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Acquiring the Most Important Skill of All

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 08:15:14 -0600

The single most important skill for a real estate agent is sales ability. No matter where you are in your real estate career, decide right now to master the skills of selling in order to fuel your success.

It's hard to believe, but it's true, that more than 95% of agents lack top-level real estate sales skills. The reason I know this is because I coach some of the best and highest-earning agents in the world, and even they believe their sales skills can use improvement. The difference between them and other agents is that they realize that sales skills are vital to success and they continuously seek excellence in this area.

To follow their example, make it your priority to develop and constantly improve your sales skills, especially in these areas:

Develop sales skills to secure appointments.

Develop sales skills to persuade expired and for-sale-by-owner listings to move their properties to your business. This lucrative and largely untouched field.

Develop sales skills to make persuasive presentations that result in positive buying decisions. You can do this in every step from prequalifying prospects to planning your presentation, perfecting your skills, addressing and overcoming objections, and ending with a logical and successful close.

According to the National Association of Realtors, over half of current real estate agents have been in the business less than three years. That means more than one out of two of today's agents (probably including you) have never experienced a marketplace where homes sat on the market for 60, 90, or 120 days, where agents faced stiff competition to move listings, and where it took real work to find and create client leads.

We are now no longer in the robust market conditions we had experienced recently, where leads were abundant and relatively easy to attract, especially buyer leads. So when the market slowed, as it inevitably would, real estate success becomes less automatic. Only great sales skills guarantee that you - instead of some other agent - will win clients no matter the market conditions. The best agents make more money in a challenging market than in a robust market.

Regardless of economics, every market contains real estate buyers and sellers. No matter how slow the economy, people need or want to change homes. Babies are born. Managers get transferred. Couples get married. People divorce. And real estate opportunities arise for those with the best sales skills.
The way to build immunity to shifting market conditions is to arm yourself with skills in prospecting, lead follow-up, presentations, objection handling, and closing.

Paul Stillwaggon,
For All Your Real Estate Needs
Contact New Jersey Estates
Real Estate Group
E-mail: njestates@gmail.com
Web: http://www.newjerseyestates.net
908-561-5492 (Paul S) 908-310-1358 (Cell)

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

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Congress Pressures FHA

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 06:46:09 -0600

Congressional pressure on FHA continued to mount last week, with the ranking Republican on the House Financial Services Committee demanding hearings on the stability of the housing agency.

Congressman Spencer Bachus of Alabama said FHA's declining capital reserves, estimated by independent auditors as barely one quarter of the congressionally-mandated minimum, raises the possibility that FHA could come hat in hand to Congress seeking a bailout.

"It is incumbent (that we) get prompt answers to the many questions surrounding FHA's risk management practices and finances," Bachus said in a letter to committee chairman Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat.

Both HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan and FHA Commissioner David Stevens have acknowledged that FHA faces financial challenges as a result of the recession and housing price declines, but insist that there will be no need for appropriations from Congress.

Donovan said the agency is now actively considering ways to raise its capital reserves, including increasing insurance premiums and minimum downpayments. Stevens noted that FHA is cracking down on lenders that underwrite loans poorly or violate agency guidelines.

But the drumbeats on Capitol Hill are getting louder. One bill has been introduced in the House that would require FHA to raise its downpayment minimum from the current 3.5 percent to 5 percent.

On the Senate side, Kansas Republican Kit Bond called the recent audit results further evidence that FHA "is a power keg that will explode unless we act now."

Potshots at FHA also are coming from private industry, including from companies who use its financing.

Robert Toll, the CEO of Toll Brothers, a large, publicly-traded home builder, called the agency's rapid growth -- from a three percent market share a few years back to a 30 percent share of higher of home purchase loans -- "a trainwreck" waiting to happen.

Roughly one in twelve of Toll Brothers home buyers reportedly use FHA financing on their purchase, so Mr. Toll's critique of FHA drew significant attention on Wall Street.

Edward Pinto, the chief credit officer for Fannie Mae during the late 1980s and now a mortgage industry consultant, told Congress recently that FHA should raise its downpayment minimum to 10 percent and slash home seller contributions to buyers' closing costs from six percent of the house price to just two percent.

FHA officials, for their part, insist that the quality of new loans they are insuring is high -- and that capital reserves, even under a worst case scenario, are adequate to handle claims as far out as 30 years.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Boaters Urged To Help Stop EPA Boat Discharge System

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 05:52:15 -0600

After 34 years of exemptions to the Clean Water Act, recreational boaters face the threat of needing permits for discharges from their vessels unless Congress acts to keep the current regulations in place.

A court decision in September 2006 required the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop a discharge permit system for all vessels in the United States. Heretofore, it has been only for commercial shipping.

Environmental groups filed a lawsuit in 1999 against the EPA, seeking to control the spread of aquatic species. The intent was to mandate treatment of ballast water in large commercial ships. Numerous organizations and groups participated in that suit and in 2005 the states of New York, Michigan, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Minnesota joined in because of their concern for the Great Lakes. This original lawsuit was aimed at large commercial ships that must take of ballast water for balance stability but then discharge it before taking on cargo.

But pleasure boaters don't need ballast water; at least more than 99 percent do not.

Still, the EPA system would touch every boater. The EPA is reportedly considering all discharges that are normal: deck runoff, engine cooling water, grey water from sinks and showers as well as all the discharges now controlled, such as garbage, sewage, oil and fuel.

EPA is currently developing the system so not much is definite at this time but there are indications that vessel owners would have to get a permit from the state for each vessel. This would be necessary for each state in which the boat operates. As an example, a boat being operated on a river that divides two states might be required to have a permit for each state at which it operates.

Fees have not been established. The EPA has said permits could cost as much as a few hundred dollars and be valid for from one to five years. Possibly, written reports quantifying a boat's discharge would be required to be submitted on a regular basis.

The court decision requires the EPA to have a system in place by September 30, 2008. Unless Congressional action is taken to stop it, after that date anyone operating a boat without a valid permit would be in violation of the law and subject to a citizen lawsuit.

The EPA has appealed the court's decision and the National Marine Manufacturers Association has filed an amicus brief. The appeal will be heard in August by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit but there is no deadline for rendering a decision.

A bill has been introduced in the House of Representatives to protect recreational boaters from this expensive permit system. It is H.R. 2550, sponsored by Reps. Gene Taylor (D-Miss) and Candice Miller (R-Mich), with 16 others Representatives signed on as of late July. The bill-the Recreational Boating Act of 2007-has been referred to the House Committee on Water Resources and the Environment. No hearing dates were set prior to the Congressional summer recess. The legislation would give recreational boaters permanent exemption from the permit requirement. The Senate has not taken action.

All boaters are urged to contact their elected officials and urge support for H.R. 2550.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Customer Retention Tips for Today's Challenging Economy

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 12:28:08 -0600

[Note: To follow is an excerpt of a radio show interview conducted by Peter L. Mosca, host of Income Property Investment Talk dot com, with Michael Anderson, CCIM, founder and co-owner of RealSource who is filling in for Nate Hanks who is the co-owner at RealSource; Bob Turner, Owner, Southern Properties, LLC, and Mindy Williams, President, RentandRetain.com, will explore proven practical ways to hold on to your valuable customer base, win repeat business and maximize assets. To listen to the show archive or download an MP3, go to www.IncomePropertyInvestmentTalk.com/102809.]

Mosca: Customer retention provides the competitive advantage necessary to survive in any market. There is no doubt that with the weakened economy it has shifted concerns from staffing and acquiring new customers to client retention. Is there a way to know for sure that customers and clients are satisfied?
Williams: The main way you can tell if your customers are satisfied or not is if they are staying and then the second one is if they are referring their friends. I come from the property management aspect of this so if your referrals continue to be strong that means you are doing a good job. If you are losing people right and left something is happening in the office, something is happening on site that you need to change and alter. It can be done but it needs to be done quickly.

Mosca: Bob, is it as simple as meeting with them and asking them?

Turner: You've got to do a lot more than that. You've got to be so knowledgeable in their business that you could actually be in their shoes every day and do their job, otherwise you are missing out on what needs to be done with your clients and customers or partner. Be involved in their business, know how to run it for them and be in front of them most of the time.

Mosca: Mike, from your perspective working with real estate entrepreneurial investors, how do you know for sure that they are satisfied?

Anderson: We have to be in their head all of the time and in these difficult economic times when you've lost so much value in a lot of the investments over the last 18 to 24 months, you really have to sit down and think about where they're coming from and turn their economic situation around. The only way to do that is spend a lot of time with them and understand their immediate needs and concerns and let them know what you're doing to sure up the ship.

Mosca: Can you talk to us a little bit about the relationships that you have with builders and others in the new home sale arena?

Turner: On a regular basis I am out in front of the builders knowing where the markets are going to be, where they need to be, where they buy their lots, what product they need to sell, what product they need to build, and what price it needs; you've got to spend a lot of time. You literally are managing and running their business for them. What we do in my company is we tell the builder you go build the houses and we will take care of everything else. That's what we have to do. We have to be smart enough to run their business day in, day out, know when they are doing stuff right and where they are doing stuff wrong and have the ability to tell them. We listen to the market.

Mosca: Mike, as co-owner of RealSource, you work with real estate entrepreneurial investors providing them with institutional level products and services. Is that something that you focus on in terms of keeping clients? Is market and location strategy a big part of that?

Anderson: It really is Peter. As you know, this is probably the very best time if you are an entrepreneurial investor or institutional investor to be buying in this market because all of the values are so deeply reset. The key to advising a client right now is that just because everything is relatively inexpensive compared to where it was a few years ago doesn't necessarily mean it's a great buy. You have to really advise them as to which markets are likely to recover and drive the values to those assets up. In the process you really have to know which markets are likely to recover first and that's the process that you want to make your client aware of in these kinds of market conditions.

Mosca: Mindy, as president of Rentandretain.com, is market something that should be a part of the property manager's perspective when they are working with clients or perspective clients?
Williams: No matter where you are coming from you have to feel confident selling especially what product you have. Depending on where you are in the country, if everyone around you is bombing, you need to figure out a way to not bomb or to do it differently from everyone else. I am more from a marketing perspective so Mike and Bob are great at finding places, building them and where to invest. My job would then be to get in there and to find more customers, more residents and then figure out a way to keep them longer.

Mosca: With companies losing about 10% of their base each year it seems that retention should be something that we all focus on right now, especially in today's market?
Williams: Absolutely. We've done tons of studies in property management and on average it costs about seven times more to find a new resident than it does to keep your current one. It's seven times more expensive to find a new resident and our turnover is just huge. Industry wide it is anywhere, actually 2 years ago it was anywhere in the 68 - 78% range so we are losing two-thirds of our customers each year. Now I am sure it is a little bit higher. We are in a tight situation where if your competitor is offering a special, our customers can up and move and if you are looking at $800 or $1000 a month, you are losing a significant amount of money each year if you can't hold onto some of your customers.

Turner: We have to be very creative on how we are going to turn product over, how we are going to keep building and building some inventory to even have an opportunity to make money. What we had to do a year and a half to two years ago as the market started heading down severely, we had to figure out how they were going to get rid of the inventory they had, if they could even make money on it. We structured trade deals where we took houses in on trade just like a used car. If you owned a house or you would come to us or you'd buy our house, we'd buy yours and then we would turn around and have to get rid of two houses to make one work. We got rid of the new one, put the person in it, then we took the existing house as we call it and we did lease purchases, we did leases to make sure you stop the blood flow for the builders so they could continue in business. Then you figure out how to go make money. We had so many different ways that we had to really think through where are you at, where are you headed, and how are we going to get there? We had to buy time as we keep saying in the business, now we are buying time till this market changes. We've been taking trades for a year and a half to two years. A lot of builders are just now starting to do it and we've had to be very, very creative.

Mosca: Builders across the country right now must be saying, "we need Bob Turner in my neck of the woods."

Turner: That's where customer retention comes in. There is one basis that I have used for many years in my business and it's real simple book called "Raving Fans." It's a simple read, but you will read it two or three times before it really hits home with you and you start thinking about how do I do it right for the customer. That's what all of our business models are about, how do we take care of the customer. The customer may be the builder, it may be the buyer, it may be the tenant, whoever it may be, you've still got customer service the right way to do it with whoever that customer may be. All of my business is based around referrals. I don't do any advertising for customers whatsoever. I don't spend a nickel on it.

Williams: The one thing I stress in a lot of my seminars is that if you are the boss your customer very well may be your property manager or your onsite manager or your leasing consultant, whoever is running the operation for you. That may be your customer and you need to make sure you treat that person right because it filters down from there.
Mosca: I am guessing that anything you can possibly do to get to know your individual customers and clients that has to be crucial?

Anderson: Absolutely Peter. What I find that works best is a program we call "client meet and greets." We rent a room in a hotel, hospitality suite, provide a meal and then engage our customers, our investment clients at about 20 to 30 of them at a time and get to know where their concerns are and let them know that we are aware of their concerns. I think that's really important, especially in troubling times. I think that your customer wants to know that you are aware of their problems, that you are paying attention and that you are not hiding under a rock. From there, you give them your strategies moving forward. Here is what we are doing to protect your investments today, here is what the market looks like, and don't paint it in rosy colors. These people are experiencing it first hand. They need to know that you are aware just how bad it is and explain it just exactly the way that you see it. It is not a sales call. It is a customer understanding meeting or relationship that you are trying to establish. Then from there, talk about where the opportunities are. Not only what are we doing to protect your current investment and assets, what are we trying to do to provide solutions to some of your concerns, but also where the opportunities are for the future. For us it is the best of times. If you are a real estate investor, this is your market. This is where you make your money but it just really is a matter of getting with your customer base. Be involved with investors and help them understand the opportunity in front of them and then how to take advantage of it.
Mosca: I'm wondering if consumer electronic technologies, sustainability and energy efficiency are ways that builders are separating themselves or creating a niche in these markets?

Turner: They are but not as much here. Our energy costs are pretty marginal, they are economical and we build pretty energy efficient houses. The Memphis climate is not severely cold and not too severely hot. We keep moving. We don't ever stop and wait. We are steadily moving to get to that next market. That's where we are having to change and reinvent and become that niche builder that we have a product here that everybody wants.

Williams: No matter which niche market is your target market, being green is cool. I know a lot of the Gen Yers out there are especially looking for socially responsible apartment communities or are working with companies who can do that. I think there are several ways you can do that. First of all if you work for a property management company you might want to look at water conservation and energy conservation. Those are the two of the easiest things you can do if you have an existing product already. In fact, one manager in Dallas walked around her pool; it was a bigger apartment community. I think she had 350 units. She walked around the pool one summer afternoon and found 17 dripping faucets just from residents sitting by the pool. Get in all of the apartments, check the air filters, make sure they are clean, make sure your HVAC units are working effectively, and that's one way that we are going to do our part so save the environment and to save some energy. You can start a recycling program, program the thermostats in apartments is a big deal. There are all kinds of community projects you can get together to help clean up the town and be more socially responsible. Even if you aren't building a new product, you can look within your existing product to see how you can make it more green.

Anderson: Over the twenty years that we have been in business, we have probably reinvented ourselves half a dozen times based on not only what the market was telling us, but also what the client was telling us. Up until this recent downturn in the economy, we were tenant in common sponsors. We were investing clients' tax deferred proceeds from sales into larger income properties, primarily multi-family properties. When the capital markets went away there was no liquidity, there was no selling going on so our business went on to take advantage of this economic downturn and take advantage of some of the distressed properties that are hitting the market. We had to sit down and reinvent ourselves in the distressed market business, which oddly enough we started in the late ‘80s and this is the exact same market we started in. We have come full circle in 20 years but one of the things that we've learned is that the client will never lead you astray. If you listen to them and you pay attention to what they see, what they need, where they want to go, where they see the opportunity, and position yourself to help in that process, you can never go wrong.

Mosca: What are your golden nuggets for today?

Anderson: The most successful things that we have ever done in customer retention especially in the investment area is listened. In particular, we've listened closely to our critics. We've established advisory boards from our clients that we have paid to come in and criticize us and tear us apart. Don't underestimate social media. We have a number of groups that are discussion groups that we helped form and that we participate in that are designed to help us look for ways to improve. The most important things are listening and transparency.

Williams: People remember how you make them feel so if you are a salesperson, if you are a manager, if you are a boss, when that person leaves your office or leave the encounter with you, did they feel good about it? If you think about your favorite teacher growing up in school, you are probably going to tell me some of the characteristics or the personality aspects of that teacher that you liked. People remember how you make them feel. Concentrate more on the interaction rather than a cheesy sales pitch or trying to get the person to sign a renewal.

Turner: I think there are a lot of people that are looking for that deal out there and there are lots of deals and Cash is King right now. If you have equity and money and you need to be buying property, you need to look at land. Land is the greatest investment. It hedges you against inflation. There are income producing farms, timberland, a lot of other things that are out there that people are overlooking. They want to go buy a house that is a real house but the real market is a little tough right now and maybe it's not their best investment but land I can tell you from my portfolio, my land and farm operations have gone up in value double-digits over the last three years. The big purchasers now, if you go and look, the big purchasers now are trying to buy every income producing farm, operating farm that they can when it comes on the market.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Existing-Home Sales Post Another Big Gain

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:41:16 -0600

Driven by the first-time buyer tax credit and low interest rates, existing-home sales rose 10.1 percent in October, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). In addition to month-over-month gains, October's results were 23.5 percent higher than the year-ago sales pace. Sales activity is now at the highest rate since February 2007.

Total housing inventory at the end of October fell 3.7 percent to a 7.0-month supply at the current sales pace, down from an 8.0-month supply in September. Unsold inventory totals are 14.9 percent below a year ago.

"The supply of homes on the market is now at the lowest level in over two and a half years -- we're getting closer to a general balance between buyers and sellers," said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. The last time the relative housing inventory was this low was in February 2007.

NAR expects similarly positive sales results for November as many first-time buyers rushed to beat the tax credit deadline. The better news is that the tax credit was expanded and extended until April 30, allowing more time for first-time and repeat buyers to close on a new home.

Spread the good news!

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Tax cuts or health care

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 06:50:04 -0600

Minority leader Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) and other GOP members have argued that the Democrats' health care proposal, which was passed by the House of Representatives on November 7, would place a costly burden on taxpayers and cause the national debt to balloon to record levels.

The Democrats' position is, "health care reform will take pressure off of consumers and businesses by reigning in spiraling medical costs and making sure every American is covered by an affordable insurance plan," will bring little benefit to our economy.

The GOP are supporters argued that high-income tax cuts would benefit everybody because they would unleash investment that would spark widespread economic prosperity.

Over the upcoming decade (2010-2019), the costs of the health care proposals approved by three committees in the U.S. House of Representatives are projected to be around $1 trillion.

Is that a good thing for real estate in America?

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

"Solar electric system put in service in West Tenn."

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:21:23 -0600

SOMERVILLE, Tenn. - A solar design and installation company says it has put in service the largest solar electric system of its kind in the state.

LightWave Solar Electric said it installed the 16.5-kilowatt photovoltaic system for Steve and Doris Denton at their home just west of Somerville in Fayette County.

The company said the Tennessee Valley Authority will contract with the Dentons to purchase their solar-generated electricity. TVA will pay them about twice the price that most Tennessee residents pay for their utility-generated power.

The Dentons will be first in line to use their own solar power, and any excess production beyond their usage will flow out onto the utility lines to be used by their neighbors. The TVA payment will show up as a credit on their utility bill.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Green investors

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:21:04 -0600

The solid waste industry has once again caught the eye of a billionaire.

It was recently reported that Warren Buffet´s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. purchased 3.625 million shares of Republic Services Inc., according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Buffet joins billionaire Bill Gates as an investor in the solid waste management company. Gates has been a long-time shareholder through his private investment firm Cascade Investment LLC and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

It is encouraging to see these successful businessmen buying into the solid waste industry. Solid waste continues to be an industry that has predictable results, and these businessmen see the potential for growth during this tough economic time.

Although Buffet and Gates´ motives may be motivated by money, this move should serve as an example to government and other businesses that it is important to make an investment in the environment. It is a lucrative business and one that is important to the future of this planet.

The real estate industry can benefit from the Green movement. All of this activate takes usable space for the post-consumer operation of the collection and the recycling process. The land and buildings necessary for this type of operation will tend to require us to think outside of the box.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Solar energy industry brings a ray of hope to the Rust Belt

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 05:38:50 -0600

Areas hard-hit by the U.S. automakers' slump are pitching themselves to green technology firms. Workers and machines that used to crank out cars are now making parts for solar and wind power plants.

At a recent solar energy conference in Anaheim, economic development officials from Ohio talked up a state that seemed far removed from the solar panels and high-tech devices that dominated the convention floor.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Unplug Your Life

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:00:27 -0600

We live in information overload. There are more distractions coming at you from all directions, and at all times, than at any other time in the history of humanity. This is a message that is more important for you right now than ever before. Unplug your life! Here's how:

First things first, you need a daily quiet time. Let me explain. Once of the richest men in the world at the time of his death in 1942 was George Andre of Nyon, Switzerland. He was a grain merchant that had started from humble beginnings as a small grocery store owner and became one of the world's largest grain traders. He lived in an opulent chalet in the Swiss Alps and his daily routine included locking himself into a room, sitting in a chair with his cup of coffee and staring out the window at the mountains for exactly 1 hour. Everyday, just after breakfast, he did this, for 60 years. When asked what on earth he was doing, he simply said, "You wouldn't understand." Finally, a very inquisitive young man persisted and George revealed what he was doing. He said, "I talk to God."

I read a book on creativity a number of years back and the main strategy for unleashing creativity was this, "Stare out the window in silence for at least 30 minutes a day." So I guess that Mr. Andre was onto something, huh.

Try it. It just may change your life.

Besides quiet time, let's talk about technology and how to unplug that. Now, I don't mean throw away your PDA, cancel your Facebook and Twitter accounts, and stop checking emails. Instead, what I mean by "Unplug Your Life" is to control the flow of distractions and information that is coming at you constantly. Here are some tips on how to do that:

Control Your TV: I don't watch TV news. I had a mentor once tell me that I needed to fill my mind with the good, the powerful and the positive and the news fed the negative. In the 5 o'clock network news world, the phrase they use is, "If it bleeds, it leads." Meaning, the more gruesome the story, the more likely it will headline the 30 minute segment. He said that if I wanted to stay up to date on current events, to read the newspaper because I could read the headline and then choose whether to read the article.

Nowadays, you can use online publications, but the principle is the same, control the news that comes into your brain by choosing which stories to read. Further, pick one time per day, per week, per month, whatever, to review the most important news stories. It really doesn't matter, because any really important story you'll hear about anyway. Someone in your sphere of influence will say the phrase, "Did you hear..." and follow it up with some horribly tragic story of some small child in Northwest Indiana, blah, ba, blah, blah, blah.

I also don't watch TV. I record the shows I want to watch and then watch them when I feel like it (usually at night when my newborn won't fall asleep.) Again I control what is coming into my brain.

Control Your Email: This is the biggest killer of them all, email. First, you need to set aside specific times when you check and respond to emails. Once a week, Once a day, Twice a Day at the most. Based on my schedule, I check emails at 11AM and 4PM. Second, program your email so that only the best stuff gets through to you. Here's how it happens. Your surfing the web, you run into a squeeze page that asks for an email, you type in your email, and then you start getting emails from that company. If the emails provide great value, then let them flow. But if what they are sending you is garbage, send those to a junk folder. You can always set a time once a month to check the junk folder for anything interesting. I use Outlook and every email automatically goes into a different folder and then I'll review everything in a folder once a day, once every two days, etc, depending on the folder.

Control Your Social Media: With Facebook and Twitter dominating communication, this can be a massive distraction. Much like email, set specific times to check these. Once per week, once per day, whatever. Personally, I check Facebook and Twitter once a week, sometimes less. Now, I'll contribute pictures, comments, videos and the like at random times from my cell phone, but I don't actually log into either accounts but maybe once a week.

Control Your Texting: Although I have texting capabilities, I rarely use it with anyone but my very close family and friends. Once someone knows you are a "texter", it can be impossible to stop the onslaught of distractions. The same as everything else we have already talked about, check texts at specific times of the day. For me, it's 11AM and 4PM.

The Cell Phone Exception: Thus far, you have seen a very predictable pattern, control, control, control. I'm going to throw you a curve ball here...the cell phone. I have experienced some of my greatest opportunities because I have picked up my phone. I am going to encourage you to pick up your phone. Now, to avoid annoying callers, make sure your cell phone shows the name of every caller. That way, you can screen those who are not worthy to take up that moment of your time. If they leave a message, you can always call them back. I don't know exactly why picking up the cell phone is so important, but experience has taught me to pick up my phone.

What does this have to do with real estate investing and short sales? Everything. The #1 reason why people fail, as studied by Tony Robbins organization, is people get "caught up." They get so caught up focusing on all the minors of life, they run out of time to focus on the majors. Hopefully this will help you focus on the majors so you too can live the life you have always imagined.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

"Should I Focus on Buyers or Sellers?"

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:00:47 -0600

Question: "Everyone tells me that you have to 'List to Last' and that I should focus my prospecting efforts on finding sellers instead of buyers. But I prefer working with buyers! Will I fail if I don't have a lot of listings?"

Answer: No. As a new agent, you may be better off working with buyers, actually! Why?

You typically develop closer relationships with your buyers, thus increasing the potential for referrals.

When you work with buyers, you work harder. And that's good? Oh yeah, that's good. When you're new, you need to stay busy. An active buyer will keep you hopping. An active listing? Not so much.

You learn more about the overall home-buying process when you work with buyers. You're intimately involved in almost every step of the transaction, from showings to offers to inspections to loan approval. This knowledge will serve you well when you act as a listing agent.

When working with buyers, if you're observant, you'll see most (but certainly not all) of what a listing agent does. You'll learn a lot about both sides of the deal, where when you list you don't see much of what the buyer agent is doing.

You will learn your market!

The reason experienced agents advise you to focus on listings is because once you get busy, you can only handle so many buyers, since buyers are more time-consuming than listings. And this is true.

One agent, working alone, can theoretically handle dozens of active listings, while it's probably not practical to try to handle more than a half-dozen active buyers at a time. (Another reason given for "Listing to Last" is that when you have listings, you will generate calls from buyers, although I don't buy that one. There are plenty of sources for buyers outside of a For Sale sign in a yard.)

Anyway, do you have to 'List to Last?' Probably not. As you gain confidence in yourself, you'll likely want to handle both buyers and sellers, but for now, know that if you're "only" working with buyers, you're doing just fine!

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Is the Compensation Model for Real Estate Brokers Obsolete?

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:43:16 -0600

This study examines the traditional compensation model for real estate brokers under which both the listing and buyer brokers are paid by the seller based on a percentage of the property sales price.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

"Here's the fascinating Tax Lien story"

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 06:45:52 -0600

It all started when Ted (Ted is Ted Thomas) heard a neighbor friend talking about driving to Arizona to attend a Tax Lien Certificate Auction.

According to his friend, the county government was going to auction thousands of tax lien certificates that paid high interest rates to anyone who wanted to put up the money.

Now, like a lot of people, the LAST thing Ted ever wanted in his life was more government or more taxes so he dismissed his friend's talk as just a little bit crazy!

But his friend persisted and was more than passionate about convincing him that this tax lien certificate auction was a good deal.

Skeptical and disbelieving as Ted was, his friend practically dragged him into his home and showed him copies of checks; money his friend had received from the Government!

Ted was astonished to see that the tax lien certificates had amazing returns of 16%, some for 18%. In Iowa 24% and in Texas 25%. He was fascinated and pleasantly shocked.

This was documented proof that this government sponsored program was real.

Since then, Ted has dedicated his life to sharing this little-known investment strategy with thousands of people across the world.

He's visited over thirty states and thousand of counties and interviewed dozens of government officers and venture capitalists to create the most comprehensive program for low-risk and high-yield returns available in the USA.

Until now, Ted has shared his top-secret strategies for taking advantage of these hidden government programs with only a select few clients..

... but now he is ready to share these secrets with you!

Tax lien certificates can have amazing returns. There are others who will sell you the training, (search the Taxlienlady.) This is a business not a deposit. Happy investing!

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

HOA Reserve Study Conundrum

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:35:42 -0600

Some states have specific legislation that requires homeowner associations to have and follow a 30 year repair and replacement plan known as a "reserve study". It is the kind of plan that all HOA boards should follow even if no law exists since that's what good businesses do: plan ahead. Failure to plan for these expensive events inevitably leads to inadequate maintenance, declining property values and dreaded special assessments.

But there are now several new twists that make the idea of a reserve study even more compelling. In most states, HOA boards are allowed to set the level of reserve funding (how much money is set aside each year to address future costs). The fairest approach is the 100% funding model which requires all members along the 30 year time line to contribute a fair share of future costs. However, some boards have for political reasons put less in reserves (sometimes much less) to placate current owners that want to the obligation paid by future owners who have no say in the matter (sound familiar).

Now enters several new 600 pound influences into the reserve funding debate. In December 2007, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the entities that have in past years underwritten most condominium mortgage loans) enacted the following requirements for condominiums where their loans were made being proposed:

The condominium is required to have a reserve study.
At least 10% of the annual budget must be put into reserves.

FHA (the government agency that insures low down payment loans which have become a huge part of the current mortgage market) is proposing to establish even stricter requirements for condominiums including:

Developer controlled condominium reserve funds are required to 100% funded.
After developer turnover condominiums are required to be at least 60% funded.

Since Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA are the 600 pound gorillas in the current condo mortgage market, this means is that if your condominium does not 1.) have a reserve study and 2.) maintain the indicated level of reserve funds, these entities will not underwrite your buyer's or your refinance loan. Folks, this is HUGE.

Condominiums that have an underfunded reserve study need to take decisive action to comply or risk losing vital lending sources. Condominiums that have no reserve study need one as soon as possible and to fund it to indicated levels.

For more innovative homeowner association management strategies, subscribe to Regenesis.net.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

DOE Solar Decathlon Coming to National Mall

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:35:48 -0600

20 University Teams to Compete in the 2009 DOE Solar Decathlon

Read all about it: http://www.energy.gov/8097.htm

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

7 Things All Buyers Ought to Know

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 08:59:15 -0600

"Ignorance is bliss" was never said about real estate purchases for 7 good reasons:

1. "Knowledge is bliss" may not make it as a buyer's slogan either, because you don't have to know it all-just what's relevant to success as you define it. Different sets of knowledge are important in different buying situations, so the "bliss" generalization may not be specific enough to be useful. "If it is to be, it's up to me" could be an excellent mantra since determination will drive buyers, both to discover what they don't know and then, to fill that knowledge gap. This combined effort will assure a buyer is well equipped to make confident buying decisions.

2. Generalizations are self-defeating when evaluating properties since it is how each is unique that addresses specific value to a specific buyer-if you'll excuse the generalization. All first-time buyers should not seek the same type of real estate solution just because they have never owned real estate before. Each of these buyers, whether they purchase alone, as a couple or with several friends or family members, has a different set of needs, weaknesses and advantages. When generalities are stressed, real estate solutions often concentrate on weaknesses like low down payments. Customized solutions, based on real estate knowledge, should focus on strengths which would counterbalance apparent weaknesses. For instance, first-time buyers may have more creative determination, which can allow them to tolerate living with boarders or tenants. These contributors to mortgage payments create a number of financial benefits and can turn an otherwise financially-out-of-reach property into a great investment solution. (See Pur-Plexing for more on this topic.)

3. Assumptions cost money and waste time. Assume nothing, including that you know what you don't know. Experienced real estate professionals have a wealth of practical knowledge available to fill your knowledge gaps, but you have to be receptive to gain the full benefit. For instance, do you ask questions and listen to the answers? Find out what you're assuming when you view properties, evaluate value and prepare an offer to purchase. The conscious effort and deliberate intent of this clarification means money in your pocket. Determination will enable you to put your advantages into action and use the real estate professional's knowledge to overcome weaknesses. Remember the parsing of "assume" ( make an "ass-[out of]-u-[and]-me" ) if you find yourself thinking or saying, "But I assumed..." and get back in control.

4. Fear has driven too many buyers to act in haste and repent in "if only I'd..." whining that can go on for years. Fear of missing out in a down market or in an up market, or in a variety of other "losing out" scenarios, can cause buyers to dive into a buying or not buying decision which may not be in their best interest. That's why working with a buyer agent, who places your interests first, can be a great strategy for ensuring you have all the knowledge necessary to protect yourself and gain financial advantage at the same time.

5. The impossible may just take a little longer in real estate, but the impossible can happen. Your dream property can be within reach wherever you start financially, but you'll need a solid set of strategies to get you there, not just dreams. Serious about owning your own horse ranch or waterfront castle? Talk to an experienced real estate professional who works in your ideal location to chart a reverse-engineered, long-term course toward that goal. With each property you buy along this clear path, you'll move closer to your high-value goal. It may take two or more real estate purchases and some clever investing, but if will be an interesting progression. If you're determined and build the right team-real estate professional, lawyer, mortgage broker, home inspector...-what's impossible?

6. The unexpected must be expected when buying a home, cottage or investment property. Worst case scenarios, contingency strategies and "Plan B" alternatives are creative tools in preparing to achieve financial gains and desired priorities. These approaches help you react favourably to the unexpected, but hopefully not unanticipated, and take advantage of the opportunities that lie there. Experienced professionals can predict the types of expected and unexpected happenings relevant to your situation. It could be taking advantage of the timing for new listings or the types of lenders beyond banks that hold financing choices for you. Negotiations are all about the unexpected. Most buyers are so focused on purchase price they forget that closing date, number of conditions, what's included in the purchase and other factors can weigh in to reduce the final sale price-that's where professional negotiators come in.

7. Cashflow is king. Beyond the purchase price, cash is necessary to pay for lawyer fees, title insurance or a survey, reimbursing sellers who paid the whole year's property taxes, and on the list of closing costs goes. The professionals involved will provide you with details on possible expenses. While you may have enough cash to close, do you have enough cashflow for owning? Over the first year, unexpected expenses can crop up, so create a projected ownership budget at the same time you go over purchasing costs. This foresight should keep you out of the "house rich-cash poor" category.

With real estate, the best goal is not "buying," but "owning and enjoying" for a lot of great reasons.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

"New Oil Refinery Opens Despite Investigation Into Fire"

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:22:47 -0600

COLUMBUS, Ohio-A new business for Columbus is already under investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration because of a recent fire.

Heartland Refinery is a company near Port Columbus International Airport and recycles used motor oil, stripping it of impurities and reselling the base oil to other companies.

The refinery, described as a green business, had a fire in a truck loading area on October 13.

The fire was caused by static electricity which is generated when oil runs through the pipes.

"They even had that problem on the Alaskan pipeline," said Bill Snedegar, CEO of Heartland Refinery.

When asked if the plant is safe, Snedegar replied, "Absolutely safe. What created that fire and it wasn't like a fire, it was like a spark, a flash and they caught it quickly with the fire extinguishers."

"The product that we handle has what's called low conductivity and we learned a tough lesson," said Michael Kopf, the safety compliance officer at Heartland. "Even a well-designed system like we had wasn't enough to deal with that."

In the time since the accident, Heartland officials said they have improved the system of dealing with static electricity through better grounding, and by extending a flow tube so the oil is pumped into a truck below a fluid line which should prevent arcing.

"It has been the bane of our industry from what I've learned," said Kopf.

OSHA confirmed it is investigating the fire at Heartland Refinery Group and investigators were at the plant Thursday.

The plant is continuing operations during the investigation and OSHA says it could be six months before any citations are issued, if they are issued at all.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Making Green Jobs Safe Jobs

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:37:55 -0600

I feel like I'm pretty up on the push for green jobs (creating jobs in the building and installation of wind turbines, construction of energy-efficient buildings, etc.) but this morning at the APHA meeting, I learned something about the occupational health angle of this movement. At a session from the Blue-Green Alliance, Walter Jones of the Laborers' Health and Safety Fund of North America and TJ Lentz of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health spoke about making green jobs safe jobs.

So far, it seems that the shift toward greener buildings hasn't done much to make the construction or maintenance of these places safe for workers. (One positive point is that the use of safer paints and solvents can reduce workers' as well as residents' exposure to fumes.) Designers of buildings don't generally pay much attention to the ways that their plans will affect the way workers interact with them, and design schools don't tend to include occupational health and safety in their curricula. Jones noted that between 1990 and 2003, 42% of all US construction-related fatalities were linked to design.

Problems include a lack of anchor points for workers to tie off to when they're working off the ground, and parapets that meet building code requirements (being at least 30 inches high) but not OSHA requirements (39 to 45 inches). When it comes to wind turbines, fall protection is also crucial, and the inside of the tower is a confined space - but designers rarely address anchor points or tower access and ventilation issues.

Occupational health and safety advocates are working to get safety issues on designers' radar. The American Association of Safety Engineers has begun working on a standard to protect workers involved in windpower facilities, and NIOSH runs a Prevention Through Design program. As we all throw our support behind green jobs, we should make sure that "green" includes worker health and safety.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Business leases are totally different

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:34:24 -0600

Take time and do your homework. If you are rushed you won't be able to properly assess the marketplace to ensure that the needs of your business are met when you're signing a lease. If you have a lease renewal coming up, give yourself lots of time to renegotiate. Then if you can't come to agreeable terms or decide it's time to move to a different space, you have plenty of time to get everything in order for the transition.

Business leases are not like dwelling rentals. Business leases are totally different from personal dwelling rentals. In a personal dwelling rental, costs are usually restricted to a set monthly price plus specified expenses such as heat and water. The landlord could take responsibility for repair expenses. With business leases, there may be many other costs above the base lease price that will be charged back to the tenants. Outside of your written lease agreement, there is nothing like the protection offered to people renting home space. Before negotiating a lease, take time to understand what costs - above the basic lease costs - the landlord will charge you over the year. Know what actions you can legally take under certain situations, such as the late payment of rent.

Negotiate. Landlords and Realtors will expect you to negotiate, but would love for you to take the first deal that they offer. Doing anything less than negotiating will likely mean that you pay more, or that critical clauses to protect your best interests are left out of the lease agreement. In the negotiation process it helps to be prepared and don't appear too eager. Put your pride aside and be ready to negotiate the best possible lease. Start low, ask for extras such as free rent, and ask for more than you hope to get. If your first offer is accepted, you didn't start low enough!

If this is your first time, practice. Talk to different landlords, ask lots of questions, inquire about different incentives, and try to get a feel for the process of negotiating a lease. This process will help you understand the market, and will help you get ready to enter into actual negotiations once you have an understanding of what's available, what you need, and what you can ask for during negotiations.

Get expert feedback. As you move through the negotiation process, consult someone with the expertise (like a lawyer or accountant) who can act in your best interests. An expert should be able to help you include clauses that will benefit your business, tell you what to ask for during negotiations, and protect you from signing a lease agreement that could cost you money and problems in the long run. They will help you answer questions such as: does the deal look like it could cause your business to incur any unexpected costs? Are operating costs shared based on the percentage of space you take up in the overall building, or are they based on the number of tenants in the building, even if there are expenses incurred for vacant units? Does the deal allow you to reduce the cost of your rental rate if you renegotiate after the lease expires? Do you have first right to lease your space on a long term basis if you currently have a month-to-month lease? There are many questions to ask; an expert can anticipate the questions and ensure that you are protected from making costly mistakes.

Understand rental rates. Square footage rental rates won't likely reflect the true price of leasing and rates are not always as they appear. Some may be artificially high with several free months of rent offered to drive down the actual price paid over the duration of the lease, a situation that benefits landlords who want to maintain the value of their properties. Others may increase at set times and in set increments over duration of the lease. In some cases, you may think you're paying a set amount per square foot, but when the effective square footage is examined you may find that you're paying for space that doesn't really exist, based on the square footage calculations used by the landlord. As well, the landlord will likely add additional charges on top of the base rent (often quoted as cost per square foot). This could include operating costs (beware of any costs that are inflated with capital improvements) and marketing costs.

Understand space. You'll need to know how the landlord has calculated the unit space. Is it based on the actual square footage? Does it include space that doesn't actually exist? Is it accurate? When you are looking for a certain unit size, start your search by looking at smaller spaces in the building. It's often more desirable to the lessor to lease smaller spaces; by starting with a smaller space, and then inquiring about a larger space, the landlord may offer incentives to entice you to take the bigger space.

Location, location, location. It's an old saying, but for many retail businesses this factor can make - or break, the business. Choose the best location you can, taking into account as many factors as possible. Who are the other tenants? If a brand-name tenant is a big draw, are you sure they're staying? What is the traffic to the space like - and what are the demographics of that traffic? Is there adequate parking? Easy access? Will you be butting heads with a competitor? Think of all the factors that are important to your business, and then look for the property that will offer the best "return on location".

Be prepared to walk. No matter how emotionally you may be tied to a potential deal, if you aren't ready to walk away from the table you won't be able to negotiate the best deal for your business. Being able to walk away from a deal is empowering. It gives you the ability to control the final outcome. And to ensure that you get the best possible deal for your business.

Put it in writing. When you're ready to sign, make sure that all verbal agreements and promises are included in the written agreement. No matter what promises are made, if they are not included in the body of the lease, they will likely be excluded by a clause in the lease that says something like: "this is the entire agreement". Whether you've negotiated for several months of free rent, you've made arrangements for future lease negotiations, or you've agreed on other terms, if it's not in the agreement you could face difficulties later on. By putting everything in the written agreement you may avoid unnecessary problems and time and money loss later on.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Frequent Questions on LFG Energy Projects

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 05:28:24 -0600

What is landfill gas (LFG)?

Landfill gas is created when organic waste in a municipal solid waste landfill decomposes. This gas consists of about 50% methane (CH₄), the primary component of natural gas, about 50% carbon dioxide (CO₂), and a small amount of non-methane organic compounds. Instead of allowing LFG to escape into the air, it can be captured, converted, and used as an energy source. Using LFG helps to reduce odors and other hazards associated with LFG emissions, and helps prevent methane from migrating into the atmosphere and contributing to local smog and global climate change.

Methane Home: http://www.epa.gov/lmop/faq-1.htm

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Washington state to implement e-recycling law.

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:26:37 -0600

The Washington state SenateThe Washington State Senate is the upper house of the Washington State Legislature. The body consists of 49 Senators, respresenting an equal number of districts across the state, each with a population of nearly 120,000.

..... Click the link for more information. has passed a bill that aims to boost recyclingrecycling, the process of recovering and reusing waste products-from household use, manufacturing, agriculture, and business-and thereby reducing their burden on the environment.
..... Click the link for more information. of electronics in the state.

Senate Bill 6428 passed the Washington state Senate by a vote of 38-11 and the House by a vote of 69-29.

The bill requires electronics manufacturers to develop and fund an electronics recycling program in the state that uses community drop-off centers run by retailers, nonprofits and government agencies.

In a press release, Rep. Brian SullivanBrian Sullivan is a women's basketball assistant coach at Bellarmine University. Bellarmine is an NCAA Division II program that competes in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. This is Sullivan's second stint with the program, following one season with the Lady Knights in 2003-04.
..... Click the link for more information. (D-Mukilteo), chair of the House Natural Resources, Ecology and Parks Committee and sponsor of the House version of the bill, says, "The beauty of this approach is that it makes recycling simple and free for consumers and links electronics recycling with electronics manufacturingThis article presents a typical manufacturing process of an electronic assembly.

Component manufacturing Components such as resistors, capacitors and integrated circuits are generally made by specialized contractors.

..... Click the link for more information., allowing companies to save money if they reduce their use of toxic materials."

The bill was supported by Hewlett Packard, Amazon.com, Wal-Mart and the Washington Retail Association as well as by local governments and environmentalists, according to according to
prep.

1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians.

2. In keeping with: according to instructions.

3. Sullivan.

The bill has been sent to Gov. Christine Gregoire Christine O'Grady "Chris" Gregoire (born March 24, 1947) is the Democratic governor of the U.S. state of Washington. Gregoire's election to the office in 2004 was notable for her historically slim margin of victory over Republican Dino Rossi, who had appeared to defeat Gregoire on for her signature.

According to the bill, manufacturers must participate in an independent plan or the standard plan to implement and finance the program no later than Jan. 1, 2009, and must register with the state by Jan. 1,2007, and annually thereafter.

Manufacturers must submit their initial independent plans or the standard plan by Feb. 1, 2008, according to the bill. The state Department of Ecology will review each plan.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Long-Term Rates Fall to Lowest Level in Five Weeks

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 06:32:04 -0600

McLean, VA - Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.91 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending November 12, 2009, down from last week when it averaged 4.98 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.14 percent.

The 15-year FRM this week averaged 4.36 percent with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.40 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 5.81 percent.

The five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 4.29 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.35 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 5.98 percent.

The one-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 4.46 percent this week with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.47 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.33 percent.

"Mortgage rates eased further over the week, helping to promote an affordable home-purchase market and stimulate refinance," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. "This comes at a time when house price declines are moderating and consumer demand for prime mortgages at commercial banks has picked up."

"The National Association of Realtors® reported that national median sales price of existing homes fell 11.2 percent in the third quarter relative to the same period last year. Moreover, almost 20 percent of the top metropolitan areas experienced positive annual growth, compared to only about 12 percent in the first quarter of this year."

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Solar power goes underground

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 05:50:49 -0600

Scientists use fiber optics instead of solar panels to capture sun's energy

Like the idea of free and clean solar power but hate the thought of ugly, black panels covering the roof of your home? Help is on the way.

Scientists in Georgia and New Jersey are taking solar panels off the roofs of homes and cars, and moving them into basements and walls. The new panels could unobtrusively provide solar power while simultaneously protecting the delicate photovoltaics.

"No one wants to buy a big, nice, fancy car with a huge solar panel on the roof," said Zhong Wang, a scientist at Georgia Tech designing what he calls the world's first 3-D solar panel system.

Story continues below ↓

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Challenges for Sales Professionals

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:27:00 -0600

The most significant challenge for sales professionals is their time control. How a sales professional uses their time determines income. The sales professionals in the top 10% of their industry control, use, and invest their time more wisely and effectively than the lower performing sales people.

The Champion Performers are more effective with their time blocking schedule than lower performers. The concept of time blocking is not new. Most of us have been exposed to it but have yet to master it. Through years of study and coaching sales professionals, I have observed some common challenges that most sales people experience when trying to master their time blocking schedule.

1. Over access problems: The proper screening of calls by an effective gatekeeper can save hours weekly. Too often, issues, problems, and challenges that could be handled by another penetrate the walls and enter our world. These problems could be minor or major in nature, but granting unfiltered access creates large amounts of lost time for many sales people.

There should be a limit in terms of time and people who have access to you. Successful people have a short list of people who have unfiltered access to them. They do not deviate from this short list of people. These people on the short list can interrupt the schedule any hour of the day based on their importance.

My short list includes my wife, my father, my attorney, and a few key associates. The people on the short list are often extremely important to your personal life. There are very few clients that find their way on truly successful people's short lists.

There should be times in your schedule when you are uninterrupted. The biggest error that sales people make is getting sucked into the interruption game. They have limited structure for their time, so access to them becomes easy. Access should be granted, not taken. You are the controller of access.

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

Equal Housing Opportunity

Pennsylvania Releases Funding For Additional Solar Projects

Frank Festa NJ Estates Real Estate Group (Weichert Realtors) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 05:41:40 -0600

Gov. Edward G. Rendell, D-Pa., has approved more than $23 million for 36 new solar and other alternative energy projects. The Commonwealth Financing Authority administers Pennsylvania's economic stimulus programs, including the $650 million Alternative Energy Investment Fund.

Among other recipients in this latest funding round, Chatham University will receive a $113,037 solar energy program grant to purchase and install solar thermal systems for two residence halls on its Pittsburgh campus. Chatham is partnering with system manufacturer Solar Tomorrow to complete the project.

The Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens was approved for a $2 million loan to build its Center for Sustainable Landscapes Building on a remediated brownfield site in Pittsburgh. The new building will use the latest technologies, including photovoltaic installations.

Earth Rising Ventures Inc. was approved for $1.02 million for an LEED-platinum, mixed-use, high-performance building construction project in Kimberton Village's historic district, on a 1.4-acre brownfield site in East Pikeland Township. The building will use photovoltaic electricity and geothermal heat pumps.

SunEdison received approval for its $5 million solar energy program loan for a $19.9 million solar energy system at its Pittsburgh Plate Glass Co. facility in Carlisle. The company will invest $14.9 million for the system, which will cover 14.5 acres next to its facility.

Borrego Solar Systems Inc. will receive a $649,152 grant towards a $2.3 million solar photovoltaic system project for at the Tasty Baking Co. Borrego will provide $1.6 million in matching funds.

Dallastown Area School District will receive a $1 million solar energy program grant for a $3.4 million rooftop solar power system on the middle-school/high-school building in York Township. The school district will contribute $2.4 million.

SOURCE: Pennsylvania Office of the Governor

NJ Estates Real Estate Group
Weichert Realtors
908-561-5492
55 Stirling Road, Watchung, N.J. 07069

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