Christine Zelazo

Know what I like most about my company? They give. And give. And give. Between nationwide charity projects like KW Cares (check out kwcares.org) and our local branches of charities like The American Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity, Keller Williams Realty is a company that just gives back, no questions, no excuses. That ROCKS!

This Saturday, November 22 beginning at 6:00pm the Keller Williams Realty New Bern Market Center will be hosting The Keller Williams Masquerade Charity Ball and Silent Auction to benefit Habitat for Humanity. The event will be held downtown at the New Bern Farmer's Market on Front Street. ALL proceeds from this event will go to Habitat for Humanity. For the low, low price of $25.00 per ticket (or 2 for $40) you get unlimited heavy appetizers and desserts, beer and wine, live entertainment, dancing, a silent auction, costume judging contest, and dare-e-oke. There will be door prizes and drawings throughout the evening. Anyone interested in getting a ticket must purchase in advance no later than Friday by contacting their favorite Keller Williams agent at 252-637-2010.

GOD, family, business. Man, I love my job.

For the past 5 years we have made New Bern, NC our home. It took a period of adjustment, and now we couldn't imagine being anywhere else!

Having relocated from "Big City", South Florida, I couldn't understand why people did things so differently here. Why aren't banks open on Sunday? Why are there so many churches, and no night clubs? Why does traffic move so slow? What's a farmer's market? What's a pig pickin'? Why is the movie theater not part of a 3 story entertainment complex complete with valet parking? These little nuggets were my first eye-openers upon moving here. But wait, there's more...

Upon arrival here in New Bern, my mother asked me if I had a winter coat. After my eye-roll and heavy sigh were complete, I answered "Of course, Mom." Being used to mid-winter temps in the low 70's I soon realized there indeed is a difference between a jacket and a coat. I also learned flip-flops were not winter attire, and that scarves were invented just to mock me.

Soon after settling in, we decided to play tourist and try to tackle every thing there was to do here. We went to Tryon Palace, Mum Fest, the Ghost Walk, Festival of Trees, the Christmas Boat Flotilla, MCAS Cherry Point Air Show, Art Walk, Spring and Fall Historic Homes Tour, visited the Fireman's Museum, and YES, we even went to a pig pickin'. And you know what? Who needs big-city night life when there's just "life" to be enjoyed?!

This town is just plain nice! Traffic moves slow because people are busy looking out for others. There are so many churches because there is a HUGE sense of community here. Banks aren't open on Sunday because people are too busy spending time with family! The movie theaters are small, but they have 2 performing arts theaters downtown! The amount of things to do in New Bern and the surrounding areas FAR outnumbers the hours you have of free time, but I urge you to try to squeeze these events into your busy schedules. It's SO worth it!

If you would like to know more about things to do here in New Bern, check out the Links of Interest section of my website: http://christinesellsnewbern.com/index_files/Page423.htm.

If you would like to visit New Bern, or are considering making New Bern your home, please email me at Christine@ChristineSellsNewBern.com for a FREE relocation package.

New Bern Rocks! Check it out for yourself.

God, family, then business. Man, I love my job.

Is there a giant echoing canyon where your savings account/retirement account/college fund used to be? You bet your dollar store there is! As Americans, we watch and wait with bated breath to see what the next national monetary move is, only to gasp as the move shows lateral, with no real jump in either positive or negative direction. As a Realtor® (and an American) I began to do the same thing. Hold breath...wait...gasp. Hold breath...wait...gasp. Starts to sound a little like Lamaze, doesn't it?

You hear in the media headlines such as: "Housing Market in Crisis as Foreclosures Hit all Time High." or "Lenders Make it Harder Than Ever to Buy Your First Home.", and my formerly smooth 34 year old forehead cries out for a Botox injection. Why?! How can this be? I know for a fact people still need housing, and loans, and real estate agents, and attorneys, title companies, inspections, etc. So what's the deal?

Well here's the deal you won't find at the dollar store. The real estate market hasn't crashed, nor did it tank, or bottom out. It SHIFTED. Housing prices haven't hit a serious decline in value, they have recovered from their seriously over-inflated anything-but realistic pricing to a more stable and affordable price point. In Gary Keller's book SHIFT, How Top Real Estate Agents Tackle Tough Times, he demonstrates that during periods of SHIFT, fear is everywhere, although not all of us react in the same manner. During these times, it's the 80/20 rule at work. 20 percent of the people will do 80 percent of the work or business (while the remainder of the people are still practicing Lamaze), and and then in a post-shift rebound, that 20 percent will have pushed past "survive" and will shift into "thrive" and reap that 80 percent of the rewards.

This golden nugget of clarity and wisdom can be transferred into ANY period of your life where you feel the anxious pinch of worry. Don't panic over SHIFT. Shifts are periodic, cyclical, and WILL happen again. The outcome of a shift is what you chose to do about it. During these shifting times as we all watch Wall Street and speed-read the news ticker-tapes as they flash past remember this: It's not doom and gloom, it's a SHIFT. Conserve, reduce, and retain everything from money to food to fuel. Cut up the plastic (it's made of petroleum products anyway), and be the 20 percent who are looking forward to reaping their 80 percent post-shift benefits. Get through "survive" and begin to "thrive".

I plan to be 20 percent. Do you?

God, Family, then business... man, I love my job. See y'all on the other side of the SHIFT.