Bob, the secretary treasurer of the Clinton County Board of Realtors, sometimes needs Robin, the assistant to our broker, to help him with his secretarial tasks. Gee, I guess that's one secretarty helping another. Is that like one hand washing the other? Anyway, Robin must have had too much coffee that afternoon and decided to dance it off. We are a strange lot.
This week, despite the cold, the wind, the snow, the rain, we have actually had 8 homes get accepted contracts. The place is starting to feel like a real estate office again. But as you can see, we still have time for fun and games.
My one and only listing just suffered a whole house inspection in preparation for the closing next month. I say "suffered" because the inspector goes over the house with a fine tooth comb, pokes at sore spots with a stick and crawls around on the floor, and under it, with a magnifying glass. Quite a humiliating experience for the poor house. "And he invariably comes up with something, which is his job. Now we have to deal with these issues which could ultimately cost the sellers more money. Whole house inspections are always the "touchiest" part of a sales contract but we must push forward knowing that this too shall pass.
So in the meantime, let us dance.
Showing posts with label real estate market. Show all posts
Showing posts with label real estate market. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Friday, February 1, 2008
All I've Got to Do
I hate to go on and on about the slump in the housing market, but I will anyway. The economic news has stated that housing starts were at an unprecedented low last year. So what does that mean? It means that builders aren't building because buyers aren't buying. "Housing starts" is not the only way you can tell that the market is down but it is one of those "economic indicators" that economists must use because they can't call all of the real estate companies in the country and say, "Hey! How's business!"
Housing starts is like the unemployment rate, the cost of living, the stock market, the rate of inflation, the gross national product, the national debt, ad nauseum. The bean counters have to count something so they make little charts then count the little dots. I'm not saying that these indicators are not useful, they are. But they can be a bit misleading because they are averages for the country. Every region, state and community are different. Look at Detroit. Car manufacturing has been slipping for decades and the place is drying up and blowing away.
One of Wilmington's economic indicators that I have noticed is a new little subdivision that used to be the hottest thing since sliced bread, canned beer and indoor plumbing. Three years ago, those houses were going up almost overnight and selling just as quickly. They were priced for the upper middle class family and for the upwardly mobile. I drive through that area now and it looks like a ghost town. There is an unfinished street, empty lots full of tall weeds, piles of construction debris, new construction that has never sold and empty homes whose first inhabitants have moved on only to abandon the house to the vagaries of the real estate market.
Gee, I sound like some armageddonist. But if you are going to sell real estate these days, you have to get real (no pun intended) then don't take anything for granted. When things are slow, you don't just sit back and prop your feet up. You must work even harder.
For the first time in my real estate career, I have invested in marketing books. I have always eschewed the inspirational writers and speakers because they sounded so slick and evangelical to me. So one of the books I purchased has true funny stories of sales people's blunders then an analysis of what went wrong. The other book has business letter templates for marketing, prospecting and follow-ups. And...I have actually been using them, not just trying to learn by osmosis.
So far, no good. But if you keep doing what you've always done but expect different results, you are clinically insane. You may be right, I may be crazy. But it just might be a lunatic someone is looking for. And when that time comes, I can proudly stand up and say, "I'm a lunatic! Let me sell your house!"
I think I have internalized the sales blunders. Ooops!
Housing starts is like the unemployment rate, the cost of living, the stock market, the rate of inflation, the gross national product, the national debt, ad nauseum. The bean counters have to count something so they make little charts then count the little dots. I'm not saying that these indicators are not useful, they are. But they can be a bit misleading because they are averages for the country. Every region, state and community are different. Look at Detroit. Car manufacturing has been slipping for decades and the place is drying up and blowing away.
One of Wilmington's economic indicators that I have noticed is a new little subdivision that used to be the hottest thing since sliced bread, canned beer and indoor plumbing. Three years ago, those houses were going up almost overnight and selling just as quickly. They were priced for the upper middle class family and for the upwardly mobile. I drive through that area now and it looks like a ghost town. There is an unfinished street, empty lots full of tall weeds, piles of construction debris, new construction that has never sold and empty homes whose first inhabitants have moved on only to abandon the house to the vagaries of the real estate market.
Gee, I sound like some armageddonist. But if you are going to sell real estate these days, you have to get real (no pun intended) then don't take anything for granted. When things are slow, you don't just sit back and prop your feet up. You must work even harder.
For the first time in my real estate career, I have invested in marketing books. I have always eschewed the inspirational writers and speakers because they sounded so slick and evangelical to me. So one of the books I purchased has true funny stories of sales people's blunders then an analysis of what went wrong. The other book has business letter templates for marketing, prospecting and follow-ups. And...I have actually been using them, not just trying to learn by osmosis.
So far, no good. But if you keep doing what you've always done but expect different results, you are clinically insane. You may be right, I may be crazy. But it just might be a lunatic someone is looking for. And when that time comes, I can proudly stand up and say, "I'm a lunatic! Let me sell your house!"
I think I have internalized the sales blunders. Ooops!
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
You Really Got a Hold on Me
The housing market, once again, is making headlines. Well, if you don't count the State of the Union Address, which I don't. Here are some recent news blurbs concerning the State of the Housing Market, which will continue to effect us all. Much more than some lame duck.
"Make housing part of stimulus, NAR Says...The federal economic stimulus package under discussion by President Bush and Congress should loosen constraints on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to help make homeownership more widely available to households, NAR says. "Any stimulus package must address housing issues and increase the conforming loan limits for these two government-sponsored enterprises," says NAR President Dick Gaylord. NAR has been calling on Congress and the administration to increase the loan limits for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from the ceiling of $417,000 to $625,000. Doing so would reduce the supply of homes on the market by more than a month, strengthen home prices by 2-3 percentage points, and increase economic activity by $42 billion, NAR estimates. Foreclosures could also be reduced by 140,000 to 210,000 and result in an additional 348,000 home sales. )"- The Ohio Association of Realtors.
Above is a link to the news about CountryWide, the well known controversial mortgage lender. As you may know, it was purchased by Bank of America. For good or evil? You decide.
'“It looks to me as though maybe we haven't reached the complete bottom yet, but we're in the bottoming phase right now,” he said.
But the latest data don’t help forecasters much. Since July, the median price of existing homes has trended lower, but it ticked up slightly in December. And while sales volume began perking up in late 2006, a 0.8 percent drop in last month has some analysts rethinking the notion that the market had bottomed out.
“I still think there's further downside risk,” said Richard Berner, chief U.S. economist at Morgan Stanley. “And the reason is that it has become a buyer’s market with the imbalance between supply and demand both for new and existing homes out there.”
The supply of unsold homes — which soared to more than seven months worth of inventory for single-family homes from four months at the start of 2005 — has come down a bit. But it’s not clear whether the market is getting back on its feet or sellers have decided to pull their homes off the market and try again when the market improves.'- By John W. Schoen Senior Producer MSNBC updated 6:34 p.m. ET, Thurs., Jan. 25, 2007.
But the latest data don’t help forecasters much. Since July, the median price of existing homes has trended lower, but it ticked up slightly in December. And while sales volume began perking up in late 2006, a 0.8 percent drop in last month has some analysts rethinking the notion that the market had bottomed out.
“I still think there's further downside risk,” said Richard Berner, chief U.S. economist at Morgan Stanley. “And the reason is that it has become a buyer’s market with the imbalance between supply and demand both for new and existing homes out there.”
The supply of unsold homes — which soared to more than seven months worth of inventory for single-family homes from four months at the start of 2005 — has come down a bit. But it’s not clear whether the market is getting back on its feet or sellers have decided to pull their homes off the market and try again when the market improves.'- By John W. Schoen Senior Producer MSNBC updated 6:34 p.m. ET, Thurs., Jan. 25, 2007.
More gloom and doom? Well, we need to be realistic. The single largest contributing factor in the housing slump is the simple principle of supply and demand. Of course, why there is more supply than demand is a bit more complicated. Foreclosures and the threat of foreclosure, due to greedy lenders and a false sense of security amongst them, has contributed greatly to the glut on the market.
The Fed recently lowered interest rates by 3/4% and it is rumored that there may soon be another 1/2% decrease. What does that mean to mortgage rates? Diddly. That lowered rate affects what one bank lends to another, sometimes to increase their on-hand reserves which is mandated by the Fed. Sound like a game of round robin. Yep.
So, if you have bad credit or no money to spend, the interest rate means nothing to you.
But hang in there, folks. If you are in trouble with your credit card company, you can call them and negotiate a different interest rate or payment. The same goes for your mortgage lender. Call them. I can't reiterate that enough. If this whole mess is going to turn around, we have to take advantage of all resources. Every little bit helps. Don't wait for the ones with all the power and money to come knocking on your door to help you. They are only worried about themselves. YOU have to take charge, be brave and take charge.
Knowledge is power. Al Gore invented the internet for a reason.
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Fixing a Hole
The real estate world can be a cold and lonely place. Okay, not so lonely, but our fellow realtors can be cold.
Unfortunately, my latest deal with Dumpster has ended up there, in the dumpster. Our back-up offer was tossed away like so much waste paper. I found out by accident that the first offer had closed already. I hate having to tell people bad news. I try to mitigate it with something a little positive, in this case with the hopes of looking at something else to invest in. Hopefully, (there's another word you'll be seeing often), I can find something else in the "crappy" category for my client. It's becoming more of a fixer-upper world out there and competition for pieces of crap is getting tough.
Speaking of which, the glut of fixer-uppers and foreclosures out there are bringing the sharks in, circling like blood sniffing flesh-eaters.
How do you keep from being devoured and plug the hole that is your sinking ship?
The mortgage industry is being persuaded (by a rather large stick) to throw a life preserver to homeowners that are going down for the last time. Part of that big stick is made up by the mortgage industry themselves because they do not and I repeat do not want to foreclose on a home. The other part of that big stick is the National Association of Realtors. Realtors have a lot of sway in their states through lobbyists (okay, that can be a dirty word) and by the fact that there is a realtor on every corner; we are a prolific lot.
Realtors are also taught, advised and asked to take a working interest in their communities for the betterment of us all. Some do it better than others (obviously), but the good ones not only want to see you get into a good home but they want to see you keep it. (Really!)
Even in better market times, the bank will work with you when you get behind on payments. The worst thing you can do is nothing. The more you ignore the threatening letters, the madder the bank will get.
Another thing to remember is that the bank does NOT want your house. Believe it or not, that is the last thing they want. In order to foreclose on your house, they have to pay lawyers to do a lot of research and draw up a lot of papers. They have to pay someone to go to the foreclosed upon house and weatherize it, winter or summer, so pipes don't burst or a leak doesn't develope. They have to pay someone to cut the grass. They have to pay a real estate agent to sell the house. At every turn, it takes money out of the banks pocket to own a house.
For that reason, it is in the bank's best interest to help to keep you in your home.
The first thing to do when you get behind is call the mortgage company or bank. If at all possible, talk to your old loan officer. They are nice people (most of them are anyway) and very knowledgeable about how banks work and what services they offer. If you can't talk to that person, ask for someone that has information on how to help you get back on a payment schedule.
At this time, there are several programs available through banks that are designed to either help you set up a payment schedule to get back on track or, in some cases if you qualify, actually funds on hand to pay your shortfall.
Hard times can fall on anyone at anytime. Most households in this country are one paycheck away from disaster and once you get behind on your bills, it is hard to get caught up. But you would be surprised at how many companies, from the utility company to your credit card company to your mortgage company, are willing to help if you just call at the first sign of trouble.
So, grab hold of that life preserver, put an arm through the hole and hold on. There may be a hole in the ship but it doesn't mean you have to go down.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Get Back
The real estate market has its ups and downs; no different here at Bennett Realty. 2003 to early 2006 were "wonder years" - everything was hot, unfortunately few bothered to wonder what would happen in the future. The media touted an imminent real estate bubble bursting.
It is difficult, however, when you are in that speeding train to envision it coming to an abrupt halt.
But it is not as though houses have disappeared. They are still here - Clinton County is awash in for sale signs. The influx from DHL's relocation here did not come. Builder's keep building in hopes that someone will want THIS house when no one wanted the last one they just built.
But amid this seeming gloom and doom, I have been rather lucky. Lucky considering that during the "pop" of 2006 I became ill and had to take a leave of absence. I thought I was washed up as a real estate agent. This is a very competitive business so if you stumble, you are bound to get trampled.
So when I came back to Bennett Realty in August of 2006, I was pleasantly surprised when a steady flow of clients came my way. Now, in July 2007, I am finally feeling the pinch.
I'm telling you all of this back story so you will know where we are now.
I have had about 10 closings in the past 10 months. Don't know how that holds up to other agents but for one who fell off the face of the earth for 6 months, I am indeed lucky. The last closing I had was a couple weeks ago. It was a clash of wills from the beginning. It finally ended with the threat of law suit (Bennett Realty was not the cause or influence).
I have 2 transactions in the pipeline right now, both with the same repeat client. We all like repeat business but this particular client nets me less than $500 per closing. He comes to me whenever he is in the market for a new "dump", "piece of crap", or "roach motel". Find out more in my next posting........
It is difficult, however, when you are in that speeding train to envision it coming to an abrupt halt.
But it is not as though houses have disappeared. They are still here - Clinton County is awash in for sale signs. The influx from DHL's relocation here did not come. Builder's keep building in hopes that someone will want THIS house when no one wanted the last one they just built.
But amid this seeming gloom and doom, I have been rather lucky. Lucky considering that during the "pop" of 2006 I became ill and had to take a leave of absence. I thought I was washed up as a real estate agent. This is a very competitive business so if you stumble, you are bound to get trampled.
So when I came back to Bennett Realty in August of 2006, I was pleasantly surprised when a steady flow of clients came my way. Now, in July 2007, I am finally feeling the pinch.
I'm telling you all of this back story so you will know where we are now.
I have had about 10 closings in the past 10 months. Don't know how that holds up to other agents but for one who fell off the face of the earth for 6 months, I am indeed lucky. The last closing I had was a couple weeks ago. It was a clash of wills from the beginning. It finally ended with the threat of law suit (Bennett Realty was not the cause or influence).
I have 2 transactions in the pipeline right now, both with the same repeat client. We all like repeat business but this particular client nets me less than $500 per closing. He comes to me whenever he is in the market for a new "dump", "piece of crap", or "roach motel". Find out more in my next posting........
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