About Fraser Valley, BC

ANNOUNCMENT!

We are so excited to have Brian Treliving on our team.

He brings to the team great ideas and energy! We are a month into this partnership with Brian and feel blessed to have him on board. The month has shown great success and that hasn't come without it's challenges.

Brian has shown tremendous resolve in what some would say were high stress situations. Let's face it! Real Estate can be stressful, with the longer hours and unpredictability of a negotiation, you never know....

But what I love about having Brian on our team is the way he has grasped our systems and models, both in Keller Williams Realty and in the Van Nes Group - and he's run with them.

Thanks Brian ~ it's great to have you as part of our team!

Katie :)

A great big thank you to KW Elite! I really enjoyed teaching Internet Lead Generation to the class today, you guys were great and thank you for your participation.

I wanted to share ---

We had a discussion today regarding what I would call Link Backs. I looked into this a bit more because I thought that there was so much more on this topic to explore. Sure enough I found many different definitions and explainations of what this means to link with another website. Here is some of what I found... to name only a few

A reciprocal link is a mutual link between two objects, commonly between two websites to ensure mutual traffic.

Multi-way linking is a technique used for website promotion whereby websites may create similar one-way links that each involves 3 or more partner sites. This provides each website with a one-way non-reciprocal link. This technique has evolved from reciprocal linking. The latest search algorithms have evolved to hold less favor towards websites that contain a high percentage of reciprocated links, and a higher favor towards websites that maintain a high level of incoming non-reciprocated (one way) links. How to filter out excessive reciprocal link schemes is even being mentioned in anti link spam patents.^[1].

The term multi-way simply refers to the fact that the link exchange is between 3 or more websites, however each link is singular by only pointing to one other website. Other means of linking that may increase your web presence may also include other indirect methods such as loading images, videos, content or RSS feeds from a third partners website.

Link campaigns are a form of online marketing and SEO. A business seeking to increase the number of visitors to its web site can ask its strategic partners, professional organizations, chambers of commerce, suppliers, and customers to add links from their web sites. A link campaign may involve mutual links back and forth between related sites, but it doesn't have to require the reciprocation of links.

So as a result of my research, I am on a mission to find websites in Canada dedicated to real estate, that are free to post in their Realtor Directory, and free to post my listings...

So far I've found these four websites, and they seem to be free, however the third one does require... YOU GUESSED IT! ~ A Link Back to their site! LOL

http://www.homezilla.ca
http://www.realestatechannel.ca
http://www.openrealestate.ca
http://www.snapuprealestate.ca

Any more suggestions...?

I am so pleased to announce that we have a new domain name for Tapadera Estates.

You may be wondering why this is so exciting... It just so happens that nearly two years ago I tried to buy www.TapaderaEstates.com and it unfortunately was not available. I looked it up and I'm not even 100% sure where it was owned/located.

BUT... Jennifer our wonderful Office Manager was online the other night... and found it was now available!!!!!

{Much to my mother's dismay ~ we were having a web domain purchasing spree!!!}

Do you ever get those!?

Lets all say it together....

We love buying Domain Names

I wasn't going to do a post about my birthday today - it hasn't been the best of birthdays......but heck its hard to beat those birthdays of old when you we were 5 years old!

Or 5+1 like like last year A Year Ago Today - Fifty and the Big ONE....A Happy Birthday....

I did get a slew of wonderful birthday messages and well wishes today on Facebook though - and they did sweeten my day - thanks gang I love ya!

And Sylvie did do a great B-Day post for me :-) HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LIZ MORAS - thank you friend! :-)

I didn't get the long awaited phone call from my daughter in England :-( but she did send flowers. My daughter from Toronto called and sent me some amazing colour changing mugs with family pics revealed in them as the mugs get hot) . It was my first birthday every without my girls...:-( However, I did have a nice dinner with my folks and son Chris - and I do know I'm blessed to have them still with me.

And i did get phone calls from cousins in Germany - and that was sweet.

Then tonight I got this email from my cousin Deb in Winnipeg - and I have to say it put a big smile on my face so I decided to share it - and maybe it'll make you smile too! :-)

Heppy birssdeh!

My deerest koozine,

I veesh you so heppy birssdeh!

Now you are vreal voman. You know about deh life. You know deh life is more den jest deh jum-busterd, or deh bol of straow berreese. You are vize. Evree vun hess to respekt you now!

So be heppy, heppy, heppy!
You are number vun!

End vee all vreelly luv you!
from coozine, Duda

So maybe our 'Special Day's' aren't always what we expect them to be. They're just something else. And something else is o.k. too :-)

p.s. can you guess which accent this is a play on? lol - think My Big Fat Greek Wedding - but not!

Thanks Deb for being my Windex! :-)

If you or someone you know is thinking of Buying or Selling property in Cultus Lake, Chilliwack, Hope, Abbotsford, Langley or anywhere in the Fraser Valley Area of B.C. - or if you would like more information please give Liz Moras of Landmark Realty Chilliwack a call at- 604-799-0459 or e-mail at lizmoras@gmail.com.

So You Think You Want to Buy A Home? Here Are Some Helpful tips

Although not a comprehensive list here are some tips.

1. Get preapproved for a mortgage. I know we like to leave this for later in the game. But do yourself a favor and do it first! Rather than guessing or estimating how much you can afford to spend, ask a lender or mortgage broker to pre-qualify you - and while you're at it - get him to give it to you in writing.(please note the pre-qualification guarantee will be good for 30-90 days and if you have not bought in that time frame you will need to get an extension or update on the guaranteed rate.

How is he going to come up with that dollar figure? Well it'll be a combination of your household income, how good your credit is, interest rates, the type of loan you select and how much cash you have ready for the down payment and closing costs. You might be surprised that the amount may be much more or much less than you think.

2. Home Surf -Aren't we lucky that these days we have access to so much information online? This is a great place to start. We find our buyers to be extremely savvy as to sale prices, trends and homes on the market. The more educated you are about what's happening the more empowered you'll feel!

3. Find 'Your Realtor'! - this is probably a good time to think about choosing a Realtor. See How Do I Find a Good Realtor?

4. To have or not to have - that is the question!

Here are a few things to consider.

- Your Commute - how long is your drive to work;

- How good and close are the schools;

- If you're a Senior is public transport important, how about hospitals?;

- How about shopping? - do you have to drive 30 min. drive to the nearest mall?

- What or who are your neighbours;

- What is the zoning in the surrounding area?

- Think Resale - you haven't bought yet - yet you're supposed to think resale? Yes - because you'll probably be doing that one day so it doesn't hurt to think ahead!

- Size - Square Footage - what is the range/size of home you're looking for?' There are skinny houses

and there are fat houses! :0

- How many Bedrooms - Bathrooms? Do you need an office, guest room, gym?

- Style of Home - Basement Entry - 2 level - Rancher - do you want the bedrooms all upstairs, do you prefer a one level with no stairs.....and do you need a basement? Maybe you'd rather have a townhome or condo?

- Age - do you prefer new, or do you like it to be 'broken in'.......do you like a fixer-upper - or do you want it to be in 'move-in' condition?

- Lot size - with our busy lifestyles these days not everyone wants a big yard anymore.

5. Use a checklist.You have no idea how easy it is to get confused - no matter how good your memory is!Make up a checklist a head of time - or ask your Realtor if they have one - you can find great ones online as well! I often advise my clients to take photos - (with the permission of the owner of course). Now you don't want to do that with each home -but do it with the contenders!

6. How Many Homes should we look at at one time? Probably no more then 5-6 at a time - even that might be pushing it in terms of remembering what you've seen and where! :-)

7. What to wear? Lace Ups? Not such a good idea. Give the heels a miss too. Be comfortable and maybe layer your clothing!

8. Can I bring my kids? What about my Dog? - Probably not a good idea - It's important to be able to concentrate on what you're viewing - plus - kids can find it confusing, disruptive and scary thinking about moving - and looking at house after house - not knowing where home may be.

9. Breathe...No point in getting so stressed that all the fun out of buying a home is gone! Try to keep some perspective on the whole thing.

10. Have Fun! If you're blessed to be in a position to own a home - enjoy the process - with a thankful heart! :-)

If you or someone you know is thinking of Buying or Selling property in Cultus Lake, Chilliwack, Hope, Abbotsford, Langley or anywhere in the Fraser Valley Area of B.C. - or if you would like more information please give Liz Moras of Landmark Realty Chilliwack a call at- 604-799-0459 or e-mail at lizmoras@gmail.com.