Some Things You May NOT Know About Trump’s New Tax Plan

President Trump’s new tax plan, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, is a potent document that has spelled out great financial and economic changes for the United States’ and it’s residents. While many of our readers are familiar with some … Continue reading →

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New Real Estate Data Suggests That Some Polls are Completely False

I had to chuckle when I saw this Facebook post that says that the “median” (more on that below) number of inquiries (INQUIRIES) that REALTORS with personal websites get has fallen to ZERO.

 

To say that real estate agents with personal websites get zero inquiries seems to be a bit of a stretch, to me. See this comment below that was made on that same Facebook thread by our own Jay Thompson.

I’m clearly no statistician, but how does a median of zero for this data make any sense? The median is the point where half the data is above it, and half below it. So if zero is the median, how are there a negative number of inquiries?

I certainly won’t argue that the VAST majority of real estate websites are dead or dying. Many have severely outdated information, have not been touched in years, etc. Heck, like anything else that is worth doing, it takes work to make a website useful and informative. While many agents tend to use templated websites that they never touch, there are certainly more than zero sites that are enough of a benefit to the consumer to generate the occassional inquiry.

Personally, I believe that agents should own and control their own web content. I don’t think you need to be one of the top bloggers in the country to gain inquiries, but I do believe agents who want to, or claim to, do business online should make an effort to have a useful and or informative website. They should also contribute new content to that website on a regular basis. If they don’t see a benefit in doing that, it probably makes sense to remove their site entirely and quit paying for something they don’t use. Just my humble opinion. Heck, THAT would help the number raise from zero, for sure!

Here’s a stat that I found interesting, as well:

New Real Estate Data Suggests 100% of Agents Are Getting BUSINESS From Their Personal Website:

I took a poll this am. EVERY single agent that I spoke with about their current website is actually getting, and closing, business from their personal website.

This poll was done by contacting agents from across the entire United States.

I spoke with Ines in Florida. Her Miamism website generates business today, just as it has generated business for more than a decade.

I spoke with someone who works in Maura Neil’s office in Georgia. It sounds like they have certainly done business within the past year from Maura’s website.

I also know for a fact that this website and my personal website have both generated business and inquiries this year and in many years past.

Some Truth Better Than No Truth:

While data can often be whatever some pollster wants it to be, we know that accuracy can be in the eye of the beholder. I feel like the chart shows a trend but it doesn’t accurately reflect what it actually says.

Here’s part of what Laura Monrow had to say:
“I’m not sure where NAR is getting their numbers.. but from personal experience: 

NAR/Placester free sites are horrible for traffic let alone leads, AND the agents that tend to get “free websites” usually don’t even add content. 

2. The vast majority of agents prefer their social media time over true lead generation through their own content and website. 

3. Many agents have a one and done approach to their site.. they simply set it up and don’t have an inbound marketing strategy… “

Laura knows a thing or two about the real estate industry. She’s well known in the industry as someone who knows the pulse of our business.

Look, websites are not the magic bullet that many agents are told they will be. Many agents fail miserably at online lead generation, content creation, etc. BUT, that’s perfectly fine. A personal website certainly isn’t something that every agent needs to us in order to have a successful career.

Can a good website be a powerful tool? Can it generate inquiries or even help create new customers and clients? I happen to think it can…

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Originally posted on Phoenix Real Estate Guy. If you are reading this anywhere but inside your RSS feed reader or your email client, the site you are on is guilty of stealing content.

(c) Copyright Jay Thompson. All Rights Reserved.

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Using Bonfire Night in therapy sessions

I know not everyone likes fireworks and that the actual reason we celebrate Bonfire Night  is tricky, so this post may not be for everyone.  But I love this time of year, except the getting dark really early bit!  There are so many different things happening that prove to be great opportunities for discussion with children.  We have Hallowe’en and Bonfire Night in the next few weeks and then before you know it, Christmas will arrive!  Then you also have the currently rather confused British weather and changing seasons. Talking about things that your child has experienced normally evokes better, more spontaneous language and is so useful as talking outside of the ‘here and now’ is an incredibly important skill that many children find hard.

Why I talk about Bonfire Night in therapy

I personally LOVE fireworks and Bonfire Night (For our American readers this is the English celebration of Guy Fawkes being stopped from blowing up parliament and killing the Prime Minister back in 1605!).  We always go to at least one firework display each year.

I also love talking about fireworks to the children I work with.  It can provoke an interesting range of gestures, signs and words to describe them.  With younger children, it may be a child excitedly waving their arms around to show you they saw a Catherine Wheel, or lots of ‘fizz’, ‘pops’ and ‘bangs’.  I am working with some very inventive Makaton signers at the moment who love making up new signs for things – their version of fireworks was fantastic and I can’t do it justice in writing!!  It might also be a child covering their ears and saying ‘no’ – not everyone shares my love of noisy fireworks!

With older children, I have had discussions about Guy Fawkes, the gunpowder plot and tried to describe what treason is.  It doesn’t matter what level your child is at, they can still join in and discuss a shared experience.  Hopefully you will find they become more animated and can generate some good vocabulary!  So what else can you talk about?

For younger children

• Colours:  Fireworks come in a great selection of colours and you can easily reinforce and talk about the colours you are seeing.  You could also include some harder language, like commenting on which colour was your favourite and asking your child which they liked best.
• Noisy and loud:  Most firework displays are noisy although you can find some family friendly ones without the loud bangs!  You might also want to talk about quiet vs. loud before you go and possibly try some ear defenders!  Many children enjoy the colours and shapes and not the noise!
• Adjectives: Try and think of as many good describing words as you can – did the fireworks fizz or bang? Did they sparkle? Were they shiny and colourful? Did the bonfire crackle and was it hot?
• Dark vs. light: you can talk about the dark night sky, but the bright and light bonfire and fireworks.  With some help your child might be able to answer questions about why we only have fireworks at night and talk about if we could see them in the day time?
• Sequencing:  the next day, you can talk about what you did – getting your coats and gloves on, did you walk or drive there, waiting for them to start and then watching them.  Encourage your child to talk about the order of events.  You could also take pictures to help with retelling the story later.
• Acceptance:  We don’t all like the same things and that is fine!  Not every child like fireworks, so instead you could talk about which books you are going to read instead or what your family will do when those noisy fireworks are on!
• Safety: This goes for all children.  Fireworks are for grown ups to handle. They are not toys etc Again approach this at a level appropriate for your child – be it “No touching” or more of a discussion of why.

For older children

• Adjectives: But this time we expect harder ones!  Did the fireworks shimmer and fade? Did they cascade out of the sky?  You could encourage your child to look in a dictionary to try and find good words to describe what they saw.
• The Gunpowder plot:  At a level appropriate for your child (not every child likes the hanging, drawing and quartering bit of the story, but some do!) explain about why we celebrate bonfire night and what Guy Fawkes was trying to do.  Talk through the who, where, when and why of the story. Discuss tricky words like treason – again encourage your child to use dictionaries for the hard bits!
• Science:  You can ask your child if they would be able to see the fireworks in day light? And why we have them in the dark.  You then have the issue my son asked me this year “How do fireworks go up so fast” – this led to a discussion about reactions and explosions! Don’t worry if you’re not sure yourself, just make time to sit down with your child and find out together – As my son also says “Lets Google it Mum!”

What else do you talk about with your children at this time of year?

 

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Market Remains Volatile in Earning Season: Interest Rates Expected to Continue to Rise

There was a massive sell off in the capital markets last week. Business reports indicate that investors were getting nervous about recent stock market valuations in light of rising interest rates. 

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Aprender inglés en el extranjero

Hoy en día el aprendizaje del inglés está en auge, y no es de sorprender ya que tanto por motivos académicos como profesionales necesitamos aprender este idioma. Por ello, existen multitud de formas de aprender inglés: apuntarse a una academia, profesores particulares, plataformas online, etc. Sin embargo, yo siempre te recomendaré que, si puedes, te lances a aprender inglés en el extranjero.

Cómo aprender inglés en el extranjero

Mis dos formas favoritas de aprender inglés en el extranjero son consiguiendo un trabajo en algún país de habla inglesa o hacer un curso académico como los que ofrece CLS Idiomas. Y, en ocasiones, la combinación perfecta es hacer ambas cosas a la vez.

Por un lado, si eres mayor de edad y tienes ganas de ganar algo de dinero mientras vives experiencias nuevas en un país extranjero, te recomiendo que busques trabajo en países como Inglaterra o Irlanda. Normalmente en estos países hay mucho trabajo a tiempo parcial para gente joven. Con este tipo de trabajo podrás poner en práctica tu inglés a la par que ganas algo de dinero y experiencia laboral. Recuerda que al principio, si tu nivel de inglés no es muy bueno, el trabajo no tiene por qué estar relacionado con tu carrera universitaria. Se trata simplemente de tener la oportunidad de “tener que hablar en inglés” sí o sí. Esa es la mejor forma de aprender un idioma, créeme.

Por otro lado, si aún no eres mayor de edad y no te interesa trabajar, la mejor forma de conseguir un nivel de inglés increíble es cursar un año escolar en algún instituto en el extranjero. Ten en cuenta que si haces esto, pasarás 9 meses inmerso en un ambiente angloparlante. Todas las clases serán en inglés, tus compañeros de clase y amigos hablarán inglés, cuando salgas de casa todo estará en inglés, etc. La inmersión cien por cien es el mejor método para aprender inglés.

Cuándo aprender inglés en el extranjero

Realmente no existe un único momento idóneo para irnos al extranjero a aprender inglés. Depende mucho de tu situación, tus preferencias y tus expectativas. Sin embargo, a mí me gustan particularmente 3 momentos o etapas de la vida, dadas las circunstancias que las rodean.

Para empezar, la adolescencia es una etapa genial para perfeccionar nuestro inglés en el extranjero. Los adolescentes están deseando ganar independendencia de sus padres y conocer gente de su edad con la que compartir su tiempo y sus gustos. Además, aún están muy receptivos al aprendizaje de idiomas. Por eso, la opción de cursar un año entero en el extranjero es una opción genial. Y si lo hacen, no solo aprenderán inglés y se lo pasarán genial, sino que además ampliarán sus horizontes culturales. De hecho, yo he tenido alumnos de 15 o 16 años que han pasado un curso académico en el extranjero y han vuelto con un nivel C1 de inglés y con multitud de historias que contar.

En segundo lugar, otro momento idóneo para aprender inglés en el extranjero es la etapa universitaria. Cuando se es universitario, ya se es más responsable e independiente, por lo que un curso en el extranjero tipo Erasmus será una opción magnífica para viajar, conocer gente, salir de fiesta y aprender inglés. De hecho, seguro que conoces a alguien que se ha ido de Erasmus y no deja de hablar de las increíbles experiencias que ha vivido durante ese curso. Además, a esta edad se suelen hacer amigos para toda la vida. Y tener amigos de otros países es la excusa perfecta para seguir viajando en el futuro.

Finalmente, si ya te has graduado, estás trabajando y no puedes cursar un año Erasmus, no te preocupes, aún tienes muchísimas opciones para aprender inglés en el extranjero. Para empezar, si tienes una carrera universitaria puedes intentar buscar trabajo relacionado con tu carrera. Por ejemplo, si has estudiado turismo, hay muchísimo trabajo en hoteles en países como Inglaterra o Escocia. Pero, como he mencionado anteriormente, si tu inglés aún no es muy bueno, puedes buscar trabajo de otra cosa que no requiera de un nivel alto de inglés.

Tengo amigos que, habiendo estudiado magisterio, se fueron a trabajar de limpiadores o de ayudantes de cocina, algo que quizás no te parezca muy atractivo. Pero estas personas, con el paso de los meses lograron mejorar su inglés y poco a poco fueron consiguiendo trabajos distintos y más adecuados a sus cualificaciones. Por lo que no debes desanimarte si al principio no estás haciendo lo que te gusta. Con el tiempo y la mejora de tu nivel de inglés conseguirás tus objetivos. Y quizás hasta decidas quedarte allí.

¿Dónde vas a estudiar inglés tú?

Ahora que ya conoces mi opinión sobre cómo y cuándo es mejor aprender inglés en el extranjero, me gustaría que me contaras dónde lo harás tú y, si ya te has ido fuera de España a aprender inglés, cómo fue tu experiencia. Déjame un comentario y cuéntamelo todo.

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Tax Brackets And You: How Will The New GOP Bill Influence The 2018 Tax Season?

With his larger-than-life personality and disregard for the status quo, it is impossible to deny that Donald Trump is one of the most divisive political figures throughout the history of our country. Like him or not, as president he has … Continue reading →

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Accounting Solutions Ltd. Explains: E-Commerce Accounting

There are few things that make new business owners more uncomfortable than the prospect of keeping their finances in order. Add in the necessity for some form of E-commerce integration, or the fact that a staggering number of new enterprises, … Continue reading →

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