Kling Publications

As banks grapple with growing numbers of foreclosed homes, they’re trying new exchange programs and other novel ways to dispose of foreclosed homes. The problem is that such practices may be ill-advised and even fraudulent and illegal. Read full story.

Mortgage fraud is increasing the fastest in areas where foreclosures are the highest and home prices have fallen the most. Criminals are heading to distressed housing markets to employ foreclosure rescue schemes and other fraudulent plots, such as “flopping” or selling homes at deflated short sale values then quickly selling it for a higher price. Read full story.

Canadian home prices have reached an all time high. Some experts expect the real estate bubble will burst. Others think housing markets up north will cool down and avoid a collapse. Read full story.

Fewer home loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration were serious delinquency rate of mortgages last month, a hopeful sign for FHA mortgages.

Some mortgage experts were concerned about FHA home loans becoming delinquent after FHA loan originations exploded in recent years. However, the latest delinquency figures indicate the FHA is through its worst period and problem is under control. However, the latest delinquency figures indicate that the FHA is through its worst period and problem is under control. Read the full story.

Baby boomers have changed everything they’ve touched by their sheer numbers. Now they will create a home remodeling explosion as they sell their older homes and retire, predicts a study from the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University.

The new homeowners will be young, wealthy and eager to renovate the homes to suit their own needs and tastes. The FHA 203(k) home renovation loan may come in handy.

The mortgage and housing markets have been through difficult times over the last few years. Credit, debt-to-income limits, and down payment requirements all became more rigorous. Here are several reasons why mortgage qualifications guidelines will remain stringent this year.

Michael Kling has completed all the required courses to attain Web Business Certification through eClasses.org, which is affiliated with the International Webmasters Association. Courses that Michael completed to attain the certification include: Search Engine Optimization, Web Content Writing, Promoting Websites, and Understanding WordPress.

In Search Engine Optimization, Michael learned about search engine ranking factors, developing an SEO plan, link-building campaigns, and measuring success.

In Web Content Writing, Michael learned about effective web writing techniques, creativity in web writing  and measuring the results of improved writing through web analytics.

Promoting Websites covered  planning a website, pay per click advertising, content marketing, publicity, social media marketing, directories, and sig files.

Understanding WordPress covered using the WordPress dashboard, working with widgets and plug-ins, using PHP to customize themes, and marketing and monetizing blogs.

Michael has completed other courses through eClasses.org, including hyper-text markup language (HTML), cascading style sheets (CCS), and Website Design.

Michael is a member if the International Webmasters Association and HTML Writers Guild. He is currently a web content writer and editor for Total Mortgage Services in Milford, CT. He is president of Kling Publications, a firm that specializes in public relations, editorial and web content services for mortgage and other financial services companies.

Michael Kling has completed a six-week course in search engine marketing through the HTML Writers Guild. The course covered selecting the best keywords, link-building strategies, analyzing competing websites, syndicating articles, blogging as an Internet marketing strategy, social marketing, and other advanced SEO techniques.

 Creating excellent content is the best way to increase your website traffic. That doesn’t mean mass-producing filler articles filled with what’s already commonly known or tons of useless software-generated gibberish. Every company seeking a real presence on the Internet needs a good writer who understands their industry.

I am now editing and writing web copy and writing blog posts for Total Mortgage Services in Milford, CT. Visit www.totalmortgage.com/blog to learn more.

The rush is on for local online marketing. Most people search online for a local business before they pick up a phone book, yet fewer than half of small business have websites or advertise online, according to Nielsen Online.

If Horace Greeley were alive today, he would say: “Go local, young man.”

“There’s an increasing sense of urgency around having an effective online marketing strategy,” a CEO on an online ad agency told Business Week.
The Internet marketing industry is ready to help the mom and pop stores that want in Internet presence. Microsoft’s Bing has beefed up its neighborhood and business listings. Google enhanced and renamed its Local Business Center to Google Places. Businesses in a handful of cities can pay Google $25 a month to have their listing show when Web searchers check their area.

Instead hiring large big-city advertising agencies, small business will want to work with small, local experts who are more affordable, understand their communities and will take the time to meet their needs.

Local search is one of the most underused yet most effective Internet market strategies, said Jon Schepke of http://searchenginewatch.com/3641176″>Search Engine Watch. Out of 16 billion searches every month, one in five is local.

Plus, local searchers are more likely to make a purchase.

In addition to using pay-per-click advertising and search engine optimization, he says, businesses need to

• have local listings with the major search engines,
• make sure their information is up to date,
• use photos and videos to promote their brand,
• optimize profiles with customized fields with informative descriptions,
• track online performance with web analytics, and
• encourage customer reviews.

“The marketers who fully embrace local search,” Schepke writes, “are enjoying a competitive edge.