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The unintended consequences of blogging

By Teresa Boardman, Thursday, October 1, 2009.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsummers/708633214/">Banalities</a>.

A couple of years ago I was at a social event with a bunch of local bloggers -- most are in the real estate industry. I overheard a conversation that was going on behind me less than a foot away. They were talking about this woman who is relentless, ruthless and unstoppable; they said she is a machine.

When I turned around to listen, they all started laughing. They were talking about me and my blog. That was a little more than two years ago and nothing has changed. There is a post on my blog everyday. These days I get some help from a neighbor who likes to write and from a past client who works in the real estate industry. They write a post a week and I write the other five.

They used the word "ruthless" because they are what I call friendly competitors.  more...

Seller stall tactics

By Tara-Nicholle Nelson, Thursday, October 1, 2009.
Original image by <a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/A_&_E_Design_nr.jpg">Holger.Ellgaard</a>.

Q: I have been making offers for a couple of months now. In my town, most low-priced listings get lots of offers. In fact, every home I've made an offer on, I've been up against at least a couple of other buyers. Sometimes, the seller will say there's no offer before we make ours, but then we'll send it over and they'll call back and say that they heard another offer is coming in the next day, and again the next day, so that they may wait a week before they give us an answer. Why are they taking so long to get back to us?

A: Traditionally, the preventive for your problem was simply to set a short offer expiration time frame and essentially force the seller to either respond to your offer, forgoing other potential offers that might come in, or forgo your offer on the wish/prayer that others will come in and be better than yours.  more...

Real estate realism vs. optimism

By Tom Kelly, Thursday, October 1, 2009.
Flickr image by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/shivani_rana/3291631671/">Februum</a>.

Despite the growing optimism regarding the recent uptick in the market, there is no getting around the underlying foreclosure outlook for U.S. residential property.

Cliff Bowman, the Vancouver, B.C.-based marketing expert who turned pre-selling condominium buildings into an industry art form, pointed to data by credit bureau Equifax and Moody's showing that recent home price declines have left 24 percent of all homes in the U.S. with debt that is greater than their value.

"People in Canada are in a better situation," Bowman said. "I don't know why that is ... perhaps they were better prepared."  more...

Patch those plaster cracks

By Bill and Kevin Burnett, Thursday, October 1, 2009.

By Bill and Kevin Burnett

Q: We are getting ready to repaint our home office. The walls and ceiling were cracked during an earthquake and poorly patched before we moved in. We had the roof redone last summer, and the banging and hammering seriously re-cracked the plaster. In two areas there is a large "plate" of plaster that is loose. You can press it and it moves closer to the wall.  more...

Married to the homeowners association

By Mary Umberger, Thursday, October 1, 2009.
Flickr image by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/50841708@N00/408909324/">firemedic58</a>.
In marriage, sometimes it dawns on you -- slowly -- after the ceremony that not only have you agreed to bring a spouse into your life, but a full spectrum of in-laws, too.

So, too, it can be with homeowners associations: Maybe you thought only that you were getting a residence with, say, a great kitchen or a dazzling view -- but you also bought into a condo board or owners association that will make demands on your cash and maybe on your lifestyle.  more...