Ed & Cindy Knight

My life used to be so so simple...till My Computer caused Brain Over Load. It all started back in 1981 when I decided to get a degree as a computer programmer. Back then I was learning Cobal, Fortran and Assembler computer languages. What can I say I'm old. Anyway, I remember my mind being pushed and pulled every which way as I tried to do my homework assignments. I figured I was having a hard time because I was a dizzy blond. I had no idea what the future would bring.

Fast forward to December 2008 ...I never did become a computer programmer I became a real estate agent. Long story don't ask. However, I have been able to use my computer background a lot as a real estate agent. I also realized I am not only a dizzy blond but have ADD, Menopause brain fog, CRS (can't remember stuff) and now brain over load thanks to my computer.

So how did my simple life get too this point? Well let me just say I am using things daily that were not even around in 1981. Things like:

• two 22" flat screen monitors that are full color not monochrome
• a desk top computer and to think we laughed at the thought of a computer in every home
  
• I'm using a wireless mouse (I hate real ones) and wireless keyboard - I hated typing class
• daily I use Google to find things I need to know about instead of using a stack of Encyclopedia's
• my monitor has an IGoogle on it to keep me organized - thanks to Missy Caulk
• I use a site called Active Rain to write a thing called a Blog - so long diary
• better yet to see what other Bloggers post I use RSS feeds - thanks Brad Anderson looks like my brain
• oh yea my name has changed to @CindyKnight because I tweet things on Twitter - thanks Kim Wood
• I use things like PDF's, e-fax and e-mail - and use the copier, fax machine and mailman less
• the agents at the office call me to fix the Network - not ABC, CBS or NBC either
• our websites are worked on by me only now I use HTML, CSS and Java - not coffee
• when I want to laugh I check out Videos on YouTube and they are not beta or VHS
  
• I belong to FaceBook and LinkedIn - Social Networks and I don't leave the house
• then there's the journal on my desk full of 14 pages of passwords

So much for a simple life...but honestly I Love It!!! As Roger a fellow blogger said it we are Addicted.

Living in Michigan I know homes are selling for less and the Big Three is looking for financial help. However, are things really as bad as the press tells us? Do you think they make things sound worse to get more readers and more viewers? I remember as a kid my mom saying "misery loves company" and "bad news travels fast" now I know why.

So how bad are things and should we believe everything the press tells us. Remember the election? It seems like light years away now but look at all the bad press each candidate received. Turn on Fox News you hear one thing, turn on MSNBC you hear another. You never knew who to believe. Funny thing is now they both are telling the same story.

• Banks are not loaning money to small businesses - we're a small business and we got a loan
• Credit card companies are reducing credit limits - they just increased our limit on a few cards
• No one is getting a loan to buy a home - we have had 11 closings this quarter and 1 to go
• Credit card companies are raising interest rates - we just opened a zero interest credit card
• The big 3 are not selling cars because no one can get a loan - we know people who bought cars

We hear the press tell us things are really bad but that's not what we always see. Recently my brother called and asked if we were closing on the homes we sold"? I said Yes, why do you ask ? He proceeded to tell me that he had just attended a meeting where several economists and analysts were saying the banks are not giving loans so no one can buy a home. Now my brother works for a large company that sells financial products. Why do you think they are telling them this? Did they just listen to the media too?

Obviously, they are not getting there information from Macomb County. Folks here missed the news reports because every weekend the restaurants have a 30-40 minute wait. Yesterday the parking lot at Costco was so packed I had to park in the last row. Thank God I need to lose weight and like walking. Last week we waited for 15 min to eat lunch at Olive Garden on a Tuesday afternoon at 1:00pm? Let me tell you it was not filled with people on their lunch hour. They say homes are not selling - well this quarter Macomb county had 2845 closings compared to last year during the same period when we had 2442. Yes, some are having trouble but no all.

Now we can all continue to listen to the Bad News Bears and think the world is going to hell in a hand basket. Or we can turn off the negative press and do as Jim Carrey does in Yes Man and use the power of Positive Thinking. I prefer the later. How about You?

I for one am sick and tired of seeing housing values continue to Plummet. Now I may get some backlash for saying this but I feel many of these bank agents are out for no one else but themselves. Daily I am amazed to see what they price homes at. Personally I think it's job security for them. Price a home super low, sell it for even less and then all the neighbors will say the heck with it and foreclose. Oh let me guess, more business for them. If they keep it up we'll be selling homes in Macomb County for less than the price of gas.

Okay, I get it the Macomb County area is hurting because of the big 3. But if someone bought a home 2 years ago for $195,000 and it's sold at the sheriff auction for $162,800 why would you price the home at $120,000. Nope it's not trashed so that's not the reason. Homes like it sold last year at $100 sq ft and they are selling this one for $66 sq ft. The township says the value is $194,400 and is collecting taxes based on that amount. So why not list it higher? Yea yea yea "it's supply and demand". If housing values continue to plummet there will not be a demand for houses. No one will want to buy a home for fear the home will be worthless in a couple months.

At the rate we are going it's going to be 2020 before anyone is able to move again. Now I am not saying I have the answer here but please can someone tell me why the banks, that we bailed out are allowing this to happen? Why are they willing to walk away from so much money. I'll tell you why - because the asset managers the banks hire only use "Certain" real estate agents.

These banks need to "Spread the Wealth" and hire more agents and from different companies, instead of using the same agents over and over. Most of these bank agents are so busy the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing. On top of that they are using secretaries to perform duties that should be performed by licensed real estate agents. By spreading the wealth the banks would receive better marketing and make more money rather than taking huge losses. Just me 2 cents. What do you Think?

So what do You think the Real Estate of Office of the Future will look like? Do you think it will look anything like the office you have come to know? Well, earlier this year we asked our selves this exact question. You see we had just arrived on a 4 week vacation, when we received a call from an agent in our office, telling us "the broker sold out to another franchise." Well needless to say we were not to happy. Especially, since we had just moved to this office 3 months earlier and had no clue this was coming. Rather than changing signs, cards, advertising ect we decided to purchase our own Realty Executives franchise in Shelby Township, Michigan, right down the road.

But we knew if we were going to do this we better really do our home work.So over the next 4 weeks we searched the internet looking for ideas of exactly what The Real Estate Office of the Future would look like. However, this was not an easy task. We decided to switch gears and see what offices of the future would look like. We came across a great article by Mark Benhar called Shaping the Office of the Future in several publications and read it in detail. What Mark said made a lot of sense.

Our next step was to take what we knew about current real estate offices, agents, consumers, our 40 years of combined experience and blend it into what we learned from Mark. Here's a few things we knew

• The large 4000+ real estate offices and parking lots were empty
• Private offices were filled with furniture, being used by one person and many times empty
• Offices were housing more at home agents and requiring more work stations
• Brokers were becoming less profitable due to rising costs, loss of agents and less sales
• Offices were closing earlier and were seeing less activity
• Most large corporations were using automated attendants for quicker response
• Consumers were looking for homes and agents on-line at home
• Walk ins, sign calls, homes magazine ads and local advertising was way down
• Consumers want a quick response and call till they get it

Here's what our Macomb County Real Estate Office of the Future looks like

• The office is 1000 sq ft
• Has No private or semi private offices
• Only full time, experienced, work at home agents
• 2 shared desks each with wireless or plug in Internet access
• 1 shared desk with desk top computer
• 2 counter work stations with desk top computer
• Meeting room with computer and 32" monitor
• Conference with TV and computer
• Auto attendant for direct response and no receptionist
• All For Sale signs have the agents cell number for direct contact
• Each agent and the office fax are e-faxes for ease of sharing
• About 95% paperless office

The real estate industry has gone through some huge changes over the past few years. We hope that our vision is right and our office takes us into the future. See what Inman News recently posted on their blog about the Real Estate Brokerage of the Future and let us know What you think?

Do you know someone in the US Military? Do you send them care packages? Why do I ask?

Well recently I over head my nail tech telling her next client "I only have one name left on the list of troops to pass out". So I asked her what she was doing with them. It seems that she had been sending care packages to her nephew and her client had been sending care packages to her daughter. One in the navy and one in the army. However, both said they felt kinda "guilty" when they received the packages, because many in their unit never received a thing.

So my nail tech and her client collected the names and addresses of those guys and gals and passed them out at their book club. That way all would get something to open. I took the last name. Actually, I think buying for Charles (my guy) will be more fun than buying for my 23, 24 and 25 year old sons, who really need nothing.

Now we need to remember Our Troops all year and not just during the holidays. So we have decided to send care packages several times a year. But Kelly Willey made a great post about Xerox and asked all to send Christmas cards to the troops. Kim Olson whose husband has been in the military for 30 years gave another great post about Christmas cards and more. Be careful when sending cards and Do Not send them to A Recovering American Soldier c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center. According to Snopes.com they will not arrive.

If you have a moment watch this beautiful video by Lizzie Palmer called REMEMBER ME.

As we move into the holiday season Ed and I would like to say "THANK YOU" to our all our Troops, especially those at Selfridge Air National Guard Base and U.S. Army Tacom Thanks for keeping us safe.