Margaret Rome's Blog

NOT a Pretty Picture ..This is my smashed Treo!

It began a couple of weeks ago. The world of technology seemed to be turning against me. First my trusty Treo started having an identity crisis, some of the features not working, so I began looking for a backup on eBay just in case. That was before I dropped the phone a couple of days ago and created this colorful display. I do not consider this a pretty picture.    

And also before my wonderful tech was able to coax what was left of the phone to sync to my computer - a process that took hours instead of the normal seconds - so that I could at least find out what appointments I had.  

And just to top things off, the back of my two faced watch fell off - again - and this time it was lost. (Not to worry, I have a back up watch.)

At first I figured it was must me, but then I noticed that almost everyone I talked to had a similar tale of technology and communications gone haywire. 

My buyer who is scheduled to go to settlement on Tuesday reported his DSL suddenly went out. His agent tried to fax a repairs list over, but her fax was down.  Another agent asked about the counter to an offer. I never received that fax. An appraiser couldn't email information to the lender - the message kept bouncing - but could send it to me so that I could forward it on. Our own Colleen Kulikowski had to go to the library to get to the internet when her whole complex lost its wireless service. I was preparing a contract with a buyer when she started telling me what a bad day she was having...a huge misunderstanding with people at work and also with relatives and there were some harsh words exchanged. Another client of mine was irrational about not having her sidewalks cleaned from the ice. These incidents were very much out of character.

I happened to mention these technoglitches to my client in California who is negotiating for a home here in Baltimore. He had two words to explain it all:  Mercury retrograde. Excuse me? You heard right - Mercury is in retrograde, from February 14 through March 8. The smallest planet (since Pluto was demoted) is blamed for disrupting and misguiding communications, breakdowns in phones and computers, and transportation snafus involving cars, buses, and trains during its retrograde phase.                   

Three or four times a year it does this little routine, and people who study the phenomenon know the symptoms well. This client takes it seriously; he planned his trip to Baltimore and several important dates around this period. And he wasn't surprised at all when I told him that his counteroffer kept bouncing back when the other agent tried to send it to the seller.

When I called Tatiana, click here , the owner of the wonderful historic church, to tell her about a cancelled appointment her reply."Not surprised, you know that Mercury is Retrograde."  Does everyone know about this except for me? I just had to find out more.

Yesterday I was losing it with my phone broken, my watch broken, and did I mention my GPS that suddenly decided to change the route home? If you've ever been around a Type E over the edge, you know it's not a good place to be. Thanks to my clients, today I have an explanation. To explain my multi-tasking way of working, I say "That's just me, a Type E," and now I have a reason for the unexplainable:  "It's just Mercury in retrograde!"                                                                                            

Does Mercury have it in for us mortals and our tech gadgets? Or is it the full moon tomorrow? Or just coincidence? Whether the answer is none or all of the above, I'm handling it better. Now that I know about Mercury, I can roll with the punches. Now when someone is having a tech crisis, I can explain why! Speaking to an agent this evening as she complained about her computer I said, "I'm not surprised...you know, Mercury is in retrograde." Smiling, now that I have an explanation

And if you think about it, doesn't it generally work better if you admit when you can't control a situation and  just roll with the punches?                                                 

Have you noticed any technology glitches recently?

http://www.homerome.com/

Baltimore,Md.

She was one of those little girls who is all sugar and spice, but when the spice came out it was no longer nice.

Any time someone or something bothered her she lashed out with harsh words. It was a problem at school and at home, and her parents knew that they needed to do more than just tell her to stop. One day, the girl's Dad took her out to the back fence where there was a large bucket of old nails and a hammer.

  He said, "Honey, every time you lose your temper and say something hurtful, you need to hammer a nail into the fence." Like many young girls, she adored her Daddy, and she agreed to give it a try. Days and weeks went by, and many nails pierced the wooden fence, until one day the girl said, "Daddy, here's the hammer - I don't need it any more. I haven't said a mean thing for days." "That's great, Sweetheart. Take the hammer back, and now, every time you control your temper and are kind to someone, remove one of the nails."   

The girl rolled her eyes and groaned, but she agreed to do as her Dad said. Over the weeks, one by one, the nails were pulled out and returned to the bucket. Finally, she handed over the hammer and proudly said, "I did it, Daddy. I was nice to people and all the nails are out! They walked to the back yard together to see the results of her work. Everywhere a nail had been removed there was a dark hole, a permanent mark in the wood.                                             

Unkind words,even when taken back, leave scars.

www.HomeRome.com

Baltimore,Md.

The Power of One     

By now just about everyone has received an email that ended with these three lines: Work like you don't need money.  Love like you've never been hurt.    Dance like no one's watching.

Sure, it's good advice even if it's pretty hard to follow. But did you know that those lines are actually part of a larger story? The Daffodil Principle  showed up as an email  from a very special friend. It reminded me of the power of one person to change not only their immediate surroundings but also the lives of people they've never met. I think we all have at least one person who has changed our lives. How many lives have you helped to change? 

The Daffodil Principle

'Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, "Mother, you must come to see the daffodils before they are over." I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive. "I will come next Tuesday," I promised a little reluctantly on her third call.  The next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and reluctantly I drove there. When I finally walked into Carolyn's house I was welcomed by the joyful sounds of happy children. I delightedly hugged and greeted my grandchildren. "Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in these clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these children that I want to see badly enough to drive another inch!" My daughter smiled calmly and said, "We drive in this all the time, Mother." "Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears, and then I'm heading for home!" I assured her.  "But first we're going to see the daffodils. It's just a few blocks," Carolyn said. "I'll drive. I'm used to this."  " Carolyn," I said sternly, "Please turn around." "It's all right, Mother, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this experience."

After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I saw a small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand lettered sign with an arrow that read, "Daffodil Garden." We got out of the car, each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path. Then, as we turned a corner, Ilooked up and gasped.

It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it over the mountain peak and its surrounding slopes. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns, great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, creamy white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, and saffron and buttery yellow. Each different colored variety was planted a group so that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique hue. There were five acres of flowers. 

"Who did this?" I asked Carolyn. "Just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She lives there." Carolyn pointed to a well-kept A-frame house, small and modestly sitting in the midst of all that glory. We walked up to the house.

On the porch was a poster:

Answers to the questions I know  you are asking 

1.  50,000 bulbs                                   

2.  One at a time, by one woman.  Two hands, two feet, one brain. 

3. Began 1958                                                          

For me, that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman who, almost fifty years before, had begun to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountaintop. Planting one bulb at a time, year after year, this unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. One day at a time, she had created something of extraordinary magnificence, beauty, and inspiration. The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principles of celebration.That is, learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time - often just one baby-step at time - and learning to love the doing, learning to use the compounding of time. When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we can change the world. "It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn. "What might I have accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five or forty years ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a time' through all those years? Just think what I might have been able to achieve!" My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual direct way. "Start tomorrow," she said. She was right. It's so pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays. The way to make learning a lesson of celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only ask, "How can I put this to use today?"

Use the Daffodil Principle. 

Stop waiting.....
Until your car or home is paid off
Until you get a new car or home
Until your kids leave the house
Until you go back to school
Until you finish school
Until you clean the house
Until you organize the garage
Until you clean off your desk
Until you lose 10 lbs.
Until you gain 10 lbs.
Until you get married
Until you get a divorce
Until you have kids
Until the kids go to school!
Until you retire
Until summer
Until spring
Until winter
Until fall
Until you die...

There is no better time than right now to be happy.
So work like you don't need money. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like no one's watching.
Don't be afraid that your life will end, be afraid that it will never begin.'

Someone special on Active Rain inspired me to post this powerful message.

 So again, I ask: How many lives have you helped to change? 

The Power of Compounding Rain            

10,000 real estate agents! I've said it before - Active Rain's growth is phenomenal. From starting just last year, this community has grown bigger and stronger and more diverse.

We know bigger isn't always better. What makes this community different is the combined power of the people who "live" here.  Just look at Colleen and Rich  sharing their 100,000 points today with a tribute to each other!

 For every new real estate professional who joins and becomes involved, the strength of the group multiplies. When you invest money and the interest compounds, you end up with interest on interest - a bonus.

 Here we're investing our time and knowledge, and the compounding of talents means we meet new people and learn new ways to improve as professionals.  Would I have ever met so many wonderful professionals or the other Type E's? Probably not. That's the kind of interest I like best - great people with ideas who care about and share with others!

Here's a toast to the first 10,000 Active Rain real estate agents...and to the next 10,000! 

www.HomeRome.com

Baltimore,Md.

Clients Who Have Disabilities - What Do You Say?  How Do You Say It?

A few days I spoke about making my own appointments, and one of the many comments on  that post came from a lady named Nancy who pointed out some less-than sensitive terms we were using. We learned that she is not a real estate professional but rather a consumer who is visiting Active Rain to learn from us before she puts her own home on the market. 

Nancy's comments started a discussion about how we need to be sensitive to the effect of the words we use and the way we address people with disabilities. Those of us who are fortunate to not (yet) need a wheelchair probably don't notice that there is an important difference between "wheelchair bound" and "wheelchair user." But as Nancy pointed out, "People with disabilities and their families are tuned in to language that they hear as discriminatory or insensitive. Wheelchair users are not bound to their chairs. With or without help they leave their chairs to sleep, bathe, use the toilet, drive or ride in cars, enjoy amusement park rides."

My years as a Registered Nurse have always helped me be sensitive to the special needs of my clients,  but even so I needed to learn not to refer to someone as "restricted to a wheelchair." 

This is such an important subject that I've asked Nancy to write a guest blog. Please welcome her.

One in Five Americans Lives with a Person with a Disability. Are you ready?

One in five U.S. residents lives with a person with a disability. How many are your clients? Do you embrace the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) or tolerate it?

I'm a consumer, seller-to-be, and regular reader who sometimes comments on ActiveRain. I also live with a person with a disability. I have been invited by Margaret Rome to offer some insight to real estate professionals on how to interact with people with disabilities. I am under no illusion that I am an expert, but am opening up the subject hoping some of you will want to learn more. Thank you Margaret, for the opportunity.

Only 15% of persons with a disability were born with that disability. That means that 85% of disabilities are acquired during a person's lifetime. It could happen to you or a family member. It could happen tomorrow. Yes, that's right. A car accident, brain tumor, stroke. It could happen tomorrow.

If you or someone you love suddenly became disabled, how would you want to be treated?

Language is a place to start, like saying "wheelchair user" instead of "wheelchair bound," "disabled" instead of "handicapped," and referring to the person instead of the disability. Here's an example. Instead of saying "my handicapped client", say "my client who has (name disability)". Do you see the difference? Your client is a person who has a disability. It may seem awkward at first because it takes extra words, but it makes a difference in how you are heard. Also, it may seem obvious, but don't exclude your client with a disability from the conversation by addressing your statements to another person who is with him. Your client is probably not deaf or stupid.

If your language, attitude, or discomfort is perceived by your client or his family as being discriminatory or just ignorant, you could lose the client. Now you might be thinking that you would not mind losing that client; he makes you uncomfortable. His home may require an accommodation that could be hard to find, and that extra time could be more profitably spent on an easier sale.

Think again. First, because you make yourself vulnerable to a discrimination lawsuit. But more important to your business, people with disabilities are a growing part of the consumer population.

Think back a generation or more. There weren't many long-term survivors of serious accidents or illnesses. People who lived longer than average may have lived in a care facility or did not leave their home often. They were not very active participants in the consumer world.

That model no longer applies. Modern medicine, the ADA , and the internet have changed things. The potential client base of people with disabilities is huge. Based on data from a U.S. census report of 2004, and a 2000 Cornell University study, here are some interesting numbers:

•·         17.2% or 43 million US citizens aged 16-64 report some form of employment-limiting disability.

•·         Approximately 55% of persons with disabilities aged 16-64 are employed.

•·         The over 65 population currently holds the largest disposable income in the country.

I do not have statistics on the number of disabled young men and women coming home from the Middle East. Do you think many of them will be looking to buy a home? Does this client base now sound more attractive to you?

None of this is intended to criticize. I just hope that I started you thinking, and that a lively discussion will follow.

If there is interest, I will follow up with specific suggestions on how you, as an individual and a professional, can learn to be more aware, use the preferred terms, and at least not do the wrong thing. Your local disability services organizations will be happy to provide education and answer questions for your brokerage.

Thanks for reading.
Nancy

The weather called for snow and ice and rain etc. Most of the schools are closed but it is a most beautiful morning in Baltimore. Yes, it's still snowing and it will probably freeze. But right now it is so pretty. A light snow that is covering the trees and grass but the streets are clean and safe.  This is a special snow day. Here is a photo taken without leaving my house. This picture is not so clear because of the snow. I am enjoying this beauty!

www.HomeRome.com

Baltimore,Md

No not that that kind of "I Do"!                                                                                             But as a listing agent I do make my own appointments!                                                      

Every once in a while, when I'm talking with another real estate agent, the subject of appointments comes up.   When I say that I always - yes, always - make my own appointments, I can almost predict what will happen. The eyes widen, the brow furrows, there's a quick intake of breath, and then, "You're kidding!"

No, I'm not. "But doesn't it waste your time?" they ask.

Showing the wrong house to the wrong buyer, that wastes my time. Making my own appointments saves time and aggravation for me and my sellers. How can this one task make a big difference? (And it also saves time on follow up.) 

Here are just a few of the issues that I can and do clear up while making appointments on my listings. And yes, I've actually had all of these and more:

Mismatches:

•  The condo restricts pets; they have a dog and a cat. No, you can't sneak them in.
• The prospective buyer is 93 years old, and the unit I have listed is on the top floor. There are no elevators.
• A condo with no balcony - not a good match for someone with claustrophobia.
• A penthouse unit - a bad idea for someone afraid of heights.

• The buyer is a wheel chair user. Would you at least remind them, it's split-level house?

The family wants all bedrooms on the same level. Are you sure you want to show this Cape Cod?

Missing Information:

• The buyers haven't put their home on the market yet because they want to wait until they find something they like. What's the chance I could be showing them a house they can't afford because the seller will not take a contingency.
• My listing is a co-op. The by-laws require the unit must be purchased for cash - there can be no mortgage. If we haven't discussed this first, it would be no surprise when the buyer asks if the monthly fee "includes the mortgage payment."
• My client's condo has high monthly fees. The prospective buyer didn't ask before seeing the property (and his agent didn't tell, obviously). Then he asks if we can negotiate the fees down along with the price. Um...sure, right along with the property taxes.   

 And then there are the "must or must not haves":

The fireplace must be wood burning. The fireplace must be gas. We only want a pellet stove. We don't want a fireplace - it's not safe.

• Must have a swimming pool. Absolutely no swimming pool!
• The house must be on a main road with sidewalks and nearby neighbors. No, the house must be secluded, away from prying neighbors. No cul de sacs. No shared driveways.
• The townhouse kitchen has to be at the front so I don't have to schlep groceries through the house. Who wants a kitchen at the front? We need a kitchen in the back so we can walk out on the deck.
• Must have gas heat, must have oil heat, must have a heat pump.

And on and on. You get the idea. There are so many ways that well-meaning  sellers, agents and prospective buyers can waste their time and energy. Over the years I've learned that the one best way to eliminate these issues is to make my own appointments and ask the questions up front. That way I can assure sellers that more qualified buyers will be visiting their home.

Good buyer's agents appreciate my telling them about the pros and cons of the properties and frequently when they share their buyer's need; I may have another coming on the market. Or how about we run an "ad" for your buyer on  http://www.buyers4yourhome.com/ ?

So yes, I do! 

Baltimore,Md.

Blog NOT a word! How can this be? What are we all doing on Active Rain? Gee, I thought we were Bloggers who were Blogging and writing Blogs!

Did you know that Blogging is not a word?     Boggle is a word!  

While I am typing  the word "blog" right this minute, there is that squiggly red line under the word "blog" which we all know  is  saying there is no such word!  

There is a list of suggestions including, bogging and flogging and logging and clogging and slogging, but absolutely NO BLOGGING.

Now we were all really excited when Active Rain announced that we have a spell check.

 We have all waited so long for this special feature to make our BLOGGING so much easier. So while writing a comment on this post The Magic of Toastmasters, I used that word "BLOG".

 After  finishing my comment  and clicking  this icon     the  squiggly red line appeared under "BLOG"!

How long do we have to wait before the spell checkers of the world recognize BLOG, BLOGGING, BLOGGERS?

When you "google"  "blog" there are  70,200,000 hits!  That's a  whole lot of entries!  But  is that possible if Blog is Not a word?

www.HomeRome.com

Baltimore,Md.