Lake Martin Voice Realty
Lake Martin Home Sales For November 2011
The Lake Martin real estate market posted good waterfront sales for November, 2011.
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The Lake Martin MLS* reports that 8 waterfront homes, condos, and town homes were sold in November. This includes all real estate agents, all brokerages, on the entire lake, that are members of the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors.
It meant that November in 2011 was not as good as November 2010′s 10 homes sold, but was good enough to push the 2011 total above the 200 barrier to 203. This is significant because Lake Martin real estate market has not seen waterfront home sales above 200 since 2006 scored 235 sales.
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This year’s number of waterfront homes sold so far on Lake Martin has surprised me. After a strong summer and fall, I thought that we would end the year with 205 or so total. Hitting 203 with one more month to go is very encouraging. My revised estimate for the entire year is 210 or so homes sold, which, as mentioned, will be the best since 2006.
Will December 2011 beat December 2010? I doubt it. Last year there were 12 waterfront homes sold through the MLS. That’s strong – the best December since I have been tracking the numbers in 2005. The average amount of Lake Martin homes sold in December has been about 6 if you look at 2005 – 2011.
If that holds true, Lake Martin will be on a two month losing streak to the prior year. Does this bode ill? Not necessarily, in my opinion. Firstly, it’s hard to be anything but happy with the best year’s sales since 2006. Secondly, we have learned that the winter months can be unreliable predictors. To wit, 2007 had an awesome first quarter before totally tanking.
I won’t slice the numbers too much this month; I need to save my strength for my year end review later this month. But in case you are interested, there was another waterfront lot sale on Lake Martin in November:
Also the sales versus the prior month chart is as expected, November posted a loss versus 2010 but overall the year was great:
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Waterfront lot sales for Lake Martin property sold through the MLS were also strong in November.
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Strong lot sales on Lake Martin this year could mean a good year for the construction industry. Granted, total waterfront lot sales are only about 60% of their peak in 2006, but hey, over 30 is a good year.
As I mentioned above, I will put a greater amount of emphasis on the year end numbers. I will wait a week or so more to make sure that all realtors and brokerages on Lake Martin have finalized their reporting to the MLS, so please stay tuned!
Related Posts:
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2011 – October 2011
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2010 – Lot Sales
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2010
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2009 – Year In Review
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2008 – Year In Review
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2007 – Year In Review
All Lake Martin Market Reports
(*)Disclaimers: All of the above info was taken from the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. Accuracy is not guaranteed but deemed reliable. The above does not include sales by FSBOs or developers that sell privately and not through the MLS. But, I do think that the above represents a very large majority of all waterfront sales on Lake Martin, Alabama.
Lake Martin Waterfront Home Sales Beat Prior Year
It’s official, Lake Martin waterfront home sales in 2011 will be better than 2010.
Through October 31, 2011, 195 waterfront homes were sold on Lake Martin. If you check the Lake Martin real estate market for the entire year of 2010, you see that it took the full 12 months to reach the 195 level, and 194 were sold in 2009.
Since unofficial November 2011 results show that at least a few waterfront homes sold, one can confidently say that we beat the prior year of 2010.
My conservative guess is that the Lake Martin real estate market will finish 2011 with about 205 waterfront home sales. That equals an approximate 5% jump from 2010, and about 49% up from the post bubble low in 2008.
Lake Martin Waterfront Home Sales By Month
The below chart shows Lake Martin waterfront property home sales by month. It is from January 1, 2008 to October 31, 2011. You can see that 2011, at a monthly level, beat 2010 at almost every month. Please keep in mind that these numbers come from the Lake Martin MLS*, and reflect only waterfront home, condo, and town home sales by all members of the Lake Martin MLS, all brokerages.
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Cumulative Lake Martin Waterfront Home Sales
If you take the monthly sales numbers for the Lake Martin real estate market and add them together, you get the cumulative sales results. To me it is a bit easier to judge at a glance on this chart to tell how the year in total is trending versus prior years.
Please see the below chart. Here again I start at the post bubble low year of 2008 and bring it through October 31, 2011.
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Lake Martin Home Sales Versus Same Month Prior Year
Of all the numbers I crunch, of all my nerdly charts, the below one is the one I watch the most. It tracks how each month fares versus the same month in the prior year. For example, in October 2011, 15 waterfront homes were sold on Lake Martin. October 2010 saw 13 sales, all agents, all brokerages. That gives us a +2 rating for the current month.
Any positive number here is good. If I see several months in a row of negative numbers, I know that Lake Martin is in danger of stalling again. If we had been watching closely in 2006, we could have seen this coming.
The second home market here at Lake Martin has been on a win streak since since mid 2008. Has 2011 kept it rolling? The answer is yes.
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Lake Martin Waterfront Lot Sales
Has the momentum in home sales been mirrored in Lake Martin lots?
The answer for 2011 has been yes.
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While October 2011 itself racked zero waterfront lots sold, the year in total has been a runaway success. Through October 31, thirty three lots have sold in 2011. Compare that to 27 for all of 2010, and you see a hefty gain. Consider that 2010 was the lot comeback year, and you can appreciate the gravity of 2011′s success.
With the benefit of hindsight, we can see that 2008 and 2009 represented a two year divot for Lake Martin lot sales.
I like lot sales because they are a general barometer of construction potential. Let’s hope that our construction industry feels the trickle soon.
Related Posts:
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2011 – Through May
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2010 – Lot Sales
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2010
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2009 – Year In Review
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2008 – Year In Review
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2007 – Year In Review
All Lake Martin Market Reports
(*)Disclaimers: All of the above info was taken from the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. Accuracy is not guaranteed but deemed reliable. The above does not include sales by FSBOs or developers that sell privately and not through the MLS. But, I do think that the above represents a very large majority of all waterfront sales on Lake Martin, Alabama.
LakeMartinVoice Unearths Ode to Window Unit
If you read LakeMartinVoice for its brainy real estate analysis, this post may leave you scratching your head. But, by popular demand, I’ve been asked to re-submit a 2008 literary attempt I penned, “An Ode in Praise of the Window Unit.” I don’t typically recycle old material, but this one might strike a chord with a few of you.
(I’m reposting my intro to the piece, too.)
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(2008) Lake Magazine has a section called “My Lake Martin” where (apparently) they allow just about anybody to submit an article about the lake. They were kind enough to print one I submitted.
I was inspired to write an ode about a window unit air conditioner that we used to have in our cabin. Judging by its girth and sound, it had to have been made in the 1940s. Its brand name was “Kelvinator.” That’s what we called it, as in “it’s hot in here, turn on the Kelvinator.” When things are around that long, they deserve individual respect.
It’s kind of like how we refer to one of the couches as “The Herculon” as in q: “where is mainsail?” a: “stuffed behind The Herculon” or q: “why are you sweating so bad?” a:”it’s The Herculon – laying on it makes me sweat.”
Anyway,I digress.
Lake Martin cabins and window units are inseparable in my mind.
Here it is
An Ode In Praise of the Window Unit
My Lake Martin is a realm ruled by the window unit air conditioner.
Like polyester, it is a reminder of that which once was a point of pride, and is now no longer en vogue.
Oh, woe, and lastima to those who have nay slept below your frigid roar, o humble window unit!! While now your presence draws scorn from some and mockery from the rest, I weep in melancholy for the children of centralized systems who will never know your utility and hypnotic effects.
When the lake melted the zinc oxide from our noses and allowed sunrays to redden our skin, it was you, dear window unit that blew icicles to ease our suffering. You erased our memory such that we were burned the next day and the next.
When our parents were tired of hearing our noise, they declared it “nap time” – and shoved all us kids into one room. You alone watched over us with your rhythmic rumbling machinations. If we didn’t fall asleep, like a favorite uncle you made more noise than we so that the parents never noticed.
We feared you, mighty window unit – where once you were asbestosly insulated, through service your wiring became loose, exposed, menacingly copper, always one mere spark from setting the cabin in irreversible deathly flames, yet we needed you to survive a scorching August.
Lest you take an undignified backwards fall out of your perch and into the yard, we propped you up with an old board wedged into the ground, yet you never complained. Simpering Whines were foreign to you whose hazardous lead innards percolated and spewed pre-war freon. To you, brave window unit, fretting over the ozone layer was for sissies, you had kids to keep cool.
Just as God and Alabama Power mysteriously raised the lake as azaleas are reborn, so too, you were a mystery, our beloved window unit. Each spring when we first plugged you into that Tesla coil of a socket , we wondered if you could breathe once again. Not as lovely as the dogwood, yet as reliable, you awakened decade after decade despite our lack of routine maintenance. You always shook off the leaves and dead lizards to toe the line one more time.
Window unit – Thy name was Kelvinator.
Forgive us for tossing thy corpse into the woods sans pomp or due praise.
You deserved better.
Attack Of The Accountants
In my opinion, real estate advice that is based on folksy anecdotes is for chumps.
I mean to say – buying any sort of real estate, much less a waterfront home or lot on Lake Martin, is a big decision. You shouldn’t rely on other people’s whimsical stories or vague opinions as evidence to buy or not. In fact, this is one of the main reasons that I started this blog back in 2007 – to give hard facts…. verifiable evidence… the real story of what is going on with Lake Martin waterfront home, condo and lot sales.
That being said, please allow me to indulge in an anecdote once in four years. Please don’t take it seriously:
Accountants are attacking Lake Martin!
A couple of weeks ago I had a stretch of seven days where I showed homes to five different accountants. Two of them were actually married to each other. That’s right, a husband and wife CPA team. One of them joked that the CPA stands for “Can’t Pass Again.” Maybe, but in her case I doubt it. I majored in Accounting in college and after I graduated I didn’t sit for the CPA exam. I took and passed the CMA – which for me stood for “Scared of the CPA Exam.”
Spending college and the first phase of my career in the accounting world taught me that the cliches are mostly true. We accountants are a nerdy, math-brained, hyper analytical, careful with money bunch.
Here comes the anecdotal advice:
If a bunch of unrelated CPAs think that Lake Martin is a good buy, isn’t that a good sign?
Sure, it’s folksy, I know. But it’s a cute story. Think about it – isn’t it a good testimonial for Lake Martin? Like if your doctor actually exercised as much as she nags you to do? Like if your insurance agent actually bought those awful whole life policies at full retail prices instead of trying to sell these “great investments” to you? Like if the Turtle Man said, “Wow – there’s no way I’m swimming in that nasty pond,” would you swim in it?
Sit on the sidelines if you want, but, as your CPA will tell you, The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth.
Trolling Facebook Works
Unlike many of the people who use it, I freely admit to spending time on Facebook.
Why not? It’s where about 25% of page views in America are happening on the web. For a business like mine that relies so heavily on the web and personal referrals, it’s a no brainer.
Mondays and Tuesdays are a good time for me to troll my friends’ photos on Facebook to see if they have posted some fun pictures taken on Lake Martin from that previous weekend. It’s too bad I can’t freely post them here, because these are some of the best testimonials for Lake Martin that exist on the web.
Recently I came across a nice shot of Lake Martin taken from the back deck by a couple whom I helped find their lake home. This is their first summer on Lake Martin and they are loving it, as you can tell by the picture.
It is also fun to read everyone’s comments like “beautiful” .. and “can’t wait to join you” and the like.
Happiness!
What about you?
Are you considering buying a waterfront home or lot or condo on Lake Martin?
Feel free to search the Lake Martin MLS here – or give me a call at 334 221 5862 or email me through this contact form.
I would love to help you have a back porch view like this one!
Rent Vs Buy – Lake Martin Math
One of most enjoyable parts about writing this blog about Lake Martin real estate are some of the questions and comments I get from readers.
A couple of weeks ago I guy emailed me to ask me what I thought about his plan of renting a home on Lake Martin next year from May to September for $3,750 per month.
I thought that it was an interesting concept. I don’t know if he was planning to rent a Russell cabin or not. Regardless, here is how I answered him:
“Thanks for your your email. My guess is that you will probably have a tough time finding someone to rent to you May through September. That is the peak season here on Lake Martin. Most long term renters require 12 months. This goes double for Russell cabins. If you want to hear someone get tickled, call them and tell them you only want to rent during those months.
If you are really serious about renting a home, I would try lakemartin.com and go to the rentals section. That is how most people rent their homes on Lake Martin, either long term or short (nightly or weekly) term.
However, one thing to think about – if you assume 5 months rent at $3,750 – at the end of which you would have nothing and it’s (probably) NOT tax deductible. that’s 5 * $3,750 = $18,750 in total cash out for rent.
If you divide $18,750 by 12, it gives $1,562 you could pay per month on a bank loan. Assuming 4.25% interest you could service the debt on a $320,000 loan. At an 80% loan to value ratio, that assumes you can buy a $400,000 lake house. You can buy a nice waterfront home on Lake Martin for $400,000 these days.
In other words, for the money you spent in rent for only 5 months, you could pay for a $400k waterfront home for a year. At the end of the year, you are still the owner. You can deduct your mortgage interest (probably, check with your CPA). About $13,200 of that is mortgage interest payments, so if you assume a tax of 35% that’s a net effect of a $4,620 discount (35% * 13,200). Again, check with your CPA to be sure.
All this assumes that Lake Martin home values don’t rise between now and December 2012 (which I think they are likely to do). If / when they do, you gain on your home value as a direct result. If you are renting, your landlord will just raise the rent.
With home prices this low, and rates this low, it really makes the case against renting. Even for 5 months. Much less 12 months.”
What about you?
Have you thought about renting a home on Lake Martin, and are wondering how it compares to buying one? I would be glad to help you consider your options. Please use this contact form to email me or call me at 334 221 5862.
Maybe you weren’t thinking about 5 months at $3,750 per, but I am sure you still might like to entertain the notion of buying.
Lake Martin Dream Cabin Renovation In Parker Creek
For so many people, Lake Martin conjures up visions of rustic, quaint cabins on tree-filled lots. Many lake-lovers spent summers at a relative’s cabin. Maybe they never took part in the spring removing of the ladybugs, or cared that the window unit above their bed leaked a little. It was fun to bunk up with 4 other cousins in a room that wasn’t really a bedroom. 7 year olds don’t notice that the floor in the kitchen isn’t exactly level. But what they do remember is all they fun they had as a family . . .
So fast forward thirty years. Wanting to re-create those laid back, family friendly memories for their own kids, a search is begun for a rustic “cabin” to call their own. If you’ve been around the lake for any length of time, you know lots of these cabins require buyers to have a little vision.
You’ve also heard that around Lake Martin, the LOT is everything: you can change your house, but you can’t change your lot. Many times that old, rustic cabin on the awesome lot only has one bathroom. So you have a decision to make. And you need a little vision.
Colin and Julie are great examples of such a vision. A couple of years ago I had a home for sale in the Parker Creek area of Lake Martin. They loved the beautiful lot, loved the area and the cabin feel, but the house on that lot had only 2 bedrooms and one bath (and they have 4 kids).
Plus, one of those 2 bedrooms used to be a back stoop that was taken in and dubbed “The Honeymoon Suite” by the previous owners.
So they bought the location, and changed the house. And they didn’t add a lot of square footage: the only additional space comes from enlarging the existing screened porch. They shifted some things around, and ended up with a cozy cabin that completely suits their needs. See what you think in the above video. I made it by mixing together some of the pictures I took from when the home was for sale, and then some pics I took after their renovation.
And here they are talking about the process of buying their cabin:
If you dream of owning that nostalgic Lake Martin cabin, let me help you with your search. It costs a buyer nothing to have an real estate agent do the legwork. Give me a call and let’s see what we can find! 334 221 5862
My Big Mistake, Caught On Video
I go on and on on this blog about the power of video to help with the Lake Martin real estate process. I know it must get tiresome to hear, but I truly believe it. These days it is so easy and cheap to produce your own video, I use it to document Lake Martin events, neighborhoods, home tours, and yes - happiness.
Ronnie and Sheri just closed on a waterfront Lake Martin home. I knew they were excited, and that made me happy. But it wasn’t until I sat down and edited the testimonial video they shot for me, that I really appreciated the joy that’s a part of this real estate gig. I also realized that I made a tremendous error when I shot this testimonial.
My Big Mistake, Caught On Video
95% of closings for buyers coming to Lake Martin are euphoric. They are fired up, many times their car is loaded up. They are ready to enjoy their new lake home. That’s why I like to be there with a video camera. They get to gush about their excitement about Lake Martin. That’s fun to see.
And, if they happen to throw a compliment or two my way, well….. I guess I can let that slide!
I will admit, when Ronnie launched into complimenting me, I was rather flattered. I was thinking, “whoa – this is great!!” As he neared the end of his gracious remarks, and I got ready to hit the stop recording button on my iPhone, I thought it was a good video. But I missed the truly great part of the video, and that was my big mistake.
Sheri is clapping at the end of the clip.
Check it out, right at the end when I am say, “welcome to Lake Martin” – she is clapping!! It’s that excited clap like when your parents tell you that you can open up one present on Christmas Eve, or when your team scores a touchdown. It’s pure joy.
Idiot!
AND I CUT IT OFF!
What an error. I’ll admit, my ego was so inflated from the compliments that I missed it when filming.
I blew it.
That’s what it is all about – joy about Lake Martin. That’s what this blog is supposed to be about. Not about realtors blathering about themselves. We are A Voice, not THE Voice, spreading the word about the lake. That’s what all my efforts should point towards.
I know it’s totally cliche, but you can “see it all over Ronnie’s face.” It’s hard to walk away unaffected. True, not all closing as are as easy as theirs. And not all clients are as animated. I know, in the big picture, I’m an insignificant part of their Lake Martin journey, but to be let in on that moment of excitement is a lot of fun!
If I had to do it over, I would bring the sound down on Ronnie, so that you can just see his excitement about Lake Martin. Never mind that he’s talking about me. That’s not the point.
Next, I would have taped about 45 seconds of Sheri just clapping and jumping up and down.
Show of hands – who thinks they are going to enjoy Lake Martin? If you run into them this summer, tell them congrats!
By the way, is it just me, or if you close your eyes, does Ronnie sound just like Jeff Foxworthy?
Wanting to load up YOUR trailer and claim your piece of Lake Martin? Give me a call or contact me and let me help you find YOUR lake home. 334 221 5862
Lake Martin Home Sales Post Best May Since 2006
May, 2011, was a great month for waterfront home sales on Lake Martin. A total of 24 lakefront properties were sold on the entire lake – all brokerages, all agents. This is the highest number of Lake Martin homes sold in the month of May since 33 were sold in 2006. It beats the 22 sold in May of 2010 and 2009, the 14 sold in 2008, and 23 sold in 2007.
When I pull the numbers from the Lake Martin MLS*, I find that 2011 is trending to be yet another strong year for us, perhaps to be the third year in a row that we will have bested the prior year in waterfront home sales.
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Please note that in the above chart, and for the all charts going forward, I plan to quit showing 2005 – 2007 data, unless I am trying to make a specific point.
My reasons for this are:
1.) Visually, it’s hard (for me at least) to look at so many years on one chart. They just all mix together and lose context.
2.) It is my sincere belief (backed up by the numbers) that 2008 was the bottom of the Lake Martin real estate market. “The bubble” is old news. Instead of focusing on how off we are from 2005, I think the more pertinent topic to people interested in buying or selling on Lake Martin now is: how high up are we from the bottom? And, are we in danger of dipping back down again? To highlight these topics I need more space, and 2005 – 2007 must go.
I’m not throwing away the data or anything, I can always trot it back out of needed.
The below chart will show you the trend of waterfront homes sold on Lake Martin for 2011. We are trending about 10% above 2010, which suggests that we will end up selling about 50% more homes this year than in the bottom of 2008.
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See The Momentum
I am a firm believer that in order to understand the direction any real estate market, anywhere, at any time, one must study the comparison of year to year monthly sales. In other words, did the number of homes sold this month beat the same month last year? And how many months’ of victories have been tallied in, say, the last running 18 months? The answer to this will tell you that market’s momentum, and give you insight to the likely direction of pricing.
Yes, that’s right. I’m saying pricing trends follow sales trends. If home sales go up, so will prices. Dropping sales will drop prices.
What is the real estate sales trend for Lake Martin? Why am I so confident that we are at a low (relative) risk to a double dip? See this chart:
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The above is a chart of the numbers of waterfront homes sold on Lake Martin since January 2008. It shows the result of taking the current month homes sold and subtracting the same month in the prior year. Take January 2008 for example. It sold 5 fewer homes than January 2007, thus the -5 position on the chart. Ditto February 2008. But in June 2009 – we see it sold 19 more homes than June 2008, so it registers a big blip up. The key here is to focus on that zero line on the y (vertical) axis. Anything above that is “good” – aka an increasing sales momentum. The reverse is also true.
I have often cited this chart, but it is proof positive to me that Lake Martin is still on an upswing from the real estate bottom. Furthermore, you can see from the chart that in 2008 it swung from mostly negative numbers to mostly positive.
This is excellent news. We are very fortunate here.
Waterfront Lot Sales On Lake Martin
Another bit of big news is the huge increase in waterfront lot sales for 2011. Looking at the entire Lake Martin market, 4 lots were sold in May, 2011. This equaled May 2010. If we consider the entire calendar year, we are trending above 2010, which was a boom year for lot sales.
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Looking Ahead
Obviously, we have many more months to go so it doesn’t pay to get too ahead of myself. But I do think that so far we can draw two conclusions:
1.) Lake Martin waterfront home sales for 2011 will be strong again, matching or beating 2009 and 2010. Personally I would not be surprised if it ends up at 10 – 15% higher than last year. I think this also gives a little upward pressure to prices, if not this year, maybe 2012. Preliminary looks at June numbers look strong.
2.) Lake Martin lot sales in 2011 will again be strong. I think 2009 will be the bottom for lot sales, and it’s interesting to me that its bottom happened 12 months after the waterfront home sales bottomed. If lot pricing follows home pricing behavior, then we will see that 2011 will be the year that Lake Martin waterfront lot prices stop dropping.
One Final Tidbit
I always puzzle a bit when the numbers don’t match my gut. For the last 60 days or so something has been gnawing at me. We know that real estate prices are still low on Lake Martin. Check. We know that there are many waterfront homes for sale right now. Check. So:
Why am I having to hustle so hard on the last 3 or 4 deals I have done?
By hustle I don’t mean work in general. Not looking for pity. What I mean is that on these 
deals it seems like each one of them has had 2 or 3 other buyers at the sixteenth pole.
To drop the sports analogies, it seems like the “good deals” are being snapped up faster.
Am I correct? If so, that would mean that we have a high majority of homes that have been for sale for a really long time. The dogs (bad deals or junky situations) and the dreamers (sellers that are being ridiculous) are so numerous that it clouds judgement of the market as a whole. But is that a fact? And how can I go about proving or disproving my gut?
If anyone out there has a suggestion for metrics, please let me know.
Related Posts:
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2011 – Through April
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2010 – Lot Sales
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2010
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2009 – Year In Review
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2008 – Year In Review
Lake Martin Real Estate Sales 2007 – Year In Review
All Lake Martin Market Reports
(*)Disclaimers: All of the above info was taken from the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. Accuracy is not guaranteed but deemed reliable. The above does not include sales by FSBOs or developers that sell privately and not through the MLS. But, I do think that the above represents a very large majority of all waterfront sales on Lake Martin, Alabama.
A Secret Weapon for Lake Martin FSBOs
Are you selling your Lake Martin waterfront home “For Sale by Owner” (aka FSBO)?
Then let me tell you about a secret weapon.
Posterous.com is the best way right now to market your Lake Martin home, condo, or lot on the internet. I agree with its legions of fans that use it because it is SO easy. Once you set up your free account, it’s like having your own blog. It’s simple to add new info and update pages about your property, and it’s also easy to get that valuable information in front of potential buyers.
I use Posterous myself as a way to distribute pictures and quick videos. I’m such a big believer in Posterous, I’ve actually taught a couple of classes to Lake Martin area small business owners on how to use it to help their marketing. Lake Martin FSBOs can also use Posterous to help them sell their homes.
Surveys by Realtor.com prove what common sense tells us – internet marketing is a huge part of the real estate industry. 90% of home buyers use the web before they ever call a Realtor. So if you choose to sell your lakeside home yourself – you need to tap into this marketing engine.
4 cool things about Posterous.com:
1. FREE – it’s free to get an account. Once you have an account, it’s like having your own blog.
2. Easy to add info – if you can send an email, you can add web pages to your Posterous blog. Take a few pictures of each room. Attach them to an email, let the subject be “kitchen” or “lake view” or whatever. Type description in the body of the email. Send the email to [email protected] Do this for every room or vista of your lakefront property. Each email will create a new blog post, and thus go a long way to describing your property.
3. It cuts down on a lot of curious types and can also serve to qualify your buyers. When those tire kickers, or even legitimate buyers, call you for a showing, refer them to your Posterous blog first, so they can check it out before they come physically.
4. Email a video, too! Shoot a clip and email it to your Posterous blog. Posterous will embed the video. So easy.
Granted, a free blog like this will not gain the instant attention from the search engines and social media that an established site like Lake Martin Voice will. Years of work and hundreds of posts have built up credibility for Lake Martin Voice.com and my related pages on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. I don’t blog for vanity, I do it to sell homes, lots, and condos.
Obviously, I would love to help anyone on Lake Martin. But hey, if you choose to sell your Lake Martin home yourself, Posterous is a great tool. So great, in fact, that I rank it as a secret weapon.
If you think you might need some help selling your Lake Martin property, we would love to hep. Contact us here or call at 334 221 5862.
