May 2009 bring better real estate and stock market.

Wishing you the best of health in the coming year.

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Got a Trulia Testimonial?

This week we’re featuring Lee Tayor, who is a Real Estate Pro and founder of The Rootdown Group.  In his blog about Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, Lee expresses his gratitude for Trulia Voices and the success it has given him.  Here it is in his own words:

“I’ve connected one on one with 15 different Intown Atlanta buyers and sellers via Trulia Voices since December 12, 2007 - people who reached out to me, from Shanghai to Alpharetta, and asked for my help. We’ve closed 5 transactions in 2008 as a result of the relationships that we’ve built via Trulia Voices, and those represent about 20% of our business in 2008. ”

Thanks for using Trulia Voices, Lee!

We love you, too!

And your daughter is an angell!

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The results are in! We have chosen a winner for the Trulia 2008 Triple Play iPhone, Mark Arbeit!

Congratulations to our new Trulia Pro, Mark Arbeit of Prudential Fox & Roach in Margate NJ for wining our contest. And thanks to all our other new Trulia Pro subscribers who we had a chance to meet and get to know better at Triple Play.

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Every professional provides free services (pro bono)to clients and Realtors are no different.

My favorite pro bono is a “For Sale by Owner” (FSBO) in West Chester.  His property has been for sale for over 18 months- 6 months with 2 different real estate companies and 12 months (give or take a month) as a FSBO.  Currently there are 81 single family homes for sale in West Chester/Beckett Ridge priced between $250,000- $400,000.

Our first contact was a phone call questioning something I had written in the blog- and when I didn’t back down - he decided I was his new “best friend”. 

We chat every couple of weeks - most recently he was looking for fresh ideas about marketing his home….lowering the price is not something he likes to hear.

Why do I put up with his calls and emails- well in his favor is a wicked sense of humor….and I have learned from him too.  He is extremely polite and always questions whether I have time to talk.  So we talk and talk and talk…

Right before Christmas he wanted to run an ad in the newspaper- but didn’t like the cost.  I pointed out the bulk of buyers (84%) use the internet to search for homes- having your information online is more important than ever.  My pro bono”FSBO” has a neat informational web page - but it rarely shows up when buyers search West Chester real estate or homes for sale.

Other things we have worked through and are common mistakes hampering many For Sale by Owners:

• Hard to show the property.  He wants to be home and his schedule doesn’t always fit the buyer’s schedules
• “Puppy dogging” -following closely behind the buyers- pointing out everything- never allowing the buyers “private time”.
• Wasting his time with buyers looking for a land contract, seller held mortgages or lease options- this seller is not interested in any of these.
• Emailing oversized photo ads/informational pieces to area Realtors.  Many of these emails are caught in company spam blockers or are so large- that it takes more than a minute to open the attachment.
• Overpriced, Overpriced, Overpriced-this isn’t unique to FSBO’s.

If you are trying to sell your own property- put a buyer’s hat on and think about making it easy for everybody.   Screen out problem buyers by asking questions before you set an appointment.  Take a look at homes for sale in your area and price accordingly.

Finally, find a realtor willing to do “pro bono” work and listen to all their suggestions! (No I do  not want this particular listing because he is priced 20% over the market and will likely still be for sale most of 2009)

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Got a Trulia Testimonial?

Happy Holidays everyone!  This week we’re highlighting Heidi Engel, who is a Broker/Realtor from RE/MAX Suburban in Mt Prospect, IL.  As a Trulia Pro member, Heidi gets exclusive access to our Client Listing Reports- letting her send detailed property listing reports with recent updates to her clients.  This is a great way real estate agents can show clients they are creating maximum exposure for their listings by using Trulia.

Here’s what she has to say about our Client Listing Reports:

“LOVE IT!!”

Thanks for sharing your enthusiasm for Client Listing Reports Heidi!

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Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2009!

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For perhaps as long as the past 20 years, Bernard Madoff has run what is claimed to be the largest Ponzi scheme in history.  Having once consistently delivered investors with double-digit returns, Madoff has now admitted guilt in an investment scheme that lost his clients - including Steven Spielberg, the owner of the NY Mets and the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity - tens of billions of dollars.

Although some Madoff investors say the loss isn’t impacting their existing real estate plans, it’s not the case for all.  As many as four condos in one Palm Beach, FL building were put up for sale the weekend after the scandal broke, causing fears about the high-end Palm Beach market.  (I’ve already set up my Trulia email alert for new properties listed in Palm Beach over $1M - you can too!)

The New York Times reported on the impact on the Manhattan market, where one Upper East Side broker had buyers pull out of purchases on two $2 million apartments because they had lost money to Madoff.  A prominent NY attorney was told by several of his clients they expect to put their apartments on the market, as they depended on money from the fund to pay their mortgages and co-op fees.

And all of this doesn’t even count the commercial real estate industry - investors, brokers and builders.  We’ll be watching the NY and Palm Beach markets closely.  A lot of people - wealthy, average-Joes and charity foundations - lost a lot of money to Madoff, so there’s bound to be some impact on the real estate market.

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Buy or Refinance: Could rates drop to 4.5%?

Home owners and first-time buyers on Trulia are eagerly awaiting the news: will the Treasury drive interest rates below 5% for new loans? While lower interest rates won’t solve our housing market problems overnight, it may just be the incentive needed for some first-time buyers.The latest poll of first-time buyers on Trulia’s Housing Crisis Center shows that 48% are still planning to buy in less than 6 months and 27% will buy within the next 6-12 months. So if you’re even considering buying or selling, read on for tips on how to prepare!

Could mortgage rates be dropping to 4.5%?

Could Mortgage Rates Be Going to 4.5%? Today it was reported by anonymous sources that Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is considering purchasing many more mortgage backed securities issuecd by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that would be used to press the mortgage interest rates down to 4.5%. Apparently, this would only be for…. see more or reply

Written by Jeff Launiere, Real Estate Professional, Tampa, FL

More tips:

A buyer’s perspective: 4.5% Mortgage Rates for you and Me?

Should You Buy or Refinance?

What If Mortgage Rates Fell To 4.5% - Would You BUY or REFI? Real Estate sales have slowed. Nobody knows what this afternoon’s headline will scream. So it’s seems best to stop, stoop, rock, wait, twiddle thumbs or wring hands. It seems logical doesn’t it? Ahhh… see more or reply

Written by Ken Brand, Real Estate Professional in Woodlands, TX

More tips:

Refinance out of chapter 13 bankrupcy to lower monthly payments

Buying a Bank Owned house

What Controls Interest Rates? Days before the Federal Reserve Board plans to meet, the media starts reporting on anticipated rate cuts or rate hikes. This helps contribute to the misconception that a Fed rate cut means… see more or reply

Written by Pam Simpson, Real Estate Professional, Senatobia, MS

More tips:

Q: What’s the difference between interest rate and APR

Celebrity Home Sightings Ι Get your superficial fix here.

Jack Nicholson’s ex-wife Rebecca Broussard lists her Colonial-style home in LA’s Pacific Palisades $4,995,000 5br / 7ba Calculate mortgage   Rumor has it that Oprah Winfrey may be flipping a 10-room Chicago condo sprawling 4,600 square feet $6,000,000 3br / 4ba / 4,600sqft Calculate mortgage   Entertainment mogul and Vegas casino owner Phil Maloof lists his Beverly Hills mansion for $16.9 M $16,995,000 6br / 8ba / 11,689 sqft Calculate mortgage

Advice & Opinions Ι Get insightful, fast, FREE advice on home buying & selling

Blog of the week

Ask Erin: Does a Converted Garage Add or Reduce a Home’s Value? I was having a conversation with a prospective listing client in Land Park this last week regarding if having a converted garage adds or reduces the value in a home. To clarify - this would be a garage that has been converted… see more or reply Written by Erin Attardi, Real Estate Professional in Sacramento, CA Question of the week Q: Will it ever be possible to buy a home again after you’ve had a forclosure? Asked by Sarah, Just Looking in Umatilla, OR A: Here is a article I came across the other day that might interest you. It was written by Elin Bullmann What happens is that people who finally get through a foreclosure or short sale transaction are relieved and think they’re done. They’re actually not. … see more or reply

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Got a Trulia Testimonial?

This week we’re highlighting Luetta Newnam, who is currently the principal Broker/Owner of Casa Buena Realty and Casa Buena Construction.  Luetta has discovered the power of blogging and here’s what she says:

“Trulia has given me the freedom to Blog in a very easy format.  They take away the confusion and difficulty when trying to start Blogging in other formats.  The zillions of viewers are already built in and with the smart phone applications now available they are ready for the next level of consumers.  Intermixing Trulia within my Social networking sites has also been amazingly simple.  Trulia is easy easy easy!”

Thanks for being an advocate of the Trulia Community Blog Luetta!

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