My client base is more than 60% military – active duty and retired – so Afghanistan and Iraq are personal to me. How many of you sell a home to a family that is going to be without the father two weeks after they close due to an impending deployment? What happens when the HVCC rears it’s hideous head and derails that closing? I digress….

I try to earn trust by studying the market and educating my buyers and sellers as to the truth in the numbers. Our local media – dominated by input from two large local franchises – spouts misguided reports about how great things are. This followed by reductions in property tax valuations due to depreciation. Earning trust is in part being willing to give the bad news along with the good – regardless of the outcome. It starts with knowing what the actual acronyms stand for – I had an agent tell me TILA stood for “Temporary Increase in Lodging Allowance.”

Navy Chief, Navy Pride