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Jul

21
2008

Real estate's June report card

By John Burns, Monday, July 21, 2008.

In the markets that matter, listings are now running relatively flat year-over-year. Each month, we painstakingly compile listings in the major markets of the country. As shown in the green and dotted line in the chart below, listings are now approximately the same as they were one year ago. They tend to be declining in the worst markets in the country (like Florida and California, where they are declining from very high levels) and rising in the recently distressed areas such as Texas and the Carolinas.  more...

Jul

18
2008

Letter to Editor

'Where there is smoke, there is fire'

By Inman News, Friday, July 18, 2008.

Re: 'Feds close down IndyMac Bank' (July 11)

Dear Editor:

The old adage, "Where there is smoke, there is fire," comes into play here. We have lots more (closures) to go. This is a repeat of the early 1990s when all of us taxpayers had to pay for the shenanigans of the savings-and-loans.

Now you're going to see Congress bailing out banks and other lenders. How the system is going to work without a secondary funding market is going to be fun.  more...

Online video in an economic downturn

By Morgan Brown, Friday, July 18, 2008.

As the word "recession" proliferates across the media, companies inevitably look to cut spending to stay competitive. However, in their hurry to get financially lean and mean, brands must not forget the importance of having a strong and dynamic online presence beyond a few pay-per-click text ads. One of the best (and cheapest) ways for real estate companies of all types, from the individual Realtor to commercial property management firms, to meaningfully engage with potential and current customers is through online video. With the ubiquitous nature of Internet video, the real estate industry has been slowly moving to the Web to meet the demand of a rising audience. According to recent research from comScore, 75 percent of Internet users watched online video in November 2007.  more...

Jul

17
2008

'Bradley, find that Realtor's card in my wallet'

By Bradley Inman, Thursday, July 17, 2008.

When I helped sell my parents' home in Las Vegas earlier this year, pricing it was like catching a falling knife. Finding a good Realtor was also an unexpected challenge.

I reviewed agents at HomeGain, of course. I checked out sites such as Realtor.com, Zillow and Trulia. I was intrigued by a couple of agents on ActiveRain because their blog posts offered color on Summerlin, the area in Vegas where my parents live.  more...

Letter to Editor

Get rid of commissions in real estate

By Inman News, Thursday, July 17, 2008.

Re: 'Imagine housing without a secondary market' (July 11)

Dear Editor:

I disagree with almost every one of your comments on your 10 points. This entire real estate system -- banks, lenders, secondary market, Wall Street, appraisers, title companies, real estate brokers -- are all bundled up into nothing more than a den of thieves.

The best thing that can happen to this country is to go back to the basics. Live within your means. Save. No free lunch. Get rid of the commission-fee-based real estate system and you get rid of the greed, crime, fraud and outright den of thieves.  more...

Jul

11
2008

Imagine housing without a secondary market

By Bradley Inman, Friday, July 11, 2008.

In 1974, the United States was reeling from Watergate and the Vietnam War and stuck in a vexing recession. Inflation was out of control and President Gerald Ford was struggling to get control of the country and its economy. A collectible from those days is a "WIN" button, which stood for "Whip Inflation Now" -- a promotional device that the desperate Ford administration ginned up.

At the time, I was fresh out of college, living in Peoria, Ill., and working as an urban planner. One distinct memory I have was passing the downtown office of Peoria Savings with a sign on the window that read "No Home Loans."  more...

Jul

10
2008

Online Communities: Novelty or Necessity?

By Stefan Swanepoel, Thursday, July 10, 2008.

Congratulations to both ActiveRain and RealTown that have reached that magical six-figure membership number of 100,000 people.

Add to these two frontrunners the re-engineered Inman News that now includes an online real estate community (where we are having this discussion right now) and the rapid expansion of the real estate side of LinkedIn and the evidence supports that social networking and community have officially taken hold of real estate. They are here to stay and are on the short list of major contributors to shape the residential real estate industry.  more...

Jul

9
2008

Letter to Editor

Realtor finds market niche

By Inman News, Wednesday, July 9, 2008.

Re: 'It's closing time' (July 7)

Dear Editor:

I have been in real estate for 20 years, and I discovered early on -- thankfully -- that finding the right niche for yourself is the key to success. When we try to be all things to all people -- generalists -- we swim in a sea of never-ending, undifferentiated competition and become lost in the shuffle.

We're not nameless, faceless salespeople. We each have very particular talents that we need to bring out and nurture in order to carve out our place in the real estate world. I personally am a social worker first and a Realtor second, in my heart.  more...

Jul

3
2008
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