Sean Cutright's blog on Delta Media Group, real estate website, lead management technology

It's Official: First-time homebuyer tax credit extended

2009-11-06T13:17:00.003-05:00

The homebuyer tax credit has officially been extended.

According to reports, President Obama signed the bill that will extend the first-time homebuyer tax credit, and add a tax credit for existing home buyers.

The first-time homebuyer tax credit was scheduled to expire on December 1. The bill extends the credit for first-time homebuyers who sign a contract by April 30, 2009 and close by June 30, 2010. It also increases the income limit of first-time homebuyers, and includes a benefit of up to $6,500 to home buyers who have owned and occupied their current residence for at least five of the past eight years.

CNNMoney.com has more on the details of the bill and how it might or might not help the economy.

Homebuyer tax credit bill passes House, awaiting President's signature

2009-11-05T14:57:00.003-05:00

The House voted 403-12 today to pass a bill that would extend the current first-time homebuyer tax credit, and add a provision allowing up to $6,500 for existing home owners of at least five years who purchase by April 30, 2010.

The bill now is in its final stage of passage, requiring only a signature from President Obama to become effective, following yesterday's 98-0 passing vote by the Senate. The President's signature is expected to come no later than tomorrow.

There are a few sites out there that have done a great job at reporting this story, so I won't try and reinvent the wheel. Check out Jay Thompson's blog for more details. Jay might have done the best job I've seen of covering this story from the start. Inman News has also reported on the story here.

The bill has sparked a significant amount of controversy due to its excessive nature. While the existing first-time homebuyer tax credit helped improve real estate sales, a large percentage of those are estimated to have occured regardless of the bill, making the purchases that weren't estimated to have occured all the more costly for the government (read: tax dollars).

Either way, it appears close to becomming effective at this point, and could continue to help improve real estate sales as we approach what is traditionally the slow point of the year.

First-time homebuyer tax credit extension passes Senate vote, on to House

2009-11-04T18:37:00.003-05:00

The Senate voted 98-0 today to pass the bill including the extension of the first-time homebuyer tax credit.

The bill will now move to the House for a vote before President Obama can give the final stamp of approval. The administration is reported as saying it supports the bill, which the House could vote on Thursday.

"Now that this legislation has passed the Senate, I will bring it to the House Floor for a vote as early as tomorrow," said House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland [From CNNMoney.com].

The first-time homebuyer tax credit extension is packaged in a bill that could extend unemployment benefits by as many as 20 weeks. If passed as is, the bill will extend the existing first-time homebuyer tax credit of up to $8,000 for home purchases made by April 30, 2010. It would also add a $6,500 credit for home purchases by current home owners of at least five years.

Read more details on the proposed first-time homebuyers tax credit extension here and here.

Check back to Sean Cutright's blog for up-to-date details on the possible tax credit extension.

First-time homebuyer tax credit moves closer to possible extension

2009-11-03T11:53:00.006-05:00

The previously discussed first-time homebuyer tax credit extension has not been passed.

However, it has taken a step closer to passing after the Senate voted 85-2 last night to cut off debate on the tax credit extension package.

According to this article, the move means the package is likely to be sent to President Obama for his signature this week. If approved as is, the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit would be extended for homes that are purchased by April 30, 2010.

The extended credit would also be available for couples who earn up to $225,000, and would include a credit of up to $6,500 for current homeowners who upgrade their homes. The $6,500 credit requires a person to have lived in their current home for five of the past eight years. Some of the details behind the $6,500 credit are still sketchy, though, like the definition of an "upgraded home."

Check back to www.dripmarketingblog.com for more information on the possible first-time homebuyer tax credit extension.

Google Maps now displays real estate listings

2009-10-30T08:56:00.006-04:00

With all the discussion of the potential first-time homebuyer tax credit extension, it kind of slipped under the radar of the real estate industry.

But for those that did not see Google's Lat Long Blog post on it, Google Maps is now displaying real estate listings.

Google previously collected real estate data for its Google Base system, which used to display direct listing results on some Google real estate searches. But that option was removed from Google's result pages without much fanfare, and it appeared Google may be ducking out of the real estate listing market.

The new Maps system is a great step, simply for its ease of use. Search an area on Google Maps. Click the "More" tab on the map. Check the "Real Estate" sub-tab, and the map will display red dots representing the homes for sale in the market. Upon clicking a red dot, a window will open to display more listing details and a photo, and allow you to access the listing's real estate website.

If you are currently syndicating your listings to Google Base, they should be on the map. Some real estate brokerages use listing syndication services, and most typically syndicate to Google Base, among others.

If you're using Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems and don't know if you're syndicating to Google Base, check out our News blog for details on how to do this.

First-time homebuyer tax credit extension: Truths and myths

2009-10-29T12:34:00.003-04:00

There's a lot of discussion going on about the possible extension of the first-time homebuyer tax credit. Unfortunately, there also appears to be quite a few rumors and unconfirmed statements, as well.

Let's begin by laying those out on the table. For starters, the tax credit has not yet been extended. At least not as of 12:30pm Eastern, October 29, 2009.

Also, the proposal that is currently under discussion is to extend the credit for first-time buyers who sign to buy by April 30, 2010. The current bill required the home to close before December 1 of this year. Since home buyers can't control all aspects of the time it takes to close on a home purchase, the current bill left buyers confused and real estate agents, as well as mortgage and title companies, rushing to get deals finished by the deadline.

The current proposal also extends a credit of up to $6,500 to home owners who have lived in their current home for at least five years, and are "upgrading" their home. The language in that proposal currently seems a little sketchy. Did they have to own the home for five years? What if they had a lease-to-purchase deal? Define "upgrade." Does that mean move to a bigger house, a house that costs more, or a house that is worth more? If worth more, how are those numbers being determined?

In the ever-competing, "I got the story first" news industry, MSNBC.com reported Wednesday that an extension to the current $8,000 credit was agreed upon by senators. Or was it? The headline and first few paragraphs of the article appear to state that the credit was extended, but one of last sentences in the article reads: "The Senate could vote on the overall bill as early as Thursday, but lawmakers were still haggling over several unrelated amendments Wednesday evening." Read: the bill has not yet passed, and could still change quite a bit before (and if) it does.

According to a CNNMoney.com article last updated about 45 minutes ago, there is growing support for a bill to extend the first-time homebuyer tax credit, but nothing is finalized. The current idea being discussed includes a credit of up to $6,500 for "homeowners looking to trade up to a bigger primary residence and who have already lived in their current home for five years." This plan would extend the credit to those who sign to buy a new home by April 30, 2010.

As the tax credit discussion grows, I'll work to make sense of it all and keep the blog updated with new facts. Check back to www.dripmarketingblog.com for more info.

More on the newest Colorado Homes real estate website

2009-09-18T10:52:00.006-04:00

RE/MAX Alliance launches new Colorado Real Estate website

2009-09-17T17:15:00.004-04:00

Delta Media Group has just launched a redesigned real estate website for RE/MAX Alliance, Denver, Colorado's premier real estate brokerage.

RE/MAX Alliance, found online at www.HomesinColorado.com, specializes in Denver real estate and Boulder real estate. Visit homesincolorado.com to search Denver homes for sale, search Boulder homes for sale, and search properties in surrounding Colorado markets, like Arvada homes for sale, Castle Rock homes for sale, Westminster homes for sale, Aurora homes for sale, Conifer homes for sale and Fort Collins homes for sale.

RE/MAX Alliance has over 900 real estate agents serving the Denver and Boulder real estate markets, and the brokerage's new website has several break-through features that will help consumers searching for Colorado homes and real estate best find the properties that fit their needs.

Check back to Sean Cutright's blog for more information on RE/MAX Alliance's new real estate website.

Facebook 3.0 (finally) arrives for iPhone!

2009-08-27T18:04:00.005-04:00

For all you social-media-utilizing real estate agents and brokers who have been paying attention through all the real estate conferences, tweet-ups and bar camps over the past few years, Facebook 3.0 for the iPhone has arrived.

First off, I'll tell you it's cool. Really cool. While Facebook 2.5 was essentially a user-friendly-but-watered-down version of the world's most popular social networking website, Facebook 3.0 brings true utility to mobile social networking.

Facebook's programmers have realized that social networking is going mainly mobile, a trend that's not likely to slow down any time soon. And why not? You don't need to risk racking up hours on your company's firewall showing your boss your Facebook obsession when you can pop open a cell phone app a few times a day (and that's for the people who DON'T have Facebook blocked through their company's Net Nanny). And let's not even mention college students who utilize the mobile app while sitting through another lecture...

In addition to the more user-friendly design and interface, Facebook 3.0 provides benefits to the real estate community its predecessor did not. For one, you can actually create photo albums. Meaning, you can add an entire album of a networking event, open house, or new listing to Facebook while it's occurring, all from your phone. Take that, Twitter!

If you have an iPhone 3GS, you can upload videos straight from your phone to Facebook. Quick virtual tours, anyone?

Also, Facebook 3.0 gives you the ability to check your events and RSVP, update your Pages, write Notes, quickly call and text your Facebook friends, and more. I don't even have to go through all the potential real estate benefits there.

Mashable's Ben Parr has more details on the update, which, I'm told, is still listed as the 2.5 update, but loads the 3.0 version. You'll receive the 3.0 version if downloading from the iTunes store as well.

Trust me when I say you'll enjoy Facebook 3.0. If you see other cool ways you can utilize the update's features for real estate, let us know.

Google's Caffeine increasing real-time search emphasis

2009-08-25T10:24:00.003-04:00

Yesterday, I reported Inman News' interest in the Google Caffeine search engine architecture story.

Inman followed it up with a more in-depth piece today, touching on the changes Caffeine's architecture brings and how those impact the real estate market.

The article notes Google's increased attention toward search speed. The new architecture helps Google crawl faster, thus leaning more heavily toward real-time search. This means those websites that are more frequently updated will benefit from Google's more frequent crawls, adding even more weight to the importance of real estate agents and brokerages utilizing Twitter accounts and blogs.

Check back to Sean Cutright's blog and Delta Media Group's News blog for more information on Caffeine and all relative real estate search engine optimization news.

Delta Media Group training Prudential Homesale on new real estate website

2009-08-25T09:47:00.005-04:00

Delta Media Group recently sent live the real estate website of one of our largest new clients, Prudential Homesale Services Group.

Mike Minard, Delta Media Group's president, is in Lancaster, PA early this week to help train Prudential Homesale's more than 1,200 agents on how to use their new real estate website and lead management systems.

We'll keep updates of the training on Delta Media Group's News blog. Check back for further details.

Google Caffeine hitting the real estate news scene

2009-08-24T09:17:00.003-04:00

Inman News has jumped into the Google 'Caffeine' discussion, with an article this morning on how the amped-up search engine architecture Google is testing may affect overseas property searches.

Though the article adds little to the Caffeine conversation, it's worth noting the Inman has taken an interest in the topic, albeit through a republished column.

While the column asks if Google's Caffeine will affect overseas property searches, it quickly also suggests that there is little evidence that it will. In addition, it notes what we've already discussed: that Caffeine is putting more weight on real-time search, though it has not yet developed a true real-time search algorithm.

The Google Caffeine conversation is sure to continue to gain ground. Check back to Sean Cutright's blog or Delta Media Group's News blog for more information on how it will impact the real estate market and real estate search engine optimization.

Caffeine back up, Bing gaining ground

2009-08-17T10:35:00.004-04:00

'Caffeine,' Google's new search engine architecture, is back up in its test mode, for those of you eager to check it out.

After a short demo period last week, Google took Caffeine down Wednesday night for updates. It was not back up as of Friday morning.

To a regular observer, Caffeine may only show slight changes from Google's regular search results. It does, however, seem to work a good deal faster and produce several more search results than Google's current engine.

The debate is still out as to whether Microsoft's Bing will gain much ground on Google in the search engine wars. Reports show Bing did gain 3 percent market share In June, and another 1.24 percent in July. Some argue that Google's new algorithm is built with intention of keeping up with Bing, while Matt Cutts, Google's head of Webspam, has said it is not.

Check back to Sean Cutright's blog or Delta Media Group's News blog for further details.

Google downs 'Caffeine' for short period

2009-08-13T10:00:00.004-04:00

If you're looking to test Google's new search architecture, codenamed 'Caffeine,' you'll have to wait another few hours to do so.

According to a Tweet (Twitter post) by Google Webspam head Matt Cutts, Caffeine was taken down until approximately "late Thursday for datacenter upgrades."

Check back to Sean Cutright's blog and Delta Media Group's News blog for further real estate search engine optimization news.

More 'Caffeine' updates per Matt Cutts' blog

2009-08-11T15:45:00.003-04:00

Matt Cutts, the head of Google's Webspam team, posted some follow-up Q&As about Google's 'Caffeine' on his blog yesterday. Click here for more information.

On his blog, Matt reviews questions about Caffeine, its design, what it aims to do, Google's direction with it, search engine competition, giving feedback on Caffeine, and more.

Check out Matt Cutts' blog at www.mattcutts.com/blog.

More info on Caffeine to come at www.dripmarketingblog.com.

PC World's look at Google's 'Caffeine'

2009-08-11T14:54:00.004-04:00

PC World's David Coursey took a look at Google's new search engine architecture, codenamed 'Caffeine,' in a blog entry this morning.

Coursey's article notes that Caffeine could affect search engine results, thereby increasing the importance of a well-positioned SEO company to help keep the search engine results of a business website high. Of course, many of Google's results might not change, and there's no guarentee with any SEO company as to how quick their methods will help improve the results on any search engine. At this point, Caffeine has not been announced publicly for 24 hours yet, so there will be quite a bit that we'll learn about it through time.

Check back to Delta Media Group's News blog and Sean Cutright's blog for more information and news updates on Caffeine, and how it will impact search engine optimization in the real estate industry.

Google announces new search engine architecture

2009-08-11T14:39:00.003-04:00

Yesterday afternoon Google officially announced a secret project several months in the making: a new search engine. Or, in Google's terms, "a next-generation architecture for Google's web search."

Codenamed 'Caffeine,' Google is allowing consumers to test the new search architecture at http://www2.sandbox.google.com. The page appears the same as Google's current search engine because the only changes Caffeine currently brings are "'under the hood' of Google's search engine, which means that most users won't notice a difference in search results," as Google's blog entry notes.

As a company that helps improve the search engine optimization of real estate websites, Delta Media Group will be testing Caffeine and how we can help the SEO of the brokerages we work with. Check back to Sean Cutright's blog or Delta Media Group's News blog for more details.

More details on the real estate market up-turn

2009-08-11T13:06:00.003-04:00

Steve Murray posted a good article to the Lore blog over the weekend about the recent real estate market up-turn.

Over the past few weeks the real estate market has received several positive stories, as documented on Delta Media Group's News blog. Among those are:

The news certainly paints an optimistic picture for the future of the real estate market. As Murray notes, we likely won't see the market return to the "glory days" of 2003-05, but we also shouldn't see 2007-09 numbers for too much longer.

Check out Murray's article on the current state of the real estate market here.

Looking to position your real estate company to better improve your online profits? Contact Delta Media Group for more information on its real estate website, real estate lead management and real estate search engine optimization services.

Google's Chrome and the Google/Microsoft war

2009-08-03T15:07:00.004-04:00

By now, you may have heard Google's announcement of its own operating system, titled "Chrome."

Chrome was announced the first week of July, and is said to potentially be a "Microsoft killer." In essence, Chrome will be a Web-based operating system, accessible through any computer that connects to the Internet. Its target focus will be netbooks - small, inexpensive laptop-like computers that connect to the Internet, but don't offer much in way of storage. CNNMoney.com took a closer look at Chrome here.

News about any of Google's developments is worth taking a look at, particularly if you're in the real estate industry. While Google has targeted Microsoft's niche in operating systems, Microsoft is trying to step on Google's search engine turf with Bing.

The rivalry between the two companies is guaranteed to have a major impact on how we utilize everyday technology. Will laptops turn to netbooks, with consumers accessing all their files through a small device used solely to connect to the Internet? Will Bing be a major search engine in the real estate market?

I'll keep updates with the progression of both companies as developments come along.

Brokerage more than doubles monthly online leads through SEO

2009-07-31T12:21:00.003-04:00

Today's the final day of the month, and I'm happy to report a real estate company using Delta Media Group's SEO services has averaged 82 percent more leads/month in the two months since beginning its SEO program than it did the 24 months prior.

In July alone, the real estate brokerage received more than double the amount of online leads than the brokerage averaged over the two years prior to beginning their SEO service!

If you're looking to improve your online leads and real estate business, Delta Media Group's Real Estate Search Engine Optimization program has proven to help. Contact DMG's Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com for more details.

Yahoo/Microsoft search engine deal and real estate implications

2009-07-29T13:31:00.004-04:00

As you may have seen, Yahoo! and Microsoft announced an Internet search partnership today, looking to cut into Google's search engine dominance. Yahoo has more on the story here.

The Yahoo/Microsoft deal will certainly have implications on search engine optimization, and I'll be taking a closer look at those on this blog soon. As with anything, changes bring about opportunities, and the partnership could be a boost to improving the SEO of your real estate website.

If you're looking to boost your real estate SEO, Delta Media Group can help. Contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com for more info.

Delta Media Group updates 'Post-to-Craigslist' feature

2009-07-28T15:21:00.004-04:00

Delta Media Group released new adjustments to its 'Post-to-Craigslist' system today.

The updates allow brokers and agents using Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems to track if they've posted a listing to Craigslist and, if so, how long ago they posted. This will help brokers and agents to more quickly re-post listings to Craigslist when they expire.

See Delta Media Group's blog for more info on the new 'Post-to-Craigslist' update.

Lots of good news for the housing market

2009-07-28T12:00:00.004-04:00

A handful of recent reports have brought great news to the real estate market. Delta Media Group's new Real Estate News blog takes a closer look.

Last week, it was reported that existing-home sales increased in June, while home inventories declined and there are more buyers looking to purchase homes. Yesterday, reports show that new-home sales increased at the fastest month-over-month rate in eight years.

Today, CNNMoney.com reported that home prices have increased for the first time in three years.

Delta Media Group will continue posting up-to-date real estate news on its News blog. Follow News.DeltaGroup.com for more info.

Beware of phony SEO pitches

2009-07-27T09:51:00.007-04:00

The more real estate brokers and agents I talk to about search engine optimization, the more I hear stories about shady companies continuously contacting them, trying to sell SEO services week in and week out.

One of the worst examples of this is a recent "lead request" I've found on real estate company websites, typically from the assumed pseudonym of "Travis Crane." It reads:

"We would like to get your website on first page of Google. All of our processes use the most ethical 'white hat' Search Engine Optimization techniques that will not get your website banned or penalized. Please reply and I would be happy to send you a proposal."

I've seen the message with the headline of: "Search Engine Optimization," "Internet Marketing Services" and "Get leads and sales from your website."

This is wrong on many levels. First, how can a company claim to "use the most ethical 'white hat' Search Engine Optimization techniques" while using some of the most unethical spamming techniques - submitting sales pitches through website lead and contact forms? Second, why would an 'ethical' SEO company use a pseudonym, a fake phone number (000-000-0000), and a fake address (224 Lawrence Road, New York, 11111)?

There are certainly other companies out there capable of delivering SEO for your real estate website. I won't argue that. But I'd avoid those submitting spam SEO pitches through company lead requests like I'd avoid the guy trying to sell you a "legit" Rolex from his trench coat pocket.

Delta Media Group's search engine optimization services are for real estate websites we actually create, design, program and host. Since we know the ins and outs of the system, we can apply the best methods to building it to cater to search engines.

Contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com for more information on Delta Media Group's Real Estate Search Engine Optimization services.

More good news for the housing market, per June reports

2009-07-24T12:21:00.003-04:00

The housing market received several pieces of good news yesterday, including improved existing-home sales in June, a decreased inventory, and more people looking to buy homes.

Delta Media Group's News blog takes a closer look at the housing news here.

Delta Media Group follows all housing news that can affect our more than 300 real estate company website clients. With the improved housing news, Delta Media Group clients have seen a national increase in Web traffic and leads.

If you're looking to improve your real estate website leads, traffic and search engine optimization, contact Delta Media Group.