Accent Gives Back

Accent Gives Back!!
For every home closed Accent gives $25 dollars to the charity of our Buyer’s/Seller’s choice.
This month we have given to:
The Church at Midtown
The Church at Battle Creek
First Baptist Church in Catoosa
Big Brothers & Sisters
Pet Adoption League (2)
Make a Wish Foundation
Tamboa Buddhist Temple
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Paul Wheeler at Breakthrough 2013

We, at Accent Realtors, would like to extend a huge thanks to Cadey and Alex Charfen for having us at Breakthrough 2013! We all had an amazing time and are so grateful for the opportunity. Paul had a wonderful time speaking at the conference; it was such an honor to be there. We hope to be at next year’s Breakthrough! Check out this video from Alex and Cadey Charfen: http://youtu.be/LC76K6x2fg8

Real Estate Recovery

Some of our team members and I just returned from a fantastic real estate conference in Phoenix called Breakthrough 2013. Having been through a down market for the last several years in real estate, the overall theme of the conference was on recovery. It was so refreshing. Since 2007 we have had to adjust, adapt, streamline and make everything more efficient to stay profitable. We lost hundreds of Realtors in our Tulsa real estate market and even lost a few of our big name, long standing real estate companies to buy outs. But now, with our low interest rates, shrinking inventory, recovering economy and buyer pool size, we are finally seeing the first signs of recovery. So what did they really tell us in Phoenix? They reminded us of the value of relationships. They reminded us that great communication is more important than ever. 90% of all communication is still offline. They reminded us not to take life too seriously and that laughter is still the best medicine and last but not least, they reminded us to not let the pain or challenges of the past blind us from the promise of tomorrow.

Vendors We Love: Preferred Carpet Care, Inc.

Out of the many vendors we, at Accent Realtors, use, one of our favorites is Preferred Carpet Care, Inc. After being in business for over 21 years, these vendors know their stuff! They provide all kinds of carpet services such as a simple carpet cleaning or even a full carpet repair. At Preferred Carpet Care, Inc. the workers pledge to deliver actual, realistic and expected results without any false promises. This company is trustworthy and always does their best to impress their clients. They have never let us down! With an experienced staff who uses only the best cleaning agents and equipment, they ensure the best clean possible for your carpet! Specializing in residential, multi-family and commercial spaces all over Tulsa, this crew has a service for you! For more information call: 918-451-5957 or visit them on their website: http://www.preferredcarpetcareinc.org/

Vendors We Love: Carpet Direct

We at Accent Realtors use many vendors to improve our properties. This week, the vendor we love is Carpet Direct, an amazing flooring company who never fails to please! Mike Miles, of Carpet Direct, has been in the carpet and flooring business for nine years and we, at Accent Realtor’s, have been using his services for seven of those years! This is a company who knows their trade and delivers top-notch service every time! Mike Miles is a trusted vendor who has a great work ethic and enjoys what he does. The products that Mike, at Carpet Direct, offers include carpet, wood, tile, and vinyl flooring. The workers at Carpet Direct make their flooring affordable by selling name brand, quality floor coverings directly to you at savings of 30-50%. For more information regarding Carpet Direct, you can find them at http://www.carpetdirect.com/, their twitter account @CarpetDirectLLC, or their Carpet Direct page on Facebook!

Tulsa Real Estate Market Update June 2013

We have found over the years that the best way to handle an interesting market is to understand it and educate ourselves on the trends and nuances of any changes it might be going through. Before I became an expert, I used to just cross my fingers. That was not a very good strategy.

So, we are seeing pending sales on the rise in our area. This is a good sign. More buyers are back in the market and the move up buyer is back as well. Inventory has come down but is trending up slightly because of the busy summer season. We are trending toward a more balanced market but it is still a buyers’ market with some great values out there. Economists are estimating around 1-3% appreciation this year in our values. This is a very moderate appreciation rate. Our average price of properties that are selling have gone up nicely though. This is just because bigger homes are now selling. Mortgage rate analysts are predicting around 4% by the end of the year which makes now the perfect time to buy. Last but not least, rents are increasing in our area after a decline in the toughest part of our real estate downturn.

Productivity

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A lot of people ask me how to make their days more productive. We all have the same 24 hours in everyday, and how we use it is critical to our success. One of the best things I have learned about productivity is that if we are working in our areas of talent, we can be much more productive.

I try to spend 80% or more of my day in things I excel in. The benefit of this is that you generally really enjoy those activities as well. So, find out what your strengths are. There are too many personality assessments out there to count but most will pinpoint the type of work you will be most effective in. They will tell you whether you will be good with detail work or strategic planning or face to face with clients selling your services. They are wonderful resources to get you started in the right direction.

Another way to increase productivity is to be very intentional about your daily accomplishments. Each morning, spend time doing planning and in solitude. During this time you want to evaluate your day, your business, and your successes.

One of the most effective strategies I have in being productive is that I get up before everyone else does. I usually wake up between 4:00 and 5:00 in the morning. I have found it gives me a head start on the day and my brain is very creative at that time of day. I am able to learn more and find better solutions for my life. My daily ritual is to get up and make coffee and then head to the home gym to exercise for an hour. During that time I listen to audio books on my iPhone at 3 times the normal speed. This way I can listen to two to three books a week and continually improve my knowledge base. I have found that education will solve any challenge you might be having in your life. It doesn’t matter if it is business related, marriage related or even challenges you might be having with your children. I also do my daily planning and solitude during that time and answer the questions that keep me focused on the highest priorities for the day.

Questions I recommend are as follows:

How did I fill my cup yesterday?

Right now I feel? Why?

What is the one thing I want to do today? What is my intention?

What could I do today to change the course of my business?

What task is so urgent that it would damage my business if it were not accomplished today?

Which processes in my business could be improved?

How can I improve these processes?

What friction points exist today?

Are the friction points different than yesterday?

Lately I have learned…

5 things I am grateful for today…

I am joyfully anticipating…

Last but not least, structure your day in blocks of time, so that you are always focused and intentional in your activities vs. multi tasking and putting out fires. If you can block time to make calls or to do your appointments, you will accomplish so much more in your day. Hope this helps and don’t hesitate to call or email if you any questions.

Paul Wheeler

Tulsa Real Estate

Tulsa Real Estate Market Update March 2013

Tulsa Real Estate Market Update

The best news I can share today is that we are seeing the first signs of a recovering local Real Estate market. 2006 was our peak year in the Tulsa, OK area with the highest number of sales. That year we sold about 16,000 homes in our market. Since then we declined for the next four years to a low of under 10,000 home sales in 2010. 2011 was basically flat with values declining. In 2012 we finished off the year with over 12000 home sales. Not only that, our values seem to have stabilized and the move up buyers are coming back into the market and buying the higher price ranges that have been beat up so badly over the last few years.

So, people are asking me what this means for the sellers. From my perspective, I think this is the best time to sell in the last few years. The 2010 tax credit of $8000 got a lot of buyers off the fence. Since that time buyers have been much more hesitant and the experienced investors came into our market with a vengeance. The “move up buyer” was replaced by the “best deal buyer”. For 2013, the economists are projecting a slow recovery in general with a local appreciation of 2-3%. They also hope that will continue over the next several years which will result in a slow, steady, healthy recovery for our local market.

Last but not least, the interest rates are a significant driving force behind the recovery. As long as they stay low and the lenders continue to lend money and don’t get too extreme with the regulations, we should be fine. We expect to see a slight increase in rates to approximately 4.4% by the 4th quarter of 2013.

Let me know if you have any questions and thanks for letting me share.

Paul Wheeler

Paul Wheeler’s Vision Story

A Greater Purpose

As the owner of Accent Realtors, I would like to share a story about the creation of Accent Realtors.

My quest began when I was a young man, just 17.  I was frustrated and left home between my junior and senior years of high school looking for guidance, direction, mentors, and my life’s calling and passion.  I met many people, worked different jobs, and traveled to many places.  I learned many things but three things stood out to me.

The first thing I learned was that I wanted to be happy.  I found that the happiest people I encountered were people making a difference in the lives of others.  They were giving back and helping out.  They were focused on more than just their basic needs.   I wanted to be like that.   In my travels I had met a great deal of people in need of a helping hand.  Many of them were young people needing guidance and directions.   I decided that if I was very productive, invested my money well and saved 50% of everything I ever made in the first half of my life, I could start a charitable foundation.  Then I could spend my later years championing the education and guidance of young families and children to allow them to live the best lives possible.  I dreamed of donating millions of dollars to these causes.  I now had a vision.

The second thing I learned was that I needed to be educated and be an expert in whatever I did.  Experts were able to effect the most change.  Knowledge and the use of great knowledge will still change the world.  So I went to college, paying my own way.  I became a lifelong learner and still read 100 books per year.  My areas of focus were and still are being a better business owner, better husband, better father, and now I’m educating myself on charitable foundations.  I now had a plan.

The third thing I learned was that in order to accomplish these goals, I had to be a business owner.   Being a business owner allowed me the leverage to create something bigger than I could on my own.  If I and my team of experts served enough people exceptionally well, we would have the funds to create my vision of a charitable foundation.  I now had a passion.

I arrived in Tulsa, OK with $200 to my name and started on my life’s work.  I had 3 jobs within a week and had enrolled in college.  Luckily, I only needed four hours of sleep a night.  While still in college, majoring in business, I bought a few properties as a way to start creating wealth for the foundation.  I found that the buying process and later the selling process was less than desirable and had many flaws.  A light bulb came on and I thought “Aha, there must be a better way”.  One year later, Accent Realtors was born and became a vehicle for achieving our dream of the charitable foundation.  From there, I created the best, most productive experience possible for our clients with a team of talented, passionate people and a vision of a greater purpose. Our clients hire us because we are experts in real estate.  They also know that by doing business with us they are helping reach the vision to better our community and affect the lives of local families, children, and charities. Our clients get the best real estate team in town and get to be heroes for our community and those in need.

Thanks for letting me share.

Paul Wheeler

Accent’s Monthly Email Contest

Accent’s Monthly Email Question winners for the past 6 months:
All of these winners won $100 cash or a prize equivalent to $100!
If you want to be included in our email contest, simply send your email address to Paula@accentrealtors.com

November: Megan Zetik
Correctly answered the question – In the article Unsung Heroes what was Accent Recognized for? answer: Accent was recognized for the moving van that they make available to any charitable organization free of charge.

October: Mike Todd
Correctly answered the question – How many Buyer Specialists are currently with the Accent Team? answer: at the time 6, as of today the answer is 10

September: Crystal Fulton
Correctly answered the question – How many service providers are recommened by Accent through our Preferred Vendor Program? answer: 19

August: Chris Wilson
Correctly answered the question – On Accent’s new website Biggernest.com, what neighborhood is spotlighted? answer: Seven Lakes I

July: David Alvarez
Correctly answered the question – What is the percentage difference in sales volume between the Accent Team in 2010 and the second most successful team in Tulsa area for 2010? answer: 35%

June: Aaron Beck
Correctly answered the question – According to the article by Jim Stovall, what personality attribute does Paul possess? answer: a high I.Q. (implementation quotient)