New U.S. homes sold at an annual rate of 481,000 in January, little changed from December’s revised figure, the government said Wednesday. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast sales to fall to a seasonally adjusted 467,000 from a revised 482,000 in the final month of 2014.
read more…
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/new-us-home-sales-flat-at-481000-annual-pace-in-january-2015-02-25
Pending home sales slightly improved in November and are above year-over-year levels for the third straight month, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). All major regions except for the Midwest experienced a slight gain in activity in November.
The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI), NAR’s forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, increased 0.8% to 104.8 in November from a slightly downwardly revised 104 in October and is now 4.1% above November 2013 (100.7) – the highest year-over-year gain since August 2013 (5.6%).
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said signed contracts inched forward in November and have been fairly stable but haven’t broken out even as the economy picked up steam this spring.
“The consistent economic growth and steady hiring we’ve seen the second half of this year is giving buyers enough assurance to consider purchasing a home before year’s end,” he said. “With rents now rising at a seven-year high, historically low rates and moderating price growth are likely to entice more buyers to enter the market in upcoming months.”
Yun also noted that falling gas prices will likely boost consumer confidence and allow prospective buyers the opportunity to save additional money for a down payment. NAR’s 2014 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers (released in November) found that the median down payment ranged from 6% for first-time buyers to 13% for repeat buyers.
“There’s still misperception out there that a much higher down payment is needed, while that’s not the reality,” added Yun.
read more…
http://www.mpamag.com/real-estate/buyer-confidence-keeps-pending-home-sales-growing-20872.aspx
Mortgage rates for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages dropped for the second week in a row, according to Zillow (Z).
Borrowers were quoted on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace at 4.2%, down from 4.25% at this same time last week.
The 30-year, FRM rate peaked on Wednesday at 4.28% before falling to 4.2% over the weekend.
“Last week mortgage rates dipped after Friday’s job report which, while fairly strong, failed to meet the market’s expectations,” said Erin Lantz, vice president of mortgages at Zillow. “This week, we expect rates to remain about where they are now, and aren’t anticipating any market-moving surprises with the release of the Federal Open Market Committee minutes from the March meeting.”
The 15-year, FRM Tuesday morning was 3.17% and for 5/1 ARMs, the rate was 2.86%.
http://www.housingwire.com/articles/29604-zillow-30-year-frms-drop-for-second-week-in-a-row
Americans are a restless bunch. They change locations with a frequency that would tire a migrating songbird.
But there is more to moving day than unpacking boxes; there’s also learning to care for that garden inherited with the new home.
If you were thinking ahead, you asked for an inventory of the plants and accessories that came with the house.
“There’s no problem with asking owners for a list of landscape items and for an explanation about the plantings,” said Shirley French, an agent with the Woodstock, Va., office of Funkhouser Real Estate Group. “Usually, the owners are more than happy to give you a list. In fact, if they know the purchasers are interested, that will make for good feelings on both sides.”
Gardening priorities are determined mostly by the seasons. You won’t be mowing the lawn in February, although you might be combing the seed catalogs.
But where to start with a newly purchased property?
Michael Becker, president of Estate Gardeners Inc. in Omaha, Neb., suggests that putting safety first.
“Check out the dangers,” said Becker, a spokesman for Planet, the Professional Landcare Network that certifies green industry professionals. “Are the retaining walls stable? Are any trees leaning or diseased with dead branches?
http://news.yahoo.com/home-tips-getting-know-garden-144102428.html
Do you use your Facebook personal profile to build business relationships?
Have you considered using Facebook voice messages to connect with your customers?
If you connect with customers on your personal profile, you can use Facebook voice messages with great success.
In this article, I’ll show you four ways Facebook voice messages can benefit your business.
Facebook voice messages are 60-second audio messages you record from an iOS or Android smartphone/tablet and send to friends and followers whom you’ve followed back.
To send Facebook voice messages, simply open a new message using the Facebook mobile app or the Facebook Messenger app.
From an Android phone, press the paperclip to open a blank voice message. From an iOS device, press the microphone.
When your blank message is opened, press and hold the red button to record. When you’re done recording, let go of the button and click Done to send your recording.
When a voice message is received, a playback box appears in the recipient’s Chat or Message window. They just click the arrow to listen!
Now that you have a better understanding of what Facebook voice messages are and how you access them, let’s see how you can use them to benefit your business.
When you’ve hit the magic 5,000-friend limit, the only way to connect with more people from your profile is to allow them to follow you.
One way to leverage personal connections with Facebook voice messages is to follow your followers.
To find your followers, go to the About tab on your profile. Scroll down to your Friends box and click on Followers.
Follow a few of your newest followers, then thank each of them for connecting with you with a short voice message. You might also use the opportunity to let them know about your website, Facebook page or any of your other social media channels.
Sending a personalized voice message to new followers will let them know you notice them and help you develop a deeper relationship with them.
If you receive a lot of questions, it can be difficult to keep up with the volume that comes through.
When you receive the same question from several people, use Facebook voice messages to record the answer once and deliver it to each person at the same time. Not only is this faster than typing individual text-based replies, it makes things more personal and you solve their problem with one effort!
If someone posts a question about something you answered in your ebook, send a Facebook voice message with a link to a free version of the ebook and mention where the answer is located.
It’s easy to become a go-to resource when you use personal voice messages to answer questions from your community.
If you’re a public figure, most of your fans rarely get the opportunity to connect with or meet you in person. Facebook might be the closest they get to interacting with you.
Use voice messages to surprise a few of your business connections with a free product and a personalized recording from the CEO.
Personal voice messages have greater impact than generic emails or posts. Image source: iStockphoto
A series of surprise voice messages to share free products with people helps you create enthusiastic brand ambassadors.
Nobody feels special when they receive a discount that’s offered to everyone, but they do feel special when they receive a personal offer that’s created just for them.
Send targeted Facebook voice messages to promote exclusive deals to your community members.
When you notice a particular customer has longstanding loyalty to a product or service you offer, send a voice message and offer a truly exclusive discount on that product. Or a sneak preview of a new product!
Not only does this keep your customer excited about your products, but it also empowers him or her to tell friends about your business as well.
Personalize exclusive offers for specific voice message recipients. Image source: iStockphoto
Targeted deals are a great way to reward your loyal customers and drive awareness for your business at the same time.
Use Facebook Voice Messages Wisely
Remember, just because you can send Facebook voice messages to all your connections doesn’t mean you should go overboard. Send out too many and you risk being viewed as a spammer and that bad reputation will reflect negatively on your business and the services you provide.
Instead, use Facebook voice messages strategically to make a good impression with individual members of your community, become a valuable resource and build loyalty with your fans.
New York City zip code 10013 – which includes posh neighborhoods such as Tribeca and Soho — saw 45 sales of $5 million or more in the year ending June 30, making it the second-priciest zip code in the country. Six of those sales were for $10 million or more, according to new data from Trulia.
Beverly Hills, which has the iconic 90210 zip code, took the top spot, with 80 sales of $5 million or more.
But 10013 was the only New York City zip code that made the top 10 list, according to CNNMoney. Indeed, Florida and California, with swanky neighborhoods such as Newport Coast (92657) and Miami Beach (33139) dominated the top 10.
Tribeca is also one of the city’s priciest rental markets, with one-bedrooms in the neighborhood ringing in at just shy of a median of $4,000 per month, according to Zumper. The nabe is closely followed by the West Village at $3,600 and Chelsea at $3,575.
How often should real estate agents post to their Facebook business page?
Oh boy. People have definite opinions on this subject. The thing is, they are opinions.
Opinions based on personal biases. Opinions based on personal preferences. Opinions based on statistical evidence?
In at least half of the cases, no. I’m seeing “experts” spouting advice on posting frequency from all over the spectrum, including: no more than once a week no more than three days a week daily multiple times a day Frankly, in my opinion (you knew you’d get it from me, right?), real estate agents should stick to statistical facts, not individual preferences, when it comes to posting frequency.
And honestly, real estate agents think they overcontact people when, in fact, they grossly undercontact people. The thing is, when it comes to Facebook posting frequency, there are multiple elements involved.
How often Facebook puts your posts into your followers news feeds
– See more at: http://www.inman.com/next/make-posting-to-facebook-business-page-a-daily-habit-to-drive-engagement-leads/#sthash.aV7AUMRi.dpuf
The national housing market is by most measures recovering at a healthy clip. Home prices in some of the hardest-hit markets — places like Reno, Nev., and Phoenix, Ariz. — were up by more than 30% in the third quarter of this year, compared to the same period last year. But while many cities have seen housing market activity heat up, others that were recently among the hottest in the nation have cooled off.
Realtor.com’s Quarterly Turnaround Towns Report measures the strength of the recovery in the nation’s large housing markets. The site ranked the markets with the biggest declines in inventory and inventory age, and the biggest increases in home prices, as markets leading the nation’s recovery in growth and demand. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the eight metropolitan areas that were, according to Realtor.com’s rank, among the hottest markets in the country at the beginning of the year, but as of the third quarter have cooled down considerably.
Many of these markets were among the hardest hit by the housing crisis. Cities like Lakeland, Fla., Reno, Nev., and Bakersfield, Calif., had homes lose more than half their value during the collapse. As Alison Schwartz, vice president at Realtor.com, explained, it is not surprising that these markets were among the hottest at the beginning of this year. “Markets that were significantly impacted by the housing crisis have further to accelerate in order to get back to equilibrium conditions — whereas, markets that were less affected by the housing crisis have less room for acceleration.”
It appears, however, that the rapid recovery in these markets has slowed.
One of the most obvious indicators of a cooling housing market is a slowing of home price growth. In places like Ventura, Calif., and Orlando, Fla., home prices rose by roughly 25% last year. But in the most recent quarter, prices rose by just 2.1% and 0.5%, respectively. In all but one of the hot housing markets that are now cooling off, home prices were up 7% or more in the second quarter of this year. Last quarter, however, most rose only 2% or less. In Orlando, home prices climbed 10% in the second quarter but did not grow at all last quarter.
Is Google+ working for your business?
Are you wondering how to increase engagement with your Google+ community?
Google+ is designed to focus on one thing and one thing only: engagement.
So, how can you pump up your Google+ engagement?
In this post, you’ll discover six ways to use Google+ posts to stimulate activity.
You’ll first want to help your content stand out by differentiating the formatting. Instead of publishing a boring block of text, add a little formatting variety to your next Google+ post.
Unlike Facebook, it’s generally acceptable to have longer posts on Google+. If you publish a long post, remember that dense text can be a turnoff for readers. Use appropriate line spacing and paragraph breaks to make it easy for readers to scan your content.
Use bold, italic and strike-through text to highlight important headings or passages and your post will stand out in the stream.
Here are some handy tips for text formatting in Google+.
Google+ lets you format text in your posts.
Don’t underestimate the importance of images. Stimulating graphics directly impact the click through rates on your posts.
When you post an image, choose one that has vibrant pictures with bright, eye-catching color contrasts as seen in this Etsy image.
Example of a visually engaging image on an Etsy Google+ post.
Instead of using the thumbnail images that auto-generate when you drop a link into your status update, upload a standard-size image to grab your readers’ attention.
National Geographic used this tactic to command more attention in the news feed.
Example of a full-size image on a National Geographic Google+ post.
And if you have great photography, use HUGE high-resolution images, which are much larger than standard-size images. Upload the original image resolution of your photo (e.g., 4288 x 2848), but remember that uploads count against your Google Drive storage quota.
Take advantage of this feature and your post will dominate the news feed like Mercedes-Benz does.
http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/maximum-engagement-on-google-plus/
Commercial design comes with its own set of challenges, and at 4’ by 8’, the dimensions of these engineered panels offer a handy solution for contract interiors, particularly in retail applications.
The premade three-ply architectural panels from Viridian Reclaimed Wood feature reclaimed wood faces, including the company’s Jakarta Market Blend and Rustic Old Growth Doug Fir.
The panels are available fire-rated, custom-stained, and pre-finished. Custom graphics and CNC milling can be applied to each panel. viridianwood.com
