Myrtle Beach Real Estate by Mirela Monte

LOL FRIDAY - Arranged Marriage

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 08:35:26 -0500

What? Wordless Thursday?

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:20:01 -0500

No Reason, I just love this photo and I won't have time on Wed to post

No problem; I'll re-post it for you.

What? It's Thursday already?

No problem: We'll have Wordless Thursday!

I Love the picture too!

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Via Cherry Temple:

What Do You Love About Myrtle Beach - A One Minute Movie

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:42:50 -0500

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Myrtle Beach in June Captured by I-Phone - Wordless Wednesday

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:20:56 -0500

Confessions of an REO Agent...

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:10:45 -0500

Property values are all over the place. Appraisers are tip-toeing around, not sure what to do about values in today's market. Most of the time, they just appraise the property at the sales price, thus not rocking the boat.

Oceanfront condos that were selling for $330K, are now selling for $110K. Yes, that's right: they are selling for a 66% discount off the 2005 price!!! Sure they are bank owned, but then again, what isn't these days?

Most of my business is now foreclosure based (about 75% of it). Bank Owned properties are relatively easy to deal with. There is no rhyme or reason to it all and it all hinges on which asset manager is handing that property and what day of the week it is. I have seen banks turn down a $430K offer, only to accept a $330K offer several weeks later on the same property. Lose $100K? Are they crazy? What do you think?

Incapable listing agents have a preponderance of these properties. They do little advertising, they are hard to reach and deal with and frankly most of them are quite obtuse. Going through a transaction with one of these "foreclosure hogs" is like having root canal for 4 weeks. PLLLLLEASE!!! Will some asset managers pay attention and spread the business around to more capable agents? We are having a real problem here, one that contributes to this deluge of "stale" properties.

Luckily there are a few capable ones and I prefer to deal with them. They will actually work to get these bank owned homes sold and once I bring an offer, we generally manage to get the deal closed. Thank God for you Foreclosure Queens (you know who you are, and so do the agents in the area - I, myself, am working toward that status right now, having some great bank clients that actually listen to me and take my advice).

As an REO Agent deep in the trenches of today's capricious market, here is my advice to Buyers: 1. Stay away from short sales! They take forever, and many of them eventually go to foreclosure. You are told you have the property, but you may never close on it, all the while losing other better deals.

2. Bid, bid, bid! There are neighborhoods where we don't have a single comp for over a year. Evaluating property in such a neighborhood is difficult. Make an offer! You may write 20 offers before one sticks, but one will eventually do so. Don't be afraid to bid on the same home several times. That $489K home that you bid $270K on last week? Come back and bid $290K this week! If that doesn't work, bid $300K next week. I just sold a home with a similar scenario. The Buyer ended up paying only $310K for a home priced at $489K.

3. If a deal is what you're after, you can't fall in love with the home. Just as it is in Life, you'll end up paying more for it if you do...

4. Work with an REO experienced agent. I started work on my REO certifications at the end of 2007, and that was a very smart thing to do. I know how to navigate the REO waters and it makes a world of difference to my clients' pockets... Don't expect me to taxi you around and treat you like a Diva; it's just not going to happen. I will give you a daily supply of listings and you'll be on your own to do all the driving around and previewing property. Once you find what you like, I will arrange the interior showing with one of my agents. If you like what you see, that's where I come in and earn my keep. You will do very well. When all is said and done you will be sitting pretty financially, having garnered an extraordinary buy, for pennies on the dollar. Time frame for success? It can happen in one day; it can happen in three months. Patience may be required.

5. CASH is King! Making a Real Estate Purchase in Cash is not all that unusual nowadays in our REO World. Don't expect the Bank to believe that you have money either; you have to actually PROVE it. Bank statements illustrating your dough should suffice. You have to attach it to your offer, along with a serious earnest money deposit. You want to impress the Bank to take your offer over all the others, don't you?

6. NO CASH? No problem! Just apply for a loan with a reputable Lender BEFORE you start shopping for Bank Owned properties. Banks will not accept your measly Lender letter anymore. They want hard proof that you can BUY that home; the Bank wants a "Commitment Letter". That means that you've submitted all your tax forms for the past two years, your formal application, your pay stubs etc. The application was run through underwriting and they deemed you worthy of the loan for that specific amount. Are you starting to see a pattern here? Yup! It's the Good ol' Golden Rule: "He who has the Gold, makes the Rule"...

7. Last, but not Least: BUY, BUY, BUY! Today's market will be referred to as the Market that made and broke people. You don't want to tell your grand kids: "If only I had bought in 2009..."

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Baytree Golf Colony #12B, 3700 Golf Colony Lane in Little River SC

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 19:39:51 -0500

If you’ve been talking about owning property in Myrtle Beach, this time you can finally jump in.

This wonderful fixer upper has great bones: perfect floor plan and location, excellent amenities (indoor and outdoor pools, Jacuzzis and tennis courts).

Located less than 5 minutes to the Beach, this 2BR/2BA artist loft is bathed in light. Must see to believe! Hurry; this won’t last long!

www.BaytreeGolfColony.info

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QUAIL MARSH # C-101, 2005 GREENS BLVD. in Myrtle Beach SC

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 19:22:06 -0500

Investment start-up. Extremely affordable 2BR/2BA first floor, corner condo located at Quail Marsh in Myrtle Beach, right across from Broadway at the Beach and walking distance to Pelican’s Stadium, Myrtle Waves and the Myrtle Beach Convention Center.

This Myrtle Beach condo is ever so close to everything that our area has to offer. What an excellent opportunity to own property in Myrtle Beach! Incredibly priced at $45,000!

For more information: www.QuailMarsh.com

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection

Myrtle Beach Real Estate and Vacations

55 PINEBURY DRIVE GEORGETOWN SC

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 17:30:15 -0500

Built in the grand style of old Southern Mansions, this low country style home located in the Riverfront community of Harmony Township in Georgetown, SC is sure to steal your heart.

Serenity abounds here. Take a stroll down the oak lined streets all the way to the river. Your boat safely tucked away in the Neighborhood Marina, you can set sail to other unspoiled Southern lands.

Reminiscent of Gone with the Wind, this remarkable neighborhood is only a 45 minute drive to Charleston and 20 minutes to Myrtle Beach.

This is a Bank Owned Home, selling for pennies on the dollar. Bring all offers!

For more information go to: www.BankOwnedHome.info

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810 Sea Mountain Hwy in North Myrtle Beach SC

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 17:09:07 -0500

Red Light Special for the Investor: 5 unit apartment building located on Sea Mountain Hwy., the main thoroughfare through Cherry Grove Beach.

Each unit is a spacious 1,350 sq. ft. with 3BR/2BA, upstairs/downstairs Town home style. No HOA fees.

Located within walking distance of the Beach and right next to the Marsh. This is a short-sale. Bring all offers!

For more info, go to: www.MarshVista.com

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection

LOL FRIDAY - Real Estate Now - This is How We Do It:

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:24:05 -0500

A career in Real Estate Sales is not for Sissies...

Nowadays all marketing vehicles must be employed to get our listings sold.

Here is one of our very own, teaching the latest "tricks of the trade" on how to navigate this volatile Real Estate Market:

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection Join us for LOL FRIDAY on The Optimist Group!

SHOULD I PAY MY MORTGAGE? SHOULD I STOP PAYING MY MORTGAGE?

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 23:46:17 -0500

Via Richard Zaretsky, Florida Real Estate Attorney (Richard P. Zaretsky P.A. ):

This seems to be THE NUMBER ONE question I get. Unfortunately there are several answers and which is correct for you depends on the Circumstances. I will address the common scenarios in this article.

Policy in my office is to never "tell" - as in "instruct" - our borrower client to pay or not to pay their mortgage. Paying or not paying has a lot of collateral effects and the borrower needs to know what they are before making the decision. We don't make the decision for the borrower (our client) because the effects of paying or not paying are not going to affect me - but they will affect the client, so it is the client that must make the final decision.

Let me make one issue clear - when we are hired to help facilitate a short sale or loan modification it is far easier for us to negotiate with the lender if the payments are late, but it is almost never a requirement. The exceptions to which will be discussed later in this article. Additionally, internal rules change at the banks constantly. A new client came in totally frustrated. They called their bank to help with a modification and the bank said they could not address their situation until they were at least 60 days late. So the near perfect (800+) credit score couple stopped paying for 60 days and then called the bank back. Now the bank says that because they are 60 days late they cannot speak to them about a modification! The point is, if you don't have to be late then why voluntarily create a late payment credit history that will adversely affect your credit-dependent life almost immediately and for years to come?

SO LET'S GET INTO IT - Danger - this is a long article and it covers a lot of ground!

Short Sale:

A borrower that is current and contemplating a short sale wonders if they should stop paying their (first) mortgage. They are upside down and until now they have been current. However they are paying the mortgage at a cost of not paying other bills. (Other or different facts may be that they are paying all their bills but taking the money from savings or a pension fund to make those payments, or they are borrowing money from another equity loan).

Generally, it is not a good idea to get into debt to pay your mortgage, unless you have a solid plan to both (i) keep the mortgage current and (ii) repay the additional indebtedness you are creating. It is not like taking from one pocket to put into another - it is more like taking from someone else's pocket to pay your bills. This would include credit card loans as the source of funds. It all has to be paid back, so if you don't have a plan to pay it back, don't borrow it in the first place! You are only digging a bigger hole for yourself and making it harder to get out of the hole.

If you are taking from your pension or savings money, again you better have a rock solid plan to get that money back into those accounts, or there is no sense in giving up that hard earned and usually irreplaceable retirement money, especially considering these are monies that are usually protected from creditors' judgments including those your mortgage lender could obtain (deficiency judgment)..

Of course the "amount" of money you have "in reserve" comes into consideration. If you have 2 million dollars in reserve and you decide to spend 10% of it to keep the loans current until you can short sale the property, that plan has a basis that the 10% is not going to make a difference in the way you run your life over the remaining time you have left as a mere mortal.

Sometimes, but rarely, we run into a lender that says they won't approve a short sale or modification because the borrower is current with his payments. When we have encountered this it is in most cases associated with a government backed loan, (but later on we will show you why this may be motivated by plain greed on the part of a loan servicer). A properly compiled financial snapshot of the borrower should show why they are current and what will happen if the short sale or modification is not approved.

Your decision on how to proceed should be based on what goal you are trying to accomplish and how you plan to get to that goal (see how to determine your goal).

Mortgage Modification:

Apart for some voluntary government programs regarding (Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac) government involved mortgages, I know of no lender that absolutely will not deal with a borrower who is current with their mortgage payments. Lenders deal with all sorts of situations and "absolutely not" is just not in the vocabulary. A typical borrower calling a lender may hear that they must be late, but that is more of a "vetting" statement than an absolute policy.

The exceptions are some government program guides for modification. The first step to seeing if your loan comes within this exception is to see if it is a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loan. You can do this online at the Making Home Affordable site. Many servicers and lenders whose loans are not "government backed" are now choosing to follow this government plan (known as the Home Affordable Modification plan or more affectionately called the "Obama Plan" - see below) for the simple reason that they are being compensated by the government for each successful modification they execute within its guidelines, and either the servicer or lender receive a residual bonus for the loan staying current under the modification. In these cases we have seen non-government backed loans insist on the borrower being late to qualify for modification as well. What is confusing on this point is that when the plan was introduced it included modifications (and compensation for such) for current loans as well. However, we are told time and time again from the lenders directly that they must be late to qualify. There is no such rule in the guidelines.

While this is contrary to what has been published by the government about the plan, keep mind that following the plan and any of its various aspects is entirely voluntary and up to the Lender or servicer. They can pick and chose from this plan as they see fit for their own internal reasons. Here is a more interesting twist - a servicer that modifies a delinquent loan is paid more under this incentive plan than if the borrower were to modify while the loan is current! If the borrower is current, the servicer can receive up to $3,500 in incentive fees from the government. If the borrower is delinquent, the servicer can receive up to $4,000 in incentive fees from the government. Thus it seems that it pays ($500 to)the servicer to encourage a borrower to be delinquent!

We often see a client that fits the profile for modification under this government plan. Some of these plans are said to require that to be qualified the borrower must be late 60 days (see Guidelines page 5 at bottom). But in fact, being late is not a requirement, but only one factor of many (see Guidelines page 16 at the top - "However, a NPV (net present value) positive result is not necessary to qualify a loan for a Home Affordable Modification"). If the goal is to qualify under such a plan as put in place by the lender at that time, then to accomplish that qualification the borrower may need to make themselves late, but that cannot be determined in a 2 minute telephone call with a lender representative. I cringe when we go this route because just like these "plans" came into existence, I can see them change the plan thus leaving the now 60 day late borrower with ruined credit scores that occurred needlessly.

Generally about a quarter of our modification clients never go late and still get a modification offer from the lender. However, keep in mind that nearly all lenders put up as their first line of defense the policy that going late is a necessity to qualify. We can only speculate this is done to deter the enormous inflow of loan modification requests from borrowers that would come in if this was NOT said to be a requirement. It also helps address those in the most dire amount of need first.

The Pro's and the Con's:

The general rule of thumb we use is if you can pay your mortgage and maintain your life's necessities, you may consider keeping the loan current, taking the points in this article into account. However, if you need to choose between buying food or medications and paying the mortgage, the decision that should be made is clear: your life necessities take precedent.

Here are the pro's to consider when in the short sale or modification process. Keeping the loan CURRENT has the following benefits:

a) Your credit score is not dinged until the short sale transaction occurs (and not at all in most loan modifications) and your overall credit score reduction will be minimized, and b) You will remain in good standing with your lender without worry of penalties, fines, or a foreclosure.

The "con's" of keeping the loan current are that:

(a) You will be out of pocket for the monthly mortgage payment (monies which you may or may not need to survive), and

(b) Your lender may question the sincerity of your claimed hardship, and you may be spending funds that would otherwise be potentially (but rarely) forgiven by the lender. In addition, occasionally the lenders in a short sale may require a lump sum payment above the sale amount from the borrower to forgive the debt. Coming up with that money is sometimes the difference between a deal or no-deal. If you can put your mortgage payments aside and stockpile them, it will help you cover that potential lump sum.

A similar pro/con approach applies to GOING DELINQUENT with your mortgage. In favor of going late is being able to keep the unspent mortgage payments in your pocket (or applied towards other necessities as the case may be) in which event your hardship may appear more sincere to the lender. On the other hand, there are very real consequences to going late with your mortgage payment:

a) You WILL incur late fees and other penalties on the late interest. Usually this is not a large issue as it is part of the forgiven debt in a short sale and usually forgiven in a modification, but it is something to consider,

b) Your credit score downgrade will be harder as you will compound the short sale hit with a 30 day late, 60 day late, etc, (and if this is a modification you will make a non-negative credit score event turn into a negative credit score event), and

c) You will eventually cross a threshold (typical industry standard of 90 days late) where the lender will initiate a foreclosure action in State court.

Going Late on Your Second Mortgage:

Often a borrower comes to us and says that they are late on the first mortgage but current on the second mortgage. The second mortgage is almost always totally upside down with no equity left in the property to secure that financial obligation. The borrower says they paid the second mortgage because they had the money for the smaller payment (second) mortgage but not the larger amount first mortgage. Our answer - if you don't pay the first mortgage they are going to foreclose it and then paying the second mortgage is not going to save your house.

Lately we have seensecond mortgage lenders with 90 day late mortgages skipping the foreclosure process (since if they cause a sale of the house it is sold subject to the first mortgage, and thus any buyer still has to pay the first mortgage, which usually makes no economic sense). Instead the second mortgage lender sues the borrower on the promissory note only and gets a money judgment that they can keep for a long time (20 years in Florida).

So if a client says they are paying the second mortgage but not the first mortgage, we usually suggest they look at the common sense approach and what are they likely to gain or lose by doing so.

Effect of Non-Payment / Late Payment on Credit Score:

This is a big question and nowhere is the answer clear cut. Definitely if you get a report on your credit that you were "late" (in mortgages that means 30 days or more late) then your credit has been "dinged" and your credit score is adversely affected.

Credit scores are used for many purposes, including the amount of credit you can get on a credit card, the interest rate you get on credit cards, car loans and mortgages, your ability and price of life and disability insurance and even car or house liability insurance, your ability to get a certain type of job, or to establish business relationships, and your ability to rent a place to live, to name a few. So credit scores are important. If you want to better understand credit scoring you can see the Federal Reserve Board's Report to Congress from April 2008.

How much your credit score is affected by a 30, 60 or 90 day late report depends on a lot of other factors about your financial well being, your past credit history and myriad other issues. Generally though we have our clients reporting drops of as little as 50 points for a no late payment short sale or up to 150 points for a short sale with multiple late payment reports. We have seen an 800 go to 720 and we have seen a 740 go to 500. It all depends on too many uncontrollable credit issues to be able to give a formula that works for everyone. For a discussion on credit scores this our past article.

Confused?

Rightfully so. The fact of the matter is that we are in uncharted waters and there is no industry standard for Short Sales or Loan Modifications, which makes pinning down exactly what the Lenders may do near impossible. Pile on the fact that there are a large number of lenders out there and each have their own internal policies which change as readily as the tides. The best anyone can hope to do is make an educated decision, set a plan, and be ready for anything.

Copyright 2009 Richard P. Zaretsky, Esq.

Be sure to contact your own attorney for your state laws, and always consult your own attorney on any legal decision you need to make. This article is for information purposes and is not specific advice to any one reader.

Richard Zaretsky, Esq., RICHARD P. ZARETSKY P.A. ATTORNEYS AT LAW, 1655 PALM BEACH LAKES BLVD, SUITE 900, WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA 33401, PHONE 561 689 6660 RPZ99@Florida-Counsel.com - FLORIDA BAR BOARD CERTIFIED IN REAL ESTATE LAW - We assist Brokers and Sellers with Short Sales and Modifications and Consult with Brokers and Sellers Nationwide! Shortsales@Florida-Counsel.com New Website www.Florida-Counsel.com. See our easy to find articles at SHORT SALE AND LOAN MODIFICATION TABLE OF CONTENTS

Link popularity and how to check your site for broken links

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 23:43:09 -0500

Via Scott Hoen, ePro, MBA (eMarketing Services):

Everyone talks about search engine optimization and how you can move yourself higher on the list. One way is to link out to other web sites and have others link to you. This is commonly known as link popularity but you need to make sure you keep YOUR web site current with the links you have on your web site.

Consumers want community information or school information from your site and therefore, you link out to another site as a new window or many of you link out as a frame on your web site. How do you know they are all working properly?

There is a place you can go and enter your web site and it will validate all your links on your web site instantly and I recommend you take advantage of this tool. Click here to go to this Validator tool to check your links.

Consumers visiting your web site that find broken links are a sure fire way to lose the traffic, the lead, the potential business that might have occurred due to your web presence. Don't let broken links on your site drag you down and stay on top of your site regularly. Don't count on your web master to do this for you.

Make it a profitable day!

Confessions of a SPAM ARTIST!

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 23:41:42 -0500

Via Loannetter:

Have you been getting as much spam lately as I have? SHEESH. I get at least 40 spam emails a day now. However, not to point the finger too stridently: I must admit my own part in e-spamming! Recently, I decided to email the women in my network an invitation to a party and one registered my email as spam (mea culpa).

Upon closer reflection, I realized I had blithely cruised my database for women. How rude to assume my business contacts would want to socialize with me? So that was my comeuppance: business contacts are not always up for social or other causes. And in our business, financial matters being so personal, a lot of people you have been through heck getting them qualified for a loan or purchase contract might not want to squirm next to you on a social sofa. As a southern female that was one lesson I should have remembered. Like no white shoes before Easter for goodness sakes!

Another reason people are so wary of 'invitations' is practical: SPAM has a way of getting into your hard drive and playing havoc and suddenly sending out rude jokes to your friends from your email address. Fake greeting cards often carry viruses. These companies featured on sites like Facebook and Twitter are often scams. "MyLuvCrush" has been slapped with a $500,000 fine by the WA State Attorney General for sending out fake 'admirer' emails. This happened to be a home grown version. The ones based in other countries are impossible to stop.

SO, if you are overwhelmed by spam here's some pointers: First, forward the offending email to the Federal Trade Commission's abuse department: spam@uce.gov then delete it.

Use Catchall Email accounts: If you want to know how a list-bot got your email address start using different 'alias emails' when you sign up for social media sites: for example, if you set an email as your 'catchall account' (in your email box settings on your domain host) you can tag emails to the source: for example I signed up on Twitter as twitter@mydomain.com. Then if I get spam to that address, I can track it back to the source and deal with it: i.e., either it was sold by that site owner or my posting there was somehow compromised.

Woops? I did post my email openly early in my blog career and that seems to have started a rash of spams. Yes, it's too late to retract them once they are out but you can reset your account to filter out those 'tags' by returning to non catchall accounts. You can just call that site webmaster and ask politely how someone could get that unique email first...once they know their site was compromised they may be willing to correct the problem at least on their site.

Unfortunately spammers are spawning like rabbits on steroids these days but if you do report them by forwarding to the FTC and include them in the reply it is highly likely that particular abuser will get the message and take your email off their list...one can hope

Victory in Washington State: Our WA State attorney Genera's case against the creators of MyLuvCrush involved misleading advertising and has been resolved with a settlement. Here's a link to the news release: http://www.atg.wa.gov/pressrelease.aspx?&id=22284.

Some advice from our own SAG: Internet scams are increasingly common. The easiest option is to simply delete the email. Because these schemes are usually international and involve individuals who live other countries, we let the Feds handle investigations.

Below are some resources:
* The Federal Trade Commission: Forward illegal spam to spam@uce.gov
For other types of fraud, call toll-free 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357) or file a complaint online at www.ftc.gov
* FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center: They have a form online at http://www.ic3.gov/complaint/
* Mail fraud - U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Call 1-800-372-8347 or file a complaint online at http://www.usps.com/postalinspectors/fraud/welcome.htm.
* Phonebusters, the Canadian anti-fraud call center: 1-888-495-8501, www.phonebusters.com
* Internal Revenue Service: For phishing and other scams related to tax returns, etc. Forward the e-mail or Web site URL to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov .
* Attorney General's Office: Washington residents who believe they are victims of a scam can file a complaint online at www.atg.wa.gov or call 1-800-551-4636.

In order to track the origin of an e-mail, investigators need the full header. One way to ensure that your message has the full header is to send the e-mail as an attachment, rather than simply forwarding.

Here's HOW to send emails as attachments: (use Help to search 'forward email as attachment' )

In MS Outlook
You can forward a message without double clicking to open it in a new window. Highlight the e-mail in the message list of your inbox and follow the directions for your particular mail client:
1. Create a new message
2. Drag and drop the phishing e-mail into the body of the new message.
This ensures the original message is contained as an attachment with the appropriate Internet headers.
Or
1. Open the phishing e-mail message*
2. Select View > Options. The Internet headers will appear. You can copy these as you normally copy text 3. Forward the original message with the copied message headers pasted into this message

In Outlook Express
You can forward a message without double clicking to open it in a new window. Highlight the e-mail in the message list of your inbox and follow the directions for your particular mail client:
1. Create a new message
2. Drag and drop the phishing e-mail into the body of the new message.
This ensures the original message is contained as an attachment with the appropriate Internet headers) Or 1. Open the phishing e-mail message* 2.
Select File > Properties > Details. The Internet headers will appear.
You can copy these as you normally copy text 3. Forward the original message with the copied message headers pasted into this message

In Netscape/Mozilla/Thunderbird Mail
1. Select View > Headers > All
2. Select Message > Forward As > Inline

If you are using an alternative to these e-mail clients, please consult your provider for instructions on how to forward messages.

....and HEY HEY HEY....be careful out there!

YOUR NEST IS OUR NICHE

510-LO-31434

510-MB-24707-50145

An approved Conventional, FHA/VA/USRDA, Reverse Mortgage and Commercial Mortgage Planner

   © Copyright 2009  Loannetter

8000 Reasons Get Your Butt In Gear: Deadline for First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Looms

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 23:39:23 -0500

Via Janet Guilbault California Mortgage Banker/Broker:

First time home buyers: Are you still at the computer, doing endless "research" on how to snag the $8000 TAX CREDIT for buying a house this year?

Does the November 30th deadline seem like a million years away as you think about fireworks (not turkey leftovers)?

First time home buyers: Get your butts in gear. NOW.

This is the wrong time to claim you only get motivated when a deadline looms.

This is the wrong time to tell everyone you are a "last minute kinda person" who pulls an all nighter when you have a term paper, and shops for Christmas presents on December 24th.

Here's why: Buying a house takes longer than you think. There are 8000 reasons you DO NOT want to miss this deadline.

Let's back things up. Do you think OTHER first time home buyers might wait until the last minute? Lenders could very likely experience an overwhelming amount of applications this fall.

With applications already taking 45 days, it could easily take 60 days to close your loan. Or more. Lenders are already ridicuously understaffed.

This means you will need to be in contract no later than the end of September.

If you have not already done so, you will need to accomplish this during the months of July, August and September:

Find a Mortgage person

Find a Real Estate Agent

Find a House

Make an Offer, negotiate terms. Find another house if first offer is rejected. Get new offer accepted.

Get financing completed and loan closed.

Some likely time lines and what to expect:

1. Apply for a mortgage. Provide the required documents and ask for a pre-approval. This will uncover any glitches standing in the way of your approval. This will make certain you have the right amount of funds in your account, or lined up as a gift. This will let you know your price range before you begin shopping for a house. This will let the Realtor know you have done your homework and are serious. ESTIMATED TIME REQUIRED: 1-2 weeks

2. Figure out where you want to live and find a Realtor. Look for a Realtor that knows the neighborhood where you would like to buy. Communicate openly and be on the same page if you are buying with another person. ESTIMATED TIME REQUIRED: 2-3 weeks

3. Shop for a house with your Realtor. ESTIMATED TIME LINE: 3-4 weeks.

4. Make an offer, negotiate terms, get in contract. Ask your Realtor about timing before making an offer on a short sale or a lender owned property. ESTIMATED TIME LINE: 1-2 weeks or more...depending on how many offers it will take to get a house. Market could become highly competitive as the deadline looms.

5. Secure financing with lender, and close the loan. Inspections and appraisal will occur during the time as well. ESTIMATED TIME LINE: 6 weeks to 8 weeks

Worst case estimated time line: 19 weeks.

Weeks until November 30th? 22 weeks, beginning next week.

Can you do this in less time? Yes you can.

Just like when you gave your Mom that lame ceramic unicorn for Christmas (purchased in a panic on Christmas Eve, thrown in an obviously used gift bag, then sneakily placed under the Christmas tree minutes before gift opening).

Written by Janet Guilbault, Mortgage Banker/Broker Based Out of the San Francisco Bay Area

Do you have a screenwriter? Why not hire a director as well? Avoiding unwanted social media advice

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 23:36:19 -0500

Via Jason Crouch, Broker - Austin Texas Real Estate (512-796-7653) (Austin Texas Homes, LLC):

I don't profess to be a technology or social media guru, but I will say that I have been immersed in this stuff for a couple of years, so I certainly have developed my own set of opinions on what works and what doesn't. That being said, one of the worst pieces of advice that I have witnessed is something along these lines:

"Don't blog about your personal life."

or

"Don't tweet about your boring day. No one cares!"

And so on.

I utterly disagree with those statements above. If people care about YOU, then they will likely care about what is going on in your life and during the course of your day.

The title of this post refers to something I recently discussed with a friend of mine at lunch. If you allow others to tell you what to write about, this is tantamount to attending a party with a script in hand. Don't allow anyone else to direct your networking activities to this degree. It's fine to get tips and understand protocol, but let your content show your unique personality.

On our radio show (Social Media Edge), we once had a guest who told us about his "formula" for Twitter, with specific percentages for each type of tweet (something like 20% personal, 20% business, 40% information, and 20% unwanted advice).

I disagreed with him on the air, and I still disagree today.

The essence of social media is that it's SOCIAL. When you are talking with friends in person over dinner, do you ever think, "Wow - I need to work in about 8% more talk about business, then I can mention that cool movie I saw yesterday." NO! No one does that in real life - why would you do it online?

Be yourself, and reap the benefits. If you relate to others and engage them, it can lead to some great friendships, some of which may turn into business for you (just like offline, right?).

I have been asked "But what should I blog about?" at least 250 times over the past year. The quickest answer that I can give, when blogging, tweeting, or spending time on Facebook, is this:

Anything that you are comfortable writing about is fair game. Period.

Thanks for reading!

Photo above by _MaO_ from Flickr.

My RSS feed is http://activerain.com/jasoncrouch/rss.

LOL FRIDAY: You Might Be A Taliban, IF...

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 21:11:27 -0500

1. You refine heroin for a living, but you have a moral objection to beer.

2. You own a $3,000 machine gun and $5,000 rocket launcher, but you can't afford shoes.

3. You have more wives than teeth.

4. You wipe your butt with your bare left hand, but consider bacon "unclean".

5. You think vests come in two styles - bullet-proof and suicide.

6. You can't think of anyone you haven't declared Jihad against.

7. You consider television dangerous, but routinely carry explosives in your clothing.

8. You were amazed to discover that cell phones have uses other than setting off roadside bombs.

9. You've ever uttered the phrase, "I love what you've done with your cave".

10. You have nothing against women and think every man should own at least one.

11. You bathe at least monthly whether necessary or not.

12. You've ever had a crush on your neighbor's goat.

Join us for LOL FRIDAY on the Optimist Group! Mirela Monte, AR Jokester

*This funny blog courtesy of MyrtleBeachBizzare.com

My Dracula

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:46:38 -0500

Born within a few blocks of Dracula's castle and having had my primary education in Romania, I was raised to respect this important historical figure known as Vlad Tepes, the man the legend is based on.

The Romanian history I was taught painted Vlad Tepes as a revered and much appreciated ruler. Known as Vlad The Impaler, he cleansed his country of thieves, charlatans and prostitutes. He stood up to the Ottoman Empire and was loved and respected by his people.

My Romanian education taught me to appreciate this fearless ruler. When I came to the United States at the age of 15, I was surprised to find a different story modeled after the very same man. An enlightening book reconciled the two views into my current understanding of Vlad Tepes/Dracula: In Search of Dracula: The History of Dracula and Vampires by Raymond McNally and Radu Florescu (two authors-one American, one Romanian).

The following Discovery Channel Documentary presented in three parts below, is the most accurate portrayal of Dracula I have ever found. I hope you enjoy it! It is a story unlike any other. Please let me know what you think about it after you watch it! If you are very limited on time, start with part 2.

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Should your Birdie Talk to your Friends? Submitting your Twitter Status Updates to Facebook:

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:02:32 -0500

Social Media is here to stay; you might as well learn to be good at it. With all your responsibilities (remember, you're supposed to sell Real Estate!!!), just how do you find the time to maintain a strong Social Media presence?

It's simple: You do one status update and post it to all your Social Networks: Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Plaxo, MySpace, FriendFeed, Flickr...and many others. Just imagine: you set it all up once and from that point forward, one status update will populate ALL your Social Sites. Is that great, or what?

Just go to Ping.fm and sign up. It free and easy. That's it!

If you are like me and enjoy doing status updates directly on Twitter, you can just feed your Tweets directly to Facebook without any other intermediary like Ping.fm. Just sign into your Facebook account, download the Twitter application and you're set (if you can't follow this link, just go to the Twitter page on Facebook; you'll be able to get the ap there). Your Tweets will be fed automatically to your Facebook account.

Have Fun, Stay Connected and Sell a Lot of Real Estate!

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Connection Join The Optimist Group!

Profile Best Practices for Twitter and a Free eBook on Using Twitter for Business

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:42:11 -0500

Via Mary McKnight (Sacrilicious Marketing):

Profile Best Practices for Twitter

Personal Accounts

•    Select a user name that identifies you as a person not a brand. Ideally, you want to select your actual name. This helps you create a personal brand for yourself.
•    Use an actual picture of yourself for your avatar. People connect best with other people not with your dog, not with Bart Simpson and not with your company logo.
•    Fully fill out your profile. Be sure to include your location so geo-location and mapping applications for Twitter can list you and be sure to add a bio line (Hubspot indicates that Twitter profiles with a bio line are 8 times more likely to be followed than those without)
•    Can Having a Twitter Bio Get You 8 Times as Many Followers?
•    Bio Characteristics of Twitter Power Users
•    Customize your profile by adding a custom background that identifies you. If you are not graphically inclined, try creating one on Twitbacks.com, MyTweetSpace.com, and FreeTwitterDesigner.com. These services allow you to create numerous templates that you can download for free.
•    This account is where you share information you find across the net, reply to people, make personal insights and stream events in your life.

Hubspot recommends the optimal number of tweets a user should tweet per day is 23 - during the peak hours of the customers you are targeting

Brand and Corporate Accounts

•    Select a user name that identifies your brand or company. Ideally, you want to select the name of your company or brand.
•    Use your logo as your avatar
•    Fully fill out your profile. Be sure to include your location so geo-location and mapping applications for Twitter can list you and be sure to add a bio line about your company or brand (Hubspot indicates that Twitter profiles with a bio line are 8 times more likely to be followed than those without)
•    Customize your profile by adding a custom background that identifies you. If you are not graphically inclined, try creating one on Twitbacks.com, MyTweetSpace.com, and FreeTwitterDesigner.com. These services allow you to create numerous templates that you can download for free.
•    This account is where you can post corporate blog posts, company press releases, information about your products, services, brands or industry and offer deals and coupons. Much of what happens on this account can be automated and scheduled through services like www.tweetlater.com

9385 Charleston Court, Myrtle Beach, SC - Gorgeous Home in The Grande Dunes

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 23:34:00 -0500

GORGEOUS FORECLOSURE ON HALF ACRE IN GRANDE DUNES

$489,900

Location:
9385 Charleston Court
Myrtle Beach, SC 29572

Map and Directions

Description

What an amazing opportunity: Bank Owned, All Brick Custom Home on a half acre lot, located in one of the most coveted areas of Myrtle Beach: The Grande Dunes.

Located East of Hwy. 17, a short bike ride to the beach, this enticing home is top of the line in every way, but the price: a steal at $489,900.

Just Listed. Hurry; this will sell very fast!

Photos

Listed by

MIRELA MONTE

BUYERS' CHOICE REALTY
Phone: (843) 251-2378

Listing agent/broker: Mirela Monte

What do you do if you are mad as hell and you won't take it anymore? Making a beeline to the State Supreme Court!

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 18:07:59 -0500

What do you do if you are mad as hell and you won't take it anymore? If it's regarding the brand new Myrtle Beach helmet law, you hire a Top Legal Eagle, who just happens to be the brother of the state representative and make a beeline to the State Supreme court.

That's exactly what the Business Owners Organized to Save Tourism (BOOST) did, when they hired Bart Viers, the brother of State Rep. Thad Viers (R-Myrtle Beach), earlier this year, and guess what: on Friday, the court granted the petition to hear the case.

This will save many thousands in legal bills and years of aggravation and if all goes well, the SC Supreme Court might rule in the group's favor and hold that Myrtle Beach is going beyond its legal capabilities by requiring helmets, while the state allows riders 21 and older have the option.

This maneuver is nothing short of extraordinary. A standing ovation is granted by the area's Business Owners. If all goes well, next year's bike rallies will be back to Myrtle Beach in full force and what a celebration that will be!

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Connection Join The Optimist Group!

10 Things I Learnt on Twitter Today:

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 20:50:41 -0500

•1. Four Resources on How To Optimize Your Website's SEO Using Social Media http://bit.ly/azXcO

•2. SEO Is A Super Way To Gain Top Search Engine Results http://bit.ly/133ckw

•3. A few tips to improve your social profile http://bit.ly/6nDDx

•4. 5 Habits of Successful Executives on Twitter http://cli.gs/qtbAMd

•5. Google to Launch a Microblogging Search Engine http://bit.ly/w8ndx

•6. Reputation: A Survival Guide to the Social Media Jungle http://tinyurl.com/lh36t8

•7. Short Sales May Soon Get Easier http://bit.ly/6Ki5H

•8. Warren Buffett: Distressed Assets a Great Investment http://bit.ly/15w3lf

•9. THIS is how you do a Facebook Fan Page for your Real Estate Business! Check out: The GoodLife Team http://bit.ly/ZGojK

•10. Realtor Resource: Technology for Your Business http://bit.ly/4teSAf

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Facebook Vanity Plates: Direct Traffic to Your Very Own Social Pages

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 19:10:11 -0500

Instead of a URL like this: Facebook.com/home?8734.9320?.urp2345 for your Facebook profile page, why not have something like this instead:

www.Facebook.com/Mirela.Monte

This Friday night at 12 midnight, Facebook made vanity plates available for their current users. In the first three minutes, about 200,000 user names were registered. In fifteen minutes, users had picked out half a million custom URLs. Within one hour, over 1 million Facebook user names had been snapped up.

If you already have a Facebook account, you may want to secure your name or some other catchy phrase for your profile page. I garnered www.Facebook.com/MyrtleBeachHomes for my business page.

You can then add that easy URL to your website or business cards, so your clients, friends and associates can find you on Facebook, keep in touch and network.

Social media is here to stay. You might as well participate. Happy networking!

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Connection Join The Optimist Group!

LOL Friday: Advice for Women

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 14:18:01 -0500

Via Heather Chavez, Second Self VA: When There Isn't Enough of You to Go Around! (Second Self Virtual Assistance):

Some good, solid advice to pass along to your mom, daughter, granddaughter, niece, aunt, girlfriend or any woman passing by on the street. They'll thank you for it later!

1. Don't imagine you can change a man - unless he's in diapers.

2. What do you do if your boyfriend walks out? You shut the door.

3. If they put a man on the moon - they should be able to put them all up there.

4. Go for the younger man. You might as well, they never mature anyway.

5. Men are all the same - they just have different faces, so we can tell them apart.

6. Best way to get a man to do something is to suggest he is too old for it.

7. Love is blind, but marriage is a real eye-opener.

8. The children of Israel wandered around the desert for 40 years. Even in Biblical times, men wouldn't ask for directions.

9. If he asks what sort of books you're interested in, tell him check books.

10. Remember a sense of humor does not mean that you tell him jokes, it means that you laugh at his.

Have a great Friday, everyone!

Heather Chavez - Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn't Enough of You to Go Around!

LOL FRIDAY: I Want Some Tarp!

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 23:26:40 -0500