Reasoning Theorems of Success

One of the biggest mistakes people make when selling for sale by owner (FSBO) is underestimating the home selling process. Everybody knows how the FSBO game gets played: You sign up with a FSBO magazine, you submit a photo of your home, they run your ad in their magazine, give you a yard sign and away you go with whatever ideas you have to self-sell. And for many that’s where the fun stops and the problems begin. Why? Because selling a home is a marketing problem coupled with fundamental technical problems many self-sellers never consider. Can you sell your own home? The short answer is yes. However it is a good idea to wrap your mind around a few issues before leaping into self-selling. A home is just a product and there are many competing products for sale on the market all the time. Most homes that are for sale tend to be listed with real estate companies who have name recognition, market share, large advertising budgets, business relationships with mortgage lenders and trained agents to represent those homes, hold open houses, and finagle with prospects. Agents have some level of experience dealing with people, overcoming objections, selling and closing the deal. These are important marketing assets and resources most self-sellers lack.

Remember a home is just a product and every product launch must be rolled out with a marketing plan that includes advertising, promotion and sales representation. There are many different and cost effective ways for self-sellers to roll out their home for sale but a detailed explanation of that topic is outside the scope of this article. What is important to understand is that, as a home seller you cannot stand alone on an island and think you can do it all yourself. And here is just one example of where you are going to need help.

1. Who is going to pre-qualify your buyer before you enter into a purchase contract with them?

As a self-seller this is one of the biggest “technical problems” mentioned earlier. Why? Because it makes no sense to enter into a purchase offer with unqualified buyers and unless you are a loan officer or have relationships with a couple loan officers or know how to pre-qualify people according to mortgage lending standards, you are accepting offers from people blindly. Accepting offers from people blindly is risky business which can tie up your property for a long time waiting to find out that your buyer is a financial dud. So what do you do? The answer is simpletalk to a few mortgage lenders in your area and develop a relationship with them to pre-qualify your buyers BEFORE you enter into legally binding contracts with them. You need loan officers from 2-3 mortgage companies and maybe a banker or two. Loan officers who work for mortgage companies will be more inclined to help you deal with buyers because that helps them develop a relationship with the buyer/borrower which increases the probability they will get to finance the home loan. Why is this important? Because mortgage loan officers are on a commission and they eat when they close loans. So mortgage loan officers will be enthusiastic about qualifying your potential home buyers. The reason you want a bank or two to be available is for your more upscale buyers who prefer to get a home loan at a bank rather than a mortgage company although there is really little difference today. Many times loan officers are willing to meet your prospective home buyer at their office, at your home or at the buyers place of residence. And when you are selling a home the more service you can offer your prospect the better.

This bit of insight is just one little glimpse into the information you will find in our real estate kit called “Everything A Real Estate Agent Doesn’t Want A Home Seller To Know.” The kit is very cool because it teaches you how to set up a mastermind group to help you sell your home for free. It gives you the complete marketing plan to effectively roll out your home for sale by owner with all the forms you will ever need to sell, sell, and sell. And, if you so choose, it shows you how to list your home with a real estate company in the most intelligent manner so that you dominate the home selling process, reduce commissions, reduce selling time and save money. It’s the smartest investment a homeowner can make and it is available at our website.

Copyright © 2006
James W. Hart, IV
All Rights reserved

SBS is an online information resource for people. Our focus is real estate and business and we have a number of important books, kits and Ebooks including free downloads and high quality link categories to help you get information fast. SBS has an aggressive link exchange program for anyone with a websitevisit us now by clicking this link http://www.smart67.com.

Yes, collectibles! Collectibles are where eBay started, and
they’re still one of its biggest areas - however much they might
want you to believe they’re not. eBay’s most hardcore and
long-time users are almost all collectors of something or other
- it is quite common to post what you think is a mundane item,
only to have collectors suddenly go to war over it because it is
somehow linked to something they collect.

Collectors are the people on eBay who really do pay top-dollar
for things that seem like junk to you and I - not to mention to
the people you’ll be getting your stock from! That’s why you can
make so much profit on collectibles. Here are a few tips.

Go to people’s homes. People’s homes are full of things that
someone out there collects - they are the best and cheapest
source of collectibles out there. Sure, you might find something
if you hang around at enough garage sales, but you’d have
competition. Getting invited to people’s homes to look around
should be a dream for you, and one you’re doing your best to
make a reality.

Buy on other auction sites. You’ll be surprised how much money
you can make if you buy the collectibles that people sell on
smaller auction sites like Yahoo Auctions, and then list it on
eBay. These sellers will often be perfectly knowledgeable about
their item, but simply getting a lower price because they serve
a smaller marketplace. Sometimes you can almost double your
money.

List in non-collectible categories. If your collectible doesn’t
have a category of its own under ‘collectibles’, you might
prefer to list it in a category that has something to do with
the item but nothing to do with collecting. What you will often
find is that people browsing a category for their favourite
thing will pay more for your collectible than actual collectors
would.

Do lots of research. Never list something you think might be
valuable without searching and searching to dig up every piece
of information you can on it. Everything you find out is likely
to be useful when you come to list it.

List every tiny, tiny detail. Remember that collectors really
care about the most seemingly insignificant things. An item from
one year can be worth thousands while the one from the year
before is near-worthless, or an item that is one shade of a
colour can be worth far more than one of a subtly different
shade. It’s not worth puzzling over and it’s not worth trying to
pass your items off as something they’re not - just make sure
you put absolutely everything you know in the description.

When you are listing items that require close research and
description down to the tiniest detail, however, don’t be
tempted to steal someone else’s work! Whatever you do, don’t
take another seller’s description and try to pass it off as your
own, as this could have all sorts of consequences for you. Our
next email gives you a guide to eBay’s policy on ‘description
theft’.

With the urban rich adopting the attitude, “have money - will spend,” premium luxury brands are making a beeline for the high-end segment. Ladies are increasingly investing in fashion accessories, particularly designer handbags.

With an increase in disposable income, the potential is enormous. The biggest draw, though, is what the industry terms the image factor. Brand image has different connotations for different people. For young, it’s being “in”; for the upper middle-class segment, it’s creating pockets of wealth in their lives; and for the affluent, it’s an assertion of their class.

“When we establish a physical presence in any country, our target is long-term success, and not immediate returns; but we usually develop a strong customer base within a short time,” comments Prasanna Bhaskar, Retail Manager, Louis Vuitton. “About 300 Suhali Goat Leather Handbags priced at $2,893.96 were dispatched to a burgeoning market like India, but it turned out to be a gross underestimate of the demand; the entire collection sold out within two months.” Bhaskar attributes this to the desire to associate with a well-known, high-end brand.

Another hot seller is a Marc Jacobs Quilted Venetia handbag in vintage-inspired quilted leather. Priced at $1,200.00, the leather is complemented by brass hardware and luxe-suede interiors. The young at heart are snapping up Marc Jacobs Quilted Denim Large Hobo Banana priced at $875.00. Everything about this Italian hobo, from the chunky brass straps to the slant zip pockets, makes it irresistible; the quilted denim is teamed with topstitched leather and signature hardware. Prada Lock Tote is in demand, too, and is characterized by antique leather trim, front flap, signature lock closure, and magnetic-snap front pockets.

Designer Handbags provides detailed information on Designer Handbags, Wholesale Designer Handbags, Discount Designer Handbags, Designer Inspired Handbags and more. Designer Handbags is affiliated with Designer Handbag.

There is something quite magical about painting outdoors. I feel
comfortably secluded with nature having an almost spiritual
connection when I paint a landscape. Landscape painting is a
passion of mine. I would like to share some tips and techniques
that I have become accustomed to using over the years.

My first bit of advice - try not to get overwhelmed by the scene
in front of you. I recall when I first began painting
landscapes; I tried to copy everything exactly as I saw it. I
tried to squeeze in every detail, paint every leaf, branch, and
blade of grass. You will go crazy approaching a landscape this
way. Try and paint your own impression of what you see and not a
copy of it. Squint your eyes and see the landscape as a series
of shapes, lights and darks, as opposed to seeing every detail.
You can accomplish some amazing things that you never thought
were inside if you just relax and let the painter inside come to
the surface.

Painting on location is certainly a beautiful experience, but
remember that you have to paint quite fast as the lighting will
change quickly. Begin your painting with a larger brush so you
are not focusing on detail at this stage.

Try toning your canvas with acrylic paint first before applying
your oil paint. I find starting a landscape with toned ground
makes it easier to judge values. You can also let some of that
underpainting show through in some areas of your painting for an
interesting effect.

Creating the illusion of depth or distance in your paintings can
be accomplished using different techniques. You can adjust your
colors by making them cooler and less intense for the distant
objects, warmer and more intense for closer objects. Reduce the
size of objects as they recede. You can also take away details
and sharp edges to make objects appear more distant.

You should have a focal point, otherwise known as “center of
interest” in your painting. All other objects in your painting
should not compete with your focal point and should serve to
draw the viewer to your center of interest.

Instead of jumping right for the paint, use a pencil and paper
instead. Drawing is great practice. When I am drawing, I am more
relaxed and intimate with the scene. I am training myself to see
the various lights and darks of the scene without the use of
color.

Bring only those items that you know you will need and use. When
you focus too much of your time on lugging around unwanted
materials, it takes away from the enjoyment of what you came
there to do, paint!

Painting clouds appears to be one of the bigger challenges for
beginners; I know it was for me. What I mentioned in the
beginning about trying not to paint every detail applies to
clouds as well. Clouds are three-dimensional objects made up of
water and ice particles that reflect light so the color of your
clouds will vary depending on the weather and lighting
conditions. Remember general perspective rules when painting
clouds. Clouds closer to you will generally be more detailed. As
they recede into the distance they begin to lose detail and get
smaller in size. Pay special attention to the edges of the
clouds as sharp edges advance while smooth edges recede.

Make your composition as interesting as possible by balancing
positive and negative space in your painting. The negative space
is what surrounds your objects or positive space. The negative
space is just as important as the positive space. Do not neglect
the negative space, but at the same time, do not let it dominate
your composition.

I hope this article on landscape painting tips was helpful. Just
relax, let go and most importantly enjoy yourself!