All Forum Posts by: Patrick Murray

The assessor's website in Cumberland County, NC (my market) will list sales information for each property, but it never seems to be accurate.

I'm from Fayetteville, NC.

My faxes goes straight into my email and I would not want it any other way now that I am used to it. My ISP and VOIP provider set this up for me, the only downside is the software is not complait with Windows Vista. So I cannot send faxes from my computer. But is so convenient to be able to store a fax on the computer, check my faxes on the road, or delete junk faxes without wasting paper.

Highly recommended!

As an agent, none of us should be saying what is a "typcial commission" or list any specific numbers. To say what most agents are charging in various markets is in violation of antitrust regulations. Many buyers and sellers are having problesm with believing that the commission percentages are too high. I do not believe that the commission is set too high, I believe that the customer service level is too low. If agents will provide the "Nordstrom level of service" then their customers will not balk on the commission rates.

I would recommend evaluating each home on an individual basis rather than the combined financials of the package. Review the information on each property to figure a value. Then combine the values to know what you should offer for the package. Each property is going to have risks and details specific to that property, so you will have to analyze it carefully.

Take all of the CCIM classes. They will provide you with the textbooks and spreadsheets that will help you in real estate investmenting. It is very in depth, but you will become an expert.

I suppose I was fairly lucky when I began my career in real estate. After earning my NC license, I started working with my wife's grandmother. She has owner the company for over 25 years and been very successful. She wanted someone else in the family to work with her though. So she taught me the ropes on commercial real estate since very little is mentioned about it during the pre-licensing courses. She also introduced me to many of the clients she has worked with over the years. This of course has been very helpful. I have been in the business for about 2.5 years and represented buyers and sellers of multi-million dollar properties. Most brokers starting our never get these opportunties until much later into their careers. So it really pays to have a mentor that will teach you what they know. In commercial real estate this is almost a must since it's really a niche in the real estate market that you need a lot of specialized training. Speaking of training, I would highly recommend taking all of the CCIM courses and achieving the designation if you plan on being successful in commercial real estate. I have finished my classes and will be taking the final exam soon. Good luck to anyone else that is just starting.