I worked in the oil and gas industry from 1992 until 2020. During that time period I was involved in a couple of real estate deals/activities, but really did not start to focus on investing in real estate and businesses until 2016.
Part of my departure from oil & gas was to move into real estate sales. It was once of the best things I have ever done!
I enjoy Sci-Fi, Epic Fantasy, technology, and music.
My superpower is that I have the ability to visualize how to make disparate parts into a working system.
I think my greatest failing is that I have trouble focusing on one thing.
I live in South Louisiana with my beautiful wife and two wonderful daughters.
Keller Williams Realty Bayou Partners Top Ten Sales Production for December 2021.
Just a short article here to let y’all know that I was one of the top ten producers for December 2021 in our Brokerage.
This makes the second time in 2021 that I make that list. More to come in 2022.
Remember, if you have a real estate need, whether buying or selling, give me a call or shoot me an email. It doesn’t matter if you are outside of my area, I can connect you with a Rockstar Real Estate Agent!
Clint C. Galliano, REALTOR® 985.647.4479
Clint C. Galliano, a native of Lafourche Parish, has lived in the Houma-Thibodaux area for over 36 years and is currently a REALTOR® with Keller Williams Realty Bayou Partners in Houma, La. He has been involved with real estate investing since 2017 and hosts the local Real Estate Investment Association. Real Estate is his passion. Clint previously worked in drilling fluids and drilling fluids automation for 28 years. He lives in Bayou Blue with his wife and two daughters.
Wow…It has been a while since I have posted an article here! I’ve been a bit busy with life and being a Real Estate Agent.
I just wanted share an update on how my real estate sales business did this year.
This was my first full year as a real estate agent, so it has allowed me to look over my numbers and performance to establish a baseline to grow from. Here are the highlights.
In the past year, I added 398 contacts to my database. What is the big deal about that? For every fifty people that you market to at least 12 times a year, you can expect one sale. So that allowed me to add four potential additional sales a year going forward.
Out of those contacts, 275 were potential buyers or sellers. That lead to a total of 87 sales opportunities, with 24 being listing opportunities and 63 being buyer opportunities.
I closed 16 total units with a production volume of $2,464,390. That was 7 listings at $880,500 and 9 buyer sales at $1,583,890. The average sale amount was $154,024.
I ended the year with 5 pending deals carried into 2022. 4 listings and 1 buyer. As of today, 17-Jan-2022, one of those listings has closed and buyer sale should close this week.
Remember, if you have a real estate need, whether buying or selling, give me a call or shoot me an email. It doesn’t matter if you are outside of my area, I can connect you with a Rockstar Real Estate Agent!
Now for the business breakdown…I had a Gross Revenue of $81,468. This included $68,581 of Gross Commission Income, $9,574 in referral Commission, and $3,308 of sales of oilfield testing equipment liquidated for a client.
Out of that, I paid $20,502 in “Company Dollar”, (split of my commission to the brokerage), $4,115 in Royalties to Keller Williams Realty International, $1,624 COGS, (client split of testing equipment sales), and $9,397 in operating expenses. OPEX includes advertising, training, dues, professional fees, etc.
Overall, I had a Gross Profit of $37,720 before taxes.
Not a bad start for my first full year! AND, this was while also serving as the Market Center Tech Trainer, in addition to the whole area shutting down for the whole month of September due to Hurricane Ida.
If you are interested in becoming a real estate agent, get in touch with me. It’s a really cool career and much more enjoyable than my previous career.
And, as always, let me know what you think in the comments. Ask questions, tell your story.
If you like my posts, please share them with others and subscribe to this blog.
Clint C. Galliano, a native of Lafourche Parish, has lived in the Houma-Thibodaux area for over 36 years and is currently a REALTOR® with Keller Williams Realty Bayou Partners in Houma, La. He has been involved with real estate investing since 2017 and hosts the local Real Estate Investment Association. Real Estate is his passion. Clint previously worked in drilling fluids and drilling fluids automation for 28 years. He lives in Bayou Blue with his wife and two daughters.
I hope everyone enjoyed their Memorial Day weekend! We didn’t do a whole lot, considering that last week was (FINALLY) Rookie Camp for Marching Band for our oldest.
We spent the time contemplating the sacrifices that others have made, allowing us to enjoy what we have today. We also purchased a new pellet grill, which will be the subject of an article in the near future.
Good vs. Great
Did I ever tell y’all that I used to play in a rock band when I was younger? We weren’t very good, but played a few gigs and had some fun. Our biggest gig was getting booked as a last-minute replacement to fill a week at a bar in Memphis, Tennessee. Notified on a Saturday, to start on Monday. AND, we had to bring a sound system to play through. (Queue runon sentence…) Guitar player quit, found sound system, found guitar player, practiced 2 hours, drove to Memphis, woke up with pink eye, played the first night, got fired, went home.
The takeaway? We thought we, and our gear, (the gear was a bullet point in why we were fired), was good enough. What I realized then was that good enough is never good enough. I never thought past that, but have a history of over-building things. Shed workbench? Can probably support two thousand pounds. Rental business? Running it like I have one hundred doors. Lots of over-engineering.
Lately, the subject of Good vs. Great has come up more than three times in as many weeks, so I decided to write about it.
“Good is the enemy of great. And that is one of the key reasons why we have so little that becomes great. We don’t have great schools, principally because we have good schools. We don’t have great government, principally because we have good government. Few people attain great lives, in large part because it is just so easy to settle for a good life.”
Jim Collins wrote about this in his book “Good to Great”. He details how his study of companies allowed him to determine a path from being a good company to being a great company.
Ultimately, my issue with being content with “Good”, is that you have no incentive to be “Great”. No incentive to grow. No incentive to learn. No incentive to achieve Mastery.
Summary
If you want to achieve more, but don’t seem to be making progress, evaluate your situation to determine if you are content with being “Good”. If you are, then you can either learn to accept that you are OK with “Good”, or make the changes needed to achieve “Great”.
And, as always, let me know what you think in the comments. Ask questions, tell your story.
If you like my posts, please share them with others and subscribe to this blog.
Remember, if you have a real estate need, whether buying or selling, give me a call or shoot me an email. It doesn’t matter if you are outside of my area, I can connect you with a Rockstar Real Estate Agent!
Clint C. Galliano, REALTOR® 985.647.4479
Clint C. Galliano, a native of Lafourche Parish, has lived in the Houma-Thibodaux area for over 36 years and is currently a REALTOR® with Keller Williams Realty Bayou Partners in Houma, La. He has been involved with real estate investing since 2017 and hosts the local Real Estate Investment Association. Real Estate is his passion. Clint previously worked in drilling fluids and drilling fluids automation for 28 years. He lives in Bayou Blue with his wife and two daughters.
I really don’t want to sound like a broken record, but I have been staying highly occupied while trying to build up my new business. From establishing my name as a real estate agent to marketing, to implementing systems and processes to make it successful.
Some of that is starting to pay off. I was able to close one sale each in January, February, and March.
Then I had a friend who was planning on listing their home when school ended, but decided to list it in March. We got it under contract fairly quickly, so they went out & put a new construction home under contract.
In the same week, a neighbor asked me to show them a couple of homes in a neighborhood closer to his family. They made an offer on one of them that was accepted and listed their home, too.
So, April found us closing on my (now former) neighbor’s house and their new home. This allowed me to rank in the top 10 for April!
Now that we are in May, I have two more closings coming up, signed two listings yesterday evening, and may possibly pick up two more listings. That is on top of working with two pre-approved buyers.
I’m really enjoying it all. It’s a big shift from my former life in oil and gas.
Well, enough on this for now. Let me know what you think in the comments.
It’s been almost six months since my last post here…that kind of sounds like a confession. My penance shall be to pen more posts!
I have not been sitting idle during the intervening time. It has been spent learning the ins and outs of the local real estate market from a real estate sales perspective. In addition to learning the Keller Williams franchise’s CRM platform. The software part was easy. Go figure, right? In fact, I picked it up so well and so fast that I was asked to become the Market Center Tech Trainer.
So, I am running a real estate business as an individual agent and the training resource for all of the other agents in the office.
I am enjoying this new career immensely compared to my previous one. A lot less stress and more control over what goes on with my business.
Enough for now. More to come, soon!
Remember, if you have a real estate need, whether buying or selling, give me a call or shoot me an email. It doesn’t matter if you are outsideof my area, I can connect you with a Rockstar Real Estate Agent!
4 days after surgery compared to 2 years. Just a little disappointed that I don’t have a “Kurgan” scar to show for the experience…LOL
I knew it was coming up. I figured Facebook would pop up a memory for me from that day. I seem to have developed the habit of letting Facebook be my reminder.
Now, I am looking forward to the two-year anniversary of doing quarantine before quarantine was cool (NOT!) after receiving RAI-131 (Radio Active Iodine) treatment and the soon to follow anniversary of being declared cancer-free.
Looking back, that first year, post-surgery, was extremely tough. As I have mentioned before, just getting the medications dialed in took a while.
And while that process was going on, I had little strength or endurance. I was “worn out” by 4:30-5:00 each day. All I could do was rest and start again the next day.
Year number two was better. I built up my endurance and became stronger. Having my glucose levels under excellent control on top of exercising regularly has contributed to this. I now am able to get up at 5:00 AM just about every morning and am good until 9:00-10:00 at night. This was my normal schedule, pre-surgery.
For those of you unfamiliar with where I live in relation to the path of Hurricane Laura, we are located just under the “O” in New Orleans in the map above. We are fine and so far, have only gotten wind and rain here. Very grateful that the we have been spared this time.
Now to the meat of this article…a buddy of mine, (Shawn Abney), posted a link to Facebook for the Calcasieu Pass Tide/Current/Weather sensor array run by NOAA Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services. He pointed out that the data was available for the point of impact for Hurricane Laura’s landfall. I took a look and was amazed at what I could discern from the data provided.
I’ll present the charts for the specific measurements and what I can infer from them below.
Location
“Where in the hell is this sensor array?” you might ask. It sits just inside the mouth of Calcasieu Pass, below Cameron in Cameron Parish, La. It is just “up the bayou”, as we like to say in the Houma-Thibodaux area, from the public fishing pier. See the map below:
This station collects a lot of data and is part of a network of data collection sites across the Gulf Coast that can show tidal effects for storms or be used for planning when or where to fish.
Calcasieu Pass Station
Another point I want to make before I get started is that this is raw data that has not been QC-checked. What this means is that a sensor may have been off or in the case of the maximum water depths, it is just the raw measurement, not the actual amount of surge. See the raw data statement from the site, below:
These raw data have not been subjected to the National Ocean Service’s quality control or quality assurance procedures and do not meet the criteria and standards of official National Ocean Service data. They are released for limited public use as preliminary data to be used only with appropriate caution.
NOAA CO-OPS Station Page
Tidal Height
So, based on tidal height measured, we can infer storm surge height. Based on the chart below, at landfall (+/- 01:00 or 1:00 AM), Laura showed a tidal height of 11.07 feet maximum. I believe these points are measured every six minutes, so it is a fairly high data frequency to infer from. The predicted tidal height was 2.19 feet at the maximum measured tidal height. Based on a non-scientific observation of the previous month’s data, the actual measured data can sometimes be up to 1.5 feet or so higher than the predicted tidal height. Based on this, the storm surge height inferred from this preliminary data was somewhere between 7.4 feet and 8.9 feet. (Caveat: This is just me looking at the data without knowing how NOAA actually calculates storm surge.)
Tidal Height
Wind Speed / Direction
The next chart shows sustained wind speed, gusts, and wind direction. It’s kind of a neat chart in that you can see the sustained wind was blowing in one direction as the storm approach landfall, then drops off to almost nothing as the eye passes over the measurement station, then picks up again with the wind blowing in the opposite direction as the eye departs.
The maximum sustained winds measured at landfall were 69 knots or 79.4 miles per hour with the maximum gusts measured at 110 knots or 126.8 miles per hour.
Wind Speed
Air Temperature
The air temperature is interesting in that you can see the temperature dropping as the storm gets closer to landfall, then rises a few degrees as the eye passes, then drops again as the winds pick up. As the storm passes, it gradually rises back to ambient.
Air Temperature
Water Temperature
You can observe the water temperature changes as the storm surge rolls in bringing cooler “offshore” water to the local area, dropping the temperature. I suspect the continued drop in temperature may be contributed to by rainfall and runoff/flowback from the inland flooding.
Water Temperature
Barometric Pressure
Barometric Pressure is another parameter measured by the station and it is interesting not so much for variation, but to see how far the pressure dropped. Initially, the chart only data down to about 980 millibar. Someone must have updated the chart range because as I am writing this, the chart now shows data with a lowest point of 940 millibar. That is low!
Barometric Pressure
Hopefully this provided a little insight into data interpretation and helps you to understand data and data interpretation better.
An update on where the predicted surge was actually seen…
And, as always, let me know what you think in the comments. Ask questions, tell your story.
If you like my posts, please share them with others and subscribe to this blog.
As I have alluded to in the last few articles I have written, I have started my new career as a real estate salesperson licensed in the state of Louisiana.
My wife and I made the decision that since I loved real estate so much, why not jump in full time? So, I attended an online real estate school during the pandemic lockdown, then passed the test slightly less than a month after starting.
This new career is also a little out of my comfort zone because I am reaching out to people proactively to talk. Not something I have done on a regular basis outside of a close circle of friends. Time to grow. Time to expand my capabilities.
I am, little by little, becoming a more public person. I have doubled my Facebook friends list and continue to add people. I am making videos and live streams, (though not very good ones – LOL), for open houses and putting them out there.
I am enjoying this!
Why Keller Williams?
A few people have asked me why I chose the local Keller Williams team. I have a few reasons. The main one is that I am a fan of Gary Keller. I started reading his books when I began to educate myself on real estate investing. I like his approach to things. A lot of it dovetails with my own philosophy. I also like the way the company has and is adapt(ed/ing) to the changing world with the use of technology. KW also has some of the best training out there.
Then there is the family aspect of things. Family is one of the guiding principles of the company. Everyone here is very supportive and will do just about anything to help you.
And, on top of that, the company has a profit-sharing structure that is designed to ensure the long-term life of the company in addition to providing you and your beneficiaries with profit-sharing income.
So if you are interested in joining the Keller Williams family, get in contact with me here.
Clint C. Galliano, REALTOR®
I am working under Keller Williams Realty Bayou Partners, an independently owned and operated office serving the Houma, Thibodaux, Terrebonne Parish, Lafourche Parish, Assumption Parish, and St. Mary Parish areas.
If you are interested in buying in one of these areas, I would love to help you find the perfect home.
If you are interested in selling your home or property, allow me to get it sold for you.
If you are an investor and want to acquire properties in the area, let me help you find the investment deals that fit your criteria.
If you currently manage your own rental property, but want someone else to take that on, give me a call. We can go over how we can help make your life easier.
And, as always, let me know what you think in the comments. Ask questions, tell your story.
If you like my posts, please share them with others and subscribe to this blog.
Howie Bick is the founder of The Analyst Handbook. The Analyst Handbook is a collection of 16 guides created to help current and aspiring Analysts advance their careers. Prior to founding The Analyst Handbook, Howie was a financial analyst.
Things To Keep In Mind When Starting A Business
Building or creating a business is an endeavor that incorporates a variety of different factors, and touches upon multiple different topics. Within the building of a business, there are lots of ideas to think about, like the amount of capital you may need in order to begin, the type of overhead or expenses you may have on a monthly basis, the type of market or demographic you’ll be catering to, and the type of competition that’s out there. The business landscape is one that requires business owners or managers to manage and handle a variety of tasks and wear multiple different hats at once. Keeping these things in mind, and having a good idea of what’s ahead, will be beneficial for anyone trying to build or create a business.
The Market or Demographic You’re Catering To
Each business or company has a particular demographic or market that they are looking to cater to. The market or demographic a company or business is looking to cater to, is often a group of people who have something in common, like a problem, an issue, or a desire they’re looking to solve. It can be something they need, desire, or want, but the business is looking to provide a solution or deliver the type of results their customers are looking for. Figuring out the market or demographic you’re looking to cater to, is a great place to start. That way, you can get an idea of the types of services they may be looking for, the type of products that may interest them, or the type of solutions they may be looking for. The way a business positions themselves, with their offerings to their customers, plays an important role in the way potential customers view them, and the way they’re viewed within the marketplace.
Competitive Advantages or Competitive Edges
Businesses that are able to carve out a particular niche, or area where they’re successful, often have a competitive edge, or a competitive advantage over the competition. A competitive edge is something that a business does better or more effectively than their competitors, or something that allows them to differentiate themselves within the marketplace. It’s an important element to any company or business, that’s looking to compete in a market where there are lots of options, and many parties looking to fulfill or satisfy their customers desires. Companies can develop competitive advantages through their prior experiences, the type of packages or services they offer to their competitors, or the type of knowledge or information they may have that others don’t. It’s something that’s important to keep in mind, when you’re evaluating whether you may be successful in a certain market, or whether you’re capable of differentiating yourself among the competition.
The Initial or Upfront Costs Associated With Starting
Every business requires a certain amount of investment, or capital in order to begin operating. Whether it’s getting a space and signing a lease, or acquiring the type of machinery you may need to operate, the costs associated with creating or building a business depend on the type of company you’re looking to build, and the types of products or services you plan to offer. It’s important to have a sense of the amount of capital or investment it may cost to create a business. It’s a tough situation when you decide to start a business and invest the capital or resources you do have, to later find out that you don’t have enough, or need to obtain more. By having an idea or a sense of the type of investment a certain business requires you can prepare or plan in advance or prior to creating the business and be better situated to develop or create the business you were looking to build.
The Monthly Costs or Expenditures
Similar to the amount of capital or investment you may need in order to start or build a business, having a sense or an idea of the types of costs or expenses that your business may accrue or cost on a monthly basis is an important metric to keep an eye on. The age-old business equation is revenue minus expenses equals profit. By having an idea of the type of expenses you may accrue, you’re able to get an idea of how much business you need to do, or how much revenue you need to generate in order to make money in a month. You’re also able to have an idea of how much capital or money you need to keep on hand to continue operating and continue running the business. The monthly costs or expenditures associated with a business is an important figure to keep an eye on, and to monitor during the operations of a business, and prior to starting or creating a business.
Personal Expenses Continue to Accrue
Whenever you’re starting something new, a new job, a new company, or a new business, it’s important to keep in mind that your personal expenses continue to accrue. In the beginning stages of building a business, it often takes a bit of time to get going, and to start making the type of money you’re looking to make. That’s why, it’s important to consider that even though you may be starting a new business or a new company, which is great and congratulations, that you’ll still need to find a way to pay bills and provide for yourself. It’s something that’s a bit of a struggle for a new business owner, who’s truly looking to build a business to support themselves, or to generate the type of income they’re looking for. Preparing and planning in advance is something that can be very beneficial to lightening the load and making the transition an easier process or ordeal for you financially.
Conclusion
Building a business is something that comes with lots of different ideas to keep in mind and brings in to play lots of different factors as well. The market or demographic you’re trying to cater to, is an important part of any business, as it’s the group of people or companies you’re looking to interact with and find a way to provide value to. The competitive edge or competitive advantage a company has, is important in a company’s efforts to stand out within a marketplace or find a way to differentiate itself among its competitors. By having a sense of how much capital or investment you might need to start a business, you can have an idea of whether you have enough to begin, or whether you need to wait longer, or figure out another way. Having that sense of how much investment it might require, can save you spending lots of your money on something that may not be feasible just yet, or a bit out of reach. The monthly costs or expenditures that a business requires, is important to know how much revenue you need to generate, and the type of capital or money you need to keep on hand in order to continue operating. A lot of what corporate finance is, is managing the finances behind a business, making sure that the business has what it needs to continue operating, and finding ways to continue to grow and develop the business as well. Even though you may be starting something new, and you need time to bring it into fruition, personal expenses are something that continue to accrue, and are important to keep in mind when building a business. All in all, creating a business is something that comes with lots of different factors, a lot more than the few we were able to highlight. We hoped this helped and shined light on some of the important factors to consider when starting or creating a business.
And, as always, let me know what you think in the comments. Ask questions, tell your story.
If you like my articles, please share them with others and subscribe to this blog.
