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Still Alive & Well - A Heartfelt Thank You to My AR Friends

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Mortgage and Lending with Los Angeles & Ventura Counties in CA

 


Yes folks, I’m still alive and well and working as hard as ever out here on the left coast and am sending a very heartfelt thank you to all my friends who have reached out to me to check in on me the last couple of months.  Words cannot express how much it has meant to me to talk to and reconnect with my AR buddies. 

Just goes to show that my time here on AR was more than just a business opportunity.  It has also been an opportunity to develop relationships with a community of wonderful & caring people.  :)

 

So where have I been?  Working my @ss off!!!  As many of you may know, I am in the process of transitioning from mortgage loans to real estate and the process has been a lot more time consuming, demanding and challenge than I had first anticipated.  While I knew it was going to be a really tough transition, there are those days that I wish it were that easy.

 

It’s been stressful but most of the time, in a good way though – an exciting sort of stress.  I’m doing so much more than I ever did as an MLO and that’s the exciting part.  I have more options (and income sources) available to me now as a Realtor than I ever did as an MLO. 

Of course, I’m building a real estate business so I am working with a handful of buyer clients as well as some rental clients.  As we all know, that in itself is a full-time job (it’s just me; no gang of assistants or “team members”).

 


However, I’m also keeping busy learning other aspects of the biz.  I’ve hooked up with a local Realtor who has been teaching me how to do BPO’s.  Yeah, I know, it’s grunt work but at this point in my real estate career, I don’t mind doing it because I think of it as just paying my dues besides, it’s keeping me busy.




The best part though is that even though I haven’t blogged since early February, I am still getting leads from my blog every single week!  AR ROCKS!!!  Gotta love that mad AR google juice!!!

Anyway, while I may not be able to blog as much as I used to, I am going to really try and blog more often.  I have so much to blog about to.  Oh and Andi, I'm still going to get around to that other thank you too!  Stay tuned. 

Have a great day everyone!  Miss you all!



Photos courtesy of flickr:  ccurtiz   peteofbrooklyn   antigone78

 

Posted by

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Donne Knudsen

Realtor® - CalState Realty Services

DRE#: 01364050 / NMLS#: 249822 

 

805.2069123

 

E-mail   My Blog  

Serving low-medium income individuals and families as well as first time buyers with both their real estate as well as their mortgage needs including down payment assistance

Los Angeles County  --  Ventura County

© 2010 - All Rights Reserved

Show All Comments Sort:
Christine Smith
Buyers Brokers Only LLC - www.BuyersBrokersOnly.com - Canton, MA
Exclusive Buyer Agent & Attorney, Canton, MA

I have been wondering where you have been!!  Then I saw the smiley face comment on Bob Stewart's blog post & I knew you were back.  Don't be a stranger!

Apr 30, 2012 04:08 AM
Sharon Parisi
United Real Estate Dallas - Dallas, TX
Dallas Homes

Donne, although we love to see your smiling face, it is much better to be out selling real estate!  Welcome back!

Apr 30, 2012 05:09 AM
Donne Knudsen
Los Angeles & Ventura Counties in CA - Simi Valley, CA
CalState Realty Services

Marie - Thx for the encouragement!  I am going to try and schedule in some blogging time into my work week.  I can't promise anything but I am going to try.  I have so much to blog about too and I can't wait until I finally get around to blogging about my transition and the stuff I've been experiencing too.  Exciting stuff!!!

Evelyn - Yes!!!  The change has been wonderful!  I don't know about easier but maybe.  I definitely feel that my mortgage experience makes me a better Realtor.  After spending years reading about so many of the things that so many Realtors do to sabotage their business and careers, I am really trying to avoid some of the huge pitfalls.

Fernando - LOL  Yes, I know and I do too.  In the cases where I am working with a buyer and they're going FHA, I'm referring it out to local MLO's that I've come to know over the years.

Valerie - LOL  I have to say that I am actually sleeping better these days though, probably has something to do with the fact that many days I fall into bed absolutely exhausted.  :)

Frank & Karen - Thx for the kind words and wishes; I really appreciate it.  It's been crazy but a good crazy though.  :)

Thx for stopping by folks; I really appreciate it.  Have a good day everyone and a fantastic week too!  :) 

Apr 30, 2012 05:28 AM
Bryan Robertson
Los Altos, CA

Glad to hear it's just a matter of refocusing business and not something else.  Congrats on the shift.  You're doing it at a great time as the market turns around.  I hope you get a deal in contract soon.  Welcome back!

Apr 30, 2012 06:53 AM
Lenn Harley
Lenn Harley, Homefinders.com, MD & VA Homes and Real Estate - Leesburg, VA
Real Estate Broker - Virginia & Maryland

How exciting.  A real adventure. 

My best wishes for your pending success. 

One thing for sure.  Your clients will be well served by an agent with mortgage experience.

Apr 30, 2012 09:48 AM
Donne Knudsen
Los Angeles & Ventura Counties in CA - Simi Valley, CA
CalState Realty Services

Linda - Thx for the well wishes; I appreciate it.  I will try and get in some more blogging on a regular basis.  Maybe not as much as I was but more than I have been lately.

Joni - I definitely feel that my mortgage experience makes me a better Realtor.  It's a lot of work but I'm loving it.  :)

Dave - Agree and I think it makes me a well rounded Realtor.

Don - Thx for the good wishes; I appreciate it.  I am working so much harder now than I ever have but I love it.

Sandy - First and foremost, thank you for reaching out to me; I really appreciate it.  Some days though, it's all I can do to drag my butt home, eat dinner and crash.  I'm completely exhausted but it's a good exhaustion, if that makes sense.  LOL

Thx for stopping by everyone; I really appreciate it.  Have a good night all and a wonderful week too!  :)

Apr 30, 2012 10:04 AM
Christine Donovan
Donovan Blatt Realty - Costa Mesa, CA
Broker/Attorney 714-319-9751 DRE01267479 - Costa M

Donne - It sounds like you've definitely started off on a new adventure.  Best of luck as you continue forward.

Apr 30, 2012 10:28 AM
Donne Knudsen
Los Angeles & Ventura Counties in CA - Simi Valley, CA
CalState Realty Services

Maria - Yeah, I am hoping that I do eventually get a handle on my new job duties and responsibilities soon.  It would be really nice to be able to have some time to start blogging again on a semi-regular basis.

Tammy - Yeah, busy is good - no complaints!  It's important though to continue to do all those things that brought in the business to begin with.  I really do need to start blogging again on a more regular basis.

Adrian - Thx for the kind words; I really appreciate it.  My mortgage experience is an absolute godsend to my real estate biz.  I would never have had the courage or the interest in doing this if it weren't for my nearly 10yr mortgage career/

Paul - Thx; that means a lot to me.

Christine - I'm going to try and stop by more often.  No promises but I'm going to try.  :)

Thx for stopping by everyone; I really appreciate it.  Have a good night everyone and a fabulous week too!  :)

Apr 30, 2012 02:35 PM
Donne Knudsen
Los Angeles & Ventura Counties in CA - Simi Valley, CA
CalState Realty Services

Sharon - Yes, I had some hard decisions to make during this transition.  As much as love blogging here in the rain, this transition has required all of my time, energy and attention.  Even the times that I wanted to login and blog, the truth is that I was just literally brain dead and I needed to spend my time taking care of myself.

Bryan - Ths for the well wishes; I really appreciate it.  I am so happy with my decision and just wish I had done it sooner. 

Lenn - Thank you so much for the kind words and well wishes; I really appreciate it.  It's been crazy and exciting but I'm loving it.  I do believe that my mortgage experience has made the experience so much more rewarding and incredible for me and my clients.

Christine - It has been a great journey so far and I am so excited about all the things that I am doing now.  I have so many opportunities available to me now than I ever did as an MLO.  I'm loving this.  :)

Thx for stopping by everyone; I really appreciate it.  Have a good night everyone and a wonderful week too!  :)

Apr 30, 2012 02:47 PM
The Scott Loper Team Bux-Mont Premier Properties
Keller Williams Real Estate - Montgomeryville - Lansdale, PA

Hi Donne,

Welcome back and congrats on the transition to real estate!  I haven't been blogging as much either - just busy also.

Lisa

Apr 30, 2012 10:42 PM
Paul S. Henderson, REALTOR®, CRS
Fathom Realty Washington LLC - Tacoma, WA
South Puget Sound Washington Agent/Broker!

Welcome back Donne! I'm going to be watching your progress on your return! 

May 01, 2012 10:57 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Donnee

I missed you! Glad you're okay...and glad you are on another adventure. You're so right about AR blogs having a long shelf life. Thank goodness you're ahead of the curve where it comes to building your brand through blogging.

Good luck and go knock 'em dead.

May 07, 2012 05:05 AM
Susan Haughton
Long and Foster REALTORS (703) 470-4545 - Alexandria, VA
Susan & Mindy Team...Honesty. Integrity. Results.

I went looking for you today, realized I hadn't "heard" from you in a while and missed you!  ;-)  It's been a crazy spring here, too, so I've been out of touch a lot myself.  So glad to hear you are doing well and jumping into RE.  Look forward to seeing you more often!

May 17, 2012 01:12 AM
Carol Faaland-Kronmaier
Weichert, Realtors; Hillsborough - Hillsborough, NJ
PhD, e-PRO, Manville, Hillsborough, Somerset NJ

Donne, Good luck on your transition. I will look out for your new blogs in the future!

Jun 13, 2012 11:19 PM
Michael Jacobs
Pasadena, CA
Pasadena And Southern California 818.516.4393

Hi Donne -- just checking in...I hope things continue to be going well with your business and happy for you that those referrals and phone calls keep coming in.  You provide such great service and knowledge that clients surely appreciate.

Jun 19, 2012 09:29 PM
Gene Riemenschneider
Home Point Real Estate - Brentwood, CA
Turning Houses into Homes

I am so glad to hear it is going well.  I wish you all the sucess in the world.

Aug 17, 2012 04:13 AM
Hercel Spears
Advanced Realty Education HomeSmart Realty - Tempe, AZ

Well welcome to the fun side of the business. :)

 

Hercel

Nov 16, 2012 12:35 AM
Tish Lloyd
BlueCoast Realty Corporation - Wilmington, NC
Broker - Wilmington NC and Surrounding Beaches

Donne ~ I just got back to blogging and went looking for you!  Hope that you are well and continuing to enjoy your new career.  It is stressful, but, oh, the joys really do outweigh the negatives!

Feb 27, 2013 02:14 AM
Suzanne McLaughlin
Sabinske & Associates, Inc. (Albertville, St. Michael) - Saint Michael, MN
Sabinske & Associates, Realtor

Miss you Donne and wish you would come back tot he Rain, but I get it.  We aren't in your business plan. 

May 31, 2014 05:18 AM
Inna Ivchenko
Barcode Properties - Encino, CA
Realtor® • GRI • HAFA • PSC • Short Sale • Probate

Donne,

You blogged so much and suddenly stopped.

Are you still in real estate?

HOpe, you are doing great:)

Jan 19, 2015 04:13 PM