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    <title>Hawaii Randy's Real Estate Opinions</title>
    <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/</link>
    <description>Associate Broker, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR "Not Just Another Pretty Face" Hawaii&#8217;s VA/Military/ 1st time buyer&#8217;s expert. My aggressive marketing programs bring top dollars for sellers.</description>
    <language>en-us</language>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2745396/buying-a-home-in-hawaii-with-a-va-loan-in-2012</guid>
      <title>Buying a Home in Hawaii with a VA Loan in 2012</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;img title="US Military" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/6/5/1/3/6/ar13272199463156.jpg" height="259" alt="US Military" width="157"&gt;One of the best benefits given to active to military is housing.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;When I speak of housing I am not talking about base housing which has been greatly improved in Hawaii the last few years.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;I am speaking about VA benefits to purchase a home.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;The VA loan program is an extremely attractive program for active duty soldiers and veterans.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;The VA loan program offers 100% financing.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;In Honolulu County (the island of Oahu) the &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/files/Flyers/2012_Hawaii_VA_Mortgage_Limit.pdf"&gt;&lt;span&gt;limit for 100% financing in 2012&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt; is: $695,750.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;If the vet wants to buy a home for more than that amount most lenders require 25% down for the amount above the limit.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;Besides offering the 100% loan program, active duty soldiers also receive &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/files/Flyers/2012_Military_Housing_Allowance.pdf"&gt;&lt;span&gt;BAH (Basic Housing Allowance)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;On Hawaii an E-1 with a dependent receives $1860/ month, while on the high end an O-7 and above receives $3423/month.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;That is above and beyond their pay and cost of living allowance.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;What makes this significant is that not only does an active duty soldier have a wonderful mortgage program, but the government gives them a housing allowance to make the payments.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;There are a few differences between using a VA mortgage compared to using a conventional loan.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt; &#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;1)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;The VA provides a guarantee to the lenders.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;2)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;The VA has a streamline program for refinancing loans.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;3)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;VA loans are assumable.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt; &#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;4)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;The appraisal process is handled by the VA and an NOV (Notice of Value) is issued.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt; &#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;5)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;The VA restricts some of the closing costs paid by the buyer.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;These are known as non-allowables.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;In Hawaii we have &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryLinks.html"&gt;&lt;span&gt;several military bases&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt; and a large number of veterans.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;In my real estate business, Active duty military and veterans account for over half of my business.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;With the number of VA transactions I do, I have been able to put together support services with local venders and lenders for VA buyers.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;A great example is that a few of the local lenders pay the VA non-allowables, so the buyers do not have to negotiate that from the sellers.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Other venders offer discounts to military, such as home inspections.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you are considering buying a home in Hawaii and would like to know how using your VA benefit will impact you, please contact me anytime.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;I would be honored to assist you.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Good luck and Happy House Hunting!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:49:25 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2745396/buying-a-home-in-hawaii-with-a-va-loan-in-2012</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2664695/mele-kalikimaka</guid>
      <title>Mele Kalikimaka</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;img title="Mele Kalikimaka" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/1/2/3/9/7/ar132483659779321.jpg" height="396" alt="Mele Kalikimaka" width="612"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img title="Mele Kalikimaka 2" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/3/4/2/7/3/ar132483655237243.jpg" height="357" alt="Mele Kalikimaka 2" width="300"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 25 Dec 2011 13:13:52 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2664695/mele-kalikimaka</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2656241/2012-military-housing-allowance-honolulu-county</guid>
      <title>2012 Military Housing Allowance - Honolulu County</title>
      <description>&lt;p class="MsoHeading7"&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoHeading8"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Monthly BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing) for Honolulu County.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;The new VA mortgage cap for 100% financing in Honolulu County is: $695,700.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;(Larger amounts will require some down payment.)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;RANK&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;WITH DEPENDANTS&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;WITHOUT DEPENDANTS&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;RANK&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;WITH DEPENDANTS&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;WITHOUT DEPENDANTS&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,860&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,461&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;W-4&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$3,006&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,523&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-2&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,860&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,461&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;W-5&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$3,123&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,676&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-3&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,860&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,461&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-1E&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,670&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,004&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-4&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,860&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,461&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-2E&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,877&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,157&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-5&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,899&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,701&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-3E&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$3,024&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,487&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-6&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,487&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,866&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,965&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,818&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-7&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,637&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,977&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-2&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,475&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,980&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-8&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,802&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,100&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-3&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,898&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,274&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E-9&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,979&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,235&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-4&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$3,168&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,655&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;W-1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,490&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$1,869&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-5&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$3,357&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,751&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;W-2&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,703&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,028&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-6&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$3,390&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,907&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;W-3&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,907&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,238&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-7+&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$3,423&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;$2,964&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoHeading9"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;E=&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;enlisted&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoHeading9"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;W=&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;warrant officers&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoHeading9"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-1E= officers with enlisted experience&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;O-1=&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;commissioned officers with no prior enlisted experience&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Mon, 19 Dec 2011 19:49:59 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2656241/2012-military-housing-allowance-honolulu-county</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2634237/2012-hawaii-va-mortgage-limit-for-100-financing</guid>
      <title>2012 Hawaii VA Mortgage Limit for 100% Financing</title>
      <description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Beginning January 1st, 2012 the VA Mortgage limits for 100% financing for Hawaii will be going dow&lt;img title="Armed Forces" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/2/9/4/8/2/ar132313366328492.jpg" height="236" alt="Armed Forces" width="132"&gt;n a little.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;For Oahu County is will be: &lt;strong&gt;$695,750&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;For all other Hawaii Counties it will be: &lt;strong&gt;$625,500&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;VA Jumbo loans will be handled the same way.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Most of the Hawaii lenders require 25% down payment for anything over the limit.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;For example a purchase of $795,750 on Oahu would require $25,000 down.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you are looking to purchase a home in Hawaii and you are considering using your VA benefit, please contact me and I can walk you through the process.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Good luck and happy house hunting!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Mon, 05 Dec 2011 20:11:56 -0500</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2634237/2012-hawaii-va-mortgage-limit-for-100-financing</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2536407/you-might-consider-another-line-of-work</guid>
      <title>You Might Consider Another Line of Work</title>
      <description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Jeff Foxworthy has, &#8220;&lt;span&gt;you might be a redneck&lt;/span&gt;.&#8221;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;I have, &#8220;&lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work&lt;/span&gt;.&#8221; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you are a real estate agent or a loan officer and:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;1)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You don&#8217;t put your client&#8217;s needs ahead of yours; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;2)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You don&#8217;t return phone calls on a timely basis; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;3)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You are not getting properly trained; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;4)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You don&#8217;t like people and you can&#8217;t treat everyone exactly the same; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;5)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you are not willing to work as many hours as it takes to get the job done; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;6)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you turn off your phone on the weekends; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;7)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you can&#8217;t follow a timeline;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;8)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you think a closing date is only an estimate&lt;/span&gt;; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;9)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you think a deposit is the opposite of posite;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;10)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You believe a deed is something a boy scout does at least once a day;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;11)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You think a closing is when they turn the lights out at your office and lock the doors&lt;/span&gt;; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;12)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You order a survey and they e-mail a list of questions to your friends;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;13)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You think a carport is a truck that carries several cars;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;14)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You believe a counter offer is used to buy a counter;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;15)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You think a short sale is a fast one;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;16)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You think an addendum tells you who the speakers are at a meeting;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;17)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You think a covenant is a religious cult;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;18)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Last but not least, you think escrow is something you get in a French restaurant&lt;/span&gt;; &lt;span&gt;you might consider another line of work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;The behavior of many loan officers and real estate agents has gotten pretty bad.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;I can&#8217;t tell you how many phone and e-mail messages a week I send, that go unanswered.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;My time and my client&#8217;s time seem to have little value to many.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;You know they are not returning their client&#8217;s messages either in these cases.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;The number of poorly written contracts and untrained agents is mind blowing.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;I have crossed swords with many loan officers who do not care about the unnecessary stress they put their clients through.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 02 Oct 2011 04:21:18 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2536407/you-might-consider-another-line-of-work</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2523825/attention-renters-it-is-time-to-buy-</guid>
      <title>Attention Renters - It is Time to Buy!</title>
      <description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;img title="Key to Your New Home" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/9/3/8/9/2/ar131688416829839.jpg" height="185" alt="House Key" width="200"&gt;Do you want to be a homeowner?&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Are you worried about timing&lt;/strong&gt;?&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;After reading this article, you will better understand why it is time to buy.&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Let&#8217;s look at a few factors, the amateur experts and the news media failed to tell you.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Prices are down.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Are they at the bottom?&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;There is no possible way to predict the absolute bottom in any market, but they are down and in many areas are showing signs of leveling and even climbing. &lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;As you read down, you will see that timing the bottom; may be one of the lower priorities when deciding to become a home owner.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Interest rates are historically low.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This is the most important point to consider.&lt;strong&gt; &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;If mortgage interest rates climb by only 1%, mortgage payments will increase by something closer to 21%.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;That was such an important point, that I need to repeat it. If the interest rates climb by only 1%, mortgage payments will increase by something closer to 21%.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;While you are waiting for prices to drop by a percent or two the payments may climb 20% or more.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Even if you believe that you are in a more challenged area that prices may drop by as much as 5% or 10%; if you wait you may lose. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Have you heard about the renter&#8217;s penalty tax already passed by Congress?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Am I scaring you? If you are renting, you should be scared.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Did you know you are already paying it?&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;They are not calling it the renter&#8217;s penalty tax, but that is exactly what it is.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Our politicians are calling it a tax credit for home owners.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;While you are waiting, the government is reaching in your pocket and grabbing out a big stack of bills.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;They are penalizing you for renting in a huge way. The interest part of your mortgage payments (which is the majority of the payment) on your primary home is tax deductable.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;That means you will not have to pay taxes on that part of your paycheck each month.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;To get a better picture of what that means to you, talk to a tax professional. &lt;em&gt;(Not your amateur expert friend or hairdresser).&lt;strong&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;If you rent, you do not control of your future.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;If your landlord sells your home you may be moving.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;If the landlord chooses, the rent may go up.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;If you own and take out a &lt;strong&gt;fixed rate mortgage&lt;/strong&gt;, you know what your payments will be for many years.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;If prices go up, your mortgage payment, unlike rent will stay exactly the same.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;When prices go up your landlord gets to keep the equity.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;All profits to be gained down the road go to your landlord and not to you, if prices climb.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;So of course you ask; &lt;strong&gt;what if prices go down?&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;You lose nothing&lt;strong&gt;.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Ok, I know you doubt me with that statement&lt;/strong&gt;.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Let me explain.&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;As long as you own the home, you will not take any losses or gains based on the value of the home.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;You can only lose on the value, if you sell while prices are down.&lt;strong&gt; &lt;/strong&gt;If prices drop you will continue to take advantages of homeownership with the only impact being possible lower property taxes. &lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;If you sell then and only then, is when you win or lose on the equity.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Even then, if you are relocating; you will take advantage of the lower prices on the other side.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;No loss.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;I hope after reading this article you have a little more clarity about why it s the right time to buy.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Here is my last tip for potential homeowners.&#160; Get professional help. Do not try this on your own. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;1)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Get a full time professional Realtor&#174;.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Someone who is an expert in the areas you are interested in.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Not a part time agent who does this on the side.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Someone who will protect your interests.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;In most cases you will get their services for free.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Sellers normally pick up their fees.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Your Realtor&#174; will let you know when you are looking at exceptions to that rule.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;2)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Get a top loan officer from a local, funding lender.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Someone with a good reputation in your area.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Someone that will be there to walk you through the process and be there to explain any documents you sign.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Your Realtor&#174; is a good source for a referral.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;They will know loan officers in your area and can share their experiences with you.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;3)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Start now!&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;It is time to buy!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Good Luck and Happy House Hunting!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Mon, 26 Sep 2011 12:27:10 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2523825/attention-renters-it-is-time-to-buy-</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2493189/homes-don-t-always-sell-fast</guid>
      <title>Homes Don&#8217;t Always Sell Fast</title>
      <description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Selling a home can be quite a stressful process for sellers.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Many homes are on the market for months and sometimes longer.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Sellers need to maintain their home in showing condition during that period.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;That can be a big burden while trying to live their lives. They are paying mortgage and can&#8217;t finalize their future plans until it sells.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Homes may linger around for a couple of reasons.&lt;img title="House" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/4/3/6/5/9/ar131532610295634.JPG" height="210" alt="House" width="204"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Failed marketing.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;It may be one or more of the following.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Over priced&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Now showing well&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Not properly advertised (MLS, Internet, virtual tours, flyers, open houses, etc.)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Hard to show&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Bad neighbors&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Poor location&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Next to a pig farm.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Not convenient to transportation, shopping or schools.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Across from the sewage plant.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Surrounded by industrial properties, etc.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;(Items&#160;1 through&#160;6 - can be overcome with a lower price.)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Changing market conditions.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Short sales and foreclosures in the area.&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Bad economy (increasing unemployment in the area, etc.)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Prices falling&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Surplus inventory&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;(Items&#160;1 through&#160;4 - can be overcome with price)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;In the end there are many variables you have to deal with, when selling your home.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;The price is the great equalizer.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Any home in any condition can be sold in one day at the right price.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;The question for sellers is, &#8220;How close to the one day price do you want to be? &#8220; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;By properly marketing the home and having it better prepared (repairs and upgrades completed and the home staged), along with making it easy to show; the home will sell faster and possibly for more money.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;If the home is not selling after being for sale for a long period of time, the market has rejected your home at that price.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Buyers are able to find another home at equal or above condition for a better price.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;In some cases sellers hang on too long to their price because they are either convinced their home is worth more than buyers are willing to pay or because they need to hit a certain price.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;In a some cases the home is not being properly marketed.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Tips for sellers:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Get a top full time Realtor&#174; who specializes in your area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Listen to your Realtors&#174; advice for getting your home ready, pricing and marketing strategy.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Be prepared to adjust the price after it has been on the market a period of time.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Remember time is money.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;If it is not selling, you are paying carrying costs. (Mortgage, utilities, taxes, insurance, maintenance, etc.)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Have reasonable expectations and plan accordingly.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;If the average sale time in your area is X number of days and you want to sell faster than that, you have to do something to make your home a better deal than those you are competing with.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;
&lt;div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;If on Oahu call me for a free consultation.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;I would be honored to evaluate your home and present you a marketing plan for your home.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Good Luck and Happy Home Selling!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 06 Sep 2011 12:24:22 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2493189/homes-don-t-always-sell-fast</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2489836/inexperience-is-absolutely-no-excuse</guid>
      <title>Inexperience is Absolutely No Excuse</title>
      <description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Professionalism is heavily discussed during CE classes (continuing education) I teach for real estate agents.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;When the State of Hawaii issues a salesman&#8217;s license to a real estate agent, the state is not saying you are qualified to properly represent a home buyer or a home seller.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;They are saying you are licensed and will be held to a set of standards.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;strong&gt;As a professional you will honor your fiduciary duties to your client.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Those duties are:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Loyalty&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;Obedience&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;Disclosure&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;Confidentiality&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;Reasonable Care and Diligence&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;Accounting&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;The one that I feel needs more focus on by new agents and their brokers is &lt;strong&gt;Reasonable Care and Diligence:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;The standard of care you give your client is that of a competent professional. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#8226;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You &lt;span&gt;are required&lt;/span&gt; to prepare yourself through education and study.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#8226;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;You &lt;span&gt;are not&lt;/span&gt; required to perform services outside the scope of your license.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;In those cases you should recommend your client seek the appropriate professional.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#8226;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Accounting, legal advice, engineering, tax advice, etc.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;What I tell new agents is that there are no short cuts.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Learn the business!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Take classes.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Team up with experienced agent.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Get your broker involved in all of your dealings.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Do not take on anything you are not qualified to do.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#183;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;And please refrain from inserting opinions on things outside the scope of your license.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Please remember if you are representing a client you are required to act as a professional.&lt;span&gt;&#160; &lt;/span&gt;Inexperience is absolutely no excuse.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 Sep 2011 04:20:01 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2489836/inexperience-is-absolutely-no-excuse</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2488873/2011-hawaii-state-chess-championships</guid>
      <title>2011 Hawaii State Chess Championships</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;img title="HCF Logo" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/9/0/3/7/1/ar131506771617309.JPG" height="124" alt="HCF Logo" width="100"&gt;This Labor Day Weekend I will be wearing one of my other hats, that of Hawaii Chess Federation president.&#160; The &lt;strong&gt;Hawaii State Open Chess Championships&lt;/strong&gt; will be held at the Ohana East Hotel in Waikiki.&#160; The time control will be Game/ 120.&#160; (Each player will have 2 hours on their clocks to complete of their moves.&#160; Giving a total of 4 hours for each game.)&#160; Pawns will be down range at 9:00am this morning.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Sat. 9/3/11&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;8:00am&#160;&#160;&#160; Registration &amp;amp; Check-in&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;9:00am&#160;&#160;&#160; Round 1&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;1:00pm&#160;&#160;&#160; Round 2&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Sun. 9/4/11&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;9:00am&#160;&#160;&#160; Round 2&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;12:55pm&#160;&#160;Election of HCF Board Members&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;1:00pm&#160;&#160;&#160; Round 4&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Mon. 9/5/11&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;9:00am&#160;&#160; Round 5 (Final Round)&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Monday Afternoon the &lt;strong&gt;State Blitz Chess Championships G/5&lt;/strong&gt; will be held.&#160; Each Player will have 5 minutes on their clock giving each game up to 10 minutes total.&#160; Each round has 2 games.&#160; The player will play one game with White and one game with Black.&#160; Each player will play a total of 14 games for the 7 rounds.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Mon. 9/5/11&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;1:30pm&#160;&#160; Registration&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;2:00pm&#160;&#160; Round 1&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;2:30pm&#160;&#160; Round 2&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;3:00pm&#160;&#160; Round 3&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;3:30pm&#160;&#160; Round 4&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;4:00pm&#160;&#160; Round 5&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;4:30pm&#160;&#160; Round 6&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;5:00pm&#160;&#160; Round 7&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sat, 03 Sep 2011 12:45:39 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2488873/2011-hawaii-state-chess-championships</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2454505/great-open-house-today-</guid>
      <title>Great Open House Today!</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;There are signs all around, that the real estate market in my area is recovering.&#160; Today I held an open house at an older home near the Mililani golf course and had the largest turnout I have seen in at least a couple of years.&#160; We may have multiple offers coming in.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Mon, 15 Aug 2011 06:25:00 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2454505/great-open-house-today-</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2383444/a-home-inspection-and-a-boat-sinking</guid>
      <title>A Home Inspection and a Boat Sinking</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;In the real estate business you never know what to expect.&lt;/strong&gt;&#160; Every transaction has unique challenges and twists.&#160; The other day, I added another new experience to the list.&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;My buyers' home inspection included the fire department coming out to assist the tenant whose boat sunk at the dock.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;B &lt;/strong&gt;- Bring&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;O &lt;/strong&gt;- Out&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;A &lt;/strong&gt;- Another&lt;strong&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;T &lt;/strong&gt;-&#160; Thousand&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I arrived at the home to see a boat coming down the canal that was listing really bad to one side.&#160; The occupants were leaning out trying to balance the boat.&#160; They came up to the boat dock at the home we were there to inspect and yelled for help.&#160; The home inspector and I jumped on the boat to add weight.&#160; After a lot of scrambling, to get the bilge pumps working, bailing water and unloading gear, the stern went down.&#160; Fortunately the water was shallow enough that the stern and engines hit bottom, while keeping the top of the stern at the water level and the bow out of the water.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;After several attempts to bail and pump out the water, &lt;strong&gt;the fire department was called.&lt;/strong&gt;&#160; They brought with them a lot of experience and a larger pump.&#160; About three hours later they had the boat floated.&#160;&lt;strong&gt; The folks at the Honolulu Fore Department are truly an amazing bunch.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I feel bad for the tenant who will be spending a lot of time and money getting the engines back in working order after sitting in the salt water for about 4 hours.&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Before anyone asks, the home inspector was able to do a thorough home inspection despite the unexpected distractions.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Mon, 04 Jul 2011 07:27:27 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2383444/a-home-inspection-and-a-boat-sinking</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2325733/selling-a-home-in-hawaii</guid>
      <title>Selling a Home in Hawaii</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;My Marketing Programs are Designed to Sell Homes Better.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&#160;My Marketing Programs Include:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;A website for each home, with its own web address.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;A virtual tour including wide angle shots of your home.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;A consultation with a professional home stager/ interior designer.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;A complete valuation report of your home.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Copies of public records for your home.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Your listing posted on more websites than I can count.
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Also Facebook, the real estate blogs and Craig's List.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Regular open houses, including special broker's open for Realtors&#174;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Featured at regional Realtor&#174; meetings.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;E-mail marketing to top agents in the area.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Color Flyers&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;For sale sign, web address rider and brochure box in front of home.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Once We Have a Buyer?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I will present to you all offers immediately.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Research every offer for potential complications and inform you.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Help you find other professionals (surveyors, handyman, contractor, escrow officers, etc.)&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Give you guidance on pricing and negotiate on your behalf.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Draw up any needed documents during the purchase process.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Explain all documents to you.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Open escrow and ensure you are protected through the purchase and in the future.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Alert you know when you may need opinions from other professionals. (CPA, attorney, contractor, etc.)&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;strong&gt;Here are a few facts about using me as your Realtor&#174;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;You are getting Century 21 Liberty Homes top agent for the last several years.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I am the regional chairman for the Honolulu Board of Realtors&#174; (elected by my peers).&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I am a full time Realtor&#174;.&#160; Real estate is all I do.&#160; Selling your home is my highest priority.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I will guide you through the process, remove stress and keep you informed at all times.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Your interest comes first at all times.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I am highly trained agents in our area and teach classes to other real estate agents.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;Check out my website it contains real estate tools including a search engine of homes for sale listed on Oahu with Realtors.&#160; It also has my bio and blog site:&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Please feel free to interview me before making any decisions.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 31 May 2011 12:34:00 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2325733/selling-a-home-in-hawaii</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2310682/purchasing-a-home-in-hawaii</guid>
      <title>Purchasing a Home in Hawaii</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;I will make purchasing your home a pleasant experience.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Here are a few facts about using me as your Realtor&#174;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;My services for normally free to buyers.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;My most important job is to protect your interests.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;You are getting the top agent in our company for the last several years and the regional chairman for the Board of Realtors&#174;.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I am a full time Realtor&#174;.&#160; Real estate is all I do.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I will guide you through the process, remove most of the stress and keep you informed at all times.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I will help you find the home of your dreams.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I am one of the most highly trained agents in our area.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I teach classes for real estate agents.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;If I am Free to You, How do I get paid?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;I normally get paid by the seller and not the buyer.&#160; In most cases the seller's contract with their real estate agent, gives half of the commission to the buyer's real estate agent.&#160; If we come across a rare exception I will alert you up front.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;What are some of Tasks I perform?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Locate candidate homes that meet your criteria and set up appointments to view them.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Indentify any potential red flags in that property.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Help you find other professionals (loan officers, home inspectors, escrow officers, etc.)&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Provide you a market analysis and public records on any home you choose to make an offer on.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Give you guidance on pricing and negotiate on your behalf.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Draw up the purchase contract and any needed documents during the purchase process.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Explain all documents to you.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Open escrow and ensure you are protected through the purchase and in the future.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Alert you know when you may need opinions from other professionals. (CPA, attorney, contractor, engineer, etc.)&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Check out my website it contains tools for buyers including a search engine that can look up all homes listed on the island with Realtors.&#160; It also has my bio and blog site:&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Please feel free to interview me before making any decisions.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sun, 22 May 2011 15:31:00 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2310682/purchasing-a-home-in-hawaii</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2278660/buying-or-just-fishing-</guid>
      <title>Buying or Just Fishing?</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;In the last week, I have been received the following comments on a home I have listed for sale.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;How motivated is your seller?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Is that price firm?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Is there room on the price?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Isn't that price kind of high?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Is your seller flexible on the price?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Am I wasting my time if I offer ______?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This listing has attracted a lot interest.&#160; We had a great turnout at the first open house on Sunday and had several agent showings during the week.&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Here is the rub.&lt;/strong&gt;&#160; The comments above came from real estate agents who had not seen or shown the home to their clients.&#160; They wanted to start a negotiation sight unseen.&#160; Are you kidding me?&#160; You really want to negotiate price, before you see it?&#160; Is the price of gas gotten so high that you don't want to burn a gallon for a &#189; million dollar transaction?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;How about this?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Get in your car and show it to your client.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Check the comps.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Submit a clean written offer.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Whatever happened to professionalism?&lt;/strong&gt;&#160; They don't know if it's overpriced or underpriced?&#160; They don't even know if their client even wants it?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;So here is my response.&lt;/strong&gt;&#160; I present all written offers to my clients.&#160; Please show your clients the home and check the comps before you try and tell us we are priced wrong.&#160; The fact that a long line of people showed up at the first open house tells me, we can't be too overpriced.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Wed, 04 May 2011 14:25:41 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2278660/buying-or-just-fishing-</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <guid>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2196771/interview-questions-for-real-estate-agents</guid>
      <title>Interview Questions for Real Estate Agents</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The real estate market is beginning to pick up in many parts of the country.&#160; Many other areas have either bottomed out or appear to be bottoming out.&#160; Laws and guidelines are also going through many changes.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There are many opportunities for consumers in the real estate market.&#160; There are also many challenges.&#160; &lt;strong&gt;It is important to choose top professionals to avoid potential pitfalls.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The best real estate agent in your area generally cost the same as an inexperienced rookie.&#160; If you are a buyer, in most cases you will get their services for free and they will save you money and better protect your interests.&#160; As a consumer you are far better off to find the best.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;I have put together a few questions for interviewing a real estate agent.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Are you a full time agent or is this something you do on the side?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;What level of license do you hold? (broker or salesman)&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;How many years have you been in the business?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;What professional designations or certifications do you hold?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;What communities do you service and which ones do you specialize in?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;What services do you provide?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;(For sellers) What is you marketing plan for my property?&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Before interviewing an agent, check them out on the internet.&#160; Look at their website and read their blog articles if they have a blog.&#160; If they do not have an internet presence, keep looking.&#160; You need an agent who is not technology challenged in today's market.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When finding a loan officer you are looking for similar qualities.&#160; Your real estate agent can be a great resource for finding a loan officer.&#160; They know the best&#160;mortgage people.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;If you are looking for a real estate agent in your area and need help pre-screening them, I also provide that service at no cost to you.&#160; Please feel free to contact me anytime.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="agent_signature"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Randy L.&#160;Prothero,&lt;/strong&gt; REALTOR&#174;, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Century 21 Liberty Homes&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Randy Prothero&#160;is well established as an expert in working with&#160;military / VA clients and first time home buyers.&#160; His home seller's&#160;(listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy&#160;services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and the&#160;Leeward Regional Chairman of the Honolulu Board of Realtors.&#160;&#160;To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&#160;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&#160;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.HawaiiRandy.com"&gt;&lt;span&gt;www.HawaiiRandy.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; *&#160; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://idxpro.cisdata.net/AR221002/Search/quick/?IDXSESS=pkgvpornhhr50u11vtbn41oi46" title="IDX/ MLS Property Search"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&#160; &lt;span&gt;*&#160; &lt;a href="http://www.hawaiirandy.com/MilitaryRelocations.html" title="Hawaii Military Relocations"&gt;Hawaii Military Relocations&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description>
      <dc:creator>Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR&#174; (808) 384-5645 (Century 21 Liberty Homes )</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Sat, 19 Mar 2011 14:24:46 -0400</pubDate>
      <link>http://hawaiirandy.net/post/2196771/interview-questions-for-real-estate-agents</link>
    </item>
  </channel>
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