How to Get More Accurate Appraisals

Low appraisals have been blamed on delaying—or even canceling—many real estate transactions over the last few years. While real estate professionals are limited in how much involvement they can have in the appraisal process, they can do a few important things to help ensure their sellers receive a fair valuation.

1. Be there. Appraisers and other real estate agents say that being present at the home’s appraisal is important. Agents can respond to any possible questions the appraiser might have as he or she is valuing the property. However, agents need to make sure they don’t overstep their boundaries. Rules limit contact between agents and appraisers.
2. Provide extra information. Michael Citron of Coconut Creek, Fla., says he gives appraisers packages of information that include comparable sales as well as a list of the home’s upgrades and amenities within the development. Others also recommend that any information include the dates that renovations took place, permits for additions, and even receipts for the work (if available).

“You don’t want things to be missed that may result in a higher value,” says appraiser Scott Dooley in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Source: “How-to Make Sure a Home Is Appraised Accurately,” RISMdia (July 28, 2012)

Marketing Tips for Tried and True Print Media

Social media is grabbing the attention of more and more of today's real estate agents, but it has not diminished the importance of reaching potential clients via well thought out print media.
The benefits of online marketing can be enhanced with "touch and feel" print strategies that give customers a more organic and real experience when buying a home through an agent.
In order to tap the potential of print marketing, practitioners must establish a brand identity that takes into consideration their unique selling proposition as well as their target audience. A solid brand identity will help agents to create a logo that represents them best — which, in turn, will be featured prominently on all of the print products used in the agent's marketing campaign. Those materials will include business cards, which agents should carry at all times since potential clients are anywhere and everywhere, as well as brochures and postcards. Yard signs and banners, which should feature the agent's image along with his or her contact information and the status of the property, are other resources.
Additionally, agents should regularly dispatch direct mails notifying recipients of current promotions or open houses. Mailing services that target specific audiences ensure that only people who are interested receive the material, making it more likely that they will not only read the content but also respond to the call to action.
Source: "Refining Your Real Estate Marketing Using Print Media" Business2Community (07/20/12) & Information, Inc.

Balancing Act: Body language can shape workplace image

Sitting around the table for the first time with a new client, Jane Snell found herself getting more and more frustrated. Although she owns her Coconut Creek construction company, JS-1 Construction, the half-dozen men seated around the table were addressing their questions and comments to her male assistant. It wasn’t until days later that she discovered where she had gone wrong: her smile.

“The way I was grinning said ‘administrative assistant,’ not ‘owner,’ “ Snell said.

Our posture, our facial expressions, even the placement of our legs can speak volumes about what we’re conveying in the workplace. We can put in hours networking or working late and then blow our image as confident experts by sending a different message with something as simple as a smile.

Sharon Sayler, body language expert and owner of Competitive Edge Communications, educates women and men about the hidden nonverbal statements in business that can ruin a deal, diminish credibility, even create doubt about capability. In workplaces with increasing diversity, age differences and cultural peculiarities, what you’re saying with your eyes, feet and hands could be as game-changing as what comes out of your mouth.

“There are a lot of nuances to what’s being sent unintentionally,” Sayler said. “We need to understand messages we’re sending and be strategic. When you’re not getting the response you want, you need to think about why.”

For example, women are too quick to smile, she said. “Executives rarely smile, so if a male executive sees you smiling like a joker, he will think you must be the assistant.” Instead, she advises being strategic. “When someone introduces himself and says his name, that’s when you smile and say, ‘Happy to meet you.’ “

Inez Romaguera, a South Florida employee benefits broker, recently learned she, too, was sending the wrong message with her body language. Romaguera, owner of Strategic Benefits, wears heels as part of her work attire. Locked in a conversation with a shorter male, she typically would shift her feet to appear less intimidating. “It was taking away my power and making me seem less confident.”

Romaguera says she now stands with her feet apart and firmly planted as she networks and make presentations. “There are subtle things we don’t notice we’re doing that apply to business owners because we do so much networking.”

Sayler says the worst gaffes usually involve our chin and feet. In workplace situations where there are height differences, keep your chin parallel to the ground, she advises. It may require taking a step back. Tilting your chin up or down could cause you to come across as snooty or timid, she says: “Either way, it does not say leadership.” Also, a head tilt, even to make eye contact, creates a shrill voice pattern, which could make someone come across as a whiner and diminishes authority.

Anything other than a stance with both feet firmly on the floor could send the message you’re off balance, personally or professionally, she says. And, if you want someone to know you’re interested and listening, make sure feet are pointed toward him or her. If you’re the speaker and someone’s feet are pointed toward the door, it’s a message they’re ready to make an exit, she says.

Sayler says one client was exacerbating the rough patch he hit in business. Slouched shoulders, shuffling feet and tucked-down chin gave the appearance to others of being beaten down: “It was affecting how his clients saw him, and it was affecting how he saw himself.”

David Dorr of Dorr Asset Management of Miami says personal coaching brought his unintended messages to the fore. He hadn’t realized he was racing through financial presentations to clients without taking breaths, sending the message he wasn’t speaking with authority. “I was telling them about how they should invest but I was losing their attention because I wasn’t giving them time to digest.”

Dorr began to watch the body language of others he felt had a powerful presence. “Nine out of 10 times they were breathing between sentences. It’s something small, but it might have changed a deal or cost me an opportunity.”

Now, more attuned to body language, Dorr finds himself watching the small cues others give him when he speaks. “I watch the way they shift their feet or eyes and I think, ‘Maybe I shouldn’t waste more time here.’ “

Body language expert Carol Kinsey Goman says even leaders have to be careful with what they might inadvertently be saying through posture. Goman, author of “The Silent Language of Leaders,” says a leader’s natural sitting position – expanding with hands behind head, elbows wide and legs loosely crossed – could undermine his efforts in leading collaborative teams. “If you’re sending the message that you’re the boss who has all the answers, why would anyone else need – or dare – to contribute?”

Goman says most people don’t realize, “one small nonverbal signal can change the dynamics of an entire business interaction.”

Snell, of JS-1 Construction, says she, for one, now realizes it.

Source: The Miami Herald. Distributed by MCT Information Services.

Florida’s Realtors make more money, plan to stay

For the first time in several years, the median gross income of Realtors rose from the previous year. The typical income among members was $34,900 in 2011 compared to $34,100 in 2010, while Realtors in Florida made only slightly less – $34,600. Overall, the 2012 Florida Realtors’ 2012 Member Profile, compiled by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), suggests a turnaround in the industry.

While housing prices have declined in Florida, the state’s agents are slightly busier than their cohorts throughput the U.S. The typical Florida agents had 11 transactions, while the number was only 10 nationally.

The report compares Florida membership characteristics to Realtors nationally. Highlights specific to Florida include:

• 68 percent of Florida Realtors members were licensed as sales agents (U.S.: 57 percent) and 73 percent specialize in residential brokerage.

• The typical Realtor has 10 years experience (U.S.: 11 percent).

• 59 percent of Realtors have had a website for at least five years; a little more than 1 in 10 members have a real estate blog and 61 percent of members in Florida use social media.

• 80 percent of Florida members are “very certain” they will remain in the business for two more years.

Business activity

• The typical Florida agent had three transactions that involved a short sale and three foreclosures; nationally, agents had only one short sale and one foreclosure transaction.

• 28 percent of members cite “difficulty in obtaining mortgage financing” as the top limitation to growing their number of clients.

• Most Realtors work 40 hours per week both in Florida and nationally.

• Realtors in Florida spend a median of $240 annually to maintain a website.

• Florida’s Realtors’ websites typically brought in five inquiries and 5 percent of their business (U.S.: four inquiries and 3 percent of business).

Income and expenses

• 72 percent of Florida respondents said their compensation was in the form of a commission percentage split.

• The typical business expense paid was $4,030 (U.S.: $4,520).

• Biggest single expense: Vehicles at $1,830. (U.S.: $1,770 – about a 5 percent yearly increase).

Office and firm affiliation

• 64 percent of state Realtors are affiliated with an independent company. (U.S.: 59 percent).

• Typical size of a Florida firm: 22 agents and brokers (U.S.: 23).

• 66 percent of Realtors receive no benefits from their firm. (U.S.: 72 percent).

Demographics

• The typical state Realtor is 55 – younger by a year than the 56-year old typical national Realtor.

• 60 percent of Realtors are female. (U.S.: 61 percent).

• 77 percent say real estate is their only occupation, rising to 85 percent for members with more than 16 years experience. (U.S.: 76 percent and 84 percent, respectively).

• Median gross income for a Realtor’s entire household in Florida: $84,600 in 2011. (U.S.: $94,100, up 2.6 percent from 2010).

• 87 percent own their own home (89 percent nationally).

The complete 2012 Florida Realtors Member Profile can be found on Florida Realtors’ website on the research page.

© 2012 Florida Realtors®

Personal Information, Password Theft on the Rise

Hacked personal information online, including stolen passwords, has soared 300 percent during the first four months of 2012, according to a study by Experian CreditExpert and Opinion Matters.
Twelve million pieces of personal information were illegally sold to cybercriminals during that timeframe, with the bulk of the hacked information containing login details and passwords for personal accounts.
"The reason password and login combinations make up nine out of ten illegally traded pieces of data is because they give access to a huge amount of other valuable information, such as address books and related accounts," Peter Turner, managing director at Experian Consumer Services in the UK and Ireland, told The Tech Spot.
One thing putting some people more at risk from hackers is that they use the same password for all of their online accounts, or they have five or less of the same passwords that they use over and over again. Security experts suggest having a different password for each account you have. They also recommend that passwords contain at least eight characters with a mix of upper and lower case letters, numbers, and special characters.
Source: "Experian: Password Theft Soars 300% to 12 Million in First Quarter,” TechSpot (July 18, 2012)

Is Instagram Real Estate's Next Frontier?

The Instagram app makes it easy for amateur photographers with smartphones to create works of art. Some real estate firms are taking advantage of the app's popularity and using it to accentuate their listings.
Instagram offers numerous filters, with the home's appearance and the targeted audience determining which one will help it sell. Buyers who are cynical about real estate photos will appreciate images without a filter, while homes with a rustic feel, natural wood siding, or adobe walls could benefit from the sepia filter, Toaster. Meanwhile, the black and white filter, Inkwell, could help emphasize the elegance and strong lines of modern and postmodern homes or those with underwhelming exterior colors.
Featuring a purplish tint, the Nashville filter will attract buyers who like movies and want to imagine living in one; and the 1977 retro filter with white border would work well with ranch and vacation-style lake homes.
Source: "Is Instagram Real Estate's Next Frontier?" Fox News (07/14/12) & Information Inc.

Simple tools make smartphone videos shine

With more than 365 million Apple mobile devices (iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch) and 350 million Android devices in consumers’ hands, it’s easy to say that more folks have access to a video camera than ever before.

But how to take advantage of the surprisingly robust video features offered by the mobile devices? It’s a question many are grappling with, as they produce shaky videos with poor sound that don’t look as polished as some of the best work on YouTube and Facebook.

There are easy solutions.

In a nutshell, steady the image and improve the sound, and you’re halfway home. The good news: You don’t need a big video camera anymore to get great videos. The cameras in smartphones have so improved that with a little thought and some tools, you can make great-looking work.

Here’s what you need:

Stabilizers

Studio Neat Glif ($20) connects your smartphone to a tripod. If you don’t have a tripod, you can skip that step and pay $40 for Joby’s Gorrillamobile. The phone fits directly onto the portable tripod with bendable legs. You could put the unit on a table, for instance, or bend it onto the back of a chair. A bracket can also help – try the $10 Heavy Duty L-bracket from photo retailer Adorama. With this, you can add a light as well.

Musicians have turned to IK Multimedia’s $40 iKlip as a way to hold their iPad on microphone stands, to easily turn the pages of their sheet music at gigs when performing. The iKlip also works great for video: Place the iPad into the unit and start recording high-def video without having to worry about shaky images.

Tip: A word of caution for all three devices – remember to shoot in horizontal mode. When you flip the screens vertically, you only record part of the image – which looks OK for photos but terrible for video.

Sound

The audio from the internal microphones on the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch is terrible. There are simple solutions to dramatically improve your audio, and while they’re not cheap, they will make a huge difference in your videos.

You have three options: a microphone, a cable to connect the mike to the iPhone or an audio recorder.

• Mike cables. Action Life Media has a $29.99 cable that will hook a microphone with a connection directly into the iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad’s headphone input. The company also sells cable connectors for higher-end mikes with XLR inputs.

• Microphones. If you’re looking to do an interview with Grandma about her early days or a chat with your son about this weekend’s soccer game, you could buy the same kind of mike you see folks wearing every day on TV – a lavaliere mike that hangs on their lapel. Mikes aren’t cheap, but you could start with an entry-level model from the likes of RadioShack, which offers one for just $39.99. Another option: IK Multimedia’s iRig Cast is a small $39.99 mike that plugs directly into the iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad. It will do wonders in relatively quiet rooms, but in a crowd – such as a party or bar – it won’t make much of a difference.

• Audio recorder. My favorite go-to device is the $299 Zoom H4n audio recorder. You can plug two microphones directly into it (great for interviews) and also make use of its two, excellent internal microphones as well, which, if they’re placed close enough to you in a quiet room, will sound just as good as the lavaliere mike. (The audio won’t go directly to the camera – you’ll have to marry it with your video file when you start editing. The easiest way is to make your own “Clapper,” the tool that’s been used at the beginning of movies since the Charlie Chaplin era. Just clap your hands when you start recording – or use an app, as described at right.) If $299 is too steep, consider Zoom’s entry-level model. The H1 sells for about $100 and has one mike input and one internal mike.

Tip: Before you start recording, don’t forget to turn on the Airplane Mode in general settings – otherwise an incoming call could cancel out what you’re doing.

Source: USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc., Jefferson Graham

Improve Your Smartphone Camera Photos

Smartphones offer convenience when you need to take a quick photo on the go.
While you wouldn’t want to shoot all your listing photos using your phone, you may find times where you need to take a quick photo for a client and you don’t have your camera with you. Is there a way to snap-and-send from your phone while still having it look professional?
“You need to approach [phone] photography as photography; a good photo is a good photo no matter what equipment you take it with,” Adam Bronkhorst, a professional photographer and author of “SnApp Shots,” told The New York Times.
Bronkhorst offers a few tips on improving your phone photos:
▪ Pay attention to your framing: Do a close-up to showcase an important element in the photo, Bronkhorst says. “If the background is distracting, you can change your angle slightly,” Bronkhorst says. “If it doesn’t add anything to the photo it shouldn’t be in the photo.”
▪ Watch the lighting: The phone’s small lens makes it difficult for enough light to squeeze through in photos and can making taking photos indoors difficult. Bronkhorst suggests not using the harsh flash on the phone, but finding another light source — even another phone — that could come in from the side for extra light. Also, he says most phones have adjust settings for your focal point in a photo. So if your focal point isn’t properly exposed — with many phones — all you have to do is touch it on the phone screen before shooting the photo and it will automatically adjust.
▪ Use editing software afterwards: Your photos may need to be touched-up a bit after you snap a photo with your phone to hide any flaws and make the photo look more “artful,” Bronkhorst says. Bronkhorst recommends using Instagram’s Amaro filter and bringing the saturation in the photo down to wash it out a bit.
Get more camera photo tips at The New York Times.
Source: “Four Tips to Better Phone Camera Shots,” The New York Times (July 2, 2012)

Tablet wars heat up with mini iPad

Apple is building a miniature iPad to rival Amazon’s Kindle Fire and Google’s new Nexus 7 tablet, as a battle royal over tablet computers shapes up among technology’s biggest names.

Apple, the world’s most valuable company, is moving toward mass production of smaller iPads, according to industry tracker DisplaySearch. The move comes as Amazon quietly preps its next Kindle Fire. Both are expected to be released ahead of the holidays.

Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller declined to comment.

The race to build book-size tablets is driven by consumer desire for greater portability. But the world is going bonkers for tablets of all shapes and sizes. IDC forecasts that by 2016 there will be 222 million tablets shipped worldwide, and 61 percent of those will be sold by Apple.

Google just last week launched its 7-inch Nexus 7, available for pre-order, and expanded the number of movie, TV, music and e-books available from its online Google Play store. Meanwhile, Microsoft last month unveiled its Surface tablets sporting a supersize 10.6-inch screen vs. the iPad’s 9.7-inch one.

“There’s going to be a ton of choices for consumers by the fourth quarter,” IDC analyst Tom Mainelli says.

Yet each company – Apple, Amazon, Google and Microsoft – courts tablet buyers for different reasons, besides selling the devices themselves, analysts say. Microsoft wants its profitable Windows operating system, built into the Surface tablets, to live on among the mobile masses.

Google, which depends on ad revenue, wants the Nexus 7 to be a magnet for more ads.

Amazon subsidizes its tablet and uses it mainly as a way to sell books and other products from its online stores. Apple uses its popular iTunes Store as a lure to sell its iPad at a premium.

Apple’s smaller iPad, sporting a 7.85-inch screen, is expected to be assembled in time for an October stage debut. “We’re starting to see more concrete evidence that it’s going to be produced” in that time frame, DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim says.

Apple’s iPad scaled down from its current screen size would be a potent rival to other small tablets, including Barnes & Noble’s Nook Color. A mini iPad would also add more luster to the evolving market for lower-cost media-consuming tablets that fit in the hand.

The Kindle Fire is the No. 2 best-selling individual tablet on the market. Samsung actually sells more tablets overall but has no individual unit as hot as the Fire.

The next Kindle Fire, which gains a camera, is going into “mass production now” and is expected to be very similar to the Nexus 7, says Shim. “They’re still in the early stages of their growth.”

Whether a smaller Apple tablet would match the lower $199 price point of the Kindle Fire remains to be seen. Estimates for a smaller iPad are closer to $299.

“People would spend $299 for an iPad over a Kindle Fire,” Mainelli says.

The mini iPad is expected to be manufactured at the Foxconn factory in China, where iPhones and current iPads are made. It isn’t expected to share the higher-resolution “Retina display” of the newest iPad. Few other details are known.

Contributing: Edward C. Baig

Source: USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc., Scott Martin

How Agents Are Investing in Their Business

Real estate professionals are investing in a number of tools to expand their reach to customers.
According to a new survey by ActiveRain of 2,000 real estate agents, 63 percent of repondents say they have their own Internet Data Exchange (IDX) Web site, which features home listing feeds from their MLS. Their average expenditure on an IDX Web site is $75 per month, according to survey respondents.
Additionally, 62 percent say they use tools that help them create comparative market analyses for clients (a $73 per month expenditure, on average), and 51 percent use customer relationship management software (a $46 average monthly expenditure) to help manage their customer leads.
The survey also found many agents still use direct mail for their outreach too. Forty percent say they rely on direct mail ($108 monthly expenditure), while about 45 percent say they use search-engine optimization, blogging, and social media (a $47 average monthly expenditure) for their real estate marketing efforts.
Also, 32 percent of respondents say they pay for online leads (a $155 monthly expenditure, on average).
Source: ActiveRain and “Most Agents Investing in IDX Web sites,” Inman News (July 3, 2012)

Prevent Short Sale Delays, Double-Check Paperwork

Under new rules that took effect June 15, underwater borrowers with Freddie Mac- or Fannie Mae-backed loans who sell their homes in a short sale now will receive decisions on whether their short sale is approved from lenders within 60 business days.
The new guidelines are viewed as a way to speed the short sale process, which once averaged eight months, according to RealtyTrac. The long wait often had buyers walking away from the deals.
But despite the faster deadlines now in place, the process can still be prolonged if all the necessary paperwork isn’t submitted to the lender, even if just a photocopy of a borrower’s driver’s license is missing. One missing piece of paperwork could cause borrowers to have to start the submission process all over again and prolong the wait, banks say.
"The way short sales are packaged and presented by real estate agents is more than half the battle," Ed Delgado, who trains agents how to package short sales, told the Chicago Tribune. "The more agents understand about how the process works, the fewer the delays and the faster the closings."
One critical document in the short sale package: The hardship letter. In this letter, home owners explain why they need to short sell the property.
"You don't need a novel ... Be precise; be clear," says Karen Mayfield, national sales manager at Bank of the West in San Francisco. "Offer a bullet-point list in your own hand of the events that led to your hardship. If the lender can't understand how you got into trouble, he may close your file and move on to the next one. Or he may suspect you are trying to pull a fast one."
Lenders also likely require tax returns for the last two years, bank statements for two to six months, pay stubs for the last 60 days, proof of residency (such as a paid utility bill), a listing agreement, and a third-party authorization allowing the bank to work with the real estate agent.
Sales trainer Gee Dunsten says he advises agents to bind all of these required documents together with a cover letter and table of contents that clearly lists everything included to let lenders know right away everything is there. Dunsten also says he writes a personal letter to the lender that explains the details of the transaction.
"When it comes to short sales, the devil truly is in the details," Dunsten says.
Source: “It Pays to be Proactive in a Short Sale,” Chicago Tribune (June 22, 2012)