4. Convince your friends (or those who you've helped move in past) to come over and help you. The more people you have, faster things will get done.

A few tips before you start filling boxes:

# Get everything on your AFTER THE MOVE LIST and put it in bath tub of your new place. Why bath tub? Because it's just about only place you won't be shoving boxes into, and it's usually already clean.

# Do not pack things in trash bags.... especially if you have a lot of people helping you move. Someone will throw bags away.

# Don't just mark boxes KITCHEN, or BEDROOM. Break things down into sub-categories. It's easy to do and makes unpacking a breeze. For example you might have KITCHEN - Dishes and Silverware; BEDROOM - Sheets and Comforter, etc.

# When you move boxes, you'll be stacking them, so don't just write contents on top of boxes, write them on every side.

# Wait as long as you can to pack your stereo or T.V. You'll want entertainment while you're packing.

# To protect glasses from breaking, wad up paper to shove inside and then wrap glasses in several sheets of newspaper.

# Don't foget to wad up paper to shove between breakables.

Pack 'til you can't pack any more!

Hopefully, these little tidbits will help you pack for your next move.

Third, we now discuss U.S. Constitution almost daily and how it might apply to current events in Washington. The Fifth Amendment, in words everyone can understand, plainly says that government cannot take your property without just compensation. And that's exactly what rent control is -- a "taking" that arbitrarily deprives landlords from receiving income they would properly earn in a free marketplace.

The good news is that more and more states are prohibiting rent control. There's more work to do, but at least we're heading in right direction.

Question Of The Week

Q We have been advised that a land contract can be used to avoid due-on-sale clause for an existing mortgage. Is this correct?

A This is a debatable issue.

Most loans today contain a "due on sale" clause which provides that a lender may call a loan under certain conditions such as an ownership change. This clause prevents loans from being assumed by borrowers unknown and not qualified by lenders.

A "land contract" is an installment sale where title is not transferred until some or all payments are made.

Some attorneys -- and certainly most lenders -- argue that a land contract can set off a due-on-sale clause because borrower has given up possession of property and right to future appreciation.

Others say that until there is a transfer of title lenders cannot accelerate loans when a property is purchased with a land contract.

There is also practical issue that if a loan has a sufficiently high interest level and payments are timely and complete, a lender may not want to call a loan even if it has right to do so.

The view here is that one should not suppose an installment sale can prevent a lender from calling a loan. Land contract rules differ by state, not all loan agreements have same terms, different conditions may apply to FHA and VA financing, and being wrong could be costly and terribly inconvenient. Before signing anything, please speak with an attorney in state where property is located.

Weekly Resource

One of best sites online for legal information is Findlaw. In addition to a variety of useful features, Findlaw offers an excellent review of anti-trust allegations facing Microsoft, including an extensive link collection.