Chase International Collects Impressive Awards at Luxury Real Estate Conference

Oct 21, 2008 — Shari Chase, Chase International Real Estate

I attended the 13th Annual Luxury Real Estate Conference in Philadelphia. Chase International was bestowed with two notable awards: Best Web Site Innovation for “ChaseNation” and election to the Billionaires Club. I was one of only four named to the Billionaires Club, an honor given to real estate professionals who have sold more than $1 billion during the course of their careers. To be recognized as one of the top producing luxury real estate professionals among my industry peers is certainly an honor and a milestone in my career.

Warren Buffett: Handling Tough Times

Oct 20, 2008

By Michael Marquette with Marquette Turner Luxury Homes In a time where debt is catching up with companies and individuals alike it is important to look at those who have led the way: what have they done to amass their wealth and importantly what have they avoided doing? With banks and countries collapsing (Iceland is teetering the brink of bankruptcy), Japan is potentially already in recession and the EU and US are in disarray, it is hard to go past Warren Buffett in looking at the best way to handle difficult times. Over the past thirty-five years, Warren Buffett has emerged as arguably the greatest investor in American history, and is currently listed by Forbes as the world’s wealthiest individual with a fortunate of approximately $US62 billion. If you had invested $10,000 in Berkshire Hathaway when he took control in 1965, your holdings would be worth more than $50 million today.  Buffett still lives in the same house he bought three decades ago for $31,500 and drives an older Lincoln Towncar. This all points to avoiding excess and showing restraint, even in the good times. Warren Buffett had humble beginnings and has never lost sight of what it takes to continue succeeding and preparing for the tougher times. It’s certainly never too late to take notice: the sooner the better!

Pristine and Picturesque Tuscany

Oct 17, 2008

By Ottavia Panciroli of Capolavori Immobiliari Since 1990, the region in central Italy was one of the most popular spots in Europe for second home-buyers seeking la dolce vita—including celebrities and royals such as Sting, Antonio Banderas, Richard Gere and Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. Spanning approximately 9,000 square miles, Tuscany is the site of several important Italian cities, including Florence, Siena and Pisa. Yet the region is equally well known for its pastoral countryside. Most of the landscape is rural and mountainous, with a generous stretch of coastline along the Tyrrhenian Sea.

Branding & Marketing Strategy

Oct 16, 2008 — Shaun Dalton, Gulf Coast International Properties

During our fantastic breakout sessions in Philly this past weekend, one well executed session (just kidding guys I know there were technical dificulties) I attended was the marketing shop put on by Daniel Gale and a few other well informative professionals! I know alot of you were there as well because the room was packed!!! A few pieces past around there were personal newspapers. I just don't remember anyone giving away their prefered method of production for such pieces. I am currently in the process of producing my own 12 page newspaper and have already secured the zip codes I want in my area. I had this idea after offering to give my local paper, FREE statistical market data for the luxury home market place here in Naples FL, and to my surprise they were'nt interested. Proof that they only like to highlight the doom and gloom! I guess the fact that pending sales have been up in the Naples area in previous months some 40% over 2007 does'nt matter, only that the credit crisis is going to be the end of us all! I've had it with them so I'm publishing my own. I figured some of you may be interested in this as well as the media only likes to brag about the positive when there is no more negative news to carry on about! The company I'm using specifically designs publishes and strategically mails these POSITIVELY INFLUENCED (real estate) news papers for you and you can sell some add space to offset the cost that honestly doesn't cost much more than a large postcard to begin with!!

Some in East Bay real estate are on the slippery slide of FEAR!

Oct 15, 2008

By Jim Walberg From his blog: Some East Bay Real Estate Is On The Slippery Slide Of FEAR! Once you get on the Slipper Slide of Fear, it is difficult to get off! Please stay off that slippery slide! So, I picked up USA Today last Saturday on my flight to the Luxury Real Estate Fall Conference in Philadelphia where I was a presenter. The USA Today headline was, “FEAR is a slippery slide!” In some of my past comments I have used the sailor’s mantra, “Do not be fearful!” It still applies today, in spite of an almost 900-point recovery on the Dow Jones the past two days. Don’t forget… once you step on the “slippery slide” of fear, the momentum carries you away very quickly. The voice of experience, the voice of the local authority, and the voice of credibility can still prevail. And we are the ones that need to be that voice. I just completed a walk from the Philadelphia Ritz Carlton to Constitution Hall, the Liberty Bell, and other reminders of the work our founding fathers did on our behalf 230+ years ago. What an inspiring day! (You may recall this is the organization that is the acknowledged authority of luxury real estate! It was founded by John Brian Losh with a vision of connecting the best luxury brokers and agents in the world – 1,900 members from 65 countries.)

Cayman – a place for everyone!

Oct 14, 2008

By Kass Coleman So you want a place in paradise, either while you live here or to come to on vacation? Luxury homes in Cayman meet the needs of most people, both internationally and locally. If you’re local, you can work and live here with or without children and there’s never a dull moment. Cayman offers an abundance of activities for kids of all ages: sporting activities, arts, music, etc allow kids to flourish and express their creativity and talent through avenues that in some other countries aren’t as eager to welcome such raw talent. Cayman has an active social scene comprised of a number of charity events, art and music shows with many local musicians playing nightly in various locations island-wide and endless sporting and water-sports events. It’s just one more way in which we here in Cayman are truly blessed. Now, if you’re only here for a short period of time – not to live here, but just love to visit – this is also the place for you too! Foreign investors aren’t just welcomed, they are encouraged to make Cayman their “home away from home.” You’ve probably heard the phrase “no restriction of foreign ownership” before… what’s that mean? It means you can own a luxury property here in Cayman outright – no one else needs to be involved if you choose for them not to be. You can own it in your own name or through a Cayman Company, set up through one of Cayman’s law firms, many of them internationally known and well-recognized.

Protect your privacy when selling your luxury home

Oct 13, 2008

By Christine Watson From her blog: Hide Your Personals! Protecting your privacy when selling your home! Putting your luxury home on the market poses two very personal concerns: 1. Invasion of privacy: that your personal life will be on show; 2. Theft: your personal effects are prey to any “prospective” buyers De-clutter your property before placing it on the market: this is my first piece of advice for those vendors concerned with their privacy being publicised to the world. To some it means removing everything from bench tops, cupboards and shelves and to others it means keeping the home clean, neat and tidy. But how do you protect your privacy and hide your personal items? Your home generally depicts your personal life, showing your taste in furnishings, colours, art, antiques and family photographs. Is opening your home to the public an invasion of your privacy? Absolutely!

Chase property

Oct 12, 2008

This is an amazing listing from Chase international...

New Cuba Gooding Jr. movie films at Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan estate

Oct 09, 2008

By Robert Lockard I have some very fun news to share. A new TNT movie starring Oscar® winner Cuba Gooding Jr. is currently filming in the Detroit area, and part of the filming is being done at a waterfront luxury home on Windmill Point Drive in Grosse Pointe Park. This property is being represented by Higbie Maxon Agney, Inc. Realtors, a member of Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate and the Board of Regents. Check out this wonderful story in the Grosse Pointe News that I received earlier this week. Sorry I don’t have a link to the story online. Apparently, that newspaper doesn’t post some of their stories on their Web site, but luckily I have a PDF version of the printed article. The movie is called “Gifted Hands: The Story of Ben Carson” and it follows the life of Ben Carson, born into poor conditions, who was able to lift himself up and become a famed pediatric neurosurgeon. It’s scheduled to debut on TNT on Feb. 7, 2009. I love inspirational stories about good people triumphing over difficult circumstances. Actually, this discussion reminds of a blog entry that Jim Walberg, the co-Owner/Broker of The Bay Area Team, just wrote about not giving in to fear despite our difficult financial market.

Economic meltdown causes fear in East Bay real estate community

Oct 09, 2008

By Jim Walberg From his blog: Economic Meltdown Causes Fear In East Bay Real Estate Community! No matter how positive and resilient one is, we are in stormy economic times! However, opportunities abound in the midst of this economic hurricane! I was chatting with my friend, Bob Waun – president of Vacation Finance, which is headquartered in Michigan – about the financial meltdown going on in the credit markets and the stock markets. He asked if I was afraid for what is next for our real estate businesses in the Bay Area and the Caribbean. I told him, “Nah… we are still having the time of our life!” The mantra of a sailor is…, “Do not be fearful!” And, the definition of FEAR is False Evidence Appearing Real! If you didn’t know, my favorite condition in sailing is with the gunnels (side rails on each side of the boat) in the water and salt water spraying all over me. You can’t imagine the big grin on my face while I am sailing in those conditions. However, it is not the time for the faint of heart if you are a sailor in stormy seas. It is the time when experience pays off. Both our Bay Area and Caribbean real estate businesses are thriving… however, it is taking all hands on deck to pull it off. We are blessed with a great team who only look at the glass half full, and are committed to creating a GREAT experience for our customers. Many of our competitors are running down to Starbucks talking about how the sky is falling. The vacuum they are leaving within our real estate community is amazing, and whoever fills that void today will have a larger market share when the market shifts again – which it will. In order to make it through these tough financial times we all need to work together, side by side, realizing storms don’t last forever. At the end of Bob’s and my conversation, he left me with these thoughts:
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