Even though Alvin real estate was all about ranching in the early years, its industries expanded in the 1930s to include oil and agriculture, becoming a major producer of strawberries, oranges, pears, figs, rice and the cape jasmine flower. More recently, Alvin has become famous for its hometown son, Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Nolan Ryan, who played for the Houston Astros in the 1980s and is still greatly revered in the area.

Located in Brazoria County, Alvin is only 30 minutes south of Houston Texas, and home to over 23,000 residents. With plenty of open parks and oak tree-lined neighborhoods in its 5-mile radius, the community of Alvin offers educational opportunities and recreational activities for the whole family.

Living in Alvin, Texas

Alvin homes for sale include older Victorians, custom homes and mid-range single-family homes in peaceful neighborhoods. Residential single-family homes range in price from just under $100,000 to the mid $600,000s, with a wide variety of acreages. If you’re looking for a new home, there are a few new developments in Alvin that include 2, 3 and 4 bedroom homes ranging in price from $129,000 to $200,000. Additionally, there are working ranches and commercial property for sale with average prices in the mid-1 millions.

Things to Do in Alvin

As you cruise along the town’s streets – many named for Confederate generals and railroad investors – you’ll notice Alvin has a busy downtown retail / commercial area, along with its own airport. The nearby Gulf Coast Speedway offers the thrill of speed, while the Alvin Golf and Country Club offers a more tempered level of excitement. Family activities include taking the kids on a “safari” at the Bayou Wildlife Park, birdwatching along the Great Texas Birding Trail, swimming at the YMCA or shopping at Froberg’s Farm – billed as the area’s largest open-air farmer’s market. And, of course, there’s a museum dedicated to Alvin’s local baseball hero at the Nolan Ryan Center.

Alvin Independent School District

Alvin Independent School District serves the communities of Alvin, Manvel, Iowa Colony, Liverpool, Amsterdam, and parts of Rosharon, Arcola, and Pearland. With approximately 16,000 students, Alvin ISD is the second largest school district in Brazoria County. Of the district’s 22 schools (13 elementary, 5 junior high, 2 high school, 2 alternative campuses), 10 are rated as “recognized,” 9 as “exemplary” – the highest rating given by the Texas Education Agency. Beginning teacher’s salary starts at $45,000 as of 2010, with more information on the AISD website’s Human Resources Center.

For those pursuing secondary education, Alvin Community College (http://www.alvincollege.edu/) has been serving the Alvin community for over 60 years, and offers a wide array of associate and certificate programs. Of course, Alvin is also within driving distance of the University of Houston, Rice University and other higher learning institutions in Houston.

Alvin’s major employers include Alvin ISD, Alvin Community College, Dish Network and a variety of companies in the energy and petrochemical fields. These, along with proximity to NASA facilities and the Houston business district, are contributing to Alvin’s growth. While Alvin is a growing city, though, its tree-lined streets, neighborhood farms and sense of community still make it feel like home.

First, the good news. In addition to some general improvements for consumers, from lowering credit card fees to increasing FDIC-insured deposits to $250,000, the new law provides specific assistance to homeowners as well. A new set of rules regarding mortgages is intended to make the loan environment safer and fairer for borrowers. Some of the new regulations include requiring full income documentation to prevent so-called “liar loans,” prohibiting incentives from lenders to mortgage brokers for loans with terms unfavorable to the borrowers, and eliminating most prepayment penalties.

Homeowners struggling with unemployment will also benefit from this new law. Considering that the federal Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) only provides loan modifications to those with verifiable income – and 56% of homeowners participating in the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling Program say they wound up there through losing their income – this law helps fill that gap with $7 billion set aside to help those unemployed keep their homes. Additionally, it provides funds for the Neighborhood Stabilization Program which purchases and rehabilitates abandoned or foreclosed homes, or demolishes those blighted and beyond repair.

While these and the many other provisions of the law have good intentions, it’s not hard to see some unintended consequences coming into play before long (aside from the obvious impact of the government simply spending more money). First of all, limiting banks and other financial institutions on what they can charge in some areas simply means they’ll raise charges in others. For instance, as credit card “swipe fees” go down, expect ATM or teller fees to go up. As the CEO of Chase Manhattan bank said, “If you’re a restaurant and you can’t charge for the soda, you’re going to charge more for the burger.” And specifically for mortgages, as they become less profitable for lenders and documentation requirements are more stringent, expect their availability to diminish – not good news for borrowers who are already struggling to qualify in this environment.

Add to that the fact that the law calls for 68 task forces to look into specific issues – including rules regulating derivatives and whether stockbrokers should be held to “fiduciary” standards with their clients – it will likely be years before the full impact of this legislation is known. As Heidi Moore of the Big Money said on American Public Media’s Marketplace, “I’ll [give my opinion] on it in five years, when financial reform actually takes place.”

Certainly some of the provisions in the financial reform law have the potential to benefit consumers and make the market fairer and more stable. With so much unknown, though – and so many potential unintended costs – it’s hard to know whether this will be a net win for consumers and borrowers. What is certain is that potential and current homeowners, and the real estate market as a whole, don’t need any more obstacles on the path to recovery.

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Mark W. Martin is President and Principal Broker of 2M Realty. He is active in real estate sales and develops land in the Houston real estate market. Mark is a Houston Realtor and has been a Texas real estate broker for over 20-years. To view real estate listings in the Greater Houston market, please see our Houston MLS to search properties for sale and lease.

The good news is, while foreclosure is a difficult process, it doesn’t have to mean the end of the road to home ownership. What it does mean, though, is you’ll need to spend some time working to rebuild your credit – and evaluating what led up to this point. Barbara Eisner Bayer, a writer for houselogic.com, sheds some light on the subject and offers several tips to owning a home after a foreclosure.

First, Bayer recommends finding a steady job. Now, in this job market, just saying “find a job” is reminiscent of Steve Martin’s old “How to Be a Millionaire” shtick. (“First step, get a million dollars.”) Clearly, getting a job is easier said than done, and anyone unemployed or seriously underemployed probably has bigger issues to worry about than buying a house. But, if you have a job, do whatever you can to keep it secure. Showing you can keep a job is critical to mortgage lenders, especially these days. Even taking a lower-paying job might be worth it, Bayer says, if it equates to stable employment.

Second, have an emergency fund. No, not just the $1,000 “rainy day fund.” We’re talking the three- to six-months’ worth of expenses in savings. (Lean towards six.) The best way to prove yourself trustworthy to lenders again is to show you have a contingency plan to take care of the mortgage in case the worst happens.

Third, work on your credit score. Yes, trying to raise your FICO score can be challenging and counter-intuitive at times. (Closing a credit card account actually takes my score down?) But they help dictate whether and on what terms you can get credit, so it’s important to look after them. The three most important things to do to improve your credit score are: pay bills on-time, keep debt balances low, and build a lengthy credit history. It takes time and yes, your score took a hit from the foreclosure (probably around 150 points). As Bayer says, though, “The foreclosure will stay on your credit report for seven years, but if you prove your money management skills have matured, it will become less of a red mark as years go by.”

Lastly, explore alternatives. If you’re just beginning the foreclosure process, consider asking your lender to agree to a short sale (selling the house to a buyer for less than the amount left on the loan) or a deed in lieu of foreclosure (lender takes the deed and absolves the owner of the remainder of their mortgage). There are pros and cons of these which need to be weighed thoroughly. One positive, though, is a reduced waiting time to own again.

Earlier this year, Fannie Mae reduced the mandatory wait time for getting another mortgage after foreclosure from four years to two, for anyone who completed a short sale or deed in lieu. Also, if you can prove your foreclosure happened due to extenuating circumstances (e.g. lost job, divorce, unexpected medical expenses), your wait time could also be reduced to two years.

For most people, it does take some time and hard work to recover from a foreclosure and qualify for a mortgage again, but it can be done. Before running back to buy again, though, we must – all of us – understand what got us here in the first place, and ensure we have plans in place to correct it. Because, as important as it is to get back in the home ownership game, it’s not worth it if we make the same mistakes twice.

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Mark W. Martin is President and Principal Broker of 2M Realty. He is active in real estate sales and develops land in the Houston real estate market. Mark is a Houston Realtor and has been a Texas real estate broker for over 20-years. To view real estate listings in the Greater Houston market, please see our Houston MLS to search properties for sale and lease.