In the wake of Facebook announcing their upcoming IPO last week, I have decided to write about my “aha” moment on this topic of Social Media.
Courtesy of Inman Next
For those of you that are still thinking that Facebook, Twitter (and new Google+) are just for entertainment…you are missing out on the grander perspective. Sure…the tech geeks have figured out the greater value and meaning of social media. Now, the masses have to catch up.
College "Pig Book"
If you are a baby boomer like me, the “Facebook thing” was meant for “the kids”. The original concept of Facebook was to connect college students on their campuses. It reminds me of its pre-digital print version from my college years in the 80′s called the “pig book”. (Does anyone remember that)? Back in my day at University of Pennsylvania in the fall of 1981, we freshman couldn’t wait to get a hold of the “bible” so we could check out our roommate or the cute guys that we hope lived on our floor.
Many compare social media to the mid 90s, when most didn’t understand the power of the internet. Today, we couldn’t imagine life before the web. Well, social media is in its infancy today and its practical uses in business go way beyond the obvious tweet of telling your friends that you are at the grocery store, for example. Social media marketing is all about creating, formulating and elevating a brand’s image. It is that powerful.
Prior to me attending Agent Reboot in NYC and Inman Connect in Jan 2012, I was one of THOSE that proclaimed, “what’s the point?” I was truly (and falsely) proud of myself that I was one of the first Realtors in my marketplace that figured out how to put my listings and open houses on Twitter and FB. And I thought I was doing pretty well, until I was told by the tech g-ds, that just postings this stuff was a big no-no!! How boring was it for my followers and friends to just see postings about houses? In fact, I bet many chose to hide my posts or de-friended me.
But now with my new knowledge and armed with a plan (and even some technology), I am ready to tackle 2012–the year of social media explosion! Granted–I have been following real estate tech gurus like Chris Smith and Tech Savvy agent Steve Pacinelli over the past 12-18 months as they have shared quality tech info to us in the real estate industry. I am on surfing sites, reading posts and tweets throughout the day and attending numerous webinars (I can even do this right from my iphone as I travel to my next appointment).
For this “older dog” that may have a harder time learning new tricks, it is a lot of info to take in. But I am actually starting to feel somewhat competent in this area—so you should feel optimistic, even if you are just starting down your technology road. In just 4 weeks time since my NYC tech adventure, I have created 4 brand new videos on You Tube, one that Warren Patch asked to post on their website. And @Katielance just asked to show my new videos in her upcoming webinar. I have over 1200 views on my very first video that was introduced 7 days ago–and is growing exponentially (over 200 views in the last hour!!).
Here is my explanation of this phenom of social media!
People/consumers online seem to trust another’s views on a business (whether it be a restaurant, hotel, app, business tool, etc) if there is a common “friend”. For example, I am a huge fan of @katielance and @chris_smith at Inman News. They provide quality tools and real estate news/education. People that they trust and follow become natural “friends” for me to want to learn from and follow on Twitter or FB. I see who they choose to spend time following, reading and learning about. I trust their business judgment on what is worthy material to read. Here is the crazy part of the mathematical equation: Now that I am connected in their network of people, friends, followers, their followers are now choosing following me–and their followers and so on……………..!
2012 will be a huge turning point, as many will start to realize the power of “this thing called Twitter, Facebook and Google+” etc and others. Social media is in its infancy. Those that jump in, will reap the rewards of greater business and market share within their industries. If you have clientele that are Eco-boomers or Generation X, implementing social media is essential. The train has pulled out of the station and it is going to be a fun ride. Get on board!
I hope to continue sharing my social media and tech journey with you.
I began my day at 8am, ready to meet my new client to video and photograph a beautiful stately home in Warren Twp, NJ. Meeting me there was Rory, my videographer and Jamie, my professional photographer. As I met with the homeowner, these guys did their thing. We finished here in about 2 hours.
Stately 6 Stonehedge Ct, Warren, NJ
And the day began……… we shot footage at the 4 elementary schools, 1 middle school, 1 high school. 1 turf field, 2 park, 2 lakes, 6 neighborhoods, 1 downtown with 100 businesses, 1 farm stand, 1 new development that my partner Siu Wong and I are representing in Warren called Normandy Estates. I feel like these are lyrics to a version of the 12 days of christmas.
Here is Rory taking shots of Flag Plaza- Downtown Warren.
Part of our Warren Twp community shoot - Flag Plaza: Our downtown
Here I am...I'm smiling...................
We worked fevorishly until we feared for dark…we came back to REMAX Premier in the Kings Plaza at 4pm…and we had to take a break. Rory grabbed me a soda (which I never drink–but I needed some renewed energy) as the “VIDEO DAY” was just halfway through. The dreaded ON CAMERA production was next. Rory took about 45 minutes to set up his professional lights, cameras and audio. I needed some time to unwind – but also needed to get back to some clients that needed me to speak with them.
By 5pm we were ready to go again. Now, I needed to speak and look into a camera and tell my social media world “who I am”. I must have said, “Hi, my name is Judy Weiniger, I am a Broker-Salesperson at REMAX Premier” – 152 times. After the 36th time, my own name started to sound corny and rehearsed. I was trying to get across my “real” warm, friendly personality–tough to do, when I was tired tired and cranky. But I pressed on with my “coach” Rory rooting me on…telling me, “that was good, but can you just do it again?”
It is now 7:33pm and Rory said the magic words…”It’s a wrap!!!” Music to my ears. While he began to dismantle the “set”, i came right to my computer to check in with my social media world. I am trying to upload a couple homemade videos I made today on You Tube to try and get them to show up here on my blog. Trial by error…that is becoming my mantra. And..can’t figure out how to add a video (HTML) and visual photos. Oh well…sorry. I hope to figure that one out for my next blog with video embedded.
As time keeps slipping by…now 8:57pm, I am trying finish this blog and call it a day.
After spending time at Agent Reboot NYC, #agentrb and Inman Connect last week,#ICNY, I heard the loud chatter–over and over again, that social connecting is the goal moving into 2012. I plan on going “all in” on this topic…moving forward. And I appreciate all the info of Inman News and the generosity of others that are willing to share their experience and how to’s with us delinquent social media challenged agents.
Understanding how to pull it all together is essential…and for me, the million $$ question.
Starting tomorrow morning, my first crusade begins…VIDEO real estate marketing. I will be meeting my videographer Rory at my brand new listing in Warren Twp, NJ and we will be spending the day shooting footage and content for listing videos and community videos around Warren and Watchung.
I will be posting updates on my brand new challenge. Given my middle aged status– and thus, NOT an eco boomer, this task of social media and You Tube channels feels like I am falling into a black hole. But with some web support from my friends on Twitter and fb and Inman News…and Rory and Dan, I am ready for this challenge.
Follow me on twitter too for my updates throughout the day at @judyweiniger
The Weiniger Family wishes you a very happy and healthy new year
I wish all a very happy and healthy new year! I just returned from a family vacation to Florida, recharging my battery and prepare for the start of the new year. We started on the west coast of Florida to visit family and ended at a beautiful oasis on Marco Island. We stayed at the Marriott Hotel and I was so impressed with the quality of the rooms, the GORGEOUS views of the gulf, especially at sunset of course!
I am charged up and excited about the real estate market in Somerset County, NJ…more specifically Warren Twp, Bridgewater, Basking Ridge and Watchung. These towns have all traditionally been strong…but I am feeling the pent up buyer demand. If you are a buyer hoping to buy a good, well maintained home on a quiet location, you may be competing again with multiple bids moving into the spring market. I am already seeing this occur in the dead of winter. Many homes are going into attorney review and at decent prices.
Moving into 2012, I will be taking over the listing and marketing of the new construction development, formerly known as Landmark at Warren Hills in Warren Township, NJ. The new development name is
#3 Normandy Court, Warren, NJ 07059
Normandy Estates...named after the cul-de-sac street it is located on. The community of 8 home sites, 4 of which are sold.
Gorgeous Workmanship in #3 Normandy Ct, Warren, NJ 07059
Built by Landmark Homes, these are quality built, custom homes!! Look for my marketing to roll out Wednesday January 4, 2012. Prices have been re-positioned. Or call me for the pre-listing update on the new pricing! Be first to look at this homes in 2012. The photos to the right show this “ready to close” home. There is a 2nd home almost completed. I will be posted photos laster this week.
I also just listed a lovely townhouse in Loft Farms, Martinsville. This highly demanded community built in 1997, has so much to offer. This home at 83 Loft Drive, is a one owner townhouse. Just listed today, 1/2/12,call me for a personal showing. Photos have just been uploaded to the mls and can be seen on my website. Price is $459,900.
Bright and Sunny Kitchen at 83 Loft Dr., Martinsville.
This article is courtesy of my colleague, Matthew Northup from Arlington Capital
The “new” limits are in effect for case numbers issued from November 18th of this year through September 30, 2012.
However, any borrowers that got a FHA case number between October 1, 2011 and November 17, 2011 must either abide by the lower limits available during that period of time, or wait 6 months from the case number issuance, and reapply for a loan under the “new rules.”
We had begged clients to get into a FHA deals pre-October 1, 2011, and are happy to let all know going forward through next September, 2012…the limits are once again higher!
This is really great news for people buying (or refinancing) a home with a sliver of equity, lower credit scores, and higher ratios of debt-to-income. It also permits up to a 6% seller contribution from a seller to a buyer for actual closing costs and escrows.
So, with no further ado, here are the “new” limits for FHA loan amounts in New Jersey, listed alphabetically by County;
If you are a math whiz you can divide any of these limits above by 96.5% and know what the maximum purchase price is in each county with just 3.5% down. So, say in Somerset County, NJ, the maximum loan amount is $729,750. If you divide this number by .965%, you find that a home could be purchased for $756,217 in Somerset County with just 3.5% down ($26,467.)
Matthew Northup
Private Mortgage Banker Arlington Capital
33 Witherspoon St,
Princeton, NJ 08542
The excitement of the holidays is here. And there are some fun event in Warren right now and coming up soon. Here is a snip it of the activities available for you and your family.
The Wagner Farm Arboretum is having their holiday boutique. The boutique offers a wide variety of jewelry, artwork, fresh local honey, breads and baked goods. Or enjoy the other vendor merchandise like candles, stationary, clothing, pocketbooks. Stop in this weekend or over the next two weekends in December. Check out their website at http://www.wfafnj.org/events.html for more information on dates and times.
Warren Township Seniors Holiday Party on December 7th, 2011 at 11:30 am at Forest Lodge. All Warren Seniors are welcome and encourage to come! Cost is $15 for all Warren Seniors and Friends from out of town $30 For more information about this event, check out the Warren Twp page at http://www.warrennj.org/
Letters to Santa….Now thru December 16th. Warren Township Recreation Commission has been approved by Santa to gather mail from the Township children and deliver it to the North Pole. They will be accepting mail from Nov 22nd to December 16th. Letters should be dropped off at the red mailbox in front of the Municipal Building or sent to “Santa” Warren Twp. Recreation Commission at 46 Mountain Blvd, Warren, NJ 07059. Every child will receive a personalized letter from Santa, but after December 16th, Santa will be busy getting ready for the holiday and will not be able to answer any more letters. They ask that Mom and Dad, please be sure to include a return address.
Mark your calendar for January…Yuletide Bonfire. 4th Annual Yuletide Bonfire Winter Festival is back! January 21st 2012 6-9pm behind the Municipal complex off Bardy Rd. under the pavilion. More to come….
I personally love Zillow for its marketing genius! They have created data that no other site has given directly to buyers and thus have become a valuable, “go to” site for buyer prospects. In turn, it has become a powerhouse with a huge audience. That is why advertise on this site quite heavily. My buyers from NYC to Warren Twp, or Basking Ridge and Bridgewater, are all looking at listings for sale here…they are looking at the taxes of a property over the past 5 years…they are looking at the price the seller of their dream house paid in 2005.
I asked a question today on my facebook page, www.facebook.com/judyweiniger, how many of my friends and subscribers actually believe and rely on the “zestimate” when looking at homes to buy or examining what your home may be worth in this market? I can tell you…most of my buyers look at it and believe in it. Many make offers based on what they see on Zillow.
An appraiser friend of mine, Paul Sobol from Sobol & Associates, Inc, explained “that as an appraiser I have serious concerns about sites like Zillow. I have found them to be misleading and inaccurate. As you know, there are so many variables that need to be taken into consideration when valuing real estate.”
He continues, “as marketing tool it is awesome. The problem that we have is that when people are refinancing their homes they rely on that data way too much.”
From my perspective as a real estate agent, Zillow is a fantastic lead generation machine for me. I get numerous internet buyers as clients thru Zillow, meaning, the buyers are on this site and using it. They like it. From the buyer perspective, this site gives valuable data that up until Zillow was introduced, the power of this data was solely in the real estate professionals hands.
But beware buyers…After really testing some of these numbers out with my listings and what they actually sold for, I think it would be a fabulous study, for Zillow or an independent, to show the internet community a report card on Zillow’s success or failure to predict the value. After a home is sold, how close was that “Zestimate”? After a home is appraised by a professional appraiser, how close was that “Zestimate” to the appraisers’ reality?
My personal opinion is that the “Zestimates” seem to be based more on the township’s assessed value and it is quite difficult, if not impossible, to value these homes consistently. And furthermore, the computer calculating that value, has never been inside my home to know what condition, upgrades and updates this homeowner has done compared to my neighbor.
Stay tuned…I think I am going to do that analysis and report back.
RE/MAX Ranks Highest in Customer Satisfaction in 2011 J.D. Power and Associates Study
DENVER, CO – Results from the J.D. Power and Associates 2011 Home
Buyer/Seller Study recognize RE/MAX for providing the highest overall
consumer satisfaction for both home buyers and home sellers. In last year’s
study, two different companies ranked the highest in each category, but this year
home buyers and sellers both rated RE/MAX the highest.
“It all comes down to professionalism and a commitment to a premier level of
customer service,” said RE/MAX Chairman and Co-Founder Dave Liniger.
“Because RE/MAX agents average more experience and training than other
agents, they are better prepared to deal with home buyers and sellers in any kind
of market. And, consumer preferences tell the story . . . nobody sells more real
estate than RE/MAX.”
This is the fourth annual study of home buyer and seller satisfaction with the
largest national real estate companies, conducted by J.D. Power and Associates.
For the home buying experience, three factors were considered:
agent/salesperson, office and a variety of additional services. Four factors were
examined for the home-selling experience: agent/salesperson, marketing, office
and a variety of additional services.
Details from the study indicate that on a scale of 1,000, homebuyer respondents
ranked RE/MAX with a score of 805 and home sellers put RE/MAX on top at
791. The 2011 study includes more than 4,200 evaluations from 3,680
respondents who bought or sold a home in the U.S. between March 2010 and
April 2011.
=
On September 14, 2011, Governor Chris Christie signed into law A-2748, the bulk sales legislation initiated and strongly supported by NJAR®. This law, which took effect immediately upon being signed, exempts individuals, estates and trusts involved in purchasing one- and two-family residential and certain seasonal rental properties from bulk sales notification requirements. LLC’s involved in real estate transactions pertaining to one- and two-family residential and seasonal rental properties are still subject to bulk sales requirements.
In addition, the law is retroactive to August 1, 2007, meaning that any transactions taking place between that date and September 14, 2011 were in essence, never subject to bulk sales requirements.
This new law, which was approved unanimously by both houses of the state Legislature, immediately protects one- and two-family residential real estate transactions from being unnecessarily delayed by the bulk sales notification requirements imposed by the New Jersey Division of Taxation. In many cases, the previous requirements led to unnecessary closing delays or sellers being asked to place potentially thousands of dollars in escrow until the Division of Taxation cleared a property sale to proceed.
If a previous owner of a one- or two-family home or seasonal rental property owed state taxes on revenue earned from the property (i.e. if the seller ever rented the property), the purchaser will not be considered liable for any taxes owed by the seller. NJAR® sought this provision in the legislation and was successful in its inclusion and implementation.
For additional information on A-2748 and the bulk sales requirements previously in place on one- and two-family homes and seasonal rental properties, visit NJAR®’s bulk sales webpage, or the NJAR® Government Affairs Facebook page. If you have any questions on this issue, contact the NJAR® Government Affairs Department at (732) 494-5616.
Beautiful brick front Colonial set on a level lot in highly desirable community called Greenwood Meadows.
3 car garage, Conservatory, 5 BR, 3.1 baths, circular driveway, 2 story family room, very spacious upgraded kitchen, hardwood floors in the living room, dining room, family room. Huge master bedroom suite and master bath with skylight and jacuzzi tub. Fantastic basement ready to finish, pre-plumbed and stairway to the garage.
Prior to me attending Agent Reboot in NYC and Inman Connect in Jan 2012, I was one of THOSE that proclaimed, “what’s the point?” I was truly (and falsely) proud of myself that I was one of the first Realtors in my marketplace that figured out how to put my listings and open houses on Twitter and FB. And I thought I was doing pretty well, until I was told by the tech g-ds, that just postings this stuff was a big no-no!! How boring was it for my followers and friends to just see postings about houses? In fact, I bet many chose to hide my posts or de-friended me.
2012 will be a huge turning point, as many will start to realize the power of “this thing called Twitter, Facebook and Google+” etc and others. Social media is in its infancy. Those that jump in, will reap the rewards of greater business and market share within their industries. If you have clientele that are Eco-boomers or Generation X, implementing social media is essential. The train has pulled out of the station and it is going to be a fun ride. Get on board!
