Open Houses

So, this past Sunday afternoon and I held an open house at my charming Fountain Square listing. I was pleasantly surprised with the turnout on that cold, wintry day- unhappy with the fact that it has started to flurry again; I’m definitely ready for spring! Had good traffic through the open house- approx 6 groups of potential buyers through the front door- 1 20-somethings couple relocating from Wisconsin to our beautiful city, 1 group of 4 adults, a Fountain Square neighbor and 1 family of 3, and another group or 2.

It always amazes me the different types of people that appear interested in certain homes. There are the young professionals, the retirees, the first-time homebuyers, the “right-sizers”, those that are fervent about a neighborhood or area, historic home aficionados, and those that are “just looking”. I definitely understand the “just looking” type of people- I’ve been “just looking” at homes since I was about 12 years old. I used to spend Sunday afternoons with my mom “just looking” at homes in my hometown of Goshen, IN. It was a great way to pass the time while Dad was at the golf course! I guess I was destined to get into real estate. I do find open houses a great way to get some candid feedback on a home. And today, the feedback has been relatively positive. The passers-through seem to like the colors, the hardwood floors and décor (which is good as all of these are relatively new), some noted that the fact there was not a garage was a turnoff- and I accept that. There were also comments about how large the home was, the “walk ability” of Fountain Square, and the proximity to Downtown.

 I like open houses for the fact that they are a fairly non-evasive, leisurely way for potential buyers to come through a house. And I HAVE sold listings as a direct result of an open house; in fact I’ve sold 3 that way. As well as I’ve started working with new buyers as a result of an open house. Open houses are also a good way for buyers to “pre-screen” Realtors and find that certain agent that they just click with. As a licensed Realtor, I want to build and maintain and relationship with my clients, that is hard to do if there are no commonalities among the parties. Now, do I expect to become best friends with everyone of my clients- NO, but I do intend to maintain a good working relationship, and continue in a trusted advisor role throughout many years to come. So, if you are thinking about whether or not it is the time to buy, I’d encourage you to start going to open houses in neighborhoods that you are interested in, interview agents to find a good fit, and start talking with a mortgage lender to get preapproved- you never know when the house you walk into might be the ONE! And in case you haven’t heard- it IS a good time to buy!

Expand your Mind

Brian Tracy. Kevin Eikenberry. Tony Scelzo. CJ McClanahan.  Four of the most expressive, forward-thinking minds all together in one place- The Ritz Charles in Carmel, IN.  I must say that I just finished up an extraordinary evening.  An evening that will stick with me for a lifetime- and hopefully made an impact on all of the people in the room.   I’ve had the honor of listening to, being instructed by, and conversating with Tony Scelzo, Kevin Eickenberry and CJ McClanahan; this was the first opportunity I’d had to hear Brian  Tracy speak- and what an opportunity it was. For the last several months I’d heard`Tony speak about Brian Tracy this, and Brian Tracy that- know I have a better understanding of who Brian Tracy is.  Take a high school drop out, little or no chance for advancement, and a drive to get to a better place- and you get a man who has been known for a long while as the formost speaker in the United States, if not the World.  This is someone worth listening to.

Today’s talk was on self-improvement, looking further into your inner self than most people find comfortable, and understanding that most of how you advance is because of WHAT you do, and HOW you do it.  Looking for opportunities to succeed, rather than reasons why something won’t work; investing in yourself, your education, your skills, to get ahead financially, in relationships, in life.

Those that continually educate themselves are proven to steadily increase their income.  Learn more about your current skills, or learn a new skill, and you will be needed and wanted by someone who is willing to pay you for it.  But, you may ask yourself, how do I have time to learn a new skill, to hone my current skills, when all I do is work, work, work?  Well, in steps iLearningGloabal.tv- a state of the art website designed to help you learn, to hone your skills, to expand your mind.  This incredible website delivers high definition, full screen, non-buffered video directly to your computer screen, allowing you to view the best speakers in the world, at the touch of a button.  These videos relate to a wide variety of business strategies, instructed by the people that KNOW business. 

I am confidant that I will learn more through using this website over the next year, than I ever could have hoped to learn from listening to “CD’s on tape”, going to seminars, or reading a book.  The videos are presented in 7 to 12 minute formats that are strong on content, high in motivation and hugely educational.  This website is taking off at phenomenal rate, so great that Brian Tracy has taken on a role as Chief Learning Officer and came to the Indianapolis area to speak to a room of 600 people about how this website can change their lives- by expanding their minds and building wealth.

Whether or not you see the income potential in this product, you are going to find the educational aspects impossible to beat.  So make a decision now to expand your mind and take a look at iLearningGlobal.tv.