For an agent – or anyone – there is almost nothing more likely to guarantee your success than keeping your word. Conversely, by not keeping your promises, you ensure your own career mediocrity, or worse – people won’t trust you, will not rely on you – and your career growth will be stunted because high-level executives and clients gravitate toward those who actually get things done. … Read more

It’s no secret that foreign investors are changing the real estate landscape in the U.S. right now, especially with respect to the luxury market. According to the National Association of Realtors, more than $82 billion worth of homes were sold to international buyers in the 12-month period ending in March 2012. Buyers from China and Hong Kong alone accounted for $9 billion in U.S. home sales during that same time period, and that doesn’t even consider the large number of private sales transactions not officially reported.… Read more

Every Tuesday, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., is “caravan” in Los Angeles, during which about 500 to 600 houses open their doors for real estate agents to come preview and determine whether any would be right to show their clients. During this three-hour window, an incredible mix of estates, condos, fixers, specs, rentals, income properties and raw land — from Malibu to Santa Monica, from Brentwood to Beverly Hills, in and above the Sunset Strip, down by the Grove and over to Los Feliz and downtown LA — can be visited.… Read more