Ricky Ablaza

I got started in Real Estate when I returned to the USA from the Philippines in 1998. I was working as a Car Salesman for more than 6 months and was pretty successful at it. I was selling an average of 20 cars a month and making good money. But I needed more to support a family of 10. My wife, a loan processor, at the time, advised me to become a Realtor. My last job back in the Philippines was as a Marketing & Sales Director for a Second Home Real Estate Developer. I had the experience. I was immediately drawn to the prospect of unlimited income working as a Real estate agent. I knew I had to close loads of home sales a month to make that happen. I had a slow beginning. I did not close a sale until after 8 months. To augment my income I worked as a Notary and as a Waiter on Wheels. After I had closed my 1st Sale, the next sale came easier and quicker. Before I knew it I was closing 10-14 homes a year since I began in 1999. In the beginning all my sales were as a buyer's agent. I realized I could sell more homes as a listing agent for sellers. Working with sellers has its advantages. Sellers become buyers when their house is sold. Many buyers who come to the open house do not have agents. Then there are the neighborhood curious potential sellers who come to the open house who may be looking to sell their home in the near future. What a great way to meet all these potential clients - face to face, without cold calling. So I endeavored to learn how to be an expert listing agent. I realized that the greatest service I could give home sellers is the ability to sell their homes Quickly, Easily, for TOP Dollar. In fact, I spent years figuring out what home seller's needed to do to sell their homes FAST, with the Least Stress and KEEP More MONEY in their Pocket! I spent thousands of dollars on real estate training and education, went to all types of webinars and seminars, signed up with gurus and the latest and hottest technology. The priceless training that gave me the knowledge and experience I needed came from the REO Industry. REO means Real Estate Owned. It is the term used for properties that are foreclosed by banks and financial institutions. The banks use REO Listing Agents for the resale of these properties. Only a very few, handpicked, Realtors are selected as REO Agents. I was lucky enough to be chosen by Countrywide, Bank of America, IAS-REO, EMC and Chase to be their REO Agent The result of all that training and experience made me an expert in the field of: emerging market analysis, property valuation, investment analysis, property rehabilitation, marketing and the real estate transaction process. In layman's terms, I became the agent that gives valuable information to real estate sellers and buyers so that they can make informed decisions when buying and selling real estate. My buyer and seller clients buy or sell their homes quickly, easily, while keeping the most amount of money in their pockets. I perfected a proven sales system to bring my home sellers to the closing table. 95% of the homes I listed, sold for more than the listing price and stayed on the market less than 30 days. I would close around $5M home sales every year earning commission of roughly $150,000 per year. In the past, two of the homes I listed did not sell because I didn't know how to value them properly. I was a rookie agent then and succumbed to agreeing with the seller because I needed to make money. Now that I know how to use appraisal principles to value property correctly, I no longer pander to what the seller thinks his/her home should sell for " which is normally higher than the market can absorb. Why, because it's unfair to lead the seller on when I know the property is priced higher than the market can absorb. It is unfair to keep the home on the market knowing it will not sell and may get lowball offers. I owe it to my clients to tell them the truth, even if it goes against their presumption. My intention is helping home sellers like you minimize the " pain, suffering, frustration and angeraEUR? that can happen when trying to sell a home.