Alamogordo, NM

I recently read where NAR has established a new Federal Credit Union for Realtors. Has anyone looked into this yet? What are the benefits for Realtors? I was involved in establishing a credit union once years ago when CU's were brand new. It seemed like a good idea. I am wondering though how this "virtual" credit union will benefit Realtors. Will this be similar to the on-line banks that exist now where you can transfer money? What are the terms for loans and such? Will this CU take in to account the "sporadic" pay schedule of Realtors?

Can anyone explain this market to me? I have a lovely home near the only Golf Course in town. Only 3 years old, beautiful condition, ready to move into. It has been on the market almost 18 months. The price is comparable to other homes in the area. There have been many lookers and it has been #2 on many peoples list but no offers! Now, I have another home in the same vicinity that was on the market for 6 months or so. The day before my listing agreement was to expire I had 4, count them "4", offers come in! We quickly got an extension and settled on the "best and final". I try to explain to my sellers that the next buyer could walk through the door any minute now. It is hard to explain to someone who really needs to sell their home why it has been sitting on the market for 18 months without an offer. How low must the price be reduced before it attracts an interested buyer? How do you explain to the seller that they have to bring cash to closing if they want to sell their home? Challenges, challenges, challenges! If it was easy they would have monkeys doing this job!

When I first started in Real Estate, I called eveyone I knew and let them know how I could make their buying or selling dreams come true. After calling my friends and family, I started making cold calls. I found out right away I did not like this type of business. The rejection was hard to take. I was aware of all the statistics that state that you have to have 3 "no's" to every yes, but it seemed like I was getting 10 no's to every one yes. Sometimes the yes turned out to be the client everyone else had rejected. I read everything I could on how to work this business without making cold calls. Now all I make are "warm" and "hot" calls. Referrals are great, sphere of influence works, casual contacts sometimes generates business, but I think social networking is the cold call of the future. If you are not on the "net" you may be left out.

We are having quite a controversy in our local board concerning the wording of a rule in our Association Rules and Regulations. The present rule states that any picture posted in our MLS must be "solely" of the property. That is all it says. Some have questioned whether this can be interpreted to mean that your company sign can not be shown in the photo. If the photo is taken after the sign is installed, is this a violation of this rule, as stated? Is it ok to "photo-shop" a banner in the picture showing your company logo or your name, as long as the property is prominently displayed? What about your email address, can it be placed somewhere in the photo? Our Rules and Regulations committee has re-written the rule to state that no branding is allowed on any pictures posted on the MLS. We looked at several examples of similar rules that other boards have. This is to include company logos, email addresses, web site addresses, metatags, etc. The opposition is saying this restricts their right to market their property. We are stating that the MLS is not the place to market yourself or your company. Everyone has the right to market themselves or their company on their own web site or other websites where they pay for that privilege. The MLS is owned by all on the board and should not be used for personal marketing. Any comments on this would be greatly appreciated. We vote on this new rule Tuesday. I will let you know how it turns out.

Space Museum in Alamogordo, NM. A great place to spend a hot summer day!