Matthew's Blog

Blue Cross / Blue Shield apparently had a mess-up in which they recently sent out EOB's (explanation of benefits) to the wrong people in GA.  These forms contained personal and private medical information as well as possibly social security numbers and other private data that could lead to identi...

One of the provisions of the new housing bill that is likely about to go into law is a $7,500 tax credit for first time homebuyers.  Unfortunatly, I feel like this is all smoke and mirrors and is flawed.  The problems are: 1.  It's not really a tax credit - from what I understand, the buyers have...

Down payment assistance programs were put in place to help those who have good income and solid credit and can afford monthly payments on a mortgage; but who lack the cash to put a significant down payment.  These programs are very good for our overall economy and the housing market in general an...

If you are an agent who has any bank-owned properties, you may want to watch out.  An article in yesterday's Atlanta Journal indicated that the county is starting to site listing agents with fines for not taking care of the yards on their bank-owned listings. This is so unbelievably wrong in so m...

In the tough buyer's markets of today, sellers are often scrambling to find a way to make their property more attractive to prospective buyers than their neighbors home.  One of my favorite ways to accomplish this is by using what is known as a rate buydown. Many Sellers and even real estate agen...

Many sellers have the perception that more marketing from the agent will compensate completely for the wrong price.  Others think the opposite: low price will always compensate for lack of marketing.  The truth is that both need to work together to make the sale.  The home has to be priced correc...

I see it all the time:  clients come to me with a focus on school district.  However, they make several mistakes.  Here are 3 tips to avoid falling into the same traps: 1.  They select the school districts that they want to be in simply because of the "hype".  They speak with friends and take wha...

Recently, there was an article in a local paper about an old farm in the middle of an area that has seen massive development around it.  the Trust for Public Land, Cobb County Government, the National Park Service and Friends of Hyde Farm just completed purchasing this farm not to build houses an...

Until now, I had been tracking my mileage and taking a per mile deduction on my taxes for the real estate business related miles that I drive. I had a thought the other day and called my accountant to verify.  It looks like even though gas prices have escalated 400% in the past year, the IRS has ...

I hope all my fellow Daddy Raainers have a great and relaxing Father's Day.