Archives of real estate blog entries for October 12, 2007

Featured blog posts


Do I Know The Writer? - 05:14 PM
First we need to define "Transparency."
According to Wikipedia, transparency is the property of allowing the transmission of light through a material. 
You ask how does this relate:
to my me to my bloggingin my career  Quite simply, this is the age of transparency.
The public wants to know what's behind the scene. They want to know the real YOU, they want to know the SECRETS as they perceive them, they want to know if you are HONEST. The days of keeping the public in the dark are over and now it's time to open the curtain and be seen.
For those who are honest, … (60 comments)

Closing on a vacation home in Summit County is different! - 05:06 PM
How does a real estate closing work where you live?  Do you have attorneys involved?  Do the Buyer and Seller both meet at the closing, hand over keys, talk about the strange characteristics that only this house has that the Buyer needs to know about, and wish each other luck? 
It doesn't  work that way in Summit County, Colorado, about 90% of the time.  I don't remember the last time that I had both Buyer and Seller closing together, in person, looking at each other across the closing table.   The majority of our closings are "mail outs" meaning that they are done … (33 comments)

One of Reno-Tahoe's incomparable adventures: The unforgiving Flume trail - 05:11 PM
 
"Ian,Joe Isn't Reno and Sparks all about the Slot machines, blackjacks, lucky 9's, strip clubs, casinos??" One might say to me. Mm mm. Nope. Much more than that. You have no idea my friend...  
I have never been the X-games type adrenaline junkie.  But I grew up in an environment of small adventures, whether it's an expedition to the 'uncharted' neighborhood or playing catch up (armed with my bicycle) with the neighborhood bullies- (dogs that most probably hasn't been injected with anti-rabies shots.) - the best times of my life.
Why was it fun? good question.
 Maybe because there was an element of danger that every boy, once in his life, craves for.  And in so many ways, … (15 comments)

Broker Bryant exposes the secret to his success!! - 01:55 AM
Contrary to popular belief 100% financing is still alive and well. I had a closing yesterday on one of my listings in Dundee Fl. It wasn't easy and it took 71 days to get ‘er done but we did. This was one of my listings and I was also able to help the buyers. Very nice folks on both sides of the transaction. It was a deal where the Buyer walked away from the closing with keys to their new house and a check for $500!
Yep.....that's right. They bought a house and got a check. So 100% financing is certainly alive … (73 comments)

If You Could Spend the Day with One AR Member, Who Would it Be? - 01:58 AM
If you could choose to spend a day with one Active Rain member who would you choose?  A day to sit, talk, ask questions and get to know this person.
Tell me who you would choose, why and what you would want to discuss with this person.
There are so many interesting and diverse people here that I would love to meet, talk with and just spend time soaking in their spirit.    I am sure some of you must feel this way too.
If you can't pin it down to just one, no problem...choose as many as you want. 
 
 
 
Photo courtesy of Flickr -jscralette676 
 
… (123 comments)

The Truth About Easy Money... - 05:04 PM
 

One of the most unfortunate consequences of "easy money" is that it makes otherwise healthy, and intelligent people lazy...just plain lazy. I'll be upfront with my position on easy money. It's a myth, a trick...an exercise in smoke and mirrors that produces financial hallucinations. It doesn't exist...and never has.
The myth of hitting the easy money jackpot or reaching the easy money Nirvana persists for a number of reasons. Most notably, our intense desire to wish it to be so. Deep within the human spirit there exists this relentless drive to make things easier.
I think it started when Adam was driven … (55 comments)

Roxanne, Glamour Shots, and Casper the Ghost - Blog Tips for Rain Drips - 02:04 AM
In the movie, "Roxanne," Steve Martin plays the part of a small town fire chief who writes a bunch of mushy love letters for one of his fellow firefighters. The recipient of the letters, played by Daryl Hannah, is captivated by the words, but when she finally meets the fireman face-to-face, she quickly realizes the two don't match.
I remember when I first started my career in real estate back in Lawrence, Kansas. I was with a Realty Executives franchise (Realty Executives/Hedges Real Estate) that was owned by a good friend, Bryan Hedges.
Back then, real estate was all about the Agent. People would spend … (73 comments)

The Importance Of Teamwork - 05:07 PM

The real estate profession has become focused on teams, and with good reason.  There are a lot of moving parts involved in bringing a transaction to the closing table, and having the right people in place can make all of the difference in the world.  For some, this may mean delegating specific  team members to handle certain tasks.  For others, who are not on a traditional real estate team, there is still a need for teamwork. The only difference is that your team members are the other industry professionals that you rely upon in any given transaction.
One of the reasons that … (58 comments)

I Know Who You Are.... Be Nice Or Pay Up - 12:25 PM
Today I had a real eye opener - I have been finding my flyer boxes emptying faster than I could put fliers into them.  One listing in particular would go empty in less than 24 hours - it was obvious that someone or something was taking these fliers.
We were not finding any evidence of them on the street, so they are being removed and not strewn around the neighborhood.  So, where are they going?
Today the house next door which is also listed for sale was being shown, my seller knew that their neighbors home was being shown.  When she was out … (119 comments)

Get Your Clients Involved in Your Blog: Interview Them! - 05:05 PM
Having writer's block?


Shame on you! There are enough articles floating around Active Rain to inspire even the least creative with some great ideas for writing interesting content for your blog. If you spend enough time reading and commenting on other blogs, you should never run out of ideas for your own local market.






How about getting your clients involved? Many of your past clients probably don't even know that you have a blog or have become a blogger.
Here's an easy way to involve them and produce some excellent Localism material as well as … (104 comments)


Blog posts


RealBird - 04:53 PM
<iframe src="http://listings.realbird.com/widgets/FeaturedListingsMap.aspx?id=A5A5F6E4" width="500" height="500" style="width:500px; height:500px" frameborder="0" ></iframe>
… (2 comments)

Pacific Ocean Island 3000 acres for sale - up to 8000 acres possible - 05:48 PM
<iframe src="http://listings.realbird.com/widgets/FeaturedListingsMap.aspx?id=A5A5F6E4" width="500" height="500" style="width:500px; height:500px" frameborder="0" ></iframe> … (0 comments)

Another Weekend With Neal Bloom...Please Help Sell My Parents House! - 11:15 AM
That's right, Neal Bloom and I will be spending yet another weekend together!  Sounds like fun, right? 
Well Sunday we will be holding an open house for my parents. 
Neal and I have been on the phone all week working together to get my parents to their new home! 
I have really enjoyed working with him and I have to admit, Neal is "The Real Deal!"  Direct, honest and quite driven. 
My parents are relocating to Cullman County Alabama and they have already purchased their property.  
It just so happens their agent in Alabama is a member of Activerain.  His name Randy Britt!  Thank you Randy, you have … (28 comments)

Changes in FAR/BAR Contracts...Listing Agents You'll Love It! - 02:29 PM
Effective Monday in our company we will now be using the new and improved FAR/BAR sales contracts. 
According to the new contracts, Loan officers have the right to disclose the buyer's information to a seller, seller's attorney and seller's agent. 
Should be interesting in how this will pan out.
If you are not familiar or do not use the FAR/BAR I suggest you take the time and review it. 
Buyer's can now get out of the sales contract due to financing but guess what....no specific time frame. 
Do yourself and your customers a favor and learn these sales contracts.
There have also been changes … (0 comments)

Latest Update on my Push for "Katie's Law" in Washington State - 02:37 PM

I have spoken with a Washington State Senator that he said he may be willing to sponsor a bill like Katie's Law.   He is going to go over the actual law that the State of New Mexico passed and discuss it with his staff.   He also said that he is working on getting funding to take care of the backlog of the 65,000 samples of DNA that still need to be put in the CODIS national database.  The Senator also mentioned that I need to get a sponsor for a similar bill from the State House of Representatives and he gave me the name of someone to … (0 comments)

Blogging Etiquette - 10:15 PM

I have been blogging for quite a while now and have a "blogging etiquette question."  When someone comments on my post, am I supposed to answer them back every time?    I have commented on posts and never thought they should reply every time.
If this is the case, I have slighted many people and I am soooo sorry!
For information and support on Seattle area homes and condos please visit my website.
… (10 comments)

How to Get Your Credit Report (100% FREE, NO STRINGS ATTACHED) - 07:14 PM
There are a lot of scams out there saying that you can get your free credit report if you sign up for something (usually a service you have to pay for). Well, you actually are entitled to one 100% FREE, NO STRINGS ATTACHED credit report by law once a year from each of the three main credit bureaus. Go to http://www.annualcreditreport.com/ to see what lenders can see about your credit history.
Learn more about why your credit report matters from kiplinger.com.
… (0 comments)

Parade of Homes Remodelers Showcase - 08:57 PM
This weekend features the Parade of Homes Remodelers Showcase.  There are a total of 126 entered homes. Maple Grove has one entry in the show.  Vision Remodeling, Inc is featuring a lower level remodel at 17074 81st Avenue N. 
If you are considering a future remodeling project then take some time to visit some of the homes on the tour.  This is a great way to check out the workmanship of local contractors you are considering for your own project.  Or maybe you want to look at a specific project like a bathroom addition, kitchen, or deck and spark some creativity … (0 comments)

Still Need More Bloggers... - 02:59 AM
We have received a great response to our last blog entry regarding Virtual Assistants listing their business in our VA Directory on a FREE trial basis in exchange for blogging services.
We now have VA's in:
Ohio
Alabama
New Hampshire
Texas
Illinois
Arizona 
Wisconsin
and soon Colorado and Delaware
We have referred out 6 RFP's just since last Friday!!!!
If you are a Virtual Assistant and you would like extra exposure for your business please visit this link
http://virtualcas.com/services/promote-your-va-business  
… (1 comments)

You ungrateful #@!*!%#!!! Another Law of Attraction - 06:37 AM
It is extremely important to be grateful for what we have. And those of you who follow the Laws of Attraction might already be aware of this. Sometimes simply being grateful isn't enough. You should consider writing down what you are grateful for and reading it on a daily basis.
Reading it aloud might give you even more power than reading it quietly.
I ask you to think about the following. If you give a gift to a friend and that friend is quiet in their thanks to you, just how likely is it that you will give another gift to the same … (10 comments)

Is By Referral Only a scam? - 01:23 PM
OK people - I have just attended my first half day workshop in Orlando and I have to say that I think people are drinking from the Kool-aid! Within 20 minutes of the start, the speaker had the audience shout one word together. The word was "FREEDOM" and we had to shout it twice.
I looked to the person next to me, who like me did not shout anything, and we kinda raised our eyebrows at each other. But I am still curious.
I get that the aim of the free half day thing is to sell the paid for three day thing … (33 comments)

Al Gore wins the Nobel Peace Prize! Gimme a break!! - 04:39 PM
OK - so let me get this right. Al Gore makes a movie which is pretty much a slide show and contains numerous inaccuracies. He predicts a temperature rise of .7 of a degree and he predicts a sea level rise of 20 feet (no scientist gives that particular one ANY credance whatsoever), but he leaves out the part that says "if things stay the same for millennia!
He also fails to mention that warming and cooling are naturally occuring cyclicle phenomena. He doesn't even want to discuss the fact that Mars is warming, but then again we did put those … (22 comments)

The best of the Bay Hill homes for sale - 10:08 PM

When it comes to Bay Hill Real Estate in beautiful South West Orlando, it is rare to find a bargain - especially one that is not foreclosure or pre-foreclosure. Afterall, who wants to have to deal with the Banks?
Anyway, this particular piece of prime Bay Hill Real Estate could very well be the answer to your desires.
More than 5,500 square feet for less than $1m! This incredible home is being offered at substantially below it's appraised value.
THIS IS PRICED TO SELL!! 5,500 square feet in Bay Hill for this price?? This is NOT a joke! This home is being marketed at $250,000 … (0 comments)

Plan to attend the Fort Myers Beach " Sandcastle " contest - 08:33 PM
The 2007 Fort Myers Beach Sandcastle Contest will be held Nov 8 - 11.  It will be held on the beautiful wide sandy beach between the Holiday Inn and The Outrigger.  This annual event attracts amazing sand sculpters from around the country and is certain to be jam packed again this year.
Special areas are set aside for the professionals as they slowly build intricate designs with specially treated sand.  Several skill levels will be represented with prizes and awards presented at the end of the event.
I have included several pictures from the 2006 event just to wet your appetite for more.  Plan … (2 comments)

The Sky Is Falling In Seattle!! Oh, Wait A Sec......... - 11:36 AM
Yes, a new real estate cycle is turning it's little wheels in Seattle, for now. We are hearing so much negativity about sellers not being able to keep all of their 160k-200k profit from the last two years. They actually have to negotiate with buyers, lately! Mon Dieu!  Most will shed a tear, we feel your pain. Well, Not. You see, greed is not good. And it can contribute to the short-term destruction of a marketplace. But I digress. This post is not about overpriced listings, although it should be.
This is about the Doom And Gloom scenarios people just love to … (10 comments)

The WordPress Experiment Continues - Day 4 - 07:04 AM
The Firefox browser was used to compose and publish this test entry:
http://cheryljns.wordpress.com/2007/10/12/47/
Firefox and WordPress.com played very nicely together.  Multiple images were uploaded and positioned without even one click of the code view tab.
So, my first suggestion to anyone having WordPress nightmares is to download and install the Firefox browser. 
It seems to me that many, not all, but many, of the WordPress compliants can be resolved just by switching browsers.
MS Internet Explorer compliance (or lack thereof) to web standards has been a hot topic in technical circles for years.  To give MS the benefit of the doubt, I suspect the problems might originally … (7 comments)

The Machine is Us/ing Us By Mike Wesch - 10:05 AM
Greg Swann included this video in a post on http://phoenixrealestatetechnologyexchange.com/
If you are not a regular follower of Bloodhound, you might have missed it.  Do take a look.  The video was created by Mike Wesch of Manhattan, Kansas.
I think it manages to communicate alot about our new connected world within just a couple minutes:
 


THIS POST IS ALSO AVAILABLE AT DABLOGMOTHER … (4 comments)

An Era May Be Coming To An End at Windy Point Park - 09:41 AM
It was reported today in the Austin American-Statesman that the owner of Windy Point Park on Lake Travis, is for sale.  Money talks - the asking price is $15,000,000.  The owner can't afford to donate the park to Travis County (nor should he have to) - and, and 78, he wants to retire to Fiji - and who can blame him? 
Bob Barstow put together the land from several parcels in the 1970's and 1980's, and the public has been enjoying it ever since.  (As an old hippy, I can attest that the public was likely enjoying it even before then.)  It … (4 comments)

Welcome to the newbie Greeter Group - 08:21 PM
This group is for people who are available to welcome new members to Active Rain. When you see a newbie post a blog in the Newbie Group, you would comment on their blog and try to direct them to the Read me guidelines, etc.
If you see a newbie posting outside of the newbie group, you would welcome them and guide them to the newbie group.
After this gets going for awhile, I would like everyone to come up with ideas for welcoming newbies or getting them to participate in some way.
THis is not a Moderator group. You will not be removing posts … (20 comments)

Broker Bryant exposes the secret to his success!! - 01:55 AM
Contrary to popular belief 100% financing is still alive and well. I had a closing yesterday on one of my listings in Dundee Fl. It wasn't easy and it took 71 days to get ‘er done but we did. This was one of my listings and I was also able to help the buyers. Very nice folks on both sides of the transaction. It was a deal where the Buyer walked away from the closing with keys to their new house and a check for $500!
Yep.....that's right. They bought a house and got a check. So 100% financing is certainly alive … (73 comments)

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