rvahomepro: Tech Tip: A Big Win In a Short Way - 02/20/15 12:32 PM
Today was filled with wins today. One big win was getting a contract ratified on one of my listings. The win wasn't so much getting the contract completed, but how I got it done. I was out and about when the seller contacted me to sign the contract. Thankfully I already had the contract scanned and uploaded into our electronic file system (dotloop). I had already set up the signature and initials on the form and just needed to send the seller the link...
The problem was this seller does not have a computer, and he doesn't do email on his phone, but … (7 comments)

rvahomepro: 6 Buying Tips When Purchasing A Home in Glen Allen, Va - 02/09/15 11:45 AM
These 6 buying tips will save you time, money, and headaches when you're looking for a new home:
     1.   Get Pre-Qualified – before you can seriously consider purchasing a home, it’s important to know exactly how much you can afford. This can be the scariest part of the buying process for some. It’s perfectly natural to be nervous, but we can put you in touch with someone you can trust to help get you pre-qualified. A good lender may ask you financial questions you wouldn’t reveal to your mother, but they also will not share anything with any other party unless you … (10 comments)

rvahomepro: Please Don't Rob Yourself to Buy a Home! Retirement Account Loans - 01/26/15 12:34 AM
With the changes in lending that have occurred recently there are some lenders out there who are farming their contacts encouraging people to buy homes and get the minimal down payments necessary by withdrawing money from their retirement accounts under the "hardship allowance" some retirement plans offer. When someone reccomends this they sell it as you're just, "borrowing from yourself" and you are paying back yourself with interest. It's great to be your own bank isn't it? Well maybe and maybe not...
From the IRS:
1. Under what circumstances can a participant get a hardship distribution from a retirement plan?
A … (23 comments)

rvahomepro: Tech Tip: There's Been a Resurrection! Now I Can Breathe... - 01/21/15 02:17 PM
This morning I was working away on my computer and the internet stopped working. Unfortunately that's not too uncommon in my office, then my screen froze, an the dreaded blue screen of death showed it's ugly head. This is the first time I've seen this on a windows 8 machine so I waited to see what would happen...
The computer rebooted, started the boot process, did some checking, and then a strange message appeared:
Boot Disk Not Found
Umm, what? I started having flashbacks to my days in IT. I started going through my checklists in my head, what could be … (12 comments)

rvahomepro: Lessons From TOPGUN for a Real Estate Agent in Glen Allen Virginia - 01/15/15 12:01 PM
In the midst of the Vietnam war the US Navy and US Air Force both introduced some amazing new technology including the brand new air superiority fighter, the Phantom F-4. The F-4 had an amazing thrust advantage for fighters at the time and it was thought that internal cannons (machine guns) would not be necessary because combat a close range would no longer occur due to relatively new long range heat-seeking and radar-guided missiles.
Technology Can Solve Problems
The thinking was that the supersonic age was here and these new missiles would be able to destroy the enemy from beyond visual range because combat fighting was at … (10 comments)

rvahomepro: Service for Long After the Purchase of Your Home in Glen Allen, VA - 01/09/15 12:02 AM
As a  one of the services I always offer my clients in Glen Allen, Ashland, Mechanicsville, or any home I help someone with is to help them long after the transaction is completed. I look forward to the calls where a client or their friends and family need help with something around the home so I can refer quality contractors to help them out because my service extends far beyond the closing of their home. It's sort of like a personal Angie's List™ with some added benefits: no subscription fee and an advocate if something doesn't turn out like they want it.
With the cold … (13 comments)

rvahomepro: Help Finding Those Who Get Lost: Project Lifesaver - 01/05/15 01:24 AM
Back in October 2011 an 8 year old non-verbal autistic boy, Robbie Wood, went missing when he was at North Anna Battlefield Park with his family here in Hanover County, Virginia. Robbie was only wearing a red, long-sleeved T-shirt, blue athletic pants and blue shoes when he went missing. Overnight temperatures in the area hovered in 40s while daytime temperatures got up to the 60-70 degree range. Day after day passed with no sign of Robbie and thousands of professional searchers and locals came out to search for the boy. As each day passed hope dwindled that Robbie would be found alive. 
(2 comments)

rvahomepro: Why Set New Year's Resolutions When You Can Start A Bonfire! - 12/30/14 02:21 PM
It’s that time again, you’ve decided you want to make some changes in your life. Maybe it’s a New Year’s Resolution, maybe it’s just time to finally to lose some weight, or you’re going to finally do…
A Fire to Warm Your New Year
When a new year comes around people examine their life and look for things to change. Many people set New Year’s Resolutions for things they want to change in the coming year, and many of these resolutions are kept for only a few weeks, but there is hope.  Instead of setting resolutions, consider starting some fires in your life. … (5 comments)

rvahomepro: Getting Out of the Rain: Sharing My Expertise on Other Sites - 12/29/14 11:51 AM
Posting on Active Rain is a fun activity. You make connections with other professionals and you learn from others expertise while sharing your own. Active Rain is a great platform to network with others and spread your wings. It's also helped me hone my writing skills.
About a month ago I was approached by a journalist to share my experience with Zillow. I know Zillow, Trulia, and other vendors who offer services to real estate agents sometimes get bad reputations, but I think part of this reason is because we don't understand how to best use these services. Are they perfect, not by … (3 comments)

rvahomepro: Attention Burglers: Look at All the New Toys We Got for Christmas! - 12/29/14 07:59 AM
Christmas has come and gone. Now you might be using the time between Christmas and New Year's Day to clean like my family is doing. Part of this cleaning likely involves getting rid of Christmas wrapping and boxes your gifts came in. I'll bet you never thought you might be setting out a billboard for unscrupulous people who happen to go by your home. Yes, some people do their best shopping after Christmas, but they are not our frineds, they are people who look at what other's have and think they need it more than you do. 
Here's Your Sign
The box … (4 comments)

rvahomepro: Welcome to Monday, or is it Saturday? Maybe Sunday? - 12/28/14 10:52 PM
One thing I really like about working in real estate is there really no first day or last day of the week. I often find myself working on weekends and during the week it's time to connect with other professionals. The one thing that really throws a wrench in things is having holidays in the middle of the week like last week and this week. I've been working on getting a contract finished for far too long and now we are starting the inspection process. When trying to schedule the inspection it's been difficult to coordinate 3 schedules and work around … (2 comments)

rvahomepro: Tech Tip: Going a Little Deeper When Simple Tips Don't Work - 12/27/14 01:36 PM
A few weeks ago I wrote a blog post about Simple Tech Tips to Fix What Ails You and how restarting and updating your computer can solve many issues with your computer when it's acting wierd. Tonight I experieced a wierd issue that wasn't solved by those steps. The experience i had was Active Rain was working in one browser, but not in another; the other browser was just showing the dreaded intermission curtain. So someone gave me a dose of my own medicine from the original article - restart the computer. I did that and no joy - the intermission curtain was … (8 comments)

rvahomepro: Third Day of Christmas: Three French Ducks (Huey, Dewy, and Louie) - 12/26/14 02:30 PM
I have the honor of saying I'm a third generation Realtor. When I was growing up I often found myself at the real estate office my father was a part of with my two younger brothers. When all three of us showed up the other agents in the office called us Huey, Dewy, and Louie after the three nephews of Donald Duck. I so wanted to be able to answer those agents in a Donald Duck voice, but I could never manage to do it.
Both while at the office and at home I'm sure us three boys would ask dad … (5 comments)

rvahomepro: The Second Day of Christmas: Two Turtle Doves Come Home - 12/26/14 12:40 PM
My family traveled to my wife's parents for Christmas. While we were away our two dogs spent time at the local doggie day spa. That is our affectionate term for the local Hanover Society to Prevent Cruelty to Animals Kennel.  Sounds like a strange place to  send the family pets to the local SPCA but they have top notch facilities and really love on our dogs. A few years back they purchased a local kennel business to support their business of rescuing unwanted/abandoned pets. 
While at the kennel our dogs get the full spa treatment. The get a 4 paw pedicure, a full … (4 comments)

rvahomepro: How's Your Poker Face? The Players in Real Estate - 12/17/14 04:24 AM
A Buyer Calls  From time to time people call me looking for the listing agent on a home. I think some people think if they are talking to the listing agent they will be able to get a better deal or that the listing agent may have some inside information on the home or even that it really doesn't matter who I talk to as long as they can help me buy this home. When I hear a caller is looking for the listing agent my perspective is they don't really understand agency as it relates to real estate and what … (7 comments)

rvahomepro: Garbage In, Garbage Out, Why Good Data Matters in Glen Allen, Virginia - 11/23/14 09:56 AM
Would You Like Some Cheese?
From time to time Realtors whine about getting fined when they don't pend a property within the appropriate time frame or neglect to enter some other data point because they don't think it matters. It's never fun to have to pay out some of your hard earned cash to cover some "problem" the MLS administrators identify? When you don't understand why you are being held accountable for you feel less welcome to the correction. 
So here's my explanation to why there are fines. While I don't know this for a fact, I do understand databases and the fact … (3 comments)

rvahomepro: "But I Don't Want To Ruin Our Friendship..." - 11/10/14 12:24 AM
"...and Use You As My Real Estate Agent to Sell My Home in Glen Allen."
  Hiring the Right Person
Real estate agents hear this from time to time and I actually understand why some people might say something like this. Not every agent is the right person to represent you in some real estate transactions. And different real estate agents have different specializations or areas they know better than others. Sometimes you can be better served by an agent that really knows your area rather than your friend or even your sister who might be a real estate agent. … (5 comments)

rvahomepro: WARNING: Don't Change Your Clocks This Weekend! But do a few other housekeeping items at home in Glen Allen, VA - 10/29/14 07:20 AM
Yes it's that weekend for most of the United States and Canada when people get an extra hour of sleep due to the change from Daylight Savings Time to Standard Time that occurs this weekend. If you are connected to some professional who gets business in any way no undoubtedly you have been reminded of this fact already, as if it was some hidden event no one was aware of. I get so many notifications you might think some sort of national emergency occurred, or would occur if I don't change my clocks this weekend. But before you rush around changing all … (8 comments)

 
RVA HomePRO Michael Hottman, Helping you achieve goals in life & real estate (RVA HomePRO Realtor with Keller Williams serving Hanover, Henrico, Chesterfiled and Richmond, Virginia)

RVA HomePRO Michael Hottman

Helping you achieve goals in life & real estate

Glen Allen, VA

More about me…

RVA HomePRO Realtor with Keller Williams serving Hanover, Henrico, Chesterfiled and Richmond, Virginia

Address: 6600 W. Broad Street, Richmond, VA, 23230

Mobile: 804-767-5710



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