Jeff Gramins's (jgramins) Blog

Getting your home sold in today's market requires being not only aggressive, but also pro-active. Right now, the lower price ranges in many communities are selling quicker than the higher price ranges. In some areas it is not unusual to see homes on the market over 365 days. After a certain point...

Everyone says they hate negotiating, yet when the chance arises they do everything in their power to make sure that a negotiation occurs. Rule number one in negotiating: don't take it personally! The person on the other side of the table has the same job as you - they want to hold on to as much o...

Another excellent article by the great economist Thomas Sowell: "Behind the housing boom and bust was one of those alluring but undefined phrases that are so popular in politics-- "affordable housing." It is hard for me to know specifically what politicians are talking about when they use this ph...

Wow - 2 weeks in a row I have had teriffic open houses! Where in November and December I was getting 0-2 people through, in the last two weeks I have seen nearly 20 people through 4 opens (one open didn't get anyone, bummer). I really hope this trend continues - and why shouldn't it? Home prices ...

From JSOnline: Price declines reach shore With values falling, is now best time to buy on a lake? By Joe Taschler of the Journal Sentinel Posted: Dec. 12, 2008 Town of Oconomowoc - Although properties in Waukesha County's Lake Country have not been immune to the downturn in the real estate market...

The latest from Trulia.com regarding listing prices of homes in the areas on which I keep a close eye. Brookfield - week-over-week average increase of 2.9% or $10,484 to $366,715 (week ending Dec 24, 2008). However, year-over-year the median sale price dropped 1.8% or $5000 to $275,000. More... B...

This is news I like to see! Rates are down and applications are up! I am sure that the vast majority of the application are re-fi's but I am sure there are more than just a few buyers in that group. Mortgages rates drop . . .  Rates on 30-year mortgages fell to a record low for the third straight...

As promised, here is the html dummy of the new site. I will be working on the php functionality of it over the next couple days. I hope to have it running by January 1st.

I am overhauling my site over the Christmas Holiday. I recently discovered WordPress and LOVE IT! So much so that I have converted my old "JeffGramins.com" site to exclusively use this fantastic system. It is perfect for someone like me who has significantly more design skills than coding skills ...