Prepare Yourself for Our 2019 Market

There’s a shift happening in our market, and I have a few tips that will help you keep your business moving forward in 2019.

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What should you expect from our housing cycle in 2019? Many of you weren’t around when the market shifted back in 2008, but I was. At the time, I was worried and I wasn’t sure where my livelihood would go. There are a few things I wish I would’ve known then that I want to share with you now. Take a look at what’s happening with our housing cycle right now. Each cycle lasts from seven to 10 years, and if you look at the market in general, interest rates, home prices, and inventory levels are rising. Once this happens, builders start making adjustments. In fact, a lot of builders are getting more and more hesitant to build homes over $500,000. When we start seeing these trends, we know there’s a bigger change happening. I’m sure you’ve noticed this change. Some people think this means we’re in for a crazy spring, and hopefully that’s true. In the meantime, though, we know our market is changing, and we have to be prepared for it. What can you do to prepare yourself?

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When we start seeing these changes, we know there’s a bigger change happening.

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First, make sure you have the right mindset and are motivated to work every single day. It’s been easy these past few years to kick your feet up and let business come to you, but that won’t be that case anymore. Get your hands on as much motivational, self-help literature as you can and make sure you’re reading at least 10 pages a day. Second, surround yourself with podcasts and other things that are positive in your mind. This will help your business move forward. You might have to deal with a few breakdowns, but without breakdowns, there are no breakthroughs. Finally, take care of yourself. Make sure you’re eating better and thinking better. If you increase productivity by 10% in 10 areas of your life, you increase by 100%. Moving forward, I’ll be sharing more tips that I’ve learned in all my years in the business that will help you prepare for the future and keep your business moving forward. If you have any questions or there’s anything I can help you with in the meantime, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to help you.

3 Tips for Becoming the Top Producer in Your Office

You don’t need talent or luck when you can set goals and keep yourself accountable. Here’s why.

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If you’re like me, you’ve been seeing a change in the market. When times seem to be winding down like this, I like to think of how we can keep being great producers even during a lull in the market. Here are three ways to do it: 1. Spend at least two hours a day on business development. You must keep yourself accountable to this; do not take it off your calendar. You have to build your business each day, and two hours is the bare minimum. 2. Keep 80% of your time dollar-productive. Use this time to be working with people, negotiating contracts, and doing the things that really make you money. If you find yourself sitting around, get to work! Always be doing something that is growing your business in some way.

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Always be doing something that is growing your business in some way.

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3. Have your goals in front of you. You need to know exactly where you’re going and break it down into a daily practice. As you’re doing those things each day, you’ll be coming closer and closer to reaching your goals. Set a goal each morning and accomplish that goal by the end of the day. On top of all this, it’s important to keep yourself accountable. If you don’t, these straightforward routines will be nowhere near as effective as they could be. If you have any other questions or need information, reach out to us. We look forward to hearing from you.

The Due Diligence of Buying an Investment Property

Investment properties are good for your business, but there are a few things you need to know about a property before buying it.

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If you don’t already own an investment property, it should be your goal to buy one by the end of this year. Before you buy a property you’re interested in, though, there are a few things you need to consider. First, what is the projected income of that property? What are its income rates now, and where will they be in the near future? Look at the rent rates and see if there’s an opportunity to raise them. Remember, the higher the income, the higher the value of the property. If the current landlord has owned that property for at least the past three years, the rent is properly low. Second, what is the current tenant’s situation? Get a copy of the property’s leases and see if anything needs to be adjusted so you can better understand what you’re getting into. Next, consider the utility situation. If you’re buying a multi-unit property, there will be separate utilities, which means there will be a difference in income.

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When you invest in real estate, you can offer more value to your clients.

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Also, consider the overall condition of the property. You already know that you need to order an inspection for it, but in some cases, you’ll need to bring in additional experts so you can better understand what needs to be done to fix it up and whether you have the funds in place to make the necessary improvements. Lastly, try to have six months’ worth of cash reserves so you can make those improvements. Make sure you have that money in the bank so you can take care of roof expenses, plumbing expenses, etc. When you invest in real estate, you can offer more value to your clients. You understand rent laws, what it takes to buy and sell a rental property, and what it’s like being a landlord. Also, you can reap the benefits of owning that property’s income forever. If you have any more questions about the benefits of investing in real estate or there’s anything else I can help you with, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to speak to you.

What You Need to Know About the Utah Market

What is happening in our Utah Market? Today I am going to look at it with you.

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Today I want to give you a quick market update and tell you what you need to know about real estate in Utah. When comparing this quarter to last quarter, we are down 4.6% in home sales. In fact, the Board of Realtors said that, if we looked at listings, they are down 1.6%. While we are seeing less homes on the market, our home values have increased dramatically. Since last year, the median home price in Salt Lake County has increased 7.8% from $327,000 to $352,000. Of course, different markets and areas are seeing different trends. However, this market has been fantastic with 10 years of growth. Now, though, interest rates are increasing which affects affordability. Recently, we had a buyer looking for a $440,000 home, but interest rates increased and reduced his affordability to $410,000. If you are selling a home, this changes the number of people that can buy your home.

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If you are selling a home, affordability changes the number of people that can buy your home.

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When we have less homes on the market, people become afraid of where they are going to go and buyers think that they can't afford a home. Statistically, property values have increased by an average of 3.3%over the last 26 years. What you need to know is this: Interest rates are still great, but they are going up. It is affecting the affordability and is starting to squeeze the value and the affordability of homes. You are going to start seeing more and more townhome projects that come to your city planning meetings as well as smaller micro units. Also, according to economists at the University of Utah, we are seeing an increase in the number of multi-generational families that are living in the same habitation due to affordability concerns. If you need anything such as a home value or a new home, now is a great time to look at different options. For sellers, it's a good time to decide whether to sell or keep your home. Meanwhile, if you are looking at buying, you can look at the interest rates to see if it's a good time to buy. I will say this: Never wait to buy real estate. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I look forward to speaking with you soon.

Be Present With Clients and Break Through to the Next Level

Do you want to break through to the next level and bring in more business? Today I have three important tips on how to do so.

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One of the things that I have learned over the course of my career is that sometimes, when we join the real estate business, we get so heavily involved with every step of the process that it results in us not being fully present with clients.Today I am going explain how we show up and how to break through to the next level. 1. You have to be present. When you are with a client, you should be focused on them. Whether you are talking to one person or 100,000, bring all of your energy to that conversation. I never know who is listening to me on my videos, but regardless of if it is one person or 20, I will bring the energy to it.

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Be expressive and show passion as you speak, because this will help show them that you are a person they can trust.

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2. You have to own your space. Clients want and expect you to be a force to be reckoned with. Be expressive and show passion as you speak, because this will help show them that you are a person they can trust. Clients should have a good idea of how you’re going to guide them to their goals. This is exactly what I’ve done with my own clients. I’ve created this impression by speaking and acting with confidence. One client in particular affirmed that this was the case during a recent conversation I had with them over email. I had reached out to them to explain my thoughts on their million-dollar listing. When they responded, they said “You’re the pro. You’re the expert. Just let us know what we need to do.” When you display confidence during interactions with clients, you won’t have to convince them of your competence. They will sense it. 3. You have to find your love for it. I really love this business and I hope that is apparent. The key to being successful, yourself, is to find your niche in this industry, whether it is working with people, working with contracts, or doing construction. When you find what you love, it will be easy to show clients that you’re passionate. Having passion will bring a new level of intensity to your career and will help you attract more business. If you need anything from me and my team, please feel free to reach out to me by phone or email. I look forward to speaking with you soon.

Hiring a Handyman Instead of a Contractor – The Pros and Cons

Today I have a list of the pros and cons of hiring a handyman to help you decide which is best for your situation.

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Are you considering a handyman over a professional contractor to get your small repairs completed? Today I have a list of the pros and cons of hiring a handyman to help you decide which is best for your situation. The pros of hiring a handyman are: 1. There are more options for you to consider hiring. Lots of people are able to complete your job and can help you. 2. They may have more open availability. You will most likely not have to wait for them to get out and fix your issues. 3. You can save money. The costs for handymen are sometimes significantly cheaper than contractors. And, they can usually do it quickly.

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You should choose the person who is going to do the best job for you.

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The cons, meanwhile, are: 1. They lack expertise in certain areas. They cannot be fully trained in every aspect—just their trade. 2. A handyman could cause serious damages later. An incorrectly installed light switch could lead to a fire. 3. A lot of times, they do not have proper insurance. If something does go wrong, they are unable to back it up. 4. You get what you pay for. I would not recommend hiring a professional with an extremely high fee. However, you do not want to pay the least amount and get the worst quality as well. When you are looking at pros and cons for the people that you are hiring, I believe you should choose the person who is going to do the best job. Whether that person is a professional, a handyman, or just someone that is assisting you because they have done a certain task well before, choose the person that is the right fit for you. If you have any questions about this, please feel free to reach out to me. I would be happy to assist in any way that I can.

Buy Into What You Are Doing

If you change the way you think, you could end up making more money. Today I will explain how.

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I want to go over why you should be your own best client in today's market. One of the things that we talk about on our team is how can you be a market expert if you are not buying your own product. If you are looking on the market, and you are part of this business, you should be your own best client. You should be buying your own product. When I go out and do my daily prospecting from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and I reach somebody, I want that person to tell me more about the property. I am not thinking about how I can get a sale. I want to know if it is a good property that I can actually take advantage of. This is how I have located properties, bought several duplexes, and I have even had the chance to buy single-family homes that I have bought and resold. I then took that money and put it into other investments. When you shift your mindset from “I need to sell” and just taking that $6,000 to $8,000 commission, and instead actually buy something, you can make $8,000 to $10,000 every single year for the rest of your life. 

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A property that has cash and continues to kick off cash whichever direction the market goes will create opportunity for you.

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A couple quick rules to think about any time you are buying a property: 1) It has to have equity. 2) It has to have cash flow. The reason that is going to be so detrimental to you is that, when the market made a shift, the people that lost did so because they didn’t have cash flow. They have equity, but it goes away. A property that has cash and continues to kick off cash whichever direction the market goes will create opportunity for you. I would have never started my team if my rentals weren't producing the income. Think about it. Take advantage of the market; take that extra money you have and put it into the market. Find opportunities that can create money. Create a cash flow for life and something that you can essentially live on forever. If you have any questions for me about how to become your best client, please don’t hesitate to ask. I would be happy to speak with you.

5 Tips to Help You Survive the Next Market Shift

I have five tips to share with you that can help you survive the next market correction.

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I recently listened to a number of agents talking about a shift in the market. Some said they were excited and that it would be a great opportunity, and that got me thinking. They weren’t excited about the change; they were excited about the end result of that change and the opportunities it would bring up. A market shift or correction tends to weed out limited agents or those who don’t know their craft, but what about what happens within that correction time frame, though? What’s your survival guide? About 85% of you haven’t been through a market correction like I have, and I’ll be honest with you—it was horrible. I’m not trying to scare you; I just want you to survive the next market correction. To accomplish this, there are five things you need to do: 1. Become a master at prospecting. If you wait for business to come to you, I promise you’ll go away. 2. Have money in reserve. This will help you survive when times are tough.

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Prepare yourself so that you can outweigh the competition.

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3. Put money in places that will increase your cash flow. For example, I was able to grow my business because I had rental properties. 4. Grow your database. Have people you can talk to and follow up with and resources you can use. 5. Master your skill sets. I don’t know what the market is going to bring, but you’ll have to adjust and be the best. If you’re showing up to work at 60% or 70% each day, you need to start showing up at 100%. If you’d like to delve further into this subject matter, I have two links that can help you: • Click here to download an episode of my “Real Obsessed” podcast that lists all these tips and explains them in great detail.
• Click here to get a copy of the book “Winning Real Estate: 9 Secrets to Success From Leading Pros,” 20 pages of which is devoted to my system and how I survived the last market correction. If you have any other questions about this topic, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d be glad to help you.

Get a Deeper Understanding of Real Estate with My Podcast

I’m excited to tell you about my podcast, which allows me to delve deeper into the topics that you want to learn about.

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I’m very excited about the podcast we have coming out. If you’ve been listening to the short videos we’ve been making, you’ll notice that I’ve been scratching the surface on a few different important topics. This podcast gives me the ability to go a deeper into these discussions. On today’s podcast, I interviewed the CEO of Century 21 Global. In that, you can listen to a little over 40 minutes of him discussing how he went from being a solo agent to a business owner and a CEO of a global franchise, building teams and leadership skills, and the experiences he’s had over the course of his career.

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In order to be productive at work, keep yourself in front of people.

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Whether you’re a solo agent, you’re growing a team, or you’re looking to do more, I really hope that this will give you some amazing information.

You can find this podcast here, or in the iTunes Store under

“Real Obsessed With Justin Udy.”

Subscribe to it, and if you like it, go ahead and give it a 5-star review. I’d love to hear your thoughts, questions, and things that you’d like to know more about, whether it be prospecting, lead generation, people, systems, marketing, or whatever else. If there’s any way that I can assist you, please reach out to me and let me know. I look forward to hearing from you.

How the 10% Rule Impacts 3 Areas of Your Life

If you want to reach your 2018 goals, I recommend applying the 10% rule to three areas of your life: health, wealth, and relationships.

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There are three things that will be very important if you want to make this year a stronger year. When people think about real estate, they often don’t talk about the world of health, wealth, and relationships. I have a general rule that can help you improve your life in these three areas. It’s called the 10% rule. What does the 10% rule mean? Basically, you need to cut yourself some slack about 10% of the time. How does the 10% rule apply to health, wealth, and relationships? Let me break it down for you: 1. Health. Make sure that you are eating healthy 90% of the time. The remaining 10% of the time, go ahead and have that syrupy drink or other junk food. In order to perform at your highest level, you need energy. So, eat healthy 90% of the time, and 10% of the time, allow yourself to fudge a bit while living a life of health and energy. You have to have physical energy to be able to reach the highest level of every goal. Take care of your body and your mind, and you will be able to accomplish anything. People often set goals too low because they simply don’t have the energy to set them higher. We could accomplish even more with the 90/10 rule.

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In order to be productive at work, keep yourself in front of people.

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2. Wealth. When you’re at work, it’s natural to spend 10% of the time getting a coffee from the break room, hanging out by the water cooler, or talking to your friends. The other 90% of the time has to be productive. Make sure you do things to get you at the highest level of activity during those eight hours each day. By fully utilizing those eight hours, you are saving yourself from those 10- or 12-hour work days. In order to be productive, keep yourself in front of people. Focus on prospecting, attending appointments, lead follow up, and negotiating deals. You can go to lunch with people, but do it for networking purposes. Instead of goofing around, that hour can be used to further your business and reach your goals. 3. Relationships. After a full day of work, it’s normal to feel tired. Make sure you go home with 10% still in the tank. Your family, your friends, your partner, and even your pet deserve to spend time with you. I was completely unbalanced at the beginning of my career. I left before my kids woke up and went home before they went to bed. I was managing the team, the marketing, and hiring. I did 85 transactions personally that year. I was doing everything at work, but I was not the best dad or husband. When you’re at work and you feel like you’ve spent 90% of your energy, go home. Give your family that time and energy. In the end, they are who we’re doing this for. We are doing this to serve our family, our friends, and other people. When we produce enough, we can give back to others. I hope you find the 10% rule helpful in 2018. If you have any other questions about reaching your 2018 goals, just give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!

Protecting Your Mindset

Today I’d like to give you some advice about what things it will take for you to reach the highest levels of the real estate industry.

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Why is protecting your mindset and making sure that you have a daily routine so important for reaching the highest levels in this business?
There is a principle that comes from Tony Robbins that my team and I discuss frequently. It states that 80% of the real estate business is mindset and 20% is execution. After 10 years in the industry, I can tell you that this is true.
Even today, there are different problems and issues that occur that get me saying, “You’ve got to be kidding me!” When you encounter situations like that, you need to step out of that and into another role of getting production, results, and work done. The solution is all about your mindset.
I’m going to tell you two things that have really made a massive difference in my life that I would recommend you to do as part of your daily schedule.

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You can’t stand by the fire and ask it to give you heat if you haven’t thrown in the wood.

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The first is that energy is everything! Energy here means that you have the ability to get up, feel strong, want to get out there, hit the phones and reach people, knock on doors, and be actively and aggressively engaging in the market to produce higher-level results. You can’t stand by the fire and ask it to give you heat if you haven’t thrown in the wood. You have to put in the work. Get up early and work out so that your body is physically stronger than your peers and you have the energy necessary to power through the day.
The second is that you need to have a daily routine that involves protecting your mind. This can be reading 10 pages of a book, listening to a podcast, going to a meeting with the rest of your peers, or going through scripts or motivational items that will get you on the right track. If you master a daily ritual with an item like one of those, it will protect the rest of your day.
If you have any questions or need recommendations for books to read or podcasts to listen to, please reach out. We’d be happy to provide you with those resources to improve your life.

The Key to Approaching Commission Disputes

The standard 3% commission is just a little too much for some home sellers to handle at first. Here’s a fresh approach to the situation that will increase your odds of getting your standard commission.

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I recently received another question about commission structure from an agent that I felt I just had to address. This agent went on an appointment with a seller and couldn’t get the seller to budge from wanting to pay a 2% commision, which is much lower than the standard 3%. The problem was that this agent didn’t know how to attack the situation. Here’s what they should have done.
When you’re dealing with a seller who doesn’t want to pay full commission, you need to approach the situation differently. First, find out what their motivation is for selling. Then you need to find out what price they’re looking to get for the home.

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Show them you’re worth your commission.

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Instead of starting out with the question, “Will you pay a 3% commission?”, start by asking “What price are you looking to net on your sale?” After you have that number, here’s how the conversation should go with that seller:
“If I was able to net you the amount that you’re looking for, would you consider adding the 3% commission on top? You obviously want to net the most money possible, that’s why you only want to pay 2%. Do you have a plan to get that full price? I do, and if you let me assist you, I will give you a full-service experience while netting you the price you desire.”
I’m not saying this strategy works 100% of the time, but what I am saying is that switching up your approach by initially demonstrating value to your potential client is smart. And it does work. When I’m able to charge a 6% or 7% commission on a home, it’s because the homeowner knows and sees the amount of work and effort I’m putting in to ensure that we achieve our goals together.
If you have any questions for me about commission structures or anything else related to the business, give me a call or send me an email. I would love to hear from you.

Full Service vs. Limited Service: Which Is Better?

When it comes to real estate, there’s a huge difference between full-time and part-time professionals. Let me explain why.

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There will always be ongoing changes within the real estate market. The level of service provided in the industry today is dramatically different from how it was when I first entered the business. So, would you rather work with an agent who provides full or limited service? The answer seems obvious. When it comes to real estate, most everyone would prefer to work with someone who has the most knowledge and experience, and who can use those factors to provide you with the highest level of experience possible.

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Full-service agents and limited-service agents are worlds apart.

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As for me, I’ve truly committed myself to real estate as a career. I dedicate a lot of time and effort into what I do so that I can best serve my clients. Part-time agents simply can’t provide the same level of care and attention that full-time agents can. Full-service agents and limited-service agents are worlds apart. When you enter your career, you need to decide which category you fall in. One factor to consider is that full-service agents have the benefit of receiving full commission structures. Becoming a full-service agent will require a lot of planning, but the results of your effort will be well worth it. You will get higher client satisfaction rates, more referrals, and better reviews. If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.