Kieran and Cecelia's Blog

Another Short Sale

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 12:50:10 -0700

We stopped at a For Sale By Owner Home near our office. We got talking with the owners and decided to help them. They needed to do a short sale. The home was unattractive on the outside. It had 0 curb appeal. The inside was ok. We priced it to sell. I hesitate to put the price ($34000) (not that mucch hesitation) I'm not looking for referrals in thos price range at all. None. Nada. 0.

It had a 2nd mortgage on it. We had 3 buyers. Two attempts failed. Pushy, impatient buyers, couldn't wait for it to happen. The 3rd buyer had an agent that was good. We got the second to agree they (first 1st of 3 offers) would accept $1500. I was surprised when the second lender advised me they wanted $2500. The first agreed to that 2500 figure and when we sent the final HUD, they raised it to $2651. The first wouldn't (couldn't they said) change it. I explained to the second lender's negotiater the offer was two thousand dollars lower than the previous two offers. The second (you I'm talking to you the seconds negotiator) raised your to 2500 and now you want $2651.

I said "you are nuts. How about making a business decision based on common sense? She had been contacting the management company asking the same question. After one more day of waiting to hear from the manager, she sent an approval letter accepting the lower figure.

Forward to close.

We had a phone call from the buyer's agent. She wanted to do a walk through. We met at the house. It wasn't cleaned properly. She informed us their was a crack in the glass top cook top range. She said it wasn't there before. I asked to see the inspection report. She said the customer declined to have one done. I called the seller and he told me it was there from a long time ago. I said "didn't you invest a lot of money in your home a year ago. He told me it was broken during installation, I asked"and you never called them back to fix it? Inspector Clouseau thought to himself "something fishy here, boss)I suggested

he should offer the buyer $200. They had to pay $50 to have the home broom swept clean. So then I had to find a cleaner. Other than that the house was easy to sell. I made approximately $750 and had to pay a referral fee of 25%. I make 13 cents/hr. I still love the business. I like helping people. God is good.

LIFE IS GOOD. KIERAN AND CECELIA

Who is right? The realtor or the negotiator?

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 07:56:14 -0700

We had a bank approval at 121,900, a buyer (not ours) and an inspection. The inspection read "recommend further testing for chines drywall". There were pictures. The buyer walked. He had young children. We believed there was no Chinese drywall and had 2 inspections done to our satisfaction indicating there was none. The cause of the "appearance of Chinese drywall........ was sulfur in the water.

We were told to relist it at 115,000. (denied now by the negotiator) In the meantime the air conditioner was stolen. (5000) We have a new buyer at 100,000. The negotiator wanted their highest and best offer. They said 103,000. the negotiator said no and wants to shred the file.

We did the following analysis and sent it to the negotiator. Our analysis is based on common sense. We aren't making the point 'There is Chinese drywall' Our point is who's going to buy it when they see the pictures and are told the first inspection indicated the presence of Chinese drywall?

If it has it, it's worth 62,340. If it doesn't it's worth 103,000. The negotaitor wants as close to 121,900 as she can get. That is our case. We have only the court of public opinion. What do you think?

OUR ANALYSIS

In zip code 34286 on our mls ,there are 7 homes that showed up when Chinese Drywall is mentioned in the public remarks. The stats are listed below. The average sp/ftac is $34.13 The subject property has 1845 ftac. = $62,969

All homes without Chinese Drywall were $63.98 x 1845 ftac = $118,043

Address

LDATE

LPRICE

LP/SqFt

ADOM

S DATE

SPRICE

SP/SqFt

HTD

GAR

ACT

3172 PARADE TER

6/24/2010

79,000

38.76

2038

2 CAR

PNC

1749 NORVELL AVE

11/6/2009

59,000

38.29

178

1541

2 CAR

PNC

2511 VALKARIA AVE

11/6/2009

59,000

37.56

193

1571

2 CAR

SLD

2342 BEEVILLE AVE

9/25/2009

44,550

26.33

12/21/2009

55,000

32.51

1692

2 CAR

SLD

3143 TUCSON RD

12/16/2009

79,950

39.35

3/31/2010

60,000

29.53

2032

2 CAR

SLD

4228 BIRNAM TER

9/30/2009

88,100

38.74

10/27/2009

84,000

36.94

2274

2 CAR

SLD

1541 GERONA TER

12/10/2009

79,000

37.57

2/8/2010

79,000

37.57

2103

2 CAR

AVERAGES

69,800

256.60

69,500

34.13

1893

We searched the same zip code without using Chinese Drywall in the public remarks. There were 743 records. The average lp/ft was 67.41. The average sp/ftac was 63.98.= $118,043 for the subject property.

With Chinese Drywall in the public remarks, the average sp/ftac was 34.13 = $62,969 for the subject property

	Beds	Full Baths	Sq Ft Heated	List Price	LP/SqFt	Sold Price	SP/SqFt	LP/SP Ratio	Days to Contract	Days to Closed
High	4	3	3,346	399,500	187	280,000	152.55	137	822	943
Low	3	2	1,200	39,900	21	36,000	18	62	0	0
Average	3	2	1,766	118,833.06	67.41	112,093.77	63.98	97	96	150
Median	3	2	1,757	109,900	63.81	105,700	62	98	44	108

Search Criteria
Status	ACT , PNC , SLD
MLS Area - Zip	34286
Property Style	Single Family Home
Beds	between 3 -
Full Baths	between 2 -
Garage/Carport	2 Car Garage
Year Built	between 2004 -
Sold Date	24 months back

Address

LDATE

LPRICE

LP/SqFt

ADOM

S DATE

SPRICE

SP/SqFt

HTD

GAR

ACT

3172 PARADE TER

6/24/2010

79,000

38.76

2038

2 CAR

PNC

1749 NORVELL AVE

11/6/2009

59,000

38.29

178

1541

2 CAR

PNC

2511 VALKARIA AVE

11/6/2009

59,000

37.56

193

1571

2 CAR

SLD

2342 BEEVILLE AVE

9/25/2009

44,550

26.33

12/21/2009

55,000

32.51

1692

2 CAR

SLD

3143 TUCSON RD

12/16/2009

79,950

39.35

3/31/2010

60,000

29.53

2032

2 CAR

SLD

4228 BIRNAM TER

9/30/2009

88,100

38.74

10/27/2009

84,000

36.94

2274

2 CAR

SLD

1541 GERONA TER

12/10/2009

79,000

37.57

2/8/2010

79,000

37.57

2103

2 CAR

AVERAGES

69,800

256.60

69,500

34.13

1893

With Chinese Drywall in the public remarks, the average sp/ftac was 34.13 = $62,969 for the subject property

	Beds	Full Baths	Sq Ft Heated	List Price	LP/SqFt	Sold Price	SP/SqFt	LP/SP Ratio	Days to Contract	Days to Closed
High	4	3	3,346	399,500	187	280,000	152.55	137	822	943
Low	3	2	1,200	39,900	21	36,000	18	62	0	0
Average	3	2	1,766	118,833.06	67.41	112,093.77	63.98	97	96	150
Median	3	2	1,757	109,900	63.81	105,700	62	98	44	108

Search Criteria
Status	ACT , PNC , SLD
MLS Area - Zip	34286
Property Style	Single Family Home
Beds	between 3 -
Full Baths	between 2 -
Garage/Carport	2 Car Garage
Year Built	between 2004 -
Sold Date	24 months back

Kieran and Cecelia loughman

Exit Platinum Realty

Is Trying To Be Funny Bad For Business?

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 05:37:39 -0700

Hi Whomever!
I really want your opinion. Based on my blogging track record, I won't get it, but here goes anyway. I think I am funny, but my wife keeps telling me to cut it out. In our newsletter my wife and daughter are trying to seize editorial oversight. I made a comment about being in the lotus position at my private yoga session and seizing the moment, bit my toenail. That's not easy for a fat, old guy on oxygen with Parkinsons. It was understandable to me that I could lose my balance, fall from my chair and roll out the driveway to the road. I didn't realize that Joe Crowley, coming home from an all-nighter, was barreling down the road (23 mph speed limit) and just missed me. I had no idea he would sue me for slander. Funny?

A more recent item. We listed our neighbors home and a Canadian couple bought it. I put an email blurb out about it and mentioned the buyers bought with the stipulation i couldn't get the morning newspaper in my bathrobe as part of the contract. I mentioned in my e-mail something about "yeah, I ok'd it but that didn't say anything about Speedos." That was such a frightening thought, I had to stop and collect myself.

Am I the only one that thinks like this? My wife and daughter will not allow speedo and toenail comments. They are redflagged words. At this rate I'll be down to a 3/2/2. lovely, etc.

My thought process is "I'm not going to get everyone anyway." What do you think?

Kieran

How do you know when enough is enough?

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 19:21:42 -0700

We don't quit. We never do. Well maybe once, rarely. not this time, Never. You be the judge. We were referred to a short sale listing. It was a nice home. 3/2/2 + pool in decent shape. We priced it and found our own buyer who fell in love immediately, wrote an offer, and canceled it within 24 hours. They explained they would buy it when they came back in 3 months. No Probelm for us. We didn't burn any bridges with them'

We had a call from another couple that had peeked in the windows and then left for PA. They kept our phone number from the yard sign, called to find out the price and told us if the buyers backed out, call them back. We did and they had been approved by the VA and made an offer. Our seller signed the contract and we sent it to the lender.

At the inspection, prior to closing it was determined there was a termite infestation. It prevented our buyers from buying ecause the VA insists on everything being fixed before closing. our lender wouldn't pay for the damage repair and so our buyers backed out. No problem

We called back the previous buyers and told them they might be able to buy the home at a better price than before. We met them at the property with the termite inspector and the general contractor we work with. Between the two of them they assessed the damage and gave an estimate to repair it on the spot. our first buyer made an offer of initial price -damage estimate- "fear factor number. I thought he was nuts but our seller signed it and the lender turned it down. We didn't quit at that point.

This was our first experience with termites and wood frame houses. We checked and found the average sale price/sqft of wood frame houses vs concrete block houses was substantial. We applied our figures to the subject property and the lender agreed with us and ok'd the purchase. We have a happy buyer. We took care of the seller's desire to get out from under by doing a short sale. Our contractor has a nice job. Our termite inspector gets to do his thing and after all is said and done, we must have made damn near $3/hr. However the good thing for us is "it's not about the money" We really do like helping people and we learned a lot about wood frame houses and termites.

Our business continues to grow. We are learning a lot. We genuinely like helping people and we are grateful for the opportunity. We love our business. For us maybe the answer to our question is Never. Well maybe rarely. Once in a while. Occassionally, but not often.

Thank you in advance for your interest.

Kieran and Cecelia

Exit Platinum Realty

Bait and Switch

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Wed, 12 May 2010 06:31:38 -0700

Hi All

We picked www,venicegolfrealestate.com as our domain name and use point2NLS as our web host. The name comes up every so often and must be renewed/ This year we got a notice and I looked at it briefly

and handed it to my wife to pay and submit. Next thing I get a notice thanking me for switching to brand x. + it only cost us $30 for the one year.

When I realized it wasn't godaddy.com, i called the number on the notice and told the customer service rep I never intended to switch services. I had been tricked into it. (i was a victim) I wanted reparation (I'm off purpose) The rep told me he would return our check and cancel our order.

That is a nasty way to do business. I called GoDaddy.Com and they renewed my domain name for $30 for 3 years. I never checked prices. Not only was the company tricking me, but they were charging a lot more than the company I had been using.

Is it possible you have an example you could alert us to?

Kieran and Cecelia

Equator.Com Good, Bad, Ugly Kieran and Cecelia Loughman North Port Realtors

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 07:14:54 -0700

Hi Whomever!
I am referring to my wife, me and me. I do want to relay my experience with the Equator website. When I was invited to post a listing on Equator.com, I thought I had arrived. Every time I think I have arrived, I am usually leaving. I must be more careful of my thoughts. However, I am willing to share them. You be careful also.It costs money. Doesn't everything? No! Active Rain is free and it's the best source of information we have available.

I paid my money, took the course and became certified. For a lot of people, I'm sure it is easy. For me it was difficult. I found myself unable to get much help. It was easy for me to be critical of the website and the lack of help. I wanted explanations from my contact at Bank of America and they didn't respond. I could talk with the equator.com help desk, but often I had to wait 10-15 minutes on the phones and sometimes longer.

Equator answers technical questions about the website. That's all. I had that question on my test to get certified. I forgot that one right off the bat. I sent email messages to the contact over the equator,com website, whining and complaining about the lack of assistance. As usual, it was my fault for not reading and practicing.

I didn't like the fact that when I uploaded documents I had to separate them. Instead of of faxing a 50 page short sale package, I had to do them one section at a time. I always took great care to have my faxed package numbered. sectioned, organized to make things easier for the negotiator and it appears that that's what they are asking for again. It makes sense, I went from feeling I was doing their job to I'm helping us to get this job done for our seller.

What I like about it is the timeline. The mystery about what's happening is removed. The culprit who isn't doing what is needed at the time is readily identified and if it's not me, I am able to call my contact or send the perp an email and say "let's get going."

Response time is better. I am able to be more precise when communicating with our sellers and I am sure it will only get better. I think it's a good service.

Commercial for a preapproved short sale at 200,000. SFH in Heron Creek 2/2/2 + den. pool, lanai and awesome view. low hoa, no cdd, you can't go wrong with this. 5179 Pine Shadow Ln North Port Fl 34287

Lowest Priced Pool Home in Heron Creek with a view of the Ist hole, fairway and lake on the Marsh Course.

I'm Going to get what I deserve

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:33:35 -0800

We're doing a survey for our newsletter. Here is what we're thinking!There are 3 Choices1-Reparation 2-Affirmative Action 3-American Disabilities Act of 1990
We're awarding a $25 gift certificate to one of the responders (active rain) + 4 in our newsletter. Names will be drawn from "the hat."

You know what the choices are and there is a prize! Here's how this all started.

Reparation-my father came from Ireland. He was white and Catholic and a college graduate. When he arrived in Boston, he applied for a job at Harvard University as a dishwasher. (there was nothing else available) He was told Irish catholics need not apply. Unbelievable! Code Violation! It would seem hilarious today but not to my father when it happened. Any realtor not white, not of Irish descent, not Catholic owes us $500/listing in our zip code

or be subject to a fine of $100/day, if not paid by 3/31/2010.

Affirmative Action Because I am the child of white, Irish Catholics, I have had a rough time getting ahead. My father wanted to go to Harvard when he arrived here. He figured if he could work at Harvard, eventually he would be able to go there and become like Joe Kennedy. I could have been like our former Lion of the Senate who I hear is now sober approximately 135 days. I went to Fordham University and have never been the same. I am a victim of this injustice and I want to be compensated in this manner. A onetime charge of $5000/realtor active in my zip code and a fine of $100/day if not paid by 3/31/2010

American Disabilities Act of 1990- Because I have had 2 heart attacks, quintuple by pass, emphysema, fibrosis, parkinsons disease, shingles, and sleep apnea + I get an occassional kanker sore, any person that lists their home with another realtor without allowing me to compete, will be fined $1000 and must arrange with the selling realtor to have me receive a 25% referral fee or be fined $100/day. Any realtor, other than one with the same illnesses as listed above, deemed to have listing in my zip code, will pay a onetime charge of !000/listing or be subject to a fine of $100/day if not paid by 3/31/2010.

Should my demise be quick and my blog and newsletter not continue I have filed a series of pictures and other evidence with my attorney. Our hidden cameras show my daughter Lauren caught tying a knot in my oxygen line recently.

CALL 1-800-628-2148 EXTENSION 3011 LEAVE YOUR CHOICE A,B,C, YOUR NAME, TELEPHONE NUMBER, EMAIL ADDRESS SO WE CAN MAIL YOU YOUR $25 WINNING GIFT CERTIFICATE

Active Rain For All Realtors! Why Not?

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 22:11:38 -0800

We have learned mostly through our experience. Lately we have been involded with offers that we have little to no experience with. I logged into Active Rain went to the search space at the top of my home page and typed in VA Mortgages. I spent about one hour copying data, pasting it to a word document and printing it. Cecelia and I went over the research we gathered from others posting about it and learned enough to write the offer intelligently. This gave me sufficient confidence to go back to the search portion and search "inviting members" I learned enough to send invitations to 6 colleagues that I know would benefit greatly from Active Rain Membership. I sent the invitations with a personal message and trust that the open minded ones will join and start entering their profile. I'm a slow learner, but the more I see, the better I like this. I hope the ones I invited will earn more quickly than I did.

Kieran and Cecelia

Willing to look foolish

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:55:04 -0800

I decided some time ago I really like the relationship approach. I want people to know what I am up to. I don't mind them knowing I'm a little strange, So are they. so are you. So watch it, buster. I find humor in a lot of things. I find humor in people who don't find me humorous. I started sending out emails, blogs, marketing pieces that Cecelia would tell me after "made her nervous." For example. We made this sign up for our community. It says "We live here and we love it". Our community management team jumped into action and made me take it down. I responded with the following email. Most people do have a sense of humor, including the management company. They now advertise in our newsletter and get that it's ok to have fun. We really do live here and love it.

Self Righteous Indignation .....Short Sale Lessons to be learned

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 22:17:59 -0800

We entered a listing and have narketed it as a short sale. We have an offer and packaged up the paperwork, faxed it to the lender, verified it was received and then went through a process of waiting for the negotiator to agree or not on the price. We had requested the buyer be realistic and they agreed. However the bank countered on the high side and the lender wouldn't budge. Long story short... No deal

I called he lender a few days later to see what the status of the file was? What file? What LOA. They shredded the works. I'm working with someone else on that file and they were told the same thing.

I decided I wasn't going to take it anymore. I sent an email to the senior negotiator and her boss. I told them how dare they shred the file. I was going to forward the whole file to the banking commissioner and see what he thought. I was prepared to do battle. I had facts and figures. I received a call withing minutes from the senior negotiator. She asked me to not send the file out. I didn't. This afternoon I received a call from the other person, I am working with. She said she had a call from her boss and they gave a better price and said we had 6 days to get it done. How about that. They also told her 6% commission if there are 2 different agents, but only 3% if we get both sides. I AM GOING TO TELL THEM TO NOT BE WORRIED ABOUT MY COMMISSION. I MEAN IT. I AM NO LONGER WILLING TO LET THEM SET MY COMMISSION. UNLESS OF COURSE I CAN SET THEIR FEES. We shall see who wins.

5 COMMENTS I'M ON A ROLL AND LOOKING AHEAD!

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 11:48:34 -0800

HI ALL (ANYONE)!

Thank you for your comments. I can understand why you have so many blog points. I am honored to have you check mine out.

Short Sales

Have you ever picked up the phone with enthusiasm, waited 20-30 minutes on hold? Then be told your documents haven't been received. The file is shredded. Send in a complete new set of documents.

Peepy Dicky! A word used by Peter Sellers in one of his movies. Similar to balderdash but more effective.

Let me speak with a supervisor. I want to speak with a supervisor, please. I have had them review the notes, go back into the scans and retrieve the missing documents that were indeed received on time as requested. Just because I was told they aren't here, doesn't mean it's true. Sometime the person can be rushed or careless and miss them.

For record keeping I use a spread sheet and insert comments on what I was told by the person I reached. I put a date and a time. When I call back now I become the way and the truth. I am pleasant because I know I am right. If told I am wrong I ask them to review the notes. What was the last comment? If they give me the wrong one, I ask who wrote the note and on what date was it written? Usually the person hasn't gone to the end of the notes. It has happened often enough that I'm prepared for the No answer.

I am doing these things myself as Cecelia and me build our team-Team Loughman,Kieran and Cecelia-for a few reasons. One is I get a lot of satisfaction when one gets closed. We always ask for a written testimonia; from our customer. We always tell them it was pleasure doing business with them.etc etc. The second reason is to teach what I do, I must be able to do it. We are building a team by selling and recruiting. Then we teach our recruits how we sell and then we teach then how we recruit.

Our daughter, Lauren is joining us. We think whe will be great at this. Can you imagine parents feeling that way?

I'm only 70 and figure I have 20 -25 good years ahead of me. My attitude is good. I know how to get short sales done. I will begin marketing our services now that I know how to do them. I'd prefer 100 listings to the 7 short sale pending listings we have. Two are approved, one is close and I'm not concerned about the volume. So far it's all by referral and will continue to grow.We live in a Gated golf Community, Heron Crek. We love it here. It is our main focus, but we keep getting people asking us to do their short sales. We are adding the expertise we have learned to this part of the business also.

Thank you in advance for your comments. I am open to your suggestiobs.

Kieran

I never quit and don't you either

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 19:32:29 -0800

Hi!

I just checked my website and then logged onto active rain. I read a few blogs and went to my home page. I had a blog I wrote in November. I had 0 comments. Oh the pain of it all. I love the way most of you are able to insert pictures and make your blogs so inviting. I have so much to learn, and I am.

Here is something I learned about short sales. We have a great relationship with one of our short sellers. They were referred to us by a relative of theirs.

We have papers properly filled out. We listed the home and even paid money out of pocket to take care of the lawn and have the garage cleaned out.

We get an offer and sublit the proper documentation to the lender. It's a good one, credit is good. buyer is excited. To my dismay, I find a few days before we sent the offer, our customer had her attorney file bankruptcy for her and the house was included. Too late for us. Maybe not for you. The lesson we learned is always explain to your customer the significance of filing bankruptcy. Ask them if they are going to file to discuss with your attorney if they can leave the house out of it. It's good to stay in touch even when there is little happening. Our attitude remains good. Now we have one less lesson to learn.

We spent money and time and have a disappointed buyer. We have learned a valuable lesson. It was our fault. ( when things go wrong, we're usually there)

Don't quit on a customer

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 07:16:22 -0700

We have a buyer that is very needy. ( a great description) We found a property that she wanted very much. (short sale) We told her we thought we could get it for her. It required trust and patience. She said ok The seller of the property wouldn't sign the offer. He said he would but not just yet. This went on for weeks. The seller's agent told us the seller had an attorney and he would sign it. Another week or two went by. Our customer called the sellers agent and decided it was our fault (mine) for not fighting for her.

She wrotea nasty e-mail and basically told us to get lost. We didn't rspond to the email. We just received a nice testimonial from a buyer we went out of our way to help. We sent our needy former customer a copy and suggested we get back to business, By this time she had sent an apology.

We found her another property. She entered an offer and on the same day the seller of her first choice signed her offer.

It's not finished yet, but we will do a transaction with this woman. Her self esteem isn't where ours is and we didn't have to be mean because of her, + We will get the job done for her and then we'll ask her to write a testimonial for us to help with our next customer. We like helping people. Many of them are fearful and have little confidence. We do our best to help them get over that by being nice to them and getting the job done for them.

Kieran and Cecelia

A short sale success

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 06:11:10 -0700

We were approached by a tenant who asked us if we could help her find a rental for her family. She told us she was being bounced from her home because of a foreclosure. We found the owners and spoke with them and they agreed to a short sale. The tenant said she had been working on her credit and was now ok to buy the home. She referred us to her mortgage broker and we were supplied with a prequal letter. We prepared the short sale package and got approval from the lender to close and they would write off the seller's debt. At this point we were told the buyers credit was insufficient. An item had suddenly appeared that would prevent the transaction from taking place.

We didn't quit. There was a foreclosure date of 6/23/09.

On June 4th we got a new offer that was signed by the seller. and approved by the lender on June 13 with a close on or before July 13th. We prepared a new short sale package with all the necessary documents and also faxed the negotiator who worked on the previous approval. We copied him our request and asked if he could help with this matter because the property was going to be foreclosed on 6/23/09.

We never heard from him but were pleasantly surprised when we were faxed an approval letter by the lender. There is a lot of luck and a lot of work, and the results were excellent. If we have an offer on the 4th and acceptance on the 13th, 9 days is what we will tell a listing prospect now. Nine days to get approval and a close within 39 days from receipt of the contract.

This makes up for some of the ones that don't happen.

Kieran and Cecelia

The Value of Active Rain

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 04:42:38 -0700

Hi!
We are starting to build our team. We know how to sell homes and be with people and listen to what they are saying. There are about 8000 little things that we are clueless on and the only way we can cut that number to 7992 ( much more manageable) is through active rain. Today I entered one of our listings on Twitter. I saw a post by Bill from Mass. and it looked interesting. I followed the instructions and now it's listed. Now I'm going to wait for the big bucks to roll in.

Not really. I'm going to keep on keeping on. Reading, studying, talking to people, getting listings, selling listings, and prospecting. Active Rain is a valuable tool for me. I have learned a lot from using it and know it's only a drop in the bucket.I'm grateful to the people who contribute to it and recpmmend it to all the Realtors I know.

I know the more I know and develop as a realtor, the better I xan help our team. Active Rain is a great edge for me to utilize.

Kieran

Promoting our Website for No money

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 05:25:42 -0700

We aren't high tech people. As Uncle Buck would say, "we're a big pants family" sorry I'm off purpose. Uncle Buck was played by Kevin Meany, a Boston comedian and hilarious.

We recently sent our data base from MFR.MLXCHANGE.COM an e-mail asking them to help us out by going to our website www.venicegolfrealestate.com and request our most recent newsletter and research. We had enough people do it that lets us know a couple of things. Our marketing is improving and many people like our websiteand use it.

We always ask for the e-mail address from anyone we speak with. We ask where they live and can we keep them updated on that area. Most people will say yes. If they do, we add them to our data base and set up an automatic search and a drip e-mail.

It costs no money to do this. We always talk to people because we know we have an exciting product to discuss and we are good at helping people.

We continue to take courses and add to our knowledge base and love all the good ideas we get from Active Rain

Kieran and Cecelia

A Short Story of a Short Sale

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 21:50:18 -0700

Hi!

Well over a year ago we received a referral to list a home. We checked it out and recommended the customer walk away from the down payment ($30,000) because she hadn't closed on it as of then. We told her it was very overpriced and there was no way we could sell it for what she wanted. She declined and we said if you ever decide you want us to help, keep our number. At least one year went by, possibly two. The prospect called and asked if we could help her. She had rented the home for a year and had used all her assets trying to maintain the mortgage payment.She was falling behind in her payments and was becoming desparate.

We discussed a short sale and sent her our short sale package. She filled out the paperwork correctly and so we listed her home. Time was becoming important. A day had been set for foreclosure. We sent the Letter of authorization in and confirmed the lender had received it. We told them we were actively marketing the property as a short sale and requested they cancel the date to foreclose. They said bring us an order. We dropped the priced. Advertised an Open House. We arranged for a mortgage broker to be there to handle questions about financing. At least a dozen people showed up. One couple entered an offer and completed an impeccable short sale package including our own BPO and we submitted the offer.

We received a letter of approval for the short sale subject to the seller agreeing to pay a no-interest loan of $25,000 at 123/mo for 207 months. They also said because we did both sides in the same office, they would only pay 3%. We spoke with our seller and we agreed to come up with $800 cash at the closing as a counter to the $25000 loan. The lender also said "or $10,000 cash at closing". We made our counter using an amended HUD1 statement and a letter of explanation. In the letter we said it was not our prerogative to negotiate our brokers fee etc.. etc....

Well how about this?? We received a faxed acceptance of the counter with a closing date no later than 5/28/09 The write off was $217,000 to $75,000. Our customer is a hardship case. We prepared a Short Sale Package that was complete. We did our own BPO. We're getting paid our full commission. We are paying the referring agent a 25% referral fee from 2 years before. We called and he was pleasantly surprised.

We had blogged about this before, but have since received the approval of our counter offer. Our buyer is approved. We're ordering an inspection for them in case there is a major problem. We think our batting average is good because we are patient. We focus on gettingthe deal done. We try to price it fairly and stay in touch with the seller, the lender, and the buyer. We have a good attitude and try to get our customers to see how importan it is to have one.

Thank you for your interest.

Kieran and Cecelia

101 Ideas To Jump Start Your Real Estate Career

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 02:07:37 -0700

This is excellent input for anyone interested in a real estate career.

Via Lisa Udy Realtor Utah Real Estate Specialist (Logan Utah Real Estate Youngblood Real Estate LLC):

Marketing

Let's get down to business, you can't be successful if no one knows who you are.

The Internet

1. Get a Website- Seems basic, but it's invaluable. The largest market in the world is the Internet. You must have a presence. If you don't have a website already, here is a place to start.

Free Website: Free Websites

If you have the money, I would recommend doing some research in your niche market. See what other successful Agent's are doing. Find out who is hosting their websites and get the details.

2. Blog- Content is king on the Internet. Blogging is a great way for people to get market information in their local areas. You can sign up for blogs for free.

We use the #1 Real Estate blog Active Rain, try it.

3. Get Optimized- SEO:Search Engine Optimization, if you don't know what this means it's time to figure it out. I would recommend doing some reading here. SEO Book This is the #1 E-Book on SEO out there.

There is a ton of information on SEO on the Internet, use it.

4. If You Don't SEO, hire Someone that does- These companies aren't cheap, but this can make or break your business. The year is 2009, and 84% of buyers start there home search on the Internet. If you're not there, someone else is.

If you want some ideas on SEO companies, we recommend this site Top Seo's. This is a list of the top rated SEO companies for any size of business.

5. Submit Your Site to Free Directories- A free directory creates links to your website. It's kind of a complicated process, and I would recommend you hire a professional. If you know what you're doing I would check out this site: Top Ten Risk-Free Link Building Methods.

If you know what you're doing, and are looking for some free directories to start with, check out: Top 50 Free Directories.

6. Online Flyer's- an online flyer is a great marketing tool. You can track who has been looking at your flyer, and how many times. It's a great way to market a listing, and it's free! Check out these free flyer sites:

Postlets Online Real Estate Flyer's

V'Flyer Online Real Estate Flyer's

7. Take A Computer Class- If all this is overwhelming take a computer class.(I know you may not have time to take a class.) Which leads us to our next point.

8. Hire An Internet Assistant/Webmaster- Go to your local community college or University, and find a student with some experience to help you with your website. They are usually cheap and are always looking for school projects.

9. Google It- If all else fails, you can find just about anything you want from Google.

Research your questions. Someone has probably already answered your question, you just have to find it.

10. Create Link Bait- This is a whole job in and of itself, check out a great article here on What is link bait?

11. Write an Article on 101 ways to.... If you put your time and effort into this type of writing, it can become viral. Viral, in Internet marketing, is a good thing.

Learn About Viral Marketing

12. Start Social Networking- Facebook, Blogging, Twitter, Digg, Delicious. Dive into the action and let people know who you are. Don't be scared it's actually kind of fun!

13. Get a Business Email- Stop using your AOL, Hotmail, G-Mail, accounts. A professional looking email can go a long way in looking the part.

When you sign up for a website try to get at least 5 emails associated with your domain name. Most website companies have this implemented into their pricing plans.

14. Website For Every Listing- Having a website for each listing may sound difficult. Well it's not at all, and your sellers will be impressed that your are giving their listing its own URL.

Try this Single Property Website out.

Those are the basics to Internet marketing. There's a whole world out there on the Internet, and when I say world, I mean: The World Wide Web

Build Your Client Base

It's more important then ever to find new clients in today's market. Prospecting should be a high priority. This brings me to my next section:

Prospecting

15. Ask For Referrals-This is the key to real estate. Don't be afraid to ask for referrals, people don't know you need them, if you don't ask. If you're new to the industry, you may not have a client base yet. But if you have friends...

16. Market Your Friends- I can't tell you how many clients I get from people I know. Let your friends and family know you're in the business, and let them know often!

17. Network- Hand out business cards.

Leave a good tip at a restaurant, and give them your business card.

Go to one of your kids school functions, talk to people. This is not the business to be shy, be confident, and let people know how good business is.

Check out this networking site: Top Five Ways to Network Effectively at a Meeting

18. Magnetized Business Cards- The great thing about a magnet is it's useful. They have a purpose other then sitting in a drawer. If you can get front page fridge placement, you're always in view of a potential client.

Check out this Business Card Magnet website.

19. Door Hangers- Go door to door and hang your listing information on all the doors in a selected neighborhood. It's great exercise and it will get you out of the office for a while. It's also a great way to blow off some steam, and chat with the locals about their market.

Here are some great Door Hangers, and cheap!

20. Answer The Phone- This goes without saying. Be available! You never know when it could be a new client.

21. Free Free Free- Incentives are a basic way to generate business.

We give a $50 gift to anyone who gives me a referral after it closes. (In Utah that is the maximum we can give, and no soliciting.) Be sure to follow your state approved guidelines.

22. Promote a Local Business- There's nothing like word of mouth marketing. Sending people to a local business can be a great way to generate yourself some business.

23. Get Involved In The Community- Attaching your name to your community is branding 101. Get out there and be somebody!

Plant a tree on Arbor day.

Go visit the elderly.

Enjoy the people in your community, and they will return the favor.

24. Hand Written Thank You Cards- Just because you closed a deal doesn't mean you're done. Send a thank you card with a small gift.

We usually give a $50 gift card to a restaurant or Lowe's after every deal we close.

We also send thank you cards after every listing appointment.

25. Quarterly Mailings- Stay in touch. This goes back to networking. Network, network, network. Send a small card that offers them something of value.

Show your clients you're still in business and appreciate their past business.

26. Thirty Day Follow Up- I always call my clients to check up 30 days after closing a deal. Make sure there are no surprises, and get an overall feel of how they're doing.

27. Holiday Cards- This is the time for giving. Again let your clients and mailing list know you are still in business.

28. Post Cards- I send out post cards about every other week to all my sellers.

“The Purpose of Feedback,” let's our sellers know why feedback is good.

“Understanding The Real Estate Market,” helps sellers know why they are or are not getting showings.

“Freshen Up,” keeping your house smelling good always helps!

29. Write a Newsletter- this is a great way to inform your local market of new listings, solds, and comparables. Again, I can't stress this enough stay in contact!!

30. End of Year Closing Gifts- we like to give a ham or a nice flower from a local business. We promote a business in my area and give something valuable to all the clients we closed that year.

31 .One Year Anniversary Cards- this is a good time to let your past clients know you love referrals, and you're still in business.

This may seem like a lot of work, but who said it was going to be easy. If you want to be a successful Real Estate agent, you definitely have to work for it.

Time Management

The best agents are great at time management. There is only so much time in a day, and if you use it wisely it makes all the difference.

Be Your Own Boss

32. Go To The Office Everyday- if you're not at the office, you're not getting leads. Being at work, answering phones, and interacting with client's will create new business.

33. Get A System and Organize Your Clients- I can't stress enough how important it is to keep your contacts neatly stored.

34.Get Digital- There are a number of ways to make appointments and store contacts. Find what works for you.

35.Get Top Producer- Top Producer is an amazing software program to help you get digital.

You can check out Top Producer

36.Get A BlackBerry- The blackberry is an amazing business tool. Emails are key, and you can't always be at your computer. A blackberry, or another email capable mobile device, is the solution.

If you don't know what a Blackberry is, click here.

37. Appointment Book- if you're the old school type, or just like to write things down for easy access. The appointment book is a good way to go.

38. Pre-Printed Address Labels- Saving time by having your name and address on envelope labels is a great time saver.

39. Automatic Payments- are essential to time management. Setup as many auto payments as possible. This will also help with the depression of sitting down and sorting through bills.

40. Pay Your Bills On Schedule- Easier said then done. If you want to keep good suppliers, pay on time, if not early. You can also get benefits from your suppliers by being a good client.

41. Keep Your Bills In One Place- This is key to paying bills on time, keep them visible and don't lose them!

42. Your Time Isn't As Valuable As You Think It Is- I hear a lot of complaining from other Realtors about clients wasting there time. Remember you work for them. Their time is also valuable, find a schedule that works for everyone.

43 .Only Be Upset/Mad For 24 Hours- Moping around won't get you any money, and surely isn't good for business. Your always going to have something come up, or fall through. How you handle this makes the difference between a good agent and a bad one.

44. Set Clear Defined Daily, Weekly, Monthly Goals- Make goals and keep them visible. We hang our goals where we can see them constantly. “Goals in sight are goals in mind.”

What Am I Going To Do TODAY.

What Do I Want To Do This WEEK.

What Do I Want To Do This MONTH.

45. Outline Yearly Goals- If you complete your small goals this goal should be achieved. You will find your clients wanting to help you with your goals if you make them highly visible.

Number of closings.

Number of new clients.

46. Schedule Time Off- You can't work all the time. Making sure you have time for yourself and family will keep you sane.

47. Hire An Assistant- We have teams at our office for a very specific reason. You can't do it all on your own.

Time management is a never ending battle. These are just a few tips, find what works for you and stick to it.

Education

Markets are always changing, listings are added, put under contract, sold and expired every day. Stay up to date, it can mean all the difference to your clients.

Get Educated

48. Go To A Star Power University- These classes are absolutely amazing. They train real estate agent's. It's what they do, and they train them well.

How do I attend a Star Power University? Star Power University. Check out their website.

49. Talk To Successful Agents And Co-Workers- This goes along with networking. People who have been in the business are gold mines of information. Good luck, some agents are more open then others.

50. Know Your Inventory- Basic real estate 101 right? You would be surprised how many agent's fail to know their inventory inside and out.

51.Read A Book A Month- There are 1000's of books on real estate, so you better start now!

52. Attend Market Leader Seminars- Find the leaders in Real Estate and plan a vacation around a time they are speaking publicly.

53. Good Title Companies or Escrow Agents- Ask around, see who is the best in your local area.

54. Good Lenders- There are differences in lenders, find the best one in your area, and promote them. Ask other agents who they think does the best job.

55. Continuing Education Classes- Most states require you to continue your education. The more you know the better you serve your clients, stay up to date.

56. Client Surveys- Ask your clients to give you honest feedback. Send them an anonymous feedback form to get the truth. When you get the feedback don't personalize it, grow from it.

57. Be Willing To Change What Isn't Working- If it doesn't work fix it, and fix it quick. Don't get so set in your ways you can't change.

58. Charity- Learn from charities, and how they grow. If you can grow a business without making money you're doing something right. Charities usually have excellent business model's.

59. Weekly Meeting- Meet with your broker/agents weekly. Listen to problems agents are having, and come up with solutions. This is a great way to brainstorm and come up with new ideas.

Staying educated is the culmination of your efforts. An educated agent is a successful agent.

The Daily Routine

Everyday business can become a routine. A good routine is good for time management. When you get in a routine, you become the agent you want to be.

Today

60. Real Estate Bible-Get a big black binder and put all your contacts, all your listings, all your buyers, anything and everything that would be used in the field, and take it with you.

61. Dress For Your Clientel- You don't have to be Gucci if you work in a rural market. Dress the way your clients do, or who you want to represent.

62. Write Your Ideas Down- Ideas last for about ten minutes in your head.

63. Post It Notes- What would we do without them?(rhetorical question)

64 .Smile- A smile is contagious, sometimes you just don't have it in you. On those days, close your door.

65. Don't Sweat The Small Stuff- Easier said then done. If you focus on the short term. You will be overwhelmed to the point of not being able to function. If you can't function daily, your clients will find someone who does.

66. Build Your Business Around What Works For You- List your strengths and weaknesses.

Work to your strengths and delegate your weaknesses. This comes back to hiring an Internet/assistant marketer. If you're not proficient don't waste your time.

Find someone who excels at it and your team will be stronger.

67. Return Phone Calls- You can't answer the phone all the time, but you can return all your calls. Do this religiously, and in a timely manner.

68. Follow Up With All Showings- Whether you showed a house to a buyer, or another agent showed your listing, follow up and stay informed.

69. Call Sellers With Feedback- Plain and simple, yet required to succeed.

70. Check Lists- Make a checklist and check off your daily activities as you go.

Your brain releases endorphins every time you check something off. It's science, but it makes you feel good.

Stay The Course

71. Back Up Your Files- Your computer is going to crash someday. If you have your files backed up it's not a big deal. If you don't, this is the worst headache you will ever have.

72. Past Clients- Call one a day, don't be annoying, be helpful. Provide them with something of value to THEM. Give them updates, let them know how the market is doing and so on. This isn't a phone call about you.

73. Go Out To Lunch- Get out of the office, network, and leave a good tip.

The daily routine can seem like a grind, keeping your goals in a visible place can make all the difference.

Have A System

A system can keep the daily routine a “routine.” It's nice to know what to expect every day. Your clients can throw you for a loop. If you have a great system to handle these clients, your business will run like a freshly oiled machine.

System of Control

74. Buy A Label Maker- The label maker is one of the greatest inventions to organize a business.

I like this Label Maker.

75. Buyer's Guides- Make a guide for buyer's.

First time buyer's guides are great to have when you show up to an appointment with a new client.

Explain what a Real Estate agent does, and why they should use one.

76. Seller's Guides- Inform sellers of valuable information. Have it written down so they can refer to it throughout the selling process.

Good for listing presentations to show what to expect. Details are good.

77. Market Trends- Up to date information is the lifeblood of your listing appointments. Don't falsify information just to get the listing. This will bite you in the @$$ in the long run.

When you present at a listing appointment, you need to be current.

78. Listing Binders- A separate 1 inch binder for all your listings is easy to find and a great way to keep organized. Go to Staples and setup a rewards account to save some money. Office supplies are a necessity.

79. Offer Folders- Create a system to process your offers, checklists are nice for this. Make sure you take care of every detail. This should be the bread and butter to your success.

The more of these the better. (:

80. Keep Your Sellers Separate From Your Buyers- This is your fiduciary duty. Make sure to keep a system in place that won't allow for a breach of your fiduciary duty.

81. Statistics- People like to know how you're doing, and how your office is doing. Let them know, be open.

82. Flyer's With Lots Of Pictures-Great pictures can sell a house. Hire a professional, the money is worth the outcome.

Keep Flyer's on all your signs, and at all times.

83. Most Bang For Your Buck Advertising- The Internet has a lot to offer when it comes to free advertising. Get a system and stay up to date.

84. Keep Your Website Up To Date- Having a website requires maintenance. You need to monitor your website daily.

85. Yearly Expense Spreadsheet- Know your budget, and stick to it.

86. Yearly Sales Spreadsheet- Track your sales to complete your goals.

87. Yearly Advertising Budget- Advertising can be fun, but expensive. Know your limits and don't get carried away.

Some agents just aren't system agents. I would recommend hiring an assistant that is. It makes a huge difference in the level of success you will achieve.

Miscellaneous

Why are you still reading this? Oh, you want to succeed, and believe in education? Good for you, and good for your business.

88. Phone Book Ad- This add should get you on the Internet site as well.

89. Activity Book For Kids- Make a coloring book for the kids. When your showing homes nothing can sidetrack a showing like grumpy kids. Keep them entertained and your client focused.

90. Join The Better Business Bureau- Self explanatory.

91. Find A Hobby- You can't work all the time.

92. Market Pretty Yet Functional- Make sure what you're doing is worth it. Don't waste resources on something that won't function properly.

93. Don't Buy Windows Vista- Vista plain and simple, just doesn't function.

94. Catchy Headlines- If your marketing the Internet or on paper, catch the eye of a potential client and reel them in. Make them want more.

95. Why You Are Better- The art of marketing you. Be different, stand out in a sea of fish. Find what makes you better, and market it.

96. Write an E-Zine- You can post articles here to get your name out.

97. Email Leads-If you do all this right you may be getting email leads. Make sure to follow up with emails promptly, and don't give up after the first time of no response. You should work your internet leads religiously!

98. 3 in 1 Printer- Fax, Copy, Scan. It's a must in this business, I would recommend something cheap because it probably won't last long anyways.

99. Pay Your Dues- You can't be in business if you're not legal, period.

100. Internet Addiction- Don't get addicted to the social networking.

101. Most Of All: HAVE FUN!!

I hope I could be of some help to make your 2009 prosperous.

If you have any suggestions to increase this list or make it more useful email us at: Lisa@LisaUdy.com

Lisa Udy

Open House at Heron Creek

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 19:24:46 -0700

We advertised our Open houses on Realtor.Com, www.point2nls,com which links to all the major search engines and websites, www.venicegolfrealestate.com. www,mfr.mlxchange.com, realty generator and we e-mailed our data base a post card. We also advertise on craigs List.

So far the only results I have to offer are from the home I was in. 4483 Whispering Oaks Dr.

We had 10 visitors. 2 are buyers we have been showing property to already. Two are friends that may make an offer through us on another home. Two are Heron Creek residents that are looking for what's out there. Two were new to the area from Bradenton and are serious lookers and impressed with the community and liked the price range. Two came in, looked around and wouldn't engage in conversation. They missed the opportunity to converse with the great one (me) I told them that . We had a laugh and then they were gone.

We just keep on keeping on. Business is good. We're very busy. We like our business and we particularly like helping people. We live in Heron Creek and love it here. Our community is beautifully maintained, fees are low relative to other communities, and the people are very nice. This is a great place to live in .

We'll have more results from the other homes. What started out slow became fairly busy. No matter how it turns out, we always get what we get and keep doing the work.

Kieran, Cecelia and Gabe

Relationships Marketing

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 05:42:18 -0700

We were guests at our customers' home in Heron Creek. They met us in the searching for a home process and liked our stlye. We became their agent and helped them find their Dream Home. We had Easter Dinner there and it was as good as it gets. They even told us what they liked about us. They captured what it is we would like to be for the people in our lives. It was so nice to hear it said. We want a referral business with internet savvy to be our style. We want ot take great care of people and be very good at what we do.

They said " you took great care of us and you are very good at our business. I wwas a stock broker for over 30 years and know what it's like to be chased out into the street, running for my life. As a matter of fact not everyone who meets me, realizes what a good guy I am. They always, always know that with Cecelia.

Our customers are a married couple and a friend and together they bought the home. The huband is a great guy and fun to be around, His wife and her friend are just a lot of fun to be around. They have landscaped their home, has wood flooring put in, and decorated it beautifully.

We aske if they liked it here, (Heron Creek) and North Port in general. They love it here, They are out of their home almost daily, exploring what's up from Sarasota to Port Charlotte. The most recently have been taking craft lessons at the Lemon Bay Art Association in Englewood. They learned to make these gours and baskets and they are so excited about them. They looked professionally done.

There's nothing to do around here! You won't hear them saying that. One of them is going to write a book about all the fun things there are to do around here.

We told them they made a difference in our lives by being so nice to us. it was a pleasure to work with them.

One of them had her step mother and her younger sister as guests also. No whining in this home. Maybe a little from the husband and myself, It was just so nice to be complimented, invited, told all the good things they like about our community, Heron Creek,

North Port and Heron Creek are about people. We have such a nice community. We are going to wait for the book to be written for you to find all the good things going on here and other towns. It's a matter of getting out and finding them

Thank you to our friends for a wonderful Easter afternoon. You made our day telling us how much you like Heron Creek and North Port

Breakthroghs in AR, Opportunities for agents with us, Optimisim and being Positive

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 20:14:02 -0700

Hi Anyone

I just had a major breakthrough in my points on Active Rain. I broke the 12000 barrier. I think the one ahead of me is 70,000. Talk about the old fat turtle and the hare.

I went to a meeting Wednesday led by a young lady that told me why our company is the best. I knew it, but I have my own troubles. She reminded me what to say to agents in the business and people looking to get in the business. I love to tell people I'm a realtor. I love to tell them they better be buying a house from me quickly because I have had 2 heart attacks, emphysema, parkinsons ( I'm a recent mover and shaker) and most recently some kind of poison something (rash) or they will miss the opportunity to deal with the great one (me not Mark Levin- the other great one)

She talked about being positive. Can you imagine we are losing realtors when interest rates are low and prices are 1/2 what they were. I was a stock broker in 1969. This is like taking candy from a baby. I don't mean our customers. I mean people with hang down woe is me attitudes.

I'm off purpose. My firm just recruited the number one realtor in the WORLD from XXX I'm going to meet him in Tampa and give him some pointers. We also just recruited the number one producing agent for XX/XXX in Florida. I'll do my best to help him along also.

I haven't seen it like this since the late 60's. It's awesome. I can't make up my mind if I want to sell you a home or recruit you.

Cecelia and I are about to build our empire. It always includes selling and listing homes. Now we are going to build our team. We have learned enough about the business to teach others. We have our first one and he is a keeper. We are doing a short sale for a very disillusioned young couple who are about to have their life turned around (if the want it)

As soon as I finish composing this blog, I am into my data base and adding this couple and will give them perhaps the best choice financially they may see ever.

I spoke with a former associate at my firm yesterday. He's young, has integrity and drive. He has 110 listings. not bad. You can do it in any company. If you're good, you can be good anywhere. It's a pleasure to know people like him. If he reads this i'm cool with it.

My secret plan is to recruiti him back here when the time is right. I have my little hidden agendas.

Here's how you can help us( Cecelia me and Gabe) If you have a customer that you want treated like your mother and father, send us the referral, If you have a friend that is considering a career in real estate send him to us. We'll treat them like a son or daughter. (provided they have a good attitude or a willingness to change)

Here is how we can help you. You were meant for success. It was always your choice. If you forgot, perhaps this will remind you. If you needs to be reminded, I'll be glad to do it. If you are hopeless, get out of my car (nicely)

Kieran, married above my station, grateful to be in this business and with my company

Help for the Compulsive Downloader

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 06:03:01 -0700

Hi All!
This is the confessions of a guy who never saw an idea he didn't like. I am going to try to list evreything I have and do and see if there is help, not only for me but others like me. I use google mail,Act. my mls website, point2nls to add contacts. I use Exit Promo also. To start I have 5 places I can add contacts. How do I handle that? I can send flyers from my mls website, point2nls, and exit promo. I recently signed up for vflyer.com because of their access to Craigs List. I am being bugged to join Realty Generator. I also like my favorite agent.com. I am twitter person,facebook,my own newsletter monthly, I blog occasionally. I actually sell real estate. We signed up for americabuysforeclosures.com and we recently are doing e-signings through settleware.

I know my head will expload at some point. Do you know anyone that has had a similar experience and resolved it. Left to my own devices, I will continue this wway of being. If this is an inappropriate place to seek help,I apologize.

Kieran of Kieran and Cecelia (she is definitely not the problem)

I do want tot say we're very good at taking care of people and selling real estate.

Enough about broker owners what about us agents

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 06:48:03 -0700

Hi!
I notice all the headlines about I made this and that. I recruited these many agents and I niw hae xxxx.

Here's what I have accomplished in Exit since I started. I know have my first recruit and I am very excited. My plan is to teach him what I know and have him teach others. I only want willing participants and people with integrity. I have found one. He actually found Cecelia and me and we are excited about him. If you want to be a successful broker owner, check your own recruits out. If you are encouraging your agemts to recruit, that's a good thing. If you asre competing with them, that's not a good thing.

If you want to know how well you're doing ask yourself this question. Am I building a business or am I

replacing one as fast as I can?

Exit is a great company with great ideas. The agents we rercuit and train are the business.

Kieran

Wandering Less Aimlessly

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 05:39:46 -0700

I'm a former stock broker with Bear Stearns. I had 15 great years with them and retired in 1994. I missed a lot of the upside, but have no reason to complain. The one thing I never got from the business was satisfaction for a job well done. Cecelia and I became Realtors after moving to Florida in 2004. The best part of the job for me is satisfaction. The money helps but is nowhere near the joy the business brings me. I wasted 10 years doing nothing. I can't think of a more rewarding business. When Cecelia and I get a referral, we treat them like our own. As a matter of fact I know of no one who treats customers so well. I apologize for that. I know there are a lot of Realtors like us.

It's a pleasure to be part of this business and this group. We live in North Port, Fl on the gulf coast (near)

We're getting better at websites and marketing. We just attracted a recruit and are thrilled to have him. God has always put good people and opportunities in our life and we expect that to continue until it doesn't continue. We have five children. one married- 4 grandchildren and it just doesn't get any better than this.

Thanks for letting us be part of your group

Kiewran and Cecelia

BPO Referrals

Kieran and Cecelia Loughman (Exit Creative Reaty) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 01:59:32 -0800

Hi!
I am using bPOs to create cash flow to help with expenses. (agent not broker) My broker has tried to direct them to me under his pw and uid. It is too much of a hassle. Is there a way to get them direct . I can committ to 3-4/day for 3 days a week. It's a push but doable. I have tried to get them on my own, but have never won the race to the website to nail one down. Any other duggestions other than "win the race"

Thank you in advance for your patience and tolerance

Kieran