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We all have way too much to accomplish each day and feel that multi-tasking is the only way we'll ever achieve all we have on our plates.  Well, the following article explains that multi-tasking isn't all that it is cracked up to be.  In fact, multi-tasking can actually make activities longer to accomplish, your retention is reduced, and you are creating stress and damage to your brain.  Don't take my word for it, read the following copy from an article written by Doreen Stern aka The Life Doctor about this topic.  

Put everything else down while reading this.  It will make you feel better about the success of single tasking vs multi-tasking...

Do you read email while talking on the phone? Talk on the phone while emptying the dishwasher? Read while watching TV?

Sure. Doesn’t everyone? That way you accomplish twice as much. Or so the theory goes.
If only it were so. In reality, when you multitask things take up to four times longer to accomplish, along with a higher error rate. “Multitasking is a trap, declares the acclaimed science writer Dr. Stefan Klein.

Where did the idea of multi-tasking come from? So-called productivity experts pushed the concept of multitasking based on how computers work. Picture yourself sitting at your computer writing a report. At the same time, you’re downloading music. In computer-speak, you’re using Microsoft Word in the foreground, while the download is occurring in the background. Two things are happening at the same time, enhancing your productivity.

Except your computer is actually doing only ONE thing at a time, just so fast it appears as if it’s doing both tasks simultaneously. Your computer switches back and forth between tasks several thousand times per second. So fast that no information nor time is lost.

How is your brain different from a computer? Our brains can problem-solve in ways that computers cannot, yet our brains don’t have the capacity to switch back and forth between activities without losing the information currently in working memory.

If you interrupt a task you’re engaged in, even for a minute by picking up your ringing telephone, whatever you were focused on before you picked up the phone is lost to your working memory. As you check to see who’s calling, the data currently in the forefront of your mind disappears. If you want to pick up the thread again, you have to reconstitute it retrieve it from long-term memory — or look for clues in your environment, such as checking the notes you made about what you were working on.

What’s so bad about multitasking? Studies conducted at both Harvard and the University of Michigan suggest that multitasking does a lot more harm than good. People who spend time stopping and starting tasks take 2 to 4 times longer to complete them and make significantly more errors. Further, brain scans showed juggling tasks reduces the brain power available for each activity. Worse yet, multitasking causes stress: making your brain juggle activities and retrieve lost information causes you to feel harried and anxious. Over time, stress hormones from multitasking can damage memory centers in the brain.

What steps can you take?
- Resolve to do only one thing at a time.
- Make a list of your key priorities.
- Break each priority into manageable chunks that you can accomplish in short periods of time (less than 20 minutes).
- Set the alarm on your cell phone for 17 minutes and focus on one small part of the project.
- Congratulate yourself when you complete that chunk.
- Get up and take a short breather. Stretch and look out the window. And drink a glass of water, because drinking water reduces stress.
- Then recommit yourself to completing another chunk or decide to do something completely different. Consciously choose how you spend your time.
- By choosing to focus on only one activity at a time, you’ll get a lot more done and feel happier, too.

Words to live by!  Have a great February!  Don't forget Valentines Day guys!

The following information is from an article provided by Reuters News on Tuesday of this week (1/19/2010): 

The Federal Housing Administration will raise the minimum down payment for its least credit-worthy borrowers, agency announced Tuesday.

Borrowers with credit-rating scores below 580 will be required to put down at least 10 percent. Those with a credit score above 580 will be able to continue to put down only 3.5 percent. The changes are intended to shore up the agency's finances.

The FHA also will increase its upfront mortgage insurance premium from 1.75 percent to 2.25 percent. The agency is expected to seek congressional approval to raise annual mortgage insurance premiums, paid by borrowers over the life of the loan, above the current 0.55 percent maximum. The amount it will seek has yet been announced.

While you should keep your credit score in good standing anyway, it is critical to do so if you plan on taking advantage of the benefits of an FHA home loan.

Be safe out there!

Mike 

When you think about "staging" your home prior to showings, furniture and furnishings are the primary items that come to mind that must be properly positioned for the greatest appeal to potential buyers.  However, your walls are a key element as well as they can be a canvas of the greatesta attributes of your house.  After all, the furniture and furnishings will be gone when the new owner moves in.  The walls however will still be there.

Debra Gould, president of Six Elements Inc offers five rules of thumb which are great for consideration when prepping your home for showings.  I will however take some exception with one of her rules.

1.  Condition of the walls.  If they are dirty, chipped, or beat up in any way, this can be a distraction to a potention buyer and can reduce the perceived value of your home overall.  Putty and paint are the cheapest investments you can make and can bring the greatest return on investment.  Freshly painted walls of a neutral color (not boring) will help maintain or even increase the value of your home.

2. Hang Mirrors.  No matter the size or shape of a mirror, there is one for every style of home.  Mirrors are a great way to visually enhance a room and even make it look brighter.  They can be a nice little extra or can be a focal point of a room.  Remember point 1 above, a mirror will reflect the good or bad of a room.  Mirrors also are an inexpensive investment to increase appeal.

3. Artwork.  Find artwork that supports or accents the qualities of a room.  Don't go with overly religious or offensive (suggestive or violent) pieces.  Be sure it isn't hung too high and visually relates to the furniture under it.  Artwork can help enable a potential buyer's eye to move around the room and take everything in.

4.  Stay in proportion.  Whether you are placing mirrors, artwork, or other hangings on your walls, consider the overall effect before hammering a bunch of nail holes in the wall.  Small items can get lost on large walls and oversized prints can be overbearing on smaller wall space.

5. Personal pictures.  Here is where I don't totally agree with the "experts".  They claim family portraits, diplomas and awards should come down as they tend to be distractions from the house.  I maintain that a conservative number of these personal items make a house feel "homey". I believe potential home buyers want to know that this house has had a lot of "love" in it and that families have been comfortable living here.  I actually prefer a few family items on the walls and tables vs cold, empty walls the make a house feel like a building and not a home.  Again, just my opinion.  Let me know what you think!

Thank you for taking the team to read my blog.  I will be submitting more each month throughout the year.

Have a safe and successful 2010!

Mike

October home sales results and what does it mean to  you...

Existing Home Sales Growth

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports existing home sales grew again in October making it the seventh straight month of increase in existing home sales. The NAR reports that sales activity in October is at the highest rate of growth since February of 2007. In the Midwest Region (including the Fort Wayne real estate market), existing home sales increased 14.4% in October and are 28.8% above one year ago. The median price in the Midwest was about the same as recent months at $146,600. This growth, as you would expect, is causing a decrease in the inventory of available homes.

Tax Credit Impact

With the original deadline for the initial first time home buyer tax set at the end of November, home sales accelerated to a frenetic pace in many parts of the country. The bad news about this of course is that December and January numbers will likely show a decline before another surge in the spring.

The NAR also believes however that there is pent up demand still out there, especially with the extension of the first-time home buyer credit and the new $6,500 tax credit for current home owners.

Low interest rates also continue to fuel home sales growth as we are seeing some of the lowest mortgage rates since 1971. The national average for a 30-year conventional fixed mortgage fell to 4.95% in October, down from 5.0% in September.

Inventory Decline

As I mentioned previously, the inventory level of available homes (including the Fort Wayne area real estate market) has fallen. The lower end home market appears to be tightening most of all. The supply of these homes is at the lowest level in over 2.5 years. Buyers and sellers in this arena are almost in balance.

Bottom Line for the Fort Wayne Real Estate Market

Now is the time to act if you have been “on the bubble”. While inventories have been shrinking, there are still plenty of homes for now keeping the prices down. Prices will increase as the inventory gets lower as time goes on. Interest rates are still near record lows, but have shown signs of increasing. The federal government is pulling back on investments which keep rate increases in check. Finally, we now have two tax credits which you should take advantage of before April of 2010. The first-time home buyer $8,000 credit was extended and there is the new $6,500 tax credit for current home owners who purchase a new primary residence.

Call me for more information and for details on the tax credits you may qualify for!

Happy Holidays!  Be safe out there!

Good Friday Everyone!  This is my first of many blogs on the topic of real estate to help you with the selling and or buying of your home.  While I focus on the Fort Wayne, IN real estate market, all the tips and information I will provide here will apply to residential real estate in all markets around the country.

Here is my first tease!  Call or email me for the latest market conditions in the Fort Wayne real estate market and let me provide you with a free market analysis as a first step in identifying the appropriate price range for your current home.  Also, I will inform you about the $6,500 tax credit available to current home owners!

First time homebuyers will benefit in contacting me as well as I can set you up with a reputable mortgage company who will provide you with the necessary pre-approval so we will know right from the start how much house you can afford.  Also, you can still take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit for first time homebuyers now through June of 2010.

Call me and let's get started!

Have a great weekend all! 

GO COLTS!!!!!!!