Batchelder Properties

Realtor serving all of Siskiyou County; Offering Reanl Estate and Property Management in Mout Shasta, Yreka, Weed, Dunsmuir, and Lake Shastina

Must Read Book For First Time Home Buyers

Homes and Other Black Holes

Must Read Book For First Time Buyers Dave Barry Homes And Other Black Holes
Must Read Book For First Time Buyers Dave Barry Homes And Other Black Holes

You have got to read Homes and Other Black Holes and my only hope is that you don’t die of laughter before your escrow closes if you read it. This is a must read book for first time home buyers !!

Mr. Barry won the Pulitzer Prize among dozens of awards for his columns and books and no wonder, with chapter titles like these:

  • Why it Was Probably a Mistake to Buy This Book
  • How to Get Very Deeply into Debt
  • Moving; A Common Mistake

He answers buyers’ questions such as; “Can you recommend a good mortgage?” (There are several kinds: Fixed Rate, Variable Rate, and the banks’ secret weapons, the Party Hat Mortgage, and the Mortgage of the Living Dead).

And “Is there a secret to having a beautiful lawn?” (Yes and no. If you fail to feed, fertilize, and water your lawn, it will die. However, if you feed, fertilize, and water your lawn, it will also die).

The New York Times called him the funniest man in America and I believe them.

More Information

Dave Barry’s websites:

You can find Dave Barry’s book on Amazon:

Can You Believe This Tech Support Call

What Are Your Experiences?

Outsourced Movie on Netflix and Tech Support Calls
Can You Believe This Tech Support Call

Running into trouble on a computer is easy for me. I pretty much expect to have to make another one of those agonizing calls to an overseas ‘tech’ who is actually a teenager on day one of their training and for whom English is a second language.

For a great laugh, watch the Outsourced Movie on Netflix

Today however was special and warming

First off, I didn’t get the “we are experiencing a heavier than normal call volume . . . ” message that I always hear. Nor did I get put on hold.

Voilà , a real guy ANSWERS THE PHONE ! In a cadence so slow that I thought he must somehow know I’m hard of hearing.

I learn that I’ve linked up with Jasper Clint ‘Foggy’ Harris who lives in Missouri and is 61 years old. He led me through each software step so visually I almost felt that he was standing behind me. I complimented him on how good an instructor he was and it turned out he is an ex-teacher like me (grades 7 through 12) who also like me, gave it up when we both learned that we weren’t teaching anymore. At least not the way we knew we had to teach the things our kids need to know to survive high school and beyond.

Ordinarily support people don’t say things like, “Hell, Bruce, this is cool !!”. Or, “That’s just crappy!” Or, “DUDE! You’re on it ! !” This made the call so much more charming and memorable.

The call lasted over half an hour and he would have gone on even more but I was worried his employer might record or monitor calls for training as they always warn and that this chatter might get him in trouble. I told him so and asked if he would send me an email when he got off work so we could correspond. It came while we were talking, with his two personal email addresses, his business email address, his cell phone number, and an invitation to contact him directly if I had any future support questions. Can you believe this ???

So now I have a ‘pen’ pal from back when people used pens.
What a sweet support call ! !

May all your Tech Support calls be like this one!

Scammers Phish For Mortgage Closing Costs

Home Buyer Warning

Buying a home is exciting. You saved for the down payment, scheduled the move, and are dreaming of planting new roots. Closing is right around the corner… unless a scammer gets your settlement fees first. Read this article from the Federal Trade Commission by Colleen Tressler on Scammers Phish For Mortgage Closing Costs…

The Federal Trade Commission and the National Association of Realtors® are warning home buyers about an email and money wiring scam. Hackers have been breaking into some consumers’ and real estate professionals’ email accounts to get information about upcoming real estate transactions. After figuring out the closing dates, the hacker sends an email to the buyer, posing as the real estate professional or title company. The bogus email says there has been a last minute change to the wiring instructions, and tells the buyer to wire closing costs to a different account. But it’s the scammer’s account. If the buyer takes the bait, their bank account could be cleared out in a matter of minutes. Often, that’s money the buyer will never see again.

If you’re buying a home and get an email with money-wiring instructions, STOP. Email is not a secure way to send financial information, and your real estate professional or title company should know that. If it’s a phishing email, report it to the FTC.

How To Avoid Phishing Scams

  • Don’t email financial information. It’s not secure.
  • If you’re giving your financial information on the web, make sure the site is secure. Look for a URL that begins with https (the “s” stands for secure). And, instead of clicking a link in an email to go to an organization’s site, look up the real URL and type in the web address yourself.
  • Be cautious about opening attachments and downloading files from emails, regardless of who sent them. These files can contain malware that can weaken your computer’s security.
  • Keep your operating system, browser, and security software up to date.

Learn more about protecting yourself from phishing and what to do if your email is hacked. If you gave your information to a scammer, visit IdentityTheft.gov.

Federal Trade Commission Home Buyers Warning Scammers Phish Mortgage Closing Costs Identity Theft
Federal Trade Commission Home Buyers Warning Scammers Phish For Mortgage Closing Costs Identity Theft