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South Carolina MLS settles with DOJ Premium Content

By Inman News, Monday, May 4, 2009.

A South Carolina multiple listing service has reached a proposed settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice over a lawsuit filed last year alleging anticompetitive practices.  more...

Dos and don'ts of social networking Premium Content

By Bernice Ross, Monday, May 4, 2009.

Everyone has an online reputation. The question is how are you showing up online?

The younger your potential client is, the more likely he or she is to search you out on Google, Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites. Today's column takes a fun look at some of the ways that people are positioning themselves in the social media space.  more...

Borrowers get no love from lenders

By Tara-Nicholle Nelson, Monday, May 4, 2009.

You know how sometimes you'll hear a song or a catch phrase so often, you think you'll scream? Like, "Where's the Beef" or, more recently, any song by Lady Gaga? (Don't worry -- I'm not really sure who she is, either.) These days, my personal version of this phenomenon has got to be some variant on, "I thought the mortgage companies didn't want to foreclose on homes! I don't understand why they won't just modify my loan."

So, lenders, consider this an open note to you. Allow me to give you a piece of my mind -- excuse me, your borrowers' minds.  more...

Tips on buying home through relo company

By Dian Hymer, Monday, May 4, 2009.

Approximately 1.5 million sellers per year take advantage of an employer-assisted relocation, according to the Employee Relocation Council. Buying one of these listings involves a different procedure than you'd ordinarily expect.

One of the hardest parts of making an offer on a relocation listing is that it can take three to five business days to get a response to your offer from the relocation company. The sale procedure differs from one relocation company to the next. But, generally, the process goes like this.  more...

Watch Coldwell Banker on the 'Tube' Premium Content

By Inman News, Monday, May 4, 2009.

By JENNIFER BALDWIN

Steve Keefe leans forward from his desk chair, pushes the "record" button on his Flip cam, and sits back to welcome his viewers.

"Hi, this is Steve Keefe, broker-owner of Coldwell Banker Sky Ridge Realty in Lake Arrowhead, California. I'm honored this afternoon to have one of my top agents, Bob Bailey, spend a few minutes with me talking about sellers positioning their properties in the current marketplace. So here's Bob."  more...

The loan mod to-do list

By Jack Guttentag, Monday, May 4, 2009.

In recent weeks, I have been inundated with letters from mortgage borrowers who, for any number of reasons, can no longer afford their mortgage payment, though they could afford a lower payment. They seek help on getting their mortgages modified.

I have written several articles on modifications, but, as one letter writer put it, these provide "background but are not specific enough to really help." Ouch! In this article I attempt to make amends by laying out the steps in 1-2-3 order. Because the process is tedious, I have placed some of the boring details on my Web site.  more...

Slower growth seen for local online ads

By Inman News, Monday, May 4, 2009.

Local advertisers are expected to increase their online ad spending by just 6 percent this year, a sharp pullback from growth of 46 percent in 2008, Borrell Associates Inc. said in an annual survey of media companies.

Borrell is forecasting a rebound in 2010, with growth of 13 percent, and said quicker improvement in the economy could lead to more growth than currently forecast for this year. The long-term forecast calls for local online ad spending to peak at $15.9 billion in 2011 before contracting the following two years to $15.3 billion.  more...