Heath Coker, Real Estate Broker

Do you want to be "seen" on MSN real estate - possibly? If you have bought a condo, or helped a buyer buy one, at an auction, this reporter would like to interview you. Her focus is in a few particular markets, so read her request below.

Jane Hodges is a freelance writer working on a story for MSN real estate. Here is her description of who she would like to talk to:

I'd like to interview home buyers and individual investors who have purchased a condo at auction for an upcoming MSN Real Estate story. I need to find people who have attended auctions of entire condo buildings (not courthouse auctions of individual condo units) for interviews regarding the purchase process. I'm most interested in finding buyers who are in cities where auctions are a newer phenomenon (Portland, Seattle, NYC, Philly... vs. the obviously 'distressed' markets like California, Las Vegas, Florida, etc.) but am open to sources anywhere in the US. I'm also interested in talking to real estate agents who have worked with or are working with client(s) on buying at auction.

She may be contacted at: janehodges@hotmail.com with the subject line Real Estate: Condo Auction Buyer

Happy selling and listing!

This is an interesting development. If you ever wondered how much of what you do online is available for review, here's one example of what is available. Did you forget what a site was orwhen a chat online was? Now you can research it and see - if you did it inside your g oogle account. Go ogle now offers you the opportunity to review the "records" they have been keeping on you.

This is the new Goog le Dashboard. You can go to this page and see what the new Goo gle dashboard is. If you use gmail, you login to your account, and look under Personal Settings for Dashboard. Click to the right on view data stored with this account, and you'll go to a second sign in page for added security. Once past the second sign in, you can see all the places that you have been, the chats, the stuff that you have done while signed into your google account.

The extent of the goog le tracking only covers what you have done while "inside" your google account. So, if you want to keep a longer record of your internet activities, sign into your goo gle mail and do all your searching and chatting and stuff inside.

Preliminary CC&IMLS Statistics for October 2009

Single Family | #Sales | Median | $Value | DOM

• October 2009 | 330 | $336,700 | $154,029,292 | 150
• October 2008 | 296 | $337,250 | $155,716,315 | 157

Condominiums

• October 2009 | 79 | $260,000 | $20,972,155 | 224
• October 2008 | 79 | $259,500 | $21,961,262 | 192

All Sales

• October 2009 | 431 | $184,528,417
• October 2008 | 393 | $183,596,997

The Information shows an uptick in volume!

Here is a concise explanation of the benefits, tax advantages, tuition gifts and other subsidies that are planned for people in the US without permission. I watched the video below and kept waiting for the "april fools" punchline or the saturday night live cast to break in. You can't make this list up. Here is the youtube of the CNN report about the new bill.

If you don't want to watch the video, here is what the bill includes:

• No taxes for people who are in the US without permission
• People who are in the US without permission would be able to claim an earned income tax credit from US taxpayers
• English is not required for people who are in the US without permission, until nine years after an application for amnesty
• In state tuition would be provided for people who are in the US without permission
• All emigration procedings would be stopped and allow any people who are in the US without permission to apply for amnesty
• If people were in the US without permission and got deported, they could now get amnesty
• Temporary Visas will be renewable indefinitely
• Priority given to Mexican citizens for admission to the US
• Legal status 24 hours after applying for it, regardless of whether a background check is complete.
• Imigration attorneys for imigrants to the US will be paid for by the US taxpayers
• If a gang member says they aren't a member anymore, they will receive amnesty
• Us will give money to the Mexican government so they can try to convince Mexicans to stay in Mexico
• Top priority for eliminating borders between the US, Canada, and Mexico
• Border fence shortened from 800 miles to 200

Of course, these benefits are all for people who are not US citizens. Am I missing something?

If you need something different for Thanksgiving to spice up the usual cranberry sauce, take a look at the selection at Tihonet Market Village in Wareham, MA. They are actually the world's largest cranberry grower. I tried their cranberry vinaigrette salad dressing - very good!

During the growing and harvest season they have tours. I saw a few bogs still being harvested, but the tours have now ended for this year. They have some good pics on their site though.

The market area is open all day for food and cranberry specialties like the salad dressing I mentioned. I forgot to look but you can probably get cranrasins there too. It is a quite and peaceful place for soup and a sandwich if you're in the area.

The prices are reasonable, under $7.50 for the most expensive - 1/2 a sandwich and a cup of chowder! I'll be up there again today and might just have to stop again.