Inspired Real Estate For Today

The announcements earlier this week of the lawsuits against Countrywide, the nations largest lender overshadowed another important legal action pending against credit card issuer CompuCredit by the Federal Trade Commission in Atlanta earlier in the month.

According to the latest Business Week article by Jessica Silver-Greenberg..'Your Lifestyle May Hurt Your Credit.'  As Greenberg notes, most borrowers understand that timely payments on their balances are important to maintaining access to credit.  But many are unaware that this is NOT the only criteria which may be reviewed to assess their credit worthiness.

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction! What if the following happened to you?  Let's say, you've been having relationship troubles. Your marriage is coming apart at the seams and in an effort to stave off a divorce, you consult with a marriage counselor for several months; paying your bill by credit card. What if the stress of the process causes you to drown your sorrows with a few extra drinks at the local bar after work?  You may ask...who cares?

Or here's another scenario. What if instead of getting new tires for your car, you decide to retread them instead; once again paying the mechanic with your credit card.  Well, you might be surprised to discover that your banker cares. You see, every single electronic transaction is creating a financial record.  What many of us fail to take into account, is that every single electronic notation also in a sense, tells a story.  One which may be subject to interpretation.

Of instance, the marriage counsel may NOT be viewed as a positive step by the remote cold calculations of the statistical analysis of a computer aided program.  In fact, you might be surprised to be pegged as a potential 'problem borrower' due to statistical analysis which indicates that you are at a higher risk for financial crisis due to the increased probability of a divorce.  The extra drinks...well in combination with marital therapy may indicate the potential for instability. Interesting....

While most of us are familiar with the credit scoring model, FICO, this is not the only method used to make decisions which affect a bank's lending decision.  In a recent conversation with Ron Bullis, an experienced lender with Platinum One Financial in the Grand Rapids area we discussed the fact that banks have always had at their disposal a number of ways of determining your financial viability.  However, by law they have to disclose this to you.

This is the contention that lies at the heart of the Federal Trade Commissions' lawsuit against CompuCredit.  It's NOT that issues like retreading a tire or visiting a marriage counselor should not be criteria used to make determinations regarding your credit worthiness.  Your bank has the right to make that decision in any way they choose.  BUT, they must disclose.

So...is your behavior up to par?  As consumers, we will all need to be aware of the fact that it's not just our credit payment history anymore.  With increasingly sophisticated systems, your lifestyle patterns may be scrutinized in a manner which you never imagined.

Copyright 2008  Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved

Twitter is over capacity.
Too many tweets! Please wait a moment and try again.

It's become an all too familiar bane of popular sites like Twitter.  Messages about the sites being overwhelmed by too many hits from their users which are causing them to malfunction.  Active Rain also struggled recently to resolve technical issues which made the site load with frustrating slowness or...not at all.

Will there come a time where WHAT we post will be restricted?  Is the Internet an unlimited portal or will we discover that there ARE limitations...and that we all have to exercise responsible restraint in our usage?  If that happens...WHO will create the rules?  Will avoidance result in being buried under a putrid mess of virtual waste?  Just a thought...

It's been over a decade since I've participated in a real estate caravan. How about you?

So, a recent post I read 'Caravan... going, going, gone', by Margo Currie about some of her misgivings about the demise of this real estate weekly activity peaked my interest.  Many companies have stopped mandating the practise of going to pre-view new home listings.

Designated agency probably contributed to this trend by changing the fiduciary relationship that individual real estate agents had with clients whom they were not directly representing.  There have been a number of other factors which have made this option less attractive to agents and brokers such as...

Virtual Tours...

The increase in virtual tours allowed homes to be toured virtually.  When you can see a home online and drive through the neighborhood virtually...does one need to go there physically? I met a client this week who actually bought a home in the West Michigan area directly from the Internet...walking into the house for the first time when they collected the keys after the closing. 

Busy Agents... 

As agents became busier during the recent housing boom, the number of home listings increased.  This sometimes created driving routes which could literally seem like they went on forever...thus making agents feel they could make better use of their time than riding around in cars from home to home.

Gas Prices...

But, perhaps, the biggest argument against pre-view touring today is the increase in gas prices.  When gas is over $4.10 per gallon, you are determing more assiduously where you will go. It becomes a matter of dollars and cents.  Does it make financial sense to guzzle gas to pre-view homes in person?

But is the glass only half full?

But, I wonder if we may miss a rare opportunity to differentiate our level of service and showcase our creativity by excising this agent activity completely. As Margo alluded to in her blog post, agent caravans were a great way to see the company's inventory and to learn first hand about the community and neighborhoods. 

I wonder if there might be ways, this activity could be updated to reflect the emerging changes in the real estate marketplace and provide opportunities for agents and brokers to increase their profits.

For instance,

What if agent tours also afforded opportunities to capture the local scene with blogs and pictures of sights, scenes and places of interest that surrounded the homes being toured? 

What if each home Featured on a Tour had it's own blog page for a week or a month? 

What if agents were encouraged to post comments about homes that were featured on tours and links with these comments were forwarded to the company's and/or agents mailing list?

What is homes that were Sold from tour activity were highlighted with a video from the satisfied home owner recommeding the agent/broker?

Hey, I know that some of you may say that I'm a dreamer...but maybe I'm not the only one...  What do you think?  Do you have some ideas about how the dying practise of agent tours might be re-imagined and made relevant again?

Picture courtesy of petoo's photo stream @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/petoo/289495288/

Copyright 2008 Audu Real Estate All Rights Reserved

This video arrested my attention today. The courage of the people of Rawanda continues to inspire the world. The image of the acid eating through the container is one which is unforgettable. It puts the work of forgiveness into an entirely different light. We forgive for ourselves as much as for the sake of others.

Many of you are aware that I am a writer for the Mothers Fighting for Others Blog; a charity dedicated to helping women and children in need across the world.  I've admired Rocky Turner's dedication and commitment to this cause & recently had the privilege of joining the Board of her organization.  This post shares my thoughts on the state of 'mothering' in our world.  Click on the link to finish reading & visit Rocky's site.  We're doing some really inspiring things!

*Originally posts June 4, 2008

It feels a little ‘unstylish' for lack of a better word to be writing about motherhood just as the ultimate celebration of fatherhood looms front and center. But, what can I say...this is what's on my mind.

In contemplating what motherhood has been and continues to mean in my life, I wonder whether it is most appropriately defined as a noun or a verb? Is mothering merely a biological function which allowed me to carry life within my womb and sustain it through child birth?

Or is it more aptly described in the context of mothering?  As descriptive of the ongoing nourishment of life that transforms the giver and the receiver in much the same way that the physical stretching of the skin confirms the fact that something has happened within one's body.  A process which has placed it's one peculiar branding of ownership... guaranteeing that one will never be the same.

The success of motherhood may be highly dependent on some factors which are totally outside of a woman's control. Take for instance....where one becomes a mother.

Where one becomes a mother determines many things about the success of the process. If a woman is fortunate to enter into motherhood while living in a Scandinavian country, a 2006~ 2007 report by Save the Children indicates that she has done so in the best place in the world!

Click here to continue reading...

Sometimes the profound emerges from the most unlikely places in ordinary life.  Like a phrase distilled from the shroud of a mist...Simplicity is what happens when the details are stripped down to their bare essence.

The photo of the wedding scene above is taken at the Cobblestone Manor.  The lawn has been set with lawn chairs.  The entire stage has one simple purpose...the uniting of the bride and groom.  The gatherings purpose to witness the love they share. 

It's Memorial Day weekend, a time for remembrance and the creation of romantic memories.  Simplicity distilled to it's core...unfettered and free.

The Cobblestone Manor is a historic inn and bed & breakfast located in Auburn Hills, Michigan.  It is a popular destination for special events and occassions.  A wonderful place to consider if you're thinking about vacationing in Michigan.

Copyright 2008  Audu Real Estate All Rights Reserved

It's almost 3 years since Audu Real Estate set out an independent shingle.  As I was going through an old notebook, I came upon a letter which I had written to people in my circle of friends celebrating the one year company anniversary that had just been completed a few months earlier. 

As I re-read this letter, which I had all but forgotten, I was struck by some of the thoughts that I shared.  In addition to giving a brief update on the business and my family, here's an excerpt which I wrote about "What I Know to Be True..."

This I know to be true.  There are some significant foundational things in my life which change at great peril.  Faith and confidence in God's goodness and His amazing wisdom and love through Jesus Christ are not negotiable.  On the other hand, gathering places in which His love is expressed may be.

This I know to be true.  Peace, Wisdom, Love & Courage are really big deals!  Their worth in life cannot be quantified.  They are faithful companions and incredible teachers.  When expressed through the pages of a good book, they are delicious to the soul.  When found on the lips of a precious friend or in the kindness of strangers; they carry the very breath of life!  I am so grateful to have access to both sources.

This I also know to be true.  My career in real in real estate has never been simply about selling homes.  The greatest gift has been the lessons learned in life.  Working with so many different kinds of people has forced me to more fully know myself.

I have found this to be true. Often difficult circumstances have been resolved only when I have understood that these lessons were primers for my own life.  It is then that I was able to see faults within me that needed to be remedied before I was 'qualified' to pick out the proverbial 'lint or speck' in another's eye.

It's a joy to be in service.  Thank you for your personal gift of presence in my life.  I pray that you would have the wisdom and grace to know what should not change and the courage to embrace fully that which must.

Well, that was written in 2006.  And, it still rings true as What I Know to be true.

Copyright 2008  Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved

One never knows how a transaction will turn out.  Nor are we ever fully cognizant of the manner in which our lives and experiences will intersect. What happened this past week is a testimony to the mysterious workings of life that have a way of binding us together.

A couple of years ago, Ed Vogt, a real estate agent with Audu Real Estate started working with a new home buyer.  The process would be intermittent, interrupted by life from time to time, but Faye the home buyer and Ed continued forward with dodged determination and goodwill. 

As the Broker, I was not intimately involved with the home search, but would receive updates from Ed from time to time.  It was not until Ed went on vacation, that I first had the opportunity to speak with Faye.  She was interested in looking at a home we had listed & was trying to determine if she would qualify for the special loan program offered by the city of Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Faye has an engaging personality which invites others in.  I learned that not only was she looking for her own home, but she was constantly on the search for homes that would work well for friends who also needed affordable housing.  When Ed returned, Faye continued the search.

Around about the same time that Ed started working with Faye, I ran into some past clients in the parking lot of the mall.  It had been several years since I sold them a home and I was thrilled to see them again.  They were there as an extended family and I was introduced to a sister whom I will call Sally (not her real name) who would be looking for a home in the future.

Well, a couple of months ago, Sally called and we started the search for the perfect home.  Ed was also assigned to assist Sally & showed her several prospective condominiums.  But it wasn't until they entered the 32nd St. Condo project that their jaws dropped! 

These units were just gorgeous.  A warm tawny earthtone graced the walls which were framed by softly painted woodwork and four panelled doors.  The counter tops had a granite looking finish and were topped by hickory cabinets.  New linoleum and an over-sized deck made this unit a fantastic deal!  Sally bought her new home!

All our paths would not cross again until this past Friday when we all met together for two closings.  When I arrived, the first of the two closing had just completed and some additional paperwork that was needed from the seller was being obtained.  Ms. Faye was in the parking lot.  I had never met her, so when I went in Ed asked if I had had the opportunity to talk with her.  She then introduced me to a lady who is hands down the MOST JOYFUL home buyer I had ever met.  She glowed with excitement about obtaining her keys.  The fact that there was a little delay in the process did absolutely NOTHING to dampen her enthusiasm.

I went into the second closing with Sally.  This closing was delayed because of a back-up in the title company's schedule so Ed had to leave.  As we all sat waiting for the paperwork, Faye came back in because she was still waiting for the last bit of documentation from the home owner.

I was with Sally in the lobby talking with the home owner/builder of the condominums.  After some time, the builder said..."you sound like you have a little bit of an accent.  Where are you from?"  When I shared with him that I was from Nigeria, his eyes grew wide and he remarked..."I went to school there in first grade!"

It turns out that the builder and I had both gone to the same school, Hillcrest in Nigeria.  His dad, who had also attended the closing, but had left a little earlier... had taken a year off or work in the late 1960's to build several projects in my home country which had included a chapel for the school.  What a small world!

In the meantime, Faye's homeowner arrived with the necessary paperwork & there were hugs all around!  The builder insisted that I come over to a nearby restaurant to meet his parents and talk about their time overseas. Sally watched this whole amazing reunion with wide eyed amazement.  You see it turns out that the other Realtor was a cousin of a girl that I had gone to highschool with overseas.  We never understood that we had that connection until that moment!  Wow!

As we parted company, I felt a sense of awe.  What a gift we have as real estate professionals to be included in the special moments of people's lives.  What an honor it is to participate in a transaction which impacts our community in such an important way. 

I marvel at how all those extraordinary connections which spanned decades and continents could intersect in such a remarkable way in two homes with two happy ladies & one long closing.  It reminded me of this one thing...selling a house ALWAYS involves much more than meets the eye! There are all sorts of miraculous stories just underneath the surface, just waiting for our discovery.

Copyright 2008  Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved