Outer Banks Real Estate: September 2011

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder ..... home value is too - -- see for yourself ...

Your House As Seen By:

Yourself...

Your Buyer...

Your Lender...

Your Appraiser..

And....

Your County Tax Assessor...

I'm not sure where this came from, but it sure is funny and true!

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Best Buys on the Outer Banks!!!

To see each listing, simply click the MLS number and it will take you directly to the property information!
Don't forget to bookmark this blog, rss feed, like my Facebook page or ask to join my special email list to be the first to receive the best deals in the area!

Great deals don't last long, so don't miss out!!

Contact me today for more information on these great deals for for your private showing!

MLS#71893 - $499,000 for this 6 BR, Whalehead home with a pool!

MLS#71865 - Oceanfront Condo in Duck for only $260,000

MLS#71930 - (no photo yet) Bank owned Semi Oceanfront rental home with pool, elevator and 8% return for $639,000!

MLS#71880 - Cute 3 BR year round home in Kill Devil Hills for only $214,000

MLS#71915 - 2 acres, remodeled home and furnished on Woods Road in Kitty Hawk for only $299,000!

MLS#71848 - Bank Owned 4 bedroom home in Martin's Point for $378,900

Thursday, September 22, 2011

New List!! 1232 S. Memorial Ave, Kill Devil Hills, NC

Monday, September 19, 2011

How to make the most of the remaining 100 or so days of 2011!

The end of the year is approaching. Here is a list of 22 items that can help you knock it out of the park for 2011. It’s ok if you don’t agree with all of the ideas on this list.

We have to raise our level of enthusiasm to a minimum of 8 every single day! Not just the days you feel like it. It becomes infectious. Be excited about the next 100 days!

Keep your goals and the rewards of your goals posted in front of you at all times. Set some short term/end of the year goals.

Start everyday by reviewing your schedule and goals before you do anything else. This will help you stay focused.

Forget the first 3 quarters. It’s already done and holding on to what you didn’t do will only drag you down. Unless they are positive or strong. It puts self imposed limits on us.

Allow yourself the luxury of doing more business in one month than we ever thought was possible. Believe this is possible!

Take the best month of your career in terms of production and make it the minimum standard for the remaining 3 months.

Get at least 2 committed accountability partners immediately.

Remind yourself daily that market conditions have no effect on you.

Go back and review your notes from the training we’ve had this year. It’s good stuff and it works. There’s never a reason for us to suggest something that won’t benefit your life.

Put all of your leads on one sheet of paper and identify what quality they are. How many do you need to replace right now? Do the same thing with your listing inventory.

Commit 100% to becoming more coachable, NOW! Not when you feel like it. When you get good advice and don’t use it you are gaining nothing. If we spent the whole time talking about the importance of developing the skills of a coachable person, it won’t be enough.

Once a month do the following:

Have an “Expired Day”

Have a “FSBO Day"

Have a “Price Reduction Day”

Have an “Ultimate Prospecting Challenge Day”

If you went on 5 to 10 appointments in one month would you get better at presenting?

Accept the fact that making a lot of money means you are going to be doing things that make you uncomfortable. There is always a price to pay. You’ll eventually get over it and the money will be nice!

Work every day on mastering the basics

Prospect every day

Effective lead follow up daily

Effective presentations daily

Using Market Stats

Know, understand and use question based scripts everyday! Questions help you stay focused on the client and not on you. Use them every day.

Keep track of your numbers so you can duplicate what you did in the first quarter of 2012 and not lose momentum.

Understand that most of what we do is a 90 day cycle. To break the habits we have for next year, we have to start today!

Work on perfecting a well defined work schedule. A schedule that makes sense and that you can follow each day.

Delegating to staff, vendors, etc. Who are you going to delegate to? Our job is to produce income not to take care of it. It gives us freedom to do what needs to be done.

Daily refining of the prospecting skills. We have to perfect the skill that got us where we are.

Simplify your lead follow up. What’s the script? How much business are you losing by not doing this well?

Maximize your personal development this year. Over expose your brain. Burn yourself out on learning.

Read more great books. Don’t read to go to sleep, read to get alive

Only listen to things motivational or inspirational in the car.

Hang around with people doing more than you and talk to them about your goals and objectives

Expose your brain to things outside what is normal. Practice thinking bigger. Allow yourself to visualize what it would be like to be a millionaire.

Fantastic New Price!!! 161 Yaupon Trail, Southern Shores, NC

Was $599,000 NOW $559,000!!

Best Buys on the Outer Banks!!!

Great deals don't last long, so don't miss out!!

Contact me today for more information on these great deals for for your private showing!

MLS#71796 – Short beach access for this 4 BR in Ocean Sands. $309,000

MLS#69014 – Great Investment Home in Whalehead. $599,000

MLS#66404 – Soundfront homesite in Monteray Shores for only $395,000!

MLS#65821 – Soundfront home in Duck with a private pool for $569,000!

MLS#67456 – Custom built home in waterfront gated community. $309,000

MLS#56039 – 2.3 acres and a custom built home in Kitty Hawk for $350,000!

Thursday, September 15, 2011

New YouTube Video! 1706 Memorial Avenue, Kill Devil Hills, NC

Today's Market and a very special Four Letter Word!

To survive the economic conditions and climate we’re facing in the real estate industry we have to embrace one very special four letter word. The word is “MORE.” This word seems simple enough, yet it will have different definitions for many of us in the business. Your definition of more will be dependent upon what you’re currently putting in now.

You see, this is a more market. More hours, more contacts, more work, more energy, more enthusiasm, more everything because the market demands more. If you’re not exactly where you want to be for the year, where do you need to apply MORE? Take a few minutes this afternoon and really look at this question. If you put in MORE _________ would you get the result you need? What’s your blank?

The old adage, “work smarter, not harder” is being challenged in a market like this. Because of the unusual circumstances it’s really important to apply both smarter and harder in your business today. Hence, needing MORE once again! More smarts, more ideas and more techniques would all fall under working smarter. At the same time, more conversations, more appointments, more price reductions would fall under working harder.

When I look around at the agents who are succeeding in spite of the market conditions, I recognize quickly they have embraced this concept. Yet, those who didn’t get it are still working more…more part time job hours, more desperate, more overpriced listings, more time spent with unqualified buyers.

Now, since you’ll find yourself in the “MORE” anyway, which outcome do you prefer? More real estate business or more movement away from your goals?

Monday, September 12, 2011

149 Plover Drive, Duck NC

Best Business Practice - Brilliant at the Basics!

One of the best football coaches of all time was Vince Lombardi. He was famous for many things. One I remember most is the story of how he took the Championship team on the first day of the next year’s practice and held in his hand a football. He looked at them very seriously and said… “This, is a football.” His winning philosophy was to become BRILLIANT AT THE BASICS!

This idea has worked very well for me. I’m a true believer in the fact that there are many different methods to generate leads and make money in this business. If you work something smart and hard enough, it will work to some level. There are agents who generate all of their business from open house, website, past client referrals, farming neighborhoods, social media and many others.

That’s really what this blogging contest is about. What works for you and what tricks you can share to help others. For me, there are no tricks. I’m very traditional in my business approach. My secret is really no secret at all. It consists of 5 simple BASICS of selling. (Yes, that’s right, I’m a salesperson!)

Show up! Physically, mentally and emotionally. It’s show-time…leave everything else behind

Ask more questions and make less statements. Generally speaking, prospects don’t care about you and what you’ve done…they care about themselves and what you can do for them. You can’t find out THEIR needs when you’re constantly running your trap!

Be excellent at lead follow up. Regardless of HOW you generate the lead…following up will actually get you 75% to 80% of your appointments.

Ask people to do business with you. There’s nothing pushy or wrong with closing. If they need and want your service, they’ll be pleased to say yes!

Know your market statistics. There is no greater asset in your business than knowing what the trends are and how they will affect your client’s position. You cannot properly advise anyone without this information. Study the numbers and you’ll always be able to find good news to spread.

It’s fun to have trick plays and fancy moves. However, they don’t always work. If you stick to the basics of being a good salesperson, you’ll win way more than you lose..and so will your clients!

Best Buys on the Outer Banks!!!

Here are this week's SIX best deals on the Outer Banks!!

Great deals don't last long, so don't miss out!!

Contact me today for more information on these great deals for for your private showing!

MLS#71769 – Ocean Sands Beach Box for only $299,000!

MLS#71778 – 9% return on this Whalehead Semi-Oceanfront. $959,000

MLS#71780 – 3^rd row home with 2400 sqft in Kill Devil Hills for only $319,000!

MLS#71761 – Designer’s home in Seascape golf course with 3100 sq.ft. for $434,900

MLS#69541 – Great price on this 4 bedroom Oceanside home in Duck! $399,000

MLS#70874 – Check out this re-done beach box in Nags Head for only $225,000!

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Best Business Practices - Two Simple Words!

Don’t you just love opportunities to learn something about yourself and Messy office

your business? During Hurricane Irene, my office in Duck was flooded. As we speak it is completely torn apart and being put back together. So, what does that mean for my business over the next month? The office is CLOSED for re-construction.

Well, I have two choices. Keep going or stop. It’s that simple. I can’t afford to stop so I have to improvise. Well, there’s one decision out of the way.

Decision two…move upstairs to work or work from home. That’s a no brainer. I know what I’ll do if I go home…NOTHING. So I decided to move my operation upstairs. Sounds easy right? NOT! It’s very distracting working in clutter with heavy machinery and power tools around. Not to mention the 85+ degree heat with no A/C, just hoping for a cool breeze off the sound through the open windows with no screens! I’ve had plenty of visitors, but last I checked bugs don’t buy houses.

However, I’m at work! So my best business practice is simply SHOW UP! Yesterday I was determined to come in and make some calls and sure enough, I set a listing appointment for Friday. You can see the photos of the mess I’m working around. So what? It’s a great time to buy, there are a lot of great deals on the Outer Banks right now and I’M HERE! Ready to go!

I’ve learned it’s not your location, or your surroundings, or your circumstances. Those are just excuses for not getting started. SHOW UP and make something happen. If you walk into your day with that attitude, the rest will work itself out and you’ll find success more often than not.