June 1 2009 Carnival of Real Estate is Here!

Welcome to the June 1, 2009 edition of carnival of real estate.

A lot of people like reading Top 10 lists and I was intending to do a Top 10 list, however this week I didn’t feel like there were 10 submissions worth sharing with you all so here is my:

Top 9 Post Submissions

#1 – Reminding us that real estate is always local and showing us why
Tallahassee Real Estate presents Killearn Lakes Unit 1 Home Prices Holding posted at Tallahassee Real Estate Blog, saying, “A classic example of why most real estate reports are flawed. They lead you to believe that prices are going up or prices are going down, solely based upon the movement of the average sales price. This article shows why it is possible for the average home price to go up, while real home values are dropping.”

#2 – A variation on the same theme
Danilo Bogdnaovic presents Best Condo Investment Opportunities in Loudoun, Fairfax County posted at Loudoun Foreclosures, saying, “Though this post is hyper-local, the reasoning/logic behind it holds true throughout the US and should be considered by all agents and real estate investors (imho).”

#3 – Multiple offers are everywhere today (at least in my market) and we all need to bone up on our sales skills
Dan Melson presents I’m Competing Against Multiple Offers. How Do I Proceed? posted at Searchlight Crusade.

#4 – I too have many objections to Case-Shiller… check out my association’s data for some examples of better info: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Dan Green presents Why The March 2009 Case-Shiller Home Price Index Is Good News For Housing posted at The Mortgage Reports, saying, “To economists, the Case-Shiller Index is helpful. To homeowners, it’s almost worthless.”

#5 – Foreclosures impact many families… each house foreclosed means a family affected
Donna Johnston presents “Mommie are we going to have to move?” posted at Talk Charlotte Real Estate Blog, saying, “This hits me right in my heart.”

#6 – This is a little bit of a “duh” post but hey…
Jim Reppond presents What social networks are agents marketing on? posted at The Seattle Specialist, saying, “Internal Top Producer poll that suggests most agents are now using social media to promote their listings – especially Facebook.”

#7 – MI is deductible but sometimes there are better options
NetBiz presents How To Avoid Paying PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) posted at Your Finish Rich Plan, saying, “List of ways you can void paying for PMI, thus lowering your monthly mortgage payments”

#8 – Green building is increasing in my market, how about yours?
Mark Donovan presents Definition Green Building Product posted at HomeAdditionPlus, saying, “Green home building is a phrase that is often overused and misunderstood. In this article Mark Donovan discusses the process of assessing whether or not a green home building product is truly green for your particular green custom home building project.”

#9 – There’s a sucker refinanced every minute…
nickel presents Beware the “No-Cost” Mortgage Refinance posted at fivecentnickel.com.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of carnival of real estate using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: carnival of real estate, blog carnival.

Posted by Aaron Dickinson - Edina Realty on 06-01-2009 at 09:06 am
Posted in General, Info for Buyers, Info for Sellers with 1 Comment

Edina Realty Title is Hiring!

Edina Realty Title is currently looking for multiple people throughout the metro area for full time permanent and temporary work. If you have interest and experience in this area, let me know!

Posted by Aaron Dickinson - Edina Realty on 04-20-2009 at 12:04 pm
Posted in General with 0 Comments

Minesota Housing Finance Agency Needs Your Help!

Minnesota Housing eNews Alert   April 15, 2009   Homeownership Assistance Funding Cut – Immediate Response Needed! Today, the House Housing Policy and Finance and Public Health Finance Division adopted an amendment to the budget bill that reduces the funding for the Minnesota Housing Homeownership Assistance Fund (HAF) by approximately two-thirds over the next two years to only $300,000 per year.  Currently, the program appropriation is $885,000 per year.  HAF is an essential part of the first-time homebuyer programs offered at Minnesota Housing and provides the opportunity for eligible homebuyers who qualify for a Minnesota Housing loan to receive an interest-free, deferred loan to help with down payment and closing costs.  HAF has a long history of providing and promoting successful homeownership to low and moderate income households, serving a typical household income of $35,000 which is 50% of the statewide median income.  The program is also an integral tool in working towards increasing emerging market homeownership, with a high percentage of emerging market borrowers receiving this assistance. We need your help!  We urge our housing partners to please take a moment and send an email to each member of the House Housing Policy and Finance and Public Health Finance Division, asking for the immediate reinstatement of this appropriation to the House Budget, especially if you live in one of the communities represented by a committee member.  Members of the committee and their contact information are listed below. We need as many individuals as possible to respond immediately, ensuring that HAF continues to support the recovery of the housing market. Thank you. Karen Clark, rep.karen.clark@house.mn, 651.296.0294, Minneapolis Carolyn Laine, rep.carolyn.laine@house.mn, 651.296.4331, Columbia Heights John Benson, rep.john.benson@house.mn, 651.296.9934, Minnetonka David Bly, rep.david.bly@house.mn, 651.296.7065, Northfield Jeff Hayden, rep.jeff.hayden@house.mn, 651.296.7152, Minneapolis Larry Howes, rep.larry.howes@house.mn, 651.296.2451, Walker Thomas Huntley, rep.thomas.huntley@house.mn, 651.296.2228, Duluth Carol McFarlane, rep.carol.mcfarlane@house.mn, 651.296.5363, White Bear Lake Denny McNamara, rep.denny.mcnamara@house.mn, 651.296.3135, Hastings Will Morgan, rep.will.morgan@house.mn, 651.296.4212, Burnsville Paul Rosenthal, rep.paul.rosenthal@house.mn, 651.296.7803, Edina Brita Sailer, rep.brita.sailer@house.mn, 651.296.4265, Park Rapids Peggy Scott, rep.peggy.scott@house.mn, 651.296.4231, Andover Lyndon Carlson, rep.lyndon.carlson@house.mn, 651.296.4255, Crystal   Minnesota Housing 400 Sibley Street, Suite 300 | Saint Paul, MN 55101 http://www.mnhousing.gov/contact/enews/ | 651.296.7608 or 1.800.657.3769 | mn.housing@state.mn.us

Posted by Aaron Dickinson - Edina Realty on 04-16-2009 at 03:04 pm
Posted in Community Issues, Opinion, Personal Experiences with 0 Comments

April Edition – Minneapolis Real Estate Statistics Video Released!

MAAR has released the March housing market statistics and commentary in their video April video… worth your time if you’re interested in what’s going on in the local market!

Posted by Aaron Dickinson - Edina Realty on 04-15-2009 at 03:04 pm
Posted in Info for Buyers, Info for Sellers, Market Stats with 0 Comments

Edina Realty – Behind the Red Curtain

Star Tribune had a good article today about the successes and struggles of Edina Realty and of our fearless leader, Bob Peltier, who suffered a severe stroke last year and has fought back every day since.

This story does not even scratch the surface on what both Bob and Edina Realty have done and are doing in the face of challenging times.  There are many stories I can tell you of both first-hand experiences and those of my fellow agents that demonstrate the character of our leadership.  Times are harder today but there are still so many opportunities too.  I bleed Edina Realty Red because both the company and its leaders continue to demonstrate strength and fortitude in the face of ever-changing challenges.

Posted by Aaron Dickinson - Edina Realty on 03-01-2009 at 08:03 pm
Posted in Opinion, Personal Experiences with 1 Comment