Pete Doty gave me the neatest card that I keep in my top desk drawer. When you open it, it sounds like a phone ringing. That's a great giveaway, with his card (or imprint) reminding me who passed on the favor. Ever been on a phone call when you really want to end the call but aren't able to giv
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08/21/2006
Sending referrals isn't usually correlated with how long someone's been in the business. Jonathan's attitude and caring have come through his blogs, and this week I sent him a referral - and I wouldn't have known him without Active Rain. The referral was for listing a townhouse in Valrico, an are
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08/20/2006
Branding consists of many things, including a consistent image. Color photos, content and layout of our marketing materials are important to us, as is clarity of type, type of paper, borders, formatting, etc. We are reluctant to just send in an ad to be printed in a newsletter as often the qualit
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08/20/2006
In Pinellas County, Florida we use electronic lockboxes, so our Palm or just a keypad, can open the boxes. Our Palms are updated every night to be sure none have been lost or stolen and if in the wrong hands, could be used to open a lockbox. We also need to enter our pin number. We can check on
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08/20/2006
Our typical August afternoon thunderstorm has just passed, and the sun coming out after the rain casts such a bright, wonderful glow on the homes (and the boats, yards, etc.) It's more concentrated than the usual sun everywhere, and it seems cleaner. I like to watch the storms, if I'm inside, and
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08/19/2006
Previously I've written about knob and tube wiring in older homes here (first half of the 1900s) and the problems created by non-insurability. In the late 1960s and early 1970s many homes here used aluminum wiring, which was perfectly permissible under the codes. Since that time, homes are genera
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08/19/2006
Here in St. Petersburg, Florida we have a variety of magnet programs at the schools - special programs that are designed to attract students from all over the county. One of the newest high school level programs is the St Petersburg Collegiate High School, which allows a student to graduate not o
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08/19/2006
Many articles have been written about staging a home, but the Wall Street Journal today wrote about another slant - using art to sell a home. Many museums will rent artword, paintings, statues, etc. Sometimes the art is used to enhance furnishings, sometimes to liven up a vacant home. This seems
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08/18/2006
Sellers of resale homes are beginning to offer some of the concessions offered by new home builders - one may offer to pay a year of the condo association dues, another may offer to buy down the mortgage rate to 5.99%. Before offering these on behalf of a seller, I called a favorite loan officer
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08/18/2006
Earlier this year, NAR approved the RSPS, a Resort and Second-Home Property Specialist certification. There are two required 2-day courses, the NAR Resort & Second Home Markets course and the RLI Tax-Deferred (1031) Exchange course. In addition, two electives are required. Yesterday I earned this
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08/18/2006
