By Scott Newman So you’ve made it through the worst of the real estate bubble, you’ve developed a nice client base, and you’re taking over the entire industry – great! If that’s the case, then this blog isn’t for you. Instead, this blog focuses on what we as veterans of the industry can share with the newbies to shorten the …
Do You Have A WIG?
By Melissa Krchnak Do you have a wig? No, I’m au natural. I’ve been learning about “The 4 Disciplines of Execution” and getting my Wildly Important Goal (WIG) figured out. Oh, that kind of a WIG… Yea, I’ve got one of those! Most of us do not have a problem coming up with great ideas. Hell, we could revolutionize our …
Working With Your Clients During the Gov’t Shutdown
By Dave Robison In the midst of the government shutdown, we are still working with our clients to get their deals closed. Yes, the FHA is still committed to getting loans processed, but other government entities are closed, including the IRS. Lenders require a 4506-T form, but the IRS is now unable to fulfill requests. So what does this mean? …
3 Tips for Transforming Your Job Into a Business
By Dave Robison How many times have you heard it? You are your very own business owner in real estate. You are an independent contractor, you incur and write off expenses, you spend your own marketing dollars and you work your own hours. You own a business. It definitely sounds like a business. Years ago, I was convinced I had …
Thank You
By Anand Patel “Why do you do this for free?” “What do you get out of it?” “When do you have time to make money?” “Why do you waste your time with that?” “What’s the point?” If you volunteer some of your time and talents to National Association of REALTORS® (or any other organization) at the local, state, or national …
Understanding Client Psychology, Managing Expectations, and Communicating Effectively
By Sammer Mudawar Buying and selling residential real estate is one of the most emotional transactions consumers conduct. Understanding client psychology, managing expectations, and using effective communication are the three most valuable skills that a real estate professional needs to develop for a successful career with less stress. Client Psychology Understand the psyche of your client and your chances of …
3 Tips to Avoid Financing Pitfalls
By Scott Newman Many agents forget that barriers to getting deals to the closing table exist in both good and bad markets. We are seeing a lot of appraisal issues in the Chicagoland area as over-regulation and timidness on the part of appraisers to push values — despite undeniable appreciation — has resulted in many deals dying at the financing …
Valuable or Worthless? The Choice is Yours
By Sammer Mudawar Let’s face it, in the eyes of the consumer, especially the internet shopper, all real estate agents are the same. In fact, they don’t even know why you get paid since they find properties on the internet themselves. Does this sound familiar? Regardless of experience level, 6 months in the business or 16 years, most agents are …
The Wild Ride of Interest Rates
By Jason O’Neil Sit tight. Last week mortgage interest rates jumped drastically. Some say without warning, but then again, most have been preaching for months, if not years, that rates can’t stay this low. Can they? Why did they rise? Is Wall Street fed up? Was the Federal Reserve testing the market’s tolerance with some well thought out comments? “The …
Think Outside the House
By Anand Patel We can’t help it. As real estate professionals we sometimes are trapped within an industry bubble. We attend conferences, meetings, seminars, mastermind groups all related to the real estate industry. We spend most of our time with fellow real estate professionals (our whole business is based on cooperating with our competition). The topic of many of our …