August 13th, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Michael Groysman, Marketing Intern

We had some server issues last week, and we were not able to bring you any interesting articles – so here is a double dose of the Weekly Roundup.

Enjoy.

• Happy 50th Birthday to the space shuttle Echo-1, the father of all modern satellite communications (via Gizmodo):

“Today we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Echo 1, history’s first passive satellite. NASA’s Echo mission began rather poorly. A test launch had exploded so brightly, so spectacularly, that it prompted frightened calls up and down the entire eastern seaboard.”

• Problems with legalizing jailbroken iPhones (via CNET):

“The jailbreak for the iPhone released over the weekend may have exposed a flaw in the iPhone’s mobile Safari browser. Unlike previous jailbreaks, which required the iPhone to be connected to a computer to run the software update, the latest jailbreak, posted by the iPhone Dev Team at Jailbreakme.com, is accomplished via the Safari browser loaded on the device.”

• Teleconferencing and its impact on businesses travel (via Chicago Tribune):

“Technology has made many things easy. We record TV shows and fast-forward through commercials. We listen to far-flung radio broadcasts live on our telephones. And we meet face to face with clients and staff members from thousands of miles away.”

• A look at why fewer new homes are being built (via Bubble Meter):

“It is a long and slow decline. Housing prices were simply unsustainable. National housing bubble coverage, with special attention to the Washington, DC area housing bubble.”

• How can we bring quality jobs back to the United States (via Redfin Blog):

“Grove argues that Silicon Valley can’t create jobs because we out-source most of our manufacturing abroad. His startling political opinion is that the goal of our government’s economic policy should be to maximize profitable employment, not just total corporate profit.”

• Another depressing, but important mortgage story (via Bloodhound Blog):

“Unfortunately, even Congress — that bastion of liberalism and home of the bailout — is tiring of pouring good money after bad into the two mortgage giants that have been sucking up all the mortgages — good and bad — that private industry is willing to create. To paraphrase one-time third party Presidential candidate, Ross Perot: That giant sucking sound you hear is taxpayer money subsidizing home mortgages.”

• Sales from Realogy Corp and its franchisees lead transactions in the rankings (via RISMedia):

“Sales professionals affiliated with Realogy Corporation or its franchisees represent 41% of the nation’s Top 400 residential real estate agents and teams based on sales volume and transaction sides, according to the fifth annual rankings report published by The Wall Street Journal/REAL Trends.”

Tags: construction, jailbroken iPhones, mortgage woes, Realogy, Redfin.

July 30th, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Michael Groysman, Marketing Intern

• The utilization of mobile devices and QR codes for real estate listings (via Inman News):

“Real estate marketing is getting ever more mobile, but one of the most effective tools an agent has is still that iconic, printed yard sign. For those agents interested in directing potential clients from printed materials to the ever-ubiquitous smart phones in their hands, startups specializing in QR (Quick Response) codes are springing up.”

• An interesting utilization of the iPad (via Geek Estate blog):

“SignMyPad is a new iPad app that lets you sign and fill out pdfs right from your iPad. If you’re like me, you chafe every time you need to print out a form, fill it out and sign it, scan it, then discard the original printed version. While there are much larger and more established companies such as Docusign, SignMyPad takes a different approach. Instead of a computer generated signature, with SignMyPad you literally sign with your finger.”

• How simple things can improve your internet marketing and also customer relations (via Agent Genius):

“How often do you go into a listing appointment and talk about how slick your internet marketing is?  When you’re trying to impress a potential client and prove to them that your listing package is the best thing to come around since Al Gore invented the internet, it’s easy to talk about listing feeds, show a video or two, and perhaps even show off your site statistics or how well you rank for Google keywords.  All of that is great, but as more agents become better connected themselves, it’s time to start thinking about ways to keep yourself a cut above the rest.”

• A look at the marketing of HTC and how it can be implemented in real estate (via 1000watt):

“You may know HTC as the object of a lot of smart phone industry buzz. What you may also know is that their phones – Evo, Aria, Eris and Incredible – are taking this industry by storm. They’re kicking Nokia’s nuts and threatening Apple’s attempt to corner the market. How is that happening? I decided to do a little checking. Seems they’re doing a lot right. More on that below. It also made me think it would be instructive to pull this brand through a cosmic wormhole and ask the question…”

• And a fun one for everyone: the future of clothing production and design (via Gizmodo):

“Fashion site Ecouterre has an article on the 3D printed clothes phenomenom, and the museum of Modern Art is exhibiting the Dutch designer Freedom of Creation’s works already. It’s not just the lure of having clothes that fit properly that’s appealing for designers—3D printing also helps cut down on labor costs and could be seen as reducing waste.”

Tags: HTC marketing, internet marketing, mobile devices and QR codes, SignMyPad.

July 23rd, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Michael Groysman, Marketing Intern

• An interesting look at the rising value of information (via RISMedia):

“In today’s business world, content is most definitely king. But it’s not enough to just have great content—it’s about how you distribute that content and how quickly you can get it to your intended audience. The real estate industry is no different.”

• Revamped Google images and the potential it has for real estate (via 1000Watt):

“Google launched a revamp of their Google Images search this week. The service has been a remarkable catalog of the web’s visual information since 2001 and now indexes over 10 billion images. But as of now, it’s even cooler.”

• A look at some of the most creative and interesting business cards (via Agent Genius):

“Many of these cards are no more than two colors, are the standard rectangle, yet they are well outside of the box of the normal business cards and most of theses cost the same or less than what you’re currently paying, given the advent of ordering online. If you’re not creative, hire a designer, they’re not super expensive for business cards. If you are creative, you’ll get your inspirational juices flowing with these pictures below.”

• Possibility for a new real estate tax by 2013 (via Bubble Meter):

“Apparently, ObamaCare contains a new tax on real estate. It only affects ‘the rich.’ However, given enough time and inflation, it may start affecting middle class Americans, much like the AMT.”

• An interesting comparison of Facebook and Google (via Future of Real Estate Marketing):

“One of my favorite sessions at Real Estate Connect SF was a panel answering the question: Is Facebook bigger than Google?”

Tags: 2013 real estate tax, content is king, creative business cards, Facebook vs. Google, new Google images.

July 9th, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Michael Groysman, Marketing Intern

• Geolocation jobs boom; here is a look at some of the other most requested and fastest growing freelance jobs (via Tech Crunch):

“Freelancer.com spotted a whopping 909% increase in geolocation jobs online. As a result of what the company dubs the ‘Apple effect’, Freelancer.com also saw a significant 721% boost in HTML5 jobs.”

• Some mistakes that one can make when using social media (via Future of Real Estate Marketing):

“As you all know, simply creating an account on Facebook or Twitter rarely equates to being plugged in. The most common reason for not spending time on developing a social media strategy is that real estate agents and brokers fear there will be little to no return on investment – and that frankly ‘it’s just too much work’ or ‘I don’t have the time.’ Here are 3 common mistakes that I see real estate agents and brokers doing all the time”

• Very interesting analysis of the economy, stock market and the financial future of the world (via Bubble Meter):

“Alan Greenspan on the economy, you can count me as one of the people who blame him for the current economic mess, but I still think he’s very knowledgeable about the economy.”

• Things to know when buying a house (via CNN/Money):

“If you can’t commit to remaining in one place for at least a few years, then owning is probably not for you, at least not yet. With the transaction costs of buying and selling a home, you may end up losing money if you sell any sooner – even in a rising market. When prices are falling, it’s an even worse proposition.”

• MapQuest adopts open source format and new models and designs (via ReadWriteWeb):

“AOL’s MapQuest announced today that it is launching an open source mapping initiative, beginning with the U.K. and then heading to the United States. The project, available now at open.mapquest.co.uk, uses the new modern design and layout for MapQuest, revealed last week in beta format. However, the data on the site comes from the OpenStreetMap community, an ongoing effort to create free and editable maps worldwide.”

July 2nd, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Michael Groysman, Marketing Intern

• Century 21 upgrades their mobile app to make it user friendly and dynamic (via RISMedia):

“Century 21 Real Estate LLC, the franchisor of one of the world’s largest residential real estate sales organizations announced the release of its new iPhone app. The Century 21 iPhone app automatically provides mobile users with property listings, open house information and Century 21 office locations. It also provides a quick overview of the communities associated with each listing, including school details, community images and statistics.”

• Very interesting and stylish graph on the inner workings of Google (via PPC blog):

“You wright a blog post, tweet, update your site or otherwise add content to the web. Google’s bots crawling the web will come across your post”

• The use of social media in the real estate market (via Mashable):

“Over the past two years, real estate professionals have found creative ways to overcome the real estate crisis, including finding innovative uses for social media. After facing drops in home sales well into 2010, real estate pros have been forced to utilize their offline skills in an increasingly social way online. By using photo and video sharing to enhance listings, along with professional networking sites to hone their sales skills, real estate veterans have made strides in moving inventory in tough times.”

• Congress helping out home owners by prolonging tax credit on housing (via Bubble Meter):

“First-time homebuyers will have until Sept. 30 to close on their purchases and land an $8,000 tax credit under a bill passed by the Senate late Wednesday. President Obama is expected to sign the bill, which was overwhelmingly approved by the House on Tuesday. The deadline had been June 30.”

Tags: century 21, how Google works, real estate social media, tax credit.

June 25th, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Michael Groysman, Marketing Intern

• Government helps struggling homeowners (via Advertising Age):

“For homeowners that are unemployed and underwater, they don’t always qualify for traditional loan modifications or governmental assistance, so last month, the Obama administration set aside $2.1 billion in assistance for ten of the worst hit states. Each state had to submit plans that were innovative in order for their method to be approved. The plans varied from subsidizing mortgage payments for up to 2 years to paying down principle.”

• Interesting insight into the trends of our economy (via Bubble Meter):

“There’s a sharp divergence emerging in the U.S. economic recovery, with housing stumbling and the industrial sector booming.”

• A great buyers guide for homeowners insurance (via Sellsius Real Estate):

“So you finally own your own home. Congratulations. The first thing you are going to need is homeowners insurance. Homeowners insurance is one of those things no one likes to talk about.”

• John Tuccillo on the state of the housing sector (via Real Blogging):

“For months, we’ve been wondering if the housing sector was rebounding or whether the good news was a creature of the tax credit. Well,  the jury is still out, but we have a microphone in the jury room and it doesn’t look good. The May numbers were just plain disappointing, and no amount of it-takes-longer-to-close-a-short-sale explaining away will excuse it.”

Tags: market trends, mortgage, tax credit.

June 11th, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Michael Groysman, Marketing Intern

• Interesting use of GPS information of images in Flickr (via Gizmodo):

“If you are going on vacation to New York, London, San Francisco, Paris, Madrid, Venice, Rome, Amsterdam, Chicago, or any nice city in the coming months, these maps will tell you where are the most popular photo spots.”

• Brian Boero talks iPhone and iPad apps for real estate (via 1000wattblog):

“With these apps and a handful of other well done entrants, is there a need for every brokerage in America to develop their own (and likely far less delightful) app?”

• Critics give NAR mixed reviews in lobbying Congress (via Agent Genius):

“Despite how this extension makes the real estate sector appear, others are supporting the move for the sheer fact that loan officers are up against unprecedented difficulties in getting loans processed and most of it is outside the control of Realtors and their clients.”

• Greg Swann talks about the correlation of economic freedom and corruption as it relates to the poverty of a given population (via BloodHound Blog):

“Countries that pursue policies of economic freedom have rich populations. Countries that obstruct free enterprise have poor populations. The relative wealth or poverty of a given population is strongly correlated with and can be readily predicted from the level of economic oppression in that political economy.”

• Shedding some light on the decline of mortgage delinquencies (via AOL Housing Watch):

“Stricter lending rules have helped curb the number of mortgage delinquencies. Agencies from the FHA to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are reporting a decreasing number of people who are behind on mortgage payments.”

Tags: economic freedom, GPS and Flickr, iPad and real estate, mortgage delinquencies, NAR loan extension.

June 4th, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Specialist

• The Library of Congress and Columbia University are beginning to preserve geospatial data (via ReadWriteWeb):

“Through its partnership with Columbia, the Library of Congress is creating a digital clearinghouse of maps and satellite images that are important for preserving the unique insights that geospatial data provides.”

• MyTechOpinion reviews new apps for the iPad:

“So you have the iPad now….time to put it to good use! To start, you need some apps. You won’t have the abundant choices like with the iPhone since it’s still early. But there are several iPad apps worth adding right away.”

• Roost introduces evaluations for broker Facebook pages (via a bird’s eye view blog):

“Facebook presents real estate brokerage companies an enormous opportunity to extend their brands – but only if it’s done right. Our intention is to help you identify where you’re strong and where you need to improve so you can do just that.”

• Tom Royce of The Real Estate Bloggers makes an interesting observation on a new negligent generation of home owners:

“If you want an example of the old school philosophy between doing whatever it takes to pay ones mortgage to the new school ‘lets just walk away from the home when it is upside down’, we need to take a look at rapper Chamillionaire.[...] This could be scary as a new generation sees the housing market not as a person’s castle and lifelong goal but as a disposable asset. “

• NAR asks for an extension on tax credit eligibility (via The Real Estate Bloggers):

“The law states that homes had to close by June 30th, 2010. But with the foreclosures, short sales, and bump in the market activity, getting to the closing time for many buyers is not going to happen. We are already seeing many of the contracts that were signed in expectation of the tax credit run into difficulties. Now, agents and the NAR are afraid that another whole crop of sales will not make it to the table in time to qualify for the handout.”

• Fannie Mae tightens restrictions on home loans, worrying some real estate analysts (via Rain City guide):

“Effective on loan applications taken on June 1, 2010 or later, Fannie Mae is requiring lenders to confirm that undisclosed liabilities are not present prior to funding a transaction as part of their Loan Quality Initiative (LQI). Currently a credit report is pulled and is valid for a specific amount of time–as long as the transaction closes prior to the expiration of the credit report, it typically is not repulled.  Fannie Mae is now requiring the lender to make sure that there is no new or undisclosed credit at closing.”

Tags: geospatial data, home loan restrictions, iPad, NAR, Roost, tax credit eligibility.

May 14th, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Specialist

• Eight websites you need to stop building (via Gizmodo):

• There’s been a lot of talk about cloud computing; here is an article that dumbs it down for the rest of us (via npr):

“Yesterday, Microsoft began selling a new version of its office software, and notably, it allows users to store documents on the Web rather than on their personal computers. This new feature is seen as an attempt to fend off Google, which has been encroaching on Microsoft territory with software that’s free and based on the Web. With the move, Microsoft is going further into or onto -whichever you choose – the cloud. That’s cloud computing, a trend that is rapidly transforming the way we work in the office and at home.”

• AgentGenius looks in to the implications of Tagwhat for real estate:

“We realized immediately the implications of Tagwhat in the real estate industry and have since spent some time talking to the folks that created the AR product and have learned a lot from them in preparation for their official launch today. First, we’d like to introduce you to how to use Tagwhat for real estate- you don’t have to call a developer to make an app for you, it’s already done and can even be branded.”

• Laws reveal that backup offers can still qualify for the first-time buyer tax credit (via Inman):

“Looking backwards, if you were in backup position to buy a home, and got into that position before April 30, does that qualify you for the homebuyer credit? The answer in any particular scenario depends heavily upon the language of the contract, which varies by state and even by city. But, in general, the answer is yes — it is possible that a backup contract could qualify you for the first-time buyer credit: as long as it was actually executed by the seller on or before April 30.”

Tags: Agent Genius, cloud computing, overplayed websites, Tagwhat, tax credit and backup offers.

May 7th, 2010

Weekly Roundup

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Specialist

• Meet the new face of search (via Mint Factory):

“Major changes to the Google interface focused on user experience and easier search management. The New Google interface has been designed to greatly reduce time that average user spends before reaching relevant content they’ve been looking for.”

• Five ways to give Gen X and Gen Y clients what they want (via Inman):

“…today’s buyers and sellers don’t want to have to register to receive property information. Nor do they want to reveal who they are to a Realtor who may ‘drip’ them, call them, or pursue them about buying or selling before they are ready to proceed.”

• Google Latitude clocks 3 million active users, passing FourSquare and MyTown (via TechCrunch):

“Lee said that one reason it took some time for Latitude to take off was that there hasn’t been very good iPhone support. The iPhone is key for a lot of location services. The majority of users of Foursquare and all of MyTown users are on the iPhone (or iPod touch/iPad), for example.”

• Teresa Boardman argues that you won’t find quick sales on social media outlets (via Inman):

“Using social media to grow a business is like farming. When I first started as a Realtor, new Realtors were encouraged to farm a geographic area. This was to be done in conjunction with open houses, cold calling and various other methods of getting business. We were told that agents often fail and throw money away when they farm a geographic area by sending postcards or trinkets, because they don’t stick with it long enough. Giving up too soon is like throwing money away. The idea is to keep hitting the same area and get listings and leverage those listings to get more business.”

Tags: Google, Google homepage, Google Latitutde, real estate social media, social media.