Drick Ward

According to a recent article in the Virginian Pilot, the stimulus bill passed last month includes help for military members who must sell their property due to a transfer. Up to 95% of the service member's loss would be paid by the government.

That's good news for our area, since we have the largest naval base and many other support commands and bases throughout Hampton Roads. Of course, the details are still a bit murky, and there are provisions that must be met which include:

• Home must have been purchased before July 1, 2006
• Service member must be under orders to leave the area
• Opportunity only lasts until 2012

This may give military members a way to avoid short sales so their credit isn't adversely impacted. Although it's not expected to solve all problems, every bit helps in these tough times. Military personnel who need to sell their home can contact Drick Ward at EXiT REALTY CENTRAL (757-227-9007) for more information.

I recently had some buyer clients ask about a particular foreclosure website they had come across. Of course, most agents know that the primary purpose of such sites is to be a business. The purpose of business is to make a profit, and they have a twofold approach:

1. Revenue from the consumer to "gain access" to their database (meanwhile they harvest the contact information of the unsuspecting consumer and somewhere in the fine print, disclose that they will be selling this info to agent(s).
2. Revenue from agents for "exclusive territories" often based on zip code and personal bio paragraphs touting them as a "foreclosure specialist" (which may or may not be the actual truth)

Most agents also realize that the properties in these "databases" include many many properties that are only at the first step of foreclosure (notice of default sent) and the delinquency will be cured long before it actually gets to foreclosure, so it's incorrectly included on the list.

And the final inadequacy of these systems is that the "database" only shows the information available to the person who added that record. For instance, if a homeowner forgets to pay their second mortgage and it gets to the point of a NOD, the home would appear in the "foreclosures list" with the price showing as the balance on their second (likely much less than the value of the house for the neighborhood, thus it looks like a fantastic opportunity to the unsuspecting consumer.)

Luckily, I was able to quickly log into ACTIVE RAIN to verify that the company they had stumbled across was indeed following this business model and many other AR agents had posted about their difficulties with that particular firm. In short, the company didn't really have anything of value to offer. Thank you AR for being there!

Savings on routine bills are always appreciated by agents. Here's some info on Vonage that you may want to consider for your real estate business, whether you're working alone or a part of a team.

Of course, anyone who offers phone service has packages that include long distance (with Vonage, all long distance is free and overseas is really cheap) and voicemail is a staple with most systems at the base price. But here's a feature in Vonage that has real practical use for agents.

You can program your phone from any internet connection which isn't offered by all providers, but here's the real feature: Simultaneous Ring. When someone calls your number, it rings on 5 separate lines at the same time - whoever answers first gets the call. Now what could that do for you or your team? Consumers are generally frustrated by modern phone systems and prefer to speak with a live person. Often that's just not possible, but with a feature like this, it may be a more practical solution for the public to speak with you or one of your team mates.

Of course, they offer all the standard features like:

• three way calling
• call forwarding
• call waiting
• caller ID, and many more

Follow the link for special offers and to learn more about what Vonage can do to make your phone system work for YOU.

OK, for those of you up North, snow might not be a big deal. But for those of us in the Southern States (yes, Virginia is a southern state), the mere mention of snow brings a flurry of excitement. Our local weatherman says we might get some http://www.wtkr.com/Global/story.asp?S=3588421 so let's keep our fingers crossed.

I've lived near Chicago before - they are trudging through the snow to get to work, school, and all the other activities of the day. I've also lived in San Diego for a brief time - not even sure if they know what snow is there. Here in Hampton Roads, we know what to do. Cancel everything and go play in the snow.

Schools usually announce closings the evening before, some companies either close or open later than normal Clients who have unexpected kids for the day want to cancel showings, many agents are suddenly tied up with their own kids, and (of course) everyone forgets how to drive, so I make the most of the "downtime". It's a great day to catch up on phone calls to people in other areas, catch up on blogging, or any computer work, for that matter, while everyone else gets caught up in the moment, I use the time to (hopefully) get ahead.

So, if we do get snow, consider using the time to your best advantage. If we don't, have a great day anyway. We generally get a good snow (4-6") about every 5 or 6 years, so we are now overdue--this could be the year!

The "economic stimulus" package is expected to add massive growth to one employer, the Federal government, but not much more immediate relief for our ailing country. So, if you've got a job, it's better to get a mortgage while you're still employed as that may not even be an option if you're out of work. For those who are currently renting, purchase a moderate house that is within your current means and worry about being jobless later-if and when it happens. The simple fact is that whether or not you have gainful employment, you need to keep a roof over the head of yourself and your family. If you stop paying rent or mortgage, the end result is the same, but you've got more leverage as an owner than you do as a tenant.

Many economists agree that the increase in money since 2000 combined with the action our legislators are currently taking will result in massive inflation in the next 18 months. Once that happens, the Feds will have no choice but to increase interest rates similar to the late 1970's and early 80's. Once that happens, mortgage interest rates will be at the credit card rate level and other rates will be through the roof.

Now consider that there are a larger than normal number of foreclosures on the market today keeping downward pressure on housing prices. Let's see, low mortgage interest rates, ample supply of home choices, and an uncertain future economy. Seems like a no-brainer to me.