VanEd Newslog

Affiliate Spotlight: $2 Million in Commissions Paid and Growing!

Entrust New Direction reports that over $2 Million in commissions have been paid to real estate professionals who know about self-directed retirement plans have been brokering deals involving IRAs purchasing or selling real estate for their clients. Entrust New Direction has overseen over 900 real estate transactions for clients. Self-directed plan administrators like Entrust New Direction are not allowed to give investment advice, make recommendations, or sell any products.

“Being a marketing person, our limitations put me in an awkward spot at times. Potential clients call, are excited, and want to know how to find that first piece of real estate for their IRA. I can’t help them with that. That’s why we spend so much time building relationships with professionals who can,” offers Marketing Coordinator, Amy Sheflin.

“The key for professionals is just letting clients know that they can make these investments and then following up with listings of available investment properties. Knowing how to analyze the investments for the client’s retirement plan is key. This education can be a cornerstone to building sales and catering to investor clients.”

Many professionals are just starting to realize what this growing market of investors could mean for their business. Entrust New Direction continues to try to reach these professionals through continuing education and other events in the metro area and teach them how to use the tool to build sales. Entrust offers education both online and in their on-site classroom and has several events planned for this fall. For a full list of upcoming events, visit www.NewDirectionIRA.com.

Agents and brokers can take the MRE approved course online through Van Education - register online at http://www.vaned.com. Entrust New Direction will also be the featured course author in VanEd's booth at the Colorado Association of Realtors convention in Colorado Springs from 11:30am - 2:00pm at the Broadmoor on Monday, October 19^th. Stop by the VanEd booth to say hello!

Two follow-up classes are planned after this event and qualify for 2 hours of Continuing Education credit. The Introduction to the Real Estate IRA offers an overview of how it all works and how professionals can incorporate self-directed investment tools into their business to help sell properties. It will be offered on October 28^th from 8:30am – 10:30am and again on November 12^th again from 8:30am – 10:30am. Both classes will be held in Entrust New Direction’s classroom, registration is available online by clicking here.

Guest Authors Bill Humphrey and Catherine Wynne are Principals with Entrust New Direction IRA. Reach them online at www.newdirectionira.com.

Q&A with Jennifer Allan - Do I really have to do an open house?

We asked author Jennifer Allan to answer questions based on her teaching and experience in the real estate industry. Jennifer is also a regular contributor to Realty Times and RE/MAX Times.

Question: "Everyone knows that open houses aren't likely to sell the house. Do I really have to do one?"

JA: I think so, sorry. For many reasons, not the least of which is that your seller expects you to and any attempt you make to talk him out of it will make you appear, um, lazy. Even if the seller agrees to your face that open houses are a waste of time, inside he's wondering if you're really as committed to getting his house sold as you say you are. Open houses are one of the most visible things we do as real estate agents and a very easy way to keep a seller happy. Conversely, refusing to do one is a very easy way to make a seller UNhappy!

Here are three other reasons to hold your listing open, at least once:

1. You can gather feedback from the public to share with your seller,
2. You'll become more familiar with your listing and might notice features (or challenges) you didn't see before,
3. You might sell the house. You never know - but it's not as if you holding an open house will HURT your chances of getting it sold!

So, yeah, I think you oughta do it. What's the worst thing that could happen?

Jennifer will be presenting "Selling to your Sphere of Influence" next week at the CAR Convention. Click here for information.

Guest Author Jennifer Allan has authored five books and multiple courses designed to teach agents her Sell with Soul philosophy that centers on four interrelated principles: Respect, Competence, Confidence and Enthusiasm.  The latest release of her book Sell with Soul is available in the VanEd bookstore. You can also visit her online at www.sellwithsoul.com.  

CAR convention and expo - REALTOR® World - October 19th - 20th

Scheduled for October 18th - 20th, 2009 at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, the annual CAR convention and expo - REALTOR® World - includes FREE registration to both the CREC Annual update course and a New Colorado Contracts course. The two-day exhibit hall and more than 35 education sessions highlight the annual conference (pre-registration is a must!).

Attendees will also have a chance to win the $1000 grand prize sponsored by Metro Brokers at the Exhibit Hall Oktoberfest on Monday night! The annual association business meetings will follow the conference and expo on October 21st and 22nd.

VanEd is proud to be an exhibitor at this years CAR Conference and Expo, so make sure to stop by and see us! There are also affordable hotel options available. Check them out by clicking here, and we'll see you there!

Click Here to view the entire REALTOR® World Schedule - or Click Here to register online!

2009 Boulder Valley Real Estate Forecast coming in November

The Boulder Valley Real Estate Conference and Forecast is being held at the Millennium Harvest House Hotel Thursday, November 19th. The conference will consist of a four part program that will look at the real estate economy in Boulder County as well as the country on the whole.

Topics being covered will include current banking and credit issues, demand, and Green issues and how the growth of the Green industry will benefit the local economy. The schedule again includes an update on what to expect in the year ahead.

Van Education Center will be providing 4 hours of continuing education credit to those Real Estate professionals who attend the entire program. Registration for CE will take place on site. To register in advance to ensure your seat at the conference, Click Here or click the link below for more information.

http://www.fallrealestateconference.com/

Q&A With Jennifer Allan ~ Best system for sending out greeting cards

We asked author Jennifer Allan to answer questions based on her teaching and experience in the real estate industry. Jennifer is also regular contributor to Realty Times and RE/MAX Times.

Question: "What’s the best system for automatically sending out birthday and anniversary cards to my sphere of influence?"

JA: I love this question! We real estate agents love our systems, don’t we? Anything to make our stay-in-touch efforts more efficient!

 

Well, here’s the thing. “Efficient” doesn’t always equal “effective.” You can efficiently market to thousands of people at once, but that doesn’t mean that you’ve effectively marketed to anyone. This is nowhere more true than when you’re staying in touch with your sphere of influence.

 

Never, ever use your systems to DO the actual staying-in-touch with the people you know. It’s just fine if you rely on your systems to REMIND you to stay in touch, but always DO it yourself. Go to Wal-Mart, pick out a nice birthday or anniversary card, write a personal note and sign it. Hand-write the address, slap on a cute return address label and a nice stamp and put it in the mail with your very own hands. MUCH more effective!

Have a question you would like Jennifer to answer? Email it to info@vaned.com!

Subscribe to "The Daily Seduction: Tips & Inspirations to Generate Business from Your Sphere of Inluence." (a free newsletter)

Guest Author Jennifer Allan has authored five books and multiple courses designed to teach agents her Sell with Soul philosophy that centers on four interrelated principles: Respect, Competence, Confidence and Enthusiasm.  The latest release of her book Sell with Soul is available in the VanEd bookstore. You can also visit her online at www.sellwithsoul.com.

Question: "What’s the best system for automatically sending out birthday and anniversary cards to my sphere of influence?"

JA: I love this question! We real estate agents love our systems, don’t we? Anything to make our stay-in-touch efforts more efficient!

 

Well, here’s the thing. “Efficient” doesn’t always equal “effective.” You can efficiently market to thousands of people at once, but that doesn’t mean that you’ve effectively marketed to anyone. This is nowhere more true than when you’re staying in touch with your sphere of influence.

 

Never, ever use your systems to DO the actual staying-in-touch with the people you know. It’s just fine if you rely on your systems to REMIND you to stay in touch, but always DO it yourself. Go to Wal-Mart, pick out a nice birthday or anniversary card, write a personal note and sign it. Hand-write the address, slap on a cute return address label and a nice stamp and put it in the mail with your very own hands. MUCH more effective!

Q&A With Jennifer Allan ~ Listing Exclusions

We asked author Jennifer Allan to answer questions based on her teaching and experience in the real estate industry. Jennifer is a regular contributor to Realty Times and RE/MAX Times. This week she answers the question of whether or not to agree to a "listing exclusion."

Question: "What if the seller asks for a 'listing exclusion?'"

JA: For those who haven’t encountered a “listing exclusion” yet, it’s simply a request from a seller that if a certain person or persons buy the home after it goes on the market, your listing commission won’t apply. For example, perhaps the seller knows a guy at work who says he’d be interested in purchasing the house, but he’s still thinking about it. Your seller doesn’t want to wait for him to make up his mind to go on the market, but neither does he want to pay you if the guy actually ponies up. So, the seller asks you to “exclude” this particular person from your listing agreement.

Should you do it?

My advice? Sure. Don’t argue, don’t explain, and don’t make a big deal out of it. Write in the exclusion and get on with putting the house on the market. The chances that this guy is actually going to purchase the house are slim, but if he does, the seller will probably need your assistance to get the contract written and to closing. For which you most certainly may charge a reasonable fee.

No reason to go to battle over this. Save your energy for bigger things!

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Guest Author Jennifer Allan has authored five books and multiple courses designed to teach agents her Sell with Soul philosophy that centers on four interrelated principles: Respect, Competence, Confidence and Enthusiasm.  The latest release of her book Sell with Soul is available in the VanEd bookstore. You can also visit her online at www.sellwithsoul.com.

Valuation Expo 2009 - CE Credit for Appraisers in Iowa

Appraisers from Iowa attending the 2009 Valuation Expo in New Orleans can receive 7 hours of CE credit for the Valuation Visionaries keynote opening session as well as 7 hours for Regulatory Updates / Re-Engineering the Appraisal Process.

Valuation Visionaries (A502-109) involves the use of the latest technology and methods available to provide quality, reliable, dependable and security data for analysis. Each speaker has a unique focus in the industry. These speakers aren’t selling anything. These speakers are giving insight into the future of the appraisal industry. What are the upcoming challenges for appraisers and how will appraisers tackle them.

Re-Engineering the Appraisal Process (A502-108) looks at how the current economic environment has forced us to examine our processes, procedures and policies.  There has been a tremendous gap between what appraisers produce and what lenders need. Listen to the experts and get a peek into where we need to direct our focus to reshape the appraisal landscape.   How are appraisal leaders, appraisers, federal agencies, regulators and vendors working together to identify solutions to restoring integrity in collateral valuation. The Regulatory Updates portion will detail the specifics of new legislation both enacted and pending.  Presenters include a representative from the Appraisal Subcommittee, state appraisal board directors and a national legislative consultant.   The focus of this presentation is to show the effect of current and pending legislation on the industry.  How do these issues trickle down to the appraisers in each state. 

The Valuation Expo is hosted by our partners Appraisal Buzz. Certificates will be issued by VanEd.

Q&A with Jennifer Allan ~ How Do I Let My Friends Know I Want Referrals?

We asked author Jennifer Allan to answer questions based on her teaching and experience in the real estate industry. Jennifer is a regular contributor to Realty Times and RE/MAX Times. This week she continues her discussion from last week about asking one's Sphere of Influence to send referrals.  

Question: "If I don't remind my friends that I'd like their referrals, how will they know to send them to me?"

JA: The short answer - They just will.

 

The longer answer is that as long as your friends think you’re a reasonably competent human being, and they know what you do for a living AND, they know where to find your phone number, AND – they’ve heard from you recently, you have a great shot at being the agent of choice in their world. This means that you’ll get their business, you’ll probably get their family’s business and your name will be mentioned if their friends ever have a need for someone like you. Once your name gets around in a few social circles, you’ll see referrals naturally start to come in.

 

 

But a lot of people are concerned, reasonably so, that their friends don’t know how they work - that they DO want and need referrals and that if they don’t let their friends know that, they’ll innocently hire or refer someone else.

 

 

Fair enough. But there are better ways of letting people know how you work without putting them on the spot. For example, when you have social conversations with the people you know, you can casually mention a referral you just received that you’re excited about. Or when talking with a prospect, try this phrase, “I love working by referral because I meet the nicest people!” which not only gets the point across that you do work by referral, but also implies that you think your prospect is one of those “nicest people!”

 

 

In reality, if you’re good at what you do and you love what you do, that will be apparent to the people in your world and they’ll want to support you. Conversely, if you take the approach of begging for business, that sends the opposite message. Don't risk it!

 

   Subscribe to "Confidence Builders for Rookie Real Estate Agents" (a free newsletter)

Guest Author Jennifer Allan has authored five books and multiple courses designed to teach agents her Sell with Soul philosophy that centers on four interrelated principles: Respect, Competence, Confidence and Enthusiasm.  The latest release of her book Sell with Soul is available in the VanEd bookstore. You can also visit her online at www.sellwithsoul.com.

Registration is open for the Nebraska REALTORS® Association Fall meetings

The Nebraska REALTORS®Association Fall meetings are scheduled for September 15th - 18th in Lincoln, NE. The schedule includes committee meetings as well as an RLI marketing session. Continuing education courses scheduled include the first three days of the five day Foreclosure Intervention Specialist certification program, Ethics and two courses taught by VanEd author Doug Devitre.

Doug will teach Communicating Effectively & Minimizing Risk Using Social Media, as well as the  Blogging Effectivelycourse that is also currently available online at VanEd. During this course students will learn how to create a blog so that they can help the consumer with the home buying and selling process. Doug will define the rules on how to minimize risk an stay alert with ongoing ethical considerations related to blogging.

You can view the entire schedule by clicking here. Online registration for this event, being held at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Lincoln can be found by clicking here. Early registration is open until September 4th, 2009 at 5:00pm CT.

VanEd is proud to be the home for the Online Nebraska GRI, Graduate REALTO® Institute Program. For more information on Continuing Education in Nebraska, visit us online by Clicking Here!

Designation Spotlight: MRE - Master of Real Estate

What three things do consumers desire in a real estate professional? Trustworthiness, Representation and Communication, which are the hallmarks of the MRE, Master of Real Estate professionals.

The MRE designation is an education based program that requires a candidate continue their personal education beyond any mandatory requirements or statutes. The program is flexible, allowing for different students to complete a varying group of courses to earn the designation. Courses in the program are broad based and cover numerous real estate areas, such as Planning, Commercial and Negotiation. Students are also able to complete top National coursework and earn credits towards the MRE designation.

As new market economies push real estate professionals into new and unfamiliar areas, it becomes more evident that those who have continued to educate themselves beyond any minimum standards will have an edge on the competition. Learn more about the MRE, Master of Real Estate designation, requirements and courses by visiting the MRE website at www.RealEstateMRE.com today!

VanEd is proud to be the online provider to the MRE program and host to numerous continuing education courses within the program.