Texas Real Estate Bible Podcast

Wire fraud rears its ugly head and strikes one of Karen's clients.

Karen and Kevin dive deep into the dark underworld of property taxes when they uncover shenanigans being played by a new home builder aimed at increasing the tax assessments on houses that had already been sold. After enlisting the help of a local journalist, they end up face to face with a surprisingly helpful representative of the Harris County Tax Office.

We normally tend to try to steer clear of discussing politics because frankly, the topic sucks, and it's not entertaining to hear people bitch and moan about what's wrong with the country.  After all, if you want to see a change in how our government works, you should run for office and do something about it instead of complaining. This week, we bring you an example of just that.  Jon Rosenthal is a personal friend of ours who has put himself out there to run for a seat in House District 135 for the Texas State Legislature.  Regardless of your political stripe or affiliation, we think you'll enjoy the conversation we had with Jon, and we wish him nothing but success! If you live in his district in Cypress, TX, we hope you'll pull the lever for Jon in November.

Where have we been?  That's a good question.  Listen to this episode to find out what caused our long break from the show and what you can expect for the future.

In today's episode, we interview Joseph Gozlan from EBG Acquisitions.  Joseph is a multifamily investments specialist. Leading group acquisitions of over $11MM in real estate and providing asset management services to a portfolio of 156 units with 97 additional units currently under contract and growing. In our conversation, we learn more about multifamily properties, how syndication works, and how individuals can participate in these investments with their retirement dollars.   Joseph is also the author of the book, "The Real Estate College Fund", which helps first time investors recognize the advantages and risks of investing in real estate, and offers ways to mitigate those risks. Also in this episode, we cover some listener feedback that proves that Kevin is (occasionally) right!

It's been a long time since we published our last episode.  Too long.  In today's episode we catch you up on the series of unfortunate events that have kept Karen and Kevin away from the mics for so long.  

Karen closed on a transaction she's been working on for quite some time, and shares the ups and downs of the transaction.  Listen as she shares the blow by blow of the negotiation and how it played out. Having an agent who will negotiate hard for you and protect your negotiating position is crucial, and so many agents throw their clients under the bus in the hopes of closing the transaction quickly.

Today, we bring you an interview with Aaron Moore of Smart Zip.  Karen recently became a client of Aaron's because they do some pretty impressive things with applying data analytics and applying it to real estate.

In this supersized episode, we talk about what we did leading up to and in the aftermath of the arrival of Hurricane Harvey. I don't think we need much more of an introduction than that.

From time to time we like to welcome other entrepreneurs on the show to talk about their businesses and their own real estate stories.  This week, we welcome our friend Eric Dolan, who in his career has been in the Army, the Oil & Gas industry, and is now in business for himself. As the owner of the PostNet franchise in Tomball, TX, Eric shares a number of stories about the challenges and rewards of starting his own business.  He talks about lessons he's learned and some interesting people he's met along the way.  He also walks us through the process he used to select his commercial storefront location. If you have any printing, shipping, or mailing needs, we highly recommend Eric.  He will take GREAT care of you.

When it comes to pricing your home, the market really, truly doesn't give a shit about two things that are probably really important to you as a seller:  * What you owe on the house   * How much cash you expect to get out of the sale (for whatever reason) We opened this episode chatting about the state of the market in Houston, and why it's not going down as many people believe.  In fact, recent sales figures for the overall market seem to indicate that the market is still strong, with inventory still below the level of what is considered a "balanced" market.  That means if your house isn't selling, it's not because of a poor marketing job, it's probably because it's priced too high for the location and condition. Many people have an idea on their heads about how much money they expect to put in their pockets after their home is sold.  Typically, this number is influenced by how much they owe on their home, how much money they need for their next house, or just flat out what the homeowner thinks it's worth. The reality is your buyer doesn't care.  Your buyer doesn't care how much your mortgage is, or how much money you need for your next down payment, or what you think you should get.  All the buyer really and truly cares about is whether or not they are willing to pay what you're asking.  If not, your house isn't going to sell, no matter how much righteous indignation you feel. Your agent's job is to be an expert in the process of selling the home; To keep you out of trouble; To make sure all of the moving pieces fall into the right places at the right time; And yes, to make sure your home sells for as close to the contract price as possible.

The stated purpose of this podcast has from the beginning been to generate content that would eventually become a book.  As we've stressed in the past, if you want a job done right, you have to hire a competent professional to help you.  We believe this with real estate, and we took our own advice when it came to writing the book based on this show. We've been doing this for over a year now, and we have hired Brian K. Wright to ghost write our book for us.  In this episode you'll find out about Brian's background and why we think he is uniquely qualified to write for us.   Brian is also the host of his own very successful podcast, Success Profiles Radio, we recommend you give it a listen.

In this, the 10th and final Client Commandment, we cover the basics of the Closing Disclosure, and the things you really should know about before you sit down at the closing table.  We bring you up to speed about the things you should question, and the things that really are normal. We also get in to some story telling about a home warranty company that really needs to be called out for being sleazy.  Enjoy the fireworks!

This week, we rebroadcast for you our mutual favorite episode, our rebuttal to the Adam Ruins Everything episode on real estate. Since Kevin is traveling internationally, we are broadcasting this "best of" episode from our archives.   We will return next week with a new original episode.

Are you a police officer, fire fighter, teacher, or EMT?  If so, you qualify to get your house for 50% off of list price by buying it from HUD!   This week, we explore a source of potential homes and investment houses that most people don't normally think of.  The US Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD for short.   When a bank forecloses on a loan that has been guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration, the government makes the bank whole and the house ends up in the inventory of homes owned and offered for sale by HUD.  If you'd like to browse the properties they're selling, you can find them all at www.hudhomestore.com.   Keep in mind though that you have to submit your bids through a licensed agent, and if your bid is accepted, you have very little wiggle room as all sales are "as-is, where is".  For this reason, we recommend that you lowball your offers.  If you don't hear back within 1 business day, you know your offer was rejected and you can resubmit a new bid if you like or move on to another house.  

David Letterman had a recurring segment on his show called "Stupid Pet Tricks".  Similarly, we are introducing "Stupid Agent Tricks" as (probably) a recurring topic on the show.  In the episode, we discuss some of the "sinners" we've run in to recently.   We talk about the latest abomination from the brokers, gurus, and sales coaches who think the BINGO card pictured here is a great way to motivate their agents to do something they hate - make cold calls.  Can you imagine yourself *hoping* to get cussed out on a sales call just so you can win this game?   We also talk about one recent example of agents we both encountered in the past couple of weeks who don't know the rules of the industry in which they operate.   Finally, we explore some of the ridiculous lengths that Karen has had to go to keep her deals from falling apart because of lazy/incompetent agents on the other side.

If you know an entrepreneur, they'll tell you that being in business for yourself is a pretty lonely existence.  Many people say they want to own their own business, but only a small fraction of people actually do, so it's difficult to find other entrepreneurs who understand the struggle.   For this reason, we are using the platform of our podcast to connect with and give exposure to entrepreneurs in our community that we vibe with.  This week, we highlight Daniel Johnson, one half of the Hanigan and Johnson orthodontics practice in our local community.   Through his practice, Daniel recently built a commercial building from the ground up.  Daniel also tells his personal story, touching on his missionary work in South America, his military service, and how he found his partner to start his practice shortly after orthodontics school.   Karen and Daniel have a number of things in common, which we explore in the episode.  They are both triathletes, and they both use their businesses as a vehicle to give back to the communities they serve.   You can find Hanigan & Johnson at www.straighttooth.com or you can call the office at 832-777-7001.

This week we celebrate our 50th episode by finishing our conversation with Tinja Anderson-Shiery.   In this episode, we cover the remaining two communication archetypes, Analyticals and Drivers.  Both Karen and I scored very high on the Driver scale, so you'll learn a little something about both of us by listening to this episode.

Have you ever met someone and knew almost instantly that you were going to get along great with them?  What about the opposite, where you almost instantly know you are NOT going to get along?  Much of that first impression comes from the communication style of the sender and the receiver. This week, we welcome back Tinja Anderson-Shiery to the show to talk about the 4 major communication styles.  She reveals to us what our styles are according to the test we took.  Nobody is all one style, rather we are all blends of the 4 different archetypes. Why should you care?  Knowing the nonverbal cues of each of the types will help you to adjust your communication style to suit your audience.  This is a practiced skill that will benefit people in all walks of life. The conversation was quite long, so we split it into 2 episodes.  In this first half, we discussed the Expressive and Scientist archetypes.  Next week, we will finish the discussion by covering Analyticals and Drivers. Enjoy!

When we were homebuyers, it was irritating to us that our agent wouldn’t answer certain questions that we thought were perfectly reasonable. Now that Karen is an agent, we know exactly why he wouldn’t provide direct answers to what we thought were simple questions. Questions like: “What are the demographics in this area?” "How are the schools here?” “What are the crime statistics of this neighborhood?” “Is there a church nearby?” “Is this a nice neighborhood?” If an agent were to provide a direct answer to any of these questions and others like them, they would be putting themselves at risk of running afoul of the Fair Housing Act, which prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, sex, national origin, or religion. The best your agent can do is to provide you with places to do your own research and answer these questions for yourself. It’s unfortunate, but this is what your friendly neighborhood real estate agent has to do to stay on the right side of the law!  

This past week, Karen was down for the count with a stomach bug.  As a result, Kevin pulled double duty with the kids so Karen could just be sick.  For this reason, we had completed zero preparation for the show, but we are committed to (not just interested in) releasing something every week, so we hit record and went with it. Our conversation took a few twists and turns, but we ended up having what we thought was an important and meaningful discussion about an autoimmune disorder that our family is about to start dealing with.  Yes, this podcast has "real estate" in the title, but not every episode has to be about real estate.  This podcast is also about the people behind the microphones and our real, actual lives. We hope you enjoy and can connect with us as we share our challenges with you.  Don't worry, it's not all heady content, we also discuss our upcoming plans to return to the Houston Roller Derby and our kid's participation in her swim team.

Get ready for a wild one!  Karen blows off some steam in this episode.  After spending a lot of time and effort with a client, she was dismissed by the client with no explanation.  Obviously it's the client's decision as to who represents them, but it's basic common courtesy to explain your thinking to someone who has invested a lot of time and money into helping you find the perfect home for you, and who now will not be paid for it. Real estate agents are people with families too!  Consider this: Most people go look at houses after normal business hours and/or on weekends.  That's time people normally spend with their families.  Every hour an agent spends with you is an hour they choose to spend away from their family.  So yes, it's the right thing to do to offer an explanation so to why you're terminating your representation agreement. You might say, "Well, that's the lifestyle the agent chooses by their choice of profession."  True.  It's also true that wasted time is just a part of the cost of doing business.  However, none of that is an excuse for you as a client to be rude. Look, we get it.  This industry is filled with real estate agents who will beg, badger, plead, and otherwise devalue themselves just to get your business.  That's not Karen or any of the other agents who we have in our referral network.  If that's what you want representing you, there are plenty of agents out there to choose from.  However, if you want to work with someone who is authentic and real; if you will respect their time as much as they will respect your transaction, we want to hear from you!  

While this podcast is primarily focused on real estate, we do take time to tell stories about our lives from time to time.  In this episode, we share the struggles we have had this year with our kindergartener dealing with a bully at school.  We thought it would be helpful to share this story if for no other reason than to give other parents the benefit of our experiences, and some things to look for with your own kids. We also chatted a bit about Karen's new fitness regimen, which she's having great success with, and we take a moment to celebrate Kevin's latest flag football adventures in his work league.  

Most people are familiar with the idea of crowd funding.  Sites like Gofundme.com and kickstarter.com have helped some really great ideas get off the ground and brought in to reality. This week, Nathan Roach, the CEO of MassVenture.com explains to us how the laws in Texas have recently been changed to enable a crowd funding spin to be applied to real estate investing.  Through the platform, individual investors can invest as little as $500 in the projects they have curated for their members.

This week we sit down with Don Leonard.  Don has been in the real estate industry for 34 years, giving him a wealth of knowledge and expertise in real estate.  Don has hosted two radio shows in Houston about real estate, currently teaches at the Champion's School of Real Estate, and has had his own broker's license for 18 years. Don sits down with us this week to swap war stories and offer some advice on some specific questions Karen has about a deal she's currently working.  Don also shares with us some of the details of a coaching program he is hosting entitled the Nature of Real Estate.  If you're an agent looking for a different way to do business than cold calling, door knocking, and publicly begging for business, then you're listening to the right podcast, and you should consider this coaching program.

Just imagine it:  You wire your money to the title company as instructed the day before you buy your dream home.  You show up to closing, and they ask you, "Where's your down payment?"  You think this must be some kind of silly joke, so you say, "You mean the massive wire I sent you yesterday wasn't enough?" "Wire?  I checked a few minutes ago, and we didn't receive a wire from you, but I'll go double check."  The serious look on the escrow agent's face tells you this isn't a joke. "Yes," you say, "I sent it to the updated account you asked me to use via email yesterday." "... I didn't send you any updated wire instructions yesterday." After a few eternal minutes of double checking both on your end and on the title company's end, it's clear that you did indeed send the down payment, but you did not send it to the title company.  Instead, you sent it to an overseas thief who has now disappeared with your money.  How could this happen? This has been a growing problem in the real estate industry that was highlighted by ABC news station KOMO in Seattle. The scammers first target real estate agents and attempt to gain access to their email accounts.  Agents are great targets because their email addresses are readily available online, and there's a very high likelihood that if an agent gets an email from someone that says, "I'm interested in hiring you to represent me in the purchase of a home, please click this link for listing details", they're probably going to click on it.  The problem is, clicking on the link gives the scammers control of the agent's email account. They then monitor the traffic in the account by checking it regularly or setting up a rule to automatically forward a copy of every email to a different account controlled by the scammer. (When was the last time you checked your auto-forward settings?) With the information that passes back and forth on their deals, the scammers can construct a pretty clear picture of the transaction:  When it is taking place, how much money the buyer is bringing to the table, and what title company is being used in the transaction. Armed with these details, the scammers, posing as the title agent, send an email to the buyer the day before the transaction is supposed to close, providing them with a new account to which they should send the money.  The email looks legitimate because it contains all the details of their transaction, so many people act on them, unwittingly sending their down payment money to overseas thieves. What can you do to prevent this? As an agent: Don't click on links or open attachments from unknown sources. Change your email password regularly Check your email forwarding settings regularly As a consumer: Bring your funds to closing with a Cashier's Check OR (Here's a little tough love for you) Before you send a wire, pick up the damn phone and call the title company to verify that you have the correct information. Never, EVER act on "updated wiring instructions" without confirming via a PHONE CALL. Don't get screwed, friends!

If you want to know what Phil Dunphy, roller derby, and dental work have in common, listen to the show this week. Customer service seems to be a dying art in our increasingly digitally connected, yet personally disconnected world.  Kevin and Karen talk about some recent customer service experiences they've had to illustrate why excellent customer service is one of the single most important ingredients to a successful real estate transaction.

Credit repair.  It's a frequent question that many real estate agents hear from their clients: "I'd like to buy a house, but I have some problems with my credit.  It really is an honest mistake but I don't know how to go about getting it cleaned up."  Having bad credit can prevent you from qualifying for a loan.  If it doesn't flat out prevent you from getting a loan, it will cost you many thousands of dollars in additional interest payments whether you're buying a home to live in or as an investment. In today's episode, we welcome back our first ever repeat guest on the podcast, Dave Cole.  Dave was previously a guest on the show for Episode 32, when we covered Solo 401(k) plans.  Today, Dave returns to the show to talk about the state of the credit repair industry.  Listen in as he gives a (very) brief history of the credit repair industry and points out how the business model that most of these services have doesn't work any more, and their customers are simply wasting their money.  Dave shares a much better approach that leverages the law to compel the credit bureaus to clean up your file if they can't produce all of the legally required documentation.  It's a 60-90 day process, it costs a fraction of what you might pay a typical letter writing service and best of all, it's guaranteed.  If you want to learn more about the service, watch the webinar Dave created for it.

Tinja Anderson Shiery has spent her entire professional life until recently as a consultant teaching professionals how to craft their messages for success. One of the many classes she teaches is entitled "Winnings Words", and Kevin was a student of hers in his role in the Oil & Gas industry, and the class changed the trajectory of his career.  Listen in as Tinja compresses this 3 day class into a one hour crash course for Karen.  If you take nothing else away from this episode, wrap your mind around the art of the sincere and honest acknowledgement. Tinja has recently started her own business and works every day now to adapt the model she learned from her parents to fit her new role. You can find Tinja's jewelry business here: www.candibytinja.com You can also find her on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/tinjashiery

Have you ever wondered what would happen to your property if you didn't pay your taxes?  Most people envision the police eventually knocking at the door and throwing you out.  The reality in Texas at least is that the knock will eventually come, but it will be an investor knocking, an investor like today's guest, Arnie Abramson. Arnie has been investing in Texas tax auctions since the early 1990s.  With a very long track record of success, he leads the Texas Tax Sales Resource Group, which is comprised of individual investors that have been investing in income producing real estate in Texas for many years.  The Group helps members find, bid on, purchase, and own properties that go to public auction in all 254 counties in Texas. The law in Texas is very favorable to investors in these properties.  The winning bidder at the auction is immediately awarded ownership and possession of the property.  The ONLY right the previous owner retains is the right to "redeem" the property, a process by which the investor is rewarded with a 25% to 50% profit on his/her investment.  If you are or want to be a real estate investor, you should listen to this episode twice! In addition to investing in tax auctions in Texas, Arnie makes available to his priority members investment in certain tax liens outside of the Lone Star State, through the Lien-to-Deed program, the details of which he also shares in this episode. Karen and Kevin are both Priority Members in the program, and as Karen says in the episode, just having the knowledge and education that Arnie provides gives us the confidence to go and bid at the auctions, which to the uninitiated are intimidating and confusing.  If you decide to become a Priority Member too, we've worked out a discount with Arnie if you call by Monday, March 13! If you'd like to ask Arnie a question directly, please feel free to reach out to him at arnie@txtaxsales.com.

Effective writing is important.  This is why this, the 10th and final Agent Commandment, is about writing. We have seen far too many examples of horrific writing on the part of real estate agents.  You don't need to read very many MLS listing descriptions before they'll start popping out at you.  Poor spelling, bad grammar, lack of punctuation.  They all jump right off the page and detract from the professional message you're trying to communicate on behalf of your client. For this reason, we've enlisted the help of Laura Peterson, Author, Teacher, Entrepreneur, Podcaster, and Digital Nomad.  On her podcast, Copy that Pops, you'll find a wealth of information on how to write effectively for your newsletter, ads, and blog posts to drive traffic to your destinations. Listen in as we have a wide ranging discussion with Laura about the impact of effective writing, vomit comets, living in Europe, and International Dog of Mystery, Tuck.  

The topic of inspectors has come up in past episodes, so we thought we'd delve a little deeper into the topic with this episode by sharing the top 10 issues that come up during inspections. After hearing this episode, you will understand the great benefit an inspector brings to the table.

Decrepit cars, interest rates, closing disclosures, and mortgages, how do they all relate? In this episode, we welcome Patrick Morales back to the podcast for a wide ranging discussion about mortgages. When preparing to buy a new home so many consumers don't realize they might have to choose between the new car or the new home. Learn about how mortgages work, hidden fees, and what's happening in the market. Find out what pro-rations are, general closing costs and fees and get into the nitty-gritty of mortgage closing costs. So many people shop on the interest rates alone, but that's not always the best strategy!  You should calculate the total cost of the loan before you sign on the dotted line. Know before you buy! 

Listen in as we discuss the difference between being interested and being committed.  It's a huge distinction!  Our stand is that agents should be committed to their chosen profession of being a real estate agent! You want to know what that cryptic message means? You have to listen to the podcast to find out.  Perhaps the Spartan King Leonidas will clarify what it means to be committed to your profession.  Maybe NFL Coach Herm Edwards can point out how being interested versus being committed has an immeasurable impact on the performance of the team. Your realtor is a member of your home buying or selling team, and like any major event in your life you want a professional and a committed team member watching your back. We hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed recording it. Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast and give us a review on whatever platform you use to listen to the show! podcast@texasrealestatebible.com

Lately, we have been getting a lot of requests to do some episodes aimed at real estate investors.  While we are technically real estate investors by virtue of the fact that are landlords,  we don't feel like we've had enough experience to speak authoritatively on the subject, so we decided to do some research and find guests for the show who know far more about real estate investment than we do. In this episode, we welcome David Cole to the show who shares with us an amazing tool that isn't very well known yet, but is an incredibly powerful tool for real estate investors and/or people who want to be real estate investors. The single participant 401(k), commonly known as the "Solo 401(k)" plan gives you as an investor unprecedented access to and flexibility to personally invest the retirement funds you have been building up throughout your life.  Do you have a 401(k) from a previous employer?  Do you have a traditional individual retirement account that you self-funded?  All of these funds can be rolled in to a Solo 401(k), where YOU take the role of trustee, enabling you to have checkbook access to the funds for the purpose of investment. Listen to this episode as Dave walks us through the background, requirements, and rules of this option that all investors should know about! Dave can be reached at: Website: http://www.freedomfirst401k.com Phone: 928-350-8368 Email: dave@freedomfirst401k.com

In today's episode we interview Mike Michalowicz, author of 4 different business books.  We had no intention of turning our conversation into a Commandment, but Mike shared so many great insights that we had to do it.  Mike is the author of Surge, Profit First, The Pumpkin Plan and the Toilet Paper Entrepreneur.  He is also a popular keynote speaker and successful podcaster. Mike built and sold two multi-million dollar companies by his 35th birthday.  Confident that he'd discovered the secrets to success, he became an angel investor... and proceeded to lose his entire fortune.  Now building his third multi-million dollar company based on the thesis of Profit First, Mike shares his insights with us on the program.  Although Mike shared a lot of insights and fascinating stories in and about his books, we thought his advice from The Pumpkin Plan was spot on for real estate agents.  In order to get noticed, you have to be different!  You shouldn't expect to gain the attention from the marketplace by being exactly like every other real estate agent out there, you have to be different in order to get noticed.  Think about it - the human brain is conditioned over millions of years to notice things that are out of the ordinary.  If you're watching a freeway with car after car whizzing by, you'll get bored pretty quickly.  Wouldn't a person riding a giraffe down the freeway immediately grab and hold your attention?  Of course it would! Remember though, being different doesn't guarantee success, it only guarantees that you'll get attention.  What you do with that attention depends on you!  At the end of the episode, Mike fills us in on his hit book, Profit First, and talks about the critical takeaways from that book that can be applied to every real estate agent out there.  If you're struggling in your business, whether it's in real estate or any other business, give this episode a listen, you won't be disappointed! Connect with Mike: Website: http://www.mikemichalowicz.com Podcast: http://www.mikemichalowicz.com/category/profit-first-podcast/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mike+michalowicz Books: Surge  -  Profit First  -  The Pumpkin Plan   -  Toilet Paper Entrepreneur

Come spend some time with us while we heckle a close friend and new build buyer, Scott Sniderwin. Scott recently purchased a new build home here in the Houston area.  Although Scott is now a regular listener to the show, we hadn't started the podcast at the time he was buying, so he wasn't plugged in to the commandments, and his real estate story turned into a horror story. Luckily for Scott, he is persistent, and as he put it “a real pain”, so he kept fighting to get things done properly on his new build home.  He walks us through his story of building a new home from contract to final closing to his warranty period. Listen to the podcast to hear all of the details and how he got things fixed, and what he could have done to protect himself from the get-go.

Recently, we received a listener mail that had a great question: "How will rising interest rates impact the real estate market?" Since we aren't financial experts, we decided to call in reinforcements in the form of Patrick Morales.  Before becoming a Loan Originator, Patrick was a Financial Planner, so we thought he would be a great person to answer this question. During the discussion, Patrick shares with us what you as a buyer can do to prepare for higher interest rates to take the best advantage of the situation. He also shares some very useful information for anyone who currently owns a home who had a loan modification done in the last 5 years.  If this is you, don't miss this episode! You can reach Patrick at 832-639-3350 or by email at pmorales@cenderafunding.com.  

This is a special episode!  We recorded it in front of a live audience at the University of Houston with special guest host, Hank Moore.  Hank has been shaping our culture for a generation, and is a living legend in many spheres, including the Non-Profit sphere.  Listen to this episode as we discuss how important it is for agents to be committed to giving back to the communities they serve. Real estate agents, more than any other profession, are intimately linked to the communities in which they do business.  It is therefore imperative that we make our businesses about more than just making money for ourselves.  A portion of our profits should go back to the community in the form of philanthropy.  It's good for the community and it's good for your business.  If your agent can't name at least one charity that they personally support through their work, you should start looking for another agent!

Outdoor living spaces are a huge attraction, especially in areas like Houston where the weather makes them useful nearly year round.  In this episode, we interview Deedra Chavez from Bello Domani Outdoor Designs. Deedra has been in the industry for many years and has a great eye for design.  She designed the outdoor living space in Karen and Kevin's backyard and we have been referring business to her ever since. Deedra shares with us some of the most popular features and upgrades available on the market today, like high efficiency pumps that allow you to greatly reduce the energy cost of running your pool (roughly $15 per month).  She also gives us detail on our favorite pool upgrade, the in-floor cleaning system.  While we absolutely love this upgrade, there is one... let's call it "unexpected feature" that the system brings to the pool experience.  You'll have to listen to the episode to find out the hilarious truth! We also hear about some of the creative things people are doing by mixing fire and water features with outstanding results.  In the episode, you'll also hear about the outdoor living feature that provides an average 130% return on investment.

If you're a new agent, you will likely be approached fairly quickly by an experienced agent who wants you to join his/her team.  They pitch it to you as a great deal for you because they have a steady flow of leads from all of their existing marketing efforts, and for a cut of the commission, you can almost immediately start making some money and learning the ropes. All of that sounds great, and it would be great if that were the whole story, but sadly it's not.  Frequently, your responsibilities under this team agreement begin to sound like a job description.  Okay, that might be fine for people who need a little structure in their business.  If you're in to that kind of stuff, knock yourself out.  But the one thing that is common in these team agreements is something I simply cannot condone: On top of the requirements for you to spend a minimum number of hours prospecting for leads for the team, if your prospecting does turn up a qualified home SELLER, you are required to hand that lead over to the team leader for him/her to handle. THIS IS NEVER OKAY. While it does take a lot of work to help a client sell a home (which you can learn about in Episode 10), it's far more time intensive to represent a buyer because of all the driving to showings (and working around your buyers' schedules) that you will have to do.  The team leader will try to justify this by telling you they're sending  you all the buyers listings, but wait a minute,  you're paying the team leader a cut of all of your commissions in exchange for those leads, you don't owe them your sellers too! Why is this bad?  There's a damn good reason the team leader wants to represent sellers (and only sellers).  After selling their home, what does a seller need immediately after?  That's right!  A new home!  Typically sellers provide their agents with two transactions, a sell followed by a buy!  Sellers are also typically much lower cost clients to acquire, especially if the seller comes to you because you represented them on their original purchase.  DO NOT GIVE UP YOUR SELLERS, FOLKS!  A seller that comes to you as a repeat customer is your reward for doing a great job for them the first time around and for continuing to be in touch with them after the sale.

Put yourself in the place of a couple who find a great rental on Craigslist.com.  The house was beautiful, it was in a great neighborhood, and it was being listed below market!  They were happy with the pictures they saw in the ad, so they called the number.  The landlord said there had been a lot of interest in the property, so if they really wanted it, they'd have to make a decision quickly and send in their application and application fee quickly, so they did. A few days later, they got a call from the landlord to let them know that of the 7 applications that he'd received, he'd chosen their application.  Of course they were very happy and eager to know what to do next.  The landlord said he was about to go out of town on vacation for a week, so if they'd just mail money orders constituting first and last month's rent and security deposit, he'd meet them at the house on the day the lease began to deliver the keys. On moving day, they showed up and wondered why there were other moving trucks on the street.  It turns out that the person they'd thought was the landlord actually didn't own the property, and the real owner had no idea what had been going on.  The scam artist had made the same promises to 7 different callers, and had made off with roughly $80,000 in money orders that had been sent in to cover rents and security deposits.  Even worse, the scam artist had all of their personal information from the application and stole their identities, opening credit card accounts in their names! It's scams like this that underline how important it is to have a real estate agent working on your behalf, even if you're renting a home or apartment.  Their services are completely free to you, and they have access to resources that will help to ensure you're never the victim of a scam artist.  Listen to this story and more in this episode!

In this episode, we welcome Nicole Normandin to the show to talk about Stuff The Sleigh, the charity we are benefitting at the upcoming live event on December 14.  In the interview, we learn about her, and her personal connection to the mission of Stuff The Sleigh, which benefits pediatric cancer and hematology patients. Nicole gives us a behind the curtains look at how Stuff The Sleigh delivers its services and what it takes to manage and grow a Non-Profit organization. Finally, she shares some gripping stories about the children that have benefitted from Stuff The Sleigh. Don't miss this episode!

Not all offers are the same.  There are many ways a crafty buyer can hide costs in their offer that reduce the overall value of deal for you as a seller.  This is one of the many reasons why you need a competent, detail oriented agent looking out for your best interests in your transaction. In this episode, we delve in to some of the nooks and crannies that make up the offer and walk you through your options when you're selling your home.  For example, did you know that your buyer's source of financing can have an impact on the total amount of money you end up with in your pocket?  I didn't know that either until we recorded this episode!

It's been a frequently repeated position on the podcast that the barriers to entry into the real estate business are far too low, and that results in a lot of unqualified people getting their licenses.  These agents frequently get frustrated with how difficult it is to be consistently successful as agents.  They frequently take these frustrations out on their fellow agents by making transactions harder than they need to be. In this episode, we tell a number of stories of agents who refused to maintain their professionalism, and in the process ended up costing their clients money.  The upshot of these stories - as an agent, it is your JOB to be professional and dispassionate so that you can act in the best interest of your client at all times.

As real estate dorks, we enjoy watching HGTV (well, 2 out of 3 of us do).  There are some great pieces of information you can get out of watching the many great shows on the channel.  For example, you can get a very good idea of what styles and finishes you like in homes, and you can get a great idea of what kind of layouts appeal to you.  However, while watching any television show, it's important for you to remember that pretty much everything you see is scripted, and only about half of it is true.  For example, on renovation shows it's pretty common for the contractor to give a cost estimate on the spot after eyeballing the house for 2 minutes.  This will not happen to you in real life.  Furthermore, the prices they quote differ greatly when they are on camera versus how they would answer to you in real life. Enjoy this episode as we delve in to our favorite HGTV (and other channel) shows and point out the things you should be taking with a grain of salt.

Karen and I have our shows that we watch together to unwind.  One of our favorite shows is "Adam Ruins Everything".  The show, hosted by Adam Conover is a mainstay on our DVR because it shows the hidden side of many things that we just take for granted in our culture. A recent episode entitled "Adam Ruins Housing" piqued our interest because, obviously, we're in the business.  Before we watched the episode, we saw a preview of it on Facebook, and had a conversation with some friends about some crazy statements that were made in the clip. After the episode aired, we knew we had to do an episode to rebut the half truths, misstatements, and outright lies that were told about the real estate industry in the first 6 minutes of the show.  Listen in as we share the details of the conversation we had with one of the actual sources cited on the episode.  Spoiler alert: His study actually stated the opposite of what the episode said.

Jen and Mike finally made the decision to stop being renters and become homeowners.  They were excited!  They both knew they had great credit since they checked their credit rating with a free credit reporting service, so they called an agent and started shopping.  They saw some great houses, and some not so great houses.  In all, they went to 30 different properties before they found THE ONE. It was perfect.  Great curb appeal, great school district, close to work, and had more than enough room for their growing family.  The kitchen and the living spaces were exactly what Jen had always dreamed of, and Mike could already see himself relaxing in the built in man-cave.  Before putting in their offer, they calculated for themselves what the loan payment would be and decided that it would be a stretch, but it would be worth it!  So they put in their offer, and after a little negotiation, they agreed on a purchase price of $350,000.  They took their executed contract to their local bank where they'd been customers for years, and put in their mortgage application.  They went back to their apartment and immediately started boxing up their things.  Sure, it would be several weeks before they would actually move, but they were excited! A few days later, Jen's phone rang.  It was Chris, their Loan Officer.  "Jen" he began, "I'm not sure how to break this to you so I'll just say it - you and Mike can't qualify for the loan on the house."  "How can that be?  We both have great credit, we both have full time jobs!" "That's all true, but there's a lot more to your financial picture than good credit and employment.  I'm afraid the best you can qualify for based on the information in your application is a $300,000 purchase price." This is a scene that plays out far more often than most people realize, and when it does happen, it's crushing for the people in Jen and Mike's shoes.  Not only have they wasted a lot of time looking for and falling in love with a house they can't afford, but they also will have their perceptions of all of the future houses they CAN afford tainted by the experience.  This is why it's so important to contact a Loan Officer before beginning your home search. In this episode, we welcome Clay Bohannan, Senior Loan Originator and Partner at Encompass Lending Group as a guest host.  With Clay, we dive into the many details of the mosaic that makes up your full financial picture.  In this episode you will learn: What are the three pillars that make up your financial picture? What are the top things you can do to improve your financial picture? When should you start working with a loan originator? What is the process for obtaining a Pre-Qualification? What is the difference between a Pre-Approval and a Pre-Qualification?

Recently, Karen was representing a set of buyers who found a house that they really liked.  It was in the neighborhood they wanted, it was exactly the right size for their family, and it (almost) fit their budget.  Truth be told, according to the data on other similar homes that had recently sold in the neighborhood, it was overpriced by about $20,000.

In this episode we wrap up the Kevin interview. You'll learn of the triumphs and failures that shape who he is today. You'll also learn who he thinks would win in a fight between Spider-Man and Batman, and what his life would be if Star Wars had never been made.

Karen and Kevin discuss part 1 of Getting To Know Kevin. In this episode, you'll learn about what makes your host tick.  We cover his formative years through college.  After listening to this episode, you'll have the answers to the following questions: How much money did he make selling candy to his classmates in grade school? Can Kevin dance? Why did he join the Air Force at the ripe old age of 27? The answers to all this and more in this episode.