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New national events page
Updated website
I know it’s been awhile since you’ve heard from me, but I’ve been working on some big things. The biggest one is right in front of you. If you haven’t noticed already, our website has been updated! Most things are in new places and we’ve got updated information on many of our pages. I did my best to test all of the links, to make sure they go where they’re supposed to, so if you come across something that’s broken, please let me know so I can fix it.
There are even more updates coming soon as well. The next big change coming is we’re totally revamping the events page to make it easier for you to register for events in your area.
I’ll keep you up to date and now that the main work is done, you’ll see more regular blog posts.
“Are you sure REIC isn’t a scam?”
With all these experts around making a living selling their real estate investment secrets, banks falling apart, Bernie Madoff going to jail for his huge Ponzi scheme, and Enron running itself into the ground and taking all its employees’ retirements with it, we’re especially cautious about trusting people with the money we’ve worked so hard for. You’ve undoubtedly wondered whether REIC is a scam, right? I’ll admit that I wondered about it and even went searching for information about it. You’ve probably come up with the same thing I did when I went looking for information on whether REIC is a scam: not much at all.
I cornered Kris Krohn and told him that I’d expected to find more negative experiences, considering how much he talks about real estate being a tough industry (especially considering the current market) and the emotional connection we all have with money. Having some irate customers seems to be one of those things that comes from doing business, just part of the deal. But REIC seems to have very few members who aren’t happy with us. Kris explained that we don’t have many unhappy members because we work so hard to make sure they understand the risks and don’t make them walk the minefield themselves. We’re always there to help you through the tough parts.
Another thing that I’ve learned as I talk to the people here is that REIC’s program is designed to benefit the company when our members succeed. It’s in our best interest to make sure your real estate investment portfolio is growing and doing well. That means we work hard to make sure our members are happy because that means we’ll be happy too. We all win together.
Review of “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin
“You can choose to lead, or not. You can choose to have faith, or not. You can choose to contribute to the tribe, or not.
“Are there thousands of reasons why you, of all people, aren’t the right one to lead? Why you don’t have the resources or the authority or the genes or the momentum to lead? Probably. So what? You still get to make the choice.”
—Seth Godin, “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us,” p. 146
Are you looking for a good leadership book to read to start the New Year? This is a good one; better than I thought it would be. If you have ever attended one of the Prosperity Summits co-sponsored by REIC, you may remember how many times Garrett White said the word “tribe.” When I attended my first Prosperity Summit, Garrett probably said the word “tribe” at last twenty times. Because he said it so many times, I became curious about 1) what a tribe is, 2) how to create one myself, 3) how to become a tribe member, and 4) what the big deal is.
Garrett read this book and began to understand the power of a tribe. I read this book and began to understand the power of a tribe. You will, too.
What do tribes have to do with real estate? In a word, nothing. But that’s not important. The way tribes tie into what we do here at REIC is this: when you have extra income produced by real estate, you have extra time; if you have extra time you can help the world by living your soul purpose. Those you affect, help, work with, lead, etc. while living your soul purpose are your tribe. Real estate is the tool used to finance your soul purpose so you can build a tribe.
Make the choice to read this book this year. It can change your perspective on many different topics. The year is fresh; opportunities to lead a tribe abound. Don’t let the year slip by without doing something great!
If you are interested in reading my full book review, click here.
Introductions to REIC and real estate investing
Funny meeting you here, on the internet at REIC’s blog. This is my first time writing here, so hi, I’m Rob. I’m going to be updating all kinds of things on the website, so keep an eye out for the changes coming in the next few months. I just spent the last week (except for the time I was sleeping) in meetings here at the REIC office, taking a crazy crash course on all the things that REIC does. No, seriously, all week. I took tons of notes and I’ll be sharing those with you over the next little while. For now, all I’m going to say is that REIC is committed to helping our members complete their personalized game plans.
Before I get to those notes, though, I want to make you a little fly on the wall of our staff meeting this morning. You’d undoubtedly prefer to be a fly on some other wall, but this last week, REIC had three major, exciting things happen at the office that I want to share with you.
1. I mentioned that I was in meetings all week, so we’ll start with that one. Let me be clear that I’m not important enough to warrant this kind of attention on my own, but I was part of the training for a new outside sales group as the notetaker and general scribe. We had about a half dozen highly skilled sales professionals who are going out to share REIC’s resources with a broader group and they’re excited to get out and help more people get on the path. Don’t worry, this doesn’t change the level of personal service you receive as a member of REIC, we just want to help as many people as we can. I’ve got to say that the more we learned about the details behind what REIC does, the more impressed the sales guys and I were by the company. If you’re already a member, you’ve got first-hand experience with it. If you’re not a member yet and are looking at the blog to find out more, let me tell you that everyone here is focused on what would be best for our members.
2. The next big thing that happened at REIC this week was our first Boot Camp. It was a training for the people who have gone through the home study kit and wanted some more information and training. It’s a manageable amount of good information and there was lots of personal interaction with the team here.
3. The last big thing we did last week was hold our first coaching graduation. We brought together people who went through all of the personal coaching steps and purchased their first investment property. Exciting, right? You can do it too and you’re not alone. Our members do this all the time, we just wanted to make sure they realized what a big step it is to make their first investment deal.
Did you catch how these three things are all the similar? The essence of REIC is training you how you can become a real estate investor and connecting you with the talented team of people here who are excited and committed to helping you succeed. And not just some generic ‘you’ printed on some script we’ve got on our computers.
We’re committed to you, the person reading this blog post right now. Stop rolling your eyes because I saw that and I’m serious. If you don’t have your personalized blueprint yet, you can get started right now. Just click here and we’ll get you started. If you’re not ready yet, that’s cool too. I’ll see you back here soon.
A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle
My book review for this month is A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle. Click on the title to read the full review.
After reading my review, I’m sure it’s obvious that I liked it—a lot. But many of our blog readers may be wondering why reading a self-help book will help them invest in real estate. Allow me to run a few ideas by you.
I’m guessing that you are investing in real estate, or are interested in investing in real estate because you want more out of life—more wealth, prosperity, time for family and friends, and a thousand other reasons. If you are not investing in real estate yet, you may be looking onto REIC to see if you want to play the Strait Path game with us. In either case, chances are that you aren’t in the financial position you’d like to be for a reason. Most reasons have something to do with your mindset.
Reading A New Earth could be your first step in beginning to look at the way you see yourself, life, your lifestyle, your paradigms, etc. Tolle has an interesting way of explaining how our minds (specifically our egos) succeed at ruining our hopes, wishes, dreams, goals, and the good things in life that make living fun and interesting. From our relationships to our bank accounts, our egos have a huge amount of control over what we manifest, or fail to manifest, in our lives. The ego is our enemy. Tolle shows his readers how to quiet the ego so they can begin to manifest what they want.
After reading the book, chime in. Let me know what you think.
The Week of Gratitude
“Our society is afflicted by a spirit of thoughtless arrogance unbecoming those who have been so magnificently blessed. How grateful we should be for the bounties we enjoy. Absence of gratitude is the mark of the narrow, uneducated mind. It bespeaks a lack of knowledge and the ignorance of self-sufficiency. It expresses itself in ugly egotism and frequently in wanton mischief. We have seen our beaches, our parks, our forests littered with ugly refuse by those who evidently have no appreciation for their beauty. I have driven through thousands of acres of blackened land scourged by a fire evidently set by a careless smoker whose only concern had been the selfish pleasure gained from a cigarette.
“Where there is appreciation, there is courtesy, there is concern for the rights and property of others. Without appreciation, there is arrogance and evil.
“Where there is gratitude, there is humility, as opposed to pride.
“How magnificently we are blessed! How thankful we ought to be!”
—Gordon B. Hinckley, “‘With All Thy Getting Get Understanding’,” Ensign, Aug 1988, 2–5
Last year, I wrote an article titled “Thanksgiving Day – The Forgotten Holiday” to pay homage to a holiday that is about more than good food, family, friends, and a post-turkey nap. The very foundation of the Thanksgiving Day holiday is to feel and show gratitude for what and whom we have in our lives. It is not an accident or a coincidence that Thanksgiving Day is celebrated after the years bounty is brought into storehouses. It is at this time of year especially that our ancestors were able to take a step back and actually see a physical manifestation of not only the fruit of their labor, but physical, quantifiable proof of their abundance. I hope that as you read this post, you will think about the things and the people that you are most grateful for and express your gratitude for those blessings.
What are you Grateful For?
Start with a surface-level list of items you use every day that makes modern life great. Your list may look something like this:
- House(s)
- Car(s)
- Cell phone
- Laptop or desktop computer (or both)
- High-speed internet
- Wireless internet access
- Post-It notes
- Cable TV
- NetFlix
- The latest Harry Potter movie
- Josh Groban’s new album
I encourage you to use the above list to get yourself thinking of all of the gadgets, tools, and entertainment sources that make your daily life better.
Next, create a list of ten (10) people in your life that make getting through the day-to-day bearable. Include family members, friends, co-workers, and acquaintances to get started. Feel free to add more lines yourself.
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
- __________________________________________
Next to the person’s name, identify why you are grateful for them. What have they done for you in the past year that allowed them to show up on your gratitude list? If there are multiple reasons, list all of them.
This is when this exercise will get fun—for you and for those people on your list.
By the end of Thanksgiving Day, contact the people on your list, tell them about what you did, and express the gratitude you feel towards them. I would be extremely surprised that the opportunities you create to show gratitude will end badly. On the contrary, these opportunities will likely be among the most memorable of the year, for you and those you are grateful for.
Share your experiences with us! Add a comment about your experience on the comment form below.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Local Real Estate Statistics
REIC’s corporate office is located in Orem, UT. Orem and Provo, UT comprise the 2nd largest Metropolitan area in Utah (the largest is Salt Lake County). I received an e-mail the other day containing a fascinating local real estate statistical report produced by a local real estate firm, and I’d like to share some of that information. Because of the population density and relative economic strength of the area, these current real estate statistics are an interesting read.
Over the last 180 days, our local real estate statistics look like this:
Active Properties: 3,055
Median Price: $214,900
Average Price: $295,357
Median CDOM: 116
Under Contract: 649
Median Price: $214,900
Average Price: $250,863
Median CDOM: 81
Sold Properties: 52,511
Average Price: $216,598
Median CDOM: 61
There are 23 ZIP codes in Utah County where residential real estate is actively being sold. Of the 23 Zip codes, only 3 have experienced an increased median sold price. The rest have dropped—some of them significantly (Alpine, UT: -23.4%; American Fork, UT: -14.5%; Mona, UT: -52.9%; and Mapleton, UT: -12.2%).
Amid the general economic gloom, the report provides a few bits of information that we Utahans can be proud of:
- Utah is ranked #1 in a major economic outlook report by the American Legislative Exchange Council. I have personally never heard of them before, but the information came from the third edition of the “Rich States, Poor States: ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitiveness Index.” Next in line were Colorado, Arizona, South Dakota, and Florida.
- Utah is the 2nd healthiest state in the Union, following Vermont as the healthiest state. Utah was ranked 5th last year, so we have improved a bit since then.
- Utah is ranked #1 in Forbes Magazine’s “The Best States for Business and Careers.” A high ranking like this one should bring businesses and jobs to Utah. That would be great for our local economy!
As a real estate investor, knowing the statistics provided above for your local area will help you to make better deals when you buy local real estate. Contact your realtor for information related to your local statistics.
Source:
Collette-Marti, Lorna; Craig Collette. The Collette Team: Bi-Annual Real Estate Market Report. Equity Real Estate. November 2010.
Market Still in Prime Condition for REIC-Style Real Estate
Today being Friday and all, I thought I would surf through news websites to see if anything interesting was going on in real estate news. As it turns out, I found an interesting nugget written by Alan Zibel from the Wall Street Journal. The article is titled, Home Prices Decline in Nearly Half of Metropolitan Areas.
The point Zibel makes in the article is that median home prices are still falling all across America. Home prices fell in 76 out of the 155 (or about half) areas that are tracked by the National Organization of Realtors. These numbers are for the third quarter 2010.
The reason? The government tax credit that was provided to mostly first-time home-buyers ended, so fewer people are willing to buy a home. Also, because multiple banks had fraudulently filed foreclosure documents on a huge number of homes, the investigation process has deterred would-be foreclosed property buyers.
This is good because it means that the real estate market is still producing great real estate deals for REIC clients and investors. When banks figure out their foreclosure problems, foreclosure numbers are expected to rise. This means that REIC will be able to keep providing inventory for their Strait Path, Strait Path Outright, and Strait Path Accelerate programs.
Learn and Grow Over Time
“Principle-centered people are constantly educated by their experiences. They read, they seek training, they take classes, they listen to others, they learn through both their ears and their eyes. They are curious, always asking questions. They continually expand their competence, their ability to do things. They develop new skills, new interests. They discover that the more they know, the more they realize they don’t know; that as their circle of knowledge grows, so does its outside edge of ignorance. Most of this learning and growth energy is self-initiated and feeds upon itself.”
—Stephen R. Covey, Principle-Centered Leadership, p. 1
If you have been a member of REIC for a while you are familiar with the program. Your membership fee brought about a learning curve which, for some of our members, is huge and intimidating. For others, it is simple and common-sense. For everyone, though, it is a great learning experience.
One of the main features of this experience is the actual education our members receive through the coaching sessions. Our coaches are very well versed in all components of the Strait Path process. They know it so well because they have done it themselves, and because they have taught it to so many people. It is difficult to teach a subject well without knowing it intimately.
If a member plows through our coaching program, they are done in 3 to 6 months. But their game plan covers a ten-year period. So, what can our members do to keep the enthusiasm they experienced during their coaching alive over their ten-year game plan period? I have a few suggestions:
- Read one good book per month – There are literally thousands of good books available that will keep your love of learning alive during your game plan period. We have started providing you with title suggestions, and will continue to do so at the rate of one to two titles per month. Pick a subject that you would like to dive into and start reading.
- Contact your coach regularly – Your membership provides you with coaching for life. Most of that will be done soon after becoming a member, but in order to stay grounded in your goals, meet with your coach at least once per calendar quarter. Calling your coach once per month will give you the opportunity to see if we have anything new going on. Based on past experience, it is likely that something interesting has happened.
- Read through your game plan – Doing this will keep it fresh in your mind and help you to stay on track.
- Utilize opportunities to learn – Opportunities to learn are all around us. Seek them and you will find them. When you find an opportunity, see it for what it is: an opportunity. Not all opportunities need to be taken in order for you to continue your personal growth while you are on the Strait Path to Real Estate Wealth.
By following these four simple suggestions, a couple things will happen. One is that they will soon become a habit. Then the fruits of these efforts will fulfill what Covey stated above: growth energy that is self-initiated will feed itself. When that begins, hold onto your hat because it is going to be an interesting ride!
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