Brigita's Blog: June 2009

For the past 6 months, I have been taking my GRI (Graduate REALTOR Institute) courses online, which consisted of 3 parts.  Each of the 3 parts concluded with a final exam.

Today, I took my last final exam, part 3.  I was very nervous about it.  Some of the questions I answered quickly, others I took my time to figure out.  (Some were math problems.) 

Once the 50 questions were answered, I nervously hit the done key.  I must say I still had time left, but I felt I had done well.  Lo and behold, my test score came up as passing with an 86%.

Woohooo!!  All my hard work and hours of studying paid off!  I have earned my GRI designation! 

I am now better equipped with knowledge to help clients with their real estate needs.  I strongly suggest this course to anyone that wants to increase their knowledge in real estate.  It is well worth it.

Now, to decide what course I will take next.

As you go about your daily business and personal life, there are many ups and downs, failures and successes.  You can learn from these and improve.

How do you go about that?  Here is a simple way.

Take some time out at the end of the day when you are unwinding.  First think about what was positive about that day.  Next, think about what went wrong.  Then, decide how you could improve on it.

If you take each day and item individually, it will be a simple task.  You will also be able to remember each success and failure and find a way to correct or improve on it. 

Remember, it is easier if you take little steps at a time. 

One of the Northampton County 4H Clubs held a schooling horse show this past weekend as their fund raiser.  One of my members rode in it and several other members of my club helped out. 

For the benefit of those that do not know what a schooling horse show is, it is a practice show.  The horse and riders participate in different classes in the show and are pinned like at any other show.  The only difference is at the end of each class, the judge speaks to each rider individually to inform them how they can improve themselves in that particular class.  You might say a schooling show is a learning experience.  (That is why it is called a "schooling" show.)

The show also included some fun classes, such as egg & spoon and musical mount. 

During Egg & Spoon, each rider is given a spoon and an egg.  Each rider rides different gaits (walk, trot, canter) while balancing the egg on the spoon and controlling the horse with the other hand.  When the egg falls of the spoon, the horse and rider are "out".  The last one to have the egg on their spoon is the winner.

Musical Mount is like musical chairs.  The riders walk their horses around in the ring to the music.  As soon as the music stops, everyone mounts their horses.  The last one to get on their horse is "out".  The remaining reiders then dismount and start again. 

This is not only a great learning experience for the kids, but also a fun day with some games with their horses. 

I, too, had a great day watching and helping out.  Looking forward to the one that will be held on October 11th, as I'm sure, many of the youth.

Three old guys are out walking.
First one says, "Windy, isn't it?"
Second one says, "No, its Thursday!"
Third one says, "So am I.  Let's go get a beer."

A man was telling his neighbor, "I just bought a new hearing aid.  It cost me four thousand dollars, but it's state of the art. It's perfect."
"Really," answered the neighbor. "What kind is it?"
"Twelve thirty."

Morris, an 82 year-old man, went to the doctor to get a physical.
A few days later the doctor saw Morris walking down the street with a gorgeous young woman on his arm.
A couple of days later the doctor spoke to Morris and said, "You're really doing great, aren't you?"
Morris replied, "Just doing what you said, Doc: 'Get a hot mamma and be cheerful.'"
The doctor said, "I didn't say that. 
I said, 'You've got a heart murmur. Be careful.'"

A little old man shuffled slowly into an ice cream parlor and pulled himself slowly, painfully, up onto a stool.  After catching his breath he ordered a banana split.  The waitress asked kindly, "Crushed nuts?" " No," he replied, "arthritis."

Hotblooded, coldblooded, warmblooded . . . . what's the difference??

This is a question that many have asked me over the years.  So, I will try to explain them to you as best as I can.  Ready?

First of all,a pony is defined as being under 14.2 hands or under 58 inches or 147 cm.  (A hand equals 4 inches.)  Many pony breeds developed in the wild.  This has led to a natural hardiness that is not found in most horse breeds. 

Horse heights are considered as 14.2 hands or over.  Also, the height of the horse is measured not at the head, but at the withers, which is the area where the neck and the back meet, to the ground. 

Coldblooded horses are usually referred to the large, bulky, draft horse breeds, such as the Shire, Clydesdale (the Budweiser horses), and Belgian.  These horses are known to be docile and insensitive.  They are often called "gentle giants".

Hotblooded horses are usually Arabians, Thoroughbreds and other horses of oriental origin.  These horses are known to be energetic and sensitive, or hot.

Warmblooded horses are a cross between a hotblooded and a coldblooded horse.  This resulted in a trainable, athletic horse, often used as a sport horse for dressage, jumping, eventing and so on.  European breeders have warmblood registries that represent particular lineage, such a Hanovarian, Holsteiner, Oldenburg, Trakehner, Dutch Warmblood, and Swedish Warmblood.  These European horses are highly sought after in other countries, resulting in a large exportation market.

Hope this helps to clarify the difference between the coldblooded, warmblooded and hotblooded horses.

This past weekend the weather was perfect in the Lehigh Valley.  The sun was shining, with a few clouds around, and the temperatures were in the 70's.  Couldn't ask for a better weekend.

My husband and I are outdoors people, so we had to take advantage of the great spring weather.  So, off we went to a trail by the Lehigh River in Bethlehem, with our bikes.

There are 2 options with this trail: you can either take the easy paved trail, or rough it on the dirt trail right along the banks of the Lehigh.  We chose the paved, since this was our first time out on the trails this year. 

The trail winds through the woods and in between the trees you can see the river.  Many take advantage of the fishing and the boating in the Lehigh. 

Along the way, a deer popped out in front of us on the trail.  That was quite a surprise.  Heading towards Louise Moore Park in Easton, a local softball game was going on, with others enjoying a picnic at the tables in the shade under the trees. 

Riding along, we met up with a family of geese, heading towards one of the tables hoping for a snack from the picnic-ers.  To their dismay, they were chased off.  Oh, well, off for a swim instead.

It was a perfect afternoon riding along the Lehigh River.  Many others had the same idea.  Who can resist such nice weather?  Maybe next time we will brave the rough trail that few others tackle.

I thought this would be worthwhile to reblog.  I would love to find out what the results are.

Read on:

With so many REALTORS around, how do you go about finding one that is right for you?  Here are some questions to help you decide on an agent.

• How long have you been in residential real estate sales?  Is it your full-time job?  (While experience is no guarantee of skill, real estate, like many other professions, is mostly learned on the job.)

• What designations do you hold?  (Designations, such as GRI and CRS, which require that real estate professionals take additional, specialized real estate training, are held by only about one-quarter of real estate practitioners.)

• How many homes did you and your company sell last year?

• How many days did it take you to sell the average home?  How did that compare to the overall market?

• How close to the initial asking prices of the homes you sold were the final sale prices?

• What types of specific marketing systems and approaches will you use to sell my home?  (Look for someone who has aggressive, innovative approaches, not just someone who's going to put a sign in the yard and hope for the best.)

• Will you represent me exclusively, or will you represent both the buyer and the seller in the transaction?  (While it's usually legal to represent both parties in a transaction, it's important to understand where the practitioner's obligations lie.  A good practitioner will explain the agency relationship to you and describe the rights of each party.  It's also possible to insist that the practitioner represent you exclusively.)

• Can you recommend service providers who can assist me in obtaining a mortgage, making repairs on my home, and other things I need done?  (Keep in mind here that real estate professionals should generally recommend more than one provider and should tell you if they receive any compensation from any provider.)

• What type of support and supervision does your brokerage office provide to you?  (Having resources, such as in-house support staff, access to a real estate attorney, or assistance with technology, can help a real estate professional sell your home.)

• What's your business philosophy?  (While there's no right answer to this question, the response will help you assess what's important to the real estate practitioner-fast sales, service, etc.-and determine how closely the practitioner's goals and business emphasis mesh with your own.)

• How will you keep me informed about the progress of my transaction?  How frequently?  Using what media?  (Again, this is not a question with a correct answer, but that one reflects your desires.  Do you want updates twice a week or don't want to be bothered unless there's a hot prospect?  Do you prefer phone, e-mail, or a personal visit?)

• Could you please give me the names and phone numbers of your three most recent clients?

In addition to these questions, you should find an agent that you can trust and are able to work with.  The agent should have the client's interests at heart.

Also, not all real estate agents are REALTORS.  REALTORS belong to the local and National Association of REALTORS and stand by a strict code of ethics.

I received a nice surprise in the mail today.

A good friend of my daughter's is currently in Iraq.  I have known him for about 10 years.  He went to school with my daughter and he is with the National Guard.  He was deployed back in January of this year.

I have been keeping in touch with him by sending him cards now again.  In my last card, I enclosed a printout of the "Original S.U.V." with a note stating "Here's a little something to put a smile on your face."

When I picked up my mail today, there was an envelope from the US Army.  It was a short note from my daughter's good friend in Iraq.

In it he wrote that the printout did more than make him smile.  It made him laugh!  He loved it!  He mentioned that they have so much candy and food from packages, that they have no more room for anything else on their tables. 

This note gave me such a good feeling that they feel good about us keeping them in our thoughts.  He is so looking forward to coming home and seeing us all.

Let's continue supporting the military personnel.  This is what keeps them going.  We pray to God that they all come home safe and sound.