Home

Aug

2
2007

YMLS

By Glenn Roberts, Jr., Thursday, August 2, 2007.
SAN FRANCISCO -- Saul Klein, president and CEO for Internet Crusade, an Internet publishing company that offers online services for real estate professionals, noted that people often ponder what the nation's multiple listing services will be like in the future....  more...

Home Gets a Second Look on 'Second Life'

By Glenn Roberts, Jr., Thursday, August 2, 2007.
SAN FRANCISCO -- Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC, which in March announced that it was getting into the business of selling and renting virtual homes in a Internet-based three-dimensional world called "Second Life," has further blurred the line between reality...  more...

Making Microsoft your bitch

By Matt Carter, Thursday, August 2, 2007.
In today's keynote address at Real Estate Connect SF, GapingVoid publisher Hugh MacLeod explained how a viral marketing campaign he engineered for a South African winery, Stormhoek, has helped boost sales from 50,000 cases to a projected 250,000 cases in...  more...

Project Blogger winners revealed

By Jessica Swesey, Thursday, August 2, 2007.
SAN FRANCISCO -- Congrats to the winners of the 14-week-long Project Blogger competition: Mary Pope-Handy and her coach Frances Flynn Thorsen (pictured here), who were named during the Bloggers Connect conference here yesterday afternoon. ActiveRain execs presented the team with...  more...

Apartments sell on Texas coast

By Inman News, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

Tenant-in-common investors this week bought a 284-unit multifamily community in Corpus Christi, Texas, for an undisclosed price.

The purchase, which closed Tuesday, involves Harbour Landing located on South Padre Island Drive. Situated on nearly 12 acres, the property consists of 22 apartment buildings and a clubhouse totaling approximately 193,000 square feet.

Community amenities include a fitness center, tennis court, basketball court, business center, and two swimming pools complete with a wading pool and heated spa.  more...

$21 million Georgia multifamily deal

By Inman News, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

Century Hills, a 200-unit multifamily community in Augusta, Ga., recently sold for $21 million.

Richmond, Va.-based Triple-Net Properties LLC purchased the property from Atlanta-based Centennial Properties.

Located at1035 Alexander Drive, Century Hills is comprised of 24 three-story buildings on a 16.8-acre lot.  more...

California MLSs to share real estate data

By Inman News, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

The California MLSAlliance, a new search platform that gives agents and brokers the ability to find real estate listings statewide, launched this week with more than 2.5 million listings.

Ten multiple listings services from across California signed the joint data-sharing agreement, which covers active listings and off-market properties and extends a blanket offer of compensation and cooperation to all authorized users of the system.

"With all the focus these days on super regionalization, statewide and national databases, the California MLSAlliance is a great demonstration as  more...

Survey: Fewer renters becoming homeowners

By Inman News, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

Consumer demand for apartments remains strong as the subprime mortgage meltdown has decreased the number of renters leaving to become homeowners, according to the National Multi Housing Council's July 2007 Quarterly Survey of Apartment Market Conditions.  more...

Realogy to put listings on Yahoo! Real Estate

By Inman News, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

Realogy Corp., the largest real estate company in the United States, today announced a marketing agreement with Yahoo! Inc. in which it will distribute property listings from its four residential franchise networks to Yahoo!'s real estate site.

This latest agreement pertains to listings that appear on the CENTURY 21, Coldwell Banker, ERA and Sotheby's International Realty brand Web sites, and is an extension of Realogy's overall online listings distribution strategy, first announced in March 2007.  more...

Redfin in a media storm: The inside story

By Inman News, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

"60 Minutes," angry bloggers, controversy and an NAR uproar. Learn how Glenn Kelman managed the clash between old and new media.  more...

Mortgage rates drop again this week

By Inman News, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

Long-term mortgage rates declined further this week as investors remained cautious about the housing market's recovery, Freddie Mac and Bankrate.com reported today.

In Freddie Mac's survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dipped to an average 6.68 percent from last week's 6.69 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage sank to 6.32 percent from 6.37 percent.  more...

Internet marketing -- from popcorn ceilings to mobile devices Premium Content

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Thursday, August 2, 2007.

SAN FRANCISCO -- A blog about popcorn ceilings, the growing use and sophistication of mobile devices, and participation in marketing and networking sites such as ActiveRain.com or Facebook.com may hold clues to the future of Internet marketing, though there is no single magic recipe that works for everyone, presenters said during a real estate conference on Wednesday.

"I think how you use all these technologies is so much more important than the technology itself.  more...

Overnight real estate rates lower

By Inman News, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

Long-term mortgage interest rates sank Wednesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield rose to 4.79 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average fell to 6.26 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate dipped to 5.93 percent. The 1-year adjustable slipped to 5.49 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was up at 4.93 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more...

Penny-pinching landlord needs lesson in safety

By Robert Griswold, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

Question: I live in an 11-unit apartment complex. Our front-entry door is a hollow-core door just like our bathroom door. These doors are not very secure and are showing serious signs of weathering due to age. I have asked my landlord for a new door and was denied. My neighbor even offered to pay for a new solid-core front door and was told "no." Are there regulations regarding exterior doors on rental units? If not, what can I do about getting a new door?

Property manager Griswold replies:  more...

Don't get stuck paying big capital gains

By Robert Bruss, Thursday, August 2, 2007.

DEAR BOB: We own a rental property that was not properly set up two years ago to "stepped-up basis" when title passed from a deceased spouse to a surviving spouse. Should we amend the tax returns to reflect the higher basis or begin the adjusted cost basis for depreciation purposes in 2006? We are thinking of selling the property. --Rebecca C.

DEAR REBECCA: You can amend your income-tax returns for the last three "open" tax years. From your description, I would do so.  more...