Labor Day deals kick-off summer clearance as stores prep for holiday

FatWallet.com, where millions of deal hunters go to stack coupons with cash back, presents a one-stop-shop to quickly compare the best Labor Day deals and coupons from hundreds of top retail stores. Early Labor Day sales bring the kick-off of summer clearance which coincides with Back to School clearance, as well as the clearing of other big ticket inventory, like major appliances, mattresses and furniture. Shoppers can reap savings to the tune of 20-80% on patio furniture, grills, tailgating gear, summer clothing and shoes, and a variety of items for the home as retailers look to make inventory room for holiday merchandise. FatWallet members will stack additional savings from increased cash back from dozens of top stores including Walmart, Home Depot, Sears and Overstock.

Lke President's Day and Memorial Day, retailers now lengthen Labor Day sales into a 10 day marathon resulting in some of the best prices of the year on a wide variety of items," states Brent Shelton, Online Shopping Expert from FatWallet. "September can be very fruitful to family budgets, if they know what to shop for."

Seven Labor Day and Seasonal Clearance Hacks:

1. Summer Clothing Clearance: The perfect opportunity to buy t-shirts, shorts, sandals, swimwear and sunglasses at the lowest seasonal prices from 50-75% off retail at both bigbox and branded stores like AERO, Levi's, Nike and PacSun.
2. Back to School Clothing and Tech Clearance: Hitting back to school clearance the last week of August during early Labor Dayevents can offer savings of up to 25% more than in August and July, including laptop deals and older cell phone deals in September (thanks to new iPhones).
3. Yard, Grills and Patio Furniture Clearance: Starting Labor Day and through September, home and garden items see huge discounting from 20% to 60% off, including savings on other accessories like seat cushions, grilling utensils and weed whackers. 
4. Appliances and Mattresses: To make room for new models, Labor Day sales offer 50% or more discounting on the big ticket home items, especially last year's appliances and mattresses (not refrigerators) - the lowest prices we'll see until Black Friday.
5. Fall Fashion: Waiting until mid to late September will pay dividends on buying fall fashion as sale pricing becomes more in focus on the items once summer inventory is cleared out, ramp up to 40% off by the end of the month on boots, jeans, jackets and sweatshirts.
6. Sports and Outdoors: Expect end of season clearance on baseball, golf, biking, camping and fishing and in season sale pricing for hunting apparel and gear from Cabela's, Walmart, Gander Mountain and Bass Pro Shops.
7. Holiday Travel Deals:  Best time to book in advance for Thanksgiving and Holiday travel (times, selection and price) as top travel sites offer up to 50% off on airfare, hotels and packages. TIP: Add cash back from more than 100 travel sites shopping through FatWallet and find insider tips for best rates, credit card hacks and stackable travel offers on FatWallet's Travel Discussion forum.

Coldwell Banker Real Estate, The Original Silicon Valley Startup, Celebrates 109th Anniversary

 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC proudly celebrates 109 years in business today. This milestone comes at an exciting time for the brand. Coldwell Banker Real Estate has built a stellar reputation for high quality service, and the brand is marked by professionals who instill trust in millions of home buyers and sellers across the country and around the world.

Consumer trust is in the brand's DNA. Colbert Coldwell, and later Benjamin Arthur Banker, founded the company to bring ethics and integrity back to the San Francisco real estate community after the turmoil of the 1906 earthquake. This vision continues to guide the company in 2015.

Today, the Coldwell Banker® network has approximately 88,000 agents working in 3,047 offices in 43 countries worldwide. In 2014 alone, Coldwell Banker participated in 705,322 U.S. real estate transactions, at an average U.S. sales price of $300,914, 17.8 percent higher than the National Association of Realtors average. This included 21,023 transactions over $1 million.

"We are obviously very proud of the legacy our brand has built over the years and are thrilled to celebrate 109 years in real estate," said Budge Huskey, president and chief executive officer of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. "Yet innovation is our true hallmark and we are fully focused on our continued leadership in this area going forward."

As an innovator in real estate, Coldwell Banker Real Estate continues to provide state-of-the art technology to support the home buying and selling process. Recent launches include a re-imagined seller-focused real estate website www.coldwellbanker.com, as well as a series of industry exclusive proprietary digital tools, including the industry's first "big data" listing app CBx and the integrated world class ZAP platform, provided through Realogy sister company ZipRealty. The brand also provides network support through Coldwell Banker University, one-of-a-kind experiential learning sessions and award-winning social media channels. Social media analytics service, Klout, has recognized Coldwell Banker Real Estate as the No. 1 real estate brand in social media.

About Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC

Since 1906, the Coldwell Banker® organization has been a premier provider of full-service residential and commercial real estate brokerage services.   Coldwell Banker Real Estate is the oldest national real estate brand and franchisor in the United States, and today has a global network of approximately 3,000 independently owned and operated franchised broker offices in 43 countries and territories with more than 88,000 affiliated sales professionals.  The Coldwell Banker brand is known for creating innovative consumer services as recently seen by being the first national real estate brand with an iPad app, the first to augment its websitewww.coldwellbanker.com for smart phones, the first to create a iPhone application with international listings and the first to fully harness the power of video in real estate listings, news and information through its Coldwell Banker On LocationSM YouTube channel.  The Coldwell Banker System is a leader in niche markets such as resort, new homes and luxury properties through its Coldwell Banker Previews International® marketing program delivering exceptional experiences for all consumers served.

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Back-to-School Shoppers Slowly Tackling Lists This Summer

As families artfully craft their back-to-school shopping plans around promotions and even their state’s sales tax holiday, it seems there is still quite a bit of shopping left to be done. According to NRF’s latest Back-to-School Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, the average family with children in grades K-12 has completed just half (50.4%) of their shopping, which is even with results from last year’s survey (49.9%).

“As expected, families are carefully measuring where, when and how they should spend on fall apparel items, school supplies, electronics and other necessities,” said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “Late summer promotions and sales tax holidays around the country are likely contributing to the delay in back-to-school shopping this year, which means the next few weeks could be exceptionally busy for retailers large and small.”

“Retailers, hoping to strike a chord with both budget-conscious and value-focused parents, will roll out hard to pass up promotions designed to capture the attention of those last-minute shoppers,” said Shay.
"As expected, families are carefully measuring where, when and how they should spend on fall apparel items, school supplies, electronics and other necessities."
Matthew Shay

Though fewer people this year admit that they have not yet started their shopping (19.5%) compared to last year (23.6%), it’s clear that most of those who have started shopping still have quite a bit left on their lists. A number of families, however, stated they already have everything they need for the first day of school with 13.3 percent saying that they have finished their shopping.

Coupons and promotions continue to resonate with today’s shopper, and the survey this year found that mom and dad certainly have done their own homework when it comes to the new supplies, apparel and electronic items on their lists: those who have already started shopping indicate that about half of their purchases (51.3%) were influenced by coupons, sales and promotions, down from 58 percent last year.

When it comes to classroom needs, the survey found parents are on the hook to contribute several items. On average, parents say that 64.4 percent of their purchases of pencils, folders and other school supplies are influenced by classroom lists or school requirements. In addition, 45.9 percent of their electronics purchases for back to school are influenced by the lists and requirements of their family’s schools.

“Given the extra costs some parents take on these days when it comes to stocking their children’s classroom, many will certainly look to take advantage of retailer’s sales and promotions as well as their state’s sales tax holidays as they wrap up their lists,” said Prosper’s Principal Analyst Pam Goodfellow. “More retailers than ever are in the back-to-school spectrum, so it won’t be difficult for mom and dad to find what they need wherever they shop, be it their favorite website for free shipping offers or their local drug store for last-minute deals on supplies.”

When asked what payment method families shopping for back-to-school used most often, 44.6 percent have or will use their debit cards, while others have or will swipe their credit cards (27.7%) or pay with cash (25.5%).

As for where consumers will finish their shopping, discount stores will see the most traffic (53.4%), while 46.8 percent will shop at department stores, 36.6 percent at clothing stores and 12.8 percent will wrap up at electronics stores; 27.2 percent will check out retailers’ best online deals, up from 24.8 percent this time last year.

In-store ads, coupons and promotions continue to be the big influencers for families shopping back to school. Parents say traditional media has the most impact, saying that coupons (43.4%), in-store promotions (35.3%) and advertising inserts (31%) influence them the most to shop at a particular store. Word of mouth (21.5%) and television ads (19.4%) also make a difference.


Families Shopping for College Necessities Waiting for Late-Season Deals, NRF Survey Finds

College shoppers are delaying the inevitable and waiting until absolutely necessary to fill up the family car with their college needs. NRF’s Back-to-College Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics found college students and their families have completed about half (49.1%) of their shopping lists compared to 53.7 percent this time last year. Nearly one-quarter (24%) of those planning to shop for college necessities have been busy enjoying the summer days and have not yet begun their shopping, down slightly from last year (26.2%).

College shoppers are also turning to coupons, sales or promotions to get the best bang for their buck: the survey found nearly half (48.1%) of what parents have purchased has been influenced by early summer deals and promotions, which is the same as last year but higher than the 44.4 percent in 2013.

Many colleges and universities today require incoming and/or current students to come armed and ready with their own computer. The survey this year found 49 percent of the electronic items college students and their parents have already purchased were influenced by their class or school requirements, down from 56 percent last year.

While most back-to-college shoppers say that they have or will use debit cards to make purchases (41.8%), a number of shoppers have already or will use their credit cards (31.9%) or have chosen to pay with cash (22.1%) when buying supplies, apparel and electronic items for class.

Much like back-to-school shoppers, most of those shopping for college will cross off bedding, apparel and other items from their lists at discount stores (46.3%), department stores (38.8%), clothing (28.8%) and electronics stores (20.3%).

Traditional media also resonates well with back-to-college shoppers. The survey found four in 10 (42.3%) college shoppers agree coupons influence their purchases, and nearly three in 10 (27.6%) responding that in-store promotions and advertising inserts (26.2%) are also big influencers.

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Nation's Largest Residential Brokerage, NRT LLC, Completes Roll-Out of New Coldwell Banker-Branded Consumer Webs

NRT LLC, the largest residential real estate brokerage company in the United Statesand a subsidiary of Realogy Holdings Corp. (NYSE: RLGY), announced the completion of the roll-out of ColdwellBankerHomes.com, a new consumer website featuring all available MLS property listings in the regions the company serves with its company-owned Coldwell Banker brokerage operations.

This innovative brokerage site unifies 17 websites that served more than 50 of the largest 100 metropolitan areas in the United States. This newly combined site complements ColdwellBanker.com, the national site of the Coldwell Banker® franchise brand, which continues to be the No. 1 real estate brand online.*

"While NRT is the largest residential real estate brokerage in the nation, our Coldwell Banker online presence was spread across many regional websites," said Bruce Zipf, president and chief executive officer of NRT LLC. "By focusing our resources, traffic generation, search engine optimization, and unique content into one consumer site, we expect to fully capitalize on the volume of Web traffic we are generating and harness the power of NRT's Coldwell Banker presence into one single brokerage website used by all of our company-owned Coldwell Banker operations. We fully anticipate that ColdwellBankerHomes.com will become a leading real estate website that consumers turn to for their real estate needs in the markets in which we operate as Coldwell Banker."

"When designing ColdwellBankerHomes.com, we set out to ensure that consumers are able to easily access the information that is most important to them on whatever device they prefer," said Dan Barnett, senior vice president of marketing of NRT LLC. "We created a mobile-first experience that effortlessly converts to desktop, mobile, and tablet formats while retaining the features that made our local sites popular and introducing new functions that enhance the user's experience."

The responsive-design site offers virtual tours, photos, property videos, community profiles, city and school reports, interactive maps, tips for buying and selling a home, and Coldwell Banker/NRT property management and rental listings. Consumers can also request a report on their home's value in today's market.

Agents affiliated with Coldwell Banker/NRT receive a free personal profile page, and have the ability to upload a video profile, unlimited photos for each property, and send automatic email alerts on new properties, price reductions and open houses to customers who opt-in.

Leads on properties listed by a Coldwell Banker/NRT affiliated agent will be sent directly to the agent through HomeBase InTouch, NRT's customer relationship management system.     

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Coldwell Banker Real Estate and CNET Survey Finds Americans Ready for the Smart Home

The smart home is here to stay. A survey of U.S. adults by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC, the original Silicon Valley real estate start-up founded in 1906, and CNET, the world's largest and most trusted online source of consumer technology news and reviews, found that Americans are already embracing the smart home with 28 percent owning at least one smart home product and almost half of Millennials (ages 18 to 34) adopting the technology.

"Smart home technology is catching on because it is literally changing the way we live in our homes," said Sean Blankenship, chief marketing officer for Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. "Not only is it shifting the financial perception of the home, but it's also transforming our emotional connection to our homes. We have entered a transformative era. We believe that in three to five years, home buyers will expect smart home technology -- it will become the new norm."

Blankenship pointed to the fact that of those surveyed currently using smart home technology, 81 percent said they would be more likely to buy a home if smart technology, such as connected lighting, thermostats, remote-access security and smart locks, was already installed. For Americans who currently don't own smart home products, this provides an opportunity to make the move and adopt the technology. The trend will only grow as millennials start to represent a larger share of homeowners. 

The Coldwell Banker/CNET survey of approximately 4,000 Americans analyzed trends and insights related to smart home technology.

Smart Homes Save Money, Time and Provide Peace of MindAmericans are adopting and strongly valuing smart home technology. In fact, 91 percent of those who currently own smart home products would recommend the technology. Other findings include:

• 87 percent say the technology makes their lives easier.
• More than half (57 percent) of Americans who own smart home products say the technology saves them time and at an average of almost 30 minutes per day.
• The technology is saving owners of smart home products money. Forty-five (45) percent of Americans say that, on average, their smart home technology saves them over $1,100 a year.
• 72 percent say smart home products provide them with peace of mind when it comes to home security.

Parents Twice as Likely to Adopt Smart Technology Parents with children under age 18 are almost twice as likely to have smart home products (42 percent of those with children vs. 23 percent of those with no children).

• Parents were also more likely to have made their home "smart" when they moved in (68 percent of those with children vs. 50 percent of those with no children).
• Security is top of mind for those with kids. Seventy-eight (78) percent of parents say that smart home products provide peace of mind, while only 68 percent of those without children agreed with the statement.
• Among all respondents, 59 percent of parents said they'd be willing to pay more for a home with smart home technology installed. This is significantly higher than the 47 percent of those without children.

Other Key Survey Findings

• The smartphone is the remote control for your smart home. Seventy-six (76) percent of those with smart home products control them with a mobile device.
• The living room is the "smartest." When asked which rooms benefit from smart home technology, over half (51 percent) cited the living room, followed by the bedroom (45 percent), family / rec room (35 percent), kitchen (30 percent) and dining room (21 percent).
• Cost and savings are key to smart home purchasing decisions. Of those who do not have smart home products, 44 percent said they would consider purchasing the technology if it cost less, while 42 percent said they would consider purchasing if it would save them at least $500 yearly on utility bills and household expenses.

"From the living room to the yard, consumers are embracing smart home technology," said Lindsey Turrentine, editor-in-chief of CNET.com. "This market will continue to develop as the technology becomes even more mainstream. Our survey highlights the fact that this innovation has made its way into homes faster than many expected, and that once a homeowner tries a connected device, that person is ready to experiment with more smart products."

"Today's buyers are expecting smart home technology. It's no longer just an add-in," said Danny Hertzberg, sales associate affiliated with Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate in Miami, Fla. "I'm seeing first-hand how homebuyers are requesting and favoring homes with smart features, such as automated lighting and temperature control. Smart home technology is also influencing the home selling process. In addition to de-cluttering a home, sellers are upgrading to smart home technology to attract modern buyers. Consumers are truly seeing the convenience and benefits of these products, understanding how smart home technology makes the home more comfortable, convenient and energy-efficient."

The full survey results can be found here.

Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the United States between June 18-19, 2015 by Harris Poll on behalf of the Coldwell Banker brand and CNET via its Quick Query omni­bus product. The survey was conducted among 4,043 adults (ages 18 and over) among whom 1,141 own at least one smart home product. For the purposes of the survey, "smart home technology/products" were defined as products or tools that aid in controlling a home's functions such as lighting, temperature, security, safety, and entertainment, either remotely by a phone, tablet, computer or with a separate automatic system within the home itself. Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, the words "margin of error" are avoided as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in our surveys. The data has been weighted to reflect the composition of the adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in our panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

About Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC
Since 1906, the Coldwell Banker® organization has been a premier provider of full-service residential and commercial real estate brokerage services. Coldwell Banker Real Estate is the oldest national real estate brand and franchisor in the United States, and today has a global network of approximately 3,000 independently owned and operated franchised broker offices in 43 countries and territories with more than 88,000 affiliated sales professionals. The Coldwell Banker brand is known for creating innovative consumer services as recently seen by being the first national real estate brand with an iPad app, the first to augment its websitewww.coldwellbanker.com for smart phones, the first to create a iPhone application with international listings and the first to fully harness the power of video in real estate listings, news and information through its Coldwell Banker On LocationSM YouTube channel. The Coldwell Banker System is a leader in niche markets such as resort, new homes and luxury properties through its Coldwell Banker Previews International® marketing program delivering exceptional experiences for all consumers served.

About CNET
For more than 20 years, CNET has been telling stories of the technology, people and companies reshaping our lives. CNET is the world's #1 tech media brand, with tens of millions of people visiting its news and reviews site each month to find the stories, photos and videos that matter. CNET offers the best advice for living with technology and covers every aspect of consumer technology, from personal and automotive tech to home and smart appliance tech. CNET recently launched CNET en Espanol for Spanish speakers in the U.S. and beyond. Follow CNET and CNET en Español on Twitter (@CNET and @CNET_es) and on Facebook (www.facebook.com/cnet) and www.facebook.com/CNETenEspanol). CNET and CNET en Espanol are properties of CBS Interactive.

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