"I do have concerns about allocating federal resources" Reich said.

However, many experts claim the bulk of loan modifications don't actually provide much financial relief for borrowers.

The government's data don't include enough detail about the types of the loan modifications that were made, said Sheila Bair, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. "The quality of the (modifications) are not what they should be," she said.

The U.S. economic picture has darkened over the past month. One in 10 Americans with a mortgage is either behind or in foreclosure, and more than 500,000 jobs were lost in November.

Unemployment stands at 6.7 percent, and the worldwide credit markets have only improved modestly from the freeze that led Congress to approve a $700 billion bailout before the election.

Discussion on Monday's focused on how broad the government's intervention should be, rather than whether the government should play any role at all. The U.S. is on track for 2.25 million foreclosures this year.

"We need a bottom-up approach, in my view, by modifying people's mortgages and helping them stay in their homes," said New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine.

Corzine called for a three to six month halt to foreclosures while the government works out a more aggressive plan.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com, said the public is likely to be more sympathetic to efforts to assist troubled borrowers, because the link between the foreclosure crisis and the sinking economy is increasingly clear to most Americans.

"It's now in every corner of the country," Zandi said. "I think that people understand that this is a broader issue."

During an interview that aired Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press," President-elect Barack Obama declined to say how large an economic stimulus plan he envisions. He said his blueprint for recovery will include help for homeowners facing foreclosure on their mortgages if President George W. Bush has not already acted when Obama takes office next month.

For nearly a year, some consumer advocates, lawmakers and think tanks have advocated a dramatic government response. The effort, they say, should be similar to created the Home Owners' Loan Corp. in 1933 to help borrowers refinance troubled home loans during the Great Depression.

The Bush administration has focused mainly on voluntary industry efforts to modify loans, and those have not stopped the surge in foreclosures.

The market is dreadful. We all know that and there isn’t anything we can do to make buyers start buying again. That is a market force we have no control over. We do have control over our activity however. Frankly, that’s why most Realtors are starving. They do not have the work ethic or marketing platforms in place to create the leads required to survive in a market like this. On occasion we get the “I only want to work with buyers” remark. This article is meant for those of you who do not have tunnel fission! J

We all know the importance of marketing our names to the public to create awareness. What most Realtors do not know is that this approach is effective only with people who already know you. To survive in this business, it is critical to market to people who do not know who you are. If you find yourself in a situation where you have very little activity, listings, or closings, maybe it’s time to ask yourself a tough question. What can I do differently?

Did you know that branded sites such as BobJonesSellsHouses.com on average create less than 3% lead volume? We have branded sites. I can tell you from experience that the lead volume from our unbranded websites is like night and day and the main reason why we created SellMyHouse.com.  What most Realtors do not know is that, per various marketing reports, unbranded websites create at least 3x the lead volume that branded sites offer. Why? Visitor comfort level! We all know it. Everybody is afraid that they will be attacked relentlessly if they fill out a form on a Realtor website. Personally, I believe the stat listed above could easily be 10-20 times more effective based on our experience. The use of unbranded websites is vital to being successful when reaching out to the public for additional lead bases. This is not to say that you shouldn’t have a branded site. On the contrary, this is vital to creating the professionalism needed for your existing clients.

What would 3x the lead volume do to your income? The answer to that is simple. We have Partners all over the country who have seen their listing bases triple because of our affiliation. In this market, if you aren’t utilizing every resource available to you to survive, well, then you might not.

SellMyHouse.com was structured to be a significant marketing asset for our Realtor Partners. We operate on an exclusive basis, we charge no money upfront for leads, there are no franchise fees, and most importantly, we offer an unbranded solution to our visitors that they desperately crave. We are already at the top of every major search engine under several key real estate phrases.  Because we are uniquely positioned to offer a variety of services to our clientele, SellMyHouse.com offers the most powerful unbranded opportunities in the industry for our Realtor network. The combination of our lead generation technologies and service platform combined with our Realtor, FSBO, and investor networks create tremendous opportunities for our Partners. Ohh, we also operate a call center that gives you a buffer to lean on when our leads need a push one way or another.

So how can you use our company to not only survive, but thrive in this market? It’s simple. BUY INTO THE SYSTEM!

1. Learn the system. If you have not taken the time to visit our Realtor section or attend our weekly conference calls it will be difficult to create a client base. Most of the questions that we get from Affiliates about our system are answered in both areas. We get emails once a week that says “Most of your leads expect me to buy their house.” That is a dead give away that you have not embraced our system because you do not know how to answer this question. By learning our system and how some of our leads are generated, you will be able to convert that lead into a listing. More info
2. Use the brand. It’s like owning a Porsche but never driving it. What’s the point of owning it if you aren’t going to use it. In the case of SellMyHouse.com, you don’t even have a monthly payment to own this Porsche! Market the brand.
1. Put the SellMyHouse.com sign riders on all of your listings to drive more buyer traffic. Result: they may not buy your listed house but find one on our site. Guess who they are referred back to as a Buyers Agent? J
2. Send the SellMyHouse.com stop foreclosure mailers to default clients in your market. Result: The content on our website creates the ‘act now’ scenario needed to get their property listed asap.
3. Add the logo to your personal marketing material such as your website and business card. Aligning yourself with our brand is a very powerful marketing tool. Our name is advertised all around the country. Result: Instant credibility with the client.
4. Add SellMyHouse.com into your listing presentations to improve closing ratios.
5. Add your listings to SellMyHouse.com for more exposure. Result: Create 3 to 4 times more buyer and seller lead volume.
3. Use our auction system to become the liquidation expert for pre-foreclosures in your market. Banks are becoming very aware of our liquidation platforms and are extending foreclosure deadlines for their clients who use our service. Give yourself and the client more time to price the house right and find a buyer to avoid foreclosure.
4. Embrace our FSBO service. 80-85% of FSBO sellers end up listing with a Realtor. 70% hire the first Realtor they talk to. Why not embrace the system and guarantee yourself this lead source? Help us find and work closely with our FSBO affiliates who market our service to clients. We have proven that this is a tremendous lead source for our Realtors who work the process correctly. The time is now to start building this service in your market so that we a ready when the market turns positive.
5. If you become one of our Partners, we’ll introduce you to our investor and partner networks. SellMyHouse.com is always exploring partnership opportunities that will benefit our Realtor network. We have several in place that offer Realtors in our Partner Program an opportunity to enhance their lead volumes.

The best part of all of this, whenever a lead is created it goes right back to you because you are our exclusive Realtor in your market. If you understand our model then you know that by embracing our partnership we can help each other dramatically expand income opportunities for both parties by building long term brand awareness. It is possible to triple or quadruple your monthly income with our platform.

By following our Partner Marketing Plan, it is probable that you will see your client bases expand dramatically. Our Realtor section explains this in detail and gives you access to all of our marketing platforms.

(Money Magazine) -- Take a memo.

To: Our new Congress; the President-elect

From: Nickeled-and-dimed Americans

Re: The (other) financial mess

Congratulations on winning your elections. We trust you won't spend too much time celebrating, though. We taxpayers have had to lay nearly $1 trillion on the line to keep the banking and credit system from collapsing. Cross our fingers, it just might work.

Your task now is to reform the financial industry that helped get us into this jam in the first place. Already there's a fervor in Washington to clamp down on the wholesale side of Wall Street's business, to tighten capital requirements and to get on top of derivatives and the other kooky securities investment banks trade.

All good. But please don't ignore the retail end - that is, the way lenders and brokers do business every day with us consumers. That's a mess too. You've allowed these companies, including some of the very ones we're bailing out now, to do pretty much whatever they want to drain us of our money.

Even the most responsible and savvy borrowers among us have trouble avoiding the tricky fees and rate-hike triggers on our credit cards. You've allowed our kids to get sucked into the debt culture before they've even gotten a job to pay the bills.

And then there are the financial products that are just plain poison, like mortgages that homeowners can't possibly repay and loans with interest rates to rival what guys with names like Sammy Knuckles used to charge.

As we're seeing now, irresponsible lending doesn't just hurt the people who take the bait. It can undermine the whole economy.

We aren't saying that lenders shouldn't make a profit. And we aren't saying that we borrowers aren't responsible for our own choices. We just want transparency and safeguards against faulty financial products.

Here's what you should be working on:

We understand the basic bargain behind credit cards (or think we do). For the convenience of charging, we have to pay some interest. If we pay on time, we should get a lower rate because we've proven that there's little risk we won't pay back.

But if we miss payments, we'll pay more - and even get dinged with some penalties. The card issuers call this risk-based pricing. And whenever lawmakers discuss new regulations, issuers strenuously argue that this system must never be undermined, for the good of consumers.

Ken Clayton of the American Bankers Association says that if lenders aren't allowed to charge their riskier customers a penalty, "some people will lose access to credit at reasonable prices."

Well, sure. Of course lenders ought to be able to set rules for borrowers - the only trouble here is the complexity. It seems to us that card companies aren't pricing for risk so much as teasing us with one low rate and then building multiple traps into their contracts to get us to shell out more, no matter how creditworthy we are. After all, virtually anyone can occasionally incur a late fee.

For starters, there are contracts that stipulate that the terms of the loan can change "at any time, for any reason" - which makes us wonder what all the rest of the gobbledygook is there for.

Among the reasons a card lender might choose to hike our rates: We missed a payment owed to someone else. (The lenders' jargon for this is universal default.) And when we're hit with a new rate, it's generally applied not only to new purchases but to any outstanding balances.

Penalty fees have become an important part of the card lenders' business model. According to IndexCreditCards.com, the average late fee is up to $35; the fee for going over the credit limit is about the same. (And those charges accrue interest too.)

Bills are often mailed out uncomfortably close to the due date. Sometimes the deadline isn't just a date but a specific hour. You can even be charged when paying on time: A Washington Mutual card assesses a $15 fee for paying online on the due date.

And then there's the stuff that seems intentionally perplexing. Many cards, for example, offer tantalizing 0% rates on balance transfers while charging a higher rate on regular purchases.

If a customer doesn't pay off the balance transfer immediately, all the monthly payments go to that 0% loan while the balance for the other, higher-rate charges just compounds and compounds.

Another common trick is "double cycle" billing. Here's how it works: Say a cardholder with no previous balance charges $1,200 and pays off $500 when the bill is due. You might think that interest would be assessed only on the remaining $700.

And with some cards that's true. But with double-cycle cards, a customer would owe interest in the next billing period on $1,900 - first on the original $1,200 and then on the $700 left over.

It's tough enough for full-fledged grownups with steady incomes to navigate this credit-card maze. So it worries us when we see that credit-card companies are aggressively pulling in college students. If they're over 18, they don't need a parent's consent to sign up.

A 2008 survey of new college grads for the credit bureau TransUnion found that 24% start their adult lives with more than $5,000 in credit-card debt. Many students have no means of support other than their parents, scholarships or loans.

But if kids don't or can't repay, says Robert Manning, author of Credit Card Nation, lenders "send bill collectors after parents saying, 'Do you really want to ruin Sally's life over $6,000?'"

How to fix it: We're hopeful that change is coming. "A critical mass is building for reform," says Travis Plunkett, legislative director of the Consumer Federation of America (CFA). Last year the Federal Reserve, which regulates banks, proposed new rules and asked for public comments. An unprecedented 62,000 consumers wrote in.

The Fed's proposal is a good start. If chairman Ben Bernanke actually approves the new rules, they'll ban double-cycle billing, prohibit applying rate increases to old balances and force companies to consider a payment on time if received by 5 p.m. of the due date.

The Fed would also require card companies to apply payments above the minimum proportionally. So if a cardholder who owes $2,000 for new purchases at 19% and $3,000 for transfers at 0% made a payment of $500 over the minimum, the bank would have to apply $200 to the new purchases and $300 to the cash advance. How perfectly sensible.

If the Fed doesn't act or waters down its ideas, then Congress, it's up to you. The Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights, sponsored by Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., passed the House in September.

It would do much of what the Fed proposed and then some. It would bar universal default and "any time, any reason" rate hikes and require card companies to send out bills 25 days in advance of the due date.

The measure would also cut down on surprises. Card companies would have to notify customers of any rate increase 45 days before it went into effect. That would give us more time to make other plans or shop around for a better rate.

In an ideal world, we'd like Congress to go further. If a card has a credit limit, the lender should enforce it, instead of letting the transaction go through and then spanking us with a big fine.

And lawmakers should forget about those complicated deadlines and require lenders to accept a payment if it's postmarked on the due date. If that's good enough for the IRS, it should be good enough for a card company.

But most important, we've really got to protect students. Manning proposes a common-sense solution: Those between ages 18 and 21 should be allowed to have credit, but only if they have some income. Student loans and bailouts from the Bank of Mom and Dad shouldn't count.

Read the rest of the article here.

Financing

Interest rates are dropping below 6% on residential mortgage loans.  Rates are seldom that low and when they have reached that level, mortgage loan rates do not stay there for long.  According to HSH Associates, the nation’s largest publisher of consumer loan rates (HSH.com) from mid 2003 through mid 2005 rates hovered just above and below the 6% threshold, never below for more than a few months.  Before that they had not been below 6% for forty years.  The most likely conclusion is that mortgage loan rates will not stay below six for long.  So, Buyers would be wise to be actively looking to buy and take advantage very soon. 

Mortgage money is available.  Real Estate Agents and mortgage brokers from coast to coast are all telling me that there is money available with five percent down or less.  The Buyers do need to have steady employment, and a reasonable credit rating.  The days of Buyers needing to prove employment, have some cash on hand and credit worthiness have returned for good, hopefully.  Violating those obvious principles contributed enormously to our current global financial crisis.

Requiring stability of employment, credit and some cash is not the banks being cautious.  It is the way lenders have made decisions since paper money was invented.  The last ten years when those fundamentals were ignored have been the exception.  Bottom line, solid Buyers can get the best rates and buy at what I believe is at or near the bottom of the market.   

Inventory, Foreclosures and Pricing

New home inventories are being absorbed.  According to HWMarketIntelligence.com “the number of new homes for sale continues to steadily decline and have not recorded a monthly increase since May 2007.”  According to the Mortgage Bankers Association the number and rate of properties entering foreclosure is slowing. 

My anecdotal research from my Real Estate Agent Clients around the country is that the foreclosure properties are being purchased at a much higher rate as first time home Buyers and investors in market after market are deciding that we are near enough to bottom.

This Buyer and investor activity will create its own momentum.  As more Buyers and investors choose to buy now the demand they create will stabilize and lead to market appreciation.  Did people who bought at the height of the boom in late 2005 and 2006 lose equity?  In most markets yes, in some markets they lost a lot.  Are the Buyers who buy over the next year likely to be buying at the bottom of the market and benefit from excellent appreciation?  Every indication that I see says yes. 

As Real Estate Agents you need to decide if you are comfortable recommending that this is the time for Buyers to buy, that prices may be at or near the bottom.  I suggest that we are at or near the bottom and the Buyers you encourage to buy over the next twelve months will be forever grateful for your advice.

Some Considerations

The Real Estate market, specifically for residential homes is typically not a speculative market.  The vast majority of people buy a house to live in it as their home, not to resell it for a profit.  Over the last forty years Buyers have come to expect that their home will build equity and appreciate in value.  But, the decision to buy is usually based on factors other than anticipated appreciation.  The Buyers you encourage to buy want to own the space in which they live.  The fact that this is a fabulous time to make that decision just makes your job easier. 

Second, there is a continuous demand in most markets.  People graduate from school, get better jobs, get married and divorced, have children, upgrade and downsize, among dozens of other reasons that new Buyers come on the market.  These life events keep occurring.  However over the past two years these Buyers have paused.  They still want to buy but they are waiting.  Historically when there is a time that Buyers are reluctant to buy for any reason this creates a pent up demand. 

As Buyers realize that it is a good time to buy but not necessarily for Sellers to sell; demand will begin to absorb and exceed supply.  Over the next year or two the additional demand is likely to lead to a Seller’s market.  Because of the severity and magnitude of the current housing supply this turn to a Seller’s market will likely be gradual. 

The signs of this shift are occurring now, that is, the supply of new construction and foreclosure homes are being absorbed by first time Buyers, investors, and secure homeowners taking advantage of their financial strength.  This spring may be the tipping point when market activity flourishes.  I believe it will.  

Inflation: The X Factor

I remember a rapidly inflationary period.  I remember it for a funny reason.  I used to drink a lot of Coca Cola.  One day when I put a quarter into the machine to vend my Coke I realized that it was going to cost me forty cents.  Soon after that it was fifty cents and within five years it was seventy five cents.  Now it is at least a dollar.  This is inflation.  Your money buys less and the cost of what you buy increases.

If you owned Real Estate during this same period you were very happy because the property you owned in 1981 also doubled in price or more by 1986.  That is true even if you didn’t live in a highly populated area.  This inflationary period did not discriminate by locale. 

Are we on the verge of another inflationary surge?  I don’t know.  I have been reading what I can find on this and it seems to be a largely ignored topic.  I notice that gas prices are declining but not much else.  I think about the trillions of dollars worldwide being spent on the bailout.  The definition of inflation is when the amount of money in circulation increases and the available goods decreases.  It seems to me that is what is happening. 

If inflation does devalue our money then house prices, along with the price of almost all other hard goods will increase and this year’s Buyers are going to get benefit tremendously.  Whether this happens or not it is time for buyers to get in the market. 

First Time Buyers and Investors

For certain Buyers it is time to get active.  I am saying to anyone and everyone that will listen.  FIRST TIME BUYERS THIS IS YOUR TIME!  The federal government is still offering a $7,500 tax credit that is scheduled to conclude in the summer of 2009.  Prices and interest rates are down.  If you are employed and credit worthy you can buy with a small amount of cash out of pocket.  FIRST TIME BUYERS THIS IS YOUR TIME!

Another group that I am encouraging to buy now is investors of residential rental property.  Investors still have to do their investment analysis.  They still have to carefully look at occupancy and vacancy rates.  In other words, investors have to make smart, calculated buying decisions.  This is always the case.

The reason it is a good time for these investors is because the market is soft.  As long as there has not been a population exodus in your community, that is, as long as people are choosing to live in your community and employment is stable, the rental property is going to sustain value.  At the same time market conditions right now, with more challenging underwriting standards and only those who really need to sell putting their property on the market creates the opportunity all investors are looking for, buy low, particularly those with some cash. 

Get in the Game

So, I have been telling my Agent Clients and my audiences to shout from the rooftops that first time Buyers and investors should get in the game.  Call the people in your spheres of influence and your past Clients and be honest with them about whether it is a good time to sell. 

At the same time encourage them to tell their relatives, friends and any one that they care about that if they are first time Buyers to call you and start looking.  If they are investors with some cash suggest that they start looking for golden opportunities with you.

Look for articles from legitimate sources about what is going on with the global financial crisis.  But then look at your local market and discover the opportunities for first time Buyers, investors or any other group or type of property that may be a shining beacon through the fog.

Be the optimistic and intelligent voice of opportunity and you will both survive this market you will become a roaring success as the market improves; which it will.  When?  For most markets, the prediction is late 2009.  For some it will be spring of 2009 and for others it will be longer. 

I have led Agents to success in four of these major shifts since 1979.  Every one of these soft markets creates strength in those that survive it.  And those who survive it by discovering the opportunities for their Clients become the highest producers and the leaders of the healthy market that is likely to be just around the corner.   

Building a business starts with a business plan, followed closely with a mission statement and a vision. Yet a successful company knows that creating a brand is the primary driver for their networking, marketing and everyday business practice.

The best example of a “brand” is “KLEENEX”.  Kleenex is the company brand for tissues, yet if you ask for a Kleenex, everyone knows you are asking for a tissue.  Mission and vision statement are important parts of the business plan as they offer focus on what a company wants to be or do.  Branding encompasses the promise of functional and emotional benefits from the customer’s point of view. Thinking brand is different than thinking business. Branding focuses on setting yourself apart from the competition, creating a positive experience, and encompasses service that draws the customer back again and again.

The mission statement will outline an overall goal and the reason why a business exists.  The vision statement gives a broad-based overview of the company’s purpose…the big picture.  Branding looks at how the business wants the customer to feel…their ultimate experience in dealing with the business and specifically you.

In developing a brand, define your promise to the client.  What business is your brand in?  What makes your product and services different?  Where does the value lie within the brand and company?  These questions should be addressed within the company slogan, or your 30 second elevator speech. The clear-cut branding statement keeps your staff, clients, and prospects on the same page. 

Brand name your company, products, stationary, services, processes, customer programs, your intellectual property, e-blasts, , etc.  Everything must be in direct alignment with your branding statement.  Your brand names provide traction for your clients and should not be disconnected, difficult or confusing.  Focus the company on how the brand is perceived, how it is communicated, and how the company will continually move the branding and company forward.

Developing a slogan and logo can embrace a unique marketing opportunity which appears every time a potential customer encounters your logo identity.  Your slogan articulates how your uniqueness, and distinctly differentiates you from your competition and should be part of the branding statement.  Re/Max is distinctive as a real estate company….their logo and ads put them “Above the Crowd”.  It’s still up to the individual Realtor® to brand themselves as to their unique selling points, area specialties, and specific customer service.

In branding yourself or your company consider who your customer base is.  Can you define who your eight most enriching customers are and where can you find them?  This has been referred to as Professional Referral Sources….those associated businesses to yours that may help develop a fluid source of leads and referrals.  Mortgage, real estate, CPA’s, financial planners, title companies, human resources, insurance professionals all have the potential to become Professional Referral Sources for each other. They may or may not be your clients, but they are solid resources for potential clients.

What are you trying to tell people?  Refine, refocus and find the magic.  Put your buzz into your customer’s conversations.  Make sure your messaging is persistent and consistent. Branding is the spark of genius, the magic you deliver systematically, without fail, to your customer.  Branding plugs into and drives your marketing system.

Make it your goal to work on your brand.  List all of the services that you do for a client and identify a brand name and slogan.  Make your company buzz, set your company on fire with a branding statement, and focus on bringing your company and brand to the forefront.

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Jason K Roberts is the President of SellMyHouse.com, Americas's leading portal for real estate information and service. He is an expert real estate investor and sales company with over 20 years of experience in all facets of the business. SellMyHouse.com is a consumer advocate company that was created to help foreclsoure victims resolve their situation. Jason can be reached at 888-557-2772.

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SellMyHouse is Americas's leading portal for real estate information and service which include: House searching, FSBO and flat fee services, online auctions, full and discount MLS listings, short sale, and pre-foreclosure platforms.

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SellMyHouse is Americas's leading portal for real estate information and service which include: House searching, FSBO and flat fee services, online auctions, full and discount MLS listings, short sale, and pre-foreclosure platforms.

www.SellMyHouse.com is Americas's leading portal for real estate information and service which include: House searching, FSBO and flat fee services, online auctions, full and discount MLS listings, short sale, and pre-foreclosure platforms. The company utilizes a national network of real estate professionals to service its client base. The company is a leading advocate of pre-foreclosure and short sale services to help homeowners and banks reduce the damage of the current mortgage crisis.

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SellMyHouse is Americas's leading portal for real estate information and service which include: House searching, FSBO and flat fee services, online auctions, full and discount MLS listings, short sale, and pre-foreclosure platforms.