consumer
Advisors: the real estate agent. Part 2 – Boston Globe (blog)
Advisors: the real estate agent. Part 2 Boston Globe (blog) On their disclosure forms, agencies that practice dual and designated agency indicate; “only the real estate agent listed below represents the consumer … Go Green, Save Green: 3 Easy Ways Real Estate Agents Can Save Money Going Green PR Web (press release) all 3 news articles
Trulia releases new Premium Listings
Trulia rolls out a new premium listings program for brokers. With the new product, brokers and agents will receive top placement and added exposure for being a Trulia customer. The new Premium Listings package makes it much easier for consumers to connect with leading brokers and agents. Premium Listings includes: Featuring of listings at the top of the results Optimized and company branded home buyer contact form Detailed listing and lead reporting More brand exposure Dedicated customer support This, along with our new ranking of property listings, will be a winner for both consumers and real estate professionals. Premium Listings is intended for entire companies, as opposed to just one agent.
Improve the Light Bulb — Win Up to $10 Million in Prize Money
First, the Netflix Prize offered a $1 million to anyone who could improve the DVD-rental service’s recommendations by 10 percent. It was hailed as a brilliant idea . Now, the government is getting into the act by offering cash prizes up to $10 million — that’s right, $10 million – for improvements to the much-maligned light bulb. The contest is called the L Prize , which is: “… the first government-sponsored technology competition designed to spur lighting manufacturers to develop high-quality, high-efficiency solid-state lighting products to replace the common light bulb.” Criteria include: bulb must provide same amount and color of light made by a 60-watt incandescent bulb, but uses only 10 watts of power bulb must also last for more than 25,000 hours — about 25 times longer than a standard light bulb at least 75 percent of the bulb must be made or assembled in the United States. So far, Dutch company Philips is the first to submit its entry and others are sure to follow since the stakes are high
A Tale of Two Bottoms: Sales and Home Values
Yesterday, National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their existing home sales numbers for June , reporting the third consecutive monthly gain for existing home sales. Annual sales were up to 4.89 million homes (seasonally adjusted annual rate) marking a 3.6% increase over May’s number (and relative to a 2.4% increase between April and May). This lends further support to the view that we’re seeing a bottom in sales volume nationally. Demand for housing has been spurred by the Federal tax credit to first-time home buyers , mortgage rates that are relatively low historically, lower home prices, large numbers of very cheap foreclosures, and increasing consumer confidence. But, obviously, a bottom in sales volume is not the same thing as a bottom in home values. The former is a necessary precondition for the latter, but most economists expect prices to keep falling nationally through at least the early part of next year. Why? Well, for a variety of reasons having to do with both supply and demand, specifically: Current trends may owe a lot to seasonality and the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit. As such, current demand may not be based on sustainable market forces. With negative equity rates high and unemployment continuing to rise, we have likely not seen the peak in foreclosure rates. Indeed, even recent foreclosure rates may have been artificially suppressed due to various moratorium in effect. Unemployment rates are not expected to peak until next year and high foreclosure rates will continue to put downward pressure on home prices.
True Gotham: The Traditional Real Estate Brokerage Model is Broken
They understand that our job is no longer to be providers of data but rather to help the consumer navigate that information and make smart decisions when buying or selling real estate . They understand the power of technology as they …
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