Does this sound like your computer? A computer is "supposed" to do what you tell it to do, but often times it seems like it does what it wants to do. Here is some quick advice on how to get your computer back under the reins. 1. Never, ever, ever, ever, install anything that is a toolbar or anything that will "speed up" your computer. You don't want or need these things. In fact the more programs you install the slower your computer will go. 2. Do not use anything that says "registry cleaner" or registry speed up. Your registry is very complicated and only a professional should be writing things into it or deleting entries. Your registry will contain thousands of entries and the only true way of permanently cleaning it up is to install a fresh copy of windows every year. In fact the onl... 08/05/2008

  What online real estate websites are people in the Eau Claire/Chippewa Valley area using for information (non real estate company owned)? What impact could localism have on our area (www.localism.com)? Are people aware of this site? If information was put together for people in our area could it work for your needs? Would you contribute? Let's make a list of sites that work for our area. As soon as this site goes online I would like to see what it has to offer for us, the people living in the Chippewa Valley. Let me know what you think and if you have questions on how you can contribute please feel free to ask! Thanks. Search Eau Claire Wisconsin Real Estate! Buy Eau Claire Wisconsin Real Estate Sell and List Your Eau Claire Wisconsin Home Work with Eau Claire Wisconsin Real Estate Ag... 07/31/2008

    Instead of long articles every day I will offer quick tips as often as possible and then use these tips as supplements to longer posts later in the week or month. My first priority is actively selling real estate.  Let me know what you think of course!   Quick tip: Low balling in any market is a bad idea. Why? It sets a poor tone for the offer and can sour their opinion of you and your offer. Do you really want the seller in a bad mood after reading your offer? Think about their impression of you as you write it. Not every offer goes back and forth with counter offers and starting off extremely low does not mean you are going to meet in the middle! The closer you come to what they are asking the greater chance they will accept your offer outright. There are many strategies to this a... 07/30/2008

  As you pick up the newspaper scanning the open houses, take a moment to find out what you can do to learn how to go about buying a home for the first time. Maybe it's just been a while and you feel a bit rusty or out of tune with the market. Follow along; and soon you will be singing a different tune! Ok then let's get started. Where do we begin? 1. Go to your bank. Have you been to the bank? Do you know what price range you will be approved for? Many people start the process with looking for a home and then find out that the home they want is out of their price range. This can be disappointing, but avoided, if you start with the bank first. 2. Talk with a professional. Contact a local real estate office. They know the area and are familiar with the local inventory. Find someone you a... 07/25/2008

  Many people are aware that there are things you can do to your house to increase equity in your home with little or no money. "Sweat equity" as it has become known involves sweat and lots of it. It also involves great risks in many of the projects that are suggested. Without the consultation of a professional you could become involved in a project that quickly gets out of control. If the project is not done in a professional looking manner not only are you out the cost of materials but time and energy as well. Plus not only have you not increased the value of your home you may have actually hurt the salability. What can you do to avoid this dilemma? Get help! Assess your own abilities first. Don't start a project that you think is too hard. If you think it's hard it probably is. Some ... 07/23/2008

  Eau Claire Wisconsin Real Estate Agent Realtor® Shane O'Gorman The intent of this blog is to create a simple environment so that I can share my real estate experiences and expertise with the people closest to me here in Eau Claire and the entire Chippewa Valley. After spending some time looking around I see there is a huge void between real estate professionals and the clients and customers they rely on. I think it is time we give back to the community which has provided for our growth. I want this to be the place where we can share our common experiences and grow together. I will use this blog to share valuable information that relates to everyone in the area. I have done extensive research on matters of real estate in Eau Claire Wisconsin  and it is my conclusion that most sources p... 07/23/2008

In the process of selling a home, the seller often begins with their assessed value as a basis point for determining the market value of their home.For example, the local tax board has determined the land value of the home to be $20,000 and the improvements to be valued at $80,000 for the total value of $100,000.  They then either give you an estimated market value or they tell the the assessment is based on 88% of market value.  The only math step required is to divide $100,000 by 88% to determine that the local tax board thinks the market value of the home is worth $113,636.  This is the assessed market value.There are several reasons why this assessed value may be wrong:The local tax board usually only does a area wide assessment every five years.  That means that home values are onl... 10/11/2007

One of our commitments at Your Family Realty LLC is to educate you on the current real estate market and the place that your home fits within ihat market.  In light of this I wanted to provide you with some information for the various lengths of time it is taking this year to sell a home in Eau Claire.We'll take a look at Eau Claire homes that are currently active on the market and then homes which have gone to closing.  These figures include Westside, Southside, Northside and outlying homes that are in the Eau Claire School District.Active Homes - Days on MarketHome Value          Number Sold          Days on MarketSingle Family Homes50-99,999          133                    139100-149,999      313                    130150-199,999      223                    223200-249,999      115   ... 10/05/2007

As a real estate agent, I got into this business because of a deep desire to help people in one of the most important financial decisions of their lives.  Whether it's a first time homebuyer having the thrill and fright of their first home buying decision or a grizzled old timer who knows exactly what he wants, when you help them smoothly negotiate the process and see the appreciation on their face, it's worth it all.Now, a lot of these same people are in some real trouble.  I don't want to lay blame anywhere, but for whatever reason, the people whom we serve can't afford to pay for their home anymore.  When that happens, a long, difficult, heart-wrenching process begins:The struggle to make ends meet degenerates to being unable to make ends meet. The house will go up on the market, but... 10/04/2007

Yesterday one of my clients asked me why you couldn't negotiate for a home the way that you negotiate for a car.  In particular, he was talking about a negotiation between two individuals, not an individual and a company or bank.For example, say my client wanted to by a used car (after all houses are used products too), he would go and observe the car and then determine the value he wanted to pay for the vehicle.  He would offer the seller the amount and receive an immediate acceptance, rejection or counteroffer.  Say the car was listed at $2000, he offered $1500, and the seller took it.Here's his dilemma.  We are looking at a home in the $200,000 dollar price range and he wants to know why he can't offer $150,000 for it.  It's only been on the market 22 days.  I've indicated to him tha... 10/02/2007

In today's world of information technology the way people access information has changed drastically.  The people who access that information have also become busier and their lives more complex.  If you want to sell a home or a piece of real estate you must market it in a way that connects with potential buyers and makes that process as simple as possible for them.First a statement that's very pertinent:80% of buyers in 2006 used the internet at some point during their home search process.Let's get more particular though.  Where did people FIRST see the home they eventually bought?36% found their home by their Realtors recommendation24% found their home on the internet15% found their home through a yard sign8% found their home by a friend, neighbor or family members recommendation8% fo... 10/01/2007

There are a lot of people required to successfully conduct a real estate transaction in today's market climate.  A good Realtor brings you not only his/her own services, but also the services of a team of trustworthy, competent, and fair professionals to make the transaction as simple and troublefree as possible.Who are these professionals?  Here's a list of professionals and what they do:1) Realtor-The Realtor's task is to bring sellers and buyers together through marketing and service and to help the parties negotiate a successful real estate transaction.2) Loan Officer-The loan officer works for the buyer to pre-qualify them so they can make an informed purchase, process the loan in a timely manner in order to facilitate a quick closing, set terms and limits appropriate for the buyer... 09/27/2007

The Coldwell Banker 2006 Price Index cam out recently with a Canada vs. USA comparison of real estate market, a most expensive place to live in America, and a state by state guide to the most expensive and most affordable real estate markets in each state.The most expensive place to live in America is Beverly Hills with an average price tag of $2,206,883 and the least expensive was Killeen, TX $136,725 average price tag.In Canada, the most expensive real estate is in Vancouver, BC with average prices of $1,327,875 and the least expensive average home price in Prince Edward Island at $157,630.The state of Wisconsin has Milwaukee average home prices at $324,750 and the most affordable real estate market in Eau Claire with average home prices of $158,650.What this means for those of us in ... 09/26/2007

The other day my buyers chose to close on a home that had water seepage in the basement.  In the MLS listing the agents remarks indicated that this would be repaired prior to closing.  We put in our offer a contingency sealing that promise.  The crack was repaired two days prior to closing and my buyers have a lifetime warrenty on the crack injection for as long as the own the home.  It cost the sellers $480.  We closed.  ALL OK!However, all during the process heading towards closing I kept thinking in the back of my mind that I'm not sure I could buy a house with seepage.  I hold the foundation in some sort of no touch place that says if the foundation has a problem, run away.  In the end I was just glad it wasn't me closing on the home.THEN THERE WAS TODAY!  We had two inches of rain ... 09/25/2007

As we draw nearer to hunting season, Thanksgiving, and Christmas in Wisconsin, many of us begin to think that we are ready for a big slow down in the residential market.  What is even worse is that many of our potential customers are thinking that now is not the time to list their house, but they should wait until spring or the end of the school year to do so.I don't know about you, but I'm not interested in sitting idle all Winter moaning and groaning about my woes.  I want to be able to demonstrate to potential sellers that we can get their house sold in Winter.  Here's what I plan to do this year.1) Arm myself with facts.  For example, I did an MLS search of residential properties which closed in Oct,Nov, & Dec of 2006.  The results of my findings show that in Oct. 2006 374 houses so... 09/24/2007