realtor: And The Award Goes To - 05/27/12 01:31 AM
I think I may have just found the laziest Realtor of the year and the year is not even half over yet. I’m just glad they actually stopped the car to take this photo.


Sometimes it’s not what I do that makes me Better Than Your Average Joe, it’s what my competitors don’t do.  It's a good life.
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realtor: Golf And Real Estate Are A Lot Alike - 05/12/12 11:18 PM

Driving home from a listing appointment the other day in Lemont’s Ruffled Feathers subdivision I got to thinking about how Real Estate is much like a game of golf . The professionals hone their craft every day whether it’s a golfer getting up early to hit buckets of balls or a Realtor being in the office early and learning what the Real Estate Market looks like that day because the markets are always moving.A pro golfer has to know how to play in all types of different climates, hot, rainy, windy and sometimes very cold conditions.  A Realtor has to … (41 comments)

realtor: What Does A Buyer Look Like? - 02/08/11 04:15 PM
A fellow Realtor told me a story today that should teach us all a lesson.  She told me that many years ago her uncle owned about four or five junk yards and was pretty well off.  One day he decided to buy a car and put on the oldest and dirtiest cloths that he could find.  He strolled into an auto dealership and started to look around the showroom but nobody approached him. A  few minutes went by when one of the salesman came over to the uncle and gave him a dollar.  The uncle gave the dollar back to the … (17 comments)

realtor: What's On The Shelves? - 02/08/11 10:32 AM

 
When I was a kid, every Saturday my dad would load my sister and I into the car and drag us around the neighborhood to all of the different shops.  We would start at Tony & Jerry’s Grocery Store, followed by Caliendo’s Butcher Shop and finish up at the Egg Store.  Each store having it’s own unique specialty.  The Egg Store always amazed me as to how the cashiers would know the price of  the different items my dad would place on the counter. There were no scanners in those days and the the produce was never labeled. Then … (6 comments)

realtor: Is NAR® Really Working for Me? - 01/13/11 12:03 AM
 
I'm sure most of us have heard the radio and television commercials from the National Association of Realtors regarding home ownership.  As a consumer or Realtor do you think the commercials are painting an accurate description of the Real Estate Industry.  I would love to hear your thoughts.  I like to thank Laura Giannotta of Keller Williams in Manahawkin NJ for the post below.
 
Is NAR® Really Working for Me? The National Association of REALTORS® is continuing in 2011 to use our $20. community awareness fee to tout the benefits of home ownership.  Continuing to call it the American … (2 comments)

realtor: Anti Trust Laws -Test Your Knowledge - 01/07/11 02:50 AM

 
 I read a post yesterday that just about blew my mind.  A Realtor wrote about commissions and how upset they were about having their commission cut  in which a full blown dialog ensued.  The Sherman Ant-Trust act is something I learned about when I was in high school.  O.k. let me clarify that, I heard something about it when I was in high school, but really didn't get a firm grasp of it until I was in a crowed banquet hall one Wednesday morning.  During a Q& A session a lady stood up and started to explain what her … (7 comments)

realtor: What to do When Professional Standards Are Not Professional? - 01/06/11 10:19 AM

 
You never can tell  when a discussion regarding professional standards for Realtors might pop up.  I was watching a Chicago Blackhawks game at a local watering hole with some of my Br Rice alumni last night when the shirt I was wearing started a conversation regarding professional standards amongst Realtors.  My brand new button-down, shirt with the Mainstreet Organization of Realtors anniversary logo caught the eye of "Bob" who asked me what was Mainstreet? 
I explained to him that is was a local organization for Realtors and that I had just attended a professional standards workshop.  By the look … (37 comments)

realtor: The American Dream But For Who? - 12/31/10 11:29 AM
I have a coach that has been encouraging me to get out out of the office and work from places where people are converging because face it, I have a better chance of meeting the people in my database at a coffee shop than I do being tucked away in the back of the office. Well today was as good as any to try this, my wife was off ( and loves the house to her self on her day off), it is New Years Eve, and unusually warm here in Chicago (52 F).
I answered emails and made a few … (6 comments)

realtor: What is a Realtor Worth? Part 2 - 02/23/09 12:42 PM
Last night I wrote about the conversation I had with a past client and good friend regarding what they felt Realtors were worth.  Tonight I'm responding to a posting that was left on my Face Book page.
As a non-Kool-Aid drinker, I think it would be helpful if you told us sellers what you were paying for on our behalf, i.e. ad on Realtor.com is $50, Zillow is $100, etc. That would help justify the 5-6% fee that gets tacked on along with the tax escrow and stamps that sellers have to come up with. If you went to a car … (1 comments)