Eddie Godshalk bought his first investment houses in 1987, where he was a licensed agent in the Eastern U.S. From those humble beginnings, Eddie has gained more than 20 years of real estate investment, business development and mortgage experience. Eddie received his MBA from San Francisco State University (SFSU) with a focus on building automated valuation models (AVM’s) and real estate finance.   What began as a graduate school project quickly turned into an obsession that has inspired for the past several years.  After collecting more than four years’ worth of micro block data, Eddie and a team of SFSU and Berkeley PhD’s tested and back-tested algorithms and built the Home Value Predictor™ system.   Eddie is committed to bringing the most accurate, reliable and relevant information to the real estate market Home Value Predictor™ is poised to redefine the way we think of real estate in the 21st century.

Title:  The Missing Keys to Thriving in Any Real Estate Market

Website: www.HomeValuePredictor.com

Blog: http://homevaluepredictor.com/blog

Twitter: http://twitter.com/EddieGodshalk and http://twitter.com/valuepredictor

Facebook: www.facebook.com/people/Eddie-Godshalk/655477353

Q: Welcome to Beyond the Books, Eddie.  Can we start out by telling us whether you are published for the first time or are you multi-published?

A:  My first book was titled The Missing Keys to Thriving in Any Real Estate Market. It has been a while in writing, since my software at www.HomeValuePredictor.com is just getting ready to launch, which will deliver the missing keys.

Q: What was the name of your very first book regardless of whether it was published or not and, if not published, why?

A: My first book The Missing Keys to Thriving in Any Real Estate Market was published, and I am currently updating, the updated book should be done in early August.  My focus is developing and delivering quality current information to everyone who wants it, at the hyper local market level.  And all this information is currently missing at the Block Level and Zip Code level.

Q: For your first published book, how many rejections did you go through before you either found a mainstream publisher, self-published it, or paid a vanity press to publish it?

A:   I did not approach any high level publisher, but was referred to Aviva Publishing by a good friend.  My real focus is and has been in developing the back end software and delivering current local information on the over 350,000 hyper local markets in the USA.

Q: How did the rejections make you feel and what did you do to overcome the blows?

A:  I felt great, since I was focusing on what is most important.   Our first launch of www.HomeValuePredictor.com had rather complex maps, which many members did not understand why the colors of the Census Block Groups changed.  So we had to make a simpler interface and improve our maps and reports, so that they deliver more relevant and understandable local information to the Block level.

Q: When your first book was published, who published it and why did you choose them?

A:  Aviva Publishing out of New York published my first and current book.   I choose them since I was referred to them by a good friend, Patrick Snow from www.CEOSpace.net.

Q: How did it make you feel to become published for the first time and how did you celebrate?

A:  I felt very good.  My first book is based upon years of work, and deep analysis on data and examining housing variables that matter.   And a lot of friends and fellow real estate investors and Realtors have been helping and advising me along the way.   So far, I still have not celebrated, since www.HomeValuePredictor.com has not launched at this time.  Should be very soon.  Then, can you spell Cancun?

Q: What was the first thing you did as for as promotion when you were published for the first time?

A:   For my first book The Missing Keys to Thriving in Any Real Estate Market I am just beginning to promote, initially through social media.  Then as soon as www.HomeValuePredictor.com launches, I will start a more elaborate marketing campaign.  I feel very strongly that once people know what is missing, and where to find the missing information, that my book and new Web site will be successful.  It is just a matter of getting the word out, and educating people, since a lot of the new “keys” are not mentioned by other real estate people, since they do not buy or compile local data or information.

Q: If you had to do it over again, would you have chosen another route to be published?

A:  Maybe.  Maybe if I had a publisher who was more involved with marketing.  But as an entrepreneur, I am OK with the way things worked out so far.  Soon, it will be just a matter of getting the word out and getting feedback from people.  The beauty of blogging and software development, is that they are easy to change and adapt to what people want. So I look forward to getting feedback on my books, and updates and comments from readers at by blog at http://homevaluepredictor.com/blog.

Q: Have you been published since then and how have you grown as an author?

A:  I have very much grown as a writer and speaker.  Originally I was so involved in data analysis and complex systems, that many people, who understand real estate, did not know what I was talking about, since they have been so engulfed into false beliefs that want matters in real estate in property information.   Today I just say things like, would you be interested in finding the missing keys to the lockbox, or does current local information matter to you?   I have learned to not speak or write in detailed numbers, and if people want better information, I am just the provider. And they can seek, and find critical information and answers, which currently they cannot.  It will soon be up to people if they want to access quality local information, and prior to the launch of www.HomeValuePredictor.com the people have access to hardly any current local information at the Census Block level.  So I am pretty excited about the future.

Q: Looking back since the early days when you were trying to get published, what do you think you could have done differently to speed things up?  What kind of mistakes could you have avoided?

A:  Probably the most important thing I have learned over the past years is to only work with local quality people.   After going to India for less expensive programmers, I have learned to work only with qualified local people who I can trust.   I knew from being a builder, that if I hired to lower waged person outside a Home Depot, that I would have to monitor there quality of work.  I did not apply this idea to overseas programmers, and figured if they said they could do something, they could.  If I just hired and worked with local experts, my site would have launched a while ago.  But this is really OK, since now my book is a lot better written, and I have a lot of feedback from real estate investors, so now our maps and local reports deliver better information to members.

Q: What has been the biggest accomplishment you have achieved since becoming published?

A:  Well, hopefully the biggest accomplishment has not happened so far, since I am just starting out the gate.   A friend of mine, paid me a nice complement a few weeks ago and said, you know Eddie, I do not know anyone as passionate and dedicated as you, except for Barack Obama.  And this is sort of true, not to many people would buy and compile expensive data, and have the dedicated drive it took, to figure out what is missing in the real estate market, and hire PhD’s to help develop predictive models down to the Census Block Group.  Most people just take the easy way out, and get a “job” of sell something.   So I guess my biggest accomplishment is an ongoing dedicated spirit, and I am dedicated to helping others and discovering and delivering the truth, this is what keeps me going, and my passion.

Q: If you could have chosen another profession, what would that profession be?

A:  Sometimes I get rather heavily involved in data analysis and projects, but I am really a part time hedonist and X rugby player, hippy, and surfing beach bum who enjoys travel, socializing, sports, and adventure more than most people.  When I first went to college at St Mary’s College in Maryland, this was partly because I wanted to study and be an oceanographer, and partly because St Mary’s just changed from being an all girl’s school.  So I guess, being an oceanographer, since I love the water, surf, bikinis, and I know our planet needs some help and assistance.

Q: Would you give up being an author for that profession or have you combined the best of both worlds?

A:  Have not combined them yet. Will see what shakes out after www.HomeValuePredictor.com launches.  Nice thing about having a web site, is that I can move and be mobile.  General plan is to travel to various real estate events and start speaking too.  And I really look forward to this, since I know my service can help a lot of real estate professionals, real estate investors, and consumers.

Q: How do you see yourself in ten years?

A:  Well with God’s grace, and taking the right actions, alive and healthy first.   A good friend of mine Clinton Swine, from www.FrontierTranings.com once said, Eddie just get it done, www.HomeValuePredictor.com and the relationships that will evolve alone will be worth the effort.  So I expect to grow within the real estate community, and still be involved as a smart real estate investor, and helping other make smart investment decisions.  Within the real estate industry, there are a lot of avenues and niches that need quality forecasting and information.

Q: Any final words for writers who dream of being published one day?

A:  For me content is king.  So either work with very high quality of content and be an expert in your field, or work in a niche that is very high in demand, or just be passionate and non-stoppable in your dream and never give up until you reach your dream.  And if your dream is to be published, seek advice and information, so you take the right steps along the road.