Here’s a quick note to let you know how I can help you—or anyone you feel comfortable introducing me to.

All real estate agents are not created equal. The best agents invest considerable time and expense before, during, and after the transaction. Suppose a buyer makes an offer on a house, but has not yet met with a lender. An inexperienced listing agent might encourage the seller to accept the offer, tying up the property, only to discover that the buyer is not qualified. By taking the home off the market, momentum is lost and the result might be a 1% to 3% drop in sales price. A more experienced listing agent would demand proof before recommending accepting the offer. This is not a legal requirement, but a protective action to minimize risk. There are literally dozens of small and large decisions like this that protect a client and increase the likelihood of the deal closing. The value of this expertise is shared with clients in the form of a successful and profitable transaction.

If you, your friends, or neighbors are planning to sell their home, contact me to get top representation: 609-338-3773 or matt@sjhouses.com. Ask for a copy of my report, How to Stop Spending Money on Rent and Own a Home Instead.

Matthew Haviland, Your Real Estate Consultant For Life Keller Williams Realty Atlantic Shore 609-484-9890 ext 132

P.S. Who do you know who’s thinking about selling their home? Please introduce us so I can discuss their situation and help them plan ahead.

Here’s a comment I read online that got me thinking about my neighbors differently.

“I’ve had cause lately to examine my cultural prejudices. I’m not talking about international culture. I’m talking about family culture.

Family culture is about ‘the way we do things in our family.’ It’s the feeling we get when we go to someone else’s house for dinner for the first time, and it feels ‘foreign.’

Like most people, I measure other families to my own standards, and of course, my standards are always higher.  That’s what got me thinking about my cultural prejudices and wondering which families I’m judging because they do things differently. I’ve resolved to be friendlier and if the chance presents itself, to talk about our differences.

At the very least, this comment reminds us to look at our neighbors with more empathy, and to notice if we’ve pulled away from them because they’re too “different” from us. I believe that great neighbors make great neighborhoods, and we’re all charged with being great neighbors.

Sincerely,

Matthew Haviland
Your Real Estate Consultant For Life

P.S. If you’ve got a story to tell, you can reach me at matt@sjhouses.com, or by calling me at 609-338-3773.

Click Here To Download Our July Newsletter:  July Newsletter – Matt

Are You Listening?

We’ve all heard that listening is the greatest compliment we can show to another person. Yet we are all constantly guilty of what Steven Covey called “autobiographical listening.” That’s listening with only half an ear, while in our heads we are busy preparing what to say next.

It is said that Franklin Delano Roosevelt, US President, so despised this, that he devised a test. When a petitioner asked how he was doing, he would say, “I murdered my grandmother this morning.” Most of the time he got a noncommittal response, proving the other person was probably rehearsing what to say next. (Although, one person trumped him by saying, “I’m sure she had it coming to her.”)

In a world where our attention is constantly being demanded by electronic devices, it is an even greater compliment than ever before to pay attention to one another, to lift our faces out of our phones and be 100% present.

One way to practice the art of listening well is to do something called “Parrot Phrasing.” During conversations with family, co-workers, your boss, and friends, you occasionally say back to the person exactly what they said to you, switching only the pronouns. After parroting what they said, you can add a question or comment.

For example, if they say, “I’ve had a horrible run of luck at work lately.” You can say back, “You’ve had a horrible run of luck at work lately. What’s been happening?”
Give it a try and let me know how it works for you.

Sincerely,

Matthew Haviland
Your Real Estate Consultant For Life

P.S. If you’ve got a story to tell, you can reach me at matt@sjhouses.com, or by calling me at 609-338-3773.

P.P.S.  If you have not seen my post about our upcoming golf tournament please click here for details.  This year’s event is to benefit my Aunt Denise.  Please help.