One of our students in the Norfolk, VA, area has started a Wealth Intelligence Academy group on meetups,com. She wants to get together with like-minded folks to share ideas, network, learn, and more. Here's the link to her page if you want to check it out: http://realestate.meetup.com/1456/. And if you decide to start another group in another area, let us know and we'll help spread the news.
A report from the Center for Media Research reveals some interesting facts about the wealth of Americans. The report says that a new segment of wealthy Americans has emerged in recent years:
“Known as the New Mass Affluent, this new crop of wealthy Americans were born of the post-war boom, raised in middle-class suburbs and benefited from college educations and years of economic prosperity during the bull market of the 1990s. Today they're the empty-nesters converting their kids' old rooms to home gyms, the well-heeled shopping at Costco and the workaholics fiddling with their BlackBerry on the express commuter train.”
These people are also investing and could be ideal financial partners for real estate investors.
Click here to read the full post by Jack Loechner (you have to sign up, but the account is free), then look around at the people who know who fit the demographic he describes. You may have some funding sources right in front of you that you never thought about before.
Communicating on the Telephone:
It’s What You Say and How You Say It
Of the three basic components of interpersonal communication (body language, vocal qualities, and the actual words said) body language carries more than half of the message–which means you begin any telephone communication at an automatic disadvantage.
Forbes.com iConference: All-Weather Portfolio Strategies
On May 22, 2008 Forbes.com will hold its first-ever virtual investor conference that is designed to help investors navigate the current turbulent market environment.
Prospering during times of uncertainty takes more than just patience and investor fortitude, it requires smart, actionable investment advice. This day-long online event begins at 10:00 a.m. and goes to 6:00 p.m., and will feature Steve Forbes and an all star panel of investment advisors and experts, including Robert Kiyosaki. The event is free to all investors and is accessible via any Web-connected computer.
In addition to speakers and discussions, you can visit an exhibit hall with booths and information about the sponsors. There is also a resource center, opportunities to network, receive advice through chat rooms and message boards and the opportunity to win prizes just for attending!
Steve Forbes and Robert Kiyosaki will present Stocks, Politics and the Economy: Prudent Strategies for Turbulent Times at 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.
Click here for more information and to register for this valuable free event.
What if they gave a recession and nobody came?
Some people may be going through difficult economic times, but you can choose not to be one of them.
"Here's wishing you the top o' life without a single tumble.
Here's wishing you the smiles o' life and not a single grumble.
Here's wishing you the best o' life and not a claw about it.
Here's wishing you the joy in life and not a day without it."
-- Irish Blessing
Wishing you a safe and joyous New Year's celebration and tremendous prosperity in 2008!
Jackie and the entire Wealth Intelligence Academy team
As you’re shopping for your holiday gifts this year, consider a gift that will be kept and used forever: knowledge. Books, audio and video programs, training classes – all are truly gifts that keep on giving and will always be treasured.
Got someone on your list who is interested in investing in real estate or stocks? Wealth Intelligence Academy training makes a wonderful gift. Or the Millionaire Real Estate Mindset is an affordable book full of advice on how to create and manage wealth. For a business owner or manager, The Entrepreneur’s Almanac is a book they’ll refer to regularly for years to come.
The gift of knowledge is one that will increase in value and be appreciated forever.
On behalf of the entire Wealth Intelligence Academy team, have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!
Jackie
I like the show “Frazier” and still enjoy watching the reruns. I also like Kelsey Grammer’s new show “Back to You.”
Why am I telling you this? Because I just saw an article about Kelsey Grammer’s real estate investments. You might not learn anything profound from it, but if you’re a fan, it’s entertaining. Click here to check it out.
Jackie
The Entrepreneur’s Almanac: Fundamentals, Facts and Figures You Need to Run and Grow Your Business by Jacquelyn Lynn is a treasure trove of advice for business owners and managers on how to start, run, and grow a business. It’s designed to be something you can read for just a few minutes each day and get ideas and inspiration that will help you boost profits, increase productivity, and improve efficiency. You’ll find words of wisdom from real-world business owners, including names you’ll recognize—such as Russ Whitney, Robert Kiyosaki, Kim Kiyosaki, and more.
The Entrepreneur’s Almanac belongs in your own personal library and will make a great holiday gift as well. It’s available online and in all major bookstores.
A new real estate website, www.get1percent.com, promotes itself as a place where sellers can list and buyers can shop for property and pay only a one percent commission.
But many consumers were careless when typing in the URL of the site. They dropped the “get” and instead went to www.1percent.com—which is a site selling drug paraphernalia. Parents were upset, real estate buyers and sellers were complaining, and the executives at get1percent.com are trying to figure out what to do.
The folks at the real estate website have issued apologies to anyone who was offended and say they are “working on solving the problem.”
To which I say: What problem? The real estate website has simply offered buyers and sellers a low-commission resource. Consumers have the responsibility to accurately type in the URL and to not get mad just because another site with a totally different product line has a similar address—and appears to have been in business for more than a decade.
People just need to be careful when they type in URLs, and not try to turn their mistake into somebody else’s problem.
Jackie
If you have something to say about the content of this blog, I’d love to read it – and I’m sure our readers would, as well. All we ask is that your comment pertain to the subject of the original post.
Please understand that we are not permitted to give specific investment advice and that issues related to your own training, subscriptions, and so on need to be handled by our student services team. Also, comments are moderated so that we can filter out the spam, so there may be a delay in publication.
So, please, speak up – tell us about your thoughts, your reactions, your experiences. After all, this blog is for you, and your participation will make it an even more valuable tool.
The Department of Justice and FBI has announced the results of an ongoing cyber crime initiative to disrupt and dismantle “botherders” and elevate the public’s cyber security awareness of botnets.
Here’s the complete release from the FBI:
It’s a great day for internet and e-mail users – one of the world’s top spammers has been arrested. This is not directly connected to real estate investing, but spam affects every e-mail users, and I just can’t resist commenting on it.
An article on techshout.com opened with this:
Robert Alan Soloway, 27, has been indicted on 35 federal felony counts, including identity theft and money laundering. U.S. Attorney Jeff Sullivan said this is the first time federal prosecutors have used identity theft statutes to indict someone for taking over someone else’s internet domain name. Sullivan said Soloway is responsible for millions of spam e-mails. If convicted as charged, Soloway faces a maximum of more than 65 years in prison (without internet access, we hope) and a fine of $250,000.
Congratulations to the diligent investigators and prosecutors.
Jackie
Pretexting is one of the latest ways identity thieves steal your information. The technique is so named because the scammers use a pretext to get data—either they pretend to be you and try to get your information from someone else or they pretend to be someone you do business with and try to trick you into divulging information they can use to steal from you.
Federal officials don’t know how widespread the use of this technique is, but they know it’s happening and they know that pretexters are very resourceful.
Never give out information over the phone, through the mail, or over the internet unless you’ve initiated the contact or know whom you’re dealing with. It’s a sad fact, but when it comes to your personal information, you need to be suspicious of everybody these days.
Jackie
Wishing you a safe and happy New Year’s celebration and all the best in 2007.
Jackie
Happy Holidays!
Wishing you joy and peace now and throughout the coming year.
Jackie
So much of our business is being conducted by e-mail these days. Are you getting the most out of this technology by using good e-mail etiquette? I can tell you from the contents of my inbox that many people aren’t, and I honestly don’t think most of them mean to be rude, they just don’t understand that their e-mails come across that way.
When you’re dealing with lenders, buyers, sellers, and other real estate professionals, you need to be sure your e-mails present you in the best possible light. For great advice on e-mail etiquette, visit www.netmannersblog.com.
Jackie
Chief Blogger
Wealth Intelligence Academy
This doesn’t have anything to do with real estate, but I thought it was interesting, so I’m sharing it.
The White House will send birthday (to folks 80 and older) and anniversary (to couples married 50 years or more) greetings, as well as cards for weddings and new babies to anyone who requests them.
The procedure is simple. Go to www.whitehouse.gov/contact, scroll down to “Invitations and Greetings,” then click on the link to guidelines for greetings. For birthday and anniversary cards, the request needs to be made at least six weeks in advance. For weddings and new babies, the request must be made after the wedding or birth has taken place.
Jackie
You see a lot of stuff floating around the internet about how to handle unwanted telemarketing calls, such as asking for the caller’s home phone number and saying you’ll call them back, or just rambling on for a long period about essentially nothing. Recently an audio file of a man who pretended to be a detective and told the telemarketer he had called a murder scene and was now a suspect was circulating around the internet—it was funny, but not particularly useful. Techniques such as those may give you some temporary satisfaction but they won’t stop the calls.
Here’s a script that will actually be effective—and may give you recourse if the telemarketer calls you back. Click here for complete details.
Jackie
Chief Blogger
Wealth Intelligence Academy
You’re going to see some changes to the Wealth Intelligence Academy blog. Our goal has been and will continue to be to give you information and advice you can use to build your real estate investing business. As the newly-appointed Chief Blogger, my job is to provide commentary that is contemporary and relevant, and to work with our trainers and mentors to share their insight and wisdom with you as well.
I’m looking forward to the challenge and I hope you’re looking forward to the change.
Stay tuned,
Chief Blogger
Wealth Intelligence Academy