Justin Holder- Bob Parks Realty

www.poodwaddle.com --Very Interesting...

Interesting.  They have sources to back up all these numbers.  Feel free to get your pad out and recalculate.  Enjoy the weekend!

Poodwaddle.com

Friends keep you humble

Friends are always good about keeping you humble, as you'll see in the picture here.  The actual painting is in my friend Jon Troutt's office.  The cut out stand-up of me is from the latest "Who's Who" magazine. 

This issue centers around "Building a Community that Lasts," and features one Realtor, builder, lender and home improvement person. 

If you don't have a copy and would like one, send me an email to justin@justinholder.com and we'll get one out to you. 

The painting has always been a joke to Jon and me.  As you'll notice, some of the proportions in the painting are slightly off.  Notice the elongated head and small feet...hoofs I suppose their called.  I'm no horse expert.

To see the print in person, come see Jon.  He's our Suntrust/Home Financial lender here in house. 

Send me your input

I'm in the middle of planning an 8-week marketing plan that will cover the topic of home improvements in several price ranges.  I'm interested in anything you've done to improve the value of your home and exactly how you did it.  It may be a $50 job or a $50,000 job.  The pricepoints that we'll examine will be: $50, $100, $250, $500, $1,000, $2,500, $5,000, $10,000. 

Have any ideas?  Send them to me!  If you're not on m y mailing list and would like to receive the tips, just send me an email.  Also, if you have what you've done, email me on that as well.  My email address is justin@justinholder.com.  Have a GREAT weekend!

Justin

There's nothing better...

This morning, as it was cloudy and rainy, I started to rush into the office.  I'm on the board of the Beesley Humane Board of Directors and we're setting up for an event later that's this weekend.  But, with no pressing appointments this morning, I stayed home a little later and played with Onyx and Ruby. 

When I surprised Rachel with Ruby (since Onyx has always preferred me), we weren't sure how Onyx would deal with the new member in the house.  However, it's been amazing!  They're the best friends and have a big time together.  She looks sweet in this photo, but she's pretty wild.  She likes to run from across the room and clamp onto Onyx's back leg. 
You wouldn't think he'd put up with much, as he's all muscle, but he's overly protective of her.  I'm glad I spent a little extra time with them this morning. In the whole scheme of things, what was more important?  Enjoy the weekend!  Justin   

Big thanks to Bob Parks Auction Co.

When I find folks that are running their business like a business, I can't tell enough folks about them.  Folks that truly show up different and deliver superior service. 

Our auction guys are such people.  They do an amazing job. 

For as long as I can remember, Toot's has been hosting a United Way 4th of July Benefit Auction.  There's a variety of everything and it's just a big time.  Our auction company always shows up and "performs" at the auction.  If you haven't been to one of them, there's nothing more fun. 
The Auction brought in over $6,000 for the United Way, with a large percentage of the items purchased by the Auction team.  With over 500 auctions per year, they're definitely at the top of their game and I couldn't recommend them enough.  Of course, most of all, we thank Toot's and Wade Hayes.  Their support of United Way is endless.

So, if you're in the mood for wings, head to Toot's. If you're in the market for a productive auction that's sure to be fun, see our auction folks at Bob Parks Auction Company or call my friend Keith Strain at 456-7575.    

Be careful who you bet with!

I've never done much gambling....and it's probably a good thing!  My broker, Dan, has had a snow globe type thing on his desk for as long as I've known him.  Inevitably, when you're in there you're always drawn into picking it up.  There's a tee in the middle with a real golf ball that floats around.  For years and years, no one has ever gotten the ball on the tee...til Friday. 

Tina, from our office, brought her kids in Friday afternoon.  They quickly ran out of fun things to do, so Dan gave them the snow globe.  I happened to be walking by and joked "get that ball on there and I'll give you 100 bucks."  Their eyes got as big as the snow globe and there was dead silence.  You could cut the concentration in the room with a knife.  Not a sound for probably 2 hours....til there was a scream. 

Greg (the brother) grabbed up his sister (McKenzie) and was jumping around like that of a Publisher's Clearinghouse commercial!  They could not have been more excited.  Meanwhile, in my office, I realized I spoke too soon. 

They did, in fact, get the ball on the tee. Luckily, I was able to negotiate a slightly smaller payoff.  I won't be playing in Vegas anytime soon....Enjoy the week! 

What is ASID?

Do you know what ASID means?  I am learning all kinds of stuff.  My assistant, Kristen, recently graduated with her interior design degree.

ASID stands for American Society of Interior Designers. It is  one of the professional organizations for designers.  An interior designer has aesthetic, practical, and technical expertise in all the elements that make up an interior environment. A designer understands how people use and respond to these elements, not just individually but as the elements interact with one another.

That's the technical explanation, but she just does a great job.  She specializes in the following:
-Home Staging
-Holiday & Party Decorating
-Residential Space Planning
-Professional Organizing
-Interior Makeovers
-Material Selections

Getting some ideas?  You can reach Kristen Shell at 615.294.4227 It's amazing how many small (and inexpensive) changes to your home can result in additional thousands when your home hits the market!  What will you work on first?  Have a great weekend!

Tips from the BBB

I had an interesting lunch yesterday with Beth Furbish from the Better Business Bureau (BBB. It's interesting how savvy identity fraud has become.  Before meeting with her, I have of course heard that it's very common, but had no idea how common it really was...and how tough it is to undue once it's done.

She gave several good tips for both monitoring your credit and maintaining your identity.

One tip, one of the most important, dealt with the use of social security numbers.  We all know to keep them private, but really unless the company that's asking for the social is doing so in order to lend to you (banks, credit cards, even Blockbuster) you're not obligated to give them the number.  Some that do only ask out of technicality.  A friend of mine recently told me when he's in that situation, he always scrambles the last two numbers of his social when filling out the forms.  He says rarely is it caught or needed.  Interesting. 

Another dealt with keeping a check on your credit.  As you may know, you're entitled to one free credit report per year.  Don't be scammed, like me, into sites like www.freecreditreport.com, that end up charging you for the report.  She said the only official one that the BBB endorses is Annualcreditreport.com.  She said it doesn't give you your score, but lists fully what all is on your report. 

She also mentioned that if you see the BBB logo on a website, ad, or flyer...always question it.  Many times it's legit, but logos are stolen so easily and she said the BBB is one of the top misused.  You can always call the BBB and they'll confirm if  the business is in fact endorsed. 

Now go have a great day and keep your identity to yourself.   

Being where you are

We live in an interesting age that allows us to wear many hats at once.  Thanks to technology of my Blackberry, I'm able to be out with my wife enjoying a fun activity, but still stay connected to my clients via my Blackberry.  If you aren't familiar with them, they're called "Crackberries" for a reason...they're very addicting.  Emails come to me immediately, whether I'm in the car, waiting for someone, or at an open house. 

Pretty convenient, huh?  Yes it is...but don't ask my wifes opinion.  Ha.  No...she has little room to complain... now that she has her own.  Seriously, the joy of these is that I don't return to the office to 50+ emails to return. I'm able to knock them off as I receive them.  Plus, I find emails to be more time efficient than phone calls.

But what are the bad points to them?  Before a few friends and my wife held an "intervention" meeting with me, I was honestly aware how much I was using it.  I'd feel it buzz, grab it and respond to an email, while in conversation and snap it back in the holster without every knowing it.  What a jerk, right?  I just didn't notice...but I do now. 

A few months ago, my wife and I went to see an amazing marriage counselor Patsy Highland with Master Resources here in Murfreesboro on Heritage Park Drive.  We both feel it's good every now and then to just have a little "check-up."  One issue that I learned I could improve on was "being where I am."  That means not being at dinner with my wife, but being all over the place in my mind.  It involved tuning-in better and...well...being where I am. 

It's a pretty neat thing to work on.  My mother always used to say "what good does worrying about it do?  You worrying about it won't change a thing."  Turns out she was right.  So now, if you email me and there's a delay, know I will be with you soon.  I may just be "being" somewhere else at the moment. 

The 4-Hour Workweek

I have to admit I've never been much of a reader.  I've always bought interesting books..but more skimmed them over than read them.  And books with lots of pictures-I love them.  However, on a recent cruise, I made myself start reading and now I really enjoy it.  I guess it was that I never tried reading something I enjoyed. 

Anyway, last night I was at Costco and saw "The 4-Hour Workweek."  I had heard about it quite a bit and was interested in what it was all about.  And, now a voracious reader, I took it home. 

This is actually quite a book.  Now, let it be said, I am not wanting to reduce my work to 4 hours per week, nor is that really what the book is about.  It's about really working when you're working.  I don't know about you, but many times it seems like I'll get in the office early, return 50 emails, return some calls, set some appointments, and then it's 5:30.  Ever happen to you?

Some of the points that I love in the book is the "low-information diet."  In my business, so many agents won't do anything until they understand everything.  Don't get me wrong, knowledge is important, but I don't let information I don't need to know bog me down.  Like lending--I have a great lender that I work with and I have no interest in knowing every aspect of his business--that's why I work with him.   Same thing at the car dealership:  Don't ever open that hood for me--I don't know what's under there and couldn't care less.  Give me the bullet points, not every detail. 

What I also like about the book is the emphasis on enjoying your life...now.  Many planners push us to save, save, save for retirement and postpone living until then.  Though I of course see the importance of saving, 401k's, etc...I also see the balance in enjoying life along the way. 

Want to learn more about the book?  Visit 4-Hour Workweek's homepage.