House hunting Stepdad
Friday, September 26, 2003
We bought Baby BOY Thigpen his first hat last night
B and I went to the mall and checked out some shops. She got nine pairs of ear rings and an FSU Cheerleader doll (I got a Lord of the Rings action figure), she rode the carousel and we found Baby T a hat!
For some reason, Jen and B both let me buy it. Looking at it just now, it's cool and all, but thinking of a newborn baby head under it makes me laugh. I hope I'm not setting Baby T up to be beat up a lot :)
So, now it's strange that we can zero in on boy's names. For so long we have been trying out both boy and girl names. Girl names are just cooler, like Riley Madison, which is one of the names we settled on if Baby T turn out to be a girl. We were going over boy names and have several we like, but new ones keep popping up.
My personal favorite is Pippin Marino, but it seems as if Jen and B and ummmm everyone else doesn't like that name. Seriously though, the middle name is going to be either Jeffrey or Jefferson, to honor my brother that died a few years ago. He was 38 and Baby T would have been his second Nephew.
But a lot of names go with either Jeffrey or Jefferson, such as Ian Jeffrey, Aiden Jefferson, Mitchell (her Dad's name) Jeffrey. Andrew Jefferson or Jeffrey. Gah, we will never figure out the right name!!
But my money is on Pippin Marino.
|
B and I went to the mall and checked out some shops. She got nine pairs of ear rings and an FSU Cheerleader doll (I got a Lord of the Rings action figure), she rode the carousel and we found Baby T a hat!
For some reason, Jen and B both let me buy it. Looking at it just now, it's cool and all, but thinking of a newborn baby head under it makes me laugh. I hope I'm not setting Baby T up to be beat up a lot :)
So, now it's strange that we can zero in on boy's names. For so long we have been trying out both boy and girl names. Girl names are just cooler, like Riley Madison, which is one of the names we settled on if Baby T turn out to be a girl. We were going over boy names and have several we like, but new ones keep popping up.
My personal favorite is Pippin Marino, but it seems as if Jen and B and ummmm everyone else doesn't like that name. Seriously though, the middle name is going to be either Jeffrey or Jefferson, to honor my brother that died a few years ago. He was 38 and Baby T would have been his second Nephew.
But a lot of names go with either Jeffrey or Jefferson, such as Ian Jeffrey, Aiden Jefferson, Mitchell (her Dad's name) Jeffrey. Andrew Jefferson or Jeffrey. Gah, we will never figure out the right name!!
But my money is on Pippin Marino.
Thursday, September 25, 2003
IT'S GONNA BE A BOY!!!!!
After four months of not being able to tell on the ultrasound, the one time his sister and his Dad can't be there, Baby T lets us know whether he's going to be a quarterback or cheerleader.....in the traditional sense.
Actually, I was there but my 10:30 appointment came in twenty minutes early so I couldn't call and let him know I'd be 10 minutes late so I left the office right before they were going to do the ultrasound.
I think Baby T is a tad stubborn!
IT'S A BOY!!!!
|
After four months of not being able to tell on the ultrasound, the one time his sister and his Dad can't be there, Baby T lets us know whether he's going to be a quarterback or cheerleader.....in the traditional sense.
Actually, I was there but my 10:30 appointment came in twenty minutes early so I couldn't call and let him know I'd be 10 minutes late so I left the office right before they were going to do the ultrasound.
I think Baby T is a tad stubborn!
IT'S A BOY!!!!
Wednesday, September 24, 2003
Ok, this is PATHETIC!!!
And I wonder why there aren't any books or good websites for Stepdads out there.
Yes, this was an actual screenshot from my computer as I was spellchecking my last post (I can never spell 'opportunity' correctly.
|
And I wonder why there aren't any books or good websites for Stepdads out there.
Yes, this was an actual screenshot from my computer as I was spellchecking my last post (I can never spell 'opportunity' correctly.
Real Estate isn't as easy as it seems...
I realize the name of my Blog is 'House Hunting Stepdad but I notice I'm not talking a whole lot about be a Realtor. I am talking a bit about being a Stepdad, but I think I should write more about that side of my life, too.
I have wanted to be in the Real Estate Business for many years and finally got the right opportunity to do so a few months ago. I don't know how many of you watch House Hunter's but, reality it is not. Well, actually now they are getting some buyers that are similar to what I see on a daily basis. But, they are still not quite there. Still, it is a great show and I am hooked on it.
Being a new Agent, I don't have the contacts that some of these guys have. Some of the Agents here have a contact list of over 500 people. Real Estate is a numbers game, the more people you know, the more sales you will make. I have found some neat ways to increase my contacts and I have been very pleased with the results. But, without 500 people on my contact list, I have to rely on the Office Generated Leads.
We have a Leads Department and any calls or walk ins we get goes through them. They also do a lot of cold calling to generate more business. Whatever appointments they set get filtered down to the agents. The big dollar leads get sent to the established Agents. They don't want a big sale getting flubbed by a new Agent. That's understandable to me, it makes good sense. The sure leads get sent to the older Agents as well. They don't want to lose a sure deal. That is also understandable to me.
Newer Agents get leads that are not a done deal. Usually, one of my leads won't be able to prequalify for anything, for one reason or another. Some of the times they do prequalify, it is not enough for a home they think they should be able to afford. I have been given two leads that are actually going through, one of them is a high price contract, over 250,000. That's a high price contract in my book, anyway.
So, even when we do get a lead that is a good lead and you write the contract and it closes and the commission is split between the two brokers, and then your broker takes his cut, then the Leads Department takes their third. So, out of that six or seven percent commission, your Agent only gets around 1 to 1.5 percent of it.
So the point of all this is that I need a lot more contacts. Anyone want to buy a home in Tallahassee, Florida?
|
I realize the name of my Blog is 'House Hunting Stepdad but I notice I'm not talking a whole lot about be a Realtor. I am talking a bit about being a Stepdad, but I think I should write more about that side of my life, too.
I have wanted to be in the Real Estate Business for many years and finally got the right opportunity to do so a few months ago. I don't know how many of you watch House Hunter's but, reality it is not. Well, actually now they are getting some buyers that are similar to what I see on a daily basis. But, they are still not quite there. Still, it is a great show and I am hooked on it.
Being a new Agent, I don't have the contacts that some of these guys have. Some of the Agents here have a contact list of over 500 people. Real Estate is a numbers game, the more people you know, the more sales you will make. I have found some neat ways to increase my contacts and I have been very pleased with the results. But, without 500 people on my contact list, I have to rely on the Office Generated Leads.
We have a Leads Department and any calls or walk ins we get goes through them. They also do a lot of cold calling to generate more business. Whatever appointments they set get filtered down to the agents. The big dollar leads get sent to the established Agents. They don't want a big sale getting flubbed by a new Agent. That's understandable to me, it makes good sense. The sure leads get sent to the older Agents as well. They don't want to lose a sure deal. That is also understandable to me.
Newer Agents get leads that are not a done deal. Usually, one of my leads won't be able to prequalify for anything, for one reason or another. Some of the times they do prequalify, it is not enough for a home they think they should be able to afford. I have been given two leads that are actually going through, one of them is a high price contract, over 250,000. That's a high price contract in my book, anyway.
So, even when we do get a lead that is a good lead and you write the contract and it closes and the commission is split between the two brokers, and then your broker takes his cut, then the Leads Department takes their third. So, out of that six or seven percent commission, your Agent only gets around 1 to 1.5 percent of it.
So the point of all this is that I need a lot more contacts. Anyone want to buy a home in Tallahassee, Florida?
Tuesday, September 23, 2003
Memo to self: Self, remember to breathe.
Sheesh, with work (28 days straight til I stayed home yesterday), stepdaughter, writing (a little but after putting off that short story for four years, it is getting written!), planning for Baby Thigpen and FOOTBALL!!! I haven't had time to do anything else, such as go downtown and take some pictures or go out wirth Jenn and some friends.
I have a feeling in the next couple of months, time will be even more scarce. Jenn's due at the end of December, work is cranking up, etc etc.
Anyway, just wanted to vent. Oh, one little favor, if I may. I know where some of you guys are coming from, and those of you looking for a picture of some over hyped bad singers, but what about you other readers? There are a lot of you. How about you guys leaving me a comment and telling me where you are from and age and anything else you might want to leave? That would be cool of you. (I can take some constructive criticism, if you want to leave some) Thanks!
|
Sheesh, with work (28 days straight til I stayed home yesterday), stepdaughter, writing (a little but after putting off that short story for four years, it is getting written!), planning for Baby Thigpen and FOOTBALL!!! I haven't had time to do anything else, such as go downtown and take some pictures or go out wirth Jenn and some friends.
I have a feeling in the next couple of months, time will be even more scarce. Jenn's due at the end of December, work is cranking up, etc etc.
Anyway, just wanted to vent. Oh, one little favor, if I may. I know where some of you guys are coming from, and those of you looking for a picture of some over hyped bad singers, but what about you other readers? There are a lot of you. How about you guys leaving me a comment and telling me where you are from and age and anything else you might want to leave? That would be cool of you. (I can take some constructive criticism, if you want to leave some) Thanks!
