Archives of real estate blog entries for January 24, 2010 (Page 8)

Blog posts


Speechless Sunday - Sometimes You Just Gotta Eat What You're Hungry For - 03:27 PM
This was what I had for lunch...

 
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Life in Southeast Oklahoma is GREAT! If you're looking for a home or land in my part of the country, please give me a call, and give me a chance to earn your business! 
Judi Barrett, broker, Integrity Real Estate Services, 580-212-5946
Photo courtesy of
lazy_lobster
Integrity RealtyIntegrity Real EstateLake Raymond Gary HomesFort Towson HomesValliant HomesMcCurtain CountyChoctaw CountyBroken Bow LakeLake Raymond GaryRaymond Gary LakeCommercial Property List
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Are You Type A or Type B Personality and Are You Happy Being There? Take This Quiz - 05:13 PM
Your business style has to be closely connected to and reflect who you are if you are to be happy with it and able to stay with it over the long haul, not to mention sleep at night. Are you a Ttype A or Type B personality? 
Do you know how to relax? Are yousatisfied with the world around you? Are you competitive? Hostile? Findout whether your drive is too extreme or well balanced by the abilityto take it easy....read more and take the test here.
 
I took the test and am thankful that I scored in the … (5 comments)

Facebook Ads - A Very Different PPC Experience - 08:54 AM
I've written two tutorials on using Facebook ads with small PPC budget.  I'm running an experiment with these ads to compare to my years of use of Google Adwords. These tutorials have screen shots to step you through the process.
http://realestate.about.com/od/internetmarketing/ss/facebook_1ads.htm - This short tutorial shows how it works, and how targeted we can make our ads in reaching the best prospects.
http://realestate.about.com/od/internetmarketing/ss/facebook_2ads.htm - In this one, I show shots of the reporting and tracking of ads, including how you can see WHO in some cases, even in WordPress.
Here, I've posted some recent results on my About.com blog.
 
Jim … (4 comments)

Speechless Sunday - Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks - 01:06 AM

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How Is Your Performance In The Red Zone? - 07:06 PM
With the NFL playoffs and the Super Bowl activity in our midst here currently there is that football parlance that can be applied to a real estate professional's work:
How Is Your Peformance In The Red Zone?
In football it is your scoring ratio, if you score, how much you score for the final 20 yards into the end zone. As a Realtor, Mortgage lender, inspector, Title Co. worker what happens?
Do you close effectively, keep the client focused, provide creative solutions, work through obstacles, have an above average "red zone" performance?
Something to measure and improve on as our business … (35 comments)

Homeowner Information Guides Available for FREE Download - 04:21 PM
Thanks to the great home inspection company, HouseMaster, there are a number of great FREE Downloads available through their easy to navigate website, www.HouseMaster.com.  Several guides I thought were pretty interesting may be downloaded at the following links:
Fireplaces . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide23.pdf Common Electric Concerns . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide22.pdf Radon . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide17.pdf Preventive Maintenance Checklist . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide14.pdf For many other great brochures log onto the HouseMaster website.  You will find many more guides as well as useful, up-to-date information on other relevant topics to the real estate industry.
As always, contact me directly when you're ready … (2 comments)

Unauthorized Practice of Law: What is Prohibited in Real Estate Transactions? - 07:22 PM
Have you ever wondered if you or an associate ever crossed the line in practicing law in a real estate transaction?  After all, what is prohibited in real estate transactions for someone not holding a law degree?  Can you give advice on Loan Mods?  How about advice on Pre-foreclosures and Short Sales?
I came across a great article that you may find by clicking here: http://firstamerican.com/content.cfm?id=3394.  This article was written in 2005 by John C. Murray when the issue of charging "doc prep fees" on transcations, by someone other than an attorney, was challenged in court.  I found it to be interesting back then … (61 comments)

Golf Course Home For Sale in Algonquin, IL - 07:27 PM
Single Family Luxurious Golf Course Home … (0 comments)

A Short Sale 'OOPS' - 09:01 PM
I just finished reading about a short sale 'oops' that occured in Milton, MA.  This 'oops' caused a real estate attorney some real headaches!  He had to use his malpractice insurance since he didn't get a release from a bank for a 2nd mortgage on his client's sale.
Rather than have me rehash the specifics here, log onto http://firstamerican.com/content.cfm?id=2746 to read the short article firsthand.
 
… (1 comments)

Fort Mill SC Homes for Sale in Baxter Village - 11:19 AM
The design of Baxter Village in Fort Mill is reminiscent of a traditional neighborhood design which gives the neighborhood a small town feel. Baxter Village uses unique features such as pocket parks and village greens where neighbors can get outside and spend time together instead of being locked up inside as might be the case in other neighborhoods. This master planned community has everything you remember from where you grew up: great neighbors, strong community connections, a Village Green, YMCA, parks, festivals and wide open places to play.It also features a Town Center with shops and restaurants, an elementary school, and public library right in … (0 comments)

Meet Tina, one of my latest happy clients - 09:35 AM

By Todd Clark (Broker/Sales Coach) 503-524-9494

Tina was a referral from one of my mortgage brokers because her agent abandoned her. Why? Because she didn’t have a pre-approval in hand and this agent refused to show her homes until she did. Normally, I would say the same thing, but this was a special case. You see, Tina was less than one month away from getting a pre-approval.
Tina and her family had OK credit, a good down payment, the only thing holding up the pre-approval was the fact that she was 45 days away from the two year … (76 comments)

Who'll Stop the Rain - 12:12 PM
The housing market continues to cloud our economic recovery throughout the United States. The Obama administration has finally admitted its $75 billion program to stop foreclosures may need some more tweaking. According to the New York Times only Ocwen Financial, a subprime lender, can claim success in loan modifications, with a 40% conversion rate. Bank of America and Chase are lagging far behind with only 2% and 4% respectfully. But the big boys are unwilling to do what Ocwen did early on to fend off foreclosures: principal reduction. It is reported that 43% of Arizona homeowners are underwater. It would cost … (0 comments)

2010 A Loan Odyssey - 12:38 PM
2010 is bringing unprecedented changes to lending. Our squabbling, not talking parents, HUD and the FED have put new regulations into place to monitor home loans. (They don't even meet for coffee. More on that at a later date)  In the old days (2005-2006) if a buyer was using an unethical  lender,  went to closing and if the interest rate was higher or the closings costs were more than stated on the good faith estimate ,the buyer was encouraged to sign the final loan documents or the seller could refuse to sell the home.    Those days are gone, gone, gone.   As … (0 comments)

Howard County Maryland - Types of financing for homes sold in December, 2009 - 04:46 PM
Howard County, Maryland In December, 2009, Howard County Maryland bucked the trend in the area for loan financing types. Most other jurisdictions surrounding Howard County had more FHA loans used to purchase property than conventional loans. Howard County MD home purchasers used conventional loans 100 times compared to FHA loans 60 in December, 2009. Investors are still in the Howard County real estate market since 23 properties were paid for in cash. The FHA has recently increased the upfront MIP required to 2.25%. This amount is built into the loan amount and paid off over the life of the loan. Interest … (1 comments)

Baltimore County MD - Types of financing for homes sold in December, 2009 - 04:57 PM
Baltimore County, Maryland In December, 2009, Baltimore County Maryland continued to see more FHA loans being processed than conventional loans. A total of 189 FHA loans were processed to purchase homes. Investors look like they're still in the Baltimore market since 56 properties were paid for in cash. The FHA has recently increased the upfront MIP required to 2.25%. This amount is built into the loan amount and paid off over the life of the loan. Interest rates are still excellent for most borrowers with decent credit. Speak to your loan officer regarding rates, and the best type of loan for … (0 comments)

Baltimore City - Types of financing for homes sold in December, 2009 - 05:11 PM
Baltimore, Maryland In December, 2009, Baltimore, Maryland continued to see more FHA loans being processed than conventional loans, by a significant margin. More than twice the number of FHA loans were used in December, 2009, compared to conventional loans. Investors look like they're still in the Baltimore market since 125 properties were paid for in cash. The FHA has recently increased the upfront MIP required to 2.25%. This amount is built into the loan amount and paid off over the life of the loan. Interest rates are still excellent for most borrowers with decent credit. Speak to your loan officer regarding … (0 comments)

Anne Arundel County MD - Types of financing for homes sold in December 2009 - 06:03 PM
Anne Arundel County Maryland
In December, 2009, Anne Arundel County Maryland continued to see more FHA loans being processed than conventional loans. The FHA has recently increased the upfront MIP required to 2.25%. This amount is built into the loan amount and paid off over the life of the loan. Interest rates are still excellent for most borrowers with decent credit. Speak to your loan officer regarding rates, and the best type of loan for your individual circumstances.

Richard Iarossi, REALTOR® Long and Foster® Real Estate, Inc. Crofton, MD 21114
410-451-6255 Office 443-995-9595 Cell Web: http://www.RichSellsHomes.com eMail: Rich@RichSellsHomes.com
Annapolis MD Real … (1 comments)

Annapolis MD Real Estate - Status for Week Ending 01/23/10 - 06:25 PM
Annapolis MD Real Estate - Status for Week Ending 01/23/10
Annapolis, MD added 44 new active listings to the current inventory last week. The least expensive was a rowhouse in Eastport listed for $104,900. If you have an extra $2,999,000 laying around you can pick up a fantastic Annapolis MD Victorian, on a large lot. Annapolis, MD rental market is one of the more robust in the area. Last week 9 new rental listings came on the market, and applications were registered for 4 of the current rental inventory. 18  properties moved or changed status into some sort of Contract … (0 comments)

Severna Park MD Real Estate - Status for Week Ending 01-23-10 - 06:48 PM
Severna Park MD Real Estate - Status for Week Ending 01/23/10
Severna Park, MD added fourteen new active listings to the current inventory last week. The least expensive was a 3/2 rancher int eh Riverdale section. If you're looking for a 3/2 rancher in the water oriented Manhattan Beach section, you're going to have to pony up $749,900. At least, thats the beginning asking price. Severna Park, MD is not a big rental market and nothing that happened last week changed that. No new rentals and not rentals went off the market. 4  properties moved or changed status into some … (1 comments)

Bowie MD Real Estate - Status for Week Ending 01/23/10 - 07:02 PM
Bowie MD Real Estate - Status for Week Ending 01/23/10
Bowie MD added a pretty substantial 50 new active listings to the current inventory last week. These were a good combination of offerings for anyone from first time home buyers to move up purchasers. Nine new rental listings came on the market and four had applications registered. Right now, the rental market is very robust in Bowie, MD. 44  properties moved or changed status into some sort of Contract status, while 13 sold and went to settlement. The contract status changes tends to be a future indicator of settlements to … (0 comments)

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