Is it me?

Here comes a wall head banger…                                                                                           Yes, I know I have been relatively quiet these past couple of blogs.  But it is the middle of the month of August and maybe the heat is getting to me. I am in the midst of showing a Buyer a condo. Before I bring my Buyer and after I make the appointment, the Buyer has a list of questions about the specific condo and the rules etc.  Of course I email the Listing Agent and she knows nothing, she has only had the listing 6 weeks so you would think she would have a semblance of knowledge about the complex/unit.  We are only talking about a 26 unit building so how hard can it be to get information from the condo association and/or the owner.

The place is not clean, and stuff is everywhere.  So is it me? When I am listing a property, I need it to be clean, neat, stuff is either boxed up in a corner but certainly not strewn all over. I even suggest to short term rent a storage unit and clear all out. I am not speaking about a under $500K/unit, this is considerably higher and a large unit in a desirable area.  I even suggest to short term rent a storage unit and clear all out. Who can really see anything under all the stuff? Oh well, what can I say, at this point in time, I am still waiting for information, but my Buyer has moved on and we are looking elsewhere, but this would have been a perfect unit as it met most of the wants of the Buyer. So as I pick my head up off the desk, I go on to the next showing hoping this one will show better and the listing agent will know something….anything!

So my fellow Realtors, be good to each other, until next week!

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inspiration…

INSPIRATION.  An interesting word, that means to inspire or cause someone to do something, a good idea, a force or influence.

I often wonder what inspires a person to do something…good or bad.  I have read all kinds of books on sports heroes and everyday heroes that attribute someone or something that inspired them in their lives.  Have you ever thought about what inspires you?

My Dad first inspired me.  He taught me that there is no gray, it is either black or white, good or bad.  And boy, did I ever argue with him.  I always wanted to look for the compromise.  Of course I was very young at the time, young and no experience in the world.  My Dad came from a very poor background and went through college and law school on a scholarship.  He worked hard all his life.  He taught me, honor and hard work.  He also taught me that under no circumstances do you soil or as he put it “Besmirch your good name”  for if you do, you can never erase that stain again.  And so you contribute to the world around you the best you can so that you leave it a better place than when you came into it.

And so my Fellow REALTORS, on this Monday morning I ask you: Who Inspires You?  What inspires you?

Until next Monday…Be Inspired!

Peace of Mind…

I am sure we all, in the course of our real estate careers, have run across various ideas that aid in our business.  Seller inspections, I have thought about that idea for some time but never really pursued it.  I came across the idea again in an editorial …..Seller inspections.  We all know that in the course of a real estate transaction, the Buyers do inspections.  I always worry about appraisals and inspections as those are the two aspects that can cause difficulties.  Just because the Seller does inspections doesn’t mean the Buyer doesn’t have to inspect, however it may give the Seller a little more peace of mind to know where in their property, difficulties may exist, and be prepared to address them.

So my fellow Realtors, let’s be good to each other. Until Next Monday…

From Beginning to End…and Everything In-between!

I am sure we have heard and discussed discount brokers and limited service brokers, you know the ones that charge a minimal fee, put the listing in the MLS and do very little or nothing else.  The discussion goes into fear they will take over the industry, and put the full service agents, brokers out of business.  As I have travelled around the state and the US, and discussed business with fellow Realtors, our business is getting more and more complicated.  What with staging, negotiating, mortgages, license law, contracts, disclosures and the list goes on…we need more education and more technologically astute Realtors.  Unless you have a customer that has bought and sold multiple properties, they need an expert in, or educated in the details of the transaction.  You also have geographical areas that call for distinctive characteristics in the business model as to how business is conducted.  I have had to explain to my customers about who picks the title company and why as it is distinctly different in areas around Florida. So rest assured, the full service Realtors will be around for a long time, as most Buyers and Sellers need an expert to guide them  from beginning to end, in the buying and selling of real estate.

So my fellow Realtors be good to each other.

Until Next Monday…

A Train Wreak Waiting to Happen

Scary word!  We are all liable, at sometime in our lives, to others.  However, in real estate, liability becomes EXTREMELY important! How you might say? Well, if you are a Realtor Associate, you are liable for your actions and that reflects on your Broker.  The Broker is responsible for you…your actions or inaction can cause your Broker to be fined, lose their license or even more fun..to be sued.  Your actions and inaction can also cause the cooperating Realtor to be liable.

Real Estate license law clearly states that the Broker is responsible for his/her agents who have their licenses with his/her office.  You say, as the Broker, I didn’t know….and license law basically says, too bad…you are responsible – you should have known. Ignorance is no excuse. 

Many Brokers hire many agents and never train them or care one way or the other as long as they are closing transactions.  It is a train wreck ready to happen.  I see it over and over every day as I show listings from other companies, and the agent has no idea how to obtain a listing or what forms to use.  There are some transactions that I end up doing 85% of the work as the other side has no clue. If I say something to the agent, and this is laughable, the other agent looks at me as I have no idea what I am doing as they have been selling real estate for many  years (3 years!).  If I call the Broker to ask for help to obtain information, they usually dismiss you as they know more, having been in the business for a long time,(4 years!).

So my fellow Realtors, if you don’t know what you are doing, L-E-A-R-N, as there are new ideas and changes to the law frequently.  I am constantly learning as our industry changes.

We all have to try to be professional to all out there.

Until Next Monday…

This time it was me…

Most of the time I blog about real estate happenings, problems and people in general and usually it’s other people I mention.  This time it is me, that had no clue.

One of my listings had a full price offer – FHA financing.  Seller jumped on it even though I explained…the good, bad and ugly; i.e. appraisal, costs, etc.  So appraisal comes in $50k under contract price and of course, Seller refuses the offer. So back to marketing and another offer comes in with conventional financing, which is acceptable to Seller.  Appraisal this time comes in at contract price.  Down the road to closing, lender finds a program that Buyer likes and wants to switch to FHA.  Seller receives a firm commitment that lender will use current appraisal.  And here’s where I learn something new every day….first appraisal was filed with FHA and appraisals stay with FHA and that property for 120 days…..and lender says why didn’t I relate that first appraisal  to them…? Which of course I was not aware of the 120 days aspect.  Seller, of course, isn’t real happy as now the Buyer is going back to conventional financing.  Ahhh, the life of a Realtor! Our business is a continual learning process.

Yesterday, was Deborah Valledor’s birthday! She is and has continually been the driving force in the beginning of this blog, she puts in the pictures etc.( I really like the one of me banging my head on my desk) and generally makes me look good, which believe me takes a lot of effort.  So please wish her a  very happy birthday, as I am grateful for her friendship and help in many ways!

Don’t forget to be good to each other!

TEAMS

Today I am writing about Teams.  Many Realtors have Teams but they have lost sight of who is responsible for the Team…and that is the Broker.  Many of the public, whom we service, think the Team IS the Brokerage company, and it is not, unless it is licensed with the state as a company or an LLC.  Nowhere on the sign or advertising was the brokerage name, or it was so small you had difficulty reading it. So the state of Florida stepped in under the auspices of FREC and did several workshops and listened to many area Realtors and really didn’t make sweeping changes….but…they stated that in any advertising, all Teams must have the brokerage name the same size lettering as the team name, otherwise the public believes they are operating as a brokerage.  Timing to comply is just about a year as they recognize that signs need to be changed with lettering etc.  So the statute remains basically the same, Teams are responsible to the brokerage and must advertise in kind.

So my Fellow Realtors, be kind to each other and have a profitable week.

Until Next Monday,

To maximize social media distribution, understand your target audience and build your network. Ask these questions:

• Who are your social media readers? Specifically discover which platforms they frequent and when? Why do they use each network?
• By platform, what content do they seek and why do they want or need it? And, who do they follow on social media and who influences their decisions?
• When and where do they check social media? Specially determine their physical location and device.

Test a variety of platforms to determine which ones yield the best results for your business! Consistently showing up, participating and sharing matters.

You don’t need to use every aspect of a specific social media site. The major players offer a variety of content and participation models.

• Facebook offers Business Pages, Facebook Groups, and Facebook Live
• Twitter offers TwitterChats
• LinkedIn offers Business Pages, LinkedIn Groups, LinkedIn Pulse  and Slideshare
• Instagram offers IGTV
• Google+ (Yes it still works. Additionally I’ve heard this from promotion experts.)
• Pinterest (Use it as a visual search engine.)
• YouTube (Use it as a video search engine.)

Source: www.HeidiCohen.com