Home Field Advantage: Colby Rasmus, Toronto Blue Jays

Toronto Blue Jays center fielder, Colby Rasmus, shares what home means to him on this edition of Coldwell Banker Home Field Advantage.

4th of July Advice to Keep Pets Comfortable and Safe

Fireworks and Travel Precautions to Prevent Pet Anxiety

SAN DIEGO - To ensure the 4th of July holiday is a positive experience for everyone, Petco shares some simple ways to keep pets' safe, drastically reduce their stress and lower their risk of running away.

To help pets comfortably weather fireworks, considering the following:

• Create a quiet place so pets have a restful room or area to retreat to. Firecrackers, loud party voices and booming music can make pets anxious.
• Proactively attend Petco's free Anxiety & Calming Seminar, which takes place at stores nationwide June 28-29, 2014 at 2 p.m. Pet parents will learn how to recognize their dog's stress signals, learn techniques to help settle pets down and understand the importance of mental and physical exercise as ways to keep dogs calm.
• Be sure all pets, including indoor cats, wear current ID tags. Clear identification can be a pet's ticket back home.
• Avoid taking pets to see fireworks. Secure all potential escape routes and leave them in a quiet, sheltered area. A television or radio left playing at a normal volume can be reassuring.
• If it is necessary to be outside with dogs during fireworks, make sure each dog is secure on a leash and harness. Frightened dogs commonly manage to slip out of their collars, and harnesses allow pet parents to stay in full control.
• Don't leave dogs outside unattended. Even tethered pups will struggle to get away if startled by noise. Dogs who aren't tethered may try to dig out of an enclosed yard.
• Comfort pets with their favorite toy or blanket. Also, Thundershirts will dramatically help reduce the fear dogs and cats may experience. Hire a pet-sitter for the day or evening or ask a friend who knows the pet well to pay a visit.

If bringing pets along for a July 4th road trip, consider the following precautions:

• Always think safety first. Traveling with an unrestrained pet is not only dangerous for the pet and driver, but for every car on the road. Keep the pet comfortably restrained with an auto safety harness or in a traveling crate at all times. Be sure to secure the crate inside the vehicle to prevent it from tipping over. 
• Don't allow dogs to stick their head out of open windows while driving.
• Give smaller dogs a boost up to enjoy a clear view of the journey with the Petco Booster Seat.
• Keep small animals safe by securing them in the vehicle in a proper carrier. The Caitec Perch N Go Bird Carrier and the Petco Pet Keeper for Small Animals both allow their passengers to be transported safely and comfortably while in the car and also acts as a safe habitat for them while they are out and about with their pet parent. 

Even as Inventory Surges in May, First-Time Home Buyers Remain Challenged As Affordable Homes for Sale Fall

Inventory gains mostly concentrated in middle and upper home value tiers; Annual home value gains slow to lowest pace in a year, according to Zillow Real Estate Market Reports

- Inventory of all for-sale homes nationwide rose 11.8 percent year-over-year and 4.3 percent month-over-month in May, but fell among lower-tier homes in most large markets.

- The Zillow Home Value Index rose to $172,300, up 0.1 from April and 5.4 percent in May 2013.

- National rents fell slightly in May from April, down 0.1 percent to a Zillow Rent Index of $1,310.

SEATTLE -- After plunging throughout 2012 and for much of 2013, and rising only modestly through the beginning of this year, the inventory of all for-sale homesi nationwide spiked in May, jumping 11.8 percent year-over-year according to the May Zillow® Real Estate Market Reportsii.

But most of those gains in inventory were made among homes priced in the middle and top one-third of home values. The number of homes available for sale in the most affordable price bracket, those homes most sought by first-time homebuyers, fell year-over-year in 28 of the nation's largest metro areas analyzed by Zillowiii.

The total number of homes listed for sale on Zillow in May was up 4.3 percent over April, and has risen month-over-month in each of the past three months on a seasonally adjusted basis. Overall inventory of for-sale homes was up year-over-year in 506 (78 percent) of the more than 600 metro areas analyzed by Zillow. Large metros where inventory has increased the most include Las Vegas (up 51.5 percent year-over-year), Washington, DC (up 45.7 percent year-over-year) and Riverside, Calif. (up 42.7 percent year-over-year).

"It's good to see overall inventory rising. It's likely that many would-be sellers have decided to capitalize on recent home value gains, particularly as the pace slows, and list their home for sale now in order to move into a new home while mortgage interest rates remain low," said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Stan Humphries. "But persistent inventory constraints at the low end of the market continue to make it a tough environment for first-time and lower-income homebuyers. Low inventory and high demand can lead to rapid price spikes, which make homes even more difficult to afford for many buyers. Hopefully the inventory gains we're seeing in the middle and upper tiers of the market will begin trickling down to the most affordable homes soon."

In addition to low numbers of affordable homes for sale, first-time and lower-income homebuyers armed with traditional financing are also competing with all-cash buyers at the lower end of the market. Zillow reported last weekiv that in 27 of the top 30 metros analyzed by Zillow, more than one third of all sales of the lowest-priced homes were made with cash. In three of the top 30 metros – Tampa,Detroit and Miami – more than 80 percent of all sales in the lowest price bracket were cash deals.

National home values in May were up 0.1 percent from April to a Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI)v of $172,300, and have now risen for 28 consecutive months. Year-over-year, U.S. home values rose 5.4 percent in May, the slowest annual pace of appreciation in more than a year. For the 12-month period from May 2014 to May 2015, national home values are expected to rise another 2.9 percent to approximately $177,321, according to the Zillow Home Value Forecastvi.

National rents fell slightly in May from April, down 0.1 percent to a Zillow Rent Indexvii of $1,310. Year-over-year, national rents were up 2.3 percent in May.

	Zillow Home Value Index			Change in Inventory, by Price Tier
Metropolitan Area	May 2014 ZHVI	Month-Month % Change	Year-Year % Change	YoY % Change in For-Sale Inventory, Bottom Tier	YoY % Change in For-Sale Inventory, Middle Tier	YoY % Change in For-Sale Inventory, Top Tier
United States	$172,300	0.1%	5.4%	N/A	N/A	N/A
New York/Northern New Jersey	$372,700	0.2%	5.6%	1.5%	-1.3%	-0.2%
Los Angeles, CA	$530,000	1.6%	14.9%	6.0%	2.2%	-8.2%
Chicago, IL	$181,600	-0.3%	7.2%	-3.4%	3.2%	0.2%
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX	$144,600	0.4%	6.4%	-0.7%	-1.2%	2.0%
Philadelphia, PA	$194,700	-0.3%	2.4%	-1.1%	0.6%	0.5%
Houston, TX	$151,700	-1.5%	0.1%	N/A	N/A	N/A
Washington, DC	$352,800	0.2%	7.3%	2.0%	4.1%	-6.1%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL	$195,500	1.0%	16.3%	1.9%	1.0%	-2.9%
Atlanta, GA	$145,400	1.3%	16.4%	-1.8%	4.5%	-2.8%
Boston, MA	$359,400	0.4%	7.6%	-0.8%	-0.7%	1.6%
San Francisco, CA	$683,900	1.4%	15.5%	8.4%	-1.2%	-7.2%
Detroit, MI	$110,100	0.9%	17.3%	-5.8%	2.1%	3.7%
Riverside, CA	$274,700	2.0%	21.9%	-0.4%	5.9%	-5.4%
Phoenix, AZ	$195,100	1.3%	8.1%	-1.1%	1.1%	0.1%
Seattle, WA	$332,000	1.4%	12.5%	5.3%	1.0%	-6.2%
Minneapolis-St Paul, MN	$201,200	-0.2%	6.6%	-3.3%	0.7%	2.6%
San Diego, CA	$464,600	1.3%	12.7%	-7.5%	2.1%	5.5%
St. Louis, MO	$131,100	-0.2%	-1.6%	-2.3%	2.1%	0.2%
Tampa, FL	$142,000	1.6%	15.0%	-2.9%	2.6%	0.3%
Baltimore, MD	$236,300	-0.3%	2.3%	-0.8%	2.9%	-2.1%
Denver, CO	$253,300	0.0%	8.3%	-1.0%	-4.5%	5.5%
Pittsburgh, PA	$120,900	-0.2%	6.7%	1.6%	-0.5%	-1.1%
Portland, OR	$271,800	0.7%	10.5%	1.3%	3.3%	-4.7%
Sacramento, CA	$316,700	0.7%	14.9%	-3.4%	1.7%	1.7%
San Antonio, TX	$148,800	-1.5%	-0.5%	N/A	N/A	N/A
Orlando, FL	$161,300	1.1%	15.0%	-0.8%	3.0%	-2.2%
Cincinnati, OH	$132,300	0.3%	3.0%	-0.6%	-0.2%	0.8%
Cleveland, OH	$118,500	0.3%	2.8%	0.0%	-2.2%	2.1%
Kansas City, MO	$141,100	-1.1%	-2.1%	-0.4%	-3.4%	3.8%
Las Vegas, NV	$180,800	2.6%	23.3%	N/A	N/A	N/A
San Jose, CA	$801,200	1.8%	15.1%	7.4%	-3.3%	-4.1%
Columbus, OH	$142,700	0.9%	9.5%	-0.8%	0.5%	0.3%
Charlotte, NC	$154,000	1.0%	7.0%	0.1%	2.5%	-2.7%
Indianapolis, IN	$133,000	-0.9%	1.9%	-0.9%	-1.5%	2.4%
Austin, TX	$217,400	-1.0%	5.0%	N/A	N/A	N/A