STAGING for DOLLARS with SHELL BRODNAX of RESA

Live on 16 June 2007 from Madison, Wisconsin

STAGING INTERVIEW – Listening Info…

You have been invited by Bill Quigley and Art Blanchet to join in a live TalkShoe simulcast with TalkShoe from Madison 1670-the Pulse. Recorded audio is also available for listening.

Listen to or Join the Talkcast: YOUR HOME – YOUR MONEY
(join within 15 minutes of start time or anytime after)

Phone number: (724) 444-7444

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  • Talkcast Name: YOUR HOME-YOUR MONEY – the Real Scoop!
  • Host: Bill and Art – mailto:info@yourhome-yourmoney.com
  • Next episode: #72 – STAGING for DOLLARS – with Shell Brodnax, Sat, June 16, 2007 10:00 AM EDT

Tis the season to be Selling…and there’s lots of competition in home sales this year. One underused weapon in your Home Selling Arsenal is staging – which is the art of presenting your home in its best light. To help us out we’ve invited Staging Marketing and Business Coach Shell Brodnax of the Staging Career Center to share ideas and tips about how to stage your home for maximum selling impact.

Shell also founded RESA – the Real Estate Staging Association – and knows her stuff. Join us in this live feed from WTDY, Madison 1670 – The Pulse.

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  • Phone number: (724) 444-7444
  • Talkcast ID: 1009
  • PIN: The phone number or 10-digit PIN you signed up with
  • Other future episodes:
    • #73 – The Evil Empire – Those Nasty Online Lenders, Sat, June 23, 2007 10:00 AM EDT

Two Rules to Stop Solicitors in their Tracks – and Save Your Family Money!

Everybody is trying to sell you something – at least it seems that way. No Call Lists are ignored and salesman have ALL the answers where ever you go. Everyone has a one-time-only deal or buy-now discount. It seems we are destined to be victims, that we need to hand over our wallets and credit cards and just shut up. Not so. There are simple buying rules that will help you hang on to more of your money and avoid spot decisions – and save more than money.

When my family was younger my wife and I had two simple solicitation rules:

1. Don’t buy anything over the phone.
2. If the price isn’t the same tomorrow as today, don’t buy.

The first rule took care of LOTS of problems immediately. I would explain Rule #1 to the solicitor and ask them to mail me additional information for review. If they could/would not, I’d politely state we couldn’t buy then (can’t break a rule) and say good bye.

The second rule eliminated the “create a sense of urgency” sales pitch where you MUST buy today as the price will be higher tomorrow. Again, same explanation – this time about Rule #2. And that was that. We were always nice about it, too.

These ‘rules” eliminate impulsiveness and make the decline easy and less personal. You know – can’t do it because THE RULES forbid it. I think that would work in business as well for most folks.

You can throw in one more rule if you want. It really does help control spending. Here it is:

Neither party will spend more than “X” dollars without consulting the other. “X” can be what works for your family. Say it’s $50. That means if you stop by a garage sale, you can pick up some useful items with a clear conscious, but if something “big” is there – like that must-have moose head wall mount for $200 ($200 is more than $50), another head will be involved in the decision – your spouse’s. Or yours might be removed.

“NO” is a powerful word. It does not have to be difficult – just say, “These are the family (or business) rules. Sorry. Nothing I can do about it.” No pressure. No decision. Easier life.

Art Blanchet

Bill Quigley

Mortgage Title 101 w/Ben Smaglick

16 May 2007 – Madison, Wisconsin

#12 Mortgage Title 101 w/Ben Smaglick – Getting the Basics

Encore performances from Your Home-Your Money Mortgage Talk Radio

Description: Why on earth do we need Title Insurance?! Ben Smaglick, Wisconsin Business Development Manager for First American Title Company joins the Your Home-Your Money Mortgage Radio as a special guest to explain the HOWS and WHYS of the seemingly mysterious (and costly) Title Insurance.

Listen here and find out why lenders require it and learn why homeowners really need it! Super Ben delivers in a fun, easy, and informative episode – don’t miss it!

Link to the recording: http://recordings.talkshoe.com/TC-1009/TS-737.mp3 (Be patient – it will happen eventually…)

In a hurry? Listen here to the “chipmunk version” – a minor hoot!http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/audioPop.jsp?episodeId=737&cmd=apop

Jenni the Bill Collector – by Scott Bilker

2 June 2007

Debt Collectors – ya gotta love ‘em. Some people pay their bills for no other reason than to avoid dealing with these misanthrops, the Ambassadors of Animosity. Scott Bilker from DebtSmart shares this story about Jenni the Bill Collector from his website – we’ll share with you and then the follow-up, too Comments from Scott are in italics.

We don’t know if “Jenni” is representative of Bill Collectors in general, but read the article – she sure represented herself as a human quite poorly.

Thanks Scott!

Bii Quigley and Art Blanchet

Your Home-Your Money

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Jenni the Bill Collector

by Scott Bilker

I received a letter from Jenni about Chris Peruzzi’s article, Bad Customer Service. Turns out that Jenni is a bill collector. I found her comments to be quite interesting in that you can get an insight into the thinking of the typical bill/debt collector. I included my remarks for added entertainment.

Jenni: “I am a bill collector. What a lot of people forget is that what we do is our job.”
I don’t think anyone forgets that it’s her ‘job.’ Jenni’s collection victims also have jobs.

Jenni: “We do not come to your office and cuss you out because you wanted an 8:00 meeting. Under the FDCPA (fair debt collection practices act) we are legally allowed to call from 8:00 am until 9:00 pm your local time.”
Of course Jenni didn’t come to our office and cuss. It sounds like she would, if she could, which is why the law limits their contact.

Jenni: “But where I work, we start calling at 7:00 am our time. Do you think that I really want to be pleasant at that time?”
Does Jenni think the people she’s calling are going to be pleasant at that time?

Jenni: “One of my biggest problems is that we are constantly mistaken for telemarketers/customer service. We are far from that. Our job is not to make you happy, but to make our client happy.”
Well Jenni, obviously you’re not making us happy, so don’t be so surprised when people hang up on you!

Jenni: “We don’t always know what is going on though. That is why we call. We were hired to find out why there is a past due bill with you and our client. Give us a break. You do your job, and we will do ours.”
I don’t think Jenni knows why she’s hired. Her job is to collect, not to ‘find out why.’ That’s why the job title is Debt Collector not Debt Investigator.

Jenni: “Also, remember this; we want to get it cleared up just as badly as you do. So allow us to help you dispute things properly if you feel that there is something wrong with the bill. Hanging up and cussing us out does not make us want to help you.”
Jenni assumes that people want her ‘help’ to clear things up. She doesn’t want to help, she wants to collect.

Jenni: “Do you really want something on your credit that could have been avoided?”
More than likely, something is already on the person’s credit report because the account is in collection. It cannot be avoided at this point.

Jenni: “You are an adult. So act like one. If you don’t want us to call at 8:00 am, politely tell us to call you after noon. We will be more than happy to. And don’t insult our intellegence.”
If Jenni could spell ‘intelligence’ it would make it more difficult for people to insult her. The best advice to get Jenni to stop calling is to politely ask for her address and then send a letter demanding that her company cease calling.

Jenni: “I am a 20 year old college student working my way thru just like anyone else. At least I have the manners and maturity to handle things like an adult. Think about that one.”
I thought about it, and I think Jenni doesn’t understand the situations that real adults, not adults by age, have on their plate. Situations like multiple jobs, children, mortgage payments…life!