http://www.homeappraisalsbatonrouge.com/ – Baton Rouge Home Appraisal Blog: Capital Heights Home Sales Prices Increasing

Older, well built Cottage style homes where the wood floors creek! Tree lined street where your neighbors actually know one another! This is Capital Heights. Stephanie Riegel with Baton Rouge Business Report wrote about this market in 2007 here, “Old Neighborhood, New Heights“. And, the home prices in this market, during a national economic recession, continue to increase!

Solds In Capital Heights Subdivision from 1/2010 to 12/31/2010 revealed:

Average Sales Price: $194,343 ($190,716 in 2009)
Average Sold Price Per Sq. Ft.: $148.88/sf ($131.99/sf in 2009)
Median Sold Price: $200,000 ($195,000 in 2009)
Number of Sales: 23 (29 in 2009)
Average Number of Days On Market: 110 (88 in 2009)
Low To High: $123,000 to $329,000
Number of Sold REO/Foreclosures Noted In MLS: 0
Current # Listings: 10, 0 Are Foreclosures
Current Listings Price: $159,900 to $319,900 or $116/sf to $201/sf

NOTE: Based on information from the Greater Baton Rouge Association of REALTORS®\MLS for the period of January 1, 2009 to December 31, 2010. This information was extracted on 1/14/2011. YES, this appraiser does have the permission of GBRMLS to use the chart above Subdivision Price Trends Report!

Tags: Baton Rouge Estate Minute, Baton Rouge Homes, Baton Rouge Housing, Baton Rouge Real Estate, Baton Rouge Real Estate Trends, Capital Heights, Baton Rouge Garden District, 70806

http://www.batonrougerealestatebuzz.com/ - Baton Rouge Real Estate Buzz: Video Listings Site brHomeListings.com is now online!

brHomeListings.com is here! We have created accounts for some of you, so try and log in FIRST with your 1st and last name (NO SPACES), and the password is “password.” If you have any questions at all about how to load your listings, create a Realtor Spotlight Page, or any questions at all… please feel free to call or email me. For those of you who do not have an account, just click the “Register” button to do so. This site is SURE to get your listings sold faster than any other advertising available once it has been exposed to the Greater Baton Rouge Metropolitan Area! And YES…. every feature on our website is FREE!!!!

Kevin DeLaune
“Owner”
Realty Studio HD
Greater Baton Rouge Metropolitan Area
(225) 439-1344
www.RealtyStudioHD.com

http://www.batonrougerealestatebuzz.com/
http://www.videosofbatonrougerealestate.com/

What is brHomelistings?
It’s the first real estate listing website designed primarily around video as a means of reaching potential buyers. The system is designed to quickly connect buyers with the property that the buyer is looking for. Here are some ways in which we’re making finding a home in the Greater Baton Rouge Metropolitan area faster, more effective and more fun:

Video! Video! Video!
Buyers have said it… Sellers and Realtors have said it… Market Analysts are saying it. Now, as if it we’re from a Beetle Juice episode, video is here! Video is in the process of revolutionizing the way real estate is marketed and sold online. Our real estate search engine is designed to really encourage users to use video along with their listing. Of course, we do pictures and text as well, but hey, that’s so 1999 and boring! People want to see video and current web trends are strongly reflecting that. We’ve made it simple to cut & paste a simple youtube video URL and have the video professionally displayed on your listing’s page.

Single Click Search (Touch Search)
By clicking or touching once on a search option in the search page, the listing results automatically narrow down to show only those listings with that particular criteria. Each time you click or touch a new option, the results continue to narrow down accordingly. This new search feature will make searching for a home easy and fun on all new touch-based mobile devices!

Jot and Jump
Jot and Jump is our revolutionary new way to quickly pull up a house that a buyer finds while driving around. Our brHomelistings.com yard signs (provided by Fast Signs) have a space where the Jot and Jump number is printed in LARGE BOLD characters. When a buyer sees a brHomelistings.com yard sign she only needs to visit brHomelistings.com and type in the Jot and Jump number on the home page and click “Jump To It!” In one click, the listing will be displayed for her. Simple. Fast. Extremely effective. You can even provide jot and jump numbers on your own flyers, cards, etc to quickly direct buyers to specific listings on brHomelistings.com

Realtor Spotlight
We don’t just want to reinvent the wheel, we want to redefine it. What is the Realtor Spotlight page? Well, in short, it is what the majority of Realtors today want when they go hunting for a way to publish their own website–and more. A place to post your name, agency, contact information and your listings. Only, we’re taking it a step further–and in a way you’re gonna love. We’re building the full Touch Search feature right into your Realtor Spotlight page so that visitors can search only your listings! Send out a link to your Realtor Spotlight page via email, facebook, text, twitter or however you choose, and when visitors come to it, they will see no competing agents or advertisements. It’s okay, we could almost cry with excitement too!

Did Somebody Say FREE?
Like a cheap commercial from the 1980′s we just want to say “and that’s not all!” It’s true, every feature listed above is provided at no charge to the buyer, seller or realtor.

We have so many ideas that if we tried to pack them all in before launch, we would never launch. What we’re providing at launch is just the tip of the iceberg. There is a contact us form displayed on the site that can be used to send feedback, bug reports and suggestions. We’re looking forward to revitalizing and re-energizing real estate in the Greater Baton Rouge Metropolitan Area with you!

http://www.batonrougerealestatebuzz.com/ – More Details Released About Baton Rouge Metro Areas First Video Real Estate Listings Website – brhomelistings.com!

On September 8th, Buzz delivered to you news about the Metro Areas “First” Video Real Estate Listings Website here: Baton Rouge Real Estate Buzz: Metro Areas First Video Real Estate Listings Website – brHomeListings.com! At that time, the only details Kevin DeLaune, with RealtyStudioHD, would offer was that the site would be launching in the near future and “brHomeListings.com is Baton Rouge’s first local real estate website to incorporate video as an essential component in real estate marketing online!”

The following details below were released from brhomelistings.com just prior to site launch. This will be a “beta version”. Kevin stated that, ” In the near future, as we continue to grow and receive feedback, there will be many more features added.”

“At launch, some of the site’s key features will be:

• Free listing insertion ( no charge to submit listings into the search engine )
• Free video embedding of user created video tours or professional video tours
• Free unlimited photo uploads
• Unified FSBO and Agent listing search
• Advanced single touch search to accommodate new touch-based mobile devices
• The ability for buyers to “watch” listings for price drops
• Management of the user’s submitted and “watched” listings will be via a familiar mlooking youtube-esque management system
• Listing pages will employ automatic google maps based geo-location by listing address
• Realtors can integrate their twitter accounts for automatic tweets of new listings to their twitter feed
• Realtors can create an exclusive non-competitive ( no competing realtors or ads ) “Realtor Spotlight” page with full listing search capabilities of the realtor’s active listings”

Buzz Perspective. From the Buzz perspective, the addition of video listings to the Greater Baton Rouge Real Estate landscape will be greatly welcomed by locals that start their search for their new home online. Instead of getting in the car and driving to a dozen homes on a Saturday with an Agent, now locals will be able to narrow their home purchase focus rather quickly!

And, from what Buzz has heard about this new site, it’s going to be highly intuitive in terms of navigation (ease of use) and is being built by Khris Woodring, a perfectionist that doesn’t want to launch, and has delayed the initial launch, to make sure the site operates perfectly. According to Kevin, there has been months of behind the scenes research into the site design, functionality and testing. This isn’t just going to be another local flash-in-the-pan FSBO site. This is going to be THE state-of-the-art Baton Rouge Home Listings site to be listed on!

A Site Built For Favorable Google Indexing and Search! It won’t take long for this site to gain traction with locals and with Google because Google loves to index “Video” for search, which is one reason why Google owns YouTube! Home listings which include indexable video will receive better attention in the search engines.

http://www.batonrougehomeappraisal.com/ – Baton Rouge Home Appraisal: Westdale Area Home Sales 2010 Update

Solds In Westdale from 1/2010 to 9/28/2010 revealed:
Average Sales Price: $204,983
Average Sold Price Per Sq. Ft.: $128/sf
Median Sold Price: $194,450
Number of Sales: 6 (18 Total in 2009)
Average Number of Days On Market: 80
Low To High: $138,500 to $282,500
Number of Sold REO/Foreclosures Noted In MLS: 1
Current # Listings: 10, 2 Are Foreclosures
Current Listings Prices: $149,900 To $510,000

NOTE: When I refer to Westdale below, this includes Westdale, Westdale Heights, Westdale Woods and Westdale Terrace. From 1/1/2005 to 9/28/2010, there were 89 total sales from $121,600 to $685,000. The peak of the median sales price took place in September 2007 at $235,000. NOTE: The median sales price has increased by +4.89% since 9/2009.

This data was used with the permission of GBRAR, extracted on 9/28/2010 from 1/1/2005 through 9/28/2010.

Tags: Baton Rouge Estate Minute, Baton Rouge Home Appraisers, Baton Rouge Homes, Baton Rouge Housing, Baton Rouge Housing Market, Baton Rouge Real Estate, Baton Rouge Real Estate Agents, Baton Rouge Real Estate Appraisers, Baton Rouge Realtor, Baton Rouge Realtors

http://www.batonrougerealestatebuzz.com/ – The Importance of Greater Baton Rouge Curb Appeal!

Baton Rouge Real Estate Agent, Glenda Daughety, had published a helpful article on the importance of Curb Appeal with some tips on how to improve your curb appeal to sell that home. Read her entire article here: The Importance of Curb Appeal. Buzz is providing a couple of snippets from her article:

“Most potential homebuyers make a decision about a house within the first 30 seconds. For example, simply driving by a well-kept single family home for sale in the Baton Rouge, Prairieville, Denham Springs Louisiana areas is often enough to cause people to pull over and make an immediate call to their realtor. That’s because an inviting exterior promises an inviting interior.”

Tips To Look Out For

“Look out for:

Visible mold or mildew on the house, roof, or sidewalks
Outdated exteriors
Yard clutter
Dirty gutters, siding, or windows
Chipped paint
How your home appears at dusk or even at night
Overgrowth in the yard or on the sidewalks
Dead plants or leaf piles
Overly personalized doormats”

Check Glenda’s Blog below!

Tags: Baton Rouge Housing, Baton Rouge Housing Market, Baton Rouge Real Estate, Baton Rouge Real Estate Agents, Baton Rouge Real Estate Buzz, Baton Rouge Real Estate Housing, Baton Rouge Real Estate Minute, Baton Rouge Real Estate Trends, Baton Rouge Realtor, Baton Rouge Realtors, Baton Rouge Curb Appeal, Curb Appeal Baton Rouge

http://www.batonrougerealestateminute.com/ – Baton Rouge Real Estate Minute Video Updates: August 2010 Update!

The August 2010 housing numbers are in and local real estate agent and broker, Tony Zito, just sent this 1 minute update on the numbers. Tony says that the number of home sales are down from 881 in 8/2007, 720 in 8/2008, 610 in 8/2009 and 414 in 8/2010. However, Tony brings up the points about it being a great time to buy a home with favorable mortgage rates and favorable mortgage programs to get buyers into homes.

http://www.batonrougerealestatebuzz.com/ – Bankrate.com: Summary Of Real Estate Appraisal Rule Changes In Dodd-Frank Act 2010. These are the new rules that apply to Greater Baton Rouge Home Appraisals!

I have provided a few snippet paragraphs from this two page article below. Read the full article here: Real Estate Appraisal Rules Changing

“According to Lucien Salvant, a spokesman for the National Association of Realtors, or NAR, in Washington, D.C., the law is intended to:

*Strengthen appraiser independence.
*Sunset a problematic industry agreement known as the Home Valuation Code of Conduct, or HVCC.
*Regulate appraisal management companies.”

“Buyers, sellers can inform appraisers

That said, the end of the HVCC should help to clear up widespread confusion over who can present information — including data about recent sales — to an appraiser.

“The intent of the HVCC was to put a firewall between the lender and appraiser, but it put up such a big wall that everybody was afraid to talk to appraisers,” Salvant says. “The (new law) does say that Realtors and sellers and buyers can talk to (appraisers).”"

“Appraisal management companies

The new law also regulates appraisal management companies, or AMCs. AMCs aren’t new, but they have gained more control over real estate appraisers and appraisals in the 15 months since the HVCC was implemented.

The financial reform law requires federal oversight of AMCs controlled by federally regulated financial institutions. It also requires state registration of all other AMCs, according to the Appraisal Institute.”

“Questions to ask (editor’s note: should be rephrased “Questions AMC’s should be asking those appraisers they intend on hiring for the appraisal order”)

If there is an upside to the confusion over appraisals, it’s that homebuyers, sellers and homeowners are now more aware of these issues, says Richard Koestner, a partner at Koestner, McGivern & Associates, an appraisal firm in Davenport, Iowa. He says they are more likely to ask questions about the appraiser’s experience and expertise and calls the development “encouraging.” He also offers a few examples of questions buyers and sellers might want to ask:

How long have you been an appraiser?
How many appraisals have you completed?
How often do you appraise homes in this area?
How familiar are you with the local market?
Where do you get the data that you use in your appraisal reports?”

Read the full article here: Real Estate Appraisal Rules Changing

http://www.batonrougerealestatebuzz.com/ – Baton Rouge Real Estate Video: Keller Williams Reports On This Month In Real Estate U.S. July 2010

http://www.batonrougerealestatebuzz.com/ - Baton Rouge Real Estate Buzz: Ryan Spencer Agent Profile Video

Ryan Spencer Coldwell Banker One Agent Profile Video

http://www.batonrougerealestatebuzz.com/ – Baton Rouge Real Estate: The Advocate Features Melrose Place Subdivision as “best kept secret”

Photo Source: Travis Spradling/Advocate Staff Photo

Ellyn Couvillion, Advocate Staff Writer, has written a feature on Melrose Place 70806 here, BR’s ‘best kept secret’. The article features some interesting history of Melrose Place.

Here’s a couple of snippets below:

“They liked the quiet Melrose Place, which doesn’t have any through-traffic, she said.

“It is kind of the best kept secret” in Baton Rouge, she said of the neighborhood.

Situated about five miles from downtown and then located on the outskirts of Baton Rouge, Melrose Place was developed in 1945 by the Melrose Development Co., owned by Walter R. Aldrich, on a 300-acre tract, according to the civic association’s website at http://www.melroseplacebr.com.

“It’s an old and well-established neighborhood,” Westbrook said of Melrose Place. “The people that live there now really want to hold on to its heritage and keep it a very safe and beautiful place to live.”

“There’s a sense of community there that’s not going to be denied,” Westbrook said. “That’s the choice of the residents.

“The (association) meetings are well attended, everyone stays in touch,” he said.

Over the years, the ambience of the neighborhood has stayed true to character, Young said.

“People have the same goal — quality of life,” she said.

The residents of Melrose Place are a “real eclectic group, very diverse.”

“That’s why people move in here, for the atmosphere,” she said.

It may be something unique to the neighborhood, she said, that homes stay in families for many years, even after the owners, perhaps elderly parents, have passed away.

The kids who grew up there “don’t want to sell,” Young said”

Read the entire article here!