Tony Marino, Broker, ePro

As I have always said the burden of being a great realtor is "thinking" for all parties in the contract...

I approach each transaction as if I am the only representative in the deal... that strategy will get you and your customer(s) to a happy and stress free closing. Now don't get me wrong, I don't represent all parties. And on occasion, I relax knowing that I have an experienced agent on the other side of the transaction. Overall I attribute my success and my customer's happiness to asking a lot of questions and thinking for all parties...

Yes, I do mean the other agent, the title company, and the mortgage company and then ultimately the buyer and the seller. Transactions always have problems and I see, so often, timid agents not talking about the elephant in the room... maybe it will go away? And occasionally, it does. But more often, it doesn't. Now, we have increased our challenges with short sales... 1^st and foremost; Banks! Oh my god. If I had "3" wishes it would be to write a book on common sense, require bank management to read it (then just sit back and collect the royalties...I would be worth millions) and then it would be explaining to buyers and sellers the benefits of executing a short sale. I would talk about owners removing fixtures; refrigerators, washers, dryers, lights ceiling fans, light switches, outdoor lighting... yes, I said light switches... then occupancy... broom swept clean the day of closing...

So here are a few suggestions... listing agents... ask the seller if they intend on taking anything in the house with them when you get their short sale approved. It wouldn't hurt to remind them, a short sale is a privilege not an entitlement... We all know the list of benefits for completing a short sale vs. a foreclosure? If they want to take stuff... no big deal... Disclose it... Remove it... it's that simple. As far as moving out... before they accept the offer ... Show them on a calendar! You will need to be out this day... does that work? If everything goes well, no need to bring it up again... But if your short sales are like mine... you will need to go over it again once the short sale is approved... easy enough right? Broom swept clean the day of closing... or the alternative, you can help them load the truck and stress over it... My suggestion; helping them with the planning is always easier than breaking Rule # 33, which is: "don't volunteer to move, pack or paint..."

For buyer agents, explain to the buyer that at the end of this painful short sale process the seller walks away with no cash, "Zero" Nada!... and the emotional baggage of having lost their home... maybe a little compassion is needed... and agents save the "Greed is Good" (Gordon Gekko) attitude for your next commercial sale. It's ok if "trash" is left at the curb on Tuesday and pickup is Thursday... I understand your frustration you didn't ask enough questions of the listing agent... are "these" ceiling fans remaining with the house after closing... is the LG Steam Dryer Staying?...is the 200 year old Swarovski Crystal Chandelier staying?... then most importantly write it on the contract to be clear to all parties...

We have all gotten to the end of the transaction...frustrated and at wits end... Don't let that happen to you... remember happy and stress free Transactions make Residential Real Estate the "Best" Business in the World...

Well it's that time of the year...Dues are Due... and you either wrote a check or put them on your credit card in order to maintain your status as an active Realtor... Whenever I pay $425 for anything I like to look for a direct benefit to increasing my business... Membership should have its privileges. In this case, I consider this expense a static investment. I am not downplaying the role of FAR, NAR, or ORRA... your membership plays an invaluable role to provide real estate practitioners the resources, education, tools, and guidance to make your individual business model a success. I get that... I hope you do... But, 90 % of your Success in Real Estate Business revolves around your Active Investments... Simply put, "Time or Money" which will actively promotes consideration to buy, sell, rent, and auction real property...

Anyway, why not write another $425 check or extend you credit line a bit more to drum up some business...

Cheap stuff... Flyers! We have beautiful weather... walk neighborhoods where you have a listing... $.15 each flyer...plus gas... $25-$50 total investment... planting seeds for the future... how about an apartment mailer... $.40 all in... you can mail 1000 postcards... 250 for 4 weeks or 1000 straight away... If you worked at Real Living... you get 250 free from Quantum mail... and with the push of a button get them mailed... delivered on your schedule...No printing, No stamping and No lines at the post office...

What if you go to the local grocery...on a Friday...do a collection for a nonprofit or a bake sale for your church and then simply pass out business cards. Community supporter meets neighborhood expert... Or look around for other marketing opportunities, internet prospecting, Newsletters or Calendars... So many ways to get in front of prospects...

Or you can hang around the water cooler, remembering the good old days sharing "Oh Yea" stories with fellow knuckle draggers...

I know this market is tough but just like a turtle stuck in the middle of the road; you only have 3 choices. 1^st, stay tucked in your shell until someone runs you over... or 2^nd you can keep moving to get to the other side...

And, more often, the turtle keeps moving.... He knows it's harder to hit a moving target...

I know what some of you are thinking... what was the turtle's 3^rd option?

It's simple...He can stay put, praying someone will pick him up and brings him to safety... So, for all you folks...?

I just did.

I know you have all been waiting for me to declare.... Now that Colin Powell made his decision, I guess I should be next... General Powell decided to cast his vote for Barrack Obama. He went on Meet the Press to discuss the methods he used to arrive at determining the best candidate for president of the United States. So I, like General Powell, have utilized thoughtful consideration to arrived at my decision...

My research goes back to the beginning of the 20^th century looking to account for the most significant advancements of our American freedom... One of the most significant event happened in 1903 and of course, I am referring to developments and distribution of Crayola Crayons. Prior to 1903, a regular US citizen could only dream in Black and White.... The original "8" colors hit the USA with a fever pitch and the price was right... just a nickel. In fact, all was right with the world...Teddy Roosevelt, a Harvard Grad was the 1^st president to suggest we move the country toward Universal Health Care (sound familiar) except he was a Republican... and Our government ‘s power was restricted by the Gold Standard (most problems could not be solved by firing up the printing press)... It was a time when our President was revered as he became the first American to win a Nobel Peace Prize... and did I mention...no enforceable income tax laws (The 16^th amendment was still 10 years away)... but still most significant was the fact that our Forefather's helped nail the creation of the first "8" colors... Americans were happy with the original selection of "8" for 41 years.

In 1949, Americans needed to be reassured of the American Dream....Harry Truman, obviously having incredible influence on one Pennsylvania business lobbied to have the "8" pack of Crayolas expanded to "48"... the largest single movement in history... growing the color spectrum exponentially... one color for every state (Yes, Sarah Palin would have been considered Governor of a different country...)

Life would never be the same... Americans always wanting more... and Government giving people what they asked for in exchange for their votes... Democrats have constantly promoted the expansion of the Crayola Box feeding the never ending American Habit of wanting more... You may not be aware that Bill Clinton was the last President to get a 24 color increase... (current 120 color box) However, you are all too familiar that Democrats continue to focus on expanding the size of the Box, while Republicans are focused on allowing you fill the Box yourself... neither is focused on how fragile the box has become...

So, in my own way... I have decided this race is about color (I have your interest now)... It's about my favorite color...Green... Therefore, I have decided to Vote for the Candidate that will give me the most Green for my vote... So Far, Barack Obama has promised to give 95 % of taxpayers $500 for their vote (40% of those folks don't pay taxes).... He calls it lowering taxes... I call it the "new age" of quid pro quo... So, here is my proposal to Barack Obama... I will vote for you if you give me $60,000 of the $150 million raised in September by your campaign and you pledge to work hard with Hallmark for a 10% reduction in colors...allowing for the fact that some critical colors will not be touched... I think that would be a fair offer...

And, FYI, the $60,000 is not arbitrary... It happens to be my portion of the $10 trillion dollar national debt... you know the debt... that ugly monster that chews up 16% of the federal budget... the Elephant in the room that has swollen to 72% of the GDP... Oh Yea..., that Debt! We don't hear much about that.... but Day in and Day out, both McCain and Obama are ignoring the present day realities as they each promise to make everyone's crayon box bigger and better...$500 here, $5000 there... All on the backs of other people... Look around my fellow sheep, those other people are you and your children...

So starting today and over the next two weeks, I hope you make the right choice... Lately, you have been inundated with 1929 talk, endless Wall Street Crash Stories trying to play on your fears... I am not sure of many things but I am 100% sure, we are never going back to a Box of "8"... but it never ceases to amaze me what excuses politician use to promote false promises and somehow "promises" always get the better of reality...

You have 14 more days... it's up to you to make your own deal...

My offer stands until midnight on November 3^rd.... $60,000 is a drop in the bucket... Let's just call it redistribution...

Ps. you will never know if I received the $60k... it will be between me and the ballot box...

A few people have asked... why I haven't been blogging. My answer sounded like I was Forrest Gump... "I have nothing to say... and that's all I have to say about that..." For me "Blogging is just "one" medium to influence and motivate the people around me..." also Blogging helps new recruits to get a picture inside our company beyond a regular interview... it's not about me...It's just another tool in the tool belt... Agents appear to be running into the blogosphere as an alternative to water cooler chats in today's abandoned office... It's always easy to avoid the difficult activities required to make gains in this sagging real estate market.

Now don't get me wrong, some of you have specific blogging goals, measurable goal, community goals, office goals, that when reached; will turn dollars into sense... and others, the pioneers, conquering short sales, managing REO's and foreclosures, recruiting successful agents, are all attempting to educate the rest of us with the potential and the pitfalls in our changing market...

But ultimately, finding buyer and sellers is what I am all about, either by motivating Great Agents or Closing Transactions.

So, my question to you is this... Are You Keeping Your Eyes On The Prize? I hope your "DAILY" blog posting is not specifically designed to grab a piece of the daily top 10 ... Don't get me wrong, the world needs great headlines but what about looking around your office.... Which agents are still doing business? Look to those agents still doing "Day to Day Combat" and ask them about their success...

If you don't have anyone doing business at your office and everyone is moping around with their knuckles dragging on the floor... maybe it's time to find a new office? If all you are getting at the water cooler is water... Maybe you should find a new office? What is holding you back? Now more than ever, the future is bright and you everything to gain!!! Remember, the most gain is always measured from the bottom of the market...That's when you make the largest profits... Heck... Now is the time to Join Real Living! (Sorry for the shameless plug)

I still love Orlando... I can't imagine having to endure the challenging weather of the North and Midwest, as I did it for 36 years of my life... With 260 days of sunshine combined with sharing our home with the #1 Mouse on the planet, Orlando is tops on my list. Most original Orlando residents would think I was crazy to go to Downtown Disney at the height of spring break and the Friday before Easter but I went anyway...

I drove around and around looking for a parking spot, eventually having to stalk vacationers as they made a move toward their rental car. In my Real Living Golf Shirt and Carol in a light sweater, we caught the end of sunset (almost 8pm) as we became one of the cattle to herd our way through the Disney Stores and Shoppes. Watching people, and soaking up the energy of the Disney Disciples who were trying to get every last second of Disney Magic that they could soak up.

Finally, we made our move to the Portobello Yacht Club, a Great Restaurant. The last time, we enjoyed a peaceful lunch with about 20 other people, now the Yacht Club had been transformed into a train station with what appeared to be a 1000 people trying to get a ticket to ride. We slipped through the masses to the bar and ran into one of my customers, Steve Richard, who is the Head Chef. I got a chance to watch for a few minutes before he noticed us, Steve is a Pro... I can tell you he was totally focused on managing the chaos of the day while trying to give all his guests the experience they were expecting. Carol and I mused over the calm that he brought to the environment as he lead his staff to produce and deliver, in our case, Excellent Results. Now dinner was complete and we walked back to a slightly less crowed parking lot, reflecting on "Life in Orlando." We both agree this is the best place to sell Real Estate and find people homes... We love Orlando, and we appreciate the masses who visit our city... Heck, 10 years ago we were just like you, and now we get to call this city our home...

http://www.levyrestaurants.com/Levy/DiningExperiences/Restaurants/Group1/Portobello+Yacht+Club.htm

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/moreMagic/moreMagicLanding?id=DTDLandingPage