If you’re one of the many real estate agents who frequent our office, you’re probably familiar with this picture. It’s the first thing you see upon entering our marketing department– directions. If you look up you’ll find the ceiling, if you look down you’ll find the floor, and if you look around the corner, you’ll find Kelsey (that’s me) and Caroline.

So yeah, it might be a poor attempt at a joke, but it’s also a metaphor. As marketing professionals at Coldwell Banker Townside, REALTORS, Caroline and I strive to provide direction. We help our agents identify where they are and where they want to go. Then we use marketing communication strategies to help them get there.

Ironically, I’m actually horrible at finding my way from point A to point B in a car. Just ask my personal GPS system, his name is Andy and he’s my husband. Fortunately, providing direction and giving directions are quite different.

As a Marketing Department, we understand that one of the most helpful resources we can offer our agents is a fresh perspective– the ability to see the big picture, ask a lot of questions, and ultimately discover direction. Once we locate point A and point B, getting there is just a matter of drawing a line on a map. Again, perhaps not the best choice of words, coming from someone who finds physically driving from point A to point B rather challenging. Whatever, you get the point. We’re here to help by providing direction in the form of communication strategy, advice, and design. We’re here to help in case you get lost along the way.

If you get the local paper, you probably noticed a group of good looking people, all dressed in blue, right on the front cover. That's us! So now that we've got your attention, we would just like to say– Hi!

Also,if you are ever in need of commercial or residential real estate advice, we're here to help! Just give one of our New River Valley agents or Roanoke Valley agents a call.

GO BLUE! for Coldwell Banker Townside, REALTORS!

A couple of weeks ago, I asked on Facebook and Twitter “what do you love about living in the New River Valley?” I was overwhelmed with responses, both in messages on Facebook, or tweets, or emails and in one case, a text.  Here’s a list, unedited, of some of the reasons why people are so in love with the New River Valley (well, bolding or links are mine… so it’s partially unedited). Feel free to add your own reasons by posting a comment below.

• When you drive down the back roads and people wave
• I love coming over a hill and seeing the Blue Ridge Mountains everywhere
• I like that I can leave my keys in the ignition and not worry about it not being there when I come out of a store or restuarant. Plus how clean it is.
• We love that there’s curbside recycling available, and that it’s growing to include even more of the Valley!
• The abundance of coffee shops, the tech savviness, the short work commute, the Hokies!, the plentiful, jaw-dropping sunsets, etc…
• That if I go out of town for the weekend and forget to lock the front door, all of my stuff is still in my house when I return. Short commute
• The sense of community, parks and open spaces, the university brings events that a small town otherwise may not have (art, music, sports), and everything Caroline said
• Friendly people, supportive environment
• There isn’t any traffic – unless you’re trying to go to a football game at Lane Stadium
• I buy my fruits and vegetables from the Farmer’s Market and my meat directly from the farmer.  I love knowing where my food comes from
• Even though I have never gone to The Lyric on a Monday, I love the text message I get from Downtown Blacksburg each Monday informing me that it’s “Free Popcorn Monday” at The Lyric
• I love the parades we have for Christmas and 4th of July and how the whole Town attends them
• The kids in my neighbohrood play outside all day long and build forts, make up games, collect bugs and pick wild blackberries. I love that they can just be kids.
• There’s a planetarium in Radford that offers free shows.  At night, we can sit out on our deck and see the stars and point out all the new things we learned.
• At the local coffee shops, people don’t have conversations about what they watched on TV. They talk about how they can make our community better.
• I love that I can jump on Amtrak in the morning out of Lynchburg and be in the heart of New York City by mid-afternoon, all for $66.50 (and have wi-fi all the way)
• I love that I can catch Megabus in Christiansburg and be in the heart of DC in 4.5 hours for $8 (and have free wi-fi all the way).  If i want to take the BT to catch the MegaBus in Christiansburg, it costs me an extra $.50.
• If I leave my neighborhood and travel 7 minutes west, I can see a covered bridge that was built more than 100 years ago.  If I trvel 7 minutes east, I can see the amazing things being researched and invented at Virginia Tech to improve our future.
• I have neighbors from Sweden, Poland, Mexico, China, India, and all parts of the US.  I experience the true meaning of diversity every day.
• I love that we have more health food stores and local markets than traditional grocery stores.
• I can experience three seasons in one day … I’m learning to layer my clothes and love that.
• I have a menu of collegiate athletic events I can choose to attend each week – many of which are free.
• The Christiansburg Aquatic Center.  It has a water park for my son and free wi-fi for me – I love it.
• My family can have a nice dinner out with table service for less than $30.
• My property taxes are less than 5% of the tax bill my parents pay on their house in New York. And I love to remind them of that.
• When people here say, “Hi! How are you today?”, they look you in the eyes and they mean it.
• Life in the New River Valley is not a sprint; it’s a marathon (quote from @nrvliving)
• Volunteering and giving to others is the norm here, rather than the exception
• I love that wherever I travel in the NRV, I always have a beautiful view out of my window.
• History is cherished here, rather than ignored
• I love the “casualness” of the NRV.  We put on our “nice” jeans to go out to dinner.  It’s okay to wear your slippers to the grocery store.  Sweatshirts are perfectly acceptable church attire.  And the kids all wear VT shirts to school.

Dear Home Seller,

Hello there! Welcome to this exciting phase in your life! We want to share with you a few important statistics just to keep in mind as you enter the initial phases of selling your home.

As you might have noticed, a lot has changed (and continues to change) in the real estate world. We do business drastically different from the way we did just 5 years ago. The Internet, social media networks, and mobile applications have changed practically everything about the way we do business. The home buying and selling process has moved almost entirely from paper to the web, buyers and sellers have access to tons of property data through real estate websites, Facebook, Twitter, and mobile apps, and agents now connect with prospective clients on a much more personal level.

Here's what we know about how buyers are searching for homes in 2011:

• 90% of all buyers use the internet to search for homes
• 37% buy the home they find online
• 59% search for homes on MLS websites
• 45% search for homes on Realtor.com
• 43% seach for homes on local real estate websites (like cbtownside.com!)
• 42% search for homes on agent websites
• 2% seach for homes on social networking sites
• 2% seach for homes on YouTube

In short, it's advantageous to work with an agent and a company that places an emphasis on online advertising. At Coldwell Banker Townside, REALTORS®, we focus on giving listings targeted local distribution and worldwide internet exposure. So, you might be asking, "What does your worldwide internet exposure for our listings look like?" We're glad you asked! Just check out the chart below.

All the best,

Your friends at Coldwell Banker Townside, REALTORS®

Blog post courtesy of NRVLiving.

The Town of Blacksburg has put out a movie about what to do when you’re moving to Blacksburg – with information like setting up utilities, registering to vote, etc., it takes typically boring information and puts a – well, an interesting – spin on it.

...

Click here to read the entire post!

The key to success is punching your fist through a piece of wood.

Pictured from left to right. Back row: Pat Tracy, Caroline Laski, Paul DiMaio, Greg Vidmar, Cliff Dowdy
Front Row: Kelsey Sarles, Sandy Grant, Marie Flippen, Lisa DiMaio, Bill Gearhart, Anne Johnston.

I realize that this is probably going to require an explanation. Our Marketing Department along with several of our agent friends recently headed south to sharpen our marketing skills at a seminar hosted by Hobbs Herder.  On the first day we were asked to write a list of all of the things we wanted to accomplish in the next five years. We were asked to dream big. On the back side of this piece of wood we were instructed to write all of the things that were holding us back from turning our dreams into reality.

Then we were taught the art of breaking a piece of wood with our bare hands. Okay, so maybe the first step of success isn't literally chopping through a piece of wood. I get it. It's actually a metaphor. It's about pushing through your fear and not letting anything hold you back. It's about just going for it...See video below.

And we did! When it comes to successfully chopping through blocks of wood, we are 11 for 11. Of course, this is just the beginning. We left Charlotte and the Hobbs Herder seminar with lots of great ideas and the confidence to make 2011 our most successful year yet. GO BLUE!

Blog post courtesy of NRVLiving.





















Well look at who’s getting some well-deserved recognition!

From VirginiaLiving.com:
The secret that is Floyd, Virginia is getting out. The little mountain town in southwest Virginia has made Mother Earth News’ fifth annual “6 Great Places You’ve (Maybe) Never Heard Of” list, recognizing towns and cities that “stand out for their commitment to culture, community and sustainability.

The sustainable-lifestyle magazine is particularly taken with the town’s music scene, which features “various old-time fiddle and banjo styles” and centers around the locally famous Floyd Country Store. Mother Earth News is also impressed with the strong alternative community, which has fostered a lively arts scene and what the magazine calls a “DIY, back-to-the-land ethic.” Hippy stuff, basically, but in the best possible way. Because this is a town that seems well prepared for change.

...

Click here to read the entire post!

Article excerpt featured on Handshake20.com posted by Margaret Galecki

After one particularly lazy quarter in 1981 at Virginia Tech, I sat on the edge of the bed in my room and burst into tears when I opened my grades. My mother came in and found me boo-hooing, and asked quite simply whether I had done work that warranted any higher grades. "Truthfully," I answered through the tears, "No." In one of her most brilliant mother moments, she relieved me of the responsibility to please only her:

"Margaret, if you want to be average, be average.
But be happy about it."

What relief! I felt instantaneous pleasure at the loss of that parental performance burden. The next feeling, however, and equally as strong, was a flash of anger. "I'm not average! How could anyone assume that I am average, or be happy with being average? Harumph." Needless to say, when I took responsibility for my own success, my grades and my pride in performance improved significantly and I learned so much more...read more!

Now that we have begun 2011, I am reflective of the last year & my business. I not only take stock in the previous year's business, but prior year(s) positive & negatives from which to glean.

I have had a list of entrepreneur characteristics for several years which hang in my office. The characteristics are an important guide for anyone self-employed. I believe these are a must if you are to succeed!

• Independent
• Creative
• Hard worker
• Self-confident
• Energetic
• Visionary
• Organized
• Innovative
• Risk-taker
• Inquisitive
• Persistent
• Competitive
• Driven to achieve
• Problem-solver
• Unafraid to fail
• Fortunate

Best Wishes for a new year filled with great health & prosperity!  Susanna

Our principal broker, Bill Gearhart, told me once that he wrote his very first contract of his real estate career on Christmas Eve. That piece of information was, of course, my cue to keep the office open that year on Christmas Eve! 

It's no secret that some seasons are considered more conducive to buying and selling real estate than others, and winter usually isn't first on the list. But for those who need to sell or want to sell, now could be the perfect time. Consider these three simple reasons, why this winter season could be the perfect time to stick a for sale sign in the yard.

1. Serious Buyers – Yes, there are fewer buyers, but those buyers that are in the market are usually very serious about making a purchase or in some cases have to make a purchase because of job or personal reasons.

2. Homes Show Better During the Holidays – Though it may be colder, the holidays are a great time to show homes because they are usually dressed for holiday celebrations. You have the benefit of staging your home with the decorations you already own!

3. January Is a Big Transfer Month – Many corporate moves happen during January. By listing your home during the winter season, you can reach those people moving to new jobs in your area.

When determining the best time to sell your home, it's also important to consider competition between other home sales. It's easier to stand out when the inventory is lower. Lower inventory usually aligns with the winter season, however this isn't always the case as there are currently over 1000 residential real estate listings on the market in the New River Valley (including Floyd, Giles, Montgomery, and Pulaski County). Although inventory isn't low, one factor that continues to make this winter a potentially desirable time to list is that interest rates continue to be at record lows giving buyers more incentive to buy now, and we certainly don't know whether the spring selling season will have that luxury.