Archive for August 23rd, 2009

Real Estate Marketing With SMS

I watched a web seminar this afternoon the subject of cellular messaging. The reason for joining the meeting was to find ways to create visibility our expired listing lead service from RedX. The information presented was very useful; especially if you have a number of prospective clients that you are finding difficult to contact. The technology has evolved where you can now provide your prospects a way to stay constantly in contact with your product offering. This type of approach is not new. There are online corporations that provide information on homes for sale in response to a particular cell phone text numbers that you can place on your listing. Unfortunately, these systems regularly provide a single interaction with your prospective client, and some basic contact information from which to follow up.

Most real estate agents are aware of this approach which is different than what was presented at the webinar. The model that was provided was a message that was sent out from during a concert to those who had registered to receive mobile updates. The communication included a voucher code and a request to send that coupon on to each of the recipient’s contacts which effectively made the message viral. Now I understand that you are not putting on large rock concerts, and likely do not have that large of a budget; also, real estate is a completely distinct animal. However, the strategy remains the same.

This is the way I would personally recommend use of this technology:

1) Attracting leads: Establish a relationship with a SMS text service contributor so that you may put special text codes on discrete listing signs and promotions that you place. There are a number that serve up the real estate industry, but make certain that they have an autoresponder system so that after the initial text is sent, the textee is provided a follow up requesting permission to provide additional updates. You want your list of leads to opt in to the communication.

2) Sending a list of listings may be trite, let’s face it, we all do it as a standard of practice with little differentiation. To differentiate yourself, choose to send out information or reports that are unique to the services that you offer. If you link the text digits to an individual promotion, you can at least assume some things about the individual who requested the data. From there, you can create follow-on texts that may suite the prospect’s interest. These could incorporate new listings that are similar to what originally prompted the text. For differentiation and the viral spin, you may want to send local updated on local events. You may also go as far as approaching some of the advertisers in the local clipper magazines and mailers and request permission to forward their offer to your target list. Let’s face it, when was the last time you received a free pizza or 20% off dinner at your local Chinese restaurant from your Realtor?

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Virginia Lake Property

Memories Then and Now: Wood pile~Shadow Shot Sunday 082309
Sunset over Virginia Lake~SkyWatch Friday for 082109 – Tuesday evening hubby and I were out driving and we decided to take the Virginia Lake turnoff. We had never been there and there were some lovely … 1 day ago. desertsouthwest …  read more…

Enjoy Countryside Living at Virginia Farms and Waterfront …
Whereas growing farms and lake side properties that are not resorts, but the places to build their houses. There are many benefits you can enjoy the rural life, especially if you settle on farms and waterfront property in Virginia, …  read more…

Lakefront realtor | Lake House
More Great News for Lake Geneva Real Estate | Lake Geneva Property This is probably most applicable to the lakefront homes and lake front condominiums on Lake Geneva and the other various lakes in the area. Contact Bob Webster at Keefe Real Estate for answers … Paul Moore is an experienced Realtor in the Smith Mountain Lake area of Virginia. Paul, a Detroit native, paid a visit to the area and loved it so much that he moved to the Smith Mountain Lake area an… read more… …  read more…

From Google Blog Search

Who is Paul Moore?
Paul Moore is an experienced Realtor in the Smith Mountain Lake area of Virginia. Paul, a Detroit native, paid a visit to the area and loved it so much that he moved to the Smith Mountain Lake area an…  read more…

Investing In Smith Mountain Real Estate Market Is A Good Option
There is absolutely no denying the fact that recession has hit all markets and business sectors. But, real estate industry is still on track. Though it is true that housing market is not very good in …  read more…

Log Home Living in the Laurel Highlands
Every month thousands of people from Western PA, Ohio, West Virginia and Maryland flock to the Laurel Highlands in search of something they can’t find in their everyday lives…tranquility. From whit…  read more…

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Resolved Question: If I live an hour away from Madison, Wisconsin?
I might be moving from Virginia to a home in Columbia, Dodge, or Marquette (maybe Dane) counties where I could teach for the Dane County/Madison public school system (High School Spanish). I might teach in other school systems in those specific counties as well.

I know that snow in WI can be brutal, but realistically speaking I would be an hour away from my work. Is it realistic to be such a distance from school considering snow? How are the roads taken care of there? How do people drive in high amounts of snow?

What I really want is a property worth around $120,000 near a lake or a river.

Since we don’t get even a comparable amount of snow in Virginia, I’m left with superficial ideas about how Wisconsinites deal with their snow. If there, per se, is 20 inches of snow on the ground and I live an hour away from school, what would happen? Would I call in a substitute or something like that? Or am I absolutely obligated to come to work?

I prefer not to live in the city.

Thanks!

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Resolved Question: do you know about a cave in virginia?
ok, i know this is a long shot, but here goes…….about 9 years ago a friend told a group of us about a cave near catawba va. someone else drove so i wasn’t paying attention to where we were going. we parked on the side of the road, hopped a fence, and walked a short distance into the woods and came to a stream. we followed that for a short distance until it entered a cave. it was very easy to get into, no climbing or anything. once inside there was a large underground lake and you could walk in a little way to a wall w/ a crack at the top. if you climbed the wall and shimmied through the crack you would enter a really big cave.

i guess my question is, does anyone know about this place. don’t write back w/ dixie caverns, this place was on someone’s private property and miles away from d/c. i would love to know where this place was so i could go back. i can’t find the people i went w/ originally, so i can’t ask them. i’m really hoping someone on here might just be from virginia and know what i’m talking about. thx!

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Resolved Question: Have you ever researched your hometown?
no matter how large or small?
Here is a little bit of history of my hometown:
In the land now containing the town of Richlands a Native American village probably once stood. As late as 1775, the area containing the future town of Richlands held the line as a western outpost of civilization. Forts and militiamen offered refuge and protection to pioneer families during native tribal raids. Not until December 1792 did civilization push its borders into Kentucky, and the area was no longer a military outpost.

In the 1890’s touted to speculators and investors as the “Pittsburg of the South,” Richlands began with promises for riches and success. The Clinch Valley Coal and Iron Company, a conglomerate of seven companies, purchased extensive holdings in the valley. Historian William Pendleton estimated the Richlands area as measuring two by four miles with five thousand acres of “very valuable land.” Clinch Valley Coal and Iron properties extended through the outlying territories of Indian Creek, Middle Creek, Town Hill Creek, Swords Creek, Dumps Creek, Weaver’s Creek, and Big Creek. The company in turn leased these properties to various people.

The name Richlands evolved from the land grant of 1785 from Patrick Henry, then governor of Virginia, to a John Fowler for a tract of two hundred acres extending from Lake Park (Lick Lot then) to Doran. The grant described the land location as “in the rich lands on both sides of the Upper Fork of the Clinch River.” As pronounced in that document, both words were and are accented equally Rich-lands. Historian Bickley commented that Richlands was “…noted for its fine lands. It is a pretty place, and desirable.”

Therefore this small small country town is pronounced Rich-lands (two syllables)

compliments of wikipedia.org
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richlands,_VA

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The World Wide Web has been opening new avenues to help real estate professionals promote and enhance their business online. Social bookmarking sites, a reflection of its boon has started gaining a lot of popularity due to their power to help build networks and even businesses. The best three social bookmarking sites that can help you in promoting your real estate business over the internet are Digg, Stumble upon, and Delicious.

Delicious has been the standard by which all other social bookmarking websites are gauged. This site has been operating since 2003 and possesses rich content and a strong and active community. Its content is not very philosophical. Its interface is rather simple and convenient to use. Its strong following and easy operation makes it a popular choice among new users.

Delicious, a forerunner in the modern era of social bookmarking, allows you to save all your bookmarks and run a search through them by using the appropriate keywords. You can also search through the most recently added and popular websites that are recommended by a significant community of users. You can add friends and even browse their personal bookmarks. The site is easy to sign up with and its simple design allows you to use it instantly.

Following Delicious is Stumble Upon, another leading social bookmarking site. Its functioning style is unique and one of its kind. You can click on the sign that shows the “thumbs up” sign that will appear in your toolbar if you like a particular page while browsing the internet and the “thumbs down” option if you dislike a particular page. You can simply click a toolbar and voice out your opinions on such a social bookmarking site and rate only the pages on which you carry a strong opinion.

If you do not value some page, you can simply press the “thumbs down” button. You are not required to rate all pages, only the ones on which you want to make any comments. Clicking a button on the toolbar and writing your feedback can be an easy and suitable method to express your opinions on such a social bookmarking site.

Another social bookmarking site, StumbleUpon is very useful and you can set your individual preferences. It can then select a group of users who have preferences similar to yours. Now you can set “stumble” to pages which are common with users whose preferences match with you. There is no requirement to share your own votes with others. However, by opting-in, you can help others in finding attractive sites. This site can be a good choice if you want much more than just storing your bookmarks.

Following these two is Digg, another popular social bookmarking site. It makes the process of tagging simple and is easy to use. After registering you can use the numerous facilities that they offer like, adding buttons to your own web browser or add any story or article. For this all you need to do is mention the URL, post a little comment on it and a title that describes it well. If your story gets enough appreciation, it can carve its way to the home page and gain some publicity.

Digg, the social bookmarking site also provides the facility to add videos, various podcasts and even collaborate on the editing labors of other users by digging their articles. Via RSS or email you can also subscribe to the submitted articles of other users. You can digg the stories you are pleased about. If you are not pleased about some writing, you can advise that it gets “buried”. Real estate advertising and marketing can be conveniently done using social bookmarking sites and they can give great benefits to your business.

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Home Equity Loans For The Beginner

If you are on the market and are wanting to get a home equity loan, then it is important that you cover your grounds before agreeing to any terms. In most cases, lenders will often sell homes for the amount owed on the property if the homeowner falls behind on payments.

You must take this into consideration when you are trying to get a home equity loan, and you must ask yourself, is it really worth it to risk losing my home if I am unable to pay the loan back to the lender.

The majority of the mortgage lenders will offer 25 to 30 year terms for repayments. Providing the homeowner pays each month on time, over time, the loan amount will drop.

This is great as you will have low monthly payments for the next 30 years, but you must take into consideration that the lender will be making a lot of money off of the loan due to the amount of interest that is building up over the years.

When you are beginning to pay the 2nd mortgage loan back, you will be paying just one amount that is mixed in with your mortgage, depending on what type of home equity loan that it was that you took out in the first place. You will have to pay back both the capital and the interest of the loan.

There are 2 different kind of agreements when it comes to the interest only equity mortgages in most cases. One of these agreements will be for the capital payments while the other one will be for interest payments.

Therefore, you should research and think carefully before deciding on equity loans. If you select the wrong interest payments, you may find yourself paying off interest only for years before you ever start cracking the principal amount.

Finally, there are various equity loans available; however, if you are in good standings with your current loan, then you may want to reconsider equity loans for re-mortgaging.

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The Legend of the Dominion Lending Centres

Considering just how many homeowners there are out there, it’s safe to assume that you yourself are one of them. There’s also a good chance that you’d like to take out a mortgage but you simply don’t know how to go about it. While it’s fair to say that many home mortgage companies will really go the extra mile in order to help you, there are just as many companies out there that will do whatever they can in order to take you for a ride. As you can well imagine, home mortgages are certainly not something you want to be taking a chance with, so of course it would be in your own best interest to go with a company which has an outstanding reputation, and one which takes pride in helping their customers.

Dominion Lending Centres is just such a company, and since 2006 they have been helping Canadians all over the country. In fact, they’ve even been awarded the “Best Newcomer Mortgage Company” award in 2008.

Over and above home mortgages, Dominion Lending Centres also have a leasing division in order to deal with financing requirements for various commodities such as motor vehicles and computers. Of course, this is one thing which sets them apart from many of the other mortgage brokers out there in that the majority of brokers fail to offer such a service. Irrespective of what it is you require; there’s a strong possibility that Dominion Lending Centres can in fact offer you assistance.

Over and above the services already mentioned, the company also offers refinancing, and of course they are fully aware of just how important a person’s home is to them. In fact, they have people on hand 24/7 to provide assistance should you experience any issues relating to your home mortgage. Interestingly enough, this is a service which practically no other mortgage company offers and as such, it should be testimony enough that the company can be relied upon.

You’ll also notice a few handy features if you browse around on their website such as a refinancing calculator and a home mortgage calculator. Both of these tools are of course extremely handy in helping you to calculate what your monthly payments will be.

Homeowners would be well advised to only use such calculators on dedicated mortgage websites, simply because if you choose to use one of these calculators on a random site, you could very well be playing right into the hands of a scammer. Alternatively, you could be playing into the hands of a mortgage company which provides undesirable rates on the calculator, and then offers better rates in order to lure people in. This is exactly why it is always better to become involved with a mortgage company such as Dominion Lending Centers which are capable of standing on their own two legs.

There is certainly no shortage of refinancing companies and as a result it can often be extremely challenging when it comes to choosing a company which is willing to put your best interests before their own. Dominion Lending Centres realize that while they may not be able to convince you to use their services, they do however suggest that you at least go and talk to them so that they can help you get the most out of your home mortgage.

Above all, you need to realize that getting a home mortgage does not necessarily have to be a daunting task, providing you’re willing to follow the advice of an expert in conjunction with using your own judgment and the services of Dominion Lending Centres.

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Real estate market is going through a severe competition level and the stress factor seems to be building up day by day. Real estate agents are now trying to find out different unique methods to promote their business on the World Wide Web. However, there are some effective online marketing strategies that seem to be just perfect to fill up the notion from real estate agents. When there is a need for finding out a groundbreaking marketing strategy, real estate investors really prefers to go after Internet. For grabbing any sorts of information about products and services people like to search through Internet. If you can exhibit your services and products on the global screen effectively then more people will know your business, thus you can generate good revenue through your blog.

If you are the owner of a real estate agency and trying to enhance your business periphery then a website or a blog can make the necessary adjustment for you. Especially, blogs are the most cost-effective way to promote real estate business among the global audiences. Real estate blogs marketing is going high in demand as many real estate investors, agencies and agents are going for it at a great pace.

In real estate business good communication plays the most vital role to enhance your business products. Specially, when you are dedicated to come out with a blog and focus on the worldwide arena. Blogs marketing is the most affordable and low cost way to promote your real estate services. The advantages are uncountable and offering you a pioneering result.

With the use of traditional means for marketing products, you are not going to make a good amount for your real estate business. All you need to expenses a lot of money and have to put in your hard effort in order to drive business success through conventional marketing strategies. But real estate blog marketing is a cost effective way and it can also generate handsome revenue for your business. These days, many real estate investors and agents are looking for such marketing method due to its effectiveness.

Real Estate Blog Marketing is a successful system that can increase new elevation for your business. That is the authentic reason for the growth of this sector that influences real estate professionals and business holders to gain revenue online.

If you are not sure about it then look for other successful real estate blogs. How they have prepared it and what is the information these blog owners have offered. This can bring you a good idea about your next step for creating real estate blogs. Real estate blogs marketing is a good way to promote your business and to create your leads.

Creating more leads for your real estate blog or website is the most important factor that you need to keep in mind. If your blog or website cannot generate more leads then they don’t worth. In order to achieve this target you need to add fresh and informative content for your blog. Write down little informative, brief and unique content and upload it with your real estate blogs. Visitors that visit this blog will come to know about your real estate services.

The informative part of your blog can draw a visitor’s attention instantly. In this way you can too retain your web visitors through your blog. Thus such visitors will like to visit your blog whenever they need more information about the real estate world. Update your blog on a regular interval and try to add more real estate news for it. Real estate blogs marketing is all about allowing web visitors to know about your business. So, make it wisely.

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What Is A 1031 Exchange In Plain English?

I had no idea what a 1031 exchange was when I first heard of it, but have since learned some more about it. This article is intended to help others who have no idea what a 1031 exchange is, but would like to know. I will do my best to write this in a clear, easy to understand manner.

Before you can understand how a 1031 exchange works, you should first understand why they exist. They exist so that people can avoid losing money in form of capital gains tax when they sell one property with the intent to reinvest the proceeds immediately. A 1031 exchange makes it possible to defer the capital gains taxes. The term 1031 actually comes from the IRS code. The reason this was created was to encourage people to continue to reinvest their profits, thus helping the economy.

So now that you understand the purpose, you should understand a little bit about how it works. First, you are required by law to have what is called a QI. This is a 3rd party that is independent and serves as a Qualified Intermediary (hence QI). They are there to hold the profits from the sale of the first property that you sale until you invest it into another property(s).

Next, there are some rules about what can and cannot qualify for a 1031 exchange. First, remember that we are discussing property. This cannot be done with anything but investment properties. However, that can be widely defined to mean single family rental units, multi-family rental units, office buildings, storage facilities, raw land, retail shopping centers, and industrial facilities.

Second, the major qualifier is that the properties are of like kind. Like kind refers to the similar nature or characters of properties, not the grade or the quality. They (referring to all properties involved) also must also be held for productive use in trade or business. Another viable option is if they are held for investment purposes.

Keep in mind that this involves the IRS (1031 actually refers to the number of IRS code that this comes from) and as such, of course will have a lot of rules and regulations. You should seek professional consultation on the specifics pertaining to your circumstances. However, there general guidelines will help you to understand some of the basics.

1- The value of the replacement property must be equal to or greater than the value than the old property that you are selling. 2- The equity of the replacement property must also be equal to or greater than the value of the old property that you are selling. 3- The debt on the replacement property must be equal to or greater than the debt of the old property that you are selling. 4- ALL of the net proceeds from the old property that you are selling must be used to acquire the replacement property.

There are also some timeline issues that you will want to be aware of. First, in order to successfully qualify for a 1031 exchange, you will need to identify a new property by the 45th calendar day from the time of the closing on the relinquished property. (There are guidelines about that too – see a professional) Second, you need to close on the new property by the 180th calendar day from the time of the closing on the relinquished property. Hopefully this helps. Please call a professional when you are getting ready to consider a 1031 exchange.

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Finished Basement Photo: Why Its Advantageous

You’ll hardly have a hard time finding finished basement photo in almost every magazine and website that features basements. The reason is simply because pictures support information about renovating a basement. If it’s about steps in waterproofing for example, you get a whole set of images under that category. Some sets of photos compare their basement on a before and after perspective. This way, it gives a more impressive impact especially when your basement used to be a dark and seemingly unusable.

Pictures inspire and motivate you. The moment you have an idea of what you want with your basement, you have a picture of it in your head. A finished basement photo is the actual print from that idea. The process from its conception to that printed image is where the challenge is. Most often, it is much fun to get the things in between going. What makes it more interesting is when you do the things yourself.

There are also batches of a finished basement photo that include details on fixtures. They showcase the different types of doors, windows, lighting, and all things that can be in a basement. Close up images are shown to illustrate the details. To give a more appealing value for the images, captions are written down.

One other thing you’re likely to find in a basement gallery is a step by step guide on the installation of these fixtures. While these fixtures are common to any household, some of them are specially design for basements. Windows in basements for example have specifications on the kind of framing materials and glass mount.

The major reason for this is because the basement has specific properties as apparently attributed to its surrounding subsoil. This leads to a more detailed demonstration of the how-to procedures, particularly on the installation. A finished basement photo can help a lot in this.

Photos also serve as a useful documentation medium. If you had every step of your basement remodeling photographed, the sense of fulfillment can be overwhelming when you get to the end of the project. Upon seeing your finished basement photo, it brings back good memories when building your basement. You probably got spilled one time when you were getting the plumbing system fixed and your wife took a picture of it. Later on you discover how funny it was despite the mess.

Taking pictures of your basement should be included in your task list when remodeling your basement. You know you will be mostly devote your time on managing the construction and if you’re doing it yourself, might as well assign the task to a family member.

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The Best Way To Find Foreclosure Listings

You want to make most of the foreclosure opportunity, but you don’t know how to do it? Don’t worry, in this blog we are going to discuss three of the best way to find some excellent foreclosures using foreclosure listings.

Let’s get started.

Networking: Some of the best foreclosure properties are worth the effort. However, you need to network your way through. Once you are privy to the insider information on the best foreclosures, you’ll be able to invest in foreclosed properties that most other people may not even know about!

So how do you network? Start by contacting some of the most experienced real estate agents in your area. Convince them that you are a serious customer and want to establish a long-term relationship. Since these agents have access to the latest news, current foreclosure listings and developments, when you network with them you’ll be in the ‘thick of action.”

Do It Yourself: A killer technique for sure. It may sounds a bit strange, but it yields excellent results. All you need to do is drive around your area and keep an eye out for ‘For Sale’ signs on homes. Stay alert for signs like ‘foreclosure,’ ‘bank-owned foreclosure’ or ‘bank repo.’ Jot down the contact information and once you get home, call them up. Now here’s the important part. Once you have collected information on the foreclosed property, also ask about any ‘red hot’ foreclosures in that area. Believe me when I say, agents will have foreclosure lists with the latest and best foreclosures with them! Try it and you’ll see what I mean.

Bank Websites: This is one of the best ways to find foreclosures. Not only will you find foreclosure lists on various bank websites but you will also be able to get the latest information regarding foreclosures. Some of these bank websites are for Bank of America, Chase Mortgage, US Bank.

Well there is another technique that helps you find the best foreclosure listings out there. It’s called, “making others work for you!” These techniques have been derived based on practical experience and established results. Once you have managed to practice these 3 techniques to find the best foreclosure listings for some time, you can simply relax and let others do the hard work for you!

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What Should Be Included In A Tenancy Agreement?

A Tenancy Agreement can be defined as an agreement or a treaty between two parties i.e. the tenant and the landlord. It is a contract, which allows the tenants to occupy the property or a house, and authorises the landlords to receive rent for letting their property.

The contract is signed as a legal formality and is a proof of the tenancy, in order to avoid any disputes between the parties after the property has been occupied. The tenancy agreement can be both oral and written. However, it is advised to have it written, since the oral agreement results in many arguments and clashes, as it cannot be verified. As a written document, the contract is more authentic as a proof of the consent. In case of problems, you can easily approach to the authorities with the agreement.

The contract for the tenancy should follow certain guidelines. It should be designed as per the rules imposed in a country. It will not be any good if it does not focus on all the legal formalities. Both parties are eligible for certain benefits, if they design the agreement as per the law of the country and are accountable as well in case of violation.

Each point of the tenancy contract should be clearly mentioned separately in points to avoid any misunderstanding in the future, which in the end will be signed by both parties, proving their consent. A third person, who acts as a guarantor should be present at the time of the agreement, since he will be responsible for making sure that every month’s rent is being paid as per the defined time line and due dates. The starting and ending date of the tenancy should be clearly mentioned in the contract as well.

The payment that the tenant has to submit to the owner, has to be stated in both words, as well as numbers next to the agreed due date for the payments. The owner of the property will then give a written testimonial about the security deposit that he has the right to keep till the tenure of the tenancy. Even the amount of the security deposit has to be in words as well as in numbers.

Even the system of the payments should be clearly mentioned in the tenancy contract for future reference, which will state the way the rent will be paid to the owner; either directly, by the state agent, by mail, cash in hand or by signing a cheque. This will be a written proof holding all the details of the payments.

Other important details and points, such as the tenant being responsible for paying all utility bills on time, paying for the reconnection of any certain facility, if it is disconnected etc. are must to be mentioned in the agreement. The agreement will also contain the point stating the tenant’s duty to maintain the house in a good condition and not using it for any illegal purposes. Another point will be stated about the owner of the property to be responsible for paying all the refurbishment and repairing charges, the property’s insurance and the taxes.

The tenancy contract proves to be a record of all mutual agreements decided by both parties, and hence, they are bound to abide by it in order to avoid any disputes.

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