Gary Woltal's Blog

I travel inside many pre-owned homes on showings with buyers and previewing for buyers. I have concluded that many homeowners are clueless about staging a home or the listing agent is clueless in far too many instances about preparing a home properly for sale.

I say don't try this on your own, but hire a Stager as part of your team and use the tremendous gift they've been given to do the job right.

But since I know Stagers, here are a few Insider Secrets given to warm you up to their special abilities.

When you focus on a house for sale think three main areas:

* Entry, Kitchen, Master Bath. If these areas fail for the prospective buyer you are already in hot water. I see mats that are grungy at the front door, I see dishes in the sink, I see toothbrushes on the counter, I see clutter on the island and too many appliances on the countertops.

* Next think light and bright. Who's "bright" idea was it to open up into a dark house in the foyer, have all the curtains and blinds drawn shut and you need a flashlight to find the wall switch in the Master Bath? We are dealing with rank amateurs here.

* Next if you are a listing agent, explaining what needs to be done, use the OREO approach. Tell them something good about their house, say what needs to be improved like the Mooseheads off the wall and stored away, and then compliment them on some other area of their taste.

* Always have a vendor list ready for paint/carpet/tile to get things in top notch shape. Remind them to trim back trees and bushes and add fresh mulch in the beds every 45 days or so to keep the good smell going. The really brain dead listing agents don't even get the lawn and weeds mowed down once a week or trim the tree branches back so you can see the house in the photo. Why, I ask? Cheap. Like not paying to hire a professional Stager. It is SO DUMB!!

* Add flowers to the front of the house, preferably red, or at most TWO colors only.

* Paint low ceilings white to give it a more expansive feel to the house.

* The less signs of occupancy the better. Out with the photos of Johnny from birth to teenager years up and down the stairway and Dad's trophies from golf on his credenza behind his desk in the office. Think of a model house. You don't see this stuff!

* Use some Febreze or plug-in air fresheners like linen smell to give the house that fresh scent.

* If you want to score BIG POINTS with the sellers, provide them some boxes to start packing away all the knick knacks that nobody wants to see anyway.

* Tell the family to put their personal hygiene items in baskets and put them under the sink and off the countertops.

* Remind the homeowners that paying for things like paint and repairs are not a cost but an investment.

A Stager would make all this much smoother in your life but these are a few tips to think about in getting a home ready for sale. And above all do daily maintenance on the home. If I see one more pool with black water in it with the filter not running I think I am going to croak. BTW, last week I actually found a live frog floating in one of these black water pools. At least he felt at home. Ya' think he'll make an offer?  : )

I haven't quite always figured out my purpose or purposes in life at times, but I know one mission I have is to stamp out self-doubt. Nothing is more detrimental to your place in the world.

I see it with buyers remorse in real estate. I see it in fledgling careers of entrepreneurial types such as Realtors and Stagers. Should they really be doing this?

NOTHING, and I mean nothing is more important in life as a gift to the world than you remaining genuine and authentic to who you are. You are beautiful just as you are. Listen to your inner voice and PLEASE be YOU.

There never has been someone like you. There never will be one like you after you are long gone. Cast aside your doubts about who you are. Embrace your strengths, weaknesses, and emotions.  Always show the world the BEAUTY that is you and give us for all to see your

                                 TRUE COLORS

I've always been one in life to completely miss the obvious of what others see. I call it having a reverse wired brain. However, I don't view this as bad. It is my gift. Because I miss the obvious, voilla, I see what many don't see. If everyone would be looking at the heads on a coin and commenting on how great a President that was, you'd find me closely examining the tails side and telling you how many columns there were on the Lincoln Memorial on a penny.

Case in point with Realtor blogging. Having written a handful or two myself I have noticed that you tend to attract first to your blog those that are inclined to hear your messages. Likewise as a reader you "connect" with other souls out in the universe who have to say something of meaning to you. You comment on their blog and if dialogue occurs over time you get to know that person better.

But then here's what I see, that maybe many miss. Review your blog comments over a week, several weeks or a month's time.

             You have Guardian Angels on the Prowl.

Some of these people "resonate" with you and want you to succeed. It is as much about them as it is you. They are watching over you and guess what?

                              THEY CARE.

To all the Guardian Angels I have found, thank you. Be on the lookout for YOUR guardian angels too. Do you know who they are??

The modern day world is full of stress and strain. The expression stop the world I want to get off seems more and more appropriate each year. In the early years of the telephone it became an annoyance by telemarketers ringing it at the dinner hour. Now the curse of the cell phone is it can track you down anywhere with a call and with GPS technology even pin point your location. No wonder we all want to retreat to the deep woods and get unplugged now and then.

I want to talk about a consequence of this speeded up world that can hit us at any point in life. It is a heightened form of fear. Think of it as being overwhelmed.

                    I am talking about "PANIC."

We may have experienced it at various points in our life. You know when it sets in as the mind locks up and doesn't know what to do. I know I have experienced it when driving a car on ice and it slid out of control towards a concrete bridge guard rail. Also, one time a horse I owned was tied up incorrectly to a metal fence and was spooked and ran off with the fence section dragging behind it. I thought the world was about to end. Your heart beats faster and your mind goes blank.

For those who get clinical panic attacks it can take the form of uncontrollable rocking, back and forth.

You just want to scream, not knowing what to do.

Fortunately, there is light at the end of the tunnel. For ordinary panic the ride is a short one before it subsides. You need a place to retreat to in order to re-think what happened, and to process your feelings.

Metaphorically speaking, stressed out buyers and sellers of real estate come to a REALTOR as that calm place to stop panicking when all sorts of twists and turns occur during a transaction. They lose a bid on the house, the prospective buyer is low balling the seller and insulting him. The lender does not approve your loan. How could they? You're a good person. Lots of fun and games. Throughout it all the REALTOR is the calm intermediary between all parties. They are a CALM CORNER.

Physically and emotionally, you also need a calm corner in your life. This may be a quiet room in your home. It may be a retreat away from your normal world. It may be getting together with that one true friend in your life as a sounding board, family or otherwise. It may be immersing yourself in music or nature. Someplace where you can achieve calmness, peace and a sense of your spirituality. It will help you overcome any stress, fears and panic that the world hurls at you.

                  KNOW WHERE YOUR CALM CORNER IS.

Visit it often !!! Where's yours?

Life is all about comings and goings. Beginnings and endings. In real estate you meet new clients, go through an entire purchase or sell process with them, and then wrap things up. There are mini beginnings and endings each and every day within the larger sequence of start and finish.

I would encourage you in your work and in life in general to pay close attention to the endings, the departures. They can be fleeting at times, a hurried wave as you catch a plane, or run out the door to work, or catch the bus to school.

Life is short and uncertain for sure. You're never actually sure when you will see that person again. So

          LEAVE THEM WITH SOMETHING GOOD.

A smile, a laugh, a memory, a gift, a token of appreciation, something to think about, a bit of encouragement, a vision of the next time you'll get together, something to look forward to, an experience they will cherish, a hug or kiss, something on the emotional level.

Words are important and do matter. Carefully choose them to be positive and don't leave someone while fighting or arguing, especially those who mean something to you.

Give people more than they expect and when they depart from you into that uncertain world your actions and example will stay with them.

You want them to remember that spending their precious minutes of lifetime with YOU they were leaving the Good Times Station.

LIFE ON A TRAIN

There is a concept in life that

                   LESS IS MORE.

Yes, I have seen it in real estate where less screaming kids in the back seat of my vehicle makes the showings go more orderly. Less clutter in a house makes the rooms feel better staged, having better Feng Shui, and feel more open.

The world and Madison Ave from as long as I can remember tells us to gravitate toward more, more, more. Is this always good? Sometimes it's ok, but many times less is more. Less noise, more peace of mind and focus. Less stress, more harmony. Less being disagreeable, more being accepting. Less judging, more loving. Less trash, a better planet.

Even in blog land I see extra added designs surrounding the text. Beautiful? Definitely. More design, more distraction, less room for the text of meaning.

You tell me in your life where less was more. There are examples everywhere.

One famous one from history centers on President Abraham Lincoln. If you don't know this story you should. It will remind you to always think of less is more (and I promise to bring this blog to a close). Abraham Lincoln didn't have a whole bunch of time to write his Gettsyburg address following that horrific battle killing so many on both sides in Pennsylvania during the Civil War. He was preceded that day by famed orator Edward Everett who gave a two hour speech dedicating the cemetery. Lincoln, even being invited to the cemetery was an afterthought. He rose after the long two hour speech by Everett and delivered his most famous (and short) speech of two to three minutes, ten sentences and 272 words. It was profound. In his high pitched Kentucky accent he summarized the war saying that these dead shall not have died in vain-that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom-and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

If you ever are in Washington D.C. and stand in the Lincoln Memorial, read the words. It is chilling.

Less is more often in life, so keep that in mind that everything does not have to expand (except for more smiles which add more joy to the world!!!)

Sometimes positive posts and articles absolutely annoy me. Have you ever had one of those days? Some days you feel down and you just want to be left alone. I'm here to tell you, THAT'S OK!! You know what? That just means you're human.

Crying is very good for us. Yes, men too. Sadness envelopes us from heartbreak. Deep tears flow from the death of a loved one. No one wants to be around a chipper person when YOU are really out of it. Crying helps us. Think of all the events in life that make you cry. Being hurt by someone. Death of your dog of 13 years. Death of a loved one, brother or sister, parent, close friend or relative. Someone who meant the world to you.

But a good cry or multiple cries over time are good for us. It leads to healing. As children we tend to cry easily and then bounce back. I've toured homes where the child hurts herself and immediately cries and then five minutes later is back ok with Mom's reassuring hugs.

There just is something as a process that crying allows us to go through. It is emotions at our rawest nerve. We also cry out of joy and moments of great happiness too. If we all, mainly men here, would allow tears to flow more freely, like in sappy love stories or moving moments in movies, we'd be much better off. Why we hold back I think is a culture thing. But you know me, I don't dwell on being down, but remind everyone to move through this process or flow we call life. If you need permission,

                            GO AHEAD AND CRY

You will feel much better afterward and you know what?

Talk to the sun and know THE BLUES WON"T DEFEAT ME. Be Happy!!

A lawyer pulls off to the side of the road in his Lexus to check some engine noise. He opens the driver's front left door and stands out on the road and WHOOSH a fast moving truck drives by and rips off the door. He immediately gets on the cell phone and calls 9-1-1 to report the accident. The state trooper comes by and says, "Buddy, why are you worrying about your Lexus? Your left arm is ripped off and you are bleeding!" The lawyer says, "So where'd my Rolex go?"

               WHAT IS ABUNDANCE TO YOU?

To many it is all about stuff. REALTORS, Stagers, Appraisers, Inspectors get to see plenty of stuff in homes. Sometimes nice stuff.

Sometimes the "stuff" is unorganized or you get the sense of over indulgence. Not too judge anyone but you do feel at times a second dishwasher in the house, the fireplace in the Master Bedroom, two or three Wii games for the kids is pushing the envelope. Hey, if you have the money, enjoy life and share. But you'll also see many times in modestly furnished homes another abundance. It's the abundance of love. Lots of hugs, kisses, smiles, kindness, laughter, support, and instead of a sense of over indulgence, a sense of family. A dog that licks you in the face. Kids jumping up and down on a backyard trampoline and acting silly.

I knew a church youth group that found this idea of abundance on an Easter trip to Mexico to visit a very poor village. They helped them build better houses. They told me from those who had nothing the help they gave them was a huge blessing to them. The twist was that the youth completely forgot about their worldly possessions of Game boys and MP3 players back here in the states and got so much love from the villagers. Abundance that will not be affected by the moth or rust might be something to seek.

So again, what does abundance mean to you? If it leads to your happiness and fulfillment you are on the right track and

NOT LOOKING IN THE WRONG PLACES

The problem with negativity is you start believing it if you don't stop it. Sure there are situations in life that are not easy. The reality is you just need to work your way through the issues.

Sometimes you can get so myopic in looking at a problem you miss the big picture or develop a mindset that things can't turnaround and get better in a hurry.

We sometimes are so busy bailing water out of the boat that we never figure out that maybe if we would just plug the hole we could stop bailing.

I think we as REALTORS and others working in the housing industry and working with folks in pursuing the American dream of home ownership can dramatically shape the vision of where our country is going. We are like little mini dream builders. We lift people's hopes and make dreams come true one family, one household at a time.

I don't know if it comes from my Texas roots or not, but I think for America

                     OUR BEST DAYS ARE AHEAD OF US

In Texas we have a saying that it is not a state, but a state of mind. As a Lone Star state contributing to the other 49 stars in our flag, I see challenges ahead for sure. But daily I see many good people who want the best for their children.

Advances in medicine and technology give me hope that people are working on good things. Problems remain in energy policy, a government that doesn't serve the people, and tremendous healthcare questions. I have faith we will work through this.

Our world will never be perfect. But the good people, including many of the young people I interact with give me great pause for an America that will continue to be a good country in the years ahead.

Some perspective is in order. From many shores our immigrants arrived here to the light of America. The bastion of freedom. With freedom of press, speech, assembly, and worship these were inconceivable in foreign lands from whence we came.

Do not count out America. The vision I see is a good one. How do I know this or why do I believe this? I have met the good people that the country is made of. From all over who

                           CAME TO AMERICA

In the world of being a REALTOR, Stager, or any service professional, so many of these types tout how much they know. They illustrate that they sell the most homes, been in the business ten years, have lived in the area their whole lives, are tough negotiators, have an artistic flair, whatever...

Guess what? People really don't care. You are being a

        LITTLE MISS SMARTY PANTS

The key rule in defining the benefits to people is tuning into radio station WIIFM or what's in it for me? Wrapping up this thought always remember this phrase:

PEOPLE DO NOT CARE HOW MUCH YOU KNOW UNTIL THEY KNOW HOW MUCH YOU CARE.

It will serve you well to heed this advice.