The Internet age is here to stay, and for most of us, that means changing the ways in which we approach almost every little task. This month's newsletter focuses on two technology topics: searching for homes on the Internet and setting up a home wireless network.

Internet Shopping for your New Home

The Internet has revolutionized the way homebuyers think and act as they pursue the home of their dreams. According to the National Association of Realtors, 77 percent of buyers use the Internet as their first resource in a home search. Recent figures indicate that nearly 30 percent of new homeowners first saw their purchased house online.

If you aren't using the Internet in your home search, you're missing out on one of the most powerful real estate resources available to consumers. Searching for homes online is easier than you might think, even if you consider yourself e-illiterate.

Identify Key Wants

Before starting any home search, buyers should first establish the home traits that they consider the most vital. A well-defined set of priorities serves as the basic guide for your home search. In general, it's advisable to have desired home specifications grouped into categories of importance (separating the "wants" from the "needs").

Knowing what you want is even more important when searching real estate on the Internet, because the sheer amount of information available can overwhelm unfocused buyers.

Scouting Location Location remains one of the most important factors in any real estate purchase as well as a highly personal choice. If you don't already have a specific district or two in mind, you can use online neighborhood data and community profiles to help narrow down your target areas. Compare current asking prices by neighborhood to get an early feel for market factors.

Pay attention to detail

One growing trend in online real estate is to display an impressive amount of details about the listing. Gone are the days when the most you could expect to learn are the listing price, number of beds, and number of baths. Depending on the thoroughness of the listing agent and the rules of the area, you can often learn a great deal about a home by reading beyond that first descriptive paragraph.

Look for the extras

Many online listings include galleries of additional photos and virtual tours of the home's interior and exterior spaces. Often extra listing features such as these can be a great way to get a better feel for a property from the comfort of your home. Online open house listings provide an additional means of learning more about individual properties.

Keep track of your favorites

Keeping tabs on the homes that interest you the most is absolutely essential. Print of listing details or flyers of your highest rated homes for a hard-copy reference. Whenever possible, save searches or favorite properties online to easily track available homes on the market. Tracking listings online can even help you catch crucial changes such as a sudden change in price or terms of sale.

Perhaps the most exciting thing about shopping for real estate online is the pace at which the technology continues to develop and benefit buyers. Ever improving features such as map-based searches and emailed search updates keep providing reasons to start the search for a new house with the click of a mouse.

Going Wireless at Home

In a time that places an increasing emphasis on staying connected, a funny thing has happened: the world has fallen in love with everything wireless. Walk into your local library, coffee shop, or even Laundromat and you'll likely find an armada of humming laptops, each connected wirelessly to a broadband Internet signal. Attracted by the flexibility and convenience that wireless connectivity affords, a growing number of homeowners and renters are putting this technology to use at home.

What is Wireless?

While wireless networking can take a variety of forms, the most popular and accessible to the average consumer are "Wi-Fi" networks. The term "Wi-Fi" (sometimes called "wireless fidelity") refers to certain standards of wireless local area networks (WLANs), which are most commonly used for Internet access. A local Wi-Fi network gives wireless-capable computers or PDAs connection to the Internet when in range of an access point. The area covered by one or more access points is commonly called a wireless "hotspot".

In basic terms, a standard broadband Internet connection (such as Cable Internet or DSL) is converted into a broadcasted wireless signal using either an external device or capabilities built into the cable/DSL modem itself. The receivers in wireless ready devices then pick up the signal. A home Wi-Fi network lets everyone in the home share files, printers and a single Internet connection.

Does a Wi-Fi network make sense for your home?

The practicality of a Wi-Fi network in your home depends on the ways in which you and your family use the Internet. If your home has several computers in remote locations, a Wi-Fi network can save you the headache that comes with hours of stringing cable across the house. For those with mobile devices such as a PDA or notebook computer, a Wi-Fi network cuts the tether of standard Internet connection and gives you the freedom to work or browse from anywhere in the house.

If you aren't using the Internet in your home search, you're missing out on one of the most On the other hand, if your home Internet needs are confined to one computer, a Wi-Fi network probably doesn't make sense unless you anticipate adding a second desktop or notebook in the future.

Basic Setup

If you do decide to set Wi-Fi up at home, the process is relatively painless:

• The Internet connection (DSL, ISDN or cable modem) connects to the Wi-Fi gateway. Some modems have built-in Wi-Fi broadcast capabilities, while others will require connection to a separate Wireless Access Point device.
• Once the modem and wireless access point are set up and running, laptops with internal or slide-in wireless cards will be able to access the network. Desktop computers can be connected to the network via slide-in PC wireless cards or by using wireless devices that plug into the USB (Universal Serial Bus) drive.
• If multiple desktops share a similar location, you may consider using a wireless router (hub). These devices receive the wireless signal from the access point, and can connect multiple PCs.
• During the setup of the wireless access point, you should be prompted to create an encrypted password for the network. Make sure you enable all available security measures to protect the data transferred via the Wi-Fi signals.
• A single computer attached to one of the desktop or laptop computers enables all of the computers on the network to send print jobs wirelessly (provided that the host computer is turned on). In addition, you may now purchase Wi-Fi print servers or a printer with internal Wi-Fi capabilities.

Georgia Prudential Realty

(678) 313-4018

www.gaflproperties.info