| Duane’s Real Estate Video September 15 “It’s a great day to be in real estate! Duane Beisner here… sales manager and a sales representative for ERA real estate. | ||
| Duane’s Quote of the Day Action without study is fatal. Study without action is futile. -Mary Beard | |
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Duane’s Joke of the Day
An Indian walks into a cafe with a shotgun in one hand pulling a male buffalo with the other. He says to the waiter, "Me want coffee." The waiter says, "Sure chief, coming right up." He gets the Indian a tall mug of coffee. The Indian drinks the coffee down in one gulp, turns and blasts the buffalo with the shotgun, causing parts of animal to splatter everywhere, then just walks out.
The next morning the Indian returns. He has his shotgun in one hand pulling another male buffalo with the other. He walks up to the counter and says to the waiter, "Me want coffee." The waiter says, "Whoa, Tonto! We're still cleaning up your mess from yesterday. What was all that about, anyway?"
The Indian smiles and proudly says, "Me training for upper management position: Come in, drink coffee, shoot the bull, leave mess for others to clean up, disappear for rest of day."
Duane’s Business Tip of the Day
Three things to know: outsource, automate and delegate.
Think about it.
Darwin Award of the Day
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Who would park the car on a busy freeway in heavy fog, for a quickie?
Picture this: A young couple driving on Via Dutra, the major freeway in Brazil with tons of heavy traffic, at 6AM under heavy fog the couple decided to park the car for "dating," according to the charming Google translation. And yes, they parked in the right lane of freeway, not on the shoulder or at a gas station -- and naturally, a huge cargo truck comes by and runs right over the car, immediately killing both inside during the act. Double Double Darwin! Two (2) people making two obviously stupid decisions, and natural selection acts at the very moment the two are reproducing . . .
Duane’s Social Commentary
Five Secrets to Business Success
by Richard Branson for Entrepreneur
I am often asked if I have found a secret - or at least a consistent answer - to successfully building businesses over my career.
So I’ve spent some time thinking about what characterizes so many of Virgin’s successful ventures and, importantly, what went wrong when we did not get it right. Reflecting across 40 years I have come up with five “secrets.”
No. 1: Enjoy What You Are Doing.
Because starting a business is a huge amount of hard work, requiring a great deal of time, you had better enjoy it. When I started Virgin from a basement flat in West London, I did not set out to build a business empire. I set out to create something I enjoyed that would pay the bills.
There was no great plan or strategy. The name itself was thought up on the hoof. One night some friends and I were chatting over a few drinks and decided to call our group Virgin, as we were all new to business. The name stuck and had a certain ring to it.
A businesswoman or a businessman is not unlike an artist. What you have when you start a company is a blank canvas; you have to fill it. Just as a good artist has to get every single detail right on that canvas, a businessman or businesswoman has to get every single little thing right when first setting up in business in order to succeed. However, unlike a work of art, the business is never finished. It constantly evolves.
If a businessperson sets out to make a real difference to other people’s lives, and achieves that, he or she will be able to pay the bills and have a successful business to boot.
No. 2: Create Something That Stands Out.
Whether you have a product, a service or a brand, it is not easy to start a company and to survive and thrive in the modern world. In fact, you’ve got to do something radically different to make a mark today.
Look at the most successful businesses of the past 20 years. Microsoft, Google or Apple, for example, shook up a sector by doing something that hadn’t ever been done and by continually innovating. They are now among the dominant forces.
No. 3: Create Something That Everybody Who Works for You is Really Proud of.
Businesses generally consist of a group of people, and they are your biggest assets.
No. 4: Be a Good Leader.
As a leader you have to be a really good listener. You need to know your own mind but there is no point in imposing your views on others without some debate. No one has a monopoly on good ideas or good advice.
Get out there, listen to people, draw people out and learn from them. As a leader you’ve also got to be extremely good at praising people. Never openly criticize people; never lose your temper, and always lavish praise on your colleagues for a job well done.
People flourish if they’re praised. Usually they don’t need to be told when they’ve done wrong because most of the time they know it. If somebody is not working out, don’t automatically throw him or her out of the company. A company should genuinely be a family. So see if there’s another job within the company that suits them better. On most occasions you’ll find something for every single kind of personality.
No. 5: Be Visible.
A good leader does not get stuck behind a desk. I’ve never worked in an office - I’ve always worked from home - but I get out and about, meeting people. It seems I am traveling all the time but I always have a notebook in my back pocket to jot down questions, concerns or good ideas.
If I’m on a Virgin Atlantic plane, I make certain to get out and meet all the staff and many of the passengers. If you meet a group of Virgin Atlantic crew members, you are going to have at least 10 suggestions or ideas. If I don’t write them down, I may remember only one the next day. By writing them down, I remember all 10. Get out and shake hands with all the passengers on the plane, and again, there are going to be people who had a problem or have a suggestion. Write it down, make sure that you get their names, get their e-mail addresses, and make sure the next day that you respond to them.
| Duane’s Real Estate News
By Les Christie, CNN Money September 15, 2010 The national housing market is shrouded in uncertainty. But in California, there are glimmers of stability. Home prices are rising in virtually every corner of the state. They've climbed for nine consecutive months, and in July posted a 10.4% gain year-over-year. That puts the state's median price at $315,000 -- nearly twice the national median of $183,000. And the news is even better in coastal cities. San Francisco posted the biggest gain of any U.S. metro over the past year, rising 14.3%. The median price there is now more than $607,000. Meanwhile, San Diego has climbed 11.2% (median price: $389,000) and Los Angeles jumped 9.2% (median price: $345,000). Meanwhile, Florida, Arizona and Nevada -- California's erstwhile bubble-state partners -- continue to struggle. So where is the Golden State's strength coming from? "I think it comes from the fact that prices went down so far and so quick," said Lesley Appleton-Young, California Association of Realtors' chief economist. "That left a lot of people here saying, 'Wow, affordable California housing.'" However, a quick home price rebound was delayed by the crush of foreclosures that accompanied the subprime mortgage meltdown. California real estate had become so expensive that a basic single-family home required many buyers to overextend themselves with exotic loans. That is no longer the case. Most of the subprime-related distressed properties have been flushed from the system. And when a foreclosure does hit the market, it's snapped up. The median days it took to sell a home in July was just 44 -- lightening fast. "It's the dearth of supply for distressed properties that has put pressure on home prices," said Appleton-Young. "More than half the homes on the market last year drew multiple offers." Plus, the California economy is picking up. Even in a recession, it has remained one of the world's 10 largest economies, mainly because it is driven by every major industry -- aerospace, tech, software, finance, agriculture, tourism. So as more of those industries recover and employment picks up, demand for housing will jump. Another factor that has helped lift prices is a trend toward more short sales. Fewer of the distressed properties are going all the way through the foreclosure process. "The shift to short sales in itself would increase home prices," said Mark Goldman, who teaches real estate at San Diego State University. Goldman added that California markets are, generally, more constrained than any of the other bubble states. Florida and Nevada, for example, still have room to develop and grow in most areas. But the lack of developable land is especially acute in California, pushing home prices up. For home sellers in other states, what's happening in California is encouraging. Trends often begin on the coast, so they're hoping the recovery will roll eastward. |
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This is Duane signing off. Happy Trails to you! As always, I am proud to be an American.
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