Dallas Welcomes Its Newest Citizen: A Dog Rescued from Iran
Shellman, a female German shepherd mix has traveled a long way to find a safe home in Dallas. The two-year-old dog was found wandering the streets of Tehran, Iran, and was facing possible execution when she was rescued and brought to Texas.
People aren’t the only ones who have found their land of opportunity in America. Shellman and a group of about 80 dogs have made the journey to North America and Europe for refuge during the past three years following a decree which claimed that under Iranian law, dogs are unclean and should not be kept as pets.
Shellman, the two-year old German shepherd mix, recently journeyed from halfway around the world to the SPCA of Texas in west Dallas after spending one year in an Iranian shelter. Throughout Iran, reports are heard of police confiscating dogs from owners and of police shooting strays.
According to SPCA of Texas President James Bias, this is the first rescue to come across international borders. While Bias says that all of the pets at the SPCA have stories, this is a truly unique one.
Since it opened in 2003, the Vafa shelter where Shellman was rescued in Iran has been a sanctuary for the overpopulation of dogs, but the past decade has also forced the shelter to deal with growing government restrictions. The Iranian government has tolerated pet ownership in the past, but in 2011 a still-pending law was proposed that, if passed, would ban dogs entirely and criminalize dog ownership.
The SPCA of Texas has expressed a willingness to offer asylum for more dogs from Iran, but they do not expect to have the resources to make a significant impact. Although the SPCA has only done a small part to improve the situation for dogs in Iran, they’ve made a tremendous impact in the life of one dog.
Dallas is such a wonderful city to call home! If you’d like to learn more about Dallas mortgage opportunities, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’d love to share with you all the reasons why Dallas is such a great place to live, work, and play.
Dallas Area Expected to See Heavy Redevelopment Efforts
A recent report by Steve Brown on www.DallasNews.com highlights some of the new property ventures unfolding in the Dallas region. Construction on corporate offices and warehousing is already picking up steam and the building of new apartment residences doesn’t look like it’s going to abate anytime soon; more than 20,000 units are currently being constructed in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Even residential housing – why typically might be more cautious – has shown consistent growth in terms of supply, demand and pricing. The causes for such a positive outlook are economic improvements and escalating numbers of new residents.
Even the landscape of Dallas has changed. The removal of a three-blown stretch of foliage erased the divider between downtown and uptown. By connecting the brightest property sector from the older business district, the Woodall Rodgers Freeway park (Klyde Warren Park) provides an additional boost to the city’s renaissance. The project is a shining example of how private and public investment can come together to spur economic activity for years to come. And the planning of several new office complexes speaks to the continued arrival of business up-starts and relocation of proven corporate players.
In short, virtually every real estate indicator is on the rise in the Dallas region: increased construction, booming demand, job growth, infrastructure investment and public works and greatly decreased foreclosures. These are all signs that the Dallas area is poised to reap the rewards of a legitimate lifestyle-career boom. Which means that now is the perfect time to consider buying a home in Dallas.
We’ve got our finger on the pulse of the city and know of several great opportunities, which probably won’t last too long. Give us a call today to find the best Dallas mortgage to suit your needs and to match that perfect Dallas home.
Texas Remains in Top 10 of Best States for Business
The Lone Star State is currently ranked #7 in the nation’s best states for business, according to a recent study by Forbes. Based on a number of factors including labor costs, educational levels, median age, language proficiencies and regulatory climate, the study ranked those state with the most favorable conditions in each, as well as other factors such as tax rates. More notably, Texas was the only state to rank in the top third in economic outlook and prospects for growth. This puts into relief what many of us have understood for quite some time – that Texas is rebounding from the stale economy at a steady clip.
And this is not the only desirable list on which Texas finds itself. They are in the top third of all states for 24/7 Wall Street’s Best-and-Worst-Run states and was just edged out of the #1 spot on Site Selection Magazine’s best business climates. Finally, in the Tax Foundation’s State Business Tax Climate Index, which measures the impact of taxes on people and companies, taxes came in ninth, helped in large part by the fact that Texas has no individual income tax.
We are certainly seeing the signs of favorable business climates in Texas as local businesses continue to expand and others even move their headquarters to the Lone Star State. What does this mean for real estate? Well, commercial and industrial space is booming and an increasing number of entrepreneurs both homegrown and from outside the state, are targeting cities such as Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, San Antonio and Austin as fertile grounds upon which to seed their dreams. Of course, all of this economic activity is drawing in workers and spurring on others to look for career advancements, which means new homes. In short, it is a fun, energetic time in Texas, and its hub, Dallas-Fort Worth.
I am certainly seeing the activity pick up on real estate ventures so if you are thinking about making the move, now is the time to give me a ring.
Trip Down Memory Lane at Plano’s Heritage Farmstead Museum
Dreams of a snow-covered holiday season may not be a realistic wish for Plano-area residents, but that doesn’t mean holiday tradition is lacking. For the past three decades, the Heritage Farmstead Museum has transformed itself into a seasonal landscapes by recreating historic detail from holidays of years past. This year, the Museum is paying homage to the Roaring 20’s.
Beginning December 1st, Heritage Farmstead will spare no detail in restoring this iconic time period complete with Ford Model T’s, a General Store and lessons in the Charleston, all of it lit by close to 100 lanterns and a towering Christmas tree. Regional choirs will provide the sounds while the Plano Repertory Theater plans on performing excerpts from the most famous holiday work of all: Scrooge.#
The Heritage Farmstead Museum is a long-standing and proud feature in the Plano community. Their Lantern Light festival has been an area favorite for nearly 30 years. It’s not just a wonderful learning experience but a fun, interactive one for the whole family, including games, wagon rides, pottery and storytelling that will kick off your holiday season in grand fashion. We know we’ll be in attendance. Learn more about Heritage Farmstead Museum.
Plano provides a plethora of recreation events throughout the year. To learn more about Plano mortgage and real estate opportunities, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Mass Transportation Expands in Dallas-area Suburbs
The Dallas Area Rapid Transit system is expanding operations, according to the latest report from the Star-Telegram. Texas’ largest public rail system is adding service to the Dallas suburb of Rowlett. DART has also added bus service to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport from Irving. This follows after Irving and Dallas-Fort Worth were connected via an Orange Line over the summer. And while a few fees have been heightened to deal with the augmented services, DART has also simplified its price structure into two classifications of local and regional runs.
The expansion of the already 700-square-mile light rail and metro bus system speaks to the growing Dallas-Fort Worth area. New companies are drawing more workers, which in turn spurns the local economy and housing development. Every real estate indicator – pricing and escrow activity – is on the upswing in the region, with positive gains forecast for 2013. Civic leaders and organizations like DART are getting ahead of the curve to deal with the influx of new residents and businesses.
The availability of mass transit is also of major appeal to would-be residents and business, too, so the expansion of the system feedbacks back positively to corporate and housing development. Companies and their workers like to know that there are options across the Dallas-Fort Worth area for getting to work, shopping and recreation rather than spending hours in their cars. As DART grows, so does the entrepreneurial and living landscape across Dallas-Fort Worth. With these new services, other suburbs are suddenly become desirable options.
If you want to learn more about these and other real estate options in Dallas-Fort Worth, just ring us up today!
Fort Worth Adoption Center Reaches Inspiring Landmark
According to the Star-Telegram, the 30,000th adoption was reached this month when a month-old daughter was brought home by a Fort Worth couple. Adding to their newfound family joy, the couple was then presented with a $30,000 scholarship to commemorate the occasion, an unexpected gesture to the mother and father, who have adopted children before. It was a very special holiday gift and a reminder of the generosity of spirit both within Fort Worth citizens and the amazing Gladney Center for Adoption.
Frank Garrott, president of the Gladney Center and himself a father who has twice adopted children, talked about how adoption is not just a backup plan for the parents who come through his doors: “Occasionally you’ll hear some people refer to adoption as Plan B,” he said. “But you won’t hear our parents refer to it as anything but Plan A, because the children they adopt were always intended to be in the family.” Indeed, adoption is about creating a family in the truest sense of the word, which to these fine citizens, has nothing to do with just biology.
Another gesture to commemorate the occasion was the scattering of 30,000 bluebonnet seeds near the campus at 6300 John Ryan Road. The Gladney Center has a long and storied tradition that stretches back over one hundred years when Fort Worth was the last stop for unwanted orphans being sent out of Philadelphia and New York. Then, as now, the city of Fort Worth proved not to be a last stop, but a first hope for children in need of adoption. It reminds us, especially at this holiday time of year, that the people and city of Fort Worth are special indeed.
If you are looking to relocate to a truly caring community, please give us a call today to begin discussing real estate options.