Real Estate Tips

Not All REALTORS Are Created Equal: 10 Tips for Finding One by Elaine VonCannon

I have seen home buyers and sellers less than satisfied with REALTORS who were not providing them the level of service they felt they deserved. If you take the time to find a good match, you may find your search for a home to be a rewarding experience. Here are some tips on evaluating a REALTOR.

1. If you are a seller, select a REALTOR who will advertise your property individually and distinctly.
2. A REALTOR must have a hot, up-to-date web site that changes to reflect the market.
3. Take into account the busy lifestyle of today’s professionals. Consider that most people use the internet to search for homes. Understand a REALTOR’S presence on the internet is crucial to their effectiveness.
4. If paying commission is a huge point with you, find a REALTOR who will be flexible.
5. Use a REALTOR with a national presence in the real estate market. Analyze the REALTOR’S web site as an indicator of this.
6. Choose a REALTOR with experience. If they are newly licensed, ask if the REALTOR is in a mentor program.
7. Check the REALTOR’S license by visiting your state’s department of occupational professionals web site. You can determine if the license is in good standing, read about any complaints or investigations, and see how long the REALTOR has been licensed.
8. Find a REALTOR who will research and obtain information from the source. This includes visiting a tax office or courthouse to research things like zoning or mapping topography of a home site.
9. Ask your REALTOR if they have access to more than one Multiple Listing Service (MLS) – if this is applicable in your area. Access to more MLS means increased opportunities to sell you property to qualified buyers or find the home that meets your criteria.
10. Open houses are not the way to sell homes, so do not be dazzled by a REALTOR who hosts them frequently. Often open houses attract neighbors and people not yet ready to buy.

If you take the time to find out more about the REALTOR you expect to use, you could land yourself a dream home, or a nice net gain on the home you are going to sell.

About the Author

Elaine VonCannon is a REALTOR with RE/Max Capital in Williamsburg, Virginia, and she manages investment property as part of her business. Elaine is also an Accredited Buyer’s Representative as well as a Senior Real Estate Specialist. She has helped numerous clients invest in and make money on property in Southeastern Virginia.

Local Realtor Attends “World-Class Service” Seminar by Leslie Riggs

For Further Information Call:
Jonathan Taylor (714) 815-4540
For Immediate Release

Local Realtor Attends “World-Class Service” Seminar
This past week, Orange County real estate specialist Jonathan Taylor attended an advanced customer satisfaction seminar in Palm Springs given by BY REFERRAL ONLY, a professional training company devoted to excellence and delivering “wow” service.
“I’ve lived and worked in Orange County for over 40 years,” said Taylor “My work in real estate helps build the community I love.”
During the seminar Taylor learned about common mistakes many homeowners make when selling their homes. “I came back from the seminar full of information to share with the community,” said Taylor. “Orange County is a wonderful place to live. I’m committed to making sure that home sellers and homebuyers have all the information they need to make the right decisions.”
Jonathan Taylor of First Team Real Estate has set up a free, 24-hour Consumer Awareness Hotline a1-888 281-3740 Ext 8605 that gives Orange County home sellers a behind-the-scenes peek at the most common mistakes people make when selling their homes – how not to make them – and shares tips on simple, inexpensive things to do that make homes sell for thousands of additional dollars.
“Some home sellers overinvest in expensive improvements that don’t significantly increase the value of their home,” said Taylor, “while other sellers fail to do the simple things that cost almost no money, yet always make homes sell for thousands of dollars more.
“It’s really nice to see that people are calling and getting benefit from the hotline,” added Taylor. “We get calls from people almost every week thanking us for the tips.”
Listen to Taylor’s free, 24-hour Consumer Awareness Hotline by calling 1-888 281-3740 Ext 8605

About the Author

Top Prodcer fro First Team Real Estate

How to Buy a Home with No Money Down by Garret Belisle

For many of us coming up with “the” down payment for a home is quite a struggle. There are many reasons for this, such as your income, your family needs, your savings account is well, non-existent. Not to long ago if you didn’t have at least 10 percent down you didn’t have a 10th of a percent of buying a home. As of late it can be a very affordable 5 percent or zero percent.

Okay now on to how it is done…

So let’s say you are a first time buyer (although this also works if you have already owned a home) and you simply need a break. You need a way to get into the market without spending a cent. Its called the No Money Down Mortgage, at least that’s what its called where I live, maybe its called Zero Money Down where you live but you get the idea. Now here is what is needed :

There are specific qualifications….and yes they are pretty much in this order.

Read on MacDuff….

1. An A Plus Credit History.

No recent history of any bad debt of any kind, which also includes all payments for your credit cards or shopping cards etc, etc. must be paid on time in most recent months.

2. Limited liabilities.

This means something like “Sign here….don’t move while we look into your ENTIRE credit history, but disclosure is not a bad thing, if your credit is good it will certainly work in your favour. This is done to make sure you can carry the extra debt.

3. At least 3 years of stable employment.

This needs to be verified on paper by your employer preferably or some form of financial statements. The employer is much better in most cases.

Finally. You must be able to carry large monthly payments.

Without a down payment, obviously lenders and the bank want to make sure you can handle the obligation of larger payments, The monthly payments may increase from a few to several hundred more a month but you can buy several styles of home.

This is the program in detail it is widely known and used by almost all banking institutions for greater details or understanding I highly suggest you go to your local bank and have a sit down with your financial advisor, someone you know and trust.

So in a nutshell, if the down payment is the current problem, it may no longer be with this program. You no longer need to pay your landlords mortgage, you can immediately get into a home with this program if you qualify.

And again, sorry to repeat myself but go and make an appointment to review this option with your realtor or banker or both. It’s worth taking a look at.

And always ask about mortgage leads…this will get the ball moving a little faster.

Now go get that house

About the Author

Garret Belisle runs several community blogs with advice on home buying and credit repair and currency trading to name a few.
You can view more information here :
http://www.gbcmortgage.blogspot.com
You may also subscribe for automatic updates as well

5 Questions you must ask your realtor before you list your house for sale. by Vince Ohare

5 Questions you must ask your realtor before you list your house for sale.

Your house is a major part of your life and when it comes time to sell it you need to get the best possible price. Here are some things to ask your prospective realtor before you list your house for sale.

1 How many homes have you listed and how many homes have you sold in the last 6 months? You are looking for a realtor that has experience with homes that are just like yours and from the same neighborhood. They can tell prospects about the schools, churchs etc.

2 Could you send me some info about yourself? You always need to do some research on someone that is listing your house. If they dont have promotional materials odds are they are not professional. If they avoid your request they will probably take a back seat when someone is looking to buy your home.

3 What is the average time when it comes to listing and actually selling a house? If they are moving houses too quickly they might not be getting the best prices that they can.

4 How long have you been in business? You always want someone with experience that is a no brainer.

5 Do you have assisants in case I need to get in touch with someone? Every real estate agent has assisants if they are serious about their work.

This is just a list to go by before you sell your house. Your main goal is to get the best possible price. If you want ask around your neighborhood or go to the local community meetings and ask around. Odds are someone in the room has bought a house in the neighborhood.

For more tips like this visit A1-Moving-Supplies.com

About the Author

Vince Ohare is a free-lance writer that has been published on many internet topics. This article can be republished as long as the links stay intact.

Why Get Pre-Approved For A Mortgage? by Chris Rocks

One of the most important steps in the home buying process is getting Pre-Approved as early as possible.

The Pre-Approval process involves you speaking with a Mortgage Lender about your financial situation, what you’d like to accomplish, and any concerns you have. Armed with that information, a Mortgage Lender can obtain an approval from a lender up to a specified loan amount and provide you with monthly payment information and closing cost information.

There are many benefits to getting Pre-Approved. First, Realtors will spend more time assisting you with your home search if they are confident you’ll be able to obtain financing once you’ve located a home you’re interested in purchasing. Second, Seller’s will take your offer more seriously since they know you will be approved for a mortgage — and they won’t risk taking their home off the market only to find out the deal is going to fall through 30 days later. Finally, since you know you’ve been approved and much of the paperwork has already been processed, you’re in for a much less stressful experience.

Why is it important to do this as early as possible?

Many loan officers report that over 50% of the credit reports they see have inaccurate information listed. This inaccurate information could be the difference between you getting a loan or not getting a loan - getting a rate of 5% or getting a rate of 7.0%. The earlier these errors are found, the sooner they can be corrected.

So, what do you need for the Pre-Approval Process?

Here a list of documents your Mortgage Lender will want to initially see copies of:

*W2’s from the last 2 years
*Tax Returns from the last 2 years
*Pay stubs from the last 30 days
*Bank & Brokerage Statements from the last 3 months

Additional documentation will be required depending on your specific situation and as the process progresses.

Your Mortgage Lender will go through a loan application with you, which covers questions related to your current residence, employment status, marital status, etc. There will be a series of disclosures you’ll have to sign as well - some required by the State or Federal Government informing you of your rights in the process.

With the application and disclosures signed, the supporting documentation you provided, and an understanding of what you are hoping to accomplish, the Mortgage Lender is ready to submit your “loan” through what’s called “Automated Underwriting”. Within minutes, unless your situation requires an underwriter to personally review your file, you will have an answer to your loan application.

Now that you have an approval, your Mortgage Lender will issue a Pre-Approval letter outlining the terms of your approval. Your Realtor will request a copy of this letter (typically before they begin showing you homes) and will include a copy with any offer
you make on a property.

Now it’s time for the fun part – looking for homes!

About the Author

Chris Rocks is a successful Mortgage Consultant and writer based out of Chicago, IL.

Website URL: http://www.loansbyrocks.com

Contact Email Address: chris@loansbyrocks.com

Sellers, Are You Having A Hard Time Selling Your Home? by Sue and Chuck DeFiore

Sue and Chuck DeFiore have the perfect solution for you – Lease Purchasing your home!

What is Lease Purchasing?

A Lease Purchase is a process that combines a basic rental lease with an agreement to purchase, or with an option to purchase the property. The Buyer (or Lease-Purchaser) pays to the seller a monthly payment that usually approximates a rental amount or a typical mortgage payment on the
home. A percentage of that payment is typically applied towards the purchase price. At the end of the term, the buyer has the right to purchase the property for the price and terms to which both parties have previously agreed.

Put another way, a lease purchase is essentially a rental agreement combined with a purchase contract with pre-negotiated terms. The buyer leases the property for a specific period of time and then purchases the property before the end of the lease agreement. Sales price, length of rental, rent credits, escrow instructions, etc., are all contained in the agreement.

A lease purchase is a wonderful way to control property without the headaches of banks, mortgages, taxes or immediate loan qualifying. Lease purchasing gives you the right to buy the property, but not the obligation to buy.

Following are just some of the benefits of Lease Purchasing for sellers.

1. Usually top sales price for the property.
2. Better quality tenants.
3. Higher rent than usual for the market area.
4. Non-refundable option consideration.
5. All minor maintenance is delegated to the tenant/buyer.
6. Seller remains on the deed.
7. Seller retains the tax shelter.
8. No fees to pay.

So, you ask, how do I lease purchase my home? Drop by our website and check out “How To Sell Your Home In 30 Days Or Less! Without A Realtor Or Realtor Commissions!”, Just click on the
link below:
http://www.homebusinesssolutions.com/products/lpsellermanual.htm

We will give you the ability to move your home in 30 days or less! This will allow you to move forward with your plans, whatever they are! Why not get started making those plans today!

Copyright DeFiore Enterprises 2005

About the Author

Interested in having your own successful, home based creative real estate investing business? Chuck and Sue have been helping folks start successful home based businesses for over 20 years, and we can help you too! To see how, visit http://www.homebusinesssolutions.com

7 Selling Mistakes You Don’t Want To Make! by Madan “Raja” Ahluwalia

7 Selling Mistakes You Don’t Want To Make!

Mistake #1 — Pricing Your Property Too High

Every seller obviously wants to get the most money for his or her product. Ironically, the best way to do this is NOT to list your product at an excessively high price! A high listing price will cause some prospective buyers to lose interest before even seeing your property. Also, it may lead other buyers to expect more than what you have to offer. As a result, overpriced properties tend to take an unusually long time to sell, and they end up being sold at a lower price.

Mistake #2 — Mistaking Re-finance Appraisals for the Market Value

Unfortunately, a re-finance appraisal may have been stated at an untruthfully high price. Often, lenders estimate the value of your property to be higher than it actually is in order to encourage re-financing. The market value of your home could actually be lower. Your best bet is to ask your REALTOR® for the most recent information regarding property sales in your community. This will give you an up-to-date and factually accurate estimate of your property value.

Mistake #3 — Forgetting to “Showcase Your Home”

In spite of how frequently this mistake is addressed and how simple it is to avoid, its prevalence is still widespread. When attempting to sell your home to prospective buyers, do not forget to make your home look as pleasant as possible. Make necessary repairs. Clean. Make sure everything functions and looks presentable. A poorly kept home in need of repairs will surely lower the selling price of your property and will even turn away some buyers.

Mistake #4 — Trying to “Hard Sell” While Showing

Buying a house is always an emotional and difficult decision. As a result, you should try to allow prospective buyers to comfortably examine your property. Don’t try haggling or forcefully selling. Instead, be friendly and hospitable. A good idea would be to point out any subtle amenities and be receptive to questions.

Mistake #5 — Trying to Sell to “Looky-Loos”

A prospective buyer who shows interest because of a “for sale” sign he saw may not really be interested in your property. Often buyers who do not come through a REALTOR® are a good 6-9 months away from buying, and they are more interested in seeing what is out there than in actually making a purchase. They may still have to sell their house, or may not be able to afford a house yet. They may still even be unsure as to whether or not they want to relocate.

Your REALTOR® should be able to distinguish realistic potential buyers from mere lookers. REALTOR®s should usually find out a prospective buyer’s savings, credit rating, and purchasing power in general. If your REALTOR® fails to find out this pertinent information, you should do some investigating and questioning on your own. This will help you avoid wasting valuable time marketing towards the wrong people. If you have to do this work yourself, consider finding a new REALTOR®.

Mistake #6 — Not Knowing Your Rights & Responsibilities

It is extremely important that you are well-informed of the details in your real estate contract. Real estate contracts are legally binding documents, and they can often be complex and confusing. Not being aware of the terms in your contract could cost you thousands for repairs and inspections. Know what you are responsible for before signing the contract. Can the property be sold “as is”? How will deed restrictions and local zoning laws affect your transaction? Not knowing the answers to these kinds of questions could end up costing you a considerable amount of money.

Mistake #7 — Limiting the Marketing and Advertising of the Property

Your REALTOR® should employ a wide variety of marketing techniques. Your REALTOR® should also be committed to selling your property; he or she should be available for every phone call from a prospective buyer. Most calls are received, and open houses are scheduled, during business hours, so make sure that your REALTOR® is working on selling your home during these hours. Chances are that you have a job, too, so you may not be able to get in touch with many potential buyers.

(c) Copyright 2005 Madan Ahluwalia. All rights reserved.

Madan “Raja” Ahluwalia is an Attorney at Law and Realtor. Raja offer his real estate clients a counseling-based approach to home buying, where the client’s long-term goals are the most important consideration and outweigh the benefits of any single sale. Raja possesses a thorough understanding of the real estate market and trends, based on years of involvement in real estate. He provides expert insights and helps clients understand timing, pricing and financing issues. Contact Raja at raja@kw.com or 650.430.4023.

USED THIS BIO

Madan “Raja” Ahluwalia is an Attorney at Law & Realtor. Raja offers his clients a counseling-based approach to home buying, where the client’s long-term goals are the most important consideration. He possesses a thorough understanding of the market and trends, based on years of involvement in real estate. He provides expert insights and helps clients understand timing, pricing and financing issues. Contact Raja at raja@kw.com or 650.430.4023.

Unleash the Power of Post Cards by Judith A. Wentzel

Direct mail marketing is essential for a business to survive.

Choosing the correct materials can make the difference between success and failure of your marketing campaign.

Postcards are visually appealing and one of the most affordable means to market your products and services.

What makes an image smarter marketing post card different from all the other direct mail pieces and postcards that flood our mailboxes each week?

They are high quality, powerful marketing tools that peak curiosity and evoke a response from the prospect.

What Is Image Marketing?

Image marketing isn’t new. It’s been around for decades.

Many of the top corporations around the world use image marketing every day.

RE/MAX uses “Nobody Sells Real Estate Like RE/MAX”.

The RE/MAX balloon magically enables the realtor to personally deliver the good news regardless of where the client may be.

This is a wonderful example of image marketing. These ads make evoke a feeling of trust. The message; RE/MAX goes all out to deliver top quality service to it’s clients.

Nike’s “Just Do It” brought them millions in revenue.

Remember Allstate’s slogan “You’re In Good Hands With Allstate”…

These are not mere words. They are powerful, image marketing tools that evoke an emotion. Using postcards to deliver your message is one of the most affordable ways in which you can use image marketing.

Realtors have been marketing with postcards for years. They use them because they get results.

What are Image Smarter Post Cards?

Image smarter postcards are high gloss, laminated, full color
postcards, printed on high quality card stock which relay a message that stirs and emotion or causes a response in the recipient.

They deliver your message in a crisp, vibrant manner making it more appealing to the prospect.

An image smarter post card will:

>Grab the recipient’s attention.
>Present a powerful message.
>Evoke a response
>Create recognition.
>Establish a relationship.
>Increase sales.
>Increase referrals.

The biggest asset of an image smarter postcard - your message is instantaneous!

No need for the recipient to have to open an envelope.

Your message is right there in front of her nose.

Both sides of the postcard contain a call to action and both sides are readily available.

Image Is Important.

First impressions mean everything in the business world. Add to this the importance of standing out from your competition and you see the need to use image marketing.

Incorporating image smarter marketing materials into your marketing campaign is more affordable than you may think and will reap you many rewards.

These powerful marketing materials relay will reflect a more dynamic, successful company image in the eyes of your prospects.

Don’t settle for what I call “Cookie Cutter” marketing.

Many business owners fall prey to this form of advertising.

Simply put, they use the same types of ads and materials they see their competition using. Wrong, wrong, wrong!

Wake up and smell the coffee!

You need to stand out from your competition and be recognized for the products and services you offer.

You need to use marketing materials that are appealing and evoke an emotion in your prospects. You want your postcards to peak their curiosity.

Simply put, you need to send image smarter marketing materials that are designed to GRAB your prospects attention.

Affordable and practical, these easily customized marketing wonders are one of the most reliable means by which you can skyrocket your business through increased sales and referrals.

The proof is in the pudding. Try it yourself by including image smarter post cards in your marketing campaign today and start working smarter, not harder.

Once you do, you will never use any other type of marketing again.

Image marketing – it works!

About the Author

Judith A. Wentzel - Image smarter marketing specialist providing image smarter web site design, marketing & business services. Assisting realtors & small business owners with their business and marketing needs since 1993.
ImageSmarterMarketing.com
Site-Build-Them-Ecommerce-Smart.com
ImageSmarterWebSiteDesign.com

The Listing Agent’s Role in Marketing Your Home
Advertising to the “Public”
Every home seller likes to be assured that their listing agent and or their real estate company will run ads featuring their home. Newspaper ads range from color photo ads to lots of listings reflected on a page with primarily only copy. Classified ads featuring your home are another tool. Ads may also appear in local real estate magazines and on the Internet (ideally on several sites).
Of course, Realtors and their brokerages will run ads featuring your house, but not necessarily for the reasons the seller expects. The primary motivation for advertising is to make the telephone ring. Advertising creates phone calls and some of those callers become clients of the agents answering these calls. This builds up a pool of homebuyers looking for property in general. Multiply this by all the agents and companies who also advertise homes, and there is a large pool of homebuyers in the market at any given time – all of whom have contacted a Realtor. The agents representing those homebuyers know about your home once it is listed in the Multiple Listing Service, has been on broker preview, and because your agent is also marketing directly to these agents.
Through, the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), the agents match up their clients (computer prospecting), with available homes, one of which may be yours. Realtors then show the selected homes to their clients, who ideally end up buying one. Although, ads do not typically sell your house directly, they create a pool of clients for Realtors; and one of these existing clients typically purchases your home.
Behind the “Advertising Scene”
When an Agent or their brokerage, advertise homes they have for sale, there is more than one objective. Certainly, the real estate office wants to generate phone calls and sell houses, but the advertising also shows other homeowners how effectively they market their listings. This impresses not only the seller, but also others who may be thinking of selling their home.
The advertising brings in more listings, which generate more ad calls, which produces more buyers…. Cross selling is often how your property is sold; someone calls on one home and the agent on the line tells that buyer about yours. About 5% of the time, you and your agent will get “lucky”; and someone calling on your house may actually end up buying it.
Neighborhood Announcements
When you first list your home many agents send “announcements” to all of the other houses in your neighborhood. This is typically done in the form of postcards, or letters. This too is has a double purpose: your neighbors might have friends who are looking to buy a house (but they probably would notice the for sale sign, anyway) and of course this hopefully impresses other area homeowners that might be contemplating a sale.
Open Houses
An open house can be also be helpful, but not for the reasons most homeowners think. Just like with advertising, most visitors rarely buy the house they come to look at. They usually do not even know the price of your home when they stop by– they probably just followed an “Open House” sign to your door. Often, the exterior of the home appealed to them, because the home is over their budget.
An open house reminds your neighbors that your home is for sale, and offers them an opportunity to “take a look.” Hopefully your neighbors will tell friends or family members about your house, creating “word of mouth” advertising.
However, there are other reasons for conducting open houses, too. Listing agents who “farm” a particular neighborhood use them as an opportunity to meet with other local homeowners who will someday be selling their home. Most of us, Agents hope to also list your neighbor’s homes in now or in the future.
Advertising to Realtors
Realtors are typically more comfortable showing clients homes that they are familiar with. The Broker’s Open House is a very effective means to quickly get a large number of Realtors into your front door. These realtors are hopefully working with prequalified buyers that are looking to buy a home similar to yours. To maximize attendance, veteran Listing Agents might provide refreshments or a raffle of some sort.
Property Brochure Distribution is another way that your Listing Agent may be marketing your home to other Realtors. These services hand deliver your property brochure to each individual agent in a specific geographic area. Other top Realtors employ an Internet program to email listing cards to the top local selling agents in your community.
Because Realtors are the ones with the “buyer pool”, It is much more productive and beneficial when your listing agent directs most of his or her marketing efforts toward other agents. It is an easy mistake to measure your agent’s effectiveness solely by counting the number of newspaper and magazine ads featuring your property. “Behind the scenes” marketing is the most effective and most difficult for the seller to measure.

About the Author

Phyllis Harb, a California native is a Realtor/Marketing Specialist at RE/Max Tri City in La Canada, California. RE/MAX Tri-City offers additional offices in La Crescenta, Glendale, Los Feliz and Pasadena. Harb has been assisting Los Angeles County home sellers and buyers since 1989 and additionally offers over 10 years experience in real estate lending. Harb has an award winning web site @ www.RealtorHarb.com & may also be contacted at 818 790-7325.

Learn Instantly How To Use The Power of Persuasion To Get What You Want
Copyright © 2005 Keith Wellman
eMarketing Code
http://www.emarketingcode.com/thank-you.html

>From the time since man first started interacting with people
the power of persuasion has helped him get what he wanted.
Persuasion is used by every political leader, CEO, president,
and anyone who might possess power and wealth. Did they use
persuasion techniques to gain that power and wealth? You bet
they did!

Bill Gates is considered by many to be on of the richest and
powerful man in the world today. How did he get there? Bill
Gates was able to use his natural ability to persuade to get
people to build some of the most complex software known in the
world today. The result? Huge respect, wealth, and power in
a very short amount of time.

There are many famous marketers today that use persuasion
techniques in their everyday marketing campaigns. People like
Jay Abraham, Terry Dean, Mark Joyner, Ken Evoy, Armond Morin,
Mike Filsaime, and many many others use persuasion techniques
to make themselves thousands of dollars every month. Some of
them may not even realize they are doing it.

Recently a new book has been published that could very well be
your ticket to these very powerful persuasion techniques. The
book written by Keith Wellman titled “The Persuasion Code”
teaches exactly how to use, implement, and learn these secret
techniques. Up until recently these secret techniques were
known only by the rich and famous and the rare few that have
the natural ability to persuade.

Until next time,
eMarketingCode

———————————————————————
A free copy of Keith Wellman’s four week
beginners course to persuasion is available at
http://www.emarketingcode.com/thank-you.html
along with a few other extras that he has made
available to you.