Home Staging a HUGE HIT!

There was recently some information posted that Forsalebyowner.com is going to allow fsbo's to place receive placement of their homes on realtor.com. But with the hard work that Realtors put in to attempting to get their listings sold, there is cause for question regarding this possibility. BUT... here is what has just been released from NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS.... PLEASE READ to clear the air... We'll see what happens next. Anyone with further information, please feel free to post!

This is from the front page of REALTOR.org:
 
Daily Real Estate News  |  November 13, 2008  |  

NAR: ForSaleByOwner.com Statement Misleading
A press release distributed Nov. 12 by ForSaleByOwner.com erroneously and misleadingly claims that REALTOR.com is allowing FSBOs to be posted on its site. That claim is false. REALTOR.com and the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® have asked ForSaleByOwner.com to retract its incorrect press release immediately.

There is no formal partnership between ForSaleByOwner.com and REALTOR.com.

REALTOR.com is the official consumer Web site of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® and is operated by Move Inc.

No FSBO Listings on REALTOR.com

REALTOR.com only includes listings from multiple listing services (MLSs), which are cooperative listing databases maintained by and for brokers who are in the business of helping consumers buy and sell real estate. There are no "for-sale-by-owner" homes on REALTOR.com, nor would they qualify to be submitted to a REALTOR-owned and operated MLS.

MLSs, as participating data content providers to REALTOR.com, decide which of the listings in the MLS they will distribute to REALTOR.com.

Because no property can be listed on REALTOR.com without first being listed in an MLS, and since all properties in the MLS are listed by a broker, every listing on REALTOR.com is listed by a licensed broker. That would apply to properties supplied by ForSaleByOwner.com to licensed brokers who enter the listings on an MLS. In a case such as this, the ForSaleByOwner.com listing is not a "for sale by owner" listing but a broker-represented listing.

Erroneous Connection to Pending Lawsuit Settlement

In its Nov. 12 press release, ForSaleByOwner.com refers to a settlement agreement pending between NAR and the U.S. Department of Justice on the display of listings on brokers' Web sites.

"The DOJ-NAR settlement benefited consumers by giving them access to Realtor.com without the expensive cost of a commission fee," says Greg Healy, vice president of opreations at ForSaleByOwner.com.

In fact, there is no provision in that pending settlement agreement that allows unlisted properties, such as "for-sale-by-owner," to be posted on REALTOR.com. The settlement agreement, when final, would not allow "new direct access to REALTOR.com," as the statement incorrectly claims.

 
Deborah Boza-Valledor, CIPS,CRB,CRS,GRI,TRC
Chief Operating Officer
Realtor Association of Greater Miami and the Beaches, Inc.
700 S. Royal Poinciana Boulevard, Suite 400, Miami, FL  33166
Direct 305-468-7080 Cell 305-439-4667 Fax 305-468-7081

Teresa King Kinney, CAE, RCE, CIPS
Chief Executive Officer
Realtor Association of Greater Miami and the Beaches, Inc.
700 S. Royal Poinciana Boulevard, Suite 400 Miami, FL 33166
Direct line 305-468-7010
Cell 305-218-0123 Fax 305-468-7070
mailto:tkinney@miamire.com
http://www.miamire.com/

Besr Regards,

Jill Doppel

Principal, Ambassador Properties, Inc.

I received yet another email from a company claiming to have a Buyer/Seller client in my area. Anyone who knows me knows I like to rat out the scammers to my colleagues. It is my intention to help everyone avoid getting ripped off. We're all in this together, and I feel for anyone who has not done enough research and has gotten scammed, and lost money.

Here is the feedback I've found on the internet about EPAGE LEADS: You may also visit the site yourself to read more.

http://e-page-listing.pissedconsumer.com/epagelisting-sends-invalid-leads-as-old-as-6-months-20080425119003.html

 1. Written by Michelle, on 10-09-2008 10:12

Andy, YOU ARE FULL OF IT!! 

I am a broker and did not recieve ONE good lead. All too old! Realtor's know how to work a lead when it's a good one

2. Written by jim, on 08-09-2008 20:53

I cancelled my E-Page agreement today. The so called leads were the worst I have ever encountered. I was told they were a bout a week old, but leads I contacted told me they bought 6 months ago, or they could not speak or understand English, or they were from over 100 miles away, or the phone or e-mail address was bogus, or the lead never remembered asking to be contacted by a Realtor, etc., etc., etc. STAY AWAY--FAR AWAY--FROM E-PAGE LISTING--In my opinion---it is a really seamy scam operation. A lot of lies. No substance whatsoever.

3. Written by idaliserrano, on 05-09-2008 16:21

Please understand I am not getting anything out of "trash" talking Epage. But, Natalie Giraldo of Epage is the worst customer service care representative I have ever come across. They charge you up front, and will NEVER refund if unsatisfied. They hold themselves to their contract, because they don't have a good reputation, or service to back them up! Don't be fooled, and invest your money in ANYTHING but Epage!!!

4. Written by Christy, on 05-09-2008 15:51

I am currently in a month to month contract with epage. Things started out VERY rocky and unreliable however; I do now get a good response from their customer service department. I am on my second month and still no contracts yet. I am giving it this month and then probably cancelling. Most of my leads have been OLD, or the clients bought and closed on their house already!

5. Written by Christy, on 05-09-2008 15:51

I am currently in a month to month contract with epage. Things started out VERY rocky and unreliable however; I do now get a good response from their customer service department. I am on my second month and still no contracts yet. I am giving it this month and then probably cancelling. Most of my leads have been OLD, or the clients bought and closed on their house already!

6. Written by Lisa, on 05-09-2008 09:30

Just got a fax today...decided to look up to see if they were a REALTOR...nope..so on to google search and found this. THANKS for saving me the headache!

7. Written by Nancy, on 03-09-2008 10:50

Just received an email from an Epage employee asking me if I can assist her clients looking to buy/sell in my area; is this legit or are they fishing for my business? Had to google them before answering.

8. Written by alex, on 29-08-2008 12:45

I was contacted by Andy, and he is a liar! They sell you on their monthly service fee, which is excessive, and they have no real value for what they are selling. Everything that was posted; old leads, no response, no customer service, is completely true. If you value hard work, honesty and ethics, do yourself a favor and stay away from Andy and Epagelistings!!!

9. Written by jim, on 29-08-2008 07:51

i have been getting "leads" for real estate from epage for 2 weeks now. They started off pretty disorganized. The leads were from over 100 away from me. None in the Zip Codes I requested. They said they would replace them. I have received more leads, but they have not been good quality yet. I will give them another week, then cancel. It sure sounded good at the start. There is no tutorial so it is difficult to refresh the potential customer's mind about why you are calling them with the information provided.

10. Written by Jay, on 04-08-2008 20:10

Epagelisting sends invalid leads 6 months old. Yes, i was ripped off here in Rhode Island. They operate out of California & everything the person above listed is TRUE. 100% Don't Waste your time or money!!!

Horrible experience!! Never do any business with this company they use referrals that are old and give the same ones to all agents in the same area.

I filed a complaint with the CA Attorney General I want to bring them down...

I am in the process of sending a complaint to the Better Business Bureau of Ventura County, CA.

Ms. Julie Sugar was my contact it took me forever to get to the Customer Service Dept. a guy name Mark and he didn't do much for me and was always unavailable. This company is bad news read all the reviews before you do business with them.

NEW INFORMATION: EPAGE HAS A "D" RATING WITH THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU. SUBMIT YOUR COMPLAINT HERE: http://www.la.bbb.org/BusinessReport.aspx?CompanyID=100066369

TO ALL REAL ESTATE BROKERS:

The company who described themselves as "Money Tree Lending" should be on red alert. See and judge for yourself:

I received an email today which stated "We have leads for you please call". See email below:

Dear Jill,

I was referred to you as an active real estate agent working with buyers and
sellers.

We have a few buyer applications in NY that have been pre
approved for a loan. These applicants are looking to buy a house within the next
0-180 days and have been verified. They need a real estate agent to find them a
property!

Can you call me at (818) 444-7295 Ext. 8029 to give you more information about
these applications?

Thank you,

Mark Smtih
Sales Manager, Money Tree
6433 Topanga Canyon Blvd. #602 - Canoga Park, CA 91303
(818) 444-7295 Ext. 8029 


   This email has been sent on behalf of Money Tree Funding

I asked "David" TWICE which website these "fully verified buyers" come from, and after trying to evade the question, he eventually spewed out the following when I asked the exact same question again: "nationalcreditservices.net, moneytreefunding.net, and "moneytreefunding.com pretty soon!", and something about "quickcash" and "credit services" again. He actually started to sound like a bill collector, with high pressure fast talking sales pitches. Everyone whose voice I heard was young-sounding and uneducated. I asked the guy to slow down a little because he is starting to sound a bit "hard-selling" so far in the conversation, and I wanted to get complete information so I can research his company. I said that I always do further information research on the people who call me with leads, and that I don't just sign up with every company that calls, as I'm sure he could understand. He interrupted me, got furious and abruptly started spewing off at the mouth in a loud tone and said "We are NOT subservient to you! We are supposed to be considered partners! Thanks for the lesson in grammar but you have just DISRESPECTED ME and that is rediculous!!" and hung up on me. (gulp...)

I got off the phone and Googled MONEY TREE SCAM and found this:

Comments about 8187703074 number:

Rating: 0 Tatiana - 18 Feb 2008 This is a phone number of a fraudulent company, who represent themselves as "Money Tree Funding LLC". This company does not exist, it is not registered in US as such. It is a scam targeted for realtors, where they offer solid buyer leads in exchange for a modest payment, such as $20, 25 per lead. Their so-called "website" is just a front and does not have any business at all behind it. They first send you an e-mail and them call you. Do not get victimized by them!! Caller: Money Tree Funding LLC Caller Type: Telemarketer

NO PROFESSIONAL COMPANY WOULD ACT LIKE THIS. THE GUY ON THE PHONE WAS HARDLY EDUCATED ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO CONDUCT HIMSELF LIKE A GENTLEMAN OR HAVE A "PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS CONVERSATION".

THESE PEOPLE ARE NOT PROFESSIONAL, AND SOUND AS IF THEY ARE DOING BUSINESS USING SOME SORT OF SCAMMING TECHNIQUE, OR THEY JUST AREN'T A LEGITIMATE COMPANY WHO DOES ANY TYPE OF PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS. DO NOT GET INVOLVED WITH THEM!! SPREAD THE WORD TO YOUR FELLOW COLLEAGUES/REALTORS! AND FOR GOD'S SAKE, DON'T PAY THEM A DIME, THEY MIGHT BE ABLE TO USE YOUR ACCOUNT INFORMATION TO SOAK YOU DRY. YOU NEVER KNOW.

I have since sent an email back to the guy who supposedly wrote the email and got no response. If you've ever heard of this company or have gotten the same type of dealings with them, you should also aware other colleagues. If we stand up to protect one another, as well as Buyers out there, we can avoid getting involved with companies like these.

Here's their website: http://www.moneytreefunding.net

AND LOOK AT THIS ONE (scroll down to see the folks on the phone with their baseball hats on:)

http://www.nationalcreditservices.net/contact.php

HERE'S ONE MORE, WHERE THEY SELL AD SPACE TO ADVERTISERS:

http://www.nationalcreditservices.com/index.php?Query=2USZ9rTT6GM0eWNz%2BHdn8BXrhEu2gSnziZog9kW6D4PeoKVREAk%2FGEbb3vyv%2FJtNbTx6GsO1RPU6POYP865YeoSdps9NToz76H5RD0XfMDvkulrSk4XxrQFFR%2BGF85bkmdkl9LPlkBajCahFGSp2wnejeFyzMJNly%2B1bqhuy9nVwBlFvAfAkPPsEDrw20JgUc8J3hN%2BZ2kG%2FiB2vHxxtXdVgfOLXr04Dpo9Ru8Y4T%2FgA6eLKrPgPXasf3P2VHjYCSq0R4InyOzhh1otdrgTi0LEx%2BKVOegtLniC37Sz44xOKVxvk1nMOCCP8vNRTSD10jiZdlhzqIL%2Bm6vYzJz88L3CAuFkQIcDuUbslFyuDr0u4cHhjhH%2BNm9B5Jtiz29PpOObToxFzR0sMEhJD3z4%3D

Ambassador Properties has been consistently featured as Google's top Home Staging Real Estate Agency in Dutchess County. Broker/Owner Jill Doppel is the founder and President of Ambassador Properties' "Illusions of Grandeur Home Staging Program", which is offered to Home Sellers in Dutchess, Putnam and Westchester Counties.

"No matter what kind of a market we're in, a home owner cannot afford to not stage their home the right way before putting it up for sale. And not just anyone knows how to stage a house right. There's a lot more to it than the same old boring 'selling tips' you see on most real estate websites. The bottom line is though, that you still have to price the home properly after it's staged. No amount of staging will sell a house that's priced out of it's competition", -Jill Doppel, Ambassador Properties

 For more on Home Staging, visit http://www.AmbassadorPropertiesInc.com.