Sewerage systems are about as interesting to most home owners as root canals to most people.  However, having recently relocated to a city where septic systems are fairly common, I thought I would highlight a few things I've personally learned in my own research in a new real estate market.  Before getting into the meat of this however, let me first provide a basic definition for those who are not familiar with this concept.  With a septic system, essentially all of the waste from a home that would normally go into the sewer (from toilets, showers, sinks, etc.) is stored in a large tank (typically underground).  This tank/system then utilizes anaerobic bacteria to decompose the waste and dispose of the liquids via a leach field, which basically means that the liquid is allowed to leak out into the ground beneath the yard of the property.  The psychological appeal of the concept aside, below are a few of my thoughts on the system in general and its economic merits:

1. Septic Systems are more common than you think.  While many people, especially those in large cities assume that public sewers are the only option for most single family homes, the reality is that most of the world is on some form of septic and even here in America, it is quite common in a number of cases:
       - rural areas or cities where average lots are quite large: in many of these cases, it may
         not have been economically feasible for either the city/municipality or the original
         builder/home owner to invest in infrastructure costs to connect to the city sewer sytem
,     - cities that have experienced rapid growth - in places like Atlanta where the last real
        estate boom drove lots of expansion, homes may have been built before the city had
        sufficient time to extend the sewer infrastructure, so septic may be the only option

2. Septic Systems can be much more economical.  By not having to utilize the sewer system, in many cases, homeowners can save quite a bit of money from their monthly water bills.  Now the trade-off is that there will be some ongoing maintenance costs associated with periodic emptying of the tank and other maintenance to ensure system operations, but even with those infrequent costs included, the overall savings can be quite substantial for many large homes (20-25% less/yr in some areas).

3. Septic Systems can also be more green.  While the idea of "leach fields" and liquid waste draining into the ground beneath your backyard may not be the most appealing, the reality is that it can be just as hygienic and effective.  In many regards, it's not that different than what a sewerage treatment plan would do but without requiring as much chemicals or energy in the process, so for those who want to reduce their impact on the environment, this can be an interesting option.

At the end of the day, for most people, this is likely not an option that you would select when buying a home unless you are building a custom home on an individual lot, however, my conclusion is to not necessarily eliminate homes with septic systems if you are a prospective home buyer and to potentially consider it if you are doing some major renovation of your home.

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With Summer Vacations just around the corner, I thought it timely to launch a new page on travel saving ideas!  Enjoy and happy travels!

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Today was a truly extraordinary day for the US stock market. 

For those who may have missed it, the stock market plummeted from a loss of just over 200 points to nearly 1000 points in intraday trading in the span of about 2 hours. 

As someone who witnessed this live action unfold and actively traded during this period, I thought I would share a few observations and thoughts. 

1. Despite all the great technologies we have today, we clearly have a ways to go to further ensure the integrity of the markets and to provide a level playing ground for all market participants.  As the story continues to unfold on what led to this collapse today besides the macro economic concerns that have been rattling the markets, we've started to hear tidbits about breakdowns in electronic trading and data entry errors made by traders which triggered the rapid collapse in the stocks. 

The human trading errors notwithstanding, one thing I experienced first hand today was the uneven playing field that still exists between institutional investors and individuals.  Savvy institutional investors like hedge funds have access to sophisticated computerized trading tools that enable them to take advantage of rapid movements in stock prices and to profit quickly from changing market conditions given their strategies.  On normal trading days, this may not be a major advantage.  But on a day like today, it can make all the difference in the world.  As the market was plummeting in double time, I as an individual investor simply could not keep up with the changing prices despite having the right trading strategy in mind.  For instance, as P&G dropped more than 25% (just one of several examples) to outrageous levels,  I simply couldn't buy the stock fast enough before it recovered to a more rational level.

2. A second observation I would make is the fact that while the intraday lows are now  clearly known to be driven by a human/electronic error, the fact that it was believable at the time to so many people (including myself) tells me that we are really not out of the woods yet on the global economic recovery.  With soverign debt worries led by Greece (but also other Euro nations), continued lackluster employment here in the US, the prospect of a property bubble in China, and continued threat of a real estate double dip in the US just to name a few top of mind issues, this market clearly still remains a split second away from a massive "flight to quality" stampede as evidenced by the market demand for Gold today.

3. Lastly, as I've remarked often in the past, I think market days like today is what separates the savvy/institutional investor from the everyday Joes.  To put it more simply - when the market moves like this, the everyday Joes tend to execute their stop loss orders and run for cover, while the savvy investors are busy accumulating their positions.  This is the essence of buying low and selling high - to behave in a contrarian manner when the stampede is going in the other direction.  After all, if you liked a stock at $10, you should be loving it at $5 unless there are meaningful fundamental changes that would support changing your strategy.

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