I really like this Copyblogger piece by Robert Bruce.  Very relevant to real estate marketers (really, all realtors looking to develop a digital "voice" in their market corner).  Worth reading all the way through!  The article uses Matt Drudge as a model for content curation, a fancy term for using good links to interesting stories in your marketing.  And thinking up good headlines! 

 

Today I write my last blog post as a real estate agent... well, sort of.

Can it ever get out of your blood?  

I've covered a lot of ground since my first post here at Activerain, back in April 2007.  The family of real estate bloggers was much smaller then.  It was Activerain that first fueled my passion for new media marketing and reaching people through my words.  I can say today that it was indeed worth the work to get here.  

This blog post will be my 901st... exactly 900 posts, the record in Lancaster County by far & away.  

This week I transition into a new phase of my real estate career.  I'll be the, let's see, which trendy title should I use?   CMO (chief marketing officer)?  Marketing evangelist?  I know that anything-evangelist is the hiphip trendy thing right now... My hired title is VP Marketing & Communications, which is very corporaty but says enough for now.  Coldwell Banker Select Professionals is the company, Central PA's fastest-growing real estate franchise and easily it's most innovative.  I'm excited to not only help guide our 10 offices forward but also be a resource to our 270 agents on the ground!

Good times.

 

CONTACT:  

(717) 735-8402

 

Coldwell Banker Appoints Marketing Vice President

Expands commitment to growth throughout Central Pennsylvania

 

Lancaster, PA(January 4, 2012) – Coldwell Banker Select Professionals is proud to announce the appointment of Jeff Geoghan as the VP of Marketing & Communications.  

Geoghan brings a wealth of experience to the Central Pennsylvania Coldwell Banker franchise with 10 offices and over 250 real estate agents.  His background includes degrees in business management and marketing and a fortune 50 company track record.  Most recently, Geoghan has been a licensed Realtor here since 2003 and has been with Coldwell Banker since 2008, earning Coldwell Banker’s “Diamond Society” sales honors.

“Jeff’s mission will be to refine existing Coldwell Banker marketing in Central Pennsylvania, develop new initiatives and leverage technology for consumer engagement” commented Ryan C. Hess, Partner at Coldwell Banker Select Professionals.  “He will work to train and educate our agents, teams & offices in web marketing, and help the leadership team consolidate our position as the regional market leader”.

Geoghan brings an extensive background in internet marketing, blogging, and search engine optimization (SEO) for the real estate industry. “His experience has positioned him to be an industry thought leader in these areas with top-ranked websites, blogs, and social media” added Hess.  Geoghan will be based in the Lancaster City corporate offices.

 

 

Coldwell Banker Select Professionals and Coldwell Banker Homestead Group serve all of Central Pennsylvania with over 250 real estate agents in offices in Lancaster, Ephrata, Wyomissing, Lebanon, Hershey, Harrisburg, Camp Hill, York, Hanover.   Coldwell Banker Select Professionals is a principal broker for Cartus and USAA relocation services in Central PA, and has been named in the top 50 franchises for Coldwell Banker nationwide.   Read more at www.cbsp.com and www.centralpa.com.

About Coldwell Banker^®

Since 1906, the Coldwell Banker^® organization has been a premier provider of full-service residential and commercial real estate. Coldwell Banker is the oldest national real estate brand in the United States and today has a network of more than 86,000 sales agents working in approximately 3,200 offices in 49 countries and territories. The Coldwell Banker brand is known for creating innovative consumer services as recently seen by being the first national real estate brand to create an iPad application and the first to fully harness the power of video in real estate listings, news and information through its Coldwell Banker On Location^SM YouTube channel.  The Coldwell Banker system is a leader in specialty markets such as resort, new homes and luxury properties through its Coldwell Banker Previews International^® marketing program. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act.  Each office is independently owned and operated. 

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The other day I was forwarded an ad for a new residential listing by an enthusiastic homeowner.  They had listed with another agent and wanted me to know about the property.  The title of the ad was “gorgeous home in a family-oriented neighborhood”.

I can only hope this particular ad copy was penned by the homeowner themselves, because if they were asking the agent to write it the agent should just say no.

 

Everyone knows about Fair Housing, right?  In the course of advertising a property for sale or lease, one cannot discriminate (or present the appearance of discriminating) against a protected class in the Commonwealthof Pennsylvania.  To read more on that see the state page here: http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/phrc_home/18970/housing_discrimination/707780.  The stakes for violating this law can be significant to the agent, up to the loss of license.

 

The “golden rule” in Real Estate is “talk about the property, not the people”. If you see advertising anywhere that makes reference to the kind of people that would prefer that property, you’re probably looking at a Fair Housing violation.  It makes sense; what exactly IS a “family-oriented” neighborhood, except as exists in the mind of the adwriter?  Are they including single parents?  Why should a single individual without a “family” be discouraged from buying in that neighborhood? 

 

Fair Housing violations actually abound in the Real Estate industry – just watch for ads stating “great for first time buyers”(economic), “walk to shops”(disabilities), and so on.

I have sat in listing meetings with a home seller telling me to advertise the property in such a fashion many times… people think this way, it’s understandable.  It’s our job to translate that thinking into appropriate advertising such as “great price, great home” or “close to shops”. 

 

Incidentally, the most common advertising that would be an exception would be surrounding 55+ or “retirement” communities – the law has held that agent can legally advertise since the community does hold bylaws specifying age or lifestyle restrictions.  Even then, I would be careful not to go beyond the straightforward “55+ buyers” advertising. 

 

As Real Estate licensees we’re required to take periodic  refresher courses in applying the Fair Housing laws, and I think that’s a good thing.  Make sure that if you’re selling or renting property in PA that you, too are at least conversant in what you can & can’t say in your advertising and interviews.  Don’t ask your agent to use phrases that may cause them grief.

I just added this special photo to my photo tour of this School Lane Hills home for sale in Lancaster, PA:

You can see the full tour at http://www.1112wheatland.com.  

Here's the story of this amazing home:

Francis Leon Suter moved with the Armstrong Cork Company from Pittsburghto Lancasterin 1909 to manage operations there - by 1929 he was a principal manager on his way to an eventual senior vice presidency and lifetime board member. in 1922 He and his wife Mary had completed plans for a grand residence along tree-lined Wheatland Avenuein the then-expanding School Lane Hills Estates neighborhood. The architect was an Armstrong client named Henry Boettcher - the plans were finally done on February 17th, 1922. The house was mostly completed by 1924 with the exception of the "courting room" wing added in 1927 (we'll get to that in a moment).

The home design reflects the very best of the age in American architecture. An English Tudor Revival style, 1112 Wheatland boasts distinctive Tudor aspects such as combination half-timbering with stucco inlay, stone wall cladding and multiple gables. The Suters apparently were ahead of their time with regard to natural light because it abounds throughout the 4,000 square foot home.

Ok, about the "courting room". The Suter's daughter Elizabeth was beginning to "entertain courters" and Mr. Suter felt strongly that she needed her own "space" - hence the 500 quare foot great room added to the rear of the principal residence in 1927. This wing could be used as a dance hall (parkay flooring) or reception area.

1112 Wheatland is our featured home in School Lane Hills - Listed exclusively by Jeff Geoghan of Coldwell Banker Select Professionals. Emailhomesales@schoollanehillshomes.com to inquire about the F.L. Suter Home.

 

Today I updated my sales databases for Lancaster County PA - I keep a running log of residential home prices, sales totals and other figures off the MLS.  I was curious to dig into home prices in Lancaster County a bit more, and also wanted to see if I could spot any trends in pricing other than the generic "things are off a bit" analysis.

I combined the monthly absorption rate (total active home listings divided by sold homes that month) with the median sold prices from January 2007 to October 2011.  Absorption rate is a widely-used yardstick for market health - the industry considers 5-7 months of inventory to be a "stable" market, or balanced between sellers and buyers.  Below 5 months is a sellers market, and above 7 months is a buyers market.

Here's the chart:

You can see a couple of things:

1 - Lancaster county statistically hasn't been in a sellers market since the third quarter of 2007.

2 - The last month we saw a "stable" balanced market was July 2010 (homebuyer tax credit?).

3 - There is a fairly clear inverse relationship between median home prices and absorption rate.  It's supply and demand of course... more homes to choose from, prices take a dip.

4 - We should see the absorption rate spike up again to 17 or 18 in the next few months.

5 - Median sold prices have fluctuated since 2007 but overal remain in the mid $160's.  

More fun with numbers!

Here in Lancaster County PA there's no shortage of farmhouses, and some are always reaching their last days before being removed in favor of new buildings or uses. This home, in Manheim Township with a Lititz address at 20 Regency Court, was one of those looking the wrecking ball square in the eye...

Today, this amazing property has been immaculately restored with loving care, and is a testament to the dedication of it's owners who have not only brought the grand old house back to life but improved the grounds to the point where a visitor feels as though they are walking through a botanical garden.

The home itself begain life in the 1700's (1600's?) as a smaller farmhouse overlooking a large property. Gradually, as many functional homes are, it was expanded to be a large estate home (the owner found inscriptions from the Civil War in the home noting additions made!). But by the mid 20th century the home was beyond it's useful life and the farm was purchased by a developer for what was to become the Kings Pointe neighborhood of newer homes. The old farmhouse had little time left.

Enter the current owners, who brought the old place back to vivid life using original materials and decor while adding new features such as the 25 foot wide grand foyer with 10 foot staircase. Wood floors were remilled and put back in place, deep window wells were restored and the cedar shake roof replaced with a modern cedar covering. This home shows as a textbook case on how to bring a big old house back to life.

Interested in seeing the photo tour? You can at http://www.20regency.comand the "home photos" tab. 

Thanks for watching this episode of YourLancasterHomeTV! 

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Thanks for watching! If you LIKE this episode PLEASE take a moment to subscribe here at http://tv.yourlancasterhome.com and pop over to my facebook page to LIKE it at http://www.facebook.com/lancasterhomes

Choose Jeff Geoghan for you next home sale or purchase in Lancaster! Thanks.

Today we're with Josephine Stoltzfus of Sprama Design to talk about getting into décor in your home or apartment. Josephine is an experienced Lancaster PA home designer and talks about layering techniques and using color & patterns to pull things together.

While some aspects of design and decoration are best left to a professional in the field, Josephine was enthusiastic about the possibilities that can be explored even on a tight budget using relatively inexpensive pieces. Creative groupings, offsetting pattern sizes and color schemes that can be replaced as your taste changes are some of the ways she lays out in this video episode.

If you are interested in professional home design services (from décor choices to actual CAD layouts and working with your contractor) reach out to Josephine or her partner Harmony Boore at http://www.Sprama.com or 717-238-1001 anytime.

For tips on desgning for small spaces, check out this episode filmed in Lancaster City:http://www.youtube.com/user/yourlancasterhome#p/f/65/wFbE4TYK7jw

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Thanks for watching! If you LIKE this episode PLEASE take a moment to subscribe here at http://tv.yourlancasterhome.com and pop over to my facebook page to LIKE it at http://www.facebook.com/lancasterhomes Choose Jeff Geoghan for you next home sale or purchase in Lancaster! Thanks. (c) 2011 Jeff Geoghan

Here' a cute summation of the "Top 10" reasons to buy a home.  Thanks to Lauren Selinsky out in my old stompin grounds - coastal SoCal!