Yes, it's happened again. For the past several years some national publication has picked Boise Idaho as one of the best places to live or a great place for business and industry.

In 2008 Forbes ranked Boise the 2nd best place in the nation for business climate and careers. Forbes cited the diverse business climate, strong econimic foundation, diverse culture and the wonderful atmosphere which offers the Boise River runing the middle of the city and impressive mountains in the backdrop.

And now U.S. News and world report has named Boise Idaho as the 4th best place in the nation to live for 2009. The article cites over 2,700 acres of parks, Micron Technologies, Hewlett-Packard and the diverse cultures that are evident throughout the city.

With all the talk about the struggling economy it's nice to know there are places like Boise, Idaho that have many areas that have never even felt the blow of the recession. There is a positive and vibrant atmosphere in Boise and many marvel at what it has to offer.

 Posted By: George Tallabas - Boise Idaho Real Estate Agent- Associate Broker 
with RE/MAX Advantage, Canyon Counties #1 Brokerage in sales and listings
specializing in Boise Idaho Real Estate and Southwest Idaho Real Estate. 

Yes, I was hesitant to write this blog because I have nothing new to report. It is the some ole, same ole with one long distant potential buyer and one buyer that went out with my buyer agent, sounded like a great buyer only to fizzle away and leave my buyer agent high and dry.

I woulld love to report I have had a sale and that I have a slew of new buyers waiting in line but I cannot tell a lie or my nose will grow leaps and bounds, ha ha!

I shall keep my chin up and hope for greener pastures around the corner.  If you want to learn more about Growth Leader click below and good luck to you.

Yes, last week I reported I had a HOT LEAD which has quickly turned colder than ice. She has not returned any of my calls or emails after having what I thought was a great conversation. One never knows and there may be some things in her life that has kept her from following up but I am not holding my breath. The two leads I have had this week have not left contact information.

On a brighter note, one past lead did go out with my buyer rep last week and this could turn in to something but it is too early to tell.  I also have had an out of state buyer contact me on a regular basis. Her and her husband are from Alaska and want to purchase a second home her in Idaho.

If these two leads turn in to something then I could avoid being skunked all these weeks!  I will keep my chin up and if you want to learn more about Growth Leader click the link below.

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 Posted By: George Tallabas - Boise Idaho Real Estate Agent- Associate Broker 
with RE/MAX Advantage, Canyon Counties #1 Brokerage in sales and listings
specializing in Boise Idaho Real Estate and Southwest Idaho Real Estate. 

After several weeks of lows and near highs that fizzled out I just received a lead this past week that may be the real thing! I spoke to this lead for a good 30 minutes and she seemed like the real deal!  She is a first time home buyer and was very interested in Idaho's First time home buyer program and the $8,000 federal tax credit program. I explained both programs in length.

After a lot of tire kickers it will be nice if this lead turns out to be what I believe it is.  I won't really know for 3-4 weeks when they plan on being in my area. The wife I spoke to indicated they will contact me a few days before they come to the area to make an appointment with me.

Wish me good luck and if you are interested in finding out more about Growth Leader click the link below and "Go for it".

Sorry, nothing new to announce. The some old same old. I have had one out of state buyer contact me that contacted me 3 weeks ago. They are considering a second home in Idaho and have been pre-approved for a loan with one of my lenders. 

Other than that there is nothing new to announce. I have signed up for "Vision 301" for next week in hopes I can find a way to generate more traffic to my site and make things happen.

If you want to find out more about Growth Leader click the link below and good luck.

Visitors to my Growth Leader site love to tease me. About every other week I get a lead that appears to be serious about buying a home. So far, every lead (there has been 4 of them) that initially communicated with me and tells me they want to connect with me have all cooled off as cold as ice! Two leads even called me and scheduled appointments and never followed through.

I feel that I am now starting off at week again one all over but maybe the record low interest rates, $8,000 tax credit to first time homebuyers, the incredible price of homes, and the sunshine spring has brought us will bring out some serious buyers that will follow through and actually show up for an appointment.

To all of those which have had good success with Growth Leader I wish you continued success. Some day maybe your luck will rub off on the rest of us.  Good luck to everyone on this gorgeous Easter Day!

I reported in week 3 & 4 that I had a hot lead but had to report in week 5 & 6 that this lead turned cold as ice and would not return any of my emails or calls. Well, I was certain my luck had turned around in week 5 when I had a conversation with a lead that had made an appointment with me.  At last I finally had a lead that would actually get in my car!  Well, that soon turned cold! An appointment with that lead last week turned up empty when they failed to honor an appointment!

This last week a new lead came in and she emailed me directly from Vision because she used to work here in my home town and left for 3 years to move to Oregon with her family.  Her husband and her have been back in Idaho for a year and now want to buy a home.  She recognized me because I did a lot of business with the title company where she used to work. We have spoken twice on the phone and there is an immediate trust.  We now have an appointment for next week to look at homes!

Will this be the real deal? I will report next week and let you all know. In the mean time click below to checkout Growth Leader and get all your questions answered.

Our market has been a tough one and one of the toughest on record. Many buyers are hesitant to come out of the woods because they don't know if they are going to have a job or not.  I have been hoping that with record low interest rates, low home prices and the $8,000 goverment tax credit for 1st time home buyers some serious buyers would come out of hiding.

Low an behold one of my leads from week 4 contacted me today and wants to go look at properties this coming week!  That long awaited lead that actually gets in my car may become a reality next week some time!

Wish me luck and if you want to know more about Growth Leader and all it has to offer click below and as the old saying goes..."Read all about it"!

Many SEO experts agree that one of the best ways for us to climb up the Google ladder with our websites is to comment on sites that have a high Google ranking. The problem for most of us is which sites do we comment on and how do we know what their page ranking is and if they are a good site to comment on?

A year ago Active Rain member Reil Roussopoulos gave me one of the best SEO tips I have ever been given. Riel told me there is a site out there that will not only allow me to select which sites to comment on but will also tell me what each sites page rank is.  Riel highly recommended Comment Kahuna and it has been awesome.

When you join Comment Kahuna and log on you will see a screen like this one below.  Before you begin you will have already entered the URL for your website and setup your profile. You then start by entering a key word to search such as "Global Warming". You then select what kind of search you want to do and then select the minimum and maximum page rank for your search.  This is the Google page rank of each site you will be shown.  You then select a profile which you setup when you signed in to Comment Kahuna. You then click "Search".

After you hit the search button this screen will come up. This shows the blogs and articles that are relative to what you are searching for. To the left of these sites are the page ranks for each site. You can then begin commenting on each site one by one. It's that simple.

Make sure and read the instructions before you start using Comment Kahuna. By reading the instructions you will easily understand all the functions like the "No Follow" button which is a debated topic. You will also want to vary your profile name.  For instance, one week you may want to use "Montana Real Estate" and the next week "Missoula Montana Homes", etc.  This way you will get the Google Juice for a varity of topics.

Aside from the incredible SEO benefit I can honestly tell you I have learned more than words can say by reading so many articles. I have found anything from a natural cure for arthritis to well written articles that have changed the way I view certain the world.

You can go to Comment Kahuna and play a video that shows you the benefit of the system. You can then sign up for FREE and start commenting your little heart out.

 Posted By: George Tallabas - Boise Idaho Real Estate Agent- Associate Broker 
with RE/MAX Advantage, Canyon Counties #1 Brokerage in sales and listings
specializing in Boise Idaho Real Estate and Southwest Idaho Real Estate.