Mitchell Mote

As 2010 President of the Benton, Bryant Realtors Association, I write an article entitled President's Message bi-monthly for the Daily Record newspaper. It goes out not only to our local board, but to different people and businesses, many of them having to do with real estate, around the state of Arkansas.

A friend suggested that I post them to my blog, so here goes.

New Beginnings

As the New Year begins, and we look forward, we often time look back and reflect on the previous year and our personal lives. How could things have been better? What could we have done differently? What can we do to make things better in the New Year ahead?

God blesses us with a chance to start over at the beginning of each New Year, underscored like some giant Techno-color sunrise which we normally take for granted each day. "Things will be better this year!" We say, as we make New Year's resolutions, desperately wanting to do things differently. Countless flock to join gyms to get fit. Most all of us in real estate set goals to make more sales in the next year. For some it's getting a new car, or to go on that dream vacation. Maybe it's a major change in your life, or a new home for yourself. Whatever the reason, we know that things could be done differently now that we have a chance at a new beginning.

I learned years ago that most New Year's resolutions, no matter how fervently desired, are seldom kept and quickly forgotten. Like the excitement felt after hearing a great motivational speaker, our fervor can smolder and then quickly fizzle out once we are inserted back into the real world, back into the daily grind of our mundane routines.

The old Chinese proverb of "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear" is simple, but true. And it pertains to making changes in our lives as well. We cannot make significant changes based upon the clock changing from 11:59 to 12 o'clock. Real change comes from within, when certain conditions within our lives are no longer acceptable to us. Then the change comes. Then the "teacher appears".

For me personally, simplicity is key to making a change. My New Year's resolution, if you can call it that, is simply this: To be grateful. And we do have much to be grateful for. We not only survived a year of the "great recession" as they're calling it, but thrived even as scores of Realtors in other parts of the country left the real estate profession due to terrible market conditions, many even losing their own homes. I am grateful to our immediate past president of the Benton Bryant Board of Realtors, for such hard work and a good example for me to follow. I am grateful for my family. I am grateful for friends, customers and clients. I am grateful for God's blessings. And for new beginnings.

I, like most people, am not always the most enthusiastic person. Sometimes we feel tired, sometimes things don't go our way or we get drawn into the whole negative world that the news media perpetuates, etc... we can always change our level of enthusiasm.

Think of children who are always amazed at discovering new things. I personally like to draw inspiration from a couple of my TV heroes: The late Steve Irwin (The Crocodile Hunter) and Bear Grylls (Man vs. Wild). Steve loved sharing his experiences with others and it showed. Bear has a overall zest for life and also enjoys sharing his experiences with other people.

In our business, it is a must to be enthusiastic. We are helping people enjoy the dream of home ownership - what a cool thing to be involved in! Plus our enthusiasm can bleed over and inspire others we come in contact with. Maybe one of our sellers is down and needs some positive re-assurance when all the feedback has been negative. Perhaps a buyer is discouraged, and needs us to let them know that their dream home might be the next home listed.

Every memorable act in the history of the world is a triumph of enthusiasm. Nothing great was ever achieved without it because it gives any challenge or any occupation, no matter how frightening or difficult, a new meaning. Without enthusiasm you are doomed to a life of mediocrity but with it you can accomplish miracles.
Og Mandino

Have a fantastic day, and make someone else's while you're at it!

Mitchell


Mitchell Scott Mote CRS
Executive Broker
Weichert Realtors, Pat Mote Properties
Selling Central Arkansas Real Estate
mitchell@patmote.com
501-860-3547

Well Fall is in the air, and home sales are really picking up here in Central Arkansas. Many people are under the assumption that Spring is the best time to buy and sell homes. I don't know why, but my best time has always been the Fall.

Things have been looking up now for awhile and it's not a turn in the economy that's spurring on the sales - it's the fact that we never were grossly overpriced with our inventory in Central Arkansas Real Estate market like some areas of the country were. (before the economic downturn)

We are truly blessed to have the new construction inventory at a good balance as well. I've heard that some areas had a massive over abundance before the slide and have not fared so well - leading to problems like an entire new construction neighborhood falling prey to the dreaded "repo neighborhood status" label now required by certain guidelines within the appraisal industry. Or squatters coming in and taking up residence in vacant, repo homes. There was even a story on the news I saw (and subsequently felt physically sick) which filmed an entire neighborhood of new construction homes being demolished by the bank because they were too much of a liability sitting vacant for so long.

No, we don't have the problems that many areas of the country have experienced, although sellers with homes for sale in Central Arkansas have felt a pinch, especially if they bought their home from 2003 to 2005-6 range, and paid minimum down when the market was at it's peak. But overall we are faring rather well.

God bless you and yours this Fall season.

Mitchell Mote CRS

Executive Broker, Wiechert Realtors, Pat Mote Properties

www.mitchellmote.com
mitchell@patmote.com