Austin Texas Real Estate Blog

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Blog Carnival of Real Estate - My First Time to Host! Winners Announcement

Not long ago, I was asked by my friend Mike Price to host the "Carnival of Real Estate", which is essentially a gathering of blog posts each week about our industry.  Sounds like fun to me, so I said a hearty "Yes!".  Since I've held lots of contests during my blogging career, I have a little experience in this arena.  :)

 

First of all, if you took the time to submit something this past week, I thank you all for your submissions.  We all take pride and a great sense of ownership of our writing, and I know firsthand that it can be a personal thing.  With that in mind, I appreciate you all giving me a chance to review your hard work.  This is my first time judging this particular competition, and I consider it an honor.

 

There were just over 20 submissions, and there were six that I felt really stood out:

 

First Place Searching for Real Estate Made Easy: Geo-Fences Plus Mobile Phones by Chris Thorman of SoftwareAdvice.com.  This is simply an awesome blog post.  It has many solid elements:  it’s informative, current, and well-written.  It has helpful graphics and good organization.  The anecdote at the beginning makes the post more interesting and draws the reader in.  Everyone loves technology, and the internet is certainly the best place to come up with new ways to use it.  Kudos.

 

In Second Place, I would put this rant (if I may call it that): Can I get proof of a competing offer? The answer may surprise you by Jay Thompson, the Phoenix Real Estate Guy.  For those of you who know Jay already, it should come as no surprise that he wrote a terrific post on a compelling topic.  If you haven't had the situation Jay describes come up yet in your real estate career, you will!  I myself have written/ranted on the same subject, and I think it’s a topic most of us have some opinion on.  That fact, and the opener mentioning “slam my head into a wall” draw the reader into the story.  Jay also expresses some strong opinions in his post, which makes it more interesting and comment-worthy.  His structure and grammar are clear and accurate, and he makes good use of the medium with his tone and subject.

 

Third Place: What are Mortgage Accelerator Programs? by Jim Wang 

This is an article-type post that is truly informative.  It’s conversationally written and Jim doesn't talk down to the reader.  It seems well-researched, and the advice it gives seems wise.  It's also well-structured and well laid out.

 

Fourth place goes to 10 Most Common Mistakes of 1st Time Home Buyers by Robert Buchholz.  This is a very informative post that could actually help some new buyers, if they follow the advice therein.   If I were a rookie Realtor, I might print this out to give to my buyers, and Robert Buchholz’ name would be there, too, which can only help Robert’s business.  That’s part of the “big idea” of blogging!

 

Honorable mentions: Hey You Pessimists (Yes you, homeowners): It’s Not Quite That Bad… by Amy Bohutinsky and Investors: Should You Get Your Real Estate License? by J. Scott.  Both of these are well-written and informative posts.  “Not Quite That Bad” has some very interesting & encouraging research with a “killer” graphic.  Which of us could not do with a little good news these days?  “Investors: Should You Get Your Real Estate License?” attempts to give a brief yet through review of the issue, and seems very helpful.

 

All in all, there some terrific posts for the carnival, and it made my decisions difficult.  In fact, I had to call in some help (my wife read them, too).  I applaud you all.  Keep on making the RE.net a more informative, interesting, and helpful place.

 

 

Photo credits: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fleur-design/ and http://www.flickr.com/photos/joelzimmer

 

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Comments

Jason, these look like great posts... I go a reading now... Thanks!

Posted by Don Wixom (RE/MAX Advantage Nampa, ID) 4 months ago

Well...Dang, I missed this one all together but look forward to reading the winners posts!

Posted by Russell Lewis, Broker,CLHMS,GRI (AvenueOne Properties, Austin Texas Real Estate) 4 months ago

These are very intersting posts.. just ready of a couple of them and I am finding them very thought provoking.  Thanks for taking the time to judge these posts.

Posted by Joan Whitebook, ABR,e-Pro,CEBA Southern New Hampshire (Buyer's Option Realty Services) 4 months ago

Wow I only read 2 of them and can see why you picked them...I am off to read more!

Posted by Marie Westerman REALTORĀ® Evans GA, Ft Gordon GA, Augusta GA, Waynesboro GA (Keller Williams Realty Augusta Partners) 4 months ago

Hi Jason... I love carnivals!  How did I miss this one?  BTW, great pics on this post!  I love the YoYo!

Posted by Steve Shatsky, SFR - Dallas Real Estate & Short Sale Specialist (469)449-9840 (Prudential Texas Properties) 4 months ago

It's been a couple of years since I've heard about the Real Estate Carnival. I would encourage all Rainers to take a look at these posts, to see that there is a lot of great talent and a wide audience of new readers outside the Rain.

Posted by John Novak - Las Vegas and Henderson NV Real Estate (Keller Williams Realty The Marketplace) 4 months ago

I missed out on this too....but will read the posts....and appreciate the hard work of the bloggers!

Posted by Kirsten Lindquist (Pacific Union International - Christie's Great Estates) 4 months ago

I've already read a couple of these, but your other choices some interesting. I see I have some more reading to do =)

Posted by Lisa Hill (Daytona Beach Real Estate) (Florida Property Experts) 4 months ago

Thanks for the mention and the kind words Jason! Hard to believe the Carnival of Real Estate has been going on for 176 weeks!

Posted by Jay Thompson 4 months ago

Jason - I think the Top 10 Mistakes First Time Home Buyers Make was great!!!

Posted by Betsy Schuman Dodek Potomac Luxury Homes (Washington Fine Properties - Washington DC Area Real Estate) 4 months ago

Jason, looks like I have alot of reading to catch up on, thanks for putting these together, I will definately be checking them all out...

Posted by Gerry Michaels GettysburgGerry (Community Benefits Real Estate, Gettysburg, Pa) 4 months ago

Sorry I missed this, Jason.

I will go read the posts and the titles are very enticing. I love that Phoenix Real Estate Guy so I know that will be a great post. He is in my feedreader but darn haven't been there in 2 weeks either.

Posted by Missy Caulk-Ann Arbor- Realtor(R)- Ann Arbor Real Estate (Keller Williams-Ann Arbor) 4 months ago

Hi Jason -- I missed these so I'm off for some reading! Thanks.  I wanted to attend the webinar yesterday abut something came up, too bad AR doesn't screen/audio record it for playback.

Posted by Chris Olsen Broker Owner Cleveland Ohio Real Estate (Olsen Ziegler Realty) 4 months ago

Jason, was this something sponsored by RE.net? No wonder why many of us Rainers missed it. Perhaps the next time they have a contest you can announce it here, so you can get more participants.

Now, off to read what you've picked as the winners...

Posted by William James Walton, Sr. Greater Waterbury Real Estate (Century21 Access America) 4 months ago

i have started reading them, they are excellent! BTW-thanks for a great webinar on Monday.

Posted by Scott Fogleman, SFR, e-PRO (Scott & Bond, Inc.) 4 months ago

Jason, 

Just read them all.  They were fantastic.  We have a lot of amazing voices here.  Thanks for bringing them to our attention. 

All the best, Michelle

Posted by Michelle Francis, Atlanta GA (Tim Francis Realty) 4 months ago

Lots of great info. Thank you for the time that you spent.  Do you have a posting of the webinar replay??

Posted by Robert Earl - The Earl of Real Estate -> Northern Virginia Real Estate (Keller Williams - The Earl of Real Estate Team) 4 months ago

Chris - Sorry about that.  I think I will be teaching the webinar "live" again at some point soon.  :)

Robert - I'm not sure I know which webinar you're referring to.  I've already had two this week.  Which one were you interested in?

Posted by Jason Crouch, Broker - Austin Texas Real Estate (512-796-7653) (Austin Texas Homes, LLC) 4 months ago

Hi Jason,

 

Really good posts, great information......talented writers.

 

 

 

 

Thank You

Posted by ROBERT TWARON satxmilitaryrelocation.com 4 months ago

Hey Jason, Thanks for bringing these good postings to my attention.  I'll be sure to read them tonight.  In the meantime, thanks for hosting the webinar Monday.  Very informative!

Posted by Evelyn Zebro - Asheville NC Real Estate Broker (Beverly-Hanks & Associates) 4 months ago

Jason, thank you for taking the time to review these posts. I will be reading many of them in the next few minutes.

Posted by Mark Montross (Catamount Realty Group) 4 months ago

Interesting reading, thanks for posting.

Posted by Vicki Baggs (Neptune Properties, Bayou Vista, TX) 4 months ago

Jason:

Those are excellent posts you featured. DO you have any knowledge about all the technical issues we're having on AR right now? It takes my outside blog 30 seconds or more to load -- when it loads, which is only about 25% of the time.

Posted by Agent Aaron | Hill Country TX Homes For Sale | Austin TX MLS | Avoid Foreclosure (Austin Texas Homes, LLC) 4 months ago

Great topics, and thanks for sharing them.

Posted by Joe Pryor.com REALTORĀ® Oklahoma Investment Properties (Redbud Realty) 4 months ago

I just bookmarked this to come back and read these. They look very interesting!

Posted by Cheryl Ritchie, Southern Maryland Real Estate (RE/MAX 100) 4 months ago

The first one was fascinating. I am unclear what this carnival includes. Are these AR Bloggers submitting stuff from their outside blogs or AR Bloggers submitting cool blog posts they have read about our industry? Not sure I get it yet.

Posted by Cheryl Ritchie, Southern Maryland Real Estate (RE/MAX 100) 4 months ago

Sounds interesting, wish I'll have to check it out...thanks

Posted by Linda Lohman- Former Teacher/Broker (Fonville Morisey Realty) 4 months ago

Cool posts!

Posted by Whitney Peddy (de Luxe Homes & Estates) 4 months ago

It looks like I am going to be off doing some additional reading tonight.  Thanks for the compilation.

Posted by Christine Donovan Costa Mesa Real Estate Broker/Attorney 800-610-7253 DRE01267479 (Donovan Blatt Team - Donovan Group Realty) 4 months ago

I missed a few of these... but re=blogged the others!  A good balance, I guess.  Keep on doing what you do- I am a fan!  Kathy

Posted by Kathy Schowe (The Lori Bowers Group) 4 months ago

How do we find out when you're having another carnival?  Can you do a Carnival cruise giveaway as a prize?  I really need a vacation.

Posted by Sellers Real Estate, Zeeland, Mi ~ Keith Sellers, Broker 4 months ago

Aaron - I really don't know anything about the technical issues you described.  Sorry.

Cheryl - Actually, it's neither.  These people aren't necessarily AR members at all, but rather members of the real estate blogosphere at large.  :)

Posted by Jason Crouch, Broker - Austin Texas Real Estate (512-796-7653) (Austin Texas Homes, LLC) 4 months ago

Keith - You can visit http://carnivalofrealestate.com to see announcements about each one. 

Posted by Jason Crouch, Broker - Austin Texas Real Estate (512-796-7653) (Austin Texas Homes, LLC) 4 months ago

Jason,

This is the first I have seen of this, but I have been away from my blog for a while so no wonder.  I will read the rest of these, it is good work

Thanks for the post.

Posted by Joey Remondino Broker, GRI, E-Pro (StoneHouse Realty Inc) 4 months ago

So these are non-ActiveRain blog posts. There's so much good stuff out there that I'll never be able to read it all, so gatherings like this are very helpful.

_________
Come join the fun in ActiveRain's Guerrilla Marketing Team Contest.

Posted by Jim Frimmer, Realtor, Mission Valley, CA DRE #01458572 (Century 21 Award) 4 months ago

Jason

Amazing the talent here; everyone of those posts were a great read and super information.

Posted by Tom Braatz, Waukesha County Real Estate,WI (Re/Max Realty Center 262-377-1459) 4 months ago

Thanks for the post. I will read them soon. Good luck.

Posted by GITA BANTWAL, REALTOR BUCKS COUNTY, PA HOMES (ReMax Centre Realtors) 4 months ago
so many blog posts to check out - I missed this but will start reading some of them!
Posted by Barbara-Jo's Beach Blog - Clearwater & Pinellas County Florida Real Estate (Charles Rutenberg Realty) 4 months ago

Jason, I'm sorry I missed this one but I'm not going to miss reading the winners' posts.  Thanks so much - love the photos too!

Posted by Susan Brown (Keller Williams NE, Kingwood Texas (Humble & Atascocita too)) 4 months ago

Jason - I didn't hear of this, but thanks for sharing some of the top posts.  I especially look forward to reading the post by Jay Thompson.

Posted by Troy Erickson - Your Chandler, Gilbert, Queen Creek Realtor (Terra Solis Realty, LLC) 3 months ago

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