In the never ending line of chain blogs, I've been "tagged" by fellow CRS Chapter member and Realtor Extraordinaire, Rich Mielke to write about why I'm in this wacky business.  Rich got "tagged" from fellow Rainer/Realtor Sandy Shores from Melbourne, FL (can Sandy Shores be a real name for a Realtor in Florida??  Evidently so.), who was "tagged" by Fred Chamberlin, a mortgage guy, in the Eugene, OR area.

It never ceases to amaze me at the widespread connections we tend to make on Active Rain.  It just shows the awesome power of networking, writing, and experience...from a variety of different fields. It is this diversity of experience, both in terms of years and in terms of expertise or "niche", that keeps me engaged in the real estate profession and on Active Rain. Where else can you find fellow professionals so willing to share knowledge about everything from technology to marketing to the requisite "war stories" of houses and clients and everything in between.

When people ask about what I did before real estate, it's gotten to the point where it almost doesn't matter.  I was in the tech field (think Intel, Apple, software companies) from the early '90s until I got my license in 1999.  I wasn't a techie.  I was a marketing guy but I had to know nough about it to be able to interact with the engineers and end users who would buy the stuff. All that stuff doesn't mean much today. Technology has advanced so far, so rapidly (and continues to do so) that anything I knew in 1995 is totally worthless today.

I got a little tired of it and thought I'd stick my toe in the real estate waters.  I started as an unlicensed assistant to the Realtor who sold me my first condo. I thought is might be fun.  I found out real estate was fun but the Realtor I was assisting was, er, not as much fun.  I will say, though, that she taught me the things that the pre-licensing classes never touch - how to fill out contracts, the flow of a transaction from offer to settlement, how to keep in touch with clients.

I eventually got m license and left "assistantship" to go out on my own.  My first stop was with a Coldwell Banker franchise in Bowie, MD.  I had a great time, worked with a great manager and learned a lot.  I eventually got a call from a Broker/Owner of a RE/MAX franchise in College Park, MD and decided that the RE/MAX system was definitely the way to go. So I transferred my license and lived happily ever after for the next 8 years until I decided that it was time to move my license, once again to another RE/MAX franchise in Fulton, MD (aka Maple Lawn) - this time a larger, multi-office franchise that has a few more bells and whistles and a very nice physical location.

Along the way, I've gotten involved in my local Realtor Associations and organizations. As Rich Mielke points out, I'm the Immediate Past President of the MD/DC Chapter of the Council of Residential Specialists (which is where we met).  I'm currently the Treasurer of the Prince George's Association of Realtors, sit on their Grievance Committee and Maclin Scholarship Fund Task Force, I sit on a couple of Maryland Association of Realtors committees as well including Leadership Academy and Communications (read: magazine and website for the Association).

So, yeah, it's been a fun ride. I am never bored. I get to meet lots of interesting people. Some actually become friends. I get to see lots of different houses in all kinds of conditions from HGTV to unfit for human habitation.  I've met some really neat people in the profession.

If there was ever a time when I would even entertain the thought of bailing out to try something new, this would be the time. A lot of people who had been in real estate have now left the profession. 

Real Estate is a good life and a good livelihood, though.  So I think I'll stick around.

I'll tag someone I met on Active Rain. I'll be getting to meet Teri Deane of RE/MAX 100 in Columbia, MD in person for the first time in a couple of weeks.  Exciting stuff.