Author Archives: Brad Horner

By: Brad Horner

This week, Coldwell Banker Real Estate, LLC released its Home Listing Report, a snapshot survey of U.S. four-bedroom, two-bathroom home listings.  The HLR provides the average home listing price of more than 18,000 four-bedroom, two-bathroom properties on ColdwellBanker.com that were listed between February and August 2010 from nearly 300 select U.S. markets where Coldwell Banker Real Estate has a presence.

The report found a $1.7 million difference between America’s most expensive and most affordable housing markets.  I’ve listed the top five most expensive and top five most affordable U.S. housing markets below.  Click here to view the full HLR data.

The most expensive real estate markets:

1. Newport Beach, Calif. $1,826,348.00
2. Palo Alto, Calif. $1,479,227.00
3. Rye, N.Y. $1,325,500.00
4. San Francisco, Calif. $1,325,103.00
5. La Jolla, Calif. $1,210,300.00

The most affordable real estate markets:

1. Detroit, Mich. $68,007.00
2. Grayling, Mich. $84,625.00
3. Sioux City, Iowa $85,967.00
4. Cleveland, Ohio $87,240.00
5. Muncie, Ind. $100,314.00

By: Brad Horner

Wednesday’s launch of Google Instant had marketers buzzing all week about how the tool may change businesses’ SEO efforts, as Google Instant vowed to deliver results “instantly in a way that has never been done before.”  Google continues to change the way we use the Internet – including how consumers find information, how marketers reach consumers online and how people do business, in general.

Are you using Google to your advantage?  Below are five of my favorite (free) Google tools that help with business:

1.     Google Alerts – Managing your and your company’s online reputation is important to be able to know what your potential customers can read about you online.  Google Alerts can alert you within seconds of an identified name or term being posted online.  This is a good way to monitor for online mentions about your company, as well as what is being written about your competitors, industry terms of interest and more.  Use Boolean Logic to receive exactly what posts are helpful to you.

2.     Google Reader – Real estate analysts write blogs.  As do real estate reporters.  And local influential leaders.  And your competition.  And, you need to follow them all.  But instead of spending time each day to proactively seek out each blog, have the latest posts come to you – in real time.  Read them all in one place with Google Reader, a Web-based aggregator that makes keeping up with your favorite blogs and Websites as easy as checking your e-mail. You can even organize each blog into categories.

3.     Google Profile – What do people see when they find you online?  You can control some of this information by creating a personal profile in Google and including links to your blogs, online photos, links to other online social profiles (including LinkedIn and Facebook), contact information and more.  Your profile won’t display any private information unless you’ve explicitly added it.

4.     Google Maps – When searching an address in Google Maps, you’re able to get a first person look at the neighborhood – including the street layout (access to highways, relationship to nearby homes, etc.), terrain and nearby retail – without ever leaving your desk.  You can even embed these views on your Website.  This is such an important tool for all who are involved in real estate transactions.

5.     Google Keyword – I can’t think of any better place to turn for information about what consumers search for online than turning to Google!  Google offers detailed information about how people search online in Google Keyword, giving you limitless knowledge about consumer online behavior that will help when searching for a domain name, creating an SEO strategy, thinking about blog topics and more.  Just type in a phrase and see how many people have searched for that phrase.

What other Google tools have you found helpful?

By: Brad Horner

We have shared with you the success of Orlando’s Mosaic at Millenia (where NRT Development Advisors manages marketing and sales), which is due primarily to the large number of international cash buyers.  This trend became a big story in local, as well as international, press, including Orlando Sentinel’s May 2 front page story, “Foreign buyers kick-start Orlando-area condo sales“, Orlando Business Journal’s June 18 front page story, “Condo sales making a comeback” and Voice of America’s article (and video) “Condo sales up in US despite volatility in housing market.”

But why are the international buyers flocking to properties such as Mosaic at Millenia?  And why are they buying with cash instead of mortgaging the homes?  The 2010 NAR Profile of International Home Buying Activity provides good insight about the needs, wants and challenges of international buyers.  Below are five findings from the study:

1. According to NAR’s Home Buyer Seller Survey 2009, 92 percent of U.S. buyers financed their homes with a mortgage. In contrast, foreign buyers are reported as paying cash 55 percent of the time. This appears to be reflective of difficulties in establishing international credit: credit profiles based on financial ratios differ widely based on local customers, local expenditure patterns, and specific financial issues. In addition, it is difficult to move money around the world on a timely and secure basis—even though the money, transaction participants, and end use purpose are legitimate. In fact, there is at least one major company specializing in assisting buyers in simply transferring funds internationally.
2. The median price paid by international buyers was in the neighborhood of $219,400 during 2009/2010. In contrast, the overall median price for Existing Home Sales was $173,000 during April 2009 to April 2010. Foreign purchasers ―on average‖ participated closer to the upper end of the market—which is not surprising given the circumstances surrounding the purchasing decision: desire for a second home, diversification of assets in the United States, perception of U.S. real estate as offering higher value, pooling of investments by families seeking to participate in a desirable market, and attraction to urban, higher priced markets.
3. Detached homes were in the majority by type of property. However, compared to domestic buyers, international buyers purchased more condos. According to the most recent NAR Home Buyer Seller Survey, 78% of the buyers purchased detached single –family homes, 8% chose townhouse/row house, and only 7% chose condo/apartment.
4. Forty-five percent of foreign purchases are concentrated in South, the states such as Florida and Texas. It is followed by the West (32%), the states such as California and Arizona.
5. Seventy-nine percent of respondents indicated that changes in the value of the dollar can impact international sales. To examine the potential impact we have developed a graph of the price of a U.S. existing home in U.S. dollars and in terms of Euros over the past five years. When the dollar decreases in value relative to other currencies, U.S. property becomes less expensive.  International comparisons of property values are difficult, for property characteristics vary widely from country to country. However, a comparison of average or median prices, based on available data, between U.S. and foreign property indicates that U.S. property appears in general to be less expensive than is the case for foreign property.

By: Brad Horner

Today’s Friday Five is short and sweet…and resourceful!

I assume that you visit Virtual Views for its industry information, case studies, company updates and other informative posts.  If so, you might also find the following social sites (with which we’re affiliated) helpful:

1. Facebook –We regularly link to articles of interest, inform fans of upcoming industry events and post about the Southeast real estate market.  We hope that you will become a fan.
2. YouTube –NRT Development Advisors’ YouTube channel offers a sneak peak inside the walls of the beautiful multi-family and single-family homes that we represent.
3. YouTube – More than 1.5 million people have visited Coldwell Banker’s YouTube channel, On Location, which includes videos of listings, home buying and selling tips, expert interviews and more.
4. Twitter – We have a rapidly growing number of Twitter followers from around the nation because of the up-to-the-minute industry information that we post.
5. Insight Real Estate blog – If you like what you read on the Virtual Views blog, you’ll also enjoy the information shared on Coldwell Banker Residential’s blog, Insights, which includes Atlanta, Dallas/Ft. Worth and Florida real estate information, as well as corporate announcements.

Where are you online?  Leave us a comment below so we can be sure to follow you, as well.

By: Brad Horner

The real estate market has always been cyclical, and, as a result, builders and developers have always needed to adapt their home designs to speak to current buyer demands. As today’s builders and developers look to 2011 and beyond, many are analyzing how the recession, growing population and consumer trends have impacted the way homebuyers live and what they look for in homes.

Below are five popular home trends for the coming years:

1. Two master bedrooms – A National Sleep Foundation survey found that nearly 25% of American couples sleep in separate bedrooms or beds, due to different sleep schedules, sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome and many other reasons.  As a result of this trend, the National Association of Home Builders predicts that 60% of custom homes will have dual master bedrooms by 2015.
2. Energy-efficient products and appliances – Buyers are willing to invest more upfront on products to make their homes more energy efficient in the long run.  And energy-efficient homes extend far beyond Energy Star appliances; energy-efficient options also include low flow plumbing fixtures, LED lighting, solar technologies, programmable thermostats and more.
3. Minimalism – Many buyers are “rightsizing” in their search for smaller, smarter homes designed to function more efficiently with no wasted space and plenty of room for storage. Consumers have lost interest in McMansions and instead are looking for homes in the 2,000 to 2,500 square foot range that are compact, low maintenance, low energy homes and serve the needs of family.
4. Accessibility – Currently, 12% of the U.S. population is over the age of 65 and the percentage is expected to increase to 21% by 2050.  But this isn’t a group that plans to quietly move into assisted living centers as they age.  Instead, many are looking for homes in which they can “age in place” (with features such as no-step thresholds, roll-in showers, grab bars, ample maneuvering space, raised appliances and other modifications).
5. Fewer luxuries – Buyers are eliminating unnecessary luxuries – such as upgraded carpets, over-the-top kitchens and excess granite in kitchens and bathrooms – as a way to lower home costs.  Many builders have found success in promoting one or two luxuries that help the home stand out, yet keep the final costs down.

By: Brad Horner

Though new technologies may have emerged, external e-newsletters are still one of the strongest marketing channels that businesses have in their arsenal.  The intimacy of e-newsletters foster personal relationships better than other communication vehicles.

Your network is used to sharing things via e-mail and checking e-mail multiple times throughout the day.  A visitor’s inbox is their trusted zone, and when you appear there on a regular basis – providing good content – you increase your company’s awareness and position the company as an industry thought leader.  Epsilon’s February 2009 branding survey found that 57% of consumers feel they have a more positive impression of companies when they receive e-mail from them.  And the Direct Marketing Association found that e-mail’s ROI in 2009 was $43.52 for every dollar spent on it.

NRT Development Advisors regularly sends its newsletter, Developing News, to inform our network of clients, prospects, brokers and more about industry news, helpful tips and our clients’ successes.  And I’m proud to say that we have a much higher than average open rate for the real estate industry.  How?  We follow the below five rules:

1. Get input on useful content. Deciding to write an e-newsletter is easy.  Deciding what to write about is much more difficult.  Visit the websites and forums that your audience typically frequents to learn what topics seem to generate the most interest and coverage.  Blog search engines can also help you identify relevant themes and topics.  And don’t forget to take advantage of opportunities to personally ask your potential readership what they’re most interested in.  Your sales teams and others who deal with customers on a daily basis are great sources of such information.
2. Send only when you have something interesting to say. There is no set rule about how often you should send an e-newsletter, but it should be often enough that your readers don’t forget that they subscribed to your list, but not so often that they are annoyed when they hear from you.  And, your readers want substance, not self-promotional messages.  Establish your e-newsletter as a thought leader with relevant industry topics, as editorial copy is a better read than advertising.
3. Make it aesthetically pleasing. You only have once chance to make a first impression, and with e-newsletters that first impression comes in the form of good looking content.  Ensure that the e-newsletter’s template matches your corporate branding.  Put the most interesting, relevant information on topic (where it can be seen in an e-mail preview window).  And, use graphics strategically.  Photos can break up cluttered text; bullets and highlights make e-newsletters easy to skim.
4. Build trust and credibility. To build trust when asking people to sign up for your e-newsletter, you must be able to clearly answer if you will share their e-mail address and how difficult it will be to unsubscribe.  Consumers are, understandably, leery of companies asking for e-mail addresses because they don’t want to be spammed in the future.  Provide an obvious and painless way that people can unsubscribe.
5. Consider each e-newsletter a test. Carefully analyze the distribution results that e-newsletter programs offer to determine what makes your audience respond.  Do e-newsletters that are sent on Mondays receive a higher open rate than those sent on Tuesdays?  Are more people opening it in the mornings or afternoons?  And what subject lines prompt the quickest action (those with a question or a statement)?  Did particular article topics cause readers to click for more information?

If you’d like to be added to our e-newsletter list, you can sign-up here.