DoubleDeuce

quote:

---

Oh, please. Allow me:

---

All I'm saying is you can't have an average and take out what doesn't prove your point! Averages don't work that way. And besides, it appears that our best offensive production came against better competition (UNC, UA, Ole Miss, Arky & TAMU)

341 ypg doesn't mean that you get 341 yards every game. It just doesn't happen that way. You get 450 one game and 232 the next. When you play Bama you just hope to score more than 10 w/ 250 yards in offense.

They're cool and all, but the line backs up because no one knows how to use them. I'm 30 and I find them confusing. Imagine standing behind a 70 y/o lady trying to get a regular diet coke.

FYI...Basically it has a touch screen that allows you to pick standard drink options and add additional flavors via one spout. Also, the ice comes flying out way too fast.

Going through it right now in Houston. I would shop around. Get all of your financial information together first (W-2s, tax returns, pay stubs and bank statements). It depends on how complex your income stream is, but if it's straight and to the point it's pretty simple. My income is rather complex due to the fact I am self-employed.

I assume you know what you can qualify for and are staying below that. If that is the case it's all about interest rates and the origination charge. I initially got in at 4.85% two months ago, but have since got 4.55%. Most lenders don't charge you anything to open an application and get pre-qualified. So just call one up and see how it goes.

Get the pre-qualification before you shop for houses. Then once you find a house and make an offer you can then figure out what lender you want to go with.

I initially went with a mortgage broker I found, but then switched to one my realtor recommended. I close in two weeks.

Call Wells Fargo. You ultimately may not use them, but they can show you what you qualify for, $ needed to close and interest rates. And it's no-hassle and free. I called them when I was thinking about buying and they sent me a 'Good Faith Estimate' along with down payment info and such. I ended up using someone my realtor recommended.

I did a 30 year FHA with 3.5% down at 4.75% interest and I have a 720 credit score. I ended up buying a $200k house and needed $16k at close with down-payment, prepaids and closing cost. I had to do an FHA because I'm self employed and show little to no income and my debt-to-income ratio is all whacked-out. You may get better rates if you do a conventional...I'm not sure how much better though.

Here's what I recommend. If you think you are ready to make a purchase in the near future, find a realtor in the area. Find one that specializes in first time home buyers or the area of interest. Look at the listing agents in the area you are targeting and call one. Or go to open houses on the weekend. Talk to the realtor, but never tell them you don't have a realtor! They will harass you if leave a number on their sign-in sheet.

Once you have a trusted realtor, they will be able to guide you to a trusted mortgage broker. That's essentially what I did.

I'm interested in the OP's topic, but in a differing light.

What's the general consensus in the value of the MBA? Obviously it depends on industry and individual circumstances, but how do most with the distinction feel it benefited them.

It's hard to poll MBA folks because you have no clue who has one. Unlike attorneys, doctors and other post-grad degrees, most MBAs don't wear that distinction on their sleeve.

I've considered applying for some time, but haven't really concluded if I would receive any benefit. (I'm 29, employed in the upstream oil & gas business and reside in Houston)

You really need to take a real estate investing course.

Even if you sell this house for $420k you profit nowhere near $50k. You put $20k in renovating.

That brings you now down to $30k. I'm going to assume you have a mortgage and it's a 30 year note. So if you got a descent deal in 2010 around 4.75% then you will pay roughly $23k in interest by the end of 2011.

So now you're $7k up. You still haven't paid any property taxes or insurance. If you do sell before the 2 year cut off your subject to capital gains tax.

I'm going to venture to say that by the time it's all said and done you won't "really" make any money.

I've seen tons of people get in way over their heads trying to flip houses. They say "I bought it for X and sold it at Y, I made a ton of money."

And I say "Did you finance that transaction? Did you use an agent to sell it? Did you calculate the takes you paid on the property? How about capital gains?"

Is it possible that Krags comes in and by the start of the 2011 season Jefferson is the 3rd QB on the depth chart?

We've all seen Jefferson in a pro-style, drop-back passing style offense and that is what Krags is bringing.

What ever happens, it's going to be interesting to see where the QB play goes next season.

quote:

---

I absolutely think he should get some recognition...

---

Would anyone have a problem with him running out and being acknowledged next year?

While I agree he should NOT be recognized this year; I DO believe that he has contributed a lot to LSU and should have his time to be individually recognized in Tiger Stadium one last time!

quote:

---

You clearly don't watch college FB.

---

The comparison I always get when I defend Les Miles is...

"Do you want another Larry Coker?"

And my response is: "Do you want Randy Shannon?"

You have to careful what you wish for. Since bagging Coker Miami has struggled to get themselves back to relevance. LSU is relevant.

Don't confuse the situation. Which job would you rather doing? And what is a SAR?

quote:

---

We have a schizo offense, simply because we're putting square pegs through round holes.

---

100% correct! I saw a recent interview with Bobby Bowden where he said this was FSU's problem his last 10 years or so. They got lazy and recruited who the "experts" said was good. They figured that these "experts" had to be right and that any 5* would fit into their system. It just isn't so.