judyo's Blog: In The Trenches

If I had all the time in the world I'd have even more blogs and websites than I do now.  I love having different looks, niches and skins/templates.  To me, geek that I am, having a collection of pretty looking websites/blogs is right up there (and may have surpassed) my love for shoes.

So I feel like a giddy kid at Christmas (I'm a cheap date) to find new skins for my Gmail account.  Right now I'm loving the Desk theme and the Teahouse is a pretty color but you can't see any graphics until you scroll all the way down with that one. 

I'm not sure which theme it is, but at least one changes from day to night and asks you where your location is.  I think if it's raining where you are it will rain in your Gmail theme!  Want wet e-mails?

Another favorite…

I'm certainly not as busy as I'd like to be but there was a big lull in my area for awhile.  All of a sudden, a few of my listings were getting a nice amount of showings and one of my Tinley Park homes for sale just got a contract.  That was a nice one since the sellers already purchased a new townhouse and are living apart - one in the townhouse and one in the house (many people don't realize that their Home Owner's insurance probably doesn't cover a vacant property).  This couple isn't taking the chance.

Another thing I noticed is the amount of my VOW sign-ups (VOW requires registration) has gone up recently. In fact, I had an e-mail conversation with an Active Rainer about a new lead generating program he started using called Growth Leader.  He told me…

I'm walking away from more listings lately than ever.  More this year than in all the 25 years I've been in the biz.  And I'll keep doing it when sellers won't face the facts.

I was on a listing appointment for Blue Island real estate last week.  It was a legal 2-flat that looked like a single family residence with a 3 bedroom unit on the main level and a 1 bedroom unit upstairs.  The sellers lived in another home and needed to get one of their properties sold.  They said whichever one sells first means they'll keep and live in the other one.

I explained today's Buyer's Market to them and showed them all of the comparable listings.  However, this was a unique set-up so I got as close to their unit as possible.  They seemed to understand, even though…

Wow!  Talk about the power of the Internet.  You haven't been reading too many blogs or fourms lately if you haven't heard about Marc Rasmussen vs. SAR MLS (Sarasota Multiple Lisitng Service).  To quickly summarize, SAR MLS wants Marc to hand over his long-held domain name, thesarasotamls.com.  You can read the original post that started fellow REALTORS to unite here: Sarasota Multiple Listing Service (SAR MLS).

And let's not forget Marc's new domain name for Sarasota homes for sale.  Marc took down his original domain which caused this brouhaha and simply wants to be able to redirect it to his new domain.  After all, he is the owner of the domain in question.

This has made other real estate agents very mad!

And they've been writing about it.  There…

In the last few years I've been interviewed by several local newspapers for different articles.  It all started when an article regarding a lost domain name was published in the Wall Street Journal.  That was syndicated all over the nation and was picked up by The Chicago Sun Times and the Daily Southtown.  The Daily Southtown even did a second story with a photo!  I was also featured on a local radio station regarding that story.

Once I got that second Daily Southtown article I started getting interviewed for real estate related stories.  I've saved all of the interviews that I found.  The problem is that they don't always tell you when the story will be published.

I was even on television this year (regarding my blogs on hypermiling) on WYCC on a…

There are so many blogs and posts written about the REW conference but I had to add my own story.  I almost didn't go because I was so intimidated by the multiple methods of travel required - all explained at my fear of flying post.

Planes, Taxis, Ferries and Automobiles

I felt like a whiny little baby about my fear of traveling to Nanaimo.  Especially when I heard Michael Brown's story.  He had a longer flight than I did but he also had a 3 1/2 hour drive to the airport first and had to use extended parking.  My airport is less than 15 minutes away.  Boy, we sure take things for granted.

I arrived at Seattle first and waited for Michael.  We told each other what we were wearing although I was sure I'd recognize him from his pics on his website. …

I didn't start flying until I was around 45.  I took my first Valium ever for the flight and couldn't sleep well for weeks prior to the trip.  But it was a trip to Cancun as a Christmas present that I just couldn't turn down.  I am claustrophobic plus I just can't understand how planes can actually fly.  I won't scare myself too much with my other thoughts and feelings about flying so I'll stop here.

On my first flight we sat in the first seats as I thought I'd need the leg room (I'm 5'3" - I guess I thought it would offer a more open feeling although I've never sat there since).  I was eyeing the door and kept telling myself not to bolt.  I took deep breaths and the Valium started kicking in.  It was a very smooth flight with the exception of banging my…

I just gave a referral away that came to my website.  Why?  It was a couple looking for a rental.  There's not much commission money in rentals and I wanted this couple to be taken care of.  But they were looking in an area I don't work in, even though it is in the large MLS I am a member of. 

Sure, I could use the business but I'm sticking to my guns of how much travel time I'm willing to take, especially wth today's gas prices.  And I doubt these renters will find what they want in one trip.  In fact, they only gave me one address to view so I think this is just the beginning of their search.

I get a lot of out-of-area leads from my website, both buyers and sellers.  I've passed some of them on, mostly for a referral fee, but sometimes I just pass on…