Blogging education goes a long way!

 Todd Clark from Knipe Realtyhas taught me so much about Activerain! He's also such a great real estate agent, a real go-getter and actually calls people back immediately.

There's an old saying, "you don't know what you don't know." That adage applies throughout your life. Well, blogging education can come from many sources but today I'd like to tell you about the education I recieve from just knowing one special person named Todd Clark.

Todd Clark came to Keller Williams about four years ago and taught a class on how to blog in Activerain. 

  I was so excited about what I was hearing! Getting leads just from writing stuff on a blog in Activerain?? Whoooohoooo! I was all for that! Sign me up! I was fortuntate enough to become friends with Todd.  Over the next year, we met and talked about HOW to blog. Todd has taught me the important of underlining leading sentences that are good for Google juice. He taught me that I need to interview local people and bring business to THEM and also to myself. He taught me about NVU...which is a blogging platform that I write my blog on and then turn it to html. HTML! Todd has taught me so much about html too, linking pictures to websites, how to host a picture on photobucket.com and many other things! And he challenges me to put my real estate business into high gear.

Why is all this blogging education important? Because I get leads from my blog! I make friends with strangers who come to my blog. I get leads from out-of -town agents.  Thank you Todd and Activerain! You ROCK!

Santa lives at the North Pole and makes toys and fun for kids around the world Check out TheNorthPole.com for lots of activities, advice for parents, the toy shop to visit, weather page for the North Pole and around the world and lots of other kid-friendly Christmas things...TheNorthPole.com is just a fun resource page!

Three tips on buying or selling a home on the Washougal River. River life has a few unkown aspects that are helpful and also some that are required. I specialize in the waterfront homes since I live here. I  LOVE the river. It's a "lifestyle" because it is like paradise May through October. There are so many awesome things to do and see along the river.

A piece or property, land or home on the Washougal River should have safety first of all:

1.  The first thing to consider is whether the home will flood. The best way to really know for sure is a tour of the property, not just browsing on the internet. (As we all know, pictures lie!) If the home is close to the water, a buyer should consider if a rising river would compromise the house. Many Washougal River homes have what are called "flood gates" or "flood doors"underneath that would allow the river to run underneath or through the basement if necessary.

2. Parking along the river waterfront is a premium. A buyer would want to look at the property with the thought that you will have plenty of guests and visitors who want to enjoy the river at your house.  So, a buyer would be wise to choose a place that has some parking. (Another side of the Washougal River road parking problem is that in the summer swimmers, etc. who are getting out of their cars and coming into contact with the busy river road traffic.)

3. Elevation certificates for sellers: Most of the properties about the Little Washougal River Road/Blair Rd. have not been surveyed for flood status. They do not have a true "flood rating." When you get an offer on your, lenders will want to know if you have a elevation certificate. This is accomplished by hiring one of the many survey companies in Vancouver, WA to see how high the home sits above the river. The lender will also want you to apply for flood insurance too. Some places are "grandfathered" in for the flood insurance.



Please feel free to call me with any questions you may have about living on the Washougal River! I love to assist buyers and sellers here!

USDA Loan and Address Eligibility Finder
Go Rural!!  Would you like "FREE" downpayment money towards your purchase of your new dream home?Go RURAL!!  

USDA, or United States Department of Agriculture will pay your downpayment when you purchase a home in a rural area!  Would you like to know if a particular area address is eligibile to use to get a USDA loan??  (USDA Address Finder Eligibility Site)You can find out for yourself, you won't have to wait for a lender to tell you if it is a USDA candidate for the "FREE" downpayment.  Click on this site and see their website. It covers Residential, Multi-family and  Business Programs. There are some requirements and expectations to be met, but this is a great option for new home buyers.

Go Rural!!  Would you like "FREE" downpayment money towards your purchase of your new dream home? Go RURAL!!

This is an uplifting story about how we use our words with others, but it could also be used to describe how hard it is to keep going, especially if you work in real estate. It is easy to get discouraged and give up. This story came to me by email so I'm not sure who the author is, but enjoy:


A group of frogs were traveling through the woods, and two of them
fell into a deep pit. When the other frogs saw how deep the pit
was, they told the two frogs that they were as good as dead. The
two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump up out of the pit
with all their might. The other frogs kept telling them to stop,
that they were as good as dead. Finally, one of the frogs took
heed to what the other frogs were saying and gave up. He fell down
and died.

The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again,
the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die. He
jumped even harder and finally made it out. When he got out, the
other frogs said, "Did you not hear us?" The frog explained to them that he was deaf.
He thought they were encouraging him the
entire time.

This story teaches two lessons:

1. There is power of life and death in the tongue. An encouraging
word to someone who is down can lift them up and help them make it
through the day.

2. A destructive word to someone who is down can be what it takes
to kill them.

Be careful of what you say. Speak life to those who cross your
path. The power of words... it is sometimes hard to understand
that an encouraging word can go such a long way. Anyone can speak
words that tend to rob another of the spirit to continue in
difficult times. Special is the individual who will take the time
to encourage another.