Ron Martin Team

With the events in the financial markets lately in reference to the Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the $85 billion bailout of insurance AIG, all which can affect the housing market, everyone may be getting a little over board and sea sick from all the wavy action.

But if your good with the waves then you will be-able to ride it out. You will then end up at the shore. If you want to succeed then you need to hang in there and manage the business to your best ability.

We can all get caught up with the stock market falling and then rising with its up & down yo-yo action, but remember life goes on. You will have good times & you will have bad times. Many things in life that are important goes in cycles. Just ride it out. Don't let them get you down. Or if they do, get back up on your feet and show them the next round that it won't knock you down again, but you are actually going to have fun with it.

Keller Williams

Realty

245 E. Blackstock Road

Spartanburg, Sc. 29301

Contacts:

Cell: 864-404-5098

www.ronmartin@kw.com

Most of us would love to leave a healthier planet for our children. But how to live a greener life? Its easier than you think.

1. Use Green Cleaning Products

Common cleaning products are filled with toxic chemicals -- compounds that are directly linked to cancer, reproductive disorders, lung and skin damage, and other serious health concerns. Kids are especially vulnerable. Cleaning chemicals are a major contributor to indoor air pollution -- and keep in mind that inside the house is where the average family spends 90% of its time.

2. Install a Water Filter

Clean, safe water. This is a simple home improvement that is smart, easy and cost-cutting: no more plastic water bottles, no more fossil fuels used to deliver the H20, and no more water delivery bills, either.

3. Use Energy Efficient Light Bulbs

Did you know that 90% of electricity is lost by heat in incandescent (regular) bulb's. Energy-efficient bulbs produce the same amount of light using about 25% of the energy. There are energy-efficient light bulbs for every kind of fixture, providing a spectrum of watts, hues and ambience. There are even light bulbs that last 20,000 hours that's 5 hours a day for 11 years. Just one of them will replace 26 store-bought light bulbs.

4. Use Recycled Paper Products

Every year, more than 900 million trees are cut down for U.S. paper and pulp mills. More than 40% of landfill is paper office and residential paper dominates it. What's more, the bleach used on most paper products has toxic chlorine-based chemicals that destroy the ecosystem, cause cancer and birth defects.

5. Purify Air with Houseplants

The EPA estimates indoor air to be two to 10 times more polluted than the air outdoors. Building materials, furnishings, carpet backing, cleaning products, computer circuitry and printers continuously release pollutants. Plants are not only nice to look at, they are also great, natural air purifiers.

6. Choose Natural Lawn Care and Stop Using Pesticides and Synthetic Fertilizers

Pesticides are intentionally toxic. Every year, 90 million pounds of pesticides are used on lawns in the U.S. alone. Our shoes track these toxins into our homes and our children's health is the most compromised. Exposure to pesticides can lead to such health problems as birth defects, neurotoxins, and kidney and liver damage.

7. Choose "Green Energy" Options through your Electric Utility

How cool is it that so many standard utility companies offer "green energy" options? For a small premium, you can elect to get your electricity from renewable sources such as wind, solar, or biomass. This is a direct way to personally wean your household off fossil fuels. Sign up and save the world!

8. Favor Cloth over Paper Products

Using cloth towels, napkins and rags instead of disposable paper goods can reduce the heaps of rubbish in our landfills and save you a few bucks in the process. Cloth dishtowels are a smart eco-choice over paper towels. Use cloth napkins instead of paper napkins.

9. Be Wise with Laundry

Use Biodegradable Detergent and Oxygen Bleach: Both are free of toxins and irritants. Wash Clothes on Cold: The washing machine performs just as well with cold water as with warm or hot. It will save energy and money and extend the life of your threads. Wash Full Loads, But Don't Overfill: It takes the same amount of energy for a small load as a large load. However, an overfilled machine wont perform as well and may need a longer wash/rinse cycle.

10. Buy Organic Food Products

Going green at the supermarket is one of the most important and influential options for human and ecological health. Organically grown food simply does not contain the cocktail of chemicals used to cultivate conventional food. Buying organic is a win-win situation -- better for us, better for the planet. Of course, opting for organic does cost significantly more and such products are not always available. So allow your shopping list to evolve little by little. Start by prioritizing your purchases. The following types of products are the most important to buy:

Meat, Poultry, Eggs and Dairy, Berries, Potatoes:

Fall weather is here, and the streets are full of prospective homebuyers. How do you make sure your property stands out above the rest? I will explain a few ways you can update your home to make sure it shines to its complete potential and help you achieve the largest return on your investment.

Fresh Paint
Fresh paint is the most cost-effective and profitable improvement you can make. Even if your home doesn't need a new coat, painting the interior walls a neutral color and the ceilings white can make rooms look bigger, brighter and cleaner. Less then around $25, you can give an older looking room a complete makeover.

New flooring
New flooring will increase the market value of your home, shabby floors can add a problem to a sale. Instead of spending money on carpet or hardwood, try laminate instead. The new laminates imitate the look of expensive hardwood, but will never fade, scratch or dent. Certain brands like Wilson art flooring come with a glue-less tongue-and-groove installation process, they install quick and easy without making a mess., If you decide to install carpet, choose a neutral color like tan, cream.

New lights
Replace outdated light fixtures. This inexpensive improvement can update old decor that might have discouraged buyers who don't want to put any effort into a new home. If your existing lighting looks "flat," consider track lighting, which can give a room a dynamic flair by spotlighting various areas.

A clean garage
A clean garage will help make a good first impression to a buyer and shows that a home is in move-in condition. If you use your garage for storage, clean it out and rent a storage space. Paint the interior white and sweep the floor. If your garage is unfinished, install wallboard or build storage shelves on the back wall.

Create curb appeal
Attractive front and back yards boost the value of any property. Keep the lawn mowed and trim all shrubs to keep the yard looking clean. Plant some trees if the yard is bare or add new bright flowers to add color. Visit your local nursery to get the best flowers for your curb appeal.

Purchasing One-Site will help your company to control and thereby lower payable costs by providing integration, accuracy, control, and efficiency:

Integration

Property management companies need's a system that can serve as a front end to their existing company, but that is designed for use by site personnel, Purchasing One-Site provides a very inexpensive and user-friendly portal, giving your site personnel access to your enterprise resource planning system.

Accuracy

Purchasing One-Site helps prevent errors in coding, in vendor selection, and other common errors made in purchase orders or invoices. The system allows us to identify and correct errors before they are transmitted to the company accounting package (for example, by predefining which general ledger account is usually used to order a particular product). Improving the accuracy of site data dramatically reduces the costs associated with reviewing and recoding site data.

Control

One-Site Purchasing empowers the home office staff with control the purchases made at the site. Controls include budgetary limits for each account, spending limits for each user, and an approval process that can be tailored to fit the various policies that they desire. Most importantly, Purchasing One-Site allows your company to control the purchase before it occurs, in addition to providing reporting for what costs are actually incurred.

Efficiency

A typical property needs a payables system that will not interfere with site operations or slow them down. Purchasing One-Site quickly handles entry of multiple invoices, entry of purchase orders, and purchase approval. Site personnel will appreciate how fast and easy it is to use Purchasing One-Site.

The use of natural energy sources to provide heating and electricity is rapidly increasing in popularity among homeowners. The more natural and renewable energy sources is needed to take the burden off our current dependency on fossil fuels.

We can attempt to save the earth from devastation if we act now, and by making the switch to natural and renewable energy sources. many other issues need to be addressed, making the switch is a major step forward in the fight against climate change, and the fight for a cleaner environment. Switching over will not be easy nor cheap. Some of the kits are fairly descent but some can be very expensive.

Below are just a handful of the advantages relating to the use of natural and renewable energy sources:

•· The sun, wind, tides, are free to use.

•· After the initial cost of; solar panels, wind turbines equipment, the only cost to the consumer is the required maintenance.

•· No more price rises from gas, energy or electricity companies.

•· Use as much or as little of the renewable electricity of which you generate, without feeling guilty for any wastage.

•· Oil, gas and coal supplies will most likely someday run out, if we have the infrastructure in place to generate energy from natural sources, this won't be as much of a problem.

•· Government grants are available for some natural energy projects depending on your location.

Below, you can see a selection of the disadvantages relating to the use of clean energy sources as opposed to fossil fuels:

•· The initial cost of renewable energy technologies may be expensive.

It is unlikely you will be able to totally replace your current energy or power supply to the use of renewable energy, but you could get close with a realistic budget and the implementation of different energy technologies, such as a wind turbine and solar panel combination.