tallahasseerealestate

Have you ever noticed that anytime you read a blog, there is a Subscription Button that encourages you to subscribe to it? Well, I have been questioned about this a few times and thought I’d write a post about how and why you should subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog.

Most people have not become comfortable with the subscription process and purpose, so this will be a simple “how and why” article to hopefully move you forward to being better organized in your reading and researching on the internet.

Blog Subscriptions Are Just Like Old Fashioned Magazine Subscriptions

Before we had the internet, the paper world used the term subscription to mean that somebody had paid for the right to receive an amount of consecutive issues of a newspaper or magazine over a period of time. So, If I subscribed to the Tallahassee Democrat, it would be delivered to me every time a new one was printed (on the schedule that I had purchased).

Blog subscriptions are no different. If you find a blog that you like, you just click on that orange button and then you are subscribed to that blog! The great benefit of subscribing to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog is that you no longer have to check for updates, they will be delivered to you as they are published!

How Are Blog Subscriptions Delivered

The good ‘ol U.S. Mail was the delivery mechanism for paper subscriptions, but how do we receive our blog subscriptions? Well, websites publish lists of updates, called “feeds,” that indicate when new content has been posted. When you subscribe to a feed, your feed reader (explained in the next paragraph) starts monitoring that feed for updates. You don’t have to give any personal information, it doesn’t cost anything, and it’s easy to unsubscribe.

• Feed Readers - You can utilize a free web application like Google Reader to aggregate all of your favorite blogs into one easy location for viewing at your leisure. Aggregators such as this go out and check the blogs that you have identified (subscribed) and updates content since your last viewing. It saves you from having to visit your favorite blog to check for updates.
• Email Subscriptions - Most blogs offer a “Subscribe By Email” feature which will email you a copy of the latest blog post on a routine schedule. This is a very convenient way to receive the content from your favorite blogs. You only need an email application and new updates show up right in your inbox.

What Is RSS and Atom

RSS and Atom are the “languages” or formats used by the aggregators so that everyone is speaking the same language. RSS stands for “real simple syndication” and is the most often used format for blog aggregators. Fortunately, you really don’t need to know anything about this, just decide whether you would like everything sent to your email, or to a reader such as Google Reader.

How Do You Cancel Your Blog Subscription

I don’t know about you, but I get a ton of email spam these days. I used to be reluctant to subscribe to a blog thinking that  I would only be adding to the spam, but it turns out that most of these use an “opt in” subscription service.  This allows you to confirm that you want to receive the subscription and you won’t get spammed by the sender. Most blogs use a service called Aweber or one called Feedburner (and both guarantee to keep your email address private).

Subscribe To The Tallahassee Real Estate Blog

So now that you know two different ways to subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog, you have no excuse for not being in the loop about Tallahassee housing! Subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog  by email and don’t forget to comment often so that you can be part of the discussion!

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As a reminder for those who subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog by email, some embedded pictures and videos might not be appearing in your email and you might need to click the title header to go to your browser where all will be visible. Additionally, if you would like to respond (leave a comment) to this article, you will need to “click through” to the blog site to post your feedback.

Keep checking out the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog every day for updates that include charts, graphs, and analysis of the Tallahassee real estate market.

If you like this Article then please subscribe to my blog through a full RSS feed, or you can . You will be able to stay informed about the happenings in the Tallahassee Real Estate Market. You can also subscribe to this blog and have it delivered by Email.

Joe Manausa is a real estate investor and the Broker and Co-Owner of Century 21 First Realty. He can be reached via e-mail through the Tallahassee Real Estate Website or catch his latest writings on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog , or by calling (850) 386-2001.

Every so often I check my statistics when I’m checking for new messages on Active Rain. I am always shocked at how much activity this site has generated, especially when you consider I only created my Active Rain blog to learn about blogging and to meet the top blogging Realtors on the net.

So, in honor of breaking 400 blogs (about 16 months worth of blogging about Tallahassee real estate), I thought I would provide a list of some of my favorite posts (basically the ones that received the most views and/or most comments).

The topics for these posts, while centered on Tallahassee real estate, cover a diverse list of topics. Most are serious, but a few are tongue-in-cheek stories from my daily real estate brokerage. The funny part of all of this is that the most-trafficked blog is the one that took the least amount of time to produce (I’ll let you try to guess which one it is….I think you will figure it out with a smile).

The Best Of Tallahassee Real Estate

• What Has Happened To The 3000 Square Foot Home Values?

• Real Estate Appreciation or Depreciation - How Is It Measured?

• Quick Selling Keys In Today’s Real Estate Market

• How To Use Blog Subscriptions To Deliver Great Information To Your Inbox

• I’ve lost 74 … You?

• How To Increase Your Real Estate Traffic With Additional Back Links

• 1031 Tax Deferred Exchange: Realized Gain vs. Recognized Gain

• From Iraq To Tallahassee - A Job Well Done

• Best Counter-Offer Ever!!!!

• How To Make Market Graphs For Your Blog

• Hey ActiveRain, Are you linked in?

• Realtor Dies During Blog Training (warning, Graphic Pictures!)

• Absorption Rate - Homeowners Must Understand This

We have just posted the 19th Edition of the Real Estate Market Reports Blog Carnival. If you have not participated in the carnival, then you are missing out on a great way to drive traffic to your blog. Each week, the Real Estate Market Reports Blog Carnival gathers together localized information from real estate professionals all around the United States (and beyond). Our goal is to create a place with real information posted by real estate bloggers which is much more accurate than the consolidated MLS reports that NAR publishes.

Again, a super benefit derived from the Real Estate Market Reports Blog Carnival is addtional traffic that the bloggers receive. By posting an excerpt and link to their blogs, they have seen thousands of additional people visit their own personal blog sites.

How To Increase Traffic To Your Blog

As the title to this blog suggested, it is very easy to join a carnival and start getting traffic. After you write a new article, copy the permalink (i.e. http://activerain.com/blogsview/781368/Know-The-Basics-Of-A-1031-Tax-Deferred-Exchange) and follow these easy steps:

1. Click This Link To Visit the Blog Carnival Submission Form
2. Paste The Permalink in the “Permalink URL” box and then hit the “Tab” key
3. Enter a few quick descriptive sentences in the “Remarks” block so that readers are enticed to visit your blog
4. Enter your contact information and hit “Submit”

It really is that simple. Your article will have a link back to it with a nice descriptive paragraph that you wrote to promote yourself. Don’t be afraid to get started today!

Please swing by and Leave a Comment and Rate the Carnival!

This is the 19th of a series of blogs that are hosted at different sites each week, thus sending links back to the real estate blogging community from all over the internet. Thus far, the first 19 carnivals have been a great success and many new links back to a bunch of AR bloggers have been created.

If you missed any of the past Blog Carnivals, you can catch them here:

See How Easy It Is To Submit Your Article To The Carnival Each Week

These Bloggers are getting links back to their blogs, are you?

Check Out The Real Estate Market Reports Blog Carnival - Edition XIX

So I have a very important question to ask…

Why aren’t you joining this great way to popularize your blog?

It is not too late for you to submit your entry into the carnival. The process is rather easy.

• Write an article about what is happening in your local real estate market (or use one you’ve already written).
• Click on this link to submit your article to the Real Estate Market Reports Blog Carnival
• Paste your permalink into the appropriate box
• Write a very brief description of your story
• Submit your entry

As simple as that and you will have a new fresh link back to your blog!

This is a reminder that the September real estate reports have been posted on The Market Bulletin.

The month of September saw a continuation of the slower sales for homes in Tallahassee. Unit sales were very low for September in the Tallahassee real estate market. September is the month where all the “before school starts” buyers have just finished closing on their homes, so we normally see the market fall off from the summer pace.

Tallahassee Real Estate Market Reports

For each real estate market graph below, click on the link below it for a larger picture and a brief explanation of what the graph is revealing.

Video Explaining How To Interpret Real Estate Graphs

Just as a reminder, we have produced a short video that explains how to interpret each of these Tallahassee Real Estate Market Graphs.

Subscribe in a reader

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I am HousingData on Delicious
I have 6 bookmarks
Add me to your network

As a reminder for those who subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog by email, some embedded pictures and videos might not be appearing in your email and you might need to click the title header to go to your browser where all will be visible. Additionally, if you would like to respond (leave a comment) to this article, you will need to “click through” to the blog site to post your feedback.

Keep checking out the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog every day for updates that include charts, graphs, and analysis of the Tallahassee real estate market.

If you like this Article then please subscribe to my blog through a full RSS feed, or you can . You will be able to stay informed about the happenings in the Tallahassee Real Estate Market. You can also subscribe to this blog and have it delivered by Email.

Joe Manausa is a real estate investor and the Broker and Co-Owner of Century 21 First Realty. He can be reached via e-mail through the Tallahassee Real Estate Website or catch his latest writings on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog , or by calling (850) 386-2001.

We have been watching inventories continue to rise in the residential real estate market for a very long time,  going back to 2005. The Tallahassee Real Estate Blog has been instructing readers that the first sign of change in the housing market should be noted when inventory levels begin to fall on a long-term trend. I can say, with cautious optimism, that we are starting to see our long-term trend move to falling inventories in the Tallahassee real estate market.

Tallahassee Housing Inventory Falls On Short Term Trend

The thirty day trend is a look at what we have been seeing, on average, during the past thirty days. On average, the Tallahassee real estate market has seen more than four homes per day (NET) leave the market over the past thirty days. That means the number of homes for sale in Tallahassee is roughly 130 fewer homes today than it was at this time last month.

Long Term Trend Positive For Tallahassee Home Inventory

Just as the thirty day trend is positive, the 180 day trend is also showing a reduction of Tallahassee homes for sale. The 180 day trend is showing 2.5 fewer homes for sale in Tallahassee each day, meaning that over the past 6 months, the inventory of homes has fallen by 450 homes!

Home Selling Success Rates In Tallahassee Starting To Fall

Part of the reduction in home inventories is due to an increase in home selling success rates. The following graph measures the trend of homes sold versus homes listed for sale each day. What we are looking for is the direction of the trend line, as opposed to the absolute value at any given point.

Using the graph above, we can see the all the trends were near the upper thirties (34% - 40%) when our measurement began in mid-June of this year. Sales success rates rose up around the 45% range (meaning 45% of the homes listed were selling) by the end of August, but we are now seeing that number begin to decline.

I suspect when we observe this graph near the end of February, the trends will be in the low thirties again. Whether or not this fall is enough to turn around the inventory reduction remains to be seen. Stay tuned to the Tallahassee real estate blog for updates, or you can check our regularly updated “Market Bulletin” for charts, graphs, and analysis of the Tallahassee real estate market.

As a reminder for those who subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog by email, some embedded pictures and videos might not be appearing in your email and you might need to click the title header to go to your browser where all will be visible. Additionally, if you would like to respond (leave a comment) to this article, you will need to “click through” to the blog site to post your feedback.

Keep checking out the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog every day for updates that include charts, graphs, and analysis of the Tallahassee real estate market.

If you like this Article then please subscribe to my blog through a full RSS feed, or you can . You will be able to stay informed about the happenings in the Tallahassee Real Estate Market. You can also subscribe to this blog and have it delivered by Email.

Joe Manausa is a real estate investor and the Broker and Co-Owner of Century 21 First Realty. He can be reached via e-mail through the Tallahassee Real Estate Website or catch his latest writings on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog , or by calling (850) 386-2001.

Special occasions occur in life at various times, and when they are acted upon in a timely manner, they can change our destiny. I believe now is one of those times. The “perfect storm” of economic events and global opinion has created a small window of opportunity for us regular people to take advantage of something normally only available to the financially advantaged.

Five Reasons Why Now Is The Time To Buy A Home

With everybody apparently declaring the great depression in housing underway, I have to report the contrary point of view. There are many things that are making this market look poised for a historic change and I think you might agree with me once you consider these five reasons why now is the time to buy a home.

1. Interest Rates Are Still Near Historical Lows

Interest rates have been low for so long that people believe that these are normal rates. This is Wrong. Today’s rates are low and will ABSOLUTELY rise in the future. With most of us more concerned about our monthly mortgage payment than we are about the cost of the home, interest rates are critical!

If you study the history of mortgage rates, you will see a cycle. Just as in any market, the money markets see the ups and the downs. But I think that we are in a period of time that is about to see extraordinary cycle adjustment (meaning rates rising very fast, very soon) for several reasons.

• The U.S. Dollar is weak and the Fed needs to make it stronger. Soon. Like maybe after an election…
• When the Fed raises its rates, the mortgage markets will follow this time
• The mortgage market is in a mess. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been given more rope, but ultimately the mortgage industry is going to tighten lending requirements and will raise margins to sustain profits.
• When all markets try to correct, they unfailingly “over correct.” Think about it, we have seen a cycle of low interest rates for a very long time. How will the market correct this? You have to consider that the market is due for a very long cycle of high interest rates!

2. Prices Are Down Below Cost

The most important valuation factor in housing values (like any other commodity) is market opinion. The value of a home is based upon what somebody is willing to pay for it today, regardless of what it cost to produce that home.

However, the market generally seeks a value that is close to “cost.”

• If homes are selling for amounts greater than cost, then market suppliers bring more homes to the market to take advantage of the profit that exists.
• If homes are selling at or below cost, then market suppliers are no longer motivated to bring more homes to the market until the profit returns to the market.

We are now seeing homes that are on the market for sale, for prices that cannot be replicated ever again. We would need to see a collapse of the local economy and wages reduced by significant margins before we could produce homes at the prices being found in our market today. While this is not true for the highest price ranges, it definitely is true at and above the median price point (and certainly below the median price point).

3. Short Sale Opportunities Are Booming

This is one element of the opportunity window that many home buyers do not understand. While the purpose of this article is to discuss the opportunity (not to explain the short sale process like we have done in other articles), the key here is to understand why short sales are such great opportunities for buyers that can make a quick decision and then have the patience to go through a long closing cycle.

• Short sales give patient buyers huge opportunities due to the indifference of many sellers in a short sale position. They have to get rid of their home and they will not receive any money at closing. Don’t you think they’ll sign just about any offer (there’s nothing in it for them either way, right?)?
• The lack of coordination of the banks is staggering right now. With so many loans in default, they cannot handle the scores of loans they are trying to resolve. A patient buyer who makes a wise offer can get a home that will be an instant asset.

4. Tallahassee Is Growing - Ultimately We Need More Homes

I have read reports that say Tallahassee has grown twice as fast in 2008 than we normally do. So what does this mean? It means that whether that growth is people renting homes in Tallahassee or people buying homes in Tallahassee, more housing will be needed. If we build homes at a slower rate than our growth, I believe it is natural to assume that we will have, at some point, a shortage of homes. This is all part of the natural housing cycle, supply and demand. Think how smart you’ll feel in ten years  when you own a home in-town in Tallahassee, and other people have to drive thirty miles to find a home that a typical family can afford.

5. The Media And The Experts Are Now All Negative On Housing

All the wisest investors in history have always been contrarians. If everybody is saying you need to buy, they sell. If everybody is saying you need to sell, they buy. If the markets are mixed, the keep their hands in their pockets and only take advantage of special opportunities.

In 2008, we have seen everybody jump on board the panic train. Prices have plummeted below cost in many cases and inventory levels make it a ripe time for buyers to pick out a special house to hold on to for many years. Are you going to be a lemming and follow the tail of the herd or are you going to seize the day (Carpe Diem for Mrs. Hall, my high school Latin Teacher)?

Home Ownership In America Is Still Near An All-time High

More Americans own their homes today than ever before (plus or minus the last two years). I think this is going to change. More people are going to be forced to rent due to the increased tightening of the mortgage markets. Rents will rise dramatically in the future due to increased demand for rental properties as well as increased costs of money, sticks, bricks, and labor. Nobody is going to be able to live cheap (except those who are wise enough to buy today and lock into low interest rates).

So, what does the prudent buyer do right now?

• Consult with a successful, intelligent, blogging real estate broker
• Consult with a successful, intelligent, blogging mortgage broker to determine capabilities
• Review all options with real estate broker and identify potential windfall opportunities in the market
• Subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog to stay abreast of more sage wisdom

As a reminder for those who subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog by email, some embedded pictures and videos might not be appearing in your email and you might need to click the title header to go to your browser where all will be visible.

Keep checking out the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog every day for updates that include charts, graphs, and analysis of the Tallahassee real estate market.

If you like this Article then please subscribe to my blog through a full RSS feed, or you can . You will be able to stay informed about the happenings in the Tallahassee Real Estate Market. You can also subscribe to this blog and have it delivered by Email.

Joe Manausa is a real estate investor and the Broker and Co-Owner of Century 21 First Realty. He can be reached via e-mail through the Tallahassee Real Estate Website or catch his latest writings on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog , or by calling (850) 386-2001.