Friday, December 18, 2009

Dropcards

http://www.realtythoughts.com/

As a real estate professional your main focus in business has to be people. Converting those people into clients can be a tedious process which heavily weighs on trust and reputation. In the past the main avenue for getting new leads and networking was handing out business cards whenever possible. With the increase of social networks and the Web 2.0 culture, real estate pros must engage people where they frequent – the web. So I guess you’re wondering what this has to do with business cards? There’s a neat tool I want to share that encompasses both worlds of live interaction and social networking online. It’s called a dropcard, and it allows you to give people you meet your business card via text message or over the web. Not only does it allow you to give your contact and business information, it also enables you to connect with these new contacts via the various social networks you have a presence in.

www.mydropcard.com

By: David

The Mike Webb Team: www.NorthernVirginiaHouses.com

Zillow Home Value Index

Zillow.com has compiled a list of cities that are having the best year-over-year increases in home value. The study included cities with more than 20,000 residents and compared their October 2009 Zillow Home Value Index with it’s 2008 Index. The Zillow Home Value Index measures the median home value in an area. According to the research the cities with the most appreaciation of home values include a few near my hometown of Grand Island, NY in the Buffalo Metro Area. Here’s the top ten (Buffalo Metro Area in bold):

1. Charleston, WV (17.0%)
2. New Orleans, LA (14.2%)
3. Wilmington, DE (13.4%)
4. Amherst, NY (12.5%)
5. West Seneca, NY (11.5%)
6. Mequon, WI (11.4%)
7. Rochester, NY (10.6%)*
8. Cheektowaga, NY (9.8%)
9. Florence, SC (9.7%)
10. North Little Rock, AR (9.0%)

* Near SUNY Brockport where I attended college

By: David

The Mike Webb Team: www.NorthernVirginiaHouses.com

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Best Music From the Past Decade

The latest issue of Rolling Stone includes several lists including the best songs and best albums of the decade. Being an avid music-lover I'm going to list my top 10 favorites from both categories. (Note: Music selected only from R.S. lists)

Favorite Songs from the Past Decade: 1. Crazy (Gnarles Barkley) 2. The Seed 2.0 (The Roots) 3. Welcome to Jamrock (Damian Marley) 4. Paper Planes (M.I.A.) 5. 99 Problems (Jay-Z) 6. Rehab (Amy Winehouse) 7. Hurt (Johnny Cash) 8. B.O.B. (Outkast) 9. Clint Eastwood (Gorillaz) 10. All My Friends (LCD Soundsystem)

Rolling Stone: 100 Best Songs of the Decade

Favorite Albums from the Past Decade: 1. Kid A (Radiohead) 2. Back to Black (Amy Winehouse) 3. Toxicity (System of a Down) 4. Raising Sand (Robert Plant and Alison Krauss) 5. Elephant (White Stripes) 6. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (Wilco) 7. Kala (M.I.A.) 8. Sound of Silver (LCD Soundsystem) 9. The Grey Album (Danger Mouse) 10. The Marshall Mathers LP (Eminem)

Rolling Stone: 100 Best Albums of the Decade

By: David

The Mike Webb Team: http://www.northernvirginiahouses.com/

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

The ATM: The greatest thing since the locked vault

Paul Volcker, the former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman and current chairman of President Obama's Economic Recovery Advisory Board, dropped some heavy news on an audience of some of the world's most senior financiers. He claimed that the ATM was the single most important contribution their industry has made in the last 25 years.

Volcker told delegates at a business conference in Sussex, who had been discussing how to rebuild the financial system, to "wake up". He said credit default swaps and collateralised debt obligations had taken the economy "right to the brink of disaster" and added that the economy had grown at "greater rates of speed" during the 1960s without such products. At least the automated telling machine had at least proved "useful".

New York Times

The Mike Webb Team: www.NorthernVirginiaHouses.com

Monday, December 14, 2009

Real Estate Urban Legend

Courtesy of The Gory Details...of Real Estate:

"Be forewarned -- no, this is not about kidney harvesting, Nigerian Lottery winnings, or Bill Gates giving everyone lots of money for forwarding an email -- there is an email making the rounds titled "HR 2454: CAP AND TRADE ENERGY BILL", which purports that new legislation will require all homes to retroactively pass new energy standards before they are sold.

Some even say that all homes will now be required to get a "label" for your house every year, proving that your home meets new energy standards.

This is all patently and unequivocally FALSE. (and you can even check Snopes.com here to doublecheck)

Firstly, whoever started this email has a serious conspiracy theory complex. They also probably fall into the category of "birther", "teabagger party member", or "Glenn Beck-lover".

Bottom line, our gub'mint is not going to do anything - ANYTHING - that will adversely affect the real estate market, which is absolutely one of the key elements in our ongoing, slow economic recovery. Why do you think they recently overwhelmingly voted to extend the first time buyer $8K tax credit bill, as well as extend the $729K conforming loan limit? They want to encourage people to have more confidence in home ownership.

Anyway, I also consulted our National Association of Realtors (NAR) position on this, and below is what it said. The most revealing statement, which contradicts this email is that this bill "Does not create a federal energy audit requirement for real property".

"The U.S. House of Representatives approved H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act by Reps. Waxman (D‐CA) and Markey (D‐MA). Following NAR’s long‐standing policy to only take a position on legislation, or provisions within legislation that have a direct affect on real estate, NAR worked with our Congressional allies to strip the Energy Bill of provisions that would have adversely affected our industry.

After multiple consultations with the NAR Climate Presidential Advisory Group, the NAR Land Use, Property Rights and Environment Committee, and state associations who had dealt with energy audit legislation at the state level, the Land Use, Property Rights and Environment Committee directed NAR staff to concentrate on the real estate provisions in the bill. As a result, NAR issued calls for action and made this a talking point for Capitol Hill visits during its recent Midyear meeting.

Overall, REALTORS® succeeded in making a number of positive changes affecting the real estate provisions of the bill. The House‐approved bill:

  • Does not create a federal energy audit requirement for real property;

  • Exempts existing homes and buildings from any federal guidelines for new construction energy efficiency information labels.

  • Prohibits the implementation of any labeling during a sales transaction.

  • Leaves the decision to states as to whether to require energy audits, disclosures, etc.

  • Provides property owners with significant financial incentives, matching grants and tools to make property improvements and reduce their energy bills;

  • Prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating residential and commercial buildings under the Clean Air Act;

  • Eliminated an early proposal to allow citizens to sue over minor climate risks under the Clean Air Act; and Establishes green building incentives for HUD housing, including a loan program for renewable energy, block grants and credit for upgrades in mortgage underwriting."

http://gorydetails.typepad.com/the_gory_details/

The Mike Webb Team: http://www.northernvirginiahouses.com/

Friday, December 11, 2009

Rage Against Simon Cowell

London, England (CNN) -- At least half a million Facebookers are raging against Simon Cowell, trying to keep his British TV talent show "The X-Factor" from claiming the number-one spot on the British singles chart on Christmas Day.

They've vowed to download the Rage Against the Machine song "Killing in the Name" starting on Monday to make it the number-one single in the country on the Sunday before Christmas.
It might seem like a frivolous contest, but hundreds of thousands of pounds -- and a place in history -- are at stake.

A Christmas Number One enters the history books, exciting passion, disgust, joy and, yes, rage.
British music fans sometimes take the high road. They put the charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" at the top of the charts three times: First in 1984, then in 1989 and 2004 when anniversary editions came out.

Once upon a time, they got into the spirit of the season -- with "Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer," "Mary's Boy Child," and "When a Child is Born" all topping the charts on Christmas Day in days of yore.

And often they just buy the songs they like, paying no heed to the season's mistletoe and wine. The Beatles topped the Christmas Day chart four times. The Spice Girls claimed the title three times. Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley and Westlife all had Christmas number ones. So did Pink Floyd, with "Another Brick in the Wall." (Merry Christmas, everyone!)

Most infamous of all are the songs that drive you around the bend. Mr. Blobby's single "Mr. Blobby" -- no, really -- was the 1993 chart-topper. The theme song from the kids' show "Bob the Builder" took top honors in 2000. Slapstick comic Benny Hill ruled the charts in 1971 with "Ernie (The Fastest Milkman in the West.)"

And, to the everlasting fury and despair of John Lennon fans, "There's No One Quite Like Grandma," by the St. Winifred's School Choir, claimed the top spot in 1980, weeks after the former Beatle was gunned down, knocking off his "(Just Like) Starting Over."

Historically, there has been a lively business trying make Christmas number ones -- and to predict what they will be, said Rupert Adams of the William Hill betting shop.

"It used to be massive -- five years ago you would have all the big record producers try to get in on the Christmas sales," he said. "Hundreds of thousands of pounds" would be wagered on the results, he added.

Then came Simon Cowell, the flat-topped, smirking, eye-rolling impresario behind "The X-Factor."

Winners of his talent show have taken the top slot for the past four years, and William Hill now runs a separate pool for betting on what will be the number two single -- behind "X-Factor winner," as they generically call it.

Cowell is the unstoppable force in front of which Jon and Tracy Morter are trying to put an immovable object.

"2009 X-Factor is in its final stages and we need to gain more people here to try once again to stop this manufactured crap stealing our national heritage of a CHRISTMAS No.1!!" they say on the page of their Facebook group.

"We were bored of the Christmas Number One being predictable," Tracy Morter said. "When we grew up it was always exciting wondering what it was going to be. (The song) was sometimes rubbish but it was fair."

Now, she said, people are pre-ordering the X-Factor winner's song without even knowing what it is.

They've signed up more than half a million members in a week for a Facebook group dedicated to putting Rage Against the Machine on top of the charts.
Rupert Adams, for one, is taking notice.

"X-Factor winner" still tops his list of most likely chart-toppers -- people who place a £5 bet on it at William Hill will win only £1 if they're right -- but the Morters are at least making it competitive.

Adams -- who runs the William Hill betting, or "book" on the Christmas Number One -- makes Rage Against the Machine the second most likely winner. William Hill will pay out £10 on a £3 bet if "Killing in the Name" takes top honors.

"X-Factor will sell somewhere around 800,000," guaranteed, Adams said. "For Rage Against the Machine, on Monday I would have given you 100 to 1. But since then, there's this Facebook group and they now have half a million members."

The critical question -- and what makes this fun for Adams, he said -- is whether group members will actually shell out money on the song.

"We have absolutely no idea how strong this group is," he said. "Having lots of mates on Facebook doesn't mean you are going to transfer that to sales."

Cowell himself dismissed the campaign as "stupid.

"It's not going to change my life particularly" if the X-Factor winner isn't number one on Christmas, he said at a press conference with the show finalists in London Thursday. "It does, however, change these guys' lives."

Cowell accused the Facebook group of "treating our audience as if they're stupid," and said the Rage Against the Machine movement was "quite a cynical campaign geared at me."
Tracy Morter laughed off the accusation.

"He's going to get his sales anyway -- we're not going to persuade people not to buy it," she said. "People are pre-ordering without even knowing who won."

What she hopes is that people who would not normally buy music will purchase the Rage Against the Machine single -- and donate money to Shelter, a homeless charity, at the same time.

She insisted she did not have a grudge against X-Factor contestants.

"We're not against the contestants in any way. I watch it. I enjoy seeing who's good and who's not," she said.

Cowell proteges are unlikely to spend Christmas unwrapping presents alone, whatever happens.
William Hill lists Susan Boyle as the fourth most likely Christmas chart-topper, at 25-to-1 (behind Walt Disney-backed Miley Cyrus at 20-to-1), and former "X-Factor" winner Leona Lewis as sixth, at 33-to-1.

Just as a reminder of how random the Christmas Number One contenders can be, the Muppets are joint fourth with Boyle, the frumpy Scottish woman who went viral when she sang "I Dreamed a Dream" on Cowell's show earlier this year.

Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson, Take That and George Michael round out the top 10, while number 11 is World War II sweetheart Vera Lynn, whose greatest hits album this year fueled a mini-comeback this year for her -- at age 92.

Whatever the winner, oddsmaker Adams is delighted that the field is once again competitive.
"It could be a bumper year" for betting, he said. "It could be the best year since the X-Factor came onto the scene."

Then again, it might -- just might -- be another year like 1972, when Little Jimmy Osmond topped the charts with "Long Haired Lover From Liverpool."

Facebookers rage against Simon Cowell's Christmas juggernaut

The Mike Webb Team: http://www.northernvirginiahouses.com/

Thursday, December 10, 2009

2010 NHL Winter Classic

There is a game at Fenway Park on New Years Day. However, the Boston Red Sox will not be on the field. It will be their athletic city brethren, the Boston Bruins, taking on the Philadelphia Flyers on an outdoor icerink in the third annual NHL Winter Classic Presented by Bridgestone.

The game, played as a regular season matchup for 2 points, will serve as the NHL's showcase of the year since there will be no NHL All-Star game due to the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

The past Winter Classics were a huge success. The first, colloquially known as the "Ice Bowl", was played in 2008 between the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, NY and seen by 71,217 fans in attendance. The second, between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings, was played this past New Years Day at Wrigley Field.

These games are truly wonderful. Between the size of the crowds, the throwback uniforms, and the amazing visuals there is so much to love about the Winter Classic. Being an outdoor event, it harkens back to a simpler time for the old-timey traditionalists, which hockey has plenty of. But it's also something kids can get a kick out of; many children laugh at the tuque's worn by the goalies to keep their heads warm.

The ice-truck is on it's way to Fenway as I write this and construction on the rink will begin within the week. I can't wait to view the sights and hear the sounds of this years Winter Classic on New Years Day.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/eventhome.htm?location=/winterclassic/2010

The Mike Webb Team: http://www.northernvirginiahouses.com/