Judith Abbott's (judithabbott) Blog

I spent yesterday afternoon visiting friends and clients in Oak Cliff.  I sold a home several years ago that backs up to Stevens Park Golf Course.  My client has been keeping me informed about the progress being made on the course, but the reality of all that dirt-work just has to be seen to be a...

I was pretty much sound asleep when I heard the beep beep beep of my cell phone.  A text message.  There it was, the message we have been waiting for.  My son David and his wife Becky have had their new baby.  We are welcoming another person into our family, another life, a new journey for anothe...

Photos are the single most important marketing tool a listing agent currently has.  Over 90% of all home searches now begin on the Internet.  Buyers are sorting through the listing inventory on the basis of the pictures.  I used to always take my own pictures.  I had a fish-eye lense and a good c...

"We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit."  Aristotle I am thinking about habits and routines this morning.  We all have our little routines.  I know that if it is Sunday, I check my houseplants.  I know that I hand out the lead-based paint booklet along wi...

There is a building in downtown Dallas built and occupied by Hunt Oil Company.  The north end of the building points toward the Woodall Rogers Freeway.  That end of the building is covered with LED lights that can be made to become a wonderful display.  I have almost driven off the road watching ...

It is common for potential Buyer Clients to tell me that they "don't want to waste" my time by phoning me or emailing me when they see something they like and need more information. There is a big difference between wasting my time and letting me do my job. If you know that you are not going to b...

"It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan"  Eleanor Roosevelt said that. One of my fellow agents likes to say that real estate is either an easy low-paying job or a difficult high-paying job.  The difference is commitment and work.  It takes more than wishing for clients and closings.  ...

I told a seller today that an offer is like Age, it is just a number.  The trick is to not take it personally, to not react emotionally.  An offer is (usually) just a way to measure the motivation of the Buyer.  They are telling us that they are willing to pay $X for an asset we may have priced a...

Two ants on a bar are singing "We've Only Just Begun". A man leans over to the bartender and says, "Hey, What's up with the singing ant?" The bartender replies, "Those are Carpenter ants."

It is common for condo associations to limit the size and breed of dogs that can be kept in the complex.  In the last 6 months I have helped 2 clients who had large dogs get permission to move into a complex that had restrictions on pet size.  Here is what we did.    1.  Before we went under cont...