The Money Is The Monster Not The Real Estate Market

money is monster not the real estate marketConsumers live in the payment and not in the price. Think of how we all justify logically when buying something by the monthly payment and let’s be honest never really consider the price of the big ticket items. Now more than ever Realtors© need to know and understand the financing world and lending world and how it is impacting our real estate markets. Remember the classic monthly payment sheets that we had the lender do for our listing showing what the down payment amounts were, the monthly payments and minimize the purchasing of the home down to the simpler decision?

We see it in the cars, boats, electronics, pretty much everything is living in the payment to make the buying decision easier for the consumer. We need to take those payment sheets now and put them on steroids. Show the consumers what the down payments are, the monthly payments are but more importantly what they will be if they wait and time the market! Show them the financial impact on them if the payment goes just 2% higher on them. How does that look for them now? The payment jumps on them but show them the overall impact of borrowing costs for the higher interest rate if they wait.

The cost of borrowing will be higher than the anticipated correction of their house payment I guarantee it. For our sellers we then show the income qualification that is required for a buyer to purchase their home and show them how fewer buyers can actually qualify to buy their home at the new interest rates versus the interest rates in 2021 folks.

The money is the monster not the market and not the agents. Know and understand the money and advise the impact on buyers now with the rates, payments, down payments, income and qualification criteria getting tougher every week now and the sellers that buyer pools are being eliminated that are able to buy their home now. This isn’t about the market and the agents and what is happening in North America, it is all about the money.

Think about it, the government wants to curb inflation, curb our spending, allow for supply chains to catch up and make sure those that used their home and rates to spend away, get out of the housing market before defaulting and they are doing that through the money and raising the interest rates. Our clients need advisement on the money and education on the impact of the money on them at home, if buying or if selling and it is our jobs with the help of our mortgage partners to do that and educate them now more than ever. Should I refinance? Should I buy? Should I sell? What finance options are best for me the next 5 years? What do I need to do to get my cost of living in check? How do I avoid defaulting on my home? These are the conversations, questions the consumers (including myself the other day) are asking and wondering if I should be locking in my variable mortgage now?

Join the conversations the consumers are having and show up and educate and advise our clients on the financial and economic shifts and changes that are happening. Don’t by like my financial advisors who have been silent and never even called, emailed me as the stock market has completely shifted the last few months and not a word. Don’t be that advisor agents! Show up and explain, advise and educate our clients on the shift and we are here to help. Remember this is just a correction and a shift and not a crash and what else has been better for anyone investing than real estate. This is time to gain market share agents and to really do what we do for our clients.

Strength and courage,
Wade

Is Your Money Mindset Fixed on Growth?

is your money mindset fixed on growthOur relationship with money is formed at a young age. And contrary to popular belief, it’s not our management of our money, but rather our relationship with money that keeps us from truly breaking through and achieving financial independence. This is great news to the 73% of N. Americans who recently ranked their finances in a Creditwise survey as the most significant source of stress in their life. And is it any surprise? According to Bankrate, 63% of N. Americans don’t have enough savings to cover a $500 emergency. It’s clear that it’s more important than ever for us to look at managing our finances from a different angle. If we can learn how to better prioritize growing our finances, we can significantly reduce our stress.

 

  • Acknowledge that money is energy. – We put a lot of weight on money because of its association with survival, safety and security. All of which are basic needs for us as human beings. But because of the connection to survival, we make money mean a lot. In reality, money is a neutral currency. It isn’t bad, it isn’t inherently good. It’s neutral. If we can accept this idea that money is just another form of energy, we have the ability to then use money to align with our values. This is where so many people are going wrong. They’re spending on autopilot and not consciously considering where they want to put their money. Neuroscience tells us that our conscious mind plays a very small role in how we run our lives. This means we are running our lives the majority of the time from our subconscious mind which is where we store beliefs and habits that we have preprogrammed. A practical way to make this distinction to using money consciously is to ask yourself the question, Is the way I spend and save my money currently aligned with my values?

 

  • Identify the money beliefs from childhood. – What we learn about money up until age 7 is most impactful. What your parents did to earn money and how money was spoken about in the household can lead to shame associated with money (which can impact your spending and saving behavior.) For example, if you were told that the wealthy person in your community was “greedy” and therefore “bad” by your parents, then your subconscious mind would associate being wealthy with shame and an inability to be loved. One of my clients had a mindset belief that she was only able to make money if she worked really hard for it. This belief meant that she associated hard work, long hours and blood, sweat and tears with success. She had told herself this was the only way she was able to earn. In doing so, she was blocking off the flow of money in other ways. For example, clients that fell into her inbox through referrals asking to pay in full, or going into a launch and having clients come in without her having to push hard for the sale. When my client recognized this and actively started to tell herself, money comes easily to me, she was able to see all the ways she could create more money doing less, and has since streamlined her business model and added $100k in annual revenue.

 

  • Move beyond your programming and create your own money blueprint. – Moving beyond your current money stories starts with awareness, which occurs in the prior step. Once you understand your conscious mind, you then have the ability to change these beliefs. The final step is to ask yourself a series of questions to cement the new beliefs and create new habits. These can include when I am financially secure, what do my days look like? One of my clients came to me after being in business for a number of years, and was generating money through many different offers in her business. She was tired, business felt hard and she had lost faith that she could build a profitable business. The problem was that she had created a story in her mind that the business model she most wanted wasn’t possible for her until she was earning at a certain level. By shifting that mindset, she then recognized the physical changes required within her business model, and is now up 300% in revenue for 2021, working less than she ever has in her life.

 

  • When I am financially secure, where do I invest my money? – Personally, this question highlighted to me that I was living my life with the belief that I couldn’t invest or create opportunities to grow my money until I earned a certain amount. It showed me that I was telling myself a story that only wealthy people are prioritizing ongoing investing, which is counterintuitive. What habits can I incorporate into my day to understand my money and how it’s working for me more effectively? For many of my clients, they avoid their money because they don’t understand it. Having a growth money mindset means prioritizing learning, and being open to learning about money. That might look like checking your cash position every morning, or setting a bi-weekly date with your partner to discuss your household financial position. By understanding your money mindset blocks, you’ll be far more open to create habits you actually stick to. It’s more important than ever that we open a conversation about our relationship with money. By aligning the way we use money to our values, and getting clear on our subconscious programming from childhood about money, we can create new behaviors and open ourselves up to creating more wealth. If you take the time to understand your resistance to money, you’ll be much more likely to create healthier habits and practical strategies that you practice consistently.

 

With your new mindset, you’ll be well placed to seek out the advice and counsel of an accountant or financial advisor who has the expertise to help you level up your finances and start building wealth.

Strength and courage,
Wade

Generate A 10%-20% Return in Your Real Estate Biz With This One Tool

real estate toolSo before we get started, let’s begin by addressing all the elephants in the room:

1. Print is dead

2. Newsletters don’t work

3. Led Zepplin is doing a reunion tour

Now I can tell you with complete certainty that 1 & 2 are ABSOLUTELY false. As for 3 … let’s just say anything is possible.

The fact I mentioned the effectiveness of print and newsletters in your real estate business should give you a good clue as to what the “One Tool” I referenced in the headline is … Yes, it’s a newsletter! WAIT … before you throw your hands in the air and tell me print-newsletters don’t work, they are ole-school, low tech etc., allow me to say this. YES they do work, and we know over 900 agents using them and having success. A newsletter is a tool, and like any tool… If you know how to use it great things can happen. When constructed and used strategically, it is a powerful tool that will retain clients, keep you top of mind, generate referrals, grow your database AND Make You Money … PERIOD!

What Constitutes A Great Newsletter?

1. The look – a lot of people cringe when they see it. It looks homemade, like something I put together in my office. Well, that is exactly why it works. A perfect, shiny, glossy, newsletter tells the reader you bought it and slapped your name on it. I get one of those from my financial advisor every month. I know he didn’t do anything to put it together. With SFL looking homemade, my readers assume I built it myself. Also, I always say, “people can’t relate to your perfection”. With the newsletter not looking perfect, my readers can relate to me and the newsletter more. Have someone else design your homemade looking newsletter and you do real estate!

2. Client appreciation – This is a section of your newsletter where you personally name people who referred you within the last month. These brings more referrals. People love to see their name in print! Client testimonials about working with you, work really well in this section as well.

3. Power of mail – It has taught me the power of mail. Email is so noisy. My inbox is always full- probably just like yours. Google actually now separates my email, so 99% of newsletters sent to me end up in my promotional tab and I don’t even see it. However, I see every piece of mail. So does my wife (who doesn’t see any of my emails).

4. Content – I also love that most of the content is not about real estate. Over my 25 years of being a REALTOR® I have learned most people don’t care about real estate as much as we do. I love when there is real estate sprinkled in throughout the newsletter but it doesn’t overdo it.

5. The call-to-actions and special reports that come with the newsletter.

6. Sponsorship – With so much space in the newsletter I am able to leave room for sponsorship. This helps cover my cost and give other local business a space to advertise. It’s become a win-win.

7. Evidence Of Success – Listings posts asking for clients help to find a buyer for your clients home or sales message of gratitude for the pleasure of helping great people. Promoting buying opportunities of some the of the market areas best buys.

How To Use It Effectively?

1. Mail – direct mail to your relationships – these are people you have already done business with, who you have a relationship with, who know, like and trust you.

2. Mail – direct mail not unaddressed ad-mail to a specific target of homes, a farm area that you are working on a regular basis

3. Email – no cost to email an HTML version of your newsletter to your relationships. Can be done in less than a minute!

4. Post – to your website to help drive people there and use as a lead magnet. Have a lead capture subscription sign up area.

5. Post – to Facebook and various social media networks – this is easily done using our platform

6. Insert – into your info listing tubes or info boxes that accompany your “For Sale” sign

7. Insert – Pre-listing package/Buyer Qualifying packages

8. Insert – Local publications like your community newspaper inserts to help you become a “household name” in your area

9. Place – public areas like doctor/dentist offices, local shops, local mechanic, drycleaner, coffee shops – anywhere where you have a captive audience that is waiting on an appointment

10. Hand Out – in person at open houses, door knocking, mall kiosk, floor duty, local events – instantly help to establish rapport and capture new leads

Those were proven and tested methods Our Clients have submitted to us that swear by and I’m willing to wager, they will work for you too. Print is alive and well. Newsletters “Do” capture leads, keep you top of mind, and generate new leads. We don’t personally get any mail or print material of value so when they do, we know it is getting opened and read. Now it’s time for you to see for yourself. Feel free to comment below any newsletter nuggets you use that get you great feedback from your clients.

Strength and courage,
Wade

https://plus.google.com/u/2/113259707478722993209/posts/6q9E8Vk8HHR