Do you ever wonder about a particular school in a district? Like what's  going on there? If your child attends there you can feel like you know  even less! And if you are moving there how do you find out? They have  ratings systems you can look at, all with dry statistics. But there is a  source... 

In 2000 publisher Kay Coop founded a newspaper from and about schools in  an ever growing number of school districts so that parents could find  out about the schools and so schools would have a voice to talk about  what they are doing. Broadcast news won't cover it, unless it's  something sensationalist (or a high school football game) and the same  goes for newspapers.  If you want to know about your school, or  potential school, this free newspaper is the only source for a more complete picture of what's going on  Read it
from the source:  School News Roll Call.

With so much advertising from the banks and all the news about some  banks, I frequently am asked by buyers how to pick the right lender.  There are two main attributes (among several others) that a lender  should have that make the mark for me.

1) Buyers need to interview their prospective lender to see not only what is needed and what they qualify  for (they all do that), but to see how the lender communicates,  how interested the representative is in them and how responsive s/he  appears to be. Now more than ever buyers need a lender who really does  care about them. Part of this judgment will stem from the types  of questions the lender asks the buyers. Are the questions proactive  and far-reaching? Do the questions show that everything that can be done  up front will be done up front. The last thing you need in today's  market is a procrastinator. That can actuallykill the deal.

2) On the  transaction side (escrow, working with your realtor) nothing is more  important than communication. Your realtor and lender work as a  team for your benefit and nothing else. If any new program or  opportunity arises, your lender should be in touch with you first  (you're the client) and immediately thereafter with your realtor. If an  issue arises during escrow, it is critical that the lender communicate  quickly and thoroughly with you and your realtor. Important and many  times money-saving decisions will need to be made under deadline.   Those are my criteria as I work with lenders and have seen mistakes  buyers have made, as well as lenders (and realtors). There are overall  guidelines that are also important to be aware of. Some things range  from the type of loan that is best for you (fixed rate, 30 year, 15  year, FHA, etc.), but aside from the variety of loans available to you,  these items are not the initial ones to be discussed while interviewing  lenders. Here are the guidelines in an article from the National Association of Realtors .