Melinda's Blog

Where've you been, Mrs. Flynn? :)

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 08:02:44 -0600

I have disappeared for months from the blogosphere. I didn't mean to. It was an accident! The next thing you know, it's 2009! Where've I been? Since my last blog, on top of the usual family and life stuff, I was all involved in (& loving every minute):

Serving my clients during escrow
Client Parties
Building and implementing systems to handle more of your referrals coming in (I don't like to be running around town all crazy and re-active...I like to have systems so that I am pro-active and calm to better assist my clients!)
Real estate EXPO's--the California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) puts on 2 per year, and I attended 2 days in Long Beach last October to learn more about implementing technology and to stay on top of market trends
Real estate seminars (from Coldwell Banker's "Power Pricing" to help get homes sold for top dollar in this market, to Brian Buffini seminars to help me with building systems & customer service)
Helping my sellers and buyers through the escrow process
Got installed on the Palos Verdes Board of Directors for 2009
Printing my 2009 Business Directory (e-mail me if you're local and would like a copy!!)
Let's see, then there were the holidays
Then I started the year with a big kick off for my Vendor's in my network to get our year off to a great start
Last week I was in Monterey for the C.A.R. Business Meetings to learn what's new and to be involved in the process of helping realtors better serve the homeowners

You know, stuff like that!!

So, here I am, off to another day in the life of a real estate professional, striving to improve and do better for myself and my client base. I'm going to a special "Short Sale Seminar" today to learn how to increase my buyer's chances of getting short sales accepted by the banks, and also to improve the listing process for my seller's in short sale situations.

Thanks for reading! Will post again [soon]! :)

Affordable & Efficient Virtual Assistant Firm

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 12:11:54 -0500

Tired of doing your own flyers, photo shop, web updates, etc.? Visit www.LongerDays.com and you'll be amazed at how affordable and great they are! They aren't working from home, they actually go in to the office (somewhere in N. or S. Carolina), and they have a team that specializes in different areas so the most knowledgeable person gets the project they are familiar with. The lowest plan is $115 for 5 hours/month. That, my friends, is saving me more than $100 in time fussing with photos and websites and frees me up to sell houses! If you try it, please let me know what you think, & let them know I sent you.

The Latest Housewarming Party Photos

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 09:54:45 -0500

Housewarming Party for Stacey

It's a perfect house for you!

Happy Housewarming!

Contact Info

Melinda Flynn
Taking Real Estate to the Next Level

Dir 310-728-5795
Email | Website

Another Client Housewarming Party Today!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 09:41:17 -0500

I don't abandon my clients once escrow closes. As part of my ongoing Client Appreciation Program, I host buyer Housewarming Parties, and celebrate making it through escrow! So today I am excited to host a Housewarming Party for a recent homebuyer in Torrance.

My caterer, Adam, will be there on-site to whip up delish delights! My client selected her top choices from the menu, and Adam & his chef will be there to get things set up and start preparing sauces on the stove.

It's just another way I thank my clients for their business. I know there are many choices when it comes to real estate, and I do not take business or referrals for granted!

Stay tuned for photos from the party...

Client Appreciation Party 2008 Photo Show!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 09:28:34 -0500

Melinda's Client Appreciation Party 2008

Melinda Flynn: Serving Your Real Estate Needs & Referrals in, Manahttan Beach, Palos Verdes Peninsula, & Surrounding Beach Cities, CA

Got referrals? Call me for "first-class-above-what-you'd-ever-expect-from-a realtor" kind of service!

THANK YOU for your referrals and support of my real estate business!

Call or e-mail:
Melinda Flynn
310-265-4222
homes@melindaflynn.com
www.MelindaFlynn.com

Property Amenities

Contact Info

Melinda Flynn
Taking Real Estate to the Next Level

Dir 310-728-5795
Email | Website

Client Appreciation Party Tonight

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 17:51:53 -0500

I am so excited to have my Annual Client Appreciation Party tonight! I am gathering my favorite clients to mix n mingle at Beaches Restaurant in Manhattan Beach. It's a fun way to say "Thank you!" for continued business and referrals! I'll post photos and recap in a few days.

I'm in Sacramento for the California Association of Realtors Legislative Day 2008

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 09:40:48 -0500

I am currently in Sacramento with the some of the finest Realtors for "Legislative Day". This is where Realtors representing all regions of California through the California Association of Realtors (CAR) migrate to the State Capitol to lobby real estate issues to our legislators.

For example, one hot topic this year is "Point of Sale". If passed, this would require home sellers to have an inspection to bring their home up to green standards. It put enormous stress on the real estate transaction process, imagine being in escrow and finding out your home needs to have new windows, insulation, heating, etc. That would be expensive and time consuming. While Realtors are all for being green, we feel that Point of Sale is not the best way to achieve the goal of helping California homes become more energy efficient.

We had a luncheon on 6/5 with CAR's Executive Vice President and Econimist Joel Singer. I thought it was interesting that he mentioned his daughter recently got married and he told her that her main goal should be to buy a house prior to 12/31/2008. He indicates the worst is over and that the market has already adjusted. With rates being historically low and plenty of inventory for buyers to choose from, it is an ideal time to buy real estate. See Mr. Singer's Economic & Housing Market Outlook 2008.

Don't be in the "shoulda, woulda, coulda bought real estate" category! If you would like to move up to a larger home, are a first-time home buyer, or looking for deals to invest in, now is an excellent time. If you are in the LA/South Bay area and would like to explore your real estate options, give me a call at 310-728-5795 to review your real estate goals and get you moved!

Conference Call with Brian Buffini 4/29/08

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Wed, 07 May 2008 08:10:56 -0500

It had been a while since I listened in live to a monthly conference call from my business coaching company (www.BuffiniandCompany.com), since I usually have a conflicting office meeting each Tuesday. Well, this day my meeting got switched around, so I headed to my office to dial in to the call, the subject: "Increasing your Personal & Professional Effectiveness".

I realized that dialing in live to a Brian Buffini conference call is much like watching Dancing with the Stars live. There is something about having thousands of people live at the same time vs. recorded, you just never know what is going to happen.

Well I had my surprise at the end of the call during the Q&A session. They say press *1, and you think someone will tell you you'll be next on the call and to get ready. But no, you are just listening and they say "Our next call is from..." and then you are live. When Brian said he had time for only 3 calls, I really didn't think I would get on and it turned out I was the first caller.

It turned out to be good though, because now I have no reason not to increase my productivity!

On a side note, I have to give lots of credit to my business coach, Roibin McFarling. He is excellent and has been my coach almost 7 years. He helped me build up database #1 in N. CA when I was new in real estate, and then he helped me 3 years later build a new database in S. CA! It has been great having consistency from someone who knew my story from Day 1.

Roibin has his hands full with me because I love organizing, planning, and systems. He has to remind me to get out and go do! Without him, I wouldn't have stayed on track during martial arts (www.ErnieReyes.com) to go for Black Belt. I believe when I first started coaching (and real estate) I was still a yellow belt!

It has been a journey since then, I remember going to Turning Points and forever writing in my personal goals "Get to green belt...get to blue belt...get to brown belt...etc." It kept going and going, and sometimes I was at a certain belt level it seemed like forever and felt like I was never going to be good enough to get to the next level, let alone get to testing for Black Belt. At that point, on testing day, I realized that it wasn't about the Black Belt. It was about all of the other belts and working your way to get to that level. And you realize you are not that good, when you see the 2nd Degrees and higher doing their thing with precision and excellence!

Any rate, without Roibin coaching me along and asking how my training was going, etc. and he would not let me get away with not going to my classes because I was too busy with work! He would say (& as Brian says), "Schedule your family and personal appointments first, then schedule business appointments around it." I'm glad I listened to him, because it would have been easy not to do it. Thanks Roibin!

Back to the call, Brian asked me what is one thing I could do better to achieve my business goal of 20 transactions for 2008. I thought about saying "pop bys, parties, or notes", but those are things I am already pretty good at doing. I said phone calls (not knowing that would be my project for the next 6 months)! Now having committed to make 3 calls/day and ask for referrals is serious business. When I was making 10 calls a week before, I wasn't focused on the ASKING part. I figured I would let the "Oh by the way" stickers do that part for me.

It has been a week since my conference call with Brian. How am I doing?

That same day around 4p.m., I made 3 calls and asked for referrals. It wasn't so bad. The next day, I woke up at 3:30a.m. to start working on piles of paperwork so that I could make my 3 phone calls and ask for referrals that day. Silly huh?! I feel like there is much to do prior to making calls, so if I started at 3:30a.m. (I wake up early with no alarm clock, my inner clock gets me up when it's time to work!) I would be ready to make calls by 9a.m. You would think! I didn't get to my calls until later in the afternoon.

Now I realize that if I just get the calls done by 10a.m. daily instead of waiting for a convenient time and all the stars to be aligned "just right", I am free to go about organizing, planning, lunches, etc. GUILT-FREE! I am also getting to talk to people I have been "meaning to call" for a long time, and it's really great.

Thanks, Brian, for helping me rearrange my thinking about the phone calls. I see now that everything else gets done too. It only takes less than 20 minutes to make 3 phone calls, & it's pretty fun to catch up with people I've been meaning to call!

If anybody out there in Blog Land, Buffini Land, or any other Land knows of anyone looking to sell or buy real estate in the Manhattan Beach, Palos Verdes, Beach Cities/South Bay area, you know I'm never to busy to help your referrals!

Environmental & Natural Hazards Disclosures in Real Estate Transactions

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 10:33:25 -0500

I guess the days of Thailand are over, although I do still have another blog to post on that if I can ever get time to do it. Since I've been back, there have been sellers, buyers, and piling paperwork to tend to! So I'm back to my busy life, and loving every bit of it. Nice to have vacation and nice to be back to work still feeling fresh (even after 1 month back).

If you've read all of my blogs from beginning to end, you'll notice I haven't spent a lot of time on technical aspects of real estate. I will try to do more of that, so I can help eliminate some of the potential stress for sellers and buyers alike. Plus I delight in the technical aspects, and try to improve each time so the process of selling and buying is as smooth as possible.

It's never an easy thing, but I try to make is as enjoyable as possible for my clients. There are always some sort of speed bumps during escrow, but that's all they are. Of course, "speed bumps" to a real estate agent who does this all day long may feel like "crash and burn" to clients who do this a few times in their lives. My job is to help us get around the speed bumps, eliminate the crash and burn, and move forward with things.

So let me give you some insight on the Environmental & Natural Hazards Disclosures, that might help sellers and buyers feel more comfortable about their next upcoming real estate transaction.

If I can advise home sellers and buyers of one thing prior to starting the process of selling or buying a home, it would be to pay about $130 and order an Environmental & Natural Hazards report on their existing property.

(Sellers, this would help you because it's better to have the report to provide buyers prior to making an offer...that way they know ahead of time if they would or would not be willing to move forward. Wouldn't you rather them back out ahead of getting into escrow?! The only thing is that if your property sits on the market for a long time, you'd have to get an updated report in case there is anything new, but I believe the disclosure companies would do this at no cost.)

Why would I recommend spending money on something as unexciting as one of these reports? Because the reports can be overwhelming and scary if the first time you've ever seen a report like that is on a home you are about to purchase or sell. But if you order a report on your existing property, you might be surprised at what you will find is within a mile radius from your present home, and will help prepare you for what you might find on a home you consider buying. Plus it would give you plenty of time to call the company providing the report and ask questions.

These Environmental & Natural Hazards Disclosure reports provide all sorts of intersting information, such as:

Flood Hazard Zones,
Fire Hazard Determinations
Radon Gas Potential (as per Property ID, did you know that all of Los Angeles County is in a "moderate radon zone"?)
Earthquake Fault Zones
Soil Hazards
Methane Gas
Property Tax
& more

There are many companies that provide these reports. For more information or to order reports, you can start with Property ID www.PropertyID.com or National Disclosure Authority www.NDAreports.com. You can also do a Google search to find others. I have been using Prop ID for a long time, and have even been to their "Lunch n Learn" sessions onsite. Very informative and probably more than you would ever want to know!

Seeing an Environmental & Natural Hazards Disclosure report on your current home prior to buying another home might reduce some stress for both buyers and sellers. In a perfect world, we'd have no-stress "happy escrows", but the escrow process is a series of inspections, reviewing a lot of disclosures from different sources. There are seller disclosures, mandatory state disclosures, the NHD disclosures, and more beeing added all the time. Like a new addition I've seen called the Tsunami Hazard Inundation. Makes sense to have such a thing considering we live by the ocean!

Well that's about it on that subject. Of course, if I can be of any service to you or someone you know, or would like to talk about more technical issues in real estate transactions, I'm happy to coach you!

Back from Thailand, Back to Work

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 09:56:42 -0500

Well, we have been back from Thailand and are now back to work! So now I have to visit memory lane to update the rest of our trip. Then I'll get back to blogging about real estate stuff (which, by the way, is an excellent time to buy real estate with rates low and the new FHA conforming loan amount increased from $417,000 to $729,500 in our local area...buyers, it's a great time for you to see what you can do!).

Here are more photos from leaving Koh Chang to our stay in Krabi, Thailand. Not a lot of time to write, so I'll blog with photos to catch you up on what we did from the last time I wrote.

Trat Airport Leaving Koh Chang

Trat Airport Leaving Koh Chang (about 1 hour flight to Bangkok, then another 1 hour flight down to Krabi)

In Krabi en route to hotel

Entering Krabi via cab

Amari Vogue Resort--Our new hotel for 7 days until we leave for Bangkok to return home

Amari Vogue Resort Towels n Tea...you just can't beat the welcome service in Asia!

Dreamy pool at Amari Vogue

Long Boat off of Amari Vogue beach...very isolated and quiet. Nice for R&R!

That's all I have time for now...I'll post the rest of our photos later this week. I am off to meet clients and sell houses, but remembering our nice, relaxing trip! Ahhhhhhh.....

My Garmin iQue m4 (PDA/GPS All-in-One)--Saves Time AND Stress!!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 22:08:02 -0500

It seems that upon the first time out with a buyer, there are a lot of properties to show to bring them up to speed on the market in their price range and area. So there are days when I show anywhere from 8-15 properties in a day.

Of course this takes time to plan and set appointments if needed. I used to spend at LEAST 100 minutes on routing, esp. when showing properties ranging in 5 different cities (about a 10 mile radius)! Using MapQuest or other online mapping tool, you have to know the order, and then it tells you how to get to where you want to go to the next leg. I'd have to print the directions for each leg of the trip and then put them in some type of order. It was crazy, and then if the client ruled out something on the list, I was stuck because I already included that on the directions!

Enter the Gamin iQue m4 Pocket PC, which is a GODsend. This handy tool allows you to enter as many properties as you'd like (maybe up to 20, but I don't know, I haven't reached the point of showing that many properties in a day; I don't think it's possible unless they are all in a small area!), and then it will route you in the best order by "shortest distance" or "faster time." I know Tom Tom is great, BUT when I was looking to purchase a GPS, Tom Tom didn't route multiple properties.

It's just a huge time-saver, and if a clients says, "Oh, we decided we don't want to see the one with the pool," it's not a problem, and just delete it from the list and go to the next property.

The PDA feature syncs with Outlook and is amazing to have it on the same handheld as my GPS! If my clients want to drive due to carseats for the kids, etc. it's not a problem...I just tuck it in my purse, hop in with them, and away we go!

Thanks for reading! Have an efficient, productive, saving $$ or time day!

Koh Chang--More Photos from Thailand!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 00:55:55 -0600

I am still catching up on my photos and blog, I think after this one I will be caught up to present day.

Jim is still recovering from being sick, and is resting through lunch. After I get offline, I'll probably go down to the pool and have some lunch. There is only so much poolside lounging one can do before it's too much sun! And we still have 7 days in the southern beaches, so we'll have to be careful not to overdo it.

Here we are in Koh Chang, a lovely place to visit. We originally decided to come here because of 2 things: 1) I heard of a neat boat trip to Cambodia from here. What we found out was that it's 2 days, 1 night, and we don't want to do that since we only have a few days in Koh Chang. So that's out. 2) Jim thought this is where I could ride my elephant on the beach. No such luck. It seems elephants are only in the jungle. So we've already done that twice, and I don't need to do it again anytime soon. It was fun the first 2 times if you get my drift.

But, we are glad we came to Koh Chang. It's a beautiful place, as you'll see from the photos. Jim wanted to cancel the rest of our travel and just stay here, but I told him we should go because we'll see some more beautiful beaches!

2/19 Chiang Mai To Koh Chang

Flew back from Chiang Mai to Bangkok. Since all flights from Bangkok to Trat were booked, Jim arranged a driver to meet us in Bangkok to take us on a 5 hour ride to Koh Chang. So we basically were in the van for a good 4 hours, then 30 minute waiting for the ferry to take us across to Koh Chang. We stopped for lunch after hour 2, at a rest stop along the freeway. I think I was again homesick for regular food, and didn't want to eat anything from the Thai buffet. So I had some Soy Milk (this saved me on several occasions...not that I'm not one for exploring and trying new foods, but I have heard of people on travel who get sick and I didn't want to be one of them. At least in the US, we have our system of ABC for restaurants that is very helpful to know the cleanliness, and I am not sure of how it is here...I'd rather starve than chance!)

Once we got to the ferry, we were amazed at the beautiful blue water. We boarded the van on the ferry along with other vans, cars, and trucks. There were snacks and drinks available for purchase, but I was still okay after my Soy Milk. Jim had a beer and said he feels like he is now starting his vacation.

View of Koh Chang from Ferry Boat

Once off the ferry, it was just about a 20 minute drive to our hotel at the Amari Emerald Cove Resort. Oh my gosh, they greeted us right away and took our bags. We were going to go to the counter to register, but they told us to sit and sip our cool tea and refresh with cool cloths while they got us checked in. They showed us to our room, which was amazing. Very comfortable and contemporary, with a great view of pool and ocean.

The first thing we did was to put on our swim suits and go out by the beach. The hotel is right on the beach, with lounge chairs on the sand. Jim wanted beach view rather than pool view, so we did that. We had refreshing drinks, and sat staring at the amazing view and beautiful water. We took a walk along the beach towards White Sand Beach, and passed many Thai massage places, restaurants, bars, etc. that are right on the beach with no walls. Just chairs and table on the sand!

It's a Good Life Koh Chang at Amari Emerald Cove Resort. I am thinking how grateful I am for http://www.buffiniandcompany.com/ and my coach, Roibin who work so hard helping me grow my business to allow us time and baht to afford such a nice trip. There will be more in the future, so Roibin, we've got work to do when I get back! (Please just let me recover from my jetlag first!)

Back to the hotel, we were ready for our complimentary dinner and had our choice between the Thai or Italian hotel restaurant. We opted for Thai, since we are here after all! The food and service were delicious.

Delicious Dinner at Just Thai Hotel Restaurant

One thing we notice is that English is not as prevalent here as we noticed in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. The staff speak enough to do their jobs, but not on a very fluent level. So we feel a bit stifled at times. There are many tourists here, mostly from Germany, UK, & Japan.

2/20--Spa day and Break from the Sun

Well, not much on the list to do today. We'd like to do a one day snorkel tour, but for today we'd just like to relax and enjoy the hotel amenities and nearby shops and restaurants. Not quite ready to leave the palace!

Since I wanted a break from the sun, I decided to get a massage treatment at the spa. We went in to inquire and we were told to sit and sip some cool tea and have a cool towel. There are no lines here, just sit and relax while they bring us stuff. I can get used to this!! Just selecting spa treatment was an experience in itself. We sat in the cushy chairs by the pool and sat with the long list of menu choices.

Hotel Spa Cool Towel and Cool Tea

I decided to go for the Floral Spa treatment, which is 4.5 hours of indulgence and pampering. It included a honey scrub, aloe wrap, floral soak in a nice big Jacuzzi tub with ocean view, and 90 minute massage. It was about 6,000 baht, which is about $200 USD...one would pay about that for a basic 90 minute massage at Burke Williams, so this was a good deal for half a day! Once I selected my treatment, the lady brought me a tray of oils and incense to see which once I preferred. They all smelled good, it was hard to decide.

Floral Soak at Hotel Spa

About 2 hours into the treatment, I was missing Jim and wished I was out in the sun with him. Only so much relaxing you can do in 4.5 hours! I was starting to daydream and make plans for my next Client Party (as I was wrapped up in my Aloe Wrap repairing my sunburn from the Chiang Mai pool day)! I think I will call it Taste of Thailand, and invite my favorite clients and friends to attend. I think I have it all planned out, from the invitation with a Thai orchid for each guest, to the Pad Thai, and the 15 minute Thai massages for guests. He he. Is that what relaxing so much does?

For dinner, we asked one of the staff where is a good place to eat. She recommended a place call Chalay at Bang Boa Village, a local fishing village. We took a cab (truck) to the village, about a 20 minute ride in the dark. I was wishing it was daylight out, I'm sure the views would be beautiful. But we wanted to eat at a local favorite and recommendation.

We got out of the cab, and walked along the pier with many shops open for tourists. Smelled kind of fishy for me, but we came to eat at Chalay, so that is what we'll do! After looking at the menu, I was in the mood for something familiar. So I ordered rice with chicken to start, and then we order calamari and some crab. Well, they forgot the rice with chicken, so I was limited to the calamari (a bit too fishy tasting for me, but then again, that's me! I love seafood that doesn't taste too fishy!). I wasn't going to try the crab, since my idea of crab is King Crab Legs from Outback, not the little ones that you see crawling on the rocks. Jim said it was pretty good. Looks like a lot of work and not enough crab meat to me.

Once we cabbed back to the hotel, we decided to book our snorkeling trip. That would be on a boat with 15 stops, Thai buffet, and snacks on the boat. Sounds like fun, and a great way to see the surrounding areas.

2/21

Today we are just hanging out by the pool with nothing on our list. Lounge around the pool (umbrella open!), Jim ordered some fantastic Bloody Mary's, and we just sat and drank by the pool overlooking the beach. This is the life!

Delicious Bloody Marys by the Pool

For lunch, we walked to a nearby beach restaurant where Jim said he had a hamburger whilst I was at the spa. He said they were good burgers and I'd like it. So we did that for a late lunch. We sat and stared at the sea whilst we ate our burgers. They were very good, but the French fries were even better!! Yum! Then I had a Banana Shake to top it off.

View from Beach Pub Near Hotel Where We Ate Hamburgers

We walked back to our lounging chairs by the pool, took a swim, and relaxed a bit more. Then we went to the room and relaxed. Then we went out to book or snorkel trip at the hotel tour office.

We were going to look into what hotel we're going to stay at next, either in Krabi, Koh Lanta, or Trang. We heard the latter 2 are pretty secluded, and I think 8 days there would get boring. As we were online, I looked at Jim and he didn't look so good.

An Adventure In Itself: Buying Cough Medicine in a Thai Market When No One Speaks English!

Jim said he had a headache, and he was coughing a lot. He went back to the room to rest. When I got back to the room, he was coughing a lot, so I went on an adventure in itself to buy some cough medicine. He said he wasn't hungry, that I should order room service (he must be sick if he's telling me to order room service!!) So I ordered a small pizza from room service and headed to the local market for cough medicine. Nothing was in English at this store, and I had a hard time finding cough syrup. There were a lot of people in the tiny store, and I didn't have time to wait in line, ask the lady which one to buy, etc. since the pizza would be delivered within 20 minutes. I didn't want them to go in and disturb Jim. So I left the store, ran back to the room to wait for room service to show up, then back to the store.

Once I got back to the store, I asked the lady which one for cough and she pulled one out that wasn't in English. I asked her if it was for daytime or nighttime, and she said "Anytime." By this time, there was line forming. I didn't even know how much this cost, and I didn't know if I had enough baht. I told her I'd like some cough drops too, so she pulled some out of a glass case. I don't think she had patience with me. I told her I would like to pay with credit card, and she asked me how many baht I had. I told her 200. Turns out, I bought the cough syrup, cough drops, and a some type of card worth 200 baht!

I went straight to the front office staff at the hotel, and asked them what the directions are on the cough syrup and to verify that was the right stuff. They said, "Yes, take one spoonful every 4-6 hours, and it's for anytime." I don't think they have the daytime nighttime cough medicine concept here. I also asked them what I just bought for 200 baht, and they said it's a calling card. They understood the error, and wrote a note in Thai explaining what it was, so that the lady at the market would refund my 200 baht. I felt like a kid going to school with a note from my Mom as I walked back to the market, but hey, you get over these things when you don't want to buy something you didn't need! It's all part of the experience. One can imagine what travelers to US go through, where maybe they might not get any help! Thank goodness it worked, but it was another trip across the street to return the card, while my pizza was still waiting for me and Jim was still coughing!

Finally, got back to the room where Jim was dressed and going to come look for me because it was taking a while. Once he saw me, he got back in bed, took the cough medicine, and had a piece of pizza. He said he'd feel better tomorrow for the snorkel trip. I told him I found out they won't refund the money, but if he doesn't feel good, he shouldn't worry about it.

It was a long night, and Jim didn't sleep too well because his head was hurting. Poor guy, but at least the coughing got better.

Enough of that, I'll post the rest of our photos from Koh Chang. We ended up not snorkeling, but it's okay...still enjoying it here!

More Beautiful Koh Chang Photos

Jim Wants to Live Here

Koh Chang Swing on Beach

Sitting Around at a Beach Bar Having a Bite at Sunset

View of Sunset from Koh Chang Amari Emeral Cove Resort Hotel, just outside of our room.

This is the Life in Koh Chang! Walking on the Beach at Sunset

Walking Along Koh Chang at Sunset...I think we've got some good photos for home decor!

Well, that's about it for now! I can't say what the next post will be, so I'll be just as surprised as you! Stay tuned as we head further South!

Final Days in Chiang Mai--More Photos!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 23:48:45 -0600

Here is a summary of the rest of our Chiang Mai events in photos. Detailed-lengthy text version below photos. Some good times we are having! We are currently in Koh Chang, with these Chiang Mai days in our memory book!

Thai Orchid Garden Tour

Thai Orchid Garden Tour2

Chiang Mai Elephant Ride. Our tour guide told us that lumbering was outlawed in 1987, and that's what these elephants used to do. So now the locals have turned it into a tourist attraction, where they can still earn money without having to abandon their homes. They have a great attraction, complete with a Thai buffet after elephant riding and the elephant show.

Flat Stanley at Elephant Show--You didn't forget about Flat, did you?? He's been having a great time, but we need to fold him up and send him back to Ani's school by Feb. 22...so he'll be off to the Post Office soon!

Did You Know Elephants Can Paint? Flat is really enjoying this!

This was so cool! One of the elephants even signed his name!

Here you can give money to the elephants, and the take it with their trunk. I have never been so close to an elephant trunk before! Maybe he was afraid of me too, but he took the money anyway!

Final Day in Chiang Mai, Catching up on Last Minute Things after Elephant Day Tour:

Flat Stanley Goes to the Chiang Mai Post Office. We couldn't break it to him that we had to send him back home until we got to the post. Ani's school is expecting him back on Feb. 22, we hope he makes it by then but it may be a few days after. We made a copy of Flat Stanley, and will now travel with his brother, Flat Steve. :)

Uncle Jim Mailing Flat Stanley to Ani's School. We will miss him, but will have fun with his twin, Flat Steve.

Jim's Favorite Deal in Chiang Mai 7 Dollar Laundry. Wrapping up our trip, and taking photos we didn't take yet...this is one of Jim's favorites. He wants to bring the Thai lady home to do our laundry. Sounds good to me!

Thai Movie Theater to See a Thai movie called "Chocolate". I'm all for the martial arts movies, and I learned some good techniques...but there was a bit much gore for my taste! An interesting premise I thought. Jim doesn't like going to movies on vacation, but I love it. So this was a treat for me on vacation! I thought it would be cool to see an internation film while on international travel.

Detailed-lengthy text version:

2/18 Day Trip: Orchid Farm, Elephant Trekking & Elephant Show, Thai Buffet, and Bamboo Rafting

We arranged a day trip with the tour agency at our hotel. We wanted to see some sights outside of our Walking Trip. No other tourists booked on this day, so we basically had our own private guide and taxi. That was pretty cool. Our tour guide was very nice and knowledgeable. Best to blog these experiences with photos. One thing we learned that we had no idea, was that it takes 3 years to grow an orchid. We were amazed at that! And it was beautiful to see the orchids in bloom and how they grow.

I asked our tour guide what he thought about my idea to see the Thai movie Choclate. He said it would be fine to go to the mall nearby our hotel, and that the movie would have English subtitles. He said that movie was selling a lot of tickets, but that he hadn't seen it.

So later that day, once we got back and rested a bit at the hotel, we decided to go see a movie. That was an experience too! In Thailand, when you pay for the tickets, you also select your seats from a display screen...then the host shows you to your seats. That was pretty cool, I thought. The hard thing for us was trying to determine if the red seats on the screen were available or taken, and the teller didn't speak much English. So we had to point and she would say yes or no.

The popcorn and coke were delicious, but the movie was a bit harsh. I'm all for martial arts movies, but this was a bit hefty and gory. But a good concept I thought, and the fact that we saw a movie in Thailand was fun.

Now we're off to Koh Chang and to explore the beautiful southern beaches we have read about! Photos to follow at next opportunity...

Chiang Mai Walking Tour--More Thailand Photos!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 23:12:01 -0600

Jim is feeling better today, but went back to rest after breakfast. We think it was too much sun all at once, since it's so inviting to be outdoors all day when you are in Koh Chang!

So I am posting our Chiang Mai Walking Tour that we thought was interesting. We found the map and directions of things to see as we walking through the town in a National Geographic Tour Book. Below are some photos and events (Koh Chang photos will come soon...first another Chiang Mai post with our Elephant Trekking, Thai Orchid Farm, & Bamboo Rafting 1-Day Tour). We were in Chiang Mai 4 days, but wish we had stayed a bit longer, as there are many excursions and tours that are 2 or 3 days and take you just outside of Chiang Mai. Maybe next time!

Thailand: Trip Bangkok to Chiang Mai 2/15

This was an easy flight, much like flying from LA to SF. We arrived in Chiang Mai, and unlike Bangkok with its busy and noisy feel, we felt a sense of calm and country as we exited the airport via hotel shuttle.

Driving through town, we saw many internet cafes, coffee houses, very modern, cool, contemporary, and clean. We liked it very much. We drove past Chiang Mai University and saw many local Thai students as well as international.

Our hotel was Amari Rincome, one we found online. The hotel was just beautiful, and the service was outstanding. We couldn't believe how beautiful the view was from our 6^thfloor room. The pool was very welcoming, and we couldn't wait to use it the next day, once we got settled in to the hotel and explored our surroundings. We were so happy with the hotel quality, especially since the next leg going to Koh Chang we were also booked at an Amari Hotel (Emerald Cove Resort). So at least we knew we'd like the hotel since the service at Chiang Mai was so great.

Chiang Mai Amari Rincome Hotel View Daytime

Chiang Mai Amari Hotel Sunset View

2/16 First Full Day in Chiang Mai: Laundry & Walking Tour

The first thing on our list to do was laundry! The hotel averaged about 100-150 baht per item, which was about .50 USD. Added up, we would have paid almost $50 in laundry! Jim was on a quest to find a Laundromat, and found one not too far from the hotel. His favorite part of Chiang Mai was having all of our laundry done by a nice Thai lady for $7!

So our first full day in Chiang Mai whilst our laundry was being done, we decided to take a Walking Tour in Chiang Mai that Jim found from a National Geographic Travel Book. We had the hotel make a copy of the page we needed, which included the map of starting point and the directions how to go. That way we wouldn't need to carry the book around, just the paper.

According to the Walking Tour, it would take us about 1.5 hours and about 2.5 miles to do the walk. The starting point looked easy enough to get to from our hotel, "just across town". We both had our backpacks on, and really looked like tourists with our Walking Tour Map. Many locals whizzed by on their motor bikes, bicycles, in cars, "tuk tuks" etc. But whenever we met their eyes, they would bow and smile.

Several people just came up to us and asked where we were headed. I showed them our Walking Tour Map and they said, "Wow, that's far, are you going to walk?" Yes! We wanted some exercise, and the starting point at the First Church looked pretty easy to walk to. After they asked where we are going, they always seemed to ask, "Are we having a tailor made suit, and where?" Sheesh...that was like the question of the day! They commented that Chiang Mai is where many people from Bangkok and even Hong Kong go to get their clothes made. One man told us he has had 600 suits made for him here. Wow! To me, how does one keep up with 600 suits? Maybe it's like a prestige thing around here.

Turns out that by the time we found the starting point, about 1.5 hours had passed. It was already near noon, and hot! So we found a place to refresh and have a snack and cool drinks at the Good View Restaurant, just on the river. And a good view it was! We had some spring rolls and juice drinks. Delicious!

We were finally ready to start our Walking Tour.

Start at the First Church, then proceed on the bridge, to the pedestrian bridge. Veer right into the Wororat Market. Easy enough as we marked off 2 of 8 things to see on the Walking Tour. Next to see was the Chinese Temple, as something different form the many Thai temples we would see on our tour. We came across a Chinese Temple, it was hard to find since the local people didn't seem to know what or where it was. So we were happy to find it, we took our shoes off, went in, and took some photos. We even saw a Chinese man doing some beautiful calligraphy. He gave us permission to take his photo.

We continued on our Walking Tour, and found ourselves talking with some ladies from Bermuda. They said we had to go inside the Wororat Market...we thought we already did! Turns out, we had just walked around it instead. So we actually went inside and we were amazed at all of the vendors. This is where the local Thai people go for produce and goods. Wow! It was very cool.

When we exited the Wororat Market, we discovered another Chinese Temple, and found that is the one we were supposed to see in the first place according to our Walking Tour. He he! The magic of taking a Walking Tour on our own; we got to meet many people who were trying to help us get to the next place.

Continuing the Walking Tour, we actually made it one by one. Turn here, go left at the red cobble-stone street, etc. We were getting tired, but still amazed and the beauty and friendliness of the people. We found ourselves in alleys and on little streets we'd not ever have seen had we decided to skip the Walking Tour. It was fun to finally find and take photos of the places along the way, and to cross them off of our list. The most fun was meeting people along the way and seeing the sights.

Arriving our last place, we were exhausted and our feet were sore. After touring the last Wat on the list, we wanted to cab it back to the hotel. We decided to take a "tuk-tuk", and Jim decided to negotiate. Squabbling with the driver over a dollar, we lost the deal (and I think offended the driver, not by intention!) and had to walk a few big blocks to find another tuk tuk. We ended up taking it for what the other guy started with...we just wanted to get back to the hotel and not on foot! We were laughing that when we negotiate in bath, it doesn't seem like we have a real grasp on the amount, and once we converted the negotiations into USD, we realized how silly it was. It's like trying to get a cab driver to drive us across town for $5 instead of $6! At some point, you just have to get in and go.

We had this tuk-tuk driver take us to pick up our $7 laundry and back to the hotel where we were too tired to go out to find food so we just ate at the restaurant. We felt much better after eating, and crashed in bed around 9p.m.

Setting out for Chiang Mai Walking Tour

Chiang Mai Good View Restaurant Pre Walking Tour

Walking Tour Pre Refreshment at Good View Restaurant

The First Chinese Temple with Chinese Man Doing Calligraphy (we thought this was the Chinese Temple from our Walking Tour, but it turned out not to be it...we randomly came across the other one, but thought it was a cool thing to find 2 Chinese Temples within the heart of downtown where most are Thai Buddhist Temples..and quite amusing for us to think we had the right one the first time!)

One of Many Beautiful Temples on Chiang Mai

Three Kings Monument on Walking Tour

One of the Surprises on Walking Tour was An Art Show at the square where we found Three King's Monument. This was a cool art show, many ice sculptures with frozen flowers as shown here, some had frozen vegetables in there. Many locals and some tourists were perusing the art stands.

Jim Turning Left on Red Cobblestone Road for Walking Tour. This one was kind of fun, because there was no street sign posted on the street or in our Walking Tour directions. It just said to "turn left at the red cobblestone road"...we didn't find it to be that red, but we were pretty sure this was it since there weren't any other roads we say with cobblestones. Don't Jim's walking shoes look comfy? :)

Last Wat on our Walking Tour and Jim is Asleep

And Were Our Feet Tired After Walking Tour 6 Hours Later. This is our feet on a "tuk-tuk"...a motor-bike type of transportation common in Chiang Mai.

Celebratory Walking Tour Drink

2/17 Day After Walking Tour (Photos Below):

After all day walking before, we decided to hang out by the pool and rest. We got a burger and drinks poolside. After about 4 hours, I was red as a lobster, and realized I overdid it with no suntan lotion. So the next couple of days were ouchie on my back! Stay inside and try not to get too much sun for the next few days.

We got out of the sun, and decided to take Flat Stanley to the post office to get him back to my niece's school by the Feb. 22 due date. An interesting experience at the post office! We took a photo of Flat before we folded him up and send him to Ani's school with some menus, some photos, maps of where he has been, etc.

What we didn't realize was that you take a number at the post office, as the clerk kindly pointed out as we were standing and waiting for a window to open up. Take a number and have a seat while you wait? We thought that was for the DMV, but a good idea for our local US post to try.

We also had to pick up some film that we dropped off on our Walking Tour, so we went back to the photo store. From there, we walked around the "Sunday Market", which we were told is different that the Night Bizarre because the Sunday Market is where the locals go to shop and prices are reasonable. Apparently the Night Bizarre is mainly for tourists and prices are higher. The Sunday market was so big, so many streets full of vendors, that our feet were reminded of all the walking we did on the Walking Tour the day before! There were many places to stop and get a foot massage, right on the streets, so we did! We sat in big cushy chairs, and had our feet massaged for 30 minutes. A nice treat for our aching feet! Then in the streets, we heard the Thai National Anthem being played. Every person, Thai & tourists alike, stopped what they were doing, stood up, and listened to the National Anthem. No one talking or moving, just stopping to listen and pay respect. Once the song was over, everything resumed as if nothing ever stopped. Jim said he heard that when you hear the song, stop and stand until it's over. Thanks for the tip, because I didn't hear anything of that or what to do so it was a new experience for me. But it was okay once I knew what to do. Afterwards, we resumed our foot massage. When that was done, our feet felt so light, ready to walk some more!

What we didn't realize was that you take a number at the post office (photos of post office in the next blog), as the clerk kindly pointed out as we were standing and waiting for a window to open up. Take a number and have a seat while you wait? We thought that was for the DMV, but a good idea for our local US post to try.

We were feeling like locals now, having been to the post office, the local "Sunday Market", etc. There were a couple more things on our list; one was to get a Thai massage from a place we read about called Let's Relax. So we found our way from the Sunday Market to the Night Bizarre/Mall area and found Let's Relax. They took us up to a room, and washed our feet, then took us to a private room with 2 mattresses. We changed into some massage clothes, I guess you call them! Then 2 ladies came in and started our 1 hour massage. Nice and brisk massages, good for our aching muscles from traveling and walking. That was a nice experience. Once we came out, it was about 9p.m. and we still didn't eat dinner. We didn't want to walk home, so we took a tuk-tuk to go back...whatever price the guy told us is what we paid. We were in no mood for negotiating. Just wanted to get to our hotel since we had a busy day next day full of touring adventures.

But one thing on my list was to see a Thai movie. I'd been seeing ads for a new Thai movie called Chocolate, but was curious where the theater even was and how much it cost.

Day After Walking Tour Relaxing Feet by Hotel Pool

Celebratory Thai Foot Massage Day After Walking Tour at Sunday Market. I think it was 250 baht per person, just under $10 USD. Baht well spent, and what a relief!

Celebratory Day After Walking Tour Thai Massage. After the Sunday Market, we headed to the Night Bizarre to get a Thai Massage. We read about this place called "Let's Relax", recommended for its quality of service and good pricing. We look like we're in the hospital, but we were really relaxing. :) They brought us warm, white towels to relax while we waited for our massage room.

After our long Celebratory Day after our Walking Tour and massages, we were starving. Here is our food at the restaurant hotel. Delicious!

Next post coming is our Elephant Trekking, Thai Orchid Farm, & Bamboo Rafting 1-Day Tour in Chiang Mai...stay tuned!

What Inspired Our Trip to Thailand

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 08:09:52 -0600

Oh yeah: some people asked how we came up with Thailand...

I bought a desktop calendar for Jim's birthday a couple of years ago based on the book "1,000 Places to See Before You Die". For 365 days of the year, a new place was featured. That way, when Jim was hard at work he could look at his calendar and know that one day we would be able to travel to some of these exciting destinations. Jim had mentioned Thailand would be a neat place to visit at some point. Once we decided to take a vacation, we were trying to decide where to go.

Out of 1,000 choices, it was hard to decide our first destination. So I told Jim to close his eyes and I would flip through the pages of the calendar, and whatever page he pointed to would be the place we would go. Ironically, the page stopped at one of the many destination stops in Thailand. To confirm, we did it again, and the page stopped again on the same page. So that confirmed Thailand would be our destination.

Over the course of our planning, we pulled out all of the calendar pages that related to Thailand and put a map of Thailand on a wall at home. That way, each day as we rushed out the door to work, we could see the places we would go and could start learning the geography. Some of the featured places to see in Thailand: The Grand Palace, the Reclining Buddha, Chiang Mai, and the Floating Market. So that would be at least 4 places to cross off our list in one vacation.

So here we are in Thailand, all because of a birthday present! :)

Thailand Vacation Continues...More Photos!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 08:04:25 -0600

I know; what the heck does posting about vacation have to do with selling real estate? Plenty! We work so hard, making sure the details are taken care of, developing and fine tuning systems to make things go more efficiently, etc. Sometimes we are on call 24/7 it seems, even during family time. You just never know when a client will find the right house, or when an offer on a listing will come in.

That's why I'm on vacation...to take a break and truly unplug, so that when I get back to work I can be fresh and ready for anything!

In addition to my work, Jim has also been working just as hard if not harder for the past few months. We are 2 fried crispy critters, that are out to get chilled. It's working, and we're loving every minute of it! :)

Well, Jim is not feeling well today, so I basically had all day to work on the photos and catching up. So here you go, and now I've got to head off to take care of Jim (he's fine, just a headache and slight fever...he is feeling much better and we're going to have room service tonight...you know he must not be feeling too good if he's okaying that idea!). I'll post more photos tomorrow.

Back to our last full day in Bangkok, here's what we did in a nutshell (detailed-lengthy text version is below photos):

Floating Market Bangkok

Jims Authentic Thai Lunch at Floating Market, the lady made it straight in the wok on her boat!

Delicious Pad Thai, topped with cilantro.

After the Floating Market, we went to ride elephants (sorry, no photos for that one, we ran out of film!! But you'll see plenty once we get to Chiang Mai photos). Then we went to see the Reclining Buddha...hard to take full pictures due to the structure of the building, but here you can see his head.

Reclining Buddha

That night, we headed out to downtown Bangkok to see what that was like for our last night before leaving for Chiang Mai:

Downtown Bangkok at Happy House Beer Garden

Thailand Feb. 13 (Grand Palace, River Cruise)

Today we toured the Grand Palace, one of the destinations from 1,000 Places to See Before You Die. We felt a bit overwhelmed by all of the temples, and realized we probably should have had a tour guide to lead us through and explain the significance of each temple. But it was fun to explore on our own, and wander through at our own pace. The temples are beautiful with intricate details.

After the Grand Palace, we wandered through the streets outside of the gates. We didn't know quite where we were going, or what to expect but we heard there was a river cruise we could take. The problem was, we didn't know which way the river was. So we walked quite a few blocks in each direction until we found it. There were so many vendors lined along the streets, people asking us to buy this, buy that, take a taxi, etc. We didn't want to buy anything, we just wanted to find the river! We finally found it after about 45 minutes. A lady came up to us and asked if we would like to take a river cruise. We asked her how much, and she said 1,800 baht (about $30 USD). We heard we should always negotiate prices, so Jim was able to get her down to 1,200 baht.

Well, the River Cruise was pretty cool. They showed us a map of where we would go and that we'd be back in about an hour. So we hopped in, and took off. It was fun to be on the water, just relaxing and taking in the sights. There were many homes lined along the river. They looked like they have been there a long long time, and didn't look like some of them would weather a storm. Many people were sitting on their porches, and would wave to us, or we would wave and they would wave back with big smiles. They were very friendly.

The best part of the River Cruise was when we stopped to tour a traditional Thai House. (See prior blog post.)

Feb. 14 (Floating Market, Elephant Trekking, Reclining Buddha & Downtown Bangkok):

Today we took a taxi at 9a.m. from our Montien Riverside Hotel to go to the Floating Market, another destination on our 1,000 Places list. This was about 1.5 hours, and we drove along the freeway, viewing many salt farms, shops, and houses along the way. Once we arrived the Floating Market, we didn't know what to do. So the taxi driver said we should do the 1.5 hour trip, and that we would enjoy it. We asked him how much is reasonable to bargain, and he said as much as 40% in some cases. At least we knew the going bargain rate instead of feeling cheated, and that we wouldn't be offending anyone.

So we got in the boat, and had a nice, relaxing cruise along some houses, and some shops. Our boat driver (?) pulled over to a shop, where the lady had a nice set up of souvenirs and items for sale. I bought a nice set of photos of the Floating Market at a good bargain.

We continued cruising a long in the boat and saw many more shops similar to the one we stopped at. We told the driver to keep going, many of the shops had the same items. After about 20 minutes, we arrived at a shop that we would get off the boat and have a free "Welcome Drink" (some delicious, cool coconut juice) and shopped around a bit. We watched 2 ladies making some coconut sugar cookies, and watched locals and tourists alike shopping, buying and enjoying themselves.

We got back in the boat and finally arrived at "The Floating Market". It was amzing to se the boats floating by with goods for sale: souvenirs like t-shirts, hats, jewelry, photos, picture frames, food, drinks, etc. We came across a lady making Pad Thai right from her boat. Suddenly Jim got hungry and decided to order some. He was craving some authentic Thai food, and, well, it doesn't get much better than have a nice Thai lady cooking some delicious stir fry right from her boat! We waited in our boat next to hers while she finished. Delicious! We also bought a lunch for our boat driver, so we all ate in the boat.

Then we were off to finish our boat ride and see if there was anything else we wanted to buy. Many locals go to the Floating Market to buy produce and goods. We thought it was a great experience, and well worth the trip to see this first hand.

Once off the boat, our taxi driver took us to an Elephant Riding place. What an experience! The only elephants I have seen have been on TV or in the zoo. I have never been on an elephant and didn't know what to expect. They have little riding seats on them, room for 2 people to sit. We climbed stairs to a tall platform where they load people onto the elephants. We got on and off we went! At first it was scary, but I relaxed once I saw other people in front of us. We rode through the jungle and through the river (the photos look more adventurous than it really was...the water wasn't too deep and we were only in it for a few minutes!)

We asked our taxi if he could take us by the Reclining Buddha (another destination 1,000), just next to the Grand Palace, since we didn't get there the day before. Kindly, he took us through the awful traffic to get to the Grand Palace again and waited for us. This is a sight to behold, The Buddha so long, golden, & reclining!

With all the photos we took, we were out of memory to take any more. Once we got back to the hotel, we asked where we could buy memory sticks or photo cards. That turned out to be an adventure in itself, because the hotel didn't have anything like that. They said we could walk across the freeway to the overpass and get some at the Home Mart Mall. Well, it was dark, probably around 6p.m., and we headed out to the mall. Mind you, there wasn't much around the hotel, just a river and some deserted buildings. So there wasn't in between, but dark road. I was fine and we almost made it to the overpass when I saw a few stray dogs, which is common here. But I am not too much a dog person even at home, so when I saw these dogs in the dark and nothing and no one around us, it was time to go back to the hotel!

Then we decided to take a hotel shuttle to downtown Bangkok, since we still hadn't seen the "downtown" area. All in search of the photo cards! Once in downtown, we were on a quest, through the Night Market (that was an experience in itself, full of vendor stalls and everyone trying to sell us stuff we didn't want!), through the restaurants and night life. We finally found 7-11; they had some blank cds where so could download our photos.

Then we walked around and finally sat to relax and have a beer (okay, probably 2!) at the Happy House Beer Garden. Jim was a happy camper! We sat and people watched, and, oh, the people we watched! Much like Las Vegas, we saw some interesting and crazy people coming and going. Seems like anything goes there. And too many people asking us to buy this, buy that, come to this bar, go to that bar. After a couple of hours, we were ready (okay, "I" was ready!) to get some food and go back to our hotel. It would be our last night in Bangkok, until our return to LA, so it was good to see downtown.

Well I was hungry, but wanted something familiar. Lucky for me there was a Pizza Hut nearby; not Taco Bell, but it was just what I needed. Something from home.

Back on the hotel shuttle, and to the hotel around midnight. That was a late night for me, but a fun, full, & adventurous Valentine's Day! One that will not be forgotten for sure!

Next posting will be our Chiang Mai photos...see you soon!

Photos from Thailand: Day 1

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 18:54:46 -0600

Not too much time to blog, so I'll blog with photos for now...we're having so many adventures, it's hard to believe what you can experience in one day!

Flat Stanley & Jim in front of Grand Palace entrance, Bangkok:

Melinda on River Boat near Grand Palace, Bangkok:

The river boat stopped off at a traditional Thai house, where we saw some Thai dancing girls:

Realtor in Thailand with Husband & Flat Stanley

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 22:50:16 -0600

For those of you not familiar with Flat Stanley (I had never heard of him until a couple of weeks ago!), we were introduced to him in the mail by my 7-year old niece, Ani. Her school project is to send Flat Stanley on as many places as possible, and then we fold him up and send him back to her school for her show and tell, to share where he has been.

So my husband and I decided to take him to Thailand, although Ani's intent was for her Uncle Jim who works in aerospace/satellites to "send him to the moon."

So far, Flat Stanely has really enjoyed himself. He endured 24 hours of travel fairly well, and didn't get too cranky.

We arrived Bangkok yesterday around 3:30p.m., and decided not to take a nap because we didn't want to get thrown off too much by the time change. So we managed to stay awake, and had a few drinks (Mai Thai's for me!) in the lounge. Flat Stanley is underage, so he just had water. Our riverside hotel is nice at the Montien, and the views are very nice. The service here is outstanding, as if everyone here is looking out for your well-being.

We are taking Flat Stanley to the Grand Palace today. We have to wear long pants and long sleeves when we go there, so I've got to buy a new shirt for him so we are allowed in.

More later...stay tuned!

Does "I've Lived in an Area All My Life" = The Best Real Estate Agent to Help You?

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 13:29:05 -0600

I don't know why, this topic gets under my skin. (I know, you're still waiting for the 2nd part of Mysteries of Marketing...don't worry, it's coming!!)

When you are selecting an agent to help with one of the biggest financial decisions to sell, buy, or invest in real estate, what is your criteria?

I sure hear a lot of agents who say that "I've lived in this area all my life," which is great. But is that a good reason for a client to list or purchase through them? Maybe that's one reason, but there are other factors to consider.

For instance, I know there are about a million dentists in the South Bay. If they have been in dentistry all of their adult working life, are they still practicing the same old way as 20 years ago? Not on my teeth! If someone is going to be drilling in my teeth, I'd like to know that they take time to read the latest dentistry trends, take continuing education to keep up on the latest tools and technology for providing a more efficient, comfortable experience for his or her customers.

I'd also like to know that they enjoy learning and staying on the cutting edge to be the first to implement new ways to work with the public. I like my dentist, Dr. Ray Padilla, because he does that. And he teaches courses to other dentists at UCLA, so he also gives back what he knows to help further the new ideas and new ways. Not only do they take good care of my teeth at Dr. Padilla's office, they also served me a snack tray of fruit and a nutrition bar before the did the work because I mentioned I was hungry! My husband who recently visited Dr. Padilla was also impressed that each staff member shook his hand upon entry. It's the little things that make me want to refer Dr. Padilla whenever someone I know needs a dentist!

Back to real estate, what does the agent you are currently working with (or thinking about working with) offer you as far as technology? Are they afraid of it, and ignoring it hoping it will go away? Do they complain that they "have" to attend this new training or seminar? Well, they just might learn something new that would help make their business better to help their clients better. Is that a bad thing?

We get so caught up in doing the basics of our business, that we forget to stand back and look at the big picture and consider a few questions: why am I doing what I do? can I do it better? is there a way to do it more efficiently? what do industry experts do that works? are there things I do that aren't effective and I should drop them from my repertoire?

For me as a real estate agent, my job is to make the process of selling or buying a home as efficient and stress-free as possible. I am reading the latest real estate tech magazines, such as Realtor Magazine, RIS Media, etc. I use eSignatures (which saves time and stress for buyers & sellers), online contracts, and as much online as I can get my hands on (I have been ordering my groceries online for about 5 years now!). Okay, so not all of my clients are that keen on all of this online stuff. But once I show them how to do it, they love it! Can you imagine eSignatures where you don't have to print anything or fax it back? You can just do it online with an internet connection. It's safe, legal, and simple to use.

I hope this helps, and of course if you have any questions, new ideas, or things that help you run an efficient office, I'd love to hear from you!I'm always looking for new ways to improve my client experience when they sell or buy real estate through me.

Have a blessed day!

The Real Deal on Commissions

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 20:32:25 -0600

I know, I know. I still owe you Mysteries of Marketing Part II. I got very busy during the holidays with clients and sales; mostly with buyers getting year-end specials from motivated sellers. So I'll get back to you on the Marketing topic later.

But first, I'd like to address some common questions regarding commissions which have recently come up from first-time sellers.

(BTW: I don't know who made up the rule that sellers pay commissions, but that's the way it is! "Usually" anyway. Once in a while, you get a buyer who wants to make an offer on something where the seller is selling For Sale By Owner, in which case the seller might represent themselves and pay the Buyer's Agent commission OR the buyer agrees to pay for Buyer's Agent representation.)

I'm telling you how it is, coming from a former teacher (I taught middle school ESL for 6 years prior to getting my real estate license). Believe me, teachers make more than some real estate agents, but the general public seems to think that all agents are 1) already rich and making too much money, & 2) greedy for daring to want to make more money.

I'll address the main questions: Why are commissions so much? Why do some agents charge 5% and others up to 7%? What's the difference?

The difference is in what YOU want to get out of it when selling your home.

Do you want an agent who puts a sign, lockbox, flyers, list you on the MLS, hold a couple of Open Houses?

Or...

Do you want an agent to do all of that and more? For example, list and market your home on their own personal websites, office website, create a slideshow/virtual tour, floor plans drawn by a professional company, offer staging advice and provide resources, market within their own sphere, campaign for agents at their office to show it to their buyers, has an assistant or transaction coordinator to handle details, etc. and once offers come in and an offer is accepted (here's an important part!): make sure the buyer(s) are well-qualified PRIOR to accepting an offer, making sure that the lender, appraiser, title, escrow, inspectors, etc. are all staying on schedule. You'd also want an agent who will take your calls and answer questions even after the transaction has closed.

Agents should be able to articulate why they charge 6% vs. a 5% or 5.5% fee. If they can articulate the difference, you should be able to see for yourself and know which model you prefer. Sometimes you want Starbucks coffee, other times McDonald's will do.

The difference also comes in follow up and pro-activity. There are so many things that can potentially go wrong; you'll want to know the agent's plan to avoid problems up front. Of course, there are things that are unforeseen, but a good listing agent will be organized and not digging around for your file or papers associated with it! They should show you checklists, systems, etc. as well as the Marketing Plan to get your home sold. In addition to each agent's individual efforts, larger firms usually have extensive marketing capabilities that extend beyond the local market.

For example, at my brokerage requires that agent post a minimum of 6 photos on the MLS (from the buyer's standpoint, it's frustrating when there are limited or no photos and they may completely disregard those listings with no photos). We also have a program called "LeadRouter" where listing agents will get a call from the system within 30-60 seconds with a buyer's contact information once they click "Send me more information" from our listings they find on our www.californiamoves.com, http://www.realtor.org, and other internet sites. If the listing agent can't or doesn't respond to the initial LeadRouter system notification within 15 minutes, the system will call the next agent in the queue until a live agent responds to the system and gets in touch with that buyer.

Not to mention our brokerage has exclusive partnerships with Google, Yahoo!, http://www.trulia.com/, http://www.realtor.com/, etc. and is one of the leading companies with a presence on these sites to get more world-wide as well as local exposure for our listings, even beyond our local MLS. We have stats pages of how many hits our websites get each month, which is very useful for sellers to know!

The commission amount is a lot, so let me explain where it goes.

First of all, I believe most people have the impression that all of the money goes directly to the listing agent's pocket (at least I had this notion when I was a teacher). Nope!

Using 6% as an example, that is usually split in half 3% to the listing brokerage, and 3% to the buyer's agent (selling agent) brokerage. A portion of that commission goes to the brokerage (anywhere from 20% to 50%, depending on the structure of the firm and the individual agent's production level. Some offices pay the full amount to their agents, but then the agents pay a "desk fee" and other fees each monthly). On top of these splits and fees, each agent pays taxes on their commission checks (roughly 33%). You can see the net amount dwindling down.

Most agents are self-employed, meaning we don't have a salary or "draw" from the office to help make ends meet. So we had better be covering our costs and creating profits for our businesses! Our budgets must make sense and make sure we are covering our costs to help us survive in this business. All of our personal marketing services (see Marketing 101!), assistants, professional coaching, paperclips, envelopes, advertising, etc. are all paid by us. We are on our own as far as all/most of the extras (again, depending on the brokerage), and each agent must set their business and home budget and charge fees according to the services he/she provides.

Two good things about being the seller 1) you don't pay anything until the job is done! 2) when you bought your house, you didn't pay commissions at all.

The bottom line for sellers: commissions are negotiable. Each agent determines their own budget and fees. If they can't lower their fee to meet their budget, then it's up to you to decide if you want to hire them at that price or find a less expensive model. Sometimes you want the basic car, and sometimes you want the options and upgrades at a higher price. You just have to know what you are paying for.

Oh, & if you live in the South Bay and would like a complimentary copy of my Marketing Plan and Listing Checklist, please e-mail me with your mailing address. Please allow 3-4 business days to ship.

Thanks for reading, & have a blessed day!

"The Mysteries of Real Estate Marketing 101"

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Sat, 10 Nov 2007 09:21:41 -0600

I am never quite sure what I will write in my blog until I start writing. So my last blog entry called "Ready or Not, We're On to October" was about getting comfortable in the current month's festivities, but time has a way of pulling you out of comfort mode. From that I had to explain what I meant by that, which led to my real estate marketing efforts and how there is much to do in that.

I left off my other blog post saying I would post again with all of my marketing efforts that helps generate new referrals coming in. There are many facets of what I do, so I will try to blog as much as possible when I can.

Monthly Marketing:

Items of Value - full color flyers on a different motivational, inspirational, or themed topic. October was about car maintenance, November is all about "Giving Thanks".

eNewsletter - current topics, real estate news, a South Bay Housing Study prepared by a local appraiser, and any specials I happen to be running through my business (for example, now through the end of the 2007, any escrows closing with me receive special packing/unpacking and organizing services--contact me for more details if you're interested!). Oh yeah; I also include fun topics (e.g., see my Haunted House for Sale slideshow from October's eNewsletter) 'cause you've gotta have some fun too! This eNewsletter also reflects the Item of Value for the month with a related link to a helpful website, and a Sneak Peak at next month's Item of Value in the mail.

Quarterly Marketing:

Pop by's - where I pop by my top 30-50 supporters (meaning referrals have been sent in the past 12 months) to say hello and bring a little something which is a small token of appreciation for their support and referrals to my business and includes a marketing slogan. I did my Halloween Cupcakes (see blog post Cupcakes & Firestorms) with candy wrapped in cellophane topped off with a tag that said "It's a Real TREAT Working with your Seller & Buyer Referrals".

Magazine - this is a personalized high-quality magazine for my top 50 supporters of my business. Articles range from interesting places to visit, design & decor, and recipes.

I know there is more to write on my marketing efforts. I will have to stop now and get ready for a 6-mile run. But I'll finish up this topic later...so stay tuned!

(This is an updated version of a past entry...)

Ready or Not, We're on to November!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 07:36:51 -0600

Well, THAT happened! [Cupcakes & Firestorms]

Now, on to Thanksgiving. I don't know if it's just me, but I always feel comfortable in each month with whatever the holiday or festivities might be for that month. October, for example. I didn't quite feel ready to take down our ghosts and goblin decor from our house, but was forced into Thanksgiving mode. Who would keep a ghost face on the window during November? You are out if you do that. :) SO, it's no more anticipation of Halloween, it's in the past, behind us, look to the future of Thanksgiving woman! Okay, so I'm snapped out of October.

Then I look at the dates on the calendar to see where I'm at with my marketing, and how much time I have to relax about it. NO TIME that's how much! I am amazed at how quickly the time passes in between marketing efforts. There is no time to get comfortable with marketing because when you stop doing it, you stop generating new referrals coming in! That is bad for business.

So, I take a deep breath to get going on November's marketing. But first, I must explain how the whole gammet works, as it's mysterious to people not in the business how it works. At least it was a mystery for me before I got into real estate...I had no idea what it was like behind the scenes!

As a former teacher (6 years, middle school and loved it!), I am going to educate you on exactly how marketing works for agents. I will call it "The Mysteries of Real Estate Marketing 101" because every good story should have a title. :)

First of all, when you hear a brokerage firm name such as Coldwell Banker, ReMax, Keller Williams, Prudential, etc. the firm is like the school. You go to the office and use their space to do your job. The manager of the office is like the principal of the school. Agents report problems to the manager, or when in trouble that's where they go. But the manager is not your boss, since all agents are independent contractors meaning: there is no steady paycheck coming in.

Time spent in the office does not mean there is money! Real estate is not a "job", it is a business. Each and every agent is their own boss, each and every agent gets out of it what they put into it. Which could be a lot, or a little!

The office does not supply everything for agents to be successful. Of course each office is different so I only speak from my own experience with 3 different firms in the past 6 years. (BTW: I have been with Coldwell Banker for the last 4.5 years and not planning to go anywhere else that would take me another blog time to explain.)

As independent contractors, we agents are responsible for our own: motivation (this I list FIRST as if you don't have this, you will not survive in the business and as much as I'm sure every brokerage firm would love to provide this for agents, it's not sold in stores and can't be handed out!), postage, marketing, events/seminars, memberships (e.g., Chamber), coaching, stationary, mailings, etc.

Some offices provide "work stations" with staplers, paper clips, computers, etc. I prefer to have my own belongings and "work station" so that I am sure not to run out of inventory. Or maybe I am a control freak and just like my own stuff.

Knowing that agents are up to their own efforts on marketing and generating new business, it's interesting to have a look at how each agent's efforts vary. I can only speak for myself, and I do have a very solid marketing system. This system is the "engine room" of how I stay in contact with my clients and friends (not necessarily in the market to buy or sell, but willing to refer business to me when they come across someone in need of an excellent agent who will go the extra mile).

Stay tuned for the ending of Mysteries of Real Estate Marketing 101...for now, I have to go meet my Team in Training group at the pier for a 4-mile run.

Cupcakes & Firestorms Update

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 08:47:10 -0500

It was a weird, wild week last week to be sure. Fortunately, my in-laws were all able to go back to their homes safe and sound. I hope that everyone who was not so fortunate will be able to rebuild and back to living life in a short time.

And 200 cupcakes later! Many cupcakes were delivered to people in my database (and to some people not on my database, like the volunteers at our local Beach Cities Health District who were working to take the donated goods to help fire victims. I gave them cupcakes because, well, volunteers in my book deserve a special treat!).

I made fresh cupcakes every 2 days, packaged them with cellophane wrap, black and orange curling ribbon, stickers, my business card, and a tag that says "It's a real TREAT working with your Seller and Buyer Referrals, and then delivered them homes and offices. I've got 8 more trays to deliver today and tomorrow, for a total of 30 special deliveries.

And don't forget, when you come across someone in the South Bay who needs to sell or buy real estate, let me know. I'll be happy to help them achieve their real estate goals, and provide excellent customer service all year-round (above and beyond real estate as posted in my Mission Statement)!

Cupcakes & Firestorms

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 11:43:09 -0500

First of all, I must extend my heartfelt sadness to those affected by the fires. On Sunday, October 21, my sister-in-law and her 2 children were evacuated from Escondido and went to stay with my mother and father-in-law in Valley Center. Yesterday, they were all evacuated from there, and have found a hotel about an hour away. They do not know at this point if either of their homes are still there. Let's pray this will be over soon, with as many homes as possible still standing.

On the business front, today I am making Halloween cupcakes for my database. Vanilla cupcakes, some with orange food coloring for extra fun! I am decorating the cupcakes with orange and chocolate frosting topped with Halloween trinkets, like spider rings, bats, ghosts, etc. I will add some orange and black sprinkles, too!

What the heck do cupcakes have to do with real estate? Nothing and EVERYTHING!

Anyone with a real estate license can sell you a house. I work hard to separate myself from the marketplace and to make people feel special. I don't take for granted that there are a million agents out there, and I highly value people who believe in my services and refer me business.

I am going to share with you how I've structured my business and how it works, based on the premise of Michael Gerber's E-Myth Revisited, and my ever-wonderful business coaching company www.BuffiniandCompany.com:

Since I rely on referrals from people I know to feed my real estate business, I work my Client Appreciation & Referrals Program, which is the main crux of my marketing. I have 100+ people in my database (also known as my "list of relationships") that I market to. It's not about quantity of people on my list, it's about the quality of people that I want to serve.

How do I "serve" my database? I send monthly Items of Value which are mailings on topics of interest, a monthly e-newsletter that relates to the mailing, personal notes, parties, lunches, etc. In an effort to see people face to face, I usually do something every few months to get out and visit with a "pop-by"...a small treat and personal visit to say hello. I want to make sure people know I am interested and available for any referrals of friends, family, co-workers, or neighbors they may know in need of real estate services.

Beyond the satisfaction I receive from helping referred clients sell and buy homes, I enjoy delivering fun things and visiting people. As a former middle school teacher, it is my way of being creative and thinking of new ways to make people smile. Little did I know as a teacher that the skills I used to engage my students would transfer into real estate marketing!

Out of 100 people, how do I select those 30 to 50 people who get special treatment? Similar to rewards and points programs the airlines use, I spend extra time and energy on those who have referred their friends or family to me (or those who would refer me if they had the opportunity). I track and monitor these people who trust in me...those who know my character and know that I will follow through with the smallest of details. My A People are on cupcake status. They have sent me referrals or repeat referrals in the past. I spend time thinking of ways to give back to them. I want to take good care of them and let them know I appreciate their confidence in my abilities as a real estate professional.

"You mean to tell me that you spend all of this time on thinking about people and making cupcakes?!"

You bet.

My business systems are set up to handle the details of my day-to-day operations so that the real estate details are taken care of. In addition to taking care of my current clients, my focus is always on generating new business and taking care of people who refer me business.

For now, I'm off to the kitchen to frost cupcakes. This afternoon and tomorrow I'll be out on my broom delivering some fun to some really great people, in addition to following up with current clients!

If you live in the LA/South Bay and would like to be added to my Client Appreciation & Referrals Program or to be upgraded to cupcake status, contact me for more details.

And by the way, I'm never too busy for any of your seller or buyer referrals!

Go Buyers! The Fed Cut Rates by 1/2%...Time to Get Preapproved!

Melinda Flynn, DRE# 01320480 (Coldwell Banker) — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 11:21:36 -0500

Are you a buyer who is on the fence about purchasing a home? Are you waiting for home prices to drop? Here is a must-read article of the Brief History of Real Estate to help put things in perspective.

Sure, prices go up and down, but over time real estate has dramatically increased over the past 30 years! If you plan to buy and then sell within a year and hope to increase the equity quickly, it's probably not a good time for you to buy.

But if you plan to buy and hold a while, read this article and then call me for some great referrals to trusted lenders in the South Bay! Your preapproval letter is the first step to owning your next home. Then call me at 310-728-5795 for an appointment to go see some properties in your price range. You could be in your new home at a great interest rate within the next 30-60 days!