Alan Schmitt - Part 2

California leading the way! No not yet.

October 18, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

The chart below lays out the top 10 (the only 10) cities that have experienced a year over year increase since last August. California, although starting to fall in place is not there yet.

We do expect San Diego prices to start rising soon as the inventory is low enough to create an upward pressure on price.

Want to buy a house in West Virginia?

One thing is for sure, 2012 and 2013 will be very interesting years for the housing market. There are quite a few variables including interest rates, how lenders will handle REO’s and short sales, and what the government will do.

One thing is for sure right now though…the interest rates are the lowest in history and prices are the lowest in 5 years. Chances are prices will not be this low again in our lifetimes.

How can you take advantage? Use any investment money to purchase real estate. Buy a condo and rent it out. When you calculate the numbers, you can easily get a positive cash flow with as little as 20% down.

If you want to take advantage of this opportunity of a lifetime in San Diego, call me at 619.985.6528 or visit the best property search in San Diego at AtHomeInSanDiego.com

One last thing for now….the current economic times have been difficult for many. If you are having mortgage challenges, don’t ignore them. They don’t go away by themselves. Check out my website at ShortSaleDignity.com . There you will find my free book Fighting Foreclosure. I can assist in San Diego but can also refer you to the best Certified Residential Specialist and short sale professional in your area.

CoreLogic August Home Price Index (year-over-year change)

State/district	All single-family	Excluding distressed sales
West Virginia	8.6%	10.7%
Wyoming	3.6%	2.4%
North Dakota	3.5%	4.2%
New York	3.2%	3.6%
Alaska	2.2%	3.1%
South Dakota	1.5%	0.6%
Washington, D.C.	1.3%	1%
Nebraska	1.1%	1.1%
Kansas	1%	3.7%
Indiana	0.8%	2.2%

Filed Under: Builders and housing inventory, Current San Diego Market, First Time Home Buyer, investors, National, Short Sales Tagged With: corelogic, housing market, schmitt, west virginia

San Diego home prices….Time to buy?

October 17, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Well the news is not great, but the area is , as they say, “hangin’ in there”. Home prices in San Diego County fell in September, while sales numbers were mixed, the latest DataQuick report shows. Figures for Southern California also were mixed, with the same economic factors in play: the pursuit for lower-priced distressed properties, financial uncertainty and lower-than-normal mortgage rates.

Locally, the median price for all sales – including resale homes, resale condos and new homes – was $315,000 in September, down 1.6 percent from August and down 4.7 percent from a year ago. The new-homes sector was the only area that saw a year-over-year price gain, rising from $439,250 to $515,000, or 17.2 percent.
The county recorded 3,084 sales in September, down 5.1 percent from August but up 0.5 percent from the same time last year. The only sector that saw a positive year-over-year gain in sales last month was resale homes, rising 6 percent.
As a region, there were 18,149 total sales, counting Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties in September. That figure is down 7.7 percent from August and up 0.3 percent from a year ago.
Demand is staying moderate because of affordability. The interest rates remain at or near all-time lows. In addition, prices are still at or near all time lows. What a combo, you would think demand would be through the roof. However, loans are still difficult to get and many people feel economic woes and are putting off any kind of “large purchase”.
Historical data from the data company show sales have fallen on average 8.3 percent between those months since 1988, when the real estate data company began tracking those numbers.
Meanwhile, the median price for total homes sold last month was $280,000, up 0.4 percent month-to-month but down 5.2 percent from a year ago.

Those who have the means who buy now will be looking back in 5 years saying “Thank god I bought those properties when I did!” The rest will be looking back and saying “If only I had….”

If you are lucky enough to be looking in San Diego, call me at 619.985.6528 or send me an email. And…if you are having any kind of mortgage difficulty, visit ShortSaleDignity.com.

Please feel free to leave any comments — thanks!

Filed Under: Current San Diego Market, First Time Home Buyer, investors, lenders, Short Sales Tagged With: dataquick, gray, san diego housing statistics, schmitt, short sales, spillum

Two sides of the internet – One awesome, the other not so much…

October 16, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

As is customary on Sundays, I will post on a topic which may or may not have any connection to Real Estate. I have a friend who writes incredible articles on current topics. This article is on an important topic so this is what I choose to share today. Although we have all come to rely on the internet for many things, it is a very important part of my business. Ah…but there is a dark side!

Do all you can, and if we each try a little maybe we could have an impact. This is a very important issue. Please share your comments.

Hate, abuse, intentional pain… the dark side of the Internet gets worse while we wonder what we can do.

By Dr. Jeffrey Lant

Author’s program note. I remember Mickey Mouse, in 1939, as the sorcerer’s apprentice, deciding to see for himself just what the sorcerer could do … certain he could control the great power and even greater potentialities which the sorcerer respected and managed so well.

But we all remember that Mickey lost all control and created one escalating problem after another. And it was all set to the onrushing whirlwind of Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky’s “Night on Bald Mountain,” (written 1867), pulsating music that contains — like the Internet itself – Force! Power! And the capacity, as Mickey came to learn to his chagrin, to overwhelm mere humans and our toehold on this planet. So, for this article about an invention of great power, even greater power to come but with a proven ability to be greatly misused, nothing less than “Night on Bald Mountain” will do.

Find it in any search engine… and play it only when you are sure to be uninterrupted. It is the perfect incidental music to this article about how — yet again — thoughtless people, selfish people, misguided people, angry people and, yes, dangerous people are perverting one of the most important developments in human history. It is an unfolding tragedy with unanswerable evidence mounting and a backlash sure to come.

Rise in anti-Semitism tied to online groups.

In the olden days of ,say, 25 years ago, it was relatively difficult for people of malice and murderous intent to find each other, meet, collude, and destroy. Now it is almost child’s play. A self-appointed leader, an individual of warped vision and an electronic touch, can create what old-time Bolsheviki would have called a “cell”. From this protected place of irresponsible behavior, the leader, in process of morphing into a mini-messiah, would recruit, proselytize and dream of when he would be God. Now this insidious process takes just a few weeks… or even days, taking on speed and momentum as it grows worldwide and threatening.

Right this minute there are hundreds, maybe thousands, of these mini-messiahs online… and they do not have to guess at the power of the ‘net or how to wield it. They have seen it in the streets of Cairo and around the world.

Hate fuels these groups and restless young people are easy targets. The disenfranchised and powerless always gravitate to the “men of destiny,” and these proliferate on the Internet… spreading venom… thereby proving to all who will listen — and there will always be such people — how superior and desirable they are.

And so Jews are hated and attacked… gay people are hated and attacked… immigrants are hated and attacked. And it can all be done under the cloak of anonymity. An informal, but revealing new report by the Massachusetts Anti-Defamation League shows just how serious this situation is and predicts more of the same… for every hate group needs a scapegoat and these targets are already well known.

The report by the Anti-Defamation League, a civil rights organization, is a compilation of records from local law enforcement agencies, along with reports from victims and witnesses of harassment or hate crimes. 18 percent of the anti-Jewish incidents involved a form of electronic communication — easy, irresponsible, cowardly, anonymous.

Among many worrying aspects of this matter, this fact is perhaps the most unsettling: most hate crime offenders are between the ages of 14 and 22. They are Internet savvy and remorseless. “The Internet has become this feeding ground for individuals who hold these kinds of bigoted views,” said Jack McDevitt, a criminologist at Northwestern University.

Young find online abuse pervasive, poll says.

What do you think would happen if every youth between, say, 14 and 22 years old was suddenly granted the gift of being invisible… of being able to act out their fantasies, even the most disgusting, demeaning, deleterious and dangerous? Well, you need not wonder… for that is the state of the Internet today. Yes, at this very moment large sections of this often thoughtless, careless population are engaged in perpetrating human abuses and outrages which in the full glare of sunlight all but a few would eschew as too dangerous to do.

But now these young people, freed from the trammels of civil and acceptable behavior, give rein to the darker side of the human nature. Lying, misrepresentation, false identities are all part of their daily life online… devilry is considered cool… with the “goodie goodies” who aim for “truth, justice and the American way” disparaged and denigrated as “uncool,” the ultimate put down.

Of course in this heated environment, where up is down, some people, recognizing no limits, go too far; indeed the situation is tailor-made for the worst possible behavior from the largest number of perpetrators.

A new Associated Press-MTV poll of this youthful population finds that most of them — 56 percent — have been the target of some type of online taunting, harassment, or bullying, a slight increase over just two years ago.

Sexting.

Fully a third of those interviewed affirm they have engaged in “sexting”, the sharing of naked photos or videos of sexual activity. And of course here the temptation is overwhelming to share these with people, lots of people, globally who of course continue the “sharing” process which in due course brings maximum embarrassment, cat-calls, insults, aggressive behaviors of every kind — and so much shame and confusion that suicide sometimes seems a better alternative than life amidst so much derision and disdain.

All this is called “digital abuse”, and it is a growing fact of our vicious, viral age. It is something every wired young person (and that is most of them) must know and deal with on a daily basis. And in due course, far too many of them will engage in activities where hurting people intentionally will be the order of their day.

What can be done?

During the writing of this article, I asked a valued colleague what he would recommend to solve, or at the very least, curtail all these unacceptable behaviors. He paused a minute and said (as I thought he might) “we must draw a line to determine what is allowed… and what is not.”

His words sounded reasonable, entirely justified, and timely. But there is no solution where words like “controls” and “censorship” are concerned. Who would appoint the people who would decide what needed to be controlled and what didn’t… and how would they decide? And that’s the problem… we are equipped for license and outrage… we are not equipped to curtail and control.

That is why, for now, we must tolerate even the most intrusive, abashing, humiliating occurrences while the problem, like an adolescent pimple, grows and festers, until we are ready to pop it and regain some of our embattled civilities and human responsibilities. For we cannot throw the baby of the Internet out with its bath water, no matter how toxic and revolting that water is and will surely become.

About the Author

Harvard-educated Dr. Jeffrey Lant is CEO of Worldprofit, Inc., providing a wide range of online services for small and-home based businesses. Dr. Lant is also the author of 18 best-selling business books. Republished with author’s permission by Alan Schmitt http://24HourHomeBusiness.com. Check out Commission Commando -> http://www.24HourHomeBusiness.com/?rd=xn7hmKgE

You can go here to help save the Polar Bear

If you want a free guide on short sales and avoiding foreclosure, visit my website at ShortSaleDignity.com. If you want the best home search for San Diego, visit AtHomeInSanDiego.com.

Fight Foreclosure – learn all of your option

Filed Under: Articles, internet marketing, Life, National Tagged With: internet, real estate, schmitt, short sales

Mortgage Interest Federal Tax Deduction in Jeopardy!

October 16, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

The home mortgage interest deduction is one of the most important pieces of any tax reform. If you look at Republican frontrunner Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 plan for completely dumping the current tax code, the mortgage deduction will be eliminated. I found an interesting pros and cons on the houselogic website. You can go to houselogic and read the entire article.

I just wanted to present the pros and cons here. Although I am intrigued, I think maybe a homebuyer exemtion to the sales tax and a federal homebuying subsidy if planned properly could be an acceptable substitute within the context of any elimination plan.

Please read below and feel free to post any comments. Also…if you need help or information on how to handle your mortgage, please go to my website at ShortSaleDignity.com I also have an incredible advanced property search site at www.AtHomeInSanDiego.com for San Diego County and I can refer you to the best Certified Residential Specialist in your area. Just call me 619.985.6528.

Now….see what you think on this issue and share your opinion. Thanks

How the deduction works

In general, any home owners who pay U.S. taxes and who itemize their taxes can deduct mortgage interest attributable to primary residence and second-home debt totaling $1 million, and interest paid on home equity debt of as much as $100,000.
Mortgage interest deduction threatened

In recent years, the mortgage interest deduction has come under attack. Among the suggestions for cutting it back to deal with the deficit:

Reduce the mortgage interest deduction for upper-income taxpayers—they’d only receive 28 cents on the dollar, even if they’re in a 33% or 35% tax bracket and can now deduct 33 or 35 cents on the dollar.

Reduce the $1 million cap by $100,000 a year.

Change the mortgage interest deduction to a 15% tax credit.

In the past, members of Congress have suggested other mechanisms for eliminating or limiting the mortgage interest deduction. None of those has ever gained traction.

Arguments against mortgage interest deduction

Arguments against the mortgage interest deduction center on who benefits and whether the government should support home ownership. They say:

It primarily helps the wealthy, since high-income taxpayers are more likely to itemize their deductions and to own homes. About 90% of taxpayers earning more than $100,000 itemize, while only 18% of those earning less than $50,000 follow suit, the Tax Foundation estimates.

Taxpayers who don’t itemize deductions get to use the “standard deduction.” They do that because it gives them a bigger tax break than itemizing to use the mortgage interest deduction.

Ending or reducing the mortgage interest deduction would create a deep source of money for reducing the budget deficit.

In the aftermath of the mortgage crisis, the U.S. needs to rethink its favored tax treatment of home ownership.

Arguments for mortgage interest deduction

Those who favor keeping the mortgage interest deduction say it helps middle-income families, who already pay nearly all U.S. income taxes. Plus, getting rid of the mortgage interest deduction would hurt home prices.

More than 60% of the families who claim the mortgage interest deduction have household incomes between $60,000 and $200,000, estimates the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.

A disproportionate number of those high-income taxpayers live in areas where housing is especially expensive, such as California and New York. In high-cost housing markets, lowering the $1 million cap would add a tax burden on families who already must pay high prices for homes.

Home owners already pay 80% to 90% of the income tax in our country, and among those who claim the mortgage interest deduction, almost two-thirds are middle-income earners, says NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. So home owners, who are the pillars of federal income tax revenue, would have to shoulder a bigger tax burden.

Home values could fall 15%, says Yun, as buyers discount the value of the mortgage interest deduction in their purchase offers.

It’s faulty to link the mortgage meltdown to the country’s support for home ownership. The meltdown is rooted in lax underwriting and faulty ratings by credit rating agencies of the securities backed by the mortgage, says Yun.

Protecting the deduction promotes housing. In supporting the mortgage interest deduction, you help ensure that tomorrow’s families can follow the same path to home ownership that so many of us have already traveled. So either keep the deduction or find an equivilant replacement

Filed Under: Articles, First Time Home Buyer, investors, lenders Tagged With: irs, mortgage interest tax deduction, schmitt

Condo’s are IN – Here’s why!

October 13, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

The Egyptian - San Diego CA

Manyl home buyers are tired of all the responsibilities of owning a single family home. The dreams of huge rambling rooms, spacious yards and seclusion no longer outweigh the alternatives. Many buyers, rather, are on the search for a home that will be easy to care for and will give them plenty of opportunities to be active and enjoy a social life and community activities.

From retirees ready for down-sizing to just marrieds to first time home buyers, condos offer a wealth of opportunity. Many condo communities come equipped with clubhouses, gyms, social meeting and gathering rooms and other common outdoor meeting areas. Outdoor pools and spas are commonplace. Others go above and beyond with organized mixers, dances, movie nights, and more!

Single homeowners are finding that condos can be a great alternative to Facebook and Twitter and the zillions of dating sites for socializing. They also can be a wonderful choice for older adults who are fully capable of caring for themselves, but wish to cut back on home maintenance.

Owning a condo typically means you no longer have to worry about mowing your lawn, maintaining landscaping, cleaning or shoveling the snow from the sidewalks (or blowing the leaves or dust if you live in more moderate climates), or making large-scale repairs. You pay a small fee each month (HOA fee) that pays for your portion of the upkeep. Your condo association should also have a reserve fund that is held for large repairs, such as roof replacement or building painting when the time comes.

Not all condo associations are exactly the same. Some cover water, hot water, trash, sewer, insurance ,cable and many other things. Before you buy, be sure to check into how diligent the association is and exactly what your fee covers. Are the reserves sufficient, how often have they raised fees? Do they have any lawsuits pending?

When you set up a showing, (San Diego, call me 619.985.6528) be sure to check out ALL the amenities.

Condos generally come with an extensive set of rules and guidelines(CC&R’s). This means the condo government dictates what you can or can’t do to your home. They can prohibit improvements, pets, home-based businesses, and subletting. The positive side of these rules is that your condo community should stay uniform, updated, and in good order. If you have an issue with a neighbor, you can easily lodge a complaint, for each resident is responsible for complying with the rules. In addition, you can become a board member of your condo association and thus impact these rules and regulations.

There are a few things that are not so great about condo life…One primary negative is the overall lack of storage. Generally, you have no garage, (although many townhomes and rowhomes are exceptions), there usually is no attic, basement, or backyard storage shed to house those Christmas decorations and other seasonally stored items. Some condos do come with storage rooms or storage lockers though.

Another downside is the monthly HOA fees. For the entire time you own the condo, you will be expected to pay these fees. While these go towards upkeep and amenities, it is an added financial burden that one must consider on top of the purchase price. You can look at these fees as replacing some of the fees you would have as a homeowner (landscaping, pool maintenance, insurance, etc.) Additionally, you are still responsible to pay your monthly fees even after your condo is entirely paid off.

Finally, while owning a condo means you have many comparable homes on hand for pricing comparison, it also means you have lots of competition on hand for units that are just like the one you want if you are trying to find a “bargain”.

Condos can make for an incredible living environment . Be sure to do your due diligence when researching that community that is perfect for you!

Visit my website at ShortSaledignity.c om for a free Fighting Foreclosure guide

Feel free to comment!

And…by the way….If you are having even the slightest hint of mortgage problems,go get my free book, Fighting Foreclosure.

I am a Certified Residential Specialist serving all of San Diego County in Southern California. Please contact me if you have any real estate questions at all. I can refer you to a Certified Residential Specialist and a short sale expert in your area.

Filed Under: Builders and housing inventory, First Time Home Buyer, investors Tagged With: condos, first time home buyers, retirees, schmitt

Shadow Inventory – What is it and what does it mean?

October 12, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Shadow inventory is defined as properties whose borrowers are 90 days or more delinquent on their mortgage payments, ones currently or recently in foreclosure or those that are back in hands of the banks.

This shadow inventory will slow down the housing market recovery. Monthly foreclosure numbers will remain high through 2012 and the REO Inventories will remain high through 2013 possibly even 2014. The banks hold about 800,000 REO and three quarters of those are not listed for sale.

The shadow inventory keeps home prices down for months and even years. States like California, Florida, Illinois, Georgia and Ohio have the largest shadow inventories. It takes more than a year for the bank to put up “For Sale” Signs. All of the people 90 days or more past due are all potential foreclosures if they can’t accomplish a modification or a short sale.

Many short sale prices are not an accurate reflection of true market value. Many buyers gravitate toward short sales for two reasons. The first is that the price is attractive and the second is that the potential buyer believes the seller is desperate.

Short sales are on the rise as the foreclosures have slowed over the last few months. This gives distressed homeowners who do not qualify for loan modification or refinancing a viable option to foreclosure. Short sales also give lenders the opportunity to avoid the long, costly and increasingly messy process of foreclosure
and the responsibility of reselling the property as an REO.

Once a property is foreclosed upon, the bank usually will not be able to get a higher price for the property. Many
times if the bank can negotiate with the seller’s buyer on the offer price for the property, they are going to get more for that property than if they take the property to sale.

So….if you are looking, go get a deal on a short sale or if your mortgage challenges have got you down, call me at 619.985.6528. I will take very good care of you in San Diego or refer you to the best CDPE, CRS in your area.

Free book Fighting Foreclosure – get your copy NOW!

Filed Under: Current San Diego Market, First Time Home Buyer, investors, lenders, National, Uncategorized Tagged With: default, distressed property, foreclosure, mortgages, shadow inventory, short sale, upside down mortgage

Short Sale – Words that will be around in the real estate world for at least a few more years.

October 11, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Short Sale, Short Sale, Short Sale. Heard it enough? Plenty more to come! 2012 should set the record as many people rush to beat the deadline for tax forgiveness. The MTDFRA ( Mortgage Tax Debt Foregiveness Relief Act) and many state counterparts will expire at the end of 2012. That means that if the transaction closes after that date the homeowner will need to pay taxes on the amount forgiven. See my previous blog on this subject.

Many Banks have taken 3 years to get to the point where they can now process short sales in an efficient and timely manner. At the beginning it was a nightmare. We (agents) would have to fax in a 60 page files multiple times because the banks “couldn’t locate” the files. We would have to call in 30 times just to get a hold of a clerical who didn’t know the answers to anything!

But….now the time is right. The banks have streamlined the process and now have dedicated departments to assist Realtors and customers. We can now get a short sale done in as little as 5 weeks. However, keep in mind you should allow 90 days at a minimm in case there are “issues”.

If you are having any issues with your mortgage, get help now.

The mortgage companies are truly prepared to assist with many options and the government now has programs in place to help, too, such as the HAFA short sale program .

The process is now very smooth. There is little pain and the effect on credit has been minimal. But…you do have to move out of the house if you chose the short sale.

We’ve come a long way in helping the many, many Americans in need. GET ALL THE ANSWERS!

Please visit my website at ShortSaledignity.com for a free Fighting Foreclosure guide

Feel free to comment!

And…by the way….If you are having even the slightest hint of mortgage problems,go get my free book, Fighting Foreclosure.

Filed Under: investors, Short Sales Tagged With: foreclosure, mortgages, short sales

Credit Cards – use is up! Are people charging their mortgages and car payments?

October 10, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Consumers and lenders are meshing well together when it comes to credit cards. Why? Reasoning could be that there is a heightened level of confidence with spending, or because of a heightened level of panic due to the inability to pay bills or pay for items with disposable income because of the issues in the housing crunch.

Articles across the internet are boasting the level of incentives the credit card companies are giving to it’s potential consumers in order to open yet ANOTHER credit account with them. This is despite that the average interest levels for these cards have increased significantly over the last two years.

It’s important to understand that the credit crunch is making these credit card companies give massive incentives because their consumer base has shrunk over the last few years because of the very crisis’ that they created to begin with.

As homeowners in this volatile housing market, it might be wise to be cautious when applying for credit lines when other areas of your financial well being might be suffering. Most of the credit card companies have switched from fixed rate interest to variable rate interest, similar to what was the adjustable rate mortgages that caused a massive stir in the foreclosure market.

Food for thought: If interest rates in general start to rise, credit card costs will increase at a very rapid rate. All the televisions, food, gas, etc. that were purchased on it, can quickly get outrageously expensive.
Check out this article in AZCentral http://www.24HourHomeBusiness.com/?cp=gc662lxa

Get my free book on Fighting Foreclosure. If you are having trouble paying your mortgage or your house is upside down, a short sale may be an option.

Filed Under: Articles, lenders, National, Uncategorized Tagged With: bofa, citibank, consumer credit, credit cards, schmitt, short sales, wells fargo

President Obama is a goner, unless he gets the message fast: the issue is and always has been: Jobs! Jobs! Jobs!

October 9, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

On Sundays my blog will take a little bit of a different approach. All week long I will blog about specific real estate news, stats, trends and other information important to the housing market. Come Sunday, I will post a blog about an article which may or may not have any connection to real estate at all. It may be funny, sad, silly or may solicit donations for a cause in need but…..it will be entertaining.

This last week a good friend of mine and one of the best writers I have ever known published an article which is relevant to the real estate market, for only after we create jobs can the real estate market truly recover.

Here is a link to my internet marketing blog if you want to read more articles by this author. Incomefaucet.com.

The music he recommends can be found here…. Get the music and then read on! Comments always welcome.

President Obama is a goner, unless he gets the message fast: the issue is and always has been: Jobs! Jobs! Jobs!

By Dr. Jeffrey Lant

Author’s program note. You know and I know (and may be even they themselves know) the folks in Washington, D.C., those congress people, and even the president of these United States, just don’t get it. I mean, it just seems like common sense, logical, that a human person needs a job and the income that derives from it. So today I’m going to do these exalted poobahs a favor. I’m not going to wait a moment longer… I’ve got a detailed plan for what the Honorable Barack can do — right now. And he better use it, too, before all the folks without jobs hand him his hat… and some other gent his job.

It doesn’t cost trillions of dollars and your right arm. By Washington standards, it’s cheap… and that’s probably why they’ll turn up their noses at it… because this plan isn’t going to swell the ranks of the bureaucracy; it is only going to help real people get work and focus the president on what’s important: having a job, like he does.

For the incidental music to today’s article, I’ve selected a pip of a tune. Your mom probably sang it to you when you were a kid. Mine did… and mom (who was a bit of a ham, like all good mothers) needed no persuasion, not just to belt it out, but pretend she was a train and that I was her favorite passenger. The tune is “I’ve Been Working On The Railroad.” You’ll find it in any search engine. Go now, find and sing it at the top of your voice. Feels good, doesn’t it, especially if you’ve got a job!

It’s a traditional American folk song first published in a book of glees, “Carmina Princetonia”, by Princeton University in 1894. Those privileged boys knew nothing about work, of course; but they did know a good tune when they heard it…and so did the Sandhills Sixteen who first recorded it. It was released by Victor Records in 1927… and was so popular everyone and his bro’ recorded it, too. It’s easy to see why. It’s got traditional American pep and toe tapping rhythm. It’s the way a bunch of folks would sound as they let off steam (and had a cool one, or two) after work… The key was “work.” And that, Mister President, is why you need to listen to this tune and its lyrics and get the message:

“I’ve been working on the railroad All the live-long day.”

A pie cutter, not a pie maker.

To understand Barack Obama better, you’ve only got to remember that he’s a lawyer. And while that isn’t exactly illegal, it is certainly not what we need when the issue is, as it has been throughout his presidency, jobs, pure and simple. That’s because lawyers are adept at dividing wealth (always keeping a good slice of it for themselves); they are not and never have been good at creating wealth. I like to say, lawyers can cut up a pie and distribute it… but they don’t know a hill of beans about making pies. And that’s Barack’s problem and why he’s having so much trouble… and why much more trouble is heading his way unless he gets the message and starts creating some jobs.

And one more thing… the problem is even worse because he’s a Harvard LAW grad.

Now, I’ve got nothing against the “Harvards” (as Lyndon Johnson used to call them); I have two Harvard degrees myself. but you’ve got to understand something. Harvard Law graduates (the best trained lawyers on earth) are cool, detached, analytical to a degree. They have been trained in the mastery of words… not in the necessary skills for working with, inspiring and motivating people. And if you don’t see Barack Obama in these words, you need to change your bi-focals. He was trained in a way that provides no assistance whatsoever in making pies and feeding Americans who need them.

I’m here to help. I am always glad to pull a Harvard Law grad out of the drink… It helps humble that insufferable breed.

Here’s my suggestion designed to save the president’s bacon and, while we’re at it, put millions of Americans to work, which is where they ought and want to be. Here’s where a knowledge of business, marketing, and the Internet come in handy.

First, let’s make sure we’re focused on the right enemy and get Obama focused, too. He missed the boat (as every political junkie knows) by concentrating first on health care, gays in the military, etc. These were important, of course, but never as important (or as marketable) as JOBS. And here the Honorable Barack unquestionably muffed it. It’s what put him in the soup and soured America. Real people never forgot that which Obama gave no indication of ever knowing; namely that having a job (with that all-important predictable income) is the key to the good life and the mental serenity that everyone needs. It’s that “pie maker” thing I mentioned above.

Declare war on the real enemy – unemployment.

Obama is the Commander-in-Chief of all the president’s horses and all the president’s men. He needs to act like it and select the right enemy: unemployment. This means setting the goal and going about the business of achieving it.

Start by turning the Roosevelt Room into what it used to be: a military command center. Tell the nation that a 24 hour-a-day strategic center will work from there… and that it will help folks around the nation CREATE jobs… and recognize those who do. Make it clear that you, the president, will appear in this war center daily; also, that you will address the nation for 5 minutes or so. Monday through Saturday. Set up the necessary video facilities in the White House.

Then get a website where the jobs being created are listed along with the folks responsible for thus helping achieve victory in the war for employment. Make it clear to your fellow Citizens just what you are doing and that you are calling upon them to help add new workers to their enterprises and organizations.

Each day cite progress, outline problems, say what you’re doing to solve them and make progress. Show the American people what YOU are doing… and then make it clear what they need to do. Americans like this kind of common sense approach. They can understand it, unlike mere statistics as reported by government agencies and run in newspapers. Your job is to keep it clear and simple so that even teen-agers understand.

“Hi, fellow Americans, here’s what we achieved together today.”

You pioneered in using the Internet to raise money and identify supporters. Now use it to motivate and recognize job creators of any kind for everything they do. Be enthusiastic! Always mention the names of these heroes in the war for job creation and growth. Make your website interactive like my Live Business Center. Have employers leave their job creation info… and have a staffer get back to them at once for all the details. Make sure you phone some of them… and always, always, always thank the people — by name — for what they do towards creating the jobs Americans need. And, remember, every job created has a tremendous ripple effect, the new job holder, his family, the children, the merchants where they shop, you get the picture.

Turn it into a Big Deal…. because it is.

One more thing: by doing this and embracing the American people and their needs and concerns, you’ll not only save your soul; you’ll probably save your presidency, too. And if you follow these recommendations and achieve success, you’ll deserve it!

About the Author

Harvard-educated Dr. Jeffrey Lant is CEO of Worldprofit, Inc., providing a wide range of online services for small and-home based businesses. Dr. Jeffrey Lant is also the author of 18 best-selling business books. Republished with author’s permission by Alan Schmitt http://AtHomeInSanDiego.com

Well, what did you think??Feel free to comment!

And…by the way….If you are having even the slightest hint of mortgage problems, go get my free book, Fighting Foreclosure.

Filed Under: Articles, National, Uncategorized Tagged With: housing market, jobs, lant, obama, schmitt

Real Estate Agents – To Hire Or Not To Hire. An Informative Article!

October 8, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

This article appeared recently in the National Realty News. It gives good insight. As a Real Estate Agent myself, hire makes more sense to me!

Please feel free to comment on the article. Call me in San Diego if you have any questions. I can refer you to a great agent in any city. My number is 619.985.6528.

Need to understand short sales? Head right on over to ShortSaleDignity.com. Do not put this off – the website is VERY informative . The best San Diego search online can be found at AtHomeInSanDiego.com. Check it out!

Selling a home is never painless, but during the current buyer’s market in many cities a house sale is more delicate than ever. That’s why choosing the most dependable realty agent will make a serious difference in both the price you get and the speed with which your residence sells.

Your starting decision is whether or not you require a real estate agent. Close To 20 percent of homes are sold with no professional real estate agents. However, many of those do-it-yourself sellers said next time they would find a professional broker. Additionally, many do-it-yourself home sellers eventually hire a real estate agent to market their homes.

With no realty agent you will have complete obligation for advertising, answering phone calls, demonstrating the house to likely purchasers, assisting with financing, preparing a lawfully binding sales contract, setting up the sale closing, and managing particulars of the sales agreement.

Nonetheless, there is something that is even more frightening than all this – competition with thousands of other houses for sale via the local MLS (multiple listing service).

This means that houses which are in the MLS have a privilege because dozens of them get presented by an agent to prospective buyers and a great deal of them meet the buyer’s wishes. Your single house doesn’t stand a chance to dozens of others.

Going through the procedure of picking out an agent is the best way to make up your mind if you actually require one. This procedure will allow you to find out all the things they do for house sellers and help you recognize if you necessitate marketing service.

Consult your neighbors to seeif they can recommend to you some professional real estate brokers. To find out whether or not you need an agent, you must speak with a minimum of three brokers who sell homes in your vicinity.

Alan Schmitt - Realtor

When selecting real estate agents to talk to, be sure to invite local brokers who have recently contacted you about either selling your house or calling you to their open houses of nearby homes currently listed for sale.

Also contact agents who had “for sale” signs on neighborhood houses which became “sold” signs. In addition, check the newspaper classified ads to learn which agents advertise homes for sale in your vicinity.

Last, phone nearby brokerage firms which specialize in homes in your region and ask the managing director for the name of that firm’s most successful agent who markets houses in your vicinity. Don’t merely cold call and talk with any available broker since you are probably to get an unpracticed agent who has “floor duty” when you call.

If you or someone you know is having ANY kind of mortgage problems, please have them go to my website and get my free book on foreclosure avoidance. It is so much easier than you think!

‘Til next time, make some comments and return here often!

Filed Under: Articles, Current San Diego Market, First Time Home Buyer, investors, National Tagged With: buying a home, CAR, investment property, NAR, realtors, selling a home

San Diego Real Estate And Lifestyle