Talk about a geek’s dream come to life! I recently came across a story on sciencefiction.com about a Star Trek home inLeicester, UK. Tony Alleyne, the owner, turned the interior of his flat into a replica of a Star Trek spaceship!
The transformation took more than 10 years, and it included hand-crafted furniture, reworked walls, a command console, a transporter room, voice-activated lighting system and more. The level of detail is absolutely incredible… Alleyne really outdid himself. (more…)
I don’t know about you, but one of my favorite things about the holidays is seeing everyone take out their holiday decorations. It’s especially great at night, when you can drive around and see all of the holiday lights at the neighbors’ homes.
But where do you go to get absolutely overwhelmed by holiday light displays? Georgia has some great spots that are sure to make your jaw drop! (more…)
Realtors and smartphones go together like peas and carrots. It’s an absolutely crucial tool for agents, since it allows them to get their email, search the web, and keep in regular communication with their clients. Nowadays, the most popular smartphones are Android devices.
There are more than 50 Android phones currently on sale in the U.S. alone. In fact, Google’s Andy Rubin – Senior VP of Engineering who oversees Android – recently said that there are more than 500,000 Android device activations daily. (more…)
Congratulations. You got a real estate license some time ago and became the CEO of your own “small business”. How’s business been lately? Bad? Worse than bad? Did you make enough money in 2010? Have you taken a “real job” to make ends meet?
What’s your plan to succeed in 2011?
The CEO of any business is in charge of hiring the right people to perform the services necessary to generate income. As the CEO of your own business, you “hired” yourself, didn’t you? Have you as CEO analyzed yourself as the sole provider of income to the company? Would you hire yourself again? (more…)
When you rent office space, there are many things to consider and several key questions to ask before you sign the commercial lease. Each lease agreement is different and you’ll want your commercial Realtor to help you negotiate lease terms that could protect you in the future.
How long do I plan to be in the space?
Estimate how long your business can operate effectively in the space you want to lease. Do you need a short-term or long-term lease? Do you want specific renewal option periods? (more…)
Have you seen the new Windows Phone 7 commercial (view it on YouTube) where a person is texting while ignoring someone who is right there trying to get their attention? They ask “REALLY… REALLY?” Children, spouses and friends are truly disgusted. I especially love the sexy wife whose husband is oblivious. It does seem like everybody is off in their own little universe and unaware of life happening just beyond their bubble. Am I the only person to notice or have you noticed it, too?
I think I saw the ultimate case of life in the bubble. Last night, when I was at the store the Christmas Bell Ringer for Salvation Army was ringing his bell while texting. (more…)
Everyone knows that it costs more money to acquire new customers (5 to 7 percent more on average) than to stay in touch with existing customers. Yet so many sales associates don’t have follow up programs in place.
It’s shocking because it’s easier than ever to stay in touch with customers now because of technology as well as companies that do the work for you.
The problem is that sales associates think of marketing as a cost, something they have to spend money on and can cut during tough times. However, the reality is that you spend more money to get a new customer. Think of how much more business you could have if you spent a little time and money on follow up.
Customer follow up should really be seen as an investment. Use some of today’s money to generate a future income stream. Look at the lifetime value of a customer versus the cost to acquire a customer.
Here are a few ideas for sales for following up with customers after a closing and retaining them for life: (more…)
Hoooooooooo boy, here it comes. The day of reckoning for agents who don’t follow the FMLS rules of membership is at hand. As every real estate agent in the metro Atlanta area knows, FMLS is one of two major MLS systems providing information about listed properties. Member real estate companies pay a great deal of money to join FMLS and be able to provide access to its valuable information for the company’s affiliated agents.
FMLS has always had a unique method of charging for its services:
Phones are ringing and emails loaded with links are flying! What does the latest foreclosure debacle, the fact that errors or omissions have been/are being discovered in previous residential foreclosures mean to homeowners being threatened with foreclosure, to bank sellers who have already foreclosed, to potential buyers, to mortgage lenders and to real estate professionals?
Many, many residential mortgages have not been retained and serviced by the lender who initially made the loan. Over the years, most mortgage debt instruments (mortgages, for short) have been sold, resold and resold again on the secondary financial market. Homeowners routinely received notices that their mortgage had been sold and that “the new mortgage servicing company is (insert name of new mortgage company here).” Payments were dutifully sent to the new company until the next notice arrived. (more…)
We all grew up with our mothers telling us certain little ditties that have become as familiar as Shakespeare quotes. Much of what we were told as children has great application for how we conduct ourselves as real estate professionals.
A great example I heard yesterday was “If everyone else jumped off a bridge, would you?” and I thought, you mean like if every other agent took overpriced listings, why shouldn’t I? Taking overpriced listings is not good for anyone. It’s bad for the agent, because it costs them marketing dollars. It’s bad for the homeowner who will not attract the most eligible homebuyer and it’s not good for buyers who might get a contract on a house that will not appraise. (more…)
September of 1989 began an unprecedented series of natural disasters when Hurricane Hugo hit South Carolina. Little did we know at the time, this would begin a pattern of at least two major events per year for the next 10 years that would change the way insurance companies treated both consumers and their employees.
These events would include at least one major hail storm per year coupled with many others scattered throughout the southwest including hurricanes and earthquakes. Hurricane Andrew hit in August of 1992, becoming the costliest disaster on record for insurance companies with billions of dollars paid out in claims.
As a result, the “loyalty” from the insurance company once coveted by consumers took a direct turn to a total focus on the bottom line, profitability. No longer did it matter you had been insured with one company for 25 years with no claims, once you had a string of bad luck, you were canceled. (more…)
Homebuyers are always asking me to find them a “great deal”. Today’s market makes that easier in some respects (prices are depressed and mortgage rates at a lifetime low) and tougher in some respects (there is SO much inventory to look at). Inevitably, though, the buyer’s definition of a “great deal” involves much, much more than just the price of the home. Here are some examples of truly GREAT DEALS:
Example 1
A young first-time buyer tried his best, but was declined by the mortgage lender for the financing he needed. He had a 5% down payment, but the lender wouldn’t lend him more than 90% of the home’s value. Fighting tears, he told me he was so embarrassed not to be able to complete the purchase. I asked the seller if he would be able to hold a note for the missing 5% for a year or two until the buyer could arrange other financing. He was happy to, since he could receive interest income on the note and hold a security interest in the property. The fact that the seller also respected the young man for his honesty and integrity probably played a part, too. This was a GREAT DEAL because of the financing terms. (more…)
I began my insurance career on February 12, 1988, as a Claims Representative (aka Insurance Adjuster) for a major insurance company. Little did I know the situations encountered for the next 10 years of my life would shape me as an individual in ways beyond I could ever imagine. No other career path I can think of requires one to be a contractor, psychologist, attorney, expert negotiator and doctor all rolled into one. In one single day, it was not uncommon to inspect 4 different property claims involving all five of these fields. The job was never boring!
The schedule for any given day might look something like this:
9:00 AM – Take a recorded statement from the owner of a dog that bit a little girl in the face when she tried to go under a coffee table to retrieve the furry stuffed animal that happened to be alive. While there, take photos of the dog and where the incident took place.
10:30 AM – Inspect the home of an insured that accidentally set a grease fire in their kitchen. There is fire damage to the house along with smoke damage throughout. Take photos, diagram and measure each room so an estimate to repair and clean can be written, advise the insured to find a contractor they want to do the work and explain the process. (more…)
Homebuyers who are taking advantage of the great home values and historically low interest rates are finding the mortgage qualifying process much harder than ever before.
I’ve put together several stories based on real buyers from recent deals that were almost killed by the top “Closing Killers” in the market today. The names have been changed to protect the innocent.
Our first story is about a first time homebuyer couple who barely escaped the sneaky Closing Killer, “Unexplained Deposits” who is part of the Closing Killer gang led by “Opening New Credit”!
Harry and Sally were buying their first home. The house had originally sold for over $250,000. Harry and Sally were able to secure a signed contract for $134,500 with the seller paying all closing costs. They had applied for an FHA 30-year fixed rate loan, putting down only 3.5%. They only needed $4,700 for down payment and 2 months reserves of the PITI (principal, interest, taxes and insurance) payment to qualify for the loan. When they finally sent their current monthly bank statement to the mortgage processor, it showed a current balance of $16,000! Much more than what they needed to close! But wait… did this bank statement reveal a possible Closing Killer: Unexplained Deposits”? YES! (more…)
If I am considering purchasing real estate, what are the pros and cons of selecting one agent to work with exclusively? Why not “play the field” and contact several (or even lots of) agents and have all of them scouting properties and deals for me? Why not just look around on my own? After all, I know what I’m looking for, right?
Let’s cut to the perceived “cons” of signing a Buyer Brokerage Agreement first, since they may seem obvious to most potential buyers:
Will I really save money by dealing directly with the seller’s listing agent? Overwhelmingly, no. That listing agent realizes that he/she will earn every penny of both the listing AND selling commission since they will be solely responsible for seeing the entire deal through to closing. And I have absolutely no power or standing whatsoever to renegotiate the commission agreement already signed between the listing broker and the seller since I am not a party to that agreement. It’s none of my business and some listing agents may even tell me so. Unrepresented buyers like me, in addition to needing much more “hand-holding” than I ever believe I actually will, are also placing ourselves in a position of “spilling our guts” to the listing agent, only to find out later that the listing agent MUST report any pertinent information to his/her CLIENT, the seller. What I say can and will be used against me during the negotiations and at the closing table. Ouch! (more…)
 |
Ann Bone (bio) Offering advice, one question at a time. |
 |
Glen Curry (bio) Your go to guy for insurance. |
 |
Dana Eskridge (bio) Relocation and foreclosure specialist. |
 |
Tisha Gay (bio) Delivering the hottest marketing trends and ideas to help you. |
 |
Dan Hinson (bio) Your business and commercial brokerage specialist. |
 |
Judy Jones (bio) Metro Brokers' own mortgage guru. |
 |
Eddie Krebs (bio) Providing advice on the latest real estate tech. |
 |
Kevin Levent (bio) Providing insight into industry trends. |
 |
Fran Stiakakis (bio) Dedicated to agents getting the most from their broker. |
 |
Brenda Waters (bio) Guiding agents through their real estate careers. |
