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Jon
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CEO and publisher of LuxuryRealEstate.com John Brian Losh said, “The Executive Committee serves as council to me and my staff on the direction of the Board of Regents program. They consult on new program concepts and help identify new markets.”

The following Regents will serve  through May 2010:

Campaign Statement (in 200 words or less):
"I joined Perry&Co. in 2002 as the Director of Technologies, which was a perfect fit after 14 years as Owner of VideoLogical Productions, a video and web production business during which I wrote and produced over 100 real estate training videos and dozens of real estate company websites. I am a second generation Denver native and a second generation Realtor®.

"In my current position at Perry&Co. as Vice President, my responsibilities include staff management, relocation, training, and IT. I am active in Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate as an Executive Director on the Board of Regents, and the Denver Board of Realtors’ Ethics Committee. I routinely teach technology classes to the Who's Who members. I am also an active blogger - my "Information For Realtors" articles can be read at 3033997777.com. 

"My goals as a DBR Director are to uphold the highest standard of Realtor® ethics, foster the greater use of technology, and promote Denver in the international markets. 

"I hope you take the opportunity to introduce yourself to, or Google, your candidates to learn more about each of us."

DBR members, primary or secondary, in good standing will elect three Directors for three year terms. The DBR Director election will take place July 15, 2009. The following candidates have been selected by the Nominating Committee.

• Jetta Brouker, ZipRealty
• Tony Cline, Cliffdwellers
• Greg Geller, Vision Real Estate
• Jon Larrance, Perry&Co.
• Charles Roberts, Your Castle
• Ellen Smirnoff, Keller Williams DTC
• Vafa Sohi, Luxe Group

Congratulations to all the candidates!

Check out the Denver Building Department website for more info on the Home Renovation Bonanza" and what type of work qualifies.

2/19/09 - The IRS' ARRA of 2009 expands the first-time homebuyer credit to include purchases made before Dec. 1, 2009.  Click here to see The National Association of Realtors' full breakdown of the 2009 First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit

The IRS announced Feb. 25 that for first-time homebuyers who purchase in 2009, the maximum credit is $8,000 (with no payback) and can be claimed on a buyer's 2008 federal tax return.  The credit is claimed using Form 5405. 

Please contact me with questions of how you can benefit from the First-time Homebuyer Tax Credit.

Colorado House Bill 1091, requires all homes offered for sale in Colorado on or after July 1, 2009, that have a fuel-burning heater or appliance, a fireplace, or an attached garage to have an operational carbon monoxide (CO) alarm installed within 15 feet of the entrance to each room used for sleeping purposes.

This bill also requires the Listing Contract disclose to the Seller, that all homes offered for sale in Colorado on or after July 1, 2009, that have a fuel-burning heater or appliance, a fireplace, or an attached garage to have an operational carbon monoxide (CO) alarm installed within 15 feet of the entrance to each room used for sleeping purposes.

Landlords: It also requires rental property that has a change in tenant occupancy on or after July 1, 2009, that has a fuel-burning heater or appliance, a fireplace, or an attached garage to have an operational carbon monoxide (CO) alarm installed within 15 feet of the entrance to each room used for sleeping purposes.  The new statute however does not require landlords to change the batteries or maintain the CO detectors after they have been properly installed.

To that end, Perry&Co. established its “Internet Lead Team.”  Most real estate companies have a system for addressing internet leads but we think ours’ is unique.  Most of our competitors’ systems rely on handing the lead down an assigned chain.  Such that if the first person in the chain doesn’t respond in 10 minutes, the lead gets handed to the next person in line, and so on and so on.  When a lead comes though the Perry&Co. system, a text message gets sent to all the members of our Internet Lead Team.  The first respondent receives the lead.  On average, five agents respond to the lead notification text message within 30 seconds.  Thus the consumer is responded to regularly within two minutes of submitting a request.  This response comes from a licensed Perry&Co. real estate professional, not some third party virtual assistant who is contracted to incubate leads.

The Perry & Co. Internet Lead Team is committed to the following principles: To always have their email enabled SmartPhone on their persons, and to responding to any lead within minutes – no excuses.  The members of this team are specialists in utilizing the latest technologies available to today’s real estate professional.

Don’t misunderstand us, the business of real estate is still all about relationships.  But how people foster and cultivate those relationships has changed dramatically.  Rest assured that we recognize that behind every internet lead is a human being who is asking for service.  At Perry & Co. we are committed to providing a unique customer experience, one which emphasizes extraordinary service.

When Perry & Co. was selected to become the exclusive Denver Regent for the Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate Board of Regents, we were given the opportunity to appoint our company Associate Regents.  Our criteria was well-defined; Perry & Co. Associate Regents were chosen primarily because of their knowledge of the global luxury real estate market. 

Luxury properties require innovative marketing strategies in order to target the ultra-discriminating buyer.  The lessons learned by working with luxury real estate sellers, and buyers, can only be had through this specialized experience.  Additionally, Perry & Co. Associate Regents are committed to networking with the most elite luxury real estate professionals regionally, nationally and internationally.  Because of their understanding of real estate markets around the world, they think of themselves as being Global Realtors.  In fact, twice a year at the LuxuryRealEstate.com conferences Associate Regents from all over the world get together to talk about their markets and their luxury clients’ particular needs.  These relationships are crucial in exposing local luxury properties to potential luxury buyers worldwide.  Perry & Co. Associate Regents have the ability to look at the big picture.  They have the ability to tailor their services to the individualized needs of their clients.  Perry & Co. Associate Regents are simply the best of the best.

Perry&Co. Real Estate Professionals has been “A Denver Tradition” since 1971, and we’ve had the same phone number during every one of those 37 years of real estate business.  We are the experts in Denver real estate.  Our customers know that they can talk to a person they trust by dialing 303-399-7777.  Why should online be any different?  When you visit our Blog you are carrying on a personal dialogue – we’re talking.  It only seems natural that our blogsite should be an extension of our telephone number.    

You can always visit our main website at perryandco.com to search properties for sale, search for global luxury homes, meet our agents, find open houses, use our easy mortgage calculator, and much more.  But, now with our blogsite you can find out what we think about current market conditions, or our area neighborhoods.  You can learn about our commitment to the community or what our agents really think about their listings.  We also talk about our alliances and how we market luxury properties globally through LuxuryRealEstate.com.  We’ll even give you an occasional human interest story about what our staff is up to.

Another great thing about our blogsite is that it affords you the opportunity of commenting on what we’ve posted.  In fact, we urge you to tell us how we are doing, and if you agree or disagree with what we’ve said.  We promise to respond to you in a timely manner.

Alas, if the phone number address still confounds you… our same blogsite can be found at perryandco.wordpress.com. 

Everyone at Perry&Co. looks forward to hearing from you.

1. Opportunity: Obviously, there are amazing deals on real estate available to your Buyers.  Prices are down and sellers are getting increasingly desperate.  Now is the time to move investment money away from the stock market and into real estate.  Enough said.

2. Opportunity: This is the perfect time for real estate professionals to increase their real estate portfolios.  With all the foreclosures, the rental market is on the upswing.  Put your existing equity to work for you.  If you can pull together a down payment and cash flow a new property for the next five years, then you have a no-brainer. 

3. Opportunity: When other real estate companies are busy down-sizing and letting go of all but their top producers, Perry&Co. is encouraging expansion.  We’ve been selective, and thus have saved a few open desks for this transitional time of year. As always, we are seeking career Broker Associates who are interested in making a move to a traditional boutique real estate company.  Perry&Co. is “A Denver Tradition” – a history dating back to 1971 – we currently have three offices and the same independent ownership since first opening our doors almost four decades ago. Nevertheless, we are technologically savvy, Perry & Co launched its first website (perryandco.com) in 1996.  Today Perry & Co. boasts an in-house intranet, blogsite, Exchange Server, Blackberry Server, VPN/Terminal Server, and a fully unified messaging system.  Our exclusive membership on the Board of Regents for Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate is also something we are quite proud of.

Big business real estate companies are falling by the wayside.  Hobbyist real estate agents are turning to other past-times and letting their real estate licenses lapse.  Once again, the public is turning to seasoned real estate professionals to help them navigate these troubled waters.  The time is now to be that trusted source for all things real estate.  Don’t wait until after the stimulus package is in place to act.  Interest rates may not drop any lower.  Call everyone you know and tell them about all the amazing opportunities available in real estate right now. Also, if you position yourself through blogging, social networking and other relationship marketing strategies, you will be another step ahead of your competition when the market does turn around.  Lastly, call Perry & Co. at 303.399.7777 to learn more about all we have to offer you.

In these tough economic times, real estate agents are getting back to the basics – gone are the days of “spray and pray” marketing.  Relationship marketing has always been one of the fundamental real estate basics. Relationship marketing is all about targeting your marketing efforts to people you already know – you know their likes, dislikes, needs, life situation, etc.  Real estate professionals lost sight of this during the boom years of the early 2000’s because it seemed everyone was buying and selling real estate, the secret was hitting the consumer at the right time – it was a numbers game and spray and pray marketing worked to that end.  In the “old days” real estate professionals fostered their relationships through phone calls, dinner parties, email and direct mail.  Today, savvy agents are utilizing social networking sites in order to achieve the same results.  And it’s working!

The beauty of social networking sites is that you can foster a far greater number of relationships equivalent to the amount of time invested. LinkedIn, for example, automatically calculates the number of people in your Network of Trusted Professionals – for every 100 connections in your “trusted friends and colleagues” category, you will see close to 4,000 “friends of friends” within two degrees of separation.  With that being said, thousands of potential clients, or referral sources, are privy to the message you present through your online profile.

Given that there are so many social networking sites, here is a breakdown of some of the more popular sites to help you get started:

• Facebook – Although Facebook is primarily a more personal, rather than professional, site, its advantage is in visibility – meaning more people are going to see what you are up to.  By keeping your message professional you will get noticed above all the prevalent mindless garbage. Another advantage of Facebook is that you are privy to the daily goings-on of your sphere - this knowledge provides you instant conversation topics for the next time you see them or talk to them on the phone.  Don't forget to taut your successes (without being too boastful), over time this will have an impact on your FB sphere.
  
• LinkedIn – LinkedIn is considered the professionals network.  It’s been said that members will browse other members connections in order to understand someone’s reputation – thus your clout comes from who you are associated, or “connected,” with.  LinkedIn is also advantageous in that it provides the members with slightly more personal anonymity than Facebook.  After you've established your profile and contacts, you find that there is no need to update your status every day, or even every week, because your profile isn't visited as frequently as on Facebook and your past statuses aren't visible anywhere.  Instead, take advantage of Group Discussions to get noticed. 
  
• Twitter – Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to stay connected through the exchange of frequent answers to one simple question: “What are you doing?”  We've all seen that Twitter use has exploded in the past couple months.  Twitter provides greater transparency and more timely information. Again, keep your message professional and you will get noticed.  My experience is that there is a direct correlation between the number of people you follow, and the number that follow you.
  
• ActiveRain – Specific to real estate professionals, ActiveRain’s real advantage is in its blogging capacity.  Because of its size, the search engines love ActiveRain, thus the general online public will see conversations you have within the network to a greater extent.  Good news for those who made a blog post on ActiveRain before 3/16/09 - you will be grandfathered on the free platform as ActiveRain moves to being a paid blogging site.  I've noticed recently that ActiveRain salespeople are monitoring usage - so don't be surprised when you get a 'random' phonecall from one of them while using the site trying to upsell you to RainMaker.
  
• Inman – Being part of Inman Real Estate News, the Inman community provides its members with continual relevant news from top real estate professionals around the country.  Like ActiveRain, Inman has blogging functionality built into member profiling.  Also keep yourself informed on the latest trends in real estate by signing up for the Inman News feeds.
  
• Trulia - The Trulia Voices Community is a place to share what you know with other expert agents.  It encourages you to participate with other community members by blogging and answering questions.  When the public stumbles upon your profile they can judge your credibility by your blog entries, etc.  My experience is that blog posts on Trulia receive the most readership of all the real estate blog sites.  Don't forget to link your listings up to your profile by entering in your MLS ID number.
  
• Realtor.com - Did you know Realtor.com offered blogging capabilities?  You'd be foolish not to publish your blog on the number one visited real estate website in the world!
  
• MySpace – Don’t dismiss it as just a site for teenagers and college students, there are currently 2,500 results under “Denver Real Estate.”

Obviously, there are many other social networking sites gathering momentum these days (Bebo and Flickr to name two more) all of which have their own nuances. I hope this article gives you the courage to dive deeper into a social networking platform that suits your individual style.  Remember, it’s all about relationship marketing – same concept, different venues.

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P.S. I participated in a panel discussion with Jim Walberg and Bruce Hiatt which was moderated by Victor Lund of the WAV Group entitled “The Power of Social Networking: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Blogging Tactics of Top Luxury Professionals” at the 2009 7th Annual Luxury Real Estate Spring Retreat. 

Click here to see the FACEBOOK&LINKEDIN TIPS from the Panel Discussion.  Click here to see the BLOGGING TIPS and here for the TWITTER TIPS.  Read the conference attendee’s Reviews of the Panel.

In fact, Perry&Co is also a distinguished member of the Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate Board of Regents. The Board of Regents is an exclusive network of the world's most elite luxury real estate brokers. As the Exclusive Regent in the Metro Denver marketplace, Perry & Co. has a relationship with a worldwide community of real estate experts comprised of 85 brokerage firms representing more than 600 offices and 1,700 luxury real estate professionals around the world. Each Board of Regents member is selected based on their qualifications and commitment to the Luxury Real Estate brand. Brokers selected to serve on the Board of Regents provide leadership in their communities and the highest level of personal service and commitment to their clientele.

Having a network like The Board of Regents is crucial to the successful marketing of luxury properties. As a Perry & Co. agent, or client, you are afforded an instant marketplace for your luxury property anywhere in the world.  This word of mouth is crucial, however all Perry & Co. listings over $500,000 are displayed on LuxuryRealEstate.com.  In addition, we syndicate all of our listings to over 22 other top global real estate sites, including Realtor.com, Trulia, Zillow & Yahoo Real Estate. Combine this with our Denver Metro presence through perryandco.com, and thousands of IDX websites, and you can be confident that Perry & Co. listings are seen on the internet by virtually anyone on the planet who’s passionate about luxury real estate.

“We work hard getting to know the other Regent companies personally, so that we can refer a client moving to another city to them with the assurance that they will be treated with the same level of integrity and professionalism that we’ve built our reputation on,” says Jon Larrance, Vice President of Perry & Co., who sits on the LuxuryRealEstate Executive Committee.

There is another key that improves Perry & Co’s interconnectedness, and that is our associations within the Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate Board of Regents exclusive network.  As stated in the earlier blog, Perry & Co = International Exposure, “Perry & Company works hard getting to know the other Regent companies personally, in order that we can refer a client moving to another city to them with the assurance that they will be treated with the same level of integrity and professionalism that we’ve built our own reputation on.”

We’re specialists in Denver Metro real estate, but when you are buying or selling property anywhere else on the planet, let us introduce you to the expert in your new destination – that’s Global Realtor Screening.