Inspired Real Estate For Today

This article in the Christian Science Monitor brings back memories.  The sight of a baby perched peacefully on its' mother's back is something you see ALL over Africa.  In West Africa, the term used for this makeshift type snuggly is a Lapa...in South Africa, the term is a Kanga.

Just about every baby on the Continent has had it's share of "Back Time."  I'm referring to a period which can encompass as little as 3-6 months or as long as 3 years.  A time when mother and baby connect because they are together almost all the time.  Safely snuggled against mom's back, the African baby observes the world shielded by the comfort of knowing that everything and everyone must come through Mom first! 

Consequently, people have noted, African babies rarely cry.  Why should they?  Mom is never far away. They experience all sorts of exciting things from a "rare air" view...looking at life from a perspective which is usually unavailable to little people.  African babies are lulled to sleep by the rhythmic movements of their mother's gait and learn to attune to her voice while listening to the music of her beating heart next to theirs. 

This is one reason why being a young orphan in Africa is such a loss. Who will carry you next to their heart?  Where is the wrapper to shield you from  the harsh physical realities of life? Who will embrace your developing form within the warm confines of mom's cloth wrapped cocoon?

When it's time for a baby to be fed, the wrapper is simply untied  and a sling is formed which allows mother and baby to nurse comfortably.  For an orphan, the emotional loss of this type of security is enormous. You see on the African continent, it's one of life's meaningful dignities to be carried in the warmth of a Lapa, a rite of passage which provides a dimension of safety through the passage way of life.

It is this sort of dignity that Rocky Turner refers to in her mutahood blog post entitled Underwear for Africa ~How You Can Help. The story by Monstersandcritics.com tells about the sale of second hand underwear in Kenya where Rocky is going to help with the orphanage. It's a story about the loss of a basic dimension of human dignity because of poverty.  A dignity which seems held at gunpoint by the cruel ravages of desperation fueled by the scarcity of life's most basic necessities. Something that most in western culture can not fully understood because the experience is so foreign and in some ways unthinkable.   

It is in this pause, within this space suspended between disbelief and empathy that the decision is made. The choice to support the dignity of life or to deny it.  It is what we do with the least of these that defines ultimately the fate we have chosen for ourselves...because like it or not, we are all connected. 

So as the image of the African mother carrying her child continues to run through the slide-frames of my mind, I am reminded that we've all been carried at some time.  At sometime, we have all needed care, a shoulder to cry on, an ear to listen, a hand up, or even hand me down.  In other words, in one way or another, we've all  ridden for FREE on someone's back and perhaps, now is a good time to return the favor.

Rocky is leaving for Kenya in a few days.  We can't go with her physically, but we can support her efforts financially and through our prayers.  Rocky is collecting funds for her trip and NEW underwear.  You can send donations to her here and visit her blog:

Mothers Fighting For Others INC

Underwear For Africa
27943 Seco Canyon RD # 533
Santa Clarita CA 91350

Donate Here Flyer: Donate Here Flyer

Got Underwear? Flyer: Got Underwear Flyer

Email Message: Underwear For Africa Email 2

Widget:

  Widget: </a *photo is courtesy of Ferdinand Reus on flickr.com

I was on the phone talking to a mortgage lender  and about to head out the door when the doorbell rang. Peering out the sidebar of my front door, I saw 2 individuals.  A well dressed lady was on the stoop and an elderly gentleman leaned against the brick wall that framed my entryway. When I opened the door, the lady said, "We brought you your mail, it was delivered to my parents' mailbox...and my father would like to meet you."

I looked at the elderly gentleman, my neighbor... whom I was meeting for the first time.  He smiled and tried to extend his hand from the wall; but he clearly needed it for support. I could see that bracing himself with the cane required considerable effort.  I patted him on the arm and smiled; thanking him for delivering our mail.  Then he repeated his statement again..."I wanted to Welcome you to the Neighborhood.  You see, I don't get out much any more, but I wanted to make sure you got this piece of mail.  I live down the street on the same side as you do."

It was an odd moment...gratitude and surprise mixed with more questions and a little hesitation.  I was aware that there was a party on the phone listening to this exchange and knew I didn't have the time to invite him in, but in an odd way I felt the exchange though brief was significant. He had decided to make a personal delivery rather than simply giving the properly addressed letter back to the mailman.

You see, our family is the first of its kind in this neighborhood.  We are African Americans in a Lily white community. It's an elegant setting with nicely coutoured homes, many of which were parade homes a decade ago.  Our home was built on one of the last remaining lots. Over the past three years, we have met several of the neighbors around us and were invited to an evening dessert with one couple.  The gentleman admitted that he wanted to "see what kind of people we were."  It was very interesting evening to say the least.  At the end he indicated that he just knew..."we were different."  I didn't ask him to elaborate!

But the people further down the street have remained a shrouded mystery.  I have come to understand that most individuals in my neighborhood are retired business owners.  Their names sometimes mentioned from time to time within the context of small chit chat.  But in this neighborhood, neighbors don't frequently walk up the street to simply say hello. Most of these grand homes harbor their inhabitants in quiet solitude...broken occasionally by the visit of an adult child or grand children.  I know these are good hard working people, but sometimes it seems that our homes have become a shield instead of a welcoming shelter.

I am at once humbled that this gentlemen took the time to deliver the letter himself with great personal effort.  But I also wonder what prompted the welcome after I had lived in the neighborhood for over three years!  Did it take three years to carefully access how we would maintain our home?  Then again, I must ask myself...why have I not walked down my street and knocked on his door?  What are we all waiting for?

As we prepare to cross the threshold of another remembrance of the day that changed America forever, September 11, 2001...the issues concerning what it means to be a good neighbor invariably become a focus on the screen of our national conscience. This 6 Year Remembrance is also framed within the context of the observation of the 2 year anniversary of the catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.  Two years later...abandoned homes, vacant lots and dashed hopes and dreams still litter the landscape of sections of the 9th Ward that was once a thriving community. Six years after September 11, 2001 Americans struggle with nagging fear and distrust; we're still wrestling with the implications of accepting individuals who subscribe to a different faith into our homes and communities.

In some ways, the veneer of prosperity has become a gilded cage which masks a disheartening deterioration in relations between human beings.  We are slowly forgetting what it means to be good neighbors. Has the race to amass more and better obscured the value of ascribing proper value to what is real and enduring?  Unfortunately, we seem determined to lurch from tragedy to tragedy without arriving at a clear consensus. This is not the most prudent way.  Perhaps, on this anniversary of 911, we can each determine to take one small courageous step. Perhaps, actions like those of the elderly gentleman who simply came to my door and extended a sincere, albeit delayed "Welcome," will do more to heal the hearts and souls of our nation and mend deep wounds of suspicion than any laws or alerts from the department of Homeland Security can ever hope to.

Copyright 2007  Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved

If you were in Grand Rapids, Michigan today, you know that it was one of those days in which only those forced to work or those obsessively dedicated to work are doing so.  A brilliant blue sky framed picture perfect clouds.  It's the sort of day that makes one think of picking up an ice-cream cone along the boardwalk in Grand Haven. But, alas, I was one of those working.

After my listing appointment, Renee, a Client Specialist with our office, and I  headed out to catch a bite to eat at the Schuller's Bookstore cafe. As I settled down to eat, I glanced a couple of tables over  and observed a man with a shock of white hair engaged in an animated conversation with a young lady.  I wouldn't have paid much more attention except for the fact that I caught a drift of his voice.

Could it be him?  I couldn't remember the last time I had seen him...but the gravelly voice was as unmistakable as the telltale mop of white hair.  They seemed to be preparing to leave, and then he turned towards me and caught my gaze.  Across the divide of a couple of tables, I asked, "Are you Professor Wilson?"  It had been 24 years since I was in his classroom at Calvin College.  I didn't expect him to remember.  But he did!.  He remembered my name, he instantly recalled my native country and  asked me if I was still working as a real estate agent. I was astounded.

Although he was on his way out, he asked to join us for a few moments. What a delightful time it was. Professor Wilson is a person who cares about people. A curious soul whose inscrutable gaze always affirmed that fact that he truly saw you and sought to understand who you were.  And he never forgot....a name or a birthday.  For many years after I left college, Professor Wilson's birthday cards would arrive to wish me well on my special day.  Given the number of times I changed addresses, I couldn't figure out how he found me!  I asked him that today.  He just smiled and said, "I have my ways."  The professor's birthday card list is rumored to be in the thousands!

Meeting the Professor today reminded me about what is important.  People are important.  Caring about someones life is important.  Taking the time to talk and listen is important. Taking the time to meet people in person; not just communicating through e-mails, or phone calls is important.

Although he is officially retired, Professor Wilson still makes time for people; taking a student from the college out to lunch almost every day just as he has for most of the past 50 years.  It was a kind invitation to a young college student, thousands of miles away from home and the gentle words of encouragement that still resonate in my heart decades later.  The Professor asked if  I'd have time for lunch.  "I'll make time, " I said.  In fact, I hope that we will be able to have he and his wife to our house.  A small repayment for the debt of gratitude to a soul who understood that the sincere recognition of another human beings intrinsic value is the greatest gift of all.

*the picture of the man above is not Professor Wilson.

Copyright 2007 Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved

 Click Here to Read More about Grand Rapids, Michigan

My second "slap upside the head"  came while reading a post by Brian Wilson, entitled "How the Real Estate Industry Changed While I was In Iraq. Part 1/4."  Brian, a Colorado Real Estate Broker and reservist is back from a tour in Iraq. He is writing an enlightening series of posts about what has changed while he was away.  Sometimes distance creates  perspective

Brian writes that "prior to Iraq only three real estate websites affected my business: Realtor.com, my local MLS and my website."  What's startling is that many of us in the real estate community have not  grasped what become obvious to Brian Wilson in a foreign country.

Our industry has radically changed and the new players are recreating significant aspects of the real estate market. Websites and concepts which did not exist 24 months ago may have greater implications for the future of real estate than systems which have served us for decades!

Real estate PRE-Iraq  of 2005 was still pretty much limited to connecting with a LIVE real estate agent...even when portals like housevalues.com "tricked" you into doing so. Brian Wilson admits that PRE-Iraq of 2005, he had never read a blog and considered any company that paid people to use their services desperate.  That was then...this is now!

Today, real estate companies like Redfin are not only paying customers rebates for their services, but interacting and getting daily feedback through their blogs.  Today, you can buy and trade virtual real estate. And Today, it is possible to preview a multi-million dollar home, marketed by one of the nation's largest real estate brokerages, who re-created their prime listing virtually on secondlife.com for sale in real life! We are witnessing an incredible synthesis which merges the real and the unreal into a virtual potpourri. 

 For for the first time, businesses can get "real time" feedback on new services and products.  And this feedback can be obtained realtively cheaply and very rapidly.  The price of knowledge has shrunk and the value of wisdom has exploded!

We are witnessing the emergence of a culture, where the value of an idea supersedes the price that we are willing to pay for information.  This shift is a critical reason why real estate as it has been practised for the past 100 years will not survive. It will change because it has to. In it's place is arising a new creation which will function in a world with new rules.

In this world... where the real and the unreal synthetically merge, Transparency is rapidly becoming the core currency of trade.  The degree to which our industry grasps and responds to this will determine our viability and ultimately our profitability.  Transparency is also the great "equalizer."  It levels the economic playing field and renders the world flat.  Access to information has allowed ALL  players, big and small, to present their wares on the world stage.  We are redefining the nature of the court of public opinion through a little feature at the end of a blog post known as the "comment."

It's intriguing to ponder how this will impact the real estate industry. Consider the trajectory we are on.  A decade ago, NO pictures for listings were available on line. Now, we can create collages with multiple interior photos and feature virtual tours complete with  mood music.  The advent of the youtube generation is re-imaging how we tell the truth. 

Polished and shined up will not necessarily be cool if the reality on-line is markedly different from what a home really looks like. We will be challenged to learn to think differently. Is it conceivable that showing a home with ALL it's flaws might actually aid and facilitate a Sale? Will this affect how a home is staged, filmed, video taped or blogged about? 

It seems probable that these questions in some fashion impact whether the MLS systems and the real estate agents who depend on them today exist in the future or not. Like Brian Wilson, I too am increasingly reflecting on how much has changed so quickly.  But, I'm also intrigued by the reflecting and wondering about the ...Why.  Hidden in that 3 letter word is the key to the transformation that is already upon us.

*picture courtesy of distractedmind's photo stream on flickr.com

on what year you start the count.

Copyright 2007 Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved

 Click Here to Read More about Grand Rapids, Michigan

Sometimes you need a smack "upside" the head to jolt you into reality.  Well, it was two smacks for me today to be precise. Delivered via virtual space long hand in a couple of blog posts.  Mark Eibner, the Real Estate Zealot, writes a blog post  entitled "Are You Gearing Up for Gen Y Business?" in which he links to a recent  CNN article about the 17 year old kid who unlocked the I Phone's tether to AT & T; making it possible to use the phone with other carriers.  This was big news on August 24, 2007.   Although I did hear about it on the national media, I didn't fully grasp the implications of what had happened. 

Reading the CNN article clarified things for me.  The code that tethered the iPhone to the At & T network was one of the most closely guarded secrets on the face of the earth. The system was programed to be be unbreachable by some of the most brilliant computer experts on the planet.  It also represented potentially billions of dollars of proprietary business; blocking out other would be competitors. 

The fact that the code and process could be unravelled so quickly was astounding...but by a 17 year old kid!  After accomplishing this monumental feat, the kid posted all his "how to instructions" on-line for other would be hackers;  apologizing that it was such a cumbersome process. He also gave "assistance credits" to two individuals from Russia whom he didn't know apart from their on-line monikers.  Thus heralding, a new concept in collaboration...networking to create solutions across the globe by collaborating anonymously with others on-line towards the accomplishment of a shared goal. Talk about kicking the concept of Free Shareware up another gigantic notch. 

This is how Gen Y thinks.  And this is why they won't do real estate the way their parents did.  They have this insatiable desire to share...everything.  On-line music, blogs, games, movies, shopping....The fact that we can obtain real estate information anywhere for Free is baseline for them.  That's par for the course. 

They also have a radically distinct view of "ownership."  The kid (of iPhone hacker fame) felt that his solution to the "problem" faced by many who were held "prisoners" to a proprietary system was ultimately the property of the world.  This is the generation which created major headaches for the recording industry with pirated music from Napstar and thought it was cool to allow everyone to listen to music for Free. Will this approach to ownership and proprietary information make the current process of broker aided real estate transactions seem archaic if not downright draconian?

Perhaps we are about to witness a radical transformation of the meaning of the word transaction...how it's executed, how it's paid for and what it is.  The Real Estate Transaction of the near future will embody elements that cannot be imagined today. It is certain that there will be a re-definition of the meaning and value of professional expertise.  We can also anticipate that the relationship with the "expert" will be much more collaborative and interactive than it is today. Real Estate Blogging represents the primary swing into the first portion of the arched curve around this track. 

This also underscores why *76 Million Gen Y's (1982 - 2000) connecting to the real estate market within the next decade will make the real estate transaction of today feel like viewing the relics of a dinosaur.  I quote from the Mike Eibner, the Real Estate Zealot..."All media is moving to the palm of your hand and this includes real estate."  Are you ready for a revolution that's aims with the precision of a pinpoint to transform the world with the gentle side swipe of a finger?

Stay tuned for the next installment of My Second Slap Upside the head!

photo by Personeelsnet's on flickr.com

*Edited/update:  #number of Gen Y's.  A lot of conflicting information regarding the exact number of Gen Y's, but 76 Million seems to be a number which is more reflective of current norms depending on what year you start the count.

*Blog Update #2:  Christian Sterner has written an excellent post about Gen Y's and Marketing.  With his permission, I am posting this link: Top Four Reasons Why You Should Not Use Video in Your Marketing. Christian shares some great perspective and insight.

Copyright 2007 Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved

 Click Here to Read More about Grand Rapids, Michigan

Hiring a real estate agent to sell your home is an important task.  Most of us are far more skilled at answering questions when searching for employment than thinking of creative ways to interview a real estate agent to help us to sell our home.  Since standard questions are often anticipated, they will provide limited insight into how a person thinks and functions. Because the sale or purchase of a home is the largest investment that most Americans will make, it might be prudent to go beyond the "standard" when evaluating who you select to provide service in this area.

Many home owners have limited experience with hiring real estate agents.  The average home owner will only interview one or two agents within a 3-5 year period. The questions they are often advised to ask are fairly simplistic & usually flow along these lines: 

•  
  • How many homes have you sold?
  • How long have you been selling real estate? 
  • How long will it take you to sell my home?
  • Home Often will you Advertise my Home?
  • How many Open Houses will you do?

While these questions listed above may address the nuts and bolts of the transaction, they will do little to give you insight into the nature of the individual you are hiring.  Statistics can be manipulated and may not tell the whole story.  For instance, a well trained newer agent with enthusiasm and passion may actually do a better job in marketing and selling a home than a cynical, jaded long time real estate agent who has collected a slew of accolades.  Since you will be working with a real estate agent for a few months or considerably longer, it might be important to understand more about an individual than their statistics.

Sometimes, going off-track in your questions will yield an entirely different perspective of the real estate process and give a new dimension to your understanding of the service level you can anticipate during the duration of your contract.  It may be helpful to intersperse quirky questions with commonly asked questions to truly enhance the experience of getting to know and rate any real estate professionals that you are considering.  So, here are some "quirky questions" to spice up your next real estate interview and add a little more fun into the process too!

 1.  What aspect of your job makes it Fun to get out of Bed in the morning?

2.   Describe Your Oddest Experience on the job to date.

3.  What Would you like to be doing 5 years from now?

4.  What's your source of Inspiration?

5.  Define your idea of the "Perfect Real Estate Transaction."

6.  Describe your idea of the "Perfect Client."

7.  If you had the commission from the Sale of My house in your hand right now...what would you do with it?

8.  What's the most important thing you've learned, heard or read about in the last month?

9.  Who do you admire or look up to a  role model or mentor?

10.  How has your real estate career impacted your life?

11.  What are you doing to do to make sure that I don't have to ask anyone else these questions with regards to selling my home?

Before you ask these questions...think about the responses you anticipate and what is important to you in selecting a real estate agent. Remember that a good agent will be evaluating you as well.  This can be a fun and unusual way to conduct an interview. Be courteous and polite.  Not every single question will be appropriate for every agent, but every question is sure to add a different dimension to the interview process!

Copyright 2007 Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved

 Click Here to Read More about Grand Rapids, Michigan