The Condulent Breach that Trapped Me and Over 25 Million Users—Take This One Seriously
Over the weekend I received a letter from a company called Condulent. Their systems support services for more than 100 million people nationwide including a majority of Fortune 100 companies plus more than 500 government entities. It hacked Medicaid, SNAP, Blue Cross Blue Shield plus data from a number of corporate services. It got our Social Security Numbers, date of birth, and reams of personal identifying data. The danger is that this data exposes those experiencing the breach to long term fraud years from now. 
If you received one of these letters, take it seriously. You can put a fraud alert on your accounts, sign up for credit monitoring, or the step I’m going to take, put a credit freeze on all my accounts. That means no one can open new accounts in my name or with my SSN. It’s a pain if you need a new credit card (which most of us probably don’t), but this may be the strongest step you can take to stop identity theft. Make sure you put it on at all three credit bureaus.
Here’s the link from Experian that shows you how to do this. Be sure to call Equifax and Transunion as well.
A Simple Tip to Overcome Procrastination
Today we have a simple tip to help you overcome procrastination. A primary cause of procrastination is the feeling of being overwhelmed by how much you have to do.
The solution is surprisingly easy. Shift your focus from “What’s not done” to “What can I do right now?” This simple approach clears out all the “what I should be doing” and allows you to focus on your highest priority activity. Try it for at least five days to see how well it works for you. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by how effective this simple approach can be.
A New Year, A New Path
This is the first edition of RealClues in 30 years that lacks Byron’s name on the byline below. Yesterday was my first day back at work and it was also the first day since his death that had a sense of normality and flow.
All of us are impacted by loss, whether it is a friend or loved one, a divorce, illness, business failure—the list goes on and on. What I have appreciated most are my neighbors, my industry friends, and our RealClues readers who were praying daily for Byron’s recovery and sent their love and support in texts, phone messages, and cards. 
My next-door neighbor Pat has been amazing in this respect. The morning after Byron was admitted to ICU, she offered to drive me to the hospital and just sit with me and read. It turned out he died only a short 90 minutes later after we got there, but I was incredibly thankful I didn’t have to face it alone. Her presence met more to me than words can say.
Since then, she’s been there to help me in any way she can. She and her husband take in my trash bins, Pat has called to check to see if she needs to just come over to give me a hug, asked if she can get any groceries for me, join them for dinner, or simply to sit with me and if I just need to have someone here with me. These are simple things you can do for others, especially if it’s family or close personal friends.
Professionally, if the person you’re helping owns their own home, they will need an evaluation of the value based upon the date of death. I suggest that you not only do your usual CMA but also include values from realtor.com and a Zestimate to support your CMA numbers.
The good news taxwise is that they get a “stepped-up” basis on the value of their home, which means the IRS now considers their “basis” in their home at the date of death, rather than when they acquired it. This is extremely important since it can greatly reduce their exposure to income taxes.
Also, encourage them to talk to their CPA or tax professional before making ANY financial decisions. Many people have regretted rushing things. This is especially important if they’re considering selling their home or liquidating stock. They need to know the tax consequences before they act.
If they enjoy massages, get them a gift certificate. If their yard isn’t being taking care of, send a crew over (with their permission) to mow and clean up the yard. If they don’t have a housekeeper, hire a housekeeping team to clean their house when they’re ready. There’s no limit to what you can do.
Wishing you and yours the best year ever in 2026!
When You Observe Excellence, Model It
As we head into the holiday season, now is a great time to reflect on your takeaways from 2025 and what steps you plan to take to improve your business in 2026.
One of the best strategies to become better at what you do is to look for mentors or successful people from both inside and outside the industry.
For example, if there is a top-notch agent you admire, take him or her to lunch to discover how they became successful. Better yet, shadow that person for a day. Observe what they do that you could incorporate into your business to increase your success.
Don’t stop there, however. You can learn just as much by modeling the habits of people who are successful in other industries. If you haven’t tuned in to the TED Talks, now is a great time to take a look. Only the best-of-the-best make it on to the TED talk stage, so this is a great place to discover new resources from outside of real estate.
Excellence is all around you if you just look for it. When you do find it, learn from it!
Is the Government Shutdown Finally Over?
Late Sunday, November 9, 2025, the Senate struck a deal to reopen the government. In truth, however, what they really did is kick the can to January 30, 2026, by keeping current spending levels where they are until that date. While the
House and President must approve the deal, this will bring relief to many people who need it the most.
Last week I wrote about the window of opportunity over the holidays due to the reduction in mortgage interest rates. With the shutdown ending, there’s even a greater opportunity at this moment since everything could go sideways again on January 30, 2026.