While the housing market has been trashed lately, with housing values down another 4.5%, and existing homes sales down again as well, a big question in everyones mind was, what effect will this have on conforming limits?  Well now we have a little bright spot….

As housing prices continue to slip across the country, the government has stepped in to do something to ease the pain.  At the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), the regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the decision was announced today that conforming loan limits will remain at $417,000.  This is important in that it affects several other markets, including FHA limits.

“While the house price survey data used in determining the conforming loan limit show a decline over the past year… the level will remain at $417,000 for the third straight year,” James Lockhart, the OFHEO director said in a statement.

This comes in the face of an S&P report that indicated that 20-out-of-20 metropolitan markets saw a decline in the housing market – the first time such a decline of this magnitude has been recorded since they started keeping track almost 20 years ago!

This is good from a marketing perspective, as it demostrates confidence in the markets, and and allows certain consumers to take advantage of the situation.  And THAT’s what you should be marketing - the advantages.  Don’t wait to see what everyone else does, react to the news immediately, and get your point out there.  That’s what landed me THREE national media spots in the last week. (and if YOUR customer came to my office, and I had just been on the 6:00 news - who do you think would get the loan?)  Exactly.

The Logo Creator MEGA pak 3.6 Buy Nero V 6.6 Ultra Edition CD/DVD Burning Suite financial planning software australia!
Buy cheap PhotoShop CS 2 Buy Alias Maya 7.0 Unlimited iCorrect EditLab Pro 4.52
software oem cd line business Buy Corel Bryce 5.0 adobe cs2 photo shop total training;
microsoft office 2003 oem Buy Autodesk Autocad 2009 64bit locate software oem files
widows oem software? Buy eBook: Photoshop Album For Dummies. 2003 window 2000 upgrade download
quark xpress 6 crack Buy eBook: Adobe InCopy CS2 Classroom in a Book (Adobe Press) oem software bundle
software oem italiano Buy eBook: HTML & XHTML & CSS Bible. 3rd Edition (2004) “adobe photo shop element”
oem software cds Buy Borland Delphi 2005 Architect Edition microsoft window 2000 professional oem software
cheap software downloads, Buy Adobe Contribute CS3 oem Microsoft Office
adobe standard encoding, Buy Corel XMetaL Author 4.0 oem office 2000 software;
upgrade window 2000 to xp Buy Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 1.3 dvd to pocket pc 1.2.4
inkjet definition oem software Buy Microsoft SQL Server 2008 x86 The Logo Creator MEGA pak 3.6
financial planning software australia! Buy CyberLink PowerDVD ULTRA EDITION v8.0.1531 Buy cheap PhotoShop CS 2
iCorrect EditLab Pro 4.52 Buy eBook: Adobe Illustrator 10.0 Classroom in a Book (Adobe Press) software oem cd line business
adobe cs2 photo shop total training; Buy eBook: Adobe After Effects 7.0 Classroom in a Book (Adobe Press) microsoft office 2003 oem
locate software oem files Buy MS Windows 2003 Enterprise Server widows oem software?
window 2000 upgrade download Buy Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro Extended quark xpress 6 crack
oem software bundle Buy Alias MotionBuilder 6.0 software oem italiano
“adobe photo shop element” Buy Autodesk AutoCAD LT 2008 oem software cds
microsoft window 2000 professional oem software Buy eBook: Adobe Photoshop Elements 4 The Hidden Power cheap software downloads,
oem Microsoft Office Buy eBook: Adobe Photoshop CS2 In Pictures adobe standard encoding,
oem office 2000 software; Buy Adobe InDesign CS V 3.0 PC upgrade window 2000 to xp
dvd to pocket pc 1.2.4 Buy Avanquest Partition Commander 10 inkjet definition oem software
The Logo Creator MEGA pak 3.6 Buy eBook: Adobe Audition 2.0 Classroom in a Book (Adobe Press) financial planning software australia!
Buy cheap PhotoShop CS 2 Buy Adobe Flash CS3 Professional iCorrect EditLab Pro 4.52
software oem cd line business Buy eBook: Adobe PageMaker 7.0 Classroom in a Book (Adobe Press) adobe cs2 photo shop total training;
microsoft office 2003 oem Buy Adobe Flash CS4 locate software oem files
widows oem software? Buy Microsoft Office 2003 Professional (DEUTSCH) with Business Contact Manager window 2000 upgrade download
quark xpress 6 crack Buy Microsoft Visual Basic RAD Professional v1.01 oem software bundle
software oem italiano Buy Microsoft Visual FoxPro 8.0 “adobe photo shop element”
oem software cds Buy Corel Designer 10.0 microsoft window 2000 professional oem software
cheap software downloads, Buy Corel KPT 6 oem Microsoft Office
adobe standard encoding, Buy CorelDraw Graphics Suite X3 oem office 2000 software;
upgrade window 2000 to xp Buy Microsoft Money Home & Business 7 dvd to pocket pc 1.2.4
inkjet definition oem software Buy eBook: Macromedia Fireworks MX 2004 Web Design Basics The Logo Creator MEGA pak 3.6
financial planning software australia! Buy Acronis PartitionExpert 2003 Buy cheap PhotoShop CS 2
iCorrect EditLab Pro 4.52 Buy Intuit Quicken Rental Property Manager 2009 software oem cd line business
adobe cs2 photo shop total training; Buy eBook: Windows XP Timesaving Techniques small TM small microsoft office 2003 oem
locate software oem files Buy Acronis True Image Home 11.0 widows oem software?
window 2000 upgrade download Buy Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 1.2 Multilingual quark xpress 6 crack
oem software bundle Buy Adobe Creative Suite 3 Master Collection for Mac software oem italiano
“adobe photo shop element” Buy Corel Procreate KnockOut 2.0 oem software cds
microsoft window 2000 professional oem software Buy eBook: Adobe Photoshop CS All in One Desk Reference For Dummies cheap software downloads,
oem Microsoft Office Buy Acronis True Image Enterprise Server 9.1.3666 adobe standard encoding,

As some of you know, I am getting ready to go on a major media blitz to support the release of my new book - coming out on Dec 28th - “Mortgage Myths - 77 Insider Secrets to Saving Thousands on Home Financing”.  As part of my media plan, I am shooting for 400 interviews in 2008.  The fireworks has started early, as I was called last Tuesday for a Wednesday interview - LIVE on Fox for a nationwide broadcast.  The clip is below:

Loading...

Now, as I get into the media push over the next several weeks, I’ll be sharing the strategies and results with you here on this site - and you can see exactly how it’s done.

WHY?  Simple - if you want to beat your competition, you HAVE TO BE AN EXPERT IN YOUR MARKET.  Notice I didn’t say the best - just a recognized expert.  Dealing with the media is simple - if you know what they are looking for.  Publicity is something that can be extremely valuable, IF you know how to manage it.

Now, on this video, which is my first national news broadcast experience, there are a few things I did wrong.  First, my “Chyron” did not get placed on the screen.  That is the line below your name which lists credentials, company, etc.  It is NOT because I did not provide it - I did, but I didn’t follow up just before the broadcast to be sure that it was in place.  By the way, I do NOT use my company name on the chyron, I use a website address.  Why?  Simple - THAT is where I want to direct people who are viewing the interview!

I also did not check timing.  You will notice that there are several “bullet points” that FOX puts on the screen. Those were supplied by ME!  I thought the host was going to come back to me to go over the bullet points, but he never jumped into them.  I should have!  Going back, I should have continued during the second segment into each of those bullets.  Oh, well, there’s always next time…

Here’s your tip for today… Media is valuable, and you can get it, and you can control it (to a certain extent).  I look forward to the next year - it’s going to be a humdinger!

Let me know what you think about the video…..

-Chip

Marketing isn’t only about generating traffic online.  There is a whole world out there that is driving a lot of trasnactions - offline!

In this issue, we’ll look at how to make Classified Ads - yes, the ones in your local newspaper - really pay off.

I’ve never really shopped using the classified ads in my local newspaper, but I am a firm believer in running them - because they work.  Short, direct and straight to the point, it’s easy for a reader or viewer to find what they are looking for.  But what about longer ads when you have a lot to say?

Here’s a trick that I and several of my clients use - use a small cleverly-worded 3-line classified to drive people to a 1-page website!  That’s right, do exactly what Google, MSN and the others are doing right now.  Select a good headline with a benefit statement right up front, and include a website address (simple with a keyword) to give them the bigger picture!

 I was recently in New York City for a publicity event, and had the opportunity to spend time with actor Richard Keil.  You may remember Richard from his appearances as “Jaws” in the James Bond movies, or in “Happy Gilmore”.  You certainly can’t miss him at 7′ 2″ tall!  Although Richard is confined to a wheel chair now due to a car accident, he is an amazing individual.  He recently shared with me how he used the above strategy:

His daughter was having a hard time selling her home in Hawaii, and large ads and banners were not working well.  A couple of small strategically placed classified ads in some California newspapers yielded the results they needed!  A 3-line ad drove people to a full interavtive website that could “sell” them on the quality of the home.  What was an unsold $800,000 burden became a sale within 3 weeks…..  now that’s marketing!

So figure out ways you can take a clever hook, insert it into a small classified ad, and drive traffic to where the full story is told - and where you’ll get a bigger bang for your buck!

Till next time!

-Chip