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Wintergreen Brief

Wintergreen is a quiet resort community in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia and is close to Charlottesville, Richmond and Washington D.C. Visitors can enjoy skiing, world-class golf, and explore endless trails. Find a Wintergreen private vacation home on Viscape to rent for a family or romantic getaway by clicking here.

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Snowy lanes Pic by Terren in Virginia


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Winter and green - get it? Pic by faeryboots


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Bear visit Pic by Carly & Art

350 Years of Yarmouth

The second oldest town on Cape Cod (with arguably the coolest name), Yarmouth is a quaint seaside community replete with gorgeous beaches, lush green landscapes and a historic charm that puts even the most stressed of vacationers at ease. Composed of the three small villages of West Yarmouth, Yarmouth and South Yarmouth, this seventeen mile stretch of paradise on Cape Cod boasts a literal cornucopia of opportunities and activities for travelers of all ages, shapes and sizes. First things first though – sleeping arrangements! With plenty of Yarmouth vacation homes or bed and breakfasts in Yarmouth, this genteel seaside town offers as many cozy sleep spots as it does beach front property.

Check out the fine Yarmouth real estate and survey the roaring Atlantic Ocean while relaxing on the perfectly warm sand of one of 15 Yarmouth public beaches. Grab a pair of binoculars and go whale watching off the coast And for those seeking a bit more of an active vacation, a trip to one of the four Yarmouth golf courses or one of the 14 tennis courts in Yarmouth should provide some fun and excitement for those a bit more athletically inclined. For the intrepid shopper, head down to South Yarmouth along Route 28 for some prime outlet shopping as well as some unique family friendly sea lion shows. Then head over to the Boardwalk at Grey’s beach which is perfect for people watching (just don’t be too obvious about it). Or for a great spot with appeal for the whole family, head over to West Yarmouth to the historic Baxter Grist Mill – a 27-hole public golf course that also holds miniature golf course, trampolines, a fishing pier and even a petting zoo. With over 350 years of rich history and a friendly community of locals, Yarmouth is an idea spot to rest, recover and relax!

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View of Yarmouth Pic by PhillipC

Zi-What?

In the movie, The Shawshank Redemption, Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) tells his friend Red (Morgan Freeman) that his dream is to own a small hotel on the beach in Zihuatanejo – to which Red humerously responds “Zi…what?” At the end of the movie, when the main characters reunite after being apart for years, the camera pans outward to show a beautiful, white sand beach as Andy and Red embrace. While Zihuatanejo is indeed beautiful, few people know that the beach shown at the end of the movie is actually Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge in St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. At Viscape, we love movies all most as much as we love travel. Almost, but not quite. ;) Right now there are no properties on Viscape in Zihuatanejo...if you have one, list it on our site for free. Cheers!

The Real Zihuatanejo!

The perfect stretch
Playa Las Gatas pic by gahan78
  • View of the village from the beach

Top 10 REAL ESTATE TWITTERERS TO FOLLOW

Top Vacation Real Estate Twitterers That You Should Follow -- My Sweet Viscape <!--[if lt IE 7]><link rel="stylesheet" href="http://blog.viscape.com/wp-content/themes/viscape/ie6.css" type="text/css" media="screen" /><![endif]--> .recentcomments a{display:inline !important;padding: 0 !important;margin: 0 !important;}
 
 

Top Vacation Real Estate Twitterers That You Should Follow

Posted by Dorothy | December 19th, 2008

Are you a vacation real estate professional or just simply interested in vacation real estate? Are you tired of scanning every news item, blog post or blurb about vacation destinations and vacation real estate in order to find out the most up-to-the-minute changes in the vacation home market? Well, there’s a simpler way to keep 2-steps ahead of the ever-changing marketplace and also connect with some movers and shakers in the industry. Just follow them on Twitter!

To make it easy for you, Viscape has compiled a list of the top vacation real estate twitterers out there. So, without further ado, here are the top real estate twitterers that you should be following:

Name Geographic Area Twitter ID Number of Followers
Tim McDonald Carribean http://twitter.com/tamcdonald 652
Real Estate Pat North Neck Virginia http://twitter.com/RealEstatePat 246
Seaside Vacations NC Outer Banks http://twitter.com/SeasideVacation 20
Sonya Loose Gladwin County,MI http://twitter.com/GladwinCoMI 15
Jay Thompson Phoenix, AZ http://twitter.com/PhoenixREGuy 1,533
Carolinamorning Asheville, NC http://twitter.com/carolinamorning 268
Edith Russo Seattle, WA http://twitter.com/edithrusso 187
ResortQuest Everywhere http://twitter.com/ResortQuest 206
sprental United Kingdom http://twitter.com/sprental 114
John Atkin Sarasota, FL http://twitter.com/JohnAtkin 5
Viscape Arlington, VA http://twitter.com/viscape 875
penchantlama Everywhere http://twitter.com/PenchantLama 558
Artist Escapes Colorado http://twitter.com/mistyeyed 466
Caroline Allison Washington, DC http://twitter.com/VacationHmQueen 373
Carlin Catra Cwik Chicago, IL http://twitter.com/carwinian 24
Jessica Nunemaker Northwest, IN http://twitter.com/JessNunemaker 283
Kelly Mitchell Kahala http://twitter.com/HawaiiRealty 2,595
Leslie Gilmore Outer Banks, NC http://twitter.com/LeslieGilmore 1,576
Dru Bloomfield Scottsdale, AZ http://twitter.com/drubloomfield 1,436
rainmakertom Bulgaria http://twitter.com/rainmakertom 1,452

Do you think that we unfairly left someone out? This list is dynamic, so, give us a shout. Contact Dorothy@Viscape.com.

Follow Viscape on Twitter at : http://twitter.com/Viscape

Viscape University Announcement: Weary of potential downfalls of landlord ship and real estate management? Viscape University will host a more in-depth virtual seminar on the topic on Monday, January 12 at 7:30pm EST. Experience management and real estate professionals will be on hand to answer all of your questions. Space is limited, so RSVP now to reserve your spot: RSVP@viscape.com.

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How to Make Your Property Manager Work for You!

Tips on How to Make Your Property Manager Work for You! -- My Sweet Viscape <!--[if lt IE 7]><link rel="stylesheet" href="http://blog.viscape.com/wp-content/themes/viscape/ie6.css" type="text/css" media="screen" /><![endif]--> .recentcomments a{display:inline !important;padding: 0 !important;margin: 0 !important;}

Tips on How to Make Your Property Manager Work for You!

Posted by Dorothy | December 13th, 2008

Tips to Make your Property Manager Work for You!
by Alfred and Emily Glossbrenner - Founders of FullyBookedRentals

It’s often said that “the Internet changes everything.” Certainly it has changed the traditional relationship between vacation-rental owners and property managers. In fact, the Internet has empowered vacation rental owners to completely eliminate property managers and the 15 to 50 percent commissions they charge. You really can do everything yourself, and keep the commission money in the process.

But what if you don’t have the time (or inclination) to screen renters, handle inquiries, maintain an availability calendar, send out rental agreements, and collect payments? What if you just don’t want to do it all yourself?

If you’re not forced to maximize the income your property generates, if your current goal is to simply cover most of your expenses, then going the property-manager route might very well make sense. But here’s the problem: The really good property managers handle dozens (even hundreds) of vacation rentals. None of them has any real incentive to concentrate on marketing your particular property.

So, assuming that for reasons of the sort cited above you want to turn your property over to a property management company, what can you do to help that company keep your place fully booked?

Here are some suggestions:

  • Write your own property description. It’s unlikely that your property manager knows anywhere near as much as you do about the joys and pleasures of your place. You can set yourself apart from the competition by creating your own write-up and providing it to your property manager. Put your personality into it. Explain what you love about the place. And be frank. If there’s an ocean view, but you have to crane your neck to see it, go ahead and say so. Then make the point that for a full ocean view, the price would be considerably higher.
  • Take charge of your photos. Unless your property manager is a terrific photographer or has one on retainer, we recommend that you provide your own photos. Enlist the help of a friend (or hire a professional photographer for $200-$300) if you’re not comfortable with a digital camera. Be sure to “dress” the set, pay attention to lighting, and use a wide-angle lens for your interior shots.
  • Augment your management company’s online listings with your own. Most property management companies now have their own Web sites with pictures and descriptions of the properties they manage. But when it comes to getting noticed by the search engines, more is often better. So boost your property’s “search footprint” by listing on leading sites and have all inquiries go to your property manager. (Editor’s Note: Viscape lets you list your property for free.)
  • Spread the word with business cards for your property. For less than $25 at sites like VistaPrint and OvernightPrints, you can design a business card and order a supply of 100-250 cards. Offer them to friends and business acquaintances who ask about your property.

Viscape Property shot

List your property for free on Viscape to complement your property manager’s marketing efforts!

There really are many ways to get what you want and need from a vacation rental. And the Internet is a big help, regardless of the path you choose. The key thing is to take the reins and use the Internet tools at your disposal to help your property manager keep your place fully booked.

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Alfred and Emily Glossbrenner are experienced vacation-rental owners and the authors of How to Make Your Vacation Property Work for You! They also own and operate FullyBookedRentals (http://www.fullybookedrentals.com), a membership Web site devoted to helping other vacation-rental owners advertise, rent, and manage their properties effectively and profitably. Alfred and Emily will be on Viscape Univeristy’s discussion panel on January 12th at 9:00 PM EST - Make Money Honey! The Insiders Guide to Short Term Vacation Rentals! Space is limited so sign-up today: RSVP@viscape.com