Bob Caldwell's (rcaldwell) Blog

How do you buy a home with no money down?  Is this even possible with the new regulations that came into effect after the housing bubble burst?  Believe it or not, the answer is yes--to a degree.  VA, USDA, and FHA loans all allow you to put no money or a small amount of money down upfront.  This...

The following blog details some aspects of social media marketing along with announcing an ActiveRain seminar on the top, "More Social, Less Media." While I believe there's actually a role for more media in the real estate industy (photos, YouTube videos, customer testimonies, etc.), the social a...

I've blogged in the past about the importance of "location, location, location" in terms of home valuation, especially in the current market where the housing industry is still recovering in many places throughout the country.  In addition to location, as this blog notes, a lot of a home's value ...

I've written about the topic before, but for those unfamiliar with search engine optimizations tips and tricks, Google updates its proprietary search algorithm every few months or so--and this decides where your website(s) will end up in the ranked search results provided by Google.   The most re...

While I am writing this on the Internet, this article sums up-nonetheless--the benefits of working with a local, community lender like myself.  This is a great blog post I want to share with all that are reading this...Often times buyers miss the point in the beginning of an Escrow that choosing ...

Jonathan Benya, a real estate agent from Charles County, makes note of three very important pieces of news--good news for a change--about home sales in the county.Charles County, Maryland home owners may finally have some good news! Good News #1 - Active Listing Volume Has Fallen There are less h...

This is a great blog and a must-read for those living in MD--the mortgage interest deduction many of us use while filing our taxes is at risk of being repealed.  If you want to prevent this from happening, spread the word! A Call To Arms in the Maryland State Capital to preserve HOME-OWNERSHIP. M...

This is an excellent blog post that serves as a reminder for those trying to clean up their credit in hopes of securing a mortgage:  money does not grow on trees and if something seems to good to be true--well, it may in fact be that:  too good to be true.  In his defense, the new car was sweet. ...

From the Desk of Bob Caldwell Wanted: Honest, Knowledgeable, and Experience Mortgage Professionals There is a very thought provoking article today posted on the Wall Street Journal’s Market Watch web page entitled, “Wanted: Mortgage Professionals Across the United States.” While this summer’s ga...

From the Desk of Bob Caldwell What is the best blogging platform for me? Part II On Monday I posted a blog pondering the question posed to you above. Specifically, I focused on what Blogger, WordPress, and Tumblr offer that ActiveRain does not (or vice versa). Later that day, Twitter bought a ri...