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I
have been in the real estate business in the Mid-Peninsula area since
1994. Before that, I was an Engineer at IBM for more than a decade. To
learn more about me, please visit www.myarima.com.
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EDUCATION | I took several courses from the Anthony School of
Real Estate and from junior college. I only needed one course (Principle
of Real Estates) for my license requirement. I found it helpful to have
others like Business Law, Small Business, Legal aspect of Real Estates,
Appraisal, Accounting, Managing Real Estate Offices and many other real
estate seminars.
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HOW TO GET STARTED | I drove and walked around the neighborhoods I
was going to specialize in. I learned the associated school districts
as well as their school districts' boundary lines. I interviewed all the
brokerages in the area. This enabled me to network and also find a
brokerage that was well suited to my personality. For prospecting new
clients: I hosted open houses, made cold calls for "expired listings"
and "for sales by owner," answered company's floor calls and knocked at
the doors of my farm area. Through the process, I learned about which
prospecting worked for me the best. What I like and do not like.
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MUST HAVE TRAITS | The ideal person for this business is a jack
of all trades; someone who knows schools, houses, territories,
negotiating, accounting, business law, decorating, marketing and is an
entrepreneur at heart.
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beginnings
how I got started | Starting a family took me in the direction of
exploring other career options. During this process, I looked into
retail, possibly owning a boutique store for baby clothing, wedding
dresses or flowers. But the business life of retail was a deterrent.
inspiration
why this job?| I knew I had an innate interest in people and artistic endeavors. So when I came upon real estate, it was such a natural fit.
love
why I love this job!| Working in real estate brings my love of
communicating with people, architecture, garden design, staging homes,
negotiating deals, analysing investment value of properties as well as
construction management. This uses my analytical skills from
engineering, as well as my artistic ability. I am not overly aggressive
and this profession has let me grow at my own pace.
Working with people that I like and enjoy, makes my life so enjoyable. I
am a strong believer at quality clients, quality life. I take pride in
the fact that most of my business is based on referral.
work
my typical day|
challenges
what they are | It is hard work! Yes, it is flexible and while it
seems like life is under your control, it is quite different in
reality. Remember: no pain, no gain! There is a price for everything. It
is the life of an enterpreneur. The most challenging part for one to
get started, as I put it is that, it does not come with an "in basket."
You have to create your own "in basket." My advice for those who are
interested in this business is to take a lot of seminars or classes,
make a commitment for working in the business for 1-2 years and have
enough reserve for the try out period.
upside
all about growth | For me this job has been very gratifying. I do
not look out for the next best thing for myself materially and being a
realtor lets me reach my goals in my own way. I am also not personally
driven by money but by stability and harmony in my life. My family has
been fortunate and able to build our dream home in Professorville of
Palo Alto. I am pleased to meet many friends (clients) through the
process. They have been a great addition to my life. It is a competitive
field but I am at ease that there is enough business out there for
everyone. I believe that if I take care of business the business will
come back to take care of me.
More Info
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