The Pinnacle Ideal Comes Alive
Starting this September 1, something very exciting will be happening in more than 50 REALTOR® communities across the country. September 1 is the date that the Pinnacle Group Project, an extraordinary...
View ArticleIs Your Future in the Industry Crucible*?
* Crucible: a container of metal or refractory material employed for heating substances to high temperatures. These are complex, bold and very confusing times for the North American real estate...
View ArticleSave Big on Real Estate Signs
New program gives members up to 12% discount, other advantages As a Texas REALTOR®, you have access to a huge variety of exclusive discounts and benefits. Through these programs, the Texas Association...
View ArticleManaging Assets: The Gateway to Market Level Profitability
Please allow me a bit of a diversion into another industry that our firm is involved in. These are difficult times for the U.S. trucking industry. High fuel prices, government regulation, a fluctuating...
View ArticleIs Your Brokerage Playing Out Its “Aggro” Strategic Intent?
Some of the most creative and stimulating writing environments in the country can be found on the beaches of Southern California. The salt air keeps the mind sharp and each wave brings a new idea or a...
View ArticleWait, Wait, Don’t Go There
Our firm is in the process of completing a survey of 35 leading brokerages across the country. As of the 25th interview, one could not help but be concerned about the results to date. Some thoughts by...
View ArticleFrom “How Did We Do?” to “How Are We Doing?”
It happened toward the end of a business lunch at a popular restaurant. There it sat, hidden from view between a glass of Diet Pepsi and a bowl of salsa – a small printed note on a card in a plastic...
View ArticlePractitioner Dismissed From Fair Housing Lawsuit
A Tampa, Fla., real estate professional has been dismissed from a complaint filed by a fair housing tester in November 2012, says National Association of REALTORS® General Counsel Laurie Janik. His...
View ArticleAvoid the Same Old Score. Digitize Your Brokerage’s Message and Style.
One of the joys of engaging with the real estate industry these days is the opportunity to understand the course of the industry’s current migration and, at the same time, be able to identify the...
View ArticleBecause Mr. Wynn Doesn’t Want You to Smell Smoke
Participating in a recent industry conference in Las Vegas brought with it the requirement to take the semi-annual walking tour of the famous strip. The centerpiece of this amazing architectural,...
View ArticleOff MLS Marketing: From Pocket Listing to Industry Tsunami
The “pocket listing” is one of the oldest and most contested scenarios in the real estate industry. A seller retains an agent to sell a property and a listing agreement is executed. If it is a classic...
View ArticleFrom Whence Consumer Power Comes
This special consumer-centric edition of Houston REALTOR® is just one more reason for all of us to be proud of the Houston Association of REALTORS® (HAR) and the Houston area real estate community....
View ArticleIt’s Time to Accept the Fact that Consumers are the Drivers of the Industry
By Marilyn Wilson I can’t tell you the number of times I have had a conversation with someone in the real estate industry in which they tell me that the consumer is NOT their client. We prefer to think...
View ArticleThe Dangers of Surfing the Hyper-Market
Across much of the country a new real estate market has either arrived or will be arriving over the next few months. One can feel its energies and potentials. It is renewing the passions and...
View ArticleIs a Listing in the Pocket Worth Two in the MLS?
Off-MLS listings are back with a vengeance. Tom Gillett offers some reasons why pocket listings represent short-term gain in exchange for long-term pain. Very early in my real estate career, I met a...
View ArticleMaximizing Growth: Houston & You – High Performance is a Choice
GHBA & HAR have teamed up to bring you a program designed especially for the real estate and home building industry to help you dramatically maximize Houston’s strong market in 2014 and beyond....
View ArticleAre You Prepared to Run the CFPB Gauntlet?
Democracy is such a predictable condition. That predictability is now poised to create a potential nightmare in the American real estate marketplace. This article will spend a lot of time on the...
View ArticleHCAD Outlines the Process for Protesting Property Values
Submitted by the Harris County Appraisal District Each spring, homeowners throughout Harris County receive a property value notice from the Harris County Appraisal District in their mailbox. If they...
View ArticleThe Company You Keep
By Grant Harpold, HAR Legal Counsel A lawsuit involving a local residential transaction was the subject of a recent Houston Court of Appeals decision supporting the conduct of a broker and its agents....
View ArticleConvergence or Unintended Consequences: The Growing Legacy of Off MLS Marketing
It arrived in the spring 2012 to the collective relief of an entire industry. After five years of unstable and conflicted market conditions, the market seemed to finally have “returned.” With it came...
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