Monica's Blog

My holiday travels...

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 14:45:22 -0500

So, originally I was going to NY for a Wedding. My Kids had taken a plane there the week before I drove up there. I left home on Thursday, July 3rd and took the long way through KY and saw a friend along the way and a Cousin I have not seen in 10 years. It was a nice visit. I continued on to NY and got to my children at midnight on July 5th. I picked them up and due to unforeseen circumstances we left that night and did not get to the wedding. We did take the long way home so we could stop in NY city and visit the WTC Site. We also swung by DC and took in the sites there as well. It was a long, and emotional journey. I say emotional because when I got to the WTC site, I was unprepared for the emotions that hit me. I am very glad I made the extra trip so that I could experience that. My Children learned a great deal while we were there. We left and headed to DC where we saw many of the Monuments, the White house, Capital hill and the Smithsonian. So I decided to share some photos of my travels, I hope you enjoy them.

this is my Cousin I have not seen in 10 years! I hope she does not get mad at me for sharing this photo..lol

My Babies in DC by the River, Don't they looked thrilled? LOL

My Girls

Kids in front of White House

At the Capital

Me and my youngest

The WTC Site, this was very sad to visit...

4th of July..

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 08:48:35 -0500

It seems like just yesterday that I typed out my blog asking what everyone had planned for the 4th of July last year. I can tell you that I am now and always have been a very Patriotic person. I am pridefully teaching my children about the Flag, Patriotism and our US Military. In my mind they all go hand in hand. I used to be a Military Wife and still cry when I see a homecoming being covered by the News. Unless you have experienced a Military Homecoming ceremony you can never really "know" the intense feelings you get during one. It is a wide range of emotion, you feel extreme happiness for the Military Members coming home and extreme sadness for the Family Members of the soldiers that did not make it home. Another thing you feel is worry. You worry about how long they will be with you again before the next deployment. When in a car driving, my children will now point out an American Flag and say that it is a beautiful sight. I feel much pride when they do it because that means I am doing my job. I grew up in a home that didn't really make a big deal about the Flag or even patriotism. This doesn't mean my home was not patriotic, just that we really didn't talk about it. My Children will never wonder where their patriotism comes from, they will always know. I was at a Family Birthday party a few months back and there was a Family at a neighborhood park and in this Family was a 15 year old girl. The birthday party had balloons and one of them happened to be a red, white and blue, flag themed balloon, it was a windy day and the balloon kept hitting the girl in the head. I asked her if she was patriotic, to which she replied "No" and I said, well maybe that's why the balloon keeps hitting you. She laughed, I laughed. I talked to my kids that night. It seemed funny to them that a 15 year old girl would not be patriotic. I explained to them that not everyone shows patriotism even if they feel it. I do not know what the point to this rambling blog is. I wonder how many of you show your patriotism. I hope that each of you have a wonderful Independence Day and please take a minute to think about our Military Members that are overseas right now defending our freedom.

Interesting Neighborhood Sights...

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 21:21:07 -0500

Okay, So I live in Ocala and I drive around my community daily and see funny little things that catch my eye. For instance, On 17th Street (known for all the Professional offices and Banks) which also has single family homes and a Duck pond, well this duck pond happens to be kind of interesting in that there is this beautiful tree that hangs almost into the pond. I have never seen a tree like this. I think it is an Oak tree (Someone correct me if I am wrong, please). The tree began growing at a strange angle and actually looks as if it is going to fall into the water. I am not sure the history about this tree and if there is one, someone please enlighten me. Anyway, back to the reason for this blog. Driving down Maricamp today (also known as CR 464) and I was at the Red light and looked over and saw a tree, the funny thing about this tree was that it had a large whole in the side of it and someone with a sense of humor decided to put two eyes on the tree and a nose. I sat at that traffic light and laughed so hard. It reminded me of Dorothy and the Apple trees that threw their apples at her in the Wizard of Oz. I decided to share it with the world. I am also issuing a homework assignment to you all. Take a humorous photo in your community and blog about it here and DO NOT FORGET TO LINK ME PLEASE!!! :o) Here is my photo funny.

Asking for the SALE?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 22:27:27 -0500

Okay, so I went and met a Buyer at a home we have listed today. The Buyer's are a Husband and Wife, around early 20's, one baby boy that appeared to be about 11 months old. The Wife was pregnant with #2 and They are moving up here for South Florida in the next few months so she can begin College. I have not become too knowledgeable about mortgages but I felt like with them both moving to Ocala, they may not be in a position to Qualify, maybe I am wrong..that is entirely Possible too! I asked the following questions, Please feel free to add to my list if you have some insight in today's Buyers, or if you just have a method that works very well for you.

1. Are you pre-qualified, to which they answered "No"

2. Where do you currently live? They said "Inverness"

3. How soon do you want to be in a home? They said they just started looking but want to move fairly soon.

4. Is this home the price range / Criteria you are looking for? They said yes. I then gave them a name of a Mortgage Company I use and They said they would call.

5. Can I e-mail you additional homes with the same criteria of this home?

6. When will you be back in town? They replied "Next Tuesday"

7. If you see a home before we meet again, please call me and I will make arrangements for the showing.

Now, I felt like I should have said more, done more, but I also felt like they were very timid about making a decision right now. So I guess my question is, How do you push a Buyer that you know if you push too hard they will end up not buying at all.

One of the Hardest things I've had to do..Personal

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 07:43:55 -0500

So, I figured I would blog about this here since I share everything else. I was asked about allowing my kids (3 - Boy, Girl & Girl) to go to NY this summer (5 Weeks) for My Sister's Wedding and I will be driving up there in 8 days to see them and stay for a bit. They flew out by airplane this morning with their Grandfather. I have been apart from my kids one other time, When I went to Basic Training with the US Army and I was gone 9 weeks. I only had the 2 older ones at the time and while home between Basic and AIT I became pregnant and that ended my training. It about killed me to leave My two Kids at the time, and I have not done it since. So back to today, I told myself I was going to be brave for them. They would be with their Grandfather and he would keep them calm, happy and that would be that....Ummm...WRONG..My girls slept with me last night, I slept... not a wink. My Youngest Child, and a Daughter stayed up all night as well. She slept on my lap on the way to the Airport this morning and again I told myself...it's only 8 days. I do not understand why I was surprised by the extreme pain I felt when I had to walk away from my babies at the airport. I felt like someone opened up my chest and ripped out my heart while it was still beating. I tried so hard to be strong for them so they could leave without being sad. I looked at my second child, (My 1st Daughter) and she had these big crocodile tears welling up in hers eyes and I was a goner. I got up to hug my Son, he was trying to be so strong, He is 14 and we found out today, graduated the 8th grade and will be a Freshman next year. He looked at me as I reached to hug him and He saw my tears and he let loose as well. My Youngest had been crying since she first saw me crying, I always ask a question in my blogs so I am asking this, when does it stop hurting this bad to let go of your children?

E-mail Campaigns? Mailings? Etc...

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:33:13 -0500

Okay, so the question of the hour is "Do you do e-mail campaigns?"

I have done them for my previous Employer and I know they are very helpful, I am curious to know how many out there use them? Do you use a particular company, like Vertical Response? I have seen e-mails done with this Company and they are Great! How about Top Producer? I have used Top Producer to send out mass e-mails (Campaigns) and It was pretty good, not as flashy as Vertical Response. What about Newsletters? Does anyone send them to their Clients? Do you send them regularly? Have you gotten any responses from your e-mail campaigns?

What about ideas that are "New" to attract Buyer's/Seller's? I am curious how much is out there, what works for Agents, What about to other Agents? Do you send them your listings in e-mail? This seems to be a very common occurrence these days. Every week I am getting more Agents e-mailing me new listings, listings that they have had and reduced.

What about postcards? Do you send "Just Listed" or "Just Sold" Postcards? Again, for my previous Employer I have done Postcards. I don't think we ever got a response to them though. It was a bit disappointing.

I am always open to learning what works and ditching what is a waste of time and energy. I am back in "the ring" so to speak and I will be here often asking questions again. I strive to learn something daily, I am a sponge and love to soak up knowledge and use it for future use. Anyone have any other ideas that I haven't mentioned?

I look forward to reading the responses!

Realtor.com Tips and Tricks...

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 19:04:50 -0500

Okay, I do most of our online marketing for my "Teams" listings and I have to say that www.realtor.com is one of the places I spend most of my time. My Team has the enhanced version of Realtor.com and I use it often. I even enhance Vacant land listings. Most people do not enhance these. Below are some of the steps I do for each listing we get, I will separate them into two categories,

Homes

1. I always take about 100 different photos of the homes we list. Realtor.com allows a maximum of 25 photos in their enhanced listings.

2. Bold headline. Use something that stands out to the Buyer's. a "Hook" We use the same headline on all of our listings.

3. Scrolling text, I am currently using a call capture number on our listings. We have gotten leads from doing this!

4. More Text! Do not just go with the MLS Text, You can use both to give more information. I add Text describing the home and I also Use the MLS Info that is pulled into Realtor.com.

5. Virtual Tour! Some Virtual Tour Companies will Include Realtor.com linking "Free" USE it! This also helps you come up higher in a search on www.realtor.com.

6. Videos - Currently I am not adding Videos to our listings, they are a great marketing tool and you can make the videos about the City the home is located in. If you are attracting an Out of State Buyer, they will find the video very useful in getting to know the area they may end up living in. The reason I do not use the Video option right now is because You can only use a certain format and most of them I have found charge. **If anyone knows of a frugal company to create these Videos, I would be happy to learn about it**

I have searched on www.realtor.com by number of photos and I do search on there often, if you enhance your listings to the Max, you will come up at the top of the search for the criteria the Buyer is searching.

Vacant Land

1. We live in a wonderfully Modern County here in Ocala, FL. The Property appraiser site allows you to get a ton of public info. **Disclaimer, The Site has been known to be wrong, but for the most part the info is pretty accurate** I Use this site to pull Ariel shots of the Vacant land we list. I pull several different versions of the Ariel and Plat from that site. I pull the school district and add that as one photo on the Enhanced listing. I also pull the Fema Flood Rating. There are many other info I pull, it is way too much info to type out here, If you live in Marion County, go check out the site here.

2. Bold headline, Use one for Vacant lots too!! Just because there isn't a home on the lot doesn't mean you can't enhance the listing on Realtor.com. Most Realtors don't enhance Vacant Land. It is a shame. I enhance EVERY Listing we get that shows on Realtor.com.

3. Scrolling Text, again...Use something that will grab your Buyer's attention!!!

4. Text - Type up about the area surrounding the Land. If someone is going to move here, they will want to know about the area, use this space!!

5. Virtual Tours - You can make a Virtual Tour about Vacant Land, even if you do not have Photos of the Land. I use the Ariel shots I get from Property appraiser. It works wonders!!

6. Videos - Again, I do not use these but Create a Video about the surrounding City/Town!!

Summary, I always ask my Callers where they saw our listing. Most of the time they answer "Realtor.com" With all the TV advertising the Association of Realtors is doing about that site, why wouldn't you take advantage of it??

Gas prices and the Market

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 07:00:43 -0500

Okay, so I was thinking yesterday afternoon about how our current gas prices effect a Realtor's job. I once went to a seminar that told us "If you are in the office, you are not making money" So if this is really true then how much gas money are you spending in a week? I have a friend that told me he spent $125 to fill up, foe the 2nd time this week. The Gas here in Ocala, FL is between $3.89 and $3.99 was the highest I have seen it, just yesterday....and I bet I just jinxed that by mentioning it...LOL

Anyone know of ways to get the job done without so much traveling? Especially if you live in a city like mine that is spread really far? Also, for the sake of public interest, what are you paying for gas where you are, how often do you fill up, and if it is not too nosey of me, how much do you spend when you fill up?

Short Sales?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 20:21:12 -0500

What are Short Sales? I have heard a whole bunch about short sales in the last several months. Even more then hearing about them, I noticed that alot of Agents I come in contact with on a daily basis do not understand them. Most Agents I see avoid them. I also noticed there are some Agents that are making a living only selling Short Sales. I am very interested in learning all I can about short sales and what they involve. Can you really make a living doing short sales? What are the tips to making a short sale more comfortable for all parties to the transaction? What materials should you have upfront to make the whole deal go quicker. How much time should you tell your Buyer to expect before they get an answer from the bank? What about repairs to the home they are buying through short sale? I am truly interested in this subject so I would really appreciate any and all information you can give me. Thanks in advance!

Referrals?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 10:51:23 -0500

OKAY, So...I have been working in this industry for about 3 years now. Not as an Agent but as an Assistant. I only worked as a Buyer's Agent for about 6 months and I loved it!! I have worked for the best of the best for the last 3 years and I have learned so much. To be fair, at the beginning I was given a link Active Rain by Kelly Barthlow. I will always be thankful to her for that. I was here daily for quite a while and then unfortunately "Life got in the way". I have met some great people on here and even Greater Teachers. I am glad I am back. Now, on to my "Newbie question"

I have heard for years about "Referrals". Now I am asking this question. How many of your Agents do most of your business by REFERRALS? Can you truly make money on referrals? I was fortunate to sit in on one of Brian Buffini's 100 days to greatness classes and I learned a lot, one thing I heard frequently was REFERRALS. Is this business about referrals? Logically speaking I could see how you might make money on referral business but how many of you are diligent and follow the referrals all the way to the end? Do you have a "System" for getting and being paid on these referrals? I would like to hear from both New Agents and "Seasoned Agents" on this subject. I am curious how the answers will match up. Look forward to reading the responses!

Hello everyone!! I am back!!

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 18:04:28 -0500

Well, to say that my life has changed and had some ups, downs and major curve balls would be a HUGE understatement. I have lived, learned and I am still learning to move on. My Children have grown like weeds, I am now the Proud Mother of a Freshman (9th Grader), a 6th grader and a 3rd grader. Where does the time go? My hair has grown longer, You might be able to spy a grey hair or two, developed a few wrinkles, possibly an ulcer as well but I am still alive and kicking. I have thought about my Active Rain family many times since I last visited and I am glad to say I am back to stay. I need some more teaching and figured where would I get any better Teachers then HERE! I just hope you all welcome me back with open arms.

HAPPY FORTH OF JULY!!!!

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 12:34:11 -0500

Just wanted to wish each and every one of you a Wonderful forth of July, I hope the Hotdogs taste like heaven, the Watermelon melts in your mouths and the fireworks are breathtaking. Independence day is a day of celebration and please NEVER FORGET THE SOLDIERS, SAILORS, MARINES AND AIRMEN THAT SACRIFICE THEIR VERY LIVES FOR US ALL EVERYDAY TO LIVE IN FREEDOM!! I hope that you have Family around you on this wonderful day and take a moment to say a prayer for our troops that are overseas today, so they may at least have a bit of peace for one day.

New Profile :)

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 14:10:57 -0500

Well, My Changes are complete and I am really excited about what my future holds for me. I am also a little sad about what I am leaving behind. I know that life needs to change at times, it just gets hard for me to accept it sometimes. I have nothing but positive feelings about my new opportunities and I intend to surround myself in positive energy and Look forward to the happiness I will bring to myself and my children.

4th of July or Independence Day?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 23:00:13 -0500

Any special plans for Independence Day? Do you do anything as a Tradition?

We always go where the fireworks are, I have three kids and they love to see them. The best 4th of July we ever had was in Texas. We lived on Fort Hood, the Army base and I was absolutely amazed when people began lining the highway and firing off fireworks towards the sky above the highway, there was police and ambulances everywhere lining the Highway as well and I LOVED every minute of it.

Okay, who's next to share their traditions?

Question Time :) Expired Listings?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 22:47:47 -0500

Do you call Expired Listings?

I met with a Broker today, I picked up some great tips and I am very excited about what the future holds for me. He did mention something I have not done before so I figured I would ask about it here on the Rain.

1. Do you call Expired Listings?

2. If so, How Often?

3. If not, Why Not?

4. If you have, How has your response been?

I would expect you would need to research the expired Listings because I would not want to be the one who called a Seller that just Listed with another Agent last week, Tell me ways you would research this, if you research this and How successful your technique has been. Thanks!

BIG CHANGES......

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 22:18:00 -0500

Hello all, I have missed you so much. I have been very crazy lately and trying to make up my mind about what to do with my future and I have been very confused. I have made the people who know me very crazy and I am sure lost a couple friends because of it but I think I am finally at peace. I will be updating my profile next week and plan to join the group again and be more active, I hope you all will welcome me back with open arms. I have missed all of you and I have read a few Blogs and will promise to do better. I started a Business and plan to add a profile on here under that Category as well.

-Stay Tuned :)

Moni C <W>

:::::Wipes Brow:::::

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 07:17:54 -0600

I am SO Tired, I have been neglecting my Active Rain People :( Life has been thrust into the Fast lane for me so to speak! I hope I am forgiven. I have missed you all though. Do we have any NEW people on here? Any more Rain Bugs? LOL

I am still loving my Job, Kids have been making me completely Batty, anyone sympathize with me on that one? I finally went to the Board of Realtor's for my New Associate Orientation and I am sure they (The Powers at the Board) Will be happy to read this, I Learned a whole Bunch! I am so glad I went. It did last all day though, it was really hard to go knowing I had to be gone all day, but you know what, sometimes you need to just get away. Anyone else feel like that? I know going to a day long class is not getting away....but It was kind of relaxing for me. So I missed you all and I will be around more often, I PROMISE!

Appreciation Day for your Clients?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 07:01:30 -0600

Anyone hold an Appreciation day for their Clients? I have heard about Movie days, where you rent out a Movie theater for the afternoon and play a new movie, ask the Clients to bring their kids, friends, family...anyone they know who can give them a referral. I have heard that it is a very productive idea for getting referrals. What about Dinner parties? Any other ideas? If you do hold one of these events, how do you pull it off without getting Broke? How often do you hold one of these events?

Tornado's in Central Florida?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 18:41:31 -0600

Just checing on everyone in Central FL on here, check in and let us know that you are okay. I hope no one was Hurt During the storm, I live in Ocala and it was a bad night but luckily we only lost a few shingles from our roof and our Lawn chairs got tossed around but otherwise we are perfectly fine. My Heart hurts for those who lost Family Members, and I hurt so badly knowing that those children died. :( I always worry about tornado's and the scary part about this is that these people probably did not know what hit them. I was scared that night, I usually get nervous when we have bad storms cause as a Child living and growing up in Citra we had a really bad storm one day and My Mom was at the next house and we were holding my Baby Sister and the Window in our Kitchen broke in on us. Bad memory that I can't get rid of. Anyway....Just check in please :)

Health Insurance?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 07:05:48 -0600

Okay, I have been UNDER the weather for a couple days and it got me to thinking. What do you do for Health Insurance? I am lucky right now I have health insurance through the State of Florida but I know one day I will need to shop for myself, Where do you get your Health insurance? Please link me if you have a link, Does your company do something special for the Agents? I know that Re/Max Premier Realty has a Health plan here in Ocala, is this the Norm for all Brokerages? Does your Health plan include discounts for RX's? In this day and age we all need to know as much as we can about Health coverage. :) What about Supplement insurances like Aflac? Anyone have that as well? Dental Insurances?

Your Personal Statistics? Online SIte?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 07:05:28 -0600

So I took a LEAP Training class last week, During that class I got the idea to track every lead that had come in for the month of January and continue this practice for the year, On a Month by Month basis. I was completely shocked by the Percentage of Leads that came from the Internet. I know I asked the question here before about the Internet versus Print Ads but after doing the Work to figure out my percentages for the Month, so far in January Print Ads only count for barely 1% of our Leads, the rest come from the Internet, so What are some websites online that you advertise your Listings? Even if there is a Monthly fee I am interested in hearing about them. I am curious if I am using the same sites as everyone else :) Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. IT's MONDAY!! LOL

Virtual Assistants?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 07:10:01 -0600

Okay, I have heard about these a lot in the last few months, what is a Virtual Assistant? What do they do and How do they get paid? Do you use a Virtual Assistant? If you do, where did you get yours from, what website? DO Virtual Assistants go to school to be one? If you do not use a Virtual Assistant do you know what they are and have you thought of using one? Why did you decide not to use a VA?

I obviously do not have a Virtual Assistant but I think that they could be very useful so I am curious about what others think about them. Any first hand accounts of a VA?

Vacations?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 06:58:05 -0600

Okay, this seems to be the perfect day to talk about Vacations. It is Cold and Rainy here in Ocala :( So, do you plan for a vacation yearly? How do you handle your Business while you are on vacation? Do you have any Vacation Rules, like no cellphones? Do you go to the same place every year, do you take more then one vacation a year? I want to hear all about your Vacations, the best, the worse, the one you thought would never end. Give me ALL THE DIRT PEOPLE!! LOL

AS IS with Right to Inspect?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 06:53:15 -0600

Okay, for those of you that have not realized this, if I ask a question on AR it is likely because I am dealing with this subject in my "Real" life. I have found that AR is the best place for me to ask a question and get so many ways to deal with a problem or learn something that I did not know. I JUST WANT TO THANK EACH AND EVERY PERSON WHO IS CONSTANTLY HUMORING A NEWBIE by answering all of my questions.

Okay, I need someone to explain exactly what an AS IS with right to inspect contract is. I do know that it means they will not pay for any repairs, but what I am curious about is, does the Buyer sign the contract BEFORE they inspect the property or After? If the Buyer signs the contract before they inspect the property, and the Buyer finds something that is devastatingly wrong with the property, can the Buyer withdrawal from the contract and get his deposit back? Can the Seller make a closing date for less then 30 days? Can the Seller make the Deposit non-refundable regardless of what the Buyer's find?

Any and All information regarding this subject would be GREATLY appreciated!! Thanks!!

Is this a Hint?

Monica Hubert (RE/MAX Allstars Realty) — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 07:14:43 -0600

I think maybe Someone is trying to tell me that they don't like my "MUG" I logged on to AR this morning and my Profile Pic was missing..LOL - Come on, you can break it to me, was my picture scaring people away from AR?? LOL

On a serious note, Search engine optimization, What is it? Do you maximize your Search engines? Which Search engines do you think are the best to use? Have you found some Meta Tags that work better then others?

I think I am pretty Internet savvy, but I can admit that I would like to learn more. I am like a sponge, always looking for something new to absorb. So all you Internet search engine Guru's out there, teach me something I don't know :)