I had an experience that bears remembering from a couple of years ago. I got a call from an acquaintance who wanted me to drop by his office. That is always bad news. I thought Amway? Some other multi-level, get rich quick scheme? Well, I went because I have this lingering fear that something is going to come along that truly is a get rich, quick scheme and I will be chasing the train after it leaves the depot.
There sitting on top of this guy's desk is a little machine that looks like a blood pressure machine that you see in the pharmacy. He started giving me the hot pitch. Seems this machine was the first of its kind and its function was to measure your level of antioxidants. I have never been a big believer in antioxidants but I stayed mute. He invited me to stick my finger in a little orifice in the machine and wait until the red light went out and then the machine spits out a cash register tape and he tears it off and looks at it. Shaking his head he tells me that I am pitifully low on antioxidants. He shows me the number. It is around 10,000.
At that point I ask him what the number means. He says it means that you are way low on your antioxidants. I tell him " No I mean, if you take my blood pressure the number is a manifestation of millimeters of mercury measured at atmospheric pressure against a specific gradient. If my blood pressure is 140/90 then it means that the pressure is 140 during systole and 90 during diastole. What does this number mean?" He stared at me for a moment, thanked me for coming by and told me he had another appointment. I found out later that he was a NuSkin distributor and he was jockeying to sell me vitamins to build up my antioxidants.
On a visit to my physician later on, who is a respected practitioner of internal medicine, I asked him what he thought about antioxidants. He told me that if it could help me take off about 40 pounds of blubber he was all in favor of it. Otherwise, he was in agreement with the folks at American Heart. It is a nostrum without the benefit of clinical trials nor proven efficacy. It was all in the minds of the people who like to sell you health supplements, containing antioxidants.
Here lately, I have been running into a little creature named Zillow. I had a face to face encounter with a client on a listing appointment. He had his laptop, I pulled out mine. We both jumped on some unsuspecting neighbor's wireless network. He said Zillow had his property valued at X. My comparables, out of the local MLS network, had him priced at Y. We argued for the better part of a half hour and struck a compromise at Z. It was exhausting. He had unflailing confidence in his Zillow. I started to ask the same question about the Zillow formulae as I did the NuSkin salesman. I let it go. It is possible to win a battle and lose the war.
I blogged a few weeks ago about the Wal-Marting of real estate commissions. My bottom line was that if you are going to retain a Realtor then get an experienced, smart one, preferably pretty good-looking, and then listen to the advice they give you. We live in the world of real estate daily. We practice in your back yard. We are the doctors of the real estate scenario.
It is easy to get enamoured with an internet entity that is so pretty and has as many little bells and whistles as Zillow. However, would you please explain to me how a software engineer sitting in Zillow headquarters in Pittman, New Jersey can create a formula, from property appraisers databases primarily, that can tell you what a home is worth that they have never walked into? It is mostly Buyers who glom onto Zillow and want to beat you off your price, because it is usually lowball.
This is another tiresome effort to remove the expert from the process. We believe their fees to be too high. They are crooks. They are lazy. They don't spend enough time with us and on our project. "That doctor was in the exam room with me for 45 seconds, looked at my labs and then had his nurse write me a handful of Rx's. His fee was $150. The Rx's cost $200. " My next door neighbor, who graduated from, junior high school, in the summer, sells health supplements that have antioxidants in them. I am going to put my life in her hands." Whoa ! That physician did 8 years of schooling past high school. Then he did another 4 or 5 in a residency program somewhere. He knows his specialized field better than anyone. Realtors do not come close to that level of professionalism, but they are trained and experienced where you are not. Retain one, listen to them and get ready to go to a closing. Remember that Realtor does not make a dime until he or she sells your house.
I have relatives and friends, in whom I place great confidence, who put a lot of stock into health supplements. For that reason I give them some degree of merit. I often consult Web-MD to provide explanations for my numerous bouts of hypochondriasis. I think that Zillow and the other online appraisal engines have some degree of credibility. Just as I would not rely solely on Web-MD to give me conclusive avenues on an illness, I would not rely solely on Zillow for setting a value on my property. The more information we garner the better off we are. In the final analysis you need to consult the expert to come to a well advised path forward. The internet is a wonderful tool for raising the performance of all of us.
Visit me on my website at http://elvass.com/
A little ditty:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo1iX-vpm3o&feature=related
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Just call me Cleopatra because I am the Queen of Denial
Pam Tillis had a top Country Western hit with the title Call me Cleopatra, Because I am the Queen of Denial. This song was about her unfaithful boyfriend who kept stepping out on her but she refused to accept the fact.
I was diagnosed with Diabetes, Type 2 back in 1996, 12 years ago. I never had unquenchable thirst, frequent urination, etc. That is the hallmark of diabetes. It is a very subtle and stealthy disease. I have been in denial ever since thinking the labs and the physician reading the labs are incorrect. I make that statement as my toes are turning numb under the desk upon which this lap top resides, right now.
What has this got to do with Real Estate? I find that a lot of folks who have decided to sell their homes at this juncture are in denial. You see houses coming onto the market that are priced just as if there has been no correction in the market. A Realtor can only suggest the price at which you should go to market. The Seller is the ultimate authority and boss of the pricing process. The Realtor is only a consultant. Most folks don't want to listen to the expert. After all this is my house. Just as I say, "Diabetes ???? This is my body, it is as sound as ever. Your labs are not correct." The seller says, " This is my house. My babies all came home from the hospital here. Why the Mayor lived just two houses down. That is all worth dollars."
Sorry folks. The news reports are true. We are dead in the middle of a housing downturn. We cannot deny the labs that come to us in quarterly statistics. Do you listen to the 6:00 local news? The 6:30 National news? We do not live in Utopia any longer. I suggest to my Sellers, " Take that number you have been carrying in your head, reduce it by 10% and we will sell your property." Stay with the denial number and we merely list your property. Deep down I know that folks want to SELL their property not just LIST it.
Consider this: In June of 2006 we sold 559 homes. In June of 2007 we sold 483 homes, In June of 2008 we sold 383 homes here in Tallahassee. That is a decline of 32%. In June of 2006 we had an inventory of single family residences 2579. In June of 2008 we have inventory reflected at 3331. That is 23% more inventory. Do the math. Fewer sales, Bigger inventory, Equal lower prices. Supply = Bigger, Demand = Lower, Sales Price = Smaller. 9th grade economics.
The numbers tell us that the appreciation rate we were used to has become flat. No longer do we appreciate at 10-16% per year. We are now much lower than that. Yet our median price is now about 228K vs 238k of a year ago. That is really soft compared to other markets in Florida that are down 28% and more. We are down about 5% compared to last year in median price. That is really fairly good news. It is taking an average of 100 days to sell a property that is priced well. It took 50 days a year ago. Properties that are not priced well sit for a year in some cases.
Pam Tillis and I are here to tell you. Her boyfriend is running around on her. I have diabetes. Your $200,000 house is not going to sell for $500,000. As Lillie Tomlin used to say, " And that's the trooooooooooooooth !"
Please visit my website: http://elvass.com/
Pam Tillis sings: pam tillis-cleopatra queen of denial
I was diagnosed with Diabetes, Type 2 back in 1996, 12 years ago. I never had unquenchable thirst, frequent urination, etc. That is the hallmark of diabetes. It is a very subtle and stealthy disease. I have been in denial ever since thinking the labs and the physician reading the labs are incorrect. I make that statement as my toes are turning numb under the desk upon which this lap top resides, right now.
What has this got to do with Real Estate? I find that a lot of folks who have decided to sell their homes at this juncture are in denial. You see houses coming onto the market that are priced just as if there has been no correction in the market. A Realtor can only suggest the price at which you should go to market. The Seller is the ultimate authority and boss of the pricing process. The Realtor is only a consultant. Most folks don't want to listen to the expert. After all this is my house. Just as I say, "Diabetes ???? This is my body, it is as sound as ever. Your labs are not correct." The seller says, " This is my house. My babies all came home from the hospital here. Why the Mayor lived just two houses down. That is all worth dollars."
Sorry folks. The news reports are true. We are dead in the middle of a housing downturn. We cannot deny the labs that come to us in quarterly statistics. Do you listen to the 6:00 local news? The 6:30 National news? We do not live in Utopia any longer. I suggest to my Sellers, " Take that number you have been carrying in your head, reduce it by 10% and we will sell your property." Stay with the denial number and we merely list your property. Deep down I know that folks want to SELL their property not just LIST it.
Consider this: In June of 2006 we sold 559 homes. In June of 2007 we sold 483 homes, In June of 2008 we sold 383 homes here in Tallahassee. That is a decline of 32%. In June of 2006 we had an inventory of single family residences 2579. In June of 2008 we have inventory reflected at 3331. That is 23% more inventory. Do the math. Fewer sales, Bigger inventory, Equal lower prices. Supply = Bigger, Demand = Lower, Sales Price = Smaller. 9th grade economics.
The numbers tell us that the appreciation rate we were used to has become flat. No longer do we appreciate at 10-16% per year. We are now much lower than that. Yet our median price is now about 228K vs 238k of a year ago. That is really soft compared to other markets in Florida that are down 28% and more. We are down about 5% compared to last year in median price. That is really fairly good news. It is taking an average of 100 days to sell a property that is priced well. It took 50 days a year ago. Properties that are not priced well sit for a year in some cases.
Pam Tillis and I are here to tell you. Her boyfriend is running around on her. I have diabetes. Your $200,000 house is not going to sell for $500,000. As Lillie Tomlin used to say, " And that's the trooooooooooooooth !"
Please visit my website: http://elvass.com/
Pam Tillis sings: pam tillis-cleopatra queen of denial
Monday, June 23, 2008
Leon County Update Summary
I am going to take a few minutes on today's blog to give a thumbnail summary of where I see the market right now in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. Sorry I have to inculcate some numbers but they tell the story most effectively. These numbers are made available through May 2008. They are reported by Tallahassee Real Estate Trends N Data Services Numbers are compiled by Mr. Don Pickett, a veteran Realtor, who is oft quoted in our local press. I have respect for Mr. Pickett and his reporting efficacy. He has served as the chairman of our MLS Statistics committee for many years past.
Closings through May 2008: ..............................................364
Closings through May 2007: ..............................................714
Differential ...................................................................-50%
Closings for year ending May 2008: ..............................3630
Closings for year ending May 2007 ................................4740
Differential....................................................................-23%
New listings for Month of May 2008 ............................... 759
New listings for Month of May 2007 ...............................1161
Differential....................................................................-35%
Days on Market YTD May 2008 ....................................... 75
Days on Market YTD May 2007 ....................................... 75
Differential..................................................................................... -0-
Median Price thru May 2008 .................................. $235,000
Median Price thru May 2007 .................................. 239,000
Differential.................................................................... -2%
We can see that fewer sales are transpiring in Tallahassee. I believe our citizens are reacting to the constant harangue of negative news in the media. Buyers are postponing purchases. We also see that there are fewer new listings, comparing May 2008 to May of 2007, suggesting that our Sellers are postponing putting their houses on the market.
Number of days it takes to sell a property, May '07 vs May '08 is almost the same number. That figure relates to those properties that have been closed. It does not give us a feel for those that have languished on the market for a long period of time, not closing. We can tell as we drive neighborhoods and look around in our own neighborhoods that there are some pretty stale "Homes for Sale" signs standing out there. This is largely the cause of Sellers pricing their homes too high. It is a hard reality to understand that homes are not selling for the same dollar as they did two years ago, during the real estate boom.
Looking at the number for median price we see a relatively flat line. The graph reflects a minimal change in value of median price. In other words the runaway appreciation that was going on during the boom of 15-16%, per year, is behind us. We are lucky in Tallahassee to have held our own during the "bursting of the bubble". You move to Miami, Tampa, Orlando you will see a huge drop in median price. The speculation that occurred in those areas was not as intense here in Leon County. Hence we have had a fairly soft landing here in Tallahassee.
If you are a Buyer you have never been in a better position to buy. Inventory is large and demand is low, driving prices downward. If you are a Seller the news is a tad mellow compared to our robust run of the last 4-5 years. However, you can still sell your house. The approach is more measured and you need to adjust your thinking of a year ago. I advise my Sellers, just off the cuff, to take the number they have been nursing for the last year and drop it by 10%. Make your listing shine and be patient and you will sell your property.
I am not objective but I feel that the services of the professional Realtor in selling your home and or buying a home has never been more important. There are a lot of new circumstances in the market place that have newly planted themselves. Your Realtor is the best source of advice on the new market.
Please visit me on my website at http://elvass.com/.
Enjoy the beautiful music of Ms. Ann Murray: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqUUQElQ8kM
Closings through May 2008: ..............................................364
Closings through May 2007: ..............................................714
Differential ...................................................................-50%
Closings for year ending May 2008: ..............................3630
Closings for year ending May 2007 ................................4740
Differential....................................................................-23%
New listings for Month of May 2008 ............................... 759
New listings for Month of May 2007 ...............................1161
Differential....................................................................-35%
Days on Market YTD May 2008 ....................................... 75
Days on Market YTD May 2007 ....................................... 75
Differential..................................................................................... -0-
Median Price thru May 2008 .................................. $235,000
Median Price thru May 2007 .................................. 239,000
Differential.................................................................... -2%
We can see that fewer sales are transpiring in Tallahassee. I believe our citizens are reacting to the constant harangue of negative news in the media. Buyers are postponing purchases. We also see that there are fewer new listings, comparing May 2008 to May of 2007, suggesting that our Sellers are postponing putting their houses on the market.
Number of days it takes to sell a property, May '07 vs May '08 is almost the same number. That figure relates to those properties that have been closed. It does not give us a feel for those that have languished on the market for a long period of time, not closing. We can tell as we drive neighborhoods and look around in our own neighborhoods that there are some pretty stale "Homes for Sale" signs standing out there. This is largely the cause of Sellers pricing their homes too high. It is a hard reality to understand that homes are not selling for the same dollar as they did two years ago, during the real estate boom.
Looking at the number for median price we see a relatively flat line. The graph reflects a minimal change in value of median price. In other words the runaway appreciation that was going on during the boom of 15-16%, per year, is behind us. We are lucky in Tallahassee to have held our own during the "bursting of the bubble". You move to Miami, Tampa, Orlando you will see a huge drop in median price. The speculation that occurred in those areas was not as intense here in Leon County. Hence we have had a fairly soft landing here in Tallahassee.
If you are a Buyer you have never been in a better position to buy. Inventory is large and demand is low, driving prices downward. If you are a Seller the news is a tad mellow compared to our robust run of the last 4-5 years. However, you can still sell your house. The approach is more measured and you need to adjust your thinking of a year ago. I advise my Sellers, just off the cuff, to take the number they have been nursing for the last year and drop it by 10%. Make your listing shine and be patient and you will sell your property.
I am not objective but I feel that the services of the professional Realtor in selling your home and or buying a home has never been more important. There are a lot of new circumstances in the market place that have newly planted themselves. Your Realtor is the best source of advice on the new market.
Please visit me on my website at http://elvass.com/.
Enjoy the beautiful music of Ms. Ann Murray: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqUUQElQ8kM
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Wal-Mart and Real Estate commissions
I am biting off a hard subject here today. Realtors and their commissions. I read an editorial this morning in USA Today. It had to do with a recent agreement, under pressure from court action, between National Association of Realtors (NAR) and so called internet real estate brokers. One such broker is Redfin which is an online brokerage that supposedly gives its users a big break on real estate commissions. The meat on the table is access to the 800 something Multiple listing services (MLS) around the country. Redfin insists that they should be able to access that information just like all other brokerages. NAR decided that they would share the information. Let it be said that they sure don't share that knowledge with me, a licensed real estate broker, unless I pony up about $1200 a year. The big, all knowing, USA Today Editor accuses the real estate industry of collusion, antitrust violations and downright meanness. He is as uninformed as he is opinionated.
First off, I am positive that this editor does not donate his time to USA Today. I will bet that he makes a pretty decent salary and probably some incentives. Why? Because he knows how to run a newspaper, or at least a department within a newspaper. So we can assume that the nasty old profit motive runs deep to his core beliefs.
The belief that the commissions realtors earn is out of line is not a new concept. When I first got into this business I had no clue how a Realtor made a living. I was advised that the average Realtor makes about $36,000 per year. I would be willing to bet that Mr. USA Today makes a lot more than that in a year. You must then take into consideration that a Realtor pays all, and I mean ALL of their own expenses. No company car, gasoline credit card, health benefits, etc. Add a 15% self employment tax on top of that and you will find that most Realtors make less than minimum wage. That does not take into consideration the costs for membership to the MLS, Licensing fees, Education costs, Lock box dues, cell phone, PDA, laptop computer,ISP costs, errors and ommissions insurance, etc. Then a salesperson has to split their commissions with their broker. My first broker splits were 50%. The negotiated 8,7,6,5% commissions are split between the Listing agent and the Selling agent, one representing the Buyer and the other the Seller.
I was fortunate to enter the business 6 years ago when the boom was on. I attained several listings from people who knew me and thought me to be a pretty savvy business man and wanted me to sell their houses. I had this "friend" who was a Broker who went around behind my back telling the people I had listed that he would have charged them 1/2 of what I was charging them to sell thier home. I confronted him and he told me that we Realtors make too much money in commissions. He spent his career in the Public sector so I laughed him off as just not quite understanding the good old American profit motive.
I told him this story that was told to me by an economics professor when I was in college back in Alabama. Seems that there was this manufacturer of widgets located up around Sylacauga, Alabama. He turned out 10,000 widgets a day which he sold for $1 each. He had several employees and business was good and life was rewarding to all involved. One day his assembly line came to a sudden and alarming halt. Over the next couple of days he called his engineers together to address the problem. Nothing, 4 days passed without a single widget rolling off the assembly line. They finally had no other choice but to ask for the Tech rep of the manufacturer of the assemblage machinery to come have a look. Into Sylacauga on a private plane comes the Tech rep. He comes to the factory with an attache' case in hand and walked up and down the frozen assembly line. He finally stopped at one particular place and opened the atache' case. He pulled out a hammer and gave a mighty whack to the line and it came to life rolling along without a hitch. Business was back on track and the widgets rolled off the line as before. A couple of days later the CEO recieved an invoice from the manufacturer for $10,000. The old man was livid. He told his Secretary to call the company and demand an itemization on the invoice. The itemization arrived a few days later. It said: $1 for hitting with a hammer. $9,999 for knowing where to hit. He paid the bill.
I remember back around 1988 putting my home on the market by myself as a For Sale by Owner. Interest rates were 18% on mortgages. Mine was 13.5%. No one was selling houses. My little FSBO sat there for two years. All the while I wondered what in the world I would do if someone came along and wanted to buy it. I had no clue what the next step would have been. I finally woke up and gave it to a Realtor and about 3 months later I attended the closing and got a check. I had little clue as to what happened in between.
You pay a Realtor for what they have between their ears. I have sold a little more than $10 million dollars since I first entered into the business. I have handled over 100 transactions, not all successfully. One thing I have learned along the way is that if you have seen one real estate transaction then you have seen one real estate transaction. They are all unique one to another. You need the professional by your side. Please see my last post.
In our modern world we have, including myself, developed a Wal-Mart mentality. We are all about saving the dollar, getting the best deal. Can we find it at Wal-Mart? You know they ALWAYS have the best price. What about Craigs List, E-Bay, etc. ? Let's take the Realtor out of it and then we can really shuck some corn and save a boat load of money.
I cannot for one minute imagine some faceless person on the internet in front of a keyboard on a computer caring about me in a real estate transaction. I mean really caring about me and my best interests first. You need someone you know well. A person who you trust and believe will put your best interests first and foremost. Most people only buy or sell a house 1-2 times in a lifetime. Wal-mart, E-Bay, Craigs List, Amazon discounting just does not apply in that scenario.
Please visit me on my website: http://elvass.com/.
Enjoy this bottom line philosophy of Marvin Gaye and Tammy Terrell:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0QjqErjTRU&feature=related
First off, I am positive that this editor does not donate his time to USA Today. I will bet that he makes a pretty decent salary and probably some incentives. Why? Because he knows how to run a newspaper, or at least a department within a newspaper. So we can assume that the nasty old profit motive runs deep to his core beliefs.
The belief that the commissions realtors earn is out of line is not a new concept. When I first got into this business I had no clue how a Realtor made a living. I was advised that the average Realtor makes about $36,000 per year. I would be willing to bet that Mr. USA Today makes a lot more than that in a year. You must then take into consideration that a Realtor pays all, and I mean ALL of their own expenses. No company car, gasoline credit card, health benefits, etc. Add a 15% self employment tax on top of that and you will find that most Realtors make less than minimum wage. That does not take into consideration the costs for membership to the MLS, Licensing fees, Education costs, Lock box dues, cell phone, PDA, laptop computer,ISP costs, errors and ommissions insurance, etc. Then a salesperson has to split their commissions with their broker. My first broker splits were 50%. The negotiated 8,7,6,5% commissions are split between the Listing agent and the Selling agent, one representing the Buyer and the other the Seller.
I was fortunate to enter the business 6 years ago when the boom was on. I attained several listings from people who knew me and thought me to be a pretty savvy business man and wanted me to sell their houses. I had this "friend" who was a Broker who went around behind my back telling the people I had listed that he would have charged them 1/2 of what I was charging them to sell thier home. I confronted him and he told me that we Realtors make too much money in commissions. He spent his career in the Public sector so I laughed him off as just not quite understanding the good old American profit motive.
I told him this story that was told to me by an economics professor when I was in college back in Alabama. Seems that there was this manufacturer of widgets located up around Sylacauga, Alabama. He turned out 10,000 widgets a day which he sold for $1 each. He had several employees and business was good and life was rewarding to all involved. One day his assembly line came to a sudden and alarming halt. Over the next couple of days he called his engineers together to address the problem. Nothing, 4 days passed without a single widget rolling off the assembly line. They finally had no other choice but to ask for the Tech rep of the manufacturer of the assemblage machinery to come have a look. Into Sylacauga on a private plane comes the Tech rep. He comes to the factory with an attache' case in hand and walked up and down the frozen assembly line. He finally stopped at one particular place and opened the atache' case. He pulled out a hammer and gave a mighty whack to the line and it came to life rolling along without a hitch. Business was back on track and the widgets rolled off the line as before. A couple of days later the CEO recieved an invoice from the manufacturer for $10,000. The old man was livid. He told his Secretary to call the company and demand an itemization on the invoice. The itemization arrived a few days later. It said: $1 for hitting with a hammer. $9,999 for knowing where to hit. He paid the bill.
I remember back around 1988 putting my home on the market by myself as a For Sale by Owner. Interest rates were 18% on mortgages. Mine was 13.5%. No one was selling houses. My little FSBO sat there for two years. All the while I wondered what in the world I would do if someone came along and wanted to buy it. I had no clue what the next step would have been. I finally woke up and gave it to a Realtor and about 3 months later I attended the closing and got a check. I had little clue as to what happened in between.
You pay a Realtor for what they have between their ears. I have sold a little more than $10 million dollars since I first entered into the business. I have handled over 100 transactions, not all successfully. One thing I have learned along the way is that if you have seen one real estate transaction then you have seen one real estate transaction. They are all unique one to another. You need the professional by your side. Please see my last post.
In our modern world we have, including myself, developed a Wal-Mart mentality. We are all about saving the dollar, getting the best deal. Can we find it at Wal-Mart? You know they ALWAYS have the best price. What about Craigs List, E-Bay, etc. ? Let's take the Realtor out of it and then we can really shuck some corn and save a boat load of money.
I cannot for one minute imagine some faceless person on the internet in front of a keyboard on a computer caring about me in a real estate transaction. I mean really caring about me and my best interests first. You need someone you know well. A person who you trust and believe will put your best interests first and foremost. Most people only buy or sell a house 1-2 times in a lifetime. Wal-mart, E-Bay, Craigs List, Amazon discounting just does not apply in that scenario.
Please visit me on my website: http://elvass.com/.
Enjoy this bottom line philosophy of Marvin Gaye and Tammy Terrell:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0QjqErjTRU&feature=related
Saturday, May 24, 2008
The Golden Rule and Realtor Ethics
I just completed a 3 hour continuing education (CE) class on Ethics. Realtors are required to acquire 14 hours of CE with every license renewal, approximately every 2 years. National Association of Realtors (NAR) requires that every 4 years Realtors must have 3 hours of Ethics training.
Why this emphasis? I suppose that the most common thread running through the practice of selling Real Estate is distrust. Distrust amongst the folks who practice and certainly amongst the consuming public. I remember as a small child when a family member would make a far reaching comment on something requiring trust, the comment fired back would be something like,
" Right, next you will want to sell me some swampland in Florida." This distrust runs beyond the spirit of Caveat Emptor, Buyer Beware. We are all naturally on edge in buying. The bigger the purchase the keener the edginess. In Real Estate, dating back to when Adam and Eve were evicted from the garden, because of their dealings with the snake, the distrust of Realtors has been a prominent reality.
I have now been in this business going on 6 years through numerous transactions. I am more aware of the necessity of being on edge, now more than ever. Trust me. There are numerous snakes still active in the garden of home ownership. This stretches to all involved, unfortunately, including the Buyer and the Seller. You need to be on your toes. You need to tread carefully.
I took a canoe trip through the Okefenokee swamp once. Did I go alone? Absolutely not ! I went on a guided trip. I did not know the guide, but I assumed that someone would get him if I ended up like Amos Moses, alligator bait. All ended well. You need a guide in the business of acquiring real estate, especially if you are inexperienced. Even if you have experience buying in Milwaukee, you do not have experience in buying in Tallahassee. Real estate is a regional business. What goes on across state lines does not have uniformity everywhere. If you are a buyer it costs you nothing to employ a Realtor. Get a good one. Someone you know personally or a referral from a friend that you have high confidence in.
The instructor in my class was a Broker from a competing firm. I have done business with that firm. Just like me, they bear watching and holding to standards of performance. We all make little mistakes. Then there are those who want to throw you under the bus to profit from your sacrifice. You need to have your advocate, guide and friend with you along the way, no matter who you are dealing with.
This instructor started the class by searching for a definition of "ethics". Someone offered the Golden Rule as definition. I attended Vacation Bible School at the Hillsdale Presbyterian Church, in West ( By Goodness ) Virginia in the summer of 1955. I was 9 and the thing I had on my mind mostly was the softball game and the ice cream. Yet I do recall the dissertation on the Golden Rule. " Do unto others as you would have done unto you." Zowie ! What a concept ! I pretty much lived my life from then on assuming that all others were practicing the same precept. I had a few bumps along the way and I remember getting beaten out for various things and then finding out afterwards that I had been "had". Not all God's creatures are dealing from the top. Many are dealing from the bottom. Many are quite comfortable living in the bottom land of reptiles and sliminess.
That was made crsytal clear to me during the segment of my life that involved lobbying legislatures in various states. I represented a Fortune 500 company with deep pockets. I remember running across another definition of the Golden Rule. It was simply. " He who has the gold...........................RULES !" What a concept ! As we seek truth and sanity through the upcoming election we will see a vivid representation of this aspect of the Golden Rule. The emerging victor for whatever office will most likely be the victor because of huge amounts of money to convince the public that he/she is the best candidate. Such is the case in the world of real estate.
Reputations are mostly earned but many are bought through the reality of money spent on advertising. Choose carefully. There are 1.2 million members of the National Association of Realtors. Let's do some simple math. There are 300 million Americans. Let's say they live in families of 4. That gives us 75 million households. Not all people own homes. Let's say that 50% do and 50% do not. Half of 75 million is 37.5 million. Now, if there are 1.2 million Realtors, then we can assume, roughly, that there is one realtor for every 38 households. It is not that hard to get a license. It is a little harder to keep a license. We had a gentleman here in Tallahassee who sold jewelry. His name was Lester Moon. He always ended his commercials with the statement
" If you do not know jewelry, then know your jeweler." To the same point if you do not know real estate then make an attempt to know your Realtor. Get a referral from a friend. Make calls to former clients. You know the drill. Everyone is not grinding the pencil of the Golden Rule from the same end.
Please visit me on my website at http://elvass.com
Why this emphasis? I suppose that the most common thread running through the practice of selling Real Estate is distrust. Distrust amongst the folks who practice and certainly amongst the consuming public. I remember as a small child when a family member would make a far reaching comment on something requiring trust, the comment fired back would be something like,
" Right, next you will want to sell me some swampland in Florida." This distrust runs beyond the spirit of Caveat Emptor, Buyer Beware. We are all naturally on edge in buying. The bigger the purchase the keener the edginess. In Real Estate, dating back to when Adam and Eve were evicted from the garden, because of their dealings with the snake, the distrust of Realtors has been a prominent reality.
I have now been in this business going on 6 years through numerous transactions. I am more aware of the necessity of being on edge, now more than ever. Trust me. There are numerous snakes still active in the garden of home ownership. This stretches to all involved, unfortunately, including the Buyer and the Seller. You need to be on your toes. You need to tread carefully.
I took a canoe trip through the Okefenokee swamp once. Did I go alone? Absolutely not ! I went on a guided trip. I did not know the guide, but I assumed that someone would get him if I ended up like Amos Moses, alligator bait. All ended well. You need a guide in the business of acquiring real estate, especially if you are inexperienced. Even if you have experience buying in Milwaukee, you do not have experience in buying in Tallahassee. Real estate is a regional business. What goes on across state lines does not have uniformity everywhere. If you are a buyer it costs you nothing to employ a Realtor. Get a good one. Someone you know personally or a referral from a friend that you have high confidence in.
The instructor in my class was a Broker from a competing firm. I have done business with that firm. Just like me, they bear watching and holding to standards of performance. We all make little mistakes. Then there are those who want to throw you under the bus to profit from your sacrifice. You need to have your advocate, guide and friend with you along the way, no matter who you are dealing with.
This instructor started the class by searching for a definition of "ethics". Someone offered the Golden Rule as definition. I attended Vacation Bible School at the Hillsdale Presbyterian Church, in West ( By Goodness ) Virginia in the summer of 1955. I was 9 and the thing I had on my mind mostly was the softball game and the ice cream. Yet I do recall the dissertation on the Golden Rule. " Do unto others as you would have done unto you." Zowie ! What a concept ! I pretty much lived my life from then on assuming that all others were practicing the same precept. I had a few bumps along the way and I remember getting beaten out for various things and then finding out afterwards that I had been "had". Not all God's creatures are dealing from the top. Many are dealing from the bottom. Many are quite comfortable living in the bottom land of reptiles and sliminess.
That was made crsytal clear to me during the segment of my life that involved lobbying legislatures in various states. I represented a Fortune 500 company with deep pockets. I remember running across another definition of the Golden Rule. It was simply. " He who has the gold...........................RULES !" What a concept ! As we seek truth and sanity through the upcoming election we will see a vivid representation of this aspect of the Golden Rule. The emerging victor for whatever office will most likely be the victor because of huge amounts of money to convince the public that he/she is the best candidate. Such is the case in the world of real estate.
Reputations are mostly earned but many are bought through the reality of money spent on advertising. Choose carefully. There are 1.2 million members of the National Association of Realtors. Let's do some simple math. There are 300 million Americans. Let's say they live in families of 4. That gives us 75 million households. Not all people own homes. Let's say that 50% do and 50% do not. Half of 75 million is 37.5 million. Now, if there are 1.2 million Realtors, then we can assume, roughly, that there is one realtor for every 38 households. It is not that hard to get a license. It is a little harder to keep a license. We had a gentleman here in Tallahassee who sold jewelry. His name was Lester Moon. He always ended his commercials with the statement
" If you do not know jewelry, then know your jeweler." To the same point if you do not know real estate then make an attempt to know your Realtor. Get a referral from a friend. Make calls to former clients. You know the drill. Everyone is not grinding the pencil of the Golden Rule from the same end.
Please visit me on my website at http://elvass.com
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
In the eye of the beholder
Back when I was in college I took an art appreciation class one semester. Thought was that I could skate through it and earn 3 credit hours that would not tax me too terribly. I have to say that it was a major struggle. I worked long and hard to get a passing grade. I looked at stuff that was supposed to be art that I swear my 5 year old grand daughter could now produce.
I think of Pablo Picasso, particularly. I remember looking at his works and thinking what the heck. This guy has been doing some serious hallucinogens. The instructor would ask our opinion of the artists expressions in his paintings. Where I saw a woman with a giraffe neck with halibut eyes on one side of her head someone else saw an expression of life's struggle within and frustration spilled out all around until it painted her personality in a surrealistic tone. The latter comment would get the A+. I was asked to stay after class and put in some extra study. To top it all off this painting hung in the Louvre and was worth millions of dollars. I still am not seeing it.
Since I have gotten into real estate I struggle with another artistic expression. The appraisal. I was taught in the University of Real Estate that appraising was not an exact science , it was more of an art. That is the understatement of the century. Now, please don't think that this is an attack on appraisers. I have great respect for the path they trod to become certified in appraising. They put in enormous classroom hours and pass some really hard tests to make the grade. They then are not allowed to be the head appraiser until they have been someone's apprentice for two years. So it is a distinctive role.
I read a little blurb in the USA Today just this morning that real estate fraud was rampant and being put under the microscope and the hammer was coming down on those who committed it. One area they sited was over-evaluation of property by appraisers.
That works like this: A Realtor writes a contract for a certain amount of money on a property. There is built into the contract that an appraisal must be performed. The buyer's lender usually orders the appraisal. The appraisal ALWAYS comes back at the price or slightly above the price. In my experience I have not ever been involved in a property transaction where the property did not meet appraisal. I worried about a few of them as I thought that the price was pretty aggressive compared to the market comparables that I had looked at. Time wasted. The appraisal would always hold water.
Imagine, please, that you are in the business of loaning money. You finance lots of properties and you need appraisals quickly and reliably. The appraisal company is in the business of valuing property and you have solicited several lenders to send their appraisal business to you. Now what is going to happen if you bring back low appraisals to that lender? Well, the buyer has a right to opt out of the deal leaving you, the lender, holding the bag. That is why the price of the property is communicated up front to the appraiser. The appraiser figures a way to hit that number. You are not going to get repeat appraisal business if you come low too often.
It is sort of like the only accountant joke I know. A Fortune 500 company has need of hiring a CFO for thier company. They want a CPA with some experience. They arrange to interview several people over the course of one day. The candidates are lined up outside of Mr. Big's hotel suite to be interviewed. He asks each candidate the same question " What is one plus one ?" to which everyone answers the obvious, " Why, that would be two, Mr. Big." This continues until one fellow comes in and Mr Big poses the question, " What is one plus one ?" This candidate goes and draws the blinds and then locks the door. He then leans in close to the corporate bigshot and says, " What would you like it to be, sir?" He gets the job.
I recently had a transaction wherein an appraisal was performed about 9 months prior to the sale of a property. The appraisal at that time was around $200k. A contract was written and sent over to the Title company. The lender ordered the appraisal and lo and behold it came back $3K over the contract price, about $25k south of the earlier appraisal. Same house, same neighborhood, etc. Hallucinogenic expression? No the bubble bursting on the real estate market.
You can take your home and figure what it is worth in your head and what you will take for it. In our current market you will need to take about 10% off of it just to get it in line with where home values are currently.
Market value and Appraised value have not always seen eye to eye in real estate. You see, appraising is not an exact science it is more of an art. The value comes down to what the seller wants for the house and what the buyer is willing to pay. In this market adjustment the equation has only gotten more complicated. The lady with the giraffe neck has now added a third eye and some warts on her neck. It still confuses and mystifies.
Please vist my website at http://elvass.com/
http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2008051503?OpenDocument
I think of Pablo Picasso, particularly. I remember looking at his works and thinking what the heck. This guy has been doing some serious hallucinogens. The instructor would ask our opinion of the artists expressions in his paintings. Where I saw a woman with a giraffe neck with halibut eyes on one side of her head someone else saw an expression of life's struggle within and frustration spilled out all around until it painted her personality in a surrealistic tone. The latter comment would get the A+. I was asked to stay after class and put in some extra study. To top it all off this painting hung in the Louvre and was worth millions of dollars. I still am not seeing it.
Since I have gotten into real estate I struggle with another artistic expression. The appraisal. I was taught in the University of Real Estate that appraising was not an exact science , it was more of an art. That is the understatement of the century. Now, please don't think that this is an attack on appraisers. I have great respect for the path they trod to become certified in appraising. They put in enormous classroom hours and pass some really hard tests to make the grade. They then are not allowed to be the head appraiser until they have been someone's apprentice for two years. So it is a distinctive role.
I read a little blurb in the USA Today just this morning that real estate fraud was rampant and being put under the microscope and the hammer was coming down on those who committed it. One area they sited was over-evaluation of property by appraisers.
That works like this: A Realtor writes a contract for a certain amount of money on a property. There is built into the contract that an appraisal must be performed. The buyer's lender usually orders the appraisal. The appraisal ALWAYS comes back at the price or slightly above the price. In my experience I have not ever been involved in a property transaction where the property did not meet appraisal. I worried about a few of them as I thought that the price was pretty aggressive compared to the market comparables that I had looked at. Time wasted. The appraisal would always hold water.
Imagine, please, that you are in the business of loaning money. You finance lots of properties and you need appraisals quickly and reliably. The appraisal company is in the business of valuing property and you have solicited several lenders to send their appraisal business to you. Now what is going to happen if you bring back low appraisals to that lender? Well, the buyer has a right to opt out of the deal leaving you, the lender, holding the bag. That is why the price of the property is communicated up front to the appraiser. The appraiser figures a way to hit that number. You are not going to get repeat appraisal business if you come low too often.
It is sort of like the only accountant joke I know. A Fortune 500 company has need of hiring a CFO for thier company. They want a CPA with some experience. They arrange to interview several people over the course of one day. The candidates are lined up outside of Mr. Big's hotel suite to be interviewed. He asks each candidate the same question " What is one plus one ?" to which everyone answers the obvious, " Why, that would be two, Mr. Big." This continues until one fellow comes in and Mr Big poses the question, " What is one plus one ?" This candidate goes and draws the blinds and then locks the door. He then leans in close to the corporate bigshot and says, " What would you like it to be, sir?" He gets the job.
I recently had a transaction wherein an appraisal was performed about 9 months prior to the sale of a property. The appraisal at that time was around $200k. A contract was written and sent over to the Title company. The lender ordered the appraisal and lo and behold it came back $3K over the contract price, about $25k south of the earlier appraisal. Same house, same neighborhood, etc. Hallucinogenic expression? No the bubble bursting on the real estate market.
You can take your home and figure what it is worth in your head and what you will take for it. In our current market you will need to take about 10% off of it just to get it in line with where home values are currently.
Market value and Appraised value have not always seen eye to eye in real estate. You see, appraising is not an exact science it is more of an art. The value comes down to what the seller wants for the house and what the buyer is willing to pay. In this market adjustment the equation has only gotten more complicated. The lady with the giraffe neck has now added a third eye and some warts on her neck. It still confuses and mystifies.
Please vist my website at http://elvass.com/
http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2008051503?OpenDocument
Monday, May 5, 2008
How do you like my hat?
I just got a cool hat. I ordered it from Golfballs.com. It is red and has Callaway advertised on it. To top it all off, it has my name, Lee Vass, stitched in white thread on the right side. Now what is so big about a hat? Search me, but I have always loved hats. Ask my wife. I have the entire top shelf of my clothes closet covered with hats. Some are so sweat stained that they look like something from the 40's. However, I cannot bring myself to part with them.
I suppose that the enamourment with hats is because it tops off your ensemble for the day. I like to match my shirts color to that of the hat. I go back into the 60's when shirts had to match the color of socks. I suppose that carries over to my hat fetish.
I recently lost a sale to a home inspection. The home was built in the 60's and no one was around who could tell us when it last had its hat changed. This buyer drove the seller off the price by $35, 000. I paid $32,000 for a brand new house in 1972. The home inspector declared that the roof was at the end of its useful life. Never mind that they loved the location of the house, the friendly neighborhood and they had to have loved the price. They could not move past the old hat. I guess they are a lot like me and just obsessive compulsive about what sits on the top of the
edifice. Some folks are like that. They could have had 5 new roofs put on the house with the $35k they saved.
I read a very scholarly article, sometime back, by an FSU Real Estate professor about the various elements of a home and how they independently affect overall price. He, straining my memory, said that the various components affected the price in incrementally different manners. He said that the house was like a bag of groceries. Encapsulated in the overall house was a kitchen, some bathrooms, some counter tops, some flooring, some windows, a roof, a garage, perhaps a pool. The question on the table was where could you best put your money in updating the house? The final answer, as I remember, was the kitchen. I don't think the roof was in the top 3
Now back to the roof people. They are not all that unique. I sold another house, sometime back, that was also built in the 60's. We did not get a lot of showings initially. I suggested to the owner that since he needed a roof anyway, then why not go ahead and put one on. These sellers had treated this home with extreme care and it was in great shape. He did replace the roof and in short order we had a contract that we successfully closed.
Different strokes for different folks. Some pass on a nice home because they don't like the wallpaper in the family room. The WALLPAPER for crying out loud. How much does it cost to replace wall paper? A real estate transaction is an emotional experience at both ends of the spectrum, whether buyer or seller.
I lived in an old farmhouse when I was a child. It had a tin roof on top of it. As I recall, it had some badly rusted areas that probably signalled a new roof was needed. I, being 10 years old, could have cared less. However, I was keenly aware of that roof. It played music to me when it rained. Nothing soothed my soul more than the "rhythm of the falling rain." It put me to sleep as predictably as Ambien does today. Why the Cascades even made a top 10 hit about my roof. I suppose that roofs are important as are hats. The appeal is along a broad span of reasons. All of which could be made painfully obvious after a few sessions with our favorite psychoanalyst.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBjtQ5Hea5Y&feature=related
Please visit my website at http://elvass.com/
I suppose that the enamourment with hats is because it tops off your ensemble for the day. I like to match my shirts color to that of the hat. I go back into the 60's when shirts had to match the color of socks. I suppose that carries over to my hat fetish.
I recently lost a sale to a home inspection. The home was built in the 60's and no one was around who could tell us when it last had its hat changed. This buyer drove the seller off the price by $35, 000. I paid $32,000 for a brand new house in 1972. The home inspector declared that the roof was at the end of its useful life. Never mind that they loved the location of the house, the friendly neighborhood and they had to have loved the price. They could not move past the old hat. I guess they are a lot like me and just obsessive compulsive about what sits on the top of the
edifice. Some folks are like that. They could have had 5 new roofs put on the house with the $35k they saved.
I read a very scholarly article, sometime back, by an FSU Real Estate professor about the various elements of a home and how they independently affect overall price. He, straining my memory, said that the various components affected the price in incrementally different manners. He said that the house was like a bag of groceries. Encapsulated in the overall house was a kitchen, some bathrooms, some counter tops, some flooring, some windows, a roof, a garage, perhaps a pool. The question on the table was where could you best put your money in updating the house? The final answer, as I remember, was the kitchen. I don't think the roof was in the top 3
Now back to the roof people. They are not all that unique. I sold another house, sometime back, that was also built in the 60's. We did not get a lot of showings initially. I suggested to the owner that since he needed a roof anyway, then why not go ahead and put one on. These sellers had treated this home with extreme care and it was in great shape. He did replace the roof and in short order we had a contract that we successfully closed.
Different strokes for different folks. Some pass on a nice home because they don't like the wallpaper in the family room. The WALLPAPER for crying out loud. How much does it cost to replace wall paper? A real estate transaction is an emotional experience at both ends of the spectrum, whether buyer or seller.
I lived in an old farmhouse when I was a child. It had a tin roof on top of it. As I recall, it had some badly rusted areas that probably signalled a new roof was needed. I, being 10 years old, could have cared less. However, I was keenly aware of that roof. It played music to me when it rained. Nothing soothed my soul more than the "rhythm of the falling rain." It put me to sleep as predictably as Ambien does today. Why the Cascades even made a top 10 hit about my roof. I suppose that roofs are important as are hats. The appeal is along a broad span of reasons. All of which could be made painfully obvious after a few sessions with our favorite psychoanalyst.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBjtQ5Hea5Y&feature=related
Please visit my website at http://elvass.com/
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