#first time home buyer Rosenberg

[saragoates]

First Time Home Buyer in Pearland: Your Ultimate Guide | Sara Goates Real Estate

Buying your first home is an exciting journey, especially in a vibrant community like Pearland. Whether you're eyeing charming townhomes, spacious new houses, or land acreage to build your dream home, Pearland has plenty to offer. Let’s walk you through some essential steps and tips for first-time home buyers in Pearland, with a special focus on those looking in the Richmond area.

Explore Houses and Townhomes in Pearland

Pearland boasts a diverse range of properties, from cozy townhomes to luxurious new houses. Here’s what you can expect:

Houses in Pearland for Sale: The market is bustling with options. Whether you prefer a modern style or something more traditional, you’ll find various Houses in Pearland for Sale that fit your needs and budget.

Townhomes in Pearland for Sale: If you’re looking for a low-maintenance lifestyle, townhomes might be your best bet. They offer great amenities and a sense of community.

New Houses for Sale Pearland: Newly built homes are increasingly popular in Pearland. These properties often come with the latest features and energy-efficient designs.

Relocation Services in Pearland

Moving to Pearland, especially if you’re new to the area, can be a big step. Thankfully, relocation services in Pearland are designed to make the transition smoother. These services can help with everything from finding the perfect neighborhood to settling into your new home.

New Homes for Sale in Pearland

The real estate market in Pearland includes numerous new homes that cater to different tastes and lifestyles. Whether you want a starter home or something more expansive, you’ll find new homes for sale in Pearland that match your criteria.

Land and Acreage in Pearland

For those dreaming of custom-built homes, land acreage in Pearland is available. Purchasing land allows you to design and build your home exactly as you’ve envisioned it.

Buy and Sell Real Estate in Pearland

If you’re considering both buying and selling real estate in Pearland, partnering with a knowledgeable real estate agent can be a game-changer. They can provide valuable insights and help you navigate the market efficiently.

Home Buying Programs in Fort Bend County

As a first-time home buyer in Fort Bend County, you have access to various home buying programs that can offer financial assistance and incentives:

Home Buying Programs in Fort Bend County: These programs are designed to make homeownership more accessible. They may provide down payment assistance, favorable loan terms, or grants.

First Time Home Buyer in Fort Bend County: Specific programs cater to first-time buyers, offering support tailored to your unique needs.

Fort Bend County First Time Homebuyer: Make sure to explore all the options available to you as a Fort Bend County first-time homebuyer. Local government and nonprofit organizations often have programs that can significantly reduce your costs.

Final Tips for First Time Home Buyers

Get Pre-Approved: Before you start house hunting, get pre-approved for a mortgage. This step will give you a clear idea of your budget.

Work with a Real Estate Agent: A local agent, like those at Sara Goates Real Estate, can provide invaluable assistance and insider knowledge of the Pearland market.

Consider Your Needs: Make a list of must-haves and nice-to-haves for your new home. This list will help you stay focused during your search.

Inspect the Property: Always hire a professional inspector to check the home’s condition before finalizing the purchase.

Buying your first home in Pearland is a significant milestone, and with the right resources and guidance, you’ll find the perfect place to start this exciting chapter of your life. Happy house hunting. If you need more detailed assistance or personalized advice, don’t hesitate to reach out to Sara Goates Real Estate. They specialize in helping first-time home buyers in Richmond and the greater Pearland area.

[architectnews]

Joan Rivers’ Palatial Penthouse, New York

Joan Rivers’ Luxury Penthouse, New York High Class Home, NY Building, American Architecture Photos

Joan Rivers’ Palatial Penthouse in New York

May 24, 2021

Joan Rivers’ Palatial Penthouse

Joan Rivers’ Palatial Penthouse is Back at $38 Million – Ghost Long Gone!

Location: NYC, USA

Can we talk? And no, it hasn’t been redecorated, as who could have done it better than Joan herself? Reportedly purchased in 2014, after her death, by a Middle Eastern buyer when listed at $28 million, Joan Rivers’ Palatial New York Penthouse is back on the market, intact at $38 million.

One of the world’s most popular comedians since the 1960s, Joan was known for her in-your-face, politically incorrect stand-up performances and off-the-cuff humor that kept her fans laughing and sometimes made national headlines. Author of 12 books, joke-and-comedy script writer, film director and actress in 27 films, jewelry designer and with a host of other business pursuits, Joan’s life was as fast as her one-liners, spanning a prolific 55-year career.

Joan’s sense of style was as legendary as her sense of humor. Originally, the Upper East Side apartment had been designed for socialites John and Alice Troth Drexel in 1903 by the Gilded Age architect-to-the-very-rich Horace Trumbauer. After changing hands a few times, in the 1930s it became an exclusive apartment house with only nine units.

A year after her husband Edgar Rosenberg’s death in 1987, Joan sold her home in Los Angeles, returned to her home state and purchased the New York penthouse. She threw herself into decorating it lavishly, while keeping the decor style sympathetic to the French-themed architecture. She resided there for 28 years and often entertained a bevy of celebrities, including Princess Diana.

A private elevator entry hall leads to a dramatic two-story gallery which adjoins a light-flooded living room, each with a wood-burning fireplace. The reception rooms feature soaring 23’ ceilings and elegant parquet-de-Versailles flooring. A spacious corner-paneled library and a formal dining room feature ornate 18th-century French panels, both with original wood-burning fireplaces and overlooking a south-facing terrace. The four-bedroom triplex has large entertaining spaces with a ballroom, music room and antique columns. In Joan’s lavish style, the decorating is over-the-top just like Joan herself, who said, “It’s what Marie Antoinette would have done, if she had money.” She further described the apartment as “Louis XIV meets Fred and Ginger.”

As much as Joan loved her fashionable home and the Central Park views, it had a quirk which she didn’t like: a ghost in the form of what was believed to be former owner, Mrs. Spencer. This probably wouldn’t have mattered had Mrs. Spencer stayed quiet, but on one occasion Joan said, she bit the heads off the cherubs on a chandelier.

With 23-foot ceilings in the formal rooms, who else could have done it? Finally, Joan engaged a voodoo priestess from Louisiana to eradicate the spirit throughout the building. As an extra incentive to keep the ghost happy, Joan found an old painting of Mrs. Spencer in the basement, cleaned it up and hung it in the hallway with a vase of flowers on a table underneath it.

The listing agent is Jenny Lenz of Dolly Lenz Real Estate.

Photo credit: Corcoran

Source: TopTenRealEstateDeals.com

Joan Rivers’ Palatial Penthouse, New York images / information received 240521

Location: Manhattan, New York City, USA

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The post Joan Rivers’ Palatial Penthouse, New York appeared first on e-architect.

[gokinjeespot]

off the rack #1208

Monday, April 16, 2018

 Today is going to be challenging here in Ottawa. Freezing rain overnight has left thick ice on everything. It's going to take a lot of muscle and time to scrape off any cars parked outside overnight. Penny has been going at hers for half and hour and she still hasn't left for work. I would normally go out and help her but I caught a bad cold and I feel like poop. I probably got the bug on the flight home from Cuba last Tuesday. My immune system let me down this trip.

 Our week at the Brisas Guardalavaca resort in Cuba was near perfect. Beautiful sun every day. I took one of the resort bikes out for a ride on one of the only cloudy mornings, got rained on a little but made it back to the resort unscathed. I donned mask, snorkel and fins every afternoon but one to swim out to look for tropical fish on what remained of the reefs after last year's hurricanes. I'm happy to be home but I wish winter would finally leave the area. Just going to stay in today and try to get better.

 Domino #1 - Gail Simone (writer) David Baldeon (art) Jesus Aburtov (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). Killer Instinct part 1. It's my lucky day. The merc with the facial tattoo is back on the racks and she's being take care of by a writer and artist team that I like a lot. This story starts off with Neena Thurman's birthday but may end in her death day. If I didn't like this whole issue and the many guest stars so much, that last page guarantees that I will be reading the next issue.

 Immortal Men #1 - Jim Lee, Ryan Benjamin & James Tynion IV (storytellers) Jim Lee & Ryan Benjamin (pencils) Scott Williams & Richard Friend (inks) Jeremiah Skipper & Alex Sinclair (colours) Carlos M. Mangual (letters). The End of Forever part 1. I used to get excited when I saw Jim Lee's name attached to a new project because his art was so fantastic. At least to me it was. His X-Men and Batman stuff made me go "wow". Now I look at his art and feel meh about it. This latest New Age of Heroes book introduces a team of immortals that are brand new to me. None of them made a positive impression. I didn't finish reading the Dark Nights Metal stories and this team ties in to that series so that's probably why I couldn't get into this debut. These Immortal Men will be short-lived.

 Xerxes #1 - Frank Miller (story & art) Alex Sinclair (colours). I really liked 300 when it hit the racks 20 years ago. This new 5-issue mini promises to be just as good. This time the Greeks and the Persians go at each others' throats in 490 BC. I have an interest in ancient history so I'm going to follow this story to see what happens.

 Exiles #1 - Saladin Ahmed (writer) Javier Rodriguez (pencils & colours page 4) Javier Rodriguez (pencils) Jordie Bellaire (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Here we go again with Blink leading a team of heroes to save the multiverse. This first issue introduces two team members and the big bad guy that they'll be facing. I liked this debut. It reminded me of the Unstoppable Wasp book with young Nadia. I really enjoyed Javier's art in Spider-Woman so I'm giving this new book a chance.

 Batman #44 - Tom King (writer) Mikel Janin & Joelle Jones (art) June Chung & Jordie Bellaire (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). I loved the silent scenes where Selina picks out her wedding dress. Those pages are interspersed with flashbacks showing different times in Batman and Catwoman's tumultuous relationship. The lead up to the wedding has been amazing. I'm starting to get a bad feeling about the blessed event however. The "'til death do us part" part may be a nasty surprise that the creative team are going to spring on us. I really hope not.

 Oblivion Song #2 - Robert Kirkman (writer) Lorenzo De Felici (art) Annalisa Leoni (colours) Russ Wooton (letters). Still liking this adventures in monster land series.

 Runaways #8 - Rainbow Rowell (writer) Kris Anka (art) Triona Tree Farrell (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Julie Power/Lightspeed is all grown up. I remember reading Louise Simonson and June Brigman's book when it first hit the racks in 1984 and loving the Power Pack kids. I never would have thought that Julie would mature into the woman she is now and would be dating Karolina. Julie's visit to her girlfriend's is interrupted by a surprise villain who wants Victor's head. I was surprised because I thought he was a good guy now.

 Superman #44 - Patrick Gleason & Peter J. Tomasi (writers) Doug Mahnke (pencils) Jaime Mendoza & Doug Mahnke (inks) Wil Quintana (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). Bizarroverse part 3. Thank Darkseid this story is over. This climax had more Bizarro characters so the confusion I felt while reading this issue was increased exponentially. Even the sound effects were Bizarro. I hope we get back to normal next issue.

 American Gods: My Ainsel #2 - Neil Gaiman (writer) P. Craig Russell (script & layouts) Scott Hampton (art) Rick Parker (letters). Find out why this arc is called My Ainsel.

 Spider-Man #239 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Oscar Bazaldua (art) Brian Reber (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). The Sinister Six deliver their stolen S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier to the buyer. A special guest star team helps Miles to stop the handover. Somebody is going to die I bet.

 Detective Comics #978 - James Tynion IV (writer) Javier Fernandez (art) John Kalisz (colours) Sal Cipriano (letters). The villain tips his hand this issue. I just noticed that all the ad pages were in the back of this book so that reading the story was a lot smoother. I wish every comic book was printed that way.

 Avengers #687 - Mark Waid, Al Ewing & Jim Zub (writers) Paco Medina (pencils) Juan Vlasco (inks) Jesus Aburtov & Frederico Blee (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). No Surrender part 13. The Avengers find out what they're involved in as Voyager confesses to her duplicitousness just in time for the bad guy to ratchet up his threat to destroy the planet. The scene between Jarvis and Bruce Banner bodes well for the return of the Hulk.

 Avengers #688 - Mark Waid, Al Ewing & Jim Zub (writers) Kim Jacinto  & Stefano Caselli (art) David Curiel (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). No Surrender part 14. The Avengers need every hero they can assemble to defeat the Challenger after he crowns himself the Grandmaster Prime. It's going to take a lot of sacrifice to save the doomed planet. Who will not survive is the question.

 Old Man Hawkeye #3 - Ethan Sacks (writer) Marco Checchetto (art) Andres Mossa (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Clint is hunting Thunderbolts and Bullseye is hunting Clint. We all know that Clint doesn't die in this story because he still has to go on a road trip with Old Man Logan. I'm curious to see how he survives Bullseye.

 New Mutants #2 - Matthew Rosenberg (writer) Adam Gorham (art) Michael Garland (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). The team gets sent to the Arctic to deal with a giant problem. Meanwhile a new New Mutant makes a surprise appearance on the last page. Maybe Doug Ramsey will show up too.

 Amazing Spider-Man #798 - Dan Slott (writer) Stuart Immonen (pencils) Wade von Grawbadger (inks) Marte Gracia (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Go Down Swinging part 2. I love the design of the new Red Goblin. The sacrifice that Peter has to make to keep himself and everyone he loves safe is huge. Now we'll see if he can come up with a way to beat the Red Goblin without his web shooters.

 Marvel 2 in One #5 - Chip Zdarsky (writer) Valerio Schiti (art) Frank Martin (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Ben and Johnny find themselves in a universe where GalacDoom has eaten everything except Earth. Now he's going to eat it too. Then what? There's nothing left to eat. Not very bright, GalacDoom. Seeing the Silver Surfer and Emma Frost doing the Smallville thing was cool though.

 All-New Wolverine #33 - Tom Taylor (writer) Ramon Rosanas (art) Nolan Woodard (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). Old Woman Laura part 1. We jump into the future where Laura is queen of Madripoor after the good guys win Doom World War. Wait until you see who the POTUS is. Laura has only months to live due to a genetic glitch and one of the items on her bucket list is to kill Victor Von Doom. Someone shows up in the last panel and April 25, when the next issue hits the racks, can't come soon enough for me.

 Astonishing X-Men #10 - Charles Soule (writer) Aco (pencils) David Lorenzo (inks) Rachelle Rosenberg (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). A Man Called X part 4. As much as I liked Aco's art in the Nick Fury mini, I didn't think it suited that spy versus spy story. It's perfect for this reality warping story though. The team tries to save the villagers of Fetters Hill in the Scottish Highlands from the villain Proteus before he can spread his madness even further. I'm interested to see how they do that.

 X-Men Red #3 - Tom Taylor (writer) Mahmud Asrar (art) Ive Svorcina (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). The Hate Machine part 3. I don't remember much about the villain Cassandra Nova but it's clear she's one very nasty person in the first three pages. I'm not usually a fan of super hero teams but Tom Taylor writes the All-New Wolverine and Gabby and Laura are on this team so this book stays on my "must read" list.

 Star Wars: Darth Vader #14 - Charles Soule (writer) Giuseppe Camuncoli (pencils) Daniele Orlandini (inks) David Curiel (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Burning Seas part 3. Vader is sent to the oceanic planet of Mon Cala to hunt down some surviving Jedi that slipped through the Empire's clutches when Order 66 was executed. The defiant Mon Calamari are thwarting his efforts. Mmm…calamari is yummy.

 Captain America #700 - Mark Waid (writer) Chris Samnee (art) Matthew Wilson (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). So disappointed that a time paradox was used to beat the bad guy. All that matters to Cap fans is that Steve is back in the "present" and the series continues.

[presssorg]

Speculation that Canada is on cusp of recession

‘They would be incorrect’: Bill Morneau shoots down speculation that Canada is on cusp of recession Canada is not currently in a recession, nor is it heading for one, Finance Minister Bill Morneau said on Wednesday, disputing a notion that some economists have begun to contemplate in recent weeks. “They would be incorrect,” Morneau said following an early morning speech in Toronto, less than 24 hours after he released the 2019 Federal Budget. “That would be technically wrong and certainly not in line with our expectations.” A downturn in the economy could have significant bearing on the government’s fiscal plans. The Liberal budget is based on expectations that GDP will grow by 1.8 per cent in 2019, and projects a deficit of $20 billion this year. By 2024, that deficit is expected to have fallen to $10 billion.

Canada Growth Domestic Product Since 2010 But economic growth in Canada was almost non-existent in the fourth quarter of 2019, due to a collapse of oil prices and a continued decline in housing and business investment. Morneau said that the government had already projected two quarters of weak growth — the fourth quarter of 2018 and the first quarter of 2019 — but that it expects the economy will pick up steam after that. “We’re expecting … that we will have a return to growth at expected levels in the second quarter (of 2019) and our long-term forecasts are positive,” Morneau said. This week, Fidelity Investments portfolio manager David Wolf, a former advisor at the Bank of Canada, suggested that Canada may already be in a recession even if there haven’t been two consecutive quarters of economic decline. GDP shrank by 0.1 per cent in November and December, but Canada eked out 0.4 per cent growth in the fourth quarter. Gluskin Sheff chief economist David Rosenberg has also said that recession is “unavoidable” this year and that if Canada isn’t already in one, it is one rung away on the ladder. In the event Canada does enter recession, Morneau wouldn’t commit to further deficit spending. He emphasized the government’s positive tone on the economy, focusing on the strength of the Canadian market and the unemployment rate, which is at its lowest in more than 40 years. One of the driving factors leading economists to begin to hypothesize about a recession is the sharp decline in Canada’s housing market, which underwent a correction in 2018. The market fared no better to start the new year as sales in January were the worst since 2015. Household debt, meanwhile sits at a record 174 per cent of disposable income. The Liberal government addressed concerns about housing affordability in the budget by investing $1.25 billion over three years to introduce a mortgage incentive for first-time homebuyers earning under $120,000 per year. For those who meet the criteria, the government will finance five per cent of mortgages on existing homes and 10 per cent on those that are newly constructed. First-time home buyers will also now be able to withdraw $35,000 from their RRSPs — up from $25,000 — without paying taxes to pay for their homes. Morneau expects the initiatives to increase the number of first-time homebuyers by up to 40 per cent, from the current mark of 100,000 per year to 140,000. Under the plan, however, the total value of the incentive and the mortgage cannot exceed four times a participant’s income, or a maximum of $480,000, meaning that it may be of limited help to those looking for houses in the country’s most expensive markets — Vancouver and Toronto. In February, the benchmark price for a home in the Greater Toronto Area was $767,800, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association. In Greater Vancouver, the benchmark price continues to exceed $1 million. Only average home prices in markets in Alberta, Saskatchewan, the East Coast and select areas in Ontario such as the Niagara Region and Ottawa are below $480,000. “We expect that the initiative we put in place will have an impact across the country, including in Toronto and Vancouver,” Morneau said, emphasizing that the government had only considered measures that would not destabilize the housing market. When asked if he had a back-up plan in case the Liberals’ housing measures don’t work or drive up demand even further, Morneau answered briefly: “These measures will work.” Email: vferreira@nationalpost.com | Twitter: VicF77 Published at Thu, 21 Mar 2019 01:50:57 +0000 Read the full article

[nightmare-afton-cosplay]

Social Media Star: ‘Famously Heinous Mansion’ in Indiana Racks Up the Retweets

realtor.com

The eye-popping Kessler mansion in Indianapolis is back on the market, priced at $1,750,000. The 29,500-square-foot compound comes with 11 bedrooms, eight bathrooms, and one extremely strange history.

The home wasn’t born this way—it became supersized over the decades. A former owner, Jerry A. Hostetler, had an overarching goal of grandeur. In this case, one man’s grandeur is another man’s gauche.

Known as “Mr. Big,” Hostetler actually started small, with a three-bedroom ranch house in the 1960s, according to the Indy Star.

A pimp who eventually transitioned into a construction career, Hostetler gradually bought up neighbors’ houses and, according to the Star, “cobbled them together, dug a swimming pool, dug ponds, imported fountains, added ballrooms, added life-size statues of gorillas, added—of all things—a stone grotto (into which he installed a hot tub).”

Multiple balconies

realtor.com

Eat-in kitchen

realtor.com

Dining room with decorative ceiling

realtor.com

Game room

realtor.com

Living room with fireplace

realtor.com

Ornate kitchen

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Stone staircase

realtor.com

After Hostetler’s death in 2006, the eclectic “Midwestern Vegas Versailles,” as the Huffington Post called it, fell into a sorry state. Bills went unpaid and creditors were circling by the time internet domain entrepreneur Chad Folkening picked up the shabby Shangri-La in 2006.

Rather than raze it, Folkening put resources into repairs and a restoration. The property now includes the main house, a guesthouse, a pool and pool house, fountains, and a dolphin statue. The main house features a huge kitchen, dining area, game room, and multiple balconies. Outside, there’s a grilling area.

Having relocated to Florida, Folkening has placed the palace back on the market—again.

He tried unsuccessfully to sell the place for $2.2 million in 2012, $1.3 million in 2013, and even $862,000 in 2014. The mansion hosted an estate sale in 2015, but has remained relatively dormant except for appearances on vacation rental sites.

Three years away from the market have been beneficial to the price tag, and the home’s list price has more than doubled. It’s ambitious, but perhaps there’s a buyer willing to go all the way this time.

The remarkable residence has had a fair share of publicity over the years due to its staggering strangeness, but it bounced back into the public eye this week after a tweet thread by Gabriel Rosenberg, a professor at Duke University, went viral. In the thread, Rosenberg called the estate a “famously heinous mansion” and “notably ghastly.”

Hello there. May I show you the greatest real estate listing in human history? This is a thread about it.https://t.co/mRzplQQJI0

— Gabriel Rosenberg (@gnrosenberg) August 19, 2017

If you’re thinking viral fame could make this wacky residence a wise investment, you might be on to something.

The current owner has listed the place on Airbnb, and the listing suggests the property could be turned into a family compound, income rental, or even a vacation getaway.

In 2010, the compound made local news when the Baha Men stayed there during a comeback tour. It was also featured on the HGTV show “Extreme Homes.”

But for a not very extreme price, the next owner could own quite a spread—and a story.

The post Social Media Star: ‘Famously Heinous Mansion’ in Indiana Racks Up the Retweets appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.

from http://www.realtor.com/news/unique-homes/kessler-mansion-indianapolis/

[bensgaragedoor894-blog]

Advantages of Using Automatic Garage Door Over Traditional Doors

Automatic garage door are becoming increasingly popular in South Jordan with every passing day. It's only this door's inherent fabulous feature what makes it the first choice of many homeowners and businessmen. Some advantages are mentioned below for you.

Convenience: automatic doors don't need be manipulated manually, i.e. you don't need to get out of the car to open or close the door of the garage. This is very comfortable especially in rainy or snowy days or when going out hurriedly or when returning home exhausted. The installation is easy and hassle-free too. Having this door means ease and convenience together in one place because you can simply drive into your garage without pausing.

Safety: These doors are safer than the traditional doors in two aspects. Firstly, the locking system, which can be easily manipulated, stops intruders from entering the garage to a great extent. This is one important reason why homeowners of South Jordan are getting this door installed more and more as they feel more secure inside the protection of this door. Secondly, there are less chances of an accident from malfunctioning of the door. Unlike the traditional doors, these doors don't fall.

Many choices: These doors are highly customisable and come with different attractive models. Depending on the operating speed to the auto reverse system or personalized preferences, these doors are highly flexible. The door operating systems can be altered to suit the buyer's need. Also there is the magnificent auto reverse option available which increases the operating safety greatly. Auto reverse system consists of few sensors which can sense any approaching car on the travel path or object and reverse the movement of the gate. This helps to prevent the accident if any object or human accidentally passes under it.

Hassle -free maintenance: The initial installation cost isn't much and the maintenance can be performed by any door mechanic for a small and average fee. This suits those busy bees who don't have the time to check the door's condition themselves.

However, before installing you must consider that the installation cost isn't as low as traditional doors. Therefore you must have enough resources to avail these doors but once installed these doors have very low maintenance cost. As long as they are serviced and maintained properly, your door will work just fine and smooth. You should not forget to research about the products before you purchase. You should be very clear about what you need and find yourself the exact same product from the innumerable options.

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[cathrynstreich]

Part-Time Agents: A Look Into the World of Synchronous Careers

Oftentimes, when speaking about real estate agents, the initial thought goes to individuals who help consumers buy, sell, rent or invest in real estate as their full-time career. However, while the number is unknown, a significant portion of the agent population works in real estate part-time.

Who are they, and why did they choose to pursue multiple careers?

Some of these agents work gig-economy style, dipping their toes into several side jobs as independent contractors, while others balance two major careers. Often, the skillsets used in the other career become valuable in their real estate roles. The motivations and end goals of these individuals run the gamut from wanting to reach full-time agent status, wanting to balance two or more careers and wanting to wait and see where the road takes them.

These are their stories.

Heather Christine Agent Home Experts Realty

An agent with Home Experts Realty in Ohio, Heather Christine has worked in real estate for four years, closing six transactions in the last year while also juggling a career as a virtual assistant (VA) and social media manager. Her real estate career typically accounts for 5-10 hours of her week, while her VA role requires much more, at about 30-35 hours.

While Christine wants to continue balancing both careers, she does recognize that her jobs can bleed into her personal time and has, as a result, taken steps to protect that time as much as possible. The biggest bonus for Christine? Being able to stay home with her children while still providing income, she says.

“I create hours that let me work my business around my life schedule,” says Christine. “There haven’t been challenges between the two yet, but I am sure something will arise. The greatest opportunity is the ability to network with clients and other agents from real estate that could benefit from my VA business.”

Osi Rosenberg Broker/Owner A to Z Realty Osi Rosenberg is broker/owner of A to Z Realty, LLC in Connecticut. Starting as a real estate paralegal in 2006, Rosenberg earned her real estate salesperson license in 2015 and her broker’s license in 2017. Last year, she closed 11 transactions as a referral-based business. At the same time, Rosenberg works as a full-time office manager for the law firm of Rosenberg, Whewell & Hite, LLC.

“My goal is to keep a life balance and diversify my time,” says Rosenberg, who adds that she doesn’t ever sacrifice family time. “I love working at the law firm as I believe we are able to contribute positively to people’s lives, and I enjoy working with the attorneys and staff. I absolutely love doing real estate as well. It offers the opportunity to help people through a very difficult transition. There is no greater pleasure than seeing a buyer find their next home or helping a seller move on to their next adventure. It is part of who I am to guide people through these transitions.”

The law firm typically accounts for 40 hours per week, while her real estate career often takes up 20 hours.

“I have flexibility and understanding at the law firm to be able to maneuver my schedule as needed to best serve my real estate clients,” says Rosenberg.

One of Rosenberg’s top priorities? Achieving balance while diversifying her income streams and having a household of independent income earners. Although it can be challenging and a drain on mental resources, Rosenberg says her career path affords her the opportunity of having a secure income so her family can enjoy life and save for retirement and the unexpected.

“I am always working towards a net life,” she says. “That means that I live my life to its fullest every day and build into my life things I enjoy. To do that, time management is everything. Everyone gets the same 1,440 minutes in each day. How we choose to spend those minutes is what makes all the difference in the world.”

Nick Hernandez REALTOR® Mark Dimas Properties Nick Hernandez is a REALTOR® with Mark Dimas Properties in Cypress, Texas. He’s worked in the industry for 13 years, with real estate taking up about 10 or more hours of his work week. While he’s transitioning to be a full-time agent, Hernandez simultaneously works in REO asset management, which takes up 50-plus hours of his week.

“I struggle to maintain both,” says Hernandez, who has had to make many sacrifices. “Asset management is paying the bills, while real estate helps supplement.”

For Hernandez, real estate was a part of growing up—it’s the family business. He was accustomed to seeing a lot of houses, and says he loves helping people achieve their purchase goals while helping them build wealth.

Last year, Hernandez closed six transactions, working many Saturday and Sundays to get there. Although one career certainly helps the other in this case, there are challenges maintaining both, he says.

“REO asset management has brought me a lot of knowledge about the servicing side of real estate, along with origination,” says Hernandez. “These two intermingle, but asset management is such a stressful and time-consuming job that I can’t let days slide to always try and expand my real estate business.”

Douglas E. McQueen REALTOR® Judy Boone Realty INC. Investing in real estate for the better part of a decade, Douglas E. McQueen is a REALTOR® with Judy Boone Realty INC. in Norfolk, Va. He’s been an active salesperson for a little under two years, closing three transactions this past year. McQueen is also juggling a career in the United States Navy as a senior chief petty officer.

“My active duty career typically accounts for 40 hours a week,” says McQueen. “I am able, however, to double-dip most days. I spend anywhere from 20-30 hours a week in real estate.”

Deployment, however, poses an added challenge, as he’s taken away from the area for weeks or months on end. During this time, he says, he continues working on his real estate career, either through continuing education or other facets of the job. But his military background also brings opportunity.

“I deal primarily with military members as a REALTOR®, so most times I know my clients personally and it all works out,” says McQueen. “The greatest hurdle for me is not so much personal time, but being able to schedule around deadlines in both the real estate world and the military. Both fields have pretty strict timelines and deadlines that must be adhered to.”

While in service, McQueen will continue to balance the two careers. Upon retirement from the Navy, however, he plans to focus full-time on real estate, both as an agent and an investor. In the meantime, he enjoys the value each role provides.

“The opportunities are vast; financial freedom and being able to help are the biggest,” says McQueen. “The job I do in the military is closely aligned with the job I do as a REALTOR®. Both careers are essentially, at their core, problem solvers—being able to come up with solutions that work best for all involved, quickly. The military set me up pretty well for real estate and has given me a pretty wide network, not only of potential leads but, more importantly, a vast array of mentors, many who made the transition and are willing to help however they can.”

Skylar Smith REALTOR® Higgins Group Skylar Smith, a REALTOR® with Higgins Group in Connecticut, has been working in real estate for 14 months. The role typically takes 5-10 hours of his work week, and he closed eight transactions in his first year. While his plan is to become a full-time agent, Smith is currently also working as a television editor. He only works in real estate during his free time, and is driven by the motivation to learn and help people find homes.

The time commitment for both jobs, however, currently weighs heavily against his personal time.

“It does get a little crazy when I have a lot of homes under contract at one time while balancing my other full-time job. My first full year in real estate was bad for my golf game,” says Smith. “I did not have nearly enough time on the weekend to get as many rounds in. I hope to balance that out more this year.”

His choice to balance two careers is strategic.

“I want to learn so that I am not green when I retire someday and I won’t have to start from scratch,” says Smith. “I will have lots of part-time years under my belt at that point.”

Aaron Turner REALTOR® Southern Group Realty, LLC A REALTOR® with Southern Group Realty, LLC in Rome, Ga., Aaron Turner has been surrounded by real estate almost his entire life but only recently decided to pursue his salesperson license.

“Professionally, I worked at the local tax commissioner’s office and personally, my family had a company where they owned rental homes, flipped homes, etc.,” says Turner. “Since I am new, I haven’t closed any transactions yet, but I am currently showing and speaking with four homebuyers, so my hope is that I can close at least one in the next 30-60 days.”

Between lead-generating, showings and social media management, the real estate side currently takes up about 20 hours of his week. As a full-time job, taking up 40-45 hours weekly, Turner is a credit manager—a career he’s built up over 20 years. The plan is to transition to real estate full-time if he’s able to.

“I would love to eventually transition to a full-time agent; however, there are so many agents out there and getting leads can be difficult and expensive,” says Turner. “For now, I will continue part-time until I can afford to go full-time…but that may never happen, honestly.”

Turner does see challenges down the road as he tries to balance the two careers, such as being able to answer leads promptly or setting up showings during business hours for his primary job.

“A lot of times, leads received during the week also want to set up showings during the day and this isn’t possible with my current position,” says Turner. “But continuing to maintain my full-time career enables me the opportunity to move up and potentially make more money so that I can eventually leave my career to focus solely on real estate.” Part-time agents, what careers are you juggling and what are your business goals?

Liz Dominguez is RISMedia’s senior editor. Email her your real estate news ideas at ldominguez@rismedia.com.  

The post Part-Time Agents: A Look Into the World of Synchronous Careers appeared first on RISMedia.

Part-Time Agents: A Look Into the World of Synchronous Careers published first on https://thegardenresidences.tumblr.com/

[mortgagebrokerplanotx]

Florida AG targets companies for preying on homeowners

Contents

Housing lays foundation

Bloodied. fourth annual nice festival

Analyst craig siegenthaler

Reuters bank insight. jefferies

If you don’t believe me, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says "around 15 percent of the world’s food is now grown in urban areas." Real estate trends: College town real estate Fewer homeowners.

Obama administration expects new push for REO rentals Las Vegas September home sales buoyed by move-up buyers housing lays foundation for better investor opportunities PHH Home Loans adds Steve Majerus as western regional executive Radian 4Q earnings hit .4 million freddie mac reported its earnings this week and noted that the percentage of its purchases of loans to first-time homebuyers hit a 10-year high. But the company lost 4 million in the first quarter, but the amount wasn’t large enough to force it to request a government infusion.PHH Home Loans, a joint venture between phh mortgage (phh) and Realogy holdings corp (rlgy), announced the appointment of Steve.The Boston Foundation’s Open door grants program supports dozens of Greater Boston nonprofits each year, with renewable grants of up to $50,000. Applications are accepted twice each year, with deadlines of August 1 and February 1. Next Deadline: August 1, 2019Norwalk police: Man broke into ex’s home, left bloodied. fourth annual nice festival set for July 6. Bridgeport man charged in near-fatal hit-and-runSince the Bush Administration’s push for 150 new coal plants. the hands of President-elect Obama. His pronouncements on the need for clean and efficient 21st century sources of electrical power.

Protect Yourself from Identity Theft. While people with high incomes are the preferred prey of identity thieves, everyone is a potential target. Follow the steps below to ensure the security of your financial identity. Review Bills and Bank Statements for Irregularities

Rather than selling in bulk, the bank is agreeing to short sales, in which homeowners sell. three regions of Florida, Las Vegas, Southern California and Phoenix, according to a summary prepared by.

Trulia announces partnership with My Florida Regional MLS Florida Flat Fee MLS. $399.95 FSBO.com flat fee mls includes. local MLS Listing for 6 Months with up to 20 photos; Listing syndication to Realtor.com, Zillow, Trulia & many more sites!

States all along the coast insure property some private companies wouldn’t touch. In Florida, a perennial target of hurricanes. make such policies prohibitively expensive for most homeowners. State.

Target Species. The Tampa Bay Estuary Program has set quantifiable habitat restoration targets based on the requirements of a suite of indicator species. Included in the assemblage of 38 indicator species are several target species for the Service: the threatened West Indian manatee, the brown pelican, the reddish egret, the roseate spoonbill,

Home prices in Santa Clara County shoot up Jefferies raises Nationstar Mortgage to a ‘buy’ rating Credit Suisse analyst craig siegenthaler on Nov. 14 estimated that Regions will be approved by the Fed to raise its quarterly. reuters bank insight. jefferies analyst casey haire on Tuesday.New FHFA working paper reimagines housing crash “Pursuing deficiency judgments has always been a remedy that we have looked at to mitigate our losses prior to the recent housing crash. new guidelines for making the process more effective..Six Mass. banks fight foreclosure ordinances Cordray, Watt: Mortgage industry matures to meet new regulatory framework The US is the birthplace of the automotive industry and car ownership has come to represent a critical element of the american dream. consumers’ love affair with their automobile has seen the US become the largest and most mature market for auto finance and leasing worldwide, asThey are dancing, sharing food and conspicuously lining up in front of a six-unit walk-up. A banner covers the front. Thousands more evictions have been prevented through collective bargaining with.

The combination of rising home prices and falling mortgage rates has U.S. homeowners sitting on a veritable fortune in home equity. The collective amount of money borrowers. Rosenberg’s company.

One Year Later, HAMP Servicers Modify 170,000 Mortgages Home price stall-out spreads from lower-priced homes to higher end 20171 Home Prices & Values.. The median price of homes currently listed in 20171 is $600,000 while the median price of homes that sold is $598,600.. The Zillow Home Value Forecast is Zillow’s prediction of what the Zillow Home Value Index will be one year from now.California Bay Area home sales hit 5-year high Is your mortgage business safer now than before the crash?  · You swerved for a skunk and wrecked your ride; now your car insurance is going to double, right? Not necessarily. With the right insurer—or some clever maneuvering—you can still save money on car insurance after an accident.California home prices climbed to a new 7 1/2-year high in April as low interest rates and job growth lured buyers, a research firm said Thursday. Sales were brisk.My mortgage was modified under HAMP. Can I refinance under HARP?. you would have had to document a hardship that prevented you from making the agreed-upon payments for your original mortgage. To modify your loan, the servicer would have changed the terms of your original loan to get your.

This species of tree, which guzzles water and leaves large deposits of salt, is so invasive that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has categorized. On average, state homeowners have gained $26,000.

University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension outreach is a partnership between state, federal, and county governments to provide scientific knowledge and expertise to the public. The University of Florida (UF), together with Florida A&M University (FAMU), administers the Florida Cooperative Extension Service.

“We can’t look to any other state for solutions because we’re encountering issues before most other places,” said Darren Pai, senior communications consultant for Hawaii Electric Companies. One.

Real Estate Multifamily RentWire Florida goes after 14 moving companies for allegedly holding people’s furniture hostage Movers allegedly promised low prices, then demanded more money once move.

You might think about the red tides on Florida’s coasts, or the dusty. And in cities across the country, utilities and homeowners are dealing with perfluorinated chemicals in drinking water. Brett.

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[mikemortgage]

‘They would be incorrect’: Bill Morneau shoots down speculation that Canada is on the cusp of recession

Canada is not currently in a recession, nor is it heading for one, Finance Minister Bill Morneau said on Wednesday, quickly dispelling a notion that experts and economists alike have begun to contemplate.

“They would be incorrect,” Morneau said in his first remarks since releasing the 2019 federal budget on Tuesday. “That would be technically wrong and certainly not in line with our expectations.”

Economic growth in Canada was almost non-existent in the fourth quarter of 2019, due to a collapse of oil prices and a continued decline in housing and business investment.

Liberals leave themselves little wiggle room in the event of a recession

Canadian dollar could sink to record low of 62 cents as economy slides closer to recession, says David Wolf

David Rosenberg: Don’t let ‘blockbuster’ job numbers fool you, Canada is one rung away from recession

Morneau said that the government had already projected two quarters of weak growth — the fourth quarter of 2018 and the first quarter of 2019 — before the economy once again picks up steam.

“We’re expecting…that we will have a return to growth at expected levels in the second quarter (of 2019) and our long-term forecasts are positive,” Morneau said in Toronto at a breakfast event for members of the Canadian Club Toronto, the Empire Club of Canada and the Toronto Region Board of Trade.

Earlier this week, Fidelity Investments portfolio manager David Wolf, a former adviser at the Bank of Canada, suggested Canada may already be in a recession, even if the economic numbers do not match the technical definition of two consecutive quarters of economic decline. GDP shrank by 0.1 per cent in November and December. Due to a stronger-than-expected October, Canada eked out 0.4 per cent growth in the fourth quarter.

Gluskin Sheff chief economist David Rosenberg has also said that recession is “unavoidable” this year and that if Canada isn’t already in one, it’s one rung away on the ladder.

One of the driving factors leading economists to begin to hypothesize about a recession is the sharp decline in Canada’s housing market and increasing household debt.

The Liberal government addressed concerns about housing affordability in this week’s Federal Budget by introducing a mortgage incentive for first-time home buyers earning under $120,000 per year. For buyers who meet the criteria, the government will finance five per cent of mortgages on existing homes and 10 per cent on those that have been newly-constructed.

More to come …

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[hollywoodjuliorivas]

Some home buyers play waiting game

By Andrew Khouri

Two years ago, Mike Saavedra moved to Southern California, equipped with a new high-paying healthcare job and a plan. The former Arizona resident would rent by the beach while becoming familiar with neighborhoods where he may want to purchase a house.

But a few months after starting his search, the Manhattan Beach renter cut it off. It was, he decided, the wrong time to buy.

“I definitely think home prices are slightly overinflated,” Saavedra, 48, said. And he thinks there’s a good chance they’ll fall. “I would kind of like to wait and see if that happens.”

After nearly seven years of sometimes fevered price hikes, the Southern California housing market has slowed markedly in recent months. Sales have fallen from year-ago levels and price appreciation has shrunk.

In Los Angeles and Orange counties, year-over-year price increases peaked at 8.2% in April and have declined every month since. In October, home prices in those counties rose 5.5% over the previous year, according to the latest available data from the closely watched S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller index.

A big factor, according to experts, is that many would-be buyers are increasingly priced out. But real estate agents also say a growing number of people who could buy, like Saavedra, have decided they don’t want to pull the trigger at the top.

If prices aren’t rising as much, or at all, it takes some of the edge off the psychology that has helped drive home-buying in Southern California for decades. Many renters exist in a constant state of anxiety that the home-equity gravy train will soon pass them by. That might drive them to stretch to make a down payment or to buy a suboptimal property.

In Los Angeles, people are particularly prone to “suspend disbelief” about what a home is truly worth, said Yale University professor Robert J. Shiller, a Nobel Prize-winning economist who has studied buyer psychology and co-founded the Case-Shiller index. That makes the area vulnerable to booms and busts: “You justify it: This is Los Angeles — the most glamorous city in the world.”

Buyer hesitancy is fed in part by uncertainty on Wall Street and in Washington, as well as memories of last decade’s brutal housing collapse, when as many as 10 million Americans lost their homes and prices plunged in the L.A. area by nearly 30% in one year.

A belief that the price slowdown will lead to a price drop could become a self-fulfilling prophecy, experts said.

“It’s a feedback loop,” said Shiller. “Excitement can’t last forever — and that’s what drives a boom.”

Shiller said the frothiness during this housing expansion is far less than the go-go days of last decade. But prices still could have overshot, he said. And several surveys confirm that would-be buyers have turned more pessimistic, even if they don’t think the sky is falling.

In Fannie Mae’s December home-buying sentiment survey, only 52% of respondents nationwide said now was a good time to buy a home — a low for a survey that started in 2010. The 14% share of people who think prices will decline in the next 12 months was the highest since 2012, when the market was just beginning to recover.

An ongoing Shiller survey of recent Orange County home buyers, started in 2003, also shows an increasingly dour outlook. The share of people who associate buying a home with “a great deal of risk” has climbed to its highest level since the survey began, according to Anne Thompson, an MIT research analyst who helps conduct the study.

At the same time, local buyers are expecting even less price appreciation over a 10-year period than they were at the height of the downturn.

“There has been this anticipation of another 2008” among some home shoppers, said Mark Cianciulli, a Los Angeles real estate agent. “They are expecting that to happen again, or they are at least suspecting a less severe version.”

Many who are struggling to afford a home in California would welcome a significant price drop, if it wasn’t accompanied by an economic collapse. But experts say such a prospect is unlikely, given that homes don’t appear to be in oversupply. The state has a well-documented housing shortage .

In California, an average of 91,000 homes were built per year during the current housing upswing, according to data from the Construction Industry Research Board.

That compares with a yearly average of 158,000 during the boom of the late 1990s to mid-2000s. In the 1980s housing expansion, construction averaged 267,000 units a year.

Other factors argue against a crash . The California economy is still posting robust job growth, despite the shadow of a trade war with China, which has become a big market for goods produced in the state. Whereas last decade’s housing boom and bust were driven by questionable lending, loan standards are much tighter today. And as much as prices have risen, the jump hasn’t been as sharp as it was in the early to mid-2000s.

“We don’t have a debt problem. We don’t have an overbuilding problem. We don’t have an economic problem — prices are not going to fall,” said Christopher Thornberg, founding partner of Beacon Economics, who called last decade’s housing crash.

Of course, predictions are always a fraught business. And while the vast majority of economists don’t expect a recession in 2019, some are nonetheless pessimistic. David Rosenberg, chief economist with Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc., cited uncertainty, slowing growth overseas and the effects of tighter monetary policy by the Fed in predicting a downbeat 2019.

“The message here is to brace yourself for a rough year,” he said. “If it’s not a recession outright, it will be very close.”

Saavedra said that during his brief home search, he was surprised to discover how little there was to buy on his six-figure paycheck, compared with where he last owned a home in Arizona. He also thinks uncertainty, higher mortgage rates and other factors will increasingly weigh on the market.

If he was convinced prices would keep shooting upward, Saavedra said, he might stretch and tap into stocks or savings for a home in one of the South Bay beach cities, where the median price ranges from the low $1-million level to more than $2 million. Or buy something in a more affordable community, even if it wasn’t his first choice.

“I would want to get into the market, before it just becomes completely out of control,” he said. But he thinks homes may soon become at least slightly more affordable, so he’s willing to wait it out.

[saragoates]

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[theokbrowne]

The Slowing Housing Market: Seasonal Cool-Down Or A Market Correction?

We’re hearing it from agents across the country – the slowing of the housing market seems all too real. And, nationwide statistics seem to validate the anecdotal evidence.

But, because all markets are local, it’s currently only happening in pockets across the country.

Economists predict the future of the housing market using economic factors. Real estate professionals, however, because you are the “boots on the ground,” have other and better evidence to consider.

Let’s take a look at some of what we’ve been hearing and reading about and then you can decide for yourself.

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Decline in home prices

The big news is that home prices are tumbling across the globe, from the UK, to Australia, Delhi and Honolulu.

Despite some of the clearer signals of markets changing (such as higher inventories), home prices in the continental U.S. largely remain strong, at least according to the agents we’ve spoken with.

But, again, there are areas across the country where home prices are softening – meaning, they may still be on the rise, but not nearly at the pace to which we’ve become accustomed. Some markets have even experienced declines in average selling prices.

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In Texas, for instance, homes in the Dallas/Fort Worth area increased in price only 0.5 percent over the past year, while those in San Antonio have actually decreased 5.4 percent. In uber-popular Austin, home prices are down 3.4 percent, according to the Collin County Association of Realtors.

With the median sales price of a Manhattan apartment dropping 3 percent in the second quarter, Mansion Global’s Liz Lucking went so far as to deem the borough’s current market as a “buyer’s market.”

  Traffic eases

Some agents have noticed a large decrease in open house attendance and home showings. Anecdotal evidence is fine, but we wanted some harder statistics so we turned to ShowingTime, a market stats and management tech provider.

Although the number of home showings in two of the four regions they study have increased slightly, the overall trend seems to indicate the housing market slowing down. In the West region, however, traffic through homes for sale has fallen, even during the so-called “hot” spring selling season.

This represents the “fifth straight month of year-over-year declines” in the West, according to ShowingTime.

  Days on the market increase

Agents in Las Vegas saw a rise in the number of listings without an offer climb in May and June, “the first two-consecutive-month climb since 2016,” according to the Las Vegas Review- Journal’s Eli Segall.

In Palo Alto, agents are also feeling a breeze through their market. Apparently, homes “tend to stay on the market longer” than they did last year, according to an agent interviewed by Palo Alto Weekly.

  Housing market slowing down from fewer offers per home

“There’s a drastic change in the market for sellers,” claims Beata Miklos, a Seattle agent. “There aren’t as many bidding wars … there’s not as much urgency for buyers to place offers right now because they know it’s softening up.” Clearly buyers are at an advantage in this market, so it would

Although prices haven’t softened in the fiery Palo Alto market, as mentioned earlier, homes are sitting longer on the market and “the number of offers on a single property has generally declined,” an agent tells Palo Alto Online.

The Oregonian’s Elliot Njus tells the story of a Portland homeowner who recently received only two offers on his home. “There was no bidding war. No all-cash offers from developers … A year ago, the same house probably would’ve attracted a pile of offers, most of them over asking price.”

  Price reductions

In June, real estate in King County, WA experienced its first price drop since before the recession, a Seattle agent tells King5 News.

The same holds true in Whatcom County, where 52 homeowners dropped their asking price over a 7-day period in June, according to a real estate agent in Bellingham, Washington. June, by the way, marks the peak of Bellingham’s real estate season.

The median price of a Manhattan, NY apartment has dropped for the fourth straight quarter, according to therealdeal.com’s Christain Bautista. Overall, Manhattan seems to be the market with the most change happening, and apparently, it’s been going on for more than a year.

“Fewer buyers are attending open houses, inventory is on the rise and it’s taking longer for homes to sell,” The Real Deal’s Kathryn Renzel reported last month.

  Inventory increases

Trulia’s research wizzes say that second-quarter inventories of homes for sale swelled three times the rate of the inventory increase in the second quarter of 2017.

Now, these are nationwide statistics, but you’ll find the same thing happening in pockets around the country. The supply of homes for sale in New York and Los Angeles, for instance, has increased “1% and 2.9% respectively year-over-year,” according to Trulia’s Alexandra Lee.

Palo Alto homebuyers are seeing an 11 percent increase in homes for sale over this time last year.

Seattle buyers are also getting some relief as King County sees inventory jump 43 percent (in June) from the same time last year. Seattle Times business reporter Mike Rosenberg claims that this represents “the biggest increase since the housing bubble and burst a decade ago.”

Head south a couple of hours, to Portland, and you’ll find an inventory of more than 6,000 homes “the most the metro area has seen since 2014,” according to Njus.

“Thirty of the nation’s 100 largest metros posted annual inventory increases in the second quarter,” according to a July report from Trulia. Some of these metros experienced astounding rebounds in inventory.

Nashville’s for instance, increased 52 percent and Salt Lake City saw a nearly 50 percent increase in inventory. Even the red-hot San Diego area’s inventory grew 22 percent over what they had at this time last year.

Do these nationwide changes foreshadow a changing housing market or can we chalk them up to seasonal cool-down? After all, sales typically pick up again in September.

Only time will tell.

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      The post The Slowing Housing Market: Seasonal Cool-Down Or A Market Correction? appeared first on Easy Agent Pro.

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[benmortonrealestate]

By 

Mike Rosenberg 

Seattle Times business reporter

For the first time in a decade, the number of homes for sale in the Seattle area is finally starting to rise — and in a big way — as the rapid-fire market that has led to extreme bidding wars and lightning-fast sales slows a bit.

https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/market-shift-big-spike-in-seattle-area-homes-for-sale-slows-price-growth/

Call me at 206.892.8321 if your looking to Buy a home or for strategy to Sell!

[zacdhaenkeau]

Does Your Product Help Your Customers Get Promoted?

At Influitive’s Advocamp summit, countless professionals regaled the crowd with tales of how software enhanced their careers, touched their lives, and even earned them promotions. They drove home a valuable point that often gets lost in all the talk about generating demand and marketing to accounts: If your product helps your customers get promoted, it will spread like wildfire. Click To Tweet

In this post, I’ll explain how customer advocacy is a powerful undercurrent that helps products spread.

Ask Not What Your Customers Can Do for You

In a breakout session, Addy Clark, Director of Customer Marketing at FinancialForce, shared how an advocacy software advanced her career. She used it to direct customer advocates to engage prospects on social media and as the number of referrals and pipeline attribution skyrocketed, so did her title, from customer service manager to a global director. Clark humbly credited the software with a big part of that success. Kelsie Swensen, a marketing manager at Egencia, attested to how one particular software made her look like a rock star internally. It put her in more direct communication with her customers and the human-centered insights helped her and her team beat their goals and flourish. Amy Rosenberg, a marketing manager at the HR software Namely, recounted how a software system boosted her visibility within her organization. She had so much control over customer marketing that she gave her boss 20 named references as a tongue-in-cheek holiday present.

All of these individuals carved time out of their busy days to speak. Speaking on stage can be flattering, no doubt, yet each was insistent that they were there to give back. They wanted to demonstrate their appreciation to the teams behind the software, but more often than not, their gratitude settled on the object that had a very real, very human impact upon their careers: the software itself. If feeling indebted to a bundle of code seems strange, it shouldn’t. By a strange quirk of human psychology, we develop all kinds of relationships to things, and this plays a large part in marketing.

Software Attachment Theory 

It may surprise you to know that many smart device owners frequently apologize to those objects. It’s part of a process known as anthropomorphization where we assign personalities and people-like qualities to objects. As items accompany us through our lives, we pour meaning into them. “Things are repositories for the meaning people project on them,” wrote Julie Beck, a psychology editor for The Atlantic, in an article about our sometimes irrational attachment to belongings. Objects can serve as a bridge to people or feelings, and actually evoke those feelings while the object is present. It’s why we get nostalgic about momentos, why we collect souvenirs, and why so many positive software testimonials use the word “love.”

When software plays a pivotal role in helping someone get recognition at work, feel effective, get complimented, and get promoted, it accumulates some of the gratitude typically bestowed upon teammates. Combine this effect with the fact that the brand is a proxy for all the positive interactions those users have with the people who make up the company and you have a very real connection between people and software. A software company’s mere logo can come to hold the weight of an old keepsake. When users’ gratitude bubbles over, they do what happy people do: They tell everyone.

People Talk

Word-of-mouth is a powerful, largely unacknowledged force in most marketers’ success. It rarely fits neatly into spreadsheets, it generally defies quantification, it isn’t easily tied back to top-line metrics, and thus isn’t talked about enough in B2B. Most marketers only embrace it as a happy coincidence, and sometimes work their handful of references into the ground before seeking new ones.

Jonah Berger, a psychology professor at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and author of the books Contagious and Invisible Influence, thinks marketers should be much more proactive about grooming advocates. During his keynote speech at Advocamp, he shared a few facts. According to Berger, word-of-mouth is:

Responsible for 20-50% of all buying decisions

10 times more effective than traditional advertising

And the kicker? 85-90% of word of mouth is communicated offline. Meaning, nine out of ten product mentions—even in B2B—occur during everyday conversations between friends, family, colleagues, and acquaintances, at cookouts, dinner parties, soccer games, airports, and more.

Berger also offered a checklist for marketers to streamline their messages for word-of-mouth distribution:

Social currency—Does talking about your product make people look intelligent, clever, or funny?

Triggers—Are there everyday events that can trigger a conversation about it?

Emotion—Does it make people feel something?

Public—Can it be shared publicly?

Practical value—Is there an obvious way to take action?

Stories—Can it be told as a story?

An example of a fully word-of-mouth optimized story comes from a speakeasy bar in New York City called Please Don’t Tell or PDT. The bar is hidden behind a telephone booth in a taco joint. When someone stumbles across it, they cannot help but tell their exciting story of discovery to everyone they know. Sharing makes them look cool, is triggered anytime they have cocktails, and is infused with emotion.

In the B2B world, few stories check all these boxes better than someone telling a story about how they were suddenly propelled forward in their career. A personal success story has social currency—everyone wants to share tips and tricks. It has a trigger because talking about an accomplishment is relevant to almost any conversation. It’s steeped in emotion, it’s public information, it has practical value, it’s told in a narrative, and your software hitches a ride because it serves as the punchline.

Happy advocates operate like homing missiles. They seek out people for whom the story is most relevant—like colleagues in similar roles who happen to be ideal buyers.

And over time, those happily-attached advocates take that software everywhere they go. According to Marketo Senior Customer Marketing Manager, Kevin Lau, “if a software system helps you knock it out of the park and earn a promotion or additional headcount, you’d better believe you use it again.”

Promote Your Product by Promoting Your Customers

Building a product that helps users get promoted extends far beyond marketing—it’s a whole company initiative. It’s the responsibility of the product, design, enablement, and leadership teams to serve the customer so well that they exalt in its utility. But marketers can lead the charge in making this relationship known, and by amplifying the stories of those advocates.  Happy users develop relationships with the tools that make their lives easier. If marketers can make their tools easier to love, advocates will want to tell the whole world. Perhaps they’ll even get excited enough that one day, they’ll take time out of their busy day to show up to your summit and exclaim to an audience of potential buyers, “I can’t stop telling people about it!”

Do you have a product or company you evangelize? Have you ever turned a customer into a brand advocate? I’d love to hear about your experiences in the comments.

The post Does Your Product Help Your Customers Get Promoted? appeared first on Marketo Marketing Blog - Best Practices and Thought Leadership.

from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8217493 https://blog.marketo.com/2018/04/product-help-customers-get-promoted.html

[bensgaragedoor894-blog]

Advantages of Using Automatic Garage Door Over Traditional Doors

Automatic garage door are becoming increasingly popular in South Jordan with every passing day. It's only this door's inherent fabulous feature what makes it the first choice of many homeowners and businessmen. Some advantages are mentioned below for you.

Convenience: automatic doors don't need be manipulated manually, i.e. you don't need to get out of the car to open or close the door of the garage. This is very comfortable especially in rainy or snowy days or when going out hurriedly or when returning home exhausted. The installation is easy and hassle-free too. Having this door means ease and convenience together in one place because you can simply drive into your garage without pausing.

Safety: These doors are safer than the traditional doors in two aspects. Firstly, the locking system, which can be easily manipulated, stops intruders from entering the garage to a great extent. This is one important reason why homeowners of South Jordan are getting this door installed more and more as they feel more secure inside the protection of this door. Secondly, there are less chances of an accident from malfunctioning of the door. Unlike the traditional doors, these doors don't fall.

Many choices: These doors are highly customisable and come with different attractive models. Depending on the operating speed to the auto reverse system or personalized preferences, these doors are highly flexible. The door operating systems can be altered to suit the buyer's need. Also there is the magnificent auto reverse option available which increases the operating safety greatly. Auto reverse system consists of few sensors which can sense any approaching car on the travel path or object and reverse the movement of the gate. This helps to prevent the accident if any object or human accidentally passes under it.

Hassle -free maintenance: The initial installation cost isn't much and the maintenance can be performed by any door mechanic for a small and average fee. This suits those busy bees who don't have the time to check the door's condition themselves.

However, before installing you must consider that the installation cost isn't as low as traditional doors. Therefore you must have enough resources to avail these doors but once installed these doors have very low maintenance cost. As long as they are serviced and maintained properly, your door will work just fine and smooth. You should not forget to research about the products before you purchase. You should be very clear about what you need and find yourself the exact same product from the innumerable options.

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[archiebwoollard]

Does Your Product Help Your Customers Get Promoted?

At Influitive’s Advocamp summit, countless professionals regaled the crowd with tales of how software enhanced their careers, touched their lives, and even earned them promotions. They drove home a valuable point that often gets lost in all the talk about generating demand and marketing to accounts: If your product helps your customers get promoted, it will spread like wildfire. Click To Tweet

In this post, I’ll explain how customer advocacy is a powerful undercurrent that helps products spread.

Ask Not What Your Customers Can Do for You

In a breakout session, Addy Clark, Director of Customer Marketing at FinancialForce, shared how an advocacy software advanced her career. She used it to direct customer advocates to engage prospects on social media and as the number of referrals and pipeline attribution skyrocketed, so did her title, from customer service manager to a global director. Clark humbly credited the software with a big part of that success. Kelsie Swensen, a marketing manager at Egencia, attested to how one particular software made her look like a rock star internally. It put her in more direct communication with her customers and the human-centered insights helped her and her team beat their goals and flourish. Amy Rosenberg, a marketing manager at the HR software Namely, recounted how a software system boosted her visibility within her organization. She had so much control over customer marketing that she gave her boss 20 named references as a tongue-in-cheek holiday present.

All of these individuals carved time out of their busy days to speak. Speaking on stage can be flattering, no doubt, yet each was insistent that they were there to give back. They wanted to demonstrate their appreciation to the teams behind the software, but more often than not, their gratitude settled on the object that had a very real, very human impact upon their careers: the software itself. If feeling indebted to a bundle of code seems strange, it shouldn’t. By a strange quirk of human psychology, we develop all kinds of relationships to things, and this plays a large part in marketing.

Software Attachment Theory 

It may surprise you to know that many smart device owners frequently apologize to those objects. It’s part of a process known as anthropomorphization where we assign personalities and people-like qualities to objects. As items accompany us through our lives, we pour meaning into them. “Things are repositories for the meaning people project on them,” wrote Julie Beck, a psychology editor for The Atlantic, in an article about our sometimes irrational attachment to belongings. Objects can serve as a bridge to people or feelings, and actually evoke those feelings while the object is present. It’s why we get nostalgic about momentos, why we collect souvenirs, and why so many positive software testimonials use the word “love.”

When software plays a pivotal role in helping someone get recognition at work, feel effective, get complimented, and get promoted, it accumulates some of the gratitude typically bestowed upon teammates. Combine this effect with the fact that the brand is a proxy for all the positive interactions those users have with the people who make up the company and you have a very real connection between people and software. A software company’s mere logo can come to hold the weight of an old keepsake. When users’ gratitude bubbles over, they do what happy people do: They tell everyone.

People Talk

Word-of-mouth is a powerful, largely unacknowledged force in most marketers’ success. It rarely fits neatly into spreadsheets, it generally defies quantification, it isn’t easily tied back to top-line metrics, and thus isn’t talked about enough in B2B. Most marketers only embrace it as a happy coincidence, and sometimes work their handful of references into the ground before seeking new ones.

Jonah Berger, a psychology professor at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and author of the books Contagious and Invisible Influence, thinks marketers should be much more proactive about grooming advocates. During his keynote speech at Advocamp, he shared a few facts. According to Berger, word-of-mouth is:

Responsible for 20-50% of all buying decisions

10 times more effective than traditional advertising

And the kicker? 85-90% of word of mouth is communicated offline. Meaning, nine out of ten product mentions—even in B2B—occur during everyday conversations between friends, family, colleagues, and acquaintances, at cookouts, dinner parties, soccer games, airports, and more.

Berger also offered a checklist for marketers to streamline their messages for word-of-mouth distribution:

Social currency—Does talking about your product make people look intelligent, clever, or funny?

Triggers—Are there everyday events that can trigger a conversation about it?

Emotion—Does it make people feel something?

Public—Can it be shared publicly?

Practical value—Is there an obvious way to take action?

Stories—Can it be told as a story?

An example of a fully word-of-mouth optimized story comes from a speakeasy bar in New York City called Please Don’t Tell or PDT. The bar is hidden behind a telephone booth in a taco joint. When someone stumbles across it, they cannot help but tell their exciting story of discovery to everyone they know. Sharing makes them look cool, is triggered anytime they have cocktails, and is infused with emotion.

In the B2B world, few stories check all these boxes better than someone telling a story about how they were suddenly propelled forward in their career. A personal success story has social currency—everyone wants to share tips and tricks. It has a trigger because talking about an accomplishment is relevant to almost any conversation. It’s steeped in emotion, it’s public information, it has practical value, it’s told in a narrative, and your software hitches a ride because it serves as the punchline.

Happy advocates operate like homing missiles. They seek out people for whom the story is most relevant—like colleagues in similar roles who happen to be ideal buyers.

And over time, those happily-attached advocates take that software everywhere they go. According to Marketo Senior Customer Marketing Manager, Kevin Lau, “if a software system helps you knock it out of the park and earn a promotion or additional headcount, you’d better believe you use it again.”

Promote Your Product by Promoting Your Customers

Building a product that helps users get promoted extends far beyond marketing—it’s a whole company initiative. It’s the responsibility of the product, design, enablement, and leadership teams to serve the customer so well that they exalt in its utility. But marketers can lead the charge in making this relationship known, and by amplifying the stories of those advocates.  Happy users develop relationships with the tools that make their lives easier. If marketers can make their tools easier to love, advocates will want to tell the whole world. Perhaps they’ll even get excited enough that one day, they’ll take time out of their busy day to show up to your summit and exclaim to an audience of potential buyers, “I can’t stop telling people about it!”

Do you have a product or company you evangelize? Have you ever turned a customer into a brand advocate? I’d love to hear about your experiences in the comments.

The post Does Your Product Help Your Customers Get Promoted? appeared first on Marketo Marketing Blog - Best Practices and Thought Leadership.

from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8217493 https://blog.marketo.com/2018/04/product-help-customers-get-promoted.html