Virtual Real Estate?just what am I talking about here? If I look up ?virtual? in the dictionary, it gives me words like near, practical, fundamental, or essential. It also lists actual as an antonym. Remember in school how we were required to use the new word in a sentence to show that we understood the meaning? So many times we have heard sayings like, ?Oh, that's a virtual impossibility?, ?Virtual Reality?, or ?She is virtually unstoppable.? As you can see in these phases, virtual is being used as an adjective or an adverb. Here we are using it as a descriptive meaning practically, fundamentally, or essentially. The word virtual can also be used as a noun as in this example: virtual focus. Here, the meaning of virtual focus is a ?point? from which rays of light seem to emanate but do not actually do so (such as in the image in a plane mirror.)



Now we are going back to another word we learned in grade school, antonym. Antonym mean opposite. The thesaurus tells us that ?actual? is the antonym of virtual. To look at this closer, consider ?actual real estate? compared to ?virtual real estate.? You can go out and see, touch, and feel actual real estate. Virtual real estate requires that you use a computer to ?see? it. Virtual real estate has no physical borders. Anyone (with a computer) from anywhere can visit the virtual real estate site anytime.

When you create a web site, you are creating virtual real estate. It can be just as valuable as actual real estate. In fact, a profitable web site can be more valuable than you ever imagined. Another advantage of virtual real estate is that almost anyone can afford it. In fact it is so inexpensive to create a virtual real estate site that many entrepreneurs have several of them. Each site can promote a different product, value, or information because what appeals to one person may not appeal to another. When you want to purchase actual real estate, a real estate agent helps locate the type of property desired. However, with virtual real estate, you only need to find the training on how to develop a web site (lots of courses out there) and then the product you will promote. Can't you see it now, new classes creeping up: Virtual Real Estate Agents or Virtual Real Estate Development?