Dear Readers:
I heard a tragic story yesterday. A young woman had finally saved up enough money to rent a house. She went online, found the perfect place, wire transferred her deposit, and two days before she was to move drove by her new place and noticed a moving truck unloading furniture into “her new home.”
Turns out she had been the victim of the latest Internet scam that is sweeping the country — people renting property they do not own. The scammer had downloaded the real owner’s information about the property on the web and posted the property for rent on a rental website that doesn’t do any verification. The young woman was used to finding what she wanted on the Internet and didn’t want to bother her friend who was a real estate agent.
The poor woman is out over three thousand dollars, and has to start over building back her “nest egg.”
There are just some things you shouldn’t do on the Internet and renting or buying real estate is one of them. You can search the Internet for properties, but once you’ve narrowed down your choices go to a licensed real estate broker to help through the process. Even when you are renting the seller or the landlord pays the broker’s fee, and no matter how small the fee, the realtor is happy to help. He/she has made a potential client for life.
I can give you more horrifying stories when it comes to people opting for the convenience of the Internet, and the convenience ending up being nothing but an inconvenience or worse. I have a rule of thumb. If what you are looking for requires a professional license to do for a living — hire a professional. Insurance agents, real estate brokers, architects, engineers, doctors, lawyers, etc. all spend years to obtain a license. There is a reason for it.
The same goes for discounters you find on the Internet. Buying the “home of your dreams” using the Internet and a discount broker will end up being a dream alright — “A Nightmare.”
Upcoming Events: I am excited about my next speaking event at the
Charleston Library Society in late March. If you live in the Charleston area I hope you will come by and visit. Search my website
webbhubbell.com for other events in your area. At events like these I get so much feedback on my books and almost every time I make new friends or catch up with old friends, or both. Contact me at
[email protected] to inquire about me speaking to your organization, institution, or book club.
Social Media: People ask am I on Facebook or Twitter. For the longest time I resisted but in these days and times it’s the cost of being an author trying to let people know about your books. I have an author page on Facebook, please go to and like it if you do. I also have a Twitter account that I hope you will follow. I try to regularly post on both about my books and my meditations at The Hubbell Pew although on occasion I stray onto other topics.
Books: The award-winning Jack Patterson Thrillers, including my latest, A Game of Inches are available for birthdays, thank you gifts, and just to be nice presents. Autographed copies are available at my website, webbhubbell.com. Amazon and Barnes & Noble are selling hard copies and eVersions, and local independent bookstores either have them in stock or can get books from my publisher, Beaufort Books. If your favorite bookstore has run out, ask them to order you a copy today.
A Favor To Ask. After you read A Game of Inches and if you enjoyed it like so many who are saying “this one is the best of the three” please write a review on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, Powell’s, or Goodreads website even if all you do is award it five stars.
A second way to help is to drop by your local bookstore and suggest they carry all three of the award-winning Jack Patterson Thrillers: When Men Betray, Ginger Snaps, and A Game of Inches.
Most importantly, tell your friends, your book club, and your business organization what many are writing — that it is a “must read” and “one of the top summer reads.”
Charitable Organizations. I donated twenty books to the Charlotte Library so promising Pages could read my book. If your organization is having a silent auction or needs a door prize please let me know. I heard this last week that the three book series autographed went for $300 at a silent auction. I always set aside a number of my books for charitable events.
Until my next post all the very best and don’t forget to order and then review A Game of Inches. Webb
