| Show rra— Home CC Saturday May 22 1999 & Family Standard-Examin- in the market for an antique? Go ‘ontiquing’ ary Fuller has the world at her fingertips Anytime she wants to the — Minneapolis free-lanMnter and long-tim- e antiques collector fcan log on to the Internet and within few minutes be bidding on a piece Jof Rookwood pottery offered in Alabama or a set of flow blue porcelain in Amsterdam I Like thousands perhaps millions of other collectors I uller has discovered the ease and excitement of antiquing online “I can sit m my pajamas drinking Vine and buy antiques from all over the world” she said “You can’t beat Though she still attends the big antique shows m her area I uller admits that her real-lif- e antiquing has dwindled since she discovered online antiquing or “ontiquing” as it’s sometimes called ‘‘I go to the stores less because I don’t have to look through as much crap” she said “If there’s something I’m specifically looking for I’ll go on 1 f you had enough money would you pay cash for your house? Many families are answering “yes” to this question thanks to the hot real estate market and recent massive stock profits According to Realtor and other Magazine “High-tec- h areas are seeing a large percentage of h buyers fueled by cash-nc- h young households looking to get an edge in hot seller’s markets ” t In the last two years the magazine said 10 percent of all home-buyein California and more than 20 percent in Honda have paid cash rs RITA REED buyers include misrepresented merchandise damaged merchandise or not receiving merchandise And because most of the purchases are n buyers often have little or no recourse Manuel agrees that most online antique stores and auction houses are “trying to get better at protecting n considered a transaction The payment (most often cashier’s check or money order) and shipping arrangements are made directly between buyer and seller Antique experts suggest that those new to collecting and even experienced antiquers should go online to learn before they go online to buy “It’s a very good place to shop yes and it’s a good place for con artists” said Cleo Manuel vice president for public affairs with the National Consumers League "They know that it’s really easy to hide in cyberspace We’ve seen a real nse in the number person-to-perso- person-to-perso- consumers” In addition to posting feedback from buyers and removing sellers who get too many negative responses some sites offer insurance have direct links to outside insurance services or online escrow agencies require their sellers to offer return policies or do so themselves of complaints” The most common complaints from a surge shake-u- p Divorce refinancing If you’re getting a divorce and don’t want to sell the house new mortgage guidelines may help you stay in place The guidelines allow one spouse to refinance w ith up to 90 according to percent cash-oGMAC Mortgage The departing spouse gets the cash and the other spouse stays in the house - with the heavy new mortgage payments “This limited cash-ou- t increase m value often means that retaining the property is a viable option for one spouse” GMAC Mortgage said in its Market Commentary newsletter “Such a transaction is called divorce refinancing” Highest since 1997 Mortgage rates soared this week according to a survey by Freddie Mac The national average for a ft “3 20' 30-ye- ar mortgage jumped to 723 percent up from 7 10 last week “This is the highest the C00LMIST Special Outdoor Cooling System with Every Patio Cover Now thru June 15 1999 30-ye- ar (mortgage) has been since the week ending Nov 7 1997 when it averaged 724 percent” Freddie Mac said pricing through June Limited Special Offer Call Today The national average for a mortgage rose to 6 83 percent from 6 71 percent and the one-yeadjustable increased from 5 71 percent to 576 percent JiSTlMSON'S VALLE OUTLET & Garden Center Pamela Reees antes a aeeUy real estate column for Scnpps lloaard Seas Senu e $' f l I o 999 Utah 393-616- 3 2bo0 HTSTs HimiliUTnig'rflunummmu 0 6 wBiTLr'iJnujniiiwiiuiiiiii'ii'Erifflirliii4i ijliijl ® ft L irmm lnTwjMffi'ffitiiiluiaiWMMWrHi? z mirmiifmiwiirarniiM - 5 t r ' "( “V PoignientGuiMp i ! p - u buslrtest offering quality aiSyour prpdptni’reraGefof i - 4 l a r ' 5 i V H 4 — Spring Home Improvement Awnings Patios Specials Carports Siding Doors Vinyl Windows Patio Furniture dTjCuI ROBERT LOWE KEniimiH cmTismc Isn't It Time You Enjoyed Central Air Conditioning ? 2046 N Fortbne Layton 771-557- Heartland ( )K I i Mil I n 779-09Otflcm 21 12 mrnrtm Httttim 00 04 Lmytom UT 94041 ii mwm mu 'I'J m M 'I Any Over 1000 Job June 00 V Expires 84403 15 1999 iw 3700 RIVERDALE RD OGDEN UT uf— Breeze 3220 SOUTH 1900 WEST OGDEN UT 84401 399-583- 3 9 Wir&dG&uur OKI’ mm Foe All tout Beal Estati Needs! tm er i 4 1 5-- 24 75 28th Street Ogden “ 627-102- 0: low-inco- Under this program a would get a conventional first mortgage plus a second mortgage subsidized by a state housing finance agency The second mortgage would be used to pay for the retrofitting Fannie Mac doesn't have an 800 number for consumers to call about this program So if you’re interested you’ll have to find the phone number for your state housing finance agency and try to find someone who knows about this loan It's called an HI A retrofitting mortgage Prices Effective May ar Adapting for disability home-buy- YfCDUJffi VALUE OUTLET & Garden Center ut Mortgage help is available for families who need to retrofit a house for some family member with a disability Fannie Mae a big e secondary-mortgaglender recently announced it will work with state housing finance agencies to “make it possible for disabled residents to remain in their own homes or to buy and renovate another home” St Paul Star Tribune Minneapolis iSsriMSON's ar sp FHA d business Mary Fuller bought this art deco lamp online She repainted it rewired it and bought a new Scnpos Howard Newsservice ay all-cas- ' tradition-boun- home buyers ‘Divorce refinancing’ ' changing the shade for it consignment sales and online auctions but the most popular sites are the online auction houses such as eHammer uAuction and Auction Universe In the three years since Internet auctions burst on the screen their number has grown to 300 Online auctions are similar to live auctions in that items are offered for sale for a limited time and awarded to the highest bidder However unlike live auctions most online auction houses don’t have -and won’t verify - the goods they sell Instead most function more like interactive classified advertisers They post the information and the pictures they get from the seller but the sale is Market seeing also becoming an option for keeping home i Online antique shopping is Consumer help online http www fraud org l” i EXPERIENCE: If- - ct best-know- If you come across an Item you like find out as much as you can about it Contact the seller via phone or snail mail and ask specific questions about the age and condition of the item Ask whether it has cracks dents or other visible mars Ask if it has been refimshed or repaired when and where the seller purchased the item and why it s for sale k Find out as much as you can about the seller Pay attention to the seller's feedback rating When considering an expensive purchase ask to contact the seller by phone or mail (Disreputable sellers can easily change their addresses ) Before you make a bid or agree on a purchase find out who pays the shipping fee (Many sellers do not pay for shipping but require a specific shipping company ) Make sure you know what the return policy is and again think twice about buying an expensive item from a seller who maintains an “all sales are finar policy Contact an online insurance service or an escrow service - or don’t make the purchase - if you’re buying an expensive item are uncomfortable with the interaction you’ve had with the seller or are using a site that does not offer insurance Be sure to inspect the item as soon as it arrives If the item was damaged in shipping or was misrepresented contact the seller immediately If you get no response contact the or the auction house that carried the item If they are unable or unwilling to help you contact the National Consumers League at 1 or online at http www fraud org Post feedback about each transaction you make If you are pleased with a seller and especially if you are not you’ll be helping other potential buyers ENLIGHTENING Online insurance and escrow services http www (escrow com com http www Trade-direhttp www TradeSafe com California-base- d eBay is one of the n sites among largest and online auction houses But it’s not the only place nor are auctions the only way to ontique In fact the Internet offers a number of different methods to buy and sell antiques and collectibles There are a grow mg number of sites which are electronic clusters of antique stores that offer items at a set pnce Customers shop I by clicking from booth to search for a J booth doing a mall-wid- e spectfic item or open a booth to sell their items Some also take consignments purchasing items and reselling them Other sites offer a combination of J iin policies Shop) eBay” ail-ca- sh Use the Internet as a learning tool before it as a buying tool Choose an item to or in an research and do a search at an if the item is popular ongoing auction Determine and if so its going rate Visit several sites - auction houses online malls and combination sites - and learn your way around them Carefully read the rules for each site The best sites to buy from are those that guarantee transactions or offer insurance you use Below is a sampling of online antiquing sites The list includes general auction sites antique and collectible auction sites antique and sites that offer a combination of services Many have links to other sites http www AntiqueAlley com http www Antiqnet com http www AuctionAddict com http 'www AuctionBlocktx com http www AuctionPort com http www AuctionUmverse com http 'www BuyCollectibles com http www CollectorOnLme com http www Ehammer com http www Icollector com http www OnlineAuction com http www RubyLane com http www Sothebys com http www stribauctions com http www TIAS com (The Internet Antique that” i Some antiquing tips Antiquing online JVmeapOis St Paul Sar Tnbune er 627-- 1 020 Tsrattirao Horn Bu1 Auto Qot ready now to “Bent the Heat" Thl Summer GLAMOUR GLAZE 3M (Window Dinting 860 W Riverdale Rd 393-846- 8 Ogden Umti&fcaiEtmt Ianntas2t Call Sptdalty here 625-437- 1 jWJ T" - 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