As American Idol starts to wind down with only 4 contestants left, it is getting much harder to watch. I am an American Idol junkie and a secret shower singer. My husband is astounded at my inability to carry a tune or pick out the beat. He was a drummer and this is close to a cardinal sin to him. Luckily he overlooks it and recognizes my other talents and charms.

The reason I find it hard to watch is because some of these talented singers may lose faith in continuing to pursue their dreams. Some may think the hard part is reaching for your dreams but I think the hard part is letting yourself dream. Mary Tyler Moore once said “having a dream is what keeps you alive”. Isn’t that the truth? A dream causes us to set goals and make plans. It motivates us, keeps us focused, and challenges us. A dream allows us to be bold enough to let go of our fears and insecurities and to believe that we have what it takes to be something, do something, have something.

If we fail to dream, we think we will never fail. Isn’t failing really opportunities? The opportunity to be creative, to look at new possibilities, and to take turns on a road that we may not have thought possible. Just like the incredibly talented contestants on American Idol, many people who had a dream of homeownership may have given up. How many people are afraid now to dream of owning a home? Yes, the economy is not positive. Yes, it is getting tougher to qualify for a loan. Yes, the media seems to focus on the number of consumers losing their homes. But you can change that. Don’t let consumers give up or fail to dream. Through your experience and knowledge as a REALTOR, you can help the dreams stay alive. How? Continue to educate yourself. No, don’t just continue, step it up! Now is the time to challenge yourself. Attend classes that teach you about market conditions, new lending products, new practices, laws, and regulations. But don’t just take what is convenient or free. Don’t cheat yourself or take the easy road.

The American Idol contestants have trusted advisors, and so do you. Your REALTOR associations (national, state and local) are your coaches/advisors. We are here to give you the best and highest quality programs possible. Programs that focus on today’s issues and today’s practices, using experienced instructors who have a proven track record in “educating”. Your REALTOR associations are vigilant watch dogs on the industry, and we have dedicated ourselves to be a partner in your career. We are your biggest champions and want you to succeed! Take your career seriously…spend your money and time wisely…choose your education opportunities carefully and wisely. Choose REALTOR education programs. Keep the dream of homeownership alive! As I end this post I’d like to share a poem that Jim Hogan handed out at our recent Instructor Development Workshop, author unknown…

“I am Real Estate”
I am the basis of all wealth
The heritage of the wise, the thrifty and the prudent
I am the poor man’s joy and comfort
The rich man’s prize
The right hand of capital
The silent partner of many thousands of successful men
I am the solace of the widow
The comfort of old age
The cornerstone of security against misfortune and want
I am handed down to children
Through countless generations
As a thing of greatest worth
I am the choicest fruit of toil
Credit respects me
Yet I am humble
I stand before every man bidding him to know me for what I am and possess me
I grow and increase in value
Through countless days
Though I may seem dormant
My worth increases, never failing, never ceasing
Time is my aid
And population heaps my gain
Fire and the elements I defy
For they cannot destroy me
My possessors learn to believe in me
Invariably they become envied
While all things wither and decay
I survive
The centuries find me younger
Increasing in strength
The thriftless speak ill of me
The charlatans of finance attack me
I am trustworthy
I am sound
Unfailing I triumph
And detractors are disproved
Minerals and oils come from me
I am solid
I am producer of food
The basis for ships and factories
And the foundation of banks
Yet I am so common
That thousands unknowingly and unthinkingly
Pass me by every day
I am your future
I am real estate

Sweet dreams!

First, I will admit broccoli is not my idea of a good time.  Mixed with other stuff a la fettuccine Alfredo or in stir fry, now we are talking.  But broccoli on its own – steamed or (eek! even worse)  raw?  Yeah, I’ll pass.   As kids, we tried to feed it to the dog or hide it in our milk (which I don’t recommend, by the way).  Once you become the adult or parent, now you are begging to get the kids to eat their veggies or at least you know you should be yourself.  That whole healthy thing we are supposed to do as we get older and cannot survive on mac ‘n’ cheese & Pop Tarts alone.

This is a business blog – what’s up? We really don’t care about your eating habits. Well, let’s talk about the broccoli in your business. We all have it.  The broccoli are those things we should be doing each day in our business.  It makes it healthy, grow stronger and not die of malnutrition.  Oh, I agree, I like my share of Pop Tarts, but it only lasts so long.

So let’s talk about the broccoli. What is that thing each morning when you go to the office & start your day you drag your feet on?  So much so that you will do anything, including unloading the dishwasher in the kitchen, to avoid picking up the phone and calling a client. Reaching out to that next client who may need you? Finding that next client who may need you? Calling a client that already needs you but their personality is a bit like eating raw broccoli every time you talk to them – a little tough & bitter?  What’s great about all these people, they still need you. 

We are at a time in our industry where consumers need professionals more than ever.  As professionals we are asked to know more, monitor more and reach out in more ways than we ever have.  Have you reached your client via text today? Facebook? Twitter? Did you knock on their door? Yeah, I said it…did you go see that client in person?

It’s easy to hide behind the screen of our laptop or smartphone; believe me, I am a culprit. Send a text rather than call the client directly. One of the best things I ever heard at a technology class was: “Know when to take online – off line.”  So subtle, so easy, so…. broccoli.  Reaching our clients, picking up that phone, makes a huge difference.  I have sat in an office with very talented agents who spent their days looking very busy shuffling papers, checking email, and didn’t understand why their business atrophied and died.

The biggest impact you will ever have in your business is to remember it’s about people. How we relate to them & have that personal connection.  You are assisting people with not only the largest single purchase they may ever make but also one of the most personal.  I can’t tweet that in 140 characters or less.  The smiley face doesn’t do it justice.

You absolutely can develop relationships online, get your foot in the proverbial online door. There are thousands of agents who have mastered this.  But what I love about working with these agents is they are extremely personal, approachable & are never afraid to eat their broccoli first.  They are quickly becoming the leaders in our business, the influencers & difference makers.

Today, I personally was reminded, if I started my day off first by eating my broccoli…the day got a whole lot sweeter. The afternoon was dessert.

Kathy, Ricardo Bueno (@Ribeezie) of Diverse Solutions and ARMLS mime

Most things in life can be a headline to a writer.

The whole article is another story…

Thursday, April 8th, a fellow ARMLS member and I attended the ARMLS TECHNOPALOOZA in Mesa, AZ. Yvonne Richard and I drive down from Sedona often for classes and refer to these treks as “road trips”…a time to gossip, catch up on real estate, talk golf (need to play more) and share stories. Girls will be girls!

On the way down to Mesa, Yvonne made the statement that “every transaction has its story.” True. Could make a great post…h-m-m.

On the way back to Sedona, it was “What were you thinking?!”

We were so energized by TECHNOPALOOZA that we laughed almost all the way home. Much of the time we chuckled at the comments we heard during the sessions.

Exhibit Hall at TECHNOPALOOZA

Got stories? Let me hear some of them. Please share. Short stories…

From an educator’s perspective, we hear many things that give us pause. Just a few recent ones…

What were you thinking?

From an agency C/E class:

The discussion had been on the difference between dual agency in Arizona and designated agency in other states.

“Questions?”

Student in the front row: “When are we going to cover the other kind of dual agency?”

[Ed. Note: Student had a PhD.]

From a technology class:

The discussion and demonstration showed learners how to use their tablet PCs to get signatures and initials on the loaded purchase contract by using the stylus and having the buyer write their signature and initials directly on the tablet face. Demo done.

“Questions?”

Student near the front: “Is that signature legal?”

[Ed. Note: Ever signed for a UPS package delivered to your home?]

From a disclosure class:

The discussion centered on whether or not a seller needed to disclose the results from a recent home inspection report whereby significant latent defects were discovered.

“What do you think?”

Learner in the rear: “That information is confidential and one of the fiduciary duties you owe your seller.”

[Ed. Note: Back to the drawing board…]

From a prelicensure class:

The learner had taken the quiz at the end of the session, and we were reviewing the answers. A question on stigmatized properties asked if the seller had to disclose the fact that the house next door had been used as a “drop house” for illegal aliens.

Student comment: “I suppose if the seller’s house had been the ‘drop house,’ the answer would be ‘no!’”

[Ed. Note: And your answer would be?]

That’s all for now, people…

Kathy Howe

The third annual Phoenix Real Estate BarCamp will be held on April 8th, 2011 at Scottsdale Stadium from 8:30am – 4:30pm. RE BarCamp is a FREE event to attend and is put on by some amazing sponsors.

Yes, BarCamp is an unusual name for a conference, and no, it isn’t held at a bar (although we will have pre- and post- “networking events” for your enjoyment). BarCamp is an un-conference, a place where the agenda is set by the attendees. In the past, the sessions were typically centered around technology, social networks and the like. While there will still be a LOT of great information about technology and how it can help our business, we want to bring real estate back to the center of discussions. For instance, we hope for people to share information about short sales, MARS, prospecting, etc., etc.

Yes, it’s true, the most awesome real estate learning and networking event of the year is FREE to attend. Heck, even the lunch is FREE. All we ask is that you consider bringing a canned food (or small monetary) donation for the Desert Mission Food Bank and that you come to participate. This RE BarCamp WILL involve a LOT of open discussions.

With the great support of real estate professionals and amazing sponsors like AAR, SAAR, PAR, SEVRAR, WMAR and ARMLS, as well as some of our title partners, leading real estate brokerages and more, RE BarCamp is truly a special event.

Having an event like this in a baseball stadium is a great way to have some fun while learning and sharing information in a way most people are not used to. Making classrooms out of a press box or a clubhouse is pretty darn cool. This year, we have upped our game to add more space to the rooms to accommodate everyone. Remember, come hungry for knowledge and willing to share your expertise with others.

Please be sure to RSVP for BarCamp and join us April 8th at Scottsdale Stadium!

Complete information can be found on the RE BarCamp website at http://rebarcamp.com/phoenix/. Random thoughts and information can also be found on Twitter at @REBCPHX.

If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment below or contact me directly. I’m pretty easy to find.

Scottsdale Stadium 7408 E. Osborn Road (Northeast of Osborn and Drinkwater) Scottsdale, AZ 85251 (map)

AAR now offers unlimited zipLogix Digital Ink™ electronic signatures to AAR members included in your membership dues.

zipLogix® Digital Ink™ is a digital signature solution for signing transactional documents within zipForm® 6.

Digital signatures improve your efficiency while reducing costs, saving time, eliminating delays, and better serving customers. They facilitate quick, easy interaction between REALTOR® and client, and encourage a paperless transaction. Digital signatures revolutionize the customer experience and offer your customer a truly paperless electronic process that can be trusted. Instantly e-mail real estate forms requiring signatures and eliminate the cost and time expense of printing, faxing, or cross-town meetings to get paper copies signed.

Start planning for a more efficient 2011 by trying your zipLogix® Digital Ink™ member benefit today.

Sign up today for one of the online training webinars:

Friday, 3/11     2:00PM – 3:00PM
Tuesday, 3/15     1:00PM – 2:00PM
Thursday, 3/17     1:00PM – 2:00PM
Wednesday, 3/23     1:00PM – 2:00PM
Friday, 3/25     10:00AM – 11:00AM
Monday, 3/28     3:00PM – 4:00PM
Thursday, 3/31     12:00PM – 1:00PM

Digital Ink Support:

Direct: (480)304-8930
Toll Free: (866)833-7357
Email: support@aaronline.com

Sean Wohland at First Arizona Title emailed some really helpful links to the pending contract revisions.  I’d reviewed the new contract, but his links led me to two versions of the new contract I hadn’t seen. One showed the language that was added in yellow highlight, and the other showed the wording that was deleted from our current version of the residential resale contract. 

I’m getting invitations to contract training classes on a daily basis, but until I attend a class, I’ve used these two edited copies of the contract to get up to speed quickly. AAR posted these links on their Overview of 2011 Form Changes info page, but somehow I’d overlooked them.

Sample Contract – with Additions Highlighted in Yellow

Sample Contract – with Deletions Noted in Red

Hopefully, you’ll find these two documents as helpful as I did. 

A sample version of the new and improved contract is here: Residential Resale Real Estate Purchase Contract

P.S. Thanks to all those who donated their time, energy, expertise and experience in updating the contract.

Image courtesy of Flickr user Eusebius@Commons

So you’ve earned that real estate license and are in business for yourself. You told your friends and family that you were going to get your license and, amazingly enough, they waited for you and have decided to use you rather than one of the other dozen agents they know. In no time flat, you’ve got a deal in escrow, and all seems well in the universe.

And here’s the point where it’s easiest to lose track of the second part of a real estate professional’s two-pronged job description.

Recently, Rob Hahn (aka the Notorious R.O.B.) asked what a real estate agent’s job should be and even included the definition as provided by Wikipedia, the world’s most reliable almost-reliable source. To paraphrase, a real estate agent’s job was defined as providing the best possible service to his or her clients, whether buyers or sellers.

Pushed aside to some degree was the idea of lead generation, which, truthfully, is the more important part of a real estate agent’s job if they consider themselves to be business owners and are seeking some sustainability.

Whether you knock on doors a la Tom Hopkins or spend your days writing cards and popping by as Brian Buffini tells us, without lead generation your business is not sustainable. Low-hanging fruit only lasts so long; as Adam and Eve discovered, once that fruit has been tasted you soon find yourself in the wilderness trying to survive.

Inevitably, though, lead generation takes a back seat whenever we, as agents, get busy. All it takes is one or two escrows, and the day soon is spent scheduling and attending inspections, visiting title, calling lenders and otherwise managing the transactions using the time that otherwise would be allocated toward following up with potential clients. It’s this tendency toward forgetting the lifeblood of the business, lead generation, that causes agents’ monthly production to whipsaw from feast to famine.

By defining your job as lead generation, or at least recognizing lead generation as the more important portion of a two-part job description, it’s much easier not to lose focus on what will keep you in business beyond the current deal.

Success is not an accident. It takes work. Take low-hanging fruit when you can, but realize someone else put in a lot of work from planting the seed to watering and cultivating the tree from which that fruit came.

I recently read that teaching institutions are training teachers to be the “guide on the side” rather than the “sage on the stage.” “Guide on the side” instruction facilitates active learning–engagement of the learner as an active participant in the learning process. Providing meaning and purpose for learning is a strong component of this teaching philosophy. Too often, instructors just deliver information, and although the information is current and pertains to the industry, it fails to connect the dots for the students.

When I think back to the education classes that have been the most beneficial to me, I realize they fit the “guide on the side” model. When was the last time you left a real estate education class and said to yourself, “Wow! That was the best class I have attended”? When was the last time you left knowing what to change in your business to apply the information you learned?

I’d love to hear your thoughts about Arizona continuing education classes you’ve attended.  How many classes have you attended that had a “guide on the side?”

Image courtesy of Flickr user extravigator

I waited with excited anticipation to visit a new restaurant in town. You know the one—the restaurant that everyone was talking about, but that’s a little pricey. One by one, I listened to colleagues make plans to go to dinner at the restaurant. I could actually taste the entrees in my head as they described the menu. I daydreamed about my trip to the restaurant. When would it be? What would I wear? (My husband has gotten used to the notion that dining out for me is always a great opportunity to dress up.) What would I eat?

Finally it was my turn. My husband announced that he had organized an evening with friends and made reservations at the restaurant. I knew I was in for a fine dining experience. I already knew what I was going to order. My expectations swelled as we were seated – the ambiance alone was a prelude of what was to come.

As we began the second course, the unthinkable happened. Our friend summoned the waiter and proceeded to complain about his dish. My heart sank, color drained from my face, I couldn’t breathe. How could he complain about his mashed potatoes and insist his dish be taken back to the kitchen? I was so embarrassed.

But then I realized the value he brought to this establishment. After all, he had expectations, and they were not met. He was providing an opportunity to raise the quality and standards for the restaurant. What was wrong with expressing his honest opinion?

The fact is, nothing was wrong with it, and we all should be comfortable and open with providing honest feedback when we have an experience that does not meet our expectations. I then realized that can relate to real estate education.

How many times do you leave a class disappointed? How many classes do you attend only because you need to renew your license and have no expectation of learning? In fact, how many classes do you attend with the silent hope that you will get through class without napping?

When it came time to fill out the class and instructor evaluation, you probably quickly checked off excellent or good. After all, you really weren’t there to learn or fine-tune a skill set based on previous classes you have attended during your career in real estate. What was the point?

The point is, we can only elevate real estate education if we all do our part. A real estate school should offer classes that are relevant, up-to-date and appropriate to your experience and skill level. A real estate school should hire instructors who have the necessary skills to stimulate your desire to learn, engage you during the class and teach relevant material. The instructor should have a mastery of adult learning principles and curriculum design skills.

In the book “Telling Ain’t Training,” four key principles of adult instruction are summarized as:

• Readiness: Training must clearly address learners’ needs so that they will be ready to learn.
• Experience: Training must respect and build on the life experience learners bring to the learning session.
• Autonomy: Training must invite learners to participate in shaping the direction, content and activities of the learning experience.
• Action: The connection between the training and the application of what is learned must be clear.

When was the last time you were in a class with an instructor who involved the learners in the learning process through planned activities? Used a variety of teaching methods? Taught to all participants, not just those who showed interest? Presented key points by using examples as illustrations?

When was the last time you attended a class that you knew exactly what the learning objectives of the course were? When you left the class feeling you learned something that you could apply to your business, that would enhance your skills, that would help manage your risk?

Before you attend another class, take a few minutes to identify what you want to learn and find the class that will deliver. You have an opportunity to elevate the standards of real estate education in Arizona. You have the right to demand relevant content and delivery that stimulates your interest. You have a duty to yourself to attend classes that meet your expectations and that you freely want to attend because you see the value in the class. And you have an obligation to provide honest feedback to the instructor and school whether the class falls short or exceeds your expectations.

In the coming months, I will be telling you more about AAR’s new Course Certification program, which is designed to raise the real estate education standards for real estate professionals in Arizona.

In the meantime, don’t be afraid to send the dish back to the kitchen.