April 2013 by Real Estate Magazine (REM)

Issue #286

April 2013

Roots of Re/Max are 3 generations deep

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Page 3

Terminating an employee is never easy Page 8

Top 10 simple truths for salespeople Page 26

Frank Polzler

An exclusive excerpt from the memoir of the co-founder of Re/Max in Canada Page 38

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REM APRIL 2013 3

Roots of Re/Max are 3 generations deep By Dennis McCloskey

“The only rock that I know that stays steady, the only institution I know that works, is the family.” – Lee Iacocca, former president of Ford and Chrysler

Pamela Alexander, CEO and managing director, North American operations, Re/Max Ontario-Atlantic Canada and Integra Enterprises Corporation As a 15-year-old girl answering the telephone in her father’s real estate office after school, Pamela Alexander noticed several things about her father, Frank Polzler, which would shape her work ethic and influence her to follow his foot-steps into the world of real estate. “He was such a hard worker,” she says from the company’s Mississauga head office. “He

Photo: Marko Shark

hen Frank J. Polzler co-founded Re/Max Ontario-Atlantic in Canada more than three decades ago with his business partner Walter J. Schneider, little did Polzler know at the time that he was helping to create a company that would one day become a real estate empire of over 2,300 franchised offices and 27,000 sales associates in 35 countries. The Austrian-born immigrant, who came to Canada in 1953, would be the first to say that much of the company’s success is due to the strong bond of his family, whose lives are rooted in real estate, and that Re/Max is the common thread that binds them. The current chairman continues to play a leading role in the company’s growth and success (see the story on page 38). REM recently talked to his daughter, grandson and granddaughter who currently work for Re/Max in various capacities.

became a fantastic mentor and I was greatly influenced by his positive and optimistic manner.” It wasn’t written in stone that Polzler’s daughter would enter the real estate field; in fact Pamela says initially she had no interest in real estate after completing university. She got a job in sales but realized being a salesperson didn’t fit her personality and was simply not her forte. But then she discovered she enjoyed – and was very interested in – the management and operations side of business. So in March 1980 she entered the field of real estate by establishing Re/Max Professionals, the first Re/Max franchise to open in Eastern Canada. She and her husband John were responsible for the exponential growth of the Professionals franchise. Pamela subsequently held numerous positions in office administration and operations development within the organization and literally worked her way from the ground up to the executive suites. Today she and John have four adult children and the couple lives in Mississauga. When Pamela was asked to further explain the influence her father had on her life and career, she was not at a loss for words. “First, he allowed me to be my own person. He was always in the background but he allowed me to make my own mistakes and

develop my own style.” She adds that he was very supportive but not a micro-manager. Pamela also speaks highly of her mother, who has been divorced from Polzler for 35 years but they remain good friends. “She is a very confident and focused individual who earned English Literature degrees much later in life.” Alexander, whose brother Michael Polzler is a senior VP of the company and managing director for Re/Max of Europe, says she is aware that the vast majority of family businesses do not survive through second and third generations, but she believes her family’s success can be attributed to many factors. “My brother and my children are natural ‘people people’ who inherited a can-do attitude,” she says. “And we have no sense of entitlement. We have all earned our own stripes. I am my father’s daughter and I knew I had to prove myself.” She adds that having her dad’s respect was a huge motivator. Another possible key to the clan’s success is that while they are always there for each other, according to Pamela they are able to separate the business dynamic from the family dynamic. “We don’t talk real estate all the time at the cottage or at other family gatherings. They are separate worlds,” she says, adding that the enjoyment they experience in the social/business setting extends to their relationship with the Schneider family, whom she describes as “incredible people.” It is evident there is a good mix of business and pleasure within the family. While she and her father are “passing the torch” to two of her children who are involved in the business, Pamela speaks fondly of her love of nature, bird watching, walking, biking, skiing, swimming and travel. “We are very family oriented,” she says. “Life for me is family and work…in that order.”

Leah Ambler, broker/owner and director of agent productivity at Re/Max Professionals

Frank Polzler’s granddaughter is following in her mother Pamela Alexander’s footsteps. As a young woman, Leah worked at the front desk and in accounting at her parents’ brokerage business. But after graduating with a BA from Western University in Family Studies, and studying Sales and Marketing at Sheridan College, Leah did not work in the family business at first. Continued on page 6

Pamela Alexander receives Diamond Jubilee Medal In recognition of contributions made to improve the lives of children and families throughout the global community through Plan Canada, Re/Max Ontario-Atlantic Canada CEO Pamela Alexander was decorated with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. The medal was created to mark the 60th anniversary of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the Throne. It was presented to 60,000 citizens nationwide. Alexander was honoured for her 30-year commitment to advancing the vital work of Plan Canada, the world’s largest international development agency. Plan Canada is a global movement for change, mobilizing millions of people around the world to support social justice for children in developing countries. In 2012, Plan’s work impacted the lives of over 174 million people – including 84 million children – in over 90,100 communities around the world. “I believe that when you have the ability and the opportunity to make a difference, you should seize it,” says Alexander. “Even a small contribution is enough to prompt change – every little bit helps. Whether at home or abroad, there is always a need to be filled or a lifealtering advancement to be made. We are all inherently global citizens, and there is no better way to celebrate humanity than to be a steward of its progress.” Money raised through sponsorships provides a child with life-sustaining essentials including adequate nutrition, access to clean water and sanitation, health care, education and family income. Alexander’s commitment to Plan Canada and its programs began in 1982, with the spon- Pamela Alexander receives her award from sorship of her first Sasha Jacob, Canadian Board member, Plan foster child. Canada.

4 REM APRIL 2013

Multiple Listings By Jim Adair, REM Editor Do you have news to share with Canada’s real estate community? Let REM know about it! Email: jim@remonline.com

n independent real estate company owned by Maziar Ahanin of Toronto is now Century 21 Bayview Real Estate. The company specializes in new homes and condominiums. Ahanin says his team expects to expand its services in the resale market as well as their marketing initiatives with new developments. He has 10 years of experience as a brokerage owner and is often interviewed on Canadian and Iranian radio, newspaper and television. He also speaks at various universities. Ahanin is a well-established figure in the Iranian community, assisting and

educating new immigrants with their business and housing investments. ■ ■ ■

Valerie Haskett-Chugg, broker of Prudential Highland Properties in Antigonish, N.S., has joined the Royal LePage franchise network. The office will now operate under the name of Royal LePage Highland Properties. Haskett-Chugg has operated Prudential Highland Properties for 20 years. In addition to Antigonish, the office serves the areas of Guysborough, Pictou County and Port Hawkesbury.

■ ■ ■

Philip Duplisea and David Sawler, franchisees of Exit Realty Advantage in Fredericton, have expanded their operation with a new office in Oromocto, N.B. “To continue our growth momentum we knew this was the best business decision. This new location puts our firm on the doorstep of one of the most active military bases in Canada,” says Sawler. The branch office complements their current brokerage, which boasts 10,000 square feet of space and offers specialized inhouse training for their agents. “Our focus is to transform good

agents into great agents,” says Duplisea. ■ ■ ■

Real estate runs in the family, so it is was with great pride that Terry Trembinski, a former president of the Ontario Real Estate Association and owner of Exit Realty Lake Superior, recently announced that he was turning over his brokerage operation to his son and daughter, Rob and Kristen Trembinski. “Our father has set the bar high here in the city growing the brokerage to one of the top market positions. We have big shoes to fill,” says Rob. “When I shifted from selling and started working on the management side of the business last year, I knew this was for me. Then to have the opportunity to work side-by-side with my brother to buy the business and take it to the next level was absolutely irresistible,” says Kristen. “We totally complement each other and are so very fortunate to still have our father’s guidance whenever we need it.” Joyce Paron, Exit’s president – Canada says: “Terry Trembinski was part of the original group of people who helped to launch Exit Realty. He was instrumental in Exit’s growth in the early years and continues to be an invaluable member of our organization.” ■ ■ ■

Maziar Ahanin

Philip Duplisea

Natalka Falcomer

Natalka Falcomer, the host of Toronto Speaks: Legal Advice on Rogers TV recently joined Right At Home Realty as a salesperson. Falcomer graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School while receiving numerous awards for her academic

Valerie Haskett-Chugg

David Sawler

achievements. Following a brief period on Bay Street, she moved into the world of media. Toronto Speaks: Legal Advice airs live once a month on Mondays at 9 pm and is repeated throughout the month on Channel 10 (Toronto) and 63 (Scarborough). ■ ■ ■

Louise Parker and Valerie Knol are expanding their Exit franchise to Truro, N.S. They are the current owners of Exit Realty 1st Call in Elmsdale and will create a second office in Truro. “Truro is a fabulous marketplace for us to grow our brand. The area agents have been very receptive and we feel this is a perfect fit for our business plans,” says Parker. ■ ■ ■

An enthusiastic crowd of Exit Realty associates from across Canada gathered in Moncton recently for Exit’s annual Franchisee Conference and Sales Rally. “Everywhere you looked were real estate champions – some the top in their city – learning, sharing, laughing and enjoying the special camaraderie that Exit is known for, “ says Mike McCarron, supervisor for growth and development for Canada. “Watching franchisees who are part of Real Trends Top 250 brokerages in Canada mingling with newer owners and agents, offering their assistance and words of advice, was inspiring.” Event speakers included Bob McKinnon, Victoria Rivadeneira and Craig Witt, three of Exit’s new U.S. regional presidents; Sharron Richardson, vice-president of Exit’s broker services; and top trainer Johnny Loewy. REM

iPro Realty recently opened its ninth location in Muskoka, Ont. Patti Secord, above, iPro regional manager for the Muskoka Haliburton region, shows off the sign.

Louise Parker and Valerie Knol

Kristen and Rob Trembinski

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Splashy lead-off for Canada Realty

Roots of Re/Max Continued from page 3

“I wanted to prove myself,” she says, reflecting her mother’s earlier, youthful feelings. She worked as a mobile mortgage specialist at RBC for two years and became a mortgage broker. She got her real estate licence in 2005 and sold real estate for three years, becoming an award-winning sales associate with Re/Max Professionals. Her uncle, Michael Polzler, recruited her to Re/Max OntarioAtlantic Canada’s head office to work in franchise development. She is currently the broker of record for the family firm in Etobicoke, responsible for agent productivity and the long-term growth of the company. Leah, 31, and her husband, Paul, are the parents of one-year-old Jackson. She says she was totally influenced to get into real estate by her

Cover photo: MARKO SHARK

is in marketing and promotions, and for the launch of Canada Realty he showcased some of the relationships he has built. As a video of Samdeo chatting with actor Charlie Sheen played during the reception, other guests attending included Michael Tait of WN Pharmaceuticals, Andrew Hamblin of AirSprint Private Aviation, a private aircraft provider and lawyer Larry Ellis of Cassel Brock. “It speaks volumes if you have a great network of friends,” says Samdeo. “For me, real estate is always something I wanted to do. I grew up in the Jane and Finch area in Toronto. I was on my own from when I was 16-years-old and I vowed then that I would always have a place to live. I think that’s where the passion for real estate came from,” he says. Broker of record Iri bought his first condo when he was 22, grandfather, who told her that it was important for her to make something of herself and to do it on her own so she would have something to call her own. “He was an excellent mentor,” says Leah. She also describes her parents as role models, and when asked to describe the benefits of having parents and a grandparent in the business, Leah says she never feels judged. “We have open and honest conversations and I don’t feel that I have to hold back.” As a “talent scout” for Re/Max, one of her goals is to recruit younger people into the company and help make their jobs easier through technology and support systems. A snowboarder who loves to exercise and travel, Leah is mindful of the family dynasty and admits there is a lot of weight on her shoulders to do well. “I just want to make my family proud,” she says.

Christopher Samdeo

obtained his real estate license at 25 and became a broker at 28. He’s been working in the industry for eight years. He says he believes the company can expand across the country within five years. “We think we can bring a fresh face and a fresh image to real estate that will make Canada Realty a household name,” he says. At the event, Samdeo used his contacts to create a great signing bonus for the first three sales reps to join the company – a trip to New

Christopher Alexander, sales rep, Re/Max Professionals Like his mother, uncle and older sister, 27-year-old Christopher Alexander grew up in the real estate business. As a Grade 10 student, Christopher did a school project that initially sparked an interest in real estate. He remembers thinking at the time that he might enjoy a career in the business. During summers in high school he worked for his family’s company in

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Arius Iri

Joe Carter

York City on one of AirSprint’s private jets for a stay at the Trump Tower in New York. “We have a lot of fun,” he says. “We don’t do a project where we don’t have fun. Carter says he is pleased to work as a spokesperson for Canada Realty. “I don’t just lend my name out to anybody,” he says. “In the last three or four years, we have done some pretty good deals with Webber Naturals, Blackberry and the TD Bank. It’s about loyalty and

not just chasing the money. It’s making a name for yourself and being out there in the community and giving back to the community.” A little known fact is that Carter and his wife Diane are both Realtors. “I just use my license for referrals,” Carter says. “Diana is an interior designer. She likes to find old houses and fix them up. Two years ago we built one of the first LEED certified green homes in Kansas City. She’s very talented.”

the accounting department. But he attended Carleton University and got a BA in Art History. When he decided he did not want to pursue a career in teaching, his mind reverted to the thought that he had in high school, about working in real estate. He also admits today that his grandfather Frank had an influence on his career choice. “I knew he had a dream for me and my sister to get involved in Re/Max Professionals,” Christopher says. So he entered the business and worked his way up through various administrative positions with Re/Max until he became licensed in 2010. Today, after three years of selling, he declares that he loves the business. “I want to make my mark as an agent before considering other growth opportunities,” he says. “My grandfather instilled in me that I’d have to make it on my

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own; nothing would be handed to me.” Christopher believes that any success he might enjoy in the business is up to him because “the consumer cares what I can do for them.” He believes that the marketing tools and negotiating skills he has developed came from the best teachers and mentors: his family. When asked what it’s like to have his mother as “the boss”, he maintains that she listens to him and often takes his advice. “We value each other’s opinions and expertise,” he says. Christopher, who is single and lives in downtown Toronto, is an avid snowboarder and traveler. He also enjoys basketball, gatherings at the family cottage at Pine Lake in the Muskokas, and he is an active participant with his family and colleagues raising funds for the Children’s Miracle Network. REM Printed by Metroland Media Group, Ltd. ® A certified FSC SFI Printer Printer

splashy private reception in the penthouse at the Trump International Hotel and Tower in Toronto, with an appearance by World Series baseball hero Joe Carter, launched the country’s newest real estate brokerage, Canada Realty Inc. The new firm is owned by president and CEO Christopher Samdeo and broker of record Arius Iri. Initially they hope to attract 25 sales reps as they launch the firm in downtown Toronto, offering both residential and commercial services. “We have a big vision but we’re going to start small,” says Samdeo, adding that he “wants my agents to feel they can grow from the residential side to the commercial side. We’ll give them opportunities to learn the commercial business.” The firm will offer 100-per-cent commissions. Samdeo’s background

By Jim Adair

T:11.375” S:10.25”

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We are pleased to celebrate the 3rd Annual RBC REALTOR Appreciation Week! This event is our way of saying thanks for all your efforts and commitment to our mutual clients. We understand how critical the role of the real estate professional can be in helping Canadians to find the perfect home to suit their needs and budgets. Whether it’s working with first time homebuyers to make their home ownership dreams come true, or getting a family into their next home, your commitment and hard work make a difference. With innovative tools like the RBC Inside Access website, together we can build your business and continue helping clients find the right home. TM

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®/ Trademark(s) of Royal Bank of Canada. RBC and Royal Bank are registered trademarks of Royal Bank of Canada. *Retail Banker International Awards, held May 18, 2012, in partnership with Retail Banker International and exclusively sponsored by Fiserv recognizes the best within retail banking globally. Just under 300 banks were nominated globally in 22 award categories. RBC Royal Bank was the only Canadian ﬁnancial institution to win an award. ‡ All other trademarks are the property of their respective owner(s).

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Terminating an employee is never easy Discharging a sales agent or other employee will always be stressful for both you and the employee. To avoid having the situation get out of hand be certain to go about it carefully, methodically and with forethought By Lloyd R. Manning

n my many years in the real estate and appraisal business, from time to time it was necessary to discharge an employee. I found it difficult the first time and equally hard the last. If you must discharge a sales agent or a clerical employee, particularly one who has been with you for some time, it will be difficult. When this person accepted a position within your firm, both parties were optimistic. However, sometimes things don’t work out as intended and there must be a parting of the ways. Some may go amicably; some will be fuming, while others threaten legal action for wrongful dismissal. It always engenders intense emotions for all parties – you, the departing person and those who remain. If the situation is not handled with discretion, it could generate a costly lawsuit. This could also apply to “constructive dismissal”, which is where by creating an oppressive environment, the employee is forced to leave. Oversights made before, during the exit interview and after the discharge can significantly affect both broker and employee. Terminating for just cause – “For just cause” means that the employer has a valid reason to fire this person. The reasons are numerous and could include such

infractions as poor performance, overstatement of qualifications, incompetency, violation of professional ethics, inappropriate behaviour, sexual misconduct, using drugs or drinking on the job or being belligerent to other staff members and clients. Too often it is easy to assume that if the difficulties are ignored for long enough, they will just disappear. This is wishful thinking. In most cases the problems become exacerbated with time. Wrongful dismissal – Today’s labour laws appear to be structured in favour of the employee. One only has to read the multitude of advertisements by law firms to see that few are for the benefit of the employers. However, this does not limit your right to discharge an employee for a good reason. Just ensure that the discharge is not prejudicial or could be classified as “wrongful dismissal.” This would include discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, age, nationality or sexual orientation. You cannot fire an agent or employee who filed a discrimination claim, refused to commit an illegal act or has a statutory right. However, the law is not unfair. It provides the employer the opportunity to prove that the dismissal was not wrongful or prejudicial. Still, be careful!

Methodically document the reasons and the steps you have taken in bringing about this action. Once you have decided to do it, it’s a good idea to consult with your lawyer and lay out the procedure. You may have to defend your actions before a judge. You might not be guilty of wrongful dismissal but the cost of proving your innocence could be exorbitant. If you must appear in court, never take with you any notes that could be construed as having even the slightest hint of prejudice. Better yet, don’t take any papers of any kind. Some years ago, when defending a major project foreclosure, opposing counsel snatched my sheath of notes and used some of that information against me. Destroy any such data that may be in your files. Before terminating – Discharging an employee should never be a “shoot from the hip” reaction to a specific situation. It should be a well-thought-out yet timely process. Don’t delay it unnecessarily. Some years ago I spent many hours debating with myself whether to fire one of my best sales agents. He was a good producer but very disruptive and would steal newer agents’ clients under the guise of helping them out. When eventually fired, he stomped out the door with a, “You haven’t heard the last of this!” Discharging him brought peace and harmony to the office. It should have been done much earlier. In another case an employee appraiser struggled with appraisals and I struggled with him for about six months. He was good at book learning but poor in practice. There was no way to correct his poor performance. He had the desire to be an appraiser but lacked the ability. By discharging him I did both of us a favour. He could now seek employment where his

talents could be used. When in similar situations, you must satisfy yourself that you have taken all steps to ensure that terminating this individual is the correct action and doing so is best for all. The steps: • Unless you have prior knowledge, begin with a detailed investigation into cause and probable action. • Ensure that the problem or allegations are real and have been or can be substantiated. • Have a sit-down with the employee or sales agent and in an open, non-prejudicial manner discuss the problem or allegations. • Give the employee every opportunity to respond. • Seek an alternative solution to dismissal. • Most importantly, when you are certain that the problem(s) cannot be resolved, do not sweep it under the rug. Act with discretion and candour. Doing the deed – Having concluded that there is no alternative, take a day or three to plan the exit interview so that it creates the minimum of anguish for both you and the employee. Be certain to provide a detailed explanation of why you are taking this action. Be clear about the reasons. Document those reasons. Whether to provide the employee with a termination letter setting out your reasons is your call. Avoid personal, degrading or vague statements and don’t say anything that might suggest the situation is reversible. Consider the possibility of an irrational, negative combative reaction and perhaps a tear-stained appeal. Having reached this point, do it now, not tomorrow or next week. Now! Never allow an employee a few days or weeks to get his/ her things in order. This only

permits this person to do nothing to further your brokerage but to perhaps bad-mouth you. Resolve the issues about confidentiality, listings, ongoing files, client retention, return of your property and the employee becoming a competitor. After the termination – Some remaining staff members may think you have acted too harshly and prematurely. Others will wonder what took you so long. Saying, “It’s not your concern” or something of this sort, may not cut it. You must gauge yourself as to how much explanation is required and you are prepared to give. There is no definite rule as to how to deal with these situations. Play it by ear and hope for the best. The bottom line – Discharging a sales agent or other employee will always be stressful for both you and the employee. To avoid having the situation get out of hand be certain to go about it carefully, methodically and with forethought. Know and understand the protection given to employees by the laws of your province. You could be sued for a tort action, wrongful dismissal and prejudice including punitive damage for pain, suffering and anything else that comes to some high-priced lawyer’s mind. It may be wise to consult your own lawyer and let this person draft the dismissal letter should you choose to use one. You can legally discharge an unsatisfactory employee but doing it hurriedly can too easily backfire. Lloyd Manning, AACI, FRI, CCRA, PApp is a semi-retired commercial real estate and business appraiser and broker who now spends his time writing for professional journals and trade magazines. He resides in Lloydminster, Alberta. Email lloydmann@shaw.ca. REM

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Secrets to success are timeless By Michel Friedman

originally wrote this article for the Toronto Real Estate Board’s Success magazine in 1995. I went over it to see if there is anything I needed to change to make it relevant in 2013, but I did not find anything that needs updating. We are all talking about change in 2013. How the industry is changing. How much more difficult it is to do business these days. How much harder it is to charge full commission. The number of licensed Realtors has grown, the market is more competitive, FSBO sites are more popular and taking chunks of business away from us. The Competition Bureau, the Privacy Act and CREA are not making life easy for us. On the other hand, the number of real estate transactions has also gone up substantially since 1995 and so did the average price of properties. Ways of communicating with prospects are easier and maybe cheaper (social media, websites, mass emailing). Change? What change? Read and judge for yourself. In my years of managing real estate offices, the most common answer I received when asking sales representatives what their expectations of earnings were for the year was $100,000 plus. However, practically none of the people I asked had a plan or strategy for achieving their goals. Here then, is a plan that will help you organize and structure work towards any goal. 1. Change your attitude towards yourself. Ask yourself: Is real estate my job or my hobby? Do I treat it like a job? Am I happy with my productivity? Am I a weak, average or good agent and do I know what to do to improve myself? 2. Change your attitude towards your prospects. Do you know when to refuse a listing? Did you ever initiate a cancellation of a

Here is a plan that will help you organize and structure work towards any goal. listing? Did you ever refuse a buyer? Or in real estate terminology, are you qualifying people you work with or just taking on anybody? In many cases agents who don’t qualify their prospects end up working more hours, with more prospects and with much lower results. 3. Establish your work priorities. Do active prospecting – cold calling, FSBO. Don’t wait for the business to come to you – go out and get it. Do personal promotion. In today’s era of the independent contractor and high turnover of companies, the only asset that you have is you. Promote yourself. Place high emphasis on listings. Your best and cheapest promotion always was and always will be a sold sign with your name on it. Establish control mechanisms over buyer and seller. Follow your plan religiously. Otherwise all you will have is a detailed explanation of why you don’t produce what you aimed for. 4. Establish an annual goal. Have a set dollar amount that you want to achieve. Set realistic numbers for sales, number of listings and appointments. Break down your goals from annual to monthly and then to weekly to help yourself establish a daily routine. 5. Establish a daily work plan. It should include prospecting, viewing other agents’ open houses, office work, follow-ups and appointments. Establish breaks and time off. Operate as a business, establish a budget. Pre-allocate money for promotional items with a long shelf life, advertising listings and professional development /education. 6. Prospect every day. Organize daily prospecting hours. Know your dialogue because speaking with confidence will enhance your image as a professional. Know the answers to objections, since there are usually no new objections – only unrehearsed ones. Be persistent and follow up on your leads.

Remember, a lead not followed up is the most painful loss. Two leads a day equals 10 leads a week, which equals 40 leads a month, which results in 480 leads a year. On the other hand, two leads a month can also remain as two leads a year, if you stop prospecting daily. Which option is it going to be for you? 7. Build a good personal presentation manual. To be effective, your presentation manual should include the following: your company background, personal background, your marketing plan, a graphic for price negotiations (for objections and answers), and a graphic about FSBO (for objections and answers). 8. Have a comprehensive marketing plan. A 25-item action plan looks better than a 16-item action plan. Make promises and keep them. The vendor listens to every word you are saying, especially promises that you make. Disregarding promises is disrespecting your vendor, which may cost you not only his business, but also your reputation. Have an offer presentation routine that will include showing up at your vendor’s home 20 minutes prior to the presentation and going over a blank offer sheet to familiarize the vendor with the form and all the various common clauses they can expect. Take responsibility for your actions. You are performing the way you are because of things you don’t do properly or don’t do often enough, not because of the economy, the broker, the weather or your spouse. Get back on track and feel good again. Michel Friedman is the broker of record of Orange Square Realty, a progressive real estate brokerage in Toronto. “How to earn $100,000 in real estate commissions” and “Star Agent” are selling techniques training courses developed and offered exclusively at his brokerage. REM

12 REM APRIL 2013

Realtor teaches compassion, positive energy By Connie Adair “Every day, the more people who learn The Golden Rule, like perfect it, the more people master it, the better the earth will get, every day.” – Max, 8, Tecumseh Public School, talking about The Golden Rule.

he Golden Rule. It has nothing to do with politics and nothing to do with religion. Treat people the way you want to be treated. It’s a simple concept, and Erin Henry is teaching kids how they can use it to change the world. Henry, a sales rep with Royal LePage in The Kingsway neighbourhood in Toronto, founded the Children’s Charter for Compassion after attending the Vancouver Peace Summit in 2009. The “gathering of compassionate-geared organizations” was attended by the Dalai Lama. Religious scholar and author Karen Armstrong was also at the summit, launching the Charter for Compassion, a global code of conduct.

Regardless of faith, or if you don’t have faith, The Golden Rule is a logical process, thought Henry at the time. But the mother of two wondered if young children, like her own, would “get it.” Several months later, with the help of friends, she created the Children’s Charter for Compassion, which teaches children about empathy. It focuses on the positive in hopes of getting to the issues, such as bullying, before they happen. One charter is designed for younger children and the other is for children 13 to 18-years-old. Henry also created two activity books, doing all the work herself and paying material costs out of her own pocket. “I’m affiliated with organizations who promote the charter, but all the leg work, communications and class visits are me. I’ve had no funding from Day 1,” she says. However, now a printer is helping her out by printing the activity books at cost.

Erin Henry in the classroom.

Henry visits classrooms across the GTA and reads books to the children, talks about compassion and has the class take the oath to observe The Golden Rule. The class creates a Tree of Compassion, with leaves that carry messages of acts of kindness and compassion. “Little kids draw pictures of what makes them happy,” Henry says. A school in London, Ont. was

the first in the world to embrace the charter. The second school, in Kincardine, Ont., recently got on board. As compassionate schools, they, for example, may raise funds to donate to the homeless or work together to stop bullying. More generally, the code of conduct reminds everyone of the standards of behaviour, she says. “There is no religious connotation. It differentiates so many different faith groups. It’s in no way religious, in no way anti-religion and is not political. It’s very much about character and mindset.” The one-hour presentations are geared to spreading positive energy and to teach kids to be good people. The project takes many hours in the week. Henry has lost track of the number of classrooms and schools she has visited. The flexibility of her job as a Realtor helps, she says. Visits are during school hours, so it also doesn’t interfere with her

own children, who help the cause by cutting out leaves for the trees. They have also visited classrooms with their Mom. It’s tiresome trying to balance it all, says the 20-year real estate veteran. Her work doesn’t go unnoticed. She says clients are very supportive of her work. “It’s a feel-good project. I want to touch as many people as I can.” Henry will be one of three people to be recognized for their compassionate work at the 2013 International Conference on Compassionate Organizations in Louisville, Kentucky May 16-18. The program has taken off – Henry no longer has time to help everyone who calls. She’d like to find volunteers who can help her by doing classroom presentations on their own. For more information or to get involved, contact Erin Henry at 647-242-1327 or visit childrenscharterforcompassion.com or erinhenry.ca REM

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14 REM APRIL 2013

Evaluating yourself SALES COACH

By Bruce Keith

hat do I work on next? Great salespeople are always looking for ways to improve their customer service. When you do so, typically your results improve right along with it. Here is a four-step program that will keep you laser focused, improving both. 1. Have a look at this laundry list of items that comprise the various components of your business: ■ Time management ■ Lead generation ■ Prequalification ■ Lead follow-up ■ Listing presentation ■ Pricing property ■ Buyers ■ Handling objections ■ Negotiating ■ Closing skills ■ Social media ■ Administration ■ Business planning and tracking ■ Practicing and developing skills ■ Mindset ■ Money management and budgeting 2. Rate yourself for every item on a scale of 1 to 10. 3. Pick out four items – two at which you excel and two that need improvement. 4. Get to work on all four of these right away. If someone is holding you accountable, make sure they know which ones you picked. This will speed up your growth. Why do you suppose I am suggesting that you work on two areas...weaknesses and strengths?

The answer for your weaknesses is obvious. It’s developing your strengths that is sometimes ignored. Think about it this way: you do certain things very well because you like to do them... and they work! If you’re already doing something well, you will get even more results by raising the bar on those items too. Bonus point: Start with the two areas in which you excel, your strengths. Really ramp them up and this will give you more confidence to go after the areas that need improvement. Work on your strengths first and your weaknesses will improve faster. Better strengths give you more confidence. When you keep your attitude and your mindset strong, your overall growth will be amazing! No excuses. ■ ■ ■

I came across a very interesting definition recently. It’s probably not new. It was a rather unique definition of wisdom: “Wisdom is what we learn after we know it all.” The extension of this philosophy would be that no matter what your experience level, there is always more to learn. An ego-free approach would be for every salesperson to permanently be on a quest for more knowledge...never ending. Here’s a great thought to ponder: “I’m not a finished product... are you?” There are lots of salespeople who resist growing. Make sure you’re not one of them. It doesn’t take long to realize that we never “get there”. The good news is we can always grow while we are getting there. That’s how you stand out from your competition and that’s how you demonstrate your superiority as a great salesperson. No excuses. Bruce Keith, the “Results Coach” is a sales and marketing coach and seminar leader, teaching what to say and how to say it. His highenergy, high-impact training style is sought after and acclaimed across North America. www.brucekeithresults.com REM

Canadian Marketing 100 Yonge Street, 16th Floor Toronto, ON M5C 2W1

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16 REM APRIL 2013

Our real estate sports team By Tim Syrianos

e recently had our brokerage’s annual AGM and it was a huge success. The energy in the room was high and like all of our meetings, lots of valuable information was shared. During my presentation, I shared a recent conversation I had with a group of people that asked me a question that made me think. They asked, “What sports team would best describe the environment within a real estate brokerage?” It was a great question and in my mind, I quickly went through all the various sports. I thought

about soccer, hockey, basketball and football and realized that none of these would describe a successful real estate office team. The more I thought about it, the more I realized the obvious……baseball! Let’s think about how baseball compares to our industry with agents. All the players are focused on their individual stats and achievements. The better their stats are, the bigger their contracts. Some have a batting average of .350, some average .225. Some players are specialists in the long ball (home runs) and others in short base hits with lots of singles and doubles. Some have an exceptional on-base percentage and some are specialists in fast base running. Some are starting pitchers and some are closers. The team consists of seasoned pros, rookies and rising stars. At times true leaders within a team tell another player to

smarten up and/or remind them that we don’t act or do things like that on this team. Every day and at every game, if they want to succeed they all have to go to bat and take a swing. The truly great players who want a long career take bat-

advise on when to run or stop and cheer them to run for home. They assist them with batting practice, pitching practice and the mechanics of the game. Sometimes they simply talk them through a slump until they become productive again by tap-

The truly great players who want a long career take batting practice seriously and prepare for every game. ting practice seriously and prepare for every game. Finally the team has a manager. They encourage the team,

ping into their God-given natural talent that they always believed in. The managers work with the

Sell More Real Estate in 2013. Here’s How … If getting your next good client is STILL uncertain…..if you feel trapped in a nuclear arms race of ever escalating ad spending….if you are STILL anxious about the stability of your business and income….if you are STILL competing head to head and losing listings to less qualiﬁed, damp behind the ears agents and STILL getting resistance and rejection from prospects --- there’s a lot WRONG! My successful students have included or now include agents ranked #3, #13, #28, #31, #38, #45, #46 and #70 out of 90,000 ReMax agents; #5, #6 and #21 out of 70,000 Coldwell Banker agents; #1 in Keller Williams….agents with as much as 30 years’ experience…agents producing $3-million a year.

many personalities to make sure they stay focussed on their strengths. They are a huge part of the winning formula of the team. Sometimes they also know when to say nothing and stay out of the way. We also have free agency and recruiting to improve and bring people in to be part of the team. The bottom line is that players always want to be part of a winning team. At the end of the year all the different people, with different backgrounds, personalities, talents and skill sets, hopefully come together to be world champions. Tim Syrianos is the broker of record and owner of Re/Max Ultimate in Toronto, with close 200 Realtors. He started his real estate career at the age of 19, some 24 years ago. Email tim@remaxultimate.com or phone 416-4875131. REM

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Each of these agents followed my system to success by learning how to: U Screen Out Difﬁcult, Disrespectful, Uncooperative Clients – without worry over having enough new clients and enough STEADY income UÊÊ Never Put A Buyer In A Car Again, If You Don’t Want To. There is a perfected method for making buyers do the shopping work themselves – even to get paid on every prospective buyer even if they don’t buy a home through you. MORE-BUYER-PROFIT TRAINING is included in my system, along with ‘The Power Document’ to use as a Buyer’s Agent

UÊÊ STOP “CLOSING”. Is there anything more stressful than having to be a “master closer” battling seller’s objections? And, afterward, how bad does the seller feel? “CLOSING” sets up a negative relationship likely to sour. Instead, create a sequential process culminating in a presentation that results in the client naturally asking: where do I sign? UÊ Win Listings At FULL Commission Every Time. You can opt out of the race to the bottom and Wal-Martizing of our profession. You can easily win against commission discounters, avoid negotiation and compromise.

At this point, it seems just about everybody has an “opinion” about me. It’s up to you whether to rely on others’ opinions or whether to investigate for yourself. Everybody’s entitled to their own opinions but nobody’s entitled to their own facts. Facts are facts. I urge basing your career on facts that you get for yourself and judge for yourself. Not hype and empty promises. Facts. Order my FREE Book & CD and be your own judge. Unlike any other real estate trainer, Craig Proctor successfully did what he teaches you, right here in Canada. Regarded within the industry as the King of Lead Generation, Billion Dollar Agent Craig Proctor was twice named the #1 agent in the world for RE/MAX (1991 & 1996), and was one of the top RE/MAX agents in Canada from 1990-2009. Nobody has sold more homes on the Canadian MLS than Craig Proctor. As a Real Estate Trainer, Craig has Coached more Canadian agents to Millionaire status than any other trainer.

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18 REM APRIL 2013

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By Donald H. Lapowich

n Ontario real estate agent found a home for a purchaser and drew up the offer conditional on a home inspection. The purchaser made it known to the agent and the home inspector that she was allergic to mould. The agent put in a term that the purchaser could abort the deal if she was not satisfied with the inspection report. The inspector observed no mould and no moisture penetration, but did not include in the report that parging on an exterior wall at the driveway was a major defect. The purchaser waived the condition and closed and later had an allergic reaction to mould. The purchaser sued the agent, the realty brokerage, the vendor and the home inspector. The judge apportioned 50 per cent of the blame to the inspector, 25 per cent to the agent and 25 per cent to the purchaser (contributory negligence). But the Appeal Court found the trial judge erred in finding the agent liable for not reading the inspector’s report, reviewing it with purchaser and discovering the possibility of moisture from that report. Negligence against the agent was set aside and the inspector was found 100 per cent liable. (Halliwell v. Lazarus, 2012 ONCA 348) ■ ■ ■

The British Columbia Supreme Court was asked to rule on the purchase of a condominium unit from the developer. The defendant purchaser, although entering into the agreement with a developer and having received disclosure statements, failed to close. The purchaser said the unit had an individual hot water tank and was not part of a “central hot water system” as indicated in marketing materials. The court ruled that the fact

Recent rulings the developer did not file an amended disclosure statement still allowed the developer to sue, and for a declaration that the Agreements to Purchase were enforceable. The change from a hot water system to individual hot water tanks did not render the information in the Disclosure Statement untrue because it was not a change of a material fact on the basis of affecting the value of the unit, its price or its use. The judge wrote, “Considering all of the evidence, it is my conclusion that the real reason that the defendants did not complete was because of the admitted change in market conditions. I doubt that the change to have a hot water tank installed had any real bearing on their decisions not to close, other than providing an excuse not to close.” (Bosa Properties [Esprit 2] Inc. v. Kim, 2012 BCSC 1013) ■ ■ ■

In the purchase of a residential property, the vendor provided a seller’s statement that the property was not subject to flooding. When the purchasers viewed the property it was dry. However, one month after closing, rainfall in the backyard accumulated water from a couple of inches to a foot deep, rendering a large part unusable. It was obvious the vendor knew of this problem since his neighbours also had a similar issue. The court (affirmed by the Court of Appeal) found the vendor’s statement was a negligent or fraudulent misrepresentation, which was relied upon by the buyer. Court ruled the flooding was a latent defect (when property was viewed). Damages were awarded. (Costa v. Wimalasekera, 2012 ONSC 6056) Full case summaries are available at www.canlii.org. Donald Lapowich, Q.C. is a partner at the law firm of Koskie, Minsky in Toronto, where he practices civil litigation, with a particular emphasis on real estate litigation and mediation, acting for builders, real estate agents and lawyers. REM

20 REM APRIL 2013

Selling homes in 140 characters D

avid Ursino’s next client will likely be a recent visitor to his website or a new connection on LinkedIn. That’s because one of every two homes sold by the Royal LePage sales representative is from an online referral by a search engine or social media networking website. Real estate professionals like Ursino are trading print ads for tweets, brochures for blog posts and in-person tours for virtual visits – and they say they’re getting real results. Sales reps are converting Facebook fans and YouTube viewers into buyers and sellers, and they’re striking deals faster and for more. “I’ve stopped all print media as of 2012,” says Ursino, who has been serving communities north of Toronto in Thornhill, Kleinberg, Woodbridge and Maple for six years. “People are able to see my personality and relate to me online even before we meet.” Ursino says just hammering a

for sale sign on a lawn or listing a home on a popular residential real estate website is no longer enough. He builds a website for each of his clients’ properties that includes a virtual tour inside the home, a detailed description of the layout and photos captured by a professional photographer. Then, he promotes the property on his personal website, Facebook fan page and Twitter account – places where, he says, 90 per cent of buyers begin their search for a home. In 2008, Joe Chiovitti’s King City property was on the market for six months without a single offer when he hired Ursino. Chiovitti received 10 offers in 10 days and sold his home for 122 per cent of his asking price. He says Ursino’s marketing plan was “thoughtful, clear and solid.” Digital marketing isn’t new to Ursino. He purchased a URL in 2007, started operating his personal website in 2009 and began producing two-minute videos and uploading them to his YouTube

By Christina Pellegrini

David Ursino

Aleksandra Oleksak

Chad Bowe

channel in 2010. Ursino, who calls himself “Vaughan’s first real estate video blogger,” has since uploaded nearly 170 video clips on York Region schools, local businesses and market performance. Aleksandra Oleksak, a 29year-old sales representative for Sage Real Estate, uses her personal website and Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest accounts to sell homes and apartments in Toronto. She says during the last year, four clients connected with her through Twitter, two through

Facebook and one through her blog, Realty Queen TO. “It has shown my audience that I’m an active agent who is very knowledgeable,” says Oleksak, who also buys fixeruppers and posts pictures of the renovation and redesign process on her website. “One of my clients wanted to buy a fixerupper and said he truly trusted and believed everything I said to him after reading my blog.” Oleksak, like Ursino, creates virtual tours and custom websites for her properties. But what sets

her apart is the “human element” to her online professional profile. She syncs all her social media accounts with her Instagram, where she posts pictures of her dog, Roxie, her boyfriend, Amir, and her latest manicure, cupcakes. Oleksak’s Facebook profile is accessible to anyone who views it. Her posts vary from check-ins at a local restaurant, pictures of handwritten notes from clients and links to new content on her website. She even wrote about the death of her dog, Harley. “The general public wants to see the face behind the brand,” she says. “People can relate better to you and are more willing to work with you if they feel they know you professionally and personally.” While Ursino and Oleksak say they are converting fans and followers into clients, many real estate professionals aren’t, says Chad Bowe, a member of the American Marketing Association and the owner of Toronto-based marketing firm GTA Consultant. “Online marketing is a tool for Realtors that helps bring more prospects to their door,” says Bowe. Many Realtors, he says, are “drunk with the idea” that a website, Twitter and Facebook accounts or a YouTube profile will always turn a lead into a sale. “If a Realtor can’t sit in front of a potential client and ‘seal the deal’ through old-fashioned salesmanship and personality, no amount (of time) spent on online marketing will be enough.” Ursino and Oleksak say their young, tech-savvy clients are visiting their websites instead of knocking on their doors. They’re selling themselves and their clients’ properties, 140 characters at a time. REM

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22 REM APRIL 2013

Scratched and dented AS I SEE IT FROM MY DESK

By Stan Albert

eeling a little “scratched and dented” these days? You can usually get a deal on a major appliance that has a few marks or dents on it, but it’s still useable and presentable in your home. Sometimes I get the feeling that even experienced agents feel a bit scratched and dented sometimes. We take a look at what the heck we’re doing because we’re not getting the results we need. We’re still pretty presentable, but have been knocked around a lot by mass rejections to our mailings, cold calling and/or door knocking. So some of us will flee the business or go to another brokerage because it has fewer fees or whatever. Or, some of us will actually consult with our brokers about the lack of consistency and the lack of production. The fact is, during the last few years of observing some agents who bought into “coaching for a fee,” I see they are very frustrated by the meagre results they get after hours and hours of calling with the same scripts. Or maybe they have new scripts that are suitable for the Canadian market. I actually heard a respected trainer from the U.S. stating that his firm has developed a tailor-made dialogue for our fellow Canucks! Hmm. Yes I can see that in some respects our market is different because we don’t have the mortgage defaults that we see south of the border. But really folks, a seller in need of our ser-

vices isn’t exactly hanging out a Help Wanted sign unless he’s a FSBO or a “mere posting”. Look, I’m not denigrating whatsoever the merits of coaching for a fee. But what happens to our colleagues is they overlook some other aspects of what’s available to them in the way of marketing and branding themselves as a unique salesperson in any particular neighbourhood. Over the years of training, I’ve always presented to both new and seasoned agents the following idea: develop a V.I.P List of Service Providers and Specialists in your area. Regulatory bodies usually require that we suggest three of each to be fair. So how many providers can you name, starting with A accountants, appraisers….and so on. Make some new friends with say 30 or so categories and guess what you have? A new batch of possible buyers and sellers or renters that have made most of their money in real estate. Ask those who provide materials along with services if they’d give a 10-per-cent discount if you used their name when referring them. Think that they’d be good prospects to send MLS listings to in the event that they may know someone who’d be interested, if not themselves? This is a tried and true system of marketing. Call it a V.I.P. list or a concierge list or whatever. It will take some time to get it going, but think about doing it after you’ve had umpteen rejections on the phone. Happy marketing and let me know if you take up my suggestions. “There’s only one thing better than a referral from a client, and that is a referral from his friends and/or associates!” - S. Albert Stan Albert, broker/manager, ABR, ASA at Re/Max Premier in Vaughan, Ont. can be reached for consultation at stanalb@rogers.com. Stan is now celebrating his 43rd year as an active real estate professional. REM

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Jeff Jaffari Visions Realty Inc. 416-321-2228 Former Brand: Coldwell Banker “We felt strongly that our move to RE/MAX would support that goal by ultimately providing greater property exposure, an expanded buyer pool and unparalleled marketing muscle. With the changing real estate climate, this was an ideal time to increase our value proposition and give our clients a distinct edge. RE/MAX has allowed us to do that. The company’s support of their network and the consumer is beyond incredible.”

Dave Sachko First Realty Ltd. (905) 655-1144 Former Brand: Keller Williams Former Brand: Coldwell Banker “I’ve always liked the RE/MAX brand. I work in an area where RE/MAX has over 35 percent market share and wanted to be part of the success. I like the leadership and work ethic of RE/MAX professionals and feel the environment at RE/MAX is the best place for me to continue to build my team and my business”

Zara Bahmani Realtron Realty Inc. (416) 222-8600 Previous Brand: Century 21mer Brand: Coldwell Banker “I decided to leave my previous brand and join RE/MAX after attending a very impressive RE/MAX event. It was clear to me the level of professionalism associated with the Brand is truly above the crowd. With RE/MAX standing for high service, I knew my business would benefit.

Michelle Fraser Hallmark Realty Ltd. (416) 494-7653 Former Brand: Royal LePage “RE/MAX has the strongest corporate culture and I Former Brand: Coldwell Banker knew by coming over to RE/MAX that I would improve my business by being surrounded by the best!”

For more information regarding opportunities with RE/MAX Ipsos Understanding Agent Perceptions in Canada, October 2012.

89%

74%

61%

respected by Agents Agree

Doinis Padron Legacy Realty Inc. (905) 795-1900 Previous Brand: Royal LePage

Jeff McInnis of Wasaga Beach Inc. (705)-429-4500 Former Brand: Royal LePage

Alex Lombardi Premier Inc. (905)-856-1111 Previous Brand: Royal LePage

Domenic Manchisi Legacy Realty Inc. (905)-272-5000 Previous Brand: Prudential

Angele Roy Chay Realty Inc. (705)-722-7100 Previous Brand: Century 21

RE/MAX was a natural choice for me.Brand: Coming to RE/MAX Former Coldwell Banker helped me achieve my long term goal of being an International Real Estate Agent. With the networking opportunities RE/MAX provides their agents and the state-of-the-art website, global.remax.com my decision to come to RE/MAX was one of the smartest decisions I have ever made.

“I used to think I was leading edge I starting Formeruntil Brand: ColdwelllearnBanker ing how to use the RE/MAX tools. I was behind the times. The consumer was more advanced than I was. Now I feel I am back on top of my business all thanks to RE/MAX being on the leading edge of technology.”

“I was looking for a brokerage that provided opportunity for Former Brand: Coldwell Banker growth and expansion in my business. Working with the world’s most productive agents along with the support from staff and commendable effort from management to provide training and development opportunties has already increased my business since joining in August. I can now look at expanding internationally. Something that wasn’t available before.”

I came to RE/MAX not only for the strong brand identity, but Former Brand: Coldwell Banker also because I knew there was a road to success which I could walk alongside some of the industry’s best Real Estate Agents. The amount of support available, ranging from the tools, networking opportunities, and continued learning and education I was opened up to, ensured me that my business would flourish and my envisioned plan to success would be possible.

“The brand is so well known, that I can focus on explaingin what my individual serFormer Brand:my Coldwell vice provides clients.Banker The Brand value sells itself.”

contact Adrian Burry (905) 542-2400 or aburry@remax-oa.com All statistics and testimonials are for RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada.

26 REM APRIL 2013

METES & BOUNDS

By Marty Douglas

am now convinced. Before I was uncertain, or as Daniel Boone is reported to have said, “I’ve never been lost but I remember once being bewildered for two or three days.” Over and over I have heard motivators and trainers stating boldly there are no secrets, no new inventions and no shortcuts to success. And yet, every year at every real estate conference, a new crop of gifted gabbers join with veterans to take our money and sell their DVDs. There’s a new audience born every minute, eager to listen to the same message because it’s fresh to them. Following that theory, we

Top 10 simple truths for salespeople should only have to hear the message once, perhaps with a refresher in a five-year cycle, but once learned; surely the same truths are evident. As Richard Robbins recently pointed out – to a soldout audience – if you ask yourself, “What do I have to do today?” and the answer is “Not much,” then prepare for your next slump. With that knowledge, surely we need only dust off the old work book to get back on track. Here’s more insight, including the Bible in case that is your book of choice. Speakers echo similar fundamentals. I recall getting the necessary steps to success in a Floyd Wickman Sweathog program. The four things you have to have are attitude, training, opportunity and response. But note; only “response” determines whether or not you get paid! Brian Buffini encourages H.A.S. in his Peak Producer series – Habit, Attitude and Skills. Dave Liniger, at this year’s Re/Max International conference, sharing his remarkable recovery from a

devastating health crisis, reminded delegates that E + R = O. Event plus Response equals Outcome. In a REM column, Don Kyle observed that the Bible helps us get through a bad day, week, month or year. The Bible says “it came to pass” 363 times – not “it came to stay”. History repeats itself with each new cycle of salespeople, in part because we fail to observe the lessons of the past. We look at the most successful and believe they are lucky, have the inside track, the boss’s ear (or other body part!) and steadfastly refuse to believe simple truths. Here they are, in the style of David Letterman, in top 10 format: Top 10 simple truths: 10. The world is run by those who show up. 9. You have to practice and memorize your presentation. The reason a magician can pull a rabbit out of the hat is he put it there before the show began. (Howard Brinton)

8. Character is the ability to deliver a promise you made even after your mood changes. (Floyd Wickman) 7. People don’t buy products, they buy value. People forget people who bring no value to their life. (Richard Flint) 6. Act like you’ve got the money in your pocket. (Lee Trevino) 5. Things don’t get easier, you just get better. (Sign on a gym wall) 4. The problem with socialism is that sooner or later you run out of other people’s money. (Margaret Thatcher) 3. Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won’t work. (Thomas Edison) 2. Do what you can with what you have, where you are. (Teddy Roosevelt) And the number one truth: 1. The thing I hate about the Christmas office party is looking for work the next day. (Phyllis Diller as told by Roland Wickett)

Really Marty? No, I just like that one so much I thought I’d slip it in to check the ambient room temperature. Seriously, the number one truth is: 1. Having a tattoo used to mean you lived outside the law. Now it means you’ve been to a mall. (Penn Gillette) Got you again! Okay, seriously, this time I mean it: 1. People who deliver the most value are paid the most money. (Jim Rohn) Warren Buffet adds a reminder: “If history was all there was to the game, then the richest people should be librarians.” The thing about the school of experience is that it will repeat the lesson if you flunk the first time. Contact Marty Douglas by email at mgdouglas247@gmail.com. Follow or connect with Marty on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. He is a managing broker for Re/Max Ocean Pacific Realty in Comox and Courtenay, B.C. REM

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28 REM APRIL 2013

How technology is hurting you activities and the time I spent in positions that are less than ideal for me. Voila. I am nearly a new man today. I am a fan of technology and all it does for me and my business. Ironically, this was largely responsible for the aforementioned crippling pain. Mercedes Reeb, an occupational health therapist, says the current configuration of most technology is not just bad; it’s actually doing severe damage to our bodies. Reeb suggests the biggest perpetrator is the laptop computer. The proper alignment of all of our equipment is off. Way off. The screen should be directly at eye level when you’re sitting straight in a chair. In laptop terms, this makes the keyboard awfully uncomfortable. An ancillary keyboard suddenly becomes necessary, aided possibly by a keyboard shelf. There is a reason they are lower. Your chair and seating posi-

By Ronn James

Ap ril 3

20 13

MO SU NT SA PE HL VE R YS R PE CIA L

use a chiropractor. For years, I have had aches and pains that leave me walking around thinking about the Robaxacet marionette that was jabbed with pins on TV commercials. Recently after starting a routine of learning to run intervals, I found out I was crooked. Actually crooked. Bent enough to barely walk. I blamed everyone and everything before finally asking for help. The health care providers who assessed me sought the root of my pain: fatigue, weight gain and general malaise. Mostly it was my poor posture. They looked at my daily

tion are also a vital part of the conversation. Reeb says the biggest challenge is the lack of core muscles to properly use the chair in a manner that positions the spine in proper alignment. The 90-degree rule, as it pertains to sitting position, is one you’ll want to investigate. The gear should include an exercise ball used as a tool every 30 minutes or so to help you develop and strengthen the core. Many people have gone so far as to adopt it as a seat at their desks with a look to encouraging a super healthy posture. Apparently this poor alignment is the cause of the majority of disability claims that arise. The good news is that with the proper adjustments and guidance, you can repair many of the aches and pains by simply sitting up straight. Seems that mom was right after all! As this information came to the surface and I started to make the necessary changes, I was

UP TO

shocked how quickly things improved. My energy increased, my overall health improved and the change in posture likely doesn’t hurt my overall aesthetic. In fact, I started reviewing how I use technology in a much broader sense. How many times are you caught at a seminar, looking down at your smart phone in the audience? Now consider the fish hook position of the head and spine you’re left in as you try to multi task by attending the event, listening to the presenter and solving the world’s problems via Internet. Are you reading this and catching yourself suddenly conscious and adjusting your position? If not, why not? It’s hard, and awkward, and it will take time and practice, but you’ll know when it’s working because you’ll feel the changes. You’ll also likely be surprised how quickly you feel better.

Consider this golf lesson analogy. If, at your first lesson, they told you in one long stream what you have to do and what you have to remember, you’d likely hand the club back to the instructor and call it a day. But as they explain the mechanics and the results improve over time, you’ll be that guy muttering to himself beside me, running through every lesson he ever took. Head down. Eye on the ball. Reach in pocket, hand credit card to chiropractor… With a track record that spans 31 years, Realtor Ronn James says his ambition is to educate the public and Realtors alike. He has landed appearances on Breakfast Television, CityLine, Real Life and a host of radio shows. James has also been a regular contributor to New Homes and Condos For Sale Magazine, Toronto Sun and Canadian Homeplanner. Website: www.RealEstateCommissionMatter s.ca, phone 289-242-9050. REM

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tion or drug lab, they are hindered by the lack of a central registry of such properties, OREA says. ■ ■ ■

ith Ontario’s legislature back in session, the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) is endorsing two bills that address long-standing concerns of the organization. The first bill would facilitate the use of electronic agreements of purchase and sale of real estate. Currently, Ontario Realtors are reluctant to use electronic agreements of purchase and sale because they are exempt from the legal protections afforded by the Electronic Commerce Act, 2000, says OREA. The legislation comes in the form of a private members bill sponsored by MPP Todd Smith (Prince Edward-Hastings). It was first introduced by Smith and Liberal MPP (now Minister of Labour) Yasir Naqvi in May 2012. “Deleting the exemption from the Act will remove a cumbersome piece of red tape for the real estate industry and it won’t cost the province a dime,” says Ron Abraham, OREA president. “By enhancing legal protection for electronic agreements of purchase and sale, both consumers and Realtors can benefit from technology that makes real estate transactions more efficient, accessible and secure.” The second initiative is a reintroduction of a grow op registry bill. The Clandestine Drug Operation Prevention Act, 2013, was introduced by MPP Lisa MacLeod (Nepean-Carleton) to establish a marijuana grow operations (MGOs) and clandestine drug laboratory registry. “Grow-ops are a major problem for homebuyers in the province and we have been urging the Ontario government to establish a registry to protect consumers for over 10 years,” says Pat Verge, an Ottawa Realtor. In October 2012, OREA commissioned a study by Ipsos Reid, which found that 93 per cent of Ontario residents want to know if a home they are planning to pur-

chase was formerly used as a MGO or clandestine drug lab. The research showed that 88 per cent of Ontarians support the creation of a province-wide registry. “The prevalence of these homes in Ontario is quite frankly alarming,” says Verge. “And Realtors want to be able to warn their clients as early in the purchasing process as possible.” While Realtors are obligated by law to disclose to potential homebuyers if a home has been used as a marijuana grow-opera-

Karen Singbeil

The Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board (OMREB) has elected Karen Singbeil of Re/Max at Mara Lake, Sicamous as president for the 2013-2014 term. She was installed along with 11 directors representing the Central Okanagan, North Okanagan and Shuswap zones at OMREB’s Annual General Meeting recently. Singbeil replaces outgoing president Rob Shaw of Royal LePage Downtown Realty, Vernon, who stays on as past-president. She has been an OMREB member for nine years and has served as a director since 2009, holding the membership and professional standards portfolios, acting as zone media contact for two years and sitting on the Finance

Committee. She is an associate broker and has been a Realtor for 17 years. Darcy Griffiths of Royal LePage Downtown Realty, Vernon, was installed as vice-president of the Board of Directors. Also elected to the board: Kent Jorgenson, Re/Max Kelowna; Scott Mayne, Points West Realty Group, Kelowna; Cliff Shillington, Re/Max Kelowna; Tanis Read, Coldwell Banker Horizon Realty; Christopher Miller, Royal LePage Kelowna; Joe Pearson, Re/Max Vernon; Don Gilowski, Royal LePage Downtown Realty, Vernon; Steve Lewis, Royal LePage Access Real Estate, Salmon Arm; and Tara Gallant, Royal LePage Access Realty, Salmon Arm. OMREB and the Kelowna Fire Department have announced a partnership to launch a collabora-

tive public safety effort between Realtors, fire fighters and homeowners. The purpose of the Kelowna campaign is to get homeowners thinking and talking about smoke alarms with the help of Realtors to ensure that they have functioning alarms in their homes. The Fire Department supplied copies of the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs brochure, How to Stay Safe at Home, which has been distributed to Kelowna real estate offices to be included with listing documents and left with home sellers as a community service in March. ■ ■ ■

Greater Moncton Realtors du Grand Moncton installed its new Board of Directors recently. The new president, Roxanne Maillet brings five years of Board of Continued on page 32

Darcy Griffiths

Back row, from left: DRAR EO B. Cail Maclean; Grandview Children’s Foundation senior development officer Brigitte Tschinkel; DRAR Charity Auction Committee chair Kathy McFadden; Grandview chief development officer William Pace. Front row: Grandview students enjoying “Pajama Day”.

Roxanne Maillet

Ron Todson Mike McCarron, right, supervisor for growth and development for Exit Realty Corp. International, chats with speaker Floyd Wickman at the Banff Western Connection conference. “The organizers deserve great praise and accolades for the obvious hard work that goes into putting on something this large, and that is so well done,” says McCarron.

From left: DRAR Charity Auction Committee chair Kathy McFadden; Distress Centre Durham executive director Victoria Kehoe; and DRAR EO B. Cail Maclean.

32 REM APRIL 2013

Boards and Associations Continued from page 30

Directors and 14 years of industry experience. She takes over from past-president Peter Dickson. “Our industry is changing rapidly and servicing the consumer in the new digital age is very exciting,” says Maillet. “Our vision is to be an industry leader, providing innovative member services and we accomplish this by engaging our membership, providing leading technologies, services and support that equip our members to deliver exceptional service to consumers.” The other executive members of the association are: 1st vicepresident Ricky Cormier; 2nd vice-president Chantal Albert; secretary treasurer Kevin MacKenzie; and directors Michael Ryder, Andre Malenfant and Tim Lyons. ■ ■ ■

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB) elected its new Board of Directors for 2013/2014 at its Annual General Meeting recently. Ron Todson will replace outgoing president Scott Olson. Todson has been active in real estate since 1981 and is a managing broker of Re/Max Little Oak Realty in Abbotsford. “It’s a tremendous honour to volunteer for an organization that has been serving the real estate needs of the Fraser Valley since 1921. Our mission as a board is to ensure that our members have access to the best tools and support

to provide the highest level of professional service to our clients,” Todson says. Todson started volunteering on behalf of the Board eight years ago and has served as a director since 2008. The incoming president-elect is Ray Werger, Royal LePage Coronation Park, Surrey. The vice-president is Jorda Maisey, Re/Max Little Oak Realty, Fort Langley. Also elected to the Board of Directors: John Barbisan, Sutton Premier Realty, Surrey; Sandra Benz, Re/Max Performance Realty, Delta; Manny Boparai, Century 21 Coastal Realty, Surrey; Dennis Germyn, Macdonald Realty, Surrey; Ishaq Ismail, Sutton Group - West Coast Realty, Surrey; Gopal Sahota, Sutton Group - West Coast Realty, Surrey; Ralph Visser, Century 21 Ace Agencies, Abbotsford; and Charles Wiebe, Landmark Realty, Abbotsford. ■ ■ ■

The Durham Region Association of Realtors (DRAR) recently donated more than $10,000 to two local charities. Funds raised through DRAR’s Annual Charity Auction will support Distress Centre Durham, a registered charity that provides emotional support, crisis intervention and suicide prevention to those who need it. The association also donated to Grandview Children’s Centre, which serves 5,000 children and youth with special needs each year. REM

The toilet bowl I

t was Sunday afternoon and I was conducting an open house in the north-west part of the Greater Toronto Area. It was a well-appointed townhome owned by a young, professional woman and it was immaculate. I was about to finish up and was just walking out to pick up my signs when two young men asked if they could see the place. Of course! As they walked through the house, they became more and more engaged and it was clear to me that they liked the house. They were also trying to be careful to hide these obvious buying signals from me, the Realtor. After viewing upstairs, they asked me when the open house would be finished. I replied that I would remain there until they came back with their family and decided whether they wanted to purchase the house. They asked me how I knew that this was the question on their mind. I replied that it was just a lucky guess. About 20 minutes later they returned with the family, and what a family it was…17 people. I wondered if they were all going to fit in the townhouse. But still, if they could fit in two minivans….I soon realized that some were merely advisors and well-wishers. Everyone loved the house, they and ’ooohhh-ed’ and ‘aahhh’ ed

and then talked rapidly and excitedly in some deliciously polysyllabic language. They asked about the drapes, the appliances, the closing dates and the downpayment and finally they told me that they wanted to submit an offer that same night. I locked the front door. It was time to get down to business. I sat down with the young men and began taking all of the pertinent information…and suddenly we heard a scream! It was the scream of a male member of the family. Everyone rushed to the sound and I realized that something terrible must have happened …..something so terrible that…. there would be no deal that night! I rushed to see what the patriarch had found and as I came upstairs, I realized that they were all pointing at something. You would not believe what they were pointing at. Nothing in my real estate courses and feng shui studies prepared me for this. They were pointing at the toilet bowl. I had not heard a flush, so I assumed there must be an offending turd I missed on my initial preopen-house inspection. I rushed over and flushed the toilet without looking inside. Then I asked what the “issue” (never the “problem”) might be. At first, it was all that I could

By Carl Walwyn do to keep from laughing, until I saw how very serious (and utterly disappointed) they all were. The toilet was facing in the wrong direction! It would be the ultimate sign of disrespect to their God. They loved that house and wondered if there was a way they could change the ‘direction’ of the toilet bowl. I am a master of Objective Handling Techniques, but it occurred to me that this was neither the time nor the place. The spherical nature of the earth, the metaphysics of ‘direction’, the facing east is the same as facing west if you travel far enough – all seemed out of place in this context. Faith is the kind of thing that should be treated with respect. I pointed out that this was a two-piece powder room and that there was no room to make any adjustments, although they were welcome to try after and if they purchased the home. They left saddened, looking back in regret. I waved from the front door as they piled into the minivans. I realized that I would not be selling that house that night . . . . but I had learned yet another important lesson about another culture. Carl Walwyn is a sales rep with Re/Max Legacy Realty in Mississauga, Ont. Email cwalREM wyn@gmail.com.

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34 REM April 2013

Hot market for Canadians in Cabo, Mexico

By Connie Adair

Terry Curtis

he real estate market in Cabo is hot, and you can get involved by referring clients, or enjoy the locale yourself and sell real estate in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. Century 21 Paradise Properties managing partner Terry Curtis says, “The door is open. Any Canadian citizen who has an active real estate licence qualifies to work for me. Getting a work visa

takes about three weeks.” Those who prefer to refer clients can expect a 30-per-cent referral fee. Century 21 Paradise Properties sells in Los Cabos, including Cabo San Lucas, San Jose del Cabo, Tados Santos and the East Cape, Curtis says. “Fifty per cent of our clients are Canadians. The majority of Canadian buyers buy with the idea to use the property as a holiday home and rent it out the rest of the year for now, with the intention of using it as a permanent home down the road.” There are many reasons Canadian buyers are attracted to Cabo instead of the U.S. or other parts of Mexico, he says. “We have lots of Canadians, and Canadians like Canadians. We also have a fantastic climate. Expect one month with lows of 55 F and lows of 75 F for the

other 11 months. It’s also not super expensive, and it’s clean and safe.” The housing selection is good, he says. “We have 50 months of inventory and prices are stabilizing. A year ago, a $100,000 property would go for $85,000 to $89,000. Now owners are holding out for more money and $100,000 properties are going for $95,000 or $98,000. Prices are good but it’s still a buyers’ market,” Curtis says.

a range of activities, including golfing, fishing, sailing, scuba diving, horse back riding and swimming with the dolphins. Off-road vehicles, cruises and zip lines are other activities. Curtis is originally from Corpus Christie, Texas. When he first arrived in 1989, the population was 10,000. It’s been booming since and the population is now between 250,000 and 300,000 people between here and San Jose, he says.

Century 21 Paradise Properties sold 10 properties in the first month of this year, and average 35 to 40 in a year. The average house sells for $350,000. Condos sell for $90,000 and homes can go for in excess of $5 million.

When he first arrived, he had a water sports company that employed 45, but says the market became flooded with similar companies. He decided to sell real estate, buying the franchise in 2009 with co-owner Ari Kreiss.

Los Cabos, comprised of the towns of San Jose del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas and connected by a 20-mile corridor of resort properties and beaches, offers

When the partners purchased it, the office was doing less than $5 million in sales annually. “Now we’re up to $16 million a year,” Curtis says. The company

currently has 90 listings valued at $60 million. The brokerage guides buyers through the paperwork. “We’ve lived here so long and understand the system. We help buyers. It’s part of the service.” Curtis has lived in Cabo San Lucas since 1989 and bought and sold property in Los Cabos since 1995. He has also operated several businesses and says he knows about working in Mexico as an American. He has been a Mexican citizen since 2005 and lives with his wife and four children in the community. Century 21 Paradise Properties has 12 sales reps in two offices, in Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. For more information, email Terry at terry@century21baja. com, phone 310-691-5451 or visit www.c21cabo.com. REM

Site offers “civilized” auctions of household goods

By Connie Adair

ave a client who needs to clear the clutter before they can put their house on the market, someone who is downsizing or someone who is handling an estate sale and simply doesn’t know what to do with all the stuff they no longer want or need? A new online auction, MaxSold.com, can help. “It’s like Kijiji meets eBay,” says MaxSold. com founder Barry Gordon. “eBay is a good way to sell one item to someone in California and Kijiji is a good way to sell your guitar to someone down the street. MaxSold.com is a good way to sell lots of items in your general area.” The entire process is handsoff for the seller. MaxSold. com staff visit the home and photograph and catalogue items.

The company creates a digital catalogue for online viewing, promotes the auction and sometimes sets up a preview at the house. Previews last a couple of hours and are hosted by the company. “Twenty per cent of bidders view ahead of time and 80 per cent sign up online and bid” without seeing items in person, Gordon says. Auctions are promoted digitally and to the company’s large following on Facebook and email. All items start at $1 and the highest bidder wins. Auctions have included everything from garden hoses to crystal to cars. A big benefit of the MaxSold. com concept is that it is civilized, Gordon says. Unlike estate sales, “there’s no benefit to being there first, there are no line ups

or mayhem. It’s organized and good prices are achieved through competition.” Auctions have averaged $30 to $75 per lot depending on the mix of items, with an average of over 10 bids per item and average of over 25,000 item views per event, he says. “The bulk of bidding is in the last few hours of an event….In our experience the price per item is higher than other methods of sale and more items are saleable in this process than in other methods, meaning the seller generates more money due to unit pricing and the fact that more items sell. Our average sell rate is 98.5 per cent over the 50,000 items sold to date.” After the auction closes, money is collected by the company online. “It’s a digital and transparent system, which

is important for the person who may have a power of attorney. The digital trail – what was sold and what they got – lives on,” Gordon says. The company then supervises pick up of the items from the home and then provides a cheque, less commission, to the homeowner. No money is paid upfront. The commission is 30 per cent. The whole process takes about two weeks. Households that have taken advantage of the service range from modest to high-end, and Maxsold.com works well for most items, Gordon says. If you have a lot of antiques you may want to go to a fine auction house, but for household items, Maxsold.com is the way to go, he says.

Realtors can also refer clients who are looking to furnish rentals or new or resale homes. Although the parent company, Gordon’s Estate Services, has been in the auction business for 50 years, the new Maxsold.com concept is only four-years-old, says Gordon, who conceived the idea. It’s “a fully managed event-based online auction. It’s a prototype in Canada.” The Toronto-based company currently works in the area from Ottawa to Sarnia, as well as the GTA, but is expanding to other parts of the country and into the United States. The company works with Realtors and offers a referral fee. Contact Barry Gordon at 877257-7799 for more information or visit maxsold.com. REM

36 REM APRIL 2013

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94 Scarsdale Rd. Toronto, ON M3B 2R7 s ns dbrown@marketconnection o co www.marketconnections.c

In a blender or food processor, combine raspberry vinegar, raspberries, honey and basil. Blend for 1 minute or until well mixed. Add olive oil in a slow, steady stream, blending until dressing is smooth. Store, covered, in the refrigerator. Serve over salad at room temperature.

Good Works T

he Coldest Night of the Year is a non-competitive five and 10-km winter walk fundraiser supporting select charities that serve the hungry and homeless in communities across Canada. The evening walk in the dead of winter is a reminder of the challenges that homeless people experience. Sales rep Kim MacKay of Sutton Group - Quantum Realty in Oakville, Ont. and three friends bundled up recently to raise money and awareness. Their team, called Maple Grove â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Outreach, was the fifth highest fundraiser in Oakville. They raised $2,355 and helped to bring the Oakville total to $36,548. Nationally, 6,847 walkers raised $1,399,614.

Danny Brown

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94 Scarsdale Road Toronto, Ontario M3B 2R7

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Coldwell Banker Heroes, the Coldwell Banker brandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s charitable recognition program, recorded donations of more than $4.7 million and 45,000 volunteer hours to local charities in its inaugural year. Coldwell Banker All PointsFestival City in Stratford, Ont., led by owners Donny Rivers and Pat Simons, had 27 different charitable

initiatives in 2012. Activities included multiple sponsorships and volunteering for local sports teams and events; a Heart & Stroke fundraiser, and a year-long weekly 50/50 draw with $1 per week per person donation to United Way. Coldwell Banker Rhodes & Company in Ottawa, led by broker of record Jim McKeown, supports The Hospice at May Court, a community-based organization supporting families dealing with lifethreatening illness. Through their fund-raising efforts, the company has raised $135,000. â&#x2013; â&#x2013; â&#x2013;

The 27th annual Carl Oake Swimathon, sponsored by broker Carl Oake of Century 21 United in Peterborough, Ont., aimed to raise $50,000 for Easter Seals and local Rotary Club projects. The final total from the event will be known later this year. Annaleise Carr, 14, the youngest person to swim across Lake Ontario, attended the event along with local Easter Seals ambassador Aidan Cameron, 8. â&#x2013; â&#x2013; â&#x2013;

All nine agents from Royal LePage Access Real Estate in Salmon Arm, B.C., are now officially Royal LePage Shelter Foundation supporters. Their first donation of $1,080 was raised by the agents directing a portion of their commission to the Shelter Foundation for every sale they made. Broker/owner Marv Beer says he is proud his office has now achieved 100 per cent support of their local shelter, with all agents in the office making a donation from each deal. â&#x2013; â&#x2013; â&#x2013;

Until June 18, Royal LePage Landco Realty in London, Ont. is hosting a fitness challenge in support of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. Participants can choose to challenge themselves in three different ways: Reach a certain weight loss goal; lose inches around the areas they would like to shape up, or create their own Fitness Challenge, such as increased visits to the gym over the 100 days, or working up to run a distance. All funds raised will be donated to the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation in support of Violence Against Women Services Elgin County in St. Thomas, Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Community House in London and Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Rural Resource Centre in Strathroy to provide life-saving services to women and children escaping violence. To learn more or sign up, email Sarah at shapeupforshelter@hotmail.com. REM

From left: Morar Murray-Hayes, Diane Hunt, Sue Anderson and Kim MacKay took part in the Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser.

1-800-387-6058 ext. 239

Vivian Giraldi 1-800-387-6058 ext. 246

1-800-387-6058 www.realtyreport.org

Carl Vandergoot, broker of record and owner Re/Max Centre City Realty in London, Ont. presents $15,954 to Stacey Johnson, community relations associate of the Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Health Foundation. The funds are the 2012 Re/Max City Centre agents and staff contributions to Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Miracle Network. During the past 12 years the brokerage has contributed more than $200,000.

Marilyn Kalke (far right) of the Shuswap Area Family Emergency Society accepts a cheque presented by, from left: Steve Lewis, Susanne Rahn, Doug Hubscher, Lisa Nobbs, Jeremy Osborne, Al Bingham, Shirley Barker, Gary Osborne and Marv Beer of Royal LePage Access Real Estate. Tara Gallant, who also contributed, was not present when the photo was taken.

Being Better Rocks. Brokers who are part of the Better Homes and Gardens® Real Estate family are linked to an iconic and trusted brand that has been synonymous with the home since 1924. We are committed to helping our franchisees grow by: opening up new markets, increasing profitability, and attracting exceptional talent. We have the right marketing tools, innovative technology and lead-generation strategies to help you succeed. You’re good at what you do. But with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate you can Be Better. To find out how you can Be Better: 1-855-466-0003 BHGCANADA.CA

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38 REM APRIL 2013

Frank Polzler: The simple secrets of success F

rank Polzler, a native of Graz, Austria, obtained his real estate license just six years after coming to Canada. He built a real estate business and in 1980, along with partner Walter Schneider, established Re/Max Ontario-Atlantic Canada, laying the groundwork for Re/Max growth outside the United States. Re/Max International founder Dave Liniger has said that without the early work of Polzler and Schneider, the franchise may not have survived. Later Polzler and Schneider opened offices in New England and the U.S. Mid-West, and in 1994 they established Re/Max Europe, which now includes 36 countries. In April, Polzler will celebrate his 80th birthday. Recently he published Journey of a Lifetime: A Memoir. The following is an exclusive excerpt.

By Frank Polzler with Jennifer Campbell A few years ago, I bumped into one of my classmates from grade five or six. He became a professor of physics, obviously a very smart man. We reminisced about our childhood and our school. He said to me, “Frank, I remember you in school. I sat behind you. You didn’t excel academically, but you sure showed leadership.” It’s true; I wasn’t a No. 1 student. If I was interested in a subject, I was very good at it, but the ones I didn’t like and I figured I’d never need in my life, the heck with it! My strength has always been that people looked to me for leadership. I don’t know why exactly, but that’s something in me. All along, even from when I was a kid, people gathered around me and I would inspire them to do certain things. And they’d do it and we’d all benefit. I was always good at things when I had to work by myself, too, when I had to make my own sales or something, but my forte was that I could delegate. I learned long ago that everyone has something to offer and

not everybody has everything, so I learned how to make a deal with them so we could help each other. For instance, when I was a kid and my aunt sent me a soccer ball – which at that time, believe me, was a prized possession – I’d say to my buddies, “I’ll let you play soccer with my ball if you help me out with my homework.” And it worked! When I was crossing the ocean and met Alan Mentl, the fact that he could speak English was a huge advantage and I knew that. Besides the fact that I just liked him and we got along, I knew that he could be a safety net for me. When I didn’t understand something, he’d help me. And if we both didn’t understand it, we’d look it up in a dictionary. When you team up, it’s almost always better than going it alone. A leader has to be visionary, a strategist. He has to be honest so people can trust him. You can’t force people to trust you; you have to earn and create trust. It’s very simple, really. I think I’ve done well because I’ve always had an open mind. I don’t just fixate on a certain way to do things and barrel my way through. If there are obstacles, I figure out a way around them – and there’s almost always a way. If it doesn’t work here, it will work there. Most people give up. The real key to leadership is to find a way around the obstacle or the challenge. If you can’t get over the mountain, then build a tunnel through it or a road around it. If that doesn’t work, then burrow under it. One way or another, you’ve got to get to the other side. I think people around me have come to trust that I am going to find a solution one way or another. One thing for certain; I’m not going to give up. You’ve got to have faith in yourself if you expect other people to have faith in you. I think if you were to ask the people in Europe, they’d say they trust Walter and me implicitly, without question. We’ve never given them a reason not to. Some people want the easy way out rather than doing the less pleasant things. For instance, to build a Re/Max fran-

feel lousy, I think to myself, “Well, I’m going to make the best of this day.” That’s the way you get rid of the obstacles in your life. You are mentally well and you are physically well. That’s where it’s at. I guess I’ve always had that positive attitude. I sure did when I packed my green suitcase and headed off for Canada. And I sure had it when I didn’t shy away from a crappy first job. I just did it, because I knew that once I knew enough English, I could get a better job.

Customer service

Frank Polzler (photo by Marko Shark)

chise, you have to recruit people. I don’t know any way to recruit people other than talking to them and building a relationship. Well, some people don’t like talking to other people. That’s okay, but that means they have to be realistic about their choices and chance of success. Sometimes being a leader means doing the things that other people don’t want to do. For instance, I always sold houses in the summertime, when everyone was on vacation. All the other agents figured it was a slow time and no one would be interested in buying a house. Once, back in the ’60s, it was a Grey Cup Saturday or Sunday, and of course everyone was at home gathered around their TV sets to watch the game. I was there, too. But there was so much fog they had to stop the game. I watched the TV for a

while, then thought, “Well, this is a waste of time. I’ll go up to my model house and open it for a while. Maybe somebody will drift in. At the very least I’ll get some paperwork done.” By the time I got to the model home, you couldn’t see 50 metres in front of you. I sat listening to the radio – I was a bit of a football fan but not crazy about it – and a couple walked in. The man’s name was Basil and he was English – I don’t remember his second name. They looked around and I said, “What can I do for you?” He said, “We have to find a house.” And I sold them a house that day, when every other agent was at home watching the game. The same positive, optimistic attitude will see you through recessions, too. You have to start each day like that, and things will happen positively for you. If I wake up with a bad cold and

Customer service is what makes or breaks a salesperson, or in fact any company or business. Today, real estate agents have to go to school to inform themselves about real estate laws and transactions and everything, but I don’t think they get a lot of training on customer service and sales techniques, which are really important. Intelligence is not everything. There are a lot of PhDs around who are not doing well financially – not doing well in life, never mind money. You have to have a little bit of entrepreneurship in you. You have to have a good way with people. Some people have a natural gift to be gregarious with people. It’s good to be outgoing and friendly so people relax and tell you about what they want and what they need. At the very basic level – and it’s unbelievable to me that some salespeople don’t do this – you have to smile. My great-grandson, Jackson, has a smile that would floor anybody. If he keeps that smile, there will be no holding him back. There’s something about a person who smiles a lot. It breaks the ice right away. I think I’ve been that way all my life. Maybe I smiled like that when I was his age – I don’t know, because I don’t have any baby pictures of me and, even if I had any, I’d probably have a stern face because that’s what photographers made you do in those days. At Re/Max, we teach our

REM APRIL 2013 39

people to constantly prospect. We are building relationships with people out there, the people that we are selling for, the people that we represent as buyers. We help them negotiate a deal and take care of all the details for the customer. If the agent does a good job, the buyer or seller will probably go back to him/her. We teach our people, “Stay in touch.” It’s not a case of make the sale, grab the commission and run. Once you’re in business for a while, most of your activity is going to be referrals and repeat business. That’s the key. This is the type of agent that we are developing, and this is what we teach him/her. This was never around before. I’ve always been adamant about a code of ethics for my people. At one point I served on the real estate board’s Ethics Committee. You have to establish trust. When I started Re/Max in Canada, and it was even more so in Europe, a real estate agent was on the same level as a used-car salesman. We tried to change that. There are still some bad apples but you’re going to get that in any business. But we do a good job of weeding them out. We don’t want the hucksters, the guys that want to con somebody into a deal. You don’t have to be pushy or aggressive. My philosophy has always been, “If you like what you see, if you can afford what you see, then you make the decision. I’m just here to help you.”

The cover of Frank Polzler’s memoir.

Positive attitude You also have to have a positive attitude – all the time, day in and day out, no matter what happens. Some people are like toilet seats, up and down all the time. One day they feel horrible – they don’t feel like doing anything. The next day they’re jumping up and down. You have to be constant and you have to be able to handle the downs in the business, and there are lots of them. Real estate is a very attractive career at any time. I’ve been in it for almost 55 years. But you have to be an innovator and a survivor, and you’ve got to have the stomach to hang in there. It’s not an easy business. When the market is good, it’s easy. But a lot of people fall by the wayside when the market toughens up. It’s a good business to be in if you want to work really hard and if you want to give good customer service. If you’re not hesitant to talk to people, you will always have business. I took a lot of courses in the earlier years. My personal growth was always very important. There were two themes to these courses: sales and marketing skills, and keeping a positive attitude. Somewhere in these motivational training classes, somebody said, “Your security is between your ears.” Real estate pays by commission. There’s no security, no paycheque there unless you do something. If you go through my whole story, you most probably could see that I have always thought that it’s me that has to make it happen. I’m lucky that maybe I was born with a positive attitude. I’m not one of those guys who goes around with a crappy attitude all the time and takes days out of his life to feel sorry for himself. I’m not

Frank Polzler with Dave Liniger and Walter Schneider at the company’s 25th anniversary celebration.

talking about people who truly have depression and need help; I mean the people who think they’re entitled to money and success just because they show up. When they get hit with something going wrong, they either moan that “it’s impossible” and give up or they blame someone else. There are more No’s than Yes’s, so you just live with the No’s and exploit the Yes’s. Sometimes you’re going to get too many No’s and you’re tempted to throw up your arms and give up. But don’t! Just keep going. It’s only a No. There are going to be lots of times that you have to deal with disappointment. You put in a lot of time with a customer and you think you have an honest and straightforward relationship; then you call them up one day and tell them you found a house for them, and they tell you they just bought one from somebody else. That’s why I get upset when some idiot reporter writes a newspaper article about how real estate agents rip you off. He should try just one year in real estate and he wouldn’t say that anymore. It’s not an easy business. People don’t try real estate; real estate tries people. It’s a tough one. But you have to keep at it. If someone says to me, “I got nothin’ goin’ on,” I say, “Make it happen.” Nobody’s going to do it for you. You have to get out there, talk to everyone you know, and business will come. That’s the way it happens. A lot of the franchises we sold originally have failed, but it’s not because the system isn’t

any good. In the U.S. and Europe, people bought into what the media was saying or what people on the street were saying. That’s when it got bad! They didn’t have the motivation anymore to carry on or implement this fabulous system. When people say, “How is the market?” I say, “Well, it depends. Are you selling or are you buying?” Right now, things are slow. It’s really a great time to buy. But because people are like sheep, they buy when everybody else buys and prices are on the top end. The market is also between your ears. It’s the way you think! When you listen to the news and the market is good, everyone goes, “Aha, ha-ha, let’s go and sell a lot of real estate.” Easy. If the market crashes, which it has done in my career about five or six times, and you believe the headlines in the media about how bad it is out there, you might be expected to think, “What’s the sense of going to work? It’s bad, anyways.” That’s what we’re going through with our European business right now. A lot of not going to work. However, I always did the opposite. I went out there and beat the bushes. I always got business. When I’d interview prospective salespeople, they would say, “Well, I’m going to try real estate.” I’d say, “Excuse me. I don’t think you’re going to try real estate. Real estate needs a commitment, and I think real estate will try you. We’ll know in a few months if you’ve got the stomach to hang in there.”

Real estate is great when you’re closing deals. Go to any of our Re/Max offices and you’ll see Mercedes, Cadillacs, Jaguars and Audis, all the big cars. But when there’s a dry season, you don’t know how you’ll pay the bills. I read a book once about the American Revolution. Apparently, George Washington had a terrible army. It was made up of farmers that were fighting this highly polished British army. The story goes that Washington told them, “Guys, just shoot, shoot, shoot until you learn to aim. Let’s make lots of noise, okay?” And we did the same thing. Just go for it!

Assertiveness and good impressions In the old days, we used to canvas on the telephone. Now there’s a law against phoning people. This is stupid, because these people are trying to make a living. If you don’t want to be disturbed by a salesperson at dinner, then unplug the phone. Why do you need a law? This is government intrusion into business. I would say that at least half the people I ever called were always very friendly to me, because I knew how to handle them. When I recruited salespeople, I was polite and considerate, which made them relax and listen to me. They would melt. You can’t just yak-yak-yak at people. You have to acknowledge them being there. We’d also go around knocking on doors. We might knock on 50 doors in a day and maybe Continued on page 40

40 REM APRIL 2013

Never cold canvas again

By Ian Grace ew Realtors in an area will say, “I have to make myself known,” so they go knocking on doors, cold canvassing. Unfortunately, so do many experienced Realtors as well. The sad reality is that the people out there don’t care that you have to make yourself known. I often ask my real estate audiences, “Who likes cold canvassing?” With rare exceptions, the answer is no one. Then I ask if the public likes being cold canvassed, and again the answer is no. So for the life of me, I cannot understand why salespeople who hate cold canvassing continue to do it to people who hate having it done to them. It makes no sense at all. The pure arrogance of cold canvassing, knocking on someone’s door and offering to help them, with no prior knowledge about them, defies belief. Jim Reitzel is a U.S.

Frank Polzler Continued from page 39

half of them wouldn’t answer the door or weren’t home. But with the people who did come to the door, I was always careful to leave them with a good impression. That’s where your training kicks in. If someone said, “No, I’m not interested,” then I’d say, “I understand. However (and I’d always have a smile on my face), “if I can ever do anything in real estate for you or any of your friends, here’s my card. Thank you very much.” You don’t walk away with a long face because someone said no. What makes a good salesman? You don’t give up. You just keep going! Do what you have to do. You know what to do. It’s not

Realtor/broker who I’ve known for about 10 years. Many years ago I watched him go from 250 personal sales referrals per year to over 500 in a few short years. I even brought him to Australia to speak at a conference I ran back in 2006, to tell the audience exactly what he does. The interesting thing is, his focus is never on cold canvassing, but rather on referrals and everything he does is focused on the customers, not himself. Let’s face it, if potential customers don’t like being cold canvassed, then persisting in doing it is extremely bad customer service. There are so many things that can be done instead of cold canvassing. Julie is a salesperson I’ve known for several years. She had an area that she farmed, of around 1,200 houses. Here in Australia we celebrate Australia Day once a year. Julie purchased a quantity of very cheap small Australian flags and with the help of some friends, she placed one in the front yard of every house in the area, with her business card stapled to it, merely saying happy Australia Day. The people absolutely loved it and in no time at all she had spoken to around 450 of the peorocket science – it’s easy in that you know what you have to do. You don’t have to solve huge problems, like how to invent something to prevent a car from guzzling too much gas. That’s a science. Real estate is not a science. It’s a people business, a relationship business. It’s all about how you interact with people and what kind of impressions you make.

Adaptation and perseverance This is not a business for everybody; lots of people abandon their real estate careers because they’re not good at sales, not good with people, or they can’t stand the downturns. That’s fine for them. For me, I

ple in the area. Some had phoned to say they had two or perhaps three children and one of them had the Australian flag and did she perhaps have any spare flags for the other children? How simple and powerful was that! At Christmas time, every household that decorated their

have any real estate needs or would like to receive regular updates on prices in the area.” The salesperson just does a deal with a local coffee shop, which provides the vouchers. A switched-on coffee shop realises their investment is not large and they will always get a return, because most people will bring a

Let’s face it, if potential customers don’t like being cold canvassed, then persisting in doing it is extremely bad customer service. home with lights received a certificate printed off Julie’s computer, rolled up with a ribbon around it with card and contact details, saying thank you for brightening our Christmas with your lights. By the time they then receive the Australia Day flag as well, she’s got them won. Others use devices as simple as a voucher saying, “Have a coffee on me and let me know if you

never once thought about leaving this business. I’m one of the survivors who have been in it for such a long time and it’s because I’ve moved with the times. I paid $5 for my real estate licence. I went from salesman to broker, sold new houses, sold resales, then the brokerage, back into resales, and expanded, expanded. In the ’70s, I started to realize that things were changing, and that’s when I began looking at franchises. I had a pretty good local name here in the region because of my offices in Mississauga and Etobicoke, in Milton and Brampton and Burlington. So I had that regional name but I did not have a national name. There was tremendous competition from the trust compa-

friend with them and perhaps buy something to eat to go with the coffee. And for the price of a free coffee, they may have a brand-new repeat customer. Everybody wins. Another version of this – I’ve seen others who provide a business card with 10 numbered squares on the back of their card. Each square entitles them to a free coffee when they spend $5

nies and so on and I had to change, so I did. I looked for a brand to join. Re/Max didn’t have much of a brand name at the time, but Walter and I liked the system. The fact that it was unheard of up here didn’t stop us. We believed in it from the beginning. It was a win–win situation when Walter and I started building the Re/Max brand. We sold the system. It attracted and held the best salespeople. They had all the advantages of being independent as well as having the support of the brand and the system. And if they chose not to join one of our teams and wanted to go out on their own, that was fine, too – we’d sell them a franchise! Now everybody’s copying us. A key element of success is to

or more at the particular coffee shop. This means they have to look at that particular agent’s card and perhaps photo 10 times, as they pull it out to be stamped at the coffee shop. There are innovative ways to get these things noticed. Making sure it is not a windy day, can you imagine a row of houses in a street, with cheap helium balloons flying from each letterbox, with strings attached to the voucher, inside the box? The balloons can even be printed with the real estate office and agent. And boy, would that be noticed. There’s plenty more but that’s enough for now. I hope that makes sense and moves you away from old-fashioned cold canvassing. Known internationally as “Mr. Real Estate Advertising”, Australian Ian Grace is acknowledged as one of the world’s leading authorities on real estate advertising. Since 1994, he has delivered his programs throughout Australia, New Zealand, U.S.A., Canada and the U.K. His articles about real estate advertising have been published around the world. www.iangrace.com REM

just keep going. It sounds so simple and it is simple. The same thing goes with selling franchises. Walter has a saying, “You have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince.” You just have to keep kissing, you know? You don’t give up after you’ve talked to five people and heard their sob stories. People will come to you with all kinds of rationalizing why it doesn’t work. Well, as a leader you have two choices. One is to agree with them, and one is to turn the thing around and show them how it can work. You have to be able to make people see the other side of it. Rationalizing is the easiest way to avoid doing something. “Oh, it’s tough.” Sure it’s tough. So what? REM

REM APRIL 2013 41

Home Improvement’s Richard Karn By Dan St. Yves

ou can’t flip through the TV channels these days without some sort of home renovation, home relocation or home improvement show turning up. I had the chance recently to talk with someone who spent eight seasons on a hit TV show dealing with one of those very topics. As a sort of Jiminy Cricket to guns-ablazin’ “expert” Tim Allen, Richard Karn became widely recognizable for his role as Al Borland on their popular show Home Improvement. He has also enjoyed success in movies, on stage and as a host of Family Feud. When he was in Calgary, I interviewed Karn and asked if he felt their show may have helped spawn some of the plethora of serious shows that are on the air now. “Home improvement is a popular subject. It affects everybody. Whether we’re nesting or fixing up our apartment – or we’ve bought a

new house...a lot of people want to do things themselves...” He was quick to add that Home Improvement may not have always set the tone for proper tips on renovations. “We did an episode on drywall and we were on drywall stilts. Tim put a pneumatic lift on his, and he went up through the ceiling. But we had some things, you know – we had Helpful Hints. We showed how to take out a broken light bulb with a potato. That was kind of interesting...” Mostly what Richard and the rest of the cast on the show did was provide millions of viewers with hilarious impressions of how renovation tips could go wrong. Al was most often the voice of reason to Tim’s dismissive “expertise”. The show runs worldwide in syndication now. Early on during the series, Karn discovered the show was a hit with TV audiences, and that his own role was secure. I

found a tidbit online that he had kept a job as an apartment building manager through the first season of the show, until he knew it wasn’t going to be cancelled. “Almost true – I only kept it through about half of the first season,” he says. “After a while, after the show started to air, I would get these phone calls from people...our sink is all stopped up... So, I’d go down and take a look, and there’d be about 15 people in there, and they’d go, “See, I told you Al was our apartment manager.” And I thought, okay, maybe my day job is secure now.” Karn also worked with a Canadian national treasure, early in her career – actress Pamela Anderson was a Tool Time Girl. He shared a fun story about his father meeting her, but I will direct you to my video interview for that full excerpt from our chat. Visit my site (http://thatdanguy.libsyn.com/) to download and

Richard Karn (left) and Dan St. Yves

view it, or if you prefer, watch it on my YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/that danguy1?feature=guide Richard Karn was in Calgary appearing in a Stage West Theatre production somewhat more relevant to his time spent on Family Feud. In Game Show he hosts a fictional televised recording, which involves audience members. It moves to Stage West Mississauga from April 25 to June 30, 2013.

While Karn won’t be in that production, another TV star will appear – Charles Shaughnessy from Mad Men, the sitcom The Nanny and the soap opera Days of Our Lives. Humour columnist and author Dan St. Yves was licensed with Royal LePage Kelowna for 11 years. Check out his website at www.nonsenseandstuff.com, or contact him at danst.yves@hotmail.com. REM

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42 REM APRIL 2013

Invidiata team named No. 1 worldwide for Re/Max The Invidiata Team, lead by Christopher Invidiata of Re/Max Aboutowne Realty Corp. in Oakville, Ont., was named the No. 1 Re/Max Team Worldwide for 2012 during the Re/Max International convention held in Las Vegas recently. The Invidiata Team was also awarded with the Luminary of Distinction award, for earning $20 million in commission over a 20year period. “Success is rooted in our ability to listen and respond effectively to the needs of our clients. Our team is dedicated and passionate of what they do,” says Invidiata. Invidiata began his real estate career in 1985. He has specialized in selling Oakville’s waterfront property since 1987. His specialization in luxury real estate has made his team No. 1 in Canada for 11 years. Recently The Invidiata Team made a $250,000 donation to the new Oakville Hospital. It has also been a consistent supporter of

many charities, including The Hospital for Sick Children, Children’s Miracle Network, Circle of Care, Run For Life, Dreams Take Flight, The Fight Against Breast Cancer and the Red Cross.

Judy Gray is VIREB Realtor of the Year Judy Gray of Re/Max MidIsland Realty in Ucluelet was recently presented with the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB) Realtor of the Year award. It recognizes those individuals whose dedication to excellence has had a profound influence on the professional image of VIREB Realtors and exemplifies such characteristics as leadership, industry stakeholder participation and active community involvement. A Realtor since 1992 and an office owner since 1998, Gray has earned multiple professional designations, is the past chair of the VIREB Commercial Council, is a participant in the British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) Advisory Group, and is

a passionate supporter of the B.C. Children’s Hospital Foundation among other charitable activities. Earlier this year, she was awarded the Re/Max of Western Canada Spirit of the West Award for her extensive community based charity work. The 2012 RealtorsCare Awards were presented to Matt Breedlove, Royal LePage Parksville Qualicum Realty; Erika-Leigh Haley, Royal LePage Advance Realty in Campbell River; Dave Koszegi, Re/Max of Nanaimo; Debbie Meiner, Re/Max of Duncan; and Bernie Poole, Re/Max Ocean Pacific Realty in Comox. This award, which has been presented annually since 2007, recognizes individual Realtors for their outstanding community service and professional leadership.

CIR Realty wins World Achievement Award CIR Realty in Calgary was the recipient of a Leading Real Estate Companies of the World Achievement Award presented at the network’s annual conference in Las Vegas. The event was part of the network’s Conference Week, which attracted nearly 2,000 real estate professionals from 17 countries. CIR Realty was presented the Most Innovative Brokerage Award, which honours one brokerage that “has made an extraordinary difference for their company and their business community

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through a program that has demonstrated a high level of innovation and creativity,” the company says. LeadingRE president and CEO Pam O’Connor presented the award in recognition of the brokerages’ commitment to inhouse technology solutions, unique agent recruiting and retention strategies, transparent communication systems that relay information about real estate transactions to not only CIR Realtors but also to Realtors from other brokerages, and the brokerage’s online, live meeting and training system. Kirsten Faverin, marketing manager at CIR Realty, says the technology enables the brokerage to focus on people, not paperwork. “The benefit of being an independent brokerage is that we can react to market trends and technology almost instantly… There is no red tape. We are empowered to be innovative and find creative solutions to Realtors’ needs,” says Faverin. CIR Realty is Calgary’s largest independent brokerage with over 650 Realtors, staff and managers in four Calgary and 10 Alberta satellite offices.

Cal Crawford honoured by FVREB The 2013 recipient of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board’s John Armeneau Professional of the Year award is Cal Crawford, managing broker of Landmark Realty in Mission, B.C. The award is the highest honour the board bestows, recognizing outstanding leadership and dedication professionally and within the community. After more than 30 years in real estate (24 in Mission), Crawford is well-known for his expertise in management, training and sales. For 10 years he has served organized real estate by volunteering on behalf of the board, most notably on its Brokers’ Council. “Cal is one of our most knowledgeable, dependable and respected Realtors and brokers. He has dedicated himself to our profession elevating it to the highest level by displaying impeccable standards of business ethics and teaching those same standards to hundreds of col-

leagues over the years,” says Scott Olson, FVREB past-president. Over the years, the City of Mission has honoured Crawford with a Special Citizen Recognition award; a Citizen of the Year award and a Business Leader of the Year award.

Lucky Gill, Sutton Group - West Coast Realty honoured as ‘good neighbours’ The FVREB also presented its highest honours for community giving. For the first time, the individual and corporate Realtors Make Good Neighbours awards recipients were from the same office. The individual award went to Lucky Gill, with her brokerage, Sutton Group - West Coast Realty in Surrey receiving recognition for being the most community-minded office in the Fraser Valley. Sutton Group - West Coast Realty, located in Newton, donated significant time and money to over a dozen charities and events in 2012, including the Canadian Cancer Society, the Heart and Stroke Foundation, Guru Nanak’s Free Kitchen and the B.C. Fire Fighters’ Burn Fund. The office represents 70-plus Realtors and is lead by Ishaq Ismail, managing broker. In addition to selling real estate and volunteering her time with the Mannkind Charitable Society, Lucky Gill heads Global Girl Power Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to empowering, educating and supporting women and girls locally and across the globe. She’s led annual walks to raise awareness of female feticide, organized candlelight vigils for Amanda Todd and all victims of bullying, rape and extreme acts of violence such as the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in the U.S. She has also held empowerment workshops for high school girls on body image and health.

Re/Max Kelowna honoured for CMN donations Re/Max of Western Canada recently presented Re/Max Kelowna with the Champions of

REM APRIL 2013 43

Hope Award, which recognizes the office for the highest amount of contributions ever made by a single office to Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Miracle Network. The network funds B.C. childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hospitals, where one in four of the provinceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s children will be seen in their lifetime. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Re/Max Kelowna continues to rise above and beyond in the region, and has made an enormous difference in the lives of many children through its donations,â&#x20AC;? says Elton Ash, president of Re/Max of Western Canada. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re proud to present this award to Cliff Shillington, broker/owner and we are excited to see the commitment that this group of Realtors has to both Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Miracle Network and their community.â&#x20AC;? Re/Max Kelowna is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.

Sutton Group â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Select honours Linda Wilson

Royal LePage Shelter Foundation

Linda Wilson, a sales rep with Sutton Group â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Select Realty in London, Ont. was presented with the 13th annual Michele Montour Award. The award is presented annually to a sales rep in the brokerage with a positive, professional, enthusiastic and giving attitude. A Sutton - Select sales rep since 1996, Wilson â&#x20AC;&#x153;is the first to volunteer and readily helps organize as well as participates in all company functions and events, specifically our charity golf tournament, taking a leadership role,â&#x20AC;? the company says. The brokerage awards the Michele Montour Award for Excellence in Real Estate annually to honour the late Michele Montour, a sales rep who was an inspiration to her peers.

The Royal LePage Shelter Foundation and its supporters were recently honoured with the 2013 Youth Impact Award from the Rotary Club of Toronto West. This award recognizes the leadership of individuals, community organizations and businesses that promote the importance of helping youth. Funding from the Shelter Foundation has enabled womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s shelters across the country to provide counselling and other support to children and youth who have witnessed family violence. Royal LePage was recognized for hosting fundraising events, providing commission donations and participating in the National Garage Sale for Shelter in support of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. REM

The team at CIR Realty receives the award.

Royal LePage Highland Properties Valerie Haskett-Chugg

Effective March 4, 2013, Valerie HaskettChugg, broker of Prudential Highland Properties, has joined the Royal LePage franchise network. Valerieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s office will now operate under the name of Royal LePage Highland Properties.

In addition to Antigonish, Royal LePage Highland Properties services the areas of Guysborough, Pictou County and Port Hawkesbury.

Valerie began her real estate career 22 years ago. After obtaining her license in 1989, she promptly became qualified as a broker and within a year had purchased the office where she was working. Valerie has successfully operated Prudential Highland Properties for the past 20 years.

219 Main Street, Suite 104 Antigonish, NS B2G 2C1 Phone: 902-863-1878 Fax: 902-863-1933 valeriechugg@royallepage.ca

Valerie is excited about making this change. She says that â&#x20AC;&#x153;Royal LePage has a great reputation in the world of real estateâ&#x20AC;? and she looks forward to growing her business with the assistance of the Royal LePage brand.

Valerie and her team can be reached at:

Congratulations to Valerie and the team at Royal LePage Highland Properties. For information on the Royal LePage franchise program, please call: Tel (416) 510-5827 or email: franchise@royallepage.ca

â&#x20AC; â&#x20AC; Royal LePage is a trademark used under license.

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Bruce Sworik, broker of record with Sutton Group â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Select Realty with sales rep Linda Wilson Accepting the 2013 Youth Impact Award from the Rotary Club of Toronto West is Shanan Spencer-Brown, executive director of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation (centre), presented by Simone Laronde of Pepsico and Dennis Good, president of The Rotary Club of Toronto West.

Ishaq Ismail and Lucky Gill.

Antigonish, NS

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HOME DELIVERY

Since 1989, REM has been offered free to every real estate board and association in Canada to distribute to their members. That’s not about to change, but as we approach a quarter century of publishing we recognize that many aspects of the industry have. Responding to environmental concerns, REM is now “green” – printed on paper certified by FSC, an international system for forests and forest products supported by WWF Canada, Greenpeace and the David Suzuki Foundation. Many real estate professionals now work out of their home offices. We’d like to give those who prefer to receive delivery at home the option of receiving REM directly. Home delivery of REM is now available for $19.89 (plus tax) per year. We ask only that you cover the cost of postage. We’ll take care of the rest.

Get REM at home! Call 416-425-3504 Ext. 4 or contact distribution@remonline.com and start receiving REM Home Delivery.

REM APRIL 2013 45

What’s

New FCT strengthens underwriting guidelines First Canadian Title (FCT), a provider of title insurance, recently revised its guidelines to track growing incidents of commercial real estate fraud. In past years, FCT says it has primarily reported on residential real estate fraud – fraud committed against homeowners and their lenders – in order to advise the public on how to protect themselves from becoming victims of real estate fraud. In 2012, with growing incidents of commercial

frauds, FCT is now alerting purchasers of commercial properties, commercial lenders and their legal counsel about the increasing number of incidents. “In 2012, FCT’s commercial underwriting team suspected fraud in commercial transactions valued at $28 million. These frauds represented a tiny percentage, less than one per cent of the commercial deals that FCT underwrote in 2012. However they average a potential $3.5 million loss to a commercial lender, so the impact of one commercial fraud can be substantial,” says Eric Haslett, vicepresident and chief underwriter at FCT. In contrast, FCT suspected fraud in residential deals that were valued at a total of $23.5 million. The average suspected residential fraud is estimated at approximately one-tenth the value of an average suspected commercial fraud, the company says. “While I don’t want to tip off fraudsters as to what we are tracking, I will say that we are particularly concerned about transactions involving vacant commercial land. We subject these deals to extra scrutiny,” says Haslett.

intelliMortgage joins Verico Network

Manager, Western Canada of TD Canada Trust.

Robert and Melanie McLister and Tim Mezik, the brokers/owners of intelliMortgage, based in Vancouver and Toronto, have joined Verico Canada. Robert is the writer behind one of the most-well known mortgage blogs in Canada, Canadianmortgagetrends.com, which is known as a source for balanced, intelligent opinions and read by over 600,000 professionals and consumers annually. Robert is also a mortgage columnist for the Globe and Mail and is regularly sought out by the media for mortgage-related commentary. Melanie, Robert’s wife, is a veteran broker and lead mortgage planner at intelliMortgage. She co-founded MyVirtualMortgage Broker.com in 2006 and helped build its online origination volumes into the tens of millions annually. Mezik is CEO of intelliMortgage, after having spent five years as president of FirstLine Mortgages, helping it attain a peak of $16 billion in annual funding. Prior to that, he was vice-president of GE Money and district

Lone Wolf partners with eRelocation Eliminating real estate referral oversight and tedious dual data entry is an opportunity to save real estate brokers time and money. Lone Wolf Real Estate Technologies is partnering with eRelocation, a Dayton, Ohio-based real estate technology company specializing in broker relocation software, to create seamless connectivity for referral processing and accounting, the companies say. Through the partnership, relocation referral data originating in eRelocation will pass through to the brokerWOLF back office management solution in two ways. Once a referral is assigned in eRelocation, it will be captured through WOLFconnect, Lone Wolf’s virtual front office management solution, and passed along to the brokerWOLF accounting system. There it will be available for matching to real estate transactions as they are processed. This closes the loop and will help to ensure that the proper commission sharing occurs between the referring com-

pany, the brokerage and the agent, the company says. Second, referrals that go to pending status in eRelocation will seamlessly be integrated into brokerWOLF, eliminating the need for duplicate entry. For information: www.lwolf.com.

Monica Stanciu wins staging award again Monica Stanciu, owner of Staged 2 Sell Solutions and a member of the Real Estate Staging Association, the trade association for professional real estate stagers and re-designers, was named as the 2013 RESA Professional Stager of the Year for Canada. She also won the award last year. Stanciu has been a professional real estate staging consultant since 2007. Her company services the Greater Toronto Area. “Being the recipient of this award two years in a row comes with a responsibility that I do not take lightly. I will continue to educate home sellers and real estate agents on the value home staging brings when selling a property,” says Stanciu. REM

46 REM APRIL 2013

THE PUBLISHER’S PAGE

By Heino Molls

MARKETPLACE

am pleased to humbly announce that I have discovered the centre of the universe. My discovery does not follow years of research nor is it the result of studying lengthy charts with a team of engineers from the most prestigious universities in the world. I came to this astounding information after thinking about it one afternoon this winter while I was waiting for my tea to steep. It is so simple that I understand why scientists have not come upon it themselves. I know everyone will agree with the logic of my thinking. Please pay attention and follow along: It is obvious that our galaxy, the Milky Way, is at the middle of the universe. All you have to do is look out at the stars at night to see that. Our solar system is in the middle of the galaxy and right in the middle of our solar system, discounting the gas planets, is our own beautiful planet, Earth.

Centre of the universe Taking things further along, it is understood by everyone that the best country and therefore the centre of the entire world is Canada. The one place that is at the centre of Canada for culture, music, art, business, languages spoken, transportation, real estate and anything else you can name is, of course, the City of Toronto. The accepted middle of the City of Toronto is downtown near the lake. That would be exactly at the foot of Bathurst Street. Out of amazing coincidence, I live at the foot of Bathurst Street in Toronto. So I guess I can officially declare that I am writing to you today from the centre of the universe. It’s an honour to be here. As ridiculous as all the above may seem, I know there are people who think the residents of Toronto believe that nonsense. I would like to dispel that suggestion and tell you honestly that in all my years as a resident of Toronto, I have never met anyone in this town that believes this city is the centre of the universe, much less Canada, like everyone claims they do. I have traveled this country from coast to coast. I have met wonderful souls in every village and town that I have come upon. Everything you have heard about the people in Atlantic Canada is true – everybody out there is my

darlin’ or my son, my son to all and sundry. I can tell you that almost every woman in Edmonton is as endearing as Diamond Lil herself and every man is a jolly Canuck – not to be confused with the hockey fans in Vancouver, who are polite to the point of their own endearment, which brings to mind the stylish girls in Montreal, the cowboys in Calgary, the old salts in Halifax and the uptight yet indefatigable politicos in Ottawa. Have I missed anyone? Other than my old pal Terry up in the Sault? Everyone in our country is famously pleasant, polite and has their own unique, local charm. Yet there is this nagging resentment of the poor folks in Toronto by people everywhere else. Poor Toronto. It gets picked on, verbally abused, sneered at and in all manner abused as the ash can of Canadiana. It is known for nothing and it is disliked because it has everything. For as wonderful as everyone in this fair land is, can I ask you all to cut this city some slack? Come and visit Toronto. Join the great unwashed and mingle with the crowd. Take in a ball game, grab a hot dog and a beer and give us a break.

Trade Shows and Conferences For complete listings, visit www.remonline.com To add a listing to this calendar, email jim@remonline.com Realtors Association of HamiltonBurlington Realtor Connections Conference & Trade Show Wednesday, March 27 Hamilton Convention Centre Hamilton Sheila Sferrazza - 905-529-8101 Ext. 234 HomeLife International Conference and Awards Gala April 11 – 12 Fallsview Casino Resort Niagara Falls, Ont. 1-800-668-0186 Coldwell Banker Canada Conference & National Awards Gala April 17 – 19 Sheraton Centre, Toronto www.coldwellbankercanadaconference.ca London St. Thomas Association of Realtors 2013 Annual General Meeting and Exhibitor Trade Show Tuesday, April 23 London Convention Centre London, Ont. Tracy Marino - tmarino@lstar.ca

Heino Molls is the publisher of REM. Email heino@remonline.com.

Toronto Real Estate Board Realtor Quest May 1 – 2 Toronto Congress Centre, Toronto www.realtorquest.ca Kitchener Waterloo Association of Realtors Realtor Xpo Thursday, May 9 Bingemans Conference Centre Kitchener, Ont. www.kwar.ca/XPO/ Windsor-Essex County Association of Realtors Wednesday, May 15 Ciociaro Club of Windsor Oldcastle, Ont. www.tradeshow.windsorrealestate.com

Compiled with the assistance of Bob Campbell at Colour Tech Marketing, www.colourtech.com

REM

Franchise Territories

Mississauga Real Estate Board 2013 Annual General Meeting and Exhibitor Showcase Monday, April 29 Mississauga Grand Banquet & Convention Centre Mississauga, Ont. Jennifer Vogel - 905-849-5151 or jvogel@sympatico.ca

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TEAMS unplugged unplugged April 9th , Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto

Superbowl Champion Joe Theismann Learn how to succeed under pressure - when it’s “4th and 1” - and how to adapt quickly to unexpected situations - when you’re faced with a “blitz” instead of a “zone”.

Joe Theismann Superbowl Champion

The Power of Why Amanda Lang “The Power of Why” shows how curiosity and the ability to ask the right questions fuels innovation and can drive change not just in business but also in our personal lives. Learn how to reignite your innate curiosity and overcome long-standing barriers—leaving you more creative, productive and fulfilled in your job and happier in your relationships.

Amanda Lang, co-host of CBC TV’s “Lang and O’Leary Exchange” and author of “The Power of Why”

#1 RE/MAX Team Worldwide Christopher Invidiata Christopher Invidiata, Leader of the Invidiata Team- the #1 Team in the world for 2012, and one of only 12 recipients of the Luminary of Distinction Award, in a one on one interview with Amanda Lang, co-host of CBC TV’s “Lang and O’Leary Exchange”.

Christopher Invidiata, Leader of the Invidiata Team, RE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp., Brokerage

A panel of Top RE/MAX Team Leaders who will cover their management and leadership tactics, marketing methods, and how they achieve their ultimate goals - moderated by Amanda Lang.

Join us April 8th for a Mix & Mingle at...

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Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto TEAM Leaders and Guests by Invitation only.

*Based on 2012 closed transactions. Source CREA and RE/MAX.