Archive for June, 2009
FaceBook OVERLOAD…
- Image via Wikipedia
There are big things stirring… and they are stirring in the FaceBook world.
A couple of weeks ago, while releasing the ability for people to have custom URLs on FaceBook (mine is FaceBook.com/LaneTheGarageGuy… someone beat me to LaneBailey) they also released custom URLs for Fan Pages. But, the only fan pages eligible were those that had over 1000 fans. I wasn’t anywhere near close…
This past weekend, FaceBook released custom URLs for Fan Pages with 100 or more fans. All of my real estate friends, and some of my other business friends were scrambling to get fans in order to meet the 100 fan level. And so was I.
Originally there wasn’t going to be a floor on the number of fans, then it was 25, then 100… so there were a lot of us that were left to scramble.
I’m still working towards 100 fans for the two pages I have, LaneBailey and LilburnDwellings. Feel free to drop by and become a fan if you are a member of FaceBook… and if you aren’t, you should be…
I am quite literally down to a handful of fans before I can get custom URLs for these pages. It is nerve wracking…
Aside from the business, it is all in good fun. The pages are light and fun, as well as entertaining and loaded with useful information (at least I hope so). Stop by, become a fan, post up your comments and feedback. I’d love to hear from you.
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View CommentsVacations are over for a little while…
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101 Cars, Part 78…
- Image by visual28 via Flickr
I am lumping together the widely divergent here… They might be powered by supercharged a big-block with nitrous, or they might be powered by a diesel from a Jetta…
I have skirted around rock buggies through many parts of the 101 Cars series… but this is about rock buggies…
There are three different purposes for them. The first is competition bugggies, then rock racers and the third is trail riding…
Comp buggies tend to be light and not overly powerful. They don’t need to be powerful if they are light enough. The suspensions aren’t as radically different as they used to be, but they are amazingly flexible.
The next type of buggy the rock racer… These are POWERFUL. And fast… these aren’t creepy crawlers, but rather flexi-flyers.
Recreational rigs, or trail riders are not as powerful as the rock racers, but generally more powerful than the comp buggy. Suspensions might even be more exotic, but the goal is comfort and ability… and weight isn’t as much of a concern for the recreational riders.
What they all have in common is amazing performance off-road. They can run obstacles that were previously considered unpassable… and in some cases weren’t even thought of as obstacles… they seem to defy gravity itself.
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View CommentsListing Options… Just so you know.
- Image by lane.bailey via Flickr
Yesterday I posted about how some companies are adding junk fees to the traditional sales fees for both buyers and sellers. I think this practice is just plain wrong… especially the way it is usually presented.
In order to give my clients options and help them save some money, I offer three different fee structures and two different levels of service for home sellers. Here is the quick rundown:
- Flat Fee – $999 listing plan. This is the plan from our discount arm, WhatIf? Realty. This puts your property on the local MLSs, and gets you a standard sign, as well as a lockbox and flyers. I have a couple of extras, as well as some available upgrades that aren’t shown on the company page, for my clients through this plan, so if you are interested, please contact me directly.
- Traditional Listing. This includes all of the traditional services, like full marketing, website, video, virtual tour, interactive floor plan, interactive design tools, custom sign, blog support and more. I don’t believe that tossing it in the MLS and then shooting a couple of pictures with my cell phone is a “complete marketing package”…
- The Hybrid Option. This is new and experimental, but really exciting. Many sellers want more than they get from a Flat Fee plan, but they want to save a few bucks. In effect, they are looking for a full-service marketing package with a lower overall cost… So, after looking at how we could offer something to meet this need, this is what we came up with. This includes ALL of the services of our traditional listing and adds a staging consultation. In exchange for an upfront fee, covering much of the cost of marketing, we discount the total cost.
For more information, feel free to call.
One other thing to keep in mind is that most real estate agents are actually independent contractors. While we “work for” a brokerage, we aren’t employees. In some cases, we have the ability to set our own rates, services and other aspects of our businesses. So, even agents working for the same office may offer different services or fees.
In the case of Diamond Dwellings Realty, we are a small niche brokerage… we have agents that specialize in different areas or market segments. And as a smaller brokerage, we have a LOT of lattitude to deliver the best fit for a client’s needs.
My goal is to get YOU the best total deal.
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View CommentsBroker Fees?
I’ve seen an annoying new trend. Buyer and Seller “Broker Fees”. It may go by various names, but amounts to the same thing… what Clark Howard would call a Junk Fee.
Entrance to Baltimore
These are quite different from the other fees that may be involved in a real estate transaction, and there are a LOT of fees. The lenders have fees, the closing attorney has fees, there are state fees, county fees, insurance fees, delivery fees… Simply put, buyers and sellers are paying plenty of fees. Adding some BS junk fee like a paperwork fee, transaction fee, administrative fee or broker fee is just adding insult to injury.
There is already a commission or sales fee that the real estate broker and agent are sharing. There is no reason to add another official sounding fee on top of this that is after the negotiated amounts.
And, that is how it usually works… the seller negotiates the fee for selling their home, and everyone shakes hands… and then the agent mentions that there is a $495 paperwork fee or something along those lines. They say it is required… maybe not saying that they are the ones requiring it…
In the case of buyers, after going through the buyer’s agency agreement and telling the buyer that the commission is generally paid by the seller, they hit the buyer up for a transaction fee… again, saying it is a requirement.
There are various reasons for this… What it mostly comes down to is that people and companies in the real estate industry are hurting for income. But, many of our clients aren’t exactly rolling in money… and even if they were, it isn’t right to tack on junk just because we think we can… Some agents are working for companies that charge US a closing fee for closing a transaction instead of charging a split and the agents are passing it along. It should be part of their cost of doing business.
I just say NO!
No additional fees. You will know EXACTLY what you are paying for my services prior to delivery and prior to completing the negotiations. I try to deliver more for EVERY client than other agents… but that doesn’t mean I need to add junk fees on top of fair fee structure.
And there are some different options available for sellers… but that is another post.
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Lane’s New Video Channel
I have just struck a deal with The Video Connector to provide video content for my sites. Look for lots of cool videos from Tara and TJ from Reel Productions. They have been the providers of my video tours for a couple of years now, and really have a handle on the real estate market. Enjoy.
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