Find Your Mentor Today!

The traditional mentor-mentee relationship is history! You no longer have to personally know or physically meet with the person you call a mentor. This is in large part due to advances in technology and the use of social media by great leaders and mentors. I used to always say, “I wish I had a mentor or coach to meet with me that could teach me life and business lessons and help me to be more successful.” This type of thinking is now flawed and can actually prevent you from personal and professional growth. Mentors are waiting for you out there, you just need to seek them out and engage them in new ways.

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Guest Post: FHA Takes Steps to Boost Foreclosure Sales

The federal government hopes to help low-down-payment home buyers, investors who fix up foreclosures, and communities burdened with too many bank-owned and foreclosed homes — all with one potentially far-reaching policy change.

The Federal Housing Administration revised its long-standing anti-flipping rules effective Feb. 1 and just might score a hit with all three target groups. For years, the FHA has had a strict prohibition: It wouldn’t insure a mortgage on a house if the seller had owned it for less than 90 days. The ban was a reaction to fraudulent quick flips of houses that inflated their values far beyond market worth. The flips often were pure cons: Buyer A would acquire a low-cost house in bad repair, make minor cosmetic changes and resell within days at a significantly higher price to Buyer B, who was also part of the scheme. The sequence could involve a string of serial flippers within a month or two, with prices spiraling upward.

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Upcoming Webinar – Mortgage Industry Changes

Join us for another great webinar on Thursday, February 25th at 10AM. We will be talking with a panel of experts about the recent financing changes impacting the real estate industry. Our guests will help you – help your customers navigate the difficult mortgage finance environment today. Our topics include understanding the latest financing changes, loan products currently available, how to write a strong sales agreement, overcoming lending and appraisal challenges, how the closing process is changing under the new regulations, and the effects of short sales and foreclosures on credit scores.

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The Power of a Personal Note

A brief word of encouragement and thanks is a great way to connect with people and build relationships. The personal note is my favorite vehicle for delivering these types of messages. In his book The Power of Encouragement, author David Jeremiah says,

“Written encouragement comes directly from the heart, uninterupted and uninhibited. That’s why it’s so powerful.”

Every day we are surrounded by negative news, people using foul language, people screaming at each other on the news, and just an overall lack of positive encouraging words being spoken or read. A personal note thanking someone for who they are and what they mean to your life and business may be the most important words they get all day.

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7 Elements of a Great Buyer Presentation

This week my team and I are re-tooling and developing our buyer presentations. More than ever consumers need a brief and quality presentation on becoming a home owner. In this post I’ve outlined the essential elements of a buyer presentation and the formats your presentation must be in to ensure the highest probability of success.

As you read this list please understand that a buyer presentation is not the same as a pre-qualification phone call or appointment. The presentation comes after you have established the prospect is someone you want to pursue a long-term relationship with.

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