Providing Superior Real Estate Service

July 10, 2009 // Franchising.com // PARSIPPANY, N.J. -- CENTURY 21 Real Estate LLC, the franchisor of the world's largest residential real estate sales organization, is proud to announce that it received a 2009 Stevie® Award at the 7th Annual American Business Awards(SM).

The prestigious award recognizes CENTURY 21 Real Estate LLC for its work with MediaCom Search, a division of MediaCom Interaction, in exceeding expectations with relevant consumer segmentation in the real estate category.

We Have News To Tell...

First-time home buyers and move-up buyers have another great reason to get on the path to purchasing a new home! The benefit to first-time homebuyers is a tax credit up to $8,000 and for move-up buyers a tax credit up to $6,500. But this opportunity ends in April.

Tom Kunz, President and CEO of Century 21 Real Estate LLC, comments on the legislation. Click here to see the video.

• Between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010, homebuyers that have a signed binding contract to purchase a home may be eligible for the tax credit. The transaction must close no more than 60 days after April 30, 2010.
• For first-time homebuyers may receive a credit of 10 percent of the purchase price up to the $8,000 tax credit amount. If you have never owned a home before or have not owned a principal residence in the last three years, you are considered a first-time homebuyer.

A Wall Street Alternative:

5 Timely Reasons to Invest in Vacation Property

Posted By Paige On October 26, 2008 @ 1:07 pm In Consumer News and Advice, Home Buying 101, Homeowner's Toolkit, Real Estate

RISMEDIA, The stock market is down, and if you’re like most people, your level of investing confidence has dropped as well. Yes, only those with nerves of steel feel good about playing the market right now. And if you’re not one of those hearty souls, you’re at a bit of a loss as to what to do with your nest egg. Christine Karpinski has a suggestion: Instead of pouring your money into Wall Street, why not consider Ocean Boulevard or Mountainside Drive?

“A vacation home can be a remarkably good investment right now,” says Karpinski, director of Owner Community for HomeAway.com (an online vacation home rental marketplace) and author of How to Rent Vacation Properties by Owner, 2nd Edition: The Complete Guide to Buy, Manage, Furnish, Rent, Maintain and Advertise Your Vacation Rental Investment (Kinney Pollack Press, 2007, ISBN: 0-9748249-9-2, $26.00).

“Stock market woes have always pushed people to look for alternate investments, and real estate is a consistent stronghold,” she says. “Yes, home values are down right now but they have always rebounded. I wouldn’t recommend buying a second home with the expectation of flipping it for a quick buck, but if you hang onto it for a while-and better still, turn it into a vacation rental property-you’ll make a nice profit.”

As a homeowner, you already know the importance of good credit. But no matter how hard you try, you may not be able to maintain perfect credit year after year. Your circumstance may change, priorities could shift, and despite good intentions, you could end up damaging your credit rating.

If you think this is happening to you, what should you do? First, understand that you are not alone. Millions of Americans every year discover that their credit “score,” the numerical calculation lenders use to gauge a borrower’s creditworthiness, has fallen. Second, educate yourself. Though mysterious on the surface, the logic behind credit scores—how they are determined, how they are used by lenders—is pretty simple, and there are a few steps you can follow to improve your credit standing.

RISMEDIA, May 2, 2009-If you are a recent seller of real estate, you may have had some difficulty dealing with the gap between your selling price and your actual net proceeds, as reflected in your final check. Hopefully, you knew what to expect and factored that into your decision to sell. But, all too often, in the blizzard of activities involved in transferring real property, the costs of selling are often overlooked or underestimated.

Once all loans and liens are satisfied, the next largest cost is often real estate brokerage fees. Despite recent declines, property values having did rise rapidly in many markets and that fractional six or seven percent can equate to some serious coinage. It does cause one to ponder, where does all the money go?

As is often the case, the best value isn’t always the lowest price. Those looking for real value are more than willing to pay top dollar for top quality. But, the question arises, how does one determine the elements of full value in real estate services? What should one expect from a professional real estate practitioner?