IPad. I know, it’s not a very unique response to the question posed in Active Rain's latest contest asking what business tool can we absolutely not live without. But it is true. I truly consider the investment in my IPad2 the best money I’ve spent on my business in terms of tools. So here are my favs, ala Letterman style.
10. Open Home Pro and prospect notes. How many times have you written something on a Post-It-Note, only to lose it? Or on a notepad, back of a listing flyer, never to be seen again? Use the Note pad or Evernote in your IPad, and it will forever be available to you. During an open house, have people sign themselves in with their preferences. Ipads are still considered cool, so they people tend to engage and help qualify themselves without you having to apply high pressure.
9. MLS access – when I need to look up a property, it’s much more helpful to be able to see associated documents, larger photographs and virtual tours that really show off the property, especially if I’m with a client. Who wants to squint to see things on a tiny little cell phone screen?
8. IBooks or the Kindle App. Read for pleasure during an open house, or fill your head with inspiration and learning with business journals or books. Since I don’t like stopping to find a dictionary, and get interrupted so often that I can’t sort out main characters, I love that we can interface with a dictionary, search tool and character reference keeper (Shelfari) at a minute’s notice.
7. Using Apps like Evernote, I can take notes for just about anything. It’s so cool that when I open a new note, it relates records the date, event and location from my calendar. My notes are relevant without me having to take even one more step.
6. Class and Training notes. Real estate is constantly changing. I attend a multitude of classes and it’s advantageous to take notes from these courses on a device instead of on paper. When I have dead time between appointments, during an open house, or whatever, I can re-read and put this information into action without wondering – where’s that yellow pad I wrote my notes on? Plus, any web address is automatically hyperlinked. I can work through those notes, check out sites and resources, then delete them when I’m done. The virtual wadded-up-thrown-in-a-waste-can routine.
5. Easy to read and see real-estate related apps. GPS devices are great, but they’re not perfect. I used an App called Route 4 Me, which gives me the most efficient order in which to take clients out for viewings or preview homes on Broker’s Tour. I can make changes on the fly without having to re-program my GPS while people are talking in the background. My clients act as navigators and find the tool to be very cool.
4. I’m saving the environment! I no longer carry a notebook, but use my Ipad instead. Before, I would print out tour sheets for Broker’s Tour and client listing sheets for scheduled viewings. But now I just download a PDF report and save it to Dropbox or Goodreader. Saaaaweeet!
3. Easy to Read Screens. My eyesight isn’t what it used to be. I know you can do most everything on a smart phone, but those screens just are too tiny for my liking. If I have emails to respond to that little texting screen on my phone is a challenge. But the bigger format with an Ipad allows me to see what I’m doing better (especially important if a contract is involved) and type much more efficiently.
2. Convenience. I hated carrying a laptop around – they were bulky, heavy and mine was problematic. When it was time to replace it, I saw the IPad as an excellent alternative. It goes with me everywhere and I can tuck it into a purse.
1. And the number one reason my Ipad is my favorite tool? Well, I’ll admit that in this case it’s for personal use – the Face Time Feature allows me to talk to my 2 year old granddaughter in San Diego, and feel as if I’m watching her grow up, even though I don’t see her in person very often. Any of you who are grandparents (especially out-of-town ones) will probably relate to that.
I'm not being flippant about houses that fall outside of one's affordability, but there are restrictions or conditions that may limit who can buy certain properties. Here are a few examples, and other AR members, please feel free to add to this list.
Town Homes Living, Villa Chablis 
Supply down and demand up. Sure to signal the supply of a market in transition. Sellers are finding conditions much more favorable to getting well presented and priced homes sold. Buyers are finding a bit more competition on properties.
1001, 1009 Murrieta Blvd.
Lloyd St.
The weekend promises to be spectacular for the 21st Annual Wine Country Festival. Temperatures will be ideal for this outdoor event which draws nearly 70,000 people over the two days = 78º Saturday and 82 Sundayº. Nice!