S.E.C. Real Estate Observer

In over thirty years of the real estate business it becomes evident to me that sometimes we real estate professionals are the problem, not the solution. Many of us spend so much time on our real estate education that unintentionally we think we know everything. [...]

After months of planning and homework, the Society’s Education Foundation has implemented the “Legends of the S.E.C.” program. [...]

As the Education Foundation works to implement the “Legends” program, numerous discussions have been held on who might deserve “Legend” status. Our purpose is to use the “Legends” program to educate the public and those in our profession on how important new ideas and creativity can be to our industry. We wish to memorialize Members, [...]

In any situation it is less difficult to create new advances when there is knowledge of our history and the key people who may have contributed the ideas to get us to this point.
As the Education Foundation finalizes the details of the “Legends of the Society” program the above statement, in my opinion, is the [...]

The Board of Directors of the S.E.C. Education Foundation has been very successful in fund raising the past few years. The society members have fulfilled their pledges and our Farley Fund Auctions have been quite beneficial. Now your Education Foundation is looking for more ways to promote the types of education that have made our [...]

I don’t mean this headline in any ominous way. In recent years the national economy has given the opportunity for most in the real estate industry to reap huge financial rewards with little downside risk. The last few years we have seen the following:

Huge amounts of cash were searching for real estate. Most attendees at [...]

Almost 30 years ago I walked into a big national marketing session at the Knickerbocker Hotel in Chicago. Over 100 brokers were marketing properties, brainstorming complicated solutions, and proposing to exchange equities to solve problems. It was exciting and new to me and at that moment I caught the “bug.”
Today marketing sessions are still a [...]

The National Marketing events that are the focus of the Society of Exchange Counselors are riding a wave of excellent attendance and productivity. Our most recent meetings in Las Vegas and Denver were again filled with well over 100 members, candidates, and invited guests representing many clients, money, and properties looking to make a successful [...]

As I assume the presidency of the Society of Exchange Counselors I am taken by the uniqueness of our organization. Typically the new President of a group is asked immediately something like “What are you going to do to improve our “member benefits”?” The members of the Society, however, already understand their most important “member [...]

The High Cost of Farm Preservation
Editor’s Note:
An article entitled “Expensive Nostalgia: The High Cost of Farm Preservation” by Claude Gruen recently appeared in the Gruen Gruen & Associates online newsletter, “Trends.” Claude and Nina Gruen are nationally recognized economists. Their firm provides real estate consulting services nationwide and can be found on the web [...]