Allen's Blog

In my previous blog I discussed FOCUS http://activerain.com/blogsview/338656/What-is-FOCUS Now I would like to define and discuss CLARITY.The difference between the two can be seen in these two statementsFOCUS - "I need to make X number of dollars." CLARITY "And to make this I will need to close ...

What is Focus?  By definition "focus" is to center your attention on a problem. event, situation or action.  In real estate focus should be the goal of our efforts.  What do we need to make from our real estate business in order to pay all our expenses and have enough left over to pay ourselves a...

Last week the Wall Street Journal did a series of articles on OIL ... one that I found very interesting was the consumption of oil on a per capita basis.  Here are the stats:First Place: Saudi Arabia with 32.88 barrels per personSecond Place US with 25.64 barrels per personThird Place Canada with...

OK ... the end is not near, but from an economic approach the rise in CPI (Consumer Price Index) last month and the rise in unemployment released today which hit the 5.0% level (still very low compared to other industrialized countries) these are signs of a slowing economy.Why?  A rise in prices ...

It is the end of the year, here are some FREE ideas to help get you going in 20081) Send out HUD-Statements to all the deals you were involved with ... with a letter saying, "Here are your closing statements for your taxes."  You may even consider sending these statements to the other party invol...

This is not about the horrific job of moving your office, but about the steps you should take when selecting a brokerage to associate with.  It has been my experience that you can tell a lot about the agents in an office based solely on the Employing Broker.  But here are a few thoughts about sel...

Having just read a preliminary copy of the 2008 Swanepoel Trends Report a section really caught my attention.  The section was on the Titans of the real estate industry and what they have done over the last year.  Interestingly enough when you look at all the names on the list you wonder how so m...

Well if Location, Location, Location are the words to live by in real estate than Fees, Fees, Fees are the driving force behind decisions made on many of the SIV (Special Investment Vehicles) messes we read about everyday.  A typical fee is 1-1.5% of the total underwriting (billions have been und...

Many things shape the area that you live and or farm.  Without a doubt the biggest can be the HOA that governs your neighborhood.  Recently I just encountered another HOA problem that is making life for some of the owners a terrible experience.  I have just heard of an HOA limiting the number of ...

An odd title to an odder investment vehicle.  Norma CDO I Ltd. is the full name, but it goes by NORMA and is a new breed of investments that was created at the end of the housing boom.  This tool is an example of how Wall Street took a good idea too far and it blew-up in their face.  Norma took t...