martin rodriguez: 5 Things Every Realtor in Santa Clarita needs to know for this weekend
- 11/15/09 12:51 PM
5 Things Every Realtor needs to know for this Weekend By now you already know that the FTHB Tax credit has been extended and expanded, but do you know the details so that you can properly explain it to your clients. Here are some bullet points: You need to be in contract by 4/30/2010 and close the transaction by 6/30/2010. The income limits for the tax credit have been raised to $125,000 for a single filer and $225,000 for a joint filer. The best part of this extension is the expansion to all home buyers that have owned a home … (0 comments)
martin rodriguez: Make sure your florist gets your flower deliveries right.
- 11/09/09 09:26 AM
A client bought a new home and the broker sent flowers for the occasion. The flowers arrived at the home and the owner read the card; it said "Rest in Peace". The owner was angry and called the florist to complain. After he had told the florist of the obvious mistake and how angry he was, the florist said, "Sir, I'm really sorry for the mistake, but rather than getting angry you should imagine this: somewhere there is a funeral taking place today, and they have flowers with a note saying, "Congratulations on your new home". -------------- When you close a … (1 comments)
martin rodriguez: First time Home Buyers: Use your $8000 Tax Credit Now
- 05/30/09 11:36 AM
Over the last several weeks HUD, along with FHA, have been back and forth as to the legality of whether or not they would allow the use of the $8000 First time home buyers Tax Credit to be used as part of the down payment and closing costs of a qualified purchase. Well now we have an answer. Yes! You can cash in your $8000 instant rebate at the register! There are some rules that need to be followed, so if you want this credit instantly applied to your purchase transaction, you need to make sure that your lender follows the … (1 comments)
martin rodriguez: Email vs Snail Mail.. Stop the Junk mail and be Professional
- 09/27/07 02:26 AM
I often stop and think. Wow -- how did my parents ever get anything done in the business world 20, 30, 50 years ago? There was no email, no computers, no internet and the scariest of all no Google. Yikes! (The thought of working without these tools sends chills down my spine.) Yeah, things moved slower, but nonetheless business was getting done with great success. Fast forward to the modern era of instant gratification where you can do just about anything (well almost) with the stroke of keyboard and the click of a mouse and suddenly you have a whole new set … (15 comments)
martin rodriguez: College of the Canyons -- Opens new campus
- 08/29/07 07:52 PM
Today I had the honor of attending the ribbon cutting - opening ceremonies of Santa Clarita Valley's newest college campus. The College of the Canyons -- Canyon Country campus. The project first started in 1991 when the Chancellors office commisioned a long range study to determine the educational needs of the community and recommended that a 2nd campus would be required to accomodate the rapid growth of College of the Canyons main campus in Valencia. Just as projected, the enrollment has steadily increased over the years from 6,500 students in 1990 to over 19,000 students today. The College of the Canyons main campus has been named … (3 comments)
martin rodriguez: Flow Chart: Real Estate Purchase Transaction
- 08/26/07 07:29 PM
For those of you that prefer visual concepts, I have prepared a simple flow chart that illustrates the key steps involved in the purchase of real estate. This illustration is designed to provide buyers with a road map to ownership from begining to end, it is not a detailed list of everything that occurs in a transaction. I realize there may be some variance from state to state as some states are non-escrow states, but the overall process is generally the same. If you have any recommedations or see anything that I may have missed please let me know. Lastly, If you'd like a … (14 comments)
martin rodriguez: Schools Out for Summer: What did your kid learn?
- 06/12/07 06:13 AM
Yes, this is the shameless plug of an extremely proud dad, but shouldn't we all be proud of our kid's accomplishments. From Kindergarten to Graduate school, the months of May and June are cornerstone months symbolic of academic achievements and scholastic growth. Graduations are celebrated, report cards are issued and a chapter in a students life is closed, but as parents what does this mean beyond the class room? How is our kid developing behaviorally? Sociologically and Philosophically? It used to be that our elementary schools only focused on the core studies of Math, Science, Reading and a few other foundational subjects, but today's … (12 comments)
martin rodriguez: Santa Clarita: Celebrates Life without Cancer - SCV Relay For Life
- 06/05/07 12:45 PM
Several weeks ago Dr. Kelly Herta of Aligned Health Chiropractic approached our local BNI chapter (Team Gold) and recommended that we participate as a group in our city's Relay for Life. With Dr. Kelly at the forefront our group began to learn about the Amercian Cancer Society's grass roots effort, which is an event that started in the mid 80's when Dr. Gordy Klatt of Seattle, WA decided to run for 24 hours in an effort to raise funds for his local chapter of the American Cancer Society. In just a few short weeks our BNI Chapter began to raise funds, coordinate schedules for the 24 hour event, and … (11 comments)
martin rodriguez: Do you want to be President of the United States?
- 05/27/07 11:59 AM
Last week my daughter's 5th grade class went on a field trip to the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley, CA. I was fortunate enough to tag along as a chaperone and learn more about one of the greatest President's our country has ever elected. Regardless of political affiliation visiting this library is a definite must for anyone in the Los Angeles area. The collection of history, artifacts, and memorabilia demonstrates the genuine nature of a young Ronald Reagan, and walks you through the various years of his life on his journey to becoming the unwavering leader that stands up to communism, shuts down the cold war and reduces our federal debt. … (5 comments)
martin rodriguez: Management: Leaders Pull -- They Don't Push.
- 05/11/07 06:58 PM
Whether your business is a one man operation or a corporation that is several hundred employees strong. Getting the right support from those around you is critical to your success. Your staff employees, co-workers, vendors and colleagues each play a critical role, in your success, failure, or the perception that your clients/customers will have of you and your business. It's no secret that good help is hard to find and when you find it, it's hard to keep. Unless you can succesfully create an environment that makes employees want to work for you, serve you, see you succeed and be a part of that success. In … (8 comments)
martin rodriguez: Paris911: To Protect and To Serve
- 04/28/07 05:32 PM
On the door of every LAPD police car are the words "To Protect and To Serve", but in the case of former LAPD officer turned Realtor, Connor MacIvor, these words represent a duty beyond that of a law enforcement officer. For him, these are words that describe his work ethic, dedication, and commitment to his real estate clients. Last week I had the opportunity to meet with Realtor Connor MacIvor of Re/Max in Santa Clarita. This was my first time meeting a fellow Active Rain blogger, and it was a great experience. Within a few minutes Connor and I connected like old friends, we swapped stories from our previous careers, we discussed many of … (4 comments)
martin rodriguez: Emergency Broadcast System: This is a Text !
- 04/22/07 02:36 PM
The tragic events of Virginia Tech University last week were a horrible tragedy. Our Country continues to mourn the loss of all the students and professors whose lives where robbed short of their full potential. This post is in no way an attempt to second guess the efforts of any police officer or rescue personnel. However, the campus police department has come under scrutiny (by some) for their actions and an investigation is under way. Regardless of the outcome of this investigation, there is only one question that matters. Could this have been prevented? or some how contained? Again, I'm in no position to attempt to answer that question, but … (4 comments)
martin rodriguez: Help Me Understand???
- 04/19/07 05:03 AM
Communication, Communication, Communication.. (or the lack thereof) This is perhaps one of the biggest problem areas identified by clients, employees and managers in virtually any business. It doesn't matter what industry you're in, effective communication can make you or break you. Good managers recognize the importance of this and they are always striving to improve their communication. Huh, ah what did you say? Have you ever delegated a task to another person, only to find the end result resembles nothing like what you expected? Was the task clearly communicated? Did the receiver of your message hear you? Or did they effectively listen to you? The difference being … (10 comments)
martin rodriguez: Under the Mortgage Microscope: Understanding Points vs. No Points
- 04/14/07 09:38 PM
Under the Mortgage Microscope: Understanding Points vs. No Points One of the most common questions that I get as a mortgage broker is, "Can you do a zero point loan?" Of course I can, any broker can do a loan with no points. The real question is understanding the trade-off between a zero points loan vs a loan where points are paid. (all other things being equal, of course.) Many "loan shoppers" often focus on this dimension alone and they will run the other way if the lender mentions that a loan has points included. This is short sighted and illustrates a lack of understanding of where the point costs come … (4 comments)
martin rodriguez: My lender ran my credit report and now the whole world knows..
- 03/13/07 11:48 PM
Here's a simple thing you should recommend to all of your clients even if your aren't the one running their credit report. Tell your clients to call 888-567-8688 or go online at https://www.optoutprescreen.com and have them sign up for this free service to stop the credit bureaus from selling their personal and private information. Everyone seems to know the "do not call" list however it appears that very few people have heard of the opt out list for credit reports. Signing up for this list ensures that your credit profile and personal information is not sold by the credit bureaus to 3rd parties. … (31 comments)
From this perch.............................
My vision I preach, my concepts I teach.
But for greatest perspective, It's your comments that I ultimately seek.
5 Things Every Realtor needs to know for this Weekend
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