S.E.C. Real Estate Observer

Welcome to the fall 2011 issue of the S.E.C. Observer. In this issue, Chris Dischinger, S.E.C., imparts why he feels the personal contacts created during S.E.C. meetings are so important. Jim Brondino, S.E.C., CCIM, defines moderators as “value creators;” and Bill Richert, S.E.C., CCIM, provides strategies for “creative currency” in this market. “Money making ideas” […]

The Society of Exchange Counselors is primarily an organization that exists to allow our members and guests the opportunity to gather and make “transactions.” We are unlike many organizations that serve primarily as education and networking vehicles. It is certainly true that the society offers tremendous networking opportunities, and that spending several days together five or six times a year working deals leads to the creation of a great network of brokers from across the country and Canada.

Moderators, by definition, are those who preside over an assembly, meeting, or discussion. In the context of our marketing session framework, a Moderator is a communication facilitator or conduit acting in the capacity of a catalyst and transaction merchant. Pursuant to these definitions are various responsibilities and functions that are implied when one accepts the role of moderating.

In today’s real estate climate, making your property more marketable requires creativity and an open mind. Owners need to expand the benefits their properties offer. Along with physical aspects and pricing, the structure of the transaction, and your capabilities and expertise all figure into the formula. The key to completed transactions is determining which benefits appeal to a particular buyer and still provide the same or better benefits for you, the seller.

Because of difficulties many brokers are having during this monetary mishap, the Real Estate News Observer is devoting much of its space to Money Making Ideas, Improvement in Marketing Meetings to Increase Closings, and related matters. Brokers looking for more advanced articles are asked not only to bear with us, but also to submit their suggestions to help their fellow brokers with less experience.

The S.E.C. Education Foundation is pleased to report that next month, on November 14th, Ted Blank will present “Tough Questions in Tough Times = Closed Transactions” at the National Association of REALTORS^® Conference in Anaheim. The course is approved for four hours of continuing education credit in California.

The S.E.C. National Invitational Marketing Session will be held at the Embassy Suites Anaheim South, 11767 Harbor Boulevard, Garden Grove, CA, 92840.

The S.E.C. National Invitational Marketing Session will be held at the RIO All-Suite Hotel & Casino, 3700 W. Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, NV, 89103. The special room rate for S.E.C. meeting attendees is $60.00, single or double, Sunday and Monday, and $125.00, single or double, any other day.

James M. Smith was born and raised in Kansas City, Kansas. He is of direct German descent and his grandparents came to the United States during World War I and located in Leavenworth, Kansas. His mother, Ann, was a homemaker, and his father, Nick, was a business owner during the depression and later worked as an electrician in the local public utility.

Did you ever roam around a new subdivision and see all of the homeowners putting in their lawns, and right in the middle of the subdivision are two vacant lots? The developer knows the value of “finders keepers.”