Where to Go For Tax Info...Square Footage and Assessed Value

News from CCAR - Monday Memo: "Tax information, Square Footage and Assessed Values - Where and How to Find It

Did you know that there are several ways to find Tax Information from the five most used County Appraisal Districts?
Here is how to look for Square Footage Source and correct Tax ID to use when listing is entered in MLS:

Nueces County
Call: 36...
On location they have computers you can access: 201 N. Chaparral, Corpus Christi, Texas 78401
Website: http://www.ncadistrict.com/


San Patricio County
Call: 361-364- 5402
On location: 1146 E. Market St - PO Box 938, Sinton, TX 78387-0938
Website: http://www.sanpatriciocad.org/

Jim Wells County
Call: (361... ext.12
On location: 1600 East Main Street, Suite #100, Alice, Texas 78332
For a Copy of an Appraisal Card they charge 10¢ per page. The card needs to be picked up in person by the agent because their office does not take credit card payments.

Live Oak County
Call: 36...On location: 205 Bowie, Texas 78022-9998
For a copy of an Appraisal Card they charge $1 per page. They can fax it or email it to agent per request.

Kleberg County
Call: (3...On location: 502 E. Kleberg St., P. O. Box 1027, Kingsville, TX 78364-1027
Website: http://www.klebergcad.org/search_appr.php"

U.S. Treasury Dept. Revises Short Sale Guidelines to Assist Homeowners

SHORT SALE GUIDELINES REVISED

WASHINGTON (Associated Press) - Guidelines for short sales to help homeowners who need to sell their houses but cannot secure contracts at a high enough price to pay off their mortgages have been revised by the Treasury Department.

The plan was created to aid homeowners whose income or debt is too low to qualify them for a loan modification under the Making Home Affordable program. The plan establishes timetables, a standard process and documents, and cash incentives for participation.

The new guidelines require the following:

Property be the homeowner's primary residence;

homeowner be delinquent on the mortgage or likely to default; loan was made before Jan.1 this year and is less than $729,750 and borrowers' total monthly mortgage payment exceeds 31 percent of their before-tax income.

The guidelines are expected to reduce paperwork by requiring mortgage companies to use the financial and hardship documents submitted by borrowers seeking a loan modification. To speed up the approval process, mortgage companies will have to approve short-sale terms, including the minimum listing price, before the house is put on the market. Mortgage companies will be required to offer the program as of April 5, 2010.

Sharing Fees With Attorneys - Is It Permissible?

News from CCAR - Monday Memo: "An attorney told me that her client attended an open house for one of my listings and wanted to make an offer on the property. The attorney told me she was preparing an offer for her client and insisted that I pay her the same fees I had offered to cooperating brokers in the MLS. The attorney does not have a broker's license. Can I pay the attorney the coop fee if this offer is accepted by my client?

The answer is NO. The following explains why.

The Texas Real Estate License Act (Texas Occupations Code, Section 1101.652(b)(11)) provides that a broker can lose his license for paying a fee to anyone not licensed as a real estate broker or salesperson in Texas or any other state for compensation for services as a real estate agent. While the attorney is exempt from regulation under the Texas Real Estate License Act, you are not; you would face disciplinary action for violating the act.

Certainly, the attorney is permitted to represent clients in real estate transactions by virtue of her license to practice law. It does not follow that you can pay that attorney the coop fee for her representation of her client. The attorney can and should seek compensation for her services from her client."

Third Quarter Statistics Reflect Market Status Quo

In Corpus Christi, we have recently seen our market reflect some of what has been seen across the country. But keep in mind, we in Corpus Christi are in a much better position than most other cities nationwide, and Texas as a whole is faring much better that almost every other state in the nation.

That means although our housing sales have not rebounded as of yet, we expect to see that taking place in the near future. And with the recent expansion and extension of the tax credit, we should continue to be adding new buyers and sellers to the market.

The following are our third quarter MLS Statistics. You can also find them on our web site www.ccaronline.com. When you get there, click on blogger and put the word Stats in the search box.

Due to family issues, Michael Reyna who had been hired as the new CCAR AE will not be taking the job. A new search will begin immediately!

CCAR hires Michael Reyna as New Association Executive, Membership Invited to Reception Friday, Nov. 20 @ 4:00 pm at the association office.

2009 Realtor, Affiliate, and Rookie of the Year Nomination

It is time to nominate a Realtor, Affiliate, and Rookie of the Year, the DEADLINE is October 29,2009.
Click here for the Realtor/Affiliate form http://bit.ly/2IaQBk
Click here for the Rookie of the year form http://bit.ly/3iOjWX

Take Action! Make Calls For Tax Credit Extension Today!

Take Action! Make Calls For Tax Credit Extension Today! Please read more: http://bit.ly/3PL3L7

South Texas REALTOR Convention photos and videos are up

South Texas REALTOR Convention photos and videos are up, photos http://bit.ly/1GJF3b and video http://bit.ly/4aKj2i

iPhone app - Zensify

If u have an iPhone and any social networking account try Zensify. You can send post to all accounts at once and read post from all account.

Thank you to everyone who attended today's social media/ networking class. If you were not able to I will be having another on October 28.

What can Blockbuster teach REALTORS?

Every REALTOR® who refuses to try or learn something new whether it is technology or a new way of doing business should read this. http://ping.fm/EieRT

CMLS Convention summary

I just got back from the CMLS convention where data security, social media, short sales, agent rates, and green programs were the hot topics

Coastal Bend MLS 2nd Quarter Statistics

Here is the 2st Quarter 2008 Coastal Bend MLS statistics. The following data is based on residential closed sales and the information comes from the Coastal Bend MLS from April 1, 2008 through June 31, 2008.

Data pulled: Sept. 25, 2009

CCAR Offering Facebook - Social Media Class in October

Did you know CCAR has a 2-hour Social Media Class for which you can earn two-hours of MCE Credit? Well we do. The course entitled, "Building On Line Relationships", provider #9923 was created last year.

The class, created, written and taught by Josh Ellington offers students the opportunity to learn about the benefits of social networking - how you can make it work for you - and social media including facebook, linked in and Twitter. In addition, the class covers how to use video with YouTube and blogging.

This month the Social Media classes will be taught on October 14 and 28. The cost is $25.00. To sign up for the class, please contact Josh Ellington at josh@ccaronline.com

Finding the right neighborhood

Picking a neighborhood that fits your lifestyle and desires is an important part of the homebuying process. It can be challenging, though … there are so many things to consider.
For a lot of people, quality schools top the list of desirable neighborhood amenities. It may surprise you that being in an area with good schools is important even for people without children because good schools mean a higher resale value.

As unpleasant as it may be, the crime statistics of an area are important, too. Take your time and do your research on this one … there are plenty of resources out there, including local law enforcement resources, Web sites, even neighborhood Internet groups.
You may also want to consider transportation issues, such as how living in an area is going to affect your day-to-day errands, your commute, and the ease of access to public transportation and major thoroughfares.

Some people want to be in close proximity to healthcare facilities. Others find that having quick access to shopping centers or their favorite grocery store or restaurants is a top priority. Still others may value features such as public pools and parks, access to bike routes and jogging and walking trails.

The point is that everyone’s list will be different. The key is to find a neighborhood that scores well in areas you deem important. That’s a good place to focus your search efforts.
If you’re able to find everything you’re looking for in a neighborhood, good for you! However, if you’re like many people, you may have to make some sacrifices. A neighborhood you’re considering may score well on most of your checklist but not meet every single one of your criteria. That’s when you have to decide if one missing attribute can be offset by the presence of another.

Many Texas REALTORS® concentrate on becoming experts in specific neighborhoods or zip codes, so if you find an area you like, great representation may be close by.

Source (Texas Association of Realtors®)

My house won't sell

There are a variety of factors that contribute to a home languishing on the market, including price, condition, and location. Pricing the house too high is one of the top reasons homes fail to sell. When setting an asking price, it’s important to do your homework. Conduct market research and ask your REALTOR® for a comparative market analysis (CMA). As a homeowner, try to stay on top of market conditions. Is real estate in your neighborhood relatively hot? Visit some open houses and see what others are doing. What terms and conditions are other sellers offering buyers?

Most buyers want to walk into a home that is in model condition. Although it may be difficult, you should walk through your house as if you are a potential buyer, being very critical and asking whether you would purchase a home in this condition. It may be as simple as getting that stove to shine, or you may need to do a little more like adding a fresh coat of paint to your home’s exterior. Whatever the case, talk to your Texas REALTOR® about staging your home to sell.

The third big reason a house won’t sell in a good market is location. Such things as undesirable schools, a higher crime rate, a busy road, or noise pollution can mark a bad location. If your house is located poorly, you may have to compensate with a lower listing price. Favorable terms, such as owner financing or a lease with options, could also help sell your house. Your Texas REALTOR® can recommend a strategy for selling that will overcome a poor location.

Source (Texas Association of Realtors®)

Tutorial Link - Clients, CMA, Report Editor, TransactionDesk, Blackberry, and Palm

Links to online classes and tutorials

Some extra links can be found on the MLS homepage in the Help section next to Settings. At the bottom of the page click the link to View Archived Workshops.

Prospecting Clients
http://www.mlxhelp.com/Content/TrainingResources/JEFF/New%20Tutorials/Prospecting%20Workshop/Prospecting%20Workshop_controller.swf


CMA Workshop
http://www.mlxhelp.com/Content/TrainingResources/JEFF/New%20Tutorials/CMA%20Workshop%20MLX/CMA%20Workshop%20MLX_controller.swf


Introduction to Report Editor Workshop
http://www.mlxhelp.com/Content/TrainingResources/JEFF/New%20Tutorials/Report%20Editor/Report%20Editor_controller.swf


Transaction Management/ Instanet Forms
http://www.instanetsolutions.com/webinars/


Ekey-Blackberry User Manual
http://www.gesecurity.com/GESecurity/Real%20Estate/Subcontent/ekey-blackberry-uman.pdf


Palm Tutorial
http://learning.palm.com/

Safety tips for home sellers

The Texas Association of REALTORS just release some good “Safety tips for home sellers” and I thought everyone should take a minute to read these simple yet important steps. Click on the link below to go to the webpage directly.

Click Here

1. Never leave a message on your answering machine telling callers you are not at home.
2. Never set an appointment with anyone to see your home unless you have their name and number and have called back to verify that number.
3. Remember to remove keys, credit cards, jewelry, and other valuables from the home or lock them away during open houses.
4. Never discuss your personal schedule or habits with potential buyers.
5. Carry a mobile phone with you in case you need to make a call to the authorities or to emergency personnel.
6. After an open house, check all the windows, doors, and other entrances to make sure they are locked.

Internet Explorer 8

Now that Internet Explorer 8 (IE8)is out most of you want to know whether or not to upgrade to it. IE8 is compatible with the MLXChange system but a few steps will have to be taken to make it work properly.

Install Internet Explorer 8, once IE8 is done configuring and setting up.

Open Internet Explorer and go to Tools, then Internet Options. Click on the Security Tab and click on Trusted Sites, add http://cor.mlxchange.com to the list. Once done click OK and exit Internet Options.

Then go to http://cor.mlxchange.com/ax and click on the Install button. Ok and approve each Active X control download and install. Once all the Active X controls are installed go to http://cor.mlxchange.com to login like normal.

All real estate is local

The Texas Association of REALTORS recently released an article “All real estate is local” about how national news stories and market trends don’t accurately reflect any one real estate market. The one size fits all mentality couldn’t be any more wrong. Real estate being local is a concept we here at the Corpus Christi Association of REALTORS have been trying to empress upon both our members and the public for quite some time because our real estate market has defied national trends time and time again. I’m happy to see the Texas Association of REALTORS finally addressing this issue in this article.

To read the entire article please click here.

Coastal Bend MLS 1st Quarter Statistics

Here is the 1st Quarter 2008 Coastal Bend MLS statistics. The following data is based on residential closed sales and the information comes from the Coastal Bend MLS from January 1, 2008 through March 31, 2008.

Data pulled: May 28, 2008

Sold Sales 2008
January 265
February 307
March 341

Sold Sale 2009
January 191
February 242
March 290

Average Sales Price 2008
January $153,002
Februrary $156, 514
March $169,532

Average Sales Price 2009
January $148,511
February $145,879
March $141,064

Median Sales Price 2008
January $126,950
February $135,000
March $145,000

Median Sales Price 2009
January $128,990
February $131,250
March $120,750

REALTOR SOCIAL NETWORKING, TRAINING UP

WASHINGTON (Realtor.org) – A growing number of Realtors are using social networking tools and obtaining training to better serve their clients, according to the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) latest member profile survey.

More than one-third of Realtors use social and professional networking sites, the survey found. Blogs, RSS feeds and podcasts are used by 17 percent of respondents on a regular basis, up from 12 percent in 2008.

Thirty-five percent hold at least one professional designation, up from 32 percent in 2008. The most popular is the GRI (Graduate, Realtor Institute), held by 20 percent of respondents, followed by ABR (Accredited Buyer Representative) at 13 percent, CRS (Certified Residential Specialist) at 10 percent and SRES (Seniors Real Estate Specialist) at 5 percent.
One quarter of the association’s membership belongs to one or more affiliated institutes, societies or councils. Eleven percent belong to the Council of Residential Specialists, 10 percent are members of the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council, 4 percent the Women’s Council of Realtors and 3 percent the Council of Real Estate Brokerage Managers.

NAR’s membership is currently at 1.2 million, about 60 percent of the nearly two million active real estate licensees across the country.

New SCAM Alert

Be aware of a new scam being played out on the internet.... Here's what we've had happen in Victoria recently....

Some unknown person(s) have been capturing photographs of upper-end homes that are listed for sale by a Real Estate company and posted on a web-site....(Our company web site, Realtor.com, etc.) They are transferring these photographs to Craig's list and the properties are being advertised for RENT...displaying the photographs. Persons interested in "renting" the property make all arrangements by email and a security deposit is required... by credit card. They are told where to pick up the key, usually at a Real Estate office... The credit card charge is processed overseas. Our Victoria office has experienced three such attempts in the past couple of weeks.... One person actually had their credit card charged for the security deposit and they showed up at our office looking for the key.

Just wanted everyone to be aware. jd

J. D. Simpson
Coldwell Banker The Ron Brown Company

Real Estate Institue Survey

For planning and scheduling proposes for the remaining calendar year the Real Estate Institute would like to ask you a few question regarding your mandatory legal courses.

Thank you for participating in our survey. Your feedback is important.

Please click the link below.

http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB2297NV8XT75

Finally a solution to Appraisal Form 1004MC

Many appraisers if not all appraisers have recently been asking me questions about how to fill out the new Market Conditions Addendum or Form 1004MC. MarketLinx the company that provides the MLXChange system has recently developed a solution that should make filling this form out easy less time consuming.

First, you will need to download the Excel spreadsheet they are providing. This Excel spreadsheet will calculate many of the needed fields required by the 1004 MC form.

Click Here to Download the spreadsheet - save this to your computer

Second, you will need to pull the comparables from MLXChange. To do this,

• Run a search to return all comparable properties within the past year (using Status Date >12 months ago). The spreadsheet will calculate statistics for up to 1000 comparables.
• From the search results grid, select Export Data from the Action list and click the arrow button to open the data export page.
• Ensure that the All Records radio button is selected
• From the Data Export Format list, select Tab Delimited.
• Click Next.
• Select 1004 MC from the Select Export Grid Format list.
• Click the Include Column Headers check box to select it.
• Click Next.
• When prompted to open or save the file, click Save to open the Save As dialog.
• Select a location on your computer to save the file, and click Save.
• Enter the desired evaluation date in cell B3.
• Open the data export file that you saved to your computer earlier.
• Copy the contents of the data export file and paste them into cell A18 of this spreadsheet (Paste Here!).
• Copy the statistical data from the blue table into the Market Conditions Addendum (Form 1004MC) and perform analysis as needed.
  

I hope this solutions is a help to you, please contact me at josh@ccaronline.com for question or comments.

I will be having a short 1 hours class to go over this procedure May 28, 2009 here at the association office at 1:30 pm.

Learn How to Use the New Market Conditions Addendum - Form 1004MC

Many appraisers if not all appraisers have recently been asking me questions about how to fill out the new Market Conditions Addendum or Form 1004MC. I have found this website and wanted to share this information with everyone in order to assist the appraisal community with using this new monitory form.

Please click on the link below for more information and instructions.

Click Here

Texas top growth state

Texas has 10 of the top 25 fastest-growing counties in the country, putting the Lone Star State ahead of second-place California, which has six counties in the top 25, and Arizona and North Carolina, which have two counties each. Texas counties making the top 25: Harris (No. 2), Tarrant (5), Bexar (10), Collin (12), Dallas (13), Travis (14), Fort Bend (18), Denton (21), Williamson (23), and Hidalgo (24). Analysis of the latest U.S. Census Bureau data between July 2007 and July 2008 was conducted by the Capital Area Council of Governments.

Source: Real Estate Center at Texas A&M

Texas claims 3 of 4 “up” markets

While home prices nationwide fell 11.6% in January compared to a year ago, Texas had three of the only four housing markets in the country where homes actually increased in value. Austin-Round Rock had a 3.9% increase in housing market value, Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown home values jumped 3.6%, and Dallas-Plano-Irving grew by 1.5%. Statewide, home prices rose nearly 2%, according to a report compiled by First American CoreLogic.

Source: Dallas Morning News

MLXChange Issue Fixed - Confirmation Email Page

An issue was discovered following the delivery of HotFix 5 for the MLXChange system where the confirmation email page was missing the ML numbers. As a result there was no way of knowing exactly what ML numbers were being sent.

MarketLinx has provided a solution to this issue which will take effect on 4/1/2009. The fix does not require any downtime and has NO new active-x control files.

MarketLinx recognizes the impact this issue has on your business and apologizes for the occurrence of this issue.

Do Not Upgrade to Internet Explorer 8

Recent MLS problems!!

If you are currently experiencing problems with MLXchange it is most likely because the new Internet Explorer 8 was published. This version is NOT compatible with MLXchange.

Please DO NOT UPGRADE to Internet EXplorer 8 until we say otherwise.

Please continue to use Internet Explorer 7.

In case some of you upgraded to the new version please downgrade immediately by uninstalling Internet Explorer 8.

Thank you,

If you missed TransactionDesk training

If you missed our training for the new transaction management system TransactionDesk we would like to offer you the chance to go online and get training at your own leisure and from the comfort of your own home by visiting http://www.transactiondesk.com/training to see the available online training/ webinar schedule. In addition there are pre-recorded training sessions that you may watch at http://www.transactiondesk.com/training/recorded_webinars.html. We feel this will help you become more efficient as well as helping the environment with the reduction of paper used.

TransactionDesk is available now at the following link https://www.transactiondesk.com/inet5_bin/hsrun.hse/INSTANETFORMS/INSTANETFORMS/INSTANETFORMS.htx;start=HS_ccar_login and will be available from MLXChange on April 1, 2009.

Also, as a reminder to you, we will be offering the shredding services for free on Earth Day 2009, April 22 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. Please remember that this will allow you to reduce paperwork in the office as well as to securely destroy the documents that you no longer need.

AOL Email Issues

Please Help the E-mail Get Through!

From time to time, Internet service providers like AOL put the MLS system on their bulk senders black list, temporarily preventing MLS-generated e-mail from reaching your clients.

To help keep the MLS system off these black lists, it is very important that you do not “Mark as Spam” or “Mark as Junk” any MLS e-mail messages that you send to yourself or any notifications that you receive regarding undeliverable mail. To remove MLS-generated messages from your Inbox, please Delete them instead.

Additionally, please keep your contact list up to date and frequently review your saved searches to help ensure that e-mail is only being sent to current clients. Non-clients who continue to receive MLS e-mail are much more likely to mark messages as spam and perpetuate the black-listing problem.

Thank you very much for your assistance with this important matter.

TransactionDesk coming April 1, 2009 - Get Training Now!

The long awaited transaction management system TransactionDesk is finally here. We will be holding three 1 hour training sessions in the morning and three 1 hour training session in the evening on Tuesday March 24 and Wednesday March 25 at the Corpus Christi Association of REALTORS office. All sessions are FREE!!!

There is a limit of 50 people per session and the classes will fill up fast so please sign up now. Please call and speak to Shanon at (361) 991-8221 to sign up for a time and date. The schedule is:

Tuesday March 24

Morning Afternoon
9:00 am 1:00 pm

10:00 am 2:30 pm

11:00 am 4:00 pm


Wednesday March 25

Morning Afternoon
9:00 am 1:00 pm

10:00 am 2:30 pm

11:00 am 4:00 pm

We are sure you will be excited when you experience all of the features and benefits TransactionDesk has to offer. See below for details
TranactionDesk - Features List

Access Listing and Sale Files Online

Anytime, anywhere. Access listing, sale and lease documents securely during and after the transaction. A complete document management system.

Unlimited Internet Faxing

Inbound and outbound faxing included. Send digital or paper files to anyone via fax or email. Email to fax or fax to email.

Activity Plans and Task Management

Comprehensive Online File Management - Automated reminders makes managing listings and sales easier. Work smarter, not harder.

Online Contracts and Forms

Fully internet based, fully integrated with all our other solutions.

Easy Step by Step Wizards

Helps speed the process of starting new transactions, sending contracts for signing via fax and/or email, and creating new workflows.

Love the View, But It Does Not Go First!

A picture is worth a 1000 words, especially when selling real estate...

No doubt everyone loves the view from the porch, but please don't put it first in MLS. It's very important to make sure that when you enter a listing in MLS that the first photo is of the outside of the structure, NOT the landscape or view from the property. Those make great additional photos but the first photo must be of the structure as per our rules. There will be a $25.00 fine for all listings without a picture of the structure in the first photo slot for any improved listings.

Also make sure you add a good quality photo and avoid pictures taken with a cell phone camera. The reason behind this is that the listing information is sent to the advertising websites almost immediately. Even though you may plan to update the photo later, the advertising websites do always look for any new pictures and will use a bad picture on their websites, and that will not put your listing in the best light, nor help in your marketing efforts.

Rental Listing Now Available in Supra eKey

Rental listings can now be added to your eKey EDATA if you have the Supra eKey software on a smart phone and have the professional level of service. To add rental listings to your searchable listings, go to Supra's website at www. Supraekey.com, click on Agent-Log on to KIMweb and select your association. Enter your key number and 4 digit password and Login. Once logged in click on Configure Market Area on the left to select which listings you would like. And that's it. You're done.

We would like your input - Short Survey

In our ongoing effort to provide you with the tools and services that you would like to have from the association, we would like to ask you a couple of questions.

Thank you in advance for participating in our survey.

Your feedback is important. It will make a difference for you and your business!

Please Click Here to take the survey

Local Real Estate Holds Value, Becomes Buyers Market

Even though the economic news, and particularly the real estate market news across the country, is less than optimal, the word in Corpus Christi is that our home values are holding, and if you are a buyer 2009 is the year for you.

“There is no doubt that real estate has taken a hit nationwide. But in Corpus Christi,” explains Carole Edwards, 2009 chairman of the Corpus Christi Association of REALTORS®, “ we are fairing well in relationship to the rest of the country. One of the major reasons we are doing better here is that we did not have inflated prices. Our market increased steadily over time, rather than suddenly skyrocketing exponentially. The second reason is we had very few sub-prime loans here.”

“But what is important to note, is that there has been a shift in our market. Even though values have remained strong, in fact the average sales price increased from $161,216 in 2007 to $162,594 in 2008 and the median price increased from 136,500 to 138,900, according to the Coastal Bend Multiple Listing Service (MLS) statistics, our market has become a buyer’s market.”

A buyer’s market is defined as one in which there is a high inventory – one with an inventory between 9-12 months. Currently MLS statistics reflect that we have 3,949 properties on the market. That is a 9.2-month supply. For the same period in 2007, there were 3,041 listings reported through MLS, 7.6 month supply.

“We are also looking at 50-year low interest rates,” and explains Edwards, “if you are a qualified buyer not only do you have a large number of homes from which to choose, but with 4 to 5 percent interest rates on 30-year fixed mortgages, you can buy much more house for your money. It is definitely the time to buy.

And the good news is if you are a seller, the average sales price remains strong, so you can continue to get your equity out of your home when you decide to sell. But since we do have more properties for sale, and it is a buyer’s market you also might want to do more to prepare your home for sale so you can compete with the other properties on the market in Corpus Christi.”

To give you some idea on how Corpus Christi compares to the state and the nation, according to the Texas A & M Real Estate Research Center average sales prices in Texas are static across the state, but in Arizona the average sales price dropped $115,000. Median sales prices were the same in Texas for 2007 and 2008. But they are down as much as 41 percent in California from 2007 to 2008.

As for the number of homes sold in 2008, compared to 2007, according to the Coastal Bend MLS we are down 19 percent. In specific numbers that translates to 4,844 homes sold in 2007 compared to 3,949 in 2008. Total dollar volume has decreased 18 percent. In 2007 total dollar volume was $7.8 million compared to $64.2 million in 2008.

“There is no question, our sales are down here. It would be impossible for us not to be affected by what is going on across the nation. But looking at 2009,” Edwards says, “we are cautiously optimistic. No one could predict that we would be where we are today. But we think we will come out on the better side of this in Corpus Christi. The positives for our real estate market in 2009 include the following:

· Housing remains strong, but affordable in Corpus Christi
· It’s a great time to buy – We are in a buyer’s Market
· Interest rates are the lowest they have been in 50 years
· Values remain strong
· We had very few sub-prime loans in the Coastal Bend
· We have not been in an inflated real estate housing market
· Developers and Investors continue to look at our market as very affordable

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eKEY for Blackberry is Finally Here

We FINALLY have the eKEY software and fobs for BlackBerry devices here at the association office. If you are interested please call Josh, Jay, Judith, or Loretta and setup and appointment to have your BlackBerry device setup.

Real Estate - eKEY for BlackBerry

Supra eKEY software is now available for the BlackBerry Pearl, BlackBerry Curve, BlackBerry Pearl Flip, BlackBerry Storm, BlackBerry Bold and BlackBerry 8800 series smartphones. BlackBerry users can now join the thousands of real estate professionals already enjoying the timesaving benefits of eKEY service on their Palm and Windows smartphones.

Part of the eKEY for BlackBerry solution is the eKEY Fob. The fob is used to convert the Bluetooth in the BlackBerry to Infrared so the BlackBerry can communicate with the lock box.

There are two levels of eKEY Service to chose from with BlackBerry. Both levels receive real-time showing notifications and both can be deactivated or reactivated instantly.

eKEY Basic

eKEY Basic Service allows you to use your BlackBerry to retrieve listing keys from your iBoxes. No more extra lockbox key to carry. eKEY Basic features include:
Retrieve listing keys from iBoxes

Program iBox access hours, even custom hours, when you take the listing

Beam specific showing notes, listing highlights and your business card into your iBoxes

Change your own shackle codes

Track your KeyBox inventory by number, shackle code and address

eKEY Professional

eKEY Professional Service (available Q1, 2009) adds the ability to search your MLS from your BlackBerry, using the eDATA Mobile program. You’ll have answers to your clients’ questions in an instant.

Configure a market area from your device. Always have the MLS data you need.
Search listings by MLS listing ID number, street address, or buyer profile

View listings on your MLS Hotsheet

Google maps connected directly to listings

Find the latest contact information for other agents, even if they’ve changed companies
Receive real-time showing notifications

View showing details right on your BlackBerry. See who is showing your listings while they’re at the property!

For the BlackBerry eKEY to open iBoxes, you will need a small Bluetooth to Infrared converter. The converter looks like the key fob you use to lock and unlock your car remotely.

After entering your PIN in your BlackBerry, you can put your BlackBerry away and then use the fob to open the iBox.
When you point the fob at an iBox, it converts your BlackBerry’s Bluetooth signal to Infrared, which is needed to communicate with the iBox.
The converter is very easy to set up, much like a Bluetooth headset.
It features inexpensive, user-replaceable batteries.

Corpus Christi Association of REALTORS is on Facebook

Since I promote joining social networking site such as Facebook and MySpace for developing business relationships and to create networking opportunities I decided to practice what I preach and join Facebook. I decided on Facebook due to the fact that Facebook is known for a more business like atmosphere and has a large network worldwide. If you have a Facebook account please join as a Fan so we can create an online network of REALTORS and work together. If you do not have a Facebook account I strongly suggest creating an account and joining. Facebook has many advantages and can provide many networking opportunities to your for free.

Click here for our page

Scam Alert

Caution: Property managers - Be aware that there is a person who is trying to pull a scam in our area.

This is a person posing as a doctor from Colorado - asking to rent a condo for his honeymoon.

He will send a check to secure or pay for the condo ahead of time. The check is from a hospital in Colorado Springs.

The check is for more than the condo rental, and he then wants you to send him the monies over the cost of the rental.

Scam Alert

Jury Duty Scam

This has been verified by the FBI (their link is also included below). Please pass this on to everyone in your email address book. It is spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call. Most of us take those summonses for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty, that a new and ominous kind of fraud has surfaced.

The caller claims to be a jury coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so h e or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out any of this information and bingo; your identity was just stolen.

The fraud has been reported so far in 11 states, including Oklahoma , Illinois , and Colorado. This (swindle) is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they are with the court system. The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.

Check it out here: http://www.fbi.gov/page2/june06/jury_scams060206.htm

And here: http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/juryduty.asp

New Technology - SofTokens

Dear Realtors:

Thank you for your response to our token insurance e-mail. We do; however, have a new option for you - A soft token program. Please know this new soft token program was implemented after we sent out the previous insurance e-mail. And we need to tell you about it, and then let you make the choice for yourself.

Currently you have a physical MLS token. And you have two options concerning that token.

You may either keep this token and pay $8.66 for token insurance; or you may have your token programmed on your e-key or active key, and pay $49.95 – a one-time fee. This is the soft token program. If you choose this program, it will eliminate the physical token.

The choice is yours: Keep the physical token or implement the soft token program on your phone.

If you keep your token, please know that you are NOT required to have insurance. That is also your choice.

Please call or e-mail Loretta and let her know if you prefer to keep the safe MLS token or if you prefer the soft token program e-key or active key. Please decide which is best for you and respond to Loretta as soon as possible.
You may reach her at Loretta@ccaronline.com/361-991-8221

Thank you in advance for your prompt attention to this matter.