Huge List Of Free Search Engine Marketing and SEO Tools
Nowadays, almost anyone can build a website. Free online services make it easy for even the non-technical user to create one. But, what do you do after building and launching a website? How do you get it noticed? How do you distinguish your site from another?
The answer is to come up with an SEO strategy. SEO or Search Engine Optimization is the process of improving the volume or quality of traffic to a web site from search engines via natural search results. Of course, the process involves a number of steps: researching the web, monitoring your competition, tracking your online stats and anticipating your target market’s search engine habits. Sound impossible to take on?
To help you get your website to the top of the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs), we take a look at Free SEO tools, techniques and resources available for either download or online use.
Free Keyword Tool
Software and Downloads: These will help you create or modify other existing add-ons, among other things.
Traffic Travies
Free Market Research SEO and PPC optimization tool
Traffic Travies is a free to download software which covers many aspects of SEO. It’s an all-in-one SEO tool that combines market research tools, SEO and Pay-Per-Click campaigns, optimization tools and competitor research tools.
Keyword Tumbler
Keyword Research Marketing Tool
Here’s a freeware tool which takes an existing phrase and creates several new variations. It mixes the words in the phrase and gives you all possible variations. A useful tool to get a list of possible search engine phrases.
Keyword Pad
Keyword List Generator
A more advanced keyword generation tool with many useful options. With Keyword Pad you not only generate keywords list, but can also manipulate them–remove duplicate keywords, sort keywords, remove unwanted words and characters, find and replace a term, merge lists etc.
Primitive Word Counter
Keyword Density Calculator
Primitive Word Counter is a valuable SEO tool which calculates the density of a keyword in a given paragraph. After finding the density you can also save the result in .csv format. Completely free to use, no installation required.
Keyword Analyzer
Free tool for keyword gathering and result estimation
With this tool you can compare the competition against the demand of a certain niche. Keyword Analyzer takes your main keyword, generates a list of 100 related keywords and then shows you the number of searches for that keyword on popular Search Engines like Google, MSN and Yahoo.
SEO Surf
SEO Analysis Tools
This tool allows the users to shortlist, follow up and manage potential link partners, eases backward link management and finds keywords related to the base keywords. Users can get time based reports and export them to html. A useful tool for novices as well as experienced Search Engine Optimizers.
Xedant Keyword Harvester 1.1
Keyword Harvest Tool
This tool harvests information from the top 10 web pages which appear in a search query on Google against one or many keywords. The information includes Keywords from Meta Keyword Tags, Web Page contents, Title Tag, H1 to H5 Tags and Image Alt Tags etc.
Online:
Google Keyword Tool
Free Keyword Tool
Google Keyword Tool is a free tool from Google which gives ideas about new keywords. It takes a keyword, phrase or a URL of a web page and gives out a list of related possible keywords.
Search-based Keyword Tool
Keyword Tool with additional Functionalities.
This tool has all the properties of above mentioned Google Keyword Tool plus it generates keywords as well as landing page ideas highly appropriate and specific to the given web page. It also helps you identify advertising opportunities that are still unused in the AdWords ad campaigns of user.
Keyword Density and Word Depth Calculator
This free online tool helps you to determine a keyword’s density and depth measurement. Keyword Density Analyzer takes URLs, Keywords and Stop Words as input and outputs the Word and Character Density as well as whole Keyword Density.
Niche Watch11
Niche Keywords Research Service.
Here’s a free competitor analysis tool which gives you output against a keyword. This online tool gets a keyword or phrase and gives you an analysis of the top 20 competitors against that keyword.
Google Suggest Keyword Suggestion Scraper Tool
Keywords Suggestion Tool
This tool gets keyword from users and grabs the top queries from Google Suggest, Google search result counts, and links them to the SEO Book keyword suggestion tool to give users a list of Keyword Suggestions related to the original one.
Free Keyword Suggestion Tool
Keywords vs Search Volume Estimator
Free Keyword Suggestion Tool takes a keyword from users and generates a list of Top 100 related keywords. Along with the list, you’ll get an estimate of the daily search volume against each of the keywords. It comes with an Adult Filter feature with options of “Remove Offensive” and “Remove DubiousRemove Dubious ” keywords.
Keyword Suggestion Tool - Keyword Popularity Tool
Keyword Suggestion along Popularity.
Another helpful keyword suggestion tool, which also informs you about the most popular combinations. Some of the features include Search for related terms and common misspellings, Seasonal Search Trends, KEI Analysis and Keyword Density Analysis.
Browser Plugins:
Google Semantics 2.2
Firefox Add-on
This Firefox add-on helps you get a synonym for a keyword during a search on Google. This is also known as Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) and is a vital element in Search Engine Optimization and article writing.
Alexa Toolbar
SEO Toolbar
A handy SEO toolbar for Internet Explorer users. This SEO toolbar has features that let you view the stats on any site you visit: related links, traffic trends, Alexa traffic ranking and more. Definitely a tool to check out.
SearchStatus 1.29
Firefox Toolbar Extension
SearchStatus is a free extension for Firefox. Check how every website in the world is performing. For every site users visit, you can view its Google PageRank, Google Category, Compete.com ranking, Alexa incoming links, backward links from Google and more.
MetaTags 2.3.5.2
Firefox Sidebar Add-on for SEO
As a free sidebar add-on, MetaTags conveniently displays the meta-information of web pages like meta tags and links. This tool also helps in finding duplicate keyword phrases and few other SEO jobs.
Web Developer
Firefox, Flock, Seamonkey Extension.
Designed for Firefox, Flock and Seamonkey, WebDeveloper adds a menu and a toolbar to the browser with various web developer tools. It can work on several platforms including Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.
Ranking Tools
Web Tools: Ranking and related Tools
Web Tools is a compilation of links to free online SEO Resources. Get tools related to Search Engine tasks (Backlink Checker, Cloaking Checker, Google Datacenter Search etc), Domain Checkups (Alexa Traffic Rank, Broken Line Checker, Domain Lookup etc), and HTML tools (HTML Optimizer, Link Extractor etc)
PageRank Lookup
Page Rank Checker
Here’s a Google toolbar extension that allows you to check the PageRank for a website. Users can enter a list of URLs and it’ll return the PageRank value for each one. Find out which competing websites have a higher PageRank value, a higher traffic rate and a higher search engine position.
Rank Checker
Search Engine Ranking Tool
It becomes an easy thing to check your search engine rank with a Search Engine Ranking tool. Rank Checker requires only that you create a free account before using the tool. It takes Web Pages and Keywords from users, returns search engine rankings and then stores them for easy comparison later.
Check Google Pagerank
Positioning Estimation Tool
Another easy-to-use, free tool for determining the rank of a page in a typical Google search. Check Google Pagerank facilitates your page rank without the need to install a Google toolbar in your browser.
Google Rankings
Ranking Tool for popular Search Engines.
There are a number of different search engines users can use. This tool provides you with an easy and efficient way to check the Rank of a website in one or all of the most popular search engines online including Google, Yahoo, MSN and Ask.
SEO Rank Tool
Ranking and Backlink Tool
This is a simple, yet powerful tool. Use the SEO Rank tool to easily check your website’s page rank, back links and much more.
Rank Checker
Ranking Checking Tool for Firefox
Rank Checker is a free extension for Firefox. It allows you to use your browser to easily check your site’s rankings in Google (both US and international), Yahoo, and Microsoft Live search. According to the developers “This tool is designed to be quick and easy to use, but to also give you the opportunity to gain the level of insight needed to compete with other SEOs at the professional level”.
goRank
Professional SEO Ranking Tool
goRank offers you free SEO tools including a keyword rank tracker, keyword density analyzer and link popularity checker. The site also contains several useful articles related to SEO.
Monitoring Tools:
Alexa Site Information
Website Monitoring Tools
This free site lookup tool allows you to enter the URL of your website and get detailed information and insight on your site’s performance. Find out your traffic stats, other related site links, keywords and demographics.
Site Meter
Real Time Reporting Tool
Learn more about your audience. As a real time website tracking and counter tool, Site Meter is an easy to install tool for users looking to better understand who is visiting their Websites, where users are coming from and where they are going within the site.
Traffic Estimator
Google Traffic Estimation Tool
Here’s a simple and powerful free tool from Google. Traffic Estimator takes keyword lists, daily budgets, target language and locations, and gives you the quick traffic estimates for new keywords without adding them to an account or using the AdWords sign-up wizard.
BackLink Watch
Backlink Checker
BackLink Watch is a powerful tool which takes the URL of a website to get complete detailed information about the quality and quantity of backlinks pointing to the website. It’ll show “anchor” text, pagerank, total outbound links on that page, and nofollow flags for each of the inbound link available.
Quantcast
Website Evaluation Tool
Quantcast is a decent tool for understanding your website’s value to advertisers or, for SEOs, taking a peek under the hood of your competitor’s site.
SEO for Firefox
Page Ranking Extension for Firefox
SEO for Firefox pulls in many useful marketing data points and makes it easy to get a whole view of the competitive landscape of a market.
SEO Trail
Search Engine / Social Networking Performance Monitoring Tool
SEO Trail is an SEO Tool for Search Engine as well as Social Networking Tracking. It monitors how well a site is performing across various indexing and ranking platforms.
GoingUp
Document and Image Converter
With GoingUp, you can find out about your visitors, where they came from, what pages they visit and what technologies they use. The GoingUp dashboard can be customized to show relevant information about a given site’s performance.
Pingdom GIGRIB
Website Monitoring Tool
Here’s a website monitoring tool which checks for a website’s up and down times. If this sounds like a tool you can use, you’ll need to be signed up with the GIGRIB monitoring network.
SEO Monitor
Video and Audio Format Converter
SEO Monitor is a is a stats system which updates user stats every 7 days and adds updates in the Pagerank , pages indexed and backlinks.
Website Optimization Tools
Social Poster
Social Bookmarking Tool
Social Poster is a tool which allows its users to automatically submit their prepared tagged articles with a link to target resource to a large set of social bookmarking sites.
Google Analytics
A popular free tool from Google. It gives you important insight about your own website traffic. Get informed on how users interact with your site and optimize on it.
Social Marker
Social Bookmarking and Promotion Tool
Social Marker is a free tool designed to quickly bookmark a website across 51 of the top social bookmarking sites out there. You can use this tool to help promote your site. Social bookmarking sites include: Digg, Reddit, Delicious, Twitter Spurl, Sphinn, Technorati, Fark, Google Bookmarks, Slashdot, and much more!
Website Optimizer: Website Testing and Optimization Tools
Website Optimizer is another free tool from Google which helps you test and optimize the content and design of your site. You can increase revenue and ROI quickly and easily, whether you’re new to marketing or not.
Web Page Analyzer
Website speed Test
Web Page Anaylyzer is a website speed analysis tool. Input the URL of your website to calculate the page size, composition, and download time as well as the size of individual elements. The tool sums up each type of web page component. It also offers advice on how to improve page load time based on the results generated.
Copyscape
Anti Plagiarism Tool
Copyscape is a free tool to check whether your website contents are being copied. It makes it easy to find duplicate content on the Web that is ultimately stealing your audience. All you have to do is type in the URL of one of your webpages and Copyscape will find sites that have copied your content
Search Engine Spider Simulator
Spider Simulation Tool
Here’s a free and simple tool which helps you to simulate a Search Engine by displaying the contents of a web page exactly how a Search Engine would see it. It also displays the hyperlinks that are crawled by a Search Engine when it visits the particular webpage.
Web Page Analyzer
This simple tool reads the page you specify, and puts it through a few basic tests to see if it qualifies as ’search-engine-friendly’ for the phrase specified. It then gives a report on the good, and the bad points of the page in SEO terms.
BuiltWith
Website Optimizer
Optimize, Track, Compete. BuiltWith is an optimization and tracking tool which speeds up your website SEO. It monitors the website for problems which could potentially cause you search engine optimization issues.
Sitemap Tools
XML-Sitemaps: Sitemap Generator
These sites helps users to create their XML, ROR, Text and HTML Site Maps Online. These sitemaps can be submitted to Google, Yahoo and other search engines to help them crawl your website better.
SitemapDoc
Google Sitemap Generator and Editor
To work with this tool all you need to do is type in your URL and the SitemapDoc tool will create a map of your site. Edit Last Modified, Change Frequency and Priority options for individual pages that can be reviewed as well.
AutoMapIt
Sitemap Creation Service
AutoMapIt is a collection of webmaster tools to help your web site do better in the search engine rankings. It produces site maps for websites including static pages, dynamic pages, blogs, forums, online product catalogs. AutoMapit makes sure that the website ranks quickly and is clear of any issues that push the search engines away.
GWebCrawler & Google Sitemap Creator
Source Code Web Indexing Engine
GWebCrawler & Google Sitemap Creator is a free site Indexing tool with must-have features: Include only if URL contains field, Exclude URLs containing field, URL variables to parse out, Create Google Sitemap XML file, and See the Queue list while processing etc.
Free Online Sitemap Generator
Sitemap Generator
This tool gets your website URL and optional parameters and generates a sitemap file-free of cost.
Free site map creator
Sitemap Creator Tool
Free site map creator is a free desktop application which is free and easy to install. It exports your directory structure to a file which can then be used to create sitemap of a website, or to print the contents of a folder.
XML Sitemap Generator
XML Sitemap Generator
This tool is a professional XML sitemap generator toll which allows you to automatically generate XML sitemaps for a website. With XML Sitemap Generator, you can keep up-to-date, edit your sitemaps, upload them to a web server and submit them to all search engines that support XML sitemaps.
Link Tools
In this category, you’ll find a number of SEO related research tools that can help you, as a website owner, with the research needed to optimize your web content. Track your competitors, find the most popular links, and get updated with emerging trends. The following tools will make it easier.
Back Link Analyzer
Link Popularity Tool
Back Link Analyzer is a free toll to check link popularity and also helps in link analysis. It give you reports explaining what anchor text is linking into a page or site
.
Yahoo Site Explorer
Back Link Checker
This free and powerful tool from Yahoo helps users to explore all the web pages indexed by Yahoo! Search. You can also view the most popular pages from any site. They can dive into a comprehensive site map, and find pages that link to that site or any page.
Quarkbase
Website Information Tool
Quarkbase is a database which stores information about websites website. On this site, you can share your user experience, express your views, connect to websites and find up-to-date information. Good for tracking your own and your competitor’s website.
57. Link Popularity
SEO Link Tool
This is a free Back Link Checking tool which generates a complete site analysis for the user. Get information on the amount of back links, indexed sites, and Google Page Rank for a site.
Link Popularity
Back Link Checker
Website popularity is becoming increasingly important, as many search engines are using this information as a ranking criterion. This Link Popularity tool by Addme.com helps you by informing you about the number of websites that link to your own.
BackLinks Analyzer Tool
Back Link Checker
This is another free Back Link Checking Tool. It takes an inputted URL, Link Type and Query Length and gives you useful information: Number of Links to a Domain, Number of Links to a Homepage, Pages Indexed, Deep Link Percentage, All unique linking domains and their IP addresses & unique c block addresses.”
SEO Link Cloaker Tool
Link Cloaking Tool
This SEO Cloaking Tool is free to download and allows you to cloak your links. According to its developers, “you can boost your click through rate by at least 200%”
Trend Analysis Tools
Trend Report
URL Comparison Tool
This free tool allows you to enter up to 100 URLs and then compare them on various rankings. You can also compare specific pages, in addition to the primary domain.
Trifecta
URL Strength Checker
Trifecta is a free tool which takes a website’s URL and gives you information about the number of sites/pages that link to the site, the number of times their brand is mentioned on the web and how much traffic their site receives.
Search Engine Saturation
Indexed Web Pages Finder
As a simple yet efficient tool, Search Engine Saturation takes a few website URLs and compares them against each other. The information provided back includes total number of pages in each search engines index, which of their pages are showing up in the search engines and how their competitors are performing in search engine results.
Webmaster Tools
SEO Tools for Webmasters
Another set of free tools from Google which helps you see how your site is performing in Google’s search results. You can troubleshoot potential site problems, build Google-friendly sites, ensure that Google can find all your web pages, drive traffic to your site, and remove pages from Google’s search results if needed.
Marketleap Search Engine Marketing Tools
SEM Tools
Keep up to date with new web trends, key words and popular links. Here are three free and helpful tools offered by Marketleap: Link Popularity Check, Search Engine Saturation and Keyword Verification Tools.
Mint
Web Site Analytics Tool
Mint is an excellent and easy to install tool. Highlighted features include breaking down a specified site’s activity from the past day, week, month and year as total page views and unique visitors. Check out the site and find out what else Mint can analyze about trends and websites.
Domain Stats Tool
Competitor Statistics
This tool is free and easy to use. It helps you track statistics about your competitor’s domains. Statistics include Alexa Traffic Rank, Age of the domains, Yahoo WebRank, Dmoz listings, count of back links and number of pages indexed in Search Engines like Google, Yahoo and MSN.
Keyword Forecast
Keywords Demographics Tool
This is a free to use tool from Microsoft adCenter Labs. It takes inputted keywords separated by semi-colons and predicts the impression count and predicts demographic distributions.
Hot Trends
Web Trends Analyzer
Hot Trends is a free tool from Google Labs and can be added as iGoogle Toolbar. Find out what’s on the public’s collective mind, the day’s top 100 fastest-rising search queries in the U.S., and what the search activity looked like over the course of a particular day.
competitor Research Tools
If you need tools to help you work with PDF files more efficiently, read on to find just the right add-on.
Web CEO
Search Engine Marketing and Optimization Tool
Web CEO is a powerful tool to use in the SEO industry. It helps you retrieve a list of keywords and key phrases that will bring the most targeted visitors to your site, optimize your web pages for top-10 positions, and manage pay-per-click campaigns from a single unified workspace.
Meta Search
Meta Search Tool
Myriad is an ad free Meta search tool by SEOBook.com. This search engine allows users to combine the results of Google, Yahoo, MSN Search and Ask Jeeves in one set of results. The results can be conveniently exported in a CSV file.
SEO Digger
Keywords Number Definition Tool
SEO digger is a free tool which allows users to study which keywords can be used to find a given domain in Google or MSN. It also lets to analyze any site and documents–both of users and their competitors.
Thumbshots Ranking
Search Engine Rankings Analyzer
This free application allows you to compare a keyword’s rankings from one search engine to another. You can also calculate the overlapping of links between the two sets of results.
SpyFu
Competitors Info Tool
As a free spying tool, SpyFu helps you determine which keywords your competitors are buying and which ones they’re optimizing their site for. You can compare websites and spot crucial strategies too important to pass up.
Compete
Analytics and Comparison Tool
Compete is a web analytics and comparison services provider. Build and optimize search marketing campaigns that create brand awareness, drive site traffic and increase sales. Its Compete Search Analytics tool helps you come up with new keywords to help drive traffic to any domain, identify gaps in user\s search strategy and track their performance against competitors and peers.
Google Insights for Search
Search Volume Comparison Tool
With Google Insights for Search, you can compare search volume patterns across specific regions, categories, time frames and properties.
Xinu
Page Rank and Back Link Aalyzer.
Get assistance with finding Ranks and Back Links about your website. Xinu also has additional options of showing or hiding syndication, validations, social bookmarks, ranking, backlinks, indexed pages, diagnosis, domain and screenshot.
Internet Archive
Texts, audio, moving images, softwares and web pages collections. Internet Archive is a non-profit organization which was founded to build an Internet library. Among other things, Internet Archive is a huge collection of archived web pages. Find out how old a website is, what it looked like in the past, and get ideas for your own .
In the end, articles, blogs and news about SEO tools, techniques and trends will help you to better understand the concepts of Search Engine Optimization. To that end, we have also include some of the top notch providers of SEO services for your review.
Blogs:
Search Engine Roundtable
SEM Blog
Search Engine Roundtable reports about the most interesting threads taking place at the Search Engine Marketing forums. Some of the most recognized names at those forums are listed and hence, Roundtable is able to report on these threads.
SEMLaguna
SEM and SEO Services
SEMLaguna provides Internet Marketing solutions and services and guarantee to deliver significant benefits to user’s business. Users can tap into SEMLaguna’s On-page and Off-page Internet Marketing experience that will help their brand your company and/or product.
SEOmozBlog
SEO and SEM Blog
SEOmozBlog keeps its visitors up to date with the most current News, Tips & Highlights from the search marketing industry with the daily SEO Blog.
Matt Cutts: Gadgets, Google, and SEO
Personal blog of Matt Cutts
Matt Cutts joined Google as a software engineer in January 2000 and is currently the head of Google’s Webspam team. This is how Matt Cutts introduces himself and where he gains his experience from. This is his personal blog with emphasis on Google’s role in SEO industry.
Michael Gray - Graywolf’s SEO Blog
Personal Blog of Michael Gray
This is personal Blog of Michael Gray. His experience in SEO includes his position as webmaster for a major specialty retailer involved in web development and website management since 1998. On his blog you’ll find out about search engines, SEO, SEM, the internet, business and the media.
Marketing Pilgrim
Internet Marketing News and Views
This site brings the latest news, rumors and reviews of all things related to internet marketing and online advertising.
Prone Advertising
Personnel Experiences Blog
Here is another SEO voice. This time the blog is about the personal experiences of Neil Patel in successful online marketing.
Online Marketing Blog
Internet Marketing Blog
This is TopRank’s internet marketing blog with highlights on digital PR, social and search engine marketing.
Search Engine Journal
SEO News Blog
Designed and maintained by Chris Pearson, this blog covers the latest news in the SEO and SEM industries.
Resource Sites
Webmaster and SEO Resources
SEO Resources
If you’re looking for resources with a personal voice, here’s a blog about several useful and important resources for web masters and SEO optimizers.
Beginner’s Guide to Search Engine Optimization
SEO Guide.
This is a guide providing an overview of the many processes, techniques and strategies used by professional search engine optimization specialists.
Search Engine Land
SEO News
If you’re looking for information and news on search engine marketing, searching issues and the search engine industry, check out Search Engine Land.
Search Engine Watch
Search Engines Tips
Search Engine Watch presents tips and information about searching the web, analysis of the search engine industry and also helps to site owners trying to improve their ability to be found in search engines.
PromotionWorld
PromotionWorld is a site for free search engine promotion, full of tips and tricks to help webmasters promote their sites for free!
Traffick
Web Portals Guide and Blog
Traffick charts the rise of search engines with a special eye toward the business side. Find out how the search engine marketing is changing and how everything and anything is sold and marketed using the internet.
High Rankings
SEO Forum
Here’s an SEO Forum with several Tips and Tricks, Techniques, Resources and Advices and Design and Usability information articles.
Search Engine Forums
Search Engine Marketing forum
On this site, you’ll find out persoanlly about Search Engine Optimization Techniques and Search Engine Marketing Industry Discussion Forums at JimWorld.
SEO Services/Blog
SEOmoz
SEO Services
>The Official site of SEOmoz which provides companies around the world with consulting, Internet marketing and search engine optimization services.
SEO Design
SEO Services
Site of SEO Design which specializes in organic search engine optimization services for Google, Yahoo, and MSN.
SEO and Social Media Marketing
SEO and SEM Service Providers
This is a website resource of SEO and SEM services providers SOCIALSEO.com. They claim to provide clients with clear Internet marketing strategies that increase traffic, link popularity, and website conversions.
Harvest SEO
Outsource Link Builders
Harvest SEO is a service provider for SEOs. They offer their services from very small businesses to outsourcing non-core business services.
SEO services by Outsourcing4u
Outsource SEO Services
Outsourcing4u is a UK based SEO organization that provides users with the best search engine optimization services and web-development work at a fraction of the price that they would normally pay in the UK, US & Europe.
SheerSEO
SEO Reporting Tool
Sheer SEO automates tedious SEO tasks including data collection and report creation and provides a clear and visual image of overall SEO performance of any Website. SheerSEO is a free tool that requires you to sign up. However, after an account is created, the SEO indications are monitored, and alerts are sent when changes occur.
Select the most suitable tools for you, build your knowledge level, and remain informed about the latest search engine trends and techniques. These tools will help you work your way towards the top of the search engine ranks. Get your website out there
How to Become Spokane’s Online Marketing Success Story
The National Association of REALTORS Annual Survey provided a few surprises for some. In addition to learning that sales fell, the average age of REALTORS went up and the number of NAR members went down, we also learned that only 73% of members are sure that they will still be in business for another two years. The average median income in 2008 was still only $36,700 for the industry as well. And here’s the kicker…
…According to the NAR annual report for 2008, “Members say that they received only four buyer or seller inquiries from their personal Internet site over the past year, which accounted for just 3% of their business.”
On the other hand, it is common knowledge, as reported by RISMedia, that those that are able to transition into being Internet real estate agents continue to make six figure incomes and that those agents receive about 80% of their leads and their business from the Internet.
How people are shopping for homes in Spokane
It is apparent that not enough agents have got on board the Internet marketing bandwagon. According the the NAR annual report, 80% of home buyers are not finding the traditional real estate agent still using only the traditional print marketing techniques. As reported by the NAR’s annual 2008 report, Internet real estate agents:
- 70% or more of their leads and sales come from their online efforts
- They average at least a home sale monthly from those efforts
- They average more than $100,000 a year in commissions from Internet real estate sales
- Does the property have good bones and just need a face lift? Structural upgrades such as a new roof, siding, plumbing or heating, rarely raise the resell value enough to make a significant return on your investment. Giving the home a face lift with features such as remodeling the bathroom and kitchen are great ways to increase the value of the home.
- How much should I list the property for? Keep in mind recent home sales in the area and base your price around them. Don’t raise your home’s value more than 15% above the area’s median home price. To determine a general selling price follow this basic outline:
Projected value – Total cost of renovation – 5-10% unexpected costs = Your Maximum offer - Will the projects pay off? Simple and inexpensive ways to improve the value in the home are painting, upgrading light fixtures, installing new doors, to list a few. As mentioned before, remodeling kitchens and bathrooms are great ways to bump up the value of your home.
- Are you willing to work? To make improvements cost effective, you should do the renovations yourself. There are a ton of how-to websites that can help you through the process if you are not the prototypical handyman type. Check out www.hometips.com or www.ehow.com
- Can you get the money? Make sure that you have the funds for the down payment and necessary renovations. Also have a few months of the mortgage payment saved in reserve.
- Be 18 years of age or older.
- Complete a 60 clock-hour course in real estate fundamentals. Clock hours must be completed within 5 years prior to application for examination. A list of approved real estate courses are available in the real estate course catalog.
- Obtain a Candidate Handbook, which contains the examination application, from the course provider. Have your school stamp and complete the required information on the Examination Application. To schedule an exam, contact the provider of our Real Estate examinations, Promissor, at the toll-free number provided in the handbook.
- Pass the examination. Those who pass the exam will receive information on how to apply for a license. Results are valid for one year from the date of passing the examination.
- Complete and submit the Real Estate Salesperson, Associate Broker, or Branch Manager Application with the appropriate fee.
Here’s the thing, the real estate must realize that they can succeed as a Internet real estate professional if they can acknowledge that they can they attract prospects online and then must develop those prospects into buyers with their selling skills, their local knowledge and high level of service.
Every successful Internet agent knows that you must be found online by searching for homes in your town. It is typical to find only 5-15 percent of visitors to your website are willing to sign in or register to use your site so in order to succeed, you must be willing to follow through. According to NAR’s 2008 annual report, only 50% of agents call back leads within 54 hours. That means that 50% of agents never make the call.
To learn more about how Spokane Real Estate Marketing can help you, Call or e-mail us today. One of our local Spokane Marketing Specialists will get gladly help you get your online marketing strategy prepared.
Investing in Real Estate
The value of a home is very strong over an extended period of time (The National Association of REALTORS®) making the purchase of a real estate investment a wise decision if you follow a few investment guidelines:
Beyond the 5 major areas of real estate investing, there are some minor tips that can assist you in your endeavors. Know when local marketing conditions are right. In a perfect world the community would have a low unemployment rate, consistent job growth, a strong economy, and not a great deal of new construction homes. We are not in a perfect world and obviously not in a perfect economy. One thing is sure that it is a buyer’s market and there is a wide variety of single family homes that can be bought at a “steal”.
Interest rates and tax write-offs are two things that you as a real estate investor must be aware of. The majority of the time interest rates will be higher for real estate investors but they can be off-set with added tax write-offs. Take advantage of property tax returns beyond the standard tax returns and interest returns. Some areas to write off include home improvements, house insurance and the depreciation on a residential home. If you have additional questions on these matter, than contact your accountant or a local accounting professional.
Spokane foreclosures, Spokane short sales, Spokane REO and Spokane rentals are all potential investment gold mines when purchased at the right time. The time is now so do some heavy research and start making extra cash today. Spokane Real Estate Marketing has included some helpful links to find more information in your area of interest.
Spokane foreclosures: www.foreclosure.com
Spokane short sales: www.short-sale-specialists.com
Spokane REO: www.usreoproperties.com
Spokane Rentals: www.rentals.com
Tax Returns
Owning a home comes with the responsibility of paying additional taxes but there are ways to save when it comes to property related taxes. Be knowledgeable of mortgage interest deductions, property tax deductions, capital gain exclusion, preferential tax treatment, mortgage reduction and equity loans.
Home mortgage interest is deductible on your income taxes if you itemize. For more information on the legal aspects of this process check out www.allaw.com.
As residents of Washington, 1st time home buyers have additional tax breaks. The Spokane Real Estate Marketing blog tells more in the latest post: 1st Time Home Buyers Get Your $8,000 Tax Credit Now!
When Should I Buy
When is the right time to buy?
Current economists have had a hard time predicting if the real estate market has hit rock bottom. Some say it has, yet some say the best time to buy is just around the corner. Either way you look at it, by the time economists agree on this, the opportunity will be something of the past. There are plenty of signs that point to now being the right time to buy: current mortgage loans are at all time lows, there are a variety of homes to choose from in your specific price range and most homes have already dropped in price a great deal. Delaying purchasing a home will delay financial benefits of home ownership. The long-term investment of owning a home has a good return. According to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), over the last 30 years a home’s average appreciation was 6%. Trends point to now being a great time to buy, but is it the right time for you? Analyze the local real estate market by keeping an eye on local blogs, community real estate sites and by talking to a real estate professional in your area.
Real Estate Trends to keep an eye on:
Are the real estate prices in your area of interest increasing, decreasing, or relatively stable?
Has there been an increase in foreclosures in the area?
Is your current rent close to the amount you would spend on a mortgage payment?
It is a buyers market with low mortgage rates, a variety of homes to choose from and great deals on priced reduced homes. If your personal finances are in good standing, your job situation is secure, and you have researched the market in your area, than you are ready to take advantage of the current buyers market.
Buying a Home
1. Budget – The necessary expenses in purchasing a home include: down payment, earnest money, and closing costs. There is more to purchasing a home than just the initial costs though. Post-purchase reserve funds and extra cash are highly recommended to prevent disaster.
2. Mortgage Loans – Contact a local lender to find the best mortgage rates and the program that is right for you. To have a better understanding of how a mortgage loan works, take a look at the four major components: Principal, Interest, Taxes, and Insurance (PITI). The principal is the amount of money that you borrow from the lender. Depending on the principal, the interest rate will be a fixed rate or an adjustable (ARM) interest rate. Use a mortgage calculator to get a general idea of how the interest rate will affect your monthly costs. The amount of taxes is assessed as a percentage of the property value. For example, the median property tax in Spokane County Washington is $1,702 (home priced at $163,700) A homeowner’s insurance policy protects you from financial losses on your property that might result because of fire, wind, or other hazards.
3. Approval Process – Pre-qualification is a step that can be taken to have an idea of how much you will be able to qualify for a loan. The amount of money that will be lent is based on your tax returns, credit report, and other factors. Getting pre-approval is the next step closer to the purchase of the home and is a firm commitment in with a loan amount that is good for the next 60-90 days.
4. Finding a Home – Know what you want and what you need in a home. Prioritize and make a list of things that you can’t live without. A REALTOR® will be able to help you save time and money when conducting your home search. In today’s market, most sellers will pay the commission for you to work with a REALTOR®. It is a win, win situation for the buyer (you)! Working with a REALTOR® allows you to have access to the Multiple Listing Service, or MLS. This list of homes for sale will update when new houses go on the market and the REALTOR® will notify you of any newly listed homes that meet your interests.
5. Sealing the Deal – Making an offer will be simplified with the help of an experienced REALTOR®. They will help you present an offer and counter the seller’s offer, if necessary. Earnest money is usually given to the seller as a cash deposit on the home along with the presented agreement. This money can be used towards the purchase of the home if the buyer follows through with the offer. Concluding the process, the buyer and seller sign the purchase & sale agreement. Then you are ready to get those keys and move into your new home!
1st Time Home Buyers Get Your $8,000 Tax Credit Now!
By now you should be aware that Spokane first time home buyers have the opportunity to be “gifted” up to $8,000 if you meet the qualifications of not owning a home within the past 3 years. This $8,000 was thought to be a great way to stimulate the economy but approximately half of 1st time home buyers don’t have adequate funds for their down payment. The original plan for this stimulus package was to have the $8,000 as a tax refund, so the money would not be able to be used until after filing a 2009 tax return.
Washington REALTORS® believe that it would better serve today’s home buyers if that money was accessible now! Wouldn’t that be nice to have your $8,000 tax refund early for closing? Your cries have been heard; a bill to make it possible is currently being reviewed by Governor Gregoire and waiting to be signed. The time frame for approval is about 30 days. This bill would give first time home buyer’s their tax refund now in the form of a short-term loan, or a bridge-loan. It would amend the State’s approved biennial operation budget creating a new Tax Credit Advance Loan Program. The loan would be courtesy of a $25 million deposit from the State Treasurer to the State Housing Commission. This short-term loan would be automatically repaid once your taxes are filed.
Washington is the first state to propose this creative plan and it may be just what the housing market has needed. There is great potential for this economy boosting program to catch fire and pass throughout the nation. What better place to start with than locally and what better time than now!
How to Become a Licensed Real Estate Agent
Becoming a Real Estate Agent in Washington State is not easy. There is no quick way or shortcut to getting your Real Estate license. If you are considering obtaining your real estate license in the State of Washington, you will need to know and understand the following Washington State requirements:
To be licensed as a real estate salesperson, you must:
Additional Resources
See the Washington State Department of Licensing for the latest updates to fees and licensing requirements.
How much does it cost to obtain your Real Estate License?
Examination
Re-examination
Original license
License renewal
Late renewal with penalty
Duplicate license
Certification
Name or address change, transfer, or license activation
$138.25
$138.25
$146.25
$146.25
$172.75
$26.50
$26.50
No Fee
New Customer Special
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Support
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