Today was "Daddy Day." It's my opportunity to take the kids for most of the day and do whatever me and the little ones want to do. It's been at least 10 years since I've been to the movies, so what better time to go than now.

Prior to heading to the movies me and the kids had some lunch. As we were leaving we walked past two parked police cars. I told my son that when people get into trouble they wind up in the backseat of the cruiser and "go to jail." My daughter's too young to put that together, but my son understands. Sometimes he walks up to police officers and and just stares at them. He's mystified by fire trucks, sirens and loud motorcycles. He's five.

When we approached the ticket counter at the move theater I grabbed my money clip and in horror noticed the prices. $9.50 PER ADULT. I can't believe how much it costs to watch a movie these days! When I was in high school I remember paying $2.25.

Anyways,

I got in line and waited my turn. I told a lie. I think every parent has lied about their kids age at least once. I said my daughter was 2, which she is and then I said my son was 4, which he's not. He's five.

I was convinced that UNDER 5 would somehow provide me some liberating discount.

Not 2 seconds after I said my son was four did the embarrassment begin....

"Hey! I'm NOT FOUR Daddy, I'm FIVE!"

"Tell that man I'm FIVE & not FOUR!"

"Why are you telling him I'm FOUR!"

Preston didn't let up. The people behind me were giggling and the ticket guy behind the glass was bouncing up & down like Santa with laughter. I was humiliated.

As we were walking away Preston said LOUDLY: "You're gonna go to jail Daddy!"

"I'M NOT FOUR!"

I was clearly busted. I learned my lesson. Preston said I was going to go to jail because I joked with him as we left the restaurant that if he didn't behave that I was going to put him in the back of that police car.

I'll never pull that again!

You just found a home that you're so excited about that it makes your slap you husband. You guys are stoked! You submit an offer through your buyers agent and wait for a response from the Listing Agent.

24 hours later...

Oh my gosh. You just found an even more exciting home! This time your husband lets you tackle him in the living room of the house that you are REALLY REALLY in love with!

But what about that "other" offer? How do you walk away? Or can you? Do you have to fill out paperwork, pay a fine or plead your case?

No. The only thing IN TEXAS that you have to do is simply notify the other agent by either email, text or phone call. It's polite to have a discussion and explain why.... that way the seller can have some closure as to why. Once upon a time a listing agent here in Texas got so mad that my buyer backed out of "an offer" that he demanded the earnest money so he could cycle it through the title company ... punishment slash retribution for getting him and his seller all excited for nothing. I wish I could have assessed fines for this when I was single.

I had to educate the other agent that he and his seller had ZERO right to my buyers option fee money and/or earnest money. An offer isn't binding. An executed contract IS. Executed means the seller has signed the offer. Other parts of the country use different terminology for different things, even though they might mean the same thing. In Texas we "close" on houses, in some states they "have settlements."

Every state is different. Do not back out of a contract and then site Greg Nino as the guy who said you can get your money back. I could be wrong if you live in Puerto Rico, Ohio or California. Contact a local attorney or Realtor for clarity.

Freakish resemblance... or is Bob Stewart making music on the side? You be the judge!

It's happened several times. I go to show a home and the seller has left their net sheet laying on the kitchen counter, coffee table or even under a magnet on the refrigerator. A net sheet outlines how much the seller owes and how much they expect to get back at closing. Most net sheets have a "scenario" for a potential sales price. Hardly the type of information you want to leave hanging around with its pages turned open for the buyers agent and his buyer to accidentally see.

Luckily for this seller and my own moral conscious, this house didn't suit my buyers needs. But what if it had? It's not like I walked over and thumbed through the home owners personal information. It sat open to the net page for all to see. It's like walking into a house and me seeing another man come running out completely naked from one of the rooms (it's happened). I didn't mean to look at him naked. It just happened.

Maybe a loud gasp after seeing the payoff reading 0 with me quickly looking away will be appropriate next time.

I know a lot of bright and successful people who do not like the idea of blogging. They think the idea requires some sort of special talent & ability to entertain with enormous creativity. I don't think it does. There are plenty of Bloggers who are about as entertaining as an infected toenail, yet they produce amazing localism posts, market reports and factoid filled blogs... dare I provide examples. I live against the grain, so none of that stuff appeals or interests me. I like doing things the hard way, always have. I eat my hamburgers upside down and I prefer to put tables together from IKEA without the directions, even if it takes me 37 hours.

The point is, you don't have to be the next Robert Frost or Lenn Harley to be inspirational to your readers. You can be as mechanical and dry as you like. Because there's nothing worse than watching someone trying to be funny when they're aren't. I can think of so many examples from the political scene.... but I'll pass.

I'm one of those guys who types like I talk. My english teachers in high school were not impressed to say the least. I think a lot of newbie bloggers fear that they will be critiqued and even shunned because they are far too often guilty of typing the word advise when it should read advice. Or worse, they are the Queen of run on sentences and King of misplaced commas and hyphens.

The most important thing is that you don't seek how to blog. You just do it. And you do it with passion. Anything done with passion is everything done with heart. Grandma's apple pie was made with passion and nobody cared that it was served on a cracked plate in an 80 degree kitchen.

After a buyer views a home they have opinions. Sometimes the agent has an opinion with the buyer. This means you have two opinions. It's professional courtesy to provide an opinion to the listing agent when done showing a house. Unfortunately, many agents leave feedback that is either useless or insulting, both of which are not productive.

Here are some examples:

1. Home not for us.
2. Thanks for letting us show.
3. Not for buyer.
4. No thanks.
5. Home is great, but not for buyer, good luck and thanks make it a fun day, God loves you.

The above showing feedback isn't just useless, it's extremely annoying. None of it helps the listing agent. The useless pleasantries are equally as unwelcoming.

Here are some examples of GOOD showing feedback:

1. The home showed well, but unfortunately the home has an odor that smells of mold in the laundry room down stairs. The home has more repairs than expected.
2. The lot location is too close to X. We'd consider if priced more aggressively.
3. This home needs a lot of updates for the price.
4. The seller was home and was trying to play hostess. This made for a poor showing as my buyers were unable to view the home and discuss their thougths out loud.
5. The home is filthy and did not show well.

Good showings provide examples that a listing agent and seller can use.

Bad showing feedback does the opposite.

If you're an agent showing houses consider leaving feedback that is useful to the seller and listing agent.

Today at 10:00 this morning is the deadline to submit your "bid" on one of our offices foreclosures. At 9:49 a man walked in breathing heavy as he had just ran from his vehicle to make sure he crossed the threshold of our front door. He literally stuck his head in my office and said.. "I'm here, it's before ten!"

I had no idea who this man was.

He then proceeds to hand me a hand written offer that he calls legal and binding. He wrote it up on a piece of notebook paper that he had yanked out of a spiral notebook. He then asked me to sign it to prove that it was submitted BEFORE TEN. (didn't happen)

Here's what you should know.

1. No offer will be accepted on any property (that I'm aware of) that's sumbitted in this manner. Not in this solar system anyways.

2. I've NEVER seen a cash offer be accepted without proof of funds.

3. No bank foreclosure will accept this type of offer. You have to sign addendum's, contracts and office disclosures.

4. Your offer must be submitted online with or without an agent. Probably best to use an agent so you can understand the process/mkt conditions/negotiating strategy and so much more.

5. IF you REALLY, REALLY want a property do things correctly.

This buyer assumed that I would process his sheet of paper and provide  him a response by today. He had hoped that I could secure the property for him.

I didn't write up an offer on his behalf. He came storming in without an appointment, without the proper paperwork, without having seen the property and without the slightest idea on how the process worked. Well, I take that back... he said his banker told him to offer 1k above the list price to "ensure he got the property."

My departing words to him were that he should enlist the help of an agent for the purchase and a banker who is wise enough to stick to what they know ... and that's BANKING. You would think a banker would have advised this man how a foreclosure bidding war works before shipping him down the primrose path so to speak.  

In this type of housing economy you would think listing agents and home sellers would be making absolutely certain that their home was available and at the ready for all showings. But this blog isn't about me being upset over a rejected showing.

A lot of consumers I meet are aware of what a showing service is. For example, I use CSS, Centralized Showing Service. They basically facilitate the showings on behalf of my sellers. If an agent want's to show one of my listings they can call this company 7 days a week and speak to a representative who will then coordinate the showing and verify an active showing code by the showing agent. It should be that simple.

The showing service cost me a whopping $39 a month. BID DEAL.

For whatever reason there are listing agents who do not find the value in paying for this service. They rely on providing their cell phone number as the point of contact to schedule a showing. Today I called on two properties. One of them was routed to an office (As of 9:28 this morning still isn't open) and the other routes to the agents cell phone.

You guessed it. I'm sitting here writing this post killing time and WAITING for them to call me back. If they don't call me in the next 5 minutes I won't be able to show either one of them! My buyer can't reschedule his window of showing and there are MANY other houses available.

A seller should be diligent when hiring their listing agent. It is THEIR responsibility to ensure they are hiring the best person for the job.

Is your house on the market? Are you missing showings?

If a buyer see's my listing it means they got access with either their REALTOR® or with my assistance. Here's what this also means:

1. The buyer very likely saw the listing on our MLS.
2. Each listing on our MLS has the option to upload 32 photo's, a virtual tour, 10 minute video, and much more.
3. An MLS printout with all the properties information.. and whatever else the showing agent may be providing.

So what good is an INSIDE FLYER?

An outside flyer for a listing can be helpful for buyers who are just cruising through a neighborhood. It's also an opportunity for the Listing Agent to show all 32 photo's/video and complete MLS list of information by way of a QR Code or text to link feature.

Once a buyer enters a home with their agent they really have no use for an inside flyer. The general purpose of an inside flyer is to promote the Listing Agent. I can't  see any other reason to ONLY use an inside flyer. 

What bothers me is when these flyers are touted as some sort of special marketing for the homeowner. When a seller invites their friends and family over the Listing Agent's flyers are on the kitchen counter-top for all to view. You've probably noticed that these interior flyers are of much higher quality. They usually promote the agent more than the property itself. A seller doesn't benefit when there are other homes being promoted on their own flyer. A flyer should be mostly about the house being advertised and not an insdie billboard for the brokerage.

What do you think? Do you use JUST inside flyer's on your listings?