Cost and Time Commitments of Being a Boater

The thought of getting in your own boat and cruising the seas whenever you want is what causes so many people to get into boating each year. Most people get in quickly and then want out just as fast because they didn’t take the time to familiarize themselves with how much of a commitment is involved with being a boater. Consider the following information to help prepare you for your time out on the water.

boat-buying1. Getting in the Water – Imagine sitting stuck and work and counting the minutes until you are cruising the water in your boat with the wind in your hair and no one for miles. Depending where your boat is stored, you might need more time than you think. If you thought you could save money storing the boat in your driveway, this involves heading home, connecting the boat, slowly driving to the drop area, getting help unloading, then parking your vehicle and trailer. Compare this to keeping the boat at the marina where you pull up, jump in the boat, and you are gone.

2. Price of Your Boat – The cost of your boat is just the first of many expenditures you will be paying for being a boater. Consider that you will have to pay for insurance, fuel and oil, storage, trailer, repairs, setting up the tow vehicle, food, fishing gear, skis, several life jackets, licenses and fishing permits, maintenance, and winterizing costs. Don’t assume $5,000 boat will only cost you $5000, this is an ongoing expenditure that truly is a labor of love.

3. Boat Upkeep – Like maintaining your vehicle, there is going to be days where you have to sit at the dock and do some routine maintenance to your boat. Cleaning the interior and exterior, changing the oil, having the hull checked for damage, all involve your time. If you can set aside a day a month to just sit on the boat and take care of all those needs, you will find that when you want to get out on the water you have less mechanical issues. If time is an issue, hire someone at the marina to maintain the boat regularly.

While being a boater does require some serious commitment, nothing could ever compare to the freedom of being in charge out on the water. Being able to escape the stresses of your day out on the boat is an experience unlike any other. For more information visit our contributor: Boatmo.com

Learn These Marketing Tricks to Retain Your Real Estate Clients

Rebates on Real EstateOne of the most challenging aspects of being a real estate agent is attracting and keeping clients. This highly competitive industry requires agents to be on their game day and night, working with clients all day and researching properties at night. This leaves very little time to aggressively market themselves, especially when getting new clients is the only way to successfully the customer base. By following a few of these simple real estate agent marketing tips, you can better manage those limited hours you have each day to be more productive.

The Power of Commission Rebates

Many companies are springing up that offer most or part of the real estate commission as a rebate to the buyer at closing.  The Justice Department has more information but over 40 states have approved the trend.   Paying part or all of your Real Estate clients closing costs can be a big draw for finding new and keeping repeat clients.

The Power of Social Media
One of the easiest ways to connect with customers is by interacting with them on social media. Regardless if you have a Twitter or Facebook account connected to your real estate agent website, you need a presence on one of these platforms at the least. By interacting with new customers, you give potential clients a chance to see you in action. When you are on top of your game and posting helpful tips and information about properties in the area, it makes it easy for your current followers to refer you when their inner circle is looking for an agent.

Creating a Mobile Connection
With so many people connected to their mobile devices each day, it only makes sense that you set up an account with a company that can push your messages to these mobile devices. The key here is not to spam customers, but to give them information on new listings before anyone else even knows they are available. When it is a sellers market, usually the first buyer with a full price offer gets the house. By blasting messages to your customers about new listings, you give them the opportunity to be the first in line when that new house appears. When they get the house of their dreams, you now have a client and source of referrals for life.

Having a Personal Website
A real estate website is nice for customers, but a personal real estate website for a specific realtor can really help connect you and a audience better. Many buyers complain that they are not happy walking into a real estate office and being handed the first agent that is available. Instead they want to be able to choose an agent they can relate to on a personal level. When you create your own website or blog, potential buyers can see you in action before they even meet you face to face.

For more information visit: http://rebatesonrealestate.com/category/news/

How to Engage Clients on Your Website

One of the easiest ways to grow your audience is by keeping the existing clients that you have. Rather than simply blasting them with sales flyers each week, consider interacting with them on a personal level. This not only helps to increase buyer confidence, it will make it easier for these loyal customers to tell their family and friends about your business. Consider these simple tips on how to engage clients on your website before looking for ways to grow your following.  These tips below are from one of the leading Charleston SEO companies.Charleston SC SEO

Installing Social Media Feeds
Everyone today is connected to social media in one form or another. Whether they are checking the news fees on Facebook or the popular tweets on Twitter, people today want to get their news fast. Rather than leave your website homepage stale, install a social media plugin that will allow a news feed to run right from your website. This gives you the ability to interact instantly with loyal customers or new clients who found your website and have a question.

The Power of Live Help
Make it easier for clients to interact with you by installing a free live operator app on your website homepage. Now when a client arrives on your site and has a question, they simply click the live chat button and get to speak with a representative of your company day or night. The advantage your website will have over the competition is they usually shut down during normal business hours. pay an employ or hire a service to monitor the chat and converse with customers. One additional sale in the off hours could easily offset any costs to hire a part time operator.

Keeping Things Above the Fold
Ask anyone what the biggest challenge they have when it comes to interacting with the owners of a website, they will tell you trying to locate contact information. Many companies place telephone numbers, email addresses, and physical address, deep in contact pages where the visitor must search for the information. The easiest way to engage clients is by making your contact information as readily available as possible. This means placing your address and contact information at the top of the website homepage where it can be seen instantly when a client arrives. This will set the tone for the rest of their visit knowing that you are simply a click or call away.

Take the time to incorporate one or more of these simple techniques for engaging clients, and you turn them into long-term loyal customers who will in turn tell their inner circle about you business too. For more information visit: onQsites.com

Trends in Real Estate and Mortgage Marketing for 2016

So, you have entered into a home purchase contract and now you’ve decided that you need a home loan. From this point begins the task of getting a mortgage lender that is going to be willing to work with you. There are a huge number of different options for finding the best online mortgage lenders. You also have the choice of having an independent mortgage broker connect you to a lender. You’ll find online mortgage loan provider may pre-qualify you with lenders using the best rates for that mortgage you are in need of.  Here are some handy tips and trends from our friends at Premier One, Real Estate for Everyone.  Feel free to visit them when you in the market for Charleston SC Real Estate.

Find Charleston SC Real EstateFinding the best online mortgage lenders, or five or even a dozen online mortgage lenders can be a real challenge for home buyers. Many lenders solely work in specific states and are more competitive for certain loans for specific borrowers than others. The best mortgage lender for a family buying a single family home using 25 percent down in New jersey wouldn’t be the best mortgage lender with an investor buying a new town home throughout Oregon with 10 percentage down.

How to Pick the Best Mortgage Lenders
It’s achievable to narrow your search for a top level mortgage lender. It boils down to asking a number of very simple questions, that we’ll cover from here out. Make sure that you take the time to ask a potential lender these questions if you want to put yourself in the best position from getting the guaranteed best rates.

Is You New Lender Convenient to Work With?
Mortgage lenders all perform differently. If you choose a local bank, your credit union or local large finance company, you’ll likely include multiple face-to-face appointments inside their office or your house. This can become reassuring if it’s your first-time getting a mortgage or there is a ton of concerns. On the contrary though, if you are interested in working online or are informed about the mortgage procedure, you might prefer an even more stream-lined experience. Here’s where online lenders come in handy. Usually, these national creditors don’t have nearby local offices. Being able to complete the application online and then fax or email to a lender is extremely convenient. The best online lenders have exceptional customer service team members to walk you through the entire application process.

Do You Know if the Lender is Reputable?
Most online lenders are straight-shooting organizations. Every single bank will certainly have its share of unhappy customers that didn’t get accepted or made a mistake in the application process, but pay close attention to how others rate their service. You can check the BBB on line or visit mortgage forums and see how other customers rate their service one the application process has begun.

For more interesting news on mortgage trends: http://www.cnbc.com/2016/01/19/big-banks-continue-retreat-from-mortgages.html