Before you go back to school, take this quiz. 

My academic pedigree has always been something I make light of, but it has served me well over the past couple decades.  I've always said, "With all of the education behind me, you would think I'd be smarter than I am."  Well, there's a lot of truth in that.

I'm starting to find this in real estate too.  The learning never ends.  I've been in and out of real estate classes all week this week.  Ironically, I already have all of my CEUs for my next license renewal in Virginia and West Virginia, but there are topics I'm just attracted to that all showed up in available classes at the same time.  Fortunately, most of the studies have been in my community, but today I was off to Richmond, VA for a class.

Getting up at 4:45 am and heading down the highway just after 5:00 am was not my idea of a great way to start the day, but I learned a long time ago that education that is valuable is worth a little sacrifice.  Not only is it exercise for the brain, but it sharpens you like the tip of a sword.  I'm not a big fan of voluminous certifications and long strings of initials behind a name (even though I have a number of them), but I am a huge fan of smart, timely and effective information.

A certification, or a class that can immediately help me be a more efficient business person is a class I view as well thought out and well taught.  Before you sign you up for a class, webinar, seminar or a certification, ask yourself:

• Will this make me a better Realtor?
• Is this something I can't learn at the level I need outside of the classroom?  One class I took this week failed this test.  
• Will this make me a more confident and proficient professional? Too many webinars, seminars and certifications only skim this question positively.
• Is the education I'm about to receive worth the price?  I went to a seminar in the summer that ended with a sign-up phase that was so expensive that I couldn't justify it on a good year.  If I'm going to spend five figures for the education and service, it better produce a six figure result.  There were no guarantees or refunds.  I have over 230 graduate and post graduate credits in the degrees I hold.  I could have bought a house with the tuition I've paid, but the value added impact on my life has far exceeded the money spent.  Is it worth the price?
  
• Will the information I'm learning be valuable a year from now?  You can pretty much guarantee that certain phases of the industry are going to change nearly every year.  You wouldn't need to attend a seminar on the value of using a fax machine in real estate.  That is so last decade.  What about the value of using email?  The majority of my clients want me to text updates.  Email is quickly becoming irrelevant.  Is the information you're about to pay for with your time and money going to matter a year from now?  You're tech savvy enough to know if something is passe.
  

Everybody has a product to sell, but not every product will make you better at your job.  Do your homework before you sign on to a product or service.  Talk to others who have experienced the class or product.  Pick and choose wisely, and get your money's worth so you reflect your investment by your competence and performance. 

Are you a short sale specialist? Are your hands cramped from using the phone? Is your neck permanently twisted from being on hold all day? Are you tired of your faxes getting lost, buyers walking and your files being closed? What is going on? How can you improve your short sale processing and get an "edge" on success? Well, we've got a solution.

On Saturday, August 29, at 11:00 Eastern, Bryant Tutas and I will be interviewing a working short sale negotiator from a "Top 5" Servicer. Believe me, this is a big bank that you have likely dealt with, but he has to remain anonymous or he could lose his job . Friends, we've lassoed a big one for you to answer any short sale questions you've ever had. Get out your calendars, pen and paper and get ready!

Do you want to know:

What is the best question to ask when you follow up on your short sale?

What are the short sale phone reps looking at on their computer screens?

How are all those faxes separated and imaged in?

What qualifications do short sale negotiators have?

Why do they tell you "No" when it makes sense to you?

Why do they deny your BPO and comps?

Do they care if the buyer is going to "walk"?

What is going on with your package after two months of waiting?

What happens with Fannie Mae files?

What agents get the best treatment and why?

What would the negotiator tell you if they were allowed?

What can you do to mess up your chance of approval?

Why do they cut your commission when they are the junior lien?

How can you get them to reduce the promissory note or cash contribution?

If you want answers to these questions and more, join me and Bryant Tutas when we interview The Negotiator of a "Top 5" Servicer this Saturday, August 29 at 11:00 Eastern.

It is not necessary to be there live - we will send the recorded MP3 for everyone who signs up. The cost is a modest $27 to pay him for his time.

So, get in YOUR questions. This is real, this is "insider", and this information is going to help YOU! ..... Sign up below!

Wendy Rulnick, Broker, Rulnick Realty, Inc.

www.shortsalesuperstars.com