Blogging is fun because you can choose your topic as well as your content and there is no one (at least not in my case) looking over your shoulder to critique your selections. I want to wave the banner a bit for Windermere today, and I hope after reading this you share my enthusiasm.

Last night I attended the Greater Poulsbo Chamber of Commerce Gala & Community Awards Banquet. It was enjoyable, and as a member and an Ambassador for the Chamber I was looking forward to attending. However, last night was extra special because Windermere Real Estate/West Sound, Inc. was one of three honorees nominated for Business of the Year. And – we won!!!

Two couples jointly own four Windermere offices here in Kitsap County. Each office has a slightly different culture, but all are great. And one of the things that makes Windermere great is our leadership. We are fortunate to have the owners that we do, but we are also fortunate to be a part of a much larger Windermere team.

Many people believe that the business of real estate is about sales, but it is not. It is about service. And I believe one of the reasons Windermere dominates the real estate market in our area is because our team understands that concept and lives it out on a daily basis. We bring value to home buyers and sellers by helping them identify their wants and needs and then guiding them through the complex process of making their dreams a reality. This idea of service, not sales, is foundational to Windermere as a whole.

Apart from the work we do directly with buyers and sellers, we also work as a team to make this a healthy and thriving community that we are proud to share with others. Every Windermere participates in an Annual Community Service Day where we band together and volunteer our time and labor for the day to a worthy cause. We have painted buildings, stocked food bank shelves, hauled bark, weeded gardens, and more. In addition to that, we contribute earnings to our Foundation that in turn gives money back to the community, we adopt Angel Tree children at Christmas, we donate turkeys at Thanksgiving, we round up shoes for children who don’t have the means to buy them, we support our farmer’s markets, and the list goes on. I don’t tell you these things to pat myself or anyone else on the back. I tell you these things because I am PROUD to be a part of this team! I am excited to be a part of an organization that believes in service and lives it out. And I am thrilled that we were honored by being named Greater Poulsbo Business of the Year for 2014. Go team!!!

It’s hard to live anywhere near Puget Sound, or perhaps even in Washington State, and not be a Seahawks fan these days. We take pride in the flags we wave, the colors we wear, the numbers we sport. We have an officially proclaimed day – Seahawks Blue Friday – started in January of 2014 by Governor Jay Inslee that continues even now where we sport blue on Fridays to support the team. Some people think it’s madness, a few have escaped the fever, but most of us love those Seahawks!

The NFC Championship game against the Packers was not the Seahawks best. In fact, they played poorly for most of the game. They just couldn’t seem to pull it together. Then, with fewer than four minutes on the clock, things started to turn around. Up until that point, the Packers dominated the game. You could see their confidence grow as the clock ran down. They thought they had it. A lot of people did. But they didn’t – the Hawks won! What happened?

Some of the win was luck. But more than luck, what won the game was the fact that the Seahawks didn’t give up. They didn’t fade, they didn’t lag, and in spite of not playing well, with only minutes left in the game they pushed on as hard or harder than ever. That’s difficult, isn’t it? When you’re not winning, aren’t you tempted to give up? Or give less than your best? I am. And then I’m tempted to make excuses for myself. But that’s what I love about the Seahawks the most. They play as a team, they really do play to win, and they don’t give up even when the clock is running down and the odds are against them.

I hope I learn from the Seahawks this year. When it looks like I’m not winning, I hope I don’t lose the vision. I hope I don’t make excuses, and I hope I don’t give up. I hope you push through to those wins, too. And speaking of winning, of course I hope the Hawks go on to Super Bowl victory!

GO HAWKS!!!

One of the questions Real Estate Brokers hear, and hear most often, is “How is the market?” This is a great time to ask and answer that question!

Right now we are experiencing a seller’s market in North Kitsap. What does that mean? That means we have an unusually low inventory of homes for sale. In fact, Brokers in our office who have been in the business 20 years or more are remarking on the fact that they have not seen so few homes for sale in our area in all their years of experience. How does this affect you?

Well, if you are a buyer, things can be tough. There aren’t as many homes from which to choose, and homes in desirable neighborhoods or homes that are priced particularly well are selling quickly. Sellers are receiving multiple offers, and they are able to be more selective about the offers they accept. Financing (cash remains king!), closing dates, inspections, and other contingencies can and do affect how a seller views the offers on their home. Buyers need to be ready to act quickly if they find a home in which they are interested. In all cases you should be working with a great Realtor® – that goes without saying! It also means you should be working with a great lender and have your budget determined and your pre-approval in place. Those are important pieces when planning for a successful real estate buying experience.

And if you’re a seller, our current market provides good news for you! This is a great time to sell. Low inventory means there is a pool of buyers waiting for new homes to come on the market, and they are eager to see what you have to offer. Brokers are continually reviewing new listings, ready to gain access to and show your home. It also means you want and need to put your best foot forward with a home that will excite buyers by being properly prepared, attractively staged, professionally photographed, accurately priced, and aggressively marketed. Even though there are buyers anxious to find that perfect new home, that doesn’t mean you can afford to be lax in how you present your property. Again, you should be working with a professional Realtor® who can guide you through the process and help you achieve success. Real estate transactions are complex, and many things can and do go wrong between listing a property and closing a deal. Do give yourself the advantage of professional assistance to help ensure a successful closing!

Do you have questions about our market moving forward into 2015? Would you like more information about this or other parts of the County? From Bainbridge to Port Ludlow, from Hansville to Port Orchard, I would be more than happy to be of assistance. Just ask!

I am currently reading a book that I am enjoying titled Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t. (I freely admit I am constantly reading a book of one kind or another.) This book is an investigation into and study of the factors that lead some companies to sustained greatness while seemingly comparable companies fail. If you have an interest in business, I highly recommend it!

This is the start of a new year and a time when many of us make resolutions and create new business plans, full of good intentions and hopes for success. In my reading in Good to Great last night, I ran across a thought, a quote, from George Rathmann, co-founder of the biotech company Amgen, referencing the time he worked for Abbott Laboratories. In an interview for this book, he is quoted as saying,

“What I got from Abbott was the idea that when you set your objectives for the year, you record them in concrete. You can change your plans through the year, but you never change what you measure yourself against. You are rigorous at the end of the year, adhering exactly to what you said was going to happen. You don’t get a chance to editorialize. You don’t get a chance to adjust and finagle, and decide that you really didn’t intend to do that anyway, and readjust your objectives to make yourself look better. You never just focus on what you’ve accomplished for the year; you focus on what you’ve accomplished relative to exactly what you said you were going to accomplish – no matter how tough the measure. That was a discipline learned at Abbott, and that we carried into Amgen.”

I think that’s excellent advice. I think going into the new year with our plans and resolutions set, knowing we will make no excuses for our performance but will measure absolutely against the standard we’ve set, is an excellent resolution in itself. I have set goals for myself, ambitious but not impossible, and I like the idea of “no excuses” as I move forward. What about you – are you willing to be rigorous in examining your performance at the end of this year? As we all move ahead into 2015, here’s to the courage to set goals and then to being fearless in our evaluation of what we do, and don’t do, to achieve them. And from me to you, here’s to all your dreams coming true in the months ahead. Don’t hesitate to let me know what I can do to help you achieve them!