Magic Johnson Said That

I’m a little amazed at how fast the last 10 years have flown: 2011 marks year 10 for Working RE Magazine and OREP.org. Thank you. In this time, here’s what I’ve learned about business: put the customer first; do what you say and say what you do; under promise and over deliver. Turn down business that isn’t best for both parties. Be honest. Work hard. Be respectful. Do business by the Golden Rule. Know when to say yes and when to say no. Appreciate every phone call, every piece of business and every opportunity that comes your way because that person is putting their trust in you. These values, it seems, are pretty good business principals as well. Keep marketing, keep pushing, keep sharpening your skills. Stay current, grow, evolve, learn, diversify because these are the disciplines that help keep us successful, and this hasn’t changed in the 20 plus years that I’ve covered both the profession and the business of appraising.

Turning the Corner
There are signs that the industry may have seen the worst and is now turning the corner.

Many appraisers are busy and back to work; working with some AMCs but not others. Working harder for less, perhaps, but in business; finding new sources of business, new clients, working faster and more efficiently. You’ll find some of their stories in this issue. AMCs are endeavoring to straighten out the time-consuming and clunky review processes that now infuriate so many appraisers. We learn that AMC fees are negotiable (for some) and predict that AMCs will have self-correct with respect to fees, in deference to the Customary and Reasonable fee requirement of Dodd-Frank, or face more intrusive government intervention. At the same time, new technology is making appraising more time and dollar efficient. You’ll find these issues and more covered in an important story, Working with AMCs, first published in our free Online News Edition, at WorkingRE.com, Current Issue, Didn’t fit in Print.

Magic (Johnson)
It was basketball legend Magic Johnson who famously said that success is when preparation meets opportunity. It is also true that you cannot win if you do not play. A positive spirit, good skills and the determination to push the boulder uphill every day, no matter what, never seems to fail. That is not magic. That is hard work. It’s been a tough couple of years but the worst may be over. That is not predicting, that is reporting (with a touch of optimism). Thanks again for reading these past 10 years!