Dan Cummings - The Running Realtor: April 2008

Today for Tee'd off Tuesday the news of another home invasion in Connecticut hit fairly close to my neighborhood. In this case the elderly woman was able to frighten off the intruder and according to the little news report she was not injured. Although I am by no means a trained as a psychologist I suspect anyone attacked in their bed would carry emotional injuries for a very long time.

Sad to say stories of home invasions involving rape and murder are becoming almost commonplace in the news. Just last month a recently released convict walked into an elderly woman's home on a Sunday morning while she was having coffee with her friend, she was shot but survived and her friend was kidnapped & killed.

These two latest home invasions occurred after Connecticut Lawmakers supposedly got tough on crime with new legislation.  Based on the continued activity of career criminals it is pretty clear they don't think much of the candy ass court system that offers them a free ride through life.

Last summer's triple murder in Cheshire certainly reawakened my thoughts on punishment but so far the slow wheels of government seem to be failing the law abiding citizens.  

When I realized more and more people were arming themselves I thought it may create chaos in society but my opinion is starting to sway.  The modern day criminals have no regard for human life and time has come to start ending the life of these criminals.  With advances in DNA testing it should be pretty simple to determine guilt so the laws need to provide swift justice.

TERMINATION TIME should not come after years of appeals and decades of life living on our tax dollars.  Get the job done within 30 days of conviction.

It has been many years since I have played with guns but sitting back watching as society deteriorates while more and more people are attacked in their homes does not make sense.  My thoughts are leaning towards sharpening shooting skills so if aiming is required a kill can be registered.

Of course there are many other ways to protect yourself while at home. Dogs are a great deterrent and securely bolted doors make it more difficult for an intruder to slip in undetected.  Alarm systems might frighten them off before you are in any danger of harm but when it comes down to you or them I hope the story I read is that another homeowner terminated a less desirable member of the human race.

We all hear the recommendations to check our credit report every so often to make sure it is accurate but how many times have you mailed in a written request?  I'll gamble to say none!  The internet has made life much easier and today you can check your report within minutes.

Back in 2002 was the first time I ever got a glimpse of my credit report and I did find several errors. There were a few accounts that did not belong to me and my birth date was wrong. Although none of the errors had any negative effect on my report it needed to be revised.  When I checked again in 2004 all was fine.

In the Real Estate business we hear about credit scores all the time but at this stage I myself am still confused by the different systems.  In 2004 the FICO score was the number.  The FICO score range went from 300-850 and from my viewpoint as a Realtor anyone over 600 was a good candidate to become a homeowner.  Some clients with good downpayments and a willingness to pay a higher interest rate have had lower scores.

Yesterday my ears perked up when I heard a story on the morning news about FREE credit reports.  Each of us is entitled to receive a free report once a year.  Many companies on the internet try and hook you into paying steep fees for credit monitoring services when you try to get a FREE CREDIT REPORT but the reporter cited AnnualCreditReport.com as a good site to receive a free report and since you are entitled to one free report per year from each of the three agencies they recommend ordering a different one every 4 months so you can closely monitor changes.

 Viewing your credit report does not give you the CREDIT SCORE and since I have heard of a "new scoring system" I spent $5.95 to get my number.

The Scoring Scale has changed and results in a number starting at 501 and topping out at 990. I got an ego boost since I moved a little closer to the top during the last four years.  

If you are currently in the market for a new home in my territory or have a property to sell in New Haven County feel free to contact me via email (Dan@CummingsTeam.com) or call my 24 hour access line 203-672-2455.

All the media hype about the Mortgage and Real Estate Business makes it sound pretty dismal but if you are considering a move you will find there is activity.  March was a bit cool in Connecticut but 51 single family homes were sold in my primary area.  By far the most active are entry level homes and if they are priced right mulitple offers still happen. 

If you are thinking of selling and curious about the value of your home click the house on the right to request a Free No Obligation Market Analysis of the property.  With today's on-line databases I can give you a fairly good idea of the market price without even touring the house.

Anyone ready to undertake the adventures of searching for property in New Haven County can contact Dan Cummings - The Running Realtor via email or call my 24 hour access line : 203-672-2455

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