Today's Technology Review (MailChimp) <!--amespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"-->

By Bill Arce. RealEstateLatino.com 

(This review is a commentary only; it does not represent the company mentioned here. You can use this service at your own risk)

MailChimp is a fun-easy to use email marketing application designed with the average user in mind. The interface is easy to follow and welcoming with a smiling cartoon chimp logo as their mascot. Best of all, it is FREE.

Here are some of the features that I fund useful.

You can copy and paste your contacts or upload them from a .csv file directly into the MailChimp application.

MailChimp will let you send up to 500 emails Free per months. For most Realtors this is more than enough to star your email campaign today.

Bounced emails are automatically deleted from your list, you are allowed to change your alias and use merge tags to make campaigns more personal.

Getting started is easy, they have included a wizard who takes you steps by steps to assist you setup your contacts, templates and campaigns. They also include tips for writing subject lines attached to the FAQ section.

With MailChimp you have the option to add your own HTML email code or use one of their designed templates.

MailChimp includes free unlimited image hosting (yes more free is good), make sure all your images have are less than 1mb to upload.

I found MailChimp to provide the standard reports necessary to measure the success of your campaign. You can track click-through, sent emails, bounced, opened and more. For more advanced user, MailChimp will let you integrate their application with Google Analytics.

Bottom-Line:  

MailChimp is a fun, easy to use service that can give you're the edge you need to effectible promote your services via email. I found our overall experience with them to be pleasant and planning on keeping on using them for now.

Today I came across this <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123940575642209823.html">article</a> and I wanted to shear it with you. This article mentions some interesting statistics that makes me wonder, WHY? FHA loans are FULL DOCS; applicants must disclose and verify income in order to (in must cases) pass the manual underwriting approval. After reading the whole article I come to the conclusion that we as professionals (lenders, Realtors, and sure counselors) need to do a better job educating consumers.

Now, I agreed that educating consumers on what is best for them sometimes can be tricked, why? Because sometime you cannot educate someone who are not willing to listening or just have an idea and no matter what your advice is they will do what they think is best for them.

So, what we should do as professional? First always be honest, remember "If you are thinking with your wallet, you are probably doing something wrong, or at least unethical". Secondly, explaining all the facts, advice your client the best of your knowledge, even is this is something you know they wouldn't like to hear. And last, be prepared to fired your clients or at the very least let them know that you preferred not to be part of the transaction that your experience tell you is a bad deal for your client.

Recently, I qualified a client (a family of 4) who is currently leaving with his brother in law, paying only $350 a month on rent. When I asking if he had saved some money to buy his house, he said NO, I advised him to review his family budget and save some money, that it was not a good idea buying a home without any money even if I could helping get first time buyer assistance.

Few days later he called me asking me the name of the DPA program, he was applying with a different bank, and I give him the information and wishing good luck. I have not heard from him ever since, but I am sure if he buys a home now he will be joining the growing army of homeowners losing their home to foreclosure even if they were FHA approved.

This information is from the Wall Street Journal, I hope it help to better appreciate the Latino Market :

·Hispanics now account for more than 15% of the U.S. population

·Hispanics control more disposable income than any other minority group. The figure stands at $860 billion a year and is expected to hit $1.3 trillion by 2012.

·Between 2000 and 2007, 16 states -- among them West Virginia, Illinois and New Jersey -- saw their white population decline, according to the new Census data. Over the same period, whites accounted for a majority of population growth in only 11 states.

·According to the Pew Research Center, whites are projected to make up only 45% of the working-age population in 2050, down from 68% in 2005.

·The center projects that the share of Hispanics in the working-age population will double rising from 14% to 31%.

Read the WSJ article here

Is your Online Marketing giving you the results you wanted? Real Estate Latino Network can help you get the results you need at a price you can afford. Click Here To Learn More!

RealEstateLatino.com offers real estate agencies and brokers the assistance needed to maximize their ROI by partnering with them on a customized online marketing strategy. For more information email us @ info@realestatelatino.com or call me at 888-934-9779.

Shaun Donovan, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, said that the Federal Housing Administration is going to permit its lenders to allow homeowners to use the $8,000 tax credit as a down payment.

Marketing the tax credit to the Latino community could be a great way to generate new leads. Here are some ideas of what you can do to attract potential homebuyers.

First: I would include a bilingual version of the tax credit program on my website homepage. As everything that has anything to do with government, this program is not exempt of red tape and confusion. So why not prepare a short tax credit fact sheet in English and Spanish for your visitors. DO NOT forget to make easy for them to ask you questions about the program, that why you will be able to generate and later convert leads into prospective.

Second: Create a bilingual flyer highlighting FAQ about the program and blast Wal-Marts, local business, homeownership fairs and apartment complexes. Make sure to refer readers to your website for more information and leave your cell number and email for easy contact.

Lastly: I will blast the information online at the local level. Create a bilingual Google pay-per-click campaign targeting first time homebuyers in your town. Use keyword like "tax credit program" "first time home buyer" "government assistance". Utilized the free services of Craiglist.org, post a new ad every couple days in the real estate and finance section of your home town, this will help you drive traffic to your website. Write a blog, if you have not done so; create a blog by using some free platform like Blogger.com and wordpress.com

Just keep in mind that if your strategy is educate and inform potential leads, they will appreciate and eventually would love the opportunity to work with you and find a home together.

When I was reading this article I was stunt to even think about the possibility that Google can block my website if I use SEO services. Question for the pros, can  this really happen? thank

Bill Arce

www.realestatelatino.com

Por Bill Arce:

http://RealEstateLatino.com

Si tu eres dueño de casa y estas enfrentando problemas financieros o si tu tasa de interés es ajustable (ARM) y está al cambiar haciendo más difícil el que puedas realizar los pagos mensuales, tu pudieras estar en riesgo de enfrentar una ejecución hipotecaria y perder tu casa.

No estas solo, miles de dueños de casa están en la misma situación en la que tú te encuentras, afortunadamente *** ha te ofrece estos consejos para que te informes y puedas evitar la pesadilla financiera y emocional que representa perder la casa. No Ignores El Problema. El primer paso es reconocer que tienes un problema y que necesitas enfrentarlo lo antes posible, ya sea que anticipes la perdida de tu empleo, una disminución en tu horario de trabajo o que el plazo para que cambie la tasa de interés ajustable se aproxima y no podrás enfrentar el nuevo monto mensual.

Expertos sugieren que contactes a tu institución financiera tan pronto como sabes que estas en problemas. Mientras más te demores en contactarlos más difícil será para el banco encontrar una solución que te permita quedarte con la casa. Recuerda el banco no quiere tu casa, para ellos es mejor que tu continúes pagando, así hacen su dinero. Mantén las líneas de comunicación abiertas.

Una de las partes más importante de este proceso es la de abrir todas las cartas que te envía el banco y no amontonarlas en el cajón. Además de las cartas están las llamadas telefónicas que te hará el banco, llénate de valor y contéstalas podría ser la diferencia entre quedarte con tu casa y perderla. Ten presente que si llegaras a encontrarte en una situación legal no podrías probar que el banco no te advirtió de que empezaría la ejecución hipotecaria cuando estuviste ignorando todo tipo de comunicación.

Conoces tu Derechos. Una vez que te das cuentas que estas en problemas y has decidido comunicarte con tu banco, has hecho lo correcto -pero todavía hay más por hacer.

 Revisa tu contrato con el banco para que sepas que puede y no puede hacer legalmente el banco en caso de no recibir tus pagos.

 Averigua cuales son las estipulaciones estatales que gobiernan el proceso de ejecución hipotecaria en tu ciudad. Los procesos varían de estado a estado.

 La Agencia Federal de la Vivienda le ofrece más recursos para evitar la ejecución hipotecaria. Evite hacer tratos con compañías fraudulentas. Una vez que tu caso llega a los tribunales este se convierte en información pública y por ende muchas compañías que profesan poder ayudarte a evitar el foreclosure se enteran de tu situación y te contactan para solicitar tu negocio.

Debes tener mucho cuidado con estos tipos de compañía, asegúrate que las leyes estatales te protegen ya que al ser una nueva industria existe muy poco control sobre esta. La mejor forma de asegurarse de que haces negocios con una compañía honesta es verificando con la oficina de fianzas de tu estado alguna queja de maltrato. Busca ayuda en organizaciones locales sin fines de lucro.

Comunícate llamando gratis al teléfono 1-888-995-HOPE, esta es una línea de ayuda a nivel nacional encargada de asesorar a dueños de casa que están enfrentando una ejecución hipotecaria. También puedes visitar su website www.995Hope.org. Entre las diferentes opciones que puedes recibir al comunicarte con ellos están la de negociar con tu banco para darte la oportunidad de recuperarte financieramente. Además es bueno señalar que esta organización ha desarrollado vínculos de cooperación con la mayoría de los bancos principales lo cual hace más fácil la negociación a tu favor. Priorice sus gastos.

 Ahora que sabes dónde te encuentras financieramente, es tiempo para que reajustes tu presupuestó familiar, en caso de no tener uno hecho sería buena idea crearlo inmediatamente. Prioriza la luz eléctrica, la comunidad y medicinas, también donde puedes ahorrar dinero, por ejemplo; eliminando servicios innecesarios.

Coordina con tu familia los viajes que tienen que hacer para así ahorrar en gasolina. Si necesitas ayuda para crear tú presupuesto consulta una organización financiara sin fines de lucro para que te ayude. Evita caer en manos de agencias privadas que todo lo que harían seria ponerte en una situación más delicada.

RealEstateLatino.com (REL) is currently expanding its online services in your area and would like you to join our fast growing nationwide network.

For a limited time only, if you sign up for our system you will receive your leads on a referral basis, which means that you will not pay per lead, rather a low referral fee when the lead buys or sells a home using your real estate services. Only two bilingual agents will have the opportunity to sign up for our exclusive referral network.

If you are interested in hearing more about our program please call us at 888-934-9779 or e-mail us at info@realestatelatino.com

Don't miss out on this great opportunity to expand your online network, once the first two agents sign up in your area, we will closed our network membership for that area, as they will be the exclusive agents in your territory.

We are looking for agents in the current Florida Markets:

Miami (1)

Orlando (0)

West Palm Beach (1)

Tampa (2)

Jacksonville (2)

We are looking for agents in the current California Markets:

Oakland (2)

Bakersfield (2)

San Diego (2)

Los Angeles (2)

Watsonville (1)

Concord (1)