Welcome to Friday, let’s sweep! 

A good friend and broker, Diane Terry shared this on FB last week. I stashed it away for today’s FWL. “Sunday” has officially arrived for me. Signing off for a proper vacation…

“August is the Sunday of Summer” – Watson Kennedy blog

Before hitting the road from current locale of Boston to Cooperstown, NY…a few questions to ponder in August…

When working with Buyer customers, when & how do you discuss your fee?

When working with Seller customers, when & how do you discuss SOCs?

If you have a clear plan for both, you are ready for NWMLS October 1st, 2019 changes around SOCs. If you a not confident with either question, I promise to get you there.

PS: July “science” + monthly password updated for windermerestats.com. Your office has the password or send me a quick text!  > 206.227.7133

Ok, leaving Boston and road tripping to Cooperstown, NY. Shale playing baseball for a week. Piper & I his biggest fans this week. One key ingredient missing: Chad. Had to stay back for work obligations. Feel free to check in on him;) Thank goodness for FaceTime!

“August is the Sunday of Summer” > Sunday is here.

All in, for you.

Laura Smith | Co-owner | Windermere Real Estate Co.

Welcome to Friday! How many of you have heard me say…”it matters who says it?” Well, it does. And what I want to share today I did not pen – although every once of what I’m going to share is how I feel to the core. I’ve brought in a guest writer of sorts…1000 Watt.

1000 Watt is a company that obsesses over writings about real estate, branding, marketing, media and technology. I came across one of their blog posts and it quickly rose to the top of what I wanted to share this week within FWL. As you know, I too obsess over such writings however every now and again it’s healthy to hear it from another source…”it matters who says it“…

With industry “noise” a constant in our every day, this is what I want you to digest – today and everyday. Call it a pick me up, call it a shot in the arm, call it…a “you matter” mantra. Own it and please make this your next brain tattoo.

Dear agent…

July 30, 2019 By Marc Davison

Wrapping up this week on a boat. Let’s sail on into the weekend. Fridays With Laura will be back on land next week!

Welcome to Friday evening – a beautiful summer evening at that! We are jumping into the weekend I’ll make this post short and right to the point!

The June “science” is out and ready for you to digest and use to help people better understand where the market is and where we have been.

Full reports published here.

*remember, WindermereStats is password protected. Text me if you need it! 206.227.7133. Your office also has the password.

Outside of the “science”, here are a handful of the conversations I’ve had this week > the “art” of what we do…

1. Listing brokers: make sure earnest money isn’t too light – we could start to see lighter EM’s.

2. When using digital signatures and multiple parties are signing – be sure you have confirmation that both/all parties actually signed (vs. signing on behalf of the other party) – yes, this happened (husband signed for both he + wife and wife was not aware she has sold her home – ps, PSA void)

3. When having Earnest Money deposited, please direct EM to where the PSA states it is to go – selling firm/closing agent.

4. Have price adjustment conversations as part of your pricing strategy before list date – then these conversations are more a part of the plan vs a difficult surprise.

5. It’s summer, make your “flow” fun! Keep it light, find fun ways to connect. One of the key coaching elements I share with brokers asking for a lift in their business is to focus on 20 “live” contacts each week > in person or on the phone followed up with a “next step.” Summer “live” contacts are FUN > find the FUN!

…and on that FUN note, who has played Spikeball? Wowza, the Smith’s new front yard summer game. A must in summer play, Smith approved.

All in, for you.

Laura Smith | Co-owner | Windermere Real Estate Co.

…ok, #HAPPYFIFTH! It’s Friday, let’s take a quick sweep and then jump right back into summer work + play! First order of business, a quick brush up on Computation of Time. Good time of year to share critical points. For many of us, this is forever embedded into our brains. For those of you looking for clarity and a few more reps with respect to the  importance of understanding Computation of Time…here you go:

PS, yes > yesterday, The 4th of July is a Legal Holiday when computing “time” with respect to your purchase and sales currently in play.

Understanding “Computation of Time”

General Term “l”

General Term “l” (Computation of Time) of the purchase and sale agreements governs how time is calculated for the various time periods in the agreement.

Critical Points

• Any period of time starts on the day following the event commencing the period (e.g. mutual acceptance occurs on Tuesday, day one is Wednesday)
• Time periods of 5 days or less do not include weekends or legal holidays
• Time periods of more than 5 days include weekends and legal holidays
• Time periods end at 9:00 pm on the last day of the specified period
• If the last day of the time period is on a weekend or a legal holiday, it moves to the next day that is not a weekend or legal holiday (except for the Possession Date)
• Time periods are not delayed by a missing legal description – time periods begin from the date of mutual acceptance
• The computation of time provision applies to all timelines in the purchase and sale agreements and any addenda (e.g. Form 22A, Form 22B, Form 22D, Form 35, etc.)

Reminder: NWMLS 2019 Forms Revisions have taken effect as of July 1st, 2019

NWMLS Legal Bulletin 216 fully summarizes revisions to many NWMLS forms and introduces one new form. Many of the revisions were made for clarification purposes and are not substantive changes. I want to point out one substantial change and the new form so that you may easily digest without looking to hard! *want a full run down of revisions? > See homepage of NWMLS for Legal Bulletin + red-lined versions of changes.

I’d like you to digest the following…

Heads up: if you stash NWMLS Forms somewhere outside of transaction desk, time to recycle! The new revisions are in play.

…and on that note, let’s get back to summer play! Thanks for digesting the above, in your continued commitment to be the best in the business and in your actions in constantly raising the bar. #TheWindermereWay

All in, for you.

Laura Smith | Co-owner | Windermere Real Estate Co.

…and oh, a few shots from Hoopfest last weekend > a me + Piper kind of weekend. The best. And yes, she drained that jumper [bottom right] after a wicked step back move. Fun to watch her play and coach the girls. Life is sweet. Focus on the good.

 

It’s time for another Laura Top 10 – basically, what is on my mind. Welcome to Friday, let’s sweep! Ps, I’m curious your favorite content here – post a comment on this blog and let me know – thanks! #All In, For You.

1. Educating us + our clients around the Upcoming 2020 changes to Washington State Real Estate Excise Tax. Windermere branded Excise Tax Flyer released this week. *your office has it! Digest it, educate, help people to plan early – it could be meaningful. 

2. It’s not just Amazon anymore [well, hasn’t been for awhile]. Big week for Seattle in tech choosing Seattle, once again. Geekwire article here, looking at this week.

3. Waterfront Seattle – specifically the Local Improvement District (LID) came up in my June managers meeting. Providing this resource again – includes a LID property search tool. Resource here.

4. More from Godin. In putting together a creative ad writing workshop (coming soon) –  I came across this Seth Godin blog post. Ten words per page.

5. Throwback. Want a sneak preview to successful ad writing strategies? Listen to EP6 of my Double Down podcast [@ minute 12:37 begins my interview with Catherine Adams – after the legal bite with David Daniel, Demco Law Firm] *carve our 28 minutes and tune in! All Episodes here > EP6 is with Catherine Adams.

6. The 4 P’s = personality types! How do you know which type you are working with? Here are the 4 P’s (types) + their respective wants + overarching question. If you can identify who you are working with at any given time you can adjust your communication styles.

Power | Want: control | Will you get to the point?

Perfection | Want: Facts | Do you know what you are talking about?

Peace | Want: safety | Am I safe here?

Party | Want: Fun | Are we having fun yet?

7. Sure-fire strategy in working with a Power Personality > use this vernacular…

“Here’s what happens next…”

8. WRE HUB Yes, we are moving away from the old WORC. A note from WRE Services:

You may have noticed a new look for our WORC site! We’ve updated our homepage and most interior landing pages to reflect our new branding and to make it easier to find the information and tools you need. The Brand Refresh section has been phased out, Custom Xpress and Moo have been combined into one section, and new homepage tiles have been added for Professional Development and Social Media. The remaining page updates will be completed soon.  We hope you like the new look and organization. If you have feedback, please contact the Marketing Helpdesk at justask@windermere.com.

Ps. download the app, I’m liking it thus, far excited to see it grow. Windermere Hub.

9. July 4th holiday week. 🇺🇸 Reminder: When computing time for purchase and sale agreements, please regard Thursday, July 4th as a legal holiday. *Offices Closed Thursday   Friday (July 4th + July 5th).

10. Off to Hoopfest today! Excited to coach these ballers again on the blacktop. This picture says a lot more than meets the eye. This week we practiced 3 on 3 in prep for the tournament. These are two fiercely competitive teams in the neighborhood and yet we came together to prep for the tournament. Sound familiar? Yup, a lot like our offices.

It’s what we do…

#OffMute #TheHumanAlgorithm #AllInForYou

Laura Smith | Co-owner | Windermere Real Estate Co.

It’s Saturday, not Friday. No Friday sweep to digest this week as the mountains were calling, I listened and headed for fresh air and to do something good for the soul. Ironically, I lost both soles of my hiking boots! A Friday funny for sure. Humor + the outdoors was a great way to welcome in the Summer Solstice!

No digestible bites this week. I have a Top Ten brewing for next week > as I have a lot to say. I do however have a handful of stats taken from our Compassionate Conversation this week at The Cinerama. Thank you for filling the room and coming to learn. Education around homelessness is a good place to start the conversation. And, we did.

Thank you W Creative for putting this video together to capture a few take-aways in #’s. Video here, a part of the conversation.

FYI: we will continue to use our Compassionate Conversation website for education + resources. Just added: The Emerald City Resource Guide. Know someone facing homelessness? A resource here.

…and you are now witness to my Friday funny – soul vs sole. My soul may be repaired, my soles not so much!

Hello Summer! We are glad you are here!

#OffMute #TheHumanAlgorithm #AllInForYou

Laura Smith | Co-owner | Windermere Real Estate Co.

 

 

 

Welcome to Friday! Summer vibes are officially here – heck, my kids put a wrap on school today too. Welcome summer, we are glad you are here. Speaking of summer, I have my mind on some pool time. Michael Fanning had shared this week Seth Godin’s blog post, “Don’t pee in the pool” and I do believe worth a reshare…

“Don’t pee in the pool”

It’s Friday (eve)! I write tonight being I hope my blog post gets missed on Friday with all of us out within our communities, shoulder to shoulder, doing good in our respective hoods. Here is a handful of places we’ll be “showing up” tomorrow!

Atlantic Street Center + Mary’s Place + Julia’s Place + The Brig with YMCA + Sacajawea Elementary + the streets of Ballard (clean up!).

I know, I know! It’s a busy time of year – always is – and yet this is a very special day Windermere wide. It’s what we do, together. Thank you for taking a pause, carving out the time, rolling up your sleeves and making a difference. It doesn’t go unnoticed!

Should you buy a house today?

This week I had a chance to catch up with Matthew Gardner, our Chief Economist.  One topic that came up are his favorite big 3 questions on whether someone should buy a home now? Here you go…

Are you comfortable with the job you currently have?

Are you comfortable with the debt you are taking on?

Do you you plan to be in a home at least 7 years?

ps, if your clients answer “yes” to all three –  then yes – they have Mr. Gardner’s blessing too in moving forward to purchase!

FYI: Matthew & I were speaking specifically to first time homebuyers however my optics on this is that these questions translate just fine for any perspective homebuyer in this market. Use these questions > they are tools to help people move from uncertainty to certainty = one direction or another.

Episode #14 | Double Down podcast ready!| 41 minutes dedicated to all things legal.  David Daniel & I dig deep into messy Form 17 Disclosure issues and clarity around best practices with Earnest Money. When you are good and ready to digest, tune in…

Ok, shoulder to shoulder we go in the morning – bring on Windermere Community Service Day 2019!

#OffMute #TheHumanAlgorithm #AllInForYou

Laura Smith | Co-owner | Windermere Real Estate Co.

 

Sweeping this week from my deck, in flip flops and getting ready to pack up 30 girls for scout camp – yup, I’m off to camp! It should be a beautiful weekend whatever it is you choose to do…

In sweeping this week, a handful of interesting items worth sharing and digesting…the first of which is looking forward to what Sunday marks.

On Sunday, there will be 212 days left to make good things happen in 2019.  What should/can/will we each do with these next 212 days?

Wait, first…let’s refresh on why I like the # 212.

“At 211 degrees, water is hot.

At 212 degrees, water boils. With boiling water comes steam. And with steam you can power a train.

That one extra degree makes all the difference. Effort + care + attention is what creates progress. Meaningful results however require a little more > it requires 212 degrees.” – Sam Parker

If you haven’t yet seen a 3 minutes video around the concept of 212 – here you go: I think well worth your time. Be 212, here.

This + That for this week.

This week I heard of a few Craigslist Rental scams pop up on a couple of our listings.  Suggestion: Google your listings address and make sure it doesn’t get listed as a rental.  If you see it on Craigslist, report it immediately on the Craigslist site.

This week I heard one idea worth spreading: Considering having your Seller’s initial an estimated net proceeds (at the listing price) at the time they are signing their Listing paperwork with you. We had an instance where that would have been super helpful to look back upon when clarifying costs of selling. Often we provide this information during the market analysis stage. Thus, often these costs are discussed very early in the process and could get lost in the shuffle. An idea worth spreading, your call!

Ok, let’s get after the weekend. As we head into Sunday, be 212 – bring that one extra degree in all we do in 2019. Power your steam engine.  All in, for you. Off to camp I go!

Ps, WRE Eastlake brokers, I’ll see you at your mmm!

#OffMute #TheHumanAlgorithm #AllInForYou

Laura Smith | Co-owner | Windermere Real Estate Co.