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Give the gift of home tools this season

By Paul Bianchina, Friday, December 30, 2005.

Yep, it's that time again. The holidays will be here before we know it, and if you're looking for gifts, here are some great tool ideas that are sure to delight just about anyone:

-Ridgid Heavy Duty 1/2-Inch Right Angle Drill: Got some holes to drill? Why not do it right with one of the most powerful, well-designed electric drills on the market. Ridgid's right angle drill has a compact, low profile head that is ideal for framing, electrical wiring, plumbing, and any other project that requires some tough drilling chores.  more...

Let there be a bridge

By Alison Rogers, Friday, December 30, 2005.

Every columnist looks forward to the holidays as a chance to write a "perennial" – a column that takes the concerns of the present and mixes them up with more important and more spiritual themes. You know, like "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus."

So of course the natural thing to do is to put forth a series of New Year's resolutions that are at once witty and reflective, insightful and charming.  more...

Real estate survival tips for interest-rate rollercoaster

By Bernice Ross, Friday, December 30, 2005.

If you have never experienced a market where interest rates are climbing steadily, hold onto your hat--you may be in for a wild ride.

October 2005 saw record national home sales numbers. Rather than being encouraged by this, many experts believe this surge is due to buyers purchasing prior to additional interest rate increases. With each interest rate increase, there is a reduction in the number of buyers who can afford to purchase property. The Federal Reserve is expected to continue to raise interest rates during 2006.  more...

The nation's best home mortgage lender

By Robert Bruss, Friday, December 30, 2005.

With a title like "The Nation's Best Home Mortgage Lender," if you expect me to name one of the largest national home mortgage lenders, such as Bank of America, Washington Mutual, Wells Fargo, Countrywide or Chase, you will be disappointed.

These are all fine lenders. I've done business with all of them over the years. But the nation's best home mortgage lender is one you probably don't know. Most home buyers and real estate agents have never heard of this well-kept secret mortgage source.  more...

Jazz up your yard with famous flora

By Katherine Salant, Friday, December 30, 2005.

I grew up near Alexandria, Va., where local history is American history and there are at least 16 historical sites connected in one way or another to George Washington.

Now I discover that I can make my own connection to George Washington. I can plant a sapling in my backyard that was germinated from the seed of a tree that Washington planted himself at Mt. Vernon.  more...

Versatile HomeGain CEO grooves to classical, hip-hop

By Inman News, Friday, December 30, 2005.

Under Richard Sommer's leadership of HomeGain, a provider of online marketing solutions to the real estate industry, the company has expanded its innovative line of products and technology solutions to agents and brokers, helping them succeed with today's tech savvy consumers.

An industry veteran, Sommer previously served as senior vice president of business development for the mortgage banking unit at IndyMac Bank and before that was president of Homestore International.

Inman News named Sommer to the 100 Most Influential People in Real Estate in 2005.  more...

Former gas jock now helps drivers (and others) find destinations

By Inman News, Thursday, December 29, 2005.

As marketing manager for MapQuest Business Solutions, Ian Pilling leads all business segment and product marketing initiatives for the group. He does strategic marketing, lead generation and public relations, and handles communications with MapQuest's more than 1,400 enterprise customers.  more...

'Soft' job market to kick off 2006

By Inman News, Thursday, December 29, 2005.

The Conference Board Help-Wanted Advertising Index, a key measure of job offerings in major newspapers across America, gained one point in November to 39, up from 38 in October.

In the last three months, help-wanted advertising increased in six of the nine U.S. regions. Largest increases occurred in the Mountain (7.3 percent), East South Central (5.8 percent) and Middle Atlantic (5.3 percent) regions. Declines occurred in the Pacific (-4.7 percent), West South Central (-4.4 percent) and South Atlantic (-3.3 percent) regions.  more...

Million-dollar idea draws real estate advertising

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Thursday, December 29, 2005.

Julie Lauer, a Realtor for Keller Williams Realty in Pleasanton, Calif., paid $100 for a tiny square adjoining the image of a flying Elvis. Michael Seitz, associate broker for Kingman Realty in Kingman, Ariz., bought a $400 rectangle to display the word "Arizona."

Other real estate professionals, too, spent $100 or more to be a part of a pay-per-pixel advertising site dreamed up by Alex Tew, 21, a college student from Wiltshire, England.  more...

Home builder sentenced in $3.7 million real estate fraud

By Inman News, Thursday, December 29, 2005.

A federal judge sentenced a North Carolina home builder to 27 months in prison last week, saying the man's role in a $3.7 million mortgage fraud scheme had had "dramatic and far-reaching consequences," the Charlotte, N.C. Observer reported.

Greg Smith, a Lake Norman, N.C., home builder, had pleaded guilty to three counts of mortgage fraud in September 2004, media reports said.  more...

Real estate markets normalize as average time to sell climbs

By Inman News, Thursday, December 29, 2005.

According to a recent nationwide survey of real estate professionals, the average length of time for-sale houses spend on the market has increased dramatically in the past six months.

Seventy-five percent of respondents said it now takes more than 30 days to sell a house, and of that figure 30 percent said it takes more than 60 days, according to HouseHunt's current market conditions survey.  more...

Homescape debuts online video communication

By Inman News, Thursday, December 29, 2005.

Homescape, which provides a technology platform for real estate advertising online, is innovating communication with its newspaper network through Internet video produced by Inman Stories.

To view the online video, click here.

Homescape is a division of Classified Ventures, a joint venture of media companies looking to capitalize on online advertising in real estate, automotive and rentals.  more...

FEMA sets up shop in New Orleans

By Inman News, Thursday, December 29, 2005.

Transwestern Commercial Services recently completed an 86,000-square-foot lease with FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) at the Westpark Office Building in New Orleans, La.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.  more...

California real estate prices expected to rise 10% next year

By Inman News, Thursday, December 29, 2005.

The California residential real estate market in 2005 is expected to sales and price records set last year, the California Association of Realtors reported this week.

The trade group announced some key housing market statistics from 2005 and a look ahead to 2006:

  • Sales of detached, existing single-family homes are expected to reach 635,000 in 2005, an increase of 1.8 percent over last year's record sales of 624,700. Sales are anticipated to decline by 2 percent in 2006.  more...

Real estate exec takes novel approach

By Inman News, Thursday, December 29, 2005.

For more than 20 years, Pam O'Connor has managed networks, which ultimately were consolidated into the present company, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World.

Leading Real Estate Companies is a national network of independent residential real estate firms and focuses on the special needs of individuals and families relocating from one area to another.

Formerly known as the RELO network, the organization encompasses 650 local and regional real estate brands in residential real estate, with 4,700 offices and 120,000 sales associates in the U.S. and 24 other countries.  more...

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