Carnival of Real Estate #75

We’re b-a-a-a-c-k! Yes, it’s been 74 posts since the Carnival of Real Estate launched, but it’s our chance again and we are pleased to host the 75th edition. Even though this is the second time we hosted the Carnival, a few bloggers have done it twice as a result of stepping up when the scheduled blog host could not make it. Our deepest thanks to those of you who have done that! By the way, here’s the first-ever Carnival post. See if you can identify the one blogger that appeared there and here in this post. Without further adieu, here we go!

Pick of the Week: Top spot goes to Silicon Valley Blogger at The Digerati Life for “7 Things To Consider As A First Time Real Estate Investor.” With home prices coming down from an all-time high, real estate investing is something to be considered carefully. The 7th tip was “Invest for the Right Reasons” and I think this advice applies to many facets of life, not just real estate investing.

Second place goes to Dee Copeland for explaining buyer agent incentives using a very creative approach — a recipe approach you might call it. The article was “Gotcha Guide™: Agent Bonuses are Bunk! Offer Real Incentives” posted at Texas Realty Blog. Here’s an excerpt:

INGREDIENTS & DIRECTIONS (TASTY BUYER AGENT BONUSES)

Step 1: Take 2 cups of a Seller with an over-priced home.

Step 2: Whip in a heaping mound of a Cooled Real Estate Market.

Step 3: Drizzle in 1/2 teaspoon of a Listing Agent willing to “try anything”.

Step 4: Pile on $5000 worth of a Buyer Agent Bonus.

Finally: Sparingly sprinkle on Potential Home Buyers and Top with a Smart Buyer’s Agent.

Third place goes to Larry Lohrman at Geek Estate Blog who mentioned that you can use PAP (pole aerial photography) to make your exterior photographs of your listings “pop”. I’d never heard of this approach to real estate photography, but based on the picture Larry used an example (photo to the right), it seems to make a huge difference.

Fourth place goes to Dan Melson who posted “Another Refinance Boom – With a Difference” at Searchlight Crusade. The two differences Dan brings up are the number of people that can afford a loan and impacted loan-to-value rations.

Fifth place goes to the First Time Home Buyer Helper blog by Roy Landers who gives tips on “How To Sell A Home Fast In A Slow Market.” Two tips I haven’t really heard before were down payment assistance programs and the possibility of using government money to sell your home.

And, here’s the best of the rest:

• Brian Brady — “The Danger of Real Estate Brokers as Loan Advisors” at San Diego Mortgage Rates Report.
• Raymond — “Home Seller’s Pain Is My Gain As A Renter – Taking Advantage Of The Mortgage Crisis” at Money Blue Book.
• Nigel Swaby — “It’s Clear, Now is a Good Time to Refinance” at Salt Lake Real Estate Blog.
• Brett Wilson — “Does It Matter Who Wins?” at Real Estate Radio USA Blogzine.

This Carnival offering was top-rate from start-to-finish. Many thanks to everyone who participated and is helping to keep the bar high on the Carnival of Real Estate.

The carnival will make its next appearance on Monday, February 4 at Searchlight Crusade. Please submit your best post by Sunday, February 3, to be considered. Are you a real estate blogger and would you like to host a future edition or take a more active role in carnival administration? If so, get instructions on how to do so here. Please check the complete FAQ list if you have other questions as to how to participate.