Fair-housing claims along with property-management issues such as debt collection and liability for the condition of common areas or crimes that occur on leased property are the types of real estate disputes that most often end in litigation, finds a new report prepared for the National Association of Realtors. However, according to the "2005 Legal Scan," which studied more than 1,000 court cases covering 90-plus legal issues facing the industry, realty professionals were not held liable in 72 percent of cases in which blame was assigned. Based on further analysis of 350 new or revised laws and regulations, the report also identified indoor mold, agency disclosure requirements, dual agency, breach of fiduciary duty, Internet marketing, and anti-solicitation laws as growing areas of liability concern for real estate practitioners. An appendix to the report cites the cases, statutes, and/or regulations that apply to each issue, allowing real estate attorneys to quickly determine if there are relevant cases or legislative actions that can provide guidance on a pending case. While this feature can save time and money on legal expenses, officials with NAR and with Legal Research Center Inc.--which prepared the report--say the primary objective of the Legal Scan is to alert industry professionals to the key legal issues and trends affecting the U.S. property market, prepare them for the compliance requirements they are likely to face, and better design training programs for licensees.
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Interest in the Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES) professional designation, which certifies an agent's proficiency in serving clients aged 50 and older, has surged in the past year. According to Alan Arora--president and CEO of the Senior Advantage Real Estate Council, which offers the title--the number of realty practitioners with SRES credentials approached 13,900 in 2005. That is up almost 30 percent from 2004, he notes, with even more growth expected. "We see this designation, certainly given the importance of the emerging senior market nationwide, as having the potential to double or triple in the next three to five years," Arora explains. "Baby boomers are aging and everybody lives longer now so if you look at demographics of the American consumer population, increasing numbers are moving into the 50-plus segment." To put the SRES certification behind their name, agents must complete a two-day course covering such issues as specialized housing options and asset protection. They can then carry the designation on a provisional basis for as long as one year, and they must execute three senior property transactions during that time. The designation is available only for National Association of Realtors members, who can sign up to take the course from one of approximately three dozen certified instructors nationwide.
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Frank Langen, a real estate agent at Deasy Penner and Partners, a boutique real estate firm in Los Angeles, recently sold a $2.5 million house in Malibu, Calif., after it had been on the market for three months, by letting the potential buyers sleep in the house before signing a contract. The buyers ''were able to experience the amazing light at different times of the day, the spectacular views and what it was like to really live there,'' said Langen. The couple had visited the house several times, and during one open house where they spent hours milling around the property, Langen asked them if they would like to stay for a night. ''I left a bottle of Champagne chilling, an assortment of chocolates and a mini espresso machine and left them the keys for the night,'' he said. ''They bought it the next day.'' For serious clients who may be on the fence, Langen is willing to think about the sale in a more creative way -- even if it means allowing relative strangers to bunk down in a house worth more than $2 million. As demand softens in high-end real estate markets across the country, brokers are turning to a sales strategy pioneered by the marketers of other luxury goods. ''We're really behind the other luxury markets,'' said Dolly Lenz, the vice chairman of marketing and sales at Prudential Douglas Elliman in New York, who added that she has seen the test-drive tactic surface in the last three to six months. ''People need to experience the way they will live in a property,'' she said -- at least people at the high end of the market. ''An open house is for the average buyer,'' Lenz continued. ' 'In the luxury market an open house would be considered a joke. This group of buyers expects exclusivity, privacy and special handling.''
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HouseValues Inc., a marketing partner for real estate professionals, has created "Featured Agent" and "Featured Homes" advertising features available on its website at www.homepages.com. Real estate professionals can use the new features to build local brand and name recognition, win listing presentations, impress home sellers, and generate new contacts and leads. HomePages is an online marketing service that positions real estate agents as the local neighborhood expert by providing today's home buyers and sellers with the information they need before, during, and after the real estate transaction. Launched in early October, the site represents the real estate industry's first national real estate site to combine birds-eye views of neighborhoods with detailed home listings and community information on behalf of local agents.
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Adrienne Albert combines marketing and advertising at her job at a real estate advertising agency in Toronto. She also uses the architectural skills she learned at MIT to build models of buildings, which, along with full-size replicas of condominium homes, have enabled the president of the Marketing Directors Inc. to sell more than $15 billion in properties in America and Canada. In her scheme, a well-appointed sales office is a must. The office must be on-site. It must have a welcoming atmosphere. That means fresh flowers, soothing decor, comfort food, and smiling salespeople - always smiling salespeople. "Those smiles need to be sincere," Albert said, adding that she emphasizes sincerity in her training course for real estate salespeople all across America. Those salespeople not only lead potential customers to the building models Albert has created, they also point to miniature versions of condominium apartments. "You can peek into the apartments, which are fully furnished - all models, of course," Albert said. "But customers can imagine themselves living in those exquisite units. They can imagine the space." To tap even more into customers' imaginations, Albert also maintains a staff of brokers in the sales offices. The idea, simply put, is to try and arrive at a deal on-site. That technique has been successfully used at more than 50 residential projects.
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The article's author lists 10 helpful tips on ensuring that your business's Web site will continue to attract online customer traffic for years to come. The main goal is to keep things simple, offer helpful links and a clean design with proportionate images, but do not invest in lengthy flash introductions that may turn some off. To this end, choose background display colors and other imagery that is easy on the eyes. Also, be upfront and forthright on disclosing information about your firm, and don't make it so that clients have to do too much site navigation to find the information that is important to them. The article's author further suggests: "Keep things fresh by using a rotating menu of content so that repeat visitors don't get bored." Another rule of thumb is to make sure any posted text has been spell-checked and corrected for grammar. Finally, seriously consider seeking professional design assistance for the best Web site possible.
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According to a consumer survey conducted by Hostway, 70 percent of respondents are not likely to make return visits to Web sites that force them to log-in to view promised content, require additional software, or bombard them with pop-up ads. The Chicago-based Web hosting firm names dead links, moving text, and slow-loading pages among other consumer pet peeves. The Webby Awards founder Tiffany Shlain says companies are upgrading their Web sites, now that the goal has shifted from generating traffic to providing useful links, information, and services. Shlain notes that successful Web sites display navigation bars on each page to direct site visitors, provide links to company contact information, and post company or industry news on the home page. Companies should undertake frequent site reviews to ensure that links still work and steer clear of bells and whistles that slow things down.
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GMAC Real Estate is among the realty firms with an eye toward improving technology in 2006, with a focus on consumer-centric multimedia technology and better lead management systems. CEO Lane Barnett notes that whatever technologies are implemented, it is important that they are a benefit--not a distraction--to consumers. "What we're really trying to do is create an online experience similar to an offline experience," he explains. According to Intero Real Estate Services Chairman Bob Moles, a growing number of brokerages will shift money set aside for print ads to online lead-generation tools. Additionally, he believes more competing Multiple Listing Services will be consolidated this year. Mapping technologies are also gaining popularity, and A la mode's Rusty Lindquist thinks the new year will yield changes in agent Web sites. Lindquist says agents will expand their sites to improve communications with clients and allow them to view a transaction's status, as listings are transformed into what he calls "a rich, multimedia engaging experience."
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Long & Foster real estate agent Tommy Helm saw a way to use his memories of buying his first car to inspire people to buy their first home. He posted his nostalgic story to his office's blog in hopes that it would send a warm glow through a potential home buyer's heart -- and inspire that person to call him. Real estate is trying to board the blogging bandwagon, and in late October, some real estate agents at the Long & Foster Real Estate office in Daleville started their own blog. It's an online diary of sorts, a place where they write about the houses they are selling, the Roanoke Valley's quality of life, give advice on how to obtain a home loan and list the area's accolades, such as its ranking as a top place to retire. Blogs are popping up at a time when the Internet is becoming more important in real estate sales. Research from the National Association of Realtors shows that 74 percent of home buyers use the Internet in some part of their home search. In 1995, only 2 percent of home buyers went online to look for new homes. And though it hasn't yet resulted directly in the sale of a home, the agents believe the new tool is getting the word out about their company and them. "Anytime we can get our name out is a good thing," Helm said. Some weeks there are daily entries while other weeks, submissions might pop up several times. The agents blog as much and as often as they want. Brenda Layman, another agent with the Long & Foster office, pointed out the benefits of the blog -- to reach younger home buyers who often are more Internet-savvy. "We're reaching out to a market that we might not reach otherwise," said Layman, who has written blog entries about the Roanoke Valley's attractions for horse lovers and another about entertainment in Roanoke. But real estate blogs alone don't necessarily drive buyers to purchase a certain house. They often are the first step to connect a person to a real estate company's Web site where they might find other home listings and information. Most firms link to their own home pages from their blog sites, said Heather Consalvi, director of implementation and client relations for Pro Step Marketing, a firm in Huntersville, N.C. The company works with real estate agents and firms nationwide to help them market their services, including creating blogs.
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Garmin International Inc. has introduced the iQue 3000, a newly- styled, entry-level Palm Powered personal digital assistant (PDA) that offers fully integrated Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. "Whether you're a realtor showing dozens of properties in a week, or a student trying to juggle your class and work schedule, the iQue is a versatile companion that helps make the day less stressful," said Gary Kelley, Garmin's vice president of marketing. "Garmin's broad PDA line makes it possible for customers to select a product that is best suited to their life style." The iQue 3000 welcomes users with Garmin's easy-to-use "where to" or "view maps" interface. After entering a destination, the iQue 3000 will choose the fastest or shortest route to navigate the user from door to door. The unit automatically recalculates a route if the driver misses their turn and notifies drivers of their estimated time of arrival. The compact iQue 3000 features Garmin's Que technology that offers complete integration between organization and GPS navigation functions. Que technology connects the Palm Address Book and Date Book to the GPS electronic map so that users can navigate directly to a specific address from the user's contact database or date book. Users may download detailed street information onto their iQue 3000 from the installation DVD, which is a standard accessory. This navigation database allows the user to look up nearly six million points of interest such as restaurants, hotels, transportation hubs, and banks.
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Mobile workers no longer need to carry portable devices in order to access important files and programs outside the office. USB flash sticks have been transformed into smart drives that put programs and data in the palms of their hands, thanks to a new Windows software. Several smart drives have been equipped with the U3 software, including Kingston Technology's U3 DataTraveler, Memorex's U3 Smart Mini TravelDrive, SanDisk's Cruzer Micro, and Verbatim's 1GB Store'n'Go U3 Smart Drive. These smart drives range in price from $29.99 to $180, depending on the programs included and the amount of flash storage. Mozilla Firefox, Mozilla Thunderbird, and Skype are among the U3-complaint programs currently available to users. While users could copy programs to a USB flash or hard drive themselves, U3 eliminates legal troubles with licensing and digital rights agreements.
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Email users looking to reduce the amount of spam cluttering their inboxes might want to get on BlueSecurity's "Do Not Intrude Registry." Users need a computer with Internet access to sign up for the free service. Once they download the Blue Frog client, spam messages are forwarded to BlueSecurity. The company contacts spammers to have registered email addresses taken off mailing lists and sends daily reports about illegal spamming to the Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Interpol. Other services that aim to minimize spam include Postini's Perimeter Manager Small Business Edition, with an annual fee of $30 per person. Company email is sent through Postini's servers, and messages are deleted and quarantined as necessary. Cipher Trust's IronMail is another anti-spam solution, which validates the sender's server, rejects illegitimate messages, offers privacy and virus protections, and ensures that company email polices are being followed. Research reveals that spam accounts for upwards of 60 percent of incoming email and is responsible for yearly productivity losses of $20 billion.
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People in small businesses and home offices often find it difficult to easily share files and printers among multiple computers. A product called Network Magic 2.0 facilitates file- and printer-sharing among networked PCs, and even permits remote access to shared files via the Internet. Network Magic 2.0 automatically finds and maps an entire network, including computers, wired routers, wireless routers, and printers. The mapping also allows users to know the status, maker, IP address, and MAC address of the devices, and can be configured to instantly inform users when a new device is connected or if a device leaves the network. But because Network Magic is specific for Windows, it does not support SMB Linux shares. It is necessary to download and install Network Magic on each Windows PC in the network to enable file sharing; users can then use the Network Magic interface or right click on any folder and select add "to shared folders." A service called "Net2Go" permits remote, online access to shared folders, but the log-in page is not secured by SSL or an https login interface. Network Magic 2.0 costs $49.99, which includes a year of the Net2Go service and updates. It is also available as a 14-day free trial.
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Author Brian Tracy details a system he came up with that enables entrepreneurs to get organized and have greater control over their time. One of the first tips is to make use of a time planner that enables the user to record daily, weekly, monthly, and annual milestones. It's also a good idea to jot dot a "To Do" list at the beginning of each day. Tracy notes that just the writing and organizing of such a list gives you some peace of mind that you are in control of your day. In doing so, he recommends listing each day's tasks by order of importance. Tracy adds, "Use your organized list as a guide, helping you through your day in the most effectual way and keeping you from making inefficient 'detours' toward tasks that aren't important or haven't been fully assessed and properly prioritized." Finally, he suggests the building of a physical tickler file system. Such a multi-file system will allow the entrepreneur to plan his/her time for as much as two years in advance, with files serving as monthly reminders of what must be done for the month.
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