Gary Woltal's Blog

RESPA (the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act) came out with some new rules of the game recently. The new rule book is something like 96 pages with the explanation of the rules being 695 pages. That's our Federal government in action for you (HUD). Basically if you are involved in settlement - Realtor, Title, Mortgage, Inspector, Builder, Seller this pertains to you.

The new Good Faith Estimate goes from one page to four. First time homebuyers are required to get 3 choices of lenders. At settlement borrowers are read and provided a closing script called the RESPA Miranda explaining the final loan terms and settlement costs. Yield Spread Premiums, if you know what that is, will be included in the GFE in the origination charge. All RESPA disclosures may be provided in electronic form as long as the consumer agrees to this. A good web site on all the details regarding RESPA is at

        REAL ESTATE SETTLEMENT PROCEDURES ACT

These new changes and more are open to comment until May 13, 2008 and then have a year to implement. The key is to stay out of trouble with HUD and the government by following the rules and not getting $10,000 or $50,000 fines or 1 year in prison. While complicated at times the rules were meant to level the playing field for all.

While many buyers search for houses on the Internet they are in fact missing a lot by not partnering up with a Realtor who has even "better" tools than just your basic Realtor.com. One main example are customized searches that create your own web site linked out of the MLS with the criteria you choose - say like price range, cities, size house, number of bedrooms, pool or not, etc. You typically don't want to narrow the criteria too tight or you might miss a gem in the mix.

The point is for the Internet savvy Realtor these automated customized searches are a snap to set up. For the new Realtor a little training or buddying up with one of these savvy Realtors will get you good to go in no time flat.

The "good" stuff in Real Estate is always with the professional. Don't be a do it yourselfer! Ask for help and get those automatic web links of the homes you want sent right away. It's easy. If you just talk to the right Realtor.

The advent of Spring is a harbinger for new beginnings. Some have said it is the "real" new year. Whether a bunch of REALTORS fire up their vehicles loading house hunters about or the holidays of Easter or Passover are upon us, for many just looking at nature we all know something "new" is happening.

Check out the buds on the trees returning. Those bulbs that were planted earlier start sprouting up into those beautiful and colorful tulips and daffodils. From a child's perspective it is almost magical. Life coming back from the apparent death of winter.

Stop and appreciate new beginnings in your life. Business, personal and just the natural order of the cycles in life. I think with all the harsh news we hear on a weekly basis think for at least a moment from a child's perspective of how beautiful new beginnings really are.

It's another chance we're given to finally get it right. Nature tells us there's always another opportunity if we just are open to it.

With many new REALTORS and Stagers to the industry over the years too many I think are always wavering in their confidence. Seeking out mentors and training is all part of growing and learning but I've always had the belief that YOU are your best mentor. To be of greatest service to your clients

      BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

Work on this daily, and have a growing sense each day that YOU can do it. Get more competent with practice and don't listen to naysayers who say you are a rookie or this is not your cup of tea, or you need many more years to get good at your craft.

What would have happened to these others if they had listened to those negative nellies? Check it out.

* The movie Star Wars was rejected by every movie
studio in Hollywood before 20th Century Fox finally produced it.
It went on to be one of the largest-grossing movies in film
history.

* As a child, Sylvester Stallone was frequently beaten by
his father and told he had no brains. He grew up an unhappy
loner. He floated in and out of schools. An advisor at Drexel
University told him that based on his aptitude tests he should
pursue a career as an elevator repair person. It is not a bad
profession but it is certainly not where Rocky ended up!

* Einstein was criticized for not wearing socks or
cutting his hair. He did not speak until he was four, and did
not read until he was seven. One observer noted, He could be
mentally retarded.

* An expert said of Vince Lombardi: He possesses minimal
football knowledge. Lacks motivation...

* Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred
playing his own compositions instead of improving his technique.
His teacher proclaimed him hopeless as a composer.

* Walt Disney was fired from his job as a newspaper editor
for lack of ideas. He also went bankrupt several times before he
created Disneyland.

* Henry Ford failed and went broke 5 times before he finally
succeeded.

* Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women, was
encouraged to find work as a servant or seamstress. She would
certainly never be a writer.

* In 1944, the director of the Blue Book Modeling Agency,
told modeling hopeful Norma Jean Baker (Marilyn Monroe), "You'd
better learn secretarial work, or else get married."

Ignore people who say you can't do something. DO IT ANYWAY! Never give up and make great things happen.

I met Richard Simmons one time at a Ft. Worth Cowtown marathon event in February. You know him as that zany, if not nutty guy who wants you to be fit and shakes around a lot and for all his effort is not all that trim himself. There is hope for all of us. He is a positive spirit extraordinaire with a heart of gold.

He reminded me of a room full of predominantly women lately that I saw in a Jazzercise class. Like Richard, the leader exhorted the class as well as "pumping up the volume" to

             SUPERCHARGE THEIR WORKOUTS

She mainly meant when going home to put one of those great tunes on in your boom box or MP3 player to feel the rhythm and really "fly" into your routine.

I thought as REALTORS, Stagers, Inspectors, Appraisers, Mortgage Professionals and all entering the upswing in the spring housing season we need to remind ourselves of a few things to "supercharge" ourselves to be of greatest service to our clients.

* Be prepared. Have all your paperwork organized and ready to go

* Be conscientious with a clean car, full of  "expensive gas" : ) and ready to roll

* Have a smile on your face and be optimistic that you will win the business

* Make time for exercise in your week, eat well, drink plenty of water and get enough rest

* Practice, practice, practice. It is in the doing that we get good at our craft. Don't wait for business. Go get it.

With these handful of tips, you will supercharge your life and be raring to go when you meet those clients.

And lest you have any of those grouches in your office buzzing around you with talk of recession, and houses that never sell, and that they can't find any buyers, STEER CLEAR OF THEM. HAVE FAITH.

To illustrate great faith, did you know in some of the darkest days in Warsaw, Poland during World War II during the German occupation many survived by a sustained faith? Scrawled as graffiti on a wall there it said,

I believe in the sun, even if it does not shine.
I believe in love, even if I do not feel it.
I believe in God, even if I do not see Him.

Now that's faith. Always have faith, never give up, and the sun will forever shine in your heart!!

In the fairy tale about Snow White who was a princess that had an evil stepmother Queen who was always out to get her, there was this magic mirror. The Queen would always ask, "Mirror Mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all?" Unfortunately because Snow White was always around and was the hottie, the Queen became jealous. She plotted to kill Snow White with a poison apple but alas a Prince came along and saved the day, the Queen was done away with for her wicked ways, and the couple lived happily ever after. There were these seven dwarfs in the story as well to keep the story moving along with all their funny names.

I will get to the point of this post in a minute, but I was inspired by top Las Vegas Real Estate Specialist Arina Hanciulescu in one of her blogs. Arina is extraordinarily tuned into life and sensitive to the world. When you find these people around you, and they are more rare than common, pay attention to them. Why? Because in their observations of the world you can learn so very much. What Arina reminded me of was that the people that you encounter in your life are like live mirrors sent to you.

Have you ever walked past a mirror? Now women know how this story goes really well. You catch yourself stopping. The hair is out of place. The jacket is not fitting quite right. Oh darn, you have a blemish on your cheek. You inspect yourself and swear you're not as pretty as you used to be. We are so hard on ourselves and on our external looks and beauty.

But then there are the other mirrors. Especially when you find the sensitive ones in your family, your friends, those buyers that REALTORS drive around with all the time, the co-workers, those people in your classes - they could be anywhere. They act as your human mirrors and pick up on stuff you weren't even aware of. Sometimes they correct your bad habits. Sometimes when we are too full of ourselves they bring us down a notch or two. But the nicest ones find your best qualities and tell you about them, even if you didn't know it yourself.

Some people come into our lives to reflect things we need to change. And if you're lucky, and I know I am, you'll have someone (like Arina) come along and highlight one's better qualities to glean from. Look for the people who are mirrors in your life. What are they telling you? Who are you reflecting back to them what you see?

They are around you. Just pay attention.

It constantly amazes me the little lessons I pick up from working around many in the real estate world. Recently over a period of time I have encountered buyers searching for homes and speakers of continuing education classes who taught  me about speech patterns. Also a family member starting out the journey with ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) illustrated to me the importance of voice.

With the buyer there was a dyslexic pattern where the syllables were interchanged. You had to keenly listen to figure out what was meant.

With the speaker the pace of his talk would quicken, and then all of a sudden slow down, and then go soft to emphasize a point. You would have to fine tune your listening to make sure you "heard" what they were saying. This was when they were conveying the golden nugget.

With ALS, speech can progress to being slightly slurry to very slurry and the power in the voice with less lung power can decrease. Hearing the meaning of what someone is trying to say becomes difficult. There is a struggle to communicate. You work ever so hard to understand.

In the 1970's there was a Speak and Spell toy where you typed in a word and it would synthetically produce the word but sometimes with a robotic voice you had to "listen carefully" to see what was projected. Oftentime you would laugh, and say "What??" I guess we don't like robots.

What I learned from all these instances was that in a world filled with so much noise, a soft voice can be the important one. Try to be the quiet voice of reason and calm in your dealings with other people. When all the shouting and nonsense is over with, waiting your turn, say softly your profound words. Because of the soft voice everyone will listen. Be someone of less words, less harshness, and more importance to those around you. Words are important, but so is tone.

I saw it so much with the ALS. Struggling so hard to be of importance as a speaker and the listeners so hard wanted to connect. There is much power in a soft voice. Don't underestimate it.

Real estate can be thought of as selecting your favorite ice cream.

Many choices to choose from: Chocolate, vanilla, strawberry. New home, pre-owned, single family, condo, rental, investment, land. Newer or older. Suburban, country, or city. So much to choose from.

Then you get to share with others.

Your family, your favorite REALTOR. You get to work with inspectors, appraisers, Stagers, Mortgage professionals.

Fun, Fun, Fun.

                                            All these folks are there to dish out the best taste for you.

Why surely they are soley in their respective businesses to make this a very tasty treat.

Tell all your friends what a wonderful job they are doing for you and give them all the referral business (more ice cream) you can think of.

In the end, it is all about happiness, and being together, and enjoying the good times, as well as sharing our struggles.

Taking time to enjoy life, or a home, OR AN ICE CREAM...

you have to step back sometimes and say,

"It doesn't get any better than this!!"

Realtors are always such a funny bunch if you listen to them closely. The funniest if not ridiculous ones are the ones that claim they are available to clients 24/7. It must be nice to have figured out how not to do that sleep thing. I tell them, get a life. One important aspect of life is enjoying it. Whether working corporate America, retail, insurance, business owner, real estate, education, trucking, health care or WHATEVER you know what we all need at least once a year if not more?

                         It's called a VACATION !!!

Make time for those extra special memories, and make snapshots with your camera and your mind of places you want to go to.

A wonderful tip I heard on specifically time blocking for vacation was:

GO AHEAD AND PLAN IT OUT ON THE CALENDAR.

As simple a thought as this is, many don't do it, and continue to grind away at their jobs, like dedicated slaves, forgetting about themselves and family. Those little ones grow up real fast or that husband or wife you've partnered with aren't getting any younger.

PLEASE, put it on your calendar and look forward to it. It is a little thought to make your life each year, or each season, worth savoring!!

I have seen it. It is there. It goes right over adult's heads sometimes. When showing buyers homes many adults are looking for large bedrooms, granite counters, the fireplace in the master bedroom, vanity sinks, and the flagstone patio deck. But right in their midst from their children it is in their young eyes. Don't you see it?

When you boil down the home search for young families what the children desire MOST in a place is where they can grow up with TIME, ATTENTION, AND LOVE.

It is SO obvious. Yet the adults continue to pick on things like the cabinets are scratched. There is a nail hole in the door. They really don't like this wallpaper. The garage floor has oil spots on it. Why do we obsess on necessary but trivial things sometimes?

Parents need to be searching for an environment. Some place warm, nurturing and safe. A place where kids can grow up and have fun. Where they can meet friends and have good schools and laugh and learn and how about just being silly with the family dog and their pet turtle?

A home is about LOVE. And lots of it. Pay attention and learn from the eyes of children. If you do, your search criteria will not be found on an MLS sheet but by a feel that tugs at you in your heart. When you find that special shelter, that place you know is right for your family, you will be able to plant that seed of love and watch those little ones blossom into everything you always dreamed they could be. Pay attention. Your search is over when you can see through a child's eyes.