Audrey Poltor

I love love LOVE Property Ladder. I'm not sure if it's watching make huge costly mistakes (fun, admit it) or the fact the my husband and I eat sleep and breathe real estate.

For some odd reason this morning, I remembered a show that I watched a few weeks ago. A real estate professional decided to flip a very expensive California bungalow. The walls were cracking and the floors were disgusting. I know, common with flips.........

The problem wasn't with the house.....it was with the investor. And remember, this bothered me enough to the point of blogging.......

The investor (real estate pro) rarely showed up at the property and just could not figure out why things weren't getting done. She slept till noon, put on dresses and heels, went to the house and proceeded to yell at the 2, yes, 2 contractors that were working 12 hour days. The funniest part was her hand-painted eyeglass screwdriver that she fully intended on using.......on something. She insisted that a refrigerator be sunken in to the wall........without measuring it of course......and naturally, the fridge was not the right size. This happened in various other situations during the course of the rehab. She also had absolutely NO idea how much she had spent. !!!! OMG The timeline for this flip was set at 4 weeks.........but because of the investor's careless attitude, they finished after 4 months.

My point is that, as investors, we must be 100% involved in everything we do. Push up your sleeves, get dirty and for goodness sake.........save your receipts!!!!! I was just shocked at this particular episode and had to share

~A

OK, so I was watching Good Will Hunting tonight....Robin Williams was giving a lesson on trust. In the past, I believed that trust had to be earned. One must behave in a certain manner in order for others to trust them whole heartedly.

As I listened to some of the students on the movie tonight, I started to wonder; " Is all trust simply blind, from the start?" In my previous personal life, I had been burned so many times that trusting someone was absolutely impossible. It is a risk we all take in our relationships to completely trust and believe that the ones that we are faithful to will in turn be faithful to us. With the divorce rate at 50%........it is quite understandable that most of us (women) do not trust our husbands, boyfriends or partners.

But when it comes to business; how do you trust someone right off of the jump? without references or any kind of reputation?

What are some ways that you find trust in others "blindly"?

Our website is highly functional, however we have been given some friendly criticism that perhaps it lacks some "Va Va Voom". My goal for today is to make a phenomenal website that will shock and awe our prospective clients. My husband wants to put a very cheesy snapshot of the two of us on the homepage. I think that will be much more personal than the horrible generic clip-art of unknown families that are currently starring on the page. I am cruising through hundreds of sites today for inspiration.

Anyone have any tips or insight? what really draws people to a site?

Some things in my life are not where they should be right now. I am having a very hard time staying focused. I find myself drifting during the day and hen feeling even worse because I wasn't as productive as possible. Now, I am just entering my second trimester. Is this common? and How do I channel these feelings into positive energy?

Has anyone experienced this lately? What are you doing to overcome?

I am 12 weeks pregnant now and having the most difficult time transitioning into my second trimester with my current wardrobe. I purchased 2 pair of maternity pants; one denim and one black a few weeks ago. The problem is that my shirts no longer cover the belly panel. Preferably, I would like to extend my clothes as long as possible. I am a petite gal and every maternity shirt I have tried is comparable to a circus tent. How do I keep up a professional image with my growing belly.........?

Any secrets or advice? I refuse to wear my husband's clothes.....as was suggested to me by him, naturally.