Several of Century 21’s top real estate agents from throughout the nation recently descended on the Westin Diplomat in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to participate in a training retreat.

Century 21 — the world’s largest residential real estate sales organization — recently selected Foreclosure.com Agent University to put a select group of industry professionals through its Certified Foreclosure Agent training program.

This is a career-building certification course designed specifically for individuals who are interested in foreclosures and expanding their business to include sales of Real Estate Owed (REO) properties, short sales and other distressed real estate.

All of the Century 21 agents who participated in the comprehensive learning experience were required to complete and pass an exam for each of the three topics presented receive their Certified Foreclosure Agent “Specialist” designation. For more background on the “Specialist” designation click here.

We had such a great group — many of agents flew in a day early and left a day late because of opportunity to travel to South Florida and, in the process, take home skills that will grow their businesses.

To learn more about the Certified Foreclosure Agent program click here. Broker owners and managers should contact us direct (866.382.4445) for more details on bulk pricing savings.

BOCA RATON, Fla., Aug. 6 — Foreclosure.com today announced a partnership with SmartZip, Inc. to provide homebuyers and investors with independent investment analysis for nearly two million distressed real estate listings nationwide.

Under the agreement, SmartZip.com users can rate and analyze foreclosure properties for their investment potential, and then seamlessly go to co-branded pages on Foreclosure.com to view detailed property information.

Likewise, while searching the nation’s most comprehensive database of distressed properties on Foreclosure.com, buyers/investors will be able to instantly see the SmartZip Score(TM) investment rating on every property, then link directly to SmartZip.com for more details on the rating and to analyze the property for its cash flow and return on investment potential.

“Potential homebuyers and real estate investors can now use Foreclosure.com and SmartZip.com to search, analyze and purchase homes that are not just great deals but also sound investments,” said Foreclosure.com Founder, President and CEO, Brad Geisen. “We share a common audience and jointly, we now provide invaluable resources that smart homebuyers can use daily to make better informed real estate purchase decisions. It’s a natural fit for both companies.”

SmartZip delivers investment ratings and analysis for residential real estate, making it easier for buyers and investors to find the best properties in the best markets at the best prices.

“This partnership will add much-needed transparency to the industry,” noted Tom Glassanos, president and CEO of SmartZip. “Foreclosure.com’s comprehensive inventory combined with SmartZip’s objective analysis will enable investors to buy with confidence and peace of mind.”

In addition to the SmartZip Score(TM) on every property, SmartZip.com also provides exclusive heat maps, market comparison, investor-tailored search and financial analysis tools that empower buyers to make financially sound purchase decisions. The beta site currently supports California and Florida — two of the most opportunity-rich states in the United States.

Nationwide coverage on SmartZip.com is coming soon.

Foreclosure.com has scheduled a free affiliate marketing Webinar at 4 p.m. on February 5 (for details click here) to discuss numerous topics relating to one of the top real estate programs in the space today.

What is a Foreclosure.com affiliate?

An affiliate is essentially an online partner. These partners range in size from major newspapers such as the USA Today to small-time real estate agents in local neighborhoods.

In short, we supply our affiliates with data and other valuable content that they can display on their respective Web sites, enabling them to instantly offer their visitors direct and seamless access to the Foreclosure.com database of more than 1.8 million distressed real estate listings nationwide.

What’s more, we compensate them handsomely based on whether or not they send us referrals or business. And we are able to do it month-after-month for as long as the referrals remain Foreclosure.com customers

It’s a simple, convenient and lucrative partnership that can turn a modest online destination into a money-making powerhouse.

So how do you get in on the action?

For starters, you can check out the upcoming affiliate Webinar mentioned above, which will cover, but not be limited to:

• Setting goals for 2009
• New Foreclosure.com marketing tools
• New Google optimizing tools
• Multivariate Testing

If for whatever reason you can’t attend the Webinar or want to get set up sooner, then feel free to contact a Foreclosure.com Affiliate Program representative today (for instructions on how to do that click here).

Keep in mind that no one generates more revenue for active affiliates than Foreclosure.com. So if you’re ready to make big money in real estate — and want us to help you do it — then be sure to reach out to us sooner rather than later.

Otherwise, you’ll just be leaving money on the table!

(To get an idea of how much money you can make month-over-month with Foreclosure.com we recommend that you check out our Commission Calculator right here. Don’t let all those figures scare you!)

Foreclosure.com Director of Partner Relations, Zack Preble, was the big man on campus at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla., earlier this morning, accepting an invitation to address students about how to “Grow your Business Online.”

Zack knows a thing or two about that — he is the driving force behind Foreclosure.com’s highly successful affiliate program, fostering relationships with other real estate companies to generate revenue and promote new and stronger alliances.

So when Dr. Jeanette Francis of the College of Business and Management reached out to us about stopping in her class to chat we felt it was the perfect match.

Zack presented for three full hours about how to analyze successful Web sites, as well as the importance of visiting local e-commerce teams and learning the various ways companies market themselves online to make money.

He also touched on the history of Foreclosure.com, which has roots that extend much deeper than our online inception in 1999. Zack also gave students a tour of the site, explained our business model and discussed what typical day-to-day operations at Foreclosure.com headquarters.

All in all it was a great learning experience for all parties involved. We want to thank our neighbors at Lynn University for thinking of us, as well as the students who participated in the class!

If you would like to contact Zack about future speaking opportunities please contact us right here.

In fact, we will provide valuable Web site content in the form of more than 1.2 million distressed real estate listings for over 15,000 Z57 agents

In addition, Z57 agents will benefit from free leads from the motivated buyers who visit their sites, ensuring that qualified traffic is captured and available for future marketing initiatives.

To get started today real estate agents and brokers are encouraged to visit www.z57.com/foreclosure.

“Z57 and its agents are known for standing out in the crowd,” said Foreclosure.com Director of Partner Relations, Zack Preble. “Adding the best foreclosure listings to their sites, as well as securing important buyer leads, will help them shine that much brighter.”

With more than 200 themes and customizable content, Z57 turns Realtor® Web sites into valuable community resources. And with more than 15,000 custom nationwide real estate agent Web sites, the company has emerged as the leader in online real estate marketing.

According to Z57 Chief Operating Officer, Ryan Whitlock, a dedication to providing added value to its clients such as the recent partnership with Foreclosure.com is what drives the company’s success.

“We are very happy to be partnering with the foremost provider of foreclosure data on the Web,” said Whitlock. “The real estate market is changing and more and more buyers are looking to purchase distressed real estate than ever before. Our agents will benefit tremendously thanks to this partnership with Foreclosure.com, receiving high quality content and valuable free leads day after day.”

To learn more about Z57 real estate Web design and marketing services, as well as enhancing your Web site with more than 1.2 million nationwide distressed real estate listings, please visit www.z57.com/foreclosure right now.

To check it out online via streaming video click here.

For more on the landmark agreement between America’s largest and most accurate source of distressed real estate listings (Foreclosure.com) and the seventh-largest savings and loan in the nation (IndyMac® Bank) click here.

To read the entire press release click here.

Partnerships like this are what separates Foreclosure.com from other data providers — we get our listings from the very best sources … directly. It’s one of many reasons our listing information is accurate and the most reliable in the industry.

On the other hand, working with major lenders helps them market and sell their REO properties faster because of our massive audience. Each month, millions of interested homebuyers and investors search Foreclosure.com for the best deals in real estate.

Here’s a snip from Foreclosure.com Founder, President and CEO, Brad Geisen:

“More than 80 percent buyers now start their home searches on the Internet. Listing properties on our Web site is a fantastic solution for lenders to penetrate this huge buyer pool. We’re excited about our partnership with Indymac Bank® and are confident that the agreement will help reduce the number of REO listings on its books…. Our research indicates that only 17 percent of a traditional real estate marketing budget is spent online. That means sellers are spending 83 percent of their marketing dollars chasing only 20 percent of the buyers. Put simply, times are changing and the practices of lenders and others involved in the sale of real estate need to change along with it.”

To learn more about how to post REO listings on the Foreclosure.com Web site contact our Director of REO, Glen Daniels, at (561) 981-5337.

HomeGain.com, ”a leading provider of online marketing solutions for real estate agents” announced today that it relaunched HomeScout.com, which the company originally acquired back in 2001.

According to a recent press release, the new launch adds instant home values, recent home sales and several real estate listings databases to HomeScout.com.

One of those databases contains foreclosures. And, with the most accurate and up-to-date foreclosure database in the nation, Foreclosure.com is proud to announce that we will provide the listings for HomeScout.com.

Here’s a snip from Jeff Miller, Director of Advertising Products and Sales for HomeGain:

… We have compiled a comprehensive set of real estate listings from multiple partners and sources. Combining HomeGain real estate listings with homes for sale from other top real estate sites creates a more compelling offer for consumers. HomeScout.com makes finding homes for sale on the Internet easier. It also provides additional reach and more highly qualified traffic for subscribing HomeGain real estate agents and partners.