Mountain Views News          Saturday, February 28, 2015

B5

BUSINESS NEWS & TRENDS

Mountain Views-News Saturday, February 28, 2015 

FAMILY MATTERS By Marc Garlett


GET THEIR ATTENTION

There are many reasons to feel pressured to sell, be it a job transfer, family medical issues, or 
financial hardship. This is when you face cold hard facts about your home's value and what you 
can expect to net from your sale. Understand that what you paid for your home years ago has 
no relevance today, and a buyer won't pay a premium price simply because that's what you owe.

If your home is now worth less than what you still owe, it may be time to call your lender and 
arrange listing as a "short sale." Your lender will indicate the lowest price they'll accept, and you 
can begin your aggressive marketing. A short sale will blemish your credit rating, but not as 
badly as a foreclosure would.

If you're not experiencing such financial hardship, but still facing a deadline to sell, then you 
need to discuss the Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) that your agent prepares, and price 
your home below the average sales prices listed. That's "sales" prices, not "listing" prices. “Expired” 
listings educate you about the prices for which homes did not sell under any circumstances, 
so pay attention.

Realize that an underpriced home will seem like a bargain, and attract more interest and qualified 
buyers. It's always better to sell lower sooner than have to reduce your price and sell lower 
later.

PRESERVING YOUR DIGITAL LEGACY 

JUST GOT EASIER


As our lives become increasingly intertwined 
with the internet, more and more of our assets are 
developing in, or converting to, the digital world. 
We own email accounts, domain names, hosting 
accounts, blogs, social media accounts, cloud 
storage, apps, ebook libraries, and more. As such, 
a big part of my job is educating clients on how 
to preserve and manage the digital assets of their 
loved ones when they die or become incapacitated. 

 It’s no surprise Facebook also understands the 
emerging importance of digital assets and just 
released an exciting new tool to help friends and 
family manage the wall and profile of a deceased 
Facebook user. Before this change there were only 
two options: 1) Keep the page public, in which 
case anyone could post on the user’s wall, or 2) 
have the page “memorialized” so only “friends” of 
the user could post on the wall. But either way, 
without the user’s password loved ones could not 
accept new friend requests, update pictures, or pin 
important information on the user’s wall.

 Last week, however, Facebook announced they 
will begin to allow a designated agent to manage 
a deceased user’s page, wall, and profile. From 
now on all Facebook user’s will have the option 
to choose a “legacy contact” - a family member or 
friend the user wants to be able to manage their 
account after they pass away. Alternately, a user 
can opt to have their Facebook account deleted 
immediately after they die.

 This is what Facebook had to say:

 Today we’re introducing a new feature that lets 
people choose a legacy 

contact—a family member or friend who can 
manage their account 

when they pass away. Once someone lets us 
know that a person has 

passed away, we will memorialize the account and 
the legacy contact 

will be able to:

- Write a post to display at the top of the 
memorialized Timeline (for 

example, to announce a memorial service or share 
a special message) 

- Respond to new friend requests from family 
members and friends 

who were not yet connected on Facebook 

- Update the profile picture and cover photo

If someone chooses, they may give their legacy 
contact permission to 

download an archive of the photos, posts and 
profile information they 

shared on Facebook. Other settings will remain 
the same as before the 

account was memorialized. The legacy contact 
will not be able to log in 

as the person who passed away or see that person’s 
private messages.

Alternatively, people can let us know if they’d 
prefer to have their Facebook 

account permanently deleted after death.

If you are a Facebook user, you can make a loved 
one your legacy contact by following these simple 
steps:

- Log into your Facebook account and open 
Settings. 

- Choose Security and then Legacy Contact at 
the bottom of the page.

- After naming your legacy contact, you’ll have 
the option to send them a personal message. 

To you family’s health, wealth, and happiness,

A local attorney, father, and CASA volunteer 
(Court Appointed Special Advocate for Children), 
Marc Garlett is on a mission to help parents protect 
what they love most. His office is located at 49 S. 
Baldwin Ave., Ste. G, Sierra Madre, CA 91024. 
Call 626.355.4000 to schedule an appointment to 
sit down and talk about ensuring a legacy of love 
and financial security for your family or visit www.
GarlettLaw.com for more information.

IF YOU BUILD IT, WILL THEY COME? 

Some people believe that building a web site is all that 
is needed to start a thriving, prosperous business. 
“If I build it, they will come! I will make millions.” 
I’ve yet to see that happen. I believe in having a great 
attitude, but basing your business strategy on a 
Hollywood quote doesn’t make sense to me. 

 What makes sense is to build a web site full of 
quality information, blog on a consistent basis and 
come up with content on the right tools that link 
back to your site. Using tools that drive traffic like 
Constant Contact, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter 
will help you get people to your site.

 Are you posting links to your site or blog on 
social media? If you use email marketing, does your 
banner and images link to your web site? We are used 
to clicking on images. If you use Pinterest, do your 
original images link to your web site? 

 The bottom line: As you distribute content on 
the web, you want to make sure that there are links 
throughout the copy and on images that lead back to 
you. 

 Promote your site at every touch point in your 
business (on and off-line), then they will come.

 About MJ: MJ and her brother David own 
HUTdogs, a creative services business that specializes 
in Internet Marketing strategies and Social Media. 
They offer social media management services and 
help their clients build a strong on-line presence. 
“Like” them on Facebook for trending news in social 
media, internet marketing and other helpful tips, 
www.facebook.com/hutdogs.

 

 Sign up for their upcoming classes and presentations 
at: www.hutdogs.com/workshops/schedule 


Square Footage Taped: 5,215 Lot Size: 21,600 
5 Bedrooms / 6 Baths Year Built: 1948 
Offered for sale at $5,188,000 
See more at www.2285Robles.com 
OWNED AND OPERATED BY NRT | Pasadena South Lake Office 
©2015 Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. Coldwell Banker is a registered trademark licensed to Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. 
Owned and Operated by NRT, Incorporated. Coldwell Banker does not guarantee the accuracy of square footage, lot size, or other information concerning the condition or features of property provided by the 
seller or obtained from public records or other sources, and buyer is advised to independently verify the accuracy of that information through personal inspection and with the appropriate professionals. 
Exclusive Listing Agent 
“tink” 
CHENEY 
Catherine “Tink” Cheney 
Previews Estates Director 
Cell: 626 233 2938 
tinkcheney@earthlink.net 
www.tinkcheney.com 
CalBRE# 01173415 
2285 Robles Avenue, San Marino 
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