The 4th Consumer Focused Real Estate Blog Carnival Mandatory Joy Show

FADE IN

/evil overlord high backed chair center stage facing away from audience. It slowly turns to face the audience and reveals a twisted creation being softly stroked by it's evil master. Well let me clarify that. He's both a "master" and "evil", but not to be confused with being an "evil master" in the sense of being an abusive master of the twisted creation. On the contrary, the obvious affection the evil overlord shows it, only serves as a counterpoint to his menacing presence. But hush now... the master speaks.....

Say hello to Mr Frogcat.








/squints at TelePrompter

I welcome you all to the 4th Real Estate Orientation Carnival of Consumer Carnival Real Estate.

Although I am evil overlord for just one day, I take my duties seriously. All good entries shall receive awards, barring those rule breakers who failed to submit posts written within the last two weeks, or obvious spamtards seeking to self promote without offering anything of substance.

/polite ripple of applause under pain of death

Bronze Winners did submit a good post, though perhaps better suited for the Carnival of Real Estate. Talking about Realtors over much largely dooms you to bronze. Also you may have simply bored Mr Frogcat.

Silver Winners submitted a good post and one in keeping with the spirit of the Carnival. The posts were enjoyable and directly applicable to an average real estate consumer. Well done.

Gold Winners satisfy all the requirements of a Silver Winner, but also bring to the table something special that connects powerfully with the reader. Both Gold Winners had keen insights to share and received high honors tonight.

Without further ado, stand up and roar approval for;

Gold - Nigel Swaby presents Help! I’ve been priced out of the market by house flippers, low interest rates and Casey Serin posted at Salt Lake Real Estate Blog.

"So what’s really pricing you out of the market? I’m guessing it’s your expectations. I assume you want a house similar to what your parents or friends have. You want something new, with nothing to fix."


Gold - Dan Melson presents When to Get A Buyer's Agent and Start Looking posted at Searchlight Crusade.

"You try to look at your fifteen to twenty-five properties today with an eye towards buying in six months, you are doing worse than wasting your time. You are actually confusing yourself with data that is very likely to be outdated by the time you go to apply it."


Your mandatory appreciation is required for;

Silver - David Williams presents Biloxi and Ocean Springs MS "For Sale By Owner" Tips. posted at Sergeant Real Estates Opinion... It matters to me!!.

"I say "is there a home somewhere in that yard?? Hello!!" Did you ever think to trim your bushes and possibly cut your grass?"


Silver - Joshua Dorkin presents Vacant Rental Property or Bad Tenants? posted at Real Estate Investing For Real.

"The lesson here is to have patience and wait out the right tenant instead of jumping the gun in order to get units filled. Evicting bad tenants will cost you a lot more time and money then will waiting for the right tenant."


Silver - Jonathan Greene presents The Tale of the Terrible F Bomb posted at Real Opinionated

/covers Mr Frogcat's ears and scowls.


Silver - Peter Comitini presents It's official, the Manhattan market is hot again posted at Peter Comitini

"There is activity on everything from starter studios, to the trophy apartments the big bonus recipients buy. We are seeing pent-up demand in the marketplace burst into a flurry of buying as a result of a more broadly based confidence in the future."


Silver - Larry Cragun presents I Am Not A Cat - I Am A Frog posted at MortgagesUndressed.

"In mortgage lending you hear I am an honest low cost lender. Or you hear all sorts of claims and buzz words. They imply “I wear the low cost hat”. I am not a cat I am a frog. You can trust me"


Keep clapping for;

Bronze - Jennifer Kirby presents What is a Realtor to the Public? posted at Minneapolis Real Estate Blog.

"While there might be an excess of real estate agents in the industry right now, due in part to the past five year boom, there are still those of us that hold ourselves to high standards."


Bronze - Steve Leung presents Why You Need Real Estate Agents and Why You Don't Trust Them posted at 1SiliconValley.com

"What clients really need when they hire a real estate agent is not someone who is a "closer" but someone who has the wherewithal needed to be a good consultant and Devil's Advocate. Take care not to choose someone who gets color blind to any color but green when you need a truthful opinion…"


Bronze - Maureen Francis presents Does Your Realtor Have A Lasso? posted at MiOaklandCounty.com.

"This certainly is a roll reversal from what most buyers and their agents expect, but there is nothing wrong with that. After all, my goal is to get the house sold, not to worry about what everyone else does."


Bronze - Greg Swann presents Ask the Broker: What makes property values rise? posted at BloodhoundBlog.

"The simple fact is, if you can afford to drive, and if it is physically possible to drive, there is no way that you’re going to take a chance on some wino vomiting on your $200 shoes. All over the country we are building mass transit systems for a mass transit population that does not exist."


Bronze/Matthew Paulson presents Roommates: Can’t Live With Out Them posted at Getting Green.

"Getting a room-mate is perhaps one of the best things that you can do if you are unmarried to save money. There are also a lot of non-monetary benefits to having a room-mate as well that you should know about."


Bronze - Wenchypoo presents Social Security Alternatives posted at Wisdom From Wenchypoo's Mental Wastebasket

"Why depend on Uncle Sam to save you in your golden years, when you can make better use of the savings vehicles Congress gives you (and I ain't talkin' Social Security Reform, either)?

STOP CLAPPING!

Sadly my reign as evil overlord has come to an end.

As a final note the carnival is seeking a host for next week, though there are hosts lined up for the two weeks following. Talk to Toby if you think you have the right stuff to host the carnival.

Of course I'll leave finding Toby up to you...

....as a test of your carnival hosting worth.

And don't disappoint Mr Frogcat. There's no telling what he'll do.

/slowly spins evil overlord high backed chair to face away from audience, while stroking Mr Frogcat and laughing evil overlord laughter.

FADE OUT