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Melinda Johnson
Freedom First Properties
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Life Changing Lives

The buyer side is “the weak side.”  It is a refuge for agents who don’t prepare.

I know these are harsh statements; however, agents who continually think about this business, practice in this business, and are successful in this business consistently carry large listing inventories.  As I have said many times before, having listings is your least expensive and most effective way to find buyers.  Even the top agents, who loathe spending their day as a tour guide and hire a buyer’s agent at 50% of gross, still work with the occasional buyer generated from a listing.

I’m aware that you have to work with buyers because you have sellers who become buyers.  You have referrals that need to be pampered.  You have past clients who might not be willing to work with anyone else on your team.  For over thirty years, I worked with buyers; however, it was a much lower number than sellers.  I never spent any money in buyer lead generation.  We have proven over the years that listing agents make more money than buyer agents.

When I did work with buyers, I always tried to do it as quickly as possible.  I would accomplish this goal by first showing the best properties, slowly causing the buyer to long for those properties they saw early on as the day progressed!  Of course, I only worked with the most motivated buyers.

I also didn’t show any short sale properties or REOs unless it was absolutely necessary.  Why would you show inventory that you cannot control?  You can’t control an REO until the bank finally signs the contract and that could take weeks.  If it was a good deal in the first place, it won’t be after a few weeks when the listing agent shops your deal around town.  And short sales?  Who knows when they will close?  Why waste a perfectly good buyer and your time on inventory that might not close?  I want you to be aware that showing the best inventory first to a motivated buyer and showing the worst inventory last is a major ingredient to ending the tour guide job as soon as possible. 

So, if you have to work the weak side of the business, don’t be a wimp in getting the contract signed!  Much to my dismay, some of my current coaching clients are still emailing their offers.  They wait patiently (sometimes impatiently) for the listing agent to present to their seller then wait again for the listing agent to get back with a counter or acceptance.

I never played the waiting game — and for good reason.  When you give an offer to a listing agent, they have an opportunity to “shop” that offer to their “in house” compatriots or to “possible” buyers.  Also, by not being in attendance during the offer presentation, you don’t know the seller’s “hot buttons,” which might be easily satisfied with your buyer’s abilities.  If you are not there, you don’t know what those buttons are! 

If I received any grief from the listing agent because I wanted to represent my buyer in front of their seller, I would explain that the buyer signed an agreement requesting my presence for all offers.  If a personal presentation wasn’t possible, I would request a teleconference.  If that was not enough, I would contact their broker directly regarding the lack of cooperation of the listing agent.  I wasn’t going to lose a transaction based upon either slyness or ineptness of the listing agent.

I also knew that I did not want to walk away from the table without either an acceptance or a counter-offer.  Once those goals were accomplished, I could simply walk outside to the waiting buyers, have them sign the agreement, and walk back in with a signed contract.  Yes, I know this is aggressive real estate.  In today’s real estate, you most likely will have spent tens or hundreds of hours on developing a buyer transaction.  Don’t let it come down to whims of the listing agent.

To recap: we get the buyers interested in inventory that can actually be sold!  We quickly show them the best inventory — first.  We make certain that both the buyers’ and sellers’ needs can be met by attending the offer presentation.  Present the counter-offer to your “buyer in waiting,” and get their signature.

This is efficient real estate!  It is also what needs to be done so you can get back to the best business of listing real estate.

By: Walter Sanford, www.waltersanford.com
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Video Introduction to Ron Siegel 

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning Your Credit Repair” Series.

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Ron Siegel counsels clients in all matters Debt: Senior Loan Officer, Debt Settlement, Credit Repair.  Reach on Ron Siegel at Ron@MBEhoa.com – 800.306.1990 ext 226 – www.MBEhoa.com.

For any sales professional interested in selling more to more people in less time, testimonials are an absolutely vital part of the formula for success.  If you’re not using them in your business right now, you are missing out on one of the most useful and under-used sales tools…ever!

I have some thoughts on why most people don’t use testimonials anywhere near to their full potential.  First, let’s talk about why testimonials are so effective.  Consider the story of legendary businessman W. Clement Stone.  He built what would one day become a multi-billion dollar empire by selling fire-insurance policies door-to-door during the Great Depression.

There’s no denying that Clem’s knack for people skills was big part of his success.  And he also had a little something extra — a binder overflowing with testimonials from his customers.  Legend has it that that binder never left his side when he was knocking on all those doors.  There was a good reason for that.  It was chock full of stories — and not just happy accounts from people who were satisfied.  It also told painful stories about how people had lost houses, husbands and wives to misfortune — and how relieved they were that, thanks to Clem, they had signed on the dotted line long ago, and now were covered.  Frankly, after reading stories out of that binder, it’s hard to imagine how anyone could ever say no to him!

That’s the amazing power of testimonials.  They work because they reaffirm for others what you already know is true.

As a sales professional, you take pride in the work you do.  When you meet with prospects, it’s likely that you talk about all the great things that you do for your clients.  You might also talk about how often you go the extra mile because service matters to you.  But let’s face it: in sales, no one ever becomes successful and stays that way for long if all they ever do is talk about the sizzle without ever showing the steak.

That’s where testimonials come in.  They back up what you say with what noted psychologist Robert B. Cialdini calls “social proof.”   If we drill down a little deeper into human psychology, we also learn that testimonials have amazing persuasive powers.  That’s because they touch on both the fact-based and emotion-based motivators that drive people to buy things.  They reaffirm that your claims are credible and that your services are the real deal.  They validate the feelings that a prospect has for you.  And they do so with a message that is unmistakably authentic and sincere.

When you combine all those motivators together, it helps you make a very convincing case to prospects.  That way, you can say “don’t just take my word for it; have a look at what my customers say.”  It deepens the confidence that people will have in your message, and it can dramatically reduce the barriers you face in closing that sale.

Testimonials are a form of word-of-mouth communication, which according to a McKinsey & Company study, influences three quarters of all purchasing decisions.  Add to that the estimate by consulting firm Keller Fay — that there are some 3.4 billion word-of-mouth conversations each day — and you quickly realize that talk is anything but cheap!

So why are testimonials under-used?  You might think it’s odd, given their amazing potential, that testimonials are seldom among the top-five selling tools used by organizations large and small.  It’s not because they’re ineffective.  Testimonials are under-used because most people don’t know how to find them.  And even when they do find them, they don’t know what to do with them.  So let’s look at how you can address those barriers and harness the power of word-of-mouth.

Keep your ears open wide

When you’re talking to your customers on the phone, does anyone ever share with you a little story about how they were able to make great use your product or service?  Check your email.  Has anyone ever sent you a note just to say “thanks for the great work” on that last job you did for them?  Or have you ever received glowing feedback from a client who responded to a survey that you sent out?  Each of those is a testimonial, just waiting for you to act on it.  And that takes me to my next point.

Ask and you shall receive

Remember our friend W. Clement Stone?  He once said: “If there is something to gain and nothing to lose by asking, by all means ask!”  When a client says great things about you, about your work or the products you sell, give them the opportunity to turn that praise into a testimonial.  Simply ask: “I’d really love it if I could include what you just said in my client testimonials.  Would that be okay?”  People generally like to be helpful to other people, but they’ll never get that opportunity to give you that all-powerful testimonial if you don’t ask first.

Newer customers are passionate

Get on the phone and call your newest customers.  No matter which industry you serve, the most passionate praise you’ll find for your work and the service you sell tends to come from customers with whom you have only recently started doing business.  Andy Sernovitz, the author of “Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking” explains why: they are the ones who are most excited about having found you.  Your repeat customers, on the other hand, are already accustomed to the great service you provide.  But that group can offer another important perspective, too.

Repeat customers are wise and insightful

Your repeat customers provide people (and that includes you!) with important insight about what makes your product or service worth coming back to — again and again.  So make a point of calling up those you have been doing business with for a long time and ask them why it is that they call on you.  The answers you get will often include a great sentence or two that can be added to your testimonial collection.  Again, all you have to do is ask.

Make it easy for people

One of the most common comments you’ll hear from clients when asking for testimonials is “Well I’m really not much of a writer, so it’s hard for me to put it in words.”  The real power of testimonials comes from the fact that they’re not polished; they’re authentic and from the heart.  A marketing professional I know recently shared with me his secret about how he addresses this issue in his business.  ”I borrowed an idea from John Caples, one of the great copywriters of the 20th century.  When asking a client for a testimonial, he’d simply say ‘Finish this sentence in 25 words or less: I really like (product/service/person) because¦’  This really works because it gets right to the point about the feelings people have for you, for what you do and for what you’re selling.”

Do unto others

Write testimonials for others with whom you do business and whose services have impressed you.  It’s a good thing to do.  It also helps to deepen those all-important reciprocal relationships.  Plus testimonials you write about other sends an important message to everyone about the high standards you have not only as a supplier but as a buyer, too.  Social networking site, LinkedIn is a handy tool for doing this.  Not only does it encourage reciprocity, it also helps you become part of a trusted network of professionals.

Make testimonials noticeable

As you build your collection of testimonials, you’ll need to find a place where people can read them.  Lucky for you, you have a lot more choices than W. Clement Stone did back in the Depression-era.  Not only can you put them all in a binder to show prospects, you can also include testimonials in other products — and most won’t cost you much more than a few minutes of your time.  Here are some examples.  Create a special web page devoted to testimonials.  Consider ways that you can include sample quotes from that collection and feature them in steady rotation on the main page of your site.  Another approach that I’ve seen is to include a new testimonial on the signature line of every outbound email.  The possibilities are endless, and the potential benefits to your sales record can be quite amazing and lucrative.

By: Colleen Francis, www.eyesonsales.com
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Video Introduction to Ron Siegel 

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning Your Credit Repair” Series.

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning A Home Purchase” Series.

Ron Siegel counsels clients in all matters Debt: Senior Loan Officer, Debt Settlement, Credit Repair.  Reach on Ron Siegel at Ron@MBEhoa.com – 800.306.1990 ext 226 – www.MBEhoa.com.

Strong evidence that the market has bottomed and that a more balanced housing market is emerging in many parts of the U.S. can be found in the latest HouseHunt Current Market Conditions survey data reported during the first quarter of 2010.  Although uneven, the results show prices have stabilized after steep declines over the past two to four years and in some cases are actually appreciating despite the drag of foreclosures, short sales, job uncertainties and reluctant lenders.

Perhaps the most positive news is that the buyer-seller ratio is almost dead even in HouseHunt’s national random survey of member-agents.  Also important, repeat buyers now represent 50% of all transactions with first-time buyers when investors are factored into the equation.  Three months ago, repeat buyers accounted for only 34% of home purchases.  The normal ratio is two-thirds repeat buyers.

Improvement is also seen in the average time needed to sell a home.  Fifty-two percent of HouseHunt’s member-agents report that their customers received 95 to 100% of their asking prices.  Another 35% said they received more than 90%.

“From the member-agents I talk to, there seems to be a sense the market has hit bottom and sales activity is continuing to pick up,” observes Michael Bearden, president and CEO of HouseHunt, Inc.  ”Business is by no means easy but is getting better and more reliable.  Our lead flow remains good with plenty of interest in real estate.  Consumer demand is building, especially from repeat and move-up buyers.  The federal $8,000 and $6,000 first-time buyer tax credits approved by Congress last year were strong motivators for fence-sitters to do something.  Any increase in current mortgage interest rates could stimulate additional buyer activity this summer and fall.”

When individual agents were asked if the housing market has bottomed in their communities, their opinions ranged from “yes” to a flat “no.”  A majority of them agreed that more personal contact with customers is needed, both by phone and by e-mail, to meet changing market demands.  Here’s a sampling:

“I’m definitely trying to spend more time being in touch with my customers,” said Steve Hinrichs of Edina Realty, who with his partner Jean O’Reilly are agents in Maple Grove and Rogers, MN, in the suburban Minneapolis area.  ”I’m currently offering to update my customers on a monthly or quarterly basis on homes that have sold in their communities.  It keeps me in front of them and allows me to see what is going on in their areas.  As far as local market activity, our focus has been on first-time buyers.  We’re seeing a little price growth in some areas but will know better in a month or two.  Our market will come back.  Our biggest problem right now is consumer confidence.  People are nervous and unsure about their jobs and the economy.  I try to be honest and forthright with them.  Trust is of utmost importance now.”

Geri Boyer of Altura Real Estate Group in Laguna Beach, CA, said she is seeing a stabilization of prices but expects a little more price dropping through the end of the year.  ”The activity is out there,” she said, “but our biggest problem is getting loans for my buyers.  Competition from second home buyers and investors is also keen for properties in the $350,000 range.  Recently, I had a listing on a bank-owned property that attracted 33 offers.  It sold for $100,000 over the list price.  First-time buyers are being outbid any investors with cash.”  Boyer added: “I’m doing everything different to compete in this market.  I’ve had to reinvent myself.”

Dealing with the lenders is also a big problem for Alexia Gallagher of Keller Williams Realty Atlanta Partners in Suwanee, South Forsyth County and Cumming, GA.  ”The majority of buyers who come to us are looking for deals, so we’re looking at foreclosures, short sales and distressed properties.  Our biggest problem is getting banks to be reasonable and to get them to respond in a timely manner.  We have been in multiple bidding wars.  It’s a different market.”  She noted: “I think as far as value goes, we probably have bottomed out price-wise.  Our inventory of unsold homes is down quite a bit, which is very good.  We’ve had a surplus of inventory with lots of new construction.  We continue to have a record number of foreclosures as well.  So we have a mixed market with some positive signs and some negative signs.”

Not convinced that the housing market has bottomed is Barry Newman of Century21 M.B. in Glenview, IL, a suburb of Chicago.  ”I feel that we’re over-inventoried.  I also have a hard time believing that there are as many buyers as sellers out there.  I had a great December and January, then things started to dry up, which was disappointing.”  Newman continued: “One thing I am doing to be more effective in this market is to talk more with my customers rather than e-mail them.  I now see that talking directly to people is the best way to go.  It’s better to be in front of your customers than communicating the way I have been doing.”

By: Mike Bearden, www.realtown.com
           
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Video Introduction to Ron Siegel 

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning Your Credit Repair” Series.

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Ron Siegel counsels clients in all matters Debt: Senior Loan Officer, Debt Settlement, Credit Repair.  Reach on Ron Siegel at Ron@MBEhoa.com – 800.306.1990 ext 226 – www.MBEhoa.com.

At least the real estate industry has 2013 to look forward to.

Continuing foreclosures and an “overhang” in housing inventory will likely prolong the housing slump for several more years, said economists who spoke recently during an annual meeting of the National Association of Real Estate Editors.

While home sales likely reached the bottom of the current cycle last year, home values in many markets are still in decline, said Stan Humphries, chief economist for online real estate search and information company Zillow.

“The housing recession is not over; housing prices continue to fall,” Humphries said.

And housing demand may not see a normal balance with new household formation and housing starts until 2013, said Doug Duncan, chief economist for secondary mortgage giant Fannie Mae.

The “overhang or shadow supply” of housing inventory has a lot to do with the drawn-out recovery for the housing market, he noted.  Home and rental unit vacancy rates are running about 2 million units above normal levels, Duncan said.

His forecast calls for home prices to continue to fall this year, perhaps 1 percent to 3 percent more, and hit bottom in the third quarter.

A Zillow home-value index, based on automated valuations for most U.S. homes, was negative through 2009 and reached toward equilibrium as a tax-credit deadline approached, Humprhies said.

“Depreciation rates are actually picking up again” now, he said, adding that Zillow also forecasts a bottom in home prices during the third quarter.

But don’t expect home prices to spike.

Humphries said he believes a more likely scenario is relatively flat prices, which means that home values will actually drop slightly, as they won’t keep pace with inflation.  “We think the market will be flat in nominal terms for three to five years.  We are not going to hit bottom and see a V-shaped recovery.”

The “tremendous amount of shadow inventory,” which Humphries defined as properties that are in foreclosure and not yet on the market or are seriously delinquent and not yet in foreclosure, is definitely a contributor to the stalled real estate recovery, he said.

Negative equity, combined with high unemployment, also are key factors.  “We’re going to see more foreclosures spin out of that combination,” he said.

Humphries also expects “sideline sellers” — who are waiting to put their homes on the market once they see some semblance of recovery — will continue to keep inventory high even as sales increase.

He noted that roughly twice as many homes were put on the market in April as were sold.

Foreclosure volume continues to increase and will likely peak later this year, Humphries said.  ”These rates will not recede very quickly. They’re going to stay high for awhile.”

The federal tax credit programs offered to first-time and existing homebuyers do not appear to have had a major impact in driving sales, he also said.

He said it’s quite possible that low mortgage interest rates, low home prices and widely available FHA-backed loans would have been enough incentive for most buyers who accepted the tax credits.  The programs “were just giving out money,” he said.

Also, the tax credits appeared to just be “stealing demand” ahead in time, “and we’re going to see a payback in July and August.”

Duncan said the tax credits “unquestionably simply shifted demand in time period” for buyers, though he noted the policy rationale behind the tax credits.

The intent was to prevent house prices, which tend to overshoot on the upside, from overshooting on the downside as well, he said.

“Implementation of the tax credit and other policies is an implicit belief that the social cost of all of the interventions will be less than the cost of letting the market settle itself.

“There are a whole series of incremental policy changes that are designed to cushion that overshoot, and the question is whether that’s more or less costly than letting them adjust on their own,” Duncan said.

By: Glenn Roberts Jr., www.inman.com
Free Online Workshop Schedule  

Video Introduction to Ron Siegel 

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning Your Credit Repair” Series.

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning A Home Purchase” Series.

Ron Siegel counsels clients in all matters Debt: Senior Loan Officer, Debt Settlement, Credit Repair.  Reach on Ron Siegel at Ron@MBEhoa.com – 800.306.1990 ext 226 – www.MBEhoa.com.

Property taxes vary widely from state to state and city to city.  In some locales, property taxes make up for a state’s lack of an income tax, but in others, they’re high in spite of a state’s claim on the fruits of your personal labor.  Even if you’ve paid off your mortgage, the property taxes continue, and in all but the rarest of cases property taxes consistently rise over time.  But there are legal and legitimate ways you can reduce your property taxes.

To lower your property tax:

-  Review your rate card

-  Don’t make improvements

-  Know the cost

-  Scale back on the landscaping

-  Know what your neighbors pay

-  Welcome your tax assessor

-  Let the assessor know what’s wrong with your home

1. Take a trip

Head down to the tax assessor’s office, and request to see your property tax rate card.  The property tax you pay is public information, and your rate card should be readily available to you.  The card will have information about the size of your lot, the dimensions of your rooms, and the number and type of fixtures located within the home.  It may also include information on any special features that could increase your property tax, such as a pool, a detached garage, or notations about any improvements that have been made.

When you review your property tax rate card, scour it for potential discrepancies.  My property tax increased a substantial amount (doubled) one year, and my wife marched down to city hall to find out why.  Somehow, our information had merged with another homeowner’s — one who’s home was twice as large, was on a lot 8 times larger, and had a pool house.  The clerk laughed about it saying, “Oh, that happens all the time.”  I didn’t think it was too funny.

2. Get content

Hold off making improvements to your home in the months before it’s assessed particularly if those improvements will require building permits.  Improvements could increase the value of your home and thereby, increase the amount of property taxes assessed on your home.

3. Know what improvements will cost

If you just can’t avoid making improvements, it’s best to know what those improvements will cost you ad infinitum in property taxes.  A simple call to your tax assessor or building official and they will be able to give you an idea of how much an improvement will add to your property taxes.

4. Cut the flowers

Though tax assessments are strictly controlled by formulas and specific criteria, these are human beings conducting an “assessment” on your home.  If your green thumb goes crazy (like mine), be aware that pretty homes generally get a higher assessed value than plain homes.

5. Spy on your neighbors

Since your property tax assessment is public knowledge, so is your neighbors’!  Investigate what your neighbors are paying, and if your home is assessed at a higher rate, try to find out why.  If you have a 3 bedroom 2 bath home with a basement garage and an assessed value of $315,000 but your neighbor has 4 bedrooms 3 baths and a basement garage with an assessed value of $275,000, you have every right to know why.  Ask.  Then ask for a re-assessment for your home (not your neighbors’).

6. Let him come on in

If your property tax assessor wants to tour you home, by all means, let him or her in!  Refusing to allow an assessor inside you home could result in your home being assessed at the highest possible rate.  In many cities, this is standard practice because there is an assumption that you’ve made improvements that you don’t want the assessor to see.

7. Sell your home’s bad side

Walk around your home with the assessor, if possible.  When you do, point out any negatives about your home.  Typically, a property tax assessor will only notice your new flooring, refinished cabinets, and fancy new front door.  He will probably overlook the cracked foundation, the aging roof, and the unusable fireplace.  Those negatives should be considered to get a fair assessment.

Challenge your property tax assessment

If you’re convinced that your property tax is too high, ask your assessor’s office what steps you have to take to challenge your assessment.  Most offices have a formalized process with forms and step-by-step instructions.

The bottom line on property taxes

Don’t make your home look like a dump just to save a few bucks on your property taxes.  There is a certain sense of balance between making your home look nice and saving money on your property taxes.  Time your improvements, walk your home with the assessor, do some research at city hall, and challenge anything you feel is unfair.  

You can take control of your property tax situation and save money in the process!

By: Ron, www.thewisdomjournal.com
Free Online Workshop Schedule  

Video Introduction to Ron Siegel 

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning Your Credit Repair” Series.

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning A Home Purchase” Series.

Ron Siegel counsels clients in all matters Debt: Senior Loan Officer, Debt Settlement, Credit Repair.  Reach on Ron Siegel at Ron@MBEhoa.com – 800.306.1990 ext 226 – www.MBEhoa.com.

Earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, hail, hurricanes, tornadoes and lightning strikes are just a few of the nasty surprises that nature can whip up.  Unfortunately, bad weather can affect anyone.  It is important to prepare for both large-scale and small-scale natural disasters so that, when the damage is done, you have the means to pick up the pieces and rebuild your portfolio and your life.  In this article we will look at what you need to do to make sure your financial interests come out on top after any of these uncontrollable events.

Be Sure of Your Insurance

It is a common recurring theme in every area struck by a natural disaster that a) no one saw it coming, and b) no one was properly insured for it.  Sitting in our dry and cozy home, it can be easy to scoff at the victims, but the truth is that almost everyone can be under-insured when it comes to a disaster.  The biggest wake-up call is the fact that homeowner’s insurance covers a very limited set of circumstances — fires from faulty wiring and such — that doesn’t include all the natural disasters that your area may be prone to.

Full Replacement Coverage

At the very least you should have full replacement or replacement cost coverage.  This policy will cover the cost of replacing your home or other insured buildings.  Pay attention to the limits of the policy because they will define what kind of further coverage you need.  Earthquake and flood insurance are sold as separate policies and, although the premiums can be high, you should buy them if you live in an area that regularly suffers such disasters.  If you are new to the area, the local library archives will have environmental data that will help you look into what kinds of natural disasters have occurred in the area in the past.

Keeping Current

Once you have your home covered with all the relevant policies, you will need to have your home reassessed every few years so that the policies reflect the true value of your house.  Also, if you do major renovations, such as installing hardwood flooring or finishing the basement, you will need to update the policy.  There is a more extensive home insurance policy available called a guaranteed replacement cost policy.  This policy will rebuild your home and may include improvements dictated by changes in the building code (something other policies may omit), but it is not available everywhere.

Covering the Knick Knacks

For the best insurance records, consider keeping a detailed list of the contents of your home and update it yearly.  The list should include serial numbers, photos and descriptions of everything, even the fixtures.  This will expedite the processing of any claim you may file and serve as documentation for your tax losses and deductions.  The best way to make sure your list is accurate is to ask your insurance agent what he or she wants to see in a claim.  For more expensive items like jewelry and costly electronics, you should consider separate coverage over and above the basic coverage of the items in your house (items that are likely depreciated yearly by your insurance policy).  If you have a home office, you can get affordable business coverage to cover the equipment that you use for the business, rather than putting it under your basic home policy.

Renting? You Still Need Coverage

The insurance that your landlord carries will cover damages to the building but not your possessions.  Therefore, if you live in an area that’s prone to natural disaster, you should consider renter’s insurance.  Not all policies are created equal; if you get a bare-bones policy that just covers the replacement cost of your stuff, you will be missing possible coverage for the relocation to another area or the living costs while you wait for your apartment to be repaired.  Renter’s insurance can be pretty cheap, so shop around for the best policy and the best price.

Emergency Documents

With the exception of your will, which should be kept by your attorney or at the local registrar’s office, you should rent a safety deposit box for the originals of all other important documents.  Keeping them in your home puts you at risk of having them stolen, destroyed in a fire or swallowed in an earthquake.  This includes everything from your home’s deed to your marriage license.  One good idea would be to make two extra copies of all of these documents and leave one set with your attorney or a trusted friend/relative.  The second set will be placed in your emergency kit.

Emergency Kit and Your Wish List

An emergency kit is a small and compact package of things that you want to bring with you in the event that you and your family need to flee from a disaster.  Your emergency kit should be a box small enough to run with.  Making a pack that is waterproof with a lock would be a plus, but a child’s plastic lunch box will do in a pinch. Inside should be:

1. Copies of all your important documents (home’s deed, marriage license, birth certificates, etc).

2. Enough traveler’s checks or cash to make it through a few days at a hotel.

3. Copies of any prescriptions and your health and dental insurance cards.

4. Computer backups of your financial records (if you have them) or copies of the first two pages of your most recent federal and state income tax forms.

Also, you should make a wish list of items to take in the event that you have the time to collect a few select items before you need to flee.  This can be negatives or CDs full of your family photos, jewelry or whatever else is important to you and can be quickly stuffed and carried in a small bag.  It is easier to make the decisions now, when the roof and walls aren’t falling in around you and your loved ones.

Be Proactive

While preparing for an unexpected disaster sounds impossible, there are many things that you can do.  By taking the steps mentioned above, you will be better able to rebuild after the event, but, if you are homeowner, you can go even further.  There are many upgrades, such as hurricane shutters and moving your wiring so it runs in the attic, that will minimize the damage of most natural disasters.  As a bonus, these same upgrades will lower your insurance premiums.  Building inspectors, workers from your utility company and a local fire fighter will be able to tell you what changes you can make to protect your home and the people in it. 

By: Andrew Beattie, www.forbes.com
Free Online Workshop Schedule  

Video Introduction to Ron Siegel 

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning Your Credit Repair” Series.

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning A Home Purchase” Series.

Ron Siegel counsels clients in all matters Debt: Senior Loan Officer, Debt Settlement, Credit Repair.  Reach on Ron Siegel at Ron@MBEhoa.com – 800.306.1990 ext 226 – www.MBEhoa.com.

We in the real estate business are a special breed.  Approximately ninety percent of all real estate salespeople and managers have behavioral styles that are highly aggressive and/or promotional.  That’s not like the normal population!  We salespeople types like people, and we charge ahead (my motto is, “when all else fails, read the directions”).  Only fifty percent of the normal population exhibits those behavioral styles.  Other styles are more task-focused and embrace procedures (those are the staff people and assistants who keep us from absolutely going in all directions at once).

Because we’re a “special breed,” there are five important areas coaches can help us with to leverage our natural talents and increase our productivity:

Get Us Focused

Teach Us Models and Systems

Prioritize our Talents and Information

Teach Us the “Why”

Instill Confidence and Inspiration

Focus, Anyone?

Yes, we salespeople-types have special talents-and special challenges.  Our biggest challenge is focus.  We’re great with people.  We get into action fast.  Our problem is that people and actions pull us in various directions, and we lose the one thing that drives us toward our goals — focus.  The first and biggest benefit a coach can give us is to keep us focused.

Models and Systems: We salespeople and managers don’t have them, but, do we ever need them!

Because we’re the “doers” of the world, we don’t like to get slowed down with processes and systems.  We typically hate the “linear” approach.  In fact, we like to “go with the flow.”  Problem is that our clients don’t like it when we’re that unpredictable!  They might draw the conclusion that we’re not trustworthy.

A professional coach can help us systematize to gain much greater client trust.  Models and systems are woefully lacking in our real estate industry.  After all, we’re the people who’ve always said, “Fake it until you make it.”  What if your surgeon said that?  Or your accountant?

Historically, we real estate professionals have had an aversion to following procedures.  Yet, in the world of business, systems are the basis of all business growth (and the only way you can “franchise” your business).  For us, too, systematizing is the best way we can build big, profitable businesses.

So, we need to find credible models and systems.  A competent coach uses proven models and systems that do more than stop our crisis management.  They teach us how to think through our business like the top performer would think.

Not Just the “What,” but the “Why”

When you’re choosing a coach, find one who teaches you the concepts and principles behind the processes.  After all, you want to take those models and systems and self-manage long-term.  The coach who only says, “Do it because I told you to” or provides you cards to mail out is not treating you like an adult.  (Once that dictator is gone or those cards are sent out, you’re back to being a newbie agent or a newbie manager!)

Find a coach who can coach you as a developing adult.  This type of coach says, “Here are proven models, systems, and processes.  I’ll teach you the why behind these, as well as helping you implement these models and systems to be more successful.”

What Real Estate Salespeople Think They Need from a Coach

Real estate salespeople think they need more information.  They look for information from a coach.  But, in truth, they have thousands of bits of information they’ve never put to work.  What they really need is a method for prioritizing that information and a human being to facilitate that prioritizing.  They need models and systems.  Then, they can pick and choose the important parts of that information to apply.

One of the coaches I work with has some favorite questions he asks of agents: “Where could you get that information?”  ”What are your resources?”  By asking those questions, he encourages agents to delve into their own resources, increasing their self confidence and their abilities to self-manage.

A Coach Helps You Move Faster and with More Confidence

Armed with great models and systems, you and your coach have a common language from which to work.  You will benefit from gaining focus.  You will accomplish more faster, gain greater confidence, and be able to set higher goals as a result of your coaching experience and relationship.

If you’re an agent or manager whose self-confidence has withered along with your business, believe in yourself enough to hire that “partner,” a real-estate specific professional coach who will help you get your confidence back, while getting you into action with purpose.

By: Carla Cross, www.retrainingcenter.com
Free Online Workshop Schedule  

Video Introduction to Ron Siegel 

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning Your Credit Repair” Series.

Click Here to View the Entire “Planning A Home Purchase” Series.

Ron Siegel counsels clients in all matters Debt: Senior Loan Officer, Debt Settlement, Credit Repair.  Reach on Ron Siegel at Ron@MBEhoa.com – 800.306.1990 ext 226 – www.MBEhoa.com.