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We will be taking time to doing research and evaluations on various Memphis Condos with an initial emphasis on the Downtown Memphis Condo selections. We have been receiving many inquiries on numerous developments in the downtown area, especially at or near South-end. There are an array of older, eclectic and some times historical buildings in the process of being renovated in to luxurious condo units. A flavor for every taste. From newer modern facilities with loads of amenities, to older war... Read Full Post

Memphis MLS Upgrade Set for April 2007 The Memphis Area Association of Realtors (MAAR) is going to upgrade to a new and enhanced MLS system called MLXchange. Originally scheduled for installation in December 2006, the new installation date is now April 2007. This extension will help to ensure a smooth transition among all of the systems that “talk” to the MLS like MAARdata, Homes for Sale™ and SentriLock. The long and short of it is this will be a much better system. From integration an... Read Full Post

As the new home market continues to grow in Memphis and the surrounding areas, so does the Homes For Sale™ magazine. Beginning in the first February issue, the addition of the “New Homes and Developments” section will consist of advertisements for new construction developments, new home listings or services pertaining to the sell of new homes and developments. The new section will immediately follow the classified section and is to be sorted by the same location specific areas with a di... Read Full Post

*** BEGIN QUOTE *** Consumers are greeting the new year with a lot more confidence than they've had in months, which could be good news for the housing market. The RBC Cash Index, created by the international polling firm Ipsos, showed U.S. consumer confidence at 95.3 in January. That was up from 86.9 in December and was at its highest since February of 2006. The "expectations" index soared to 83.8 in January from 55 in December. This reading was at its highest in more than two years. Consume... Read Full Post

A new article, published last week by CNN and MONEY Magazine ("Tech trends rock real estate world"), would appear to focus on technology. The real thrust of the article, however, is the way in which consumers are reshaping the real estate business! The recent Real Estate Connect NYC 2007 Conference highlighted a number of Internet-related trends (such as blogs and sites where consumers actually rate REALTORS) ...demonstrating the growing impact - and power - of real estate consumers: *** BEGI... Read Full Post

The Tennessee Real Estate Commission has postponed their update of broker supervision rules, but removal of the prohibition against cash rebates is expected to move forward. The second issue still facing the Tennessee Real Estate Commission is the removal of the rule that prohibits the paying of cash rebates to non-licensees. The U.S. Department of Justice continues to threaten that they will sue the State of Tennessee and the Tennessee Real Estate Commission if this rule is not removed. The ... Read Full Post

As of January 31, 2007 mortgage insurance companies will no longer provide MI (Mortgage Insurance) for 100% loans to buyers with scores under 575. This will impact My Community Mortgage and other programs that allow buyers with no credit scores to get 100% financing. Final word is not in yet but some MI companies are indicating they will allow only 85% LTV, others 95% LTV and some on the fence as to what they will allow. This will go a long way to curve and eliminate a great many of the forec... Read Full Post

Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaging 6.18 percent with an average 0.4 point for the week ending January 4, 2007, unchanged from last week when it averaged 6.18 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.21 percent. Just over 6% are still very nice interest rates and should be attractive to buyers, regardless of the unbelievable low interest rates of years past. Anything under 7% in my opinion will generate steady ... Read Full Post

In a recent newsletter, the Tennessee Association of Realtors (TAR) reported that the Tennessee Real Estate Commission (TREC) is proposing a few rule changes. TAR is collecting comments regarding changes to Rule 1260-2-.01 and Rule 1260-2-.33. In recent years, the TAR has successfully blocked TREC rule changes via legislative support in behalf of the Association of REALTORS. Now here is what gets my goat. The Winter 2006 issue of the TREC's official newsletter, the Tennessee Real Estate News ... Read Full Post

Your REALTOR® will know when, where and how to advertise your property. There is a misconception that advertising sells real estate. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® studies show that 82% of real estate sales are the result of agent contacts through previous clients, referrals, friends, family and personal contacts. When a property is marketed with the help of your REALTOR®, you do not have to allow strangers into your home. Your REALTOR® will generally pre-screen and accompany quali... Read Full Post