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The blue circle knows

By Joel Burslem, Friday, July 10, 2009.

In my post, "New Firefox Brings Location to the Browser," I asked the following question around the new browser's location-awareness capability: "So the race is on - which will be the first site to implement this feature? Any bets?"

Well today, we have a winner. That was fast.  more...

Roads to recovery overlooked

By Lou Barnes, Friday, July 10, 2009.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lazymonkey/348573879/" target=blank>Matt and Bess</a>.

Long-term interest rates plunged this week as any hopes for a V-shape recovery gave way to L-shape reality.

A 10-year Treasury auction drew three times as many bids as bonds offered, the yield to 3.3 percent from 4 percent last month taking mortgages under 5.25 percent. The best chance for a run back into the fours: a big break in stocks. Inflation bets sank with rates: oil broke $60 for the first time since April; gold is $912 versus $980 in May.  more...

Discount broker buys Iggys House assets Premium Content

By Matt Carter, Friday, July 10, 2009.
Image by <a href="http://www.lumaxart.com">www.lumaxart.com</a>.

Minneapolis-based discount real estate brokerage Webdigs Inc. has acquired "substantially all the assets" of Iggys House and BuySide Realty, but has warned investors that it must raise additional capital to fund operations beyond October.

In a regulatory filing, Webdigs management said the company acquired the rights to Iggys House and BuySide Realty's Web sites, software, and network of customers and real estate professionals for $150,000 in cash and 7.12 million shares of Webdigs common stock.  more...

Going halfsies on home repairs?

By Tara-Nicholle Nelson, Friday, July 10, 2009.

Q: We were trying to buy a home that is owned by a credit union. We had a home inspection done and found that the furnace, roof and water heater all need to be replaced as soon as possible. The credit union did not agree to pay for any of the repairs and we walked away from the house, which we hated to do. Wasn't it reasonable to think that the seller should cover at least half of these expenses if not all of the costs?

A: Reasonable? Sure. But reason matters not when dealing with a bank or other institution selling a foreclosed home.

Banks are not people. They do not negotiate with the same types of motivation, flexibility, logic or reason that individual people do.  more...

Hybrid circular saw makes cuts easier

By Paul Bianchina, Friday, July 10, 2009.

There are certain tools that you think you may never need, and then when you try one, you start wondering how you ever got along without it. The new Heavy-Duty TrackSaw from DeWalt is one of those tools. And like all of DeWalt's tools, it's designed and built with the professional user in mind, but it's certainly right at home in the hands of any serious do-it-yourselfer!

As the name implies, the TrackSaw is a portable circular saw that rides on a track. The saw has a broad, aluminum base with a wide groove machined into the bottom. The precision-extruded track has a raised ridge running the length of it that mates with the groove in the saw's base. The track is clamped onto the material you want to cut, and the saw runs along the track to create perfectly straight, splinter-free cuts.  more...

Appraisers shunning FHA work Premium Content

By Inman News, Friday, July 10, 2009.

New rules governing appraisals on loans slated for purchase by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are also affecting valuations conducted for loans guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration, trade groups representing appraisers say.

The Home Valuation Code of Conduct, which went into effect May 1 for loans destined for purchased by Fannie and Freddie, has caused "a significant transfer" of appraisals ordered by mortgage brokers to appraisal management companies, the groups said.  more...

Brokers think beyond the cubicle Premium Content

By Inman News, Friday, July 10, 2009.

Unlike many American workers, Anna Demeyere doesn't feel as if she's chained to her office desk. For one thing, she doesn't have a desk.

She never did.

Demeyere is a sales associate at Real Estate Partners in Chattanooga, Tenn. This young brokerage largely ditched the idea of providing assigned desks for agents in favor of "hot desks," available on a first-come, first-served basis.  more...

Expert Realty, Keyes expand partnership

By Inman News, Friday, July 10, 2009.

Expert Realty, a Florida real estate company launched in 2005, has expanded its relationship to provide a range of services to The Keyes Co. Inc., a South Florida real estate brokerage company that got its start in 1926.

Founded by Glenn Cohen as a discount brokerage company in 2005, Expert Realty changed its business model in 2006 to focus on search-engine optimization, lead generation and conversion, and other outsourced real estate business processes.  more...

Be careful seeking investment info on Web

By Steve Bergsman, Friday, July 10, 2009.

I don't know about you, but when I'm seeking investment information on the Internet, I want to know the name and credentials of the person offering this seemingly free advice.

Unfortunately, the frustrating part of an online search is that when you think you arrived at a Web site with pertinent advice, it's impossible to find out who exactly is giving out this information and more than likely the objective of this innocent-looking educational site is to obtain personal information about you.  more...

Making a mark in the Chicago market Premium Content

By Inman News, Friday, July 10, 2009.

Amanda McMillan, a real estate consultant for Prudential Preferred Properties in Chicago, has ranked among the top 1 percent of Chicago Realtors in her volume of closed sales from 2006-08. She has worked in real estate for seven years.

And while she describes herself as a "statistics junkie who loves technology," she said she recognizes that technology is just part of the equation in real estate and "client love cannot be earned in 140 characters."

Hear McMillan speak during the Real Estate Connect conference in San Francisco, which runs from Aug. 5-7.  more...