For me, the experience was one of confirmation of what I believe to be the future of the real estate industry—Internet-based real estate. The business model, like ours, is a national Internet-based Real Estate Brokerage, where the Realtors work out of their home offices, and as a result, the broker has no brick and mortar expense. In return, the Realtor keeps 100% of his or her commission and just pays the broker a small association fee each month, thereby creating a profit for the broker, rather than an expense.

Two years ago, when we first rolled out our business model in Washington D.C. at the Midyear NAR Convention, the word “virtual” was absolute poison. Brokers and Realtors would come to our booth and literally run when they heard the word virtual. What a change just two years has made.

This year at the NAR National Convention in San Diego, the word virtual was the most exciting idea being discussed. Brokers wanted to learn how to create a virtual environment for the Realtors and brokers successfully. I suspect in the coming year we will see hundreds of brokerages recreating themselves under a virtual banner.

Even the Realtors this year jumped all over the virtual business model. We encountered thousands of Realtors who realized that they can now command 100% of their commissions, and that is now the accepted standard.

Furthermore, what we heard from every Realtor is the reason they don’t go to an office, and the reason they don’t care about an office environment is boiled down to one word: distraction.

The top producers think that when they go into an office environment, they become distracted from being productive. We heard this comment universally from almost every Realtor. Realtors’ insight into their most fruitful working conditions has been an unanticipated end result of this business model.

So, after this year’s convention, I feel that Internet-based real estate was not only accepted by both the brokers and Realtors, but that brokers, such as myself, were no longer the strange broker that lived out there in some mysterious virtual never-land.

The virtual culture is not only the future of the industry, but a huge favor to all the brokers who are struggling to keep their doors open, now that even brand new Realtors expect to keep 100% of their commissions.

This new business model has legs, and it will continue to expand and grow. It will, in the process, make the brokers of our industry financially healthy once again. It will also allow the Realtors to truly be independent contractors who are allowed to keep all of what they have earned.

The virtual culture is a win-win-win for the broker, the Realtor and the consumer.

James A. Crumbaugh III is CEO of Allison James Estates and Homes and may be reached at jcrumbaugh@allisonjames.net.

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Save $25 PLUS get 2-month Extension on e-PRO® Course during November

Take advantage of special savings on the e-PRO® course during NAR’s Designation Awareness Month. Enroll by November 30 and receive a special $25 discount plus take up to 8 months to complete the course – that’s an additional two months, FREE! Discover why 58,000 real estate professionals have already chosen the e-PRO® certification as the best way to assist their clients in the purchase or sale of real estate using technology and the Internet. Register now at http://DesignationAwareness.eProNAR.com for the discounted rate of $334.

Get Exclusive member pricing on a Dell Mini 10 laptop starting at $399, that’s 24% off!

For a limited time only, Dell is offering REALTORS®, through their partnership in NAR’s REALTOR Benefits® Program exclusive pricing for the Dell Mini 10. Stay connected with advanced wireless options and a built-in 1.3MP Webcam. Get yours today starting at $399! Offer ends December 20th.

NAR Installs 2010 Officers

Vicki Cox Golder, a REALTOR® from Tucson, Ariz., was installed on Monday November, 16 as 2010 president of The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® at the association’s Board of Directors meeting during the REALTORS® Conference & Expo here. Approximately 20,000 REALTORS® and guests from the U.S. and abroad attended the annual meeting this year.

For more information, visit www.Realtor.org.

To see last week’s NAR Pulse, click here.

“As of October, the deadline for starting a home that could be completed in time for purchasers to take advantage of the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit had come and gone, and builders had no clear sign of whether Congress would extend the credit beyond the end of November,” explained Joe Robson, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Tulsa, Okla. “However, now that Congress has wisely moved to extend the tax credit into next year and expand its eligibility to more buyers, we hope and expect that this will have a substantial stimulative effect on home sales and help keep the housing market solidly on the road to recovery.”

“Builders were clearly in a holding pattern in October as the future of the home buyer tax credit hung in the balance,” agreed NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. “This is not surprising, given the fact that the tax credit had been the primary driver of construction and sales in the summer and early fall. However, the fact that permits for single-family construction remained roughly unchanged in the month is an indication that builders are preparing for the possibility of more favorable housing market conditions in the future. That said, significant challenges continue to confront builders with regard to obtaining financing for viable projects and appropriate appraisal values on newly built homes.”

Single-family housing starts declined 6.8% in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 476,000 units, the slowest pace since May of this year. Meanwhile, multifamily housing starts fell by a dramatic 34.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of just 53,000 units – the slowest pace on record.

Combined starts activity fell across the board in October, with the Northeast posting an 18.8% decline, the Midwest a 10.6% decline, the South a 9.6% decline and the West an 8.5% decline, respectively.

Permit issuance, which can be an indicator of future building activity, fell 4% overall in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 552,000 units, due primarily to a double-digit drop-off on the multifamily side. While single-family permits held virtually flat at 451,000 units, multifamily permits were down nearly 18% to 101,000 units.

Regionally, permit activity was mixed, with the Northeast posting no change for the month, the Midwest registering a 2% gain, the South posting a 5.8% decline and the West posting a 6.7% decline, respectively.

For more information, visit www.nahb.org.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

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Truitt, a Realtor with Century 21 Elite in Tampa, discovered Showhomes, a home staging company, with what it calls a unique spin on traditional home staging: the nationally franchised company finds people to live in and help stage vacant homes so that they show better and sell faster. Given the declining real estate market, mansions and just about every other type of home are difficult to sell, the company reports.

Showhomes says it staged Truitt’s home and it sold in eight days. “I had an almost full price offer within a week of Showhomes’ staging, and a 25% higher offer than the two offers that had come in previously to the home being staged,” Truitt says.

Showhomes Tampa owner Linda Saavedra says Truitt’s experience isn’t a fluke.

She says the company’s staged homes are selling in a fraction of the time most homes are taking to sell. So are homes all over the country staged with Showhomes’ system, she adds. According to the company, a typical $850,000 home in Florida is taking well over a year to sell in today’s market and the average time it has taken Showhomes to sell these homes is 132 days.

“Recently we’ve had six major success stories with homes that have lingered on the market for over a year,” she says. “Three homes sold within 35 days and two others were contracted within seven days of staging. The home that sold in 8 days has been on the market for over two years and the sale price was 20% more than the offers they received when the home was vacant.”

“Our approach is working,” says Thomas Scott, VP of operations at the Nashville-based corporate headquarters of Showhomes. “We are experiencing similar home sales results in southern California, the Midwest and Northeast. Despite the glut of inventory, there are buyers in the market and they are choosing to purchase homes we have staged.”

For more information, visit www.showhomes.com.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

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The exterior of the Tuscan-inspired home features imported French limestone and Baja Redlands terra cotta tiles that, sited at the top of a lush hillside and surrounded by terraced vineyards and fruit orchards, truly transport visitors to Italy. Approaching via a long, gated driveway and large motor court provides a sense of calm and privacy.

Inside, the opulent great room—with an astonishing 32-foot high ceiling and an open connection to the airy gourmet kitchen—is an ideal setting for intimate get-togethers or lavish bashes. Arched windows wholly capture the light and sights of the surrounding valleys and ocean. Five fireplaces, tongue and groove and exposed beam ceilings, and custom features in marble, granite, walnut, copper, and Venetian plaster provide both architectural interest and touches of extravagance.

Out on the 5,000-square-foot Egyptian limestone deck—which surrounds an exquisite infinity pool, spa and loggia—the refined indoor setting is brought into the open air.

Expected to be completed in April 2010, the five-bedroom, five-bath house will include luxuries throughout, including a high-tech media room, observation deck to best capture the panorama, wine tasting room and barrel storage, and elevator to move easily between both levels. The property also includes additional pads for a guest house, a guard house and a possible helipad.

The estate was designed by respected Montecito-based architect Bob Easton, whose grand Mediterranean and Spanish-style homes can be found in the most desirable areas of California.

For more information, visit www.rockyoaksestate.com.

To submit your Featured Listing, send 300-500 words on the property, surrounding area, and how you’re marketing it to Paige@RISMedia.com. Don’t forget to submit photos and an accompanying URL!

To see last week’s Featured Listing, click here.

According to the company, with Smartphone applications and websites on the rise, Onboard’s new platform brings the trusted neighborhood content and property listings that it currently provides to leading national real estate websites, to the wireless market. The flexible delivery of both neighborhood content and listings is designed for mobile application and website developers to design custom apps to reach the growing mobile audience through a unique search experience.

Key features of Onboard Mobile include property listings, real-time photo Web service, community demographics, school information, home values, home sales trending, home sales transactions and local establishments. The platform is compliant with the most innovative GPS capabilities, such as the ability to show users the proximity to schools and nearby businesses while they are out touring homes.

According to the company, the Onboard Mobile Platform enables potential homebuyers to do their own research at their own pace. It is designed to give users quick and easy access to virtually any town’s profile – from population, income, housing trends and education to crime statistics, weather, churches, recreational amenities, recent home sales, local restaurants, and more.

“The use of mobile websites and applications is growing in leaps and bounds, especially in the real estate industry,” said Marc Siden, CEO of Onboard Informatics. “It has become increasingly evident to us as we hear from major clients who are focusing their marketing and lead generation strategies on building a mobile presence. Our success with mobile so far leads us to believe that the companies who integrate our content will differentiate themselves from the dozens of competitors entering this space.”

For more information, visit www.onboardinformatics.com.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

According to the company, the new interface and functionality of the real estate MultiChannel Campaign system was designed to combine the ease of automation with maximum control and flexibility over a marketing plan for busy professionals who are trying to connect effectively with today’s consumer. In addition to the two ways to deliver marketing collateral, the MultiChannel Campaign system takes the integration of online and offline marketing even further by allowing agents to set calendar reminders if they’d like to include a personal phone call or visit in their campaign.

Brian Wildermuth, SharperAgent’s president and co-founder believes that this unique capability will change the way Realtors and Brokerages look at their marketing plans. “Multichannel campaigns are standard marketing practice in most industries because it’s the most effective way to touch consumers and generate interest. Before now, putting a sophisticated marketing plan like this into action took a lot of time and even more money. Our MultiChannel campaign system has now put marketing’s best tools within reach of agents at any level.”

The new functionality comes paired with SharperAgent’s extensive real estate marketing library and pre-built real estate campaign templates. With over 50 professionally designed series and more than 2,500 additional marketing communication pieces available, users can find a targeted message for their contacts and use the suggested delivery methods or completely customize the campaign to fit their needs. MultiChannel campaign users will also be able to monitor their campaigns with automatically generated reports on email deliverability and open rates.

For more information, visit www.sharperagent.com.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

Worse, some of the old ways don’t seem to work anymore. Advertising in glossy magazines, yellow pages ads, mailing out calendars and pens or notepads, working desk duty at the office—all just don’t seem to cut it like they used to. You know your own difficulty finding new clients; imagine that you are transported to a place like Wolf Creek, Colorado—a place so remote most people couldn’t find it on a map. Visitors must drive 6-12 hours to get there, so walk-ins are not a reliable way to find new clients.

It was this fear of not having enough real prospects that Poppy Borland faced when she decided to go it alone and moved into her own one-person office In May of 2008. She knew that in order to prosper, she had to be capable of prospecting most of her business because there was not enough foot traffic to her market to assure that she would always have customers.

Where Is Poppy Borland?
Borland owns Two Rivers Realty in South Fork, Colorado; a small mountain town in Southern Colorado of about 1,000 year-round residents. (The town of South Fork has been known as being in the Wolf Creek area literally forever, and people will call this area either name). The town grows to 6,000 to 7,000 in summer and 2-3,000 at Christmas or Spring Break. The 300+ sunny days per year and the sunny and cool summer weather make outdoor activities just wonderful: golfing, river activities, hunting, and riding ATVs in the summer are very popular just as snowmobiling and skiing in the winter keep the visitors coming.

“This is a mostly unknown paradise because it is far off the beaten path,” Borland told me recently. “Our visitors come from Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona in the main and almost all of them drive to get here. That averages a 6-12 hour drive, so we don’t think of South Fork as a weekend kind of destination.” Combine that with the fact that the area is surrounded on three sides by the Rio Grande National Forest and you’ll begin to get the picture that Poppy Borland operates her business in a wild and remote location. This may be remote, but its remoteness makes its properties very valuable, and homes and land sell from under $100,000 to just under $2 million.

A Strategy Born of Common Sense
“I had read many articles about how the majority of home sales began online,” Borland continued, “and I wondered if that would hold true in a remote area like ours. I realized I would never know unless I got a website and tried to make it work. I figured I could get a lot more people to visit this wonderful place online than would ever drive here, and I hoped a few might be so overwhelmed by our beauty and peacefulness that they might consider buying land or a home here.”

Lacking a big advertising budget and having very little technical expertise, Borland started researching how she could supplement traffic to her site in order to always have buyers working. She decided that the Internet would be her main producer of prospects.

Then, reality set in; how could she make that happen? “I didn’t even have a website. I didn’t know anything about how to make one effective or how to make it so that buyers could find it (and me). The more I read about it, the more I became concerned that succeeding online was beyond my knowledge level and budget. I read about another agent in a town slightly larger than mine who had succeeded with the strategy I was trying to employ in an online newsletter. It turned out that she had the very same worries I had and she had decided to hire professionals to help her achieve her goals.

“It’s just too complicated for me to do it on my own,” she said in the article I read. “I’m a real estate agent, not a technical person and for me to try to achieve Internet success is just like a FSBO trying to sell a prime property: it might work, but it probably won’t.” That resonated with me and I decided to follow her lead.

I contacted the company that had made it work for her. They connected me with a really great Web designer who did fine work at a reasonable price so I could personalize my site to be what I wanted. When my site went live, I was really excited (www.wolfcreekareaproperties.com). The company that I contacted initially, CompassSearch, made that site be found by people looking at South Fork and Wolf Creek, CO real estate. Believe it or not, I sold my first Internet buyer in only two months and my commissions paid for my site, my subscription and I had plenty left over. So far in 2009 (September) I have had nine closings—six from my website. I get 700-800 unique visitors monthly, exactly double what it was even one year ago—and I am usually working with six solid buyers all the time. Five of those six buyers come from the website on average. My idea of selling this area online worked and without it, I don’t think I would have most of the clients I have today.

“Not all people who contact me close quickly,” Borland continued. “I closed on a $1 million+ property this week where the buyer contacted me on my website on August 8, 2008, a little more than two months after I contracted with my online marketing services company. It took a year, but he got a tremendous piece of property. Although that contact was made over a year ago, my online presence gets stronger and better all the time and keeps me busy with Internet buyers.”

One Benefit She Didn’t Anticipate: Her Internet Strength Gets Her More Listings, Too
One thing many agents don’t anticipate when making an Internet marketing plan is the huge benefit it brings to a listing presentation and the physical confirmation that presence gives that seller that you are the right party to list with. Here’s how Borland uses her strength online to list more: “It’s really great that Internet buyers from anywhere can find me online, and that reality has enabled me to list far more properties, as well. When doing a listing presentation, I will act like a prospective buyer and search for real estate in the area. Maybe I’ll enter “Wolf Creek CO Real Estate” or one of the hundreds of other phrases I have been found on. When my website appears at the top of the page—number one on Google [from the aforementioned search phrase]—the sellers are impressed. I then go into the back end of my website and show the sellers my website statistics, which convince them that I can bring buyers here from anywhere. Then, when they see how my website is simple and easy to use, they usually list with me.”

It Seems So Simple
Borland is so modest and unassuming that we had to convince her to share her story here: “I wonder if my experience will really be interesting to anyone,” she told me when I contacted her. “This is just a story from ‘County Life.’

Borland might not be so self-effacing about her success if she knew that 95% of all agents fail at online marketing, according to NAR. There are so many good agents out there who just can’t seem to crack the code of how to sell homes online that many have just flat given up at online marketing. “I just can’t catch any luck with that Internet thing,” so many say.

It doesn’t take luck; it takes a good plan, well executed. Make it happen for yourself and never worry about where your income is coming from again.

About the author
Mike Parker advises thousands of agents and brokers on the subject of online marketing services for Realtors. If you want to plan to succeed like Poppy Borland did or if you’d like to request a free review of your website to determine if it can be found by Internet buyers and if it is set up to be effective for you, click here and we’ll review it for you at no cost or obligation.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

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“The tax credit has already proven to be an effective means of boosting economic activity,” said NAHB Chairman Joe Robson, a home builder from Tulsa, Okla. “We hope that the government’s action to enhance it will have the intended additional stimulative effect that will help get housing and the economy back on solid ground.”

The new law extends the $8,000 first-time home buyer credit through April 30, 2010, giving buyers who have signed a sales contract by that deadline until June 30 to close their deal. A new credit of up to $6,500 was created for repeat home buyers who buy a principal residence if they have been residing in the home they currently own (or previously owned) for five consecutive years out of the eight years preceding the purchase of the new home.

“It’s not just a first-time buyer tax credit anymore,” Robson said. “Move-up buyers, move-down buyers, and others who have previously owned a home can now qualify as well. In fact, close to 70 percent of all potential home buyers should now qualify for some form of the credit.”

Income limits for eligible buyers have also been increased to allow more consumers to qualify, particularly those in markets with a higher cost of living. Now single taxpayers with incomes up to $125,000 and married couples earning up to $225,000 may be eligible. Partial credits are available to home buyers who earn up to $20,000 more than the limits.

A leading source of consumer information on the tax credit is NAHB’s website at www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com, which saw a huge increase in visits in the days after the new law was signed. It provides basic information about the first-time and repeat buyer credits, detailed question and answer sections, and links to additional home-buying resources for consumers.

“The federalhousingtaxcredit.com website had more than 70,000 visits on the Monday after the President enacted the law,” said Robson. “Since the site was established in mid-2008, there have been more than 6 million visits by people seeking information about the home buyer tax credits. That tells you how hungry consumers are for easy-to-understand information on this great opportunity that has been opened to them.”

NAHB estimates that the home buyer tax credit will create 211,000 jobs and generate 180,000 additional home sales in the coming year. It is also expected to generate $9.6 billion in wage income and $6.9 billion in federal, state and local taxes.

For more information, visit www.nahb.org or www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

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No!

I’m sure others may disagree with my answer, and that’s to be expected. I never worked for a large real estate company and seemed to do just fine. The key to your success isn’t the size of the real estate company you work for, it’s the effectiveness of your marketing.

If you can generate and convert leads, you can be successful in any size company. In fact, I’d argue that you should start your own company and build some equity in the process of building your business. Why not get paid twice from the same work?

Now when an agent asks me about where they should work, I ask them the following question: Are you a good marketer?

If they hem and haw with their answer, I usually tell them to work for the largest company and try and secure as many deals from the marketing of the company or other agents in the firm. However, it’s important to remember what business this large company is in. They’re in the “agent” business. Their goal is to recruit and retain agents. This goal is significantly different than your goal to sell homes.

I know they run image advertisements on TV. I know they provide great training programs. The purpose of these advertisements is to make the company look attractive to new agents. Buyers and sellers don’t care very much about your company name. They care about what you’re able to do for them specifically.

If the agent responds to my marketing question indicating that he or she is a good marketer, I usually tell them to look for the company with the most favorable commission splits. Use the additional commission income to invest back into your marketing to buy more clients. The company name doesn’t matter; the amount of commission you receive does.

The one thing you should definitely avoid at all costs is thinking that your real estate company is going to provide you with sales. More than likely, they won’t. It’s best for you to learn how to generate and convert leads on your own. This eliminates your dependency and makes you a better overall business person.

Becoming a good marketer is how you eliminate dependency in your business. Once you’ve obtained the skills, they cannot be taken away from you. You can use your skills in any market, any company or in any business. These skills can provide income to you for the rest of your life.

Rob Minton, who reinvented his real estate sales business to sell 269 homes to a limited number of clients in one year, has written a very practical book on how real estate agents can sell more homes. For a limited time, you can download this book for free by visiting http://www.FreeRenegadeBook.com.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

For more real estate tips and topics on RISMedia.com, be sure to see:
Business Lessons for Agents: Zero to Billionaire in 22 Years
Re-Energize Your Burned Out Workforce – 9 Leadership Strategies to Boost Morale

Hanna, who runs the fourth-largest full-service real estate company in the U.S., was awarded the honor for continuously demonstrating extraordinary contributions toward increasing homeownership and building better communities. He was presented with the award by Blair Allan, National Strategic Business Alliance Executive for Bank of America Home Loans.

Hanna is the sixth industry icon to receive the award. Others include: Ron Peltier; Chairman & CEO, HomeServices of America; Dave Liniger, Founder & Chairman, RE/MAX International; J. Lennox Scott, Chairman & CEO, John L. Scott Real Estate; Gino Blefari and Robert Moles, Founders, Intero Real Estate Services; and Alex Perriello, President & CEO, Realogy Franchise Group.

Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Howard Hanna Real Estate Services specializes in residential, commercial, mortgage, title and insurance brokerage services. Howard Hanna delivers services through its 131 offices in 55 counties across Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and New York and more than 4,700 sales associates and staff. Howard Hanna Mortgage Services provides mortgage loans in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.

RISMedia, the leader in real estate information systems, has been providing the industry with news, trends and business development strategies for nearly 30 years through its flagship publication, Real Estate magazine, its leading website, RISMedia.com, and its renowned networking and educational events.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

Bill Soteroff, SVP of International Operations for RE/MAX International, presented Proctor with the award during RISMedia’s 14th Annual Power Broker Dinner, held last week during the NAR Conference & Expo in San Diego. The Power Broker Dinner honors the industry’s top brokers, as determined by the results of RISMedia’s annual Power Broker Report & Survey.

Proctor is the third recipient of this award. Past winners include: Howard Brinton, Founder of STARPower Systems and Nina Cottrell, CEO of the Council of Residential Specialists (CRS). The award is now an annual recognition by RISMedia and RE/MAX of those individuals whose dedication and contributions to the real estate industry often go unrecognized.

Proctor runs Craig Proctor Productions, an international real estate success coaching organization that has shaped the lives of over 30,000 real estate agents across the globe via Proctor’s Quantum Leap Real Estate Success System. By virtue of his well-documented duel track record as both a successful trainer and past agent, Proctor is a highly sought-after speaker and business coach. In his 20+ years as a real estate agent, Proctor consistently sold over 500 homes a year to earn close to $4 million in annual GCI.

RISMedia, the leader in real estate information systems, has been providing the industry with news, trends and business development strategies for nearly 30 years through its flagship publication, Real Estate magazine, its leading website, RISMedia.com, and its renowned networking and educational events.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

Matthew Stamer
Broker
EXIT Realty Central
Central Florida

Region served: Seminole, Orange and Osceola counties
Years in real estate: 16
Number of offices: 1
Number of agents: 95
Average sales price: $115,000
Average time on market: less than 30 days
Best idea for time management: Pick five things that can produce you the best results every day and spend 80% of the day on them.
Keep meetings productive by…Going into the meeting with a clear-cut agenda. Rather than addressing what has negatively occurred in the past, address the positive approach to the future.
Can’t live without tech tool: My smartphone

What strategies do you have in place to ensure you always get the right listing price?
All of our brokers and agents are very well trained in BPO (broker’s price opinion) preparation and we stay away from listing properties that are overpriced. The numbers on our BPOs are within the selling price of the home 98% of the time so our sellers are confident with the data we present them. Especially in today’s market, there is mounting evidence against inflated pricing of homes and sellers realize it is pointless to overprice their homes because they have seen overpriced homes in their marketplaces sit on the market.

What are your strategies for working in declining markets?
It is crucial to list a home at or below market price from the beginning. This way, you are beating everyone else to the final price because buyers will be looking at your homes since they are priced lower and more accurately than other companies.

What are two fundamentals that are essential to your company’s continued success?
The banking relationships we have developed in the foreclosure department as well as our consistent building and training of new talent in the sales arena have kept us successful over the years. Not only do we recruit agents into the company, but we provide them with ample opportunity to get involved with foreclosures as well as Web business.

How are you keeping consumers in your marketplace educated about the buying opportunities of today?
Our company is very active in the social networking arena. Not only do we have a Facebook page, but we also keep an ongoing blog of the current market situation (www.exitrealtyorlando.com/blog). Social networking allows us to stay in touch with customers long term who will buy or sell in the future.

How are you staying one step ahead of your competition?
We stay ahead of our competition by constantly building bank relationships, properly pricing our properties, and hiring and training new talent.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

For more real estate tips and topics on RISMedia.com, be sure to see:
Looking Toward the Future – How Should Home Equity Figure into Your Retirement Planning?
A Fix-Up Strategy Works in Long Run: If You Have Time on Your Side, Improve and Enjoy Your Home

The task force, which replaces the Corporate Fraud Task Force established in 2002, will build upon efforts already underway to combat mortgage, securities and corporate fraud by increasing coordination and fully utilizing the resources and expertise of the government’s law enforcement and regulatory apparatus.

“This task force’s mission is not just to hold accountable those who helped bring about the last financial meltdown, but to prevent another meltdown from happening,” Attorney General Eric Holder said. “We will be relentless in our investigation of corporate and financial wrongdoing, and will not hesitate to bring charges, where appropriate, for criminal misconduct on the part of businesses and business executives.”

“Through the Financial Fraud Task Force, we are making clear that the Obama Administration is going to act aggressively and proactively in a coordinated effort to combat financial fraud,” said Treasury Secretary Geithner. “It’s not enough to prosecute fraud only after it’s become widespread. We can’t wait for problems to peak before we respond. We’re seeking comprehensive financial reform to create a more stable, safer financial system and stepping up our enforcement strategy. Doing so will help to stop emerging trends in financial fraud before they’re able to cause extensive, system-wide damage to our economy.”

“To give American families the protection and peace-of-mind they need, it’s clear the federal response must be as interconnected and multi-dimensional as the challenges we face,” said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. “No one agency is going to be able to stop financial fraud. This task force will build upon many of the inter-agency collaborations already underway to protect consumers and restore confidence.”

“Many financial frauds are complicated puzzles that require painstaking efforts to piece together. By formally coordinating our efforts, we will be better able to identify the pieces, assemble the puzzle and put an end to the fraud,” said SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro.

For more information, visit www.hud.gov.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

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RISMEDIA, November 19, 2009—Our goal here at Buffini & Company has always been to “impact and improve the lives of people” – to help you significantly increase your business, while living a balanced life.

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According to the company, that’s not surprising to a la mode’s agent team, since TourNarrator solves one of the biggest problems in the highly mobile real estate field: Converting prospects into buyers by helping them narrow their choices down to the property they like best while touring properties. With millions of agents in the country and likely hundreds of thousands using iPhones now or in the near future, the future seems bright for TourNarrator.

The company says TourNarrator’s premise is simple yet powerful. As an agent gives a client a tour of a property, they use TourNarrator on their iPhone to take notes about standout observations their client has made. Typed or voice notes are taken along with photos of the various features the client likes, or dislikes. Afterward, TourNarrator presents all the information in an impressively organized rich PDF report, direct from the phone. This reduces confusion about which features of which properties the client likes or dislikes and helps the client make a decision more quickly.

“Agents call us every day looking for innovative ways to market themselves, differentiate their services, and get deals done faster. I’m so pleased that our first iPhone app does all those things simply and professionally,” said Dustin Moore, a la mode’s VP of Agent Sales. “It’s pretty obvious more and more real estate applications will continue to be developed for the iPhone, and I’m confident TourNarrator will stand out in the crowd, because it reduces confusion during property tours, and gets buyers committed more quickly.”

For more information, visit www.alamode.com or call 1-800-252-6633.

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Paul Wikle, president/owner of Coldwell Banker Wikle Properties, will remain with the organization as part of the commercial real estate team. Sue Flaig, office manager of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate’s Clearwater office, will oversee the Palm Harbor office.

“Backed by a history of service excellence, Coldwell Banker Wikle has been a prominent real estate company in the local community for 17 years,” said Clark W. Toole, III, president of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate. “Sales associates and clients of this well-respected, independently owned full service company will now benefit from additional resources and new advantages in marketing, technology and consumer related programs.”

For more information, visit www.FloridaMoves.com.

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ListHub, operated by Threewide Corporation, added PropertyPursuit.com to its broker controlled, MLS enabled listing distribution and management platform. As a result, ListHub’s national network of brokers and MLSs will now have the option of displaying their listings on PropertyPursuit.com. ListHub customers include more than 200 MLSs, representing about 85% of the national listing inventory, brokers and agents.

According to the company, PropertyPursuit.com gives consumers the ability to easily search for listings across the nation, and contact the listing broker or agent directly. PropertyPursuit.com features an easy-to-use property search, quick search and interactive map search, and gives brokers and agents the ability to market their listings and brand.

“Delta Media Group has spent the last 15 years helping drive consumer traffic and leads to our over 30,000 broker and agent website customers,” said Mike Minard, president of PropertyPursuit.com. “And now, with Property Pursuit’s new relationship with ListHub, we look forward to re-directing PropertyPursuit.com to drive traffic and leads to all brokers and agents nationwide and, soon, to a global audience of home searchers.”

“We see a lot of opportunity with our new partnership channel PropertyPursuit.com,” said Luke Glass, president of Threewide. “PropertyPursuit.com presents the ListHub network with another Internet marketing opportunity, and Threewide is committed to continually increasing the amount of listing exposure through ListHub.”

For more information, visit www.propertypursuit.com or www.listhub.com.

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One in five (20%) Northeastern homeowners believe their own home gained value in the past 12 months, according to the survey. But in reality, 31% of homes in the region increased in value, according to the Zillow Q3 Real Estate Market Reports.

That translates to a Zillow Home Value Misperception Index of -6, which means Northeastern homeowners believe values performed worse than they did in reality – a first in Homeowner Confidence Survey history. A Misperception Index of 0 would mean homeowners’ perceptions were in line with reality.

Homeowners in the West were the least realistic in the country, with 28% believing their own homes’ values increased in the past 12 months. According to Zillow, 17% of homes in the region actually increased, resulting in a Misperception Index of 17.

The Midwest had a Misperception Index of 8, while the South had an Index of 15.

Nationally, 25% of homeowners believe their own home’s value increased in the last 12 months. In reality, 22% of U.S. homes gained value. But fewer than half (49%) believe their home’s value decreased over the past 12 months, while 72% actually decreased. That discrepancy between perception and reality resulted in a Misperception Index of 10.

U.S. homeowners were also more optimistic about the future of their own homes’ values than at any time in the past six quarters. Two in five (41%) say their own home’s value will increase in the next six months. An additional 43% say their home’s value will remain the same, with only 17% saying their home’s value will decrease.

“Homeowners are clearly confused about the housing market, and with good reason,” said Zillow Chief Economist Stan Humphries. “Home values in different parts of the country have shown varied performance in the third quarter. In the Northeast, they have shown significant stabilization. In the Boston metro area, values are even up from this time last year. That gives Northeastern homeowners a negative Misperception Index in the third quarter, the first time we’ve seen this.

“But across the rest of the country, homeowners are holding onto the hope that home values have performed better than they have in reality. Consistent with all previous surveys, homeowners also seem to be overly optimistic about future home values. While we have definitely seen some stabilization in recent months, there is a high likelihood that home values will see further declines driven by an increasing number of foreclosures coming into the market and, possibly, rising interest rates after the first quarter of next year. The homebuyer tax credits have the potential to stimulate demand and bring about a bottom sooner but, even so, we are very likely to see a sustained period of negligible appreciation in real terms. It seems that homeowners are still working under the assumption of a V-shaped recovery to home values when a long, L-shaped recovery is more likely.”

Pent-up Supply Steady at Nearly One-Third of Homeowners Who May Sell

The level of pent-up supply – a component of “shadow inventory” — remained relatively steady from the second quarter to the third. Nearly one-third (31%) of homeowners indicated they would be at least somewhat likely to put their home up for sale in the next 12 months if they saw signs of a real estate market turnaround. That is up slightly from 29% in Q2. Homeowners said that hearing more general good news about the economy (45%), the ability to sell their home for more than they paid for it (43%) and evidence of increasing home sales in the local market (43%) would be the primary indicators of a real estate turn around.

For more information, visit www.Zillow.com.

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Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the projections are enhanced by a tax credit expansion to more home buyers through the middle of 2010. “Given the success of the first-time buyer tax credit to date, and the need for qualified buyers to continue to absorb inventory that will include additional foreclosures over the coming year, we are hopeful about the impact of the expanded tax credit because it will stabilize home prices,” he said. “In fact, the credit is working better than first projected – it now looks like we’ll have 2.3 to 2.4 million first-time buyers this year.”

The 2009 National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, shows first-time buyers accounted for a record 47% share of home sales over the past year, up from 41% in the 2008 survey. The share has risen steadily since a cyclical low of 36% in 2006.

Existing-home sales are expected to total 5.01 million in 2009, a gain of 2.0% over last year, and then are forecast to rise 13.6% to 5.69 million in 2010. “A steady draw down of inventory will help home values to turn positive in 2010, but risks such as unemployment remain in the economy,” Yun said.

New-home sales are projected at 397,000 this year, recovering to 549,000 in 2010. Housing starts, including multifamily units, should total 564,000 units this year but grow to 752,000 in 2010.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage will probably average 5.3% in the fourth quarter, rising gradually to 5.8% by the end of next year. NAR’s housing affordability index will set a record in 2009, averaging 30 percentage points higher than 2008. Affordability will decline from record highs next year but will remain at historically attractive levels for home buyers.

“We’ve seen a steady downtrend in housing inventory for well over a year and home prices appear to be in the early stages of stabilizing. With the expansion of the tax credit to additional buyers through the middle of next year, and no major unforeseen events impacting the economy, home prices should rise between 3 and 5% in 2010, but with wide geographic differences,” Yun said. He expects growth in the U.S. gross domestic product to be at a pace of 2.5% in the current quarter, with GDP up 2.8% in 2010.

The unemployment rate is close to peaking and is projected to ease to 9.5% by the end of next year.

“The size of the U.S. budget deficit is a concern going forward, and carries the risk of higher inflation. At this point, that risk appears to be restrained,” Yun said. Inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, is seen contracting 0.4% this year, then rising 1.6% in 2010. Inflation-adjusted disposable personal income is estimated to grow 0.4% this year and 1.2% next year.

For more information, visit www.realtor.org.

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