2013 Commission Plan

Hello all,

"2013 Commission Plan"

It is that time of year that we offer an opportunity to sit down with you to discuss your commission options for 2013. This is also a great time to have a one on one with myself, Mark or your manager to talk about your current business plan and to get some thoughts on how to be better next year. In order to have the opportunity to change plans for next year you need to sit down with Mark or myself, the cut off date for this is 12/21. I hope everyone had a great time over Thanksgiving and we are looking forward to the holiday party on Saturday!

Enjoy the coffee,

Joe

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY: 

"The quality of mercy is not strain'd,
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice bless'd;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes." 
- William Shakespeare

GOBBLE! GOBBLE! 

Remember when you were a teenager leaving the house on a date? Your parents' last words as you went out the door were, "We'll leave the light on for you". Think about that. So what if they did or didn't leave the light on? Their words were really more of a verbal hug. They cared about you - wanted you to know it - and applied the hug with kind words.

This Thanksgiving, why not take the time to "leave the light on" for someone who may not get many hugs? There's still time, and it's easy.

First, learn who needs hugs. Check with your local fire, police, or sheriff's department. Ask whether they know of three or four families or individuals who could use a hug. Ask also whether they would consider delivering your hugs at the appropriate time. Two groups stand out as needy - the elderly and families with small children. Of course, we're talking about individuals who are experiencing difficult circumstances in their lives, be they physical or financial.

Next, consider what type of hugs you have to offer. Perhaps you might prepare three or four Thanksgiving turkeys with all the trimmings. Live in the country where people heat their homes with a wood stove? Deliver firewood. Live in a cold climate? Add some warm socks or a sweater to your dinner box. It's really not that difficult to come up with ideas that would make a difference to your chosen recipients. If you aren't able to provide "things," consider visiting with some nursing home residents. Brighten their day by listening for a while.

It goes without saying that our country is truly blessed. Although practically invisible to most of us, however, there are some individuals who are being challenged. They need a hug, and we can brighten their lives by way of simple gestures. Make a family project out of it - involve your kids. Do it anonymously. Afterwards, when you get home, we'll leave the light on for you!

Happy Thanksgiving

Hello all,

"Happy Thanksgiving"

I wanted to thank everyone again who attended Thankful Tuesday last week. It was a very nice event and thanks also to everyone who helped out! It is going to be a short week in the office, we will be closing Wednesday at Noon and reopening Monday morning. Poor me... I have to fly out Wednesday evening to Boca Raton to attend a field hockey tournament with one of the children until Sunday. I hope you and your families have a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

Cut off date is Tuesday afternoon for our holiday dinner on 12/1. This too will be a very nice event sponsored by Counselors and Hutton & Patt. Please RSVP to me directly.

Germantown office- With the opening of the Aspen Hill office and the expansion in Potomac we have been focusing on getting those spaces looking nice. We are very proud in the way that they have turned out. I will now be turning my attention to the Germantown office to give it a bit of a face lift. Nothing major but we will be moving things around to add a 3rd conference room, pictures, touching up the paint... After that we will be set in all 3 offices and ready to kick some serious real estate ass in 2013!

Enjoy the coffee,

Joe  

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on."

~ Robert Frost 

THE SUN ALSO RISES! 

Have you lost sight of The Big Picture? Has every little detail, every little brush stroke, taken on such importance and worry that you no longer remember what it was that you set out to create?

Here's some news for you - it's going to be okay, even if today's troubles seem overwhelming and insurmountable. Even if you feel that it will be the end of the world if your project goes beyond deadline, if your daughter's costume isn't ready for the school play, if you forgot to call your mother on her birthday. More news for you - the sun will still rise tomorrow. 

And you'll still be here to try to fix anything that seems irreparable today. Everything that life pitches at you is only meant to improve your hitting skills. Three strikes and you're out, but remember that you'll be up to bat again. And your team mates are there to take their best swings, too. Together you may find victory. And if you lose the game today, you're still together to take on the next challenge tomorrow. 

Don't ever lose sight of tomorrow - today and its cares will be over soon enough. No matter how it feels sometimes, there really are only twenty four hours in any given day and they always pass sixty minutes at a time. Time and fear are easily overcome by your faith in the ultimate outcome.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave these words of inspiration - try to follow them: "The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith."

Builders

Hello all,

"Builders"

It is always a good idea to keep an eye on the builders to help us foresee where the market is heading, they have some of the best brains in the business working for them. Below is a graph with the yearly housing starts, note that from 1978-2007 we had some ups & downs but we averaged around 1.5M units per year. In the last three years we have only averaged around 575K units per year, that is 3M units below the average! This year the prediction is for around 875K units and we should be above 1M for 2013. So what can we get from all of this? First is the housing starts are trending back up which means the builders have confidence in the recovering market. Second, over the last three years the population did not stop growing so when we here the term "pent up demand" it is for real. As you all know there has been a severe problem with inventory in are region for some time and it does not look like it is going to get better anytime soon. The good news with that is supply and demand will continue to take over and we will be seeing sustained upwards pricing pressures.

 

2011	430,900	178,300	609,200
2010	471,200	115,700	586,900
2009	445,100	108,900	554,000
2008	622,000	283,500	905,500
2007	1,046,000	309,000	1,355,000
2006	1,465,400	335,500	1,800,900
2005	1,715,800	352,500	2,068,300
2004	1,610,500	345,300	1,955,800
2003	1,499,000	348,700	1,847,700
2002	1,358,600	346,400	1,704,900
2001	1,273,300	329,400	1,602,700
2000	1,230,900	337,800	1,568,700
1999	1,302,400	338,500	1,640,900
1998	1,271,400	345,500	1,616,900
1997	1,133,700	340,300	1,474,000
1996	1,160,900	315,900	1,476,800
1995	1,076,200	277,900	1,354,100
1994	1,198,400	258,600	1,457,000
1993	1,125,700	162,000	1,287,600
1992	1,029,900	169,900	1,199,700
1991	840,400	173,500	1,013,900
1990	894,800	298,000	1,192,700
1989	1,003,300	372,900	1,376,100
1988	1,081,300	406,700	1,488,100
1987	1,146,400	473,800	1,620,500
1986	1,179,400	626,000	1,805,400
1985	1,072,400	669,500	1,741,800
1984	1,084,200	665,300	1,749,500
1983	1,067,600	635,500	1,703,000
1982	662,600	399,700	1,062,200
1981	705,400	378,900	1,084,200
1980	852,200	440,000	1,292,200
1979	1,194,100	551,100	1,745,100
1978	1,433,300	587,100	2,020,300

 

Enjoy the coffee,

Joe

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events that occur."

~ Vince Lombardi

WINNING ISN'T EVERYTHING!

Good old Vince Lombardi - always a great source for motivating words! Success on the football field was the result of the spirit he had and developed within himself, not the other way around! Sometimes we have a tendency to put the cart before the horse, thinking that we become better people through achieving success. What an egocentric and near-sighted notion! We really achieve success by becoming better people!

Achieving your goals is like finally arriving at your destination after a long journey. How many times have you heard that it's not the destination that's so important - it's the steps that you take along the path? It's not so much what you do, but how you do it. Regardless of success or failure, it's your efforts that are remembered and define who you are.

Even the most menial jobs and tasks can be elevated simply by caring enough about doing them well. You can learn to respect any job when it is performed by someone who respects himself. Again, it is not the "events that occur" so much as it is the "will to excel" that impresses us. We shouldn't worry so much about getting a better job so much as simply doing our job better!

It's also that "will to win" that drives us to keep trying, even when we do not achieve our goals. As long as you have that drive and ambition, you WILL succeed! As a matter of fact, you've already succeeded right there. Big or small, you have dreams, you have goals, and you have the spirit and confidence to carry you. Along the way, chances are that you'll also inspire others with the will to succeed. That's what gains the respect of your colleagues. It's not what rung of the ladder you're on, it's that you simply have the will to climb.

Successes can be fleeting, but the will to succeed is timeless. What will you be remembered for?

Agent Services Training

Hello all,

"Agent Services Training"

As our little Brokerage was going through some growing pains we realized that our biggest weakness was getting new agents acclimated to RE/MAX and our systems in a timely manner. We decided we needed to have one person dedicated to helping the agents learn these systems and all of the wonderful things that they can do. We were very fortunate to bring Ella Ladas in as our "Agent Services Coordinator" about three months ago. Since then Ella has been working very hard to come up to speed on the systems and we are ready to let her loose on you all! The ultimate goal is that Ella will be helping the new agents as they come in but she needs to spend some time with the current agents in bulk trainings to catch you up. The first 2 trainings will be on Leadstreet (New version coming out 12/1) and Wolfconnect which is our backend operating system. Attached is a flyer for the trainings, we will add more trainings as needed and as we roll additional items out. I strongly encourage everyone to participate and you can attend no matter which office they are in. Ella will be our go to resource for our systems moving forward so please utilize her knowledge.

Enjoy the coffee,

Joe 

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY: 

"You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late." 

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson 

MAKE A WISH!

Remember when, as a kid, you took the wishbone from the Thanksgiving turkey, set it aside, and let it dry for several days? You probably argued with brothers or sisters about who would get to make the wish. Then, finally, you took one end, made your wish, got the bigger piece and . . . nothing happened.

On a recent news interview, someone made the statement that "Hope is not a method." Neither is wishing. On a cold autumn day, you can hope or wish you were warm all day long, but until you turn up the thermostat or build a fire, nothing will change. Action always produces results.

So we just “gave thanks” last week for all our blessings. Chances are good that what you call "blessings" did not occur as a result of wishes and hopes. You probably reached out and worked hard - you took action - to allow them to come into your life. If you did - good for you.

Not everyone can do that. Unfortunately, a great percentage of the population lives only on hope and wishes. They just do not have the ability to comprehend the concept of cause and effect. Nor do they possess the motivation or skills to act on their circumstances. The result? Their blessings are fewer than most.

Since you are blessed with the ability to make things happen, why not reach out this holiday season to those who aren't. Don't expect anything in return, and whatever you do - do it anonymously. You'll be twice blessed!