Real Estate Information

You Dont Need Health Insurance!


Seems almost every situation in our lives is centered on communication. Good or bad, the way we express our thoughts, wants, and needs to each other determines how we live, love, and learn together.

As a guy who is a regular on the seminar circuit, does a live radio show, an HGTV television show, writes books, columns, and articles, and all the while runs a thriving home inspection company, I get to do a great amount of communicating. Some of that communication is by transmitting; some of it is by receiving. After much reflection, I have come to the conclusion that nothing is learned when we transmit, but great gains come from receiving. That is to say, we learn when we listen, not when we speak.

Not a day goes by that I am not listening to Realtors. Most days I listen to more than a few, some days more than a dozen, and on occasion, I listen to hundreds at a single seminar sitting. The things Realtors tell me help me get better. Better at home inspecting, better at dealing with customers, better on the radio, just better at every aspect of my professional life! But all that input is not without moments. Those moments range from the amazing to the zealous, sad to humorous, and brilliant to well, less than brilliant!

One of my favorite Realtor quotes follow, complete with my thoughts and commentary. A disclaimer before we begin, if this particular quote sounds like you, know that none of what follows is from a single source, but representative of things I hear on a near daily basis.

"You don't need a home inspection, you're getting a home warranty".

Seems to make sense to some that if items are warranted, their condition is of little importance. But among the problems with this thought are:

  • All items that might fail may not be warranted, and
  • Items presently not functioning would be exempted from coverage as an existing problem.
  • When explaining the relationship of the home inspection to the home warranty, consider the home inspection to be a physical exam and the warranty to be health insurance. Would you ever expect to hear someone say, "you don't need a physical exam, you've got health insurance"? Doesn't seem to make much sense, does it? That is essentially what we are saying to our customers with the "you don't need a home inspection, you are getting a home warranty" comment!

    Let's flip it around now. How about "you don't need a home warranty, you are getting a home inspection". Here's the medical equivalent, "you don't need health insurance, you just had a physical exam"!

    Insane!

    In so many instances, when I have been able to explain a new or complex home related issue to a customer in equivalent medical terms, they suddenly get it. They seem to understand and are now comfortable. Clearly, most homebuyers are not in the medical profession, but the language is familiar to them. Must be from watching ER or Marcus Welby reruns!

    So be clear in your communications with your customers. Be ready and able to clearly articulate a compelling argument for anything you wish to say. And above all, EDUCATE your customers. Educate them on why they need a home inspection, a home warranty, or whatever the subject is. Teach them how to choose a qualified home inspector. Teach them how to make a good decision on any real estate subject or issue. They will love you for it!

    This subject and more about the interactions and relationships in real estate are discussed in Wally Conway's book, "Secrets of the Happy Home Inspector", available at GoHomePro.com or Amazon.com. As a speaker, writer, instructor, and host of The Happy Home Inspector radio show every Saturday at 3 PM on WOKV 690, Wally blends the right amount of up-to-date information with just the right amount of humor, insight, motivation, and real-world application.

    Visit WallyConway.com or GoHomePro.com for more information!


    MORE RESOURCES:

    Globe and Mail

    Bernanke Wants to Lend to Real Estate Investors
    TheStreet.com
    By Shanthi Bharatwaj 02/10/12 - 02:59 PM EST NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Friday that making loans more easily available to real estate investors for bulk purchases of homes would be an important step in resolving ...
    Home builders and investors both see signs of a turnDetroit Free Press
    Bernanke's speech to home buildersReuters
    Bernanke Says Housing Holds Back Fed Efforts to Boost EconomyBloomberg

    all 265 news articles »


    Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market ...
    Chicago Tribune
    The housing market might be fragile at best, but some professors and MBA's say real estate is one area where business school students can find jobs. David Hartzell, a professor of real estate and finance at the University of North Carolina--Chapel ...

    and more »


    Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers Names CEO of European Operations
    Sacramento Bee
    By Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers HARTFORD, Conn., Feb. 10, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers, one of the world's largest real estate investment advisers, has named Charles Weeks as chief executive officer of its European ...

    and more »


    Top 10 U.S. Real Estate Sector ETFs
    TheStreet.com
    By Dave Fry 02/10/12 - 03:58 PM EST There is currently an expanding list of nearly 20 ETFs oriented to primarily REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) with more on the way. The following analysis features a fair representation of ETFs available.
    Trading the Run on Real Estate Investment TrustsSchaeffers Research

    all 3 news articles »


    SILive.com

    Staten Island Real Estate Developer Guilty of Operating $14 Million Ponzi Scheme
    LoanSafe
    The evidence at trial proved that Mazella solicited money from prospective investors by telling them that he would invest their money in real estate projects, including projects in Trenton, NJ, a warehouse in Utica, NY, and a golf course in Greene ...
    Jury Finds Staten Island, New York Real Estate Developer Guilty of Operating ...Federal Bureau of Investigation (press release)
    Jury convicts Staten Island man in $14 mln Ponzi schemeThomson Reuters News & Insight
    Great Atlantic Group President Found Guilty in Ponzi SchemeBloomberg

    all 13 news articles »


    Florida Commercial Real Estate Market Looks Good for Recovery
    LoanSafe
    by Alex Ferreras on February 10, 2012 in Real Estate (Source: CB Richard Ellis) – The industry's leading commercial real estate professionals believe it is safe to say that as we head into 2012, the worst of the economic turmoil is behind us and ...
    FLORIDA COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE MARKET ON TRACK FOR RECOVERYRealEstateRama (press release)

    all 2 news articles »


    Real-Estate Crash Aids the Green Movement
    Wall Street Journal
    By LAURA KUSISTO The real-estate crash left pockets of the region's rural areas littered with the remnants of would-be golf courses, shopping centers and luxury subdivisions that never got off the ground. But the market swoon has yielded an unexpected ...

    and more »


    RisMedia.com

    Builders group sees pickup in housing this year
    San Francisco Chronicle
    By ALEX VEIGA, AP Real Estate Writer The US housing market will begin to mount a turnaround this year, building toward a solid recovery in 2013, according to a forecast issued Wednesday by the chief economist of a homebuilding industry trade group.
    This week's Real Estate storiesMarketWatch
    Menendez Bill Applauded by Home Builders for Restoring the Flow of Credit for ...LoanSafe

    all 147 news articles »


    Press-Enterprise

    Shrinking the foreclosed real estate glut
    Boston Globe
    But it isn't going to fix the nation's residential real estate mess. That mess - millions of homeowners underwater on their mortgages, a stagnant residential sales market that lacks buyers and a clog of foreclosed property - can't be cleaned up with ...
    REAL ESTATE: California receives up to $18 billion in multistate settlementPress-Enterprise
    Foreclosure settlement could actually hurt real estate marketThe Real Deal New York (blog)
    Florida Gets $8.4 Billion Share of Foreclosure SettlementLoanSafe
    Sacramento Bee -GlobeSt.com -Statesman Journal
    all 3,485 news articles »


    Fort Worth Star Telegram

    Evangelical real estate developer brought Santorum to North Texas
    Fort Worth Star Telegram
    By Bud Kennedy If Rick Santorum eventually wins Texas Republicans over, one of Texas' leading real estate developers should share credit. Last month, Jeff Blackard of the McKinney-based Blackard Group went undercover in South Carolina as a walk-in ...

    and more »

    Google News

    home | site map
    © 2006