A little good news is always a good thing – especially now.  As such, we were elated this week when we got a peek at our December traffic numbers.  In the midst of a gloomy real estate outlook, and traditionally the slowest month of the year for real estate activity, we posted a record month at Zillow.

How much of a record?  5.8 million unique visitors, which is the most for any month since we launched, and is up 62% over December 2007.

It’s clear that with all of the uncertainty surrounding the housing market, people are searching for information and answers, and we’ve had some great interest in our new Zillow Advice feature that launched in early December.  Each day, more than 40,000 contributions are now made to Zillow by our community.

December was also a month for record drops in mortgage rates – dipping below 5% for a 30-year fixed-rate loan.  As such, loan requests in Zillow Mortgage Marketplace shot up 162% over November, with more than 22,000 consumer loan requests.

Good news is a great way to end a year, and a great way to start a new one.  Let’s hope there’s more good news for everyone in 2009.

If you could live in a large, beautiful home without a mortgage for only $500 a month, would you? Vacant Home Caretakers is a private company that matches vacant homes that are currently for sale with carefully screened “Home Managers” who pay a greatly reduced rental fee to live in the vacant home until it sells or is taken off the market.  With the excess inventory for sale these days, this innovative business is booming. But, before you get too excited, there are a few requirements. Home Managers must be non-smokers, not have pets, and must stage the home with furniture that would look good in the home. Still, for dirt-cheap rent, it’s a pretty sweet concept.

A Home Manager is currently occupying the residence at 5027 Scenic Drive in Yakima, Washington. Check out the great amenities and sweeping views this for sale home has to offer:

The View

The Home’s Exterior

This rental agreement boasts advantages for sellers and Home Managers:

Seller:

1. Homeowners’ insurance rates can climb heavily on a home that is vacant because of the high risk of vandalism, home repairs that need immediate attention, or squatters — folks that break in to a vacant home and “make it theirs.”
2. A home that is staged and welcoming is always better in the eyes of the potential buyer than a house that is cold and empty. Staging a house also provides a “clean canvas” for a potential homeowner to envision themselves living in the home.
3. The utilities are paid for by the Home Manager, relieving the homeowner of having to pay excessive heat and light bills for a home they do not currently live in.

Home Managers:

1. A luxury home can be rented for half the price it would normally cost to rent in any given market. So, if a home in a market normally rents for $1,000, a Home Manager would pay half that price, or $500.
2. There is no lease period. This is ideal for folks that need a place for just a few months or for people who are waiting to find their perfect home to buy.
3. It forces you to stay neat and tidy! The company asks you to keep the home in tip-top shape since real estate agents can pop in at any time to show the home.

Vacant Home Caretakers, a company that launched in 1979, has offices located in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and southern California. According to owner Susanne Carnevali, business has increased dramatically lately and with more homes sitting on the market for extended periods of time, her business is poised to benefit from this economic downturn.

It’s known as the “Atlanta White House” and it’s a home we feature on our Famous Unique Homes page. Now comes word that the owner, builder/developer Fred Milani, escaped a close call with foreclosure and is now trying to sell the Atlanta White House for $9,880,000.

According to 11Alive.com, Milani claims that an Atlanta group called A Mighty Move of God (AMMOG), who helps desperate owners in avoiding foreclosure, helped convince Milani’s lender to re-finance rather than foreclose. While Milani is able to make his mortgage payments, he still needs to sell the house. It’s listed with Shawn Ghiai of RE/MAX.

Milani has an interesting background. He was born in Iran and became a naturalized U.S. citizen and wanted to pay tribute to his love for America, so he built this White House replica in 2001. It is quite a place, adorned with a presidential seal, white columns, an oval office and it even has a “Lincoln Bedroom.” In the photo above, check out the message in the front lawn’s landscaping — “God Hearts You!”).

So, ya wanna live like a gangsta, the ultimate gangsta? Al Capone (aka: Scarface) lived a seemingly low profile life in a seemingly normal neighborhood.  Cook County records revealed that back in 1923, Capone paid $5,500 for a inconspicuous two-flat home in the Chicago working-class neighborhood of Grand Crossing. His purchase was part of a wave of first- and second-generation European immigrants who moved to that part of the city during the Prohibition era. Perhaps as a stealth decoy, Al Capone’s wife, Mae, and his mother, Teresa, signed the original deed to the brick home, which is located at 7244 S Prairie Ave Chicago, IL 60619.

The Chicago Tribune reports that the house has had only two owners since Capone’s mother died in 1952. The current owner is Barbara Hogsette, a retired special education school teacher, who is selling so she can move to California to be closer to her family. Surprisingly, she said she has never felt there was anything extra special about the historical roots of her home.

“I’ve read some things about [Capone], and I’ve seen the ‘Untouchables,’ but I never really thought about this being his home,” said Hogsette. “This is my home. I never thought it was that sensational that he had lived here.”

This spring, Capone’s house will be listed for sale at $425,000. Buyer beware: be prepared for summer bus tours, inquisitive tourists, and maybe a few Capone ghosts.

Two creative approaches in selling homes in this slow market have come to my attention. One involves that old, tried and true deal of throwing in a car with the sale of the home and the other is a travel photo contest.

For the first one, a homeowner in Houston, TX, is throwing in a brand-new Lexus — worth about $30K — to the buyer of his 5,500 sq ft home that has been sitting for more than six months.

For the second idea, a homeowner in Florida is using the Web site HowtoWinMyHouse.com as a means of moving her Delray Beach, Florida, house along, by using a $55 raffle entry for a travel photo contest.

And, of course, there’s always the Perfect Place Contest that is really intriguing since it involves a word scramble contest. So far, no winner yet.

If you’re a real estate blogger registered for Blogger Connect, happen to be in the New York Metro area, and like beer (chances are very good you’ve nailed at least two of those three criteria)  — come on down to the Marriott Marquis tomorrow evening for Beer for Bloggers! The event is Tuesday, Jan. 6 from 6-8 PM in the Marriott Marquis Atrium Lounge (8th floor). We’ve always had fun at past Beer for Bloggers events and I don’t see any reason to stop the tradition now. Hope to see you there!

And if you’re a bit geekier than most and find yourself with a free day tomorrow, REBarCamp NYC starts at 9 AM sharp!

The 123rd edition of the Carnival of Real Estate is posted over at real/diaBlog. Tony Arko points out some posts that you won’t want to miss as you start the new year — head over to real/diaBlog and take a look!

The carnival will make its next appearance on Monday, January 12th at For Sale By Locals. Please submit your best post by Sunday January 11, to be considered. Are you a real estate blogger and would you like to host a future edition or take a more active role in administration of the CoRE? If so, get instructions on how to do so here. Please check the complete FAQ list if you have other questions as to how to participate.

Zillow employees may spend their days thinking about homes—-home values, home for sale,  Zestimates, mortgages. But, at the end of the day, Zillowites are just like everybody else. They have not-quite-finished-yet home projects, wishes of remodels, and aspirations to buy their first home. Take a look at what Zillow employees said their New Year’s home resolutions were for 2009.

“This year I would love to turn my master bath into a spa retreat” Jessica, Senior Accountant

“I will start using my kitchen for preparing food rather than just reheating take-out” Daniel, Front End Software Engineer

“I’ll clean up my basement making it a livable place for my kids” Yeng, Senior Quantitative Modeler

“I resolve to throw out enough stuff in my garage so that I can always get two cars in it.” Stan, VP Data and Analytics

“I am going to cancel my gym membership and install a sauna and gym in my basement.” Randy, Director, Test

“We replaced the wiring in our house over a year ago. This year I’d finally like to get around to patching the walls and ceiling where they laid the new wiring.” Tim, Operations Manager

“I’d actually just like to spend more time at home because right now I usually just go there to sleep.” Lakshmi, Test Lead

“I’d like to buy a house if they get cheap enough” Nicolas, Linux System Administrator

“I want to finally complete our year and a half kitchen remodel.” HP, Tier 1 Technician

“I’d like to start my kitchen remodel that I have been planning for the past 5 years.” Sean McNamara, Inside Sales Consultant

Last but not least, the wildest New Year’s home resolution yet… David M, Build and Development Engineer, has been working on full home remodel for the past THREE years. David has gone without heat for three long winters, and without lighting for a year and a half! Even worse, he’s been sleeping on a mattress on the floor as he continues to remodel his dream home. This year, David is resolving to finish his remodeling job so he and his new wife will have a comfy and beautiful place to call home for years to come.

Take a look at how far David has come in the picture below. He has a long way to go, but we wish you luck in 2009!

Rates for 30-year fixed mortgages have been up and down over the past week, but are staying close to the 5.00% mark. The average mortgage rate last week was 5.07%, close to the current rate on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace of 5.09%.

As you can see from the chart above, rates have really been up and down this month. The average mortgage rate for a 30-year fixed two weeks ago was 4.96%, and when I checked Zillow Mortgage Marketplace at around 2 p.m. Pacific time yesterday, the rate was 4.92%.

One of the brokers who blogs on Mortgages Unzipped said last week that waiting for rates to drop any further might not be the best bet. Check out his blog post here.

She may have lost the vice presidency, but she’s #1 in Zillow’s 2008   Celebrity Neighbor survey. That’s right, in a survey of over 2,000 adults conducted by Harris Interactive,  Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin was voted the most desired celebrity neighbor for 2009. I wonder if people would really be willing to move near Palin’s Wasilla, AK home for the chance to go hunting with her or snowmobiling with Todd?

Oprah Winfrey was a close second with 13% of the vote. Those wanting to live near Oprah have a few residences to choose from, including her ritzy downtown Chicago apartment building or her ranch in Maui, HI recently showcased in O at Home Magazine.

Gender played a key role in Palin’s most desired neighbor status. 17% of men chose Palin, followed by Olympic gold medalist and recent Baltimore condo owner Michael Phelps (11%).  In comparison, paparazzi magnets apparently don’t make the best neighbors, as only 2% of U.S. adults would like to live next door to David and Victoria “Posh” Beckham Los Angeles home.

Britney Spears, the trouble-prone pop star, was voted the worst celebrity neighbor in 2008, according to one in five (19%) U.S. adults. She’s making a comeback on the Billboard Charts but perhaps people are remembering the absolute media frenzy outside her Los Angles, CA  home when choosing her as the worst neighbor of the year. However, Spears’ reputation has improved over the past 12 months. In 2007, 21% voted Britney the worst neighbor. Check out last year’s Celebrity Neighbor Survey for the complete results.

Is your favorite star not on our list? I’d love to hear who you think would be a perfect addition to your neighborhood watch in 2009.