Blake A. Vartanian, DRE #00871999

August 16, 2023

 

Learn a new (or at least alternative) term to wealth building? – ‘house hacking’ is a thing and we can capitalize on it - https://finance.yahoo.com/news/5-real-estate-investors-house-030448971.html - maybe this term is only new to me? 

 

While the concept behind it is not new the idea heading grabbed my attention and I thought you too could find ways to utilize this to rejuvenate or build your wealth building strategies as found on our website - https://rpro100.com/brokers.html  

 

Tomorrow beginning at 8:58 am with the opening music we look forward to presenting "It's a 5 O'clock World - version 2.0" beginning with the opening music at 8:58 am at the Professional Growth Series, (PGS). From 10:10 am until 10:45 we take the deeper mindset dive into the ‘Journey to 10’ conversation held in the conference room. 

 

Even though there is no Zoom stream for the PGS any longer which has allowed for much better quality video recordings, and helped to increase our viewership of past meetings by as much as 10X, you can call in on the conference number below at 10:10 am to join in the ‘Journey to 10’. We do disconnect the call-in line if you are not on it by 10:10 am as the hold music is annoying to those in person if no one else is on the call, and if you want to be on the call after that time…..please call the front desk and Kimberly will be glad to connect you – 714-644-9500.

 

On Monday, August 14, 2023 I wrote ‘Despite higher rates Realty Pro 100 represented a successful closing/pending this summer season no less than 3 times at price points of $2 million or more as performed by Big Irv, Johnny Moreno and Chad Records. (If I left anyone out I apologize as that is something I will be glad to correct in the next message.)’ And I realized on my own that Kevin Lin was inadvertently omitted with his $2 million sale that closed on 8-01. Congratulations to each of you on your high priced closings. No doubt it adds a new dimension to your sales experiences. 

 

In fact, two of our companies first 3 transactions back in 2019 were north of $2 million by Gene and Mike V. respectively as the 1^st and 3^rd closings in the company’s history. 

 

We designed Realty Pro 100 to be a ‘high minded hospitality driven boutique real estate firm limited to 100 producing agents per office’ as part of our market differential. We have proudly represented the interests of clients in sales under $15,000 and as high as nearly $5 million, as well as leases, business opportunities, commercial, etc. 

 

There really are no limits on what we can accomplish other than what can be at times the self-imposed barriers we place on ourselves. Case in point, Judy Le at Pro Escrow, our non-independent broker escrow Manager/Officer was not comfortable in representing bulk sales escrows and mobile homes in her past companies, so rather than spending her career saying ‘no, I don’t do those’, she went out and learned how to do them and sought the wisdom and guidance of those who were willing to share/teach. Now she is capable and confident in an area of expertise that before coming to Pro Escrow she would have/might have taken a pass on those opportunities. 

 

The same can happen each day in real estate. What you are doing isn’t working? Change it. Not sure how? There are literally thousands of resources today that did not exist for those of us seeking to change back through the decades. The internet, live training events, colleagues willing to collaborate and resources are truly endless. Want to specialize, you can learn about it much faster today than by the school of hard knocks we got on the street or had to go to a library for, if they even had a resource book on the issue, which they didn’t really when it came to real estate back in the day. 

 

The best place to be next week will be in the Realty Pro 100 office Tuesday – Thursday 7 am to 3 pm each day for the Tom Ferry Success Summit. All other trainings next week are taken off calendar to support this event. If you had the chance to take a listing or sale right after each of those 3 sessions I believe that your odds of closing the deal and increasing your success would rise dramatically. 

 

Lastly in response to yesterday’s message I received feedback such as this from Sherry and Big Irv……I truly appreciate our ability to collaborate and share:

 

Big Irv:

 

I was taught this years ago when either Cold Calling or Knocking on Doors and the person's response wasn't very nice: 

 

They may just be having a Bad Day, Bad Week, Bad Month, Bad Year or Bad Life. Then it was On to the Next! 

 

NO=NEXT OPPORTUNITY

 

Sherry: 

 

“Good morning Blake

As always your share was greatly appreciated. Thank you."

 

 

Make it a Wonderful Wednesday of limitless success in this world of real estate in all your transactions and work with buyers and sellers.

By Blake A. Vartanian, DRE #00871999

Happy Tuesday!

 

Too many careers in our profession ‘drift’ away from what really creates success. Real estate is a full contact profession. Don’t like people? I get it, at times it can be hard to like the people who do us wrong and no doubt on the climb to the mountain top we will meet more than our fair share of people who use us for our information and give our livelihood ideas/strategies to others. It’s what happens, but when we are ‘Feeling Alright’ we are taking the right approach to taking care of ourselves. 

 

                                         

 

Introspection can be hard, in fact it can be really hard. So, this Thursday we are going to share ideas for the best thoughts on building and maintaining quality businesses together as CEO’s of our brands. I do not believe that anyone works for Realty Pro 100, not even me, but that under the banner of the brand, we can be our best version of ourselves with the environment that we create. I hope that makes sense, and whether you agree or not, I plan to deliver some of the secrets to success I have learned in the most important leadership meetings with some of the most successful people I’ve ever met, including Mike Ferry, Zig Ziglar, Floyd Wickman and Debbie Fields of Mrs. Fields cookies. What if that mind-shift could take you from say 5,6 or 10 transactions to over 20 fully commissioned deals closed in the remainder of the year? What would that be worth in your journey? 

 

The market activity nationwide is picking up steam - US Housing Market Gains Momentum As Loan Applications Jump Amid First Drop In Mortgage Rates In 5 Weeks.

 

 

Tomorrow : at 9:30 AM: AGENT ACCOUNTABILITY

 

THURSDAY:

 

8:20 AM: THE BOOK CLUB – AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

8:58 AM: PROFESSIONAL GROWTH SERIES – 'Feeling Alright’. AVAILABLE BY CALL IN AND ZOOM.

 

FOLLOWED BY THE JOURNEY TO 10 – 10:10 AM UNTIL 10:45 AM……AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

FOR ALL MEETINGS:

Zoom Meeting Link: https://zoom.us/j/887093873?pwd=T1RDbi9Yai9FY3VxOEZ4N2VMbG1wQT09

Or Call – 1-669-900-9128 to dial in!

Meeting ID: 887 093 873

Passcode: 863925

 

Make it an incredible day of limitless success!

 

 

By Blake A. Vartanian, DRE #00871999

 

I’ve decided to nominate my dog Tucker to be the next Fed Chairman. He says in his platform speech: ‘I can’t do any worse than the regulators who are charged with overseeing our banking system, and I am a lot more adorable’

 

 

He also promises to put a bone in every cupboard in the event of an economic meltdown as he sits perched on his throne. Okay, I’ve had my fun. But you have to admit he is super photogenic and always seems willing to pose for a picture.

 

So this is what a failed bank looks like below. Think you can easily get access to your money? Think again. Our money says right on it ‘In God We Trust’, not trust in something less like the system that creates the lines when all else fails. Being cynical and questioning authority is healthy and I encourage you to speak your self-truth and be yourself always. My heart goes out to the families who are struggling and then on top of that have to take away from work, life itself to deal with this emerging crisis just to get back the money they entrusted to the bank. 

 

Isn’t it interesting that former Congressman Barney Frank – coauthor of Dodd-Frank - https://www.cftc.gov/LawRegulation/DoddFrankAct/index.htm not only got to have the regulations he and former US Senator Chris Dodd placed on America to so call ‘protect the integrity’ of the US banking system, but Mr. Frank rewarded himself by being on the board of the latest bank failure in the US – Signature Bank which regulators seized this past Sunday and the world found out about it on Monday…….you can’t make this stuff up…… https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/13/signature-bank-third-biggest-bank-failure-in-us-history.html

 

Switching to real estate, in some models the focus is on building massive data bases of say 3,000 people or more wherein you can’t possibly develop important/meaningful relationships. It’s not to say that there is anything wrong with it, I simply believe it’s unnecessary and ineffective. Why pretend you have clients and customers when the people don’t really know you, or what you can bring to their lives in terms of wealth building and value?

 

Real Estate is not about how well known you or your companies name is, it’s about how many sales/listings you are able to accomplish. Misapplied ego centric advertising and marketing costs our industry millions of dollars of wasted expenditures and does little if anything to attract new clients/customers. We teach methods that focus on ‘relationships’ and growing your sphere of influence to 250 people with the idea of getting those 250 people to introduce you over time to their 250 people which is the average number of people most of us know through church, school, friends, family, etc. When we are successful we will potentially have a data base of 62,500 (250 X 250) people possible with less stress and more enjoyable experiences. 

 

Some companies train their agents to do what I call ‘step over dollars to make pennies’. They teach you how to become the 99 cents store of our profession by gaining market share through discounting. Think about it, the discerning mind realizes you are just working in some cases two or three times harder than if you had the best economic model in the first place. 

 

When you are confident and believe in your model, you attract likeminded people. So if you are confident ‘discounting’ is in your best interest that is primarily the type of clients/customers who will show up…as like attracts like…they will more times than not be people who want you to work for less. In this inflationary cycle and for personal/professional goals that is not the way we want you to win, but certainly we support your choice if that is what you feel you want to or you have to do to win. 

 

Also, to protect your own energy especially in a market like this……we encourage everyone to only work with pre-qualified, highly motivated clients who are willing to compete to sell or get a property. 

 

Please respectfully question and verify the word of a prospect when they share that they have been pre-qualified based on today’s rates by a lender you don’t know……it’s too easy to get a pre-qual letter and your time/effort should not end up 10 days before closing finding out your client cannot get a loan. – to learn more please plan on attending our ‘Super Star Lending Panel’ at the extended Professional Growth Series session on the 30^th…….see the flier attached. 

 

And if you are a lender who calls on our office or an agent/lender with an NMLS license not on the panel, we designed this to get the largest audience possible choosing some of the biggest names in the lending business locally so you can learn their strategies and mindset for massive success too.

 

This will be an event widely attended so please RSVP today to Info - Realty Pro 100℠ info@realtypro100.com.

 

Today: Best Practices with Mike Cocos: 10:00 am.

 

Tomorrow : at 9:30 AM: AGENT ACCOUNTABILITY

 

THURSDAY:

 

8:20 AM: THE BOOK CLUB – AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

8:58 AM: PROFESSIONAL GROWTH SERIES – 'Spring is Almost Here’. AVAILABLE BY CALL IN AND ZOOM.

 

FOLLOWED BY THE JOURNEY TO 10 – 10:10 AM UNTIL 10:45 AM……AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

FOR ALL MEETINGS:

Zoom Meeting Link: https://zoom.us/j/887093873?pwd=T1RDbi9Yai9FY3VxOEZ4N2VMbG1wQT09

Or Call – 1-669-900-9128 to dial in!

Meeting ID: 887 093 873

Passcode: 863925

 

Make it a superb day!

 

By Blake A. Vartanian, DRE #00871999

Happy Monday!

 

In 8^th grade at Kraemer Jr. High, before it was called Kraemer Middle School in Placentia, I had won the school spelling bee in the early spring about the same time of the year it is now. It was March of 1973, I was getting good grades, I liked school, I had a paper route, and I was about to compete in the Orange County Spelling Bee. My English Teacher Mr. Moore was working with me and already had visions of me in Sacramento winning the state championship and going on to nationals. I am not saying I was that bold because I wasn’t. The day of the OC spelling Bee arrives, and the competition began with more than 100 kids in the ‘bee’ from around the OC at Orange Coast College. I distinctly remember the stage and that the audience was much bigger than the one at the Valencia High auditorium, where the Kraemer spelling bee had occurred. 

 

The rounds went by, and it was down to the top 6. I was still in the competition and they gave us a break. Mr. Moore was excited, and I was hopeful but uncertain as there was a lot of talent in that room. When the spelling bee resumed, I was given a scientific term that I was unfamiliar with after the first person missed it. I heard the judges respond, ‘that is not correct’ and I was done. All 6 of us were asked to spell the same word, and we all missed it. They invited the last two finalists back up, and Mr. Moore went ballistic. Not at me, because I don’t think he knew how to spell the word either. He felt that it was unfair that I was eliminated because no one got the word spelled correctly. So needless to say, my journey to spelling bee stardom and fame was over with an official 5^th place Orange County wide finish…..and actually I was relieved. 

My brother, Mike Vartanian, and I were both good spellers. Our paternal side of the family spoke Armenian when they didn’t want the kids to know what was going on - and our maternal side ‘spelled’ and had us doing cross word puzzles, word searches & playing scrabble. I consider myself today to be less than average in spelling, so please know I have little to zero interest in being tested 😂

After the OC contest was over, I returned to Kraemer to a cross section of students and teachers who ranged from ‘proud’ of the school being represented so well, to disappointment that I didn't win the whole thing. At 14, I did the only thing I knew how to do: fight back with my verbal skills (or lack thereof) against the naysayers. Unfortunately, that landed me int he principal's office 4 times in one week. The principal, Mr. Baughman, was super nice and took the time to look at my school records, which clearly demonstrated since 1^st grade my proclivity for ‘disrupting’ the classroom and on occasion questioning the teachers authority. A few weeks ago, I had a random opportunity to approach former principal Mr. Baughman as he and his wife were dining across the restaurant from me - now 50 years later. 

 

I approached with trepidation, as I kept thinking ‘what if it isn’t him?’ or ‘what if he doesn’t care?’.  I didn’t expect him to remember me or the moments of that time. Interestingly enough it was him and we had a really nice conversation. 50 years later I got to thank him for sending me home with a mission to figure it all out vs. expelling or suspending me at the time. His wife joined in the conversation and they both were so pleasant. I left feeling fulfilled that I was able to check this item off my bucket list by sharing with him how much his patience and mutual respect for a teenager meant to me. He helped me discover who I wanted to be 'reputationally’ vs. simply taking harsh action against the student by unnecessarily disciplining them. 

 

Moving forward, we all have people of influence who made a difference in our lives. This situation really got me to thinking - what if we all reached out to those people and just checked in and shared how their contributions helped to shape us? It may not lead to another sale, but it sure feels good to know that I was able to have that random chance meeting and a welcome environment in which to bring closure to something like this. 

 

TUESDAY at 10am: BEST PRACTICES WITH MIKE COCOS

WEDNESDAY at 9:30 AM: AGENT ACCOUNTABILITY

 

THURSDAY:

8:20 AM: THE BOOK CLUB

8:58 AM: PROFESSIONAL GROWTH SERIES – 'Spring is Almost Here’. AVAILABLE BY CALL IN AND ZOOM. FOLLOWED BY THE JOURNEY TO 10 – 10:10 AM UNTIL 10:45 AM……AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

FOR ALL MEETINGS Zoom and call in info:

Zoom Meeting Link: https://zoom.us/j/887093873?pwd=T1RDbi9Yai9FY3VxOEZ4N2VMbG1wQT09

Or Call – 1-669-900-9128 to dial in!

Meeting ID: 887 093 873

Passcode: 863925

 

By Blake A. Vartanian, DRE #00871999

Friday’s seem to come up each week much faster in the quick paced pre-spring and spring markets. There are weeks in the dead of winter when activity is slower that seem to drag on for days and days to get to a Friday. Before we know it schools will be letting out for summer and people will be focusing on ‘summer vacations’ and other distractions that can hamper a year’s progress. 

 

In looking back, there were a couple of years in our careers when my brother, Mike Vartanian and I hit our professional goals for the year by June, and then said something like this:

"We hit our goals so we are going to reward ourselves by taking most of the rest of the year off"

At the time it seemed like a good idea, but there is always a day of reckoning for losing all of that momentum. I have thought frequently over the years that it takes a lifetime to build momentum, and literally just days to lose it.

 

Starting over from scratch is something that is a necessity over a long career. I have done so at many points with varying degrees of longevity in the new venture. Realty Pro 100 has proven so far to be the biggest and most rewarding opportunity/challenge. Not just Joanne’s and mine, but all of ours. I look at the ‘Pride of Ownership’ wall and the ‘branding wall of partners’ by the front desk that showcase our agent's brands and am so proud of our partnerships. It’s a huge responsibility and I take each day and every moment with sincere appreciation.

And ‘yes’ there are many more ‘Pride of Ownership’ agent/investor partners that are not on the wall – based on their request to remain confidential which is fully respected. Also, it’s highly unlikely that any other scaling brand featuring the brands of their agent partners as you walk into their lobby. We showcase the value of our collaborative efforts for the mutual benefit of all involved. Don’t have a brand? Check in with Cassidy she will be more than happy to help you get started…….Cassidy Pace cpace@realtypro100.com.

We recently welcomed Jim (and the Norton family) to the Pride of Ownership. And Big Irv has committed to buying more shares from future closings. Want to learn more about this unique opportunity? Check with Mary mgaston@realtypro100.com  or go to https://rp100.info/ or https://rp100.info/pride-of-ownership to learn more.  

What is interesting is seeing how hard the team/family is working……and knowing that one day this is all going to pay off far bigger than it is right now. The level of success that is at the ‘breakthrough’ moment is palpable. One massive growth understanding I have learned through time is that ‘frustration’ reaches a frenzied peak just before the greatest successes, but only for those who push through the pain and disappointment. Far too many in our profession lay the ground work and then give up just before the payoff because they don’t properly correlate the function of time into the formula. Clients and customers do not buy and sell on our time schedule, they act on their timelines. Our role is to be there when they say ‘yes, it’s time’ and for us to provide the ‘kind of help you would expect from a friend’. 

 

If you missed yesterday’s PGS presentation or would like to review the ideas pertaining to ‘change’ – please click the link here:

 

https://youtu.be/F3OriRU-tNY?list=PL6-Mjp_ucZaChDQnsxaHM597lW17wiXf_    

 

Tuesday: Best Practices with Mike Cocos: 10:00 am. 

 

Wednesday : at 9:30 AM: AGENT ACCOUNTABILITY

 

THURSDAY:

 

8:20 AM: THE BOOK CLUB – AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

8:58 AM: PROFESSIONAL GROWTH SERIES – 'Spring is Almost Here’. AVAILABLE BY CALL IN AND ZOOM.

 

FOLLOWED BY THE JOURNEY TO 10 – 10:10 AM UNTIL 10:45 AM……AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

FOR ALL MEETINGS:

Zoom Meeting Link: https://zoom.us/j/887093873?pwd=T1RDbi9Yai9FY3VxOEZ4N2VMbG1wQT09

Or Call – 1-669-900-9128 to dial in!

Meeting ID: 887 093 873

Passcode: 863925

 

Make it a great pre-spring market ‘daylight savings time’ weekend.

What time is it? It’s approaching ‘Daylight Savings Time’ and the change that happens this Sunday morning at 2 am. Personally, I don’t recall anyone who has ever said, ‘I go to bed at midnight, set the alarm clock to wake up at 2 am to change all the devices that don’t auto-adjust to the new time’ But maybe you do. 

 

Since my days end long before 2 am the next day, I chose to set the clock probably like most people…before going to bed. 

 

                                                           

 

So with the longer hour of daylight, how can that improve your business results? We will discuss this and a whole lot more in our Professional Growth Series session today: ‘Time For A Change’. For many people as March continues we are already looking at April, May and even June potential closings being set up now. Don’t want to work today? I get it, but the question remains, what does life look like if we string too many of those days in a row? Especially in the spring market where it’s common for more than 60% of the annual closings in real estate take place in March, April, May and June for many of the years in history. 

 

Also, in the Journey to 10 immediately after the PGS we will circle back to last week’s unfinished opportunities for team members to share their ‘one thing’ or ‘moment’ that might be holding them back. Several of you commented to me after last weeks session just how helpful it was to have clarity on your own vision to the top of the mountain……and speaking of mountains……this never gets old below……..I left the sky in larger than normal as the clouds seemed to be interesting – more than usual. 

 

 

And lastly for today……the cost of eggs continues to soar…….. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/act-god-type-stuff-trade-163000136.html - think of how many products need eggs to make a complete recipe…..it’s a lot. Time for us to get extra busy as we work to outpace inflation and build wealth for our clients and ourselves. 

 

Today at 9:00AM:

 

8:20 AM: THE BOOK CLUB – AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

8:58 AM: PROFESSIONAL GROWTH SERIES – 'Time For A Change’. AVAILABLE BY CALL IN AND ZOOM.

 

FOLLOWED BY THE JOURNEY TO 10 – 10:10 AM UNTIL 10:45 AM……AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

FOR ALL MEETINGS:

Zoom Meeting Link: https://zoom.us/j/887093873?pwd=T1RDbi9Yai9FY3VxOEZ4N2VMbG1wQT09

Or Call – 1-669-900-9128 to dial in!

Meeting ID: 887 093 873

Passcode: 863925

 

Make it a remarkable day!

This past Thursday we addressed strategies for combating reluctant sellers who are looking for ‘discounts’ vs. say the best overall final sales outcomes based on proven results. Saving money is not the same as making more money. You can shop at the 99 cents store but that is not quality shopping for most items. You typically get what you pay for……please watch Mike Cocos presentation, followed by the role play I had with Lara Kayali utilizing a proprietary way to overcome the discount mindset…thanks Lara for the impromptu exchange..…here is the link for last Thursday’s Professional Growth Series -    https://youtu.be/WmJZiEsVtq4?list=PL6-Mjp_ucZaChDQnsxaHM597lW17wiXf_ …nice presentation Mike.

 

I’ve stated for years that the best way to describe January and February results is that they often combined equal the single month of March. This year our projections are exactly that:

 

January + February = March. And April usually outpaces March……so far that April projection is not a forgone conclusion, as the key to growing our results is the acquisition of saleable listings, and on that front we all continue our pursuit to build a nice inventory of priced right, properly commissioned, saleable properties……I do not believe you can ever have too many high quality listings in your inventory. 

 

Judy Le congratulated Johnny Moreno on Monday for the sale of his listing in Pinion Hills and the opening of escrow at Pro Escrow, our non-independent broker escrow. Way to go Johnny. 

 

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/luxury-housing-market-sees-steep-deceleration-charts-112538320.html - Luxury market seen taking a hit in markets across America...at least that is the headline…which is about as far as many people read. 

 

It tells you a lot about the state of the economy and the impact on high end products/inflation that Tesla is slashing prices for the 2^nd time this year…… https://finance.yahoo.com/news/tesla-slashes-prices-model-model-052419668.html  - it wasn’t long ago that car dealers were short on inventory and substantially marking up many car models. 

 

Make it a great day. 

 

Today: Best Practices with Mike Cocos: 10:00 am. 

 

Wednesday : at 9:30 AM: AGENT ACCOUNTABILITY

 

THURSDAY:

 

8:20 AM: THE BOOK CLUB – AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

8:58 AM: PROFESSIONAL GROWTH SERIES – 'Time For A Change’. AVAILABLE BY CALL IN AND ZOOM.

 

FOLLOWED BY THE JOURNEY TO 10 – 10:10 AM UNTIL 10:45 AM……AVAILABLE BY CALL IN BUT NOT ZOOM. 

 

FOR ALL MEETINGS:

Zoom Meeting Link: https://zoom.us/j/887093873?pwd=T1RDbi9Yai9FY3VxOEZ4N2VMbG1wQT09

Or Call – 1-669-900-9128 to dial in!

Meeting ID: 887 093 873

Passcode: 863925