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My New Year's Resolutions - 12/31/07 08:18 PM
Yeah. It's that time again. All good intentions and resolutions.
According to the American Heritage Dictionary (as found on dictionary.com) a resolution is:
"A course of action determined or decided on."
So here is the course of action(s):
Develop a Blog with at least 50 subscribersDrop at least 50 pounds off my body weightCreate at least twice the production and twice the income as I did in 2007Stop worrying so much.I read somewhere that one shouldn't load up on a bunch of resolutions.  The idea being that if you stay focused on a few one's chances of following through are a lot better and … (4 comments)

Paying to Blog, episode 7 - 12/29/07 04:48 PM
As a Realtor, I sometimes get excited, maybe too excited, when an offer comes in on one of my listings or when a Buyer I'm working with decides it's time to write an offer on a home.  I think, "Wooo! Whooooo!  Now the fun stuff starts." I also think, "Hey, I may actually see some money!"
Now, I know I'm only supposed to be in this business to help other people and the money part is just, you know, nice. But I do like to see a couple of dollars added to my bank account so I can pay the mortgage and … (6 comments)

How Long Will It Take Your House To Sell? - 12/29/07 09:50 AM
When you're deciding on what to price your home for in order for it to sell, it is interesting to see how long, in general, it is taking for homes to sell in your area. This is known as the absorption rate.
The table below is for all the homes in College Park and Berwyn Heights (20740) during the last 365 days (12 months), 180 days (6 months) and 90 days (3 months). 
This table is very general.  It takes into consideration all homes within all price ranges. Higher priced homes as well as lower priced homes.  Believe it or not, you can … (0 comments)

Preparing Your Home to Sell -- Location - 12/27/07 08:46 PM
There is an old saying that says the three most important things about real estate is "Location. Location. Location."  This has been repeated so often by so many that no one questions it anymore.  The fact of the matter is that, as important as location is with real estate, it is not the only important aspect.  As I mentioned in my two previous posts, Price and Condition, are equally, in not more important than Location.
It is location that you, as a home seller, have no control over.  Your house is on it's piece of the earth and, more than likely, it … (0 comments)

Preparing Your Home to Sell -- Condtion - 12/24/07 09:35 AM
Back in the days of the boom, home sellers really didn't need to do anything to fix up their home in order to prepare it for sale.  Heck, all they really needed to do is put it on the market, advertise a bit and, WHAM!, people seemed to be ready to line up to buy it.
In fact, many people didn't even tidy their place up.  Clothes on the floor, dishes in the sink, dirty carpets and marked up walls were pretty normal. And that's just the cosmetic stuff.  Forget fixing the roof or the leaking faucet or the malfunctioning electrical outlets.
If … (0 comments)

Pricing Your Home To Sell - 12/22/07 01:05 PM
There is a video that was put together by a fellow Realtor down in Charlottesville, VA who writes a blog on RealEstateZerbra.com. The video is short and direct without a lot of hoopla and, to some, it may be way too fundamental and elementary - home movie. Click here to take a look.
In fact, I have a nice DVD I lend out to my Seller clients specifically called, "Pricing Your Home to Sell" produced and narrated by David Knox, a long time real estate speaker and trainer. This particular DVD is 20 minutes long and looks a lot nicer … (0 comments)

Home Trends for 2008 - 12/21/07 01:52 PM
Every so often Lowe's, the home improvement store, sends me e-mail with tips about selling homes and things to do that might make my job a little easier. It's always interesting to read and since it's just one page I can pick up an idea or two I can pass on to my clients. So, if you're interested in what Lowe's has to say about Home Trends in 2008 all you have to do is Click Here to download and print out the flyer.
… (0 comments)

A Random Walk in the Blogosphere - 12/18/07 07:05 AM
As many of the readers know, I've been working with RSS Pieces to design and implement a blog that is beautiful, functional and loaded with SEO. While I'm waiting for that dream to come to fruition, I decided to click around the 'Net to see what was out there.  After all, I'm told there are 50 million + blogs out in cyberspace.
The trip was amazing and I just skimmed the surface.
What occurred to me was that my trip was totally link based.  For example, on Seth Godin's Blog there is a recent post about outsourcing...but at the very end of the … (2 comments)

What is it with the Year End Letter? - 12/14/07 07:12 PM
In addition to all the Christmas cards my wife and I have been getting (and appreciate) we got two year-end letters catching us up on the doings of a past client and a friend from church.  Now, I normally enjoy these things but something occurred to me this year. How do these people fit a full year of activities onto one side of an 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper -- one with wide margins to accommodate the Christmas motif along the border of the page???
This is particularly interesting to me since I started blogging.  Heck, if I don't restrain myself … (3 comments)

Just wanted to let you know these houses are still available. - 12/04/07 08:35 PM
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