Jones Lang LaSalle Boosts Russia ' CIS Presence with Millard Appointment

Jones Lang LaSalle has announced a new Head of Advisory Group Russia, Tim Millard (at left) joins the firm with a decade of experience in the region.

Charles Boudet, Managing Director of Jones Lang LaSalle, Russia & CIS, had this to offer:

'We are very pleased to announce the creation of a new strategically important role in Jones Lang LaSalle. The Head of Advisory Group role is vital and critically important for us in the real estate sector which sees a substantial amount of cross-functional business generated out of advising our clients at a very early stage of their development and investment value chain. It is a unique opportunity for Jones Lang LaSalle to have a person of this professional stature joining us to lead this new division. As always our constant leadership and professional ethics allows us to remain ahead in this very competitive market and attract the best talents.'

Millard, an associate Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and a founding member of RICS Russia, holds a degree in Land Economics from Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge University. He also took an MBA at Business School Lausanne where he specialized in Corporate Finance.

Photo credit: Tim Millard courtesy Cushman & Wakefield

Builders Say Britain Needs More Energy Efficient Homes

The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) thinks making Britain's homes more energy efficient should be supported with measures included in the UK's upcoming budget. By adopting such measures, the British government would boost the construction industry and help householders deal with the issue of rising fuel bills. In a letter addressed to the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, who is expected to deliver his Budget on March 20th, Brian Berry, chief executive of the FMB, warns that over nine million British households might be in fuel poverty by 2016 some nine million British households could be in fuel poverty.

 Photo by Kay Williams/ Flickr

'We need action now to help get Britain building towards growth, and independent economists estimate that diverting funds into a massive public sector programme to improve the energy efficiency of Britain's existing 26 million homes would boost GDP by 0.2%, create 130,000 jobs and help the government meet its own targets for cutting carbon emissions,' the letter says. 'We also want ministers to rethink the unrealistic timeline for zero carbon homes, which was set back in 2006 before the economic slump. Our own survey of smaller housing developers found that the proposals to change Part L of the Building Regulations in October this year could add more than £3,500 to the cost of building a new house. This will discourage even more developers from building new homes, further exacerbating the desperate housing shortage and locking low and middle income buyers out of the market.'

The FMB also requested a VAT cut from 20% to 5% for home renovation and repairs, as British houses are old and deteriorating due to the fact that most homeowners cannot afford the repair costs.

'Families are trapped in a vicious cycle, in which they can't afford to move and planning red tape makes it harder to alter their homes to meet changing need. Cutting VAT on renovation and repair would give a shot in the arm to beleaguered builders, create jobs and encourage householders to make their homes more comfortable, affordable and energy efficient,' the letter concludes.

FMB's take on what measures the government should take was the result of new research that shows buying a new home could save a household almost £300 on energy costs. The report published by house builder Miller Homes compared newly built houses according to those built in the Victorian era and those dating back to the 1960s in what build materials of the time, and typical energy usages including lighting, cooking and heating are concerned. The conclusion was that energy savings for the newly built apartments amounted to almost £3,000 on the 1900s home and just over £2,000 compared to the 1960s property.

'I would also urge home owners in older style properties to ensure their home is as efficient as it could be wherever possible by replacing any draughty windows, installing loft and cavity wall insulation and even making sure radiators have thermostatic valves on them,' said Chris Endsor, chief executive of Miller Homes. 'But for those in the market to move, the efficiency figures of new homes speak for themselves,' he added.

Prague Finally Gets New 5 Star Hotel

According to news from Loyd's Property Investments group member Company Akroterion, preparations are underway for a new 5 star hotel at the city center of Prague. A long awaited city center luxury redo, the property will add great value to an already priceless city.

The future hotel will reportedly boast of 120 exclusive rooms, a restaurant, conference center, and other luxury accommodations  The hotel's estimated cost will be in the neighborhood of '85 million, and construction is slated to start in Q1 of 2014. Plans to rebuild the famous rebuild the famous House of Sixt on the corner Old Town Square and Celetné, would appear to finally be headed in the right direction.

Architects MS Architekti have been involved in the now somewhat dated project since the early 2000's. Some complications and back and forth use cases, would seem to finally be ironed out now so that Hotel U Sixt', and perhaps some exclusive apartments at Prague's center can get underway. According to the scattered reports, interior designer Jacques Garcia is reportedly on board as well.

Other key features of the property will include a luxury spa, shops, and more VIP private spaces. For more pictures of the prospective hotel readers may want to visit Metro and use Google Translate.

Challenging Low Appraisals: Think Like An Appraiser!

Problems with 'low' appraisals continue to be an issue, and even more so in markets where home values appear to be on the rise. A rising market moves faster than the appraisals; consider that appraisers are required to use only closed sales. In a market where increasing prices are seen over the last quarter or two, this can present big problems as the data does not reflect current conditions. Compound that with a diminished number of sales and the 'pool' of comparables for this spring is small.

© James Martin ' Fotolia.com

There is no easy fix at this point, but preparation prior to the appraisal may help. The very first thing to do is understand what an appraisal provides; simply put, an appraisal is a tool used by lenders to ensure adequate value exists in the property being collateralized. Appraisers are required to follow strict underwriting guidelines; there is very little wiggle room with regard to report composition. Third party reviews are common, as are automated valuation mode checks; think Zestimates but with much more detail and accuracy.

So how do you challenge a low appraisal? Simple, think and act like an appraiser. That includes understanding how to measure a home, what constitutes living area, positive and negative influences on value'. A few critical things to keep in mind:

• Appraisers do not set the real estate market; they report current trends and establish the most likely market value of a home at a specific time. New data could enter the market the next day and change that opinion.
• Appraisers work for the lender; they do not work for the buyer or seller.
• Appraisers are required to follow underwriting guidelines. These parameters and requirements are given to them, they are expected to be followed or the appraiser does not work.
• Purchase appraisals completed for a lender are intended to ensure adequate value to cover the amount borrowed. The appraisal is not intended to validate sale price.
• Appraisers are disinterested third parties to transactions. There is nothing to be gained by 'coming in low'; appraisers are not out to 'kill deals'.
• Distressed sales are considered in the overall market analysis. If comparable, they may be considered in the report. Not all distressed sales are in poor condition.
• Finished basements are finished basements ' not living area. These add value and utility, that will be accounted for on the report but these areas will not be included the total living area of the home.
• Despite what HGTV says, no improvement returns dollar for dollar.
• Appraisers measure the outside of homes; some use lasers, some tapes, some wheel, some round off'others don't. No two appraisers will measure a home the same way. There are clearly established parameters that an appraiser is required to follow. Agents, assessors and others do not always hold to these standards. Learn how to measure a home like an appraiser.

Changes to the appraisal business brought on by the real estate crash have resulted in many experienced appraisers leaving the mortgage side of the business. There are appraisers that are marginally adequate; when encountered it is best to be 'helpful' with applicable data.

Applicable data means just that. If there is a dispute, think like an appraiser. In the simplest terms, this means providing comparable sales data to support your position:

• Closed sales within six months preferably, but not over a year
• Closed sales within the defined competing area, typically under a mile
• Closed sales that are physically similar to the subject ' style, bedroom count, size, age, lot, location
• Closed sales that are a 'reasonable alternative purchase' to the subject; the comparables should be functionally equivalent to the subject with similar appeal. If the subject were offered for sale, the comps would be reasonable alternative purchases to it.

Pending comparables might be used to help ascertain current activity; active listings are likely to be dismissed. As reports of stable to increasing values populate the media, sellers are already increasing list prices; appraisers recognize this and little reliability will be assigned to listings.

It's best to get ahead of any potential problems. Despite being expected to do so, some appraisers may not have access to all available data. There is nothing wrong with an agent providing an appraiser with all potential comparables (see above); this ensures they see everything. It's also not a bad idea to provide a fact sheet about the subject, again to ensure that all of the positives are noted.

Friction between agents and appraisers is best overcome by finding common ground. The appraiser has no reason to 'kill' any sale; they are simply doing what they are expected to do by their client in the same way the agent is working for theirs. At the end of the day, if everyone does their job in a professional manner problems can be successfully overcome.

NAHB Survey Reveals What Buyers Want

Home buying activity is finally beginning to pick up, and so builders are naturally interested in finding out the latest trends among buyers in order to better understand their wants and needs. With that in mind, the National Association of Home Builders recently carried out a large survey of buyers in order to ascertain how the recession has affected their thinking when it comes to consumer's home buying wish lists.

© Monkey Business ' Fotolia.com

The study, which was released earlier this week, found that buyers are overwhelmingly much more cautious and sensitive to prices than before, but what's really interesting is what tops buyer's lists of must-haves in their new home.

Given that money worries are still paramount with many consumers, it's probably not a surprise to learn that energy efficient homes are priority number one for the vast majority of buyers. The NAHB found that Energy-star appliances are essential number one in the eyes of many buyers, followed by energy efficient laundry rooms.

But while people want to save money, many of them still want to be able to 'walk the walk' as it were. High-end amenities were cited by 62% of buyers as being more important to them than available living space ' in other words, most people are more than willing to sacrifice that extra bedroom or go with a smaller living room in order to get their hands on the latest hi-tech gizmos like wireless home security and Wi-Fi controls for their utilities. Buyers also want style over substance, preferring French doors over regular doors, and they want luxuries like a double sink in the kitchen, and a hot tub and shower in the bathroom.

However, today's cost-conscious consumers are only willing to shell out so much, and so luxuries like a golf course community and an elevator have gone out the window in many buyer's eyes. Consumers don't see the need for laminate countertops, nor do they have a use for wine cooler refrigerators anymore. Mind you, they'd like some outdoor space ' but an outdoor kitchen is probably a little too excessive for more.

The NAHB survey also looked at locations, finding that most people want to get the hell out of the city and live in the suburbs, away from the hustle and bustle. 36% of respondents said they'd like to live in the outer suburbs, while 30% indicated a preference for the inner suburbs of their city. Just 8% want to live in the city center, while 27% dream of living out in the sticks in rural areas.

These preferences are surprising considering that many experts have previously asserted that Americans are increasingly choosing an urban living style. In truth, what most people are looking for is access to the right kinds of amenities ' which they believe are more accessible out of town ' such as nearby parks, walking and/or jogging trails, outdoor swimming pools and such. Indeed, many respondents said they would in fact consider living in the city center if these amenities were available.

American Cities: Safe or Unsafe, and Are We More Than a List?

The Congressional Quarterly (CQ) has announced the safest and most dangerous cities in America in which to live. According to the latest FBI figures from their Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) 2011 data, released Fall 2012. According to the data (PDF) El Paso, Texas is the safest big town, and Detroit tops the list of 'least' safe places to live. But there's more to this story than a simple list of good and bad cities. These are, after all, American cities. Please read until the end.

Safe Cities

The Texas Tribune highlights El Paso's third straight win atop the list of safest cities. Surprising, or not, the border town has the best numbers across many categories. While suggestions that the illegal immigration role of the government there have put a damper on overall crime, the number still bear scrutiny. U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-El Paso, offered this comment via the Tribune:

'The fact is, the border has never been more secure ' whether measured in the $18 billion spent annually on border security, the 22,000 boots on the ground, the record number of criminal deportations in the past four years, or the record-low immigrant apprehensions this past year. I agree with the Secretary and President Obama that we cannot allow comprehensive immigration reform to be derailed by those that refuse to see the reality of the border.'

Coming in just behind El Paso in the 'safest category' are; San Diego, CA; New York, NY; Austin, TX; and  San Jose, CA.

Not So Safe Cities

At times like these there's no room for diplomacy. Detroit, in many ways, lives up to Forbes' title of 2013's Most Miserable American Cities. Topping the FBI's list of least peaceful places is one thing, but the median home price tanking to below $40,000 pretty much labels the Motor City a soon to be ghost town. Mass migrations away from Detroit amplify Mayor Dave Bing's outcry with regard to his town's going absolutely bankrupt and being taken over by Michigan altogether:

'We are hindered by several factors, including the City Charter, labor agreements, litigation, governmental structure, and a scarcity of financial and human resources. Further exploration of ways to mitigate these barriers for more timely implementation of my initiatives should be examined.'

Bing, an NBA legend and perennial Detroit Pistons winner, told the Detroit Free Press like it is there in Motown. However honest Bing is, and regardless of the Michigan State House's view, one of America's greatest towns is a living horror. Violent crime there is perpetrated on one in every 100 people basically. What's happening to Detroit is horrendous, and so many there are trying so hard to avoid what looks like the inevitable. On a personal level, watching the video reports about Detroit are reminiscent of the Fall of the Roman Empire. Astonishing how American industry has sunken.

What makes you a Detroiter? ' Courtesy Mayor Bing's Facebook

Listed right behind Detroit in terms of danger to citizens were; Baltimore, MD ; Memphis, TN; Philadelphia, PA; and the capital in Washington, DC.

Wait A Minute! This is America!

Of course the CQ and FBI websites and documents caution against making broad sweeping assertions over these figures. And there is some controversy going on in the bi-partisan halls of power where evaluating the metrics are concerned, but ending up on either list certainly has advantages and disadvantages. For one, being mentioned in the positive is simply a good thing, while being named as any sort of 'miserable place' cannot be viewed as good. Just how real is the reality of safe or unsafe cities? Like any other news we are dependent on official reports too. Given the number of so called 'boots on the ground' in El Paso and other border cities, there's room for question.

Finally, as a reporter of news finding still more evidence of a shattered American industrial age, it behooves anyone reading this to study Detroit in particular. Mayor Dave Bing has essentially taken on the impossible there. Without massive help on the national and local levels, an era in American history is not the only thing passing before our eyes. Competition from overseas, an abandonment of national goals, many political and philosophical issues have sent America down a path that is unparalleled in human history actually. Detroit is, in a nutshell, symbolic of America's greater decline. Let us know your thoughts.

Home Affordability on the Rise throughout the USA

Home affordability in the US is on an upward trend, as 74.9% of homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2012 were deemed affordable to families with a US median income of $65,000, up from the 74.1 percentage of the previous quarter. These are the findings of the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI). The latest HOI, which measures the percentage of homes sold in a given area affordable to families earning the area's median income, shows that affordability is improving in  259 out of 361 metropolitan areas.

'The most recent housing affordability data should be encouraging to many prospective home buyers, because it shows that homeownership remains within reach of median-income consumers even as most local markets appear to be on a recovery path,' says NAHB Chairman Rick Judson.

'The median price of all new and existing homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $188,000, essentially unchanged from the previous quarter's $189,000 that marked a nearly three-year high,' says NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. 'Affordability remains historically high thanks to favorable mortgage rates, even as national home price indexes show some rise in values.'

The most affordable major housing market of the US for 2012 was Ogden-Clearfield, Utah, holding this high ranking for the second consecutive year with 93.7% of families affording a home with the area's median income of $71,500. At the other end of the top, San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, California is the least affordable market (position previously held by New York-White Plains-Wayne, N.Y.-N.J). In San Francisco, only 28.4% of all homes sold in Q4 were affordable to households earning the median income of $103,000.

According to FloridaRealtors, the state of Florida showed different affordability percentages depending on the various areas' individual index. Lakeland-Winter Haven had a 93% affordability ' the highest in the Sunshine State with nine out of 10 residents being able to afford a home, while Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall scored the lowest percentage, with 66%. Rounding up Florida's top 10 most affordable areas were Ocala ' 90.6%, Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach ' 88.3%, Gainesville ' 86.8%, Punta Gorda ' 86.8%, Panama City-Lynn Haven-Panama City Beach ' 85.6%, Tallahassee ' 85.6%, Jacksonville ' 85.2%, Port St. Lucie ' 84.9% and Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Bren ' 84.1%.

Abu Dhabi Group Bails on Pakistan Investment

According to a report this morning from Reuters, the Abu Dhabi royal intent on investing in Pakistan has reversed his course in a statement to the news service. The $45 billion Sheikh Nahayan bin Mubarak al-Nahayan projected investing in the country, is now a lost deal if the reports are correct.

The Sun & Sky Towers, Abu Dhabi's tallest construction. Image courtesy of MarceloDubai

Less than two weeks after the principals penned a deal that would breathe life into Pakistan's economy has now been scrapped by Abu Dhabi Group, the investment firm Sheikh Nahayan chairs. Reuters was not given any reason for the reversal of fortunes, but what was supposed to be the biggest ever outside investment in Pakistan is apparently a 'no-go'.

In the original story Abu Dhabi Contracting reportedly signed a non-binding preliminary agreement to cooperate with Bahria Town Pakistan. Terms of the deal were not specific, but it was originally reported the construction in Pakistan would include the world's tallest building. No further world on Sheikh Nahayan's statements on the failed deal are forthcoming, but the Sheikh has a portfolio includes investments in Africa, Morocco and in the agribusiness worldwide.

Lenders Discriminating Against Pregnant Women?

Stipulations within the Fair Housing Act supposedly prevent mortgage lenders from denying or delaying loan applications for women on maternity leave, but a new report suggests that many lenders are actually ignoring these rules. According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, it's currently investigating a slew of complaints from pregnant women that say they have been discriminated against.

 

© dacasdo ' Fotolia.com

The Fair Housing Act states that lenders are not able to give 'maternity leave' as a reason for denying finance to qualified borrowers, yet the New York Times says that this has happened on 'dozens' of occasions in the past three years.

John Trasvina, assistant secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at HUD, explains:

'Where lenders run up against the law is where they single out pregnant women for a difference in treatment based upon an assumption that either they're not being paid on leave, they don't have a job to go back to, or that they are unwilling to go back.'

According to the New York Times, the HUD's investigation stems from a previous article in the paper, which revealed that new parents were coming under much closer scrutiny from lenders as they tightened up their financing rules.

The investigation has resulted in some banks agreeing to settlements rather than fight the accusations against them. In one case, PNC paid out $15,000 to a couple after a Navy veteran was wrongly told that she wouldn't be entitled to a Veterans Affairs loan until she returned from maternity leave. PNC continues to deny it discriminated against the couple, yet coughed up anyway rather than take the case to court.

MomRising, a parent's advocacy group, recently asked its members to report any discrimination they had faced from lenders. According to them, more than 200 women came forward to complain of discrimination from lenders.

Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director of MomRising, told the New York Times that lenders had asked illegal questions such as 'when are you going to have a baby?' on numerous occasions, and in some cases had even blocked people's mortgage applications due to pregnancy.

The HUD is now urging any woman that thinks she's been discriminated against them to contact Mr. Trasvina on (800) 669-9777.

Housing & Other Shortages of North Dakota's Bakken Oil Boom

A terminology some thought was dead and gone in the United States, 'oil boom' just faded into the sunset or the American psyche. The Bakken Oil Field in North Dakota has changed all that though. The largest oil discovery since the 60's, Bakken oil production has transformed far frozen North Dakota into a veritable 'boom' region. With this boom economy comes many hurdles and many responsibilities too.

With oil production at Bakken having skyrocketed from a few thousand barrels a day, to just under three quarter of a million, the Bakken boom has had both positive and negative effects. One huge problem, and a bit of a boom in itself, is the property  shortage caused by the influx or business.  is the largest oil discovery on American soil in the last 40 years. A surplus of jobs is not something American's are used to hearing of late either, but the 'gold rush' situation in North Dakota has caused a vacuum. As a workforce and industry arrays all around the Bakken boom, finding places to stay or even open businesses has become difficult.

Now Bakken Housing Group is addressing the oil industry employee housing situation. News of their construction of housing facilities for workers and families. But the news of these moves is not all good news. If you can imagine this part of America as not much changed from your visual memory of The Great Plains from movies, the image above from Ceres shows how illuminated Bakken is from space because of 'flaring'. A place literally in the middle of nowhere is as bright as most US cities. The Bakken fields actually produce more natural gas than can be consumed or distributed  The burn-off of this gas causes major problems with air quality, not to mention being massive waste.

Some say the Bakken 'gold rush' will end just like the San Francisco rush of 1849 did, with the majority of miners and businesses going bust. Add to this the environmental and other impacts that may spell disaster in the end, and North Dakota may have been better off without the shale field. National Geographic covers the massive transformation the 'boom' is having on the state. No one in this part of the country envisioned a continuous stream of tanker trucks in and out of the area (no pipeline), nor the prefabricated worker dorms, or their next door neighbor's yard with drilling going on in it, or, or, or.

Some predict the boom will last 100 years, others say a bust will come sooner. The main problem with North Dakota's treasure trove of late is environmental in nature though. Things there are simply moving too fast for foresight to reign in the mistakes. The chart above shows production wise, just how fast things are moving,

While the Bakken boom is driving a fairly massive economic development, it's the 'smartness' of the growth that is of major concern. And Hydraulic fracturing, the method used to extract the oil from the shale beneath North Dakota, is as controversial a methodology as ever. The stain on the ecology of this part of North Dakota will likely be immense and maybe unrecoverable. Contamination of groundwater, air pollution, and other considerations seem to have been scarcely noticed, with the need for economic relief so dire.

Finally, what most people fail to realize is the drilling phase of this type of exploration is labor intensive. However, once the Bakken Field goes into a so called 'production phase' (PDF), labor demands will drop by 90%. This is the main reason most experts predict a 'bust' for at least employment and added stimulus to the local economy. The problem arises in the hasty buildup of housing and infrastructure now, atop the needs of the communities there in the mid term, 10 to 15 years down the road. 'Boom' economies are oh so wasteful and inefficient.

Still, the opportunities and the relative new breath of enthusiasm this Bakken Oil Field has created for many Americans cannot be understated here. The video below from the Bakken Dispatch reflects a great deal on this, and on the way Americans have always pondered their dreams. Hazards exists, and have always existed in the realm of exploration of any kind. The best anyone of us can expect is that due diligence and long term thinking be put into the mix. And lastly, abuses like those reported by the Bakken Watch organization cannot be overlooked or taken too lightly.

UK Remortgaging Took Plunge in 2012, Research Shows

In 2012, UK remortgaging activity dropped steeply compared to the levels seen at the start of 2008, showed the latest research on the topic published by Lloyds TSB. Remortgages represented 51% of total mortgage lending between January 2008 and October 2008 and fell last year to only 24%. While lower than 2008 levels, remortgages accounted for a steady 39% from November 2008 to July 2011.

Lloyd's most recent analysis shows standard variable rates (SVRs) may no longer be the best option for borrowers, as since late 2008, falling SVRs offered fewer incentives for borrowers to remortgage, as the gab between them and fixed rate mortgages became less significant. As fixed rates have recently been on a downward trend, this might stimulate a new interest in remortgaging as homeowners might find lower rates.

Overall, the number of remortgages was 12% lower last year than in 2011, but a slight improvement was recorded in the third and fourth quarter. Remortgaging activity has been generally stimulated by borrowers who wanted replace fixed home loans at the end of their term to avoid SVRs, as these were typically more expensive and yielded uncertainty in what monthly payments were concerned. Since August 2011, SVRs have been higher than fixed rates, remortgaging activity has kept its low pace. Yet fixed rates have been decreasing since August 2012, which might stimulate remortgaging in 2013.

'With SVRs at historically low levels, many home owners have actually found their mortgage payments have reduced at the end of their term and the incentive to remortgage has been reduced,' said Stephen Noakes, mortgage director at Lloyds TSB. 'However, as we start to see fixed rates dropping, prudent borrowers taking stock of their home loans could benefit from their monthly payments falling further.'

How to Sell Your Home Quickly

No homeowner wants to have his or her house languish on the market for months. When it comes time to sell it, you want to make a deal as quickly as possibly to get on with your life. You can sell your home quickly without losing your shirt. Read on and we will look at several steps you can take to replace the 'for sale' sign with a 'sold' sign.

Pricing

Declining home values across the nation have stabilized, at least in most markets. In some areas of the country prices are on the rebound, but it may take many years before we see prices rise to pre-recession levels.

Homeowners must know what their homes are worth and price it accordingly. In some markets that may mean being flexible, especially if home prices are trending downward. You can determine your home's price by reviewing sales comparables, deducing your price from that data. Consider coming up with a price and discounting it by two or three percent to make it more marketable from the outset.

Impressions

Never underestimate the importance of first impressions. That is exactly what people will do when they drive up in front of your home. That curb appeal will be recognized within mere seconds.

You can give your home a positive first impression by ensuring that it looks spotless and clean from the street. The grass should be cut, bushes trimmed, walkways swept, leaves removed and flowers on display. The paint and roof should be in good condition, your windows cleaned and the front door and step must be in welcoming condition.

Next, concentrate on the inside of your home. Here, you will want to remove clutter including cleaning off kitchen counters, removing excess furniture from some rooms and pulling extra pictures off of the wall. You will want to give your entire home a good scrub down too. Paint ceilings and walls if needed and match room colors with the drapes to make small rooms appear larger. Essentially, you are staging your home for sale, attempting to make a good second impression that follows on the heels of a favorable curb appeal.

Agent

Unless you are planning to do a 'for sale by owner' you will need to find a real estate agent to sell your home. This professional should come highly recommended with the sales and experience to back it up.

If you are unsure of whom to use, ask friends, family members and neighbors about their experiences. You can also check online and enter the terms 'top real estate agents' followed by your city's name. Know that the web results can be gamed, but visit several websites to see what these agents have to say about themselves. Make a list of three or four agents and call each one to learn what they can do for you.

Attorney

Another professional that will play an important role in the home selling process is your attorney. Likely, you will not call upon her until you have a bid. It is at this point where you want your attorney to review the home sell agreement to protect your interests. Do not worry here: the buyer will also retain the services of an attorney to protect his own interests.

An attorney experienced with handling real estate sales will carefully review your contract and make changes. She can also identify potential problems and expedite the closing process. When it comes to selling your home fast, an excellent attorney will play a critical role here.

Bids

If you want to solicit multiple bids for your home, you can do so by lopping even a greater percentage from your homes price. Some experts suggest that you take off at least 10 to 15 percent to attract more buyers and therefore more bids. A bidding war could break out, enabling you to get more for your home. Serious buyers will also be ready to make a deal, enabling you to close on your home fast just as you set out to do.

About the author: Sam Dressler is a UK based property expert. Visit Hamptons London for more information.

Rick Otton Returns To UK For Property Mastermind Conference This April

How to Sell Your Home Quickly

February 24, 2013 By Guest Author

Praxair to Finalize Investment in NuCO2 Acquisition in Q1 of 2013

Praxair has recently announced it had agreed to buy NuCO2, one of the top providers of beverage carbonation solutions to the restaurant and hospitality industries in the US.  To make this acquisition, Praxair paid $1.1 billion in cash to the company's owners, private equity firm Aurora Capital Group. NuCO2 employs a staff of 900 who cater its customers in over 162,000 locations. As the acquisition won't have a major impact on Praxair share performance, the company's investment recommendations by analysts have been unchanged.

NuCO2 offers micro-bulk beverage carbonation solutions to quick service restaurants and convenience stores that provide fountain beverages to their customers. Through this investment, Praxair aims to expand its product offering for establishments selling draught and craft beers, giving them the possibility to include nitrogen generations and blending control systems.

'NuCO2 offers a compelling value proposition for beverage carbonation. We plan to continue to grow. the business in the United States, enhance distribution efficiency utilizing Praxair's competencies in logistics, and extend NuCO2's offerings to customers in other regions of the world,' said Executive vice president Eduardo Menezes (pictured). 

Praxair seems to have made a smart investment as NuCO2 will generate sales of $250 million in 2013 and an annual EBITDA of $115 million. Yet the deal will be neutral or have a minor positive effect on Praxair's earnings per share for 2013. It will be completed in Q1 of this year after going through the process of being approved by regulatorsThe deal is expected to be neutral or slightly accretive to Praxair's earnings per share in 2013, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2013 and is subject to regulatory approval and normal closing conditions.

At the end of 2012, Praxair, whose market value is of $32.7 billion, announced $152 million in cash and equivalents and operting a short and long term debt of $7.36 billion. The company generated $11.2 billion in revenue and net earnings of $1.69 billion, which translated into #5.61 per diluted share. 2013 full year revenues are forecast to reach $12 billion and per share earnings of $5.85-6.10, all up from the 2012 values. The market currently values Praxair at $32.7 billion. This values the firm at 2.7 times 2013's annual revenues and 18-19 times annual earnings. Praxair pays a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share for an annual dividend yield of 2.2%.

Industry Snapshot: Northern Virginia Outlook, February 2013

Seeing the national trends all day long does little to effect a view of the local real estate market picture for those interested. By looking at regional metrics via the research of agencies such as Long & Foster however, mini-trends and more relevant pluses and minuses can be understood. This weeks Industry Snapshot focuses on Northern Virginia.

The Washington Post's NoVa guru Tom Jackman reported last month Northern Virginia real estate not only being 'back', but a relative 'boom' occurring there where the supply of $600k homes is concerned. Aside his focus on that price niche, other positives are clear for the region. Jaunuary, as compared to the previous year, shows clear signs of some counties around Washington doing a lot better sales wise. This Long & Foster Market Minute Market Minute® report tells on the trend best.

NoVa Townhome find near buildup area

Accordingly, hot spots include; the city of Alexandria, and the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loundoun (see spotlight below), and Prince William saw increased sales y-on-y. With these increased sales numbers, of course inventories began to dwindle as well. Ergo Jackman's headline of 'NoVa real estate back to booming? $600K houses in short supply, condos in high demand', this is the sort of language investors want to hear, in case you wondered at Jackman's readership.

Taking a closer look at NoVa, and for those who are not familiar, The Long & Foster Market Minute® reports come from minute data on residential transactions that are geo-centric, and include universal sales, not just Long & Fosters. Looking at the chart below from their Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area ' January 2013 (PDF), Jackman's contention can more easily be seen.

While the general reduction of inventory trend can easily be seen here, the fact $450k to $650k and above inventory simply does not exist, this is a bit more difficult to pick out in my screenshot. Furthermore, the Long & Foster data clearly shows that most of the NoVa inventory is in fact within the lowest price ranges, somewhere beneath $150k.

Now (trend spotlight), to abbreviate our own report, all any investor would seem to require here might be news like Shenandoah University in Loundoun County expanding their graduate programs, after all expanded classrooms require expanded professor and/or student housing. Add to this further news that Loundoun County may get a campus of Northern Virginia Community College, and the housing picture there takes on new meaning. In fact there is no shortage of news on the trend in NoVa continuing, or even getting more acute where residential inventories are concerned.

Finally, when looking at these regional trends it seems the really tuned in observer might look at this trend from a more winning perspective. Not only are there outside forces like adjacent regional sales pressures etc. but clear opportunities may even present themselves here on a very practical level. What I mean is, using more Long & Foster detail we can look at properties and trends in and around the aforementioned Shenandoah University expansion, take nearby Ashburn Homes, for an instance. With median prices at the lower end of our 'inventory scale' ($335,000), and active inventory having gone up last month, for me this says 'potential win' if I am looking to buy and sell. One can even hammer out just how much to offer for a property using Long & Foster's 'sales vs. asking' price metrics (below).

In concluding, searching the listings in and around this part of NoVa we find a Long & Foster property a mile from our target at Shenandoah University, a large area townhouse at Ashburn Village priced at $275,000 (image top). Extrapolating our data it seems like a offer of one percent less than the median price is in order. With some hammering down on the deal here, and some patience, somehow coming out ahead in such a market would be a foregone conclusion. There's margin to be made in them Virginia hills.

Let us know your thoughts.

 

Photo credit: Investor ' courtesy © Sergey Nivens ' Fotolia.com

CBRE Names Chris Brett Head of UK International Investment

Yesterday, CBRE appointed former LaSalle Investment Management exec Chris Brett as Head of International Investment for its UK business. Brett will head a new arm of CBRE in advising international investors wanting access to commercial real estate opportunities withing the wider UK market.

The former Head of European Strategic Partnerships at LaSalle Investment Management Brett is an expert in institutional investing as well as global client services. Also according to the news, one big reason for CBRE creating this new role was the large proportion of commercial investment across the EU in 2012, as well as the percentage of Asian and other offshore investors engaging the London market. Concerning Brett's new position, Simon Blake, Head of Capital Markets, UK, CBRE had this to offer:

'While global real estate investors continue to acknowledge London as one of the most liquid, stable and prestigious markets, they are now also turning to opportunities across the UK and in other key European markets. This interest is being driven by improving confidence in real estate as well as the emergence of new investors with a wider range of return requirements. Chris' arrival at our firm will allow us to further strengthen our relationships with these investors and enhance our ability to provide all our clients with the highest levels of service and advice in the market.'

For those unfamiliar, CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG) is a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Los Angeles. The world's largest commercial real estate investment firm, the company employs some 37,000 plus professionals in 300 offices worldwide.

For more information about this news, or about CBRE, please visit the links above, or contact Jonathan Tutton ' UK Communications Manager, CBRE at:  +44 (0) 2071823337

Leveraging Behemoths by AdRoll: What's Your Best Conversion Fantasy?

AdRoll has just come out with comparative research that shows Facebook Exchange (FBX) as the biggest deal in online advertising for 2012. Experts and world leaders in the field of retargeted advertising, AdRoll has shown explosive growth similar to that of FBX. Perhaps it takes a phenomenon to know a phenomenon?

Praise for AdRoll aside, FBX mimics an 'on demand' ad channel when all is said and done. The infographic from AdRoll below, illustrates this and other variables. Most importantly, as a major FBX player AdRoll's findings on retargeting interwoven with FBX, end in a hyper conversion of sorts ' maximized ROI in the end. Note: for those unfamiliar with how retargeted advertising works, AdRoll defines here.

Courtesy AdRoll blog ' click to visit

Latvia Real Estate Growth Slows To a Crawl

A recent report on Latvia real estate reveals a slight upward momentum for a market characterized by double digit growth since 2010. If further evidence of Europe's stagnation is needed, Latvia property markets tell the tale sufficiently. The average price of a Riga apartment climbed only about 2 percent to just under '990 euro per square meter according to the Ober Haus Poland and Baltic price index.

Adjusted for inflation, just this figure represents the lowest growth in prices since 2010, and other reports show the most recent numbers being even worse, unchanged compared with relatively massive growth before the slowdown took place because of the 2007 recession. This chart (PDF) from Ober Haus shows clearly the Riga apartment market peaking at around 2,323 per square meter in 2007, with today's figures roughly equaling prices from way back in 2004.

Basically confirming this data only takes one search at WorldEstate.com for Latvia. We found instantly a 3-room apartment in Pardaugava just minutes away from the city center priced at ' 985 euro sq/m. As for the weight of this news, Baltic Business News just reported earlier this week of banks needing to offload Latvia properties.  The pileup of bad loans having added to the overall economic situation in Europe, Latvia is actually one of the hardest hit where 'relative' constricting of capital is concerned. Having created  so called 'Special Purpose Entities' (SPEs) to try and assume the potential of failed real estate projects in the country, banks now see these as insolvent. So, the move to fire-sale these properties emerges.

While this is bad news where the overall situation, even the localized one goes, the opportunity for those with far reaching strategies seems obvious. We will keep you appraised of the situation for the near future.

100 Top Google+ Real Estate Pages and Profiles to Add to Your Circles

Google+ is, according to data available, the second most important social media network. We have selected for you 100 Google+ real estate pages, profiles and communities to add to your circles. You'll find listed below associations, some magazines, real estate agencies, , home design inspiration pages and relevant communities for real estate professionals. It is not a list based solely on the number of +1's, as it is not a top 100 Google+ pages and accounts. It is a selection of updated pages and profiles and communities with a lot of interaction and posts.

 

1. Better Homes and Gardens ' Better Homes and Gardens serves and connects women who are passionate about their homes and the lives they create there. (+121k)
2. The Home Depot ' More Saving. More Doing. In 1979 The Home Depot opened our first DIY home improvement store in Atlanta, Georgia. Back then our warehouse was revolutionary ' someone tackling a bathroom remodeling project could find everything they need in one place! (+70k)
3. Zillow ' is a real estate marketplace where homeowners, buyers, sellers, renters, real estate agents and mortgage professionals find and share vital information about homes and mortgages. (+10k)
4. Home Designing ' We are an independent design blog covering architecture, interior design and accessories. At Home-Designing, we document inspiration. Our aim is to bring to our readers a steady set of resources that would help them visualize, create and maintain beautiful homes. (+6.4k)
5. Realtor.com ' Realtor.com is the most accurate national source for real estate listings. Our Google+ page is here to inspire you to love where you live. (+5.4k)
6. RealEstate.com ' Whether you're an agent looking for the latest news in real estate, a buyer looking for the best tips, or anyone else involved in the real estate industry, we're here to provide the best information for you. (+4k)
7. National Association of Home Builders ' NAHB is a trade association that helps promote policies that make housing a national priority. Since 1942, NAHB has been serving its members, the housing industry, and the public at large. (+3.3k)
8. HomeAdvisor ' HomeAdvisor, the nation's #1 free resource for pre-screened home improvement professionals. We've helped over 25 million homeowners connect to our network of over 80,000 home improvement professionals in 500 categories. (+2.9k)
9. Real Estate Foreclosures ' Foreclosure property listings for realtors, investors, home buyers and realty firms. (+2.1K)
10. Arthur Rutenberg Homes ' Elegance, Craftsmanship, & Lasting Value in Every Home We Build. We invite you to discover the elegance, craftsmanship and lasting value expressed in every home we build'whether it's one of our many award-winning model homes'or your home.
11. Real Estate School Online ' National provider of online real estate licensing and continuing education. http://realestateschoolonline.com (+1.8k)
12. Foreclosure Real Estate ' Foreclosed homes for sale, including foreclosures, preforeclosure leads, short sales, sheriff's sales, real estate auctions. (+1.7k)
13. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC ' Welcome to Coldwell Banker®, a real estate brand founded in 1906 on a commitment to professionalism and customer service which remains the cornerstone of our business philosophy today. We are the nation's oldest real estate company and our experience has helped make the dream of homeownership a reality for millions of families (+1.6k)
14. National Association of REALTORS® ' The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, 'The Voice for Real Estate,' is America's largest trade association, representing 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries (+1.5k)
15. Real Estate With Deborah ' Southwest FL ' Premiere Realty Professionals for Southwest Florida. I am the Marketing Director for a Full-Service Boutique Brokerage in Fort Myers Florida ~ CG REZ, LLC. (+1.4k)
16. Luxury Home Magazine Featured Properties ' Leader in marketing Luxury Real Estate & Lifestyles with incredible photography in an oversized Coffee Table Magazine format. (+1.4k)
17. Hughes Real Estate Group ' daho's Leading Real Estate Team | 300 Homes Sold in 2012 (+1.3k)
18. Hawaiian Americana Realty Inc ' Hawaiian Americana Realty aims to conduct business with professionalism, attention and honesty.  We provide our clients with unsurpassed service & results through attention to their needs and innovative marketing. (1k circled this)
19. Memphis Real Estate ' Joe Spake ' Joe Spake is a Memphis, Tennessee Real Estate Broker and consultant, affiliated with InCity Realty, representing buyers and sellers of fine homes in Midtown, Downtown, and East Memphis. (+1k)
20. Elias Nathaniel ' Real estate investor and promoter. worked as a commercial real estate agent for 22 years with Royal Lepage Commercial, where I built a successful career, met many interesting clients and put together some extraordinary deals.
21. Phill Grove ' Phill Grove has been called the most successful post bubble real estate investor in the country. Since 2004, Phill Grove has been a part of over 1,200 successful real estate transactions.
22. Albie Vegas Realtor ' Keller Williams ' I sell Fun in Las Vegas!!! Fun being Housing! (909 circled him)
23. Amedore Homes ' NY Capital Region home builder, dedicated to helping families realize their dream of home ownership.
24. Real Estate One ' Michigan's largest real estate company. Buying or selling a home is a complex process. You need someone to represent you who knows the market, the area and the people.
25. Christopher Arienti ' Keller Williams Realty; Realtor
26. Illinois Homes ' Illinois Homes provides complete real estate services for the entire state of Illinois. Search houses, condominiums, rentals and more for sale in Boone, Chicago North, Chicago South, Chicago Suburbs, De Kalb, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, La Salle, Lake, McHenry, and everywhere else! Get in touch with us today about our quality listings! (+771)
27. JSC Rent To Own Homes ' Free and open real estate directory. Find a buyer or renter. Find a home ' lease or buy. (+737)
28. Sotheby's International Realty ' Artfully uniting extraordinary properties with extraordinary lives since 1976. (+682)
29. Let me be inspired ' interior design, interior decorating, home interior design, interior decorating ideas, interior design trends, interior architecture, inredning, interior design blog. This blog is where I write about Interior Design and Architecture. (+667)
30. Texas Real Estate ' TexasRealEstate.com is a public Web site provided by the Texas Association of REALTORS®. You can search statewide for a new home, find a Texas REALTOR®, and get news and tips related to buying, selling, and investing in real estate in Texas. (+656)
31. Realty Executives Phoenix ' Realty Executives Phoenix is one of the largest real estate brokerages in the United States with eleven branch offices and dozens of satellite offices throughout the State of Arizona. (+656)
32. Homes.com ' Homes.com, a division of Dominion Enterprises, is an internet listing site that houses homes for sale and homes for rent. More than 6 million home buyers visit Homes.com each month to search more than 4 million homes for sale, browse all types of rentals, locate real estate agents in their area and find useful home buying tips. (+619)
33. Bill Gassett ' Top producing Realtor building lasting relationships through Real Estate. Top RE/MAX Realtor with 25 years experience selling Real Estate in all of Metrowest Massachusetts and surrounding areas.
34. Forte Properties ' Forte Properties was founded on a commitment to professionalism and customer service that continues to be the core of our business philosophy today.
35. Real Estate ' Connecting with real estate around the world! (+584)
36. RealtyPin ' Browse our over 1 million listings, sell your home for free, read great articles and get advice on all things real estate.
37. Cervera Real Estate ' We are the developer's choice ' 40,000 units sold, 10 current exclusive development projects, 20 offices & 275 agents throughout South Florida. (+539)
38. Linda Mayer ' Linda Mayer, A Realtor You Can Trust!
39. Online Agents ' Real Estate Marketing Ideas for SEO, Video, Social Media. Online Agents is Page for Real Estate Professionals. This is a place where online real estate marketing ideas, tips and tricks will be shared. (+471)
40. NC Mortgage Experts ' NC Mortgage Information & Today's Best Interest Rates! (+468)
41. Weichert, Realtors ' Weichert, Realtors ' a full service real estate company. (+431)
42. Dave Keys ' Real Estate SEO Expert and Search Engine Marketing Consultant. Real estate SEO is my focus in helping realtors and real estate agents leverage their business on the Web via search engine marketing and optimization techniques.
43. RE/MAX Executive Realty ' Top RE/MAX Realtor covering Real Estate in Hopkinton, Framingham, Holliston, Ashland, Milford, Westboro, Southboro, Medway, Grafton, Upton, Mendon, Franklin, & Northbridge. Top Real Estate agent. (+369)
44. FreeRateUpdate.com ' FreeRateUpdate.com has a network of more than one thousand banks and brokers. Get low mortgage rates  in less than 30 seconds!
45. Elegran Real Estate ' Manhattan Real Estate, NYC Apartments for Sale and Rental, Luxury Brokerage Firm (+270)
46. Paul Heim ' The New View Team is Dedicated to Your Success. Servicing the entire Boise Treasure Valley area; Your own personal 'Team' of professionals to assist you in all your Idaho Real Estate needs.

1. John Nugent ' Waterfront Properties and Club Communities ' Singer Island, Florida. Service Areas: Singer Island and North Palm Beach. Specialty: Condominiums
2. Kimberly Barton, REALTOR ' This is my REALTOR® professional profile. I serve clients in Maryland on both sides of the Bay Bridge'particularly Anne Arundel County and the immediate surrounding counties.

48. Mona Koussa ' Whether you're looking to buy San Ramon real estate, sell Dublin, Ca homes, looking for a Castro Valley local realtor or buy Pleasanton, Ca homes, I Can help. I'm a San Ramon Local Realtor at Prudential California Realty.
49. Jessi Hall ' Real estate writer for the Veterans United Network. I love writing and real estate, so my ideal job would combine the two. Enter perfection: I'm a real estate writer!
50. Kellan Stephens ' I work as a sales representative for a large real estate software company. I live in Denver and enjoy running, hiking, and living. Also, I am a huge Michigan Wolverines fan. Go Blue!
51. Christian Penner ' FEMBi Mortgage.
52. Christie's International Real Estate ' Christie's International Real Estate is an invitation-only Affiliate network composed of the world's most proven and qualified real estate specialists. (+834) [note: only listings]
53. Greater Boston Short Sales, LLC ' Massachusetts' Leading Short Sale Negotiator. Andrew Coppo of Greater Boston Short Sales is  Massachusetts' leading short sale negotiator. GBSS assists buyers, sellers, real estate agents and attorneys in getting their Massachusetts short sales closed. We have the knowledge and expertise to get your short sale to the closing table.
54. Rave ReViews Home Staging ' Providing selling solutions for all homes, regardless of age or occupancy status. Let our team of professionals create a home that sells in today's market.
55. Sharpe Properties ' Commercial Real Estate Company providing property management services; leasing retail, industrial warehouse, and office properties for rent in Miami Dade and Broward County
56. Palm Coast Florida Real Estate ' Palm Coast, Florida REALTORS with Prudential East Coast Real Estate. Your Palm Coast, Florida real estate resource for home and condo listings on the Palm Coast and Flagler County MLS.
57. Brett Mumaw | Semonin REALTORS® ' I am a full-time agent serving home buyers and sellers in Clark, Crawford, Floyd, Harrison, and Washington Counties in Southern Indiana. Call or Email me today!

59. Decoration Channel ' decoration ideas
60. SAR Home Staging & Redesign Training ' specializing in home stager training and continuing education classes & workshops.
61. Chris Clothier ' I am an active real estate investor who assists other investors in developing high quality, wealth building portfolios of investment properties in Memphis, TN.  By offering a totally turn-key solution for every investor, our company Memphis Invest has begun to help the average investor build his way toward the dream of real estate ownership.
62. Chris Birk ' I'm a former journalist and director of content development for Veterans United Home Loans, the nation's largest dedicated VA lender. I write about mortgages, real estate and military homebuying for a host of publications and serve as executive editor of Veterans United Network. I'm also the author of 'The Book on VA Loans: An Essential Guide to Maximizing Your Home Loan Benefits.'
63. Angelo Davis REALTOR® RE/MAX North-San Antonio ' Search San Antonio homes for sale by price range, neighborhoods, zip codes or features. You can specify what you are looking for in as many or few details as you like, and see those homes in real time. Of course if you have any questions about San Antonio real estate or would like some help along the way, I'm right here for you.
64. PMZ Real Estate ' For the past 40 years, PMZ Real Estate has been dedicated to selling homes, condos, ranches and other real estate properties in California's Central Valley, Foothills and East Bay. PMZ has over 600 real estate agents in Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Tuolumne and Alameda County to serve you.
65. Jay Frazier : Rural Property Pro ' Serving these SW Wisconsin counties: Richland, Crawford, Vernon, Sauk, Iowa and Grant. Jay is a rural property broker experienced in farms, recreational/hunting land, homes on acreage, and investment properties.
66. Arnold Properties ' We offer exclusive services for buying and selling residential and commercial properties in the Greater Louisville area. We have raised the bar by providing elite client services, marketing expertise, and professional vendors to accommodate any client needs.
67. Kevin Hughes ' Idaho's Top Real Estate Team | 300+ Homes Sold 2012
68. Reggie Nicolay ' I'm the VP of Marketing and Social Media for Realtors Property Resource, and responsible for providing expertise and direction related to promotion & brand monitoring, advertising, messaging and social media strategies.
69. Frank Iglesias ' Atlanta Real Estate Investor
70. WebsiteBox ' We help real estate agents get more clients by sharing good content and offering a $99 (no monthly fees) Website that is mobile friendly.
71. Sellstate Regency Realty ' A full service residential real estate office catering to our Realtors and Clients we serve locally in Orange County.
72. Karen Rice ' Lovin' Livin' In Northeast PA. When I'm not at the office or with clients selling Lake Wallenpaupack real estate, I'm probably: running around with the kids, listening to hubby build something or write a song, on the laptop working (or playing) on the Internet, or outside with my energetic and nutty Black Lab and my camera, taking pictures of the beautiful landscape around me.
73. Adrienne Hollis ' Office administrator for RE/MAX Executive Realty in Hopkinton Massachusetts. I enjoy all that goes on in the world of Real Estate.
74. Toni Weidman ' My husband, Craig, and I have lived in Florida for 29 years and have been selling real estate for 21 years. We sell homes, condos, waterfront homes, and golf course homes. I'm originally from England.
75. Jeffery L. Carter ' Mortgage Consultant
76. Art Wilson, Realtor, Coldwell Banker ' Real estate
77. Andrew Brest ' If you are a home buyer/seller and you are looking for a real estate agents, try out Sundaybell.com and get matched with agents in your area. If you are a real estate agent and you are looking for an effective way to meet new clients'why not give it a try. Profiles are free!
78. Broderick Perkins ' Broderick Perkins, parlayed more than 30 years of old-school journalism into a digital real estate news service offering 'News that really hits home!' ' the Silicon Valley bootstrap, DeadlineNews Group.
79. James Schiller ' I am a licensed realtor, but my full time work is marketing and sales. Currently I am working for Transplant Coordinators of America as the sales and marketing director. I love to be challenged to do more and be more.
80. GottaShopIt.com ' Connecting consumers with local, trusted businesses and helping everyone get the best price with zero negotiation.
81. Roger Bintner SR ' Full time Real Estate agent, specializing in view and waterfront properties.  You will find me in Redondo, South King County.
82. Home decor ' for everything Home Decor. For any and all Home Decor enthusiasts! Share your photos, tips, inspiration for home decor. And yes, your blog links too! 5310 members
83. Real Estate Marketing ' realtors, investors, builders, lenders, SEO etc. 3088 members
84. Real Estate community ' This community is for Realtors, mortgage lenders and brokers, home stagers, home inspectors, real estate investors and other real estate professionals; over 2548 members
85. Geek your home ' A discussion group that welcomes passion for technology, science, aesthetics and how they fit where we live. 2311 members
86. Realtors ' Business group for professionals related to the real estate community to share news, insight, experience and ideas! 974 members
87. Home Staging ' Welcome to the Home Staging Community! This is a place to discuss all things related to Home Staging: trends, before & after photos, ideas, design, marketing, challenges and more. 725 members
88. Real Estate ' the Official Google+ Real Estate Group; Using Google+ to discuss anything related to Real Estate whether it be general in nature or more specific topics including financing & mortgages, home staging, short sales & foreclosures, social media & SEO, as well as tips to improve your business. 2088 members
89. Home design ' design, plan, architect, decor, DIY; Home Design Samples to inspire. 708 members
90. Home Interior design ' Welcome! Whether you're an aspiring or experienced interior designer/ decorator, we can't wait to see what ideas and questions you have. 593 members
91. Real estate ' all things about real estate. Add your favorite homes, if you are selling a home, real estate news, tips, advice, anything interesting!222 members
92. Home Decor ' You want your home to reflect your personality, speaking for you and about you, even when you're not there.; 218 members
93. Real Estate ' a National Group of Real Estate Professionals. A Google+ Real Estate forum to connect with Real Estate Enthusiasts from across the USA. 209 members
94. Jupiter Florida Real Estate ' Jupiter is a magnificent very friendly and welcoming town that is situated on the eastern coast of South Florida. 158 members
95. Real estate ' real estate news from around the United States and Canada; 130 members
96. Property management ' A place to discuss the many facets of Property Management with other people in the industry. 124 members
97. Home Inspectors ' Google+ community for all Home Inspectors and others who can contribute. Our chance for one to help many.109 members
98. Your home ' Appliances Online aren't just about providing you with sparkly new kitchen appliances, we like to look at the home as a whole! 96 members
99. Home Inspirations ' HomeAdvisor's Community was built to encourage the sharing and discussion on topics relating to the home. Use this forum to tell and show us what inspires you. 84 members
100. Commercial real estate ' Investment properties ' anything and everything related to commercial investment real estate; 38 members

As I mentioned already, this is not an exhaustive list of real estate agents and pages or communities for them. Do you know other pages, profiles or communities worth adding to this list?

The Dos and Don'ts of Advertising on Facebook Mobile

You've created a great Facebook app or game. Now what? A simple, great start is to utilize Facebook mobile. Keep in mind that with mobile ads, or mobile content of any kind for that matter, the screen size is limited. Your ad needs to be clean, with a concise message, and most of all, pretty. What's the point of an ad if it fails to catch the users' eye? So how can we get started?

Facebook mobile has its own web interface that makes interaction very simple. It is broken down into three steps. First, identify your target audience. You can pick your target platform, age, and gender. Facebook is even kind enough to estimate how many people could potentially see your app. The ad placement for Facebook mobile is front and center as soon as you open the app, masquerading as a standard post.

It's also important to keep in mind the time of year in which you are posting your ad. Post-holiday ads have more competition, but that's because they reach a wider audience. After Christmas, when all the good little boys and girls have gotten their wonderful new smartphones and tablets, the first thing they do is hit the app store to populate their new toy with the latest apps. The odds are that a sizable chunk of that mobile market is using Facebook. For the first time since the company's founding, Facebook released that the time spent on its mobile app was greater than its website.

The next big question is, 'How much is this going to cost me?' This obviously varies from business to business but let's take a look at the different ways to pay. The second step to advertise on Facebook Mobile is to define your budget per day. How much money do you want to spend each day is going to depend on your cost of acquisition for each user. In other words, how much money are you able to spend for each new user who clicks an ad? The way Facebook sells ad space is with a Cost per Click (CPC) price. They use a bidding system, since advertisers in the same market are competing with one another. Each bid is generally under a dollar per click, but those clicks can, and hopefully will, quickly add up so it's important your ad strategy covers this.

Who gets preference on ad space is based on ranking, usually determined by a simple formula: your bid multiplied by the quality score of your ad. Your quality score is 'how relevant your ads, keywords, and landing page are to a person seeing your ad.' So if you're Captain Moneybags, you can jack up your bid and have a terrible ad to get your ad higher priority, or you can go the less dumb way and make sure your ad's relevance and related content are quality.

The final step is the most difficult and dreaded moment of any business's life cycle: payment. Just enter your credentials and the hard part is over. Monitoring and tweaking your ad campaign will be necessary, but Facebook gives you analytic tools so that won't be difficult. Facebook ads reach millions, so to ignore advertisement on the mobile market can really affect your app's sales negatively.

About the author: Nick Parisi is a Marketing Associate at Fueled, a leading mobile app design and development company in NYC. Nick does key research and creates content for the company, as well as contributing expertise to outside media. 

 

What You Must Know About Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Where home inspections are concerned, safety is the biggest value to look for'

Introduction

Carbon Monoxide (CO) is a tasteless, odorless gas. Detection in a home environment is nearly impossible by humans. The symptoms of CO poisoning are similar to the flue. Nausea, vomiting, confusion, sore muscles, headache, dizziness, light headedness, loss of balance, etc. Often, people who experience these symptoms simply go to bed thinking they are coming down with a cold. Some never wake up.

Red Blood Cells pick up CO more easily than Oxygen. If there is enough CO in your blood it can prevent the oxygen from getting into the body causing tissue damage or death.  You basically suffocate from lack of Oxygen.

During the heavy snow storms of 2013 on the east coast of the U.S. and Canada, a young boy died in their family car in the short time it took his father to dig the car out of the snow. Snow drifts blocked the exhaust pipe and CO entered the cabin of the vehicle. That's how quickly CO can kill you.

The Limitations of Standard CO detectors

Standard CO detectors are not very sensitive by design. All readily available CO detectors must meet the requirements of Underwriters Laboratory Standard UL 2034. The problem is that the Standard requires CO detectors to only sound under the following exposure levels:

 

A UL 2034 listed CO detector is not allowed to sound for CO levels up to 64 PPM. The UL considers this a false alarm and a nuisance. The alarm will only sound for concentrations of 65 ' 145 PPM after 1 ' 4 hours. There is no protection against low-levels of CO.

The Danger of Long Term, Low-Level Exposure

All UL 2034 CO detectors state that they protect 'Young Healthy Adults'. Young children, the elderly, those with blood or cardiovascular disease and fetus' can be affected by long term exposure to low levels of Carbon Monoxide.

It is fairly common to have low levels of CO in a home. It may not exceed the PPM for a duration long enough to sound a standard alarm. This can result in daily exposure to CO which has been shown to cause Oxidative Stress in the group listed above. A study performed by UCLA finds that exposure to even tiny amounts of CO can lead to many disorders.[1]

To avoid Low-Level exposure you must purchase a high-end CO detector capable of detecting low levels of CO.

Installation Requirements in Existing Homes

Should CO detectors be on the ceiling? Can they be plugged in as many CO detectors are sold with a plug? Is CO lighter or heavier than air?

CO has nearly the same specific gravity as air. Air has a specific gravity of 1 and CO has a specific gravity of just over .965. So the CO detectors can be mounted just about anywhere with a few exceptions. They should not be mounted on the wall within 6 inches of the ceiling. This 'pocket' is considered dead air that does not circulate or mix well with the rest of the air in the house.

CO detectors should be centrally located outside of each separate sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of the bedrooms.

False Sense of Security

If you have young children, older parents, or someone with health issues living in your house, you should consider getting a 'Low-Level' CO detector.

Prevention

The best way to deal with Carbon Monoxide is to avoid it in the first place.

• Never use a Propane or Kerosene heater inside
• Never use a generator in the house or in a garage
• Have your gas burning appliance checked annually
• Check furnace and clothes dryer flue for signs of damage or obstruction. Birds and squirrels are known for building nests or hiding food in exhaust flues
• Never run your car in the garage with the door closed ' even for a few minutes
• Replace your CO detector every 5-7 years

If you start feeling sick you should first move to fresh air and see if you feel better. Don't just assume you are getting a cold or flu and go to bed. If you feel better outside, you may have been exposed to Carbon Monoxide in the home.

About the author: Philippe Heller is the president of The San Diego Real Estate Inspection Company. His multi-inspector firm performs thousands of inspections a year in San Diego.

To learn more, be sure to read the entire paper at www.sdinspections.com.

 

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[1] UCLA Study Uncovers How Chronic Exposure to Tiny Levels of Carbon Monoxide Damages Hearing in Young Ears

Photo credit: Home inspection ' courtesy © dashadima ' Fotolia.com

'Smelly' Homes May Put Off Buyers

It's not something that buyers or sellers tend to think about consciously, but real estate agents in the 'nose' understand that the smell of a home can have a big impact on a prospective buyer's decision to make an offer or pass up the chance on a particular property.

© udra11 ' Fotolia.com

However, new research suggests that while agents understand the importance of a home with a seductive aroma, some of the most common scents used to spruce up a home could actually be having the opposite effect to what's intended ' turning buyers off.

Eric Spangenberg, dean of the College of Business at Washington State University, told the Wall Street Journal that some of the most complex smells associated with home cooking ' like chocolate-chip cookies, potpourri and gourmet foods ' actually have the effect of dampening a buyer's enthusiasm, contrary to popular belief. Instead, agents would be better off using lighter aromas such as green tea, lemon, cedar, basil, vanilla and pine.

Spangenberg and his team of researchers came to this conclusion after studying 402 customers in a Swiss home décor store back in 2010. Over the 18 days that they watched the store, the researchers discovered that shoppers would spend an average of 31.8% more money when on days when the store used simple scents, as opposed to days when more complex aromas were used. Spangenberg says that the same principle can apply to listed homes, as the aromas are believed to have an effect on the cognitive function of part of the brain that's involved in decision making.

The problem with complex scents is that, even though they may be pleasing, these can actually distract buyers from making a decision on whether or not to make an offer on the home, because they spend time subconsciously trying to guess what the aroma might be. Instead of using such smells, Professor Spangenberg recommends that agents use less distracting scents such as lemon, pine or basil to facilitate a sale.

In addition, sellers should also make sure that whatever aroma they choose is congruent with their particular home. For example, if the home happens to be located up in the mountains somewhere then a cedar smell would be most appropriate, but if the home happens to be right beside the beach then it probably isn't a good idea, simply because it isn't natural.

Kitchen Renovation Trends For 2013

It is a new year and this means that there are some new trends in the world of home decorating. Trends in the kitchen have not changed too much from last year, but you can surely find a few things that need to be updated in your home. 2013 is focused on not only being modern, but also being comfortable and that is what is driving this year's trends.

Dark or White Cabinetry

If you are into blonde woods then you may want to reevaluate because white and dark woods are what are in right now. Light woods do not lend to the contemporary vibe that is trending right now. In addition to being white or dark wood, glass cabinet doors are also very in. Yes, this means that you need to keep your shelves pretty neat and that it is in your best interest to have matching plates, cups and cookware.

Big Islands

Islands are very in right now. If you have a kitchen that is just too small you can always get a butcher's block or a smaller cart on wheels and use these as pseudo islands. Islands help to direct the flow through an open floor plan. They also provide plenty of extra cooking space, so even with a small kitchen, you can greatly benefit from this trend.

Ceramic and Porcelain Countertops

You can get these to look like just about anything from wood, to stone to fabric. This will also save you a lot of cash when compared to granite and other expensive stones. These also are very heat resistant so you can set a pot or pan right on them when you are cooking and not have to worry about ruining them at all.

Fancy Extras

All of those things you see in magazines are in for all kitchens now. These include things like a ventless fireplace, unique backsplashes, vent hoods and espresso machines. These add style and they are also very functional and can provide you with a little dose of extra luxury. You can surely think of other extra luxuries that you have seen in those fancy magazine kitchens. Of course, you can choose only those that fit into your kitchen and personal style.

Hardwood Floors

Hardwood floors are in and they are far easier to care for than other materials so this is really a win-win. Laminate hard wood is something that you could really install yourself so you can save a lot of cash in terms of the installation. Once this is down, a steam mop is a quick, easy and effective way to keep this type of flooring clean. Go with wider planks and match the flooring to the cabinetry. If you have white cabinets, a really dark wood works very well.

Stainless Steel Appliances

Gone are the days of white and black appliances. Stainless steel is very sleek and modern. It is also very easy to care for and does not rust or start to look old. This is a really nice because you can quickly wipe it down and be on your way. There is no need to scrub it down like you had to do with you old stove, fridge and other appliances. You can find all appliances in stainless steel now, including coffee pots and other small appliances.

Some Sources/Sites for Readers

Fresh Home, Bay Cities Construction, My Home Ideas, Angie's list.

About the author: Jillian Watkinson is a DIY expert and has written about home and gardens for many years. When she's not writing, you can find her covering Community Home in Chicago and other useful supply companies for various projects.

 

China Vanke Expands to the US with San Francisco Property Deal

China Vanke Co, the largest Chinese stock exchange listed developer, has just closed its first property deal in the US real estate market, acquiring 70% of a residential project in San Francisco owned by Tishman Speyer Properties LP. The two companies signed the deal on February 12, according to an update posted by Vanke's Chairman Wang Shi on Weibo, a microblogging platform similar to Twitter.

'Good enterprises in the 21st century must have global and international vision,' Wang (pictured right) wrote in his microblogging update, commenting on the deal.

As Bloomberg reported, the details on the stake purchase were released in a note to clients issued by Jinsong Du, a Hong Kong-based property analyst at Credit Suisse Group AG, who claimed to have had the information from Vanke sources. The project in question will comprise a little under 700 residential units upon completion. No further details were released by any of the two companies.

The San Francisco development acquisition is Vanke's first deal outside Asia. Shortly before this new venture, the company's Hong Kong branch jointly won a bid for a site in the city, its first in the market, which is worth HK$3.43 billion ($442 million). The Shenzen-based developer set up international units after absorbing a Hong Kong developer in May 2012, aiming to expand overseas.

The San Francisco project will mainly address buyers in mainland China, Credit Suisse stated, quoting Vanke's management. The new acquisition didn't help the developer's shares, which have reached the lowest value in three weeks. The new investment is currently pending approval from the Chinese government.

'Agent Speak': Deciphering Real Estate Agent's Babble

'Words have meaning' is a popular adage; many real estate agents would do well to adhere to it. As the spring real estate markets begin to stir, the 'spinmeisters' are sharpening their skills. But who are the 'spinmeisters'?

© Regisser.com ' Fotolia.com

 

Well they are that certain breed of real estate agent who prefers to tell you how spectacular their listings are; not nice, we're talking spectacular, immaculate, amazing'.and perhaps the best one ' 'to die for'. Really? To die for?

We're talking about what's known in the trade as 'real estate agent speak', or 'Realtor speak' and how agents spin their listings.

There remains a rousing debate around agent 'puffery' and embellishment; is it legal and ethical according to agent conduct standards? Where does subjectivity end and lying begin? Agents and Realtors are expected to abide by a strict ethical standard; yet many listings routinely misrepresent properties, frequently with errors of fact. These same agents and Realtors promote themselves as professionals with a fiduciary duty to be honest, ethical and accurate in their dealings with the public. Is this apparent double standard one of the reasons real estate agents are held in such low public esteem?

So as the spring market opens, home buyers would do very well to keep everything that they read in context.  Puffery and exaggeration are the norm of course, so keep this 'cheat sheet' handy as you peruse listings, it will help you decipher the agent babble.

Convenient to airport / train / highway ' the house is adjacent to them or under the flight path; you'll get used to the windows rattling; think of the noise as white noise; many buyers love planes, trains and automobiles

Walk to shopping / restaurants / entertainment ' hop your fence into their parking lots; you can charge good money for over flow parking; no DUI concerns for the owner of this home

Occasional views of mountains / water / city ' like when the leaves are off; trees are removed; twice a month when the smog blows out; with a telescope; from the roof

Unobstructed water views ' until they build next door; since the water is now in your yard; until the next storm when the view will be from the water; as long as you don't mind the flood insurance premium

Private natural back yard ' because it's a ravine; borders a detention pond; is a garbage dump

Updated ' painted'a room'10 years ago; with scratch and dent items; by the husband that took the 2 hour tile class at Home Depot; with outdated material; define updated?

Updated/renovated/remodeled kitchen and baths ' see 'updated'; new cabinet pulls; replaced a broken appliance; new faucet or shower head

New, like new ' not new, usually a few years old

Brand new / just installed ' usually less than a year or two old

Pristine, immaculate, to die for ' used

Cute, cozy, quaint, comfortable ' small and cramped

Eclectic, edgy, rustic ' think from bar décor to college dorm

Excellent ' OK

Average ' poor

Fair ' not operational

Waiting for your touch ' if you're a contractor with lots of time and money, or maybe an arsonist

Handyman Special ' money pit, don't even think about it unless you have money, time and skills

Cash only ' should be obvious

And this list merely scratches the surface'

Inaccurate and misleading information does no one any good. The seller is likely to wait longer for a buyer as those visiting are expecting something different. The agent is likely to see an extended market time for the very same reason. The buyer and the buyer agent will be wasting time expecting to see the home described only to find something less. In short, no matter how much someone makes a Hyundai sound like a Ferrari on line, when you walk up to it it's still a Hyundai. Buyers won't be fooled, and even if they miss something, inspectors and appraisers probably won't.

'Agent Speak' and what real estate agents say matters. Nonsense is completely counterproductive but won't likely stop anytime soon. In fact, it will almost certainly increase as the spring market begins. Agents should take a second to consider the consequences of this; not only to their seller and other agents but to their reputation in their market. It's fine to shine an apple with worm holes or bruises but keep in mind that in the end, accurately portraying a home often results in buyers with the most realistic expectations'and that usually results in a better experience for the seller.