Many people think by closing their credit card it will help their credit score, however, it 
actually will lower your credit utilization ratio.  Your credit utilization ratio determines 
how much credit you are currently using and it accounts for about 30 percent of your 
FICO score.  So think twice before closing your credit card.

When applying for a new line of credit (ie: a credit card or an auto loan), the 
company will run a hard inquiry on your credit report.  Having too many hard 
inquiries on your credit report at one time will lead to a decline in your score.  This 
can also severely affect it if you apply for multiple lines of credit in a short period 
of time.  So in a nutshell, it would be better to apply for credit only when you need 
it.

You should only apply for cards that you know you can qualify for.  If you get 
declined for five cards before getting approved – you will have six hard inquiries on 
your credit report and it will lower your score. 
If you want to make a large purchase but don't want to pay for it all at once, 
consider putting it on a new credit card instead of getting store financing. Many 
credit cards now offer a 0% intro APR for up to 18 months, which means you won't 
have to pay interest on the purchase for a year and a half. It will also raise your 
credit utilization ratio, since you are taking on more credit.

Financing a major purchase, like a couch or a flat-screen TV may seem like a good 
idea, but you should think twice about it. Some store financing can be considered a 
"last-resort loan," which can make you look like a credit risk. Any financing will also 
result in a hard inquiry on your credit report and will affect your credit score.
Paying for a car rental service with a debit card, at first glance might seem 
okay since you're not paying with credit. However, some agencies will check your 
credit report if you decide to pay by debit card. The rental agency might see it as 
a red flag that you aren't using a credit card, so they're going to check and see if 
you can be trusted. It'll count as a hard inquiry and could cost a few points on your 
score.

Not paying for a parking ticket:  You might think you pulled a fast one on the 
local municipality by not paying a parking ticket but some cities, including New York 
and Chicago, send your unpaid tickets to collections agencies. Your credit score can 
take a severe beating if you have an account in collections.
This goes the same for utility bills, back rent and other expenses that you forgot 
to pay. Make sure that all of your accounts are paid up so that no one can send your 
accounts to a collection agency.

Did you know there are dangerous words and phrases salespeople in real estate should avoid?

The following are examples of words or phrases occasionally used by salespeople that would permit a judge or jury to infer that real estate brokers are engaged in an illegal conspiracy:

• “I’d like to lower the commission rate but the board has a rule….”
• “This is the rate that everyone charges”
• "The MLS will not accept less than a 120-day listing”
• “Before you list with ABC Realty, you should know that nobody works on their listings”
• “If Jim Smith was really professional (or ethical), he would have jointed the board.”
• “The board requires all REALTORS to make their salespeople join.”
• “The best way to deal with Jim Smith is to boycott him.”
• “If you valued your services as a professional, you wouldn’t cut your commission.”
• “No board member will accept a listing for less than ninety days.”
• “Let him stay in his own market.  This is our territory.”
• “If he was really a professional, he wouldn’t use part-timers.”
  

**Information shared from the Antitrust Compliance Guide for Realtors and Realtor-Associates

A well known strategy to pass your real estate exam is to know the lingo.  If you don't know the words in a question or in the answers it will be difficult to pass the test.  Real estate schools that provide vocabulary tests and tools tend to have the highest pass rates for students.






For example consider these terms:

APR

Buy down

CRV

ECOA

deed-in-lieu

Mortgage insurance premium

Riparian rights

To set yourself up for passing grades you must study vocabulary.  Here is a study tool that you can download that will help you pass your exam.

Many times buyers (particularly first time home buyers) are not familiar with escrow requirements when they purchase real estate.

First of all, escrow needs all of the buyer’s contact information:  home, work, cell and email.

Secondly, a packet from escrow will be provided to you and they will need to know how you would like to hold title to your home.

You also need to let Escrow know if funds are coming from the sale of an existing home. 

After your loan documents have been received, Escrow will let you know what the amount is needed to close.  Funds need to be in the form of a wire transfer or cashier’s check payable to the Escrow Company.

You also need to provide Escrow with the name of your insurance agent and phone number prior to close of escrow.

At Signing:  All individuals named on the Deed and/or Mortgage must be present.  Everyone must present a valid identification in the form of:   a current Driver’s License, Passport, Department of Motor Vehicles Identification Card or other approved identification card provided it has a photograph, description of the person, signature and an identifying number.

You will receive the keys from your real estate agent and the recorded deed will be mailed to you from the County Recorder’s Office.

The median price of homes on Oahu reached another record in November 2014 at $719,500, or a gain of 5.2%. This trend continues to support the prediction of Hawaii’s leading real estate economist Paul Brewbaker, who predicted a $1M median price by 2018. Brewbaker’s prediction is based on projections that home prices would appreciate by 15% each year. In the rolling 12 months, Oahu homes increased 17%.

Inventory levels are still indicating a Seller’s market with only 2.6 months of remaining inventory. Add to that New Listings and Active Listings are both down significantly from the same time last year,  buyers are still experiencing multiple offer conditions when making offers on homes, it’s hard to argue that Paul Brewbaker will again hit his mark as he’s done countless times in the past.

Buyers are cautioned to not putting off buying a home on Oahu thinking home prices are going to drop. At least not in the foreseeable future.

Source: Honolulu Board of Realtors, PBN Biz Journals

I just got my license and my best friend’s cousin calls me saying he needs help because he wants to sell his home via an Open Listing.  I tell him before he does anything let me meet with him to discuss the different types of listings.

I tell him there are four types of listing contracts; a Net listing, an Open listing, an Exclusive listing and an Exclusive Right to Sell listing.

A Net listing is one where the owner specifies a net price he wants for his property, and any amount over and above that price is the commission paid to the selling broker for his services.

An Open listing not only allows the seller to list the property with more than one broker, but also allows him to sell the property himself.

An Exclusive Agency listing gives the employment contract to one broker only and assures him that the property will not be listed with other brokers.  However, the seller has the right to sell it himself and not compensate the broker.

Lastly, the Exclusive Right to Sell listing is one that makes the broker the sole and exclusive agent for the seller.  Regardless of who sells the property the broker will get compensated.

After going over the pros and cons of all of the listing types he turns to me and asks me where I learned all of this.  I proudly say “Inet School of Real Estate”.  He then says, “lets go with the Exclusive Right to Sell”.  I take out the paperwork for signatures and get my first listing, list price……$1,250,000!   Yeah!!

After getting your real estate license you have a number of options to consider.  Most will tend to seek residential real estate sales as a career path and it can be very rewarding.

What are other options?  For those that like administrative work and want to learn the business while getting paid, a transaction coordinator may be one way to go.  As a transaction coordinator you'll learn the ropes of the business including real estate contracts, escrows, client service among other things and it can be a huge boost of confidence before making the plunge into sales.

Some companies recruit heavily for timeshare.  This also can be very lucrative and it tends to come with an initial base salary with prospects / leads generated for you.  If you feel like you enjoy closing people for the sale, timeshare sales might be an avenue for you.

Property management is a great role for those that need steady work and don't mind process oriented job functions.  Usually sales isn't required and you maintain properties as well as screen tenants as your primary job function.  Many have made exceptional careers along this path.

Commercial is an entirely different world where you work with selling buildings, businesses, hotels or lease business space.  The real estate community tends to be separate from residential and they have a culture all their own.  The industry has produced some mega producers and can be extremely lucrative.

No matter what you are looking for, having a real estate license opens up a lot of possibilities.  Find out what it takes by click on the button below and get an free real estate exam emailed to you.  You might surprise yourself!