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Apr

2
2009

Inman Photo Contest Top-10: You decide

By Inman News, Thursday, April 2, 2009.

VOTE NOW: There were 38 qualifying entries in the Inman News photo contest (view entries).

Participate in this Inman Poll to narrow the list down to the top 10. A panel of three judges will select the winner of a $200 Amazon.com gift card (click here for more details).  more...

Startup building iPhone apps for agents

By Inman News, Thursday, April 2, 2009.

A startup company that will build customized, branded smart phone applications for small businesses to offer on Apple's iPhone App store has launched its first product, which is aimed at real estate agents.

MobileAppLoader is offering its first iPhone application, "Real Estate -- Real Easy," with no setup or monthly fees during a beta period.  more...

Rates on prime mortgages down again

By Inman News, Thursday, April 2, 2009.

Rates on prime mortgages eligible for purchase or guarantee by Freddie Mac hit another new low this week, the mortgage finance giant said in releasing the results of a survey of hundreds of lenders.

For borrowers making 20 percent down payments, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.78 percent with an average of 0.7 point for the week ending April 2, down from 4.85 percent a week ago and 5.88 percent at the same time last year. The rate's never been lower since Freddie Mac began the survey in 1971.  more...

Pick the Inman Photo Contest finalists

By Inman News, Thursday, April 2, 2009.
<a href="http://www.inman.com/poll/pick-your-favorite-entry-in-inman-photo-contest-visit-flickrcomgroupsinmanphotocontest-view-ent">CLICK HERE</a> to select a photo.

A big thank you to all who participated in the first-ever Inman Photo Contest. We received 36 qualifying entries, which you can view at the Inman Photo Contest group at Flickr.com (click here for a slide show of the entries, or click here for thumbnail images).  more...

Renters under 23 need not apply

By Janet Portman, Thursday, April 2, 2009.

Q: We own a vacation home at the beach, which we rent out as well as use ourselves. It has three bedrooms, ideal for two or three couples, or a family or a bunch of unrelated adults. We want to avoid having it rented by college students, whom we've found to be risky (lots of damage). Can we specify "No one under 23 years of age" in our ad? --Bill and Suzanne H.  more...

The do-it-yourself real estate Web site

By Teresa Boardman, Thursday, April 2, 2009.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/geishaboy500/100043823/"target=blank>geishaboy500</a>.

This week I got rid of my Realtor Web site. I have had the site for seven years. It gets some traffic but the origin of the traffic and business is my blog. I have been using the Web site as a kind of business card and it had some forms in it that potential clients could fill out, and they did.

It also had a page for my listings, and an Internet Data Exchange (IDX, an online data-sharing agreement among brokers) solution that I pay for separately.  more...

Survey: Real estate market shows vital signs Premium Content

By Inman News, Thursday, April 2, 2009.

Three out of four Inman News readers participating in an online survey say housing markets in their area are improving or stabilizing -- and most said they've noticed the change only in the last two months.

"Buyers are seeing inventory move, and that gets them moving. Interesting how that happens," said a Summit, N.J.-based who sees improvement in a market where many homes are located near commuter train lines to midtown Manhattan. "Yes, there are actually bidding wars again on well priced, staged homes in great locations."  more...

FNIS, Metavante announce $3 billion merger

By Inman News, Thursday, April 2, 2009.

A merger of Fidelity National Information Services Inc. and Metavante Technologies Inc. will create the world's largest provider of payment and processing services to the financial industry, the companies said Wednesday.

Pending approval by regulators and shareholders of both companies, Milwaukee, Wis.-based Metavante will be merged into a newly formed subsidiary of Fidelity National Information Services, in an all stock deal valued at about $3 billion.  more...

Realtors sold on next-gen phones Premium Content

By Matt Carter, Thursday, April 2, 2009.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/williamhook/2830319467/" target=blank>William Hook</a>.

Although Apple's iPhone has helped demonstrate the utility of smart phones to real estate professionals, it's taking longer for consumers to migrate over to the the new devices.

When it comes to smart-phone adoption, real estate brokers and agents may be surprised to find themselves ahead on the technology curve. But smart-phone users are a sought-after demographic, and there are many opportunities to capture business employing technologies that cater to older phones with more limited capabilities, as well.  more...