Jason Lopez

At RealEstate.com, REALTORS® our website and multimillion dollar call center generate so many live customers on the phone that our agents are dramatically increasing their business and their income. RealEstate.com is a national real estate company that is harnessing the power of the internet and dramatically elevating the quality of the real estate experience for our customers and agents. Because we are experiencing such phenomenal growth, we are seeking quality, experienced real estate agents to join our team. To find out more about what we offer and how it might impact your career, please forward your resume to Aaron.ralstin@realestate.com or contact us at 1-858-750-7852. Agents meeting our requirements may be offered the opportunity to interview with our Broker/Manager to discuss joining our team.

Where have all the buyers gone?

They are on the Internet, and then they are working with us!

Our agents receive live customers delivered directly to their cell phones. Let us show you how agents just like you are doing more business and making more money servicing our large client base. We currently have limited territories available.

Tired of paying monthly fees?

RealEstate.com Provides the following to Our Agents At No Cost

Industry Best Internet Service Center and Customer Generation

Management Support and Assistance

Listing Exposure on RealEstate.com and Realtor.com

RealEstate.com E-mail Account

Office Computers, Software, Copiers and Fax

MLS Lock Boxes

RealEstate.com National Advertising

RealEstate.com Regional Advertising

Relocation and Referral Services

Mentor and Coaching Program

Ongoing Training for Experienced Agents

Unparalleled Personal Promotion and Marketing Tools

Downloadable and Customizable PowerPoint Listing Presentation

Yard Signs and Name Riders

Business Cards

Call 1-858-750-7852 to discuss this unique opportunity with our career counselor, or forward your contact information or resume to

Aaron.ralstin@realestate.com. Agents meeting our requirements may be offered the opportunity to meet with our Broker/Manager to discuss joining our team. We look forward to meeting you!

With all the talk of the Stimulus and spending every waking hour studying the market, dealing with dozens of transactions and seeing firsthand some really cool things happening, I decided to list the top reasons to buy a home now. Now, most of this is common knowledge, but there are a couple of interesting aspects of the Stimulus and the CA state budget that may have a profound effect on the housing market. There are a few nuggets here and maybe something will ring true with you. Let me also say I am NOT a CPA or tax professional so you should verify this information before acting.

1. We all know about the $8000 federal tax credit for first time buyers. That is a good thing. What you may not know about is the $10,000 CA tax credit for new construction. If you are a first time buyer, and are buying a newly constructed previously unoccupied home, you can qualify for a tax credit of up to $18,000. That is significant!

There are some qualifiers with both so let's look a bit closer. The $8000 credit is for qualified 1st time buyers. There are income limitations...$75,000 for a single person or married but filing seperate tax returns, and $150,000 for married couples. You must not have owned a home in the past 3 years, and you must occupy the property for two years after purchase as a primary residence.

The $10,000 new construction credit has no income limitations and you need not be a first time buyer. The credit is applied over three years, and you must also occupy the home for two years after purchase as your primary residence. There has been $100 Million allocated for this credit and it is first come first serve. So once the money is gone, it's gone! Many builders are also offering additional incentives. We just closed on a home with Shea Homes in San Diego County and they offered a $20,000 incentive. During escrow they offered an additional $5000 to help the buyer get out of a lease. So there are deals on new construction out there!

2. Reverse mortgages are now available on purchases! Previously a reverse mortgage was only available to qualifying seniors on their current residence. This is a fantastic opportunity for senior citizens to buy a new home and live mortgage payment-free without having to wait for their old home to sell. The loan limits for FHA-insured reverse mortgages have been increased to $625,500 across the entire country-not just the higher cost areas. The previous limit was $417,000 across the country.

This new plan allows seniors to now buy a new home using a reverse mortgage, making it easier to buy without selling. Maybe you want to keep your old home and make it a rental. Or maybe you want to wait for market conditions to improve before selling. Think about the bigger picture of potentially renting your prior home, then using the 1031 deferred exchange plan to reinvest in another property and defer capital gains taxes. Lot's of interesting strategies could come into play here.

3. Expansion of Home Improvement Tax Credit. The tax credit for making energy efficient home improvements is now 30% of the cost of the improvements up to a maximum of $1500. This means that if the improvements cost you $4,500, you would receive a tax refund of $1,500 when you file your tax returns. Eligible improvements include energy efficient exterior doors and windows, insulation, heat pumps, furnaces, central air conditioners and water heaters. Since this is a buyers market, the cost of making these improvements can also be significantly less than just a year or two ago. Many cities and states also offer rebates for making your home more energy efficient and of course your monthly bills can be reduced as you use less energy to run your home.

4. $729,750 FHA and Conforming Loan Limits Restored in High Cost Areas. The $729,750 maximum loan limit had been in force throughout 2008, but was reduced to $625,500 in 2009. The economic stimulus plan restores the $729,750 maximum. This makes higher cost homes more affordable - especially in the coastal housing markets that tend to have higher than average home values.

5. This last group of reasons have been in play for the past year or so but sometimes it helps to see it in black and white! First, interest rates are at historic lows meaning your monthly payment will be less. Your out of pocket acquisition costs may be less as many sellers, banks included, are offering credits for closing costs and lender fees. There is a ton of inventory to choose from so your dream home is out there! FHA loans still are available with 3.5% down and there are even renovation loans that allow you to finance the cost of any rehab into your loan and the bank appraises the property as if the improvements have already been done! This let's you go after those run down REO's and feel good about it. Investors can also own up to 10 properties and get FHA financing!

Hopefully there is something in here that makes sense to you. The bottom line is if you want a home for you and your family, plan to be there for 3, 4, 5 years or longer, you will see some equity. And don't forget about the mortgage interest and property tax deductions you get as well. All in all it is a great time to buy real estate and we'd love to be the company to help you do it!

RealEstate.com, REALTORS® is setting the pace in 2009 as it announced that it had delivered over 10,000 leads to their agents in January, 2009. The bulk of these customers were live connected in real time directly to agents in local markets accross the country. The recent acquisition of New Homes Realty also played a key role in breaking the 10,000 lead barrier. Our goal has always been to deliver a great experience to our customer. And to do it at this level just solidifies what our 200 plus agents across California know...there is no better lead system in real estate...period!

Buyers and sellers are hungry for information...and they want it now! We have seen record numbers of people not only accessing our site, but also reaching out to us to get that information. Our system puts them in contact with a local agent in minutes...not hours or days. This has been a critical piece in insuring our agents have the tools they need to succeed and grow their business in this new marketplace.

The company operates five distinct business lines consisting of RealEstate.com, REALTORS®, an Internet-enabled, local, on the ground real estate brokerage that operates in 20 markets with more than 1,300 REALTORS®, a Broker Network, a strategic lead generation program for real estate brokers that provides them with incremental, targeted, and high-quality leads; iNest, a lead generator that specializes in newly-constructed homes and offers consumers an exclusive cash bonus program; Domania, a provider of innovative customer acquisition and retention products for banks, mortgage lenders and REALTORS®; and also, a network of geo-targeted advertising opportunities throughout the RealEstate.com portal.

RealEstate.com Acquires Assets of New Homes Realty, Inc.

Also see the Inman story: http://www.inman.com/news/2008/12/8/realestatecom-acquisition-grows-brokerage-biz

Acquisition Boosts Company's Expansion of RealEstate.com, REALTORS® Into Six New Markets, Increasing Agent Team by 18%

CHARLOTTE, N.C., December, 8, 2008 - Today RealEstate.com announces the acquisition of certain assets of Tampa-based New Homes Realty, Inc. New Homes Realty is an online real estate company operating in 11 metro areas across the country and utilizing a network of approximately 200 licensed real estate agents and brokers. In addition, the company developed a family of Web sites, including its flagship NewHomes.com, to provide interested home shoppers a database of thorough real estate information for new and existing homes.

The purchase will expand RealEstate.com, REALTORS® in its existing 14 markets, as well as enable the company to grow into six new areas including Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Texas, and the Washington, DC/Capital region. In addition, New Homes Realty's family of Web sites will now be run by RealEstate.com. The acquisition also allows RealEstate.com to add another lead generation component to its growing real estate portfolio, which already includes iNest (www.inest.com), a leading real estate broker specializing in newly-constructed homes.

"The acquisition of New Homes Realty assets is a perfect fit with our growing RealEstate.com, REALTORS® division," says Bret Violette, president, RealEstate.com. "The company had a long-standing reputation as being one of the best brokers in the new homes segment and will allow us to quickly add a group of talented and extremely skilled agents to our team who are already in the field working with customers. We are also excited to incorporate the New Homes Realty lead generation assets into our company allowing us to better compete for and service those looking to purchase a new home."

"Our team of experienced real estate agents and brokers is excited to join RealEstate.com, REALTORS® and begin working with high quality consumers ready to transact on a new or existing home," says Kurt Gleeson, formerly of New Homes Realty, and now a vice president of sales for RealEstate.com, REALTORS®. "RealEstate.com drives some of the most qualified and interested home shoppers in the industry so we look forward to working together and gaining the steady flow of customers ready to buy or sell their next home."

RealEstate.com, REALTORS® is a local, on-the-ground brokerage operation that operates in 14 markets across the country with more than 1,100 sales agents. This acquisition grows the operation to 20 markets and 1,300 agents.

Financial terms of this acquisition were not disclosed and are not expected to have a material impact on the consolidated financial position or results of operation of Tree.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: TREE).

About RealEstate.com

RealEstate.com gives consumers a better way to buy or sell homes through a comprehensive suite of real estate services, tools, and helpful advice. The site provides access to more than two million homes for sale, 97 million home values and a unique deep dive view into more than 22,000 cities reaching every metropolitan area in the U.S.

The company also operates five distinct business lines consisting of RealEstate.com, REALTORS®, an Internet-enabled real estate brokerage that operates in 14 markets with more than 1,100 sales agents; a Broker Network, a strategic lead generation program for real estate brokers that provides them with incremental, targeted, and high-quality leads; iNest, a lead generator that specializes in newly-constructed homes and offers consumers an exclusive cash bonus program; Domania, a provider of innovative customer acquisition and retention products for banks, mortgage lenders and REALTORS®; and also, a network of geo-targeted advertising opportunities throughout the RealEstate.com portal.

RealEstate.com is a division of LendingTree, LLC, a Tree.com, Inc. company (NASDAQ: TREE).

REALTOR® - A registered collective membership mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTOR®) and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.

After two years of building, planning, and executing we are finally landing in LA! While I have 25 agents working the market already, I just secured our first office in the heart of Downtown LA, in the prestigious Wells Fargo Center. I am excited to finally have a place to hang our hat in this market and our agents are going to benefit from having a local place to meet clients, attend training and dominate the LA landscape.

We are in the Bunker Hill area of Downtown at 333 S. Grand Ave. 25th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90045

Great place to meet clients

Iconic Building...Great Location...Live Customers to Your Phone...The Perfect Match...