The Power of belonging ... Why we started our own property tribe.

A few weeks ago, inspired by Seth Godin, and the fact that so many property forums are drowning in spam and commercial posts, we decided to form our own Property Tribe.  We wanted to provide a focal point for our property community where people passionate about property could share knowledge and experience and engage in authentic and valuable discussion with other like-minded individuals.

We really rate the word "tribe" in this context.  According to wikipedia, a tribe, is a social group of humans connected by a shared system of values and organized for mutual care, defense, and survival beyond that which could be attained by a lone individual or family. Tribes are the most enduring and successful social survival system that has ever existed on earth. Tribes can exist within or without a state or kingdom and may or may not depend on the state or kingdom to endure, particularly true in the context of the world wide web.

In other words, there is strength in numbers.  There is also strength in sharing knowledge, opinion, and experience and aligning yourself with others who share your values - never more so the case than in the challenging market conditions we are all currently experiencing.  There is no need to work in isolation when you can join communities and networks of like-minded people, both on-line and off-line.

All successful Tribes exist by agreeing to comply with certain tribal rules.  In the case of our property forum, these are simple:

1.  No spam.

2.  No commercial posts.

3.  No personal abuse.

In the interests of transparency, Web 2.0, and the desire to foster meaningful business relationships in our community, we encourage our members to use their real name and photo on the forum.  This keeps our tribe open and supportive, and our members can post in confidence without the fear of being shot down in flames by an anonymous poster, as is happening on so many other forums.

As the leaders of the Tribe, it is the job of Vanessa and myself to take you where you want to go, to prompt discussions, to provide a platform for you to communicate, and to connect you to one another.  However, it is not our job to "police" the tribe and ban members who's opinion we do not agree with.  The community will police the forum and challenge anyone that they do not think is adding value or being authentic or who has a questionable agenda. 

We see our Property Tribe as a valuable extension of our many social media activities.  Social media, in fact, is a basic human need, revealed digitally online. We all want to be connected, to make a difference, to matter, to be missed. We want to belong, and yes, we want to be led.

So I'm inviting you to join our Property Tribe - the fastest growing property forum on the web.  A forum where constructive and valuable discussion is the name of the game around the tribal camp fire.  A place where anyone with an interest and desire to succeed in property is welcome.  A place where advice and support is freely given.  Our tribal camp fire is burning brightly, so gather round!

Some of the current discussions to dive in to:

Options:  Over 74 replies to this thread about options, lease agreements, and seller financing.  A growing area of interest with the lack of good mortgage products currently available.

Still leafletting, placing ads in the paper?  You are wasting your time:  Over 30 comments on the subject of using social media in property marketing.  Whether looking for tenants, seeking out distressed or motivated sellers, you can find them on line for FREE.

Get Rich Quick: R.I.P:  Nearly 40 replies on the death of property clubs, "gurus", and get rich quick schemes and mentality.

How to be the last LandLord Standing:  How to raise your game in the current challenging market conditions and achieve maximum occupancy in your properties.

Tenants in worse debt since the ''80's and how this could impact YOU:  Forewarned is forearmed!

Join our Tribe at www.propertytribes.ning.com.  We look forward to seeing you there.  Contribute your views, knowledge, opinion and experience or simply post a question you would like answered or ask for help with a problem you're having.  We have many experts as members of our Tribe, including tax experts, accountants, mortgage brokers, lease options experts, holiday let experts, HMO experts, Landlord law experts, the list goes on. 

There is massive value for you being part of our Tribe, and, what's more, its free to join.

www.propertytribes.ning.com