Summer Skill-Building Techniques
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Summer Skill-Building Techniques
by Julie Escobar
With temperatures rising already in many areas of North America and students and parents settling in for the long summer days, I thought it might be a good idea to offer some handy tips to help today's agents make the most of their summertime.
Here are our combined ideas for keeping momentum high while breezing into the second half of the year:
1. Take a CRS course. These accredited courses -- most of which only take one or two days to complete -- offer a variety of topics and tools to help brokers and agents fine-tune their skills. Visit crs.com to find the courses being offered in your area, then plan a few additional “vacation days” to enhance your knowledge -- and earn continuing education credits while you're at it!
2. Revisit your plan. June and July are perfect for walking through that business plan you set in motion back in December. Real estate professionals historically earn more in the first half of the year than in the second so, on average, by now you should be at about 65 percent of your goals. If you are, wonderful; give yourself a bonus day! If not, this would be a good opportunity to re-evaluate your plan and talk to your manager, a fellow associate (preferably a top producer) and, of course, your family. Your goals and their goals need to coincide for your best chance at success.
3. Slip in some smart reading. When gathering your library of beach books and magazines, opt for a few on how to be the best you can be at what you do. Re-visit the article Read Your Mind: What's in YOUR Library? on RealtyTimes.com for a terrific list of great business books. Websites of your coaches, national speakers, CRS, NAR and more also feature a variety of recommended reading.
4. Make a list, and check it twice. No, not your holiday list. Summer is a great time to take stock of where you are in terms of health, wealth, relationships and personal growth. Are you eating right? Are you exercising and fueling your body with the right vitamins and nutrients to promote a long and healthy life? Are you curbing the habits that will shorten your time on Earth and keep you from the people and things that you love the most? Are you investing in yourself and your future by way of savings, investments and career-building opportunities? Are you the best mother, father, sister, brother, child or friend that you can be to those VIPs who have walked this road with you through thick and thin? Ask yourself, “Where am I, and where do I want to be in terms of health, wealth, relationships and growth?” The answers may lead you to re-direct your summer plans to include a health resort, romantic getaway, trip to visit family or a spiritual journey. Take that personal inventory, move forward, and trust that new doors will open for you.
5. Put some systems on autopilot. MLSmailings.com is a great way to ensure your marketing is in place even while you're away. A listing sells while you're at the beach? No problem! Your Just Sold cards will go out automatically. You also can schedule sphere of influence campaigns to ship while you're whitewater rafting and attend your FSBO conference call by dialing in from your cell phone while sailing in the Gulf of Mexico! Get creative, be inventive, and find solutions and systems that will streamline your business so that no matter where you are or what you're doing, your business is always in motion.
6. Have a Movie Marathon. I know, you're already committed to taking the kids to see the summer blockbusters, but why not take a hint from this month's Master Marketing NewsletterTM and consider renting or buying Door to Door with William H. Macy and Kyra Sedgwick. This extraordinary film is based on the true story of Bill Porter, a door-to-door salesman with cerebral palsy. It follows Porter's unbelievable rise to success in the '50s with humor, humanity, spirit and honesty.
The movie is a tremendous reminder to us all to invite the skills, strategies and fundamentals that allow us to overcome obstacles and accomplish goals into our lives for good. Pop some corn, settle in, and let us know what you think!
7. Schedule Some R&R. Everyone needs a break, especially when times are tough and tensions are high. Re-calendar your days so that you have some downtime to relax and rejuvenate.
You'll find yourself springing back better than ever when you return to work! Stay forward of the competition this summer by implementing some of these simple yet effective ideas. Then rest easy and celebrate with the knowledge that you have the commitment, plans and momentum to make the most of this month, this year and your career while striking a perfect balance between personal, family and professional time. Enjoy!
Published: July 14, 2008
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Washington Report: Foreclosures Fact of Life?
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Washington Report: Foreclosures Fact of Life?
by Kenneth R. Harney
Washington is still buzzing over Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's blunt, tough-love comments about the home foreclosure crisis and the real estate market last week.
His core message: Foreclosures are a fact of life in the mortgage world. They happen in large numbers even when the economy is booming. They're especially high now because a lot of people messed up - home buyers as well as lenders. In the wake of those messes, the federal government's clean-up role can only be a limited one.
In a speech to an FDIC housing conference, Paulson said many of the thousands of foreclosures now getting attention from consumer advocates and Congress were triggered by "life events," such as losses of jobs, illness, and divorce.
Even in the highest-flying year of the housing boom, 2004, eight hundred thousand Americans lost their homes to foreclosure. Though filings are up substantially since then, said Paulson, "many of today's foreclosures (were) not preventable" by the federal regulators who are now being asked to bail them out.
Compounding the situation during the boom were "lax credit and underwriting standards" -- funny-money stated-income loans, zero-equity and negative amortization -- that permitted large numbers of consumers to take on mortgages "they can't possibly afford and they will (eventually) lose their homes" no matter what.
"There is little (that) public policy makers can, or should, do to compensate for untenable financial decisions" by home buyers looking for quick profits and willing to take on unreasonable debts, said Paulson.
The Treasury secretary's comments came on the eve of Senate action on a housing-relief bill that would provide refinancing opportunities to a fraction of financially-distressed homeowners now stuck with bad mortgages. Everybody else will be left to either work out loan modification terms with lenders or end up in foreclosure.
Paulson also used his speech to punch holes in the widely-accepted perception -- fostered by media coverage -- that the housing market is in deep trouble nationwide.
"We need to recognize that there is not a national housing market," he said, "but a collection of regional," highly-localized sub-markets down to the neighborhood level that often perform starkly different than the national headlines might suggest.
Though news about high foreclosure rates on a national basis may be scary-sounding, the fact is that the housing bust is highly concentrated geographically.
For example, said Paulson, just four states: California, Florida, Arizona and Nevada -- accounted for one quarter of all mortgages nationwide, but 42 percent of foreclosure filings last quarter. Adding in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, these seven states -- all by themselves -- have accounted for over half of all foreclosure filings this year.
Published: July 14, 2008 |
Summer Skill-Building Techniques
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|
Summer Skill-Building Techniques
by Julie Escobar
With temperatures rising already in many areas of North America and students and parents settling in for the long summer days, I thought it might be a good idea to offer some handy tips to help today's agents make the most of their summertime.
Here are our combined ideas for keeping momentum high while breezing into the second half of the year:
1. Take a CRS course. These accredited courses -- most of which only take one or two days to complete -- offer a variety of topics and tools to help brokers and agents fine-tune their skills. Visit crs.com to find the courses being offered in your area, then plan a few additional “vacation days” to enhance your knowledge -- and earn continuing education credits while you're at it!
2. Revisit your plan. June and July are perfect for walking through that business plan you set in motion back in December. Real estate professionals historically earn more in the first half of the year than in the second so, on average, by now you should be at about 65 percent of your goals. If you are, wonderful; give yourself a bonus day! If not, this would be a good opportunity to re-evaluate your plan and talk to your manager, a fellow associate (preferably a top producer) and, of course, your family. Your goals and their goals need to coincide for your best chance at success.
3. Slip in some smart reading. When gathering your library of beach books and magazines, opt for a few on how to be the best you can be at what you do. Re-visit the article Read Your Mind: What's in YOUR Library? on RealtyTimes.com for a terrific list of great business books. Websites of your coaches, national speakers, CRS, NAR and more also feature a variety of recommended reading.
4. Make a list, and check it twice. No, not your holiday list. Summer is a great time to take stock of where you are in terms of health, wealth, relationships and personal growth. Are you eating right? Are you exercising and fueling your body with the right vitamins and nutrients to promote a long and healthy life? Are you curbing the habits that will shorten your time on Earth and keep you from the people and things that you love the most? Are you investing in yourself and your future by way of savings, investments and career-building opportunities? Are you the best mother, father, sister, brother, child or friend that you can be to those VIPs who have walked this road with you through thick and thin? Ask yourself, “Where am I, and where do I want to be in terms of health, wealth, relationships and growth?” The answers may lead you to re-direct your summer plans to include a health resort, romantic getaway, trip to visit family or a spiritual journey. Take that personal inventory, move forward, and trust that new doors will open for you.
5. Put some systems on autopilot. MLSmailings.com is a great way to ensure your marketing is in place even while you're away. A listing sells while you're at the beach? No problem! Your Just Sold cards will go out automatically. You also can schedule sphere of influence campaigns to ship while you're whitewater rafting and attend your FSBO conference call by dialing in from your cell phone while sailing in the Gulf of Mexico! Get creative, be inventive, and find solutions and systems that will streamline your business so that no matter where you are or what you're doing, your business is always in motion.
6. Have a Movie Marathon. I know, you're already committed to taking the kids to see the summer blockbusters, but why not take a hint from this month's Master Marketing NewsletterTM and consider renting or buying Door to Door with William H. Macy and Kyra Sedgwick. This extraordinary film is based on the true story of Bill Porter, a door-to-door salesman with cerebral palsy. It follows Porter's unbelievable rise to success in the '50s with humor, humanity, spirit and honesty.
The movie is a tremendous reminder to us all to invite the skills, strategies and fundamentals that allow us to overcome obstacles and accomplish goals into our lives for good. Pop some corn, settle in, and let us know what you think!
7. Schedule Some R&R. Everyone needs a break, especially when times are tough and tensions are high. Re-calendar your days so that you have some downtime to relax and rejuvenate.
You'll find yourself springing back better than ever when you return to work! Stay forward of the competition this summer by implementing some of these simple yet effective ideas. Then rest easy and celebrate with the knowledge that you have the commitment, plans and momentum to make the most of this month, this year and your career while striking a perfect balance between personal, family and professional time. Enjoy!
Published: July 14, 2008 |
 You can find great local Oklahoma real estate information on Localism.com Judy Chandler is a proud member of the ActiveRain Real Estate Network, a free online community to help real estate professionals grow their business. |
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Market Conditions
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Market Conditions
by Realty Times Staff
The National Association of Realtors reports that a recovery in sales could be expected during the second half of this year.
This comes on the tails of the most recent numbers that pending home sales were up 2 percent from May 2007 in the Western region -- a region that has been one of the hardest hit after the housing boom in 2004.
Looking at the nation as a whole, however, indicated that contracts fell 4.7 percent -- and are 14 percent below May 2007 levels. Dragging down this average is the South, which came in at 22.1 percent below a year ago. The Northeast and Midwest experienced double digit declines as well.
As always, markets are local phenomenons. NAR chief economist, Lawrence Yun, notes, "Some markets have seen a doubling in home sales from a year ago, while others are seeing contract signings cut in half. Price conditions vary tremendously, even within a locality, depending upon a neighborhood’s exposure to subprime loans."
Published: July 11, 2008
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