Do you remember when a phone call meant that you could get a live person on the other side, or at least a phone tree that has less than 3 branches.   Well, if you have been working in the fast and furious world of "I am an REO agent and I Don't Want You To Call Me" then you know what frustration I am going through.

First off, I am an REO agent, and a Realtor® that works with buyers and sellers in Contra Costa County, California.  We are into customer service and that means answering the phone ourselves.  Yes we might be a species on the brink of extinction but I would rather die with my boots on than with a boot across my neck.  (Not sure who said this but I am sure that it has been said)  Interestingly enough, the REO agents that have been doing this longer than anyone still pick up the phone and call you back, these are the true professionals - you know who you are. 

Instead of flaming these DRE licensed asset managed order takers, who neglect communication with those that have the cooperating buyer, I would prefer to give them some suggestions on ways that they can work with us.

 1. Get out of the business and give up your listings to those of us that care to communicate.  When real estate changes, and it will, you may not have the skills needed to grow with the change.  Quit now!

2. Call Blocking, not the screening kind, necessarily, but have blocks of time that you will call people back, like, 9-10, 12-1, 5-6.  You can be very efficient this way and can still get back to the important calls. Oh, and mention this on your voice-mail.

3. Slydial.  That is www.slydial.com.  This allows you to go directly to anyone's voice-mail to leave a message. You talk, they have to listen - and it's FREE!

4.  Hire more people!  Times are hard, if you are that busy and making money than help the economy out and get people to do the minimum wage things that you're probably doing right now that is keeping you from wooing your asset managers and getting more REO's - Stop being cheep!

5.  Get an ARCH or other 1-800 number system that people can call to get updates on your properties - you can assign an extension to each property and have your new hired help update this daily.

I am sure there are 100 other ways that you can lighten your load and stop shutting out your fellow agents that want to partner with you on closing deals.


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About the Author: Moises Pagan is a Real Estate Consultant (Realtor®) working for Stokley Properties Inc. in Walnut Creek California.  Helping Buyers and Sellers in Contra Costa County.

If you are buying or selling a residential property and would like more information on how I can get you the best deal or best price please call me at 925 285 9290, or email me at moe@contracosta-realestate.com

I present the Greats:

"Hard work alone won't guarantee success, but without hard work, I'll guarantee you won't have success.'' Bruce Pearl, basketball coach

"You can't think and hit at the same time." Yogi Berra (Note from Moises - this one is for all of my "paralysis through analysis" brothers and sisters out there.)

"We were over-whelming underdogs." Yogi Berra

"The other teams could make trouble for us if they win." Yogi Berra

"If you can't imitate him, don't copy him." Yogi Berra

"You can observe a lot by watching." Yogi Berra

"It's not too far, it just seems like it is." Yogi Berra

"You've got to be careful if you don't know where you're going cause you might not get there." Yogi Berra (Note from Moises - 2010 Goals anyone?)

"I skate to where the puck is going to be, not to where the puck is..." Wayne Gretsky, great hockey player when asked how he scores so many goals. (Note from Moises - profound! Did your cheese get moved while you were skating to the puck?)

"Efficiency is doing things right. Effectiveness is doing the right things." Zig Ziglar

"No one plays this or any game perfectly. It is the guy who recovers from his mistakes who wins." Phil Jackson

"A player who makes a team great is better than a great player." John Wooden

"The only discipline that lasts is self-discipline." Bum Philips

"One can define discipline as: Doing what you have to do, doing it as well as you possibly can and doing it that way all the time!" Unknown

"The will to win is important, but the will to prepare is vital." Joe Paterno

"Practice does not make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect." Vince Lombardi

I hope you can find something in here to grab onto and make 2010 the best year ever for your business.

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About the Author:  Moises Pagan is a Real Estate Consultant (Realtor®) in the Walnut Creek California, Contra Costa County area helping Buyers and Sellers in real estate.

If you are buying or selling a residential property and would like more information on how I can get you the best deal or best price please call me at 925 285 9290, or email me at moe@contracosta-realestate.com

Well this is something that us in Contra Costa County get once or twice per year, snow on Mount Diablo.

Taken from Dinosaur Hill Park in Pleasant Hill, California

  Growing up in this area I can remember what a big deal it was when this would happen  My two sisters and older brother would beg my mom to make the drive up to the mountain, about 20 miles from where I lived in Pleasant Hill.  Most of the time, the road on the mountain would be closed - but we didn't care as long as she got us close to the snow.  That was all that mattered. 

We don't see much of the white stuff in the valley at our low elevation so when it would come we would go out of our minds.  Today is such a day and one of the first things that I receive is a text message from my 16 year old daughter, out of her mind, wanting me to take her and her friends to Mt. Diablo.  Oh if I only had moms fire engine red, 1964, Chevy Impala station wagon - it would be just like old times.  Well she is not going to get that ride from me today so I will have to do the next best thing; post some photos that I took today.  Hope this will work...

Taken from the Top of Deer Hill Road, Lafayette, California

Taken from the top of Deer Hill Road , Lafayette, California

Taken from Dinasaur Hill Park in Pleasant Hill, California

Hanging with Rob Mondavi Jr at Pleasant Hill Wine Merchants

We have this fantastic shop in our little town of Pleasant Hill called the Pleasant Hill Wine Merchant.  Chris and Victoria Bankerd, Owners and propriators run this shop with love and care that seems to infect those around them to the point of just wanting to hang out and buy lots of great priced wines.  

Through his connectedness to the wine industry, his father was an executive for none other than Robert Mondavi, he was able to get Michael Mondavi, Robert Mondavi's son, out to the Wine merchants to introduce the new generation of Mondavi wines under the Folio Fine Wine Parnters.  

I missed that event, unfortunately, but got to go to an event that featured wines from the youngest Mondavi winemaker Rob Jr Mondavi and his fabulous wines: Oberon, Emblem, Madusa, Spellbound.  Wow! you have to try these.  Oh yeah, this is one of the perks of living so close to the wine country.

Realtors® drive a lot. In town, on the freeways, expressways, motorway or whatever you may call it.  I am always intrigued by the way people drive in different states, regions, cities, and even some shopping mall parking lots, (I nominate Trader Joe's parking lot in Lafayette, CA. as the most dangerous).

 I live and work in the East Bay, part of the San Francisco Bay Area, and have driven the highways and city-ways for decades so I'm numb to all of the quirks of the road but If this is your 1st time driving in the San Francisco Bay area then strap on you crash helmet, seat belt, update your life insurance policy and lets get ready for some bumper cars!

• Merging onto the Freeway - Get your vehicle up to cruising speed, seventy miles per hour, and hope that the person in the merge lane will budge enough to let you in before running you into the divider.  There is some serious "Me First" going on here.  No cuts! 

• Use of Blinkers - Don't use them and if you must only after you are three quarters done with your lane change.  I am convinced that using a blinker properly is viewed as a sign of weakness in the Bay Area.  If you do use your blinker before changing lanes, the driver in the lane you are moving to will almost invariably speed up and block your lane change.  If they do let you in then they are not from around here. 

• Right of way at a stop sign, please don't expect that to happen.  No one here knows left from right when we get behind the wheel.  Besides, no one really comes to a complete stop anyway.  It's California!

• Tailgating if you are in the fast lane it is an accepted practice.  Don't worry the worst offenders will ride your tail spouting expletives about your whole family and then cut over multiple lanes and take the exit.  Of course this is after you move over a lane to let them get by you.  (See "Use of Blinkers" before you make that lane change). 

• Safe Following distance - forget it.  If you trail the car in front of you at a safe distance with room for two or three cars then, two or three cars will cut in front of you.  If you leave room for one car then one car will cut in front of you.  If you insist on keeping a safe following distance then you may end up back where you started.  (See "Tailgating is an accepted practice")

Of course my wife thinks that all of this is a male-thing.  What do you think?

In 2008 I learned...

Your forehead will callous up if you continue to bang it against the wall

Your car will not run without gas

People leave food at your door when they find out your in Real estate

Friends stop asking, "hows the market",..., they know!

Focus groups pay cash

Top Ramien is not just for college students anymore

Friends, don't let Friends, go into Real Estate

Everyone has a friend who is "upside down" and needs help selling their house - Good luck!

Banks should not be in the real estate business

And Finally...

If you work at something, and never quit, you will make it!

A saying that I have jokingly adopted in life is: "Paying retail is for suckers". 

 I remember running into my Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) contractor at a Target in Walnut Creek, Ca. one night and he asked me how the electrical was coming along for my remodel.  I told him that I am just getting quotes and nothing has been done yet.  Then he gave me this bit of advice that I am going to pass onto you that can save you money almost instantly when you receive a quote from your contractor. 

He said that when the quote is given, no matter what it is, that I should physically and audibly wince, sucking the wind in through my teeth as if I just pricked my finger on a rose bush, and finish with a sigh.  This sound alone can cause a contractor to quickly, and without thinking, drop their price for fear that they may loose the job altogether. 

So I tried it with my electrician when he called me with a quote:.  "That is going to cost $1,650 to get the new service box put in".  I immediately winced and sighed then waited for his response.  "Alright I can do it for $1450!" Bingo! He dropped $200 off the price just like that.  It worked!

The kicker came when my HVAC contractor came to run the ducting work and thermostats for my remodel a few months later and he quoted me a price of $1,150, I signed and winced audibly on the phone, He immediately came back with, "well I can do it for $950".  I started to laugh, and then he realized what just happened.

I have done this with other purchases, much to my wifes embarassment, and sometimes, have gotten up to 20% off the retail price.  Give it a try! 

Do you have any money saving tips that you would like to share?