J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. will announce today that it has launched a $5.5 million program with Liberty Bank in Detroit to provide home restoration loans and down payment assistance for those buying houses in Detroit through the Detroit Land Bank Authoritys property auctions.

The program is part of $100 million in loans and grants that Chase announced in May to support economic development in the city over five years. Chase now has put $20 million of the commitment to work on blight reduction, workforce development, home repair and small-business growth.

The home restoration program, scheduled to be announced at the Henry Ford Academy elementary school in Detroit, initially will target the Boston-Edison and East English Village neighborhoods, beginning with an auction of Boston-Edison homes July 28. The program eventually will expand to other neighborhoods.

The commitment to Liberty Bank will come from the J.P. Morgan Chase Foundation and go to Liberty Banks nonprofit community development bank, Liberty Foundation Inc.

The contribution will create a $5 million loan-loss reserve fund for Liberty Bank to provide up to $20 million in new rehab residential mortgage loans. With the reserve fund, Liberty Bank will be able to expand underwriting for rehab loans and provide flexible terms to eligible borrowers who buy a home through the citys Neighbors Wanted property auction.

Chase also will create a $300,000 down payment assistance fund to be managed by Liberty Bank. Under the fund, eligible Detroit residents can receive up to $10,000 in down payment assistance.

The remaining $200,000 will help Liberty Bank manage the restoration program.

Revitalizing Detroits neighborhoods is a critical priority for the citys recovery, and we believe the home restoration program will support the auction and accelerate the turnaround underway in key neighborhoods, Peter Scher, executive vice president and head of corporate responsibility for Chase, said in a news release.

Detroit residents can learn more about eligibility by visiting Liberty Banks branch in Detroit at 9108 Woodward Ave. or calling (313) 873-3311.

Borrowers must occupy the home as their primary residence, be a current Detroit resident, participate in housing counseling, demonstrate an ability to repay the loan and comply with all auction rules.

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J.P. Morgan to unveil $5.5M program to rehab Detroit homes, help with down payments

(PRWEB) July 09, 2014

In this day and age it seems like graffiti is everywhere. Its sad how a piece of scratched glass can tarnish a business's image once some stranger decides to carve their name into it. Luckily for home and business owners alike, Western Glass Restoration and Tinting is now offering scratched glass restoration services that use absolutely zero chemicals or glazes. Photos of the companys restoration results can be viewed online at http://www.westernglassrestoration.com.

Western Glasss unique glass restoration system uses a self-contained machine that works remarkably well on all types of glass. Their innovative scratch removal and glass polishing repair system removes scratches, restores glass, removes graffiti and stains fast-and-cleanly from all kinds of windows such as plate glass, dual glazed, skylights, glass rails, slider doors, mirrors and stainless steel at a fraction of the cost of replacement.

Their scratch removal system the company uses is designed to remove scratches from virtually any type of glass. This system is handheld and uses a vacuum process to hold the machine onto the glass, while at the same time, providing a continuous flow of slurry through the system. The flow of slurry provides a continual source of new abrasives and keeps the glass within a cool operating temperature.

Western Glass Restoration and Tinting and Construction Services are delivered by a staff of team-oriented individuals who share the common goal of exceeding the expectations of their clients. Western Glass Restoration and Tinting Services prime asset and the success of any project is dependent upon them. Those in need of glass restoration can contact the company at (949) 253-7700.

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Repair Scratched Glass And Graffiti Removal From Western Glass Restoration

Walnut Creek, CA (PRWEB) July 08, 2014

Bay Area hair restoration surgeon, Sara Wasserbauer, M.D., stays on top of the latest advancements and research in hair restoration, often participating in the medical advancements herself. Wasserbauer is researching and studying the effects of the new Theradome LH80 laser helmet that can be used at home to help individuals improve hair thickness, volume, and density. The Theradome laser helmet is the newest advancement on the market to treat hair loss, and has been approved by the FDA for efficacy and safety.

Dr. Wasserbauer is looking for 20 patients to document their experience with the Theradome laser helmet. Eligible patients include those who have not changed their therapeutic regimen in the past year, those who cant use Rogaine or Propecia or other non-surgical options for hair growth, and hair transplant patients who want to maximize their surgical results. Those eligible for the study will receive a free Theradome helmet. Patients included in the study must keep their hair one inch or longer, and consent to taking photos and other metrics to document their therapeutic results.

Women in particular may benefit from the use of the Theradome device. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, 40 percent of women have visible hair loss by the time they are age 40a concern for many womens self image and emotional well-being. Theradome is the first and only FDA-approved, over-the-counter, hand-free laser treatment for hair loss, and can improve hair growth in just two 20-minute treatments a week. The laser helmet treats the full scalp area with 80 proprietary lasers that deliver the optimum wavelength of light to stimulate hair growth.

Traditional therapies to help treat female hair loss were typically only available in medical practice settings, and the cost was often prohibitive, said Dr. Wasserbauer. Theradome offers women a less expensive clinical strength alternative that can be done safely in their own home. Ive spent a lot of time researching this device, and the results can be significant, especially for women suffering from androgenetic alopecia. The purpose of my own study is to determine what kind of results can be found with specific factors, such as following a hair transplant, and for documenting the changes over the course of the hair growth cycle typically a full year.

The Theradome LH80 laser helmet was designed by a leading expert in health and biomedical engineering who suffered from hair loss himself. The system offers clinical strength hair growth therapy that can be done in the comfort of home for a fraction of the cost of office-based systems.

The laser helmet is available for study participants at Dr. Wasserbauers hair restoration practice, located at 1299 Newell Hill Place, Suite 200, Walnut Creek, CA 94596.

For more information, visit CaliforniaHairSurgeon.com or call (925) 939-4763.

Patients who are not interested in the study, but want more information about the Theradome laser helmet can visit Theradome.com.

About Sara Wasserbauer, M.D.:

Excerpt from:
Dr. Sara Wasserbauer: Primary Researcher on New Theradome Laser Helmet to Treat Hair Loss

Enfield At home on the east side of Crystal Lake on Monday afternoon, Cheryl Gerding tried to ignore the crunching sound of an excavator tearing down her familys former historic house just across the water.

Im having a hard time, Gerding said, holding back tears.

The 1790s-era home, situated on Lockehaven Road in the towns oldest section, was once the venue of a store and two town meetings and was home to some of the most prominent residents of the era.

In the buildings more recent history, Gerdings parents became its twelfth owners in 1947. At the time, Gerding was 9 years old. She and her own children spent their summers in the Old House in what was once known as East Enfield when the children were young, she said.

When Gerdings mother, Helen Auger, died in 2007 and her step-father, Harry Auger, became ill, the family could no longer afford to keep the house on Crystal Lake. Gerding said taxes amounted to $7,000 annually.

They sold the .74-acre waterfront lot and 1,300-square-foot home to Joseph Roberts, of Grafton, in 2012 for $260,000, according to Enfield assessing records. The lakeside property is appraised at $349,200, but the house was valued at just $79,000.

Roberts did not respond to a reporters requests for comment.

Gerdings daughter, Kathy Decato, admitted the house did need a lot of work, but she said that she had held out hope that the new owner would refurbish it.

It was my grandparents house, she said. It just kind of breaks my heart.

Gerding said her brother compared the demolition to a death in the family.

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Historic Enfield Home Razed to Make Way for New Construction

Posted: Tuesday, July 8, 2014 2:14 pm | Updated: 2:25 pm, Tue Jul 8, 2014.

FREEPORT - The Freeport Historical Society is on board with a proposed historic renovation of the house where Maine legend Leon Leonwood Bean raised his family at 6 Holbrook St., and this week the Project Review Board gets a look at the plan.

L.L. Bean is using Malcolm Collins as the project architect to restore the Queen Anne Victorian home to its 1912 look with its original brown tones and minus three additions. The building is now painted white.

The Project Review Board will begin a public hearing at 6 p.m. Wednesday, July 9, to consider a design review certificate, which would allow for the exterior changes, and a site plan amendment to reduce the buildings footprint.

Caroline Pelletier, assistant to the town planner, said that the board will decide on Beans request for a waiver of a four-month waiting period on the site plan amendment.

They would have to rule on the waiver first, and then on the approval, said Pelletier, who was not sure if that would all be done on Wednesday night.

Christina White, executive director of the historical society, informed the Project Review Board in a letter that she had met with representatives of L.L. Bean and Collins to review the project.

The commitment from the L.L. Bean company to the project is exciting and the proposed results will, no doubt, be welcomed by residents and visitors to Freeport, White wrote. We are pleased that the home of one of Freeports most notable citizens, Leon Leonwood Bean, will be preserved while expanding opportunities for the public to interact with the property via side yard demonstrations, exhibit area, and a walking path all which will add to the propertys enjoyment and our understanding of L.L. Bean himself and of his company.

White added that, according to the Maine Historic Preservation Commission, the house was likely designed by Francis Fassett, a highly regarded Portland architect whose work can also be seen at other Freeport locations.

There are a number of proposed exterior property changes with which we are in agreement, including the removal of a porch located on the right side of the house, adding back two chimneys (recreating the original profile), and returning to the original rich, period-defining exterior paint palette, White continued. The small porch (left side of main entrance to house) which was added sometime in the 1940s and served as L.L.s smoking area, is slated to be taken down. Our hope was that this direct connection to the man himself would be retained. If the owner moves forward with the plan to remove the porch, we ask that the porch be fully documented prior to removal.

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Freeport home with a history

by Adam Ghassemi

GALLATIN, Tenn. - The restoration of a historic home dating back more than two centuries is finally complete. Soon you'll be able to see the Douglass-Clark House for yourself.

The home sits along Long Hollow Pike at Station Camp Creek near the new Station Camp Greenway, but it was almost torn down when a subdivision started going up next door. Developers ended up donating the property to the county, which decided to save it.

The house's history dates back to the 1780s before Tennessee was a state. It's one of the first structures in Sumner County, and even served as the county courthouse for a short time.

Nothing's really level, but man could they build a tank. You know,this thing has lasted," said Sumner Co. Executive Anthony Holt.

Holt says they jumped at the chance to save it. Surprisingly, the oldest logs are still in tact while the newer areas had to be completely redone. During the massive renovation crews found a number of artifacts and even messages etched into the wall by a visitor from the late 1890s.

Monday, actors were practicing a reenactment planned for July 21st where they will demonstrate some of the original court proceedings held at the home based off minutes found in county archives.

"So we're recreating one of those meetings that would have been held at the Douglass House at that time," said longtime historian and artist H. David Wright.

After the dedication the current Sumner County Commission will hold its meeting at the home for the first time since 1790.

"That hasn't occurred in 224 years. So history is going to renew itself," Holt said.

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200 Year-Old Historic Home Gets Ready To Open In Sumner Co.

BALTIMORE (AP) Al Reed is used to strange cars being parked on his block of Hollins Street. He'll watch people get out and examine the three-story brick row home a few doors down from his, snap some pictures and peer into the windows.

That's just fine with Reed. He's thankful the old house on Union Square still brings people to the community, even if they can't get inside.

"The interest is incredible despite the deplorable condition," Reed said.

The house at 1524 Hollins St. belonged to iconic Baltimore writer H.L. Mencken. It's been deteriorating for years, opened only on special occasions, a source of frustration to West Baltimore residents and legions of Mencken admirers who believe it deserves a better fate.

What is even more infuriating to many of them is that a $3 million gift to convert the home into a museum has been sitting unused in an account now controlled by the city of Baltimore. For nine years.

How this happened is partly a tale of a rivalry between two groups vying for control of Mencken's legacy and his house and a city government not eager to be on the hook for financing the house's restoration.

The home's fate has not been aided by the beating Mencken's reputation took after the 1989 publication of his diaries suggested he could be anti-Semitic and a racist and was sympathetic to Nazi Germany.

So it sits, needing an estimated $500,000 in repairs.

Throughout his years Mencken maintained a deep love for the home where he was raised, became successful and lived quietly after a stroke in 1948 robbed him of the ability to read and write.

"(The house is) as much a part of me as my own two hands," Mencken wrote.

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House of writer H.L. Mencken remains in disrepair

Avram Avie Glazer and his wife, Jill, have sold their landmarked house at 5 Middle Road in the Estate Section for a recorded $12.6 million, according to a deed recorded Thursday.

Jordan and Thomas A. Saunders III of New York bought the four-bedroom, Colonial Revival-style house. Hes a philanthropist and investment banker who spent much of his career at Morgan Stanley before starting his own private investment firm. He also is chairman of The Heritage Foundation think tank in Washington, D.C.

The Glazers paid $7.4 million for the house in 2004 and carried out a major restoration, property records show.

Avie Glazer son of the late billionaire businessman Malcolm Glazer is part of the family that holds controlling stakes in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers football franchise and Englands Manchester United soccer team. Several Glazer family members have bought and sold property on the island, including Malcolm Glazer, who with his wife, Linda, were longtime residents of South Ocean Boulevard when he died May 28.

Designed by noted society architect Marion Sims Wyeth in 1935, the house on Middle Road had been listed for sale at $15 million in January by broker Lawrence Moens of Lawrence A. Moens Associates.

Agent Cristina Condon of Sothebys International Realty acted on behalf of the buyers. She declined to comment, and Moens is on vacation and couldnt be reached.

Thorough restoration

With 13,696 square feet of living space, inside and out, the house stands on a lushly landscaped lot measuring nearly an acre at the corner of Gulfstream and Middle roads, two blocks south of Worth Avenue. Several of the rooms overlook a secluded pool area, according to Moens sales listing.

We are absolutely thrilled to come to Palm Beach, Jordan Saunders said, speaking from her home in Locust Valley, N.Y. I walked into the door of that house, and my heart melted. It is such a gem.

The houses original owner was Joseph M. Cudahy, president of Sinclair Refining Co., who, with his family, used it on vacations from their home in Chicago. Wyeth adorned the facade with quoins at the corners, bay windows and a traditionally styled front porch. The town granted the house landmark-protection status in 1990.

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Glazers sell landmarked home for $12.6M

Avram Avie Glazer and his wife, Jill, have sold their landmarked house at 5 Middle Road in the Estate Section for a recorded $12.6 million, according to a deed recorded Thursday.

Mary Jordan and Thomas A. Saunders III of New York bought the four-bedroom, Colonial Revival-style house. Hes a philanthropist and investment banker who spent much of his career at Morgan Stanley before starting his own private investment firm. He also is chairman of The Heritage Foundation think tank in Washington, D.C.

The Glazers paid $7.4 million for the house in 2004 and carried out a major restoration, property records show.

Avie Glazer son of the late billionaire businessman Malcolm Glazer is part of the family that holds controlling stakes in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers football franchise and Englands Manchester United soccer team. Several Glazer family members have bought and sold property on the island, including Malcolm Glazer, who with his wife, Linda, were longtime residents of South Ocean Boulevard when he died May 28.

Designed by noted society architect Marion Sims Wyeth in 1935, the house on Middle Road had been listed for sale at $15 million in January by broker Lawrence Moens of Lawrence A. Moens Associates.

Agent Cristina Condon of Sothebys International Realty acted on behalf of the buyers. She declined to comment, and Moens is on vacation and couldnt be reached.

Thorough restoration

With 13,696 square feet of living space, inside and out, the house stands on a lushly landscaped lot measuring nearly an acre at the corner of Gulfstream and Middle roads, two blocks south of Worth Avenue. Several of the rooms overlook a secluded pool area, according to Moens sales listing.

We are absolutely thrilled to come to Palm Beach, Jordan Saunders said, speaking from her home in Locust Valley, N.Y. I walked into the door of that house, and my heart melted. It is such a gem.

The houses original owner was Joseph M. Cudahy, president of Sinclair Refining Co., who, with his family, used it on vacations from their home in Chicago. Wyeth adorned the facade with quoins at the corners, bay windows and a traditionally styled front porch. The town granted the house landmark-protection status in 1990.

The rest is here:
Glazers sell landmarked home on Middle Road for $12.6M

Tour Pearl S. Buck's home in Bucks County and you'll feel as if you've discovered a treasure as prized as an oyster's pearl.

Layer after layer of Buck's story will peel away and inspire you as you go room to room, walk the grounds and visit her grave. A best-selling author, Buck was the first American woman to win both the Nobel and Pulitzer prizes for literature. But her work went far beyond the printed page.

Buck counseled presidents, mothered a brood of children (one birth child, seven adopted children and at least 10 foster children), changed the lives of thousands more children and fought for racial harmony through cultural understanding. The daughter of missionaries, she used her vast knowledge of China, where she lived for 40 years, to bridge major gaps in understanding between the East and the West.

Beloved and admired, she also accepted keys to more than 30 cities, collected 13 honorary degrees and was featured on a postage stamp. She deserves as much admiration as other Bucks County luminaries, including Henry Chapman Mercer, James A. Michener and David Burpee.

"We worry young people will not know who she is because 'The Good Earth' is gone from most school reading lists," says Janet Mintzer, CEO of Pearl S. Buck International, referring to Buck's famous novel about the lives of a Chinese peasant family. Buck, who died in 1973, was born in West Virginia 122 years ago, grew up in China and lived for nearly 40 years at Green Hills Farm in Hilltown Township near Perkasie.

To keep her memory alive, Pearl Buck International not only keeps up her home, but also offers a teen leadership program and summer culture camps for children. It also continues Buck's legacy of finding loving homes for children who need them via its Welcome House program and providing still more children and their families with health care, education and support through its Opportunity House.

Pearl Buck's house, itself, also was endangered, in disrepair and needing major work despite being one of only a few National Historic Sites focusing on a woman and even fewer containing an intact collection of her belongings.

But times are looking up for Buck and her home. A new and previously unpublished manuscript has been discovered and published as "Eternal Wonder," stirring new interest in the author. The home was removed from a list of Pennsylvania's 10 most endangered historic houses and reopened in 2013, after eight years of extensive repairs and restoration.

Today, the 1825 stone farmhouse and surrounding 60 acres play a major role in telling Buck's story and continuing her legacy. Buck and her second husband, Richard Walsh, made major changes in the home to accommodate their large family and provide office space. But it never lost the appeal that made Buck fall in love with it the first time she saw it.

But how and why did Buck find her way to Bucks County?

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Bucks County home of Pearl S. Buck will inspire those who visit | PHOTOS