There's an old saying: "there's no such thing as a free lunch." Today's episode takes a look at something that all real estate agents and consumer need to know about -- companies offering small amounts of cash to homeowners who are in need of financial assistance in exchange for decades-long listing agreements, some as long as 40 years! Is this even legal? Is it ethical? Who is at risk for this type of targeting? Maura and Cheryl discuss what you need to know to educate yourself and your clients.

Georgia License Law - https://law.justia.com/codes/georgia/2020/title-43/chapter-40/section-43-40-25/ 

Here's some follow-up reading for you:

https://www.wftv.com/news/action9/action-9-uncovers-risky-realtor-contracts-that-you-cant-afford-sign/2VOKFPUJ75AOXMX6AFFNCR7HHQ/

https://www.wpxi.com/news/investigates/homeowners-blindsided-free-money-trap/7MUWLK7D2ZBXNICK2FIODTF7TQ/

https://www.whio.com/news/local/i-team-free-money-your-signature-monday-5pm-news-center-7/W4E4D3XDRZA2VJ76OGJTT4J7DI/

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/mv-realty-introduces-residential-real-150000054.html

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IT'S HERE! Cheryl and Maura's Inaugural Holiday Gift Guide, Part 2. Part 1 was our Gift Guide, our take on creative gifts for your favorite loan officer, broker, closing attorney, home inspector, co-op agent...and maybe a few things for you to throw under the tree for yourself. Join us for a cozy cocktail (yes, it's our first episode in a bar!) as we take you through our picks for those important people on your extended real estate team. Links for all of the items we mention are below in these Show Notes!

Part 2 is a little BONUS content for you on following the rules (like, the official ones, folks -- RESPA, real estate law) of giving. Hope you enjoy!

FIND (almost) ALL of our gift recommendations, here: https://a.co/aJLHBHf

And the awesome Conde Nast print Cheryl mentions can be found here: https://condenaststore.com/featured/you-seem-to-know-something-about-law-i-like-robert-weber.html

More on gift giving and an interview with Giftology author John Ruhlin: “The Art of Giving Gifts” on the Smart Passive Income podcast:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-art-of-giving-gifts-with-john-ruhlin/id383084001?i=1000399097289

Sound effects credit: “Sleigh Bells Ringing” by Mike Koenig, which can be found on SoundBible, here.

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IT'S HERE! Cheryl and Maura's Inaugural Holiday Gift Guide -- our take on creative gifts for your favorite loan officer, broker, closing attorney, home inspector, co-op agent...and maybe a few things for you to throw under the tree for yourself. Join us for a cozy cocktail (yes, it's our first episode in a bar!) as we take you through our picks for those important people on your extended real estate team. Links for all of the items we mention are below in these Show Notes!

FIND (almost) ALL of our gift recommendations, here: https://a.co/aJLHBHf

And the awesome Conde Nast print Cheryl mentions can be found here: https://condenaststore.com/featured/you-seem-to-know-something-about-law-i-like-robert-weber.html

More on gift giving and an interview with Giftology author John Ruhlin: “The Art of Giving Gifts” on the Smart Passive Income podcast:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-art-of-giving-gifts-with-john-ruhlin/id383084001?i=1000399097289

Sound effects credit: “Sleigh Bells Ringing” by Mike Koenig, which can be found on SoundBible, here.

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Cheryl and Maura tackle special stipulations -- those pesky contract "add-ons" that can make a contract stronger OR make it harder to enforce.

Don't forget to visit Cheryl's incredibly helpful website, www.smartstips.com, for more helpful tips!

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Title monitoring services? A necessity to protect your property or "a solution looking for a problem"? Maura and Cheryl discuss title fraud, title monitoring, and title insurance -- and what property owners (and agents) should be on the lookout for.

RESOURCES:

• DeKalb County, Georgia, has a Fraud Registry that provides email and text notification services once you register your property. This system was put in place in 2014 in response to the property fraud issues in the city of Atlanta.
• As of 2022, Fulton County, Georgia owners can also sign up for free alerts any time there is a change to their property title. I signed up for their R.E.A.A.C.T. (Real Estate Activity Alert and Contact Tool) in minutes and will get an email and text if there is any activity. This means that all of the city of Atlanta is now covered by a registration system.
• In Georgia, all county deed records are available online through the Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority (GSCCCA.org) but this is a pay service used predominantly by people and companies in the real estate industry. Some counties also provide their deed records free online on their own county site. Homeowners can check their state and county on netronline.com. Georgia counties that do provide free records searches include: Cherokee County, Cobb County, and Forsyth County.

ADDITIONAL READING:

"Georgia gang inmate, 31, steals $11M while in max security jail after claiming to be billionaire" -- you can read it, here.

"How a Miami Couple Used Empty Mansions to Pocket Millions" -- you can read it, here.

"Fake Home Loans Land Perpetrators in Prison" -- you can read it, here.

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Haunted house? You need to know who to call...but more importantly, you need to know what you need to disclose when it's time to sell. Pull up a chair, grab a blanket and a candied apple, and get ready for the story of a ghostly sale and the court case that followed. From hauntings to other kinds of stigmatized properties, Maura and Cheryl dig into disclosure, starting with the New York court case that started it all, the infamous "Ghostbusters Ruling."

Want to keep digging? Here are some more resources for you:

Review the court case, here.

Read the original 1977 Reader’s Digest Article (with original page ads), here.

News articles when the house went back on the market in 2019, here and here and here.

Other podcast episodes about the house, here and here.

“Due to the infamous 'Ghostbusters Ruling,' this New York house is Legally Haunted on Ranker.com, click here.

Check out the house that led to the “Ghostbusters Ruling” on Zillow, click here. 

DiedInHouse.com, click here.

ATTRIBUTION 3.0: This episode features royalty-free spooky sound effects, including "Backwards Souls" by Mike Koenig, which can be found on SoundBible, here, and also "Wind" by Mark DiAngelo, which can be found here.

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Maura and Cheryl dive into the concept of the pre-listing appraisal -- a handy tool for any agent's (and seller's) toolbox, especially in a shifting real estate market. They discuss the WHY and WHEN of the pre-listing appraisal and what to look for when choosing an appraiser for this type of consultation.

A few more resources:

Read Cheryl's recent newsletter on this topic via LinkedIn, click here.

Read Maura's recent blog post on pre-listing appraisals for shifting markets, click here.

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Get a sneak peek from Maura Neill and Cheryl King at REAL Smart, a new podcast about real estate for real estate industry folks — REALTORS, real estate agents, lenders, closing and title folks, real estate investors, and hey, anyone looking to learn a little more about real estate…and get REAL Smart. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, Maura is a REALTOR and Cheryl is a closing attorney -- two perspectives on topics ranging from contracts to negotiation, client consultation, title issues, navigating mortgage options, and crazy “can you believe this really happened” stories…and so much more! Two practitioners, both of whom are instructors and educators with a passion for real estate, learning, teaching, and generally making the real estate world a better place for all of us…one podcast episode at a time. 

Subscribe today wherever you listen to podcasts, and stay tuned! Coming October 2022!

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