There is so much misinformation out there these days about Short Sales. While this transaction may be a somewhat complicated process, here are the three very uncomplicated things lenders are looking for to see if you qualify:

1. Financial Hardship: This is defined as a verifiable reason that has or will cause you to miss a payment, such as a mortgage payment adjustment, a job loss, too much debt or a business failure.
2. Monthly Shortfall: Lenders want to see that you cannot afford to pay your mortgage. You will be required to provide your agent a financial worksheet that demonstrates this. The shortfall equation is simple: Total Monthly Income – Total Monthly Expense = Monthly Shortfall.
3. Insolvency: You must be able to prove to the lender that you owe more than you have in cash. Insolvency can be proven in many cases, even though you may still have some money for living expenses.

For more information about the Short sale process go to Homebuying.com.

The flag remains a powerful symbol of patriotism for many Americans. But where did those stars and stripes come from in the first place? Time for us to unfurl the story.

What Came Before the “Stars and Stripes”?

Try the “Continental Colors.” It had 13 red and white stripes representing the 13 colonies and a British Union Jack in the corner. George Washington raised this flag as the banner of the Continental Army on January 1, 1776. Other early flags depicted a pine tree or a snake. There were several versions of the “Gadsden flag,” which was yellow with a rattlesnake coiled over the words “Don’t Tread on Me!”

Betsy Ross–Did She or Didn’t She?

Many Americans believe a Philadelphia seamstress named Betsy Ross designed and sewed the first Stars and Stripes. The legend began when her grandson, William Canby, spoke on the origin of the flag to the Pennsylvania Historical Society in 1870. Canby said his grandmother had told him that she fashioned the flag in June 1776 at the request of George Washington. Still, despite the fact that Betsy Ross was a good businesswoman who kept careful records, Canby admitted he could find no documents to back up the story.

Canby said Washington approached Ross because he was part of a congressional committee in charge of creating a new flag. But no one has found any evidence that the committee existed, that Washington visited Ross’s shop, or that the two even knew each other. Betsy Ross did make flags, but for now, the legend of her sewing the first-ever Stars and Stripes remains a legend.

Why Stars and Stripes?

On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, adopted the following resolution, without comment or debate:

“Resolved, That the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white: that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation.”

Congress said nothing about the stars’ arrangement, so different versions of the Stars and Stripes appeared during the following years, with different star patterns. These included the “Betsy Ross flag,” with the stars in a circle.

Many historians now believe the Stars and Stripes may have been the work of Francis Hopkinson, a congressman, artist, and signer of the Declaration of Independence. In 1780, Hopkinson wrote a letter to the government about designs he had made for official symbols, including the “Flag of the United States of America.” He noted that he hadn’t been paid and asked for a quarter cask of wine as compensation.

Why Red, White, and Blue?

No official explanation of the color scheme has ever been established. Yet in 1782, Charles Thomson, the congressional secretary in charge of choosing a great seal for the United States, did explain the meaning of the seal’s red, white, and blue. He said, “White signifies purity and innocence, Red hardiness and valor, and Blue . . . signifies vigilance, perseverance and justice.”

On the other hand, the flag may be red, white, and blue simply because those are the colors of the British flag. Maybe early Americans weren’t quite as rebellious as they thought.

By Jeffery Vail

This article was provided to you through collaboration with Every Learner. To learn more, play quizzes, and read additional articles, visit http://everylearner.com and get a one-month membership at no cost to you.

Copyright © 2002-2009 Every Learner, Inc. All rights reserved.

10 Ways You Can Lift Your Spirits

 1. Realize you can’t buy happiness: Wealth is like health. Its utter absence breeds misery, but having it doesn’t guarantee happiness.
 2. Manage your time: Happy people feel in control of their lives, often aided by mastering their use of time. Set goals and break them into manageable tasks.
 3. Act happy: Going through the motions can trigger the emotions.
 4. Flow: Happy people are often in a zone called “flow”. They’re absorbed in a challenging, but not overwhelming task.
 5. Exercise: Sound minds reside in sound bodies.
 6. Sleep: Happy people allow their bodies to rest.
 7.Foster close relationships: Friends who care about you can help you weather difficult times. Don’t take them for granted.
 8. Be helpful: Doing good makes you feel good.
 9. Be grateful: Pause to think about what you have rather than what you don’t.
10. Nurture your spirit: Faith can provide a sense of purpose and hope. Studies find that actively religious people are happier and cope better with crises than non-religious people.

Source: David Myers, The Pursuit of Happiness

Promoting your Real Estate Blog

It occurred to me that since so many more Realtors are adding a blog to their mix of marketing endeavors, perhaps it would be helpful for me to share my top 3 articles I’ve read most recently on the subject. I read a lot of content regarding to search engine optimization and internet marketing because it’s become such an important part of what my team does, and I think it pays off.

I feel like I should preface this list with a simple disclaimer: you don’t necessarily need to become an internet marketing guru in order to get maximum results from your blog.

But you DO want to get results, right? That said, it’s very easy to get sucked into the world of internet marketing, especially if you’re a detail-oriented person. Don’t let it distract from your core business of selling property. Internet marketing is the same as any other industry…it’s an entirely separate industry. Just like auto repair. If you’re like me, you’re not going to spend your time replacing the fuel pump in your car. You’re going to hire a professional. At the same time, it sure is helpful to at least know what a fuel pump is, who’s competent at doing the repair and what type of charge to expect. Internet marketing is the same. You don’t need to do all this stuff yourself, BUT it is advisable to spend an hour a week for a while getting versed on the basics of the business. If you run a team, you may not produce every cma your team does, but if you didn’t even know what a cma was, you’d be in trouble.

Likewise, if you operate a blog and don’t know the difference between a tag and a category, or if you don’t know what a robot.txt is…you should figure it out, because these are just a few of the very basics in promoting a blog. I hope these articles help:

1.    3 Alternatives to Promoting Your Blogs Homepage That Convert First Time Readers to Loyal Ones…click here.
2.    10 Ways to Find Readers for Your Blog By Leveraging Other Online Presence…click here. 
3.    3 Successful Bloggers Share their Blog Tips [VIDEO]…click here.
4.    What Quantum of Solace Can Tell Us About Information Architecture…click here.

I know I said 3 articles, but there’s 4 here. I decided to add the fourth one, because I just really liked it. it’s a bit more technical but very good ideas.

Social networking sites are the newest way to connect to people with common interests. By using these sites you’re driving additional traffic to your websites, finding leads, and positioning yourself as an expert in your field. Just by adding your profile information to these sites, you are gaining valuable exposure, and even more credibility and exposure can be gained simply by posting a blog, tip, event, etc… monthly. Below you’ll find a list of these sites along with benefits.

Benefits: 
    - Drives additional traffic to your website 
    - Gives your search ranking a boost 
    - Helps you establish yourself as an expert in your field by allowing you to give advice, post blogs, etc…

Social Networking Websites:

Linkdin:

Website address: http://www.linkedin.com/

Summary: Linkedin is an online network with more than half a million registered users from around the world and focuses on Professional Networking.

Active Rain:

Website Address: http://activerain.com/

Summary: Active rain is a free online community specifically for real estate professionals designed to help them promoter and grow their business.
 
Face Book:

Website address: http://www.facebook.com/

Summary: Facebook users can choose to join one or more networks, organized by city, workplace, school, and region. These networks can help users connect with members of the same network. Users can also connect with friends, giving them access to their friends profiles.

Twitter:

Website Address: http://twitter.com/

Summary: Twitter is a social networking and micro blogging service that allows users to send and read other users’ updates (otherwise knows as tweets), which are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length

Meetup:

Website Address: http://www.meetup.com/

Summary: Meetup is an online social network of over 2 million people that focuses on LOCAL groups, people with the same interests in the same area, with the goal of eventually meeting people face to face.

The best thing about all of these sites is that they are FREE! With little maintenance, they can offer added traffic to your site, the opportunity to find new leads, and establish yourself as an expert in your field. In order to fully see the benefits of these sites, you will need to login to each of them occasionally and add some personal information.

A NEW WEBSITE CAN HELP NAIL THE LOCATION OF THAT PERFECT HOUSE:

Looking for the perfect house for a customer? The neighborhood is just as important as the actual property, if not more so. A new web site, neighborhoods.realtor.com/ , is an excellent new tool for realtors and buyers alike to check out a community. Instead of focusing on all the important individual aspects of a neighborhood, such as it’s proximity to schools and shops, nail the community’s psychographic character and chances are everything the customer is looking for will be there. Realtor.com’s neighborhood web site includes character information on area residents.

Is your customer a Big Fish, Small-Ponder, or in a Fast Track Family? Use neighborhoods.realtor.com/ to find out where others just like them are living. They have already done the research and chose that neighborhood; chances are your customer’s perfect home is next door!

A REALTOR: YOUR MOST VALUABLE ASSET:

Congratulations! You’ve decided to buy a new home. You are probably aware that this is a pretty big undertaking, and likely one of the largest investments of your life. Not to worry, your Realtor is trained and certified in the in’s and out’s of what can be a very complex process.

A Realtor is required to adhere to the Realtor’s Code of Ethics, and is on your side to the end. A Realtor has all the information and know how that you need to make a truly informed and intelligent purchase in the real estate market today.

Of this savvy professional’s capabilities are extensive access to resources, which include but are not limited to, available properties that may not be listed, qualified lenders, banks and mortgage companies, community information on zoning, utilities, schools and more, responsible and professional inspectors, all for your protection in making most informed decision possible.

A Realtor provides the truth in a competitive marketplace in terms of conditions, pricing, and financing. Strategies and conditions of negotiation differ from one transaction to another; your Realtor is knowledgeable in all these areas and will guide you through the process.

In all buying and selling of real estate a Realtor is singularly your most trusted advocate. Based on those who have bought and sold before, you and your Realtor will form a life-long relationship as an advocate in all your real estate endeavors.

INCREASED LOAN LIMITS CAN MAKE YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE:

Many of you who have been dreaming about buying a new home, today is your day! You may have heard about the economic stimulus package which was signed into effect February 13, 2008 . The package allows Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Federal House Administration to increase their loan limits. Now hundreds of thousands of you, who may have thought you couldn’t get a loan for the home you wanted, just might!

“While such an increase will not solve the full range of housing challenges, it will play a vitally important role in improving the nation’s economy and making the dream of homeownership more attainable for thousands,” said Richard Gaylord in a Washington press release of the new economic stimulus package. Gaylord is president of the National Association of Realtors, which is the leading advocate for homeownership and affordable housing.

In a study by the NAR the increase in FHA loans could singularly help nearly 200,000 people refinance their current mortgages, decreasing the number of foreclosures, and help addition 138,000 people achieve the dream of owning their own home!
Further NAR research shows lenders such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac increasing loan limits means nearly 500,000 can refinance, and 300,000 could be granted the power to buy a new home!

What this means for you? Put in a loan application for that house you’ve had your eye on! Loan limit increases are only temporary at this stage, so get out and take advantage of them while they last!