Mark- That is great, the opportunity often lies in abandoned markets or underserved markets. We were just introduced into selling hotels part of real estate and we are doing our due diligence now to see if it is going to worth the risk and preparation to put the deals together.

Kevin- You are welcome. I hope it inspires people to jump at opportunity.

Mara- You said that very well. The journey takes on an adventure of its own. Yes, it certainly is all about the journey.

Tom- I did not get it. What is flyog?

Debe- Thank you Debe! BTW- that link I was getting for you was not what I had hoped it was. We will talk more. Having a positive attitude and an abundance mentality is important in recognizing those open doors.

Mana- I know it is a long post. I tried to shorten it as much as I could without losing the point. Thank you for reading it through and that is quite a compliment to a writer to know that I could captivate you and have you read the whole post. That one compliment will keep me high for the whole next week:)

Always be aware of what the market is doing so you are not caught without an opportunity to make the income you desire to make.

Frank- Strike while the iron is hot! Now is a great time to increase your investment portfolio.

Adam- Thank you for featuring this post in your active rain addicts group. I enjoyed our conversation the other day which actually spurred on the writing of this post. I tell this story to many agents who are struggling and felt that it may be time to write it all down, thus the lengthy post. Yes, I know, members don't like to read long lengthy posts. I hope they will read this post. I watched a lot of agents and mortgage brokers in denial about the busting bubble here  and now they are no longer in business. As markets shift so do the opportunities as well as the lack thereof.

Missy- Well, actually they do call us up:) The problem is that most agents are taught the old school with blingers on vision. They don't see all the abundance and opportunity around them. Sometimes a shift into a dfferent segment of real estate is staring them in the face yet they don't see it because they are blinded by a certain way of doing things.

For example, a residential single family home salesperson may never see that they are the perfect match to sell recreational land lots up in the mountains of their area. A condo on the beach agent may not see that she needs to shift to the luxury single family home market on the beach.

We were just introduced to the players in selling and buying hotels in the multi multi million dollar ranges of which that may now be another door being opened for us. If we don't do our due diligence and measure we may miss out on a fantastic opportunity. ( That may must be my ticket to move to Hawaii@:))

Judy- Read all my posts on short sales under the tag here of short sale series. You can also look under short sales because those are all the stories with the lenders too. That will give you a lot to read and learn. My book won't be finished until the end of August. It will be better than going to a 2 day seminar on short sales.

Bryant- You have an awesome success story. Only in America! It is so great that opportunity is there for every person, you just have to open your eyes to see it. And I have already read in your posts how as the market started to shift you began to be open to new ways of getting business, just as you began to service short sales, which has the side benefit of being very rewarding on the emotional levels.

Find a need and fill it.

When agents miss the boat it is because they have blinders on and sad to say, are being led by brokers who have no clue on how to do anything different than they are already doing.

If you keep doing the same thing over and over again but expect a different result, Well, Einstein said that was the definition of insanity!

Lizette- Whether you are single, no partner, solo, or not; you have the same opportunities. It is good that you can see that the expired market is a great move, this is one of the doors we talk about. But even more than that, perhaps you need to begin to delegate some of your non income producing tasks so that you can create the energy and foresight to see opportunities that may be lurking right there in front of you.

Yvette- Being one step ahead is a gift that Nestor has. And you are so right, it is crucial to be able to keep the income coming in when markets shift. If one well dries up you need to know before it happens, not after the fact.

Kim- thank you! And thank you for reading a long post:)

Kathy- Thank you for reading a long post :) We have done well and project to some even better tines ahead. I could not do it without Nestor because he is not afraid of meeting with head hunchos of companies,etc, which before I met him, I would be intimidated by. I have learned they put their pants on one leg at a time too.

Team Newington- We have missed a few along the way too. When I was first licensed in California over 25 years ago- I had the chance to get to work with Wine companies who bought a lot of land back then, like Gallo. (spelling?) My X had a way of burning bridges and wanting too much credit. We listed a town for sale that they bought but he was so into himself, that would be the end of a great niche market. It is a small world and word gets around, especially in those circles.

Lisa and Robert, you are right, you must be able to bend, go with the flow and mind the changing currents in the marketplace.

AJ- I will tell you this. One of the reasons I am writing this book to help you master short sales is because I think agents waste money on the seminars. Most of the seminars are stupid and just grab your money. Paying from $300 to $2000 for seminars when you can get more information in an ebook, just does not make sense to me. You don't need to be certified to do short sales and not having some designation has not in the least effected our ability to list short sales and close them.

Li- Thank you very much for your nice, warm compliment. Being aware, studying signals, never get too comfortable in your business plan and never be stuck thinking that is all there is.

Barb- Those people live in fear and that is what holds them where they are. You are either moving forward or moving backwards, never standing still. You are always in motion, make sure it is motion that is beneficial to your income and your spirit.

Paul- Yes, you are right, not getting stuck is the key. Being open to change is another. Most of all paying attention to the market is crucial. People tend to get in a grind with tunnel vision. Though laser focus is essential when on task, seeing all angles in markets and being willing to move with opportunity is essential for income.

Gary- Nestor is great at seeing and believing the opportunities and even creating them. While now I can also see opportunities and not be in fear of following them, it was not always so. When you read how I was stuck in domestic violence for 20 years, those years formed who I am today in that leaving that marriage and surviving it created in me an attitude of unlimited possibilities. The fear vanished as I became a free person.

Bill- Make sure that as you assess you do not keep just one model in your mind. There are many ways in which to use your license. Most agents get stuck in one way, residential sales of homes one by one. Niching is essential as the globe becomes smaller.

Lenn- You could write a book about this. You are also a great example of moving with the markets and seizing the opportunities. You think outside the box.

Patricia- And WOW, what a life it has been! I will share more of our escapades:) Now we are looking at another real estate venture to capitalize on a hotel selling opportunity, still dueing our due diligence. Will let you know how that goes!

Ruthmarie: and this is just the time me and Nestor have been together. I was an agent since 1983, or 82? Oh, well, it was a long time ago. My x burned many bridges and therefore I was not able to rise to the top in any area, plus evertime people started to know he was abusing us, he would pick up and move to another place. But I did have some great experiences in my real estate business there too.

You may have a great way to work in these areas you are talking about but you will need to set yourself apart by creating some type of niche within that market and then really focusing on a business plan that will work in that area.

We had a lot of farm land, sugar cane fields and orange groves that was being turned into developments. Your area is probably more populated and developed.

The redevelopment project was very exciting and the gangs were finally starting to leave that town, but when the eminent domain ruling was crushed, we no longer could buy the properties that were needed for this developmental project and now that area is even more corrupt and blighted. This area is about 45 minutes away from our town so it is like a different world.

So think of a way you can service these turn around areas. You can get a hold of the HUD In that area and see if they are planning to buy any of the foreclosed properties there. Perhaps you can create a first itme home buying corporation that helps educate the buyers and become the liason between the HUD and the consumer. Just a thought, don't know if it will work.

We always feel safe in the luxury home markets. These homes tend to be more immune from economic turn downs, the people are not effected by the stupid new loan guidelines that are choking new homebuyers and we make more on one sale than you can on many small sales. So our output of energy is less and our return is higher. I always measure everything, what is the highest and best use of my time? Good luck Ruthmarie.

Ann- Thank you Ann! You said it very well. Flexibility is huge in our business. Most people in life and in business are not flexible, they give up too quick and then wonder why opportunity passed them by.

Gary- That can be a plan, however, I was thinking more in the lines of thinking outside the box. Much of it depends on what your income goals are too. During the land assemblage days and the time we spent doing the revitalization project, we are talking six figures per month for many months, not per year. You get spoiled fast that way.

Once you have a taste of that you will always be looking for the next door to meet that level of income success. We are now looking at the hotel sales world wide that some contacts have asked us to represent them on. They have 300M to spend. We are doing our due diligence now.

I think many agents do not realize their full income potential.

Cindy- This is the case with many agents. People in general do not have clear vision. Since humans in general carry the trait of resistance to change, it takes effort to learn to look for opportunities. The easiest and most overlooked ways for agents to improve in their markets is to:

1. work the expired listings

2. become a listing agent

3. expand networks to include other real estate related services such as the second home market

4. Niche, niche, niche

5. think outside the box

6. move into a higher income listing market

Christine- Thank you. Don't just look forward but rather think outside the box. Sometimes what may not make sense at the moment is precisely the opportunity to expand your business. Looking forward helps you to see the danger signals but the detour often does not show up until you are in full speed ahead and can not stop. Looking at your business from all angles and measuring it against the market happenings, you will be able to see the open doors.