The Origins of Halloween
Most people are aware of the pagan roots of Halloween, but it’s not that simple. Earliest roots can be traced back 2,000 years ago to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. Celebrated on November 1st, it marked the end of summer, the harvest, and the beginning of their new year. They believed the night before, the ghosts of the dead returned to Earth. To commemorate, Druids built enormous bonfires, where Celts burned crops and animals as sacrifices to their Deities. Animal sacrifices were all the range across cultures back then…
By 43 A.D., the Roman Empire had mostly conquered the Celts, and over the course of the next 400 or so years, the holiday was combined with two Roman holiday known as Feralia, also commemorating the passing of the dead, and Pomona, honoring the Roman Goddess of fruit and trees (the origin of bobbing for apples).
On May 13th, 609 A.D., Pope Bonface IV established All Martyr’s Day. It was later changed to November 1st by Pope Gregory III. By the 9th Century, as Christianity had spread throughout Europe, these many holidays were blended into one. To add one more holiday to the list, in 1000 AD, the Church proclaimed November 2nd All Souls’ Day, also to honor the dead.
All Souls’ Day was celebrated rather similarly to Samhain, with large parades, bonfires, and costumes such as angels, devils and saints. All Saint’s Day was also called All-Hallows (or All-hallowmas, translated from Middle English Alholowmesse meaning All Saints’ Day) and the night before was dubbed All-Hallows Eve. Over time, it just called Halloween.
I’m impressed if you’ve gotten this far. This story ended up being far longer that it was interesting, but if you have one thing to take away from it, my job is done.
Architectural Corner: Renaissance Revival
Drawing inspiration from Renaissance humanism and also called neo-Renaissance, Renaissance Revival first appeared in the 1800s, several hundred years after original Renaissance first appeared in Florence & Central Italy.
Extraordinarily ornate and unapologetically formal, the style was characterized by a rectangular, symmetrical floor plan, with masonry and/or stone exteriors, highlighted by terra cotta or cast stone details. They also had low-pitch or flat roofs hidden behind cornicles (decorative projections on top of walls, elaborate windows), and were typically massive in size.
There are examples of Renaissance revival all over Europe and the US, including the Rothschild Estate, the Vanderbilt Estate, the Schwerin Palace in Germany and the National Theater in Prague.
Vague Specifics September 2023
As the final days of God-awful weather are waning, real estate professionals are seeing a lot of mixed signals. Being ranked by multiple sources as a top-3 job market, Dallas is enjoying a very healthy influx of people seeking new employment or transfering into a very broad spectrum of industries, such as energy, technology, healthcare, manufacturing and aviation. Oddly enough (sarcasm font), they all need places to live. Interest rates can’t affect necessity buying, but it’s really affected would-be sellers who want to move but don’t necessarily need to move. We had so many people buy and sell when interest rates were in the 3’s and 4’s, buying up or down, wanting a 4th bedroom or not needing it anymore, from 2021-2022 that we’ve seen a significant decrease in new listings. That said, inventory is on the rise, but is still right around 3 months average (or equivalent to August 2020.
It’s unlikely the Federal Reserve is going to raise interest rates any further. They noted an uptick in unemployment the last report, which was what they were hoping to see. Don’t expect mortgage rates to drop in the coming weeks or months, there are still a lot of forces working against slowing the economy like the unlimited printing of money. What the Fed is essentially doing right now is trying to fill a barrel with water without plugging the leak at the bottom of the barrel. Rates will go down – they always do – when the election draws near as will gas prices. It happens regardless of the blue or red M&M being in the White House.
Next month’s newsletter is going to be dominated by reminders to vote in November. I’m not going to presume to tell you for whom to vote – the Bull Moose party’s rise again is inevitable – but what I strongly urge you to do is vote YES on Proposition 4, which is the historic Homeowner Property Tax Relief Bill. It was passed by the House and Senate earlier this year, but requires a plurality of voters in November. Texas is weird, but I can our founding being based on a supreme mistrust of government, even the one based in Austin. If approved, it will spell a great deal of relief to homeowners, especially those on the entry-level end of the spectrum. Texas enjoyed a massive budget surplus last year, this tax relief will still allow for a very healthy budget surplus. Now if only we can get started on that bullet train from Dallas to Austin to Houston…
MLS Statistics: August 2023
Fall Lawn Care
I know what you’re thinking. “John, you towering archetype of masculinity, why are you so fixated on lawn care?” Well, fictional contrivance designed to inflate my ego and forward this article, it’s my newsletter and I choose the subjects. Also, we’re expecting a colder and rainier than usual winter in 2023 and it would be wise to minimize the damage to grass and landscaping.
1) Fertilize Now – If you have warm weather grass, the a great way to reinforce your root system is to fertilize in September. Temperatures are dropping, and a nitrogen boost before plants go dormant will set them up for surviving winter. I use Scotts Bonus S. Not only does it get good reviews, but it’s expensive and we all know pricier = better, right?
2) Aerating – If you have hot weather grass like Bermuda, Zoysia or St Augustine, you don’t need to aerate.
3) Mulch – Using the mulching option on your lawn mower will shred leaves and grass clippings and return them to your lawn. It will give both nutrients and protection to your roots when it freezes.
4) Watering – Over-watering attracts pests and disease. Cut back on watering now that it’s not 107. If you don’t want to think about it, consider a Rachio or other smart watering system.
5) Weed control – My nemesis. When you have a ton of neighbors with weed-infested lawns, it’s a losing battle or so I tell myself. Pre-emergent herbicides will prevent winter annual weeds.
Bonus Tip: Spring Pre-emergent – I had a landscaper out the other day. He said to keep an eye out at gas stations, parking lots, any place with cracked concrete. When you start seeing small post-winter weeds form there, apply your spring pre-emergent.
Architectural Corner: Monterey Colonial
One of the few architectural styles emerging out of the New World, beginning in the 1800’s Californians blended New England and Spanish Colonial styles into two story, adobe, prominently balconied creations. They featured simple roofs and few decorations, long windows and a very simple design.
Although they’re listed as “regional specific” to southern California, a somewhat modified version can be found along the East Coast, except featuring wood clapboard or shiplap siding instead of Adobe. On both coasts, timber frame construction has replaced adobe in newer construction homes.
If this style is strangely familiar to you, it may be because the Doback house featured in the movie Stepbrothers was in fact a Monterey Colonial. Listed by D-Man Realty.
Vague Specifics August 2023
Like every August, the late-summer, 100+ degree malaise has settled in in the real estate market. New inventory is down a very significant 17.4% from 2022, likely led by the shock would-be sellers receive when they calculate what current interest rates would do to the affordability of their next home. Prices skyrocketed from 2020-2022, but interest rates plummeted, balancing monthly payments and making money incredibly cheap and capital fluid. Unfortunately, loose money is what the Federal Reserve is trying to rein in to tame inflation.
As much as it pains me, I have to admit something. There is no doubt the Federal Reserve grossly overestimated inflation back in 2021, leading to the current standard of living crisis we’re experiencing today, but in an act that’s almost unheard of in DC, they admitted it. Granted, none of us got a big fat apology cake from Chairman Jerome Powell, but the government way is to deny a mistake until it is long in the past, then insert a footnote admitting the truth a great time later. They actually acknowledged screwing up, and I have to give credit where it’s due. I’ve made an effort to practice radical accountability to my real estate practice, to “jump on the hand grenade” whenever anything bearing my fingerprints goes wrong, and it’s been really helpful in problem solving. It doesn’t make it easy calling someone and admitting an error and thank God I’ve never cost anyone money, but it’s not a lesson everyone learns.
I’m sure most of East Dallas knows about the tragic event that happened in mid August when beloved HVAC technician Jesse Simmons was shot early Tuesday, August 8th while trying to stop a burglar from breaking into his work truck, parked in front of his house. While the shooter is still at large, Jesse has had multiple surgeries, double spinal fusion and repaired lacerations to his kidney and liver, but remains paralyzed below the knees. He can wiggle his toes and has begun physical therapy. It’s hoped he’ll be able to walk again and return to work, although he said he would be happy as long as he could still hold his grandbabies, which he can. If you can help, scan the QR code for his GoFundMe account. Jesse has been a very good friend for over a decade and he’s the best air conditioning and appliance tech I’ve ever known.
July 2023 MLS Statistics
Architectural Corner: Internationalism
Emerging in France, Germany and Holland after WWI in commercial and residential buildings alike, Internationalism enjoyed a 50-year run as a dominant style of architecture, ending in the 1970s. Featuring the use of lightweight, mass produced industrial materials and emphasizing volume over mass, Internationalism featured minimal ornamentation and color.
Inspired to create a higher standard of living across all socio-economic levels, it enjoyed enormous popularity. However, it was not without it’s detractors, including Frank Lloyd Wright who said, “Human houses should not be like boxes, blazing in the sun…”.
It should be noted that many modern styles overlap in theme, material and motivation. In fact, Internationalism was championed by founders of both the Bauhaus and Brutalist Schools.