)

Clemson up 56-49 over North Carolina right now....... 14 minutes left

52-31 now with 9 minutes left....

There is zero doubt that if IU loses today they are out. They deserve to be out if they can't win today. I still don't understand everyone's fascination with Minnesota once you look at who they have played. I'd be happy with 6 teams in, but I don't see it happening. Then again, so far, the games have gone well so far for us bubble teams. lol

Could Clemson actually knock off UNC?

I have only been picked off once or maybe twice by the computer. Now when a friend and I play on manual pickoff returns, that's another story. I always seem to forget and fall asleep.

Ditto Valenzuela...... he signed with another team, but I cannot recall which team.

During Spring Training it will look much different than in the regular season. In ST, all of the 40-man guys are playing with the big club, plus non-roster invitees and any callups for that particulr day. That means many of the guys that end up in AA will play in AAA games to fill that roster. Much of the AA roster in ST games is comprised of guys that will end up in Class A when all is said and done. If you want to see who will be in AA, watch AAA games as much or more so than AA games.