Heidi Marshall

I love Facebook, I love Twitter, LinkedIn, and on and on my list goes.

But I have to say, I had a bad day with FB today when I was out and about and checked my phone to see that someone had sent me a message about a possible message I had sent them.

Subject matter: NOT to be discussed in the presence of minors.

I was horrified that anyone I was friends with could have possibly been sent some icky adult themed message with my picture next to it like I actually sent it to them. So, I decided to investigate and wanted pass on some information to my fellow Social Networker extraordinaires in the Real Estate Business.

Tip 1:

If you get a Facebook message from a friend you don't usually hear from DON'T OPEN THEIR MESSAGE!! I haven't seen any information on the web about getting or speading a virus just by opening the message, but I'd like to recommend weighing on the side of caution and just DELETE the message all together. Matter of fact, if it's someone you haven't heard from in a while and they are sending you a link, it's probably SPAM of PHISHING.

Recommendation: Delete the message and send them one or write on their wall to see if they really sent you a message about _______ topic? If they didn't, then you know it was your best judgement to not open that message and look, you reconnected!!

Tip 2:

If you get a Facebook message from someone that has a TON of other names attached to it, and has some outrageous subject matter unlike your personality as they know you, probably PHISHING.

Recommendation: REPLY ALL to the message and state the truth in your own words, then REPORT AS SPAM to notify Facebook staff immediately.

Tip 3:

If you see a link that doesn't start with http://www then you may not want to EVER click on that. The one I received started out with something other than that and it just didn't feel right. Gut feeling is usually right on.

Recommendation: If you get those links, avoid them like the plague!!! Go to google and in the search just start typing the first few characters and see what options you get. I don't recommend actually going to the page but usually the description will give an indication of the type of site it is.

Social Networking is an amazing part of our business so we never want to have our reputation tainted by an irritation like these. So always be cautious!

Good luck everyone!

Heidi

After a couple rounds of flu and colds, my business partner, Becky Coet and I managed to wrap up our 2nd annual Erie Commons Food Drive and collected around 600lbs of food for the Erie Food Bank.

Our goal was to beat last year's total of 800lbs but unfortunately, with the downturn in the economy, we weren't able to make it but, once we arrived at the food bank and started sorting out the food with their staff, we realized that quantity doesn't matter as much as quality.

Many residents of the community made special trips to the local stores and purchased items just to contribute to the drive. We were overwhelmed by the amount of thought and heart that our neighbors put into their donations.

Becky and I stayed at the food bank to help the few ladies sort the food we brought in. We had 3 huge areas of bags and it was amazing to see the systems they had in place.

Sort each canned item, then separate them by expiration date...and on and on it went.

It was a real eye opener to see all they had to do just to be able to give to the members of the community who needed their efforts the most. We appreciate them allowing us to give this year.

If you want to learn more about the Erie Food Bank, visit www.eriespark.com . You will find information about their needs and who to contact to donate your time.

We truly enjoyed donating again this year and look forward to making this a yearly tradition in our community.

As a follow up to last years success, Becky Coet and myself decided to continue with the tradition of giving back to our community! As members of Keller Williams-The Red Door Group, we always want to be agents constantly give back to the communities we service.

We have teamed up with the Erie Food Bank this year and are looking forward to delivering over 800lbs of food and other food bank items. With our community continually growing, we know we can exceed last year's donations and look forward to increasing what we can collect from the community each year!

This is such a feel good activity for us and we look forward to doing this each year!!

We will be delivering bags donated by local grocers by Friday, October 16th to have residents of our community fill them up with items from their pantry. We will then head out by 9am on Thursday, October 22nd to pick up the bags to deliver to the food bank. It's such an easy way for our community to contribute to such a great facility.

If you'd like to participate or have any questions, we would love to hear from you!

Email at: heidi@thereddoorgroup.com if you'd like to participate with us!

When I started in this business a whopping 1 year ago. I had set my goals pretty high and half way through my first year, I thought, maybe they were a little too high? It took me 6 months to have my first closing and I was seriously thinking I did this at the wrong time in my life.

But as a lover of Dr. Seuss, I stumbled into my daughters book library and found "Oh, the Places You'll Go!" It added a new motivation!!

My goals went something like:

1. Make ________ amount of $$!

2. Have _______ buyers,

3. Have _______ sellers,

4. Get ________ certifications,

5. Attend _______ meetings

You get my point...there were a ton of blanks to fill in!!

Well, although some of those still have yet to be determined...I did accomplish one that I never wrote down because I thought it was impossible...

2009 NORTH METRO DENVER REALTOR ASSOCIATION

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR!!!

I finally realized something as I went up to accept my award!

I FINALLY FOUND WHERE I BELONG!!

I could never have done this alone, it truly does take a village...

My husband has been so supportive of me doing this for so many years and I truly couldn't have done it without him! He is my rock, and I love him very much!!

I started this journey in 2001 working with a builder and working with my mentor, friend, and all around amazing girl, Amy Ballain!! If it weren't for her always being a shoulder to cry on, a true leader, and the most amazing friend, I don't think I could have accomplished this in my entire career!! She truly is amazing!!

Another special moment was to receive this from the prior year winner who is someone I had worked with during the builder days...Ben Ellefson. As he gave me a big hug, he told me, "enjoy it, and help other new agents!"

I WILL!!

I have a new perspective and it's amazing how much good MOJO is in the air right now, I feel on top of the world and I'm truly grateful for all that I've been blessed with this past year!

So for all you new agents out there! Lean on those who are there for you and if you reach out your hand, chances are, someone is reaching back!! I always want to make a difference and be there for others as they have been there for me!!

THANK YOU TO MY REALTOR COMMUNITY! IT TRULY DOES TAKE A VILLAGE AND I ADORE ALL OF YOU!!

heidi :)

So I've been hearing rumblings and reading articles around about a possible extensioin of the tax credit that is currently in place until December 1st (technically November 30th if you want to be picky).

I have mixed feelings about this, if it is being uttered amongst the community. Right now, buyers are feeling a push to get into a new home by the deadline because the expectation was that the credit would expire. This is good.

If it gets extended there are some factors to consider:

1. What if its better than the current credit? Well, that would definitely be a point of contention for the buyers who have already closed on homes in order to receive the current credit. Thankfully, it sounds like this will not be the case, but its definitely something to prepare our clients for right?

2. Will the urgency disappear with current buyers? Okay, so if it's decided to extend it, and buyers are rushing to find a home now in order to meet the current deadline, will this delay their urgency to the point they will possibly slow down and back off from homes they are currently considering?

3. If it doesn't get extended, what happens to the increase in home sales? I have to admit, I think that the credit has definitely helped the economy. To see an increase this past year has been pretty astounding. I personally worry that if this doesn't get extended, there will be a drop because there is no motivating factor around purchasing a home (some buyers still don't realize the long term benefits of home ownership so if the government needs to use the credit like a carrot, so be it, at least it gets some movement.)

I'm sure there are other factors to consider with this and it may be an ongoing debate for our fearless leaders...I'm all for whatever will help us do our jobs and help buyers get into a home...as Tim Gunn would say... "MAKE IT WORK".

Heidi :)