Cell phones and green, the two have finally started communications about being friendlier to mother earth. 

Check out FlipSwap.com.  The company will buy your unwanted cell phones.  You enter your make and model, and they give you a price.  For example, my cell phone is the Motorola i880, when I entered it into the search box; the price came back at $53.67.

The really cool thing about this company is that they are reducing the phones going into landfills, they are reusing as many of the phones as possible and the recycle as many of the phone parts as they can.  Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

On the site they list locations in your area, Tucson had six when I checked, to drop off your phone.  You can also mail it to them and they will mail you a check or donate the money to a charity.  Now that’s way cool.

TonyRay
TonyRay@MyGreenTucson.com

Tucson Home Search

For the first time in more than 30 years, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development issued mortgage reforms that will help home buyers shop for the lowest cost mortgage.  This reform will also help home buyers avoid costly and potentially harmful loan offers.

HUD will require that lenders and mortgage brokers provide home buyers with a standard Good Faith Estimate (GFE) that clearly discloses key loan terms and closing costs. HUD estimates its new regulation will save home buyers nearly $700 at the closing table.

You should know: A lender gets Direct Endorsement from FHA which authorizes them underwrite FHA loans.  Some lenders do not have Direct Endorsement from FHA. My advice, always look for a referral first, ask someone you trust to give you the name of a good loan officer.  When you speak to that loan officer, ask them if their company has Direct Endorsement from FHA to underwrite FHA loans.

I refer Phaedra Wilson to all of my clients; she is with Sunstreet Mortgage who does have Direct Endorsement from FHA.  Phaedra is honest, very friendly and one of the best loan officers in Tucson.

Tucson Home Search    MyGreenTucson.com

Any time I find something that can help me save time, I’m thrilled.  Any time I find something that can save me money, I’m really thrilled.  Recently my assistant brought something to my attention that is helping me save both time and money.  I don’t even know what word to use, thrilled is just not enough.

I have gone back to sending out cards via snail mail and have been doing so for awhile.  I have found that they are much more personal and I think most people are just tired of being bombarded by emails now.  I know I get over 100 a day.  And who doesn’t like to get a card in the mail.

Well Beth, my assistant, had me buy a system called Send Out cards.  It lets me send out cards from my computer.  The cards cost me less than a buck each.  I was paying $3.99 and more for most cards and spending the time to go pick em, sign em, stamp em and send em.

Now I just click a button, type a note in the little email like box and hit send.   It takes me all of 2 minutes.  The Send Out cards company mails them and they even put a first class stamp on them (they deduct the cost of the stamp from the money that I keep in my postage account). I can even add my own photos, handwriting and signature with the upgraded package.

They have different packages of course, but you can buy the system for a one time fee of $25.00 or for $99.00 you can use the one I do.  I like adding my own photos to the cards.

One more thing, mass mail outs (for example, over the holidays) are now “stress free” for me. 

The system has a database with date reminders (like someone’s birthday).  Anyway, Beth uploaded our database of over 500 people in just a few minutes. So now, all I have to do is pick the card I want and the company (Send Out Cards) will send it to everyone in my database.  500 cards will be sent out and it only takes a couple of minutes.  Thrilled.

Her website will tell you more about it or you can contact me if you wish.  If you purchase the system, she will make a few bucks (there is a business side of the company, check it out on her site if that is of interest to you).  She’ll be happy, I’m already happy and you’ll be happy.  Can’t ask for more than that.

ps The cards are on recycled paper

TonyRay
MyGreenTucson.com
Tucson Home Search

The card top right -
     A post card I made for my clients to sign up for Cirque du Soleil tix
The card top left _
     Thank you card I made with the sunset photo I took at Dove Mountain
The card middle right -
     Domestic goddess is one I picked from their inventory of over 15,000
The card bottom left -
     One of their cards, I added Phaedra's photo and the text on bottom

While I was out with a client looking at homes last week, we found a home that has a 2 car Garage with a lighted mechanics trench and a lifting beam/trolley.  Of course it also has a workbench and the hot rod garage is heated and cooled.  Just when I thought I had seen it all

I saw another home, block construction, which has been nicely remodeled.  New paint, new carpet and travertine countertops in the kitchen are just some of the remodeled items.  So what, you might say.  $89,900!  Just when I thought I had seen it all.

In case you haven’t heard, the butterflies are back at Botanical Gardens.  They are beautiful to see in person.  I took some photos of them, you can check out the photo page on MyGreenTucson.com.  I had just bought a new camera, so forgive the photos.  I couldn’t figure out how to focus on objects close up, so some may be a little less than sharp. I’ll learn, eventually.

Tony Ray
Tucson Home Search

Now that the weather is so nice, it is the perfect time to get outside and enjoy thebeautiful landscapes of Tucson.  It is a great time for hiking, or walking or jogging or whatever gets you out of the house.

Yesterday morning, we went for a three hour walk in Sabino Canyon.  The temperature was about 73 degrees.  The sun felt warm and the air was cool.  Perfect.

Although we didn’t use it, I was excited to find out that the roadway had been fixed and that the tram was running all the way up to stop 9 again.

Tucson has not had rain for awhile, but there was still water running and I love the sound of running water.  In a river, not a faucet, just to avoid any confusion.

I took my camera with me, so I have posted some photos of Sabino Canyon on a separate page.  I think I like the page so much that I will do more Tucson photo pages in the future.  Let me know what you think.  TonyRay@MyGreenTucson.com

Tony Ray
Tucson Home Search

The fourth annual Day-After-Thanksgiving Grease Collection and Recycling Event (that is a long name, how about, DAT GCRE?) takes place on, you guessed it, November 28, 2008, AKA the day after Thanksgiving.

Recycled grease creates biodiesel, a clean burning fuel.  Clean burning fuel can help to decrease our dependence on foreign oil.

You can go to any of the five drop off locations on Friday, between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.

Midtown - Pima County Conveyance Division

3390 N. Richey Blvd.

One block east of Dodge Blvd. and two blocks north of Ft. Lowell Road

East – O’Reilly Chevrolet

6160 E. Broadway Blvd.

One block west of Wilmot

Northwest – Pima County Industrial Wastewater Control

5025 W. Ina Road

¼  mile west of I-10

Near North – El Hogar de la Pas Alternative Learning Center

450 E. Wetmore

Empty lot next to the Holiday Inn, one block west of First Ave

South – Tucson Water Plant #2

1102 W. Irvington Road

On Irvington Road, I-19 exit.  Across the street from McDonald’s Restaurant

For more information, call 740-6500

After November 28, call 628-4300 for a list of locations to drop off cooking grease.  You can also get more information at www.Grecycle.com.

Tony Ray
Tucson Home Seach

This weekend was so nice.  We decided to stay home and enjoy Halloween in a completely different way than years past.

First, on Friday, we went to Brian and Kelly’s pumpkin patch and tree lot on Broadway near Rosemont (see photos).

We visit with Kelly every year.  She is really nice and very knowledgeable about the produce and how to use it.  We picked up some pie pumpkins and different squash so we could bake them this weekend.

If you want to get into the fall mood, go there, tell Kelly that Tony Ray sent you, and pick up some great produce for your Thanksgiving meal.

They also sell beautiful trees closer to the Christmas holiday.  The trees are very fresh and they last.

For Halloween, we watched the old, black and white film, “The Horror of Dracula”.  It was great.  On Saturday night we watched Disney’s scary films, Hocus Pocus and The Haunted Mansion.  If you have not taken the Virtual Ride of the Haunted Mansion in the bonus features on the DVD, do it, it’s cool.  Turn up the sound.

On Sunday we baked pumpkins, butternut squash, yams and sweet potatoes.  After they cooled down we pureed them and froze them in half cup increments for cooking throughout the year.  I hide veggies in all kinds of recipes.

Call me if you like to cook and want to add more veggies to your family’s meals.  They don’t even have to know.  It can be our little secret.

Tony Ray
Tucson Area Home Search

I fell asleep after midnight.  Don't know why, but I did. 

I woke up at 6am.  Showered, ate breakfast, and then I went to the church and voted.

Here is a photo of my tired butt after coming back from voting.

If you have not gone, please go now.  There wasn't even a line.

Tony Ray

Cirque Du Soleil is coming to Tucson at the TCC (Tucson Convention Center) and I am giving away a pair of tickets.
 
The show is fun and exciting and great for everyone.  It's over Thanksgiving weekend which is a great time to relax and be entertained.  Check out the Cirque Du Soleil photos and video link on the Cirque page.

Also, I've included a few other prizes to go with the pair of tickets. If you have not signed up for the Cirque Du Soleil prize package, go now.  

Have a great day and good luck.

Tony Ray

Tucson Area Home Search