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RISMedia, May 28 2011—Do you find yourself avoiding certain types of clients? Do you find yourself unable to speak the truth to sellers when their properties are overpriced? If you’re like most real estate professionals, your “people pleaser” pattern often gets in the way of telling the truth. When you’re not able to tell the truth to your sellers, they lose respect for you, and you end up losing the transaction. This is similar to a client of mine, named Pauline, who was unable to reach her financial goals because she only wanted to work with buyers. When I probed into what was blocking her, she said that she really didn’t like the idea of working with sellers. In fact, her dislike was so great that she actually avoided speaking with sellers.

RISMedia, May 28 2011—Recently, the California Supreme Court denied a petition for review from a homeowner who is fighting to keep his property from being taken from him and his family through foreclosure. The Court chose not to review a 4th Appellate District Court decision that upheld the right of the Mortgage

RISMedia, May 28 2011—Nationwide housing affordability during the first quarter of 2011 rose to its highest level in the more than 20 years it has been measured, according to National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) data released recently. The HOI indicated that 74.6 percent of all new and existing homes sold in the first quarter of 2011 were affordable to families earning the national median income of $64,400. This eclipsed the previous high of 73.9 percent set during the fourth quarter of 2010 and marked the ninth consecutive quarter that the index has been above 70 percent. Until 2009, the HOI rarely topped 65 percent and never reached 70 percent.

RISMedia, May 27 2011—International buyers are driven to own property for investment purposes, or as a temporary residence while visiting the U.S. for business or pleasure. For the former example, think a European business executive with a co-op in Manhattan, for the latter, a Canadian snowbird seeking Florida weather in winter. You’ll find these smart, savvy, computer-literate clients hail from Europe (30.8 percent), North America (27.5 percent) and Asia (25.2 percent), with the remainder being from Latin America, Africa and Oceania. They speak their native language. They embody their culture and follow their customs.

RISMedia, May 27 2011—No one wants to lose. That’s true whether you’re talking about the Super Bowl, a friendly basketball game with the neighbors, or a footrace between eight-year-olds. Yes, the desire to win is embedded in the human psyche. So why is it that in the business world the “win or (almost) die trying” principle

RISMedia, May 27 2011—The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recently announced that it is offering up to $9.1 million to address the critical housing needs of low-income persons and families living with HIV/AIDS, including homeless individuals and families. HUD’s funding notice is offered through the

RISMedia, May 27 2011— At a time when qualified home buyers are experiencing difficulty in obtaining mortgages because of overly restrictive underwriting requirements, the federal government needs to ensure that a reliable and adequate flow of housing credit is available through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). "If we look to the dramatic increase of FHA's market share over the past few years, we can see how essential the program is for our nation's economic recovery," NAHB First Vice Chairman Barry Rutenberg tells the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity.

RISMedia, May 26, 2011—This business is about connections and relationships. Before you can ratify a contract and go to closing, you have to connect. You have to engage. You have to collaborate. You have to deliver an experience, not just a transaction. Finding the right technology to help you accomplish this objective is critical. For the better part of a decade, technological advances allowed consumers and REALTORS® to increase efficiencies, but did very little to enhance an experience. People did pretty much the same things, only faster.

RISMedia, May 26, 2011—YouTube has changed dramatically over the last five years. Everyone in video marketing feels like they’re playing Calvinball, the game invented in the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. As Calvin once said, “The only permanent rule in Calvinball is that you can’t play it the same way twice!”

RISMedia, May 26, 2011—Whenever a new trend hits any market I have to ask, “Will it simply become another fanny pack?” You know, have its heyday then fade away, only to be held onto dearly by a few mullet-wearing fans for way too long. I have spent the last eight months completely consumed in mobile technology

RISMEDIA, May 25, 2011—By mid-May, the spring home-selling season is usually in full swing. Homes look their best, and buyers rush to lock in deals so they can relocate in the summer. But this year, things are not so good. Despite low home prices, sales are sluggish as the market struggles to recover from the burst bubble of the past decade. Many potential buyers are scared off by worries that a home bought this spring could be worth less a few months later, given that prices have fallen by more than 8 percent over the past 12 months, according to Zillow.com. Others are eager to buy at today's low prices, but cannot get a mortgage because lenders have tightened standards to avoid a repeat of the default and foreclosure crisis.

RISMEDIA, May 25, 2011—This week’s headlines from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® include: create your email newsletter with ease, put the power of the SentriLock SentriCard® to use for your customers, and NAR’s 2011 Member Profile shows commitment to profession. For more information visit www.REALTOR.org.

RISMEDIA, June 7, 2011—It’s difficult to keep certain areas of our lives neat and uncluttered, and what might look fine to us can be confusing and appear busy to others. Over time, your website can collect too much unorganized and old information, along with indirect paths to the things that matter—why they should engage you!

RISMEDIA, May 25, 2011—I recently had the chance to attend the Leading RE annual conference in Las Vegas and stay at the beautiful new Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino. The conference was great and the hotel was absolutely amazing. Spending a whole week out in Vegas really puts into perspective the need to have it all

RISMEDIA, May 25, 2011—The current explosion in smartphone sales and deployment of 4G networks is making an investment in m-commerce capabilities increasingly necessary for retailers. M-commerce technologies provide a great way to target consumers and draw them into your online or brick-and-mortar stores.