Entries categorized as ‘Uncategorized’
By: Nancy Keszthelyi
In a recent article, Vicki L. Cox Golder, 2010 NAR president wrote, “For Realtors who specialize in residential sales, this is a time to embrace your role helping clients find a home they can afford and in a neighborhood they love.
Our job at Coldwell Banker NRT Development Advisors brings that expertise to the forefront. Our agents are well-trained and counseled when it comes to the details of providing valuable service to the buyers, sellers and investors, while maintaining a high standard of practise.
When looking to hire a real estate agent, buyers should ask themselves, “Who are they working for?” Our agents are product knowledgeable, informed about the areas (referencing schools, activities, entertainment, religious venues and more) and concerned about the needs and wants of each client. NRT Development Advisors’ goal is to serve you the client with the finest team of dedicated agents who receive ongoing training and education. Our agents also educate the client regarding why it is a smart time to buy a house or condominium -not only because of attractive interest rates and tax deductions, but because we all still love the dream of owning our own home.
Categories: NRT Development Advisors · Real Estate · sales agent
By: Amber Cooley
Jessica Weston made some great points in her blog “First impressions are lasting ones” about the importance of model homes as an effective tool in leaving a lasting impression with a potential home buyer. In this market, when developers are looking to establish and maintain a conservative marketing budget and marketers are looking for innovative ways to help save costs, an excellent company comes to mind that can help everyone achieve their goals – and ultimately showcase the great value of a home through staging.
Showhomes of Atlanta (Showhomes) is a company located in the Atlanta metro area that has been in business for 19 years, providing a service at no cost to developers through the staging of vacant homes – multi-family or single family communities. Yes, you read that correctly – no cost! Coldwell Banker NRT Development Advisors has had the pleasure of partnering with Showhomes on select condominium and single-family home projects in the Metro Atlanta area and the results have been tremendous! So, how does this concept work and how can they offer this service for free?
Showhomes carefully selects individuals who have qualified to become home managers (staging professionals who temporarily live within the home) by owning beautiful quality furnishings and accessories. Showhomes’ professional interior decorators help to place the items belonging to the home managers in the home to create a model home like atmosphere. Home managers pay utilities and lawn/pool costs, while keeping the home “ready to show” 9am – 9pm, seven days a week. When the home sells, Showhomes transfers the home manager prior to closing to another home within the same community or another community entirely, leaving the home clean and fresh for the new owner. Showhomes is able to offer this complimentary service to developers by charging a monthly fee to the home manager that’s based on about a 75% reduction from the normal market rental rate.
This service allows a developer to showcase model-like floor plans to help sell homes, while accruing no additional marketing costs. This concept has proven to be a “win-win” situation for all parties involved on those projects we have partnered on with Showhomes. Specific floor plans that were perhaps more challenging to sell sold out in a matter of weeks after Showhomes had moved in and helped potential buyers visualize their living space.
I welcome you to learn more about this great service and view the gallery of photos that Showhomes has highlighted on their website to demonstrate the impact this idea can truly make. First impressions are indeed lasting ones!
To visit a Showhomes/Coldwell Banker NRT Development Advisors’ model in the area, please feel free to visit any one of the communities below:
Categories: Uncategorized
By: Leslie Williamson
Mortgage rates are at the lowest levels to date for the year. The average rate on a 30 year fixed loan declined this week to 4.84 percent from 4.93 percent a week ago.
The combination of the low interest rates with the deep discounting of home prices creates the perfect opportunity for a home purchase. Many builders and developers are even continuing the tax credit in some form or fashion by offering paid closing costs. Also there are still down payment assistance programs for the First Time Homebuyer.
Opportunities are still available in the housing market take advantage and buy now!
Categories: Uncategorized
By: Brad Horner
LinkedIn recently announced upgrades to the site, many of which seem to mirror Facebook and Twitter’s features (including article excerpts, link sharing, ability to edit posts, ability to “share” posts, etc.). I think it’s a smart move, actually. LinkedIn has always provided a helpful way to stay in touch with professional networks, but it’s been underutilized in the past as Facebook and Twitter’s popularity skyrocketed. But these changes position LinkedIn to become a much more powerful tool for information sharing.
Below are the top five ways to make the most of LinkedIn, helping you to strengthen your connections and stay top of mind among your network.
- Grow your network by joining groups. There are nearly 8,000 real estate groups on LinkedIn (including industry associations and networks); joining appropriate groups is an easy way to strengthen your connections to industry leaders and prospective clients. And many of these groups list their events, as well as those who plan to attend (if attendees have RSVP’d through LinkedIn). What a perfect way to ensure you have a presence at the same events as your prospective clients!
- Ask for recommendations. Every company in every industry knows how powerful testimonials are, so let LinkedIn be a word-of-mouth marketing tool for you. Encourage satisfied customers and vendors to write recommendations about you and your company. The quotes will be published on your LinkedIn profile and broadcasted to their LinkedIn networks (possibly leading to referrals).
- Promote events. Posting information about events can help drive participation, as you can encourage your network to attend and also encourage them to share the event information across their own networks.
- Share thought leadership. Link to articles that would be of interest to your network, including a blog post that you authored, an article in which you’ve been quoted or a timely news item. Be sure to include a brief comment about why you are sharing the link.
- Solicit feedback. Use your network as a virtual focus group and allow them to provide feedback to a question or idea that you post. You can even tape the wisdom of your network by asking them to participate in a poll.
And now that companies can be ‘followed’ on LinkedIn, as they can be on Facebook and Twitter, we hope that you will follow us! Click here to visit NRT Development Advisors’ page LinkedIn and follow our updates and successes.
Categories: Friday Five · social media
By: Christine Macrenaris
April 30th … Tax credit deadline. I am not writing today with answers or insights, I have questions.
The big question on my mind: What will traffic and sales look like post April 30th? At 3 sites (White Provision, 1010 Midtown and Villa Sonoma), we’ve written more than 35 contracts in the frenzy of first time homebuyers getting in under the deadline. These contracts were written in a 20-day period since April 10th. The good news is that 35 closings will take place before the June 30th deadline!
The real estate market has reinvented itself multiple times over the past 18months, and I can’t wait to see what the new form takes on starting tomorrow! Per Brad Horner’s blog post today, recent news indicates that positive changes are coming.
Categories: Tax credit · Uncategorized
By: Brad Horner
Call it “the light at the end of the tunnel”… call it “a step in the right direction”… call it “wishful thinking”… Call it what you will, but you can’t deny that there has been a handful of very positive – and, hopefully, very telling – real estate headlines in the past week or so. Below are our top five:
- Builder confidence improves in April The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) surged four points to 19 in April 2010, its highest level since September 2009. Builders report a “real improvement” in traffic and sales during the month and “positive momentum” at the start of the spring home buying season. The South actually had a substantial HMI gain in April, from 4 points to 21.
- Home prices post first annual increase in 3 years Tuesday’s Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index reported the first annual increase (in February 2010, the last month reported) since the end of 2006. And nationally, home prices are up more than 3% from the bottom in May 2009.
- Mortgage applications on the rise Mortgage applications in the United States rose by the largest amount in seven weeks – increasing 13.6% in the week ending on April 16, according to The Mortgage Bankers Association’s index. The gauge of purchases climbed 10.1 percent, and a drop in mortgage rates boosted the refinancing measure by 15.8 percent, the first gain since the end of February.
- New-home sales see biggest jump in 47 years Sales of new homes surged 27% in March 2010 (in great contrast to the record low in February 2009), the strongest month since July2009. Sales grew a “whopping” 44% in the South.
- Home price reduction levels drop 26 percent 20% of current home listings were reduced in price at least once compared to 27% of listed homes in April 2009, representing a 26% decline nationally.
The tax credits were certainly factors behind these positive headlines, therefore the coming months (following the end of the credits) may still feel like an uphill battle. But 65% of consumers shopping for homes say that the end of the home buyer tax credit is unlikely to deter them.
I call this a positive note on which to start the weekend!
On a related topic, we regularly share the latest real estate headlines via Twitter. Click here to follow us!
Categories: Friday Five · Uncategorized
By: Amber Cooley
The Logan, a boutique condominium community of 13 homes in the heart of Brookhaven, hosted a Springtime Evening of Art event on April 9th. The event highlighted the original work of two local artists, Jennifer Keim and Sir Fred Greer, as well as, the unique architecture of The Logan community. 150 guests attended the event which was hosted atop two rooftop patios in the penthouse suite. Visitors also had the opportunity to tour the designer model and other select floor plans. With pricing recently reduced to 1 bedrooms from the $150s, 2 bedrooms from the $190s and the penthouse priced at $386,900 – visitors enjoyed the variety of floor plans, ideal location and privacy that the community offered. Combined with the traditional and thought provoking work of the artists and the boutique feel of the community, the Springtime Evening of Art proved to be a great success and was enjoyed by all!
For more information about The Logan, please visit theloganatl.com or call 404-841-6678.
Categories: Uncategorized
By: Brad Horner
Forgive me for blogging about NRT Development Advisors’ 1Q10 report for the second time this week, but we have had a lot of discussion in the office regarding what the data says about consumer buying trends and how to reexamine clients’ sales and marketing strategies based upon the report’s findings.
One thing that stands out in the report is the significance of foreclosures in the local real estate market. These bank-owned homes offer great opportunities for buyers to purchase new construction or resale homes at a significant discount. But they also influence the pricing of owner-occupied homes, as a result.
Below are the report’s top five findings about the impact of foreclosed homes in the metro-Atlanta market during 1Q10:
- Foreclosure activity represented 29.7% of the 1,339 new construction single-family sales and 38.6% of the 10,862 resale single-family transactions during 1Q10. Of the resale single-family homes sold below $100K, 53.6% were foreclosures.
- Multi-family resale prices continue to fall and have reached the lowest first quarter average price on record. This decline is likely attributable to an over-supply of multi-family housing and foreclosures, which have an average sales price of $79,094.
- The resale of multi-family and single-family resulted in an 8.3% increase in absorption over 1Q09, while new construction sales declined 17%. This large disparity is most likely due to more aggressive pricing and the number of foreclosures and short sales in the resale market.
- Overall, foreclosure sales in 1Q10 were down when compared to 1Q09 volume, with multi-family new construction foreclosure volume being down by 43%. While the decline in foreclosure volume is a positive sign, it is most likely only temporary as foreclosure notices in the 13-county region climbed to 12,568 in March 2010, the highest figure since September 2009 when there were 12,318 foreclosure notices.
- The FDIC and Fannie Mae are developing disposition strategies, and many experts also believe a substantial amount of delinquent and pre-foreclosure homes are being held back by banks, which could mean foreclosure volume will gain momentum throughout 2010. According to a recent Housing Wire article, analysis of data from Lender Processing Services revealed Georgia has one of the largest discrepancies between delinquent loans and foreclosure inventory (10.5%), possibly resulting a double-dip in housing as delinquent loans move through the pipeline.
Requests for the full report should be sent to Judy Price at Judy.Price@NRTDevelopmentAdvisors.com. Previous reports can be downloaded here.
Categories: Uncategorized
By: Judy Price
In my previous post To Extend Or Not To Extend, I blogged about my belief that the government should extend the first-time homebuyer tax credit. Not only was I listened to, but Americans were also given an expanded credit for those living in a primary residence for more than 5 years. Well, just this past week, I sold my condo (a primary residence of over 5 years) to a first-time home buyer. And how did I do that in this economy, you ask? After doing a thorough analysis of active and sold listings in the market and looking to the success CBNRTDA is having at our on-site communities, I did the following:
• Energy-priced the home so that I was competitive with the market
• Offered an agent incentive (an additional 1% commission)
• Staged the condo so that it always looked like a model home; I even incorporated sound for showings
• Used the extensive internet exposure offered by Coldwell Banker and also invested in regular e-blasts with various messages for the market
• Reached out to local brokers
• Regularly followed-up with prospective buyers
What did I learn from selling my resale condominium in this market? That the tried and true methods CBNRTDA uses each day at our on-site communities are very effective. When I used these same methods, I generating qualified traffic and got the sale. These days, it is a combination of price, exposure and prospecting to go from listing to SOLD!
Categories: First-time homebuyer · NRT Development Advisors · Real Estate · Uncategorized
Tagged: First-time homebuyer, National Association of Realtors
Leslie Williamson
Christine Macrenaris
Maria Mena
Jessica Weston
Amber Cooley
Brad Horner
Collin Ellingson
Bob Romano
Alec String
Judy Price
Meril Missbach
Marty Griffin
Lenny Rindsberg
joanhertz
Holly Rabits
Nancy Keszthelyi