agent to agent: Do You Remember Your First Kiss?
- 05/24/07 10:43 AM
Do You Remember Your first kiss? Was it sweet? Sure hope so. But, what you're thinking may not be what I'm asking. Maybe I should clarify that with... Do you remember your first Hershey's Kiss? I sure do. What a thrill to carefully pull that little paper flag and try to unwrap the foil all in one perfect sheet, then roll that lovely soft chocolate between your thumb and forefinger and plop it on your tongue. Pure delight! Well, this year, candles are in order. The Hershey's Kiss celebrates its 100th birthday. Just thought you might like to know. It may not be … (7 comments)
agent to agent: Will I Lose Points If I Eat The Cheez-its?
- 05/23/07 05:27 PM
I received an email from one of the great all time clients. It had one simple sentence, "Will I lose points if I eat the Cheez-its?" I staged their home on Friday to get ready for the photo shoot. One of the things I placed in the kitchen was some tall jars filled with some visually interesting things. One jar is layered with colored beans, another with some pasta and the third jar you guessed it---is filled with Cheez-its. I started to email her back, then decided to call instead. I explained she was welcome to eat the Cheez-its and she … (41 comments)
agent to agent: Selling Broker Commission $1
- 05/17/07 08:05 PM
What do you do when you see the commission offered is $1? Let's say you've been sending listings to a prospective buyer for months. They've finally gotten pre-approved and want to start going to look at houses. They give you a list of the homes they want to see. By chance, while checking availability, you notice that the commission offered to the Selling Office is $1. This presents quite a dilemma. How can anyone honestly work for $1? That won't even buy more than a few miles worth of gasoline. So, how do you handle it? _______________________________________________________________________________________________
Marlene Bridges, REALTOR® 800 777-1775 South Orange … (15 comments)
agent to agent: Tip for Updating Your Professional Photo
- 05/13/07 12:36 PM
As real estate professionals, we have our photos everywhere. On our business cards, signs, blogs, websites, emails and other places I probably haven't even included here. When you think about all the websites alone that have your photo on file it boggles the mind. Trying to keep a current photo uploaded everywhere your photo appears can get pretty laborious just trying to remember every place we need to update. In an effort to make this task simpler every other year when I update my photo I decided I needed a system...it needed to be Gerberized. Being a former accountant, what else? … (9 comments)
agent to agent: Cell Phone Phenomenon
- 05/12/07 06:58 AM
In Steve Martin's 1991 movie, L.A. Story, there is a scene where he and his girlfriend (Marilu Henner) are riding down Rodeo Drive. The top of their Mercedes is down and they're both on cell phones. The frame widens to show other cars with everyone in the cars on their cell phones. The movie audience howled with laughter. Fast forward to the 2000's...This is no longer an uncommon scene. There are some great articles here on the rain about cell phone etiquette, but nowhere have I seen this discussed. Today, it's not uncommon to see a group of teens or generation xers … (7 comments)
agent to agent: Allstate Will No Longer Write Homeowner's Policies in California
- 05/11/07 02:36 PM
Today, during a conversation with a South Orange County Allstate agent he told me that Allstate has opted to write no more homeowner's insurance policies in California. I asked what would happen to the existing policyholders. He said they'd be okay. He said it actually will be good for him because as an Allstate agent, he would actually be able to choose from several insurance carriers that Allstate has approved for the agents to use. California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner's responded to Allstate's announcement with some very strong language: "Allstate's actions in California mirror its recent retreat in other markets such as Florida and New York, … (10 comments)
agent to agent: Relocation Company Affiliation - Blessing or Curse?
- 05/10/07 06:30 PM
Like most agents, I'm always working to broaden my referral base. I've wondered if working with relocation companies is really worth the effort. I've read some interesting posts here in the rain on the subject. Gerhard Ade's post in August 2006 was pretty clearly con on relo companies. It was appropriately titled "Are Relocation Companies Relocating a Chunk of Your Commission?" Dave Rosenmarkles November 2006 article was not positive either---The title read, " Reclocation Companies-Necessary Evil". Jim Lee's March 2007 article gave a positive spin "How to Win the Relocation Game". The Active Rain community represents literally thousands of years of … (6 comments)
agent to agent: IRS ~ DIRTY TRICK
- 05/02/07 04:59 AM
Late Friday afternoon, I found out that the IRS had placed a levy on my earnings. I frantically called my CPA. No answer. So, I thought, "What the heck, I'll call the 800# for IRS and see if by some slim chance there's somebody I can talk with". I was surprised that once I had waited on cue for about 5 minutes, a live person answered my call. We were able to resolve the matter quickly and agree that the IRS actually owes me money, not the other way around. Well, that's the good news. I was able to reach someone and … (20 comments)
agent to agent: Taking Time To Play
- 05/01/07 06:54 PM
In a world filled with so much to do, taking time to play often gets shoved aside. Sometimes I feel like I am overtaken by "the tyranny of the urgent". Something that I learned from coach, Joe Stumpf of By Referral Only is the concept of blended time. You don't need to take a whole day off to feel like you've take a day off. Something my buddy, Lynda Eisenmann and I like to do is toss our bikes into our trucks and drive down to the beach midweek. We ride from Newport Beach to Sunset Beach. We take along our cell … (0 comments)
agent to agent: Clear As Mud
- 04/28/07 05:26 AM
On a recent trip to another state to shop for investment possibilities, I was reminded how important it is that we are clear in the way we communicate the information on our listings. We enjoy some differences in the way we communicate from state to state. Not only are our speaking styles different, so is our vocabulary. This can cause confusion for the visiting prospective buyer. For example, I made an offer on a property that was located on a type of street I'd never heard of before. I've heard of streets, lanes, highways, avenues, etc. Well, this was called a trace. What the … (8 comments)
Do You Remember Your first kiss? Was it sweet? Sure hope so. But, what you're thinking may not be what I'm asking. Maybe I should clarify that with... Do you remember your first Hershey's Kiss? I sure do. What a thrill to carefully pull that little paper flag and try to unwrap the foil all in one perfect sheet, then roll that lovely soft chocolate between your thumb and forefinger and plop it on your tongue. Pure delight! 
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