Turkey All Over Again - 11/27/09 04:23 PM
   I have less than a hour to go at work today and all I can think about is getting home and eating Turkey Dinner Again.
 I had a Turkey sandwich for lunch and a piece of pumpkin pie. Yet all I can think about is getting home and having some more Turkey.
  Yesterday with family and friends we ate and ate until there was no more room. Sat in the family room let dinner digest than managed to find more room to have pie.
  What is it about the Turkey that makes you crave it day after day? … (1 comments)

Black Friday Real Estate - 11/27/09 04:05 PM
1) You don't have to get up at 4:00 AM.
2) No standing in line to get in.
3) No standing in line to checkout.
4) Prices lower than ever.
5) Charge at 5% vs 19% on credit card.
6) Great inventory to choose from.
7) Up to 30 years to pay.
8) Up to $8,000 cash back.
9) Prices going up.
10) Call me today to find out more.
… (1 comments)

More Homeowners Fall Behind on Mortgages - 11/24/09 06:12 PM
About one in seven American households with mortgages is behind on payments or in foreclosure, according to new data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. That is up from about one in 10 a year ago. .The group reported Thursday that 14.4% of first-lien mortgages on one-to-four-family homes in the third quarter were 30 days or more overdue or in the foreclosure process. That is the highest rate since the MBA began reporting such data in 1972, and works out to about 7.5 million households at risk of losing homes. The percentage is up from 10% a year earlier and 7.3% two … (4 comments)

Gettiny ready for a whole new range of domain names! - 11/24/09 11:43 AM
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has decided to radically expand the choices of domain names that can be assigned. Two new proposals to the regulatory group were considered that would allow non-Latin characters (e.g. Russian, Chinese, Arabic, etc.) and also allow domains to consist of any letter or number combination up to 64 characters in length. The proposal to consider non-Latin characters will be tested before final approval. The proposal to open up domain names was approved. The change was initiated by concerns that all the meaningful domain names in the English language have already been bought up. … (2 comments)

How Much Technology Is Too Much? - 11/24/09 11:21 AM
I have a friend who is a long-standing real estate agent in my neighborhood. This fellow is completely wired! And I mean literally. He has a notebook, a blackberry, a Boingo! account (wireless anywhere), a fax-to-email service, and 3 different websites. He can type 120 wpm and he can thumb text faster than my 18-year old daughter! As far as real estate goes, he seems to be doing OK (we haven't really talked numbers) -- I mean, he's been an agent now for more than 10 years, so something must be working, he takes a good vacation to a beach spot … (6 comments)

Buying and Selling through the Holidays - 11/22/09 12:03 PM
 The Holidays have always been a busy time for us in our Real Estate market. It is great working with buyer's that are looking around the holidays. They are serious buyers they know what they want and don't spend alot of time looking. This year with the new tax incentives it looks like we won't be disappointed. Hopefully everyone has this same opportunity this year. Happy Holidays!!!
… (0 comments)

Making it easier to find the property you want on Google Maps - 11/20/09 03:43 PM
Around half of the Googlers in our Sydney headquarters are software engineers, working on some really cool things - Google Wave, App Engine, Google Docs, and of course, Google Maps. Recently, some of us have been working on a particularly interesting project that combines Google Maps and search technology - we've been trying to work out if your search query in Google Maps means you're interested in having current real estate listings returned to you. It's nice to get to work on some 'search' engineering down here! So here's what we've been cooking up - in the past, if you wanted … (1 comments)

IDX – Make it Prominent & Easy - 11/20/09 10:25 AM
It would be difficult to find a real estate professional who doesn’t understand the value of a website, and the need to have some type of MLS search displayed on it. Yet, a great many of them also complain that they get few or no leads from their websites. First, if you’re not using some type of analytic or statistics software to track your site’s visitors and the pages they view, you may not even know where you need to concentrate for improvement. Once you know what’s going on, you can do what is necessary to make it better. How many … (0 comments)

Effective Real Estate Marketing Strategies - 11/20/09 10:15 AM
Congratulations! It's official. You're finally a licensed real estate agent. So, what do you do now? Newly licensed real estate agents all over the country face the same dilemma; life after real estate agent licensing exams. Truth is there are more real estate agents than you can shake a stick at, but only a few fully embrace the opportunity to distinguish themselves from the others. Simply being licensed is no longer enough and there are no guaranteed shortcuts to success. Still, there are scores of companies guaranteeing success if you buy their products. Well, save your money because there are no … (0 comments)

Clarification on FHA - 11/20/09 07:13 AM
FHA potential changes -- there is talk of a possible increase in the mortgage insurance premium and/or increased down payment requirements for FHA borrowers. This conversation is happening due to what is perceived to be a shortage in reserve funds at FHA. Reserve funds are there to cover claims for projected losses. In reality, FHA has money and should not need a bail-out and there is no impending doom. However, in this climate of increased mortgage defaults, there is always the potential for things to change. Historically, when there are FHA changes, we are given advance notice and an "effective date" … (0 comments)

Turning website visitors into true Prospects - 11/19/09 11:37 AM
We've talked before about getting traffic to your website. I'm going to assume you're getting traffic. But traffic means nothing unless you're actually getting contacted by visitors to your site. No contact means no prospect. So how do you convert a visitor to a contact? The answer is simple: Sales 101 -- you have to give them a good reason to contact you and you have to ask to be contacted. Most people get the first part correct; it's the second part they forget. There is a big difference between the website that says: "Hi! I'm Bob Smith." and the one … (2 comments)

Working on Your Homepage - 11/19/09 11:17 AM
When someone visits your site, you get exactly one chance to grab their attention. The second or two it takes the visitor to scan the contents of your home page is all the time you have to do it. They better find something interesting in those few seconds, or they’re off to the next site. What does that mean? It means first that everything in your site should be somehow visible – if only as a “tease” – on your homepage. It also means, since you have no idea the nature or characteristics of the visitor, that you ought to have … (2 comments)

Time Management - 11/18/09 07:16 AM
Time Management There is no doubt that time is a business person's most precious resource. In fact, time is everyone's most precious resource. We never realize how precious time is until we run out of it. George Burns had 100 years, yet he never had time for his final performance. We all waste too much of this precious resource. Many years ago when we began teaching methods of improving time management skills, we introduced the concept of 1435 in order to prove a major point. What is 1435? It is the number of minutes left in the day after we waste … (3 comments)

Topics for Buyers & Sellers - 11/16/09 02:31 PM
Peace of Mind Home Buyers Worried about High Unemployment The average duration that unemployed workers are out of a job is currently more than six months, near the highest level since the bureau started tracking the figure in 1948. The total number of unemployed people stands at 15.1 million. 5.4 million of those have been looking for work for more than 27 weeks. With incentives in the housing market, including very low interest rates, a large selection of homes for sale in many markets, and highly affordable home prices, concerns about the job market and possible unemployment have held back many … (0 comments)

The Housing Market - 11/16/09 11:23 AM
Existing Home Sales – Up over 9% Existing home sales bounced back strongly in September with much of the increase being attributed to the rush of first-time buyers trying to claim the tax credit before the end of this month. Sales jumped 9.4 percent to 5.57 million units over August sales of 5.09 million, marking five gains in the past six months and is 9.2 percent above levels seen last year. Sales activity is at the highest level since July 2007 when sales hit 5.73 million. Median Home Price Existing-home price was $174,900 in September, 6 percent higher from its low … (0 comments)

Budding signs of Recovery - 11/16/09 09:00 AM
Budding signs of recovery continued last month. The encouraging news arrived in a number of closely followed economic indicators. On Thursday, October 29, the U.S. Commerce Department stated the country's recession has officially ended, at least as leading data indicates. U.S. GDP expanded 3.5 percent in the third quarter, the first period of quarterly growth in more than a year. A strong bounce in housing sales activity in September, mainly due to first-time buyers' efforts to claim the tax credit before it expires for November 30, pointed to stabilization in the housing sector. And more good news this week as an … (1 comments)

Don't be a Social Media Statistic - 11/16/09 07:19 AM
Everyone needs to be aware of what phishing is and what to expect. It can happen on any social networking site, which was proven last month on Facebook when viruses spread across the site like wild fire. In that scam, users were urged to update their information by clicking on a provided link which took them to a fake Facebook login page. Once they entered in their information, it was stolen and their accounts were hacked, spreading the virus even further. A hacked account on Twitter or even Facebook can lead to account suspensions, or worse, you can be shut out … (4 comments)

SEO Marketing can you Afford to Miss - 11/13/09 10:51 AM
In the Internet, SEO marketing is the way to go if you want your business to be seen and heard. There is such a thing as an SEO marketing specialist who aids clients and website owners in their quest to have bigger sales and more traffic to the site. The Aim of SEO Marketing SEO marketing has only one aim and that is to bring traffic to a certain site. Traffic is seen as prospective buyers and clients of the site owner. Therefore, traffic is a much needed "commodity". Many Internet users visit sites that they have been redirected to or … (0 comments)

Calm before the Storm - 11/12/09 07:53 AM
U.S. foreclosure filings fell for the third straight month in October -- which "at first blush" may indicate the tide is turning, though fundamental forces driving foreclosures "continue to loom," with filings up about 19 percent compared to October 2008, foreclosure data provider RealtyTrac reported today. James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer for RealtyTrac, reported that "high-risk mortgages, negative equity and unemployment" are among the contributors to higher foreclosure activity on a year-over-year basis in most states. RealtyTrac reported 332,292 U.S. foreclosure filings in October, down 3.3 percent from September and up 18.9 percent compared to October 2008. Nevada had the … (1 comments)

The Great Cranberry Harvest - 11/11/09 08:12 AM
As the Thanksgiving Holiday approaches, we share some information on cranberries (the 'some love, some hate' turkey side-kick). One of the unique things about this fruit, is the manner in which it is harvested. The fruits are 'floated' in a bog. Check out this video on how they are harvested The cranberry is in the same genus as the blueberry (Vaccinium) - both are native North American fruits introduced to settlers by the American Indians. Cranberry juice was first made by colonists in 1683, but not produced commercially until 1930. Cranberries evolved in unique wetland conditions created by melting glaciers (now … (0 comments)

Did You Know - 11/10/09 10:56 AM
More people are becoming landlords in an economy where selling a home can be challenging. The nation's secondlargest home insurer, Allstate Corp., says the number of homeowners converting their homeowners insurance to landlord policies rose 27 percent in the first quarter of 2009. Jim Bass of Jim Bass Real Estate Group in Frederick, MD., says he has begun offering property-management services for absent owners, many of whom are convinced it will be easier to sell in a couple of years … (1 comments)

FHA to Move to 5.0% Down - 11/10/09 10:33 AM
Some congressmen are becoming more concerned about the Federal Housing Administration's financial plight and they want to increase FHA's downpayment requirement to 5%. Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., said FHA is operating at the same dangerous leverage ratios that led to the takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Rep. Scott Garrett, R-N.J., said he has drafted a bill that would increase the FHA downpayment requirement to 5% from the current 3.5% level. "There are increasing reports of the likely necessity of a taxpayer bailout for the FHA and this legislation aims to implement reforms to try to prevent such a bailout … (1 comments)

Taking the Time to get it right. - 11/10/09 10:05 AM
   O.K the new tax credit has been approved and is all over the nightly news, the internet and the office. So how many different versions are out there and do your clients have the right one. That is why I have decided to take this opportunity to call everyone and anyone that may be considering buying or selling. This is a great touch and your clients are glad to hear from you. Just one other way to help with that Lead Generation program.
… (1 comments)

Did you Know - 11/09/09 04:38 PM
The recession has more than halved the formation of new households. Between March 2007 and March 2008, the number of new households grew by 772,000, compared with an increase of 1.63 million a year earlier, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. New households result in fewer home sales and rentals, less furniture sold, and less work for electricians, carpenters, painters-and real estate professionals. Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies estimates that the glut of 1.5 million new homes created during the housing boom would be gone now if households had been forming at historical levels. The downturn also has pushed … (1 comments)

The Incredible Shrinking House - 11/09/09 04:07 PM
For the first time in almost 15 years, the size of new homes built in the United States is shrinking. New homes are now 7% smaller, or the size of one averagesized room. To be precise, the median square footage of newly built homes fell to 2,065 square feet in the first three months of this year, compared with the same period last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. 2008 marked the first year of declines since 1994. That could indicate that the romance between Americans and morbidly obese McMansions has finally cooled. "A new ethic is arising right now … (2 comments)

Job loss spreads foreclosures - 11/08/09 10:07 AM
I am not surprised that foreclosures are spreading from the initial core markets to areas that we thought more conservative. These are the people out of work for which there is no voice and no recourse politically. Banks were allowed to sell mortgages to unqualified or marginally qualified borrowers to feed Wall Street. In no other country is this allowed. Freedom is not measured by how much money one can borrow but by the type of stable life one is entitled to live. All these ups and downs in the end break people's back. … (3 comments)

The next Wave of foreclosures - 11/08/09 09:06 AM
The number of option ARMs (adjustable-rate mortgages) ready to reset is amazing in California. Not only did the balance go sky high but they are so underwater. Some are paying the negative amortization payment because it's affordable. Some are choosing to walk. If the servicers do nothing, there is going to be a huge -- and I mean huge -- wave of foreclosures. People seem not to care anymore. They seem to be saying, "Pay me to keep this house that is underwater by $200,000." I can go rent a house for less than my house payment, and a bigger one … (3 comments)

Can't Purchase Now? Rent to Own! - 11/07/09 11:31 AM
There is good and bad news in this present real estate market. First, experts are declaring that now is the time to purchase a home, which is great news for many Americans-Now is the time to buy, but that opportunity may be slipping away. For people who have a job and money, a dream house is within reach, writes Marc Roth, founder of Home Warranty of America and a columnist for BusinessWeek. He points out that mortgage rates remain low, prices are still at historic lows and the government is offering incentives for first-time homebuyers. He also adds that the inventory … (0 comments)

Good conversations to have with your sellers about pricing - 11/07/09 11:16 AM
Most homeowners have never had to face the reality that their home's value may have declined since they purchased it, or that it's worth less than they were counting on selling it for a few years ago.  Here are some solid scripts and strategies from Masterminds attendees for explaining current realities to prospects.
Give statistics with charts and graphs showing the ratio of homes on the market relative to actual sales. "It's not about the ‘value' of your home. It's about what needs to be done to show value to the buyer." "According to the National Association of REALTORS, if you … (4 comments)

Tax Credit - 11/07/09 10:45 AM
After the Senate gave final approval last night without a dissenting vote, the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly this afternoon to pass legislation containing an extension and expansion of the homebuyer tax credit, completing Congressional action and sending the tax credit to President Obama for his signature, possibly as early as tomorrow. The $8,000 homebuyer tax credit for first-time buyers, due to expire in 25 days, will be extended through April 30 of next year and buyers will have an additional two months, until the end of June, to close. First-time buyers who are in process of making a purchase will … (0 comments)

Pray for our troops. - 11/06/09 10:14 AM
 Every day I pray for our troops to come home safe and end this war. After what happened yesterday at Fort Hood it brings to light how our soilders put there liveson the line everyday. I can't imagine how hard it has to be to leave the people you love  behind not knowingif you will ever see them again. What happened at Ft. Hood is very sad and for what reason we will probably never know. Remember our soilders volinteer to serve our country and need to be thanked by us the people who depend on them. So please at the end of your long … (1 comments)

Setting Yourself Apart... - 11/03/09 01:03 PM
      Setting yourself apart from your competition can be as easy as a killer pre-listing packet. NAR statistics show that only 10 percent of Real Estate agents are taking the time to drop off a pre-listing packet to there clients. Since 90% of this information is canned in top producer you only have to add the other 10 it makes it very easy. Not only will you be the only one doing this but it will cut down the amount of time that you have to spend sitting in front of the seller with your listing presentation. With all of your information, and … (0 comments)