NAR at work for the Country! - 10/26/09 08:20 AM
The National Association of Realtors has really saved our bacon this time. The Clean Energy Act was a coffin nail for our industry. Our association though has managed to change how it was interpeted and got concessions to make it workable. This bill would have shut down home selling in America! I can not understand where our representatives in congress get their ideas but this may be the dumbest one yet. The housing and automotive industries are the two that always pull our country out of economic downturns and we are trying but this bill would have shut us down. I … (1 comments)

Town of Boonton Real Estate - 10/26/09 08:04 AM
Some other interesting facts about Boonton, NJ real Estate. The town of Boonton or should I say old Boonton is located underneath the Jersey City Reservoir! When I was younger during droughts I can remember seeing some remains of houses and a church. When they decided to create the reservoir where the town was located was a good location (is one theory) and the other one is that someone miscalculated the water flow and voila a new lake! Either way it is a story that I understand has happened in multiple areas that towns are underneath water. I am assuming that … (1 comments)

Moving 7 - 10/26/09 07:56 AM
A few more moving glossary terms;
SIT is an acronym for Storage In Transit. This means when you are moving long distance, for example from NJ to Florida, and the shipper does not leave your old home and drive directly to your new home. The mover unloads the truck and stores your belongings in their warehouse. Sometimes you get charged for this sometimes not. If it is your request , maybe your new home is not ready yet etc, then it is a charge but if the shipper needs to fill out the shipment and you are ok with it being … (1 comments)

The Town of Boonton - 10/21/09 08:05 AM
I just read some other realtor blogs and saw how they do regular posts about the towns they live and work in. It hit me like a twenty pound sledge...duh...that should be part of what I am doing. So I figured I would start with a few little ancedotes about Boonton, where our office is located. Those of you of a certain age will remember dinner ware/serving ware that was popular a few years back that was unbreakable. Remember Boontonware? Our town was suprisingly where it was made. The real estate of Boonton has changed a bit over the years from … (2 comments)

Distressed Properties - 10/19/09 08:58 AM
I have a home listed that is in a high end community that is in disrepair. We have rented it out three times for the owner( a good family friend) and each tenant (who I recomended that he not rent to) has made the property progressively worse. The neighbors are now calling me to complain about the property and scheduling appoinments to view it then cancelling at the last minute. I have gotten to the point that I am going to start requesting pre-approvals before I show it. This way they will be forced to give me there ss number before I … (1 comments)

Anniversary Gifts - 10/16/09 10:28 AM
Today October 16th is our 4th wedding anniversary so I was looking for a nice gift and also a gag gift. So I looked up the Anniversary Year Gift Chart. You know first year is paper, Twenty Fifth is silver, and fifty is gold. As a realtor I like the fourty second anniversay year gift the best . It calls for improved real estate! I am going to figure a way to use that in my advertising. Valentines is not just a hallmark holiday any more, lets make it a real estate holiday too!
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Dry Wall part Deux - 10/16/09 10:13 AM
One part that I was just thinking of that added to the dry wall shortages was Hurricane Katrina. If everyone remembers when the storm hit and the aftermath there was an immediate surge in prices of home repair prices and a shortage of plywood, drywall, and other building materials.  This added to the urgency of needing to import supplies from China. Some conspiracy theorists will blame President Bush for this as his FEMA chief did not personaly inspect every piece of wall board going in but be that as it may that storm and the resulting demolishion of 'Nawlins helped to … (0 comments)

Dry Wall - 10/16/09 08:06 AM
I have read many Blog Posts and News articles about this recently and I figured it would be a good idea for me to share it with my readers. It seems from around 2004 to 2008 during our housing boom we were running out of drywall. So what did we do ? We imported it from China, thats what. The problem is that many "organic" compounds are found in this inferior drywall and it is emitting a sulfur like smell. Add to this that insurance companies are not only not covering repairs but they are actually dropping clients with it in … (4 comments)

Day Trading - 10/15/09 10:30 AM
So while I am online doing my other business I have decided to try my hand at day trading. I am not sure if I am qualified to do this but I am taking a shot with a small amount of money. I figure I have the time and if I can get a 2-3 percent return it is just like having it in a bank. I went with etrade to start the account and I am not sure if this is the best company but who knows. I am doing research now before I jump in. It is intresting for … (0 comments)

Brokerage versus Agent - 10/14/09 08:41 AM
When determining where to hang your real estate license it takes time and you need to evaluate splits versus desk fees versus office enviroment and finaly public opinion. In Morris County New Jersey, franchises are the name of the game plus a few huge privately held companies like Weichert. We have the corporate offices for Realogy, Weichert, C21, etc here. Coldwell Banker is all company owned here no franchises. Most home sellors seem to like a national name like Remax, when in reality the company really has very little to do with selling the home (other than support and back room … (2 comments)

Car Search - 10/14/09 08:30 AM
so those of you who have been following my blog know that I am looking for a car or truck. I have jumped back and forth on what I want and what fits my needs. We had decided on a Ford F150 four door. Then after further review the call on the field was reversed as my wife would not drive it as it was too big for her. Plus my last five cars have all been silver or grey so I want a different color this time. Even a loaner car the other day while her car was being worked … (4 comments)

Follow Up - 10/13/09 12:59 PM
So my mother-in-law is in St Joes of Wayne for a heart attack. Thankfully she is doing well. We have tried to get information from the doctors and nurses and social workers/case managers and no one will call us back or even give us information. My wife has full power of attorney and is health care proxy for her mother and she lives with us so hippa laws do not effect this situation. I can not believe that professionals are so un-professional. I can relate back to this for a property we own that is ready to close but the other … (2 comments)

Selling for cash - 10/11/09 04:28 PM
In todays economy and market situation I am seeing more and more properties receiving offers for cash. I like cash, as a matter of fact I love having cash in my pocket but a cash offer scares me. I myself have a piece of land for sale that is being sold....hopefully .... for cash. Not having any tangible commitment is nerve wracking. I like not having to worry about someone qualifying for a loan but not knowing if they can and will actualy pull the trigger on the deal makes me feel as if I do not have complete control of … (3 comments)

Buying a new home - 10/05/09 11:21 AM
So this weekend I was on the other side of the desk. My wife, Mary and I went out looking for a new home, since we are selling her mothers house. As I am lisecnsed in New Jersey and we were looking in Pennsylvania I decided to do  walk in at a local rel estate office. We fell in love with a condo on a golf course but the agent did not have all of the information we needed I learned a lot for my personal business and how to treat clients from this weekend The agent was a very verbose … (3 comments)

Yard Sign with Photo - 10/02/09 10:19 AM
 
This is our first go at a personalized sign, I am not sold on this particular personal picture for me personaly on my signs but it is the only professional one I have for this company right now. I am tweaking font sizes etc to make everything readable. we will be  using riders on our signs with individual call in numbers with call capture that will have pre recorded home info on them
 
 

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Moving 6 - 10/02/09 10:01 AM
When you are vacationing out of the country and english is not the predominant language it helps to know some of the local lingo. So when you are going to move it helps if you can speak mover at least a little bit. So here are some terms you may see on your BILL OF LADING
"The receipt for your goods and the contract for their transportation. It is your responsibility to understand the bill of lading before you sign it. If you do not agree with something on the bill of lading, do not sign it until you are satisfied … (1 comments)

Yard Signs - 10/01/09 08:35 AM
 
 
This is an example of our yard signs without a picture. it has taken me a while to get it settled so now I need to have it proffessionaly created you can only do so much in publisher and power point! I am happy so far with it. I have copyrighted our slogan many years ago and will be working on doing the same for the rest of the sign. It seems to be a good luck . Let me know what you all think. Thanks and have a sparkling day and go sell something!
 

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Life Gets You Down - 10/01/09 08:13 AM
Today I have to bring my mother-in-law to a doctor she has been struggling mentaly and having issues. Yesterday she called the police to say her son who lives in the house with us (a mother/daughter) is locked in his car and dead, needless to say he wasnt either. So we are figuring this was kind of the last straw and she will be relocateing to a retirement or rest home. This has upset my wife but she realizes it is time for her moms well being etc. I did not feel like going to work but then I thought of how … (2 comments)

 
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ERIC TRAUTMANN

Roxbury Twp, NJ

More about me…

Weichert Realtors

Address: 500 Route 10 West, Roxbury, NJ, 07876

Office Phone: (973) 584-2300 x 203

Cell Phone: (973) 222-0155

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Helping the home buyers and home sellers of New Jersey and real estate agents find the information they need to survive buying a home or selling a property. Twitter Button from twitbuttons.com View Eric Trautmann's profile on LinkedIn


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