REALTOR® WEEKLY UPDATE
Weekly Update on PGPCNPREALTORS.com
August 6th, 2009
To view archive editioins, please click HERE.
Breaking News!
Calling all Golfers –Save the Date September 12th, Kingsway Country club. The Association’s 3rd Annual Golf Tournament to support our High School Scholarship Program. This is a great opportunity to hit the links for a good cause and enjoy a day on one of Southwest Florida’s most beautiful courses. We are looking for teams to play and Business Partners to sponsor, please email David-Logan@comcast.net for more details. Download the flyer to sign up your team HERE.
Interested in GRI, how does HALF PRICE SOUND? Do not miss out on this LIMITED TIME OFFER! FAR is offering for a SHORT TIME only, the GRI 1 on-line for half price ($150 rather than $300). The Online format means that you have 90 days to complete the course, work at your own pace, attend from home, office, boat, poolside or anywhere you can get an internet connection. Course also counts for 11 Hours of CE Specialty Credit (everything except core law) OR 45 Sales Post-License credit. This is an amazing opportunity that should not be passed up! Also, our Association will be providing the opportunity for all on-line participants to engage in an on-line user group which will meet to discuss questions that you may have and hear from special guest speakers who will help combine the on-line content with real-world experience. Email David-Logan@comcast.net for details.
***NEW EDUCATION CLASSES***
Shift Tactics: Are you learning to deal with a changing Real Estate Market? Would you like to learn how to shift gears by “bulletproofing the transaction” and “pricing ahead of the market”? DO NOT MISS Top Rated speaker Nikki Ubaldini who will present “Tactics to Success in a Shifting Market” based on the best-selling book “Shift: How Top Real Estate Agents Tackle Tough Times”. Nikki is a highly rated speaker on the state and national level and has been recommended by many of our local members, so you do not want to miss this opportunity to hear from her. September 16th from 10am – 2:30pm including a Free Lunch. Class is FREE to education passport members and $15.00 for non-passport members. RSVP to david-logan@comcast.net to register.
Market to the World on a Shoestring Budget: Come experience how you can reach out to the world on a shoestring budget with technology expert Barry Grooms. Topics include Web 2.0, Facebook, LinkedIn, Blogging, Postlets, Listing Syndication, and Google for Grownups. October 22nd 9am – 12pm. Class is FREE to education passport members and $15.00 for non-passport members. RSVP to david-logan@comcast.net to register.
More Education Opportunities are listed below!
FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK!!
Karen Rolland, President
My Fellow REALTORS®/Members,
As I am getting ready to leave town, I have been thinking a lot about how each of us have been working so hard in this market to make a living and I wonder sometimes if we are really in control of our life or if our lives are in control of us. Sometimes it seems like the harder we work, the more behind we feel. Income is down, prices are lower and we are working a lot harder to make the money we once did. Through all that though, it is important to take some time outs once in a while to re-group and appreciate what you do have.
My brother is turning 60 this month, not that old but it is a significant milestone for him. He was diagnosed with Juvenile Diabetes at 21 and has fought that disease his entire adult life. To add to it, he was also diagnosed with Lymphoma at 42 so the cards were stacked against him living this long. He beat the cancer (10 years cancer free) but the diabetes continues to haunt him. He leads a very active life but he has a lot of circulatory problems and has had numerous eye surgeries, almost to the point that if he has one more he will most likely be blind. Why am I telling you all this? Because I am sure that each of you knows someone who has faced some pretty major challenges in their lives, be they medical, financial, tragic accidents, or whatever and we need to remember that no matter how badly we may think things are, there is always someone struggling with something worse.
I’m going home to Chicago this weekend for a very short visit with my family. I wasn’t going to go because money is tight and real estate always seems to present some reason to stay in town… the possibility of missing a deal, an unexpected customer may show up, an open house, etc. But then I thought about how short of a time we each have on this earth and decided it was more important to make the trip and be there to celebrate my brother’s triumph over his health problems and spend as much time as I could with him and the remainder of my family. I have great-nieces I haven’t even met yet and a ton of nieces and nephews along with my 5 siblings and their spouses who I haven’t seen for a while. It will be a whirlwind visit but at least I will feel like I took back a little control in my life by making the decision to go!!
So try to do the same this weekend…do something you have been wanting to do but didn’t feel you had the time for because of work. Visit some friends, spend some time with your kids or your parents. Go fishing, go to the beach, clean the garage! Whatever it is, I hope you enjoy it. I think we will all come back ready to rock and roll again and the break will do us good! Have a great weekend!
Education Corner
All courses below are FREE to Education Passport members! Non- Passport Members – see details for cost.
Aug 26th/27th – 14 Hour Series need your Core Law or 14 hours for license renewal? Click HERE for details.
Sept 3rd – How to Run a Consumer Friendly Website 1pm-4pm 3 Hours CE Credit. Click HERE for details.
Sept 17th – Red Flags on the Waterfront 9am-11am w/Attorney & Waterfront Expert David Levin-FREE. Click HERE for details.
FREE Hands-On MLS Training! Courses include “Design Web Page & Capture Leads”, “iMapp: interactive tax and mailing labels”, “Tools: MongoFax, RatePlug, ShowingTime and MLX Wireless”, “Creating a Professional CMA”, and “MLXChange Advanced” and more. Classes are HANDS ON with laptops provided. Click HERE for class schedule, additional details and to reserve a seat, space is limited!
Looking to Improve your Public Speaking or Leadership Skills? - Come join us for our next meeting of Toastmasters International on Wednesday from 7:30am – 8:45am, there is no cost to attend the meeting and you are not obligated to join, come see what this is all about. The club is open to REALTORS® and Non-REALTORS®, so invite your friends, neighbors, or co-workers. You will have the opportunity to see what a meeting is like and discover how Toastmasters can help improve your communication and leadership skills and network with other professionals. Remember, good communication skills are the keys to success in business and real estate! For more details or to RSVP for the meeting, please email David-Logan@comcast.net you can read more about Toastmasters on the web at www.toastmasters.org
REALTOR® Safety – Did you miss our REALTOR® Safety Class in the spring? Safety expert Andrew Wooten will be teaching his 3 hour CE class at the Englewood Area Board of REALTORS® on August 10th from 1pm – 4pm, price reduced to only $5. Call 941-474-6664 or email dianemcintosh@verizon.net for more information or to sign up for this exciting opportunity.
Welcome new business partner
Jordan Aquila – Buffalo Graffix
Where in the World Is…..
The following agents can now be found at…
Kay Gero – Florida Heritage Realty
Market Watch
Virtual Staging: Brilliant and maybe Dangerous - An emerging trend in real estate is the concept of “virtual staging,” in which a sales associate e-mails photos of an empty house to a professional stager, who then digitally enhances the photos with artwork, furnishings and other finishing touches to make the space seem more inviting. There are several benefits to using this marketing tactic, including the money it saves sellers because they do not have to foot the bill for physical staging services that are both costly and time-consuming. For the full story, click HERE.
Many Adults not Sold on Social Networking - Social-networking services such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter may be generating lots of buzz. But old-fashioned, non-digital, face-to-face conversations aren’t out of vogue just yet. About 87 percent of 1,000 adults questioned in June said they prefer to deal with other people in person instead of via computers or smart phones, according to a survey from Brightkite, a mobile social-networking service, and GfK Technology, a market research agency. What’s more, half of the respondents said that they do not use social networks. Click HERE for more details.
Free Legal Advice for At-Risk Homeowners - With one of the highest foreclosure rates in the nation and a jobless rate topping 9 percent, Florida has many homeowners who are out of work, facing financial problems and trying to save their homes. The Florida Bar has links to information about free clinics and other help; about finding an attorney; and about how not to become a victim of a foreclosure-rescue, loan-modification or debt- or credit-repair scam. For the Florida Bar resources, click HERE.
Buyers Shouldn’t Wait on Falling Prices - Fear of overpaying for property is common these days, especially in places where prices continue to be unstable. If you encounter potential buyers afraid to commit based on a fear that they’ll pay too much, point out these factors: 1. Waiting for the right time can be expensive. Some buyers would have more equity today, despite falling prices, if they had bought when they first considered it instead of continuing to pay rent. 2. Financing is fickle. Some people who were highly qualified last year can’t find financing this year because the credit market has tightened or their personal financial situation now makes them an undesirable borrower. 3. Interest rates are headed up. If prices decline by another 10 percent but interest rates increase by 1 percentage point, the monthly payment will be the same. Source: The Wall Street Journal, Douglas Heddings (07/27/2009)
MLS TIP OF THE WEEK
Our local Verizon Wireless Zone has put together a MFR MLS application for your BlackBerry. This application is an icon that goes on the main screen of the BlackBerry that is a link to mfr.mlxwireless.com. Members are able to click the icon, which looks like a white R, the realtor sign. This is basically a shortcut directly to the wireless MLS. Members are able to type the address in their browser of their phone, or save it as a bookmark, but this icon is a quicker way of getting to the login screen. If you would like this FREE application, please email Chris Pizzolato at chrispizzolato@yahoo.com Thank you to Verizon Wireless Zone of Port Charlotte for putting together this free Application.
Real Estate Trivia
This Week’s Question
Answer: Take NAR’s Home Staging Quiz HERE
Last Week’s Question
Question: With the help of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® Information Central team, we scoured the history books to craft a quiz that challenges your knowledge of the association's 100-year history. After all, if you’re a REALTOR®, you should know your roots and all of the accomplishments that helped NAR rise to become the national voice for real estate.
Answer: Take NAR’s REALTOR® History Quiz HERE