Our own Jason Cochran was aboard the maiden voyage of the Oasis of the Sea. Here's what it looks like from the inside! Read more!.

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A Black Friday real estate deal, of sorts

Ann Brenoff Nov 24th 2009 @ 3:30PM EST Filed Under: Real Estate, Black Friday

Not to be left out of the Black Friday hype, Beazer Homes is offering special Black Friday deals at five of its Orlando-area communities.

What's being given away is up to $2,000 in "free" appliances for contracts signed on Friday. But before you give up your place in the Wal-Mart line at 4 a.m., just know that in today's buyers-rule-and-developers-drool market, you can likely mosey on in any old day of the week and let the good folks at Beazer know which dishwasher you want them to throw in for free before you'll sign on the dotted line. Just saying ...

Beazer Homes USA, according to its Web site, "builds for the middle-class buyer who's ready to make the move into the white-picket-fence scene." They build homes with an average price of about $248,700 and courts the entry-level, move-up, and active adult markets.

As for Orlando-area buyers who want to be able to gloat about how they got their house in a Black Friday special, here's the skinny: The special one-day incentive is being offered at Heritage Commons in Winter Springs, The Legacy in Orlando, The Enclave at Moss Park, Sawgrass, also in southeast Orlando, and at Victoria Park Trails in DeLand.

The Federal Tax Credit for qualified new home buyers at $8,000 and $6,500 for existing home buyers is still available.

CPSC study confirms homeowner's worst fears about Chinese drywall

Tom Kraeutler Nov 24th 2009 @ 3:00PM EST Filed Under: Home, Real Estate, Health

A study of 51 homes released this week by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) found a strong association between homes with Chinese-made drywall and levels corrosive hydrogen sulfide, which gives off a smell similar to rotten eggs.

It was the largest investigation ever taken on by the CPSC, costing $3.5 million and involving 15% of the staff, according to the CPSC.

Continue reading CPSC study confirms homeowner's worst fears about Chinese drywall

Free coffee for USPS mail carriers Wednesday

Julia Scott Nov 24th 2009 @ 2:30PM EST Filed Under: Bargain Babe

On Wednesday, Nov. 25, any letter carrier for the United States Postal Service can get a free cup of coffee from Dunkin' Donuts. Any size!

The company wants to give back to the folks who make it possible for us to send cards and presents to each other during the holidays.

To get the deal, wear your USPS uniform or show your union card identification. No additional purchase is necessary, but how tempting is it going to be to buy a doughnut? Very!

Beachfront properties you can afford (prepare to travel)

Diane Wedner Nov 24th 2009 @ 2:00PM EST Filed Under: Bargains, Real Estate

For sale: Three-bedroom homes with heart-stopping ocean views. Big properties. Resort nearby.
Price: $139,000
Location: Not the Hamptons (or Malibu or Palm Beach)

What, you thought it was 1950? No matter. If you're willing to fly to Managua, Nicaragua, and make the two-hour trek to lovely San Juan del Sur, you will find your dream vacation house (or land on which to build it). High prices on home turf lured legions of American, Canadian and European buyers to this low-priced Pacific Coast town and other Central American destinations during the real estate run-up earlier this decade. When the bubble burst, investors stayed home, agents and developers say. Now, prices are in oh-my-god territory, and buyers are trickling back. In San Juan del Sur, you can build your own vay cay getaway for $85 a square foot. Compare that with $625 per square foot in Malibu last month. The median price of a home there was $2.1 million in October, according to San Diego-based MDA Dataquick.

Continue reading Beachfront properties you can afford (prepare to travel)

50 Cent smacks down Taco Bell for stealing his image

Tom Barlow Nov 24th 2009 @ 1:45PM EST Filed Under: Celebs & Money

Pity clueless musicians who spend more time on their music than their image. If they want to be rich, really rich, they should follow the model of one of rap's richest stars, Curtis James Jackson III, a.k.a. 50 Cent. He may have gained his fame at the microphone or by receiving nine non-fatal gunshots, but his $400 million-plus fortune comes from another source: endorsements. Taco Bell, which attempted to use his image without paying him for it, has found just how jealously he guards his money-maker image.

In 2008, Taco Bell publicly asked 50 Cent to consider changing his name to 79 or 89 or 99 Cent, to promote the chain's "79-89-99-Cent Why Pay More?" campaign. The company even sent copies of the request letter to news outlets, as well as the artist.

Continue reading 50 Cent smacks down Taco Bell for stealing his image

Get $10 off Marie Callender's turkey feast

Julia Scott Nov 24th 2009 @ 1:30PM EST Filed Under: Bargain Babe

Get $10 off any Marie Callender's turkey feast ($99-$149) with code FEAST. Expires at the end of today, Nov. 24.

The price of the five feasts on the menu really depends on what meat you buy. Each feast comes with apple-sage stuffing, sweet yam casserole, cranberry sauce, fresh mashed potatoes, chef's vegetables, fresh baked cornbread, turkey gravy, whole apple or pumpkin pie, and Marie's house blend coffee.

You have to order online at least 24 hours before picking up your meal and you'll need to budget three hours to heat up the meal before eating.

MC's has restaurants in AZ, CA, CO, ID, NV, OK, OR, UT, TX, WA.

How not to be an unemployed 'downer' at spouse's holiday office party

Aaron Crowe Nov 24th 2009 @ 1:00PM EST Filed Under: Career, Recession

Soon after the last turkey leg is eaten, planning Christmas parties will begin.

For the unemployed who no longer have a workplace holiday party to attend, the next best thing can be going to a Christmas party at their spouse's workplace. Or maybe their friend's workplace. Or a friend of a friend.

Continue reading How not to be an unemployed 'downer' at spouse's holiday office party

The fine print in credit card insurance isn't so fine

Geoff Williams Nov 24th 2009 @ 12:00PM EST Filed Under: Credit cards

If you have any credit cards or have had some in the past, it's almost inevitable that you've been asked if you'd like to sign up for debt cancellation or credit card insurance. The pitch sounds like a pretty good idea at first, usually going something like this: If you lose your job or the ability to pay your debts, your debt cancellation service will pick up your credit card tab and make your payments for you.

Obviously, you'll have to decide for yourself it that's a good idea or not. But if you want an opinion, I think it's a terrible waste of your money. I think you'd almost be better off burning your cash in a fireplace, because at least you'll get something out of it (warmth and it's always fun to watch the flames in a fireplace). Still, it's nice to have a second and even third opinion, so I spoke to two financial and credit experts, and they, too, didn't exactly have a ringing endorsement for debt cancellation or credit card insurance.

Continue reading The fine print in credit card insurance isn't so fine

Foreclosures driving record gains in existing-home sales

Charles Feldman Nov 24th 2009 @ 11:00AM EST Filed Under: Home, Real Estate, Mortgages

I Just want to warn you folks right off the bat that this is going to be one of those is the glass half full or half empty? type posts.

On the one hand, the National Association of Realtors is reporting big gains in existing home sales for October (the latest figures) and credits first time buyers rushing to take advantage of the tax credit which has now been extended into next year. Inventories continue to shrink. All good. This now concludes the glass half full portion of this post.

If you look down -- far down -- the news release pumped out by the NAR, you will see something else: So-called "distressed properties" (which conjures up an image in my mind of a house, all by itself, phoning some shrink and asking for prescription meds to battle its depression) account for some 30% of all the October sales.

Distressed properties, of course, are foreclosed properties. This is a reflection of the still never-ending wave of foreclosures that shows no sign of abating anytime soon. Plus, because we are talking distressed properties here, we are also talking about a continuation in the slide of housing prices; with the national median existing-home price now at $173,100, which, says the NAR, is down 7.1% from October of 2008. This is all the glass is half empty portion of this post.

Continue reading Foreclosures driving record gains in existing-home sales

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