RISMEDIA, April 4, 2011—As the cold temperatures become a distant memory, and the spring selling season gains momentum, consumers have come to agree on one thing—now’s a good time to get off the fence and into the real estate market. This is the overall theme in the latest American Express Spending and Saving Tracker survey, a monthly survey that tracks the spending and saving habits of consumers in order to get an indication of what’s happening in the market. “This month’s Spending and Saving Tracker provided an up-to-date look at various consumer trends and gave us the opportunity to assess how consumers are feeling about the current market in addition to gauging homeowner confidence,” says Leah Gerstner, vice president of public affairs at American Express.

RISMEDIA, April 4, 2011—With Opening Day last week, baseball season is now upon us. I think most of us (northeast especially) are about ready for some true signals of spring and the warmer weather. The start of baseball season and a couple conversations I had last week made me

RISMEDIA, April 4, 2011—(MCT)—A home inspection often means the difference between a sale and no sale, even if the deal that results isn't exactly what the owner expected. Buyers and sellers typically recognize the need for a home inspection. Still, it may put both sides of a sale

RISMEDIA, April 4, 2011—(MCT)— What started as a hobby for Keith Gamble is now a risky, exciting, full-time job: buying properties at the monthly foreclosure sale and flipping them. Gamble, and others like him, are a new generation of property flippers who buy at low prices at a

RISMEDIA, April 2, 2011—Today’s consumers are seeking two things. The first is social proof—in other words, that you are who you say you are and you do what you say you’ll do. The second is social ranking. Forget about how many awards you’ve won or your latest sales figures; tell me instead how the public rates you. In today’s economic climate, the consumer rules, and consumer ratings will have a greater and greater influence on the decisions people make, including which real estate agent they choose.

RISMEDIA, April 2, 2011—Every year about this time, I get a powerful recharge during the annual RE/MAX Convention. Real estate professionals around the world get together to celebrate successes, share best practices, explore solutions to challenges and, of course, let loose a bit.

RISMEDIA, April 2, 2011—The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) recognizes the need for an orderly transition from the current form of the secondary mortgage market to a new structure that removes some of the pitfalls under the old GSE structure. The Obama Administration recently released a white paper with many options for changing the mortgage market. NAR appreciates the Administration’s desire to engage stakeholders in any final plan and is seeking to serve on any advisory panel that will study the consolidation of federal incentives for housing. REALTORS® want to help design a secondary mortgage model that will serve homeowners today, and in the future, and ensure a strong housing market and full economic recovery.

RISMEDIA, April 1, 2011—Developing relationships with new clients is a huge priority in real estate. Most of you will undoubtedly agree, but as many home buyers and sellers look progressively more to the Internet to answer questions and search for products, an increase in Internet based leads would be expected, right? Online factors will determine how successful or unsuccessful your web presence will be in capturing new business. Let’s take a look at some of the major issues that may be impacting your ability to capture quality leads from the web.

RISMEDIA, April 1, 2011—You've heard the statement many times: "There is no national real estate market.” Meaning all real estate, like politics, is local. There is, however, a national real estate marketplace. With a wide array of "products" on the shelf, there is literally something

RISMEDIA, April 1, 2011—Extreme temperatures across the nation contributed to a record-breaking year for home warranty claims, and now with a glut of homes for sale across the country, home warranties to cover major systems (HVAC, plumbing, electrical) and built-in appliances are even more appealing to sellers and prospective buyers. Home warranty provider American Home Shield, with 1.4 million customers, said it responded to nearly three million service requests in 2010, approximately half related to HVAC malfunctions.

RISMEDIA, April 1, 2011—The market share of vacation- and investment-home sales held steady in 2010, although the sales volume declined with the overall market, according to the National Association of Realtors®. NAR's 2011 Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey

RISMEDIA, April 1, 2011—Facebook is the number one most trafficked website in the world, and over half of the U.S. population is already on there! Wouldn't you like to be able to market to these people effectively and efficiently?  This complete Facebook Real Estate Marketing System can be set up ...

RISMEDIA, March 31, 2011—With the rise in Internet-based marketing, sales professionals have now become captives, feeling obligated to be on call to respond to leads 24/7, for fear they will go cold. Every sales professional has probably experienced this phenomenon but never put a name to it. Goomzee—a company dedicated to helping real estate professionals increase sales efficiency by delivering high quality buyer sales leads and automating lead follow up using mobile technology—has labeled this trend the “follow up trap.”

RISMEDIA, March 31, 2011—The Federal Housing Finance Agency has reported that the National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders, used as an index in some ARM contracts, was 4.79 percent based on loans closed

RISMEDIA, March 31, 2011—LOL and BRB might be key communication elements in a texting, emailing, social-media-obsessed world, but they don’t make for high quality communication or conversation. Sometimes you might not even know what your communicating counterpart is even saying to you. With communication becoming more and more diluted by technology, Maribeth Kuzmeski, , author of The Connectors: How the World’s Most Successful Businesspeople Build Relationships and Win Clients for Life, stresses the importance of once again valuing great conversation—an essential element in building strong, mutually beneficial, and even profitable relationships.