To Sell to Gen-Y, You Have to Meet Them Online

More than that, she confirms recent news reports that suggest people in her age group are using social networking to make many big-picture decisions, including renting an apartment, buying a car, getting married, buying a digital camera or buying a house.

Today's teenagers will grow up using the Internet to connect their social and business interactions. This clock can't be turned back.

Whether you work in real estate or some other business, here are some things to think about if you're going to dabble in Web 2.0:

· Social networking takes time. Connecting online can help build your business, but it takes awhile -- and time generally is in short supply for real estate agents.

· Be flexible. You can start with a plan but be prepared to make changes along the way. Be willing to try out new groups, change your profile and add features and content.

· Stay attuned to new technology and Web sites. New social networking sites pop up all the time. Most of them won't make it. But if you're among the first to sign up, you'll be able to get a jump on making connections.

· The more connections, the better. LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, your other social networking sites and your blog can all be linked together to help you build a strong online community. Create links from one to another. Connect Twitter and your blog so that they automatically upload to the other sites. Try to get your friends, colleagues and online connections to try out your other sites.

You don't have to be a technical genius to make this work. Most of the social networking sites we have joined make it easy to get started, upload written content, photos and video, and get going.

Don't get me wrong: I'm not suggesting these are uncharted territories by any stretch of the imagination. There are thousands of real estate agents and mortgage lenders who have signed up for these sites and are spending time trying to forge connections that will bring in business.

What's becoming clear is that you've got to be there, or you may be left behind.

Q I have a Veterans Administration loan and want to do a streamline refinance, which I've done before. I can't find what I believe is a true source of current VA loan rates. I've been to Bankrate.com and don't see the information I'm looking for. Can you help me find this information and choose the best lender? I also have a home equity line of credit that I would like to roll into the streamline refinance. Is this possible?

A Many lenders that offer conventional loans may also offer VA loans. But most VA loan rates are not advertised the same way conventional loan rates are advertised.