my old blog

In their afternoon news program, CNN asked the question - Sit or Sell?  Because of the state of the economy and housing market, many sellers are deciding to wait until the market improves. To answer the question of whether to sell now or wait it out,  CNN told  the story of a homeowner in MD who ...

... especially when you're selling a house.  Sellers rely on their Realtor to help them understand the local market and their competition when setting the initial price - and in this market, it can often be shocking news.  Realtors need to give an honest assessment and help their sellers come to ...

Memorial Day used to be solemnly observed by remembering those who died in service to our country. Flags were flown at half mast, stores were closed and there were parades, speeches, and prayers.  But times have changed and now many observe the long Memorial Day weekend at the beach or shopping t...

Here's a great solution from Karen Fiddler when your buyers and sellers are at an impasse. Most of us go out of our way to keep buyers and sellers apart prior to closing, but bringing them together in a pleasant setting worked wonders in getting their issue resolved.     "This is not about you or...

In a fun flashback to the Psychedilic 60's, clients of the Elder Day Stay (EDS)  in Tallahassee, Fl, were treated to Music, Trivia, Snacks, Hippie Jokes, and a "Flower Power" craft, sponsored by the Zonta Club of Tallahassee.  Everyone joined in the fun and reminisced, laughed, and shared stories...

Join the AR Facebook Fridays group if you want to be "introduced" to new ideas and help out fellow bloggers at the same time.  There are so many interesting and informed people on ActiveRain that you may never meet unless you're lucky enough to be looking on AR where/when they left a post or thei...

Great curb appeal can be the difference between many showings and few/none.  If your lawn doesn't look great, it's a turn off. A healthy lawn can often be achieved simply through an optimum watering schedule. Free help is available from the Irrigation Water Management Society, a non-profit organi...

YouTube recently launched a channel  for politicians, called YouTube Town Hall, to debate both sides of major issues and allow viewers to select the view they support.  This sounds like a great use of social media since anyone with a computer can attend the "Town Hall".  Politicians don't identif...

Never mind the fact that the QRM provision applies only to conventional loans, the whole idea of it is to give lenders an exemption to keeping 5% of each sale (that becomes part of an MBS) in reserves as "risk rentention", to minimize the chance that they will make risky loans as they did in the ...

The lovely craftsman style home at 3021 Four Oaks Blvd in Southwood, built by Foundation Homes of Northwest Florida, is the recipient of the Best of Show Platinum Award. The same home also won the Gold Award  for homes priced between $200k-$280k. I'm not surprised.  It looked like a winner to me ...