Make the REALTOR Voice HeardVOTE

1
Make the REALTOR Voice HeardVOTE!

• Early voting began on Monday, October 20 and will
  run every day through Friday, October 31yes,
  even Sunday.
• To find out the polling locations and hours, you
  may go to www.harrisvotes.com for Harris County
  elections,
• www.co.fort-bend.tx.us for Fort Bend County,
• www.co.montgomery.tx.us for Montgomery County,
• www.brazoria.tx.us.landata.com for Brazoria
  County,
• www.co.galveston.tx.us for Galveston County,
• www.co.waller.tx.us for Waller County, and
• www.co.wharton.tx.us for Wharton County.
• All others may go to your countys Web site for
  additional information.
• There are record numbers of voters projected so
  save time and vote early.

2
September MLS Sales Statistics

• The September MLS statistics will be released on
  Tuesday morning, and here are some quick
  takeaways
• Hurricane Ike. Obviously, the statistics for
  September were much lower than usual due to the
  nearly two-week period of inactivity caused by
  the hurricane. All discussions of last months
  stats have to be couched in terms of the
  hurricane, and we will make sure the media knows
  that as well.
• Sales of single-family homes across the greater
  Houston area fell 30.2 percent, compared to
  September 2007.
• Prices continue to be the shining light in the
  statistics, with the median home price increasing
  5.0 percent versus the year-ago figure.
• The average sales price rose 4.4 percent.
• We usually anticipate an uptick in the month
  following a natural disaster, as closings take
  place that were delayed. It remains to be seen
  if that will occur in October after so much
  destruction took place.
• For more detailed information, please visit
  www.har.com/mls/ and click on MLS Press
  Releases on the left.

3
Free Member Videos at REALTOR Expo

• At this years REALTOR Expo, which will be
  held on Thursday, members will have the
  opportunity to record a one-minute video about
  themselves. (www.har.com/realtorexpo for more
  information)
• The videos are YouTube ready and will be
  uploaded to YouTube and may be uploaded to your
  HAR-hosted Web site as well.
• This is a great opportunity for you to present
  your personality and expertise to your
  prospective clients, instead of just a static
  picture.
• If you are interested in recording a video, you
  may bring a script on a memory stick to be
  displayed on the teleprompter. Otherwise, please
  memorize what you would like to say so that as
  many members as possible are able to take
  advantage of this free offering from HAR.
• Just some quick tipslook into the camera, be
  friendly, dont wear green (you will be recording
  in front of a green screen so you would blend
  into it if you wear green).
• Read more about it on the HAR Tool of the Week
  slide.

4
A Bad Time for Houston Real Estate?THINK AGAIN!

• As part of HARs ongoing efforts to educate the
  public and help restore confidence to the market,
  we have redesigned our print advertising campaign
  that runs every week in the Houston Chronicle.
• The first revised ad ran on Friday, October 17
  on the front page of the Star section and is
  scheduled to run again on Tuesday, October 21 on
  the front page of the Sports section. A
  companion buyer-focused ad is being developed.

5
HAR Tool of the Week Member Listing Videos

• The HAR Member Video upload tool allows agents to
  upload and share videos of themselves and their
  listings with consumers on HAR.com.
• The member videos will add value by providing
  agents with an opportunity to market themselves
  beyond just a static image and bio
• The listing videos provide consumers the
  opportunity to capture a more in-depth view of
  the property that still photos simply cant
  provide.
• Your videos will be displayed and promoted on
  HAR.com (on your HAR Member Web site, on each one
  of your listing detail pages, as well as on Find
  a REALTOR.)
• Your uploaded videos will be published to
  YouTube.com automatically
• This new addition to the suite of HAR tools is
  absolutely FREE to members!
• Watch a quick video demonstration by clicking on
  the e-Learning button in
  the middle of the page as soon as you login to
  the Members Only Portal.