David Rathgeber's

2013 Personal Note

I'm writing this note at holiday time, a time for reflection and thankfulness. 2013 was a good year for Your Friend in Real Estate and I had a preponderance of sellers in a sellers market. The fates were smiling on me, even though I have little control over this. Our market remains healthy.

HISTORY
It was 1985 when I decided to end a rewarding career in industry to do “my own thing.” I had a secure management position but wanted greater control over the future. How can one trade in a 22-year engineering and management career (photo right) for the great unknown? I did have resources to ensure that the family could eat, live in a home, and that Susan and Davey would attend college. I also believed that I had whatever was needed to meet a new challenge and again be a winner (1958 photo link).

With my decision made, off I charged to sell my sport fishing boat, the Undecided II (1984 photo right) in Cape May, NJ. Then I prepared a spreadsheet to plot my future course. Over a dozen possibilities were carefully analyzed: franchises, marinas, a flirtation with inventing, and several real estate related ventures. The diversity of real estate seemed appealing, and from a logical start in residential sales and marketing, it would be a short step into home building for an engineer with an MBA. So I took the required courses and exam, gave notice to Mobil Oil, and joined Long & Foster in 1987.

Within days, Mobil announced the transfer of its New York headquarters to Fairfax. (Insider trading?) In the first 3 years I sold more homes than the average agent does in 20 years and had established viability and expertise in the sales and marketing arena. But the real estate boom of the late 1980s had come to an end, and the slow market of the early 1990s was not the time for my home building venture.

Meanwhile, I had developed my own ideas about real estate and about how an agent could provide real value. As new ideas emerged, new questions arose. My technical background was valuable in helping develop my ideas and in finding answers to my questions. My methods and message began diverging from “what everybody knows.” To make a long story a bit shorter, this led to my first home selling book written in 1993 with the updated 5th edition now on the Web at drrealestate.net/books.

Although a book with local appeal is not the way to fame or fortune, it does help me efficiently transfer critical information to home sellers. The home selling book led to the home buying book (drrealestate.net/books), courses at Northern Virginia Community College, and many TV appearances and speaking engagements. In 2001 I launched my own company, Your Friend in Real Estate, LLC aka YFiRE (photo link).

Some of the greatest appreciation of my novel approach has come from fellow agents. My third book Agent's Guide to Real Estate was featured on the National Association of Realtors Web site. My articles on negotiating, market statistics, and many more have been published in the national REALTOR Magazine and elsewhere.

I often get email from agents across the country telling me how much they enjoy my Agent's Guide. A few years ago I got an email from a broker in Australia named David Rathgeber! A broker from South Africa also emailed kind comments. Is the World Wide Web amazing?

THE RECENT PAST
In 2009 we moved to a large condo in Arlington, VA with views of the national fireworks; the River and the Capitol; the monuments; and the Marine Corps Marathon (photo link). Dorothy's commute is less than 25 minutes and she still enjoys her job as head of Pepco's tax department.

Son Davey is stuck in Athens, GA teaching by day and performing by night. Daughter Susan moved back to NJ this year, and granddaughter Katie moved to Naples, FL. I have actually spent time in Athens and Naples, in the U.S. and Europe. But I never tell anyone that I grew up in NJ.

Many of you have shared days on the Chesapeake Bay, cruising and fishing on the Lady Katie, but fishing has been on the decline for years. The 36express Web site I produced to sell her finally worked and she has a new home in Montauk, NY with a nice young family. She was a great boat and we enjoyed 14 glorious years. For all the photos, click here.

I have been my own webmaster for years and have authored this site drrealestate.net and several others. Being self-taught, I just learn the HTML code that I need to do whatever suits me. Recently, I upgraded this site to the latest HTML5 with CSS. Huh? Actually it is a lot of fun. Take a tour of the site and you will be sure to find something of interest. Start with "Fun Events" or "Factoids" on the left. Other sites include a lifetime collection of my grandfather's Christmas poems, which has old photos such as the family home in 1895, and a site just for real estate investors.

THE FUTURE
My focus remains on fun, including the sale and marketing of homes for you and your friends. It is a joy to have you remember me when it's time to buy and sell again. And please think of your friend in real estate when you find someone who is buying or selling a home. Oh yes, notice the QR code on the sign!

Special thanks to those who have helped me meet new folks on the Lady Katie, at the Races, and at your social events. Let's get together in 2014 to fish on a charter boat (photo right), enjoy the races (photo link), have a lunch or dinner, or even buy and sell homes. Give me a call or an email!

Sincerely,

Your Friend in Real Estate

This Web site includes the Market Report, photos from Fun Events, and lots of new pages and useful links. Give a "click" on the links at the left. Enjoy!

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YFiRE

Click HOME (upper left) for contact information.

Your Friend in Real Estate, LLC
Arlington, Virginia, USA



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