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From Blighted to Cool Green; Low-‐Cost Upgrades Cut Energy Bills By Greta Guest RISMEDIA, October 15, 2010-‐(MCT)-‐Jodie Mekled is looking forward to cheap utility bills this winter. The retail worker from Sterling Heights, Mich., could pay as little as $40 a month for natural gas thanks to energy-‐efficient home improvements made through Habitat for Humanity. The nonprofit group recently completed a rehab on a foreclosed home in Sterling Heights that Mekled will close on and move into this month with her two sons. She was living with her parents when she found out about the city's Neighborhood Stabilization Program and applied. The 900-‐square-‐foot home has achieved LEED certification, which measures how well a house performs in eight areas including water efficiency, materials selection, indoor environmental quality and innovation. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. It's the first LEED-‐certified home the Macomb County, Mich., Habitat for Humanity has built. The home features bamboo flooring on the first floor, spray cellulose to insulate the walls, recycled paper countertops, bamboo cabinets in the kitchen, a solar tube in the kitchen ceiling that reflects light from the sun and moon into the home and low-‐flow plumbing. "I love the bathroom. I love my kitchen," said Mekled, who helped retrofit the home through hundreds of volunteer hours. The bathroom features recycled glass tile and porcelain tiles.
Jim Dillard (Midtown)
Hope Dorn (Midtown)
Brandon McCullough, field operations manager for Macomb County Habitat for Humanity said less-‐expensive energy upgrades are becoming more common. Such improvements include added insulation, rain barrels and compact fluorescent light bulbs. McCullough said the three-‐bedroom, one-‐bath home was in bad shape. It had to be stripped down to the studs. "It's great because you take a blighted house in the neighborhood and make it into something cool," McCullough said. Features such as the solar tube installed in the kitchen ceiling help reduce the electric bill without costing much. The tube retails for $160. A tankless hot water heater cost about $565 for the unit and $500-‐$1,000 to install. It reduces energy use by not having to constantly heat a tank of water.
Jennifer Kelly (Lex)
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Real Estate Agents Turn to Social Media to Connect with Clients By Toluse Olorunnipa RISMEDIA, October 22, 2010-‐(MCT)-‐When real estate agent Sarah Elles Boggs walks into one of downtown Miami's condo towers for a showing, she pulls out her Android smart phone, "checks in" on a GPS-‐powered Web platform called Foursquare, blasts her whereabouts on Twitter, and leaves behind a location-‐based "tip" in the virtual world for the next visitor. It's a social media routine that has become natural for Boggs, who has incorporated micro-‐blogging, Facebook-‐updating and app-‐downloading as core parts of her business. And it's working. "I did pick up two solid new clients off of Twitter just last month alone who have already closed," Boggs said. "And I'm working with a buyer from overseas who connected with me via Facebook." No longer just the hobby of a few tech-‐savvy agents, social media is being discussed in real estate firm board rooms and at trade group meetings, and companies are tracking their return on investments in various online platforms. As real estate agents look for a leg up in a troubled market, and as more home buyers and sellers make the Internet an integral part of the sales process, tech-‐savvy Realtors are finding fresh ways to connect with clients online. Anecdotal evidence of social media's results has spread among the real estate community, and Realtors are joining Twitter, launching blogs, sprucing up Facebook pages and vying for virtual "mayorships" in growing numbers. At South Florida-‐based ONE Sotheby's International Realty, marketing
James Murad (Midtown)
Laura Oliver (NE)
Michael Scott, Jr (Irmo)
director Brad Nelson has integrated social media as a core component of the company's marketing campaign. For Nelson, it's simply a matter of numbers. "If Facebook were a country, it would be the third-‐largest country in the world," he said. "I don't know of a single newspaper, of a single television program, or a single radio program that has that kind of reach." The company has a presence on Facebook, with nearly 1,200 fans and 185 links. ONE Sotheby's Facebook page, links to the company YouTube channel, Twitter account, website and blog. All of those platforms provide visitors access to the company's agents and online listings of homes for sale, and they're responsible for a significant portion of website traffic, Nelson said. Real estate agents with a strong command of social media have an avenue to access potential clients, and promote their listings to a cloud of Web traffic, said Beth Butler, who owns real estate consulting firm Big Mouth Consulting, and hosts a weekly chat session for local Realtors. "Now that social media has gone mainstream, it's very important for real estate agents to be engaged in it in some way, shape or form," she said. "If not, your competition will be." Jorge Fernandez, a Realtor with Esslinger-‐Wooten-‐Maxwell specializing in the Coral Gables market, has spent much of the past year building up his profile on location-‐based platform Foursquare. At a number of condo buildings in and around Coral Gables, Fla., Fernandez has achieved the position of Foursquare mayor-‐a post granted to the most active user at a location. Each time a Foursquare user checks in to one of those buildings, Fernandez's image pops up, along with his tips-‐which are often ads for units he has listed for sale in the building. That strategy has helped him connect with clients, he says, and at least two recent sales originated from social media. More importantly, Fernandez says, it has helped him build his profile as an active Realtor in the region. "My Foursquare is tied into Facebook and Twitter, so it allows people to see 'Jorge is checking in.' It reminds them that I'm in real estate, I'm showing properties and I'm busy in this market," he said. Boggs also uses Foursquare, Facebook and Twitter to keep followers updated on her activity, mixing personal and social updates with real estate listings. She has about 1,000 followers on Twitter and more than 2,100 fans on her Facebook page, which is devoted to real estate in downtown Miami and Brickell, Fla. Read More
Team Tuesday -‐ November 16, 2010
Thomas Wingard (Midtown)
Carolina Panthers -‐ Special Offer
The Carolina Panthers are excited to announce a special offer for all ERA Wilder Realty Inc. employees. For the NFC South matchup between the Atlanta Falcons on December 12 th , you may purchase a $52 ticket at the special group rate of $32 each. Availability is limited and sold on a first come, first serve basis. To take advantage of this special offer, follow the instructions below: Click on the following link to purchase tickets: https://oss.ticketmaster.com/html/go.htmI? l=EN&t=panthers&o=4820472&g=107
-‐ On the first page, you will be asked to enter an offer code. Enter PANCP3 in this box.
-‐ The next screen will say your offer code has been accepted and ask you to create an account by entering your email address in the far right blue box that says "Create an account". If you have purchased tickets through a previous offer with the Panthers, enter your email address and password in the space requested. -‐ Follow the prompts to purchase tickets, including selecting the number of tickets you wish to purchase and entering your credit card information. -‐ Tickets will be emailed directly to you and you can print your tickets at home.
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