Blacksburg, VA

Down.

The government takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac made big news over the weekend.

First, the takeover took place on a weekend. Who knew government worked on weekends?

Second, Wall Street has responded and mortgage rates have gone DOWN. Why?

Because Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are considered to be much stronger, now that they are under government control. They were government entities before, just thinly veiled as such, but now they are considered much more stable, pushing rates down and lowering the cost to borrow. And they fund so many of the nation's mortgages - about $6 TRILLION of the country's $12.1 trillion in outstanding mortgages - so confidence is critical.

Good news for homeowners. Current homeowners - now would be a good time to refinance if it would save you 1/2 a point or more. Folks looking to buy - consider locking in your rate if you'll be closing on a property within the next 60 days. This could save thousands a year in payments.

Let's hope so.

I'm encouraged to see Sonic making an attempt to revamp its' approach. Don't take no for an answer, don't fight, just find a new way to make it work for everyone. Updated 9/6 - there's no guarantee it'll go through a second time; I still think too many people are just going to kick and scream on anything regarding this project at this point, but I like the approach.

Including Steve and his strawberry Limeade fix.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to speak to the Blacksburg Rotary Club on how to use social media for business. Christy Brown of LL Brown Insurance asked me a few weeks ago to speak to their group on how I use things like this blog, or Twitter, to reach out to consumers. This was the first public speaking event I've ever done, and true to form I waited until the last minute to prepare. I thought it went well; I HOPE it went well, anyway, and that those who were interested found something of value to takeaway and add to their business.

Apparently it has, because as early as last night I started receiving emails from some of the attendees, and I hope to be helping some folks start their new blogs in the very near future! Will be sure to post them here when they do.

But one of the coolest things that happened, was when Blacksburg Town Manager Marc Verniel told me that the Town had actually started a Twitter account, and was broadcasting information out regarding happenings and important messages around Town! Sure enough, I looked this morning and found them here ... this is unique, as the number of municipalities using things like social media to communicate with their citizens is still very small. Blacksburg is ahead of the trend on this.

So Blacksburg folks - or if you're just interested in knowing what's happening around Town - be sure to follow the Town of Blacksburg! Don't have a Twitter account? Well, you can resolve that here.

On a bike ride this evening, I noticed destruction and carnage where a Blacksburg landmark once stood. Where am I going to get my Makers Mark?



It's the state-run ABC store that once stood at the corner of Country Club Drive and South Main Street. I'm sure the demolition is all part of Kroger's planned 30000 square foot addition to their current store. But never fear, upon further investigation I found the new location, open just in time - SHOCKER - for football season!

It's in the same shopping center, and obviously the students have already found it. Your investigative reporter signing off ...

By the way, have you noticed all the bikes on the roads these days? I think it's a great thing - I'm seeing dozens of people commuting, riding to and from class, or just getting some miles in. I think it's great, and I hope people will continue to ride despite what the current rate of gas might be. By the way, you might want to check out gasfreecommute.com - measures how many calories you're burning on each ride, as well as how many gallons of gas you've saved, and pounds of carbon gas you've prevented from being let off into the air.

And one more thing ... if you're looking for a new bike, or need to get your new set of wheels tuned up, don't go anywhere without first talking to the folks at East Coasters. GREAT staff, awesome selection of bikes and accessories ... you will not regret it.

Have you seen this site, Homethinking.com?

According to their home page, it's designed to show consumers the "transactional histories of real estate agents and mortgage lenders. In theory the idea is great - find out what kind of experience your REALTOR® or mortgage lender has before contacting them. One of the great things the internet has provided is the ability to research and qualify BEFORE ever talking with a practitioner. I'm sure what they're doing is just compiling statistics from public records and MLS statistics, I just wish the figures Homethinking gives were right ...

If you look at my bio, it says that I sell 3 bedroom homes, averaging $214000 per sale. When I compare that to statistics from the New River Valley's MLS, I see that they got that ALMOST right. My average sale has been $217437 over the last five years, but they also say I'm selling 35 properties right now. I WISH I was selling 35 properties right now, but it's more like 11:







Of the homes they show on the first page, one of them I had listed but didn't sell (yes, it happens from time to time), three others I sold last year, and two that are listed as homes are actually land.

So what's the point? While I welcome the opportunity to demonstrate how we stand out from the crowd, how reliable IS this data, really? If Homethinking shows we're actively selling 35 properties, does that give a potential buyer or seller the impression that we're too busy for them? Can you even make an informed decision off of information like this?

Since we're discussing the issue of relevant information, they recommend other real estate agents in our area, as well. I'm sure this is a rotating, revolving ad, but they're advertising a Northern Virginia agent as serving Blacksburg. That doesn't seem very relevant.



Just another reminder that while sites like HomeThinking.com try to be a one stop shop for finding the best agents out there, sometimes you need to do a little more research. Talk to them ... read their blogs ... get to to know them ... perhaps your perceptions will be changed, and maybe they'll be validated, but you'll know that you can rely on your findings 100% of the time.